Northern Prefecture Rivers and Mountains

Chapter 118 Conspiracy

Jiankang.

Sima Daozi, who had just received Huan Hong's memorial, had a handsome face that turned red with anger.

The memorial even requested a blockade of all coastal ports...

What he said was simple, but he didn't know how much manpower and material resources would be mobilized. In many places, even Sima Daozi's orders might not be effective.

"Idiot..." Sima Daozi uttered two words.

Yandu was not only the place where he sold illegal salt, but also a transit station for smuggling goods to the north.

Now, due to the fire, not only the superficial loss of more than 500,000 coins was lost, but also the money bag that had been painstakingly built for many years. What was even more infuriating was that four ships were also lost.

The three brothers Wang Guobao, Wang Yu and Wang Kai were silent.

Xie Chong, Zhao Ya and others also remained silent.

However, he was a descendant of the emperor after all, holding a high position and controlling half of the Jin Dynasty's territory. This anger was ultimately not vented and was suppressed by Sima Daozi.

He took a sip of tea and calmed down. "There are three thousand elite Tianshi Dao soldiers stationed in Yandu every year, as well as six hundred elite navy soldiers. It seems that the bandits are quite powerful."

Wang Yu said, "As soon as Wang Gong took charge of the Northern Palace, something happened in Yandu. Is there any need to ask more questions?" Wang Guobao immediately put the blame on his cousin.

The open and covert struggles between the two factions have reached a fever pitch.

Xie Zhong said, "Wang Xiaobo is always proud of his family background and has a straightforward character. He would never do such a thing."

The matter is also clear. If Wang Gong wants to get Yan Du, he doesn't need to use any conspiracy or tricks. He can just use the excuse of Tianshi Dao to send out the Northern Palace Army and take Yan Du into his pocket.

Sima Daozi didn't dare to say anything.

"If it's not him, who else could it be?" Wang Guobao glanced at his brother.

The two brothers have always been at odds.

Wang Guobao gained Sima Daozi's favor by betraying his father-in-law Xie An, and was never liked by Wang Yu. However, as they lived under Sima Daozi's roof, the two brothers had to endure their temper and live together.

"If it's not Wang Xiaobo, it can only be the Huan family!" Wang Yu looked at Wang Guobao coldly.

"That's right, the Huan family wants to take this opportunity to stir up internal strife between me and Wang Gong, so that they can benefit from it." Sima Daozi nodded repeatedly.

It's no wonder they think this way. Rich families face rich families, poor families face poor families, and the common people have never been in their eyes. Naturally, they would not think that the person who did such a great thing would be from a poor family.

At this time, Xie Zhong, who was sitting at the bottom, said, "The Northern Palace has fallen into the hands of Wang Gong, and the Jingzhou Governorship has been taken by Yin Zhongkan. The Huan family holds military power. We should unite with them to offset Wang Gong's power."

"The Huan family is ambitious and wicked. I have spent so much energy to suppress them. If I were to unite with them now, wouldn't all my efforts be wasted? This is absolutely unacceptable. The Huan thieves repeatedly bullied my father, and this hatred is irreconcilable!"

Sima Daozi's father, Sima Yu, was helped to ascend the throne by Huan Wen. He had always lived under the control of the Huan family and suffered bullying.

This left a shadow and hatred in the heart of the young Sima Daozi.

How could he possibly ease relations with the Huan family at this time?
Xie Zhong also knew that Sima Daozi would not agree, so he retreated and said, "Since we can't ease relations with the Huan family, we should win over the Yu family. The Yu family is in charge of southern Yuzhou and protects Jiankang. They can resist the Huan family in Jingzhou and also slightly contain the Northern Court."

Southern Yuzhou includes Liyang, Lujiang, Yiyang, and Xuancheng counties, and spans both sides of the Yangtze River.

The important cities of Liyang and Gusu on the Yangtze River are both within its territory.

"Leave this matter to Jingzhong." Sima Daozi didn't take it too seriously and turned the topic back to Yandu. "The Huan family's power is all in Jingxiang. It's impossible for them to send anyone to Yandu!"

