The doctor suffers from amnesia, but not complete amnesia.

—Because, after much thought, he actually came to a point of commonality between himself and His Majesty.

Who did His Majesty rely on to overthrow Cai Yan and regain control of the court?

Sitting in this position of Grand Tutor, who is the person I deal with the most?

The almost unconditional trust in that person—that was the point of intersection between the Grand Tutor and the Emperor.

His Majesty has proven his abilities, but the Grand Commandant says that he cannot inform His Majesty for the time being—because this is the peak of His Majesty's trust in Qiao Yelan!

One who remained neutral when the emperor attempted to regain control of the court, and the other who helped the emperor turn the tide and seize power—the answer to whose trust His Majesty would place more is obvious.

As for the relationship between himself and Qiao Yelan... the Grand Commandant may not have known it at first, but the late Emperor certainly did.

He forcibly restrained the urge to turn off the communicator on his body, staring intently at the Grand Commandant, his face twitching, even showing a hint of ferocity.

The old man now desperately wanted to cover his old friend's mouth, yet he also wanted to hear more.

"The late emperor said that we cannot continue to trust that person, at least not when it comes to the matter of [age]."

"......Why?"

"Why—use your brain!"

The Grand Commandant gripped the wine jug, the veins on the back of his hand bulging.

"Have you been in the Imperial Household Department for too long, and your thinking has become rigid? I ask you, that person, the one who helped His Majesty dismantle the Cai Party and control the court—is he a person, or what?"

The Grand Tutor opened his mouth, completely dumbfounded.

"Among the royal secrets, there is a will that has been passed down orally since the founding of the Great Yan Dynasty—as long as the Great Yan royal family has never betrayed the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion, if the Great Yan is in danger of collapse, they can go to find that man surnamed Qiao. The person to contact is also a eunuch, and the message is passed on through a single line."

The old general's voice seemed to surge with wind and thunder, and to surge with raging waves.

"This saying has remained unchanged for a thousand years, and that man has protected the Great Yan for a thousand years—but isn't this a huge joke when it comes to the very foundation of our Great Yan's founding principles that we have always promoted!"

"Everyone knows that our Great Yan does not rely on giant beasts for protection, nor on gods for blessings—but is that Vice Minister of Rites surnamed Qiao a giant beast or a god?"

"What has enabled the Great Yan Dynasty to endure for thousands of years? Is it people, or—him?"

The Grand Tutor frowned deeply.

"This matter is not so simple—"

"I don't care what the reason is. The late emperor's order to me is to kill [Sui] and completely end the aftermath left over from the founding of our Great Yan Dynasty. Furthermore, Qiao Yelan must not be involved in this matter in the slightest. It must be done by our Great Yan Dynasty itself!"

The Grand Commandant interrupted the old man directly, speaking without any politeness.

"This matter was planned by the late emperor after the Battle of Blood Peak!"

"The late emperor once said that the great war, coupled with Vladimir's death, could at least secure twenty years of peace for the northern border of our Great Yan! For at least twenty years, Ursus will not dare to advance eastward or southward."

"And the Eastern Kingdom is just a small place. The losses from the Battle of Blood Peak alone will take them decades to recover. Moreover, they are still embroiled in internal strife. As long as they continue to secretly support the two generals to fight each other, the Eastern Kingdom will never have a chance to rise again."

"When the late Crown Prince left the capital, the late Emperor provided as much support as possible, with the aim of enabling Duke Wei to regain control of the Dragon Gate region. Taking advantage of Ursus's inability to invade the south, he could seize the opportunity to open up trade routes with the west and obtain the necessary resources and funds for the Great Yan to carry out its plans. He is a prince, and always will be, so he must always serve the Great Yan!"

"After that, they brought in the Duke of Ning to win over Vice Minister Ning. On one hand, they used the 'Looking' technique to distract you, and on the other hand, they secretly planted people in the Ministry of Rites and the Imperial Archives to deceive you—the matter of changing the documents in the Imperial Archives happened at this time."

The Grand Tutor was already feeling a chill run down his spine.

It was neither admiration for the comprehensiveness of the late emperor's plan, nor shock at how early the plan had begun.

