Jiuxi

Chapter 577 [Different Paths to the Same Destination]

In Xunyang City, in an ancient, elegant and quiet house.

The families of Wang An and Wang Cheng are temporarily living here, while several other Wang family members are living in adjacent courtyards.

These were naturally arranged by Wang Shao. Although the Wang family in Xunyang City was only a branch, it was still considered a prominent family here, so buying several houses was no problem for them.

Now Wang Chulong no longer has to hide her identity and can live with her parents.

The news of the great victory in Yongqiu had already spread throughout Jiangbei, but the festive atmosphere did not last long, and a piece of bad news soon shrouded the sky in sadness.

The Emperor of Great Qi passed away on April 19th.

"Chu Long, Lord Lu should be heading back to the capital now, right?"

Wang Cheng looked solemn and asked while looking at his daughter who was sitting below him.

Wang Chulong lowered her head slightly and said, "Daddy, I don't know."

Wang Cheng looked at her thin face and felt guilty.

Two years ago, she resolutely went south with only a personal maid. Although both the Lu family and the Xunyang Wang family would not treat her badly, it was not easy for a weak woman to run around in this chaotic world and shoulder the responsibilities that should have been borne by the men of the Wang family, including himself.
He sighed and asked, "Did Lord Lu send any letters during this period?"

Wang Chulong raised his head and said calmly, "Dad, Master Lu is busy with military affairs and is responsible for the lives of more than 100,000 people and the safety of Jiangbei territory. Naturally, he has no energy to worry about these trivial matters."

"That's right, you see it more clearly."

Wang Cheng nodded.

In fact, he was not only asking about Lu Chen and Wang Chulong’s private affairs.

The death of the Emperor of Great Qi will not have much impact on the situation in Jiangbei, provided that the Qi army has won a great victory in Yongqiu.

Any one of Lu Chen, Xiao Wangzhi and Li Tianrun can take charge of the overall situation. The morale of the Da Qi border army is at its peak. The Jing army will inevitably lick its wounds after a disastrous defeat. Under such circumstances, the border will naturally be safe and secure.

But for the Wang family of Zhailin, this was a very delicate time point.

Under normal circumstances, the Wang family would return to the capital with the victorious soldiers and would be formally accepted and rewarded by the court.

From the beginning when Wang Chulong went south with the military deployment map of Dongyang Road of Yan State, to Zhu Zhen's outstanding contribution in the early stage of the Battle of Yongqiu, to the chaos of Heluo City before the Wang family of Zhailin moved south with their family, forcing Qing Yugong to actively seek a decisive battle, these are all real achievements.

No one can erase it.

The problem is that the emperor has passed away at this time. The most important events in the court are the national mourning and the enthronement of the new emperor. Many established plans will change.

If the new monarch intends to neglect the Wang family of Zhailin and leave them idle in Jiangbei for a year or two, this is not impossible.

At present, the biggest support of Zhai Lin Wang family is Lu Chen, and only this son-in-law can guarantee that they get the benefits they deserve.

The two questions Wang Cheng asked Wang Chulong were actually asking whether Lu Chen had any arrangements in this regard.

Wang Chulong’s answer is thought-provoking.

Wang Cheng wasn't sure whether she understood what he meant, or whether the girl was just an extrovert and didn't want to bother Lu Chen with these things.

Just as he was about to make it clearer, Wang An beside him said leisurely, "Brother, Lu Chen will definitely return to the capital, because he is the most respected young minister of the late emperor. The court will not let him miss the national mourning ceremony, and he must be allowed to see the late emperor off for the last time."

Wang Cheng nodded and said, "Yes, I just don't know--"

Wang An interrupted him bluntly: "Brother, even if those officials in the court are difficult to get along with, you should trust Marquis Lu's character, and even more so your niece's judgment. I have sent people to Huaizhou Guangling Prefecture to purchase a house and land, and we will move to Guangling in a while. When the border troops of the Great Qi recapture the northern part of Dingzhou, the old and young of the clan can set out from Baotai Mountain to the south."

Wang Cheng asked with a hint of surprise: "Settling in Guangling?"

Wang Chulong looked at his uncle meaningfully.

Wang An said calmly: "The Lu family's roots are in Guangling. Are we going to Jiangnan?"

Wang Cheng gradually came to his senses.

Right now, every choice made by the Wang family will have far-reaching consequences, and following Lu Chen is naturally the safest decision.

Moving the whole family to Guangling could kill two birds with one stone. It would allow Lu Chen to understand the Wang family's intentions and also protect him from the exclusion and jealousy of the Jiangnan clans.

In the eyes of the Jiangnan clans, the greatest threat to the Wang family of Zhailin was not their immense wealth, not a literary giant like Wang Cheng, or even Wang An's reputation, but the talent and heritage possessed by the number one clan in Jiangbei.

Especially since the daughter of Wang family is about to become Lu Chen's principal wife, once they have Lu Chen's support and help, it won't take long for the descendants of Wang family to flourish all over Jiangnan, and it will be even easier for them to become officials in the court.

If the Wang family chose to settle down in Jiangnan at this time, they would inevitably be besieged by the Jiangnan clans.

Thinking of this, Wang Cheng said with shame: "I thought too simply." Wang An smiled and said sincerely: "Brother, you have worked really hard in the past two years. I know you are not interested in these mundane affairs, and you are only busy and working hard for the foundation of the clan. Now that the overall situation has been decided, the Wang family just needs to live a stable life. Brother, you can make friends with literary masters like before, and it is not a bad thing to sing poems and comment on articles."

