Jinting Han people

After Jia Mi left the Eastern Palace, he immediately drove back to the Imperial Palace. In the East Hall of Taiji Palace, the Queen and her followers were gathered together, waiting for the Prince's reply.

The East Hall was still the same, and the attendees were still the same, but the scenery was similar, yet the moods were different. Due to the tense political situation, everyone was unable to relax and unwind, and the once majestic hall now seemed a little deserted.

Perhaps this is what it means to be scattered. Although everyone is busy thinking about the various possible changes in the future, many people no longer see each other. The once harmonious Houdang has now spread a significant crack, which is still widening.

After Jia Mi quickly entered the hall and took his seat, everyone breathed a sigh of relief and turned their gazes towards him. Zhang Hua asked first:
"Duke Lu, His Highness has ordered you to go and investigate. I wonder what the situation is like in the Eastern Palace?"

Recalling this not-so-pleasant meeting, Jia Mi snorted coldly, and after a long while, he laughed:

"I really underestimated Sima Yi in the past. But today in the East Palace, he acted so arrogantly towards me. Thousands of people came to greet me, trying to scare me!"

Zhang Hua was not concerned about these things. He asked again, "You have seen the prince. How is his condition?"

"He has some asthma, a minor illness. I think he's just trying to avoid entering the palace because he's afraid his aunt will set a trap for him."

All the staff sighed, because this was exactly the situation they were most worried about. The prince was already making preparations for both scenarios. If forcing the emperor to abdicate failed, he would launch a coup. Under the current situation, the chances of the queen's party winning were not high.

Zhang Hua had anticipated this. He asked in a deep voice, "Did the Crown Prince offer any conditions for the Queen to respond to?"

Jia Mi nodded and said, "Of course he did. Sima Yi's words were quite high-sounding. He said he could wait for us for half a year. He only wanted the power of regent. He would not take the throne first, nor would he abolish any of our titles. He could even preserve the power of some of us as prime ministers."

But he immediately sneered, "He really thinks I'm a three-year-old kid. Who can be fooled by such tricks? Now he hasn't even taken that position yet, yet he dares to attack and kill us. What if he really takes that position? Then, it will be easy for him to kill us, and we will definitely be our prey! His ancestors made their fortunes by doing this, don't you think I don't know?"

At this point, Jia Mi bowed to the empress and said, "Aunt, in my opinion, we must find a way to depose him. You have set a precedent for deposing and killing empress dowagers. When the emperor dies and he ascends the throne, you too will be imprisoned in Jinyong City, and your fate will probably be worse than Yang Yan's. We must kill him and replace him with an obedient puppet."

These words were extremely treasonous, as if he really was the current crown prince. Everyone frowned when they heard them. If politics was this kind of fighting, how could there be peace?
Pei Wei immediately stood up to object, saying, "Duke Lu, this is no longer the era when Emperor Xuan deceived Cao Shuang. Cao Shuang was just a minister, so he was deceived. But even so, it took the Sima family twenty years to destroy Cao Shuang's followers, quell the three rebellions in Huainan, and completely replace the Cao family."

"But the situation now is very different. The Cao clan has no power, while the Sima clan does. How could they sit idly by and watch the Crown Prince and the Empress fight? No matter which side completely overwhelms the other, they will not be happy. Only by maintaining a balance can these people swing back and forth and reap the benefits."

"They support the Crown Prince now because you and His Highness have gone too far in recent years. Overthrowing the Three Yangs was one thing, but annihilating the two kings was a bit over the line. Not to mention that you have been too contemptuous of the other kings and refused to give up power over the years. How could they not support the Crown Prince?"

"But if the Crown Prince were to monopolize power, how much of a good life would the princes have? They wouldn't want to see that happen. Therefore, as long as the Queen is willing to make concessions to the Crown Prince, they will no longer support the Crown Prince's liquidation. It's not impossible that they might even support the Queen instead."

Jia Mi finally heard him finish, then immediately stood up and shouted, "You traitor, how dare you speak here? Sima Ying went to recruit you, and you talked with him for two hours. I'm afraid you've already sold us out!"

Pei Wei had not wanted to talk to Jia Mi much, but since this involved a question of position, he had to defend himself: "The Prince of Chengdu is a prince. How can I not see him when he comes to visit?"

The two young men argued endlessly in the hall, while the others watched coldly and did not express any opinions.

After a long while, the Queen finally waved her hand for silence in the hall and said, "This is not the place for quarreling. Some things can be discussed outside the hall. The most urgent thing is to come up with a counterattack strategy."

This sentence made Pei Wei speechless. Although on the surface the queen was reprimanding Jia Mi for provoking trouble, in fact she was supporting Jia Mi's position and questioning Pei Wei's loyalty.

