Chapter 1007 Chen Han's Future King

The Spring Festival of the 38th year of Chengtian arrived in a blink of an eye.

Chen Ming got up early as usual on this day, although the sky was full of leaden clouds, dark and gloomy. But he still went to greet his mother who would be 88 after the New Year, and then worshipped his ancestors, and then accepted the worship of civil and military officials in Fengtian Hall.

I don’t know when it started snowing in the sky. The elves dancing in the sky were as light as smoke and as white as jade. They circled and descended happily into this world. Soon, the snow became heavier, fluttering and floating. It was like jade leaves and silver flowers scattered in the heavenly palace, and like flying goose feathers and catkins.

For many years, Chen Ming has been completely familiar with the process of the first day of the new year. At the beginning, Chen Ming needed a gunman to write the speech for him early, and then memorize it to deal with it. The New Year’s worship requires some literary talent, just like the New Year’s greetings of the rabbit elder in later generations, which must be of a corresponding level. But now, Cheng Tiannian has passed 38 years old. Chen Ming is like the scholar who "read 300 Tang poems by heart, and can recite them even if he can't write them". He doesn't need to find a ghostwriter for many years. He can say many clichés without hiccups.

After returning to the Qianqing Palace, Chen Ming didn't lie down immediately. He was looking at the world map hanging on the wall, and kept looking at it. But he was definitely not worried about Europe. Chen Ming was just thinking about his dissatisfaction.

He is now 62 years old.

Many years ago, Chen Ming had planned to retire at the age of 60. He was ready to abdicate the throne after 60 years old, and take advantage of his body to travel around the world and take a look. But now he is 62 years old, and he is not ready to hand over the throne at all.

But it will be soon.

The world situation will be decided in the next three years. When he is 65, in 1815, Napoleon's success or failure will be clear, and Chen Ming can retire with success.

But among his sons who still stayed in Nanjing, who could take on the throne?

In fact, Chen Ming had already known it in his heart, that is his eldest son Chen Ding.

Chen Ding has not been doing well in recent years. Although he is not stupid, nor does he think he is smart, the queen and the uncle-in-law have helped him a lot, and he had a great advantage at the beginning, but he lost because his advantage in his early years was too big and too obvious.

There is an old Chinese saying that a tree that stands out in the forest will be driven by the wind, and a pile that is higher than the shore will be turbulent by the current. The first citron that sticks out will rot first, which is what Chen Ding said.

He is a tiger that cannot fight a pack of wolves, and he suffered a great loss.

Because Chen Ming's sons were all lured by the vassal states in America, the fight for the throne in the Chen Han Dynasty was not like the previous dynasty, nor was it different from the nine dragons fighting for the throne in the Kang Mazi era.

Take the situation at the time of Yong Lao Si as an example. Yong Lao Si and Lao Shisan followed the prince at the beginning, and Lao Ba followed the eldest brother in his early years. Although the prince is also the target of public criticism, he still has some helpers among his brothers.

Chen Ding is quite different. The unrelated brothers are all yearning for America and do not participate in the fight for the throne; the related brothers are all like wolves and tigers, and the first spearhead is all directed at him.

To be honest, in the struggles over the years, if Chen Ding had not been secretly protected and taken care of by Chen Ming, he would definitely not have ended up on par with others. He would be even worse! Who told him not to suppress those competitors as much as possible when he was in power?

But even with Chen Ming's secret intervention, Chen Ding can now maintain his momentum, which can also prove from a certain aspect that his personal ability is still good. Because Chen Ming's intervention is very rare.

But it's just good.

If Chen Ding is really capable, he should rely on his early advantages to suppress his younger brothers and not have second thoughts.

But he obviously didn't do it.

Compared with several sons who were fighting for the throne, Chen Ding's ability was not outstanding. The one who was truly outstanding was King Guo. The situation of a pack of wolves devouring a tiger was started by the sixth son [King Guo].

But among these sons, Chen Ming still chose Chen Ding as his heir. This was not only because he cared most about this son, but also because he personally believed that if the next generation of emperors of Chen Han was a wise monarch, it would not be good for the real constitutionalism of Chen Han.

It is now the 18th century, not the 17th century, nor the 16th/15th century. Although the days when the emperor's power was the only one in China still had soil to exist, Chen Ming could not see the light a hundred years later.

How long can the monarchy of the Eastern emperors continue? Twenty years, thirty years, or forty years? It is now 1812 in the Western calendar.

How long can the Eastern emperor's way of monarchy last? Do you really think that China has a two-thousand-year feudal history, and the people here must be devoted to the feudal system. Chen Ming has seen clearly over the years that the central Advisory Council is still inconspicuous. Although its influence has expanded a lot, it is still limited. However, the influence of the local advisory council is much higher than that of the Advisory Council.

Many business leaders have taken the opportunity to closely integrate with the local government, and the influence and potential power of businessmen are constantly increasing.

An obvious example is the education fund. Or a series of charitable donations equivalent to this fund.

The companies and merchants who contribute more money have become guests of the local government.

Otherwise? The annual charity fund of your government is less than one million, and the annual charity fund of the government next door is more than ten million.

How much can the extra nine million do?

