If he was to lend Su Rong three hundred thousand troops without a written agreement, the Emperor naturally would not feel at ease, even if he decided to delegate power to Yan Huisheng. Despite this, he couldn’t resist Su Rong’s trust.
Sometimes, the heart of an emperor can be that small. There was no helping it.
After hearing Su Rong’s words, the Emperor coughed lightly to hide his thoughts, "It’s not as serious as you say."
Su Rong didn’t expose him, "Since you trust me so much, should I not write it? That would save trouble."
The Emperor coughed again, "It still needs to be written, to be used as an explanation to the ministers along with the Crown Prince."
Su Rong smiled, not wanting to waste time teasing the Emperor any longer. She was there to discuss this matter after all, so she quickly said, "Okay."
Yan Huisheng then spoke: "Father Emperor, could we invite the old Duke, Grand Tutor, and Rui’an King to the Imperial Palace to discuss and draft an agreement? It will discuss the specific return date for the three hundred thousand troops, as well as trade, military cooperation, and other matters between Daliang and Nanchu and their joint opposition to Dawei."
The Emperor nodded, "Very well, do as you said. Not just those three, invite the heads of all Six Ministries to the Council Hall."
Yan Huisheng bowed his head and passed on the instruction.
Su Rong had no objections.
So, the Emperor, Crown Prince, and Su Rong sat in the Hall for a while longer, exchanging casual conversation. As the ministers started to gather in the palace, they then moved to the Council Hall.
When the three arrived, the ministers were already there. The old Duke arrived first. Upon seeing Su Rong, he said, "You naughty girl, quietly returning to the Capital City, and didn’t even bother sending someone to inform me."
"I planned to visit the Duke Residence tomorrow, but unexpectedly ran into you at the Palace today." Su Rong laughed.
The old Duke knew that she had just returned, and would have to visit the Eastern Palace and the Imperial Palace first. Her visit to the Duke Residence was indeed scheduled for tomorrow. He nodded, "Can you stay for a few days?"
Su Rong held up three fingers, "Three days."
The old Duke sighed, "Come to the Residence for lunch tomorrow."
Su Rong nodded, "Okay."
Seeing Su Rong, Rui’an King praised her greatly for her skills. He also asked about Zhang Mao and Zhang Yun from the Zhang family, truly wondering if she had won them over. How did she convince them to join her?
The old Duke didn’t reveal any details, and the women of the Duke Residence didn’t leak any news either. Therefore, Rui’an King and others only heard rumors. The outside rumors were rife in Capital City, but no specifics were known.
The Emperor knew somewhat but not in detail. The old Duke did not give him a detailed account. Yan Huisheng knew the details, but he naturally would not reveal them either.
Seeing Rui’an King’s curiosity, Su Rong didn’t keep it a secret. She briefly explained why Zhang Mao and Zhang Yun had decided to join her. In a few words, Rui’an King, intelligent as he was, understood and was greatly enlightened.
He respectfully said to Su Rong: "Princess, you are powerful. You can win an army without a fight. This is an excellent strategy. It is much better to control people than to kill them. This is the best strategy."
Su Rong laughed, "Today on the street, I ran into Young Prince Xie. He was very curious and invited me for a drink. But I will only stay in the City for three days. If he cannot return within these three days, I won’t be able to have his drink. May I trouble the Prince to send someone to inform him? Official matters are of utmost importance. If he is unable to make it, he will have to wait until he has a chance to visit Nanchu, and then I will treat him to a drink. Otherwise, I may not return to Daliang for a few years."
Mentioning his son Xie Lin, Rui’an King was very pleased. He had grown into a more capable successor of the Rui’an Residence than he had anticipated. He nodded and smiled, "Okay. I will send someone to tell him."
Grand Tutor Qin had been waiting nearby. After Su Rong finished her conversations with the old Duke and Rui’an King, he said, "Miss Su Qi, I want to ask about my disciple."
Looking at Grand Tutor Qin, Su Rong felt somewhat guilty. Zhou Gu was carefully nurtured by Grand Tutor Qin, but she had kidnapped him. She bowed slightly to Grand Tutor Qin, with a humble manner, "Grand Tutor Qin, after we leave the palace, my carriage will take you back to Qin Residence. Shall we talk on the road?"
After all, Zhou Gu’s situation would take some time to explain. It could not be summed up in a few words.
Grand Tutor Qin nodded in agreement, "Okay."
Everyone entered the Council Hall, taking their seats around the long table inside the Great Hall. Naturally, Su Rong stepped into this Council Hall as the princess of Nanchu.
The Emperor sat at the head of the table, with Su Rong and Yan Huisheng seated at his side, on the same level. Although Nanchu was a vassal state of Daliang, everyone clearly understood that the Nanchu King was eligible to sit on the same level as the Emperor. If it were not for the Nanchu King’s assistance at the request of Princess Zhenmin, Daliang would have long been swallowed by Dawei. The fact that Nanchu had not broken away from being a vassal state was only due to the king’s sadness over Princess Zhenmin’s death and her efforts to protect Daliang.
If not for Princess Zhenmin and Su Rong, the two countries would have long been on bad terms and had nothing to do with each other.
The relationship of cooperation between the two parties naturally needed equality. Su Rong knew that her seat was deliberately arranged by Yan Huisheng. As a vassal state, she should normally sit below him. However, his arrangement reflected his understanding that Nanchu could not always be subordinate to Daliang, especially after Su Rong took power.
Su Rong acknowledged and took her seat without showing any change in expression.
The Emperor glanced at Yan Huisheng and Su Rong and didn’t say anything. He talked about the pressure on Daliang’s military expenses after quelling the rebellion, the imminent threat from Dawei, and the potential for them to seize the opportunity to invade the border. Therefore, the troops could not be disbanded and returned home. If needed again, it would be difficult, especially to recruit soldiers quickly. Thus, they needed to be trained daily, meaning they could not be disbanded. He also talked about Zhang Ping’s rebellion, Su Rong’s chief merits, the pressure on the national treasury, the issue of Su Rong’s safety on her journey to Nanchu, and the unfavorable internal situation in Nanchu. Daliang should support Su Rong in order to ensure she succeeds to the Nanchu throne so that they can jointly resist Dawei. As such, they planned to lend Su Rong three hundred thousand troops to take to Nanchu, and the purpose of the gathering was to negotiate and sign an agreement with Su Rong.
Everyone except the old Duke was taken aback upon hearing the Emperor’s speech.
The old Duke looked at the shocked ministers and sighed only once, "Alas, the national treasury is empty."
With just that statement, everyone else fell silent. It was a well-known fact that Daliang’s national treasury was empty. Most recently, military expenses and material supplies had been met by seizing the property of countless ministers who sided with the Crown Prince and the second Prince. This provided temporary relief for the national treasury. If they were to now support an eighty-thousand-man army, Daliang truly wouldn’t be able to afford it.
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