Eagle-eyed and wolf-watching

Chapter 1734 Chen Wanting's Personal Motives
"So, according to you, Murong Yuliang is supposed to get through this safely?"

Gu Sansi pondered for a moment upon hearing this, then slowly spoke:
"That depends on His Majesty's decision. However, at this time, the court needs stability in Jiangnan. If any more trouble breaks out in Jiangnan, the situation next year will be even more difficult!"

Although Gu Sansi did not give a clear answer, Chen Wanting understood his thoughts from the meaning of his words. A hint of disappointment appeared on her pretty face. As Gu Sansi's wife, she had long been bound to him by fate, so she disliked Murong Yuliang, Gu Sansi's potential competitor.

Just as Chen Wanting was racking her brains, trying to think of a good way to trip up Murong Yuliang, Gu Sansi suddenly spoke up:
"Wan Ting, what do you think? Should I offer my job outside the office?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Wanting was somewhat surprised, but not particularly astonished. As Gu Sansi's bedmate, she often communicated with him, and Gu Sansi never hid his thoughts from her. Therefore, she had long known that Gu Sansi had ideas about going out into the world.

As Ye Mingsheng's most important advisor, Gu Sansi actively contributed strategies and plans during the rise of the Fengwu Army. He was also responsible for the reforms that Ye Mingsheng valued most. It can be said that Gu Sansi made significant contributions to the establishment of the Great Qian Dynasty…
As a scholar, one would certainly aspire to become a prime minister, assist the emperor, govern the people, and leave a lasting mark on history. Gu Sansi was no exception.

However, Gu Sansi was not the only one with the same idea; Murong Yuliang was also a strong contender for the position of the next cabinet capital.

After realizing that he and Murong Yuliang were competitors, Gu Sansi would compare his strengths and weaknesses with Murong Yuliang in his spare time.

Both men were veteran officials during the founding of the Fengwu Army and made significant contributions to the establishment of the Great Qian Dynasty.

Gu Sansi's main role in the central government was to advise Ye Mingsheng, promote various reform initiatives, and implement Ye Mingsheng's ideas. Later, when he took charge of personnel work, he also recommended outstanding talents to Ye Mingsheng.

Murong Yuliang's work in the local area was relatively more comprehensive, but it mainly focused on developing the economy and people's livelihood, as well as providing logistical support such as money and food for the Fengwu Army's military operations.

Regarding his relationship with Ye Mingsheng, Gu Sansi has always been known as Ye Mingsheng's trusted confidant and beloved general, and is widely regarded as the most trusted minister of the entire court.

Murong Yuliang is Ye Mingsheng's father-in-law, the father of Consort Murong, and the maternal grandfather of Princess Kexin and Prince Jingyan.

Although on the surface both men have made significant contributions and are close to Ye Mingsheng, they simply have different focuses. However, considering His Majesty's preference for those with grassroots experience in promotions, Gu San has always felt that he is at a disadvantage in the competition with Murong Yuliang. Compared to him, the Minister of Personnel, Murong Yuliang, the Governor of Jianghuai, is more likely to succeed Cui Shao as the Grand Secretary in the future!

Given Ye Mingsheng's clear stance that economic development and people's livelihood will be the main focus of Daqian's future work, and the encouragement of overseas development, Murong Yuliang, who has served as the Provincial Governor of Liaoyang, the Provincial Governor of Hebei and Henan, and the Governor of Jianghuai, possesses rich grassroots experience and is highly skilled in coordinating overseas trade, is undoubtedly the one in a leading position.

This is also a key reason why Gu Sansi, who usually dislikes getting involved in court intrigues, would intervene when Murong Yuliang showed a weakness...
Gu Sansi, who had always worked in the central government, had never served as a county magistrate, prefect, or even provincial governor in the Daqian court, which valued grassroots experience. This was the biggest weakness in his resume. Gu Sansi also took this issue seriously, and he had even considered being sent out to work elsewhere. He and Chen Wanting had discussed this in detail after a fierce battle late at night.

After discussion, the two summarized some key points.

The most difficult thing about Gu Sansi's idea of ​​being sent out was that his official position was too high. He was the Minister of Personnel, a first-rank official, while the provincial governors and provincial judges were second-rank officials. So this meant that if Gu Sansi were sent out to serve as a provincial governor, it would mean that Gu Sansi would be demoted.

