Going to Beijing to save his father, all the powerful officials in the city are vying to be his fath

The emperor knew that Prince Liang was looking at him, and he also knew that the contest between them had been brought to the surface, but he didn't have time to care what Prince Liang thought.

He has a lot of things to deal with.

First of all, Chang Shanqi and Gu Yun, who should have left long ago to promote sweet potato cultivation in Chanzhou, had not yet left because the capital was closed due to the epidemic.

If they didn't leave now, it would delay the sweet potato planting season, so their affairs were the first thing to be arranged.

The Marquis of Wuning's Mansion planted a lot of sweet potatoes in the greenhouse, and the harvest was good, and they got a lot of seeds. Su Qin had stockpiled a lot before, and the Marquis of Wuning's Mansion donated them free of charge. People from various officials' families who had experience in planting sweet potatoes were also in place.

The success or failure of this matter is related to the emperor's reputation in the hearts of the people, and also to whether he is capable of governing a country well. Therefore, the emperor attaches great importance to it and personally gives instructions on everything.

In addition, many officials and border generals who returned to Beijing to report on their work at the end of last year were also stranded in Shangjing City due to the epidemic. Now that the lockdown has been lifted, they have to return to their posts immediately, and new officials have to be arranged to take over when their terms expire.

The arrangement, transfer and promotion of officials who have completed their terms is also a very important and tedious matter. Previously, these matters were arranged by the four regent ministers, and the emperor only needed to agree.

But this time, Grand Tutor Yan and the Grand Preceptor intended to test the emperor and handed the matter over to him.

In the past, King Liang was the Prime Minister, and everything was asked to him first and arranged by him, so many officials were his people. But this time, Grand Tutor Yan and Grand Preceptor were obviously dissatisfied with him and did not ask for his opinion at all. The reason was very sufficient. They said that he had injured his leg before and had not attended court for a long time. After the New Year, he caught an epidemic. He had not dealt with things for too long and did not understand many things, so he did not go through them.

The Privy Councilor has always been a fence-sitter. He saw that Grand Tutor Yan and the Grand Preceptor were clearly siding with the Emperor and targeting Prince Liang. In a two-on-one situation, he would of course choose the side with the majority, so he also sided with the Emperor.

Prince Liang was completely sidelined. He didn't expect that one wrong step would lead to another. Ever since he moved the disaster relief funds and put the blame on Su Jijing, all his decisions were wrong, pushing him further and further away from the throne.

He was anxious and angry, but he had no choice but to maintain his magnanimous and kind image. He could not openly break up with the emperor until he was ready.

So he could only watch himself being sidelined in the court. Of course, he was not completely sidelined. It was impossible for so many years of planning to be shattered so easily. Now one-third of the people in the court were his people. Families like Zhao Jian who had followed him for more than ten years would not turn against him. They had no choice but to follow him to the end.

So these people in the court kept contradicting the emperor and Grand Tutor Yan.

Zou Tai's father came back to report on his work at the end of last year, but he did not return to the border because of the epidemic. He also went to court today. He came to bid farewell to the emperor and also asked for some sweet potatoes. Zou Tai told him about the sweet potatoes. He ate them and felt that they were suitable for planting in the north where he was stationed, so he came to apply to the emperor today.

But as soon as he mentioned this matter, people from King Liang's faction tried to stop it frantically. They didn't stop it in Chanzhou at the beginning because the fertility of the land in Chanzhou had decreased due to floods, and planting sweet potatoes was a last-ditch effort. However, the north itself is a cold and bitter place with poor soil, and no matter what you plant, the harvest is poor.

Planting sweet potatoes there would be a waste of seeds.

Another thing is that there are garrisons there, and they need to be supplied with food and grass by the court, so they are highly dependent on the court. If they succeed in growing sweet potatoes and become self-sufficient, they can break away from the control of the court. At that time, it is possible that the mercenaries will be self-reliant, or they will occupy the land and become the king.

Therefore, many people strongly opposed it. King Liang was also unwilling to let the Zou family grow sweet potatoes in the north. He did not want the Zou family to have an easy life. He had wanted to win over and bribe the Zou family before, but the people he arranged in the Zou family army were watched very closely, making it difficult to approach the Zou family. He could not find any evidence against them, nor could he bribe them.

