Chapter 356: Father and Son Talk by Night

"From what I have observed, Your Majesty treats Jin Niang very well—his favor is no less than he shows the Empress, and his rewards are given without partiality. His grace toward her is not inferior to the Empress's. Before I left the capital, I went to the palace to see her; she is in good health and should have no worries, only awaiting the day of childbirth. Additionally, Jin Niang misses Father greatly and asked me to convey her greetings and birthday wishes on her behalf......"

Hearing this, Gao Xingzhou nodded with a smile, a look of tender affection for his child appearing on his aged face, and said: "My daughter is beautiful in appearance and gentle in temperament—no wonder the Son of Heaven dotes on her!"

His smile slightly faded, and his voice lowered as he added: "Her favor is no less than the Empress's, but in the end, she is not the Empress!"

In Gao Xingzhou's tone, a trace of unwillingness was faintly discernible. Times had changed—one should remember that when Liu Zhiyuan had first sought the marriage alliance on Liu Chengyou's behalf back in Yedu, the old Lord Gao's attitude at the time had been one of gratitude and honor......

"Looking at it now, Lord Liu truly made an excellent bargain back then! With two marriage alliances, he bound the Gao and Fu families beneath the banner of Han, making them his wings to protect the realm!" Gao Xingzhou clicked his tongue, wearing a deeply wistful expression.

Gao Huaide stood to the side, dutifully listening to his father speak such irreverent words, and cooperatively wore a somewhat awkward smile, not daring to offer his own opinion.

Clearly, the rivalry between Lady Fu and Lady Gao for favor in the palace was showing signs of spreading beyond the palace walls. Of course, this fundamentally touched upon the standing of the two great military families of the age. In the past, perhaps no one had paid it much mind, but at present—especially in this critical period when both consorts were pregnant and about to give birth—people could not help but compare the two families, and gossip was inevitable.

Whatever Fu Yanqing's thoughts might be, Gao Xingzhou was quite unwilling to concede. In terms of reputation, seniority, and military achievement, Fu Yanqing was a junior compared to Gao Xingzhou. However, the Fu family was flourishing.

After a brief sigh or two, Gao Xingzhou turned his attention to Gao Huaide and asked: "You have been serving in the Eastern Capital for over a year now—how has it been?"

At this mention, Gao Huaide's expression immediately turned serious, as if rousing his spirits. After thinking for a moment, he said: "Just as Father said, His Majesty is truly no ordinary man!"

"No need for such empty flattery!" Gao Xingzhou waved his hand and said: "I witnessed the Son of Heaven's extraordinary nature myself in Yedu two years ago. Otherwise, even if Gaozu himself had personally come to seek a marriage with your sister, how could I have agreed so readily!"

Facing the stubbornness and self-confidence of an old family patriarch revealed in Gao Xingzhou's tone, the son dared not contradict him. Gao Huaide merely nodded in agreement and continued: "Your son serves in the imperial army in the Eastern Capital. On other matters I may only know the surface, but of the changes within the military, I have deep personal insight."

"What kind of changes?" Gao Xingzhou's seated figure slumped slightly, appearing somewhat languid.

"Centralization of power!" Gao Huaide's eyes lit up with a hint of excitement: "Before I entered the capital, I had heard that the Great Han's imperial army was a motley assortment, full of arrogant soldiers and fierce generals—especially those generals who had followed south from Hedong. Many of them relied on their merit in following the founding of the dynasty and frequently violated the law or showed insubordination.

However, by the time I took up my post, this situation had already greatly improved. His Majesty understands military affairs and places particular emphasis on military discipline. In the early days of his succession, although he continued to shower the imperial army with favors and rewards, he likewise dealt with a large number of lawbreaking officers and soldiers.

In the mere two years since His Majesty succeeded the throne, the senior old generals of the Imperial Guard Command have either been transferred to regional posts, demoted for crimes, or given empty titles in high positions—more than half are already gone. During the personal campaign against Hezhong, while pacifying Li, he took advantage of the momentum of victory to reshuffle personnel, leaving mediocre old generals like Zhou Hui stationed in the provinces.

At the end of last year came the great reorganization of the imperial army: the elite troops of the Imperial Guard were divided off to establish the Palace Command, so that the imperial army now stood with two parallel commands, no longer dominated by a single one. He also gathered the elite troops of the regional commands to serve in the Eastern Capital.

The garrisons of important strongholds like Hua and Chan were even more affected by this......"

