Chapter 136: The Crown Prince Is More Important Than the World |
Song Shi'an had not suffered any hardships in prison.
If he were a death row inmate with a set execution date, anyone could step on him—even an ordinary jailer could put on airs.
Never mind any talk about heroes returning from Shuofeng receiving respect from low-ranking government officials.
Not everyone possessed simple, upright values.
This was precisely why so-called "cruel officials" existed.
But after that court session confirmed he would definitely be protected, the so-called "following protocol" became far less stringent.
Even the meals delivered to him were now hot.
Today, Zhu Amang came as usual to deliver food. As he handed it to Song Shi'an, he half-knelt and said, "Song-daren, I heard from outside that you've successfully registered for the metropolitan examination."
"Is that so." Song Shi'an wasn't surprised.
Of course, Grandfather Cui had also exerted considerable effort.
Making such a scene at court required paying a significant price.
What price?
It meant he could no longer pretend to be angry and suddenly whack someone with his cane.
One cannot step into the same river twice, nor be struck in the head by the same cane.
This skill had a longer cooldown than fucking Kotoamatsukami.[1]
Next time, he could only use his cane strike on newcomers to court who didn't yet know of Old Cui's famous exploits.
"But..." Zhu Amang said with some worry, "For major cases like this, even after a verdict is reached, they can't just release you immediately. It will take at least another ten-plus days, because the Court of Judicial Review has too many procedures to follow. And this time, too many people are involved."
"So?"
Song Shi'an didn't particularly care.
"You can't read books or write essays here, so compared to others, you're at a bit of a disadvantage," Zhu Amang said.
"Do you think I read any books during my half-year in Shuofeng?"
"Well that's really..."
"No matter. Passing the jinshi exam hasn't reached the point where I need to open a book." Song Shi'an said calmly.
This statement truly impressed Zhu Amang.
Limited by his identity as an ancient person, he couldn't precisely express in words what exactly this behavior was.
This is called showing off, bro.
"Also," Zhu Amang continued, "Today, Minister Sun's son Sun Qian returned."
"What about him?" Song Shi'an asked.
"When he came back, he brought over a dozen cartloads of tax revenue," Zhu Amang lowered his voice and said. "Zhang County only has fifty thousand people, yet he brought back more taxes than some large counties with nearly a hundred thousand."
Upon hearing this, Song Shi'an's expression, amidst its calmness, gained a trace of depth.
"Oh, sorry Song-daren! I must go now."
Prison guards delivering meals weren't allowed to chat privately with criminals. The time for each meal delivery couldn't be too long. Therefore, after setting down the food, he hurried away.
Song Shi'an didn't press for more information.
Leaning against the wall, he fell into contemplation.
Honestly, he had anticipated that Minister Sun would flex his muscles.
But he hadn't expected it to be this forceful.
Of course, he had also been pushed to this point.
Without a doubt, the alliance between the Prince of Jin and Minister Sun was about to be formally established.
The Prince of Jin had no choice but to steel himself and oppose the Emperor.
He couldn't follow the same path as the Prince of Wu and help his father solve his worries.
The reasoning was simple—the Prince of Wu had gone all-in at Shuofeng, even personally participating, so all the benefits from Shuofeng's victory belonged to him. Both Song Shi'an himself and the Sixth Prince belonged to him.
The person presiding over the great military farming plan could only be from the Wu Prince faction.
If the Prince of Jin wanted to become Crown Prince, he couldn't work together with the Prince of Wu to defend Great Yu's realm.
Abandoning the aristocratic families and officials, then joining the military farming efforts later, would be equivalent to willingly becoming the Prince of Wu's subordinate.
For the Emperor, what he most wanted to see was naturally for the Prince of Jin to truly restrain his ambitions, assist his younger brother, and have the brothers work together in unity to expand imperial power.
But he couldn't decide the Prince of Jin's fate.
You can't very well prevent your son from pursuing a better throne, can you?
Moreover.
All of Si Prefecture was filled with powerful nobility.
