sjar Chapter 400 The Crown Prince Selection
Chapter 400 The Crown Prince Selection
In the Hall of Mental Cultivation in the Imperial Palace, Emperor Zhou sat wearily on his dragon throne, dealing with the memorials.
The memorials were almost half a person's height, and most of them were requests for her to establish a crown prince.
Emperor Zhou picked up a memorial and opened it; it was another one urging the emperor to establish a crown prince. Enraged, Emperor Zhou slammed the memorial to the ground.
"Are these ministers just sitting around doing nothing? Whether I establish a crown prince or not is my business. What does it have to do with them? They can't even manage their own households, yet they're always watching my family affairs."
Upon hearing this, Eunuch Wei carefully picked up the memorial and held it in his hand, not daring to say a word.
After a moment of anger, Emperor Zhou glanced at Eunuch Wei and said, "Give me the memorial."
Actually, what he just said was just an angry outburst. As the emperor, his family affairs are naturally different from those of ordinary officials. The crown prince is the future emperor, the ruler of the entire Great Zhou Dynasty. Every move and every word he makes is related to the safety of the country, and is naturally the matter of greatest concern to all the ministers.
Moreover, the reason why such a big thing has happened now is partly because no crown prince has been appointed. All the princes feel that they have a chance, so they are all secretly competing with each other.
He also wanted to establish a crown prince, but none of his sons satisfied him. He thought he would nurture them further and see how things went, but he never expected things to turn out this way. He was deeply disappointed and realized that there seemed to be a serious problem with his parenting.
Emperor Zhou was extremely annoyed as he looked at the memorials. Although he had dealt with many people decisively during this period, he was also very distressed.
After all, they were his own sons. Now that two of them had been lost, how could he not be heartbroken?
He had always known that the eldest prince was two-faced and had been pretending, but he thought it was nothing. However, he never expected that this son would betray the Great Zhou in order to seize the throne, and to conspire with a tiger for its skin. Had he forgotten the wounds that the Great Jin had inflicted on the Great Zhou in the past? How foolish he was.
Then there's the second prince. He's not as smart as the first prince, and he has a bad temper, but he didn't expect his second son to be even more foolish. Not only was he manipulated, but knowing that his elder brother was cooperating with the Great Jin, he was also thinking of reporting this to him and even planning a threat. He didn't care about the Great Zhou Dynasty at all.
If a son like this becomes emperor, the Great Zhou Dynasty will likely perish in his generation.
None of them are easy to deal with.
"Go and announce the imperial decree, summoning Minister Xiao to an audience." Emperor Zhou instructed Eunuch Wei as he looked at the batch of memorials. It was true, now that his teacher had retired, apart from Xiao Qinian, there wasn't a single official he truly trusted.
By the time Xiao Qinian arrived, Emperor Zhou had already reviewed all the memorials.
"Your Majesty, this humble subject pays his respects." Xiao Qinian was somewhat puzzled, wondering why His Majesty had summoned him at this moment.
"Minister Xiao has arrived. Please sit down and let's talk." Upon seeing Xiao Qinian, Emperor Zhou couldn't help but smile. Minister Xiao is truly wonderful; he has won my heart.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Qinian casually found a stool to sit on and waited for Emperor Zhou to speak.
"Minister Xiao, do you know why Zheng summoned you here?"
"Your Majesty, I am ignorant and do not know. I hope Your Majesty will enlighten me." Although Xiao Qinian had some guesses, he was not sure and dared not speak rashly.
"Minister Xiao, please take a look at this memorial." Emperor Zhou casually picked up a memorial and handed it to Xiao Qinian.
When Xiao Qinian opened it, he found it was the residence of the Minister of Rites. The contents inside expressed the Minister's hope that His Majesty would appoint a Crown Prince as soon as possible to appease the hearts of the emperor and his ministers.
After reading it, Xiao Qinian understood.
"Is Your Majesty troubled by the issue of choosing an heir?"
Emperor Zhou rubbed his aching forehead: "Indeed, most of the ministers in the court are urging me to establish an heir as soon as possible. I am troubled. My dear minister, you have never submitted a memorial, but do you have any different opinions? Do you think I should establish an heir?"
Xiao Qinian was not alarmed by Emperor Zhou's question. After a moment's thought, he replied, "Your Majesty has already made up your mind. As for me, I am more inclined to Your Majesty establish an heir as soon as possible. The princes are already quite grown up. Establishing a crown prince early will also make the princes understand their responsibilities."
Emperor Zhou did not speak, nor did he blame Xiao Qinian. Instead, he realized that he should indeed establish a crown prince.
"Alas, I am also in a dilemma. The selection of an heir is a major matter, and I am afraid of making the wrong decision and causing hidden dangers for the Great Zhou."
"Your Majesty need not worry. Your Majesty is in the prime of life. Once the Crown Prince is established and properly instructed, he will be able to shoulder the responsibilities of a ruler in the future." At Your Majesty's current age, you can sit on the throne for at least another ten years.
Emperor Zhou nodded. He had few children, only five princes in total, two of whom had already been deposed, leaving three...
“The three princes I have left each have their own shortcomings. The third prince’s mother is of low status, and he himself is taciturn and rarely participates in politics. He only thinks about his own little world and is not suitable to be the crown prince.”
Emperor Zhou was troubled by the thought of his third prince. He was completely unlike a prince, spending all his time thinking about farming and growing flowers. He used to grow them in his palace when he was still there, and later when he left the palace to build his own residence, he even planted several kinds of grains in his own courtyard. He loved them so much, why wasn't he born into a farming family? He wasted his princely status.
When Xiao Qinian heard Zhou Di's words, he thought of something that had happened before and couldn't help but laugh. He remembered that once the Third Prince insisted on going to the fields with him. He couldn't refuse, so he had to let him come. As a result, the Third Prince, who was usually not very talkative, started talking non-stop when he got to the fields. He kept asking questions and even went down to the fields himself.
"The Third Prince has the heart of a child." Xiao Qinian couldn't offer a proper evaluation, so he could only offer a word of praise.
Emperor Zhou shook his head: "Alas, let's not talk about it."
"As for the Fourth Prince, he is indeed intelligent and studious, and his abilities are decent, but his temperament is too weak and too easy to manipulate. If he were born into an ordinary family, it would be fine, but as the crown prince, he is not good enough." His temperament is too weak, and he simply cannot outmaneuver these cunning ministers. He might even be led by the nose.
Most importantly, the Fourth Prince's maternal clan is too powerful, and his mother, Consort Duan, is wholeheartedly devoted to her family. He can suppress them now, but who knows if the throne will still belong to the Xuanyuan family once he is gone?
Xiao Qinian agreed with this. A monarch who cannot control his subjects can only become a puppet emperor in the end. Moreover, the fourth prince has always been filial, and Consort Duan is too domineering. If he were to succeed to the throne in the future, Consort Duan might rule from behind the curtain.
So now only the Fifth Prince remains. The Fifth Prince is the legitimate son of the Empress, and is the most rightful candidate to become the Crown Prince.
Xiao Qinian thought to himself, then looked at Emperor Zhou.
"Fifth Prince, the Fifth Prince's status is suitable, but he is still young and has not been involved in politics for very long. I think we should observe him further. What do you think, my dear minister?"