The Wang family, a clan that was once powerful and glorious, was slaughtered in large numbers.
When the capital was shrouded in solemnity, Prince Guangling faked his death, and Princess Guangling and the Crown Prince fled back to Jiangnan. The news that Prince Guangling's Mansion was planning a rebellion finally spread throughout the capital.
After Princess Kangning returned to the Guangling Palace, she nearly miscarried again due to an unstable fetus and was forced to recuperate in bed. However, Princess Guangling and Xiao Zheng fell ill while attending the funeral, leaving her unable to see anyone while she lay in bed. In a panic, she sent someone to the palace to report to the Emperor and the Empress Dowager.
The emperor was unwell but insisted on returning to Beijing in order to deal with the Wang family to vent his anger.
After dealing with the relevant matters, he collapsed in anger and was in a coma for a day and a night. Even the grand court meeting was cancelled.
The affairs of Prince Guangling's Mansion were handled personally by the Queen Mother.
Just as the Empress Dowager issued the order to seal off all checkpoints and conduct strict inspections, an urgent military report arrived from eight hundred miles away.
Prince Guangling rebelled with the Governor of Youzhou, claiming that the emperor was immoral, mean, ungrateful, cruel and murderous. He had chased him on his way to his fiefdom, poisoned him when he was summoned to the capital, was disloyal to his brothers, cruel to his two queens, and turned a blind eye to the drought and locust plague in Qingzhou. He was not a wise ruler and deserved to be attacked by the people of the world.
This time, Prince Guangling came with great force, and what shocked the ministers was that Qingzhou also rebelled.
No one in Kyoto had ever heard of the drought and locust plague in Qingzhou.
When Emperor Jian'an woke up again, he was faced with such a chaotic situation. Hearing that Prince Guangling was faking his death and that his plan had been seen through, Emperor Jian'an, who had just woken up, was so angry that he spit out blood and fainted again.
Emperor Jian'an was not yet fifty years old and was in the prime of his life. He usually looked healthy, but this time he fell ill suddenly and his whole spirit and energy suddenly declined.
The rebellion of Prince Guangling was coming in full force, and Xiao Feng, who had nearly lost his life in Qingzhou, returned to the capital.
Wan Jinlan only learned about the situation in Qingzhou the next day when his grandfather called him to his study to meet the secret guards sent to Yangzhou.
Qingzhou had a bad year last year and the harvest was poor. This summer, there was a drought and a locust plague. The grain harvest was visibly bleak, but for some reason, the news of the local drought and locust plague did not reach Kyoto at all.
When the King of Qi was inspecting the salt fields in Lianghuai, he saw refugees fleeing from Qingzhou, Xuzhou and other places. They were all pale and thin, like frightened birds.
After Xiao Feng's investigation, he learned that the Qingzhou governor was in a critical period of promotion and assessment. He wanted to conceal the local people's livelihood. Not only did he not provide assistance to the people who suffered from the disaster, but he also suppressed them and even deliberately raised the price of grain to make money. His wife's family also lent money at high interest and forced the people to sell themselves into slavery after they could not repay the money. The Qingzhou governor's wife's family had tens of thousands of slaves.
Wan Jinlan was dumbfounded after hearing this. It was simply horrifying.
"Is the Qingzhou Governor a fool? Truth cannot be hidden. Even if he succeeds in hiding the truth and gets promoted, the new Governor will discover the truth and he will be punished as usual, right?"
The problems that Wan Jinlan could think of could naturally be thought of by the Duke of Zhenguo and the old master as well.
"In my opinion, he concealed the disaster, not for promotion or assessment." The old master said solemnly, "He must have been Guangling King's man from the beginning. Not only that, he also told the people that he had petitioned the court for help, but the court ignored the people of Qingzhou and left them to fend for themselves."
The secret guard was impressed. "Your Excellency is right. After an in-depth investigation, His Royal Highness the Prince of Qi discovered that the facts are exactly as you describe. When we escorted His Royal Highness the Prince of Qi away, the price of grain in Qingzhou had risen tenfold. It was very difficult for the people of Qingzhou to escape southward. Soldiers were stationed at every pass and city. If they went north to Youzhou, they would not be stopped. Youzhou would also properly resettle the victims. The Youzhou governor said that the emperor had abandoned the people of Qingzhou, despising them as a burden that only consumed food. But the Prince of Guangling did not do that. He would stand up for them and let them live a stable and prosperous life."
