Chapter 609 3 choices
Chapter 609 Three Choices
"The emperor has issued an order to summon the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, Dou Yan, to the audience!"
"The emperor has issued an order to summon the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, Dou Yan, to the audience!"
The eunuchs shouted out one after another, Dou Yan straightened his clothes a little, and walked quickly into the Ziwei Hall.
Soon, Dou Yan walked into the imperial study, bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you!"
"Lord Dou, long time no see."
Yang Guang had indeed not seen Dou Yan for a long time, at least a year. The last time he saw Dou Yan was before the first expedition to Goguryeo last year.
Yang Guang said politely, "My dear Lord Dou, please take a seat!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Dou Yan sat down, feeling somewhat uneasy, wondering what the emperor wanted him to do at this time?
Yang Guang pondered for a moment and said, "Because of the war with Goguryeo, my mind has not been on government affairs for the past two years, so many important positions have been vacant for a long time. For example, the Minister of Rites has been vacant for two years. After repeated consideration, I decided to let you be the Minister of Rites. What do you think?"
This was completely beyond Dou Yan's expectations. He was surprised and delighted. He quickly stood up and said, "Thank you for your trust, Your Majesty. I will definitely live up to your kindness!"
Yang Guang nodded and winked at the two eunuchs, who then tactfully withdrew.
Yang Guang then slowly asked, "Does Lord Dou still have any connections with other families? I mean the Yuan family or the Dugu family."
Dou Yan's heart trembled, he suddenly realized that his appointment as the Minister of Rites was just a prelude, the main point was just coming out.
The emperor was probably going to look for the Guanlong nobles. Dou Yan pondered for a while before solemnly saying, "I can contact them!"
Dou Yan returned to the mansion and immediately ordered his servants, "Ask Deming to come to the study to see me!"
After a while, the eldest son Dou Deming hurried over. Dou Deming had never been an official. He was responsible for managing the family property and sometimes served as an aide to his father and gave him advice.
In Dou Yan's opinion, the eldest son is much more stable than the second son.
"Does the emperor have anything important to ask father?"
Dou Deming also knew that his father had been summoned to the palace by the emperor, and he was worried.
Dou Yan nodded, "The emperor appointed me as the Minister of Rites!"
It was normal for the Minister of Taichang Temple to be promoted to the Minister of Rites, but his father's promotion was not normal. He was an out-and-out Guanlong noble. Dou Deming immediately realized that there was something fishy going on.
"What is the emperor's intention?" Dou Deming asked.
Dou Yan said slowly: "I understand that he is deliberately trying to win me over!"
"Father, I don't quite understand!"
Dou Yan smiled and said, "The emperor has only just realized the importance of the Guanlong nobles and wants to negotiate with them."
"He's just realizing it now?"
Dou Yan shook his head. "The emperor has always been stubborn and never admits he has done anything wrong. This time it must be the King of Jin who persuaded him. I heard that the emperor received the King of Jin's memorial and private letter today. After all, he is his son, so he will still listen to him."
"Does my father think it's useful? It's taken him so many years to realize the seriousness of the problem. Is it too late now?"
Dou Yan still shook his head, "I don't know either, but the King of Jin has always been in contact with the Yuan family. Since he advised the emperor in this way, perhaps the Yuan family will give him some face. Now the court still has strength, and it is still unknown who will win in the end. The Guanlong nobles will also leave some room for themselves, otherwise I would have left long ago."
Dou Deming nodded silently, "Father, do you want me to go to Chang'an?"
"That's right!" Dou Yan took out the letter he had just written and handed it to his son. "Go find your uncle and give him this letter. Then go find Yuan Min and tell him about the emperor's situation today."
"Father, are you worried that your uncle will object to reconciliation with the Emperor?"
Dou Yan nodded. "I am a little worried. I am afraid that he will make a decision on his own and not pass my letter to the Yuan family."
"Then father, write another letter to the head of the Yuan family, and I will give it to Yuan Min."
"That's okay!"
Dou Yan immediately wrote another letter, sealed it and gave it to his son. That night, Dou Deming took his father's pass and left the city for Chang'an with several followers.
