On September 19, the 16th year of Hongde's reign, in the Bianjing Palace in Daliang, the capital of Chendu, Emperor Zhao Yuansi of the Wei Dynasty returned to the Wende Hall for a short rest after his early court appearance.
The Emperor of the Wei Dynasty, Zhao Yuansi, ascended the throne at the age of twenty-six and has been in power for sixteen years. He encouraged people's livelihood at home, neglected corvee and neglected taxes, and sent troops to destroy the Song Dynasty and open up territories abroad. He can be regarded as a wise and wise emperor.
Zhao Yuanxi was not an ambitious reigning emperor. He was already satisfied with his contribution to his ancestral society and did not dream of annexing neighboring countries and unifying the entire world.
Now, all he wants to do is cultivate an outstanding successor and pass on the legacy left by his ancestors.
However, how to choose one of those princes to become the prince's heir has become his biggest worry at the moment.
Since ancient times, it is not uncommon for princes to seize the rightful son, causing fratricide and causing trouble in the palace. Although Zhao Yuanci did not want his sons to turn against each other and fight against each other because of the throne, in fact he also understood that such a thing would happen to him even if he was the emperor of the Wei Dynasty.
It cannot be prevented.
He originally wanted to delay it for another two years, but more than ten years of diligent service had already turned the hard-working Emperor Wei's temples gray at the age of forty. His deteriorating physical condition reminded him from time to time that he must
While he is still in good health at the moment, he should choose an heir who suits his wishes and stop the thoughts of the other sons, otherwise there will be trouble in the future.
But when it comes to which one to choose, to be honest, even Zhao Yuanci himself has difficulty making a decision.
"Tong Xian." The emperor called.
Tong Xian was the eunuch who served the Emperor of Wei. When Zhao Yuanxi was still the crown prince of the East Palace, Tong Xian was already serving him. Now that Zhao Yuanxi has become the emperor of Wei, Tong Xian's status has also risen, and he is firmly seated as two eunuchs.
The position of one of the eunuchs can be said to be one of the two eunuchs with the highest rank and the greatest authority in the palace.
"I'm here, old slave." Tong Xian, who was already humble, bent down and whispered back.
The Emperor of Wei pondered for a moment and asked: "Which prince do you think is safer for me to pass on to in the future?"
Tong Xian's white eyebrows trembled when he heard this. Although he was an old servant who had served Zhao Yuancai for decades, and Zhao Yuancai also trusted him very much, even Tong Xian did not dare to speak nonsense when it came to the issue of the crown prince, with wrinkles on his face.
He said in embarrassment: "Your Majesty, the matter of the crown prince is of great importance. Your Majesty can discuss it with the queen or with the courtiers... How can an old slave and a disabled person speak nonsense about the affairs of the heavenly family?"
Zhao Yuanxi frowned when he heard this, glanced at Tong Xian and said impatiently: "I told you to say it, you just say you are not guilty!"
Tong Xian couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed. Although the Emperor of Wei pardoned him and told him that he was not guilty, it was still inconvenient for him to touch upon this topic. After all, the matter of the crown prince was very involved, not only involving several princes, but also the ladies in the harem.
Be careful if you say the wrong thing, you will definitely offend some forces.
After thinking about it, Tong Xian said with a smile: "I feel that since Your Majesty has promoted the eldest son of the Emperor to be the Crown Prince, he must be interested in His Highness."
What he said was very smart. He simply regarded the prince as a beacon. He said a fact that everyone knew and would not offend anyone.
However, the Emperor of Wei was not satisfied.
However, he did not embarrass Tong Xian again. After all, he also knew that the older Tong Xian was around him, the more secretive he was about the crown prince. After all, no matter where he was, talking about the crown prince candidate was taboo.
"Tong Xian, please pass on my instructions to summon all the princes to the Wende Hall tomorrow morning. I will personally test the knowledge of several princes to see what their results are during this period... Let those who hold the responsibilities in the palace academy
The lecturer's bachelor is accompanying you."
"Follow your Majesty's instructions."
The next day, when the sky was still dark, the nine princes under Zhao Yuansi gathered at the Wende Hall according to the order. However, after careful counting, they found that there were only eight people present, one less.
However, Zhao Yuancai didn't seem to notice and was preparing to announce the test questions.
Seeing this, Tong Xian quickly bowed and reminded the emperor in his ear: "Your Majesty, wait a minute, there is another His Highness who has not yet attended."
Zhao Yuanci was stunned when he heard this. He squinted his eyes and carefully counted the number of people in the palace, and sure enough he found that only eight princes were present.
However, he couldn't tell which prince was missing for a while. He only knew that the five princes who received his attention were all present. These five princes were the eldest son "Prince" Hongli, the second son "Prince Yong" Hongyu, and the third prince.
The son "King Xiang" Hongjing, the fourth son "King Yan" Hongjiang, and the fifth son "King Qing" Hongxin.
The eldest of these five princes is twenty-five years old, and the youngest is twenty-one years old. Except for Prince Hongli, all of them have left the imperial palace, established palaces, and enthroned the throne. They are the favorites of the Emperor of Wei.
