PNB Chapter 105 Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace 32
Chapter 105 Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace 32
On this afternoon, as late autumn was approaching, the sky was a clear blue, a rare and fine day. Hongli was taking a nap in bed.
Wu Shulai suddenly stepped forward and woke him up: "Your Majesty, Consort Nara of Yanxi Palace has passed away!"
Hongli suddenly opened his eyes, and his whole body became alert. He sat up and asked, "How could someone suddenly die?"
Wu Shulai was a capable man; before reporting, he had already thoroughly investigated the matter. Now, hearing Hongli ask about it, he calmly and methodically recounted the events:
"Nara agreed to instruct the palace maid Ruixin to obtain a packet of arsenic from the imperial physician Jiang Yubin, intending to take it herself to create the illusion that someone was poisoning her, thus attracting Your Majesty's attention. However, she misjudged the dosage, and her weak body could not withstand the effects of the medicine. By the time the imperial physician arrived, she had already passed away."
Ah, this...
Speechless is not enough to express Hongli's feelings at this moment!
This was the first time he had ever seen such a foolish person who tried to commit suicide by feigning injury and ended up killing himself.
It's simply a horror of slipping the world!
Hongli really wanted to laugh; he couldn't believe such a thing could actually happen.
But then I suddenly remembered the original owner. Ruyi was the woman the original owner liked the most. If the original owner knew that Ruyi had died, he would be very sad.
Sigh, let's give Ruyi some posthumous honors!
"Nara was posthumously granted the title of Consort Xian and buried in the Consort's Mausoleum with the rites due to a Consort. The cause of death was said to be a sudden illness that she could not cure."
"The palace maid Rong Pei is loyal to her mistress and is willing to be buried with her!"
"The palace maid Su Xin and the imperial physician Jiang Yubin secretly passed on poison and should have been executed. However, considering that they had no intention of harming anyone and that it was Consort Xian who wanted the arsenic, they will be spared death. They will each be given thirty strokes of the cane and sent to guard Consort Xian's tomb."
With these instructions from Hongli, the matter was considered closed.
When Fucha Langhua and Gao Xiyue heard the news, they still couldn't believe that their lifelong enemy, Ulanara Ruyi, had actually died.
After confirming the news was true several times, they felt not happy, but rather empty. A mix of emotions welled up in their hearts, finally turning into a sigh.
The harem has finally fallen into complete silence!
Ling Yunche, who had been expelled from the palace, was beaten half to death with thirty lashes and spent half a year recovering, spending all his savings to recover. However, because his health was damaged, he was not as strong as before and could not do any heavy work. He could only live on the rice and silver distributed to him as a Manchu.
Occasionally, he would still think of Ruyi in Yanxi Palace, and secretly curse the emperor for being so petty. He had only chatted with Ruyi for a while, and yet he was beaten and kicked out of the palace.
He and Ruyi's feelings were clearly just that—feelings—and nothing actually happened. He simply wanted to quietly protect this beautiful relationship and had no other ulterior motives.
Feeling increasingly depressed and powerless to change the situation, Ling Yunche began to drink heavily, getting drunk every day.
After hearing the news of Ruyi's death, he became even more despondent and could only continue to drink heavily to numb his senses.
He longed to see Ruyi in his half-drunk, half-awake state, so as to ease the pain of longing.
In just six months, he became extremely thin, his face was pale and his lips were white, he looked prematurely aged, and his voice was hoarse and trembling. He was only thirty years old, but he looked like an old man in his forties or fifties.
When Wei Yanwan finally left the palace at the age of twenty-five, he was no longer recognizable as a human being. Terrified, Wei Yanwan ran away and never mentioned marrying Yun Che again.
······
Ruyi's death was like pressing a shortcut key on the world, causing time to fly by.
The Qing cavalry fought in the south and north, east and west, successively quelling internal troubles such as the Han tribes, the Dzungars, the Miao rebellion in Guzhou, the Tibetan unrest, the Jinchuan and Dajinchuan regions, Taiwan, and Ili. The original target, the Yu clan, had also been destroyed and officially became Qing territory.
Yu became a county under the Qing Dynasty, and the people of Yu were scattered to various places. Since they admired the culture of the Central Plains, they quickly integrated into the Qing Dynasty.
