Mu Chengan stretched out his hand and pulled Yuan Jing to sit next to him, smiling and said: "Don't worry, I dare to come here, so I am not afraid of anything. Don't worry, I don't need to do anything next time, they will be restless and can't wait."
Yuan Jing was shocked. Who could it be? The eldest prince, the second prince, or the third prince? Or were all three going to move?
Mu Chengan poured a cup of tea for Yuan Jing and said, "Just wait and see. These three are not good people and will make a move. Let them kill each other for a while. Who told the old man not to appoint a crown prince, so that the princes below are fighting like black chicken eyes."
Yuan Jing smiled and said, "Even if he is established, they will still fight. First, work together to bring down the prince, and then fight each other."
We have heard too much about dramas like the Nine Dragons Fighting for the Throne in the past two lives. So what if there was a crown prince? He was still deposed and reinstated twice, and finally imprisoned until death.
Mu Cheng'an came just to see Yuan Jing. He would feel better after talking to him. The carriage circled the city for a long time before finally stopping at the gate of the Tao family. Mu Cheng'an watched Yuan Jing enter the mansion from the carriage before ordering them to return.
Before getting off the car, he reminded Yuan Jing that both the mansion and himself should be careful recently. He would arrange a few people to protect the people in the mansion in secret. Yuan Jing did not refuse at all because this was Mu Cheng'an's good intention and it also concerned the safety of his family.
One day half a month later, Yuan Jing clearly felt that the atmosphere over the capital city had become extremely depressing, the kind that could explode at any moment. After he came back from the yamen, he asked people to lock the doors and windows tightly. His father also asked Yuan Jing to come back from the farm a few days ago, because when he went to the yamen, there were only women and children at home, and with his father around, things could be more secure.
The old lady and Xiao Song didn't notice anything unusual, but Tao Dayong, who had returned to the capital from outside the city, felt that the atmosphere on the street outside was different from before. He privately asked his son worriedly: "Yuan Jing, what is going to happen? Otherwise, they wouldn't have specially called Dad back and asked him to stay at home all the time."
Yuan Jing looked at the sky outside. It was covered with dark clouds, just like the situation in the capital at the moment. He didn't know how long it would take for the clouds to clear and the moon to rise.
He whispered, "Dad, the emperor is seriously ill. He may not last long at this age, but he has not yet appointed a crown prince, so..."
Tao Dayong shuddered all over. Are the princes trying to seize power? Yuan Jing held his father's shaking hand and said, "Don't worry, Dad. We are a small family. As long as we don't go out, our house is absolutely safe. Dad, don't let grandma and mother find out anything unusual."
"Yes, don't worry, Dad is not worried." Tao Dayong tried to remain calm. He was the head of the family and could not take the lead in panic.
As expected, something happened that night. Just as the old lady fell asleep, Yuan Jing was startled by the sound of horse hooves outside. He walked out of the study and saw Wu Yi standing on the wall in black clothes, looking in the direction of the palace. When he saw Yuan Jing coming out, he turned around to glance at him, then jumped down from the wall and told Yuan Jing what he saw outside.
As he was speaking, Tao Dayong also ran out. He had not gone to bed yet.
It was also that night that he realized that Tao Wu was different. He was no ordinary personal attendant, but Tao Wu at this time gave him a sense of security.
Pulling his son, he whispered, "Is this Tao Wu really a long-term attendant?"
Wu Yi could hear it, but pretended not to. Yuan Jing smiled and said, "Dad, besides Tao Wu, there are still people protecting our family in secret. Dad, I can't explain it clearly for a while, but Dad just needs to know that with them here, our family is absolutely safe."
Can't explain it clearly? You don't know how to say it, Wu Yian muttered inwardly with a blank expression.
There is someone else? Tao Dayong was not afraid anymore. He looked around curiously, but it was so dark that he could not see a shadow. Of course, he did not doubt his son's words. This must be a friend his son met outside. This friend is really good. He actually lent such a master to his son to protect his family. Tao Dayong thought that he should thank his son's friend someday.
"Dad, go back and look after Mom and Yuan Ze. I'm here outside."
"Okay, you be careful too. Call dad if anything happens." Tao Dayong felt much more at ease this time.
Later that night, the noise became louder and louder. Not only was there the sound of horse hooves, but people were fighting outside the imperial city, as well as voices and fire. The old woman had a light sleeper, so the old lady woke up anyway. By this time, young Mrs. Song had felt much better after being comforted by Tao Dayong. She went in and told the old lady what had happened, which scared her badly.