Although Gu San wanted to expand his horizons to make up for his lack of grassroots experience, he did not want to leave Yijing for a local post by being demoted!

If he did not want to leave Yijing in a demotion and take up a local post, there was only one possibility: to become the Governor of Jianghuai. Currently, the Governor of Jianghuai was the only first-rank local official in the Great Qian Dynasty. He was responsible for the Jiangnan and Huainan regions and controlled the court's purse strings. His position was extremely important. Therefore, it would not be considered a disgrace for Gu Sansi to be transferred from Minister of Personnel to Governor of Jianghuai.

Although Gu Sansi was interested in becoming the governor of Jianghuai, it wasn't a position he could simply decide to take!

First of all, the position of Governor of Jianghuai is not vacant; it is currently held by Murong Yuliang!
His appointment as Governor of Jianghuai meant taking action against Murong Yuliang, which would be a major upheaval in the court, something even Gu Sansi, with his influence, would find difficult to accomplish...

Secondly, although the position of the Governor of Jianghuai was very important, the work was also very arduous.

In this position, you must manage the imperial treasury, ensure the economic development and people's livelihood in the Jianghuai region, and guarantee a continuous supply of money and grain to the imperial court. In addition, you must also be responsible for the development of overseas trade, the implementation of work laws, and the coordination of employers and workers. In short, this is a very important and arduous task.

It was precisely because this position was so important to the imperial court that Ye Mingsheng appointed Murong Yuliang, a man with extensive experience in developing the economy and improving people's livelihoods, who had previously served as the Provincial Governor of Liaoyang and Jiyu.
Most of your work, Gu Sansi, is done in the central government; you have no experience serving as a local government leader.

Therefore, based on Gu Sansi's understanding of Ye Mingsheng, even if Ye Mingsheng trusted him, he would not take the risk of appointing him as the governor of Jianghuai, thus putting the already tense Jianghuai region, the court's purse, into an uncontrollable crisis.

Therefore, Gu Sansi was well aware that being transferred to another region was unrealistic, and the central government had a mountain of work waiting for him. Furthermore, His Majesty was unlikely to approve his transfer. Thus, after realizing these issues, Gu Sansi abandoned his desire to be transferred elsewhere.
Chen Wanting originally thought that Gu Sansi would completely give up the idea of ​​being sent out after realizing the difficulties in reality, but she never expected that Gu Sansi would bring it up again now.

Chen Wanting was also very helpless about this. As Gu Sansi's wife, to be honest, she did not want Gu Sansi to be sent away for his own benefit.

As husband and wife, she and Gu Sansi shared both glory and misfortune. Therefore, if Gu Sansi were to be sent out to serve as a provincial governor, even if he retained the official rank of first grade, his actual power would not be comparable to that of the Minister of Personnel.

In addition, she also had to consider whether or not to go to her new post with Gu Sansi.

As a native of Youyan, Chen Wanting has never left Youyan in her life, and she is very satisfied with her current life, satisfied with the prosperity of Yijing and the quality of life in Yijing. Her relatives and friends are also here.

Therefore, even though Jiangnan is a very prosperous region, it was still a completely unfamiliar environment for Chen Wanting, who grew up in Youyan. She had to leave her comfort zone and embrace a brand new challenge. As a woman, Chen Wanting preferred a stable life; she didn't want to leave Yijing, to leave her comfort zone!

Of course, under the laws of the Great Qian Dynasty, there was no mandatory requirement for local officials to have their families accompany them when they took office. Whether or not they accompanied them depended on their personal wishes. Gu Sansi had always respected her ideas and would not force her to do things she did not like.

Therefore, if Gu Sansi were to be transferred to another region, Chen Wanting felt that as long as she told Gu Sansi that she did not want to leave Yijing, Gu Sansi would respect her wishes and allow her to stay in Yijing.

However, there are certain risks involved in doing this!

Although Chen Wanting is now the only mistress of the Gu family, her relationship with Gu Sansi is very good, and she has even given birth to a son, Gu Yuanqing, for Gu Sansi.

However, it should be noted that in terms of official status, Chen Wanting was merely Gu Sansi's concubine, while Wang Shi in Liaoyang was Gu Sansi's legal wife. Chen Wanting's current status was not protected by feudal etiquette; it was entirely due to Gu Sansi's favor.

