Chapter 537 Arrangements
A month later, the matter in the northern frontier came to a temporary end, and Jiang Jinyan returned to Shengjing City.
Upon hearing the news of Jiang Fenghua's disappearance, he rushed directly into the Imperial Study.
When Xie Shang saw him storm in, he put down his pen and said in a deep voice, "You're back."
Jiang Jinyan almost forgot to bow. After calming down, he respectfully bowed and said, "Your subject greets Your Majesty."
Xie Shang knew why he was angry, but he didn't want to argue with Jiang Jinyan about his anger. He said in a deep voice, "Get up and sit down!"
Jiang Jinyan stood up straight but didn't actually sit down. He was surprised that the Emperor wasn't worried about Ruan Ruan's safety at all, and hadn't told him for so long that Ruan Ruan was no longer in the palace.
He said, “Your Majesty lost Ruan Ruan. When I left the capital, I promised Your Majesty that my fourth brother and I would protect the northern frontier for Your Majesty. I only ask that Your Majesty protect Ruan Ruan. But how has Your Majesty treated Ruan Ruan? For a long time, it has really only been Ruan Ruan’s fault. Your Majesty has not made any mistakes.” He knew that saying this was disrespectful to the Emperor, and he would accept the punishment even if it meant being punished.
Xie Shang was not angry and explained, "I will go and bring her back."
“She has amnesia now and knows nothing. If something happens to her, will the Emperor still be as indifferent as he is now?” The first thing Jiang Jinyan did upon returning to the capital was to go to Chenxi Palace.
Xie Shang also suffered greatly during this past month. He was filled with remorse and berated himself. At the same time, he was still the emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. He was always concerned about the war in the north and only wanted to stay in the capital to provide them with the greatest possible rear support so that the north could be recovered as soon as possible. He did not want to have any worries about the rear.
He said directly, "They didn't go to Jiangzhou, nor did they return to Yucheng. I've searched several places she might have gone. I'm just waiting for you to come back. Where might Lin Yu have taken Ruan Ruan?"
Jiang Jinyan fell into deep thought, and after a moment said in a deep voice, "The South, they may have gone to the South."
“In the past, Chen and Ruan Ruan were always doing jade and jewelry business outside... Later, Lin Yu was always busy. If they didn’t return to Yucheng, they probably went to the Southern Kingdom, where the jade production is world-renowned. It’s very likely that Lin Yu took Ruan Ruan to the Southern Kingdom.”
Xie Shang's expression was cold. Had Lin Yu really taken her to the Southern Kingdom?
"Can you contact your connections in the South as soon as possible?"
Ever since Jiang Jinyan learned that Lin Yu had taken Jiang Fenghua away, he had been thinking about their whereabouts. He said, "I have already made contact. I came back because I wanted to go to the Southern Kingdom to find Ruan Ruan immediately."
At this moment, Xie Shang handed another memorial to Jiang Jinyan, saying, "This is a memorial from Lord Yuan. There are unusual developments on the border between the Great Zhou and the Southern Kingdom. Pirates are rampant, and the court is requesting reinforcements. I will take this opportunity to go with you."
Xie Shang also analyzed that Lin Yu might take Jiang Fenghua to the south.
After reading it, Jiang Jinyan said, "His Majesty is going to the Southern Kingdom, but there are still so many state affairs to be handled in the court." He understood the Emperor's situation and was not deliberately blaming him for not taking good care of Ruan Ruan. He was just worried about his sister and afraid that something might happen to her.
"I have already made arrangements for matters of state. Since Jiang Zhiqin conquered the northern frontier, I have already drafted an edict to appoint him as the Prince of Zhenbei. From now on, I will entrust the safety of the northern frontier to him."
Jiang Jinyan was stunned and quickly said, "Your Majesty, should you reconsider? Zhiqin is only seventeen years old. Is it too inappropriate to confer a title of king on him? Zhiqin still has a lot to learn. The recovery of the northern frontier was also due to the contributions of General Peng and the soldiers. Although Cheng Yang and Cheng Ming are deputy generals, the northern frontier would not have been recovered so quickly without them."