Crown Prince Candidate.
The rest of the sons have not yet left the pavilion and established a house. Either Zhao Yuanci is reluctant to part with him, such as the emperor's sixth son Hongzhao, who is good at poetry, poetry, music, chess, calligraphy and painting, and is favored by Zhao Yuansi; or they are not old enough to leave the pavilion and establish a house.
Age, such as the seventh son of the emperor Hongyin, the eighth son of the emperor Hongrun, and the ninth son of the emperor Hongxuan.
Precisely because the three youngest princes were still young, Zhao Yuanci did not include them in the list of candidates for the crown prince, so he did not pay much attention to them.
"Which prince did not attend?" Zhao Yuanci asked with a frown.
"This is the eighth son of the emperor, Hongrun." Tong Xian, the eunuch in charge of this imperial examination, whispered: "I have sent someone to urge you. I believe that the eighth prince will be here soon."
Zhao Yuanci frowned again.
The eighth son of the emperor, Zhao Hongrun, is his eighth son and is just fourteen years old this year.
Earlier, Zhao Yuanxi had heard that this son was extremely naughty, eager to have fun, and not good at learning. As a result, the bachelors who taught palace studies had been complaining privately.
But because this son was young and had no talent for worldly affairs, he was not on the list of crown princes, so Zhao Yuansi didn't pay much attention to him before.
Unexpectedly, this boy would be late for the imperial examination today, which made Zhao Yuanci angry.
The Emperor of Wei sat back on the throne in silence, with a gloomy and unsightly look on his face.
This made all the academicians watching the test look at each other, and they did not dare to say anything.
The princes who were already seated had expressions that had nothing to do with them. Some were silent and some were ready to watch the excitement. Only the youngest prince, the ninth prince, Hongxuan, had a worried look on his face.
Among the princes, Hongxuan had the closest relationship with Hongrun, because Hongxuan's biological mother, Concubine Shen Shu, was Hongrun's mother's good sister with a different surname during her lifetime, and she was also Hongrun's adoptive mother.
Therefore, although they have the same father and mother, Hongrun and Hongxuan grew up drinking the same mother's milk. Although they are getting older and have already moved out of Concubine Shen Shu's dormitory, their relationship is still close.
After about an hour of burning incense, a group of palace guards led a young prince into the Hall of Wende. They saw that the prince had a handsome face and a dignified appearance. Although he was young, he was quite handsome. The only drawback was that he was also very handsome.
I don't know if this son has just woken up, but his behavior is a bit lazy and sleepy, and his eyes are far less bright than those of the other princes.
Seeing the expression of Zhao Hongrun, the eighth son of the emperor, the Emperor of Wei immediately guessed that this son must have been dragged out of bed by the palace guards, but with all the great scholars in the palace, he was embarrassed to expose this matter.
, so he had to give Zhao Hongrun a hard look and motioned for him to sit down.
Seeing that all the princes had finally arrived, Zhao Yuanxi announced the questions for this imperial examination.
There are two questions in total. The first question tests the talents and learning, requiring the nine princes to write an essay based on their personal aspirations and refer to the "Book of Songs". The poems are not limited; the second question tests the princes' governance and requires
The princes wrote a "Wealth of Nations", which can analyze the current national conditions of the Wei Dynasty, comment on the pros and cons of various policies implemented by the imperial court, and add personal opinions as appropriate. In short, as long as it can enhance the national power of the Wei Dynasty, it can
It can be written.
After announcing the examination questions, Zhao Yuanci got up and went to the morning court, leaving the bachelors in the palace to stare at his sons.
After about an hour, the morning court was over, and Zhao Yuansi returned to Wende Hall with the eunuch Tong Xian, preparing to test the achievements of these princes in this hour.
At this time, the nine princes had finished writing the article, stopped writing, and sat behind the exam waiting for their father to come to review and accept it.
Zhao Yuanxi was very satisfied at first, but as his eyes swept across the entire hall, the smile on his face froze.
This is wrong. There are obviously nine princes, why is there one missing?
After counting carefully with his eyes wide open, Zhao Yuanxi discovered that there were indeed only eight princes present, and there was one who had gone somewhere. After careful recall, Zhao Yuanxi discovered that this prince was actually the eighth prince, Zhao Hongrun, who was late just now!
"Where's Hongrun?" Zhao Yuanci asked.
As soon as he finished speaking, the emperor's second son "King Yong" Hongyu sat in the banquet and said with a smile: "Return to my father, Hongrun, he has gone back."
"Going back?"
"Yes...Hongrun said that he had not slept for a few hours before he was forcibly pulled up by the guards. He had to rush to the Wende Hall to participate in the imperial examination. Now that he has finished writing, he will go back to catch up on his sleep."
"This treacherous son..." The Emperor of Wei muttered dissatisfiedly. Even with all the great scholars present, he could not get angry. He suppressed his anger and said reluctantly: "Humph! It seems that my Eighth Prince has everything in mind! ... Who is going to do it?
Remember what he wrote."
