Chapter 88 A Plan for Life
When Empress Dowager Sun asked about government affairs, Wang Zhen immediately brought up his eighteen secrets and said with a wry smile, "Of course it's a great victory. Otherwise, why would the emperor issue decrees to reward the princess so many times?"
Empress Dowager Sun simply snorted, and after a long silence, she asked, "By the time Princess Shunde returns, the Emperor will have already completed the wedding ceremony... Has the Emperor discussed the matter of the Princess assisting in the administration with you?"
Wang Zhen had never expected Empress Sun to be so straightforward. He was stunned for a moment before he spoke, "This... has not been discussed yet."
This was not a lie. Zhu Qizhen was busy rejoicing over the successful start of Luchuan. How could he have time to care about such trivial matters?
Not to mention that the emperor truly trusted Princess Shunde and was not worried at all that the princess might be unwilling to give up.
However, Wang Zhen guessed that Princess Shunde would not be so desperate as to stay in the position of regent and refuse to leave.
No matter how much she loves power, Princess Shunde has to consider her own future. Continuing to assist in the administration would offend the emperor, and doing so would be more harm than good.
Empress Dowager Sun said with some dismay, "Princess Shunde has been incredibly cunning since she was young. The Emperor is completely unprepared, but don't you know how to warn him?"
Although she didn't know Zhu Yuhuan's inner thoughts, nor what plan she would come up with, Empress Dowager Sun knew one thing, that is, Princess Shunde always had a way to deal with it, and no one could find any fault with her.
If we don't take precautions, who knows what Princess Shunde can do?
Wang Zhen's face was still as flattering as ever, and he said, "Don't worry, old lady. The emperor is wise and powerful, and he won't do anything foolish."
Queen Mother Sun's tone still revealed a hint of worry, and she said anxiously, "He is so self-righteous and can easily leave loopholes for the Princess..."
Wang Zhen couldn't help but murmur in his heart when he heard this. He didn't know what this old lady Sun was afraid of. Could the eldest princess rebel against the emperor?
Everyone has witnessed what happened to the last rebellious princess. Princess Shunde is not a fool, so how could she do such a foolish thing?
Even though he had a thousand thoughts on his mind, Wang Zhen didn't reveal any of them. He simply said, "Don't worry, old lady. The emperor has his own methods for planning and strategizing. Just enjoy your life in the palace and don't worry too much."
Zhu Qizhen's intention was fully reflected in his words - the Empress Dowager must not interfere in government affairs at will.
Empress Dowager Sun only heard the word "enjoy happiness" and sneered. She felt a bit more sad and bitter in her heart. She did not hear the hidden meaning of Wang Zhen's words and only muttered to herself: "Enjoy happiness... Ha... enjoy happiness..."
The late emperor was gone, and she had a son like this, one who valued power more than her mother. What kind of happiness could she possibly enjoy? She didn't have the support of the Empress Dowager Cihui and the Princess Shunde, so she could only follow the Emperor's whims...
There is only one plan now, which is to cultivate a daughter-in-law who is willing to cooperate with her, give birth to a grandson as soon as possible, and then raise the future grandson like the Empress Dowager did. Only in this way can she have a day to get ahead. By then, even Princess Shunde will not be able to be superior to her.
After leaving Empress Dowager Sun's Shouning Palace, Wang Zhen wiped the sweat from his forehead and muttered, "This old Empress Dowager Sun has become more and more weird these years..."
He knew very well that Empress Dowager Sun, like him, feared Princess Shunde, but he was different. The harem was forbidden from interfering in government affairs, and Empress Dowager Sun did not have the prestige of Empress Dowager Zhang. Neither the emperor nor the officials had any reason to rely on her.
But Wang Zhen was different. At least he was sure that as long as he worked well for the emperor, he would be promoted naturally, and he would not have to compete with Princess Shunde for a while.
Seeing this, the eunuch beside him said, "It's because of the eldest princess's pressure. Even though the eldest princess's reputation is getting better and better, and there are women everywhere who imitate her and show their faces in public, but if the emperor gets married, will the eldest princess still be able to show off?"
Wang Zhen's words resonated deeply with him. He chuckled with satisfaction and said, "That's right. Princess Shunde will then have no choice but to behave herself..." He looked at the eunuch beside him and asked, "Any news from Ma Shun?"
"Yes, but..."
Wang Zhen saw that he looked troubled, so he asked, "Why? Does Xu Gong still dare to go against me?"
The Jinyiwei were originally the emperor's confidants, but after Yongle, several Jinyiwei commanders had "made little achievements". When Zhu Qizhen was skeptical of officials and generals, he urgently needed a commander who could "achieve results".
After figuring out the emperor's psychology, Wang Zhen immediately chose without hesitation to let the person who had defected to him take over the position of commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.
As long as the Jinyiwei are there, why should we be afraid of those officials?
"That's not the case..." the young eunuch said hurriedly, "Xu Gong is quite obedient. He knows he's no match for us, so he's delegated his responsibilities and doesn't dare act arbitrarily like before... Commander Ma simply found a good sword and would like to have it reviewed by Father."
Wang Zhen took the document handed to him by the eunuch, flipped through it casually, was slightly stunned at first, and then exclaimed happily: "This is simply a godsend!"
What was written in the document was nothing but the fact that Yang Shiqi's son Yang Ji had raped the wife of the commoner Li Chu. The witness Li Chu was in the imperial prison at that time.
Although Yang Shiqi had never offended Wang Zhen, this stubborn old man was extremely disliked by the emperor, and naturally became Wang Zhen's "enemy."
Just when Wang Zhen was thinking about doing his best for the emperor, someone brought him a pillow. If he didn't seize the opportunity, wouldn't he be letting God down?
Wang Zhen clenched the document in his hand, suppressing his joy as he instructed the eunuchs, "Tell Xu Gong that if he doesn't want to be charged with deceiving the emperor, he must tell Ma Shun everything in detail. Don't leave out a single detail! If anything goes wrong and we can't bring Yang Shiqi down completely, he'll be held accountable!"
"yes!"
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