Fortunately, the whole family was together, and the old lady, who had experienced a lot, managed to stay calm. She was about to collapse out of fright, but what she was most afraid of was her two grandchildren. For their sake, she had to hold on.
Yuan Jing also called the servants in the mansion together and kept watch until the second half of the night, when the noise outside subsided. The old lady and the others didn't notice anything, but Yuan Jing smelled blood in the wind. Many people died that night.
Yuan Jing made some calming tea and waited for his family to drink it and go to sleep. The calming tea took effect quickly, and everyone, including Tao Dayong, fell asleep. Only Yuan Jing and Wu Yi remained outside.
Wu Yi saw that Yuan Jing was not panicked from beginning to end except for caring about his family. He was completely different from the scholars he had met before. He asked curiously, "Master Tao, aren't you worried about the situation outside?"
Yuan Jing teased him: "Do you doubt your master's ability?"
Wu Yi was confused. How could he doubt his master's ability? But what did this have to do with Tao Yuanjing?
Yuan Jing chuckled: "I believe that the prince can handle all this."
When the sky was getting light, the funeral bells rang in the palace. Yuan Jing and Wu Yi looked at each other. The emperor had passed away, which meant that the outcome was decided.
"Wu Yi, you go out and take a look. I'll stay in the mansion to make the arrangements."
"Okay." Wu Yi climbed over the wall and went out. Yuan Jing ordered the servants at home to put away all the colors that should not appear.
The old emperor really passed away. Yuan Jing only then thought, how many of those princes are still alive? Because he just thought, if the ninth prince is to be promoted to the throne and the King of Zhenbei is the regent, then the previous princes cannot stay either. Otherwise, why not support the previous princes but the youngest one?
Yuan Jing didn't think Mu Cheng'an's methods were too cruel. This was a political struggle, a life-or-death struggle. There was no right or wrong position. But how would history books evaluate Mu Cheng'an in the future? Although death was the end of everything, Yuan Jing still couldn't bear to see Mu Cheng'an leave behind only a bad reputation.
The only thing he could do to help Mu Chengan was to do his best to build Daxia into a better place in the next few decades and leave a significant mark for Mu Chengan as the regent.
When the sun rose, Wu Yi came back and brought detailed information about the situation outside. In the middle of the night, the eldest prince, the second prince, and the third prince all started fighting. The palace was almost a river of blood. The fight outside was just the three princes' men bumping into each other and fighting each other.
The second prince died, the third prince was disabled, and the eldest prince only suffered minor injuries. However, the two adult princes, the fourth and fifth, were killed by these three princes without any preparation. All of them were killed with one blow. The old emperor was so angry that he died on the spot, and he didn't even have time to leave his last will.
Prince Zhenbei led people to suppress the rebellion at a critical moment, and the queen, who had been in the deep palace and had almost no sense of existence, also stood up to preside over the harem. She announced that the ninth prince would be registered under her name as the legitimate prince, and ordered Prince Zhenbei to take charge of the government and help the youngest son ascend the throne until the youngest son came of age and then return power to the emperor.
The queen was very powerful and suppressed the mothers of the six, seven, and eight princes who had been making a fuss, thinking that their chance had come. With the legitimate princes around, what could the mothers of the illegitimate princes have to do with them?
When the King of Zhenbei appeared with his troops, his face glowing with no trace of sickness, everyone knew that they had been deceived by the King of Zhenbei. How could the King of Zhenbei be sick? Even in the chaos of that night, no one knew how many King of Zhenbei appeared. They didn't even know when he and the queen hooked up. After the palace coup that night, the capital and the palace were completely under the control of the King of Zhenbei. What else could they say?
The one who died with regrets the most, Yuan Jing thought, was the old emperor. He had been on guard against the Prince of Zhenbei for many years, and what he feared most was that the Prince of Zhenbei would rebel against his superiors. But in the end, the Prince of Zhenbei really did rebel like he did, and he could do nothing. It can be said that the Prince of Zhenbei was forced to this point by him.
When the Tao family got up, order outside had been restored. Except for the soldiers still patrolling, there was no trace of the chaos at night. However, there were not many people out and about. The vendors who had set up stalls did not dare to come out because they did not know the situation outside.
Gradually, the situation in the palace was leaked out bit by bit, of course, it was the situation that Mu Chengan wanted the people to know, such as the fact that the eldest prince, the second prince, and the third prince rebelled and killed other princes, and that the old emperor was angered to death by them.
