Gu Xin had heard of this Prince of Donglin. He was the same age as her grandfather and rose to power through military achievements. He was valued by the late emperor, who was summoned back from his fiefdom by the Empress Dowager forty years ago. At that time, Yunzhou was in great chaos.
The Prince of Donglin made great contributions at the time. The Empress Dowager and the Emperor needed a military general to keep them in check, but the Peng family was far away in Kunzhou and the Ying family was in the south. The Prince of Donglin gave the late Emperor a suggestion, which ultimately helped stabilize the country. The Prince of Donglin was then granted the title of Prince.
After he held military power and helped the Empress Dowager and the late Emperor stabilize the country, he handed over the Tiger Tally and, citing injuries sustained on the battlefield, withdrew from the court in his early thirties, moving to his fiefdom of Taizhou.
Because of his sensible nature, the Empress Dowager and the late Emperor granted him the fief of Taizhou. Otherwise, there would have been no way that such a place, so close to the capital, would be granted to a prince of a different surname.
Even now, when the Empress Dowager chats with Gu Xin and her sisters, she still mentions the Prince of Donglin and his wife.
King Donglin was born in the countryside. He was a hunter from a small village in Yunzhou. After getting married, he served in the army. Because he was in Yunzhou, he was able to return to the village every year to visit his wife and children.
The situation was very tense when his fourth child was born, and it took five years to stabilize.
The Empress Dowager wasn't talking about the Prince of Donglin to the children; she was focusing on the Princess of Donglin, an illiterate village girl who single-handedly managed the Donglin Prince's residence.
King Donglin made many decisions based on the advice of his Queen.
Because their family is so sensible, the royal family is willing to give them face and grant them the title of king, with the title being hereditary and perpetual. As long as they do not rebel or do anything detrimental to the Great Zhou, their kingship can be passed down from generation to generation. Every daughter of the King of Donglin is directly granted the title of princess from the moment she is born.
"Lord Qin, I've heard of this Prince of Donglin. His heir passed away from illness a few years ago. Has Prince of Donglin not yet appointed a new heir?" Gu Xin asked.
"That's right. Logically speaking, the eldest son of the Prince of Donglin has already married and had children, and the Prince has passed away. The position of Prince should belong to the eldest grandson of the Prince of Donglin. However, I don't know why the Prince's Mansion has never applied for the title of Prince." Lord Qin replied.
“Alright, I’ll go to the palace first. You make the arrangements here, and we can set off once I’m out of the palace,” Gu Xin nodded and said.
"Yes, Princess. I'll send Xiao Qiu with He Gang and He Qiang to accompany you. You can bring the rest of the men yourself, or you can find someone at the prefectural government office after you arrive in Taizhou. Oh, and I've also arranged for Constable Gao to come over for you," said Lord Qin.
"Thank you, I'll be going now." Gu Xin said goodbye to Zheng Qiu again, and then had the carriage from the Dali Temple take her to the palace.
"My lord." After seeing Gu Xin off, Zheng Qiu seemed to have something to say.
"Xiao Qiu, following Princess Xin Xin will definitely be good for you. Do your job well!" Lord Qin patted Zheng Qiu on the shoulder.
"Okay." Zheng Qiu ultimately didn't say it.
She didn't actually want to go to the Donglin Prince's Mansion because she had a marriage contract when she was young, which was personally arranged by the Donglin Prince and the old Marquis of Yong'an. However, she was harmed by her stepmother, and her marriage contract was naturally arranged by her stepmother to be given to her own daughter.
Her stepmother was a concubine who was promoted to the rank of principal wife. Her stepmother's daughter was two years older than her and had already married the eldest grandson of the King of Donglin. She didn't really want to meet those people now.
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