"I have personal experience of this matter!" Gao Xingzhou spoke up, slightly raising a finger to point outside the hall, saying in a tone difficult to read: "The Yedu garrison troops who originally served under my command have already been replaced by more than half!"

Gao Huaide nodded, briefly organizing his words before continuing: "The imperial army of the Eastern Capital gathers the finest of the realm—it is the most powerful and most important military force of the Great Han. And this force is now entirely under His Majesty's control. With checks and balances between inner and outer, close and distant, old and new, and between the various commands, if this continues, it will inevitably come completely under His Majesty's command......

Over the past half year, His Majesty has successively dispatched large numbers of Pacification Commissioners to the army. Carrying brushes and documents, they teach the junior officers to read while also telling stories to the officers and soldiers. They expound the way of loyalty and righteousness, explain the great principles of the state, and regale them with strange tales and curious anecdotes—the soldiers greatly enjoy hearing them.

At first, I did not understand the purpose, but now I have gradually come to see it clearly—this is clearly His Majesty's move to promote loyalty and righteousness to win men's hearts! And then enticing them with money and grain—truly a sharp weapon. In my view, His Majesty intends to eradicate the accumulated ills that have persisted since the end of Tang and through the three dynasties!"

Gao Huaide's tone was filled with deep emotion.

Hearing this, Gao Xingzhou's expression remained quite calm. After a moment of silence, he looked at him and sighed: "My son has such insight—I can rest easy! The Gao family can rest easy as well!"

Gao Xingzhou praised: "Your time in the Eastern Capital these past years has not been wasted!"

"Your son keeps Father's teachings engraved in his heart at all times and dares not neglect them!" Gao Huaide hurriedly responded with modesty.

Though Gao Xingzhou's expression remained serious, the atmosphere of the father-son conversation gradually became more relaxed. After digesting what had been said, he sighed softly: "The Son of Heaven is young in years, but his vision and strategic acumen are truly of the highest order. He has seen the root cause of this realm's endless chaos! The weight of the military is heavier than Mount Tai—if the imperial army can be controlled, the foundation will be secure, and all else is not worth mentioning. That one phrase of An Rongrong's was like a clap of thunder, capturing decades of chaos and turmoil in this age!"

"Do you think the Emperor can succeed?" After muttering to himself for a while, Gao Xingzhou asked.

Shaking his head, Gao Huaide answered simply and directly: "I do not know!"

Pausing for a moment, Gao Huaide added: "Though your son is dull-witted, I do understand that to reform the ills of three dynasties cannot be accomplished by the sage Son of Heaven alone—he needs worthy ministers to assist and support him. And His Majesty promotes talent and employs the capable; he has already gathered a great many of the age's outstanding figures around him......"

"It seems you have a rather favorable view of the Son of Heaven?" Gao Xingzhou looked at him with an amused expression.

Meeting his old father's gaze, Gao Huaide lowered his voice slightly and said: "The Son of Heaven is Father's son-in-law, my brother-in-law......"

Slowly drawing a breath, Gao Xingzhou's eyes grew deep, and in a testing tone he asked Gao Huaide: "Since your grandfather's time, our Gao family has risen through military merit—decades of braving wind and rain, fighting blade by blade and sword by sword, to reach our current prosperity. Since the Son of Heaven wishes to take back military power, he must inevitably control the regional commands. Do you know how great an impact this will have on our Gao family?"

Gao Huaide suddenly felt his old father's gaze was exceedingly sharp. He straightened his back and pondered for a long while before finally showing a carefree expression: "Father, the Gao family now enjoys tremendous prestige, trusted heavily by His Majesty, and with Jin Niang in the palace, our prominence has reached the pinnacle of what a subject can attain. Was it not precisely for this that our forebears strove and fought? Since we harbor no ambitions, what is there to fear?"

"Moreover, when His Majesty reorganized the Yedu army previously, did Father not actively cooperate?"

In response to Gao Huaide's question, Gao Xingzhou laughed heartily several times with a rhythmic cadence, his clear, resonant voice sounding especially cheerful.

"All along, His Majesty has been devoted to promoting young officers. Among the imperial army of the Eastern Capital, there are already many outstanding talents. Your son has also made the acquaintance of quite a few people in the army......"

"Making more friends is not a bad thing, but you must be cautious!" Gao Xingzhou admonished.

"Why?"

"You only know that His Majesty is wise and brilliant, but you do not know that our Qianyou Son of Heaven is equally a man of great suspicion!"

Question marks were written across Gao Huaide's face.

"My position as Defender of Yedu will likely not last much longer! Last year, your sister sent a letter......"