The Black Chamber Dream: Daiyu's Revenge

The emperor glanced at everyone and immediately made the final decision: "Brother-in-law, you'll have to go there yourself."

Xiao Tingjun immediately requested permission: "Although I am not talented, I am willing to go to the front line."

Xiao Tingkai seemed to realize something at this moment and quickly volunteered to join the fight.

The Emperor waved his hand: "No need for that. Send the urgent memorial to Fujian and Zhejiang first, and send the resolution to Li Su. Since he is in charge of food and military supplies, and the commander-in-chief is now missing, he should take responsibility."

However, the emperor did not expect that the Prince of Nan'an on the front line would be so bold—the captured Prince of Nan'an actually took it upon himself to sign a contract with the island nation. Not to mention, the battle report they sent was that they had achieved a minor victory over the island nation.

Gao Zhen had just arrived when he received this news. Shocked, he immediately summoned Li Su and others. Just as they were about to discuss matters, a soldier entered and reported—

"Lord Qiao, the valiant cavalry commander, requests an audience!"

Gao Zhen didn't react for a moment, and just said, "We're having a meeting here, let him wait a bit..."

Li Su quickly interrupted, "Lord Pillar of State, this gentleman went to the front lines; you should listen to his report."

Gao Zhen, the son-in-law of the emperor, held the rank of Left Pillar of State. The emperor did not bestow any other official title upon him this time, so Li Su addressed him as such.

Upon hearing this, Gao Zhen immediately called someone in.

When Qiao Ruowang came in, he looked utterly disheveled. His hair was completely messy, his beard was over an inch long, indicating that he hadn't groomed it in a long time, and he had a knife wound on his right cheek.

"Your Highness, Lord Li, the Prince of Nan'an and General He led their troops recklessly, suffering more than half their losses. The Prince was captured and forced to make a treaty with the enemy under the city walls. They still want to deceive His Majesty. Your Highness must investigate thoroughly."

Several ideas flashed through Gao Zhen's mind, but the priority now was to stabilize morale and prevent the Prince of Nan'an from rebelling.

So he immediately asked Qiao Ruowang, "I remember you were selected by Prince Yi to study under Prince Nan'an. What about the rest of you? Can you maintain the situation?"

"Rest assured, Your Highness, we will do our utmost. With Your Highness here to oversee the situation, the morale of the army will not waver," Qiao Ruowang said firmly.

Chapter 103 Temporary Ceasefire to Test the Prince's Consort

The emperor had barely had any time to rest for days, and his rest was not good at all. As soon as he entered the study, the eunuch on duty immediately brought him a thick stack of memorials, followed by four or five boxes of secret memorials.

Then Hu Delu handed the emperor a series of sealed letters: "Your Majesty, these were sent by the Imperial Son-in-Law on horseback."

The emperor immediately opened the letter from the prince consort. After reading only a few lines, the veins on his temples bulged. He then suddenly stood up and paced back and forth, before roaring, "Come here! Immediately send troops to surround the Prince of Nan'an's residence!"

Hu Delu was panicked, not knowing what the prince consort's letter had said. He was about to take action when he heard the emperor change his order: "Wait, who's on duty today?"

The question was naturally directed at the six ministers, and Hu Delu quickly replied, "Your Majesty, it is Lord Tian Jingmin."

"Go and summon him, and also, go and summon Prince Rui."

After some further thought, he decided to summon all six ministers and also invited the veteran general Zuo Qing. However, this time, he did not summon Prince Rui, Xiao Tingkai.

The emperor and his ministers discussed the matter all night long. Just as dawn broke, the emperor immediately summoned Zuo Wei, the second son of the old general Zuo Qing, who was also the commander of the Five Cities Garrison.

"Secretly surround the Prince of Nan'an's residence without attracting attention."

This decree alarmed Zuo Wei, but he was very experienced in handling official duties and immediately went back to carry out the order.

After the court assembly, the emperor went straight to the empress's Phoenix Palace. Xuehua quickly brought over a bowl of apple and lily sweet soup that had been kept warm, and the empress personally served it to the emperor.

"Your Majesty is worried about state affairs, but your body cannot withstand such a detoxification process. I consulted the Imperial Hospital and obtained a recipe for this calming sweet soup. Yu'er and I both tried it, and it was quite good. Your Majesty, please try it as well." The Empress's voice was soft as she touched the bowl with the back of her hand to test the temperature before serving it to the Emperor.

The emperor sighed. This was his first major battle since ascending the throne. He had spent so much money and sent so many people, yet he had still lost. Not only that, the Prince of Nan'an dared to deceive the emperor. The emperor almost wanted his son-in-law to tear the Prince of Nan'an to pieces in the southeast.

After taking a few sips of the sweet soup, the Emperor said to the Empress, "I have come to tell you something. Now that we have been defeated in the southeast, there is something the Empress needs to prepare for."

