Emperor An didn't care at all, and waved his hand: "Back then, when your fifth sister led the Jinghong Iron Cavalry to fight against the barbarians of the Western Frontier, and I directly appointed her as the Jinghong General, no one dared to say anything! Besides, what you did this time is no worse than your fifth sister's!"
He then added, "Besides, as the head of this organization, you are only subject to my orders. It would be better if you had a higher official rank. Otherwise, how can you reward your subordinates when you are only a fifth-rank head of the organization?"
Jing Zhe was naturally pleased with this, and without saying anything more, he bowed and thanked him, saying, "Thank you, Your Majesty!"
After rising, he continued, "Your Majesty, since the Western Frontier Heavy Cavalry Regiment has suffered heavy losses this time, there will be no more war in Liangzhou in the short term, and Liangzhou City is no longer in danger. Therefore, I implore Your Majesty to allow my fifth sister to return to Jingzhou and relinquish her military power."
Jing Zhe had already discussed this matter with Liu Jinghong and they had reached an agreement long ago.
He originally planned to wait until Liu Jinghong returned before speaking, but now that Emperor An was going to bestow such a high official position upon him, and had repeatedly mentioned that he was "on par with your fifth sister," Jing Zhe had to speak up in advance, regardless of whether Emperor An had other intentions.
Emperor An glanced at him and asked, "Whose idea is this?"
"Your Majesty, this is the joint decision of my fifth sister and me."
Andi stared at him, then burst into laughter.
This is where Jing Zhe's cleverness lies. After repeatedly making great contributions and gaining a sect identity, he also promoted himself to the second rank. He must have thought of the situation of "his merits overshadowing his master", so he took the initiative to ask Liu Jinghong to hand over his military power.
Imagine a martial arts alliance leader of the second rank, who has both imperial and sect resources at his disposal. If his sister also controls the most elite army in Anguo, even if Emperor An doesn't think much of it, others will use it as an excuse to cause trouble.
Jing Zhe's initiative in asking Liu Jinghong to relinquish his military power was enough to demonstrate his sincerity. Emperor An, being so intelligent, had long understood his intentions and was both moved and delighted, secretly thinking that he had not misjudged the man.
But he did not agree, saying, "General Jinghong has worked hard for Liangzhou City for many years. Now that there is no war in Liangzhou, it is time for her to return to Jingzhou and reunite with you! However, General Jinghong does not need to hand over her military power; it will remain in her hands! If Anguo encounters any war in the future, General Jinghong can directly lead the troops!"
These words clearly demonstrate Emperor An's trust in Jing Zhe.
The conversation between the two then became more relaxed. After chatting for a while, Emperor An laughed and said, "Everything in this world is predestined. When your master came to Jingzhou, he happened to recognize Mo Chen as his disciple. Apart from me and the two of them, no one else in the world knew about it. I never expected that many years later, you would become Mo Chen's junior brother. It can only be said that fate is unpredictable!"
Jing Zhe nodded in agreement.
Emperor An continued, "Now that you've become the leader of the martial arts alliance as a disciple of the Heaven and Earth Sect, this identity will be very useful to you, so you must make the most of it. For example, Mo Chen is also a disciple of the Heaven and Earth Sect. This was my last resort when the Third Prince of Southern Qi came to marry her, allowing me to act with impunity. Because as long as she revealed this identity, she could escape the court's control and act as a member of the sect. You and she are both members of the sect—"
At this point, Emperor An glanced at Jing Zhe and asked, "Do you understand what I mean?"
"..."
Jing Zhe felt he understood, but he didn't dare to say he did.
He bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I understand! Although I am a member of a sect, my heart is with the court. My position within the sect is merely for the sake of convenience, and I would never do anything that would harm the court!"
"..."
Andy was taken aback: When did he become so stupid? Wasn't it clear enough that he had pointed it out himself?
Although he was the monarch of a country, he was also a father, and Emperor An was well aware of his daughter's feelings.
During the days when Jing Zhe was not in Jingzhou, Su Mochen often sat in the Imperial Garden for a whole day, looking at the western sky and sighing to himself. Later, Emperor An asked Su Mochen's personal maid, Guizhi, and finally learned about Su Mochen's thoughts.
Emperor An was initially delighted by this, because in his view, if there was a man in An Kingdom who was worthy of Su Mochen, it would be none other than Jing Zhe. Moreover, Jing Zhe was the lucky star of An Kingdom, and if he and Su Mochen could truly form a marriage, it would have a long-term significance for An Kingdom.
But then Emperor An had another headache, because he knew that Jing Zhe had many female confidantes, especially his sisters…
Emperor An lacked the confidence to persuade Jing Zhe to abandon other women and settle down as a prince consort, but Su Mochen, as a princess of Anguo, could not allow the world to know that she shared a husband with another woman…
While he was struggling with this, he learned that Jing Zhe, like Su Mochen, was a disciple of the Heaven and Earth Sect. At that moment, a brilliant idea struck him, and he came up with a perfect solution.
After finally waiting for him to return, An Di excitedly finished speaking, but Jing Zhe didn't react at all, leaving An Di dumbfounded.
Could it be that this is just wishful thinking on Mo Chen's part, and Jing Zhe has no such intention at all?
Then his idea is completely flawed!
At this moment, Jing Zhe suddenly asked, "Your Majesty, is my senior sister in Fuchen Palace now?"
Without a second thought, Emperor An nodded, but then froze, because Jing Zhe had always addressed Su Mochen as "Your Highness," and this was the first time she had called her "Senior Sister" in front of Emperor An.
Moreover, even though Su Mochen is his senior sister, it would be more appropriate to address her as "Your Highness" in the palace. Jing Zhe is not stupid, so why did he act stupid twice in such a short period of time?
Emperor An squinted and thought carefully, and then found the problem.
He's not stupid, he's incredibly smart!
Pretending not to understand him was probably because he didn't want to reveal their relationship on his very first day back in Jingzhou, but his words had already made his stance clear.
Having figured this out, Emperor An felt much more at ease.
"Are you going to find Mo Chen?"
Jing Zhe nodded.
"Going to do what?"
"I brought some things back for my senior sister from Liangzhou..."
"What is that?"
"It's just...some local specialties from Liangzhou..."
Emperor An's eyes were piercing. Jing Zhe was afraid that if he revealed that the gift he had given Su Mochen was jewelry, Emperor An would be so pleased that he would immediately bestow a marriage upon him. Although he had already understood Emperor An's meaning, Jing Zhe did not want to be forced into this situation, even if he was Emperor An.
"Oh? Local specialties? Did you bring any for me?"
"I brought it!"
Jing Zhe quickly replied, "Some of the yaks left behind by the heavy cavalry regiments in the Western Frontier were made into dried beef. I brought quite a lot with me, but I was in a hurry to go to court this morning and didn't bring them in from outside the palace. Your Majesty can send General Sui to bring them in!"
"It's truly a local specialty..."
Emperor An glanced at Jing Zhe, shook his head slightly, and thought to himself that although Jing Zhe was quite capable, he always seemed a bit dim-witted when it came to relationships between men and women…
Who gives this to a woman?
————
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