For example, the Prince of Zhenbei led his troops to suppress the rebellion, and obeyed the Queen's orders to support the legitimate prince, the ninth prince, to ascend the throne as emperor.
The common people felt relieved when they heard this. The King of Zhenbei was a great contributor to Daxia. With him around, neither the capital nor the border would be in chaos, and they could live a peaceful life.
Those civil and military officials who dared not go out at night were all stunned. In just one night, the sky in the capital changed. The officials who knew the old emperor's temper dared to bet that if the old emperor knew that the queen had handed over the power of government to the Prince of Zhenbei and let him lead the government as regent, he would probably be so angry that he died, then come back to life, and then die again. He would never hand over the power to the Prince of Zhenbei to anyone else.
But now the palace is guarded by the Zhenbei King's men, and there are so many officials standing behind the Zhenbei King in the court. What dare they say? Didn't you see that the blood stains at the gate of the palace haven't been washed clean yet? Don't you want the head on your neck anymore?
So the battle between the old emperor and the King of Zhenbei ended with the King of Zhenbei winning?
A group of staunch elements who stood on the prince's side were purged at night, so not many officials jumped out during the day, and even those officials' voices were not loud and did not cause much splash.
Moreover, on the first day of the Regent's reign, in addition to instructing the Ministry of Rites to prepare for the new emperor's enthronement, he also intensified the rectification and post-disaster management of Jiangnan Province. After the measures were handed down one by one, the officials who sincerely worked for the people kept their mouths shut. The Prince of Zhenbei did much more practical things than the old emperor and the adult princes. With the Prince of Zhenbei around, Jiangnan Province would soon be able to emerge from the shadow of the flood.
After the old emperor's funeral, the Ministry of Rites began to prepare for the young emperor's coronation ceremony.
That day, Yuan Jing was also fortunate enough to see the young emperor for the first time. He was held in the arms of the empress, no, now the empress dowager, and sat on the throne, accepting the worship of all officials.
Yuan Jing thought to himself that Mu Cheng'an must have reached an agreement with the childless queen a long time ago. Originally, the queen was unknown in the palace and lived alone behind closed doors, as if she didn't exist. But now that the queen has stood up, the ministers have nothing to say. Now she has the loudest voice in the palace. No matter how favored those concubines were in the past, the title of queen can suppress them.
When the funeral bell rang, Mu Jinxuan, who was still torturing Tao Yuzhu in the palace, was stunned for a moment, with an expression of disbelief. Such a funeral bell only represented one signal, that is, the emperor's death. How was this possible?
"Someone come! Someone come quickly! What on earth is happening outside?"
Tao Yuzhu also ran out to call for help, but the courtyard had long been sealed off by Mu Cheng'an's men. Without his permission, not even a fly could fly out. So the masters and servants trapped inside could only rely on the sound of the bell to infer the situation outside, and they were terrified.
No matter how Mu Jinxuan shouted, his people could not get out, and no one told him the news from outside. Only then did he start to panic, not just because of the worry about his disabled leg.
He had heard all kinds of rumors outside a long time ago, and from the emperor's attitude towards him, he knew that the rumors were most likely true. He was also a prince like the third prince. Although he could not get close to the throne after being adopted by the Zhenbei Palace, compared with the princes who failed in the fight for the throne, he was invincible. A hereditary king of a different surname who held military power was more important than anything else.
So he actually enjoyed the convenience brought by this identity, so he went to the palace with confidence to ask for a break from the engagement, canceled the original marriage, and asked the emperor to grant him a new marriage, because he knew that the emperor felt guilty about him, and this guilt turned into indulgence towards him, paving the way for him in advance.
So he knew that his biggest backer was the emperor, but what if the emperor died? Could he still act as recklessly as before, even ignoring the father, the King of Zhenbei?
Looking down and seeing his crippled leg, Mu Jinxuan suddenly became afraid. He didn't know which prince would succeed the throne, but no matter which prince came to the throne, he would never indulge him as he did in the past.
No, he can still be saved. No matter which emperor is in power, they are all very wary of the military power of the Prince of Zhenbei's Mansion, so they hope that this military power will return to the hands of the royal family. He is one of the important chess pieces. So no matter which prince succeeds to the throne, he will have to rely on him to inherit the throne and military power of the Prince of Zhenbei's Mansion. Once he has the military power, the emperor in power will not be able to ignore him.