This means that if Gu Sansi's affection for Chen Wanting changes, Chen Wanting's status and position are likely to decline rapidly!
Chen Wanting also came from an official family, and she knew very well that there were too many temptations in the gambling world. Gu Sansi was such a high-ranking official that even if Gu Sansi himself didn't seek them out, there were too many people who wanted to give him money and women. In Yijing, she could keep an eye on things and keep a close eye on them so that others would not have any opportunity to take advantage of her.

However, things might be different if I'm not around. Even if Gu Sansi loves me and can refuse me once or twice, he is still a man with his own physiological needs, so he naturally can't resist the relentless advances of beautiful women.

Especially the "slender horses" of the Jiangnan region are very famous. They are not only proficient in music, chess, calligraphy and painting, but also have an indescribable talent in human relations. A merchant from Jiangnan once wanted to give them to Gu Sansi. Although Gu Sansi did not accept them at the time, Chen Wanting could tell that Gu Sansi was tempted!

If I'm still like this, and I don't follow suit, wouldn't I be sleeping in the same bed with everyone?

If Gu Sansi falls in love with someone else, it will inevitably shake Chen Wanting's status and position, which is something Chen Wanting absolutely does not want to see.

Therefore, from her own perspective, Chen Wanting absolutely does not want Gu Sansi to leave Yijing...

Looking at Gu Sansi's serious expression, Chen Wanting felt a bit of a headache. In order to prevent Gu Sansi from overthinking, she felt it was necessary to comfort him and make him give up the idea of ​​going out!

At this point, Chen Wanting, this clever woman, had an idea and said to Gu Sansi:
"My lord, although Murong Yuliang has advantages in developing the economy and improving people's livelihoods, I believe that compared to his disadvantages, these advantages are nothing at all!"

Hearing Chen Wanting say that, Gu Sansi paused for a moment, then seemed to realize something and said:
"Wan Ting, what do you mean?"

"The Murong family's ambitions are so great that they naturally attract attention. In my opinion, many people don't want to see him appear in Yijing!"

Gu Sansi nodded slightly and said:

"Wan Ting, what you say makes sense, but the decisive factor is still His Majesty's opinion!"

"If His Majesty believes that Murong Yuliang, who is skilled in economics, can alleviate or improve the court's financial situation, there is a high probability that he will appear in Yijing!"

Gu Sansi paused for a moment, then looked at Chen Wanting and said:
"Wan Ting, if I don't win the competition against Murong Yuliang, I'd like to request His Majesty to transfer me to Jianghuai..."

Hearing her husband say this, Chen Wanting finally understood his true thoughts. At the same time, she also realized how pessimistic Gu Sansi was about defeating Murong Yuliang and taking over the position of chief minister!
“Cui Shao is sixty-five this year, Murong Yuliang is fifty-seven, and I am only forty-three. Murong Yuliang is eight years younger than Cui Shao, and I am twenty-two years younger than Cui Shao and fourteen years younger than Murong Yuliang!”

"So there's no need for me to argue with the two of them over a short time. Taking a step back will open up a whole new world. What do you think, Wanting?"

Hearing Gu Sansi say this, Chen Wanting appeared calm on the surface, but was inwardly somewhat disappointed.

In her view, the G-field is a battlefield, and promotion in the G-field is like rowing against the current; if you don't advance, you fall behind!

Therefore, in her view, no one can predict the future or know what will happen in the future. So since the opportunity has appeared in front of her, she should do her best to seize it!
Being young is an advantage, but it doesn't guarantee he'll become the Grand Secretary. As Gu Sansi's wife, Chen Wanting knows that Gu Sansi has been working tirelessly for years to complete the tasks assigned to him by Ye Mingsheng, and his health has suffered as a result. Therefore, his future is uncertain.

Besides, this position of Grand Secretary is something you've always wanted. Now that you've only encountered a little difficulty, how can you back down at the first sign of trouble?
Thinking of this, Chen Wanting said tactfully:

"Thinking twice before admitting defeat is not your style!"

Gu Sansi couldn't help but smile wryly upon hearing this, while Chen Wanting said solemnly:

"Sansi, you are the only candidate to succeed him as Grand Secretary. Murong Yuliang is no match for you. Sansi, you don't need to do much. Naturally, there will be people who dislike him, and some are even more anxious than we are!"