Chapter 67 Private Talk
Zhu Yuhuan insisted on staying in Yunnan. In addition to considering stabilizing the southwestern border so that there would be sufficient troops to deal with the Oirat, another point was to take this opportunity to normalize the "eldest princess's participation in politics."
Before, Zhu Yuhuan could only be regarded as slightly involved in government affairs, so Empress Dowager Zhang and Zhu Qizhen naturally would not ask Zhu Yuhuan when deciding Aluta's life or death. Now that Empress Dowager Zhang is gone, the mountain pressing on Zhu Yuhuan's head has almost disappeared, and Zhu Yuhuan must seize the opportunity.
She has her own irreplaceable qualities, and stepping down as regent is just a matter of course. After all, regent is not a normal thing, and what Zhu Yuhuan has to do is to make most people accept her existence.
Yang Pu understood from Zhu Yuhuan's brief words that whether the princess could continue to stay in the court to restrain Wang Zhen depended on the actions of these ministers. As for how to do it specifically, Zhu Yuhuan would not interfere.
If the cabinet and officials had objections, Zhu Yuhuan naturally didn't care. After all, as long as she was alive and did not make mistakes, there was no need for the emperor and Wang Zhen to always target Princess Shunde. But the officials were completely different.
Yang Pu said in a deep voice: "I understand."
Yang Shiqi looked at Yang Pu, his face showing a hint of disapproval.
The conversation just now was already extremely disrespectful. Even if Zhu Yuhuan was the eldest princess assisting in the administration, she should not have overstepped the boundaries to such an extent. There was a certain arrogance in her words and deeds, which did not sound appropriate no matter how one listened to it. Especially when one considered the old precedents of the Han and Tang dynasties, Yang Shiqi felt it was even more inappropriate.
But before Yang Shiqi could speak, Yang Pu had already grabbed his sleeve, signaling him not to speak.
Zhu Yuhuan saw these little movements clearly and couldn't help but laugh. She then said, "You two are veteran ministers. In terms of your ability and experience, no one can compare to you. Your Majesty and I both have great trust in you. I will wait patiently for your good news." Her eyes shuttled back and forth between the two men, finally landing on Yang Shiqi. She said, "I hope you both take care of yourselves. I look forward to seeing you when I return to the capital."
After saying this, she stood up and left, obviously intending to leave the private room to Yang Shiqi and Yang Pu.
Hearing the door being closed from outside, Yang Shiqi finally said solemnly to Yang Pu, his colleague with whom he had enjoyed a pleasant relationship for many years, "If others heard what you just said, I'm afraid you and I would both die."
Yang Pu sighed helplessly and said, "If words like this could be easily heard by others, Princess Shunde would not be the Princess Shunde she is today."
The Taiping Teahouse has been in business for many years, and Princess Shunde herself often comes here. Not to mention hearing such confidential conversations, there is no chance for him to even meet Princess Shunde. It is not difficult to make this business prosperous, but the difficult part is that many officials in the court can come here with confidence, which shows the level of confidentiality here.
Yang Shiqi shook his head and said, "Even so, you shouldn't have said that just now. The Princess is of royal origin after all. If you say that, doesn't it prove that you have a rebellious heart?"
Yang Pu said helplessly, "Even the princess dared to say those words, so what do I have to fear?"
Thinking of Zhu Yuhuan's bold remarks just now, Yang Shiqi couldn't help but remain silent.
Yang Pu continued, "Dongli, you're so anxious you're losing your mind. How did the princess know she'd be accompanying the army to Luchuan? Given His Majesty's personality, how could he possibly have informed the princess of such a matter before the Luchuan expedition was finalized? The princess must have made her own assumptions... I'm afraid she and Wang Zhen have long had a disagreement. Wang Zhen was trying to be clever in front of the princess, but she saw through him. That's why she concluded that Wang Zhen was using the Luchuan expedition as an excuse to 'drive' the princess out of the capital."
Yang Shiqi was silent for a moment, then said, "Wang Zhen is certainly hateful, but the words the princess just said are not what a loyal and righteous person should say. If you want the princess to deal with Wang Zhen, I'm afraid she has other ideas. Then, you and I will become part of the princess's plan to drive the tiger to devour the wolf."