Yes, that’s right, Mu Jinxuan comforted himself in this way while feeling uneasy.
But within two days, news was delivered to this courtyard. This was of course an intentional act by Mu Cheng'an.
"What? The Ninth Prince succeeded to the throne? The King of Zhenbei supported the young emperor to ascend the throne and take charge of government affairs? How is this possible?" Mu Jinxuan screamed, "No, I want to see my father. Take me to see my father."
How is this possible? Not only was the King of Zhenbei not deprived of his military power, he also took a step further and became the regent. It would take more than ten years for the Ninth Prince to reach adulthood, which meant that as long as the King of Zhenbei survived, he would be the most powerful person in the Great Xia Dynasty.
If he had known this, he should have tried to please his father instead of ignoring him and going to the palace to see His Majesty at every turn and asking His Majesty to meet his various requests.
The guards spread his words, and soon the new regent came back with a message: "Stay in the yard and recuperate. I am busy with government affairs, so don't cause me any trouble."
The original words were transmitted word for word, making Mu Jinxuan collapse on the bed. Mu Cheng'an didn't even have the patience to see him. Would it be possible... that one day even his position as the crown prince would be abolished?
don't want!
Tao Yuzhu was also going crazy. The Prince of Zhenbei, who should have died in his previous life, was still alive. Not only was he alive, he was also the regent. Moreover, the one who succeeded to the throne should not be the Ninth Prince, who had not yet spoken clearly, but the Third Prince. What was going on?
She knew very well that the relationship between the Prince of Zhenbei and his son was in name only and their relationship was not harmonious, but relying on the fact that Mu Jinxuan was favored by His Majesty, she did not take the Prince of Zhenbei, who was destined to die, seriously. But if she had known that the Prince of Zhenbei was going to be the regent, she would have flattered him long ago.
Why did everything change in this life? Tao Yuanjing came to the capital several years earlier and won the third place in the imperial examination. The damned King Zhenbei survived and became the regent. Mu Jinxuan, who should have been full of vigor and vitality, became a useless person paralyzed in bed.
Tao Yuzhu felt dizzy and finally became confused about the future and her own destiny.
***
Following Mu Ancheng's instructions, Yuan Jing chose an appropriate time to tell the Left Vice Minister of Works, Lord Yu, who was also Yu Xiao's uncle, about the existence of cement. Of course, Lord Yu did not defect to King Zhenbei, but compared to the former Minister of Works, Lord Yu was capable of getting things done.
The appearance of cement made Lord Yu see his future of promotion, and he had a better impression of Tao Yuanjing, his nephew's good friend. That day, he hurriedly called Yuanjing and said, "Quick, follow me into the palace. His Majesty and the Regent want us to go into the palace and explain in detail the function of this cement."
Well, Yuan Jing knew that this was just a procedure to officially present the cement to all officials.
Originally, Yuan Jing handed the cement to Mu Cheng for safe disposal after he made it, and he didn't want to take credit for it. After all, he was just copying the work of others.
But Mu Chengan didn't think so. This credit belonged to Yuanjing alone, and no one else could take it away. The people of Daxia should also remember Tao Yuanjing's name.
That's why Lord Yu presented cement in the court. Mu Cheng'an expressed his importance on the spot and asked the maker of cement to explain the effects of cement to everyone.
Yuan Jing straightened his official uniform and followed Lord Yu into the palace. Under the gazes of many officials, he followed Lord Yu a few steps forward to salute. Just as he was about to kneel down, he was called up. The voice was naturally the voice of Mu Chengan, whom Yuan Jing was very familiar with.
"You are the third place winner of the imperial examination last year? You are indeed very handsome. Lord Yu said that cement was made by you and your craftsmen. Lord Tao, please tell us what cement is."
Yuan Jing didn't know what to say. Is there anyone who compliments someone like this? Praising his good looks in front of others?
But other officials thought it was normal. They still remembered the scene of last year's palace examination. This Tanhua scholar was chosen by the late emperor. Unexpectedly, more than a year later, this Tanhua scholar had grown up to be even more outstanding and unforgettable. If this cement can really play a big role, this Tanhua scholar will be promoted.
Yuan Jing could only follow Mu Cheng'an and act as if he was meeting the Regent for the first time. He opened his mouth and began to introduce the functions of cement in his clear voice. It can be used to pave roads and is harder than stones. It can be used to build embankments. Its solidity and investment cost are unprecedented. It can also be used to build houses and other buildings. It has a wide range of uses.
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