The Prime Minister’s Mansion.
By the time Marquis Mu Houchu returned, Ling Feng had already been waiting. He quickly said, "Your return is overdue, my lord. The Shen family has already learned of your decision to relinquish power. They are eagerly recommending their own candidates to the Emperor, hoping to gain an early advantage. If the real power falls into their hands, I fear..."
Marquis Mu Houchu strode into the mansion, his face impassive. "Even if the Shen family has such intentions, it remains to be seen whether the Emperor emulates such wishes. After being deceived twice, how can he easily trust others?"
Ling Feng said, "The Shen family is different, it has Concubine Shen in the palace. After yesterday’s events, Concubine Shen was almost killed! The Emperor’s trust in the Shen family is not insignificant!"
Old Man Chen may have fallen from power, but the Shen family is still thriving!
"Even if the Emperor wants to reappoint the Shen family, he would also be wary of them becoming the next Old Man Chen or the next me. Hence, he will not hand over all the power to them, but rather, choose someone else. The Shen family’s recommendation will certainly not work, because the Emperor isn’t foolish enough to accept their recommendations. Whoever they recommend would certainly be loyal to the Shen Family. If he really follows their request, then the Shen family’s power will inevitably increase excessively!"
Ling Feng froze for a moment then nodded, "What you said is true, my lord. Then, in this case, how should we persuade the Emperor to make use of our people? After all, if the Emperor doesn’t trust the Shen family’s recommendations, he certainly won’t trust your recommendations."
"I don’t need to step forward for this." Mu Houchu said. "Where is the list of candidates?"
"Here it is," Ling Feng quickly handed it over.
Mu Houchu opened the list and glanced at it. "Chen Hanliang has been serving as the pick of the Dali Temple for over five years, yet he hasn’t moved an inch. Is it because Liu Fan, the minor courtier of Dali Temple, has been intentionally suppressing him?"
"Exactly. Chen Hanliang was a talent nurtured by you, sir, in your early years. On the surface, he has nothing to do with you. His entry into the Dali Temple was also helped secretly by you. But once he entered the Dali Temple, Liu Fan became jealous of his talent and has been deliberately suppressing him, preventing him from coming to the front."
"It would be best to appoint him as head of the Dali Temple. Please inform him, asking him to take the initiative to seek out Elder Duan to recommend himself. Elder Duan, with his impartiality and integrity, and with the Emperor intent on employing him, and furthermore due to Chen Hanliang’s abilities, the Emperor will believe it," Mu Houchu said.
Ling Feng’s eyes lit up, "Yes, sir!"
"You hand over the Dali Temple to Chen Hanliang, and I’ll feel relieved. As for the rest of the power, distribute it among these people whom I have circled. Once Chen Hanliang ascends to power in the Dali Temple, ask him to personally recommend these few individuals to the Emperor. The Emperor is bound to appreciate the talents ’personally unearthed’ by him. These men, riding on Chen Hanliang’s coattails and making their debuts, won’t have a hard time," Marquis Mu said.
Fed up with being deceived by the court elites, the Emperor certainly wanted to cultivate a new power base and ’personally unearth talents.’ So, these highly capable but unrecognized individuals became his main targets for support. The Emperor would never suspect that these so-called talents unearthed by Chen Hanliang were, in fact, Marquis Mu’s men.
"Your subordinate will carry out the task!" Ling Feng immediately answered.
"I am going to the palace now."
"Yes, sir."
——
The life of Concubine Shen was no longer in danger after being attended to all night.
The whole palace breathed a sigh of relief.
Only the emperor’s palace remained gloomy. People say that it was because the Emperor was still concerned about the condition of the Imperial Concubine that the palace’s atmosphere was so suffocating. Little did they know, what was truly bothering him was Marquis Mu Houchu’s handling of his powers.
He couldn’t trust anyone in the court! It was good that Marquis Mu Houchu relinquished his power, and he no longer had to suffer from threats. But if Marquis Mu Houchu didn’t own power, those powers would be coveted, just like by the Shen family.
When Lord Shen was leaving the palace, he happened to run into Marquis Mu Houchu entering the palace.
With a gloomy look on his face, Mu Houchu could tell that he had likely hit a wall with the Emperor.
"Lord Shen, you are very dedicated today. Coming into the palace even on your day off?" Mu Houchu said indifferently.
Lord Shen snorted, "Mu Xiang, you would do better to worry about yourself. I heard you’ve handed over your power? This is great news. Now you’re a free man and must be having the time of your life."
Mu Houchu responded calmly, "Perhaps that’s the case."
Stepping away from the spotlight might be a better choice than standing in a storm and being caught in crossfire.
After saying this, Mu Houchu walked directly into the palace.
Watching Mu Houchu’s retreating figure, Lord Shen’s eyes were filled with suspicion. Mu Houchu, this man, was not to be underestimated! How could such a man easily hand over his powers? Are there no hidden secrets behind this?
Regardless of whether Marquis Mu Houchu handed over power or not, the Emperor had no intention of giving the power to the people he recommended. This was truly infuriating!
Thinking of this, Lord Shen, becoming irate, swept his sleeves and stormed out of the palace.
"Your Majesty, Minister Mu seeks an audience."
The emperor asked suspiciously, "What brings him here? Let him in."
As Mu Houchu entered, the Emperor laughed coldly, "What? You just handed over your power and you rushed into the palace just as eagerly as Lord Shen? Do you also want to recommend people to take over power?"
But Mu Houchu said, "I have no such intention. Now that I have given up power, I feel light and free. I don’t want to have anything to do with the affairs of the court."
Looking puzzled and less hostile, the Emperor said, "Then why are you here?"
"Having resigned from my post while still staying in the capital puts me in an awkward position. It makes it difficult for the people below and also has the Emperor worried," Mu Houchu stated, looking at him.
Of course, the Emperor was worried. Even after relinquishing his power, Mu Houchu’s influence was still there. As long as he stays in the capital for even a day, the Emperor could not be fully at ease.
Mu Houchu continued, "So I thought it would be best to leave the capital as soon as possible and head to Lanshan City. Being away from the capital would decrease these conflicts."
The Emperor was shocked and stared at him, finding it hard to believe that Marquis Mu Houchu was willing to retreat so far. Lanshan City, where was that? It was such a backward and declining place. He chose to retire there?
The Emperor coughed lightly, feeling uncomfortable. He said, "You have helped me conquer the kingdom, and now you’ve given up power and want to go to such a place. I can’t bear the idea. I will make an exception and bestow upon you the title of Prince. I will grant you the lands of Lanshan City, so you can live comfortably there. I hereby confer you as Prince Pingyang."
Although it sounded like he was granting land and titles, making it an apparently grand promotion, the remote location and its lack of prosperity paled in comparison to the formidable power and glory of a Prime Minister.
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