Chapter 515: The Name of Chang Suining
This imperial edict was issued to announce the Crown Prince's wedding.
The prince's wedding ceremony was scheduled for October, and the emperor invited the princes and military governors of various regions to come to the capital to celebrate.
October is a good time, as the autumn harvest will be completed in various places. In addition to gifts, the princes and military governors can also escort tax silver to the capital to add a touch of joy to the prince's wedding.
It had been a long time since Dasheng had held such a grand wedding. It was almost impossible for the princes and military governors who had not been to the capital for a long time to find a reasonable excuse to refuse to go to the capital.
Holding the imperial edict in his hand, Chang Suining's mind flashed through the information sent back from the capital.
The division and combination of forces inside and outside the capital is changing rapidly, which is due to the signals that the empress has recently sent out frequently called the return of power.
Worse still, there are rumors in private that after the crown prince's wedding, the emperor will abdicate and return power to the people in order to stabilize the situation and appease the people's hearts.
This rumor made countless people uneasy, and those forces that had long been trying to force the empress to return power to the Li family were forced to wait and see.
It is foreseeable that this signal released by the Empress herself will spread quickly everywhere.
There are still three months until the Crown Prince's wedding. Three months is neither too long nor too short. It is enough time for this matter to ferment and become known to everyone, but it will not make it a foregone conclusion that cannot be reversed and is completely out of the Emperor's control.
From preparing for the prince's wedding, to claiming illness to let the prince take over government affairs, to setting the wedding date, and summoning those in power from all over to the capital... In Chang Suining's view, every step in the process, even having the envoy send lychees to Jiangdu with great fanfare at this juncture, was a carefully planned design.
Chang Suining and the people in Jiangdu Governor's Office did not stop their duties because of this sudden imperial edict.
When it was getting dark and the lights were on in the outer study, Wang Changshi came in from the front yamen, and then they discussed the matter behind closed doors.
"Are you planning to go to the capital?" Wang Changshi asked tentatively.
This is the problem that Chang Suining is facing, and it is also something that the princes and military governors everywhere need to think about again and again.
Anyone could see that this trip couldn't possibly be just to bring gift money and attend a wedding in Beijing.
According to the ancestral precepts of the Great Sheng Dynasty, the princes were not allowed to bring troops close to the capital. If they entered the capital, it would be equivalent to taking off their armor and weapons and going into danger alone - this was the premise.
If they go, the imperial court will certainly take the opportunity to test their attitude and let them express their stance. Otherwise, they will most likely be beheaded. They may go there in one piece, but their bodies will come back in pieces.
And this involves a very important question: Would the emperor really be happy to see them support the prince?
Different people have different views on this.
If they do not go, the crisis will undoubtedly be imminent. The court can legitimately determine that they are defying the emperor's authority and are suspected of rebellion, and can punish and attack them at any time.
It is true that the imperial court cannot afford the consequences of them rebelling together, but people's hearts are different, and there are many people who want to support the prince for a stable life... People's hearts are not united, and everyone has their own calculations. Under the suspicion of everything, all parties can't help but weigh the pros and cons again and again.
Facing Wang Changshi's question, Chang Suining did not answer immediately, but said: "Now it seems that the king sent lychees to Jiangdu this time, not only to show everyone how much he values me, but also to let me feel at ease when I enter the capital-"
Just like coaxing a child home, you should first show enough kindness.
Moreover, this "child" became the focus of attention from all sides. The lychees were both a reward and a kind of brand, as if announcing to everywhere the "close" relationship between the monarch and his subjects.
Yao Ran seemed to have thought of the latter intention as well, and was slightly surprised. He said, "If you go to the capital, even if the Saint has no doubts, there is no guarantee that there won't be others who will take the opportunity to harm you along the way..."
These "others" naturally refer to the forces hostile to the Empress.
My lord, this trip is indeed full of dangers.
Yao Ran couldn't help but wonder, the emperor clearly intended to use you, but by sending you back to the capital in this way, did he ever think about how dangerous your situation would be? Or, in the eyes of the emperor, those who could survive these layers of danger and come to her alive were the ones who were truly worthy of being used?
Was this a trust in the adults' abilities, or a test? Or was it a desire to use the adults as bait and use them to eliminate some enemies? Yao Ran thought a lot in a short moment, but she didn't think she was being too suspicious. Along the way, every time she touched the hearts and power struggles, she never felt that she was overthinking. Instead, she always realized that she was still too shallow and naive.
