After the whole family was swept away, I lay down flat

Chapter 683 Communication Channels
"It was my idea to let Guard Lin go to Yunyang Prefecture." After hearing his friend Hai Jiao's question, Jin Jiashu frankly told him the truth, "I'm not too sure about the situation with cousin Jin Wu. If possible, we should bring him back to Chang'an and keep him under our noses."

Hai Jiao was puzzled: "Hasn't Jin Wu been very well behaved in Yunyang these years? Ma Shangyi and Guard Lin didn't take him seriously, why do you suddenly feel uneasy?" He paused, then showed a look of sudden realization, "Is it because of what we said that day?"

Jin Jiashu nodded: "You and Sister Hai reminded me. It is impossible for the Sun family to push for Prince Ji to return to the clan and become the crown prince. The Seventh Prince is already 17 years old, and the Eighth Prince has also gone out to study. With these two princes, how can there be a Prince Ji? But the Sun family can't just accept their fate and must want to continue to control the power. If Lord Sun wants to keep the Sun family rich, he will have to make concessions to the emperor on the issue of the crown prince. But what kind of bargaining chips can he bring out? The heavier the bargaining chips, the more important his position. Now that the emperor is seriously ill, Lord Sun must be very anxious. He must take advantage of the time when the emperor is still conscious and able to take charge to strive for more benefits for the Sun family..."

In other words, the Sun family had to have something "on the side" of the new monarch in order to force the emperor to ensure that the eighth prince could take over the throne smoothly, and the future new monarch to ensure that he could sit firmly on the throne. The two generations of monarchs had to make some kind of concessions to Lord Sun in succession to ensure that the change of the throne would not affect the wealth and power of the Sun family.

The new emperor must be the Eighth Prince. Apart from being young and not as noble as his elder brother, the Seventh Prince, he currently has no obvious shortcomings. If you want to find fault with him, you might as well find fault with his biological mother, Concubine Xu!

In the eyes of those in the know, Concubine Xu's weakness is still very obvious.

However, in the eyes of the "uninformed" Hai Jiao, that is another explanation: "Are you worried that the Sun family will find Jin Wu and let him talk nonsense in front of others? But the second branch of the Jin family is just a relative of Madam Xu's deceased brother-in-law. What influence can this distant relative have on Madam Xu? Even if the Sun family is shameless, can the officials in the court still let them do whatever they want?"

Jin Jiashu paused and said, "That's true, but the Jin family and the Xu family were once old friends. It would be bad if the Sun family asked Jin Wu to make up some ridiculous stories about my aunt's life. Even if it doesn't hinder the Eighth Prince, it will cause trouble for others!"

"That's true." Hai Jiao recalled what he had "reminded" Jin Jiashu of that day. "Even if the Sun family's actions cannot affect the selection of the new monarch, damaging Madam Xu's reputation will also affect the future of the Queen Mother's administration, and the new monarch may end up being treated as a puppet by the Sun family. Even if Jin Wu's words are eventually found to be lies, the damage has already been done. It would be fine if he was courting death, but it would not cause any trouble for the new monarch and the new Queen Mother. It's better to avoid this risk if possible."

He gave Jin Jiashu an idea: "If Guard Lin really brings Jin Wu back, you can send him to Jingyang. The Shaanxi Dusi is now reclaiming mountainous land in that area and planting more corn. They are looking for retired soldiers or the sons of military households who have not been replaced. They are very strict and do not allow people to leave easily. I heard that Ma Shangyi's nephew-in-law is a manager there. You can say hello to Ma Shangyi and send Jin Wu there. Are you afraid that he will run away? Although this job is farming, it is not very hard, and there is a salary to be received. If he does a good job, he can settle down in Jingyang directly and work as a farmer for the border army without worrying about his livelihood. If he can write and count, he can also seek a position as a small manager. For him, it is much better than being beaten in the butcher's house."

Jin Jiashu smiled and said, "Thank you, Brother Hai, for reminding me. I will ask Ma Ma later." He suspected that Ma Shangyi and Guard Lin would not send anyone out of the city again. He had to keep Jin Wu under their noses to feel at ease. However, Haijiao's suggestion was not bad, and he also took Jin Wu's future livelihood into consideration. He agreed. It would not be a big deal if he could not make the decision in the future.

Jin Jiashu didn't want to talk too much about this topic, so he asked Haijiao why he came: "You come to see me at this time, but do you have any important news? It's almost time for dinner, do you want to stay at my house for dinner?" Haijiao declined: "My family must have prepared my meal, so I won't bother you. I came here to tell you that General Tu Rong is going to be transferred back to the capital, and the Duke of Zhenguo ordered Zhou Yijun to accompany him to the capital, and my second uncle is also going to go with him. He asked me to go with him, saying that it will be more beneficial for me to apply for an official position after I pass the imperial examination next year."

Jin Jiashu was stunned for a moment: "When are we leaving?"

"At the end of the month." Hai Jiao smiled sheepishly, "It's about ten days or half a month earlier than the scheduled time to go to Beijing for the imperial examination... If you leave like this, I won't be able to share your worries anymore. If you encounter difficulties in the future, you have to make your own decisions, or discuss it with Ma Shangyi, Lin Shiwei and others."

Ma Shangyi and Lin Shiwei knew Jin Jiashu's biggest secret, but Jin Jiashu's trust in them was limited. He knew that they had the Queen Mother and the Emperor behind them, and they had their own considerations, and they might not even be on the same page with Concubine Xu. How could he trust them 100%? Although the Hai brothers and sisters did not know the true relationship between him and Concubine Xu, when he encountered troubles, Jin Jiashu would rather consult with the Hai brothers and sisters than confide in Ma Shangyi and Lin Shiwei.

But Haijiao had already said that he would leave, and now he just left a few days earlier. Jin Jiashu felt a little regretful, but he had no objection. He only said to Haijiao: "Be careful on the road. If you follow General Tu and the others, it will be much harder than traveling by yourself. General Tu has always been very strict with rules. In the past few years, he has taken Tu Jinbao with him on two border patrols. Which time did Tu Jinbao not get exhausted to death? And he kept complaining after coming back? Zhou Yijun is a person who has returned from border training. I am not worried about him, but I am afraid that you will not be able to adapt."

Hai Jiao laughed when he heard this: "I am also someone who came back from the border. I have been practicing hard in the past few years. Don't underestimate me." Then he asked Jin Jiashu, "Do you have any letters or things to send to your aunt? Although I don't have the channels to send things into the palace, but in recent years, I have heard you talk about the old people in the Cining Palace. I guess that Madam Xu should know a few old palace servants who settled down among the people after leaving the palace. Maybe they have a way to send letters to the palace? If you can tell me the place, I will send it for you."

In fact, Ma Shangyi and others have their own communication channels, and in recent years they have formed a special express horse messenger team. Haijiao knew that Ma Shangyi had just sent a letter to Beijing at the beginning of the month. But what might Jin Jiashu want to say to his "aunt" in private?

Jin Jiashu hesitated for a moment before saying, "I'll write you a letter later, and you can take it to my aunt. I know my aunt has a trustworthy person outside the palace, who is guarding... my mother's grave. You can deliver the letter to that person, and he will know what to do. If you hear any important news in the capital, you can also send a letter to me through that person. I... I can't always expect Ma Shangyi to tell me everything, right? Maybe my aunt also has something that is inconvenient for others to know, and she wants to tell me."

(End of this chapter)