"How exactly do you people do your jobs?"
"This servant deserves punishment."
Inside the imperial hall of the Forbidden City in the capital, every official was kneeling on the ground, not daring to make the slightest sound. The sudden change of banners had left most of them utterly bewildered. They simply could not understand how an entire province had changed hands so easily.
But while they could not understand it, the one above them did not see things that way. The emperor, who had only recently gained some authority, was furious. He had only just gotten his hands on power, yet before he could use it, he had been struck with a crushing blow.
Shunzhi had ascended the throne very early, at five or six years old. But what could a child that age understand? Naturally, real power had rested in the hands of others, such as his uncle Dorgon. Only after he grew a little older had he gradually been granted some authority. As for ruling personally, that would probably have to wait until his uncle died.
In fact, he had already prepared to rule personally and had made arrangements for his uncle. What an emperor hated most was someone riding over his head. If Shen Fei had acted a few days later, news of Dorgon's death might have arrived—perhaps he would have fallen to his death during a hunting trip outside the city. That was the cause of death for many royals, almost as universal an excuse as gas explosions in the Holy Grail War.
But with such a huge problem arising now, no matter how displeased the emperor was, he could only postpone his plans. He even had to rely on his uncle to help strategize for this war.
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