Yang Pu was naturally aware of this, but upon hearing this, he only sighed and said, "Could it be that we are no longer part of this plan?"
Yang Shiqi was stunned, looked at Yang Pu and asked, "What does this mean?"
"Dongli, although Ji'er hasn't been as high-profile as he was in the early years of the Zhengtong era, have you forgotten that Empress Chengxiao summoned you alone?"
Yang Shiqi was stunned for a moment, but soon he understood and his face turned pale.
Yang Ji no longer acts as high-profile as he did before, but that doesn't mean the crimes he committed in the past can be wiped out. As long as the royal family is determined to investigate, they can arrest Yang Ji and put him in prison for interrogation anytime and anywhere.
Although Empress Chengxiao had stated that she would not publicly hold Yang Ji responsible, she hadn't yet "eliminated" the witness. Now, the witness might be in the imperial prison...
"His Majesty has long been dissatisfied with us two overly cautious old men. If he really knew about the existence of this witness, I'm afraid he would have taken this opportunity to use Ji'er to force you to obey the emperor's orders. Why wait until today and let Princess Shunde come to you to speak like this?"
When Yang Shiqi heard him say this, he suddenly remembered Zhu Yuhuan's words to them before leaving, "Take care of your health", which seemed to have a deeper meaning...
The most terrifying threat in the world is a seemingly casual sentence, and only after the fact do we finally discover what terrible consequences it will have.
Fortunately, Yang Shiqi "woke up" earlier than others.
Seeing the cold sweat on his forehead, Yang Pu knew that Yang Shiqi had figured everything out. He continued, "I'm afraid the Empress Dowager trusts Princess Shunde's handling of this matter and its outcome more than Your Majesty does. That's why she didn't mention it to Your Majesty and instead handed the witness to the Princess."
Yang Shiqi has completely understood that as long as the princess is willing, she can send evidence to the emperor at any time and anywhere, and Zhu Qizhen will never miss such an opportunity to defeat Yang Shiqi.
Compared to the eunuchs, these officials could not really be considered the emperor's friends. But then again, could they really be the eldest princess's friends? Especially with Yang Pu constantly speaking for the eldest princess, could there be any benefit for these old bones in the future?
After a long while, Yang Shiqi finally said to Yang Pu, "Mianren, why do you always speak in favor of the princess?"
No matter how outstanding Princess Shunde is, she is just a woman after all. Being able to assist in government affairs is an honor that others can hardly achieve. Is it possible for her to go one step further?
Yang Pu knew Yang Shiqi would surely be aware of his deliberate guidance, so he simply said, "I remember that Dongli admired Yu Qian, the Governor of Henan and Shanxi. He was a Jinshi in the 19th year of the Yongle reign, but compared to his peers, he had an eccentric personality. If it weren't for the suppression of the Han commoner Zhu Gaoxu who plotted rebellion, he probably wouldn't have made it. His subsequent appointment as Governor of Henan and Shanxi was also due to his promotion by the cabinet. Dongli, do you still remember why Yu Qian was promoted?"
Yang Shiqi was slightly taken aback and said, "Of course it's because this person is willing to be loyal to his country, has a persistent character, and is also very strict with himself."
Yang Pu took over his words and said, "As long as you have the country in your heart and are capable of serving it loyally, why should you be so particular?"
Yang Shiqi could not help but stand there in a daze, not saying a word.
Yang Pu's words contained so much meaning that even Yang Shiqi couldn't figure out immediately whether he was talking about the emperor or the minister.
Yang Pu knew Yang Shiqi was probably confused at the moment, so he didn't say anything more. He simply patted Yang Shiqi on the shoulder and said, "When you and I entered the court as officials, we always wanted to realize our ambitions. Now, although we are old and frail, and our ambitions are gone, we should do something for this country instead of just sitting back and watching. Even if it means letting a tiger devour a wolf, what does it matter? Who knows how books will praise or criticize you and me in thousands of years? At least Princess Shunde is far superior to Wang Zhen and his ilk."
Having said this, Yang Pu also stood up and walked out of the house, leaving Yang Shiqi alone in the house in silence.
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