Chapter 333: The Candidate

"Your Majesty, there is one more matter. Yan Wang has conquered Jinzhou and killed many officials who had defected to Western Liang. Now that Yan Wang's troops have withdrawn to Jinzhou, what should be done about this Jinzhou?"

The group finished admiring the peonies and continued on their way.

After walking only a few steps, Dou Wei suddenly remembered something and asked.

At the mention of this, many ministers pricked up their ears.

To them, they were actually not very concerned about how the Emperor would reward Yan Wang right now.

After all, Yan Wang's merits were clear, and a reward was certain.

But Jinzhou now belonged to Great Song, and Yan Wang had also killed a large number of the powerful clans in Jinzhou.

This was equivalent to turning Jinzhou into a piece of fat meat that no faction had yet laid hands on.

Therefore, whether it was the influential clans or the powerful Rich Clans, everyone wanted a slice of the pie in Jinzhou.

Zhao Heng turned his head and glanced at the officials behind him.

Upon meeting his gaze, the officials all dodged his eyes.

He could not help but sigh in his heart.

This problem was also troubling him.

The location of Jinzhou was extremely important, no less so than Yanzhou.

In fact, letting Yan Wang govern it would be the most appropriate.

But he was unwilling in his heart to hand Jinzhou over to Yan Wang.

Yet, he was not sure who to send who could sit in Jinzhou and make him feel at ease.

After all, like Yanzhou, Jinzhou was a place of strategic importance prone to war, and it would not be peaceful in the future.

If Jinzhou were to be taken away again, he would lose all face.

"Does the Prime Minister have any brilliant ideas?" Dou Wei had certainly brought up this question now because he had his own thoughts.

He wanted to listen before making a decision.

After pondering for a moment, Dou Wei said, "Your Majesty, in this defeat of Western Liang, it was not only His Highness Yan Wang who had merit."

He paused and added, "During the war, the Ma Family marched north all the way, captured the entire Lin Jun, and attracted a large number of Western Liang troops. Now that His Highness Yan Wang should be rewarded,

I believe the Ma Family should also be rewarded."

Zhao Heng nodded slightly.

Judging from the intelligence transmitted from various sources, this seemed to be the case.

After the war ended, the Ma Family's troops were still occupying Lincheng.

"Therefore, I recommend Ma Jin as the Prefect of Jinzhou to take charge of Jinzhou. If war breaks out again in the future, the Ma Family's troops can also coordinate with the Imperial Court's Forbidden Army to resist the enemy," Dou Wei added.

Upon hearing this, Ma Yuan snorted in anger and said, "Ma Jin is fierce in appearance but cowardly at heart, muddled and incompetent; he is a petty man. How can he be worthy of being the Prefect of Jinzhou? Moreover, the situation between the Ma Family and Western Liang in this war is truly suspicious. Rumors say that Ma Jin colluded with Western Liang in private, attempting to secretly harm Yan Wang."

"Censor Ma, what evidence do you have to make such baseless accusations? If the Ma Family colluded with Western Liang, why did Western Liang ambush the Ma Family instead, causing them to suffer losses in men and equipment?" Dou Wei glared at Ma Yuan.

Ever since Ma Xuan died, this Ma Yuan had opposed him at every turn, and he had long hated him to the extreme.

Zhao Heng's expression was as calm as an ancient well as he looked at the two of them indifferently.

He was aware of what Ma Yuan was talking about, but there was indeed no conclusive evidence.

But the Ma Family was now controlled by Ma Chong; if he let Ma Jin get involved in Jinzhou, wouldn't the Ma Family's power grow even further?

This was not what he wanted to see.

So now, he could not use people from the Ma Family, he could not let Yan Wang govern Jinzhou, and at the same time, he had to be at ease.

This choice was indeed very difficult.

After deep thought, he glanced at Ma Yuan and then said, "This matter should be considered at length, considered at length."

Having said that, he looked toward the imperial concubines who were also playing in the garden.

Leaving the ministers behind, he walked toward them with a smile alongside Liang Cheng.

Seeing this, the ministers shook their heads one after another and went off to admire the flowers on their own.