The major forces of the Huan family were all closely watched, and no movement could escape Sima Daozi's eyes.

Wang Guobao rolled his eyes. "Robbery of money and silk, burning of saltworks, and stealing of ships—all involved the involvement of the Tianshi Dao. It seems that Master Sun Tai can't control his men!"

Excluding Wang Gong and the Huan family, there is only one possibility left: the Tianshi Daoists stole from the company.

The two sides were not of the same kind, and everyone present knew the ambitions of the Tianshi Dao.

In the second year of Xian'an (372), Lu Song of Pengcheng, calling himself "the chief priest of the great way," gathered over a thousand people, broke into the palace through the Yunlong Gate, seized the armor and staff from the armory, and nearly overthrew the Sima family.

Back then, a few thousand people dared to start a rebellion. Today, the followers of the Taoist Master Way must number no less than 100,000, and they are all concentrated in the Three Wus, the heartland of the Sima family...

"Sun Tai doesn't have such courage. There must be someone conspiring with him." Sima Daozi was still very clear-headed.

Wang Guobao said sinisterly, "There aren't many people in the world who dare to attack the Prince of Xiang."

The hall suddenly became quiet.

Everyone knows the meaning behind his words.

The reason why people like Wang Gong, Yin Zhongkan, and Wang Xun dared to fight Sima Daozi was because the emperor was standing behind them.

No matter who was responsible for the Yandu incident, it was Sima Daozi who suffered the consequences.

The Northern Palace is gone, Jingzhou is gone, and now his purse is gone. It seems that there is a force that is gradually weakening Sima Daozi's power.

Even if you are the Prince of Xiang, you cannot do without money. Without money, you cannot get things done, and the loyalty of your subordinates will also be a problem.

What's more, Sima Daozi himself was a spendthrift person.

"Cook the beans and make a soup, strain the beans to make the juice. The firewood is burning under the pot, and the beans are crying in the pot. We are from the same root, why are we so eager to hurt each other?" Sima Daozi poured himself a glass of wine, drank it in one gulp, and then picked up two Wu Shi San pills and stuffed them into his mouth.

This way of taking it has the fastest effect and the strongest medicinal effect.

A strange blush soon appeared on Sima Daozi's face, and a look of madness rose in his eyes...

"Prince Xiang..." Xie Chong hesitated to speak.

But at this time, he couldn't listen to anything.

Wang Guobao held up a glass of wine and handed it to Xie Zhong. "Does Chief Secretary Xie have any other plans? We have no way out. Don't forget, if the Prince of Xiang can't win, your Xie family will also be implicated."

As a member of a noble family, Xie Chong knew very well that the current "dispute between the Lord and Prime Minister" would eventually reach this point.

The emperor was cautious in his moves, and Wang Gong had repeatedly provoked him. Sima Daozi could no longer tolerate this.

The incident at Yandu made him realize that if he failed, not only would his power be lost, but even his wealth would be gone...

Ever since Sima Yi exterminated Cao Shuang's three clans with the oath of Luoshui, all the nobles in the two Jin dynasties knew that retreat and compromise would only lead to death.

Xie An and Xie Xuan are living examples...

Xie Zhong took Wang Guobao's wine glass and drank it in one gulp.

Wang Yu stood up and said, "I am not feeling well. I am not suitable to drink today. Goodbye."

He flicked his long sleeves and walked out of the attic without caring whether Sima Daozi and Wang Guobao agreed or not. He looked towards the northeast direction of the imperial palace and exhaled a few breaths.

At this time, the attendant came over and said, "My lord, there are two down-and-out warriors who claim to be from Bingzhou. They claim to be from the Wang family of Taiyuan and want to join our Wang family and serve you."

Wang Yu was already irritable, and when he heard that it was a warrior from the north, he immediately lost interest. The Wang family was not short of one or two warriors, and there were at least a thousand people willing to be dogs for the Wang family, if not eight hundred.

"There are countless people with the surname Wang in the north. Are they all from the Wang family of Taiyuan? Humph, they are just sycophants. Get out!"

(End of this chapter)