A few days later, the Jiangnan fleet arrived in Luoyang under the escort of 3,000 cavalry, bringing one million shi of grain, 500,000 strings of cash, and 30,000 war horses.
Yang Guang was moved by the sincerity of Prince Jin and immediately issued an edict, agreeing to allow the families of 3,000 craftsmen to go to the south of the Yangtze River. The 3,000 families boarded large ships and were escorted south by cavalry.
At this time, Xiao Xia had already received the emperor's order in advance, agreeing to station troops in the four counties of Shandong Peninsula and deciding to return Jiangdu County to himself.
This was good news. Xiao Xia immediately appointed Du Ruhui as the Chief of Jiangdu County, and ordered Sun Lei to lead 30,000 troops to station in Jiangdu County, and at the same time sent 300 warships to cruise the Huai River.
Xiao Xia did not plan to move the General Administration's Office back to Jiangdu County. After all, he needed to consider safety. With the Yangtze River as a barrier, both his family and the families of other officials would have a sense of security.
In the afternoon, Xiao Xia met with Xiao Cong. Xiao Cong was currently serving as the governor of Yanling County, while Xiao Yu was serving as the Tongpan of the newly established Department of Craftsmen, in charge of all official handicraft industries except the Military Equipment Bureau. There were too many of them, including mining, smelting, casting, coin minting, shipbuilding, sugar refining, textiles, papermaking, printing, pharmaceuticals, winemaking, leather, clothing, cotton rolling, etc. They were all scattered before, but now they are managed centrally.
Xiao Xia asked Xiao Cong to sit down, and after a moment's hesitation, he said, "There is something I have to tell the Patriarch!"
"Your Highness, please speak!"
"It's about Xiao Xian. The emperor has officially asked me to be responsible for eliminating Xiao Xian, and I plan to do so. I have been thinking about Jingxiang for a long time, but I have never had the opportunity to get involved. Now I finally get the chance."
Xiao Cong hesitated for a moment and said, "Even if Xiao Xian is wiped out, will the emperor give Jingxiang to Your Highness?"
Xiao Xia nodded, "The emperor said this before. He would rather give Jingxiang to me than give it to the rebels!"
Xiao Cong smiled and said, "It seems that he finally figured it out."
"The emperor is rather stubborn and willful. It is not easy to persuade him unless he is in a desperate situation. This time I also advised him to reconcile with the Guanlong nobles and not make too many enemies. I think he will listen to my advice."
"But will the Guanlong nobles agree?"
“They will definitely agree!”
Xiao Xia smiled and said, "The Guanlong nobles are very clear about my strength. Once I send out troops, the fake regime in Chang'an will not be able to hold out for long. I am only advising them to bet on both sides, not asking them to be loyal to one side. This is in their interests, so why not do it?"
Xiao Cong was silent for a moment and said, "Your Highness asked me to come here because of Xiao Xin's matter, right?"
Xiao Xia nodded, "I would like to ask the head of the family to write a letter to Xiao Xin. I can give him a choice for the sake of our past friendship. He can surrender to me or to the fake regime in Chang'an. If he is unwilling to do either, he can also go to Jiaozhi County to establish the Liang Kingdom. I will give him a month to lead his army to move south. In the future, I will give him another chance to establish a kingdom in Champa in the south of Jiaozhi County. If he is unwilling to do any of the three options and insists on occupying Jingxiang, then he will have no choice but to die."
Xiao Cong sighed and said, "If he were to choose, he would definitely prefer to go to Bashu!"
Xiao Xia shook his head. "It's impossible for Bashu. Qiu He, the Prince of Badong and the Pacifier of Jiannan Road, led 30,000 troops to block the Three Gorges Road. Qiu He is loyal to the pseudo-regime of Chang'an. Xiao Xin's army cannot enter Bashu. I believe he understands this himself."
Xiao Cong stroked his beard and nodded, saying, "Since His Highness has asked me to do this, I will write to him immediately and persuade him to surrender. At the same time, I will also tell him the three choices His Highness has given him."
(End of this chapter)