Chapter 81: Undercurrents
Since the Crown Prince did not stay in Lin'an Prefecture but was directly escorted to the capital by the Qingzhou Guard, and then stayed in Biyang County for a full eight days, Prefect Song felt that something was very wrong.
Everyone knows that Meng Ying was a pawn abandoned by the Meng family. Before the new year, he was sacrificed because he was involved in the power struggle of the Third Prince's faction. Minister Meng, who had always avoided factional strife, quickly cut his losses and, while he and his wife were still alive, resolutely kicked him out of the house, thus severing all ties with Meng Ying. Moreover, when Meng Ying asked him for help in the case of helping refugees, he refused without hesitation, adopting a "live and let live" attitude and intending to never have anything to do with him again.
But who could have imagined that Meng Guanqi would save the Crown Prince's life by sheer coincidence? And not just once, but twice!
Prefect Song was so angry that he beat his chest and stamped his feet. Why did Meng Ying have to be so lucky? If it were him, he could almost see his own hopes of being promoted and ennobled.
He spent a lot of money to get the information out of Eunuch Wan: the Crown Prince was escorted by the Commander of Qingzhou Guard with 300 cavalrymen all the way to Huai'an Prefecture, where he transferred to an official boat and traveled by waterway to Tianjin Guard, where he was then met by the Imperial Guard and escorted into the capital.
The Emperor actually sent the Imperial Guards to welcome him, and it was the Crown Prince! What does this mean? It means that His Highness the Crown Prince's position is as solid as a rock! Those in the court who have ulterior motives and want to support other forces to seize the throne probably won't dare to show their faces. When the Crown Prince returns to the capital, he will definitely report to the Emperor and demand a thorough investigation into the assassination attempt on him. At this time, the higher one jumps, the faster one will die.
In a short time, the Crown Prince's popularity will surely reach its peak, and Meng Ying, a minor county magistrate who has nothing to do with the Crown Prince, has actually caught this wave of popularity, even though he has a grudge against Meng Ying!
Ugh, so annoying! His hair is practically turning white from all the stress.
Prefect Song felt he was barely able to protect himself and hadn't even figured out how to ease the tension between him and Meng Ying, so how could he possibly care about Lu Weifu?
After returning from Biyang County, a panicked Lu Jingli went to his door to ask him what to do.
Prefect Song had no idea what to do. He only told Lieutenant Lu not to worry and to wait and see how things went after the New Year.
This is just an excuse. Meng Ying has made such a great contribution, the emperor will definitely reward him. Moreover, in addition to the emperor's reward, the crown prince's reward will definitely not be less. If these two make a move, will the Meng family behind Meng Ying remain indifferent?
This is a family with a history of over a hundred years. For generations, no one has been able to become the emperor's confidant. Meng Ying may be of average talent and not a concern, but he has a genius son, Meng Guanqi, who will only be fifteen years old next year.
This year's autumn imperial examination will be extremely crucial. If Meng Guanqi passes the examination and becomes a Juren, the Meng family will likely use all their resources to help him rise to power. When the new emperor ascends the throne, he will have saved the emperor's life, so why should he worry about his career not going smoothly?
Prefect Song was so jealous he could hardly breathe. How could such a great opportunity have fallen into the hands of this impoverished man?
As for Lu Weifu, Prefect Song was too lazy to bother with him anymore. After what he did to Meng Guanqi, even without the Crown Prince's intervention, the Meng family would probably deal with him immediately.
The brother-in-law only got his position by relying on his own power and connections. He's just a lowly eighth-rank official, and he's spoiled his son so much that the boy dares to mess with even a son from a wealthy family who passed the imperial examination. Moreover, he openly admitted to drugging someone in front of everyone. He's not only incredibly audacious, but also incredibly foolish. He's decided to cut off this connection to prevent the boy from dragging him down with him.
Having already made his decision, why would he go back to the Lu family to listen to his muddle-headed mother-in-law and father-in-law spout nonsense? The whole family lives off his legacy; do they really want to give him attitude? He's not looking for trouble.
The best outcome that Prefect Song could imagine for them was that Lu Jingli would resign, Lu Weifu would lose his scholar status, and the whole family would return home to farm and live a quiet life.
With the wealth they've amassed over the years, they can live comfortably even if they can no longer make it in officialdom. Lu Weifu has already ruined his career. Instead of worrying about how to keep his official position, they should focus their energy on the next generation. If Lu Weifu's son is successful and takes the imperial examinations after a decade or so of silence, he might be able to return to officialdom. Otherwise, they should just wait to be dealt with by the Meng family.
He simply washed his hands of the matter, which would be a disaster for Madam Song, who had to return to her parents' home. If Prefect Lu couldn't see Prefect Song, wouldn't all the pressure fall on his sister?
During her afternoon at her parents' home, Madam Song was pressured by her father and mother to agree to completely extricate the Lu family from the situation, so as not to delay Lu Jingli's official career or affect Lu Weifu's schooling.
At first, Madam Song was vague, saying she would discuss it with Prefect Song after returning to the manor. But then Old Master Lu smashed a teacup, pointed at her nose, and shouted angrily, "If you can't do it, it's because you're not doing your job properly! Wei Fu is your own nephew! If you really wanted to help, why would you be afraid of the son of a mere county magistrate?"
Old Madam Lu wiped away her tears with a handkerchief: "From childhood to adulthood, Wei Fu has been closest to you, his aunt. Now that he is in trouble, if you don't help him, who will? In the family, the son-in-law is the highest-ranking official, and he also holds the power to decide Meng Ying's promotion. If he doesn't want to stay in Biyang County for the rest of his life and be unable to move, then this matter is not difficult to handle!"