"I have thought this through carefully. Ability is not related to age. He has strategy and courage. He deserves credit for bringing the northern border under the control of the Great Zhou. I will find an opportunity to go there in person. But right now, I need to find Ruan Ruan first."
For some reason, Jiang Jinyan felt that the Emperor had changed this time he returned. Was he really so at ease handing over the power of the northern frontier to the Jiang family? He had always suspected Ruan Ruan, and even the Jiang family.
Next, Xie Shang issued another imperial edict, ordering Grand Tutor Pan and Grand Tutor Jiang to enter the palace to teach the princes and princesses. The key issue was that the princes and princesses were still young and had not yet received their formal education. Wouldn't it be too early to entrust them with the teaching of two highly respected Grand Tutors?
When Xie Shang first stepped into Consort Gao's Yongle Palace, Gao Qingtong immediately led people out to greet the emperor.
All that could be seen in the courtyard were palace maids and eunuchs kneeling in unison. Xie Shang said in a deep voice, "All of you may rise."
Gao Qingtong was also terrified and felt extremely awkward. "I wonder what brings Your Majesty to my palace?" She had been in the palace for several years, and the Emperor had never visited her once. What had happened today?
From the first day she entered the palace, Gao Qingtong knew that the emperor did not like her, so she never had any hope and only hoped to live a peaceful life with her daughter.
Xie Shang said, "You already know that the Empress is not in the palace!"
Gao Qingtong quickly replied, "Your Majesty, I know." She didn't know the specific reason, only that the Empress was no longer in the palace, and she had been worried about it for a long time. Everyone in Chenxi Palace was frantic with worry.
"The Empress will be back soon," Xie Shang said again. "The inner palace has always been managed with the assistance of Consort Gao and Consort Song. Now I have come for only one thing: I will confer the title of Noble Consort on Consort Gao. I order you to temporarily manage the inner palace for the Empress and take good care of the imperial heirs. Can you do it?"
He conferred the title of Imperial Concubine on Gao Qingtong not because he liked her, but because he needed such a status to intimidate the other concubines in the harem. During this time, he had people keep an eye on the harem and figured out everyone's situation. He put Gao Qingtong in this position because she would not cause trouble.
Gao Qingtong knelt on the ground, "Your Majesty, when you return, I will surely hand over a clean and orderly harem to you."
Then Gao Qingtong continued, "Your Majesty, Consort Zhang and Consort Fan are both two months pregnant. The Empress is not here, and the Empress Dowager is..."
Xie Shang said in a deep voice, "Just as the Empress managed the harem in the past, Consort Gao can manage it in the same way from now on."
“Yes,” Gao Qingtong replied.
After leaving Yongle Palace, Xie Shang returned to Chenxi Palace. Now, whenever he's not busy, he stays at Chenxi Palace, following Jiang Fenghua's example and spending his days reading, practicing calligraphy, and playing games with the children.
Xie Ziyan and Xie Hongyou were naturally the happiest. Except for the occasional time when he asked them to take them to see their mother, they were very obedient.
He taught them to read and write every day, and the two children learned very well with their father's help.
Xie Hongyuan is just like a baby now, he doesn't understand anything. When they were studying, Xie Shang would put him next to him to listen. He listened very attentively, but most of the time he was sleeping.
Xie Shang observed carefully, wondering if Master Wu's prediction was wrong. Could this little baby who only knew how to sleep all day save the Great Zhou Dynasty when he grew up?
It's better to rely on a baby than on a toddler.
Xie Hongyuan couldn't speak, so naturally he didn't know anything. If he did know, he would probably roll his eyes at his father. What is a two- or three-month-old baby doing if he doesn't sleep? Is he supposed to recite poems like Xie Ziyan?
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