The film and television world begins with the battle for the throne in Kowloon

Chapter 661 Chai Shao's Wavering

Chai Shao's face also became extremely ugly. After Cheng Yaojin's analysis, Chai Shao really discovered that the emperor had given him face by not discussing the position of Zuo Tunwei in the court. He did not have the heart to embarrass him in public.

is not that right?

In this way, even if Huai Mo withdraws, his own Zhe Wei will have no chance! The emperor himself appointed the crown prince, so he must maintain the crown prince's authority. It is impossible for him to support the King of Shu again and again.

Seeing that Chai Shao was in a dilemma, Cheng Yaojin took the initiative to say, "Old Chai, I have an idea that can kill two birds with one stone. It can let Chai Shao take over the position of the General of the Left Guard and repair your relationship with the prince. It depends on whether you are willing to listen to it or not."

"There is such a way to have the best of both worlds, why don't you tell me quickly? I, Old Chai, will remember your favor and will definitely repay you next time." Chai Shao's expression brightened and he asked immediately.

Cheng Yaojin then said, "Speaking of which, Zhewei is a good kid. Although he is involved with the King of Shu, they are cousins, so it's not a big deal. But you can't be confused. You are the General of the Left Guard, who holds military power, and you are in charge of 50,000 to 60,000 soldiers in Jingzhou."

"Take this opportunity to visit the Crown Prince at the East Palace and speak for Zhewei. After all, Zhewei's mother is the Crown Prince's aunt. If you say a few nice words to smooth things over, the Crown Prince will do you a favor and give the Left Guard to Zhewei."

"With this friendship as a bond, you can basically withdraw from the situation by keeping a distance from the King of Shu. As for whether to join the Crown Prince, you can wait and see."

"Also, you should also remind Zhewei that it's good to have a good relationship with the King of Shu, but there should be a limit. Even if you have some inclination, you should also consider the distance and strength. The fight for the throne is not a matter of one or two days. You should wait and see. If things go wrong, you won't be completely demoted and have no chance to turn things around."

Chai Shao nodded frequently after listening to this and after thinking about it carefully for a while, he had to admit that Cheng Yaojin was still quite capable. Although this plan was less powerful than before, it allowed more room for maneuver and was much more stable.

Nowadays, everyone has a large family and a big business, and they really can’t afford to make such a fuss!

In this way, Chai Shao failed to persuade Cheng Yaojin, but was persuaded by Cheng Yaojin instead. After the discussion, both of them put their worries aside and began to talk about the recent anecdotes in the court.

That night, Cheng Yaojin was drinking heavily in Chai Shao's mansion and was carried back to the mansion by Chai Zhewei in the evening.

The next day, Chai Shao canceled his plan to return to Jingzhou and went to the East Palace to visit Li Yan in the morning. With Chai Shao's deliberate catering, the two had a good conversation. Li Yan finally nodded and approved Chai Zhewei to take over the position of General of the Zuotunwei Yifu, which really did a big favor for his cheap uncle Chai Shao.

When Chai Shao returned home from the East Palace, he saw Chai Zhewei, who had not gone out because he was at home, and called his son to the study.

After a secret conversation for the whole afternoon, when Chai Zhewei came out of his father's study again, his face became extremely heavy. He locked himself in the room and did not go out for the whole afternoon.

His father told him to continue to interact with the King of Shu, but not to get too involved. In addition, he just needed to help the King of Shu do his job actively, and not to come up with any rogue ideas, especially those that attacked or excluded other brothers. He should never get too close.

The Chai family has worked hard for several generations, and there are more than a hundred people in the family, so they cannot take risks.

Chai Zhewei naturally understood that his father was not optimistic about the King of Shu, so he wanted to stay out of it for the time being. This might have a lot to do with Cheng Yaojin's visit yesterday. After Huai Liang's death, Cheng Yaojin and the King of Shu also had a rift, and it was said that he wanted to send Huai Bi to the Eastern Palace as a tutor.

Chai Zhewei was truly mediocre in talent. Everything he did was arranged by his father, including his approach to the King of Shu. Although the two of them were equally skilled in martial arts and shared the same ideals, as the eldest son of a prominent family, everything he did was for the benefit of his family.

No matter how much he personally admired the King of Shu, if his father asked him to support the Crown Prince instead, he would do so.

If he didn't have this rationality and responsibility, Chai Shao would not have passed the title to him. He also had a younger brother named Chai Lingwu, who could also inherit the family business.

It is said that a good man should not rely on the achievements of his ancestors, but that is just to fool outsiders.

Just like Dugu Mou, the son of Dugu Yanyun, one of the Nine Generals of Xuanwu Gate. If Dugu Yanyun had not died in the battlefield of Suizhou, it would have been difficult for him to get away with the crime of offending the princess.

After losing his father's protection, he joined the army. If others joined the army, they would definitely start from the bottom. But Uncle Yuan was a lieutenant in the army, and he was the one guarding the general's tent. Without the merits of his ancestors, even if Dugu Mou was brave, he could not reach the position of a lieutenant without ten years of military service.