Madam Lu also held her sister-in-law's hand and cried, "It was just a joke between two children. Meng Guanqi didn't suffer any loss, did he? How did it turn into something like enemies? They are both scholars, and they will be taking the imperial examination together next year. If they both pass and become successful, they will be classmates. This concerns Weifu's future. Sister, you must help him! If he can really forgive and forget, our family can afford to spend some money to apologize."
Old Master Lu's eyes lit up: "Yes, yes, everyone says that Biyang County is so poor that they can hardly afford to eat. We are willing to offer five hundred taels of silver, hoping that the two families can turn hostility into friendship and let this matter pass."
Having said all that, Madam Song could no longer refuse, so she took five hundred taels of silver back to Prefect Song for advice.
When Prefect Song saw that they had taken out money, he thought for a moment and then told Madam Song to put the money down: "Let's see how the Meng family in the capital reacts. If their attitude is ambiguous, we can talk. If they take action without even giving us a heads-up, then you should send this money back to your family."
Madam Song cried out in alarm, "Master!"
Prefect Song raised his hand to stop her from continuing: "It's already reached the clan head. This isn't just a problem for Meng Ying's family anymore; it concerns the reputation of the entire Meng clan. If the Meng clan persists, even if we bribe Meng Ying, it won't work. Don't waste your breath. Let me tell you the truth: if the Meng clan in the capital targets the Lu family, we'll be running for our lives. Our Yubin Song clan is just a small family; how can we be a match for the Meng family? If you only care about your maternal family and not your own future, you might as well go home and stay with your parents!"
Madam Song was pale and could not utter a single word.
Prefect Song had never spoken to her so harshly before. It seemed that her family's situation was truly troublesome, and Prefect Song, fearing being implicated, had to choose to cut his losses and save himself.
Meanwhile, in the capital city, the Meng family patriarch, Meng Shiru, had just received a letter from Meng Ying seeking help.
The letter was delivered by Gu Shanzhang's attendant, tucked inside the New Year's gifts that Gu Shanzhang was giving to the elders of the clan. The attendant delivered the New Year's gifts to Gu Shanzhang before handing it over to the clan chief.
Upon hearing that it was a letter from Meng Ying, the clan chief was quite surprised for a moment. He was the eldest son of the main branch, while Meng Ying was the illegitimate son of Meng Shiqian, the second son of the Minister Meng. The clan had many male members, and Meng Ying was not favored and always kept a low profile. His relationship with the clan chief was only slightly more familiar than that of strangers. What could he possibly want from him?
After opening the letter, he remained silent for a long time.
Meng clan chief's wife, Madam He, said, "Which son of yours is looking for a job and needs your help? I told you to step down as clan chief a long time ago, but you wouldn't listen. You're an old man, and you're still getting all worked up over something as trivial as a winter melon or tofu. What kind of behavior is that?"
Chief Meng clicked his tongue: "What can I do if the second son refuses to take on this responsibility? Which of my sons is available to take on this burden?"
Mrs. He said, "Isn't there still the third son? He's eight years younger than you, he can still cause trouble for a few more years."
Chief Meng blew his beard: "The third son hasn't entered officialdom, how can he control the situation? He doesn't understand the ins and outs of this place, and he's likely to do something wrong."
He said, "He may say you're incompetent, but he's a hundred times more skilled in administrative affairs than you. Now, the collateral branches often ask him for help with tasks, and you, as the clan head, have no say in it."
Chief Meng said, "The third brother really has no say in this matter. We need to discuss what to do and whether we should get involved."
He asked, "Who exactly came to ask you for a favor?"
The clan chief Meng said, "The fourth son of the second son's family, Meng Ying, was demoted to Biyang County before the New Year."
Madam He frowned: "Him? Why would he come to you instead of his second son? You're just a distant uncle, not his father."
Chief Meng said, "The second son separated him a long time ago, but he really wants to come to me about this."
Mrs. He took the letter from his hand, read it once, and then put it down expressionlessly.
Well, this matter isn't a huge deal, but it's not insignificant either. How to manage it, and whether to manage it at all, is quite a headache.
If Meng Ying were still living in the same household as Minister Meng, it would naturally be a matter for their second branch of the family. However, since Minister Meng has already separated him from his original family, it is perfectly legitimate for Meng Ying to write to the clan head.
If they do nothing, the Meng family will surely be ridiculed by the world once the news gets out; but if they do intervene, it will be a very troublesome matter.
After all, Minister Meng had been retired for five years, and he was originally the Minister of Rites, which did not have the real power of the ministers of other ministries. The connections he had left in the officialdom were mostly nominal, so he could not exert his influence when needed.
Otherwise, even though Minister Meng had been retired for so long, it took him almost three years to promote his eldest son, Meng Rong, to the position of Vice Minister of Works. His other sons either held low-ranking or nominal positions, appearing impressive but actually empty-headed.
After he retired, Meng's influence in the court weakened considerably, while Lu Zhang was backed by the powerful Prefect of Lin'an, a high-ranking official.
Especially considering that Meng Ying was going to serve as a county magistrate under this Prefect Song, it was not good to offend him too much. But if he pretended not to see it and did not stand up for Meng Ying at all, then the Meng family would have no face to stand in front of the aristocratic families.
It can only be said that they do have ways to deal with Lu Zhang. Not to mention their numerous in-laws all over the world, they could borrow enough strength from their own family alone. However, they need to consider whether it is worthwhile to invest in Meng Ying.
He picked up his hat and put it on. Mrs. He asked, "Where are you going?"
Chief Meng said, "I'll go to the second son's house and ask him how he plans to handle this matter."
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