Chapter 377 The winds of this capital city never let anyone choose their own direction.
Jiang Yu sat in the sedan chair, reflecting on the events of the past few days and her plans for the future. She felt she should resolve the issues with the Prime Minister and the Prince of Lingnan as soon as possible. However, she couldn't rush things...
She stroked the jade pendant at her waist, planning for the future. Soon she arrived at the government office and began working, finishing more than an hour later. Just as she put down her pen, Xia He handed her a letter. She thought it was from Prince An, but was startled when she saw the handwriting on the envelope—it was from Prince Rui.
She smiled and opened the letter to read it carefully. Prince Rui had written that he had sent people to follow the Crown Prince and would inform her immediately if anything happened. Jiang Yu naturally understood why Prince Rui, who hadn't participated in court affairs for so many years, was doing this now.
However, Jiang Yu didn't want to cause trouble for Prince Rui, and she was confident she could handle the situation. After thinking for a moment, she picked up a pen and began writing a letter. First, she thanked him for his kindness, then expressed that she could resolve the matter herself. She also stated that she wouldn't be reckless and would proactively seek his help if needed.
After finishing the letter, she put it in an envelope and handed it to Xia He. Xia He took the letter and went outside, where she saw Qing Yan looking at her with a grin. She smiled and went over to him, handing him the letter. "A reply from my master, the Duke."
"Alright, thank you, Miss Xiahe." Qingyan thanked her ingratiatingly before quickly leaving.
He thought to himself that this Miss Xiahe was the personal maid of the Duke of Chu, and must be able to speak well of him. If he was polite to her, Miss Xiahe might speak well of his master to the Duke of Chu.
Giving herself a thumbs-up for her cleverness, Qingyan quickly entered the Prince's residence, handed the letter to Prince Rui, and said:
"This servant waited outside the Duke of Chu's study for a while and saw many people carrying official documents going in and out of the Duke of Chu's study, which shows that the Duke of Chu is very busy. But when she saw your letter, she replied immediately."
Prince Rui was pleased to hear this, and he couldn't suppress the smile on his face. He waved for Qingyan to leave and opened the letter, reading it several times. When he saw that Jiang Yu said she could handle it herself, he felt a little useless. But when he saw that Jiang Yu said she would ask him for help if needed, his mood brightened again.
He muttered to himself, "It's good that you don't treat me like a stranger."
Uncle Qingshan barely slept last night. Too many things had happened recently, and none of them were good. No wonder he couldn't sleep. When he woke up the next day, he felt dizzy and, looking in the mirror, realized he looked several years older.
At that moment, he wondered why he had to work so hard. Assisting the Crown Prince was a perilous path, with Jiang Yu watching him from the front, the unfathomable Prime Minister behind, and even Grand Tutor Yan's seemingly gentle smile concealing a calculation of pros and cons.
He only wanted to preserve the glory of the Qingshan Marquis's mansion and protect his kinship with the Crown Prince so that he could get a share of the spoils in the future. But now he felt like he was walking on thin ice every day, and every night he could only see the swords and shadows of the court when he closed his eyes, making it impossible for him to sleep. He was afraid that he would die before the Crown Prince ascended the throne.
well!
Uncle Qingshan sighed deeply. After being helped to wash up and eat something simple, he ordered someone to send a letter to Grand Tutor Yan, saying that he wanted to pay him a visit.
Upon receiving the invitation, Grand Tutor Yan immediately sent someone to greet him and prepared a grand welcome. However, after the messenger left, he paced back and forth in his room.
When Lord Qingshan came to visit at this time, his intentions were obvious: he wanted him to join the Crown Prince's faction, and the way to do that was for his granddaughter to become the Crown Prince's consort. It was just unclear which of his granddaughters the Crown Prince and his allies had their eye on.
In the past, it would have been Feng Xi without a doubt. But now that Feng Ju holds an official position, the Crown Prince and his allies might have their eyes on her. Thinking of the Duke of Wei's probing, Grand Tutor Yan hesitated for a moment before making his decision.
He went behind his desk, picked up a pen, and began to write a letter. Then he called his steward over, handed him the letter, and said, "This is for the Duke of Wei."
"yes."
The steward left, and Grand Tutor Yan continued pacing back and forth in the room. He had spent decades in officialdom, and his rise to his current position was entirely due to his caution and prudence. He had previously considered bringing Fengxi into the imperial harem as a stepping stone.
However, he couldn't see which prince would ultimately win, so he dared not gamble and abandoned the idea of bringing Yan Fengxi into the palace. But now the Crown Prince wanted to recruit him; if he refused, he would offend the Crown Prince's faction, but if he agreed, the Crown Prince's chances of succeeding to the throne were slim.
Now was not the time for him to waver, so he chose to form a marriage alliance with the Duke of Wei's family. The Duke of Wei's family and the Duke of Chu's family were of the same lineage, so marrying into the Duke of Wei's family meant boarding their ship. He thought that the ship of the Duke of Chu's lineage was much more stable than the ship of the Crown Prince's lineage.
This idea became even more firmly established after he met Qingshan Bo. Qingshan Bo's spirits were clearly not as high as before, while the Duke of Chu was always full of vigor and high spirits whenever he met him. Although Confucius did not speak of disorder, physical strength, strange phenomena, or spirits, seeing the stark difference in the demeanor of the two factions, one could not help but believe in the principle of the flow of fortune.
"I have heard that Grand Tutor is quite knowledgeable about landscape paintings. I have acquired an authentic copy of Fan Kuan's 'Travelers Among Mountains and Streams' and thought that Grand Tutor would surely appreciate its charm, so I took the liberty of bringing it here to present to you."
As he spoke, Uncle Qingshan gestured for his attendant to present a sandalwood box. He opened the box, took out a scroll, and slowly laid it on the table.
His face wore a perfectly measured smile, but his eyes held a hint of probing—presenting a famous painting was both to curry favor with Grand Tutor Yan and to subtly convey the sincerity of the Crown Prince's faction through this priceless object.
Grand Tutor Yan's gaze lingered on the painting for a moment, his fingertips lightly stroking his beard, leaving no room for guessing his thoughts. After carefully examining the entire painting, he said, "Authentic works by Fan Zhongli are indeed rare."
Then he sighed and said, "I am afraid I am unworthy of such a generous gift. I am already halfway to the grave, and lately I have been feeling weak and unable to manage the affairs of the court."
I've been thinking about this for the past few days. After the New Year, I'll submit my resignation to His Majesty, so I can return home, plant flowers, raise birds, enjoy my grandchildren, and spend a few days in peace and quiet. Hehehe..."
He seemed completely indifferent to everything, which infuriated Qingshanbo. However, since they had gone to such lengths to win over Grand Tutor Yan, he must have considerable power, and Qingshanbo dared not offend him too much.
But he was unwilling to leave at that point, so he smiled and said to Grand Tutor Yan, "Your idea of wanting to enjoy the company of your grandchildren is certainly good."
The smile on Qingshanbo's face faded slightly, but his eyes darkened. He said slowly, "It's just that the winds in the capital never let people choose their own direction. If the Grand Tutor wants to protect his family's safety, I'm afraid he can't achieve it simply by 'ignoring worldly affairs.'"
Some ships you can't simply board if you don't want to; some storms you can't simply avoid. The Grand Tutor, having spent so much time in officialdom, surely understands its intricacies better than anyone else.
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