"Your Majesty, please speak," the Empress said respectfully.

"According to the reported list of casualties, many members of the imperial family and the families of important officials have been killed or wounded in this battle." Although the emperor hates them for their defeat, some of these officials and members of the imperial family are people he still needs to rely on, so comforting their families will be a major issue.

The Empress immediately understood the Emperor's meaning and hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, rest assured, I will find a way. May I take a look at the list of casualties?"

The emperor would certainly show it to the empress, because it would be more convenient to entrust the management of the inner quarters and the rear courtyard to the empress.

"I think the Empress can summon the three princesses to assist her." The Emperor brought this up specifically, and the Empress immediately understood that the Emperor wanted to take this opportunity to test the three princesses.

"Yes, after I finished reading the list, I called my three daughters-in-law in to discuss it. Once we have a plan, I will consult Your Majesty first." The Empress was already thinking about it. This was not an easy matter. No matter whether these ladies of the inner quarters had lost their husbands, their sons, or their grandsons who had returned with limbs missing, none of them were feeling good.

Before his wife, the emperor was willing to say a few more words: "That damned Prince of Nan'an even promised to form a marriage alliance, so appeasing the inner quarters is one aspect, but choosing a suitable person is also necessary."

The Empress was somewhat worried—after losing the war, she was afraid that no girl from the imperial family would be willing to marry into the royal family.

Before the Empress could speak, the Emperor added, "I will not let the matter in the Southeast rest here; another war is only a matter of time."

Just as the Empress was about to speak, Hu Delu rushed in: "Your Majesty, something has happened. Prince Chun is cursing people at the Ministry of War."

The Emperor and Empress sighed in unison.

This Prince Chun was the youngest brother of the late emperor. He was a carefree and irresponsible man, but he was always favored by the late emperor. After the current emperor ascended the throne, he always treated this uncle with deference because this uncle never got involved in the struggle between the emperor and his brothers. He even praised the current emperor for being steady and reliable in front of the late emperor.

"The Emperor's second son died on the battlefield this time, and he is deeply saddened." The Emperor had originally intended to rest at the Empress's place, but now it seemed that was not an option, so he had no choice but to get up.

The emperor was halfway there when he encountered Zhao Bingxin, who had come to report again. After a clean and efficient bow, Zhao Bingxin said, "The Prince of Yi has sent me to report to Your Majesty that the old prince has been persuaded by the prince and the prince has now escorted the old prince home."

The emperor still remembered Zhao Bingxin, since he had always served the third prince, so he asked, "How did your prince persuade him?"

"Your Majesty, the Prince told the old Prince that there is no greater pain in the world than a parent outliving their child. He is the old Prince's grand-nephew and is also saddened for his uncle. But what's done is done. If the old Prince cannot move on, then Princess Chun will likely be even more grief-stricken." Zhao Bingxin only remembered part of it and reported it truthfully to the Emperor. "The Prince also said that the court will certainly give the old Prince an explanation."

The Emperor nodded, dismissed Zhao Bingxin, and turned back to Fengyi Palace. As he walked, he suddenly asked Hu Delu, "Is the third prince in the Ministry of War, but the second prince isn't here?"

Hu Delu knew a little about it and quickly said, "Prince Rui is also here. The old prince was scolding Prince Rui."

The emperor raised an eyebrow but said nothing more.

But upon returning to Fengyi Palace, the first thing he said to the Empress was, "We must quell the affairs of the inner quarters as soon as possible."

The Empress readily agreed. Seeing that the Emperor was exhausted, she personally helped him undress and served him to bed. After that, she quietly came out, went to the table, and first reviewed the list of casualties among the imperial family and the sons of important court officials. Then she asked Xuehua and others to quickly make three copies and sent people to deliver the list to the three princes' residences.

Daiyu had just received the list and started looking at it when Xiao Tingjun returned from the Prince Chun's residence. He leaned over to take a look and immediately asked, "What? Is there something you need me to tell you?"

"Her Majesty the Empress asked us to come up with a solution. This is a list of the imperial family members and sons of high-ranking officials who died on the front lines." Daiyu didn't even look up as she carefully read through the list and got a general idea of ​​what was going on.

"Just now, my great-uncle was scolding my second brother at the Ministry of War." Xiao Tingjun told Daiyu what had just happened in a few words. This was closely related to what Daiyu was going to do. "On my way back from my great-uncle's house, I was thinking about what to do. Yu'er, what do you think? What if I went to Father Emperor to suggest that a monument be erected for the soldiers?"

Daiyu was stunned for a moment: Since ancient times, only after a victory in battle would a monument be erected and inscriptions written to praise the victory. But now, the southeast has been defeated.

