After ten years of accompanying me in my studies, the entire court begged me to shut up.

Chapter 124 I Also Have a Girl

Yang Shen nodded: "Exactly."

"Oh dear! This—this won't do!"

Zhu Houzhao's face flushed red: "Who I marry or not is up to Father Emperor!"

Yang Shen said, "Your Highness, please don't be in a hurry. It's not about you marrying now, but about getting engaged. As the Crown Prince, Your Highness's marriage to the Marquis of Dingxi's family is an immense favor. Anyone who isn't a fool will know which side the Marquis of Dingxi should stand on. With this relationship, he will naturally distance himself from Li Gong and do everything in his power to protect Your Highness."

Zhu Houzhao scratched his head: "But—but this is too sudden."

Li Chun, standing nearby, couldn't help but ask, "Yang, how did you know the Marquis of Dingxi would agree?"

Yang Shen said, "He will definitely agree. Because this is his contribution to the rise of the new emperor. When His Highness ascends the throne, he will be the emperor's father-in-law. What an honor that is! It's a million times better than him drawing a salary without working while guarding Shanhaiguan. Moreover, his daughter will marry the crown prince and become the future empress. The Jiang family will then rise to the top of the nobility, and their descendants will no longer need to be subservient to civil officials. What reason does he have to refuse?"

Zhu Houzhao still felt awkward: "Isn't there any other way?"

Yang Shen said, "As I just said, there are three strategies: superior, middle, and inferior, but Your Highness does not wish to hear them."

"Alright then, tell me about the middle and worst strategies."

"The worst option is to punish everyone, regardless of whether they are civil or military officials, as long as they commit crimes, they will all be dealt with according to the law. But the consequence of doing so is that we will offend everyone in Shanhaiguan. They will be desperate and capable of anything, and Your Highness's life will be in danger."

Li Chun immediately said, "That won't do! His Highness's safety is of utmost importance."

Yang Shen nodded and continued, "The middle strategy is to turn a blind eye. We'll pretend we know nothing, eat and drink well, and after the New Year, continue our journey to Liaoyang. Li Gong and the others will definitely be eager to see His Highness off and happily send us out of the pass. But the consequence of doing so is that no one will care about the losses suffered by the court, the holes in the border towns will grow bigger and bigger, and when the Mongols invade in the future, it will still be the people and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty who die."

Zhu Houzhao shook his head: "I cannot turn a blind eye."

Yang Shen said, "Then the only option is to divide and conquer, win over the loyal ones, and suppress those with ulterior motives. Specifically, we should arrange a marriage alliance with Jiang Ji, get him on our side, and then free up our resources to deal with Li Gong. As long as Jiang Ji doesn't side with Li Gong, Li Gong will be like a tree without roots, unable to cause any trouble."

Zhu Houzhao pondered for a long time before asking, "Won't it be dangerous for military generals to become too powerful? What if they later become arrogant and domineering?"

Yang Shen said, "Your Highness, rest assured, our dynasty has no rule of granting kingships to those of different surnames. No matter how powerful a military general is, he can at most be granted the title of Duke, not a vassal king. Moreover, a military general's military power comes from the court's appointment, which can be revoked with a single word. If they wanted to rebel, they would lack legitimacy and no one would follow them."

"But civil officials are different. They don't rebel, but they are quietly undermining the imperial court. They control the imperial examinations, monopolize public opinion, and dominate local areas, gradually wresting power from the imperial court. Your Highness, think about it: how many of the governors and viceroys in various regions are military generals? They are all civil officials! They control the army, the money, and the people. If this continues, what will be left of the imperial power?"

Zhu Houzhao suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

Yang Shen sighed, "I am not exaggerating when I say this. Your Highness is young and may not have considered these things. But I have been in the Court of Imperial Sacrifices for many years, learning from my father and observing much. The power of the civil official group has grown to the point that even His Majesty has had to yield. This time, His Majesty sent Your Highness out to see firsthand the true situation on the border and the plight of the military officers."

Zhu Houzhao remained silent for a long while, then suddenly raised his head and stared at Yang Shen: "I have one last question."

Yang Shen said, "Your Highness, please speak."

Zhu Houzhao said, "Your father was also a civil official, and the Junior Grand Master of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices at that, a paragon of integrity among civil officials. How dare you speak in favor of a military general?"

Yang Shen smiled and said, "I have always been referring to the group of civil officials, the majority of them, not all civil officials."

My father was an honest and upright official, devoted to the country, and he is my role model. However, I also know that people like my father are a minority among civil officials. Most others are only concerned with their own family's reputation and their clan's interests.

