Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 814 Accepting the Order
As Xie Yuyan finished speaking, Jingyuan, who was standing next to him, took something out of the book tube she was carrying.

Marquis Changyuan was startled, and his wife, who had been sitting, immediately stood up.

That was an imperial edict.

Lady Changyuan bowed first, then looked at the Marquis beside her.

Marquis Changyuan felt his eyes tremble. The two people in front of him vaguely reminded him of decades ago, when the late emperor passed away, the empress dowager controlled the political situation, and read out the imperial edict in front of all the officials.

Different people, different situations.

Yet it seems as if nothing has changed.

Marquis Changyuan should not trust Lady Xie. This Lady Xie is not a noblewoman, and he has never even heard of her frequenting Cining Palace. He can use this to question the authenticity of the imperial edict.

While Marquis Changyuan hesitated, Xie Yuyan clearly didn't care and went straight to the point: "The Empress Dowager's decree—"

She could read the contents of the imperial edict without even unfolding it.

"The King of Qin has secretly colluded with his cronies, spying on the palace and plotting to seize power. His crimes are outrageous and infuriating to both gods and men. The Prince of Huai is benevolent and filial, and has long been favored by the Emperor. He is worthy to inherit the ancestral temple. Therefore, he is hereby specially appointed as the Crown Prince. All officials, both inside and outside the capital, should do their utmost to assist him and uphold this great cause."

"The Marquis of Changyuan has received the Emperor's favor for generations and is known for his loyalty and courage. If he can clearly distinguish right from wrong, lead his troops to serve the Emperor, and assist the Crown Prince in ascending the throne, then all his past transgressions, whether impeached by civil or military officials or investigated by the Ministry of Justice, will be completely cleared up and never pursued again."

"I hereby grant Erdan an iron certificate, which shall be kept in the Imperial Ancestral Temple. Except for the serious crime of treason, if you or your descendants commit ordinary crimes, the officials shall not arbitrarily detain you, but shall petition the court for a decision."

"This favor will be proclaimed to the world on the day the imperial heir ascends the throne and issues the edict, thus ensuring its eternal credibility!"

Xie Yuyan then looked at Marquis Changyuan and asked, "Marquis Changyuan, would you like to receive the imperial decree?"

Although Marquis Changyuan tried his best to control himself, his arm was still trembling slightly.

The imperial edict, which the founding emperor had never bestowed upon the Zeng family, was now before his very eyes.

He wanted to reach out and take it, but he quickly calmed himself down. A reward he hadn't even obtained through conquering the world—why would he take it so easily?
"This is a generous gift for the Zeng family, but to me it looks like a death warrant," said Marquis Changyuan, his eyes darkening. "If Lady Xie thinks she can control the Zeng family like this, she is underestimating me."

Marquis Changyuan deliberately avoided mentioning the Empress Dowager and instead targeted Xie Yuyan, leaving himself room to maneuver.

If Xie Yuyan were to argue with Marquis Changyuan about the authenticity of the imperial edict, it would be tantamount to placing all his hopes on an inanimate object, which hardly shows any ability.

Xie Yuyan said calmly, "Your Excellency is not being sincere."

Marquis Changyuan remained calm and listened as Xie Yuyan continued.

“When you hear this decree, you should know that it will only benefit the Changyuan Marquis’s mansion,” Xie Yuyan said. “Once the decree is issued, the Changyuan Marquis will lead his troops to defend the emperor, which will naturally be a great achievement.”

Xie Yuyan paused deliberately at this point.

"On the contrary, if the Marquis refuses to do as the decree says, he can still gain merit by handing the imperial edict over to the Prince of Qin or the Jiang family. Isn't the Jiang family just worried about not having any evidence to frame He Tan? Now they have it."

"The King of Qin just said that the Empress Dowager had forged an imperial edict, disrupted the government, and colluded with foreign officials to covet the imperial power."

Marquis Changyuan did not expect Xie Yuyan to speak so directly.

"Isn't this a great gift?"

Marquis Changyuan remained silent.

Upon seeing this, Xie Yuyan smiled slightly.

