Li Xi sent Lei Ying away and walked in with Qi Wen.
After paying their respects, Qi Wen asked, "Your Majesty, Duke Lu is in trouble, but the southwest cannot wait without someone to lead the military. Who would Your Majesty like to send to the southwest?"
Emperor Jianning was completely focused on killing Duke Lu, and had no time to consider the situation in the southwest. "Does anyone have a candidate for Prime Minister Qi?"
"I recommend Prince Jin as the Grand Commander of Huaizhou and send him to the southwest. Prince Jin is of noble status and can subjugate the civil and military officials in the southwest. With General Chang Xiong as the commander-in-chief, we will not be afraid even if the Southern Chen and Eastern Dynasty invade."
The positions of the eighteen lieutenant generals and deputy generals in the southwest need to be filled. Whoever goes to the southwest at this time will be able to disrupt part of the southwestern troops. This is definitely a great attraction for everyone.
Emperor Jianning didn't want Chai Shilun to take advantage of the southwest's military resources. "Prince Jin isn't suitable! He's already messed up a shipping office. The southwest is a matter of great importance. We should choose someone more capable and virtuous."
"As Your Majesty said, the affairs of the southwest are of great importance, and it is best for the royal family to be in charge. Prince Xuan is a scholar and does not understand military affairs. Once the war breaks out, Prince Ping will be in charge of the Ministry of Revenue and will not be able to leave. Prince Ning is still in Anzhou."
Qi Wen raised his eyes to look at Emperor Jianning, and said with a smile: "I heard that Prince Duan has gained a lot of experience in Haizhou and is very methodical in his work. How about letting Prince Duan go there?"
Emperor Jianning cursed the old fox in his heart, "Prince Duan is too young. I'm afraid he's not strong enough to deal with the old cunning guys in the southwest."
"The Haizhou Maritime Customs Office has been established. Prince Duan has made great contributions and deserves to be granted the title of Prince. Junior Supervisor Zhuo Limin is a thoughtful and thoughtful person, and he gets along very well with Prince Duan. With his assistance, I believe we can achieve twice the result with half the effort."
Emperor Jianning pondered for a moment and said, "Then do as Prime Minister Qi said. Send the imperial edict to Haizhou at an expedited speed of 800 miles. Have Prince Duan depart from Haizhou and head directly to Huaizhou."
Qi Xiang bowed and said, "This old minister will draft the decree right away!"
Only after leaving the palace did Qi Wen breathe a sigh of relief. Originally, it was just a guess, but after testing it today, it turned out to be true! He also wondered how much Prince Duan knew about the emperor's thoughts. Alas!
The news quickly reached Prince Ping's residence, and Kang Yueran asked, "Why did His Majesty choose Prince Duan?"
Seeing that Chai Shijing was distracted, Kang Yueran stretched out her hand and waved it in front of his eyes, "Ajing, what are you thinking about?"
"Ah, nothing!"
"Thinking about my treasure bag?"
Chai Shijing nodded, then shook his head. "Your master is a master, so it's normal for him to have extraordinary things. Yueran, that thing is too bizarre, you must never let anyone else know about it."
Kang Yueran hummed, "A Jing, do you want to see that treasure bag?"
"I won't read it anymore, just keep it!"
The more Chai Shijing didn't look, the more Kang Yueran wanted to be a bit of a jerk, but she still held it in. "I know. Ah Jing, what did Duke Lu mean by what he said before he died?"
"Are you talking about Nie Qiu'er? She's the head of the Woyu Mountain stronghold, and she wields a long whip with great skill. When His Majesty was young, he toured the south incognito, claiming to be a wealthy young man. He and Nie Qiu'er met through thick and thin, and they soon pledged their lives to each other.
After Nie Qiuer followed the emperor to the capital, she learned of his identity and that he had already married a queen and had seven sons and three daughters. Heartbroken, Nie Qiuer left the capital, and the emperor pursued her to Woyu Mountain and brought her back.