Rather, it was the fear that had clung to him like a leech since five days ago—

Fear of Qiao Yelan.

From the Grand Commandant's words, it seemed that the late emperor's plan was flawless—time, money, executors, every aspect of which could be said to have been calculated to the fullest extent and to have a clear understanding of the overall situation.

The problem is that both of the prerequisites for this plan seem to have been provided by Qiao Yelan.

This was the only piece of news that the Grand Tutor held in his own hands, and that the late Emperor was unaware of.

The reason is simple—he thought the late emperor knew.

When the Ursus-Eastern Kingdom War broke out, the Eastern Kingdom had already sent a delegation to the Great Yan Kingdom to ask for help. However, at that time, the Great Yan Emperor was seriously ill, the Crown Prince was acting as regent, and the ministers were divided on whether to send troops. The Emperor did not express his opinion directly.

Immediately following this was the mysterious death of the Eastern Kingdom's delegation, leaving the constables of the Jingzhao Prefecture helpless and causing great distress in the imperial court.

Immediately following was a battle report from the East – the East had won a great victory in the Battle of Bloodpeak, nearly annihilating the First Ursus Army, which was the personal army of the Tsar. The two sides are currently in a standoff in the Bloodpeak region.

Meanwhile, reports came back from the inside – the Eastern Kingdom was already at its last gasp, its elite legions were all shattered, more than half of its regular soldiers had been killed or wounded, and most of the army was forcibly replenished by newly conscripted young men; on the Ursus side, Emperor Vladimir was seriously ill and vomited blood, falling into a coma three times a day.

Anyone with discerning eyes could see that if the Great Yan were to send troops at this time to coerce peace talks, it would not only establish its national prestige but also allow it to make demands on both sides of the conflict.

The case of the mission's sudden deaths was solved immediately.

[Ursus, harboring wolfish ambitions, failed to seize the territory of the Great Yan, and thus attempted to conquer the vassal states of the Great Yan. Furthermore, they sent assassins into the capital to slaughter all the envoys from the Eastern Kingdom.]

With just one proclamation, the Great Yan gained the upper hand, not only having a legitimate reason for attacking, but also announcing to the world the Eastern Kingdom's vassal status.

Then came the Great Yan expedition, with Wei Yanwu personally leading the troops—to gain prestige.

The Eastern Kingdom dares not refuse, and has no choice but to accept the title of vassal state—otherwise, they will perish!

Ursus was even more uneasy—the invincible late emperor had been defeated at Blood Peak, and in the east, Kazimir had launched a full-scale counterattack on the lost territories.

They don't even dare to claim victory in the Eastern Kingdom now, so how could they dare to antagonize the Great Yan again?

Most people were unaware of the details of this matter, but the Grand Tutor did. He even knew who had killed the Eastern Kingdom delegation—because Qiao Yelan had written him a secret letter, instructing him to gather the candle-bearers of the Si Sui Terrace and leave some clues for him.

After that, His Highness the Crown Prince, in full military attire, visited the Eastern Kingdom. Riding high on his victory, he overpowered the Eastern Kingdom's officials, forcing them to acknowledge the vassal-subordinate agreement. Upon his triumphant return, he was greeted with cheers and admiration from his people.

That's how it should be.

Chapter 138 A New Deal

The problem arose during this casual visit.

Wei Yanwu didn't know what got into him, but after seeing Princess Wenyue of the Eastern Kingdom, he fell in love at first sight. He even abandoned his country for the sake of the beauty and insisted on forcibly marrying this foreign princess.

On the Eastern side, everyone was overjoyed and couldn't wait for Wen Yue to consummate her marriage with Wei Yanwu. On the Great Yan side, everyone was completely bewildered by this Crown Prince.

This whole affair dragged on for half a year, and even the underhanded tactics employed by the Great Yan side failed—they didn't know where Princess Wenyue got so many mysterious experts around her, and they were especially skilled in guarding, as if they were specially trained to protect some important figure.

In the end, everyone was forced to admit defeat and allowed Wei Yanwu to go and enjoy his life as a couple.

