What the final outcome would be depended on when the Emperor’s anger subsided.
“This is not a place to talk, let’s discuss it another day!”
Seeing the idle onlookers peeking from the tea stalls across the Imperial City, Liang Shicheng bowed to Zhao Huan.
“Grand Commandant, in the presence of His Majesty…”
“Your Highness, have no worries. I am here for His Majesty! His Majesty is currently enraged, and his words are bound to be harsh. I will explain things to Your Highness slowly after this matter has passed!”
Seeing the panic on the Crown Prince’s face, Liang Shicheng felt extremely pleased. This was exactly what he desired.
The people around the Crown Prince were all self-righteous. As soon as the Crown Prince’s position was stabilized, they immediately tried to distance themselves from Liang Shicheng. This caused Liang Shicheng to develop a hint of dissatisfaction with the Crown Prince.
It was precisely because of this that Liang Shicheng helped Han Mo teach Tang Ke a lesson.
Although this action did indeed cause some damage to the Crown Prince’s faction, it completely solidified Liang Shicheng’s position by the Crown Prince’s side.
For Liang Shicheng, exchanging the position of Minister of Revenue for the stability of his status was an incredibly profitable deal.
Moreover, the position of Minister of Revenue had never truly belonged to him from the very beginning!
After sending off the Crown Prince, Liang Shicheng returned to the Imperial Palace with satisfaction.
The Emperor was currently furious, and no one dared to approach him except for himself. Wasn’t this the perfect opportunity for him to consolidate his position?
“Tang Ke is ruined just like that?”
Looking at the intelligence reported by his subordinates, Cai You was utterly incredulous.
“I always feel like someone is plotting behind the scenes in this matter, but who could it be?”
Seeing Cai You’s furrowed brow, Zhao Kai couldn’t help but lower his voice.
“Even Your Highness cannot find out?”
Cai You looked at Zhao Kai with some surprise. After all, this was in Bianliang City, and Zhao Kai held the position of Director of the Imperial City Department. How could he not find out any news?
“Although I hold the position of Director of the Imperial City Department, don’t forget that everyone in the Imperial City Department is Liang Shicheng’s man…”
As Zhao Kai spoke, he appeared very helpless.
Liang Shicheng’s influence in the Imperial Palace was too great; it was simply not something a mere prince like him could shake.
The Emperor’s trust in Liang Shicheng far surpassed his trust in his own son.
It could be said that if there was anyone in the entire court whom the Emperor would trust unconditionally, it would be Liang Shicheng.
“Your Highness means that Liang Shicheng was also involved in this matter?”
Cai You suddenly asked thoughtfully.
“I don’t know if he was involved, but he must be one of the people who knows!”
“Could it be Han Mo…”
As Zhao Kai spoke, he suddenly seemed to remember something and blurted it out.
“Although he is not directly imprisoned, he is still under house arrest. Does he really have the energy to stir up trouble?”
If judged by normal circumstances, the most likely person to have acted in this matter would be the Zhe family.
However, Cai You had always been unwilling to believe that Han Mo had the ability to cause trouble in Bianliang City.
“That piece of jewelry was given by the Emperor to Li Shishi. If it weren’t for someone she trusted implicitly, why would she lend it out…”
“If it really is this kid, then we definitely cannot let him off so easily!”
After Zhao Kai’s suggestion, Cai You was now a little uncertain.
But the only thing he was sure of was that if the person who did this was indeed Han Mo, then this kid was far too dangerous.
Having grown up under Cai Jing’s tutelage, he understood that power plays were the most terrifying dragon-slaying skills in this world.
A capable minister was not terrifying, but a capable minister who was also skilled in power plays, and whose youth was enough to make Cai You despair, was truly terrifying.
If Han Mo was solely in charge of everything behind the scenes, then he would be Cai You’s most formidable opponent for the next several decades.
“If only we could recruit him to our side…”
The same matter was viewed completely differently by Cai You and Zhao Kai.
Compared to Cai You’s worries, Zhao Kai was more eager to recruit Han Mo.
After all, a master of power plays who could navigate the court was even more valuable to Zhao Kai than a hundred thousand troops.
Seeing the fervent gleam in Zhao Kai’s eyes, Cai You couldn’t help but reveal a cold smile.
This was the second weakness in Zhao Kai’s character; he was too arrogant.
If it weren’t for the fact that there was truly no one capable among Zhao Ji’s imperial princes, Cai You would not have chosen Zhao Kai.
If everything truly happened as Zhao Kai claimed, how could such a master be controlled by a mediocre person like Zhao Kai?
However, he could not say these words to Zhao Kai’s face, because he understood Zhao Kai too well; even if he said them directly, Zhao Kai would not change his mind.
“These matters can be dealt with slowly later. The most urgent matter is not this. Has Your Highness heard that Zhong Shidao has arrived in the capital!”
“You mean His Majesty intends to use Zhong Shidao to lead the troops?”
Upon hearing Cai You’s words, Zhao Kai finally reacted.
“From the current situation, it seems likely!”
“But isn’t he a military general?”
“Does Your Highness forget? Our Prime Minister Bai has already handled the transfer of official documents…”
Speaking of this, Cai You felt a sense of frustration.
Why did he have such incompetent teammates?
If it were someone else, even if a military general had a transfer of official documents, he would still be considered a military general in the eyes of the civil officials.
But Zhong Shidao was different. After all, Zhong Shidao was the great-grandson of the great scholar Zhong Fang. Although he grew up in the western regions, he had studied under the great scholar Zhang Zai and had even passed the imperial examinations in his youth.
It was only because he was ostracized by Cai Jing that he was forced to transfer from a civil official to a military general.
Furthermore, with the promotion of that immortal work written by Han Mo, Zhong Shidao’s reputation among the literati at this moment was no less than that of any great scholar today.
A mere scholar, bullied by corrupt officials, yet still devoted to serving the country. Forced to abandon his brush and join the army, he served on the frontier without complaint.
To certain scholars, this persona was almost saint-like.