"Everything I have done is for the future of the Ming Dynasty. As for myself, I have no great ideals or ambitions in this life. I am content to be able to study and write poetry with Your Highness and to live a life free from worries about food and clothing. But since Your Highness has asked, I will dare to say that my father often taught me that one should be loyal to the emperor when one receives his salary. As Your Highness's study companion, I naturally have to think of Your Highness's interests."

Zhu Houzhao looked at him and suddenly laughed: "Yang Shen, you seem quiet and reserved, but you're very shrewd."

Yang Shen bowed and said, "Your Highness is too kind."

Zhu Houzhao stood up, paced around the room a few times, then suddenly stopped: "Fine! Do as you say. Tomorrow, go tell Jiang Ji that I want to marry his daughter!"

Yang Shen quickly said, "Your Highness, you can't say it like that. You have to be more tactful. I know what I'm doing."

Zhu Houzhao waved his hand: "Alright, alright, you handle it!"

Li Chun, who was listening nearby, suddenly asked, "Yang, if I may ask, according to the rules, family background is very important when choosing a Crown Princess; usually, she comes from a low-ranking official family."

Zhu Houzhao was also taken aback: "Oh right, I've heard of that too!"

Yang Shen smiled and countered, "Who made that rule?"

Li Chun scratched his head: "Well—I can't really explain it. Anyway, I've heard people say since I was a child that when the crown prince marries, he must marry a woman from a scholarly family, not a daughter of a military family."

Yang Shen nodded and then asked, "Then think about what kind of people Emperor Taizu's daughters-in-law were?"

"Emperor Taizu had twenty-six sons. Where did his daughters-in-law come from? Xu Da, Chang Yuchun, Feng Sheng, Fu Youde—weren't they all founding generals? Princess Xu of Yan was the eldest daughter of Xu Da, the Prince of Zhongshan; and the Princesses of Dai and An were also from Xu Da's family."

Daughter. Princess Consort Feng of Zhou was the daughter of Duke Feng Sheng of Song. The Princess Consorts of Qi and Lu were both descendants of meritorious officials. At that time, marrying the daughter of a military general was considered perfectly normal.

Zhu Houzhao nodded thoughtfully.

Yang Shen continued, "Then why did it stop working later?"

Li Chun blurted out, "Yeah, why?"

Yang Shen said, "This is the result of the civil officials' efforts over the years! They tried their best to separate imperial power from military generals, marginalize military generals, and then slowly turned the fact that the crown princess could not be chosen from the families of military generals into a customary rule, even making everyone think that this was a matter of course."

Li Chun listened intently and pressed for an answer: "Then why specifically the families of lower-ranking officials?"

Yang Shen smiled slightly: "That makes things even simpler. Lower-level officials are easy to control!"

Zhu Houzhao frowned: "Easy to control?"

Yang Shen said, "Your Highness, think about it. If the Crown Princess is the daughter of a Duke, and her father-in-law is a powerful nobleman with considerable military authority, then after the Crown Prince ascends the throne, would the civil officials dare to disobey his words? But if the Crown Princess is the daughter of a minor official of the seventh rank, and her father-in-law has never seen much of the world and is completely clueless upon entering the capital, wouldn't he need the guidance of the civil officials for everything? Wouldn't that father-in-law just be a pawn in the hands of the civil officials?"

"The Crown Princess is the future Empress, and the Crown Prince's father-in-law is the future Emperor's father-in-law. Whoever sits in this position will influence the court for decades to come. The civil officials have been vying for this position for decades, and finally, they have firmly secured it for themselves."

Within the circle.

Zhu Houzhao gasped.

Li Chun was also stunned, muttering, "So that's how it is! I thought it was an ancestral rule!"

Yang Shen sighed, "Some rules were set by our ancestors for the sake of the country and its people. Some rules were set by later generations for their own benefit. But their most ingenious thing is that they make it impossible for you to distinguish between the two."

Li Chun suddenly chuckled, leaned closer to Zhu Houzhao, and said, "Your Highness, um—I have a younger sister, also thirteen years old this year, who is incredibly beautiful, so lovely and charming, certainly no less so than the daughter of the Marquis of Dingxi. Your Highness, would you like to consider her?"

Zhu Houzhao glared at him and asked, "What are you going to do?"

Li Chun rubbed his hands together, winking and saying, "But we haven't appointed a consort yet! If my sister could enter the Eastern Palace, then my lineage, the Marquis of Xiangcheng, would definitely be of one mind with Your Highness and would never be used as pawns by those civil officials!"

Zhu Houzhao's mind was a bit muddled. He said, "Let's take care of business first, we'll talk about it when we get back!"

Li Chun persisted, "Your Highness, please reconsider!"

Yang Shen stopped him, saying, "Commander Li, don't rush into marriage. Do you remember those tattered clothes we picked up at Shimen Village? Go find someone now, be quick-witted, they'll be very useful tomorrow—"