Before reaching a consensus, they had already begun to "make the best use of everything"... Is this the way of a king? Yao Ran couldn't simply judge right and wrong, but inexplicably, she didn't want her master to be manipulated like this.
In her opinion, such a path is not suitable for adults.
But Yao Ran couldn't say these words.
"Yes, there must be quite a few people who want to kill me because of the lychees this year." Chang Suining said calmly.
She believed that the emperor did not want to kill her, but he must have expected that the emperor's favor and preference shown by the litchi would add a lot of murderous intent to her on her way to the capital.
It was probably the same as when she led the troops to resist the Japanese pirates. The other side believed that she could win, even if the process was a little "hard".
The other party also knew very well that if someone attacked her on the way to the capital, she would not let it go given her personality. The court could then come forward to "do justice" for her and hold the person behind the attack accountable.
These calculations were not the main purpose of her trip to Beijing this time, or were just incidental, anyway, she has always been "useful".
After all, it was the mother who sent the lychees first to express her preference and desire to make amends. Now that he is ill with an unknown disease and in an uncertain situation, as a daughter, she should do everything she can to go back and take a look.
This was a restriction unknown to others, but just the fact that it was visible to the world was enough to overwhelm her - the king loved and trusted her so much, but she refused to return to the capital. Wasn't she a heartless person, not appreciating the emperor's grace at all?
Luo Guanlin frowned silently, and after a moment, he asked Chang Suining, "Has the assassin you brought back from Shenzhou revealed the person behind it?"
Chang Suining nodded: "I confessed. I just let it go yesterday."
Luo Guanlin wanted to ask again who it was, but the words stopped at her lips. There were some things that adults might not want to tell him explicitly, so she just needed to know them herself.
But the next moment, Chang Suining took the initiative to say, "It's Prince Rong's Mansion."
Luo Guanlin was slightly surprised.
Wang Yue and others also changed their expressions.
The female assassin brought back by Chang Suining refused to reveal the mastermind behind the crime while being detained and tortured. As of yesterday, she was almost dying and her mind was on the verge of collapse.
At this time, General Chang Suining pulled a person out of the secret room and brought him in front of the purple-clothed female assassin.
The female assassin, whose mind and body were close to collapse, had a slight change in expression the moment she saw the person coming.
And these slight changes are enough to explain the answer.
Chang Suining came to a conclusion on the spot. Seeing that the female assassin, who had given up denying, closed her eyes in despair, he raised his hand and asked someone to give her a quick death.
When Chang Suining turned around, he patted Fan Ou's shoulder in praise: [You are really useful. It's worth my trouble to bring you along.]
Fan Ou gritted her teeth. This was the second time she used him like this...using him to defraud the people in Prince Rong's Mansion.
Fan Ou was almost numb. He closed his eyes like the female assassin just now, and made the same request as before: [Kill me too...]
[No killing.] Chang Suining smiled and said, [It's rare to find it so useful, I'm happy to keep it.]
As he said that, he asked someone to take Fan Ou away.
Fan Ou's lips trembled, and he was confused - so many people died, why couldn't he be one more? Before this, he had never thought that after he fell into the hands of this little girl, he could betray his master again and again without doing anything or saying anything.
When being dragged away, Fan Ou stared at Chang Suining's figure, thinking numbly: It is true that when a country is about to perish, monsters will appear more and more.
…
Before, Luo Guanlin had asked Chang Suining about her opinion on Prince Rong.
At that time, Luo Guanlin obviously included Prince Rong in the list of candidates to be considered for support.
But even so, when Luo Guanlin heard Chang Suining say that it was Prince Rong who arranged the assassin in Shenzhou, he was just shocked, and never thought that this was a slander out of Chang Suining's selfish motives.
Under the current situation, it is perfectly normal for you to kill me or for me to kill you. An assassination attempt is not enough to bring any stain to King Rong.
"There's nothing wrong with this." Chang Suining said optimistically, "The fact that I can arouse the fear of the dignified King Rong proves that I am now a big shot, right?"
This one sentence broke the tense atmosphere in the study room, which was like facing a great enemy.
"The reason why Prince Rong's Mansion chose to place assassins in Shenzhou is obviously because it is difficult to operate in Huainan Road..." Wang Yue was still very worried: "But when the Lord enters the capital, once he leaves Huainan Road, he will be attacked by a hundred times more fiercely..."
