Daughter of aristocratic family

Chapter 444 Osmanthus fragrans
Cui Yunru was rescued, but the person who rescued her left without telling her name. She asked Madam Yu to help find out, and only then did she know that the young man was Wu Lang, the eldest son of the second branch of the Yongchang Marquis' Mansion, and Wu Lin'er's brother.

The follow-up to a hero saving a beauty is usually that the beauty pledges herself to the hero.

After the two families had contacted each other several times, Mrs. Yu wrote a letter to her sister, asking if it was possible to discuss marriage with the Wu family.

People outside were still unaware of this, but the relationship between the two families still caused resentment among the other three regent ministers.

Because they are related by marriage, Shangshu Tao is related to Prince Zuo. If he favors Prince Zuo, it will disrupt the balance in the court.

Once this balance is broken, it will trigger a series of chain reactions, which will definitely lead to turmoil in the court.

The three regents met to discuss the matter. The Minister of War asked, "Should we stop them from getting engaged?"

Ling Ze stroked his beard and spoke slowly: "Preventing them from getting engaged is not a long-term solution. Since Minister Tao is biased towards Prince Zuo, no matter what we do, he may find other excuses to support Prince Zuo."

"Furthermore, if we forcibly prevent Minister Tao from marrying Prince Zuo, it may provoke a backlash from them, and make Minister Tao get closer to Prince Zuo even faster. We need to find a more stable way to deal with this issue."

The emperor's health is getting worse day by day. Previously, he was only told to rest for a few days, but it has been almost a month and the emperor is still unable to attend court.

They could also understand why Minister Tao chose to join a "wise leader".

But even though they understood it, they were still dissatisfied with Minister Tao's betrayal.

"Are we just going to allow Prince Zuo to win over court officials?" the Minister of War asked indignantly.

Ling Ze picked up the teacup and took a sip, then said calmly: "Although Lian Po is old, he still has some courage."

Before the emperor passed away, Prince Zuo began to impatiently win over court officials, acting in a high-profile and imprudent manner.

But then again, isn't this also a reflection of the fact that the emperor is becoming increasingly weak and the position of crown prince is vacant, causing various forces to become restless?
“But when Prince Zuo wins over enough people and feels the time is ripe, he can force the emperor to abdicate, and Your Majesty will not be able to abdicate,” said the Minister of War.

Ling Ze smiled softly, "Master Yun, do you think he has this chance?"

Yun Hao, who had been silent the whole time, replied: "Most of the officials who were wooed by Prince Zuo were people who coveted power, and some of them were involved in the Yang Zheng case, so they turned to Prince Zuo to save their lives. They may temporarily turn to Prince Zuo for the sake of immediate interests, but they can also turn to others for greater interests.

"Besides, forcing the emperor to abdicate requires soldiers. The three great guards in the palace, the five armies in the city, and the four camps outside the city are not under the command of Prince Zuo. What can he use to force the emperor to abdicate?"

The Minister of War nodded slightly, indicating that he agreed with Yun Hao's point of view, but he was still worried, "Lord Yun is right, but Prince Zuo is very cunning, he may have other forces that we haven't noticed."

"Lord Li, do you suspect that he has private soldiers?" Yun Hao asked.

Minister Li nodded, "We must be on guard against this."

Ling Ze said, "We do need to be vigilant about private soldiers. But if Prince Zuo really dares to raise troops privately, there will definitely be traces. We just need to keep a close eye on Prince Zuo, and take action immediately if there is any sign of trouble."

"And if Prince Zuo really wants to launch a coup, he can't just rely on those officials who are greedy for power. He also needs to get some generals with real power, such as you, Lord Yun, and Lord Hao of the Yulin Guard."

Minister Li looked at Yun Hao, "Lord Yun, I heard that Princess Wu of Zuo County has had close contacts with your wife. I wonder if this is true?" "It is true that Wu has sent visiting cards to your house many times, but my wife has only met her twice, and we don't have a close friendship. Moreover, Wu is aggressive and wants to kidnap my wife and force me to join Prince Zuo." Yun Hao's face was solemn and he stated truthfully.

Minister Li frowned slightly, "It is really outrageous that Prince Zuo is so unscrupulous. Lord Yun, you need to be careful and don't let Prince Zuo take advantage of you."

Ling Ze also said: "Lord Yun, as the commander of the Dragon Court Guard, you are responsible for protecting His Majesty's safety. If Prince Zuo wants to force the palace, the Dragon Court Guard in your hands will be his biggest obstacle. Therefore, you must always be vigilant and not give Prince Zuo any chance to take advantage of you."

Yun Hao nodded, "Please rest assured, my two lords, I will take strict precautions and not let Prince Zuo have any chance."

"And I have already sent my men to secretly keep an eye on Wu and Prince Zuo. If they make any move, I will be able to discover it immediately."

Minister Li smiled and said, "Lord Yun is indeed a man of foresight. With this arrangement, even if Prince Zuo has great ambitions, it will be difficult for him to succeed."

Ling Ze nodded and said, "Prince Zuo has the power to supervise the country. Once he starts a rebellion, it will be as powerful as thunder and lightning. We cannot take it lightly."

Yun Hao and Minister Li agreed, "We must not only guard against his direct actions, but also be alert to the possibility that he may secretly manipulate the situation through other means."

After the three of them had discussed a strategy, they dispersed and went home.

Yun Hao smelled the rich fragrance of osmanthus as soon as he reached the courtyard gate. There were no osmanthus flowers planted in the exquisite courtyard. Did his wife change the incense?
No, his wife always likes light fragrance and thinks the scent of osmanthus is too strong.

Walking in, you will see more than a dozen baskets hanging high and low in the yard, filled with golden osmanthus flowers. The rich fragrance emanates from these osmanthus flowers.

When the maids saw him, they came forward to greet him.

Yun Hao nodded slightly and walked into the east room, where he saw Zhao Wangshu sitting on the kang reading a book with a piece of cake in his left hand.

"It's almost time for dinner, why are you still eating cakes?" Yun Hao asked angrily.

Zhao Wangshu looked up and smiled gently, "You're back. Why are you back so early today?"

"I just came back after finishing my errand." Yun Hao walked to her side and looked at the osmanthus flowers drying outside the window. "What are you going to do with all these osmanthus flowers?"

"Prepare to make mooncakes with osmanthus filling, as well as osmanthus cake and osmanthus honey." Zhao Wangshu replied.

Yun Hao smiled dotingly and said, "Mooncakes with osmanthus filling? They must be excellent."

"The sweet scented osmanthus flowers are blooming particularly well this year, and the fragrance is overwhelming, so I thought of making some snacks to suit the occasion. Not only can I enjoy them myself, but I can also give them to relatives and friends as a gift." Zhao Wangshu said with a smile.

"You can do it, but don't tire yourself out. Leave the hard work to the servants and just instruct them." Yun Hao picked up the teacup on the table and took a few sips. "Where's Yu'er?"

"Going to catch butterflies." Zhao Wangshu smiled helplessly. Ever since she accepted the butterfly given by Yun Yu, this kid went to the garden to catch butterflies every day and couldn't be stopped.

But this is what she wants to see. Children should play without worries.

My sister-in-law didn't come over these two days. I had to take care of my old lady and didn't have time to write during the day. I'm sorry.