But Nie Qiu'er refused to enter the palace as a concubine, so the emperor rewarded her with a house in the capital, letting her live outside the palace, and often staying at Nie Qiu'er's place. Nie Qiu'er soon became pregnant, and the emperor was very happy. He opened the best palace away from his bedroom and personally supervised its renovation.
Unexpectedly, after the palace was repaired, Nie Qiuer accidentally ate the white bud fruit and gave birth prematurely, resulting in two deaths. The emperor fell seriously ill because of this, and after recovering, he never mentioned Nie Qiuer again.
Kang Yueran felt sorry for Nie Qiuer, "The emperor is such a piece of shit, he actually used sweet words to deceive the girl." If they could promise to spend their lives together, it certainly couldn't be that he was taking Nie Qiuer as a concubine.
"Actually, anyone with a discerning eye can see that His Majesty hasn't forgotten Nie Qiu'er. As legitimate daughters of the Duke's Mansion, Qin Shu is a princess, while Wan Shan'er isn't even a county lady. As princesses, the lively and active Rong Hua is the most favored by His Majesty."
Kang Yueran snorted twice. Emperor Jianning loved Nie Qiu'er, so he had to take her for himself. But what about Nie Qiu'er? Was she willing to give up her freedom for her lover?
"We can no longer delve into the love affairs and grudges of the previous generation. Yueran, I don't think Duke Lu lied to us. The emperor pushed me forward to check and balance Duke Lu so that we could fight. He hated Duke Lu and my uncle for joining forces to kill his beloved woman."
"Are you sure Nie Qiuer's child is dead?" Even if Duke Lu cannot act rashly, Lin Dong is easy to deal with. Kang Yueran doesn't understand why Emperor Jianning would take such a roundabout way to retaliate.
"My findings indicate he's dead. If he wasn't, His Majesty wouldn't have let him out of his sight. And in the capital, His Majesty has never shown any particular interest in any child. As for the princes, the seventh was born before His Majesty went on his southern tour, and the eighth was born half a year after Nie Qiu'er's death."
"An early birth is unrealistic, but a birth six months later is not difficult to arrange. Prince Duan's mother is a palace maid. If His Majesty says he has favored her, then he has. As long as Li Xi is a witness, no one can say anything."
It's true that Duke Lu and Lin Dong were responsible for Nie Qiu'er's death, but the root cause was also the emperor's excessive favor, which made Nie Qiu'er jealous. Although the emperor never cared about Chai Shiqin, he was also protecting this son.
Thinking about this, Chai Shijing felt that Kang Yueran's guess was very reasonable. "Your Majesty has put so much effort into this, but I don't know if Old Eighth knows about it."
"I guess Prince Duan knows. When he went to Anzhou, he gave me a painting. In the painting, a field of red camellias competed for beauty, while only a pot of golden camellia stood out in the pavilion."
Chai Shijing was stunned, and then smiled bitterly, "I originally thought he was the least favored, but in the end I found out that he was the most beloved son of my father." And he, who was the most favored by the emperor in the eyes of the world, was actually pushed forward by the emperor to ward off evil.
He always addressed Emperor Jianning as Your Majesty, and rarely as Father. Kang Yueran went over and hugged Chai Shijing, "You've grown up so much, you no longer need Father. Ah Jing, you still have your mother, and you still have me."
"Although my mother loves to cry, she is sincere to me. And you, Yueran, I am very satisfied with you."
Kang Yueran changed the subject again, "So what should we do next?"
"The southwest isn't so easy to take over. Chang Xiong is certainly brave, but he's impulsive and irritable, and he might not be willing to listen to Lao Ba. There will definitely be outbursts between them, which will affect the southwest war, and it won't be good for Lao Ba's reputation."
康悦然立刻接上，“正好让秦舒回京请旨去打仗，她是女子，只求圆了自己上战场的梦想，若是肯把功劳堆到端郡王头上，想来圣上会同意的。”
功劳推给柴世勤，那也是推给天下人看的，真正参与战争的怀州驻军不会不知道真正有实力的是谁。明面上，是柴世勤收拢了西南兵力，可收获军心的，是秦舒。
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