This is really too risky.
Luo Guanlin was silent for a moment, then asked Chang Suining, "In your opinion, is it true or false that the Queen wants to abdicate?"
Chang Suining: "What do you think, sir?"
Luo Guanlin: "Based on my understanding of Ming Hou, this is probably a false impression."
Wang Changshi was stunned for a moment when he heard this, and looked at Mr. Qian Shen, whose face was half covered by a mask. Does Mr. Qian know the current saint well? "She is more likely to use the crown prince to win over the people's hearts and minds..." Luo Guanlin said, "She is showing weakness, or to make the princes and governors of various vassal states put down their guard as much as possible and enter the capital."
"More importantly, we can use the crown prince to split Prince Rong's power." Chang Suining said.
Luo Guanlin looked at her and nodded slowly.
After Wang Yue thought about it carefully, he understood the deeper meaning of this.
Prince Rong is the most popular prince of the surname Li today, but the forces surrounding him are not necessarily that solid, and many people are still waiting and watching... At this time, the emperor suddenly conveyed his intention to return power to Crown Prince Li Zhi, which would surely divide the hearts of those who were about to turn to Prince Rong.
Not everyone wants to take risks. Although the prince is young and ignorant, he can be taught slowly. Even for most people, the prince has the advantage of being easier to control than Prince Rong. If you support the former, at least you don't have to worry about being easily abandoned after the success.
Wang Yue said slowly with a complicated expression: "So, the prince's wedding is actually the emperor hosting a banquet with his country, inviting you to join the game, to distinguish between 'loyalty' and 'treachery', and to decide life and death..."
All the troops were taking risks, and the emperor was also taking risks. Wang Changshi said solemnly, "Prince Rong will not sit there and wait for death, and let the good situation slip away..."
"So, the odds of winning are unclear." Chang Suining said, "The saint is also gambling."
——Take the whole world as your stake.
This is undoubtedly a risky move.
But it cannot be said that the empress was too impatient and thus lost her mind.
The empress took this risk because she knew very well that she had no time left.
The situation is constantly deteriorating, and the Grand Princess is pressuring him to deal with He Xian. For the emperor, this is a sign of losing power. She must react quickly, otherwise she will be doomed...
She wanted to make the final blow while she still had the last bit of strength left.
This move of retreating to advance, either risking death and then surviving, or being shattered into pieces and buried with the imperial power - this is the situation of the person who set up the trap, and also her determination.
Luo Guanlin remained silent for a long time, silently clenching his fingers.
Although he was unwilling to follow the policies of the Ming Queen, he had to admit at this moment that in many cases, the Ming Queen had the decisiveness and courage that was no less than that of a male king, as well as the courage and perseverance to never retreat or fear.
However, the other party used all this courage to protect the power in his hand, and never, or did not have the time, to share any of it with the people of the country.
However, this courage and perseverance, when it was on the verge of collapse, revealed its drawbacks. Because they were unwilling to give in and let go, they would rather gamble with the world. If the situation got too out of control, the world would collapse to an irreversible point...
In a nutshell, she wanted this kingdom to be hers, even if it meant being buried with her.
There was a brief silence in the study. It was still late summer, but it seemed as if an endless cold wind was blowing in from the sky, and this cold wind would sweep everyone in a violent way that was visible to the naked eye.
Luo Guanlin's fingers turned white from being clenched tightly. He raised his eyes and looked at Chang Suining: "Sir, do you want to join the game?"
"Sir, I have already been in the trap." Chang Suining raised his hand, picked up the imperial edict, and said, "But I am unwilling to take unnecessary risks for ambitious people, nor am I willing to consolidate the blade of power for others, nor do I intend to be a lamb waiting to be slaughtered in a cage-"
Everyone in the study looked at the desk and the girl in the vermilion robe. Her voice and tone sounded the same as before, but her lowered eyes made it hard to tell what her emotions were.
As a daughter, I should go back to see my mother.
But she is Chang Suining, and is no longer anyone's daughter.
Moreover, she could not agree with the other party's style of doing things, so she could not accompany him.
So, she placed the edict full of plots above the candle flame and lit it, saying, "During this trip to the capital, I will not be known as Chang Sui Ning."
She would go back to the capital, but not at the invitation of others, nor to visit anyone.
Chang Suining casually threw the burning edict into the copper basin beside him, then raised his eyes and looked at the crowd who all looked silent.
Good night everyone.
(End of this chapter)
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