Lin'an Never Night

Chapter 825 A glass of wine releases military power

Zhao Qi received the news from the Privy Council and went to Zongyang Palace.

Zhao Chen read these secret reports one by one and smiled faintly.

Zhao Qi couldn't wait to say, "Teacher, Yang Yuan is so inconsistent that I don't understand him. Who among these people is his accomplice?"

Without waiting for Zhao Chen to speak, Zhao Kai said, "Of course, there is no need to mention Zhang Xiaoxiang. This man must be Yang Yuan's close friend. How annoying and hateful!"

As Zhao Qi spoke, he clenched his fist and pounded the table hard.

He was very annoyed, because with Zhang Xiaoxiang's status and intelligence, it was impossible for him not to understand that he, the emperor, was deeply afraid of Yang Yuan.

But Zhang Xiaoxiang knew all this and was still so enthusiastic about Yang Yuan, which was a public slap in his face.

The young emperor had not yet taken power and his mind was extremely sensitive, so Zhang Xiaoxiang's almost provocative behavior made him very angry.

Zhao Chen smiled slightly and said, "Since the emperor knows whether Yang Yuan's plan is real or fake, why should he lead you by the nose?"

Zhao Qi was stunned: "What does the teacher mean?"

Zhao Chen said calmly: "Wu Gong, Shi Han, Li Dao..., three people, three different ways of treating each other, then, who are his followers?
Or, is he deliberately using these three people to attract the attention of the government so as to protect his real followers?"

Zhao Qi looked bewildered after hearing this, and said hesitantly, "That's why I am quite confused."

Zhao Chen shook his head: "Your Majesty, you are the emperor, do you need to distinguish who is loyal and who is treacherous, who is more loyal and who is more treacherous?"

Zhao Chen tapped the table and said, "When Your Majesty takes charge of the government, all those who are not at ease will be replaced. Officials are what we in the Song Dynasty lack the least.

Since the court has been cutting down on redundant personnel and streamlining government offices, there are so many candidates for office, what is there for the government to worry about? "

Zhao Qi sighed and said cheerfully, "Teacher is right. I am too concerned and confused."

Zhao Chen said: "As for the present, the emperor must keep his thoughts hidden and reward Yang Yuan when he returns to the capital.

The government should continue to show him more favors, so that everyone in the world can see that the government is willing to invest in meritorious officials."

Zhao Chen smiled coldly: "After the emperor takes power, we will slowly plan for it. First, clip his wings, demote, relocate or punish those who are too close to him, and remove them from important positions one by one.

When Yang Yuan is left alone, won't he be a piece of meat on the government's chopping board, waiting for the government to punish him?"

After hearing this, Zhao Kai couldn't help but stand up and pace back and forth in the main hall of Zongyang Palace.

His robe swayed gently with his steps. The sunlight slanting into the hall sprinkled on the sleeves, and the five claws of the dark patterned golden dragon were faintly visible.

Suddenly, Zhao Qi stopped and nodded, saying, "Teacher is right. First, win him over with great kindness. After I take power, I will observe his words and deeds, and then take slow action."

Zhao Chen said happily: "That's right. Anyway, when Yang Yuan comes back this time, the emperor can keep him in the capital on the pretext of sympathizing with his meritorious officials.

In short, I will never let him leave again.

When the emperor takes power, he will gradually replace his trusted generals. By then, Yang Yuan will be a toothless tiger and nothing to worry about."

Zhao Qi nodded repeatedly: "Thanks to the teacher, I have been confused since I got these secret reports. After listening to the teacher's words, I finally feel at ease."

Zhao Chen smiled and said, "The King of Jin is a wise king who is loyal to the emperor. The emperor can trust and rely on him. If there is anything unclear, you can consult the King of Jin."

Zhao Qi waved his hands and said, "Of course I know that Uncle Jin is a wise king. The late emperor once said that if Uncle Jin had not taken the initiative to give up the throne, the throne would never have fallen into the hands of the late emperor. It's just that..."

Zhao Qi shook his head: "It is true that Uncle Jin is a wise king. But his temperament is really unpleasant, even disgusting."

Zhao Qi frowned and said calmly: "The late emperor liked his straightforwardness. In my opinion, Uncle Jin... is a little too arrogant because of his favor!"

……

When Yang Yuan returned to Lin'an, it was already late autumn.

The weather in Lin'an at this time was cool, making people feel relaxed and happy.

Yang Yuan and his convoy first returned to Renmeifang. When they arrived at the stone archway with the three characters "Sanyuan Jidi" on the four pillars, they stopped.

Yang Yuan stood in front of the cart and lent a hand, and Lu Xi jumped off the cart lightly without waiting for the servant to bring the footrest.

Although she was already married and had children, she was still in her early twenties, and she remained innocent and naive when around Yang Yuan.

This mansion was where she and Yang Yuan lived after they got married. Their child was conceived and born here.

Now returning to the old house, Lu Xi can't help but feel a lot of emotions.

This house has always been kept clean and maintained, but because there is no master to serve, there are not many servants employed in the house.

There was only one old steward and twelve servants.

At this time, everyone lined up in front of the door to welcome the head of the family back.

Yang Yuan took Luxi, Yuye, Leng Yuchan, Xue Bingxin and Wu Youyao to the gate of the mansion.

As for Li Fengniang, when the boat arrived at Lin'an Pier, Yang Yuan used all kinds of persuasion to coax her back to his boat.