There are not many heroic sons from heroic fathers. For an ordinary family, it is already good enough to produce one outstanding talent in ten generations. How could there be so many geniuses in your family?
Naturally, Chai Zhewei was reluctant to give up the huge inheritance left to him by his father and mother. This was an honor that he could never earn in his lifetime. Now, as long as he listened to his father obediently, he could get it naturally. Why should he work so hard for it?
Chai Zhewei was thinking about how he would get along with the King of Shu in the future. His father was just not as sure as before, but that didn't mean he would completely change his ways. He had to keep this line. He wanted to make it as quiet as possible without the King of Shu noticing it, and try not to cause the King of Shu to be disgusted.

His father would go to negotiate with the crown prince, and he heard that the crown prince had agreed, so he would not fight for the position of Lieutenant Colonel Yifu of the Left Guard, and would give it to himself. Chai Zhewei didn't know how big a favor this was, and what his father would use to repay him in the future, but he believed what his father said. If the crown prince really wanted to fight for it, the position of Lieutenant Colonel of the Left Guard would not be the King of Shu's turn this time. In this way, he also owed the crown prince a favor.

Is it even possible that his favor is greater than that of the King of Shu?
...

When Chai Zhewei was feeling extremely worried, Li Shimin in Chengqing Hall of Taiji Palace returned to the imperial study after court session. Wang De came to inform him that Cheng Yaojin was there to pay a visit.

Li Shimin thought that Cheng Yaojin had been back for nearly a month, and the family affairs should have been settled. Although there was no trouble on the border for the time being, the generals at the front could not always be absent. In case of Turkic invasion, without generals, wouldn't it be a big mistake?

But after all, the man had lost a son, so Li Shimin had to ask Li Daozon from nearby Dingxiang to help look after him. He approved a month's bereavement leave for Cheng Yaojin, and thought that the time was about up, so he guessed that Cheng Yaojin came to say goodbye to him.

Li Shimin temporarily put aside his official duties and specially received Cheng Yaojin.

The two talked about the border defense against the Turks and making preparations for the war this winter and next spring. Later, when they were preparing to see the guests off, Cheng Yaojin mentioned that his eldest son Cheng Huaimo might not be able to return to Chang'an for the time being, and then brought up the topic of Zuotunwei.

The last time Li Shimin threw out this position was to cause a fight between his eldest and second sons, but he failed that time. This time, they finally started fighting. Just when he was secretly thinking about it, Cheng Yaojin brought up this matter, which inevitably reminded Li Shimin of Cheng Huailiang, the former General of the Left Guard.

Thinking of this, Li Shimin sighed and comforted Cheng Yaojin with a few words. As a result, this mighty and strong man, for some reason, touched a nerve and started crying bitterly in the imperial study in front of Li Shimin.

He was not the kind who would stop at the right time. Instead, he was heartbroken and in agony, crying like a baby. He did not have the dignity of a duke or a general at all, and he did not care about the occasion, so Li Shimin quickly drove away Wang De and other servants.

They began to comfort him, but Cheng Yaojin was like a child who had been wronged outside and came home to see his parents. He burst into tears and finally collapsed on the brocade cushion. His wails were so heartbreaking that anyone who heard them or saw them shed tears. Even Wang De, who was standing at the door, sighed inwardly.

At this time, Li Yan came to pay his respects, but was stopped by Wang De. The two of them were outside the door and heard the crying sound coming from inside. They both looked incredulous.

Seeing this situation, Li Yan had no choice but to wait outside and turned away other ministers who wanted to pay a visit to Li Shimin.

Li Shimin had a helpless look on his face. He looked at Cheng Yaojin's face full of whiskers. He leaned against the stool, crying uncontrollably and gasping for breath.

It’s no wonder that I feel the pain of losing a child?
Li Shimin thought about it and thought Cheng Yaojin was crying about the Zuotunwei, so he suggested: "Zhijie! In fact, I think what the prince said makes sense. The border is dangerous. Otherwise, let Huaimo return to Chang'an. Huaimo has learned a lot from following you in the past few years. It will definitely be no problem to bring a guard to guard the city."

Cheng Yaojin just cried, but shook his head firmly.

Li Shimin was helpless when he saw this and could only comfort him with a heavy expression. Finally, after much persuasion, he finally coaxed Cheng Yaojin and told him that if he was reluctant to leave, he could stay for two more days. Anyway, there was no rush to the border for the time being.

This was all Li Shimin could do. In the end, Cheng Yaojin did not say anything else. He apologized for his misconduct in front of the emperor, hesitated for a while, and finally left Chengqing Hall with a sad face.

As soon as Cheng Yaojin left, Li Yan came in and bowed to Li Shimin, who was standing in the hall with a frown on his face: "Your Highness, your son has seen you!"

"Oh, the prince is here!"

While putting the brocade cushion back to its original place, Li Yan tidied up the imperial desk and replaced the hot tea for Li Shimin.

Li Shimin shook his head helplessly, and after returning to his desk, he said puzzledly: "I don't know what happened to Zhijie today. He was so sad all of a sudden. Huailiang has been gone for a month. Hasn't he recovered yet?"

"Father, I have been here for a while. I just heard Duke Lu crying. I am afraid the guards outside the palace have heard it."

Li Yan was slightly sure, and said hesitantly: "I know why Duke Lu broke down and cried loudly in front of the emperor today?"

(End of this chapter)