Jiuxi

Chapter 623: Seeking the Skin of a Tiger

Jingchao, Dadu.

As the emperor dismissed Qing Yugong from the post of Marshal of the Southern Court, the criticism against this military god of Dajing in the capital gradually subsided, and the Changshan County Prince's Mansion returned to its former tranquility.

The news from the south was mixed. On the one hand, the two great defeats in the Battle of Luwu Mountain and the Battle of Yongqiu were true, which dealt a heavy blow to the self-confidence of the Jing army and the Jinglian people.

On the other hand, the fact that Yan surrendered without any disturbance proved that the strategy adopted by the emperor in the past ten years was extremely correct. Through subtle influence on those places and cultivating a large number of young talents who were loyal to the Jing Dynasty, this expansion of territory was made extremely smooth.

Generally speaking, the people of Jing have not lost their strongest faith in the world, and there is still a thriving atmosphere in the government and the country.

"Yongping, you haven't been to the hunting ground for a long time."

Inside the flower hall of the palace, the fourth prince Hai Ge looked at Qing Yu Huaijin with concern.

The previous defeats had nothing to do with him, and no one would put the blame on him. On the contrary, because he enthusiastically supported Qing Yugong at that court meeting, he won the recognition and praise of many court officials.

However, to outsiders, the Fourth Prince is no different from before.

His favorite thing was still to go to the military camp and practice riding and archery with the soldiers, or to lead a group of noble children younger than him to hunt around the outskirts of Dadu.

Apart from that, the only change in him was that he came to the Prince's Mansion much more frequently than before.

It is human nature for young men to admire women, not to mention that Qing Yu Huaijin is the only daughter of Qing Yugong and is extremely beautiful. There are countless young men from noble families who want to get close to her, but most of them are afraid of her superb skills and cold temperament and dare not take the initiative to visit her.

The Fourth Prince was different. First of all, he and Qing Yu Huaijin were of similar age and had grown up together. He was also a prince that the Emperor and Empress doted on, so he naturally did not have to worry about being beaten when he came to the Prince's Mansion.

Secondly, he has an open and generous personality, and it is difficult for others to feel disgusted with such a naturally sincere young man.

Qing Yu Huaijin looked at the undisguised eagerness on his face and said calmly, "It's hot, I don't want to go out."

The fourth prince didn't seem to mind her indifference at all, and said kindly: "But it's not a good idea for you to be so restrained. You will inevitably become depressed after a while. Since you are not interested in participating in the hunt, I can organize some people to hold a poetry gathering, and then choose a clean and elegant place to accompany you to relax. How about it?"

Qing Yu Huaijin was slightly surprised: "Poetry gathering?"

The fourth prince smiled heartily and said frankly: "Of course I can't, but there are many talented men and women like this in the capital, they will definitely not refuse."

Qing Yu Huaijin was silent for a moment, then sighed, "Your Highness is thoughtful, but it is really not appropriate for me to show up in public. It is better for me to stay in the mansion and cool off."

The fourth prince frowned and said slowly, "Yongping, why are you doing this? Father has no intention of blaming you. He allowed you to resign from the position of Southern Court Marshal that day just to calm the internal and external chaos. Now you can see that no one is paying attention to the two defeats. The court and the people are all rejoicing over the surrender of Yan. After a while, father will definitely use you again. Haven't you noticed that the position of Southern Court Marshal has always been empty? It's not that no one in the court covets this position, but father has never given in. This is enough to prove his intentions."

Qing Yu Huaijin looked at his sincere expression and asked curiously, "Has His Majesty ever said something similar to Your Highness?"

"No."

The fourth prince shook his head frankly, then said seriously: "But I believe that this is the fact. So you really don't have to worry about it. Ups and downs are normal in officialdom. Your Majesty has worked hard and made great contributions over the years. How could your father forget it? Besides, Your Majesty has been fighting for years, so it is a good thing for him to use this time to recuperate."

Qing Yu Huaijin said gently: "Thank you for your enlightenment, Your Highness."

"Why should there be any outsider relationship between you and me?"

The fourth prince smiled and said with a touch of emotion: "When I was a child, I helped you fight a lot, and even fought with His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. Do you remember?"

"Naturally remember."

Qing Yu Huai Jin lowered his eyes and immediately said, "But now we are no longer children. Your Highness often comes to visit me. Huai Jin is grateful in his heart, but I am only worried that this will affect Your Highness's reputation."

The fourth prince was stunned.

He did not try to hide his thoughts. In fact, most of the powerful people could see through them, and many people must have discussed them frequently in private.

As a very favored prince of the royal family, although he could not be said to be humble in front of Qing Yu Huaijin, he was indeed caring and attentive. Anyone with eyes could see his intentions.

In his early years, he was not so proactive. At most, he would show some goodwill to Qing Yu Huaijin when they met in some public occasions.

However, after Qing Yugong submitted a petition to politely decline the emperor's idea of ​​granting him a marriage, the Fourth Prince seemed to have made up his mind and no longer cared about other people's opinions.

It was not until this moment that he heard an almost explicit rejection from Qing Yu Huaijin.

The flower hall was filled with fragrance, but the atmosphere was a little stagnant.

