Chapter 95: That Hai Rui is always talking nonsense, praying to the gods? The Yan Party and the Qingliu are both confused
King Jing also has a residence in the capital.
At this time, in the main hall of Prince Jing's mansion, Prince Jing, Yan Song and Yan Shifan took their seats in order of importance.
"Lord Yan, Lord Yan and his son have made great contributions to my return to Beijing from De'an!" King Jing clasped his fists towards Yan Song and his son.
"Your Highness, you are too kind. These are just the duties of an old minister." Yan Song raised his eyelids and said slowly: "Before this, the emperor has found masters for the two princes..."
"This old minister will be responsible for teaching His Highness, while Xu Jie and others will be responsible for teaching His Highness Prince Yu."
"Although it has not been stated explicitly, His Majesty has asked me to teach you more, so supporting you is my duty."
Yan Shifan on the side also nodded repeatedly.
"Heh," King Jing chuckled and said, "No matter what, I still have to thank Lord Yan."
As he spoke, King Jing's tone became serious, and he looked at Yan Song and said, "I wonder what Lord Yan thinks of my father's invitation to me to return to the capital?"
"I guess there are two possibilities," Yan Song raised two fingers and said, "Either the emperor will choose the final winner between the two princes to be the successor before the end of his life."
"Or, we can use His Royal Highness Prince Jing as a whetstone for His Royal Highness Prince Yu, but..." As he spoke, Yan Song picked up the painting that Jiajing had given to Prince Jing on the table and said:
"Now it seems that the second option is impossible."
"The two identical scrolls show that your majesty has the same father-son relationship with your two highnesses."
"At the same time, it is also telling Your Highness in disguise," Yan Song raised his dim old eyes and said in a serious tone, "He will not give the throne to Your Highness just because he likes Your Highness."
As Yan Song finished speaking, King Jing's eyes darkened.
"What Lord Yan said coincides with what I said. I already had some guesses when I got the scroll!" As he spoke, King Jing clenched his fists slightly.
He thought again of the scene that happened between him and Prince Yu outside Yuxi Palace today.
It seemed that he was mocking Prince Yu, and it seemed that he had the upper hand in words, but only he knew the resentment in his heart.
Because he saw more than Prince Yu!
Prince Yu might be limited to a moment of disappointment over his father's action, but he is different!
What he saw was that his father was silently telling him that he would not give him the throne out of favoritism.
His father's preference and the support of the Yan Party had always made him very eager for that position. However, his father chose the most conservative way in selecting the crown prince.
Disappointed? Of course!
He has always been the favored one, but this time, not!
"Your Highness," Yan Song saw the gloom in King Jing's expression, and used his eyes to stop Yan Shifan who was about to speak, and said slowly: "Parents who love their children will plan for them in the long run."
"In fact, the emperor has already shown a preference for Your Highness," Yan Song said, slowing down his pace and saying in a tactful tone, "Since ancient times, the crown prince has always been chosen by the eldest son rather than the most capable one."
"Because if the eldest son is made the heir, many hidden dangers can be eliminated and the other princes' thoughts can be cut off. But if the most virtuous is made the heir, then all the princes will prove that they are the most virtuous one."
"The final result is the disintegration of the dynasty. Now, in his last days, the emperor has adopted such a bold method to appoint a crown prince. Isn't this a kind of favoritism to Your Highness?"
When he said this, Yan Song's tone gradually became heavier.
Yan Song always had a clear mind at all times. Of course, what he meant was that he always remembered that he was a vicious dog in the hands of the emperor.
Even though he was now in Prince Jing's mansion and was tied to Prince Jing, his words were still to protect Jiajing. He always regarded Jiajing as his only master and protecting his master was his duty!
The meaning of these words is very clear, which is to warn King Jing not to be too arrogant because the emperor is already very fond of you.
"Moreover, the fact that you chose the most capable person instead of the eldest son shows that Your Majesty doesn't care what the history books think of him at all."
"What he has to do is to select a suitable successor for the Ming Dynasty. Once a qualified crown prince is selected, His Majesty will use the most extreme means to clear the obstacles for the successor!"
"Isn't this a heavy father's love?" At the end, Yan Song lowered his voice and chuckled.
"Huh." After hearing Yan Song's words, King Jing exhaled lightly and said in a deep voice, "I have learned from what Lord Yan said."
"Of course I understand. I just feel disappointed and unwilling. He was just born a few days earlier than me."
"It's obvious that my father loves me the most..." King Jing waved his hand and said, "Forget it, let's not talk about this."
"Lord Yan, please tell me about the situation in the northern border and the next deployment."
King Jing finally understood.
There is no point in saying all this right now. The important thing is that since it has been confirmed that my father wants to choose a crown prince before he leaves, there is no other way to win but to fight!
While everyone was discussing in Prince Jing's Mansion, people in Prince Yu's Mansion were also not idle.
After Prince Yu came back, he took down the scroll that he had hung in the hall.
He originally thought that this was a paternal love that belonged only to him, and that was deeply hidden by his father. However, he did not know that this love was so light and even equally shared.
Xu Jie, Gao Gong, Zhang Juzheng, Zhao Zhenji, and at this moment Prince Zhan Shiwang of Prince Yu's Mansion were all looking at Prince Yu who was in a bad mood above.
"Your Highness, congratulations!" At this time, Xu Jie put down the scroll in his hand and smiled at Prince Yu.
Zhang Juzheng and others on the side, after listening to Prince Yu's story, only needed a moment of thought to see the underlying meaning.
"Oh?" Prince Yu raised his eyes and looked at Xu Jie.
"Your Highness is confused by the situation," Xu Jie said with a smile on his face, "This picture has another meaning, but it is for King Jing..."
