Chapter 81 Lushan
"If we find Grand Tutor Zhou, the princess will agree to return to the capital to celebrate her birthday. I have already agreed with the princess that all the credit will go to the lady. Isn't this what the lady wants?"
Sun Wei shook his head: "Your Highness agreed too easily. But Grand Tutor Zhou is a great bargaining chip. Your Highness can ask for more."
"For example?"
Sun Wei pursed her lips, unsure whether to continue.
Sima Jun wrote for a while and said, "If Madam was afraid of Wang Pushe's revenge, why didn't you tell me?"
His voice was gentle, just hitting the nail on the head for Sun Wei.
"I just want to find the easiest way. Let Princess Wanshou come forward to plead for mercy. Wang Pushe will not refuse Princess Wanshou a favor."
"In my wife's mind, I'm just a reckless man who can only confront Wang Pushe head-on, right?"
Isn't it? Sun Wei thought to herself.
That day at Wang's residence in Jingkou, he was planning to confront Wang Han head-on.
She wanted to deny it, but when she looked up, she saw Sima Jun staring at her, as if he could see through every thought in her mind.
Since she had noticed, she didn't shy away and spoke frankly, "Your Highness has assisted the Crown Prince in retaking the Northern Prefecture, a tremendous feat. But even so, your Highness is still relatively young and no match for Wang Pushe. Especially now. Wang Pushe is incredibly ambitious. Since he sees the Northern Prefecture as his own, then Jiangzhou Prefecture must also be in his sights. If he's planning on dealing with me, he won't let go of the Yuzhang Palace. Your Highness is currently in mourning and without an official position, so it's even more inappropriate for him to antagonize Wang Pushe. It's for this reason that I'm reluctant to let your Highness intervene."
She glanced at Sima Jun and added, "I have absolutely no intention of belittling the prince. Please don't misunderstand me."
"I haven't misunderstood you, Madam, but there's something I must remind you of," Sima Jun said sternly. "Madam is from the Yuzhang Palace. Although I'm still relatively young, I'm afraid I'm the only one Madam can rely on. Princess Wanshou can indeed persuade Wang Pushe, but she's been in seclusion for many years and will have to leave Jiankang. Once she leaves, who will continue to protect Madam, and how will we protect the Yuzhang Palace? If we're all dealt with, Princess Wanshou will at most scold Wang Pushe, but she certainly won't be able to intervene in what's already happened in the capital. Who will we turn to for justice then?"
He kept calling Sun Wei "you and me", as if he really treated Sun Wei as his own.
Sun Wei looked at him, speechless for a moment.
Sun Wei was not unaware of these principles. However, the situation was changing rapidly, and she wanted to be more cautious. In this life, many things had changed due to her intervention.
If she wasn't careful, she and Sima Jun might die earlier than in their previous life. Wouldn't she have been a fool again in vain?
Of course, by now, he had already made all the arrangements. The fact that he was finally willing to reveal his true feelings showed that he had truly let down his guard.
It was a pleasant surprise.
"Your Highness is right." Sun smiled and said, "It seems that I can only rely on you, Your Highness."
This turn of events was quite crisp and clear.
Sima Jun said "hmm" and continued writing.
Sun Wei leaned forward and asked, "Your Highness, are you really going to look for Grand Tutor Zhou? Since you've promised Princess Wanshou, I will tell you where Grand Tutor Zhou is. You can send someone to tell Princess Wanshou about this and let her go find him on her own. If you go looking for him on your own, you might alert the enemy and let Grand Tutor Zhou escape, which would anger Princess Wanshou and make you and me look for nothing."
"Madam, don't worry. The princess will go with you and me. When you and I set off, she was already eager to leave. Madam, you will see her soon."
Sun Wei paused.
"In that case, the princess and her husband are meeting, so why should we join in the fun?"
