Chapter 88 The First Overt Scheme in History
The emperor had no choice but to say to Princess Jinyang, "Let's think about this matter first and come up with a detailed plan. We must not make any mistakes."
Princess Jinyang nodded.
After the emperor left, Princess Jinyang went to the Empress Dowager's palace and found that her mother was in excellent health and had a good appetite.
He left the palace with a frown, carrying the dual burdens of court affairs and family matters.
After returning home, he went to his study and stared at a screen embroidered with a map of the Dayong Dynasty at the back of the study, lost in thought.
His own son's affairs were no longer as important as national affairs.
When it comes to the fate of the nation, personal love becomes trivial.
Princess Jinyang understood perfectly well.
When the Duke of Qi returned that evening, he saw Princess Jinyang looking at a map of the northern border and knew what was going on.
During the meal, the couple sat facing each other, and Princess Jinyang was clearly distracted.
"What? Has something happened in the north?" the Duke of Qi asked.
"Um."
Seeing that she did not want to answer, the Duke of Qi did not press her further.
"Ling'er and the other officials in the Ministry of Personnel seem to be so busy lately?" Duke Qi casually remarked.
"His Majesty is preparing to send a group of people to serve in the northern border. The Ministry of Personnel is in charge of this matter, so they are quite busy."
Princess Jinyang answered expressionlessly.
"Oh, the assassination attempt on the Lantern Festival was for this?" Duke Qi asked thoughtfully.
"Yes, they want to disrupt the imperial examinations. That way, no one will be selected, and the court will have no one to send, or they will have to reduce the number of people they send."
"That one still won't give up? He's really making a fuss."
The Duke of Qi sighed.
"Back then, when the Imperial Concubine was favored, the Emperor almost deposed His Majesty from his position as Crown Prince because of the mother and son."
It was through my repeated efforts that I persuaded my father to give up his idea.
On the eve of my father's death, I again falsely conveyed an imperial edict and summoned the Three Dukes to an audience.
They were unable to alter the imperial edict.
The Imperial Concubine had offended too many people, and after her father's death, she quickly received her retribution.
However, Prince Rui believed that it was His Majesty who had done it.
"These past few years have been a constant struggle..."
The Duke of Qi remained silent, for he dared not speak recklessly when the late emperor was involved.
Furthermore, he could listen to these royal secrets if the eldest princess told him, but he couldn't presume to ask if she didn't.
The situation in the northern border completely captivated Princess Jinyang, and she had no heart to think about Xiao Ling anymore.
Even if the Duke of Qi wants to find Xiao Ling, he has to be able to find him first.
The Ministry of Personnel has been so busy lately with the spring imperial examinations and the selection of personnel for the northern border that Xiao Ling is practically living in the government office.
After the student assassination, the students in the capital quieted down for a while, but Tianxing Tower was still packed with people.
For the safety of the students, the Crown Prince dispatched officials from the Jingzhao Prefecture to patrol the vicinity of Tianxing Tower.
Students from the capital city now travel with bodyguards and attendants, significantly increasing their safety.
The emperor was overwhelmed with worries about the northern border, and the crown prince was no less troubled.
Because the emperor was overwhelmed with worries and his mood was unpredictable, the crown prince was the one who felt it most directly.
In recent days, he has been tormented by the emperor.
The emperor believed he had covered up the truth about the assassination attempt on the new scientist.
But with his own men arrested, how could the Crown Prince not be alarmed?
The day after the Dali Temple presented the results of its investigation, the eldest prince took leave from work and stayed home, saying he was feeling unwell.
The emperor sent secret guards to monitor the eldest prince.
The eldest prince then claimed to be ill and stayed at home, neither going out nor attending court, and made no move.
The Emperor has already made arrangements for the eldest prince, so the crown prince is not worried.
The emperor asked about the situation in the northern border, and the crown prince thought for a long time but couldn't come up with a solution.
He went out to look for Xiao Ling, but found Xiao Ling busy at the Ministry of Personnel, so he simply dragged Xiao Ling out of the Ministry of Personnel.
The two arrived at Tianxing Tower together, intending to relax for a while and perhaps sort out some ideas.
Xiao Ling, who hadn't seen Xie Yunyu since the Lantern Festival, sent someone to invite her to Tianxing Tower.
When Xie Yunyu arrived, Xiao Ling and the Crown Prince were sitting on the first floor listening to "Journey to the West".
The prince listened with utter rapt attention.
When Xiao Ling saw Xie Yunyu arrive, he stood up and prepared to go into the room.
The Crown Prince refused to get up, so Xiao Ling had no choice but to sit down and continue to keep him company.
Seeing that the two were sitting still, Xie Yunyu did not dare to go forward rashly and could only wait in the private room.
After waiting a while, the storyteller on stage finished his performance and received a standing ovation before the two of them finally arrived.