No matter how much face Minister Sun of Yangzhou had, he couldn't "command the wind and rain" in places beyond his power base.
The aristocratic families had also agreed to cede interests and jointly honor such a leader of the great clans, which was why so much money had been collected.
Essentially, they were forcing the Emperor to make a choice.
You're old now—will you, on your deathbed, attempt a high-risk military farming scheme?
Or will you accept that all the aristocratic families under heaven are giving the Prince of Jin face, willing to weather difficult times together, producing a large sum of money sufficient to stabilize Liang Prefecture and get through this crisis?
You're the Emperor—what do you choose?
Wei Ye was a very capable emperor. Song Shi'an acknowledged this.
But the Yu Dynasty was already in its middle period.
Decline was inevitable.
Didn't he want to start military farming earlier, to strengthen imperial power sooner?
He did, but he couldn't do it earlier.
He had created the civil examination system and gradually perfected it, cultivating an Emperor faction with considerable influence—he had already done everything he could.
If one generation accomplishes one thing well, that itself is meritorious.
Wei Ye had thought things through clearly.
He would create the civil examinations, his son would implement military farming, and his grandson would find a way to reunify the realm.
Even if reunification proved impossible, at least the Wei clan's realm would remain stable.
But heaven does not comply with human wishes.
Did the Prince of Jin not know that doing this would only make the aristocratic families stronger, and that even if he inherited the throne, his authority would be constrained?
Of course he knew.
But without doing this, even if Great Yu became prosperous and powerful, the person who became Emperor wouldn't be him.
He'd rather not have a championship without the Finals MVP.
Therefore, for someone who wanted to become Emperor, the Prince of Jin hadn't made a single wrong move so far.
If one were to analyze his mistakes, there was only one fatal error—after Minister Sun's birthday banquet, he hadn't chosen Song Shi'an.
If he had received Song Shi'an then, he would already be Crown Prince now.
But time couldn't flow backward, and beans couldn't be uncooked.
Now, he could only persist in his errors.
"Stir things up, stir them up."
The corner of his mouth curved into a slight smile. No matter how many demons and monsters lay ahead, Song Shi'an didn't care in the slightest.
Duke Zhang had said it well: You can't keep winning forever—you'll regret being so ruthless.
Fine then. I'll just keep winning.
………
In the imperial palace.
The head of all civil officials, Ouyang Ke, had personally come.
After performing the ritual bows, the Emperor granted him a seat.
However, it wasn't like Duke Li's privilege of sitting opposite him in an armchair.
Rather, he sat on a round stool to the side.
"Two million two hundred thousand coins," the Emperor smiled. "Is Zhang County truly this prosperous?"
"Your Majesty," Ouyang Ke replied. "Among all counties in Si Prefecture, Zhang County should rank near the bottom."
"Then how did Sun Qian collect so much tax? Is he truly that capable?" the Emperor said.
He was being sarcastic.
Ouyang Ke couldn't possibly respond foolishly.
As part of the Emperor faction, even if he couldn't completely open his heart to the other party, he couldn't speak nonsense either. So after considering, he said, "The wealthy gentry of Zhang County probably gave face to Minister Sun."
"If this Sun Qian sat in your position, wouldn't he be able to collect all the taxes in the entire realm?" the Emperor said.
"If such were the case, this subject would willingly yield his position to the worthy."
Ouyang Ke replied straightforwardly.
"Hahaha, you slippery fellow." The Emperor raised his finger, and after this jest, his tone shifted and he asked seriously, "Has the conflict with the officials truly become this severe?"
"Many people certainly harbor resentment, but it shouldn't be everyone," Ouyang Ke said truthfully. "Rather than supporting Sun Qian, this subject believes that at present, we should still implement military farming."
At these two words, the Emperor's expression froze momentarily.
Gazing at the other party with his head lowered, after a long while, he asked, "Are you willing to support military farming?"
"This subject is willing to support any decision Your Majesty makes."
"Then are you willing to support the Prince of Wu?"