Then, Xu Jie expressed his own views, which were basically the same as what Yan Song said.
"Lord Xu means that the emperor is actually warning the fourth son that he will not give him the throne just because he favors him? Is the emperor actually warning him, or is he caring about my feelings?"
A gleam of light appeared in Prince Yu's eyes. If this was the case, didn't it mean that his father still loved him?
Well, at least I got the same amount as the fourth brother! After all, the fourth brother had enjoyed the emperor's love alone, and I didn't get a single cent.
Now, when it comes to the choice of the throne, my father can warn the fourth brother and let them fight fairly. Well, my father still loves me!
Looking at the surprised Prince Yu, Xu Jie and others looked at each other and couldn't help but sigh in their hearts, thinking that His Royal Highness Prince Yu was really pitiful.
However, when I think about what happened to Prince Yu, I can understand it.
Xu Jie did not continue to dwell on this topic, and changed the subject, saying: "Your Highness, since it has been confirmed that it was the first guess, the emperor is selecting the final candidate for the crown prince."
"It also proves that your majesty doesn't care about his reputation before and after his death. Choosing the wise instead of the eldest will be seen as a stain in history books. It also means that your majesty has acquiesced to the struggle!"
"Well," Prince Yu, who was happy about the father's love being shared equally, took a deep breath, calmed down, nodded, and said, "I understand. We can only win this battle and not lose!"
"Tell me about the recent situation in Datong..."
Prince Yu was a man who could see clearly what was going on and quickly got to the point.
"Let me go first," Zhang Juzheng nodded and said, "Yan's party's policy of stationing troops to promote agriculture was opposed by the military households."
"Now the promotion of national policy has encountered obstacles. Facing the military households that were making trouble, local officials proposed to suppress them, but Tang Shunzhi rejected it."
"Although the Yan Party did not make a big fuss once, this was also expected. After all, Tang Shunzhi was not just a general who fought in battles. He was a capable minister like Hu Zongxian."
"He naturally understood what would happen if he sent troops to suppress the rebellion, so he ordered to temporarily put on hold the national policy of promoting the stationing of troops to promote agriculture, as well as the compensation for the expropriation of land from the local clans."
"We won the first round of the battle."
"However, among the officials who proposed the suppression, in addition to our people, there are also Yan's party. It is not difficult to see that this is the work of that arrogant and rebellious villain Yan Shifan." At this time, Zhao Zhenji also spoke.
"The Yan Party suffered a defeat. I'm afraid Yan Song will take action himself next. He is much more difficult to deal with than Yan Shifan."
"What about Hai Rui?" At this time, Prince Yu seemed to have thought of something and asked.
"The councillors around Hai Rui said that he still hasn't made any moves, and he seems to be observing and recording every day..." At this point, Zhao Zhenji said in a strange tone:
"I heard that Hai Rui is a bit strange..."
"Strange?" Prince Yu frowned when he heard this and asked, "What's wrong with Hai Rui? What's so strange about him?"
Well, he was actually both afraid and happy with Hai Rui. He also wanted to use this sword, but he was somewhat unable to do so.
While Prince Yu was asking.
At the Jingwang Mansion, Yan Shifan's voice also followed:
"The secret report said that since Hai Rui arrived at the governor's office, he would face the direction of the capital every day and kneel down to pray to the gods..."
"He keeps talking to God all day long." Yan Shifan frowned and said, "He also said that he went to Chunyang Palace the day after arriving in Datong..."
"This Hai Rui, ever since he entered the palace, seems to have been influenced by the Emperor and has also started to believe in ghosts and gods!"
"I've also heard of the reputation of this 'Sea Pen Holder'," King Jing said after a moment's silence, "What do you think, Lord Yan?"
Hearing this, Yan Song raised his drooping eyelids, pondered for a while, and finally said faintly: "Even this old minister can't see through it..."
Yes, that's right. Yan Song didn't know what happened. Why did Hai Rui, a good person, suddenly start to act weird?
Prince Yu’s Mansion, in the main hall.
"Ming Shou," Zhang Juzheng looked thoughtfully at Wang Yongji, who was also confused, and said, "Did Hai Rui have this problem before?"
Wang Yongji: “…”
This question stumped him.
"Reporting to all the elders, Your Highness," Wang Yongji stood up slightly, bowed to everyone, shook his head and smiled bitterly, "To be honest, this is the first time I heard that Brother Gangfeng has this problem..."
At this moment, Wang Yongji couldn't imagine that Hai Rui was kneeling on the ground, praying devoutly to the gods and Buddhas. This scene was simply, well, simply unimaginable.
For a moment, when Hai Rui was mentioned, the Qingliu and Yandang factions, led by Prince Yu and Prince Jing, were once again confused because of Hai Rui.
They all knew that Hai Rui was a sword hanging over the heads of the Qingliu and Yan Party, and they had no choice but to take it seriously.
Just when the two factions were confused, in Yuxi Palace, Jiajing suddenly opened his eyes and smiled, "This Hai Rui actually blames me for not showing up. Talk to him directly..."
"Ha," Jiajing chuckled again and said, "It seems that no one wants me to establish my foundation as soon as possible more than Hai Rui."
Lü Fang, who was sitting on the small table with a pen in hand, said, "Master, what should we do next to Hai Rui?"
"Tell him that Yan Song wants to take action against the Shanxi merchants and cause civil unrest in the once solid northern border. Tell him to stay out of it for now."
Jiajing said calmly, "Yan Song will take the initiative to hand over the person to him, and he will have the chance to draw his sword."
"Yes." Lu Fang responded and continued to write quickly.
"..."
Another 3K+, full of sincerity, please vote
(End of this chapter)
