36Chapter 36: Withdrawal of the Vassal State

Sun Shangshu watched the King Cheng run to the Queen Cheng, and then said excitedly: "Jun Qing, let's go eat prawns! It's sold out if we go too late!" Is this what they call an emergency? And why did the cold-faced King Cheng, who was said to be cruel and violent, show such a smile?

Mu Hanzhang saw the white-bearded Minister of War standing awkwardly in front of the door, and greeted him apologetically: "Your Highness got up in a hurry and left early this morning, so he didn't eat. Please don't mind it, Lord Shangshu."

"Princess, you are too kind. "Only then did Minister Sun come back to his senses and politely return the gift to Princess Cheng. Anyway, it was customary for Prince Cheng to leave after he called in.

Mu Hanzhang smiled and took his own prince to eat.

It was still early, and there were basically no customers in Huiweilou. However, Boss Zhou, who opened the store early every day, had already cleaned the store and prepared all the ingredients.

Jing Shao asked for a private room on the second floor facing the street.

"The crabs are not fat at this time of year, so come back to eat crabs in September." Because there was no business at the moment, Zhou Jin, who was dressed in bright pink, came to order food for them in person.

The two were no longer surprised by Boss Zhou's attire.

"I want one pound of blanched salted shrimp, one pound of salt-baked shrimp, two pounds of Huiwei shrimp, a pot of Huadiao, and two bowls of rice. "Jing Shao said as he looked at the menu. Any dish with the word "aftertaste" is the signature dish of Huiweilou. Because they couldn't buy fresh prawns, this dish was rarely available.

"You can't drink strong liquor when eating shrimps. Let me serve you a pot of tea." Zhou Jin reminded.

Jing Shao frowned. He always felt that something was missing when eating delicious food without wine.

Mu Hanzhang saw it and summoned Jing Shao's servant Yunsong to ask him to buy a bottle of green plum wine from Miss Qingmei in the south of the city: "Light wine can detoxify shrimps. Brother Zhou might as well buy some light wine. It will definitely sell well.

"That's a good idea," Zhou Jin was very happy to hear it. "Where is the green plum wine you mentioned?"

Mu Hanzhang told him the location. Even Zhou Jin, who opened a restaurant, didn't know the green plum wine. It seemed that Miss Mei's business was really bad. Since Jing Shao was going to take care of Miss Qingmei for Brother Wang who died on the battlefield, it would be much more useful to find a business opportunity for her than to buy her wine regularly.

"Jun Qing, you are really good at business." Jing Shao peeled a boiled shrimp and put it in the bowl of the person opposite.

Mu Hanzhang picked up the shrimp meat, dipped it in the sauce and took a bite, chuckled and said: "When I was a child, I heard that the descendants of the dukes and marquises rarely passed the imperial examinations. Even if they passed the examinations, it was not easy to become an official in the court. I secretly learned some business skills from my aunt, thinking that if I couldn't become an official, it would be good to take over the family business."

The dukes and marquises generally did not take the imperial examinations. They relied on the emperor's grace. To become an official, they had to wait for the grace of the royal family. Those who took the imperial examinations from a scholarly background would often be excluded by the clean stream and difficult to be promoted.

Jing Shao heard him speak easily, but he could hear the hardship contained in these three or two sentences. The dukes and marquises were all military generals. A son who could not practice martial arts would naturally be looked down upon by the people in the family, not to mention that he was a concubine's bastard. Thinking of this, Jing Shao thought of Mu Lingbao again, but unfortunately the weather was getting hotter, and he had to wait a few more months to throw him into the river.

"This shrimp is fried thoroughly, and it tastes better when eaten with the shell." Mu Hanzhang picked up a shrimp and put it in Jing Shao's bowl. "After dinner, let's go to the second prince's house. I've prepared all the gifts, and I'll ask Yunzhu to go back and get them later." Since Jing Shao has emphasized the righteousness of filial piety in the court today, there is no suspicion of forming a party when visiting his sick brother. Even if you don't believe in the instigation of traitors, the so-called three people make a tiger, and lies become true when they are told too many times. It's better for the two brothers to meet often.

Jing Shao also plans to go to the second prince's house today to tell his brother the good news that his father is going to make him the King of Rui. But Jing Shao, who always goes empty-handed and brings some good things home, realized that he had to bring gifts to his brother's house!

When they went, Jing Chen was discussing things with several staff members in the study. Hearing that Jing Shao was coming, he let him in directly.

There were three people in the room, whom Jing Shao had never seen before. Mu Hanzhang, who was standing next to him, quietly observed the expressions of several people, and then lowered his eyes. The three people seemed very nervous about their sudden entry, and one of them was obviously hostile.

"Let's stop here today." Jing Chen frowned slightly and waved his hand to let the three people go out.

Jing Chen glanced at Mu Hanzhang, and under Jing Shao's eyes that it was okay, he lowered his eyes and said in a deep voice: "You did a good job in the court today."