Now that Zou Tai is clearly on the emperor's side, there is no need to win him over to the Zou family. He would rather the Zou family army have a hard time.

Of course, there are also supporters. If the army can be self-sufficient, it will save the court a lot of money, which can be used for other things.

The court was arguing fiercely, and no one could convince anyone else. In the end, Zou Tai's father waved his hand and said, "Alright, stop arguing. I don't want it anymore. I don't want it anymore. It's not okay. Anyway, we've been suffering for many years. It doesn't matter if we continue to suffer."

Seeing that he had given up, the others stopped arguing. Zou Tai's father said to the emperor, "Your Majesty, I came here today. I have been delayed for so long. I am really worried. I must return as soon as possible."

The emperor nodded and said, "Alright, let Zou Tai escort the general out of the city."

Before the court meeting was over, Zou Tai and his father left the palace. They went back to pack up their things and left the city. After leaving the city, Zou Tai's father did not leave directly, but went to Qi Lusheng's farm outside the city first.

Marquis Wuning, Su Qin and Mr. Zeng were all waiting there.

In fact, Zou Tai's father knew today that he would not be able to get sweet potatoes today, but he still had to go through the process, otherwise he would not be able to explain himself if someone in the north found the sweet potatoes in the future.

He came here today to get the sweet potato seeds, which Marquis Wuning had already reserved for them. Zhao Liangchen had told Zou Tai about this before.

Su Qin came today because Zou Tai's father wanted to see him. Zou Tai was a careless person, and as soon as his father came back, he told Zou Tai's father about Su Qin and her series of arrangements. Zou Tai's father was really curious and admired Su Qin, and had always wanted to meet Su Qin, but there was never a suitable opportunity.

He was leaving today and didn't want to leave any regrets, so he asked Zou Tai to pass on the message. Su Qin was not disgusted that Zou's father wanted to see her, nor was he angry at Zou Tai's big mouth.

In her opinion, she and the Zou family are allies, and allies should not hide things from each other. She doesn't want others to know that these things were her ideas because she is afraid that someone will harm her.

But she believed that the Zou family would not harm her, and she also wanted to make friends with the Zou family. After all, more friends mean more paths. Making friends with a general who has hundreds of thousands of defenders will only bring benefits and no disadvantages.

When Zou's father saw Su Qin, he really couldn't associate Su Qin with the strategist who could strategize and stir up the situation.

Su Qin is really beautiful, quiet, and thin. She looks like an ordinary noble lady, and there is no difference between her and others.

Su Qin saluted him and said, "My daughter greets General Zou."

Zou's father quickly reached out and gave her a soft helping hand: "Miss Su, please stop being so polite. I don't even have the nerve to call you an elder in front of you."

His family members are all straightforward and don't use their brains except for fighting. Therefore, they admire smart people like Su Qin very much. No matter whether Su Qin is a girl or young, they want to praise and respect her.

Su Qin: "General Zou, you are too kind. You are a hero who defends our territory and can hold the North as strong as an iron wall. You are someone I admire and respect. I should respect you."

Su Qin's words made Zou's father very happy. He was not afraid of guarding the border, but he was afraid that no one would remember him. Now someone remembered their contributions and praised them, so of course he was happy.

"This is what our Zou family should do. Speaking of which, we have to thank you and Liangchen. If it weren't for your reminder, the Zou family would be in trouble. Many of King Liang's men have infiltrated the army."

Su Qin denied it, "General, I don't understand military affairs. This was all Liangchen's idea."

Father Zou said, "You are quite amazing. I have heard all about you, and every single one of them has me in awe. Take, for example, the fact that you saved your father and the others. You did it perfectly. I'm afraid few people could do it as perfectly as you did."

He pointed at Zou Tai and said, "If anything happened to me and his elder brother, I'm afraid this brat would come to rob the execution ground with a machete."

Zou Tai was laughed at, but he didn't get angry. He just chuckled and said, "Father, this is all I can do, so please don't get into trouble."

Father Zou glared at him with disdain.

Su Qin praised Zou Tai: "General, you are wrong. Brother Zou is a man of great wisdom who appears foolish. He has been able to maintain a pure heart in such a mixed officialdom. This is very rare. Even without the support of his family, he can go very far with his character."

Zou's father's eyes lit up, and he blurted out faster than his brain could think: "Do you think he's good? Then do you want to marry him?"