"Alright, since Shizi himself has admitted it, it seems that Shizi won't be able to return to Jinxi for the next few years!"
Jing Zhe said.
"How could that be? As long as I pay off the debt, I can go back."
Su Xinping said with dissatisfaction.
That's what they say...
Jing Zhe sneered, "But can Shizi repay the debt? And with what? Does the Prince of Jin have other properties that he can casually take out five thousand taels of silver to help Shizi repay the debt?"
"..."
Su Xinping was dumbfounded. At this moment, he finally realized that from the very beginning, Jing Zhe had dug a big pit for him to jump into!
He first asked about the monthly salary in front of all the ministers, making Su Xinping admit that the Prince of Jin could not come up with that much silver, and even if they had the silver, they could not repay it!
Otherwise, he would follow the trail and claim that his father had other sources of income and was plotting a rebellion!
Damn it!
This single act cost him his freedom for the next few years!
Su Xinping stared blankly, as if she had lost her parents.
After hearing this, Emperor An almost wanted to applaud Jing Zhe!
When Su Xinping was brought to Jingzhou under the pretext of "accompanying the Crown Prince in his studies," he was worried that Su Xinping would find an excuse to return, and that the Prince of Jin would take advantage of this time to rebel.
Now things are much better. Su Xinping won't be able to go back for several years, so he can use this time to do many things...
Although he was overjoyed, his expression was half serious and half regretful as he said, "Alas, how could things have turned out this way? I was originally going to agree to let Xinping return to Jinxi to reunite with his family... However, I have already agreed to President Jing's proposal, and I cannot go back on my word... So, Xinping will have to stay in Jingzhou for the time being!"
After saying that, he said to Sui Shouren, "Since Chief Jing has said that travel is restricted, then General Sui, please send a few personal guards to stand guard outside the Prince of Jin's residence. This will also protect the Prince of Jin's safety!"
Protection? It's actually just surveillance.
Sui Shouren accepted the order, gathered a few personal guards, and led the dazed Su Xinping back...
Emperor An glanced at Jing Zhe, his expression full of admiration and satisfaction.
...
Next, it's time to take care of my own business.
Emperor An glanced down at the hall below, then asked, "Chief Secretary Yang, has the Duke of Yang been corresponding with you recently?"
Yang Zhaoyang stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said, "Your Majesty, the Duke of Yang sent a letter some time ago."
"Oh? Duke Yang also sent me a message saying that everything went well during his trip to Jinxi, but I was still a little worried, afraid that Duke Yang was too proud to say anything even if things didn't go well."
"Your Majesty is truly insightful! In his letter to me, Duke Yang did indeed mention that the trip to Jinxi was exhausting and tiring. He had initially thought it would be easy, but he had been careless. In addition, Duke Yang is getting on in years and is finding it somewhat beyond his capabilities!"
"..."
The ministers remained silent after hearing this and lowered their heads.
The four major sects hold a martial arts competition every year, which is the only time of year when they all gather together. Emperor An wanted to win them over, so every year he would send officials from the court under the guise of maintaining order and collecting local customs. However, in the past, he had only sent civil officials, which was not very effective.
Because Jinxi is the territory of the Prince of Jin, it is inconvenient to do things there. Moreover, it is difficult to speak with the sect. Therefore, the trip to Jinxi is a difficult task. This year, the choice of Duke Yang Feng of Wei to go there made the civil officials in the court breathe a sigh of relief. Suddenly, when they heard that Duke Yang was complaining, they were afraid that Emperor An would suddenly send someone to support him again, so they lowered their heads.
"The Crown Prince has been staying in Jingzhou for many years. Why don't you go to Jinxi this time as a training trip?"
"Yes, Your Majesty! Your subject will certainly live up to your expectations!"
Su Moyan cupped his hands and said.
The officials were somewhat taken aback; the Crown Prince was leaving Jingzhou for the first time, and he was taking on such a hot potato.
The happiest person was Su Mowu. As long as the trip to Jinxi did not go smoothly, Su Moyan's prestige in the court would decline, which would be great for him.
Emperor An nodded and continued, "My esteemed ministers, is there anyone who wishes to travel to Jinxi to assist Duke Yang and the Crown Prince?"
"..."
No one answered.
"Since none of my ministers are speaking, shall I order it myself?"
"..."
Now, the ministers lowered their heads even further.
"Your Majesty, perhaps I should go instead!"
At this moment, Jing Zhe "voluntarily" stepped forward.
Upon hearing this, the others immediately looked up, their eyes filled with gratitude as they gazed at Jing Zhe.
"Oh? President Jing wants to go?"
"Your Majesty, the martial arts competition among the four major sects must have many interesting stories. I can take a few newspaper staff members with me to cover the event. We can then report back to the Da'an Newspaper Office all the interesting tales from the competition so that the people can see them too!"
"Excellent! It's commendable that President Jing has such awareness!"
Emperor An nodded in praise.
At this moment, King Xiang frowned and pondered.
Although he didn't like Jing Zhe, he had to admit that Jing Zhe was very capable. If Su Moyan were sent to Jinxi, he was sure Su Moyan would accomplish nothing.
But if Jing Zhe goes, then who knows…
If Jing Zhe succeeds, the credit will go to Su Moyan, which is unacceptable.
So Su Mowu quickly stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, the newspaper is thriving and deeply loved by the people. What will happen to the newspaper if President Jing suddenly leaves?"
Emperor An seemed to be deep in thought as he asked, "President Jing, what Prince Xiang said makes sense. Why don't you send the rest of your newspaper to go with the Crown Prince, while you stay behind to oversee Jingzhou?"
Jing Zhe smiled and shook his head.
"Your Majesty and Prince Xiang are overthinking it. The newspaper's procedures are becoming increasingly mature. Even if I am in Jinxi, it will not affect the newspaper's various departments' interviews and distribution. In fact, I will send a message by carrier pigeon and have the current affairs department write down the events in Jinxi!"
Emperor An nodded, but many ministers had doubts.
"President Jing, let's put aside the other sections for now, because as you said, the heads of each department can conduct their own interviews and write, but the story about the monkey in the entertainment section, I'm afraid it can't be written without President Jing, right?"
This is the key point for all the ministers who are pursuing the case!
The authors have all left, so who will update?
"Hehe, you gentlemen are overthinking it! Before leaving Jingzhou, I will tell the rest of the story to the members of the entertainment department, and they can compile it and write it themselves!"
"..."
The ministers were puzzled for a moment, then suddenly realized what was going on!
This guy has a backlog of drafts!
I even lied to them and said I couldn't think of a story!
If they really couldn't figure it out, why would they dare to run away?
So someone complained, "Since President Jing has already figured out what to do next, why don't you tell us?"
"Yes, President Jing, do you know how anxious we are waiting for the monkeys to come out?"
Jing Zhe smiled and waved his hand: "Gentlemen, you've misunderstood. I really haven't figured it out yet, but I might be able to before I leave Jingzhou!"
"..."
————
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