Mu Hanzhang was slightly surprised. He was going to leave first, but unexpectedly, the two brothers talked about the court affairs in front of him. This shows that the two brothers really regard him as someone they can trust, and even as someone who is planning to seize the throne with them. Turning his head to look at Jing Shao, the other party gave him a look that it was okay.

"Given the current situation, the King of Southwest has already angered my father, and it is only a matter of time before he withdraws his fiefdom, but you cannot mention this. I will let someone else in the court mention it first, and I will submit a charter to my father when I return to the court in two days." Jing Chen showed Jing Shao a stack of folded papers.

"Is this method useful?" Jing Shao looked at it for a long time, and generally it was a method of withdrawing the fiefdom without soldiers, and it was densely packed and very complicated. In his previous life, he was in Yunnan and Tibet, and he didn't know if anyone had mentioned the peaceful withdrawal of the fiefdom, but given the King of Southwest's temperament, this battle must be fought.

"Brother-in-law, take a look too." Jing Chen signaled Jing Shao to give the things to Mu Hanzhang.

"Brother, just call me Hanzhang," Mu Hanzhang took the charter, read it quickly, and thought for a moment, "This method is feasible if the vassal king's troops are not strong."

Jing Chen nodded slightly and looked at Jing Shao: "If the war breaks out, do you want to go?"

"Go!" Jing Shao said firmly, "This is a good opportunity to get military power. If it drags on for a few years, at least half of it can be controlled." Once the Three Feudatories War begins, it is not certain how many years it will last. Even if Jing Shao knows the weakness of each prince, he does not intend to finish the war immediately. He will not repeat the mistake he made once in his previous life.

Mu Hanzhang listened to the conversation between the two brothers and kept silent. If the war breaks out, Jing Shao will not return for many years, right?

The next day, the eldest prince finally got news. He was rescued by the Shu army. Fortunately, he did not die and was temporarily recuperating in Yunnan and Tibet. As for the King of the Southwest, he was not as fast as the Shu army in sending troops. This move completely angered Emperor Hongzheng, and many ministers took the opportunity to propose the withdrawal of the feudal system. After arguing for several days, when Jing Chen returned to the court, he directly proposed a charter for withdrawing the feudal system.

Jing Chen proposed to reduce the title and abolish the fiefdom, that is, the current vassal king is still a county king, and the next generation will be reduced to a duke, and the next generation will be reduced to a marquis... Emperor Hongzheng thought this method was feasible, but he did not show it on his face. Only after the ministers repeatedly mentioned it did he agree to abolish the fiefdom.

So, the Yunnan-Tibet issue was put on hold for the time being, and the matter of abolishing the fiefdom was put on the agenda.

In June, Aunt Qiu was promoted to a concubine, and Beiwei Hou invited Jing Shao and Mu Hanzhang to watch the ceremony.

"A few days ago, Aunt Qiu sent me a message, asking me to see her after the ceremony today." Mu Hanzhang sat in the carriage and thought of the letter that his mother had sent to Mo Lianju.

"She must have something to say to you," Jing Shao chuckled, "Just go, I'll wait for you in the front hall."

The ceremony for a concubine is not complicated. It mainly involves changing the concubine's contract to a marriage contract, worshiping the elders, and reporting to the ancestral temple.

After becoming a concubine, Qiu moved to a small courtyard in the true sense. The house was more spacious than before, and she could also have her own small kitchen.

Mu Hanzhang looked at his mother in pink clothes. Although she was already old, she was still charming. The intelligence and gentleness of a Jiangnan woman were clearly evident in her.

"Mother..." This was the first time that Mu Hanzhang could call her like this in front of others. When Mrs. Qiu heard this word, her eyes were wet.

"Son, my son..." Mrs. Qiu held her son's hand, and her tears fell like beads from a broken string. For twenty years, she didn't dare to call her son's name. He was the young master, and she was just a humble concubine. When they met, she should be the one to pay respect to the young master.

Seeing this, the maids in the room retreated one after another.

"What did you ask me to do, mother?" Mu Hanzhang took the handkerchief from his mother's hand and wiped her tears.

Mrs. Qiu took the handkerchief from her son, wiped the tears from her face in a few strokes, and sighed softly: "I can't help but have wild thoughts in this inner house. I have thought about one thing for a long time, and I still think I should tell you."

Mu Hanzhang listened to his mother's worries quietly, and couldn't help but smile and said: "Don't worry, mother, he doesn't want to sit in that position."

"Who doesn't want to sit in that position?" Mrs. Qiu frowned, seeing that Mu Hanzhang seemed to believe in Jing Shao very much, "Even if he doesn't have that heart, he is a prince, but he has no son to inherit the title, how can he be willing? Besides, he is still so young, and there will be plenty of opportunities to go out to fight in the future..."

Mu Hanzhang didn't listen to the rest, but he heard the last sentence clearly. Recalling what he heard that day in the Second Prince's Mansion, Jing Shao wanted to use this campaign to control the military power, and the three princes were not easy to deal with, and it would take at least three to five years to return to Beijing. Was he going to wait for him in the prince's mansion for three to five years?