In border areas like Youzhou, the people are naturally tough and far away from the capital, so their respect for the imperial court is far less than that of the prefectures and counties in the center of Wei. The people of Qingzhou suffered from the disaster and oppression this time, but the imperial court turned a blind eye. Their resentment can be imagined.
After understanding the situation, the old Duke asked Wan Jinlan, "What do you think of the Qingzhou Governor?"
Wan Jinlan pondered for a moment and said, "My granddaughter's guess is slightly different from your grandfather's. The Qingzhou Governor might not have been Guangling Prince's subordinate at first, but later lost control of the situation. Or perhaps Guangling Prince's followers got a hold of him, so he collected a lot of money in Qingzhou and offered him tribute to Guangling Prince. It won't be long before Guangling Prince kills him to appease the anger of the Qingzhou people and the public outcry."
The Duke of Zhenguo and the old master smiled after hearing this.
Wan Jinlan blushed a little, not knowing what she said wrong to make herself look ridiculous. She clearly thought what she said made sense.
"If you were the Prince of Guangling, the Qingzhou Governor's action was wrong." The old Duke stroked his beard with a smile on his face.
"What's wrong with that? What's wrong with speaking up for the people and winning a reputation for loving them like one's own children? Prince Guangling can also take advantage of the opportunity to bring Qingzhou under his command and become the real master of Qingzhou." Wan Jinlan was really puzzled.
The Duke of Zhenguo said gently, "If Prince Guangling kills the Qingzhou Governor, wouldn't that be telling the people of Qingzhou that the Great Wei's abandonment of them was a lie, and that it was the Qingzhou Governor who slandered the royal family for financial gain, causing them such harm? Prince Guangling's reputation would also be questioned. Furthermore, if someone who had served him met such a fate, what would the rest of Prince Guangling's men think? It would unsettle the people and damage the morale of the army."
Wan Jinlan was shocked, "But the Qingzhou Governor..."
At this point, she paused. She was a bystander, perhaps believing she saw the truth of the Qingzhou incident, but the people involved were truly being deceived and manipulated by the Qingzhou governor. Imperial officers and soldiers had stopped them from traveling south, but they had been accepted north to Youzhou, where the governor repeatedly claimed the court had abandoned them as a burden.
Will the people who are unaware of the truth feel grateful and believe what they think is the truth when they are given a meal by someone who is on the verge of despair?
Seeing her expression change several times, the old master said lovingly: "Okay, don't think about it. We don't know the whole story, so there's no point in saying more."
"Is there any news from the Yongchang Marquis' Mansion?"
The secret guard did not dare to hide anything and said bluntly: "My lord, everyone in the Yongchang Marquis's mansion was sent to Youzhou by water by the Prince of Guangling."
The old man sighed and said, "Wait a few days, and then you can submit your confession."
The Duke of Zhenguo agreed.
It is inappropriate to submit a confession now. The court has not reacted yet. They knew the news so early. Doesn’t that mean they are colluding with the rebels?
Wan Jinlan sighed, wondering how sad her mother would be.
After Wan Jinlan left, the Duke of Zhenguo looked at his elderly father and asked, "Father, why did you summon Jinlan to the study today and test her?"
The old man stroked his beard and said, "The situation is changing rapidly. Jinlan may have a bright future in the future."
The Duke of Zhenguo thought for a moment and said, "Father, you're overthinking it."
Even though Your Majesty is not in good health as before, Prince An is gone, Prince Duan is disliked by Your Majesty, Prince Rui is also gone, and the remaining princes are either ill or still young, there is still the eldest prince, Prince Shun, to take over, and it will never be the turn of Prince Qi, who is the emperor's uncle.
Is my father overthinking it?
The old man smiled and stood up, "Don't think too much, let's see as we go."
The old man remembered the fortune the old abbot had given Jinlan when he took his granddaughter to Huayan Temple.
He had gradually forgotten about it over the years, but with the sudden change in the capital recently, he suddenly remembered it again.
Of course, no matter what the situation is, the stability of the mansion is the most important thing.
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