"Your Majesty, the flowers this year have bloomed much more vigorously than in previous years. It seems this year is a good year," Empress Xie said as she led the concubines over when she saw Zhao Heng approaching.

Arriving among the concubines, Zhao Heng immediately felt his mood lighten considerably.

Being with the ministers, there was always this dispute or that quarrel, which was annoying.

"The Empress probably doesn't know, but the peonies planted by the Late Emperor have actually bloomed," Zhao Heng said.

Empress Xie covered her mouth in surprise and said, "This is truly an auspicious sign. It is said that only when a sage monarch reigns will heaven send down auspicious signs. It is evident that heaven approves of Your Majesty."

"Hahaha..." Zhao Heng laughed heartily; he liked hearing this the most. "The Empress is the best at speaking."

Empress Xie was secretly pleased, and she added, "Your Majesty, take us to see them so we may also pay our respects."

Having said that, she led the concubines and Zhao Heng to the peonies.

The concubines were also tactful and showered Zhao Heng with more flattery.

After talking for a while, Empress Xie glanced at Mi Fei beside her.

She knew in her heart that Zhao Heng was not happy just because these peonies had bloomed.

What set off the blooming of these peonies was that Yan Wang had conquered Jinzhou.

This gave Zhao Heng a feeling that Great Song was flourishing.

So she cleared her throat and said, "Your Majesty, come to think of it, it has been a year since Yan Wang went to Yanzhou. Both I and Mi Fei miss him dearly. Now that the war in Jinzhou has ended, why not let him return to Jingshi for the New Year to visit his relatives and have a reunion?"

Upon hearing this, a look of anticipation appeared in Mi Fei's eyes.

Ever since Yan Wang went to Yanzhou, she had often missed him.

At this moment, she could not help but cast a grateful look at Empress Xie.

Empress Xie's words reminded Zhao Heng.

Yan Wang had been insane for three years, and now he was far away in Yanzhou.

It is time for father and son to reunite.

Looking toward Mi Fei, he saw that Mi Fei was also looking at him, seemingly waiting for him to speak.

Thus he said: "The Empress is quite right; on the Imperial Edict for these rewards, I will add this clause to have him return to Jingshi at the end of the year."

"Thank you, Your Majesty." A smile welled up on Mi Fei's face.

Xie Huanghou patted Mi Fei's hand; this matter was naturally done by him intentionally.

Now, the entire imperial court knows that Yan Wang supports the Crown Prince, and that the Xie Family and Yan Wang are growing closer.

She naturally also wanted to do something appropriate for Mi Fei.

After discussing this matter, the group strolled through the garden.

In the evening, Zhao Heng departed for the palace, and the ministers returned home one by one.

Dou Wei returned to his residence with a dark expression on his face.

He had paid such a great price, not hesitating to use an important chess piece.

He had hoped to drag Yan Wang into the quagmire of the war in Jinzhou, letting Yan Wang continue to bleed until he could no longer hold on and weakened.

But he did not expect that in less than three months, Yan Wang would return in great triumph, even reclaiming territory previously lost by the Imperial Army of the Great Song.

"My Lord, the Third Prince has arrived."

He was deep in thought in his study when someone came to report.

"Invite the Third Prince in." Dou Wei's gloomy expression eased slightly.

Before long, the Third Prince arrived in the study, performed a salute, and said: "At the garden party today, why did Uncle not oppose the Emperor's reward for Yan Wang?"

For this garden party, Zhao Heng did not summon the Imperial Princes to accompany him.

However, even so, the news from the garden was perfectly clear to the Imperial Princes.

The mouths of the imperial concubines have no gatekeepers.

Therefore, the rewards for Yan Wang, as well as the Emperor's decision to let Yan Wang return to Jingshi to visit his family at the end of the year, had long since spread throughout the palace.

Although he knew that Yan Wang had once again performed meritorious service and that this reward was not excessive.

And this was a reward that Yan Wang should have received long ago, only it had been obstructed by the powerful ministers.

But he still did not understand why his uncle would not oppose it at this time.

Therefore, after the garden party ended, he immediately came to the Dou Mansion to inquire about the situation.

As a contender for the imperial throne, what he worried about most was the faction behind him changing its allegiance.