After rebirth, I joined forces with my mortal enemy to seek revenge.

The heads of the three provinces gathered in the government hall. All the officials had left, leaving only three people sitting in their respective seats.

Pei Jiaoran sat off to the side, sipping tea, his attitude unspoken. Jia Gonglu, wary, his gaze darting between Pei and Cen. While these two had orchestrated the Prince of Han's temporary transfer of government, the Emperor of Wei welcomed it. Instead of providing checks and balances on this matter, the Emperor tacitly allowed all forces to tilt in favor of the Crown Prince. The Prince of Wu, meanwhile, was a forsaken child, teetering on the brink of power. All he could do was get him back to Chang'an as soon as possible.

"Thank you all for waiting for so long. I have just finished talking with my royal brother." Huan Yuanjing's voice came from the door.

"Your Highness, the King of Han, is here to pay his respects to you." Everyone said in unison.

"Gentlemen, there's no need for such formalities." The King of Han waved his hand, signaling everyone to discontinue their formalities. He then said, "Although my royal brother is unwell, he is mindful of the important matters of home and country, and sympathizes with your hard work. He has specially ordered me to come here to attend to the affairs of state, so that I can inform him later."

Jia Gonglu laughed and said, "No, we all serve the country. Your Majesty shoulders the responsibility of the country and the people. Even when he is ill, he never forgets to worry about state affairs. If you work harder because of this, we will be ashamed. I only hope that Your Majesty will be in good health and live a hundred years without worries. I can retire and return home, leaving the burden to a genius like Prime Minister Pei."

Huan Yuanjing was stunned when he heard this, and for a moment he was confused about what Jia Gonglu meant. He sat down with his clothes pulled back, and said with a smile, "My royal brother just told me that Jia Gonglu is like a bamboo shoot, which becomes stronger with the wind, and can live to be a hundred years old. He and Pei Xianggong can follow Fang's plan and Du's decision. If you two can work together, it will be a great opportunity."

"Serve until a hundred years old? Even if I serve for ten more years, those who come after me will accuse me of usurping power. Alas, it is better to leave the opportunities to the young people." Jia Gonglu glanced at Pei Jiaoran and said with emotion.

As if he didn't hear what Jia Gonglu said, Pei Jiaoran looked normal and lowered his head to play with the goldfish bag around his waist.

"Why are you being so modest, Lord Jia?" Huan Yuanjing stroked his beard, a gentle smile on his face, but his eyes were fixed on Pei Jiaoran. He gestured for everyone to return to their seats, then looked at them and said, "Your Majesty asked me to inquire about General Li's current health. Has he taken any medicine? The Crown Prince and the Prince of Wu are both away in Chang'an, and the other princes are young. The Right Shence Army cannot remain without a leader for a day. He would like to ask if you have any suitable candidates to recommend?"

The title of Emperor Wei was brought up, which also meant that the King of Han's temporary handling of government affairs was only nominal, and the actual person controlling the situation behind the scenes was still Emperor Wei.

Glancing at Pei Jiaoran and Cen Xi with interest, Jia Gonglu asked, "In that case, does Prime Minister Pei have any recommendations?"

In an instant, everyone's eyes fell on Pei Jiaoran. Pei Jiaoran, who was being watched by everyone, looked towards the door leading to the public housing on the other side.

"Now the government is in good order both inside and outside, thanks to the emperor's virtue, the Crown Prince's wisdom and strategy, and the unity of all the ministers. The Shen Ce Army is responsible for the safety of the palace and should not be easily transferred to others." Pei Jiaoran said slowly.

Huan Yuanjing, who was at the top of the group, was somewhat stunned when he heard this. This Minister of the Central Secretariat had not, as his brother had expected, attempted to interfere with the personnel transfers of the Shen Ce Army. Instead, he wanted to put a shackle on the Shen Ce Army.

"Since ancient times, the defense of the palace has been the top priority. Sima Zhongda, with the help of his few years as the Central Guard, infiltrated the palace like a sieve and secretly raised 3,000 death warriors scattered everywhere. There are countless such cases in history books, and each one of them makes later generations tremble with fear. Now that the prince is away, there is no chaos in the palace, but once a change occurs, I am afraid that I will not be the only one to take the blame and the matter will be resolved." Pei Jiaoran raised his lips and was silent for a moment.

Jia Gonglu frowned, while Cen Xi listened attentively. Only Huan Yuanjing couldn't help but glance towards the room Pei Jiaoran had just been looking at.

His brother, the Emperor of Wei, also came with him and hid in that public housing.

The Emperor of Wei sat in his chair, eyes closed and brow furrowed. He could no longer fathom the intentions of this powerful official. He even felt as if he had become a pawn in her hands, thrust into her path. Her words were a reminder that she had caused this power struggle, and now, to resolve it, he must remain silent.

After countless clashes between the emperor and his ministers, Pei Jiaoran knew that the emperor, unwilling to be alone or to relinquish power, was hiding in the next room. She slowed her voice and continued, "I previously received a secret report, but the matter was of grave importance, so I dared not make any rash assertions and therefore did not report it to the emperor. Now, I would like to ask the King of Han to explain. The criminal, Zhang Rang, has served the emperor for many years and has established connections in various places. According to regulations, leaving the palace late at night requires approval from the Secretariat. However, Zhang Rang left the palace last year at night without approval from the Secretariat. This shows that the palace gates are guarded in vain. Lord Cen has also discovered this."

Glancing at Pei Jiaoran, Cen Xi said, "After hearing about this from Mr. Pei, I went to look through the records, but there was nothing there."

"Such a big thing, why did Prime Minister Pei wait until now to speak out?" Jia Gonglu looked at Pei Jiaoran, "It seems that Prime Minister Pei doesn't care much about this matter."

Upon hearing this, Pei Jiaoran replied calmly, "If he left the palace for the emperor's secret affairs, and I were to get to the bottom of it, wouldn't that make Your Majesty disgusted?"

In fact, the Emperor of Wei should have noticed this matter, but out of respect for Zhang Rang, he did not investigate further. Unfortunately, in the end, Zhang Rang failed to live up to his efforts.

"Then who does Prime Minister Pei plan to recommend?" Huan Yuanjing couldn't help but ask.

"General Xu Jian of the Jinwu Guard. This isn't a transfer, but a temporary appointment." Pei Jiaoran smiled and said gently, "Until General Li recovers, all matters, big or small, will be handled by General Xu. All arrangements involving the rotation of the Shen Ce Army must be directly reviewed by His Majesty and then executed with secret orders."

"Nonsense!" Jia Gonglu stared at Pei Jiaoran, his voice rising unconsciously. "The Jinwu Guard guards the Imperial City, and their status is no less than that of the Shen Ce Army. They should be united inside and outside. If you let General Xu take charge of the Shen Ce Army, where will the Jinwu Guard go?"

He turned around, staring at Jia Gonglu with a cold gaze, "Mr. Jia, the Jinwu Guard is under the jurisdiction of the Southern Court, while the Shen Ce Army is formed by absorbing the six armies of the emperor and is directly under the emperor's command. Each soldier has his own duties, and each unit has a number to prevent collusion. If General Xu is put in charge of the Shen Ce Army, it can firstly prevent those with ulterior motives from causing chaos, and secondly, it can prevent others from taking advantage of personnel changes to plant spies."

Huan Yuanjing glanced at the two with a wry smile, a look of embarrassment on his face. Facing these two ministers who were nearly as clever as demons, he felt he had no chance of resisting and could only bite the bullet and continue speaking.

"Do Lord Jia and Lord Cen have any candidates to recommend?"