The concubine is extremely cautious

Yu Song was the chief commander promoted by Ning Wanyin, and the Dong family was the maternal family of the third prince. In order to compete for the position of crown prince, there was a fierce fight in the harem.

In Xue Zheng's opinion, it is only a matter of time before Ning Wanyin suppresses the Dong family.

He thought about it and didn't object.

First, the Empress Dowager summoned the Dong father and son back to Beijing in the name of celebration, which was justified.

The Southwest won a great victory, and the Four Generals of the Southwest served as representatives of the Southwest Army.

Yu Song is stationed in the southwest and cannot leave. The Dong family father and son and another general are the most suitable candidates.

The Empress Dowager chose the Marquis of Dongchuan, who had a higher title and seniority, and there was nothing wrong with that.

Now he has just returned to Beijing, and it is not yet time for the Xue family to take action.

The best time would be to wait until the Queen Mother finds an excuse to keep the Dong family father and son and not let them return to the southwest.

At that time, Marquis Dongchuan will definitely take the initiative to join the Xue family for his future.

The Dong family didn't come to ask for help, so why was Xue Zheng so anxious?

It won't be too late to write a letter to support Marquis Dongchuan's return to the southwest then. Ning Wanyin still has the final say in the court.

Xue Zheng did not object, and the officials of Xue’s party did not say a word.

Song Gu agreed, "Your Highness has made a very good arrangement!"

In Song Gu's eyes, it makes no difference who comes back to attend the celebration, as long as the situation in the southwest continues to be stable!

After all, we have just conquered a piece of land from Daliang. Although there is a temporary truce now, we still need to be on guard against a counterattack from Daliang at any time.

"In terms of merit, Yu Song should be credited with the first merit. Since he cannot come to the capital, let him send someone to watch the ceremony. As for other generals who are in military service and cannot watch the ceremony, they can send their younger generations to watch the ceremony." Ning Wanyin said, looking at the Minister of Rites:

"Minister Duan, I'll leave the celebration ceremony to you."

Organizing grand ceremonies is the job of the Ministry of Rites.

"I accept your order!" Minister of Rites Duan Langyuan stepped forward to accept the order, not forgetting his original intention and flattering with excitement:

"The victory in the southwest is the glory of the soldiers on the front line who fought bloody battles! The Queen Mother held a grand ceremony to celebrate the victory and reward the generals to comfort the soldiers. The soldiers will understand that their efforts and contributions have been seen by His Majesty, the Queen Mother and the court!"

"I will make this ceremony a grand one, so that the soldiers will know how much the Queen Mother loves and cares for them! Your Majesty is clear about rewards and punishments, and is wise and intelligent. I deeply admire you."

Duan Langyuan flatters people to his heart's content, and he can even come up with a set of words to praise how well a celebration is organized!

Even Song Chengyi, who wanted to praise the Queen Mother, couldn't respond to him because he was too thin-skinned.

This may be the reason why everyone has their own expertise.

After the court session, the imperial court issued an edict to summon the Marquis of Dongchuan and his son back to the capital to receive rewards.

This kind of celebration usually involves one or two generals, who would return from the southwest with some deputy generals and soldiers to receive rewards.

In addition, meritorious generals who are unable to come can send people to participate in the reward ceremony.

The Ministry of Rites made preparations in advance, and the people in the capital were also very much looking forward to it when they heard that the victorious soldiers were returning.

When the Marquis of Dongchuan, who was far away in the southwest, received the news, he felt very heavy-hearted.

"Dad, this time the court summoned my father and me back to the capital to reward us. This is a great event that will bring honor to our family. Yu Song has no chance to go. I heard that it was Song Gu who didn't let him go. Haha, it seems that the internal fighting among their poor family is also quite fierce." Dong Wei was secretly delighted.

He believed that Song Gu's refusal to allow Yu Song to return to Beijing must have been caused by infighting within the poor family!

It was a good deal for the father and son.

"This is not a good thing." Marquis Dongchuan glanced at his good-for-nothing son and shook his head.

But he didn't say anything at this time.

The imperial edict had been issued, and not going would be tantamount to disobeying the order, so he naturally had to return to the capital.

If Ning Wanyin found an excuse to promote him to a higher official position in Beijing and prevented him from returning to the southwest, he would ask the Xue family for help.

The Xue family will not just sit there and do nothing. If the Dong family is gone, they will be the next one!

……

Dayan regained stability, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs began to make arrangements for the concubines to go to the Summer Palace, which had been postponed due to the war.

"Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager summoned you." Xiao Guizi hurried in to report.

Ning Wanyin stopped reviewing the memorials and said, "Let's go to the Cining Palace."

The Cining Palace and nearby palaces were where the concubines of the previous emperor lived.