However, Daiyu quickly understood and immediately nodded: "When Emperor Taizong of Tang lost the battle of Liaodong, he re-erected the Wei Zheng Stele. Now, Father will obviously fight again. So erecting a stele is not only a memorial to the fallen soldiers, but also an inspiration to those who come after. When we win a great victory in the future, the two steles will be combined, which will be even more meaningful."

Meanwhile, Daiyu already had a rough idea of ​​a plan to appease the inner quarters, and immediately summoned Zijuan and Xueyan: "Summon all the people in the manor who are good at math. We'll have to work hard for everyone tonight."

Chapter 104 Daiyu's prudent advice to Prince Yi

The next morning, the Empress received the proposed solutions from the three princes' consorts. She reviewed their proposals in order of seniority.

Since His Majesty was to test the Crown Princess, the Empress had to be fair and impartial and not give anyone any leverage. So after reading them, she said nothing, but instead placed the three documents there and asked Li Zhong to guard them with the Emperor and send a message when the Emperor was free.

After carefully reading the three memorials, the Emperor held up Daiyu's and said to the Empress, "The Third Prince and his wife are indeed of one mind. Just now, in the Imperial Study, the Third Prince spoke frankly about the matter of erecting a monument. He specifically said that not only should the names of the imperial family and the sons of officials be written down, but all soldiers with names should also be recorded, and those without names should also have a sentence written down, so as not to disappoint the people."

Today, during a meeting in the Imperial Study, the Emperor specially summoned all three princes, the six ministers, and two generals. The Third Prince's speech received strong support from the two old generals and the three ministers.

Even the emperor was deeply gratified by the third son's eloquent speech—the third son clearly understood that a temporary truce with the island nation would inevitably lead to a future war.

"All three daughters-in-law considered bestowing official titles upon the families of fallen generals, but Yu'er's proposal was more detailed. For example, if there were children under the age of 18, the court would provide child support; if there were no children and the family did not remarry, the court would also provide a living allowance. This wasn't just for those with official positions; Yu'er had also considered a one-time pension for the families of ordinary soldiers. Moreover, she had calculated the approximate cost." The Emperor reviewed Daiyu's proposal again. "If the family consists only of the elderly, weak, women, and children, the pension would be doubled. I think that's excellent."

"But if we follow Yu'er's method, the national treasury will have to spend a lot more money," the Empress pointed out incisively. This battle has already cost the national treasury so much money, and yet the war has ended up like this.

"We must spend what needs to be spent; we can't let the people lose heart. The Third Prince and Yu'er are both right. As for the money, we'll have it eventually." The Emperor already had a plan to confiscate their property in mind—the Nan'an Prince's Mansion had suffered a defeat, so they couldn't be let off easily. Now that they were being monitored, the Nan'an Prince's family members were still trying to pull strings, trying to influence Consort Wu, Consort Xiande, the Rongguo Mansion, and any other influential families.

Upon hearing this, the Empress did not continue the topic of money. Instead, she asked the Emperor whether the proposed measures should be implemented only after the generals returned to court.

"There's no need to wait for the generals to return to court. However, the matter of bestowing titles and honors should be discussed by the Ministry of Rites. Moreover, according to Yu'er's method, Fujian Province has contributed the most troops this time, and most of the ordinary soldiers who were killed or wounded on the front lines came from Fujian. Therefore, we need to quickly calculate and allocate silver from the national treasury to Fujian." After thinking for a moment, the Emperor immediately summoned Hu Delu. "Go, summon the Third Prince and the Fifth Prince to the Imperial Study, and also summon Song Mingshi and Zhao Feng."

Zhao Feng is the Minister of Rites, and the previous Minister of Rites was Ge Xijia's grandfather. When the Empress heard that he was addressed as the Fifth Prince, she couldn't help but think: It seems that His Majesty has deep grievances against the Second and Fourth Princes and wants to promote the Fifth Prince to a new post.

"By the way, summon Liu Jishan as well." After giving the order, the Emperor looked at the Empress. "There are several old princesses and imperial aunts who need your personal comfort, Your Majesty. I heard that Ninth Aunt fell ill after learning of her grandson's death in battle."

"Your Majesty, please rest assured, I know what I'm doing." The Empress was actually quite emotional: Back then, everyone thought that the Prince of Nan'an would definitely win a great victory in this battle, so they sent their sons and grandsons to the battlefield, thinking that they would gain military merits. Who would have thought that things would turn out like this today?

Although they were despicable, only interested in racking up military merits, at this moment, the dead should be respected, especially those who sacrificed themselves for the country. As the empress, she naturally had to properly comfort their families.

The Empress had just taken a sip of ginseng tea to rest her mind when Hu Mama came to report to her: "I heard that Princess Rui went to visit the ailing Princess Shun, but she came out looking rather dejected."

