In the study of the East Fence Courtyard of the Ningguo Marquis's residence, Ji Shi sat up, wrapped in a brocade quilt. She wanted to speak, but found her throat dry. She swallowed and called out, "Zhu Yun."
"Madam, I'm here." The maid Zhu Yun's voice rang out from outside the door. "Does Madam have any instructions?"
Ji Shi had already taken a nap, but her heart was uneasy. She woke up with a start, her forehead still damp with sweat. The window opposite was half-open, and the cool moonlight shone in, casting a shimmering glow on the spider plant beside the bed.
She threw back the brocade quilt, got up and got out of bed. Zhu Yun, who was on night watch outside, heard the noise and hurriedly opened the door and came in. "Madam, do you need to use the restroom?"
Ji shook her head. "Pour me a glass of water," she said weakly. She walked out of the room, looked up at the sky, and saw that the moon was high in the sky; it was midnight.
Zhu Yun brought a red jacket embroidered with endless lotus leaves and draped it over Ji Shi's shoulders. "Madam, it's late and the dew is heavy. Be careful not to catch a cold. Let me fetch you some warm water."
"No need, cold water is fine. My throat is too dry, I want to drink some cold water." Ji's voice was not loud, and her throat was a little sore when she spoke loudly. She had been very worried about her fifth son's marriage recently.
Seeing that she couldn't dissuade her, Zhu Yun thought that it was the height of summer and that her wife was always healthy and had drunk cold water without any problems, so she agreed and went downstairs.
After a moment, she turned back, holding a small, exquisite porcelain cup in her hands. Ji Shi couldn't wait to take the cup and gulp it down. It was so dry that she didn't care about the demeanor of a noblewoman.
She drank too quickly and choked a few times. Zhu Yun quickly patted her back and said, "Madam, please slow down."
After Ji finished drinking, she handed the porcelain cup to Zhu Yun, pulled her coat tighter, and asked, "Where is the Marquis resting?"
"The Marquis and the Third Master are still discussing matters in the study," Zhu Yun replied.
"Tell the kitchen to prepare some late-night snacks for the Marquis and my third brother, and give me some clothes to change."
"Madam, it's late." Zhu Yun tried to persuade her, but Ji Shi stopped her with a wave of her hand, so she had to turn around and fetch her clothes.
Madam Ji stared at the study, her face as cold as ice. Could they be discussing having her son marry that uncouth country girl? She would never agree to it. As long as she lived, that woman would never enter the house!
She thought she didn't know that the old Grand Tutor Wang had married a courtesan who was talentless, immoral, and ill-mannered, which led to the birth of that beast Wang Kuanqi, who committed murder and fratricide and other heinous acts. If she were to let that woman into the house today, with her seductive appearance, wouldn't she corrupt her good son?
As long as she had a breath left, she would never let that woman into the house. The emperor had not issued an imperial decree to grant the marriage, so refusing the marriage was not considered disobeying the imperial decree!
If you want to destroy her son, you'll have to step over her dead body first!
Zhu Yun moved quickly and skillfully, and soon dressed Ji Shi neatly. The small kitchen also heated up some porridge. Ji Shi looked at the two covered porcelain bowls with bamboo designs on the tray and said to Zhu Yun, "Let's go to the study."
After exiting the moon gate and walking through the covered corridor, they turned a few corners and passed through flower gardens. A second-class maid was with Zhu Yun, carrying a lantern. The three of them walked for about a quarter of an hour before finally seeing the dim yellow light of the study in the distance, which looked particularly sleepy in the moonlight.
However, Ji Shi was already wide awake.
As she entered, the gatekeeper was startled to see Lady Ji and wanted to announce her arrival, but Lady Ji stopped him, saying, "I'm just bringing some late-night snacks for the Marquis."
"Madam." The servant was so startled that he almost forgot to bow. Only after Madam Ji spoke did he suddenly realize his mistake and hurriedly bow.
Zhu Yun pushed the servant aside to stop Ji Shi. After saying that, Ji Shi lifted her foot and walked forward. When she reached the door of the study, she heard Jiang He inside say, "I have never heard of any relationship between Prince Yong and the Huo family before. How was he able to invite the Huo family's young master without anyone noticing? We are truly envious."
“Brother, it seems now that the whole thing was indeed planned by the Emperor beforehand. He first used Prince Yong to deceive us, and then defeated us one by one. That’s how the Wang and Yang faction was dismantled. Now he’s invited people from the Yan and Huo families. I’m afraid the power in the court will be redistributed tomorrow. The civil officials’ order will be reshuffled, and then it will be the military’s turn. Brother, I’m afraid we’ll also be the Emperor’s prey. You’d better think of a way.” Jiang Jian said, looking towards the palace with lingering fear. The Emperor is really ruthless, willing to ruin his only brother’s reputation to complete this conspiracy to seize power.
He couldn't help but admire him.
Upon hearing this, Jiang He nodded unconsciously, then sneered, "Who will Your Majesty use to control the military? The Wei Ting Si? Don't forget, the Wei Ting Si comes from the Wei family. Although the Wei family is a prominent family in the capital, they have little prestige there. Your Majesty is mistaken in trying to use the Wei Ting Si to control the military."
It wasn't that he looked down on Wei Tingsi. To be fair, Wei Tingsi was indeed exceptionally capable, but he didn't really have any foundation in the army. Don't think that just because he controlled 50% of the military, he had military power. His Jiang family army had 150,000 men. The reason it was called the Jiang family army was that, since the founding emperor, the army had always been commanded by members of the Jiang family.
Of course, he didn't think the current emperor had the courage to remove him, as it would definitely cause unrest in the army, and who knows what might happen then.
Jiang Jian pondered. His thoughts differed from his brother's. When Wei Tingsi first took over 50% of the military command, many people secretly wanted to see him make a fool of himself. But now, he had taken over 50% of the military command. This man was not to be underestimated.
However, when asked if Wei Tingsi could take command of 150,000 iron cavalry, he felt uneasy, intuitively believing that Wei Tingsi had the ability, but he still hesitated instinctively. "That's true, but brother, we should still be careful to avoid any trouble. The Wang family is the best example."
“Yes, better safe than sorry.” Jiang He nodded in agreement and continued, “Your sister-in-law is absolutely against the fifth son’s marriage. Tomorrow, have your sister-in-law try to persuade her. Right now, the entire Ningguo Duke… Marquis’s mansion needs to be careful with its words and actions, and not make the slightest mistake, so as not to give anyone any opportunity to take advantage of it.”
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