Chapter 278
Princess Xuan and Yan Shujin kept their conversation to themselves and didn't mention it to each other. They even pretended that they had never had a heart-to-heart talk.
Yan Shujin was somewhat looking forward to meeting the Prime Minister. Even though Fuzhou had already responded to Emperor Yan's reforms and submitted documents such as re-measuring the land, the Prime Minister still needed to make a trip to verify the information.
Judging from the route the Prime Minister took, he won't be coming anytime soon.
When the news came from General Rong in the Northwest, their grain supplies were also in trouble. Although it was not as serious as in the Southwest, nearly 60% of them were still unusable.
However, General Rong did not take over the task at all. Instead, he detained all the grain transport officials and wrote a memorial to the throne.
Upon receiving news from the Northwest, King Xuan left Fuzhou with his wife and daughter and returned to his fiefdom, while Yan Qiyu was left with Yan Shujin.
It's just that Fuzhou and the southwest are too close, so I'm not as reluctant to leave as I was when I first left.
When Mr. Du returned from Nanyue, it was already the middle of the following year. The situation in Nanyue had stabilized, and Bai Yan had also sent Yan Shujin a group of mountain people who had been trained for some time. These mountain people were handed over to Sun Qiao.
Surprisingly, quite a few of them were the sons of the village chiefs, all of whom Bai Yan had carefully selected, with some unsuitable candidates already screened out.
While Fuzhou was thriving, something happened in the capital: Emperor Yan executed a group of people.
In fact, such things are quite common. Officials who commit crimes are often investigated and their families are investigated and their property confiscated. However, the people that Emperor Yan killed were all from prominent families, and not only were their property confiscated, but their entire families were also executed.
Even when they attacked the capital, Emperor Yan had never killed so many aristocratic families. Not to mention Yan Shujin and others, even those aristocratic families were caught off guard.
What exactly does Emperor Yan want to do?
neither knows.
Yan Shujin did receive the news that these families had some private connections with the remnants of the previous dynasty. Among them were many families who had secretly transported and hidden the palace's collection of books when Emperor Yan besieged the capital. However, such information could not be known to outsiders.
However, the charge against them was that these people had tampered with the grain supplies.
Prince Xuan also received the news, but not in as much detail as Yan Shujin. He couldn't help but say to his wife, "What is Your Majesty planning? Killing so many people at once will easily cause the remaining aristocratic families to feel a sense of shared vulnerability. What if they join forces..."
Princess Xuan was reading a book. It was a travelogue that Yan Shujin had sent over. Calling it a travelogue wasn't quite accurate; it consisted of the observations and experiences of Yan Shujin's subordinates who had traveled to various places. These were not to be shown to outsiders for the time being, but it was fine to have Princess Xuan copy a copy to pass the time.
Even King Xuan enjoyed watching along. Some local customs were truly astonishing. For example, in one village, when people got sick, they never called a doctor. Instead, they would scrape some soil from a Guanyin temple and take it home. For external injuries, they would apply the soil, and for other illnesses, they would drink it directly with water.
In some places, men and women never marry. On certain days each month, they can meet in a certain place. If a son is born, he is given to the other party, while a daughter is raised in the village.
As King Xuan looked at these travelogues, he and his wife remarked that their daughter was still a little girl, yet she liked these things.
Princess Xuan simply smiled and didn't say much, but in her heart she felt that her daughter had asked them to collect these things not because she liked them, but because she had taken her mother's words to heart. Knowing more was always better for Yan Shujin.
King Xuan sighed and said, "I wonder what Your Majesty is thinking?"
"Have you considered that His Majesty might be considering adopting an heir?" Princess Xuan's voice was gentle. She put down the book in her hand and looked at Prince Xuan calmly, saying, "His Majesty is merely clearing some obstacles for the sake of an heir."
King Xuan's expression changed, and he finally said, "I've thought about it, but then I realized I was overthinking it."
Princess Xuan did not speak, but simply smiled slightly.
Prince Xuan touched his nose and whispered, "Actually, actually I've been thinking about whether Your Majesty might want Bao Jie to..."
He didn't say anything more.
Princess Xuan's eyes flickered, and she asked, "Why didn't my husband think of himself?"
If Emperor Yan really had health problems and his two sons were not suitable, then passing the throne to Prince Xuan was not impossible.
Princess Xuan did not believe that Prince Xuan had not considered this possibility.
King Xuan moved his lips, wanting to refute, but looking at his wife's expression, he finally said, "I've thought about it, but I know it's impossible because I'm not suitable. Compared to me, I'm afraid Gui-ge is more suitable, but I know that neither I nor Gui-ge can suppress it."
Ultimately, the current court needs a ruthless emperor who can kill, not an emperor who can maintain the status quo.
King Xuan looked at his wife and asked, "Does Qinniang also think Baojie is suitable?"
Upon hearing this, Princess Xuan gently stroked the pages of the book with her fingers: "I just feel that no matter where our daughter goes one day, when everyone opposes and rejects her, there will still be family members who can stand by her side and tell her not to be afraid."
King Xuan was stunned.
"I imagine my husband hesitated for a long time before giving that answer." Princess Xuan had been thinking about the right time to tell Prince Xuan these things, and today was the right time for her. "After all, even Baojie herself probably never thought things would come to this. In everyone's eyes, a woman is already extremely lucky if she can get a generous dowry after marriage, if her husband's family treats her badly, and if her family helps her or even if she gets a divorce."
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