The Queen then asked Zhang Hua, "Lord Mao, you are a wise man in the country. I plan to depose the Crown Prince. Do you have any advice?"

Zhang Hua was silent for a moment, then shook his head and said, "Your Highness, the Crown Prince cannot be deposed. If you do, the entire world will betray you. Can you bear that?"

The Queen said coldly, "Of course I can bear it. I have ruled the world for eight years and the world is at peace. I am worthy of this country. If I can't bear it, who else in the world can bear it?"

She stopped asking Zhang Hua and turned to Jia Mo, "Si Fan, you've been thinking about this for so long, do you have any ideas?"

Jia Mo also bowed his head and said, "Your Highness, it is easy to depose the Crown Prince. You can just issue a decree. But how to deal with the aftermath is beyond my knowledge."

When Shi Chong, He Yu and others were asked again, they were also divided. After all, the current situation was too dire. If they were not careful, they would go to war with the Eastern Palace. The chances of victory were slim, so wouldn't that be courting death?

After being rejected by several of her advisors, the empress, furious, turned to laughter. She looked at everyone and said, "I've allowed you to rule my country, and this is what you've ended up with? Why don't you just kill me with a single blow and then go and curry favor with Sima Yi? Wouldn't that be more convenient?"

For a moment, everyone was silent. After a long while, Jia Mo said, "Your Highness, I may have run out of options, but someone has approached me and said he can turn the situation around."

"Oh, who is it?"

"Sun Xiu, the Chief Secretary of King Zhao."

Everyone present was familiar with the name Sun Xiu, yet none of them had a favorable impression of him. It could be argued that the Hou Party's political disadvantage stemmed from the calamity Sun Xiu had caused in Guanxi. However, Jia Mo's recommendation of him at this moment was unexpected, leaving everyone perplexed.

Facing the questioning gazes of the crowd, Jia Mo took a deep breath and waved to the outside of the hall, "Sun Changshi, come in too."

As soon as he finished speaking, a short and thin figure appeared outside the hall door, and then walked in boldly.

Sun Xiu bowed to the Empress, then took a seat at the very end, jokingly addressing the Empress's loyalists, "Ah, how are you all?" Pei Wei and Zhang Hua's expressions were sullen. Sun Xiu had previously offered bribes to the Empress several times, requesting the position of Shangshu Ling for Sima Lun, but they had always rebuffed his attempts. They all knew that Sun Xiu was a villain who might hold grudges without saying them, and now that he had been allowed into the East Hall, they wondered what kind of trouble he might stir up.

The Queen also looked down on Sun Xiu, but she also had the courage to employ people regardless of their background. She had never met Sun Xiu in person before, and now seeing that he was so ugly, yet he had such an arrogant demeanor, she felt a sense of admiration for him and asked directly:

"I heard from Minister Jia that you have a way to depose the Crown Prince?"

Unlike the others who had declined before, Sun Xiu first kowtowed solemnly, then stood up and said, "Your Highness, I do have a solution, but if you want to use it, Your Highness must be willing to give it up."

"Are you willing?"

"I just heard it outside the palace. Minister Pei is right. The Crown Prince is currently in such a good position because he has the support of the royal family. Since Your Highness wishes to depose the Crown Prince, direct confrontation is impossible. Therefore, you must first dismantle the royal family's support for the Crown Prince. Let them start by causing chaos within, and Your Highness can then defeat them one by one."

At this point, Sun Xiuxian asked, "May I ask, Your Highness, who do you think are the most important among the princes who support the Crown Prince?"

"Of course, it's the King of Qi, the King of Huainan, and the King of Chengdu."

"Haha, Your Highness is right about two people, but wrong about one." Sun Xiu clapped his knees and laughed, "The Prince of Qi is not important. You don't need to pay too much attention to him. He is the legitimate son of Prince Xian of Qi, and Prince Xian of Qi is someone who can compete with Your Majesty for the throne. How dare the Crown Prince use him? The Prince of Qi knows this very well. The two of them are now hanging out together, seemingly of the same mind, but in fact they have different dreams. If there is any sign of trouble, the Prince of Qi will not go with the Crown Prince."

"In contrast, the King of Huainan and the King of Chengdu are both your Majesty's brothers and the Crown Prince's uncles. They both hate your Highness because of the King of Chu incident and want to seize power, but they pose no threat to the throne. That's why the Crown Prince is confident in using them."

Sun Xiu concluded, "Therefore, Your Highness must be willing to offer bribes and sever the support of the Prince of Huainan and the Prince of Chengdu for the Crown Prince."

"Bribery? How can you let me bribe you?"

"I have two plans for you, Your Highness. The first is for you to spread the news that after deposing the Crown Prince, you will appoint the Prince of Huainan as the Crown Prince!"

