Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 655 Struggle
Having capable ministers to assist a monarch is both a good thing and a bad thing.

When the court is unstable, it is easier for the emperor and his ministers to work together to achieve great things. However, after all the external enemies are eliminated, they will inevitably be hampered by capable ministers.

This is why, once a monarch has secured the throne, he will turn against his meritorious officials.

The Prince of Huai is not yet qualified to consider these things. The throne is extremely distant for him, and Wang Yan is not the current prime minister. Therefore, he should not have such feelings of resistance towards Wang Yan.

But... sometimes, he really couldn't stand Wang Yan. It was as if they had been rivals for decades, and that dislike was written into his very bones. Even if he took it to his grave, he would still remember it when he reached the underworld.

Prince Huai shook off his emotions and went to greet him: "Well? Has His Majesty assigned you the task?"

Wang Yan nodded.

The Prince of Huai smiled and said, "His Majesty still trusts you." In matters of great importance, a capable minister is always the best choice.

The Prince of Huai then asked, "What are you going to do next?"

Wang Yan pondered for a moment. It wouldn't be so easy to imprison a Privy Councilor. If Xie Yizhi wanted to exonerate herself, she would first destroy all the evidence, and second, she would incite a factional struggle.

Once they are swept along by factional strife, Xie Yizhi's alleged collusion with the demonic cult will be interpreted as a frame-up. With Xie Yizhi in control of the situation, those who accuse her will have to prove their innocence.

When Xie Yizhi recommends a respected senior official to plead his case, those officials implicated in the factional struggle will naturally lean towards Xie Yizhi. At that time, no matter what evidence they present, it will be questioned for its authenticity.

Therefore, even if Wang Yan wanted to lead people to protect Xie Yuyan back to the capital, he could only suppress the thought. At this critical moment, he had to trust Ayan, and Ayan would trust him in return.

Wang Yan looked at the Prince of Huai: "Your Highness should go to Cining Palace and ask the Empress Dowager to intervene and cancel the marriage with the Xie family."

The Prince of Huai narrowed his eyes. So this was a case of crossing the river and then burning the bridge. Not only was he not told the truth, but he was also being guarded against.

“I will speak to the Prince of Huaijun,” he said. “Since Lady Xie is an imposter from the Demon Sect, the marriage is naturally off.”

Wang Yan looked at the Prince of Huai and said, "No matter who Xie Erniangzi is, she will no longer be engaged to the Prince."

The Prince of Huai kept a straight face, but after a moment he couldn't help but laugh: "Hechun, do you know what you look like right now?"

"There was a pair of swans in the pond of the Qin King's mansion. One day, the female swan suddenly disappeared. The male swan was so anxious that he kept pacing around in circles and calling in the pond for several days until the female swan flew back."

"How are you different from that male swan?"

After saying that, he reached out and patted Wang Yan on the shoulder: "I will definitely do what I promised you. I will go to Cining Palace now and ask the Empress Dowager to withdraw the imperial decree of marriage."

The two parted ways at the palace gate. Prince Huai stood there, relaxed, slightly bowing, his hands clasped as he watched Wang Yan's retreating figure.

If he refuses to break off the engagement and tries every means to marry Lady Xie, I wonder what Wang Yan will do?
Wang Yan mounted his horse at the palace gate, just as Xie Yizhi's sedan chair landed.

Xie Yizhi lifted the curtain and stepped out. He looked up and saw Wang Yan riding on horseback. The moment their eyes met, one was high above, his eyes full of sharpness, while the other was crouching, his brows furrowed with worry and sorrow.

Wang Yan did not speak to Xie Yizhi, nor did he greet him; instead, he urged his horse forward directly in front of him.

Seeing this, Xie Yizhi's steward wanted to reprimand Wang Yan for his rudeness, but ultimately remained silent, not wanting to further upset his master at such a time. Xie Yizhi composed himself, straightened his official robes, and walked towards the palace gate, where the waiting eunuchs immediately came out.

“Thank you, Grand Councilor,” the eunuch whispered, “His Majesty has instructed me to wait for you here.”

Xie Yizhi nodded: "I'll trouble you, eunuch. Please lead me to the Emperor now."

The eunuch did not move, but instead said, "His Majesty has other important matters to attend to, so he will not see the Privy Councilor today. Please trouble the Privy Councilor to go back and wait. His Majesty will send someone to the mansion to summon him when he has time."

Xie Yizhi felt a chill in his heart, a cold air rising from the soles of his feet, as if the flesh of everything he touched was frozen, and he almost couldn't stand up.

The officials refused to see him, a decision made without his having offered any explanation.

He was the Privy Councilor, the chief minister of the Great Liang, yet he didn't even have a chance to struggle at a time like this.
The eunuch said, "When His Majesty has some free time, he will send someone to the mansion to summon him."

This means he will soon be stripped of his official post and sent home to "recuperate." Otherwise, he would attend court every morning, so why would he need to be summoned again?

The scene of his eye contact with Wang Yan flashed through Xie Yizhi's mind, and only now did he truly understand Wang Yan's meaning. The contempt in Wang Yan's eyes was a declaration that he had no chance of ever turning the tables.

Xie Yizhi gritted his teeth and looked at the eunuch: "Please inform His Majesty that I have important matters to discuss with him."

The eunuch smiled and said, "His Majesty said that if Privy Councilor Xie has something to attend to, there is no need to rush. He can wait a while before reporting. If it is military affairs... he might as well send the memorial first."

"Privy Councilor, His Majesty is truly too busy to attend to matters today. You should return to your quarters first!"

The eunuch dared not stop him, clearly because the Emperor had given orders that no matter what he said, he would not be summoned.

Xie Yizhi nodded: "Then I'll trouble you, Censor." With that, he turned and walked back.

He had only walked a few steps, but it felt like an eternity. The sense of powerlessness he felt before gaining power returned to his body. His younger brother, who was smarter than him back then, stood in his way like a mountain. Even though he had achieved early success and entered officialdom early, he was not noticed by anyone.

He was the eldest son, but in his father's eyes, he was merely "acceptable." No matter how hard he tried or how much he struggled, it was all in vain. Even when it came to the marriage alliance with the Xu family, his father bypassed him and chose his second brother instead.

Otherwise, how could he have taken a liking to Xu Shu? He wanted his father to see that even without an elder to make decisions for him, he could still get what he wanted.

He and his second brother were able to maintain a semblance of peace, but who knew that his second brother would go to Shaozhou and even come up with the idea of ​​recruiting the demonic sect.

The Demonic Cult was a piece of fat meat he had long coveted; he intended to use them to do his bidding, and he had already profited from it. If the Demonic Cult were to be recruited by the government, his schemes might be exposed.

Sure enough, the second brother discovered something amiss and had been secretly investigating the demon cult's business dealings at sea. If he didn't take action soon, he would be the one to die.

He had worked incredibly hard to earn the position of Privy Councilor, and he was determined not to let it fall into the hands of two children.

Xie Yizhi bent down and sat in the sedan chair. Since Wang Yan dared to treat him like this, he might as well fight to the death.

"Invite Minister Liu over and tell him... I'm about to take action. Those memorials and evidence impeaching Minister Wang must be presented to the Emperor at the morning court tomorrow."

(End of this chapter)