"I've long heard of Grand Tutor Zhou's reputation and would like to make his acquaintance. Madam, there's really no need to go. However, I'm thinking that the situation in the capital is still unclear. If Wang Hao were to cause trouble, I'd be powerless to stop him. But if you're not afraid, I can send someone to escort you back."
There is some truth in what he said.
Sun Wei thought for a moment, then flattered, "Your Highness is a man of foresight. I am humbled by your wisdom. I am willing to accompany you to Mount Lushan."
Sima Jun didn't answer, but raised the corners of his lips slightly.
Sun Wei asked curiously, "The prince went to visit Grand Tutor Zhou. Does he have any ideas?"
Sima Jun finished writing the last line and stopped writing.
"It's okay to tell my wife. Grand Tutor Zhou is knowledgeable and highly respected. He was once the prince's tutor. I would like to invite him to come out of retirement and assist the prince."
This was exactly what Sun Wei had guessed, but he was afraid it would be wrong.
Taifu Zhou's disappointment with the court was deep-rooted and could not be persuaded with a few words.
Sun Wei said, "If we can't invite Grand Tutor Zhou, it wouldn't be a problem for the Crown Prince to get to know his disciples."
Sima Jun was a little surprised: "Madam, you even know that Grand Tutor Zhou has a disciple?"
Sun Wei said seriously, "This is my family tradition, so please don't be surprised, my prince."
After that, she added: "The prince just said that he no longer has any doubts about me."
But he knows how to hit the snake on the pole.
Sima Jun glanced at her and said, "With such a family background, Madam, you must know the name of Grand Tutor Zhou's disciple."
Sun Wei was quite proud: "I just happened to know."
Sima Jun no longer wanted to ask why, and simply said, "Tell me about it."
"Teacher Zhou's disciple's surname is Ruan Hui, and his courtesy name is Zhongxuan. I calculated with my fingers and found that this person has a strong connection with the Crown Prince. Although the opportunity has not yet arrived, it would not hurt to make an acquaintance with him."
"What is opportunity?"
In his previous life, Zhou Chang was nearing death. After his passing, Ruan Hui would naturally descend the mountain and seek refuge at the Prince of Yuzhang's palace. Ruan Hui, a man of exceptional talent and learning, was later promoted by Sima Jun to the position of Chief Clerk.
This is all later.
Sima Jun is a man who likes to think things over. Revealing too much detail would only make him feel that you are deceiving him, and his hard-earned trust would collapse again.
"The secret of heaven cannot be revealed." Sun Wei said.
Sima Jun raised his eyebrows: "So, Madam, there are times when divination is not always effective."
"To be honest, Your Highness, this kind of thing happens all the time." Sun Wei continued to talk nonsense, "But I don't think this is a bad thing. It means that I still have room for improvement. In the future, there may be more opportunities for me to help Your Highness. You can look forward to it."
Sima Jun looked at her and just smiled without commenting.
——
The boat entered the territory of Jiangzhou but did not enter Xunyang, and anchored at Pengli Lake not far from Lushan Mountain.
Sun Wei is both familiar and unfamiliar with Lushan.
She had never been to Mount Lu, but in her previous life, there was a painting by Ruan Hui hanging in Xunyang Palace, which depicted Master Zhou's residence on the road.
The painting shows towering mountains and cascading waterfalls, and the small house in the mountains appears to be a fairyland.
In the previous life, when Sun Wei arrived in Xunyang, the situation was already extremely tense. Ruan Hui still insisted on going up the mountain to burn incense for Grand Tutor Zhou and visit the widowed Princess Wanshou.
Sun Wei could not go, but she knew that Princess Wanshou was of noble status, so she asked Ruan Hui to draw a picture.
Ruan Hui's paintings were known for their realism. He had clearly depicted the location of the mountain retreat, and Sun Wei had thought that when the situation eased, she would still visit it in person.
Who knew that from the beginning to the end, this was just a wish and there would be no chance of fulfilling it, so the drawing remained on her desk.
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