However, he still had some conscience and hadn't forgotten his own name, so he chose to go to Longmen, saying that he wanted to guard the border for the Great Yan Dynasty forever.

But now, judging from what the Grand Commandant is saying, it seems that Wei Yanwu's trip to Longmen was orchestrated secretly by the late Emperor—

But the Grand Tutor knew that if something seemed to be something that both Qiao Yelan and another person desired, then it must be something that Qiao Yelan desired, and the other person was merely led astray by Qiao Yelan's way of thinking.

Even if that person was the late emperor, even if he was the Grand Tutor of the Great Yan Dynasty.

Objective facts do not change because of a change in identity.

The Great Yan's retreat to Ursus in the north and Wei Yanwu's departure to Longmen were both things the late emperor hoped for—and also things Qiao Yelan hoped for.

Therefore, Qiao Yelan must be in charge of both of these matters.

Qiao Yelan must have already known about the emperor's plan, so he only told him the truth. At the time, he was blind to the truth and thought that, given the relationship between the late emperor and Qiao Yelan, the late emperor must have already known and tacitly approved of it!

Now, comparing the two, the Grand Tutor realized that Qiao Yelan had not revealed himself in the plan at all, and everything seemed so natural.

The Eastern Kingdom defeated Ursus—accurate intelligence was relayed from within the Great Yan—the army marched out—because victory was certain, the Crown Prince was sent out to gain experience—Ursus submitted—the Crown Prince fell in love—Princess Wenyue couldn't handle it—Wei Yanwu went to Longmen.

The chain is so simple and clear that there is no trace of Qiao Yelan or even the Tower of Babel mixed in.

Even the reason Qiao Yelan wrote that secret letter to himself was to avoid arousing suspicion—because if he didn't write it, the Grand Tutor would definitely report it to the late Emperor if he found anything amiss, but writing it meant he was fearless, and the Grand Tutor would believe that it was the Emperor's tacit approval.

After all, in the Grand Tutor's view, the effect of this matter would be entirely beneficial to the Great Yan Dynasty—it must be because His Majesty had given his approval.

The old man clenched his fist.

They've even considered this...

He no longer wanted to hear the Grand Commandant's description of the plan—this so-called "grand plan" posed no threat to Qiao Yelan whatsoever, nor had it been kept from him at all—as for whether Qiao Yelan wanted to get involved in the plan to deal with "Sui," that was up to him.

Neither he nor the Grand Commandant before him had any say in the matter.

"That's it for now."

He said somewhat listlessly, cutting off the Grand Commandant who was getting into the swing of things.

The Grand Commandant frowned. He sensed that the old man opposite him had changed somewhat, but he didn't know whether this change was a good thing or a bad thing.

“I will suppress the matter of Vice Minister Ning. It is indeed time to sever ties between the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Ceremonies. His Majesty harbors resentment towards me and will not mind weakening my power. Go and have him impeach me. Give His Majesty a good impression, and I will hand over the position of Minister of Rites. This should be more beneficial to your plans.”

“I will no longer interfere with or hinder your plans. If you need any help from me, just send me a message and I will cooperate with you—I will only ‘know’ about the plan when you feel it’s appropriate to tell me.”

The Grand Tutor said calmly.

The Grand Commandant's brows relaxed a little.

Undoubtedly, this was what he hoped for, because if Vice Minister Ning became Minister Ning, then the preparations for dealing with [the year] would be much easier, and if the Grand Tutor was willing to turn a blind eye or even cooperate, it would be even easier.

But... when did this old man become so easy to talk to?

The Grand Commandant's eyes remained filled with undiminished doubt.

"What on earth do you mean?"

"I didn't mean anything by it—you're right, the foundation of our Great Yan is of paramount importance. Relying on that Qiao Yelan is no different from relying on giant beasts or gods. Saying it out loud would only make us a laughing stock."

The Grand Tutor shook his head.

"The late emperor had a long-term vision, and you are decisive and efficient. On the contrary, I am already caught up in the situation and unable to extricate myself. I cannot continue like you without distraction. So let me continue to stay in this Si Sui Tai."