She was a lady who came to Beijing for selection, so Yang Yuan naturally couldn't bring her back to his home.

The familiar vermilion lacquered gate is still bright in color, probably because it is painted every year.

However, the iron bell on the eaves has already been covered with spots of rust.

After all, the master was away, so the servants would not be very careful in taking care of the place. "Luxi, accompany me to burn incense for our ancestors."

In recent years, Yang Yuan has been serving as a frontier official and cannot return to the court without reason.

Whenever it was time to burn incense and offer sacrifices to ancestors, this series of ceremonies had to be carried out in other places.

However, their ancestral temple cannot be moved easily, so it remains here.

Now that I am back, the first thing I do, of course, is to go to the ancestral temple to burn incense.

A carriage, escorted by a dozen guards, arrived at Renmeifang at this time.

The carriage has three eaves and is pulled by four horses, which shows that it belongs to a prince.

The person who came was none other than King Jin, Zhao Ju.

……

"Geese, geese, geese, geese. I haven't seen you for several years. How come you don't look any older?"

Yang Yuan and Lu Xi went to the ancestral hall to burn incense to their ancestors and their eldest brother Yang Che, and offered fresh fruits. As soon as they came out of the ancestral hall, they heard that Prince Jin had arrived.

The Prince of Jin was of a prominent status, so unless he wanted to see the emperor, he could just summon anyone else he wanted to see into his palace.

He shouldn't have condescended to come here on his own initiative, but Zhao Yu has always been such a casual person and doesn't care about the rules of hierarchy at all.

When Yang Yuan heard that he came "openly and brazenly", he suddenly felt much more relaxed.

The fact that Prince Jin could come so casually shows that the situation at the court is not as serious as he imagined.

Yang Yuan hurried to the study.

Seeing the King of Jin greet him, Yang Yuan skipped the formality of paying respect and said with a smile: "The customs of Bashu are good for people. I see that the King's expression has not changed at all."

"Of course. The local customs and habits of the south of the Yangtze River are more nourishing. Geese, geese, geese, geese..."

Hearing Zhao Qu's unique laughter, Yang Yuan felt particularly cordial.

When the tea came, Yang Yuan took a sip and complained, "Your Majesty, I am in Shaanxi. If I work hard, I can at least fight for half of the country from the Jin people. Why are you so anxious to stop the war?"

"Didn't you read the imperial edict?" Prince Jin lazily slumped in the armchair as if he had no bones.

Yang Yuan said: "I did read the reasons in the imperial edict, but it was not very detailed. I thought Your Highness would write a letter to explain it in detail."

Zhao Yu squinted at him, snorted, and said, "What letter do you need? Without my explanation, why don't you come back?"

Yang Yuan hurriedly said, "Of course not, but I missed the opportunity. I am very sorry."

Zhao Yu snorted and said, "You know, I'm just a lazy person. If my brother wants to fight, I'll fight with him. If my nephew wants to do something naughty, then why don't I stay away from him?"

Zhao Yu waved his sleeves and said, "This country belongs to him. He doesn't care about it at all. Why should you feel sorry for him?"

After hearing this, Yang Yuan was speechless.

The Goose King has not changed, he is still the Goose King.

Yang Yuan now knew the reason why he didn't write the letter.

It’s just because he doesn’t regard power as something important at all. If he doesn’t care, how can he think it is a very important matter?

However, with Zhao Que's intelligence, he obviously knew the real reason why the emperor did this.

However, one is Yang Yuan, whom he regards as a brother, and the other is his nephew’s official. What can he do?
Zhao Yu drank a sip of tea, looked at Yang Yuan's expression, sighed softly, and said leisurely: "The emperor has his own ideas. He has grown up and will soon be in charge of the government, so let him do it.

"Your achievements... are already as great as they can be, and I think you can hold this position for as long as you want. It wouldn't be a loss to confer the title of king on you, right?"

Yang Yuan didn't know whether Zhao Que had received instructions from the emperor, but these words were clearly another interpretation of "releasing military power over a cup of wine."

Yang Yuan was silent for a long time, then he smiled gently, slowly raised his eyes, looked at Zhao Yu, and said, "Okay!"

Zhao Yu was still slumped in the armchair, looking completely exhausted.

But Yang Yuan clearly felt that he breathed a sigh of relief, and his whole body relaxed at once.

One is his nephew and the other is his good brother, and it has nothing to do with who is sorry to whom.

The nephew wants to consolidate his power, and the brother wants to establish his career; each has his own pursuits.

Who is right? Who is wrong?
However, this kingdom belongs to his nephew after all, so he can only try his best to persuade his brother.

If Yang Yuan were to reach the highest position among the ministers and be granted the title of prince, he would have endless glory and splendor in his life. In his opinion, it would be worth it.

He believed that Yang Yuan would not lie to him. If Yang Yuan promised to let it go, then he must have really let it go.

Zhao Yu became excited again: "That's right, you run around all day and don't even have time to spend with your wife, concubines and children. Is this kind of life really good?
Let me tell you, I have recently acquired a few beauties, stunning young ladies from the Dangxiang Qiang people, who were given to me by Lord Anshun when he arrived in Lin'an.

Look at you, you conquered Western Xia, but you haven't even touched a beautiful woman from the Dangxiang Qiang people. Isn't that a loss to you?

"Learn from me, and from now on, we can be kings of leisure together, living a carefree life. This life won't be lived in vain. Don't you think so?"

(End of this chapter)