How many primary and secondary schools can be built with this? How many nurseries and nursing homes can be provided? How many children of school age can be sent to school?

Nine million a year is not significant, but nine million every year, which official dares not take it seriously? When that thing falls on their territory, it is a real political achievement. And there is no official who does not want to be promoted, but they also rely on real political achievements to get promoted.

Therefore, after thirty years of subtle changes, these businessmen and wealthy people who are full of the smell of money are no longer fat pigs in the eyes of the government, but nobles in the eyes of local officials. The rabbits of later generations held the Olympic Games thirty years after the reform and opening up. Social changes cannot be said to be complete, but the foundation has definitely been laid. These people enter and leave the local government like VIPs. This is normal treatment. Therefore, the social status of today's wealthy people is really rising in a straight line.

These businessmen have a high social status. Can they not seek power from above?

Chen Ming can imagine what the situation will be like in twenty or thirty years.

If he puts a son who is smart and capable on the throne, China's future will be too uncertain. Therefore, Chen Ding, the prince who has been torn for 20 years, sitting on the throne, a person who is neither stupid nor extremely cunning, should be more in line with Chen Ming's mind - China's future development path.

Because although Chen Ding has been attacked and constrained too much in these years, he does not have that suppressed anger in his heart, which is the most important thing.

Without anger, there will be no backlash. It will not be like the Wanli Emperor in history. Zhang Juzheng was one way when he was alive and another way after he died. Zhang Jiangling ruled the country for ten years but ended up with a situation of confiscating his family. His eldest son was tortured too much and died in prison.

If Chen Ding had a bit of anger in his heart, Chen Ming would never consider passing the throne to him.

...

"Father..." Guo Wang Chen Yu walked into the Qianqing Palace. He looked at Chen Ming standing in front of the window with his hands behind his back and bowed.

"You are here. Sit over there." Chen Ming led Chen Yu to the map. The teacup on the coffee table was still steaming.

"You came in now to say something to me, then you can speak freely. Today, you and I are father and son, not monarch and subject. Your father is all ears."

Chen Ming looked at Chen Yu with some pity. This son was indeed very good at wrist, decisive, and responsible. If the current events could be advanced 200 years earlier, Chen Ming would definitely choose him as his successor.

"Since the emperor said so, then I will dare to be presumptuous for once. I am not convinced." Chen Yu stared at Chen Ming with his eyes and pursed his lips tightly. The piercing eyes looked at Chen Ming with dissatisfaction in their eyes, and the wings of his nose kept twitching.

Chen Yu felt wronged.

His mother was of ordinary origin, and his own starting point was also ordinary. Chen Yu had put in a lot of effort to get to where he is now.

Chen Yu was only 32 years old, and he still had plenty of time. Chen Ming is in good health now, but he will be 72 years old in ten years. Will his health still be good? Even if it is still good, what about waiting for another ten years? He is only in his early fifties, and Chen Ming will be 82 years old by then. He is very patient, and he firmly believes that in another ten years, his strength and influence will definitely surpass Chen Ding and all those who want to be the emperor.

But now he suddenly knows that his father has decided on the heir, that is their eldest brother. In Chen Yu's eyes, Chen Ding is already a loser. He is not convinced, why?

Chen Ding has such a big advantage, and he has become what he is now. He has already failed. How could Chen Ming choose a loser to inherit the throne of the empire?

Even if it is still not himself, but just someone else, Chen Yu will not feel so wronged and resentful in his heart. He thinks it is just Chen Ming's preference for Chen Ding, and since Chen Ming prefers Chen Ding so much, why do they have to come down and compete with Chen Ding? Do they want them to be Chen Ding's whetstone?

Chen Yu felt that Chen Ming was using them as a whetstone, just like the battle for the throne during the reign of Kang Mazi, which was intentional connivance. The only thing that Chen Ming was kinder than Kang Mazi was that he would not mistreat the woman who gave birth to his child, nor would he give the opportunity for the later generations to mistreat his son. He left each of them a small kingdom, a small kingdom where they could be alone.

Chen Ming listened quietly, his eyes looking at a piece of North America on the map. The Great Lakes region was the small kingdom he prepared for Chen Yu. This child had the ability to develop and expand the Guo State, but he must not think too much...

The reason why Chen Ming allowed Chen Yu to enter the Qianqing Palace today was to leave a gap to solve a future hidden danger.

"You are indeed more capable than your elder brother, but you are too aggressive." Chen Yu went from being a prince of an ordinary family to where he is now, and he had to work very hard. But as Chen Ming said, he also developed a cockfighting spirit in the past ten years because of this. He was too aggressive.

If Chen Han is taught by him, don't think about establishing a real constitution in the next 30 years. His internal struggle with the constitutional forces is more likely to involve Chen Han's external competitiveness.

By then, the whole of China will be extremely powerful and huge, and there will be no opponents outside. They can focus on internal struggles, which will cause trouble.

"Chen Yu, your father will not hand over Chen Han's future to someone who is good at planning and extremely aggressive! Times have changed, the world has changed, and it is not a blessing for a monarch to change his job. Sometimes mediocrity is a blessing."

Chen Ding is obviously more likely to compromise on issues involving imperial power than Chen Yu. He is the first prince to get involved with those aliens.