Xie Yunyu rose and bowed, but the Crown Prince smiled and said, "No need for formalities."
After saying that, he sat down at the head of the table and asked with great interest:
"This book of supernatural tales is quite well written. I wonder who wrote it?"
Xie Yunyu thought for a moment and said, "They were short stories I found on the roadside, and then I had my family's bookstore staff rewrite them."
The crown prince nodded in agreement: "Indeed, it's captivating."
Xiao Ling remained silent, lowering his head to pour a glass of water for Xie Yunyu and the Crown Prince.
Seeing that Xiao Ling's brows were furrowed and he looked tired, Xie Yunyu asked:
"What's wrong? Have you run into trouble?"
The prince thought the question was directed at him, so he replied, "Yes, otherwise I wouldn't have come here to relax."
Xie Yunyu thought to herself, "What problem could Xiao Ling possibly have that even the Crown Prince couldn't solve?"
Did his pretense of being gay come to light and he got a beating from his mother at home?
After thinking for a moment, she asked hesitantly, "Can I know the reason?"
When the Crown Prince saw her ask this, he scratched his head and thought for a moment before saying:
"How should I put it? It's a bit complicated. Let me think about how to put it."
Xie Yunyu frowned even more upon hearing this. Could it be that she had guessed correctly?
The prince thought for a moment and said, "There was once a very large landlord whose land was too much to manage, so he arranged for several estate managers to help him manage it."
But after a while, the head of the village wanted to take all the land for himself.
They then hired a group of thugs to fight against the landlord.
How can the landlord eliminate these village chiefs without resorting to force and with minimal losses?
Upon hearing the Crown Prince's words, Xie Yunyu realized that this had nothing to do with Xiao Ling; wasn't this a matter of the court?
So he said casually, "Oh, the vassal kings are causing trouble?"
The Crown Prince was surprised that Xie Yunyu was so clever, immediately knowing what he wanted to ask.
My heart skipped a beat, and I nodded weakly.
Xie Yunyu replied without hesitation, "Yes, that's simple, the first open scheme of all time: the Edict of Grace."
The Crown Prince frowned: "The Edict of Grace?"
Xie Yunyu paused for a moment, forgetting that this was a fictional dynasty, different from previous history.
So he explained, "Um... it's an imperial decree that, to show the emperor's boundless grace, the fiefdom of the princes will be divided equally among his sons."
In this way, the king's power would be fragmented, dividing a large fiefdom into multiple smaller fiefdoms.
The Crown Prince's eyes lit up upon hearing this, and he personally refilled Xie Yunyu's teacup, saying:
"Go on."
"Then send people to lobby and stir up conflicts between these small fiefdoms, making them fight amongst themselves."
The imperial court was responsible for supplying weapons to these small fiefdoms; whoever paid the most money would be the one to receive them.
Moreover, the imperial court could influence the situation; whichever side it wanted to win, it would sell them superior weapons.
Conversely, they will not sell them weapons.
In this way, it won't be long before we can take over these small fiefdoms effortlessly and without bloodshed.
Upon hearing this, the Crown Prince and Xiao Ling shook off their previous dejection and nodded repeatedly.
"Brilliant, that's a brilliant move."
Xie Yunyu spoke eloquently, while Xiao Ling tilted his head and stared intently at Xie Yunyu's profile.
It's only been a few days, but she seems even more beautiful now.
It's rare to see her so serious, which only highlights another kind of intellectual beauty in her.
Xie Yunyu was so focused on explaining the Edict of Grace to the Crown Prince that she didn't even glance at Xiao Ling.
Suddenly, Xiao Ling noticed a strand of Xie Yunyu's hair fall down, landing beside her cheek, and swaying slightly with her movements.
Her flowing hair was like a feather, brushing against Xiao Ling's heart, making him feel itchy.
Finally, unable to resist any longer, he reached out and picked up a strand of hair, tucking it behind Xie Yunyu's ear.
Xiao Ling moved extremely quickly, and Xie Yunyu seemed used to it, casually saying to Xiao Ling:
"Thanks."
The last time the Crown Prince met the two, their relationship was tense and on the verge of conflict.
One insisted on marrying, the other refused to marry.
Seeing their interaction this time, it was obvious that their relationship had become much closer.
However, he was eager to know the answer and had to break the ambiguity between them.
He cleared his throat and said, "Ahem, is there any more of that?"
Xie Yunyu looked at the Crown Prince, whose eyes were filled with eager longing, and continued:
In essence, the goal was to divide them, throw them into disarray, and ideally, infighting, so that the court could defeat them one by one.
Given the current situation in the North, this method is a relatively safe and appropriate one.
The prince asked in surprise, "How did you know it was the northern border?"
Xie Yunyu looked at the Crown Prince with a puzzled expression: "Is it that hard to guess?"
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