The fourth prince forced a smile and said, "That's a bit awkward."

He still did not give up and wanted to reverse this rapidly deteriorating situation.

Qing Yu Huaijin looked up at him and said solemnly, "Your Highness, you have always been open and aboveboard, and I don't like beating around the bush. Some things may be better said openly. I am very grateful for your care, but this can easily lead to misunderstandings, which is inevitably harmful to Your Highness."

"I don't think so." The fourth prince looked determined, and then subconsciously asked: "Yongping, do you have someone you love?"

"Your Highness!"

Qing Yu Huaijin frowned slightly and his tone suddenly rose.

The fourth prince knew something was wrong and said with a wry smile: "Don't be angry, I just said something that didn't count."

Seeing this, Qing Yu Huaijin could only sigh softly and said quietly: "It is precisely because you and I grew up together and you treat me so well that I don't want to hide it deliberately. I don't have a crush on anyone, nor do I have any intention of marriage. Please forgive me, Your Highness."

Since she had said this, the Fourth Prince naturally could not continue to pester her.

He tried his best to calm down, then stood up and said, "Even so, I will still come to visit you from time to time. Don't worry, I won't do anything that will bother you again. I will treat you as my sister just like I did back then. As for whether others will misunderstand or talk about it, that's not something I care about. If someone can't control his mouth, I guarantee that he will regret coming into this world."

"I'm leaving. I'll see you another day."

After saying that, he turned and left.

Qing Yu Huaijin looked at his back as he walked away with a complicated expression.

About half an hour later, Qing Yugong walked into the flower hall, glanced at Qing Yuhuaijin's face, and said calmly: "It seems that the Fourth Prince really troubles you."

Qing Yu Huaijin stood up and saluted, and said with a little helplessness: "Father knows that he has ulterior motives, but he still wants to tease me."

Qing Yugong came closer and sat down, smiling and said, "Impurious thoughts? Where did you get that from?"

Qing Yu Huaijin was no longer depressed, and said leisurely: "Father said before that the Fourth Prince is not as simple as he appears. He has made friends with many soldiers in the army over the years. Although most of them are ordinary soldiers and low-level military officers, once this kind of slow work is effective, he will have enough loyal supporters in the army. He takes those young men hunting and playing together when he has nothing to do. On the surface, he is not doing his job, but in fact he unites them closely around him. These methods of his are all subtle efforts. How can he be said to have a simple mind when he is so deliberate?"

Qing Yugong smiled but said nothing.

Qing Yu Huaijin continued, "As for me... He knew that if he wanted to fight against His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, he could only seek the support of my father. Otherwise, he would not be able to accomplish anything with those means. If he could marry me, my father would naturally have no other choice."

Qing Yugong nodded and said, "That being said, he may be sincere. It is not contradictory for His Highness the Fourth Prince to be interested in you and to win my support."

The hall suddenly became silent.

Qing Yu Huaijin felt his father's calm yet profound gaze, and subconsciously became a little flustered. He lowered his head and said, "Anyway, I have no interest in him."

Qing Yugong said with interest: "In fact, putting aside those evil people, the Fourth Prince is considered a talented person among the younger generation. It seems that my daughter's vision is indeed high enough."

Qing Yu Huaijin suppressed his thoughts, coughed lightly, and changed the subject: "Father, there is news coming back from the south."

"Have your people seen Lu Tong?"

"Yes. This person is quite cunning and has no feedback worth paying attention to. He just asked some questions and then said that he is no longer concerned with worldly affairs. No matter what our people want to discuss, we have to wait until Lu Chen goes north to make a final conclusion."

"What question did he ask?"

"Most of the information was to verify the identity of the messenger. Apart from that, I only inquired about the details of my father's dismissal, especially the reaction of His Majesty at the court meeting that day, and the attitudes of the officials in the court."

After hearing this, Qing Yugong fell into silence.

Qing Yu Huaijin looked at him quietly, and after a moment he said, "Father, will Lu Tong do as you said before and directly reveal this matter, and then plunge Dajing into civil strife?"

Qing Yugong looked calm and asked slowly, "Did the messenger reveal any flaws?"

Qing Yu Huaijin shook his head and said, "I have repeatedly reminded him, and he himself does not know the details of his father's resignation. Lu Tong did not get any useful information."

"Lu Tong is not going to release the eagle until he sees the rabbit. He will definitely wait until someone of sufficient weight appears before he lets Lu Chen take over. You don't have to worry. Since he is very interested in the things in the north, it means that the next contacts will become smoother and smoother."

Qing Yugong smiled slightly, his eyes becoming a little colder, and then he said, "As for his question, it's just that he has doubts in his heart."

"What is he doubting?"

"I just suspect that the so-called dismissal from office was just a show jointly staged by your father and His Majesty."

Qing Yu Huaijin was shocked and an expression of disbelief appeared on his face.

However, Qing Yugong did not continue speaking, and said calmly: "Leave Lu Tong alone for a while, and when the time is right in the future, he and Lu Chen will naturally believe you."

Qing Yu Huaijin was secretly worried and bowed his head and said, "Yes."

(End of this chapter)