"Why are you laughing?" Marquis Changyuan frowned.

Xie Yuyan didn't hide anything: "It seems that Marquis Changyuan hasn't made up his mind to work with the Jiang family yet, otherwise he would have already snatched the imperial edict."

"With an imperial edict, if we are detained again, why should we worry about the Chiang family not giving us high-ranking positions and generous salaries?"

Marquis Changyuan suddenly spat, "My Marquis Changyuan's mansion would never stoop to flattering the Jiang family." Having said that, the rest of the conversation flowed naturally.

"The Chiang family is secretly making arrangements at sea in order to completely dominate all power and control, so that no matter what changes happen in the future, even if the dynasty changes, they will remain invincible. Loyalty to the Chiang family will only have one result: to work for the Chiang family forever and seek benefits for the Chiang family."

"As a high-ranking official of the court, he was able to retire. However, by joining the Jiang family and knowing so many of their secrets, he can only remain a servant of the Jiang family forever. Unless the Marquis believes that he will have enough strength in the future to deal with the Jiang family and become the second master."

Marquis Changyuan's eyes showed a hint of emotion: "Are you sure the Jiang family is the owner?"

Xie Yuyan retorted, "If you're not the master, why are you showing up at this time to win over officials and push the King of Qin to the throne?"

Marquis Changyuan said, "The Duke of Wei said publicly that it was for his only daughter."

"In your opinion, would the Empress Dowager make such a mistake?" Xie Yuyan asked. "Since the Emperor wants to replace the Prince of Huai with the Crown Prince, keeping Jiang Zhenru is actually a good thing, isn't it?"

"If they hadn't been prepared beforehand, why was the Duke of Wei able to immediately take action against He Tan right after Jiang Zhenru's death?"

“We couldn’t be sure of the owner’s identity before, but everything became clear after Jiang Zhenru died. The Jiang family didn’t even want the Empress’s position, which means they wanted more, which is consistent with the owner’s methods.”

Marquis Changyuan remained silent for a moment, then looked at Xie Yuyan again: "How many copies of this imperial edict did the Empress Dowager prepare?"

"One copy," Xie Yuyan replied.

Marquis Changyuan asked with some doubt: "Does the Empress Dowager trust the Marquis Changyuan's family so much?"

“Although the political situation in Daliang is unstable,” Xie Yuyan said, “it is not yet at a critical juncture. We cannot do something short-sighted like killing the goose that lays the golden eggs. Promising too much power and benefits indiscriminately will surely become a hidden danger in the future.”

"Especially future ministers of the state."

Those who were easily swayed by the Chiang family were naturally not among them.

Upon hearing Xie Yuyan's last words, Marquis Changyuan remained silent for a moment before finally lifting his robe and slowly kneeling down: "Your humble servant accepts the decree and will certainly not fail the Emperor's trust."

Xie Yuyan took the imperial edict from Jingyuan and handed it to Marquis Changyuan.

……

Marquis Changyuan watched the two figures gradually disappear into the distance before returning to his residence.

Lady Changyuan was already waiting in the study.

"Your Excellency made a decision so quickly?" said Lady Changyuan. "I thought we should appease Xie Yuyan first."

“There’s nothing more to think about,” said Marquis Changyuan. “The fact that Lady Xie came to visit again after Ji Qing left with his troops shows that she was confident she could persuade me.”

Every word Xie Niangzi said struck a chord with him.

If he hadn't thought all this through, he wouldn't have dealt with the Duke of Wei in this way. Sending his son to the Northwest with troops wasn't really to capture He Tan, but rather to assess the situation there.

"Is Lady Xie really Xie Yisong's daughter?" Marquis Changyuan suddenly asked. "Why do I feel... she looks remarkably like the Empress Dowager?"

Lady Changyuan was at a loss for words: "I think the Marquis is going to use the imperial edict before he has even received it."

……

Xie Yuyan rode his horse northwest and stayed at an inn as night fell.

She had just finished eating with Yu's mother and Jingyuan when there was a knock on the door.

The next moment, Sang Dian opened the door and walked in with someone.

(End of this chapter)