Princess Shun was the Ninth Aunt the Emperor had just mentioned, and her husband was also the late Emperor's younger brother. When news of the death of Princess Shun's eldest grandson arrived, the 68-year-old lady fainted on the spot.

"The second son's wife is still too impatient." The Empress sighed: The Prince of Nan'an was strongly recommended by the second son, and the second son has always worked in the Ministry of War. This time, the defeat in the southeast is the responsibility of the second son. It's just that the emperor hasn't made a fuss yet.

Therefore, in the eyes of these families of the injured and deceased, the second son is a hateful person. The second son's wife is in a hurry to comfort him, but no matter how much gold and silver she offers, they will not be happy.

"Princess Yi requests an audience." Just as Granny Hu was about to speak, Xuehua came in to announce the arrival.

A short while later, Daiyu came in and first paid her respects to the Empress before telling her about her and Xiao Tingjun's thoughts: "Changsheng said that the Ministry of Revenue is in a bit of a tight spot. I was thinking that since Father Emperor has given us an estate and Mother Empress has given us an embroidery shop, and we only have so many places to spend money, we have accumulated some silver. Why don't we send it directly to Mother Empress as a pension?"

Upon hearing this, the Empress asked Daiyu instead, "Now that the Princess Consort of Ruijun is going around appeasing the imperial family members and relatives, she's being quite high-profile. What, Yu'er, don't you want to show off a bit?"

Daiyu immediately said, "With the battle raging like this at the front, how can we talk about being in the limelight? Besides, the nail that sticks out gets hammered down. Moreover, the court's intervention to appease the enemy is naturally different from an individual's intervention. Now that Mother is still alive, why would we need to step in alone?"

After saying that, Daiyu looked at the Empress and added, "Besides, my daughter-in-law and Changsheng are only here to share the burdens of Father and Mother, and they shouldn't be concerned about personal gains and losses."

The Empress nodded in satisfaction: "Yu'er is right. If this were any other matter, I would have advised you to step forward and organize a fundraising campaign. But this defeat has not only upset His Majesty, but also the people of the world."

Daiyu presented the silver notes, and the Empress looked at the amount and said to Daiyu, "In this way, I'm afraid you two will have a hard time."

After all, this was indeed a large sum of money. Daiyu reassured the Empress, "Your daughter-in-law and Changsheng have calculated it and set aside what the family needs. Besides, the estate and shops will generate income."

The Empress handed the silver notes to Granny Hu to put away, and then spoke to Daiyu about another matter: "His Majesty wants to select someone from the imperial clan to marry into a foreign land. This girl not only needs to be beautiful, but also talented. Yu'er, do you think there are any good candidates among the imperial clan?"

Having been married into the royal family for some time, Daiyu knew quite a bit about the imperial relatives. After listening to the Empress's words, she thought for a while, then shook her head: "Mother, I'm afraid the imperial family won't be happy about it, after all, they've lost the war and are sending a girl to marry into their family..."

“Who can argue with that? But your father entrusted this matter to me.” The Empress sighed. This matter was even more difficult than appeasing the royal family members, because the Emperor had said that this girl had to be outstanding.

"Perhaps Your Majesty could broaden the scope and allow any interested young ladies in the capital to voluntarily sign up for the selection?" When Daiyu made this suggestion, she did not expect that the Emperor would directly ask Daiyu to help the Empress with this matter.

Chapter 105 Associate Director Xu Shufei Suffers a Setback

The Empress issued an imperial decree to select a young lady from the imperial family and official families in the capital to marry into the island nation, which immediately sparked interest among many families in the capital.

High-ranking officials or genuine members of the royal family would certainly not be happy for their own daughters or beloved daughters to be sent to marry foreign rulers. But if it was a daughter born out of wedlock or a girl who was not favored, then it didn't matter. Whether she was selected or not, she was still supporting the court and the Empress's work.

Other families that were not particularly prominent were even more willing to send their daughters out, since this was an imperial decree from the Empress. The selected girls would not marry as ordinary people, but would at least be granted the title of county princess, so that their families could rise in status as well.

Moreover, there's some unverified rumor that the Emperor and Empress will take this opportunity to choose a consort for the Fifth Prince, Xiao Tingzhao, from among these people. This Fifth Prince is the son of Consort Zhou, whose uncle is the Governor-General of Zhili. Therefore, being chosen as the Fifth Prince's consort would be a truly wonderful thing.

After the Empress's decree was issued, the Imperial Household Department received a lot of information about the candidates, including their portraits, backgrounds, education levels, and some even included poems or paintings written by the candidates.

Because of the Emperor's word, Daiyu now has to go to the palace every day to help the Empress. The Imperial Household Department reviews the information of these girls first, and only those girls with no problems in their background are sent to the Empress for her review.

Daiyu then helped the Empress check the records and carefully wrote down the strengths of each young lady.