Neighboring countries like Burma, Vietnam, and Tsarist Russia, who were eyeing the conflict with covetous eyes, were also thoroughly defeated and forced to surrender, ceding territory and paying reparations. There's even a humorous anecdote about a tiny island in the sea that, seeing the Qing Dynasty's fierce fighting with its neighbors, wanted to join in and get a piece of the action. But as soon as it showed itself, it was destroyed by the Qing army.
Hongli also took the opportunity to propose a large-scale western expedition. In recent years, the court had won many battles, the morale of the soldiers was high, and the officials were full of confidence.
As for fighting wars, the military generals in the court need no introduction. After all, which military general wouldn't want to achieve merit and make our country prosperous?
On the other hand, the civil officials, led by Zhang Tingyu, had many reservations about the western expedition.
Half of the officials in the court disagreed with the western expedition, and even though Hongli was the emperor, he could not arbitrarily push this matter forward.
In response, Hongli remained calm and simply issued an imperial edict granting Zhang Tingyu permission to be enshrined in the Imperial Ancestral Temple after his death.
Upon receiving the imperial edict, Zhang Tingyu hesitated symbolically for a moment before raising his hands in surrender, agreeing to the western expedition, and even helping to persuade other court officials.
Despite his frail body in his seventies, the allure of being enshrined in the Imperial Ancestral Temple after death unleashed tremendous potential. Zhang Tingyu, who usually needed assistance to walk, was now incredibly strong, running around from morning till night, persuading those stubborn elements.
Half a month later, Hongli brought up the matter of the western expedition again, and all the civil and military officials knelt down and kowtowed, saying, "Your Majesty is wise!"
Thus began the westward expedition that Hongli had longed for!
The soldiers and officers captured by the Yu clan were also put to use, becoming the vanguard for the imperial court's attack on the west.
The imperial court has been preparing its troops thoroughly, making ample preparations for the war.
Meanwhile, the West was in a period of chaos. Although their industry was just beginning to improve and their military equipment was slightly ahead, it was only slightly ahead.
How could they possibly be a match for the elite army that the imperial court had honed through years of war?
After a brief exchange of blows, Hongli realized the strength of the opposing side and immediately reinforced the army with 100,000 troops, winning the battle swiftly with overwhelming force.
Western countries had no choice but to follow the example of Burma and Vietnam before, ceding territory and paying reparations to compensate the imperial army for its deployment.
Emperor Qianlong left troops stationed in various parts of the west to defend the region, demanding high annual tributes from the west to support these troops.
The West, still harboring ulterior motives, secretly attempted to launch an industrial revolution. However, when Emperor Qianlong learned of this, he directly dispatched troops to interrupt their efforts, confiscating their research results and researchers. He then took the lead in developing industry in the Qing Dynasty and ordered the West to cease further research and development.
The Qing Dynasty was a vast and resource-rich land with countless skilled craftsmen. Under the strong promotion of Emperor Qianlong, industry began to develop rapidly.
Soon after, the world's first steam engine was invented.
From then on, the imperial court's scientific research developed rapidly, changing with each passing day.
One after another, novel and unusual things that had never been seen before appeared, constantly breaking people's previous perceptions.
The cart doesn't need to be pulled by horses or pushed by people; it can move forward continuously using steam.
In the pitch-black night, there is no need for candles or lamp oil; a light bulb is sufficient for illumination.
The two people were thousands of miles apart, but they could communicate with each other using just a wire!
...and so on, so many things that overturn our understanding have emerged.
And the most incredible thing for Hongli began to emerge—equality!
Since the start of the Industrial Revolution in the imperial court, politics, economy, and culture have continued to develop, and the people have begun to escape poverty.
After having enough to eat and wear, people began to pursue spiritual fulfillment.
Women's consciousness began to awaken, and they were unwilling to be confined to the small world of the inner quarters, living at the mercy of their husbands.
The distorted patriarchal ideology is gradually evolving towards gender equality.
And once gender equality is achieved, will equality for all be far behind?
Hongli suddenly realized.
It turns out this world doesn't need emperors!
Realizing this, he was not angry, but instead began to wonder what a world where everyone is equal would be like.
Unfortunately, he won't live to see it; he's very old now and his life is nearing its end.
Seeing this result is already a testament to his meticulous care for his health.
In his final moments, Hongli couldn't help but wonder: Will my world also develop along this path?
With a fleeting glimpse of the new century and a touch of regret at not being able to continue observing the world's development, Emperor Qianlong passed away peacefully at the Old Summer Palace at the age of 109.