At the mention of the Prince of Wu, Ouyang Ke immediately said resolutely, "Whatever Your Majesty commands this subject to do, this subject will do."
He was politely declining.
Ouyang Ke was unwilling to directly join the Wu Prince faction.
Of course, it wasn't completely non-negotiable.
The Emperor needed to give him a sense of security.
That would be to enfeoff the Prince of Wu as Crown Prince.
After all, for a powerful minister like him, there wasn't much point in taking risks to choose sides.
If the Emperor directly established the heir apparent, allowing him to serve as a regent minister, he certainly could do so.
But currently, the Wu-Jin succession struggle hadn't ended.
The Prince of Jin still had a chance of becoming heir apparent.
If he chose the wrong side then, he would definitely face purges.
This was an old fox.
"Zhen cannot directly install the Prince of Wu as Crown Prince. If military farming fails and We then elevate the Prince of Wu, the foundation of the state will inevitably shake."
For the sake of the Wei clan's realm, if military farming failed, he would swiftly install the Prince of Jin.
Even if the aristocratic families' power grew stronger, at least the realm would be preserved.
"Your Majesty is wise and enlightened."
Ouyang Ke wouldn't get involved in establishing an heir—it was too dangerous. Therefore, whatever the Emperor said was what it was.
What he could do, from his position as head of all officials, was not become part of the opposition.
However, this position couldn't merely avoid opposition.
The Minister of the Secretariat was too important.
The appointment and promotion of all important officials throughout the realm had to go through here.
If they were to implement military farming, they would definitely need to promote a batch of entirely new "military farming faction" officials.
Reform could only use people of one mind.
Otherwise, this reform wouldn't be able to move forward.
Wei Ye had arrived at a crossroads in his life.
The entire future of Great Yu rested in his hands alone.
《Betting the Nation's Fortune》
"Your Majesty."
Slowly, Ouyang Ke stepped forward, prostrated himself in a bow with his head lowered, and said, "This subject is willing to relinquish the position of Minister of the Secretariat."
"Relinquish it to whom?" The Emperor became angry and demanded, "To Minister Sun?"
It absolutely couldn't be Minister Sun.
The Minister of the Secretariat's authority far exceeded that of the Minister of Works.
But the Minister of Works, as first among the Three Excellencies with a super-rank, taking the position of Minister of the Secretariat would be considered a demotion.
It violated protocol.
But it even more violated common sense.
The Emperor was speaking in anger.
"Your Majesty," Ouyang Ke raised his head and said quite seriously, "Song Jing could serve as Minister of the Secretariat."
If Song Shi'an wanted to implement military farming, he needed a batch of new officials.
If his father controlled the appointment and dismissal of officials, things would be much more convenient.
"How can someone jump directly from Senior Third Rank to Senior First Rank?" the Emperor countered.
Yet Ouyang Ke still opened his mouth very calmly, "We could promote the current Vice Minister of the Secretariat to Minister of the Court of Judicial Review. Then promote Song Jing to Vice Minister of the Secretariat."
This Lord Ouyang understood everything.
Moreover, he had given the Emperor what he considered the best solution.
The Minister of the Secretariat, as the de facto chief minister, had already been weakened considerably.
But the Emperor still worried about its excessive power, so he established a Vice Minister of the Secretariat for checks and balances.
Although in Great Yu's inflated ranking system, the Vice Minister of the Secretariat was only Senior Second Rank, this Senior Second Rank wielded more power than many Senior First Ranks with slightly less authority.
"In the future, can you suppress Song Jing?" the Emperor asked.
Song Jing needed to step to the forefront, but he couldn't be allowed to stand there alone, commanding wind and rain in Great Yu.
Quite calmly, Ouyang Ke replied, "Yes."
"Then so be it."
The Emperor agreed to his decision and arranged, "After Song Jing takes his position, you go fall ill for half a year."
Ouyang Ke slowly bowed and said, "This subject receives Your Majesty's command to fall ill."
T/N: [1] Kotoamatsukami is a powerful ultimate genjutsu technique from Naruto, known for its extremely long cooldown period between uses.