Chapter 272: Proposal (Part 1)
"Then she can't just sit by and watch the Grand Tutor and the Crown Prince interact!" Wang Hao grew angrier as he spoke. "Even though he's terminally ill, who doesn't know he's still harbouring the grudge against Crown Prince Huaixian? He's been stabbing Wang Shi, never sparing any effort! How can anything good happen when these two get together? I think my aunt has lost her mind! She's been manipulated by the Grand Tutor since she was young, and for an outsider, she's actually going against her mother's family. How disgraceful!"
The princess was speechless for a moment, then suddenly felt annoyed. "Don't talk about aunt. Now my mother wants to marry Xuanji to Ajun. In the future, the biggest ungrateful person will become her niece's husband. I think they are going to turn Xuanji into the next aunt."
"Don't even think about it!" Wang Han said, "Our Wang family's daughter is too precious to be ordered around by him. This marriage is irrelevant."
"If you say it doesn't count, then it doesn't count." The eldest princess shook her head. "My husband, have you forgotten what I said to you a few days ago?"
Of course Wang Hao didn't forget.
A few days ago, the eldest princess came back from the palace and told him with a heavy heart what the Queen Mother thought of Sima Jun.
The eldest princess continued, "My dear husband, please do not look upon the Queen Mother's dissatisfaction with Ah Jun. In fact, in times of crisis, such dissatisfaction is not worth refusing. Ah Jun holds military power and is a prominent figure among the royal family. The Queen Mother ultimately regards him as the right-hand man of the court and is unwilling to deal with him. I now understand that the Queen Mother's surname is Wang, but she protects the Sima clan's world. She hopes that the Sima and Wang clans will be united forever. My dear husband, please do not offend her."
"Could it be that by arranging this marriage, the two families will be forever united?" Wang Hao said disdainfully, "Don't you see what a rebellious disaster her good grandson is!"
The eldest princess shook her head. "It's useless for my husband to say these things. This is what my mother thinks in her heart, and no one can persuade her. What's more, she also mentioned the mutiny in Jingkou, which seemed to be a warning to my husband. No matter how unhappy my husband is, he must not set his sights on Ajun. My husband said that the princess is fickle and not wholeheartedly loyal to the Wang family. In fact, isn't my mother the same?"
Wang Hao turned his gaze and looked at the eldest princess: "What do you think, Princess?"
"I have always been on my husband's side. What do you still doubt now?" the eldest princess said unhappily.
After hearing this, Wang Han felt much more relieved.
He drank a cup of tea and calmed down: "I am very pleased to hear what the princess said."
The princess gave him a reproachful look and said, "Alright, stop talking like that. Think about how to deal with this next."
"I've sent for the Chief Secretary to come into the palace. He will be here soon."
The princess agreed, "My husband hasn't eaten all night. Would you mind if I sent someone to bring some meat and millet porridge?"
Wang Han nodded and said, "Thank you, Princess."
——
Soon, Jiang Yuan came into the mansion.
Based on Jiang Yuan's experience, if he was summoned on New Year's night, something big must have happened.
Sure enough, even he was shocked after hearing what Wang Han said.
"It's been less than a month since the Crown Prince took sick leave, and he has already captured Huan An?" Jiang Yuan asked.
"If that's all, it wouldn't count. After all, he hasn't returned yet, and no one knows whether it's true or not. But the Sage has spoken publicly, which is another matter. I have no reason to attack Jingzhou again. You were the one who proposed this plan, and now that it's impossible to succeed, what do you think we should do?"
Jiang Yuan thought for a moment and said, "If Huan An is captured by the prince, Jingzhou will be leaderless. Why doesn't the Minister of Public Security take the position of Governor first?"
"Are you asking the court to directly appoint the Governor of Jingzhou?"
"That's right," Jiang Yuan said. "Although Jingzhou is entrenched in the Huan clan, they still obey the imperial court and have no choice but to accept the imperially appointed governor. Now that they are leaderless, I believe it's time for a new governor to take office."
Wang Hao thought for a moment and asked, "In your opinion, who would be the most suitable governor of Jingzhou?"
"The Governor of Jingzhou is a high-ranking official, and the most suitable candidate is none other than the eldest son."
Wang Hom did not answer immediately.
He stood up, paced a few steps, and pondered, "The Huan family is fierce and rebellious, and they will never easily accept a governor from the imperial court. Only a blood relative of the Huan family or someone with a high reputation can be qualified to be the governor of Jingzhou. The governor sent by the court may sound honorable on the surface, but in reality, who knows how he will end up."
After he finished speaking, he looked at Jiang Yuan with a sharp gaze: "Do you want Ah Zhi to die?"
Jiang Yuan's face showed panic, and he knelt down hurriedly: "I dare not frame the eldest master. I have another plan!"
Wang Hao's expression relaxed slightly. "Tell me about it."
"Your Excellency may first appoint the eldest son as the Governor of Jingzhou. However, due to illness, the eldest son cannot take up the post immediately. He will first serve remotely in Jiankang."
"You let Azhi be the nominal governor, allowing the remnants of the Huan family to do whatever they want?"
"No," Jiang Yuan said. "The Minister of State can gather troops for the eldest son and first establish the Governor's Office. Then, he can select a trustworthy and capable general to be the Chief Secretary and have him perform the duties of the Governor. Once the Chief Secretary has pacified the situation in Jingzhou and secured military power, the eldest son can take up the position. This way, everything will be perfectly safe."
Wang Han thought for a long time.
"This plan is not bad." He said slowly.
Jiang Yuan continued, "Why don't you consider Jiangzhou, Minister of State? After Prince Yuzhang passed away, the Crown Prince spent many years in Jiankang, and it was the Chief Secretary who acted as Inspector. Now that almost two years have passed, things should be stable."
"That's different," Wang Hao said. "The people in Jiangzhou were all brought up by Prince Yuzhang himself, so they're naturally close to the Crown Prince. Plus, the Crown Prince has been in charge of Jiangzhou for many years and has long-standing prestige. It's much simpler than in Jingzhou."
"So, the key is people," Jiang Yuan continued. "The Shangshu Mansion has many aides, and there are also many talented people in the court who support the Pushe. The Pushe has no shortage of people, it all depends on how to choose."
Wang Hao glanced sideways and asked, "Does the Chief Secretary have a candidate in mind?"
Jiang Yuan didn't dare to respond lightly, and only said, "This is a serious matter, I think we must be cautious."
Wang Hao nodded. "There are many staff members in the palace. I may not know them all, but the Chief Secretary knows them all. If the Chief Secretary can't recommend one or two, how can I choose someone?"
Jiang Yuandao: "Why don't you set a test?"
"What test?"
"The Grand Tutor claimed that the Crown Prince had captured Huan An, so the Minister of State used this as a test to see who could snatch Huan An from the Crown Prince."
Wang Hao's eyes lit up, and he was quite surprised. "This is a good idea. But Huan An is only one person, and I need more than one person."
Jiang Yuan replied, "Since this is a test, it depends on the skills of the staff. Whether or not they can capture him, and who does, is secondary. After all, Huan An is not important to the Minister of Justice; what is important is Jingzhou. What do you think, Minister of Justice?"
After leaving the princess's mansion, Jiang Yuan boarded the carriage parked outside the mansion.
The lights in the car were on and someone helped him in and sat down.
"You really predicted it right," he said to the people in the car, "the attack on Jingzhou will fail. Did you predict that?"
"News came from Jingzhou saying Huan An was taken away by the prince." Li Mo was a little dazed, his eyes fixed, "I didn't expect it to be true."
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