This sentence was truly earth-shattering. No one present had ever thought of it, but after thinking about it carefully, they couldn't help but applaud and exclaim: What a brilliant plan!

The most difficult issue for the Hou Party now was the reasoning behind deposing the Crown Prince. The Crown Prince was Sima Yan's designated heir, and without a just and impartial reason, the Hou Party would undoubtedly face an extremely unfavorable public outcry. However, the Hou Party's achievements over the years were widely known. No matter how absurd the Crown Prince was, he could not compare to the Hou Party's. This made it impossible for them to find a moral basis for judging the Crown Prince.

But what if it was done in the name of enthroning the Prince of Huainan as the Crown Prince? Sima Yun had long been considered a virtuous prince, on par with Sima Wei. His return to the capital to visit his brother and support the Crown Prince was widely praised. If the claim was that Sima Yi was deposed in order to enthronize Sima Yun, no one would find fault; after all, Sima Yun's moral character was universally recognized as superior to the Crown Prince.

Furthermore, this would sow suspicion between the Prince of Huainan and the Crown Prince, potentially creating a rift in their alliance, no matter how steadfast. Whether or not to fulfill their promise after deposing the Crown Prince and eliminating the East Palace's cronies was another matter entirely.

No matter how much they despised Sun Xiu, everyone present couldn't help but sigh: This is truly a masterstroke! Even more brilliant than Jia Xu's attempt to alienate Ma Chao and Han Sui!
The Queen also stood up and said with a smile, "Sun Changshi is truly a great man! I wonder what the second plan is?"

Sun Xiu said, "The second plan is also very simple. Please ask Your Highness to transfer the King of Chengdu to Hebei and appoint him as the General Guarding the North."

This plan wasn't as impressive as the previous one, and the Queen was somewhat disappointed. She questioned, "I understand what you mean. You're trying to bribe Sima Ying so he can't focus on the capital. But Hebei is the richest place in the world. If he were to rule, what would happen if he had evil intentions?"

Sun Xiu replied fluently, "The King of Chengdu is a weak and docile man. If he were to form cliques and show respect to the wise and humble, he would win their hearts. However, his temperament is not suited to military command, nor is he able to lead generals. His talent is also mediocre. Even if he were to raise an army later, it would be difficult to suppress the rebellion."

"Your Highness, there's no more suitable appointment. If the Prince of Huainan remains in Hebei, he'll be uncontrollable. If the Prince of Chengdu is made Crown Prince, even after the Crown Prince is deposed, there will be further trouble. Only this approach can effectively weaken them."

"Of course, Queen, please make more use of Your Highnesses Prince Zhao and Prince Liang. Although they may not have any talent, they are veteran officials in the court. Their seniority is enough to intimidate those who support the Crown Prince."

"However, apart from appointing the King of Chengdu as the Governor of Ye City, the other matters do not need to be implemented immediately. Now is their time of triumph, so you should lie low for now. Didn't the Crown Prince say he would give you six months? Let him run rampant for six months, identify his most powerful followers, and then, suddenly launch an attack and kill them all."

"In this case, the Crown Prince has few supporters, while Your Highness has many. The Crown Prince can only let Your Highness the Queen deal with him."

Sun Xiu finally finished speaking. His analysis was incisive and refreshing. It was also well-organized, with both urgency and timing. The other officials present were impressed, and the Empress applauded him, saying, "If this can be accomplished as planned, then Sun Changshi will be the chief contributor. I will make you a county lord!"

Upon hearing this, Sun Xiu was overjoyed. He kowtowed on the ground to express his gratitude and burst into tears. His face, which looked like a rat and a monkey, made him look really ugly.

But after the meeting, Zhang Hua was somewhat worried. On the way, he said to Jia Mo, "I heard that Sun Xiu has close ties with the prince's followers. Would such a power-hungry and unscrupulous villain really work for the queen?"

"This plan is too idealistic. Even if it alienates the two princes, the Crown Prince has been the Crown Prince for nine years. His foundation is complex and entrenched, and it is not something the Queen can easily eliminate."

Jia Mo was somewhat helpless. He said, "Mr. Mao, don't I know what you're talking about? But now that we've reached this point, we have no way out and can only move forward. If there were no other way, I wouldn't be willing to recommend him. Do you have a solution?"

Zhang Hua was speechless. He really had no idea what to do, or rather, all the possible strategies he could use would cause endless harm.

Jia Mo patted Zhang Hua on the shoulder and said, "That's how politics works. Now we just have to take it one step at a time and act accordingly. If you and I die, we'll have served as prime minister for nearly ten years, so there's nothing to regret."

Regardless, the Hou Party finally had a counterattack strategy. However, at Sun Xiu's request, his proposal was classified as top secret and was not known to outsiders. (End of this chapter)