In September, Yan Ling and Yang Gu, the governor of Dongjiang, attacked from behind and defeated the Songjiang camp.
Jiang Yi fled in a hurry under the protection of his family generals, intending to go to sea and escape across the ocean.
Xue Yi led his troops to pursue him and intercepted him before he could board the ship.
Within half a day, Jiang Yi's head was delivered to Yan Ling.
The news spread to the capital, and the whole city celebrated. Students in the academies threw away their books and went out to parade; restaurants and teahouses were decorated with lights and colorful decorations, and all offered discounts; some wealthy families even went to the streets to send wedding coins, attracting children to come in groups to congratulate them.
.
The yamen was also filled with joy. As soon as Xu Huan entered, he was surrounded by his colleagues.
"Congratulations to the Duke of Chu, His Royal Highness the King of Jin defeated the Jiang thieves and made extraordinary achievements."
"In a few days, King Jin will return to the capital. When the princess gives birth to Lin'er, it will be a double happiness."
"Exactly, we are so happy, please don't forget to treat us to a drink!"
Xu Huan responded with a smile. The short journey from the yamen gate to the check-in room took two-quarters of an hour.
He waved to Ji Jing: "Do you have any wine?"
Ji Jing smiled and rejected him: "My lord, I'd better drink later. I'm afraid there are many people coming to congratulate you today, and if you are seen, you will have to buy a drink immediately."
Xu Huan thought about it and said with regret, "The only thing we can do is drink tea first."
Ji Jing was right. It was a happy event, and the entire yamen was not interested in working. People kept coming one after another. Xu Huan's face froze with laughter. By the lunch break, there were fewer people congratulating him.
In order to deal with these people, Xu Huan drank an unknown amount of tea throughout the morning and took this time to go to the toilet.
He was a very particular person. He came out of the toilet and washed his hands carefully in the cubicle.
At this time, there was a noise in the toilet, and officials came together. After a sound of water, one of them said: "The Duke of Chu is inviting you to have a drink tonight, will Brother Yi go?"
The official surnamed Yi replied: "Of course I'm going. How can we not give face to the Duke of the country for such a happy event?"
Another person said: "Brother Yi, have you thought about it? This wine is delicious, but it is not delicious either."
The official surnamed Yi was surprised: "Brother Huang, what kind of talk is this?"
Footsteps sounded, and the two people wanted to wash their hands, so Xu Huan stepped back and hid behind the cabinet.
The two of them glanced at each other and saw no one, so they began to talk confidently.
"The wine of the Duke of Chu is the wine of the King of Jin. If you drink his wine, it will be difficult to get to the East Palace."
The official surnamed Yi was startled: "Isn't that true? The two highnesses have always been in harmony..."
"That was before." The official surnamed Huang obviously didn't think so. "Think about it, how many military exploits has His Highness the King of Jin made since he started his army? The puppet emperor was killed by his sword, and the Chiang Kai-shek was also defeated by him. You said sitting in the East Palace
Can’t sit still? I’m afraid he will be uneasy when he returns to Beijing.”
The official surnamed Yi was frightened: "...I am just a small official, and having a drink doesn't mean anything."
"You may think so, but others may not." The official surnamed Huang lowered his voice, "I went to the East Palace to deliver the memorial earlier, and when I met the people around His Highness, their faces were not very good."
"..." the official surnamed Yi asked, "Will Brother Huang go?"
The official surnamed Huang sighed: "Isn't this embarrassing?"
The two of them took it in and left.
Xu Huan came out slowly, stood and thought for a while, then chuckled.
…
That night, a banquet was given in the palace, and Emperor Mingde, who had been resting for many days, attended with smiles all over his face.
Xu Yin had a big belly, so he sat down for a while, then got up and left.
The queen repeatedly ordered people to follow her, and after thinking about it, she sent her off in person - Xu Yin was about to give birth in half a month, and the imperial doctor said that it was not impossible to start the pregnancy early. Yan Ling was about to return to Beijing, and the queen did not want to give birth.
A little bit of a situation.
When Xie saw this, her expression darkened.
After taking so many medicines, she still hasn't moved at all.
Yan Cheng, who was standing next to him, noticed this and felt even more unhappy. When the banquet was over, he did not go back with Mr. Xie, but instead called for Mr. Fu.
"My prince, the prince, has lost his voice even before the waiter comes back. My father has been recuperating for many days and is in great spirits after hearing the good news. My mother is surrounding Xu, and everyone is praising him for being the God of War again," Yan Cheng said mockingly.
He laughed and said, "Who am I? When he comes back, no one will remember that there is a prince, right?"
Mr. Fu frowned. Not only the civil and military officials in the imperial court, but also the civil and military officials in the imperial court. During the day, he took a look on the streets and found that almost everyone from scholars to traffickers and lackeys were talking about the King of Jin.
With such prestige and momentum, it is not an exaggeration to say that he has done a great job. However, Emperor Mingde was completely unaware of the problem, which made Mr. Fu feel even worse.
"His Royal Highness recently entered the palace. Didn't His Majesty say anything?"
Yan Cheng didn't know why: "I didn't say anything. I just finished my official business every day and asked me to come back."
"Have you ever mentioned King Jin?"
Yan Cheng recalled: "Yes, I mentioned it, but it was just to talk about the war situation."
Mr. Fu simply asked directly: "Is it possible that Your Majesty has never told His Highness how to suppress King Jin in the future?"
Yan Cheng shook his head.
Mr. Fu fell silent.
Yan Cheng said anxiously: "Sir, what do you mean..."
Mr. Fu sighed and said: "Your Majesty is so wise, don't you know the dangers of a strong minister and a weak master? He can naturally suppress the King of Jin, but one day he will be gone? If your Majesty is concerned about the future, he should suppress Jin from now on.
The king."
The more Yan Cheng listened, the more uncomfortable he became: "The waiter hasn't come back yet, so he's celebrating like this, but he doesn't mean to suppress it."
"Exactly." Mr. Fu said quietly, "The current situation has always waxed and waned. If you don't suppress the King of Jin, it means suppressing you..."
Yan Cheng frowned and didn't know how to respond, and finally punched the table in anger.
"Sir, is there no other way?" he asked with red eyes, "Can I just watch the waiter fall on his head like this?"
Mr. Fu was also in a bad mood: "To put it bluntly, your Majesty took the throne from you. The founding monarch has always held the power, and whoever your Majesty likes will be the one. You can only get your Majesty's approval and ask your Majesty to plan for you."
Hold the throne in your hands."
"But now it's obvious that my father..." Yan Cheng was halfway through his words when he saw Mr. Fu's sympathetic eyes and couldn't continue.
"Your Highness, your situation is more dangerous than that of the King of Jin." Mr. Fu said, "The King of Jin has soldiers and people under his command, and he has a lot of bargaining chips. But you only have the same team that came from Tongyang in the early days. After all, those
My allegiance is to Your Majesty, not to you alone."
Yan Cheng became even more depressed after what he said, and after a while he said: "According to what you said, Gu is destined to lose?"
Mr. Fu thought for a while: "That's not the case. If King Jin is too powerful, it will offend His Majesty. As long as Your Majesty is wary of King Jin, and you are filial enough, His Majesty will naturally favor you."
To put it bluntly, winning the direct line depends on who wins the Sacred Heart. Yan Ling's advantage lies in his military exploits, and his disadvantage also lies in his military exploits. It depends on what Emperor Mingde thinks.