Chapter 791

Regardless, facing his brother who was now sensible and had the bigger picture in mind, He Yue felt he could say everything he knew. Even Sect Master Xue of the Rongshan Sect trusted Big Brother; could he not? He Lingchuan was indifferent: "How long has the He family been back in the Yuan capital? The Monarch is just too impatient."

"It's no wonder the Monarch is impatient; over the past three or four months, the southern rebel army has gone from one route to four; it's truly getting more chaotic the more it's suppressed. The money and supplies for the northwestern front can't be reduced either; the Monarch has already been sick twice."

He Lingchuan asked his brother: "In your opinion, when will Dad go south?"

Heh, no wonder his father was so righteous just now, asking him to handle things impartially and audit impartially.

He Yue pondered for a short while: "It's hard to say; even if the money and grain are ready, the army hasn't finished reorganizing. Our backbone is the support army brought from Heishuicheng; after nearly a year of training in Xiazhou, there are only 1,500 people. This small number of people isn't enough to suppress the rebellion, but Father looks down on the local garrison and the Zhe Chongfu troops, saying he wants to supervise their training himself."

"He should supervise them." He Lingchuan still remembered his experience walking from Heishuicheng to Xiazhou last year; he had seen too much government incompetence and military laxity along the way. Local officials' salaries and the army's rations couldn't be paid; who would fight actively and seriously for you? Besides, the accumulated ills of Yuan weren't a matter of one or two days; He Chunhua had been a prefect for many years and knew the national situation like the back of his hand. Even if the money and grain supported by the Rongshan Sect arrived, He Lingchuan estimated he wouldn't move easily.

A gentleman does not fight; if he fights, he must win.

He Chunhua cherished his past battle record and cared for his soldiers; He Lingchuan didn't think there was any problem with that. As for whether he could withstand the pressure from the Yuan court, it would depend on He Chunhua's own methods.

He Lingchuan thought for a moment and added: "Dad must have quite a few new friends in the court, right?"

"How did you know?"

"It should be so; otherwise, why would our family be transferred back from the northern front so quickly?"

"Yes, the afternoon after Father arrived in the Yuan capital, he went to visit the Minister of Agriculture." He understood the implication; his brother's mind was clear now.

He Yue thought, was his brother like this before, or did he have an epiphany while wandering outside? "Also, State Preceptor Yan is on very good terms with Father."

"State Preceptor Yan?" When He Lingchuan was in Beijia, he had heard Li Qingge say that Yuan had already selected a new State Preceptor to fill the vacancy left by Sun Fuping, whose name was—"Yan Lixin?"

This person had established a Daoist sect in his early twenties and became the leader of the Southeast Daoist Alliance at thirty-one; he could be called a talent. This year, he was only thirty-eight and had been promoted to the State Preceptor of Great Yuan.

This was also the youngest State Preceptor in Yuan history.

Interestingly, He Chunhua and Yan Lixin were about the same age; when the former was sent to Heishuicheng, the latter was only a teenager of thirteen or fourteen. They shouldn't have had any deep intersection; how were they "on very good terms" now?

He Yue added: "Father knew him when he was young, and later when he was the Xiazhou Superintendent, they had frequent correspondence with Dunyu, and they communicated most closely with State Preceptor Yan. Two days ago, Mom even sent me to the Yan mansion to deliver a few boxes of pastries."

Looking at it this way, given He Chunhua's style of doing things, it was very likely that he had secretly contributed to Yan Lixin's election as State Preceptor.

Political investment risks were extremely high; it was a high-end game that ordinary people couldn't participate in, but once you bet right, the returns were also exceptionally generous.

From this point of view, He Chunhua's eye for picking people to stand with was undoubtedly much sharper than Hong Chenglue's. He Lingchuan asked curiously: "Mom sent you to the Yan mansion to deliver pastries, why?"

Sending only pastries as a gift was too light. Yan Lixin was a newly promoted State Preceptor; others would send him more valuable gifts, and Lady Ying wouldn't be unaware of this principle.

Besides, why would Lady Ying request to send gifts? "The eldest daughter of the Yan mansion is like you, Brother; she loves the hawthorn cake made by our cook." He Yue couldn't help but press his neck, "During the time you were away, the eldest daughter of the Yan family... became my fiancée."

"Huh?" He Lingchuan stood still, "You have a fiancée already?! How old is the eldest daughter of the Yan family?"

Sending pastries wasn't a heavy gift, but it seemed intimate.

He Yue blushed and said: "Fourteen at the New Year. State Preceptor Yan dotes on his daughter and wants her to marry at fifteen."

This kid was still growing, and he already had a fiancée! He Lingchuan couldn't help but sigh; he had only been away for half a year. "Mom must be grinning from ear to ear; she has always hoped to find you a noble lady in the Yuan capital. By the way, what is the eldest daughter of the Yan family like?"

"Very beautiful, and her family upbringing is very good." He Yue's face was as red as a monkey's butt, "She is also very, very good to me."

Marriage alliance was one of the most common ways to consolidate status and power; on this basis, if the young couple could cultivate true feelings, it would be the best of both worlds. He Lingchuan, as an older brother, was certainly happy to see it happen.

"When will you arrange for me to meet her?"

He Yue stammered a few times and changed the subject: "The situation is unstable; who can foresee future events?"

He Lingchuan patted his shoulder: "Be optimistic. At least the problem on the northern front is temporarily solved; Nian Zanli won't be coming back. One of the three major troubles has already been reduced."

Without Nian Zanli to cooperate, the resistance for the Grand Marshal in the northwest to fight back to the Yuan capital would increase.

"Ah, Nian Zanli's arrest is truly great news; Father was so happy those days he couldn't sleep, and he kept saying 'as if helped by the gods' every day." Speaking of this, He Yue was indeed cheerful, "As soon as you came back, I felt that the He family's luck had turned."

He Lingchuan said softly: "Dad has already been enfeoffed as a marquis and is a general with military power; his achievements have already surpassed the ancestors of the He family."

But he knew He Chunhua wouldn't stop there. With his current experience, it wasn't hard to see that his father had even higher ambitions.

In an era of great contention, it wasn't just Nian Zanli and Dong Haoye who wanted to accomplish something.

Just seeing He Chunhua send his second son to the Minister of Agriculture and find a future father-in-law for He Yue who was a new State Preceptor, one knew his plan was being pushed forward step by step, in an orderly manner.

He Lingchuan didn't know how many more operations he had in the dark. Some people were born good at intrigue and planning.

As long as He Chunhua won two more battles, not only would his prestige be at its peak, but there would also be people speaking for him in the court.

Therefore, He Chunhua was extremely cautious about going south to suppress the rebellion; he just didn't want to waste the advantages and prestige he had worked so hard to build.

He was entrusted with high hopes by Great Yuan, so the final battle results must live up to expectations.

Otherwise, the great situation he had worked so hard to manage might be ruined.

He Yue sighed again: "By the way, have you heard that Lingxu City is in a big mess? I really didn't expect that even someone as strong as Beijia would have its nest raided. Brother, you've been away for nearly a year; the world outside is truly changing rapidly."

Counting from He Lingchuan's scene in the Heavenly Palace, it had been several months. This kind of heavy news always spread like wildfire; for Lingxu City, it was bad news spreading far, and even the commoners in Yuan were talking about it with relish.

(End of chapter)