All the scholars looked at each other, but no one stood up to read the poems and articles written by the Eighth Prince Hongrun. Presumably, these people were all aware of the talent and learning of His Highness, so no one took the initiative to read what he had written to avoid reading.
He came out to offend the emperor and was implicated here.
Seeing this, Zhao Yuanxi raised his hand and pointed at the ninth son of the emperor, Hongxuan: "Hongxuan, read it."
"Yes, Father."
Although he was raised by the same mother, the ninth son of the emperor, Hongxuan, who was one year younger, had more princely etiquette than his elder brother Hongrun. He slowly stood up and bowed to the emperor.
Finally, I walked to my brother Hongrun's examination case, picked up the paper on the case and looked at it carefully.
It didn't matter at this glance, the young Hongxuan suddenly frowned.
"Read it!" Zhao Yuanci urged dissatisfiedly.
However, Hongxuan still hesitated to speak.
Seeing this, the eunuch Tong Xian immediately understood that the article written by Hongrun, the eighth son of the emperor, must have been written inappropriately, which made it difficult for the ninth son of the emperor, Hongxuan, to express his concern for his brothers.
Therefore, he said softly to Zhao Yuanci: "Your Majesty, the wind has been strong in recent days. His Highness the Ninth Prince is still young. He may have been infected with the wind and cold and has a problem with his throat. It is better to change to the inner prison behind the old slave."
"Hmm." Zhao Yuanxi glanced at Zhao Hongxuan and noticed something was wrong.
Under the look of the great eunuch Tong Xian, a young eunuch walked quickly to Zhao Hongxuan, bowed his waist, took the examination paper from the hands of the Ninth Prince who was smiling wryly, and read out loud: "The morning rooster has not yet crowed.
, you summon all the children to the palace of literature and virtue. One is to ask about talents, and the other is to ask about court reviews. My brother has read thousands of volumes, and my brother is talented in writing. However, my son has an empty belly, scratching his ears and cheeks, and it is difficult to write..."
Zhao Yuanci was slightly happy when he heard this. He was well versed in the Book of Songs, and of course he knew that the pattern of Zhao Hongrun's poem did not come from the Book of Songs. However, for some reason, it seemed catchy when he read it, especially the sentence "But my son's chest is empty, and it is difficult to write a poem by scratching his ears and cheeks."
”, vividly describing Zhao Hongrun’s embarrassment that he was sitting in the palace just now and watching other brothers writing rapidly, but he himself was unable to write anything.
"Although the poem style is strange, it is still well written. Why doesn't Hongxuan dare to read it?"
Zhao Yuanci was puzzled.
At this time, the little eunuch was still reading.
"...Everyone in the world thinks that princes are good, but they don't know that it is difficult to be a prince. I have risen before the concubine has risen, and I have not slept before the concubine has fallen asleep..."
"..."
Zhao Yuanci couldn't help but feel a little moved. Although the words of Hongrun's strange poem by the eighth prince were straightforward, it described the prince's dilemma, especially the sentence "I have risen before the concubine has risen, and I have not slept before the concubine has fallen asleep." Born under the emperor
Which of the princes in the family has not received a strict palace education since childhood and has no freedom at all?
Moreover, this sentence is quite suitable to be applied to Zhao Yuansi, the emperor of the Wei Dynasty.
Zhao Yuansi has been in office for sixteen years and is diligent in state affairs. On which day does he not go to bed later than the officials and wake up earlier than the officials? Even among ordinary people, how many people can be like him?
Therefore, it is difficult to be a prince, even more difficult to be an emperor, and it is even more difficult to be a wise king!
This sentence simply expresses Zhao Yuansi's inner feelings.
At this time, the little eunuch was thinking about the last sentence.
"Simply my ambition is not here... uh... simply my ambition is not here... eh..."
"Read it!" Zhao Yuanci urged with a puzzled look on his face, thinking to himself, isn't this written very well? Why didn't he read it again?
After several urgings from the Emperor of Wei, the little eunuch suppressed the redness in his ears. Suddenly, he gritted his teeth and read out the last sentence.
"...I simply don't have this intention, haha, just let him go!"
As soon as these words came out, the whole hall fell into silence.
The Emperor of Wei Dynasty, Zhao Yuanxi, was even more stunned.
"Ha...ha? Let him go? Let him... go?"
Suddenly coming back to his senses, Zhao Yuanci was so angry that his eyes widened. He finally understood why Hongxuan did not dare to read this strange poem.
"presumptuous--!!"
The emperor was furious, and everyone in the Wende Hall was so frightened that they knelt down and knelt on the ground in fear.
————"Attached to Hongrun's strange poem, a limerick that makes you want to break your head"————
The morning rooster has not yet crow,
You summon all the children to the palace of literature and virtue.
The first is to ask about talents, and the second is to ask about dynasty reviews.
My brother has read thousands of volumes, and my brother writes with great spirit.
However, my son has an empty stomach and is unable to write anything while scratching his ears and cheeks.
Everyone in the world thinks that the prince is good, but little did they know that it is also difficult to be the prince.
The concubine has not yet risen, but I have risen; the concubine has fallen asleep, but I have not yet fallen asleep.