But because there were so many concubines in the previous generation, the palace was full, so all the concubines of the previous emperor, including Ning Wanyin, still lived in the original palace.

The twelve palaces in the east and west were the residences of the emperor's concubines, and it was inappropriate for them to live there for a long time. Ning Wanyin issued an imperial decree, asking everyone to go to the Summer Palace.

Liu Zhen was already waiting at the gate of Cining Palace.

Seeing Ning Wanyin's phoenix chariot appear from afar, he immediately stepped forward with a very respectful look:

"Your servant pays respect to Her Majesty the Queen Mother. May Your Majesty live a long and healthy life!"

He looked down on Ning Wanyin at first, but he didn't expect that Ning Wanyin would become the biggest winner in the harem.

Moreover, the Empress Dowager has now chosen Ning Wanyin, so he is naturally very polite.

Ning Wanyin ignored him and went straight into the Cining Palace, just like she always did when she came to pay respects, following the rules and etiquette:

"My son, I send my regards to my mother."

The Grand Empress Dowager looked at Ning Wanyin and vaguely remembered how she looked when she first entered the palace. At that time, she never thought that she would be able to climb step by step to the position of queen, or even empress dowager.

Now, the game is decided and the dust has settled.

The Queen Mother knew that her brother had some plans, but she also had plans of her own.

It's time to leave a way out for the Xue family.

"I heard that you were planning to send your concubines to the Summer Resort. I have already discussed with them and we will move there together." The Empress Dowager said slowly.

She will take the emperor's grandfather and concubines to the Summer Palace.

Although the Empress Dowager can come back at any time, her departure today is a statement that she will never be involved in the affairs of the harem again.

This is somewhat surprising.

Ning Wanyin is respected as the empress dowager, but she is the grand empress dowager, and is superior to Ning Wanyin in terms of etiquette and law. Moreover, the Xue family is powerful, so if she does not want to retreat, she can create some trouble.

"The Mountain Resort has beautiful scenery and is a great place to spend your retirement. Is there anything that I need to arrange for you, mother?" Ning Wanyin understood what she meant and looked at the Empress Dowager.

There must be conditions for her leaving.

The Empress Dowager said in a deep voice, "I heard that you have already chosen a tutor for Xi'er. You must also choose carefully the person who will be Xi'er's study companion. I do have a candidate. My nephew is about the same age as Xi'er and is very smart. What do you think?"

Ning Wanyin understood instantly.

This time, the Empress Dowager is betting on Xier.

So he wanted to send a younger member of the Xue family to enter the palace to be the emperor's companion.

This means being friendly with the emperor and hoping to be favored by the emperor. They grew up together and generally, such ministers would become the emperor's right-hand men.

Ning Wanyin pondered for three times and answered decisively, "The person chosen by your majesty is naturally good. I will issue an order tomorrow to have him enter the palace to accompany you in your studies."

The Xue family guarded the southeast of Da Yan and were the heroes of Da Yan. As long as the Xue family did not rebel, Ning Wanyin would not get rid of them.

If the Xue family was too arrogant, Ning Wanyin would warn them, and if the Xue family wanted to be loyal to Xier, she would naturally give them a chance.

Otherwise, the emperor's cold rejection of the Xue family would be just pushing them away.

The Empress Dowager was a little surprised to see that she agreed so calmly without any surprise.

Ever since Ning Wanyin entered the palace, the Xue family has always stood on the opposite side of her, and the open and secret struggles between the two sides have never stopped.

Now that Xue Zheng is in the court, he also wants to sideline her and is no longer loyal to her.

She was also able to accept the younger generation of the Xue family as the emperor's tutor and was willing for the emperor to make use of the Xue family, which really made people look at her with a higher regard.

"You have always surprised me. Even until this moment, you still surprise me." The Empress Dowager had a complicated look in her eyes.

Ning Wanyin was neither arrogant nor impatient, and smiled, "Mother, you are praising me too much, but it is my duty."

In the past, it was her job to be loyal to the emperor and to check and balance the Xue family.

Now, it is her responsibility to take charge of the country and stabilize Da Yan.

The two sides agreed on the terms and Ning Wanyin bowed and took her leave.

Before leaving, Ning Wanyin also asked the Empress Dowager if there were any stewards or cooks she liked that she wanted to take away, and she was very polite, leaving no room for gossip.

The Empress Dowager suddenly remembered Helian Qi, who was also an unexpected person.

At the beginning, she played chess with Emperor Ming.

At that time, Ning Wanyin was just a chess piece in his palm.

Now, she is the one sitting across from the chessboard.

With one's own efforts, one can rise from a humble position to a great position. Such a method is rarely seen in the world.

She is indeed a rare and extraordinary woman.

Therefore, the Empress Dowager thought that the Xue family would not lose money in this deal.