These words touched Wang Cheng's heart.

If he had been interested in worldly matters, fame, wealth and power, he would not have taken the initiative to give up the right to inherit the position of patriarch to Wang An, nor would he have won the reputation of a master in the literary world.

It’s just that the Wang family’s situation was worrying in the past few years, and Wang An was too busy to handle it, so he helped to deal with some trivial matters.

He smiled and said, "Since you say so, I'll just let it go."

Wang An agreed respectfully, and then said to Wang Chulong: "The late emperor has passed away, and Lu Chen must be very sad. You might as well write a letter to comfort him. Chulong, from now on you are a member of the Lu family. The Wang family will only be your strongest backing and will not let you fall into a dilemma."

Wang Chulong glanced at the smiling Wang An and knew that he had seen through her thoughts. She also knew that this letter was not just to comfort Lu Chen, but at least to let Lu Chen know that the Wang family would stand firmly on his side. So she stood up and replied softly, "Yes, uncle."

……

Heluo City was shrouded in dark clouds.

Although it is not summer yet, restlessness has quietly arrived, especially in gloomy and windless weather when the heavy rain is reluctant to fall. The sticky air makes people feel as if they are carrying heavy stones, making it almost impossible to breathe.

In the corridor of the main hall of Zhuo Garden, Qing Yu Huaijin looked indifferently at the sky in the distance, while the sounds of conversation in the hall kept reaching her ears.

"...The lords in the court have been impeaching the prince one after another, but His Majesty has not accepted them. His Majesty said that victory and defeat are common in the military. You only know that the Prince of Changshan was defeated this time. Have you forgotten his great contributions to Dajing in the past? Moreover, Southern Qi tried its best in this battle. The Prince of Changshan was defeated only because of insufficient troops. It was not his fault for the war."

A Jinglian nobleman sat on the left, looking at the calm face of Qing Yugong sitting on the main seat, and continued, "Your Majesty also said that he hoped the Changshan County King would not blame himself too much, and that there would definitely be a chance for revenge in the future."

Qing Yugong raised his hands to the north and said with guilt and gratitude: "Your Majesty is so kind and merciful. I am truly ashamed."

This nobleman is named Wu Yanshu, he is 43 years old and is the deputy commander of the Loyal Army.

As the emperor's personal army, the commander-in-chief of the Loyal and Righteous Army was naturally Emperor Jing himself, and Wu Yanshu was the actual commander of this army of more than 90,000 cavalry and infantry.

Wu Yanshu said with emotion: "Your Highness, don't feel bad about yourself. Who would have thought that the people of Southern Qi could be so united? Ahem... His Majesty has ordered me to take care of the military affairs in the south for the time being. Please return to the capital to rest for a while. By the way, His Majesty has another instruction. He asked me to make it clear to Your Highness that this move is only to calm the disturbances in the court. I hope Your Highness will not worry too much."

Qing Yugong nodded and said, "Your Majesty is so caring and loving, how dare I not appreciate it?"

Wu Yanshu smiled slightly and asked respectfully, "I am new here and don't know much about the situation of the Qi army. I hope Your Majesty will be generous in giving me some advice."

Qing Yugong thought for a moment and said, "I don't deserve your advice. According to my judgment, although the Qi army is in high spirits, it is difficult for the Southern Qi central government to provide continuous logistics. They will not force a northern expedition, and most likely just want to retake the northern part of Dingzhou."

Wu Yanshu pondered and said, "Then according to your opinion, should we defend the northern part of Dingzhou to the death?"

Qing Yugong said calmly: "Whether to defend or not is up to the general to decide."

Although he did not get a satisfactory answer, Wu Yanshu's face was still full of respect.

After talking for another half an hour, Wu Yanshu stood up to say goodbye, and Qing Yugong personally escorted him to the second gate.

When I turned around, I saw Qing Yu Huaijin standing in the corridor.

"Father."

"Ok?"

"Will it be dangerous to return to Beijing this time?"

"What's the danger?"

Qing Yugong walked steadily and his expression was calm.

Qing Yu Huai Jin sighed softly and said, "Although His Majesty did not dismiss my father from the position of Southern Court Marshal, he let Wu Yanshu take over the military power and hurriedly asked my father to return to the capital. I am worried..."

"Are you worried that His Majesty will take your father's head?"

Qing Yugong took over the conversation and continued, "Your Majesty will not do this. Of course, my defeat this time is a good opportunity. Your Majesty will let me bear the anger and criticism of the officials in the court, and use this to reduce the glory of the so-called military god of Dajing."

Qing Yu Huaijin frowned and said angrily, "It is obviously His Majesty who is meddling in the military affairs on the front line. Father, if His Majesty does this, why should the Qing Yu clan work hard for him?!"

Qing Yugong turned to look at her with a gentle expression: "Qing Yu is not working for your majesty, but for ourselves. You don't have to worry too much. His majesty just wants to damage my reputation and won't force me too much. As long as the world is not unified, he will not kill me and Qing Yu."

He paused for a moment and said earnestly, "Huai Jin, the Qingyu family has enjoyed respect and wealth for more than 20 years. It is not a bad thing to lie dormant for a while. People will climb mountains and step into valleys in their lives. The reason for retracting the fist is not because of fear, but to accumulate strength and wait for the opportunity. Do you understand?"

Qing Yu Huaijin's heart trembled, and he nodded and said, "My daughter understands."

Qing Yugong raised his hand and patted her shoulder, smiling and said, "Life is long, don't rush."

(End of this chapter)