Shipin Dalizheng

Taifu Xie never imagined that when he reported to Emperor Xuanning that the Earl of Jian'an might be a spy from the Southern Dynasty, Emperor Xuanning was very calm.

"The Earl of Jian'an confessed this to me long ago. He had no choice but to do it that day. Grand Tutor, there's no need to worry too much."

Taifu Xie was shocked, realizing that the emperor's trust in Rong Tang far exceeded his imagination.

"I also learned about it by chance. It was not directed against the Earl of Jian'an. Thinking about it carefully, perhaps I misunderstood."

Emperor Xuanning remained noncommittal about his misunderstanding. "Grand Tutor holds a high position, and it's his duty to be concerned about state affairs. I wonder where he gets his information? He's even quicker than the imperial spies."

"minister……"

Master Xie was startled, his voice choked, and for a moment he didn't know how to answer this question.

Emperor Xuanning remained gentle. "I know that your noble families all have their own secret methods of communication, and it's possible that you receive news faster than I do. This is perfectly reasonable, Grand Master, don't worry. I simply wish you to look up some truly useful information. While you're at it, please share any that you think may be useful to me."

Taifu Xie sank to his knees. "I dare not conceal anything. The second branch of the Xie family has long been trapped in Jiangnan, having not been together for twenty years. My grandfather and father were deeply concerned about their passing. I have taken great pains to infiltrate this organization solely to ensure the safety of the second branch. I have no other motives. Furthermore, communication is extremely difficult, and it is not uncommon for us to go years without hearing from each other. It is not that I am unwilling to share information with Your Majesty."

Emperor Xuanning suddenly realized something and slapped his forehead. "I remember now. There's still your second branch of the family in Jiangnan. That one's called Xie Huaiyu, and I heard he's even an Imperial Censor. So, quite a few of the civil and military officials in the court have relatives in the south."

He Daban sighed, "If His Majesty punishes everyone, there won't be many innocent people left."

The implication was that the Xie family also had potential as spies. Since the two sides could communicate, why hadn't they passed on any useful information to His Majesty in all these years? Had the second branch of the Xie family settled down to serve as vassal to the Southern Dynasty?

Taifu Xie broke out in a sweat and claimed that he was guilty, asking only for punishment. He was quite perceptive. If he insisted on arguing, he would become a joke for having just revealed Rong Tang's secret.

Emperor Xuanning's eyes were gloomy, and he waved his hand to let him leave. However, shortly after Tutor Xie left, he reached out and threw a teacup.

He Daban did not try to persuade him, but only asked someone to clean up the broken porcelain. As his companion since childhood and his most trusted confidant, how could he not know that even after becoming the emperor, the four great families that seemed to have no ulterior motives were still large and independent families, and did not wholeheartedly regard themselves as subjects of the Nangong Dynasty.

"He Daban."

"The old slave is here."

"Send someone to tell the Earl of Jian'an that Grand Tutor Xie has denounced him."

He Daban immediately arranged for his godson to go, and this was the cause and effect of Rong Tang receiving the news.

He Daban arranged things well and came to serve Emperor Xuanning again. Emperor Xuanning twisted his new teacup and seemed to be talking to himself, as if asking for his opinion, "Who in this court can compete with the four great families?"

He Daban smiled bitterly, "This is really difficult for me. I am just a eunuch. I only know how to serve my master. I don't understand the politics of the court, nor do I know how to check and balance."

Emperor Xuanning laughed and scolded, "You old rascal, when I was studying, you were my close companion, never missing a single lesson. If you don't understand, who will?"

He Daban said, "That's just me being stupid. Hearing something and being able to apply it are two different things. Right now, the Left Prime Minister is Prime Minister Zheng, the Right Prime Minister is Prime Minister Wang, the Xie family has a Grand Tutor, and the Cui family has a Principal Academician of the Imperial Academy. None of your majesty's princes are from these bloodlines. Hasn't your majesty maintained a good balance over the years?"

"It seems balanced, but there are also great hidden dangers. If there is a change in the political situation and chaos breaks out, these four families will not go all out to protect a certain Nangong bloodline because they have no direct blood relationship."

This was also the main reason why he had been governing the country in a passive manner for many years, carefully maintaining the balance of power in the court. He wanted to conquer Jiangnan and unify Dai Viet, but he did not dare to fight a large-scale war. The people fought among themselves and the country was weakened. If a rebel from another family rose up, Dai Viet would be destroyed by him.

In fact, in essence, he and Nangong He had the same political views, which was to get rid of the control of the gentry and unify the royal power, but their approaches were both extreme.

After Nangong He crossed the Yangtze River and established his own government, he pushed the aristocratic families out of the imperial power center, and those who sat in high positions were those he considered to be independent and capable ministers. As a result, even if the aristocratic families were not in the court, even among the people, they were still a force that could not be ignored. In the struggle with imperial power, the aristocratic families maintained their local power, and the emperor's decrees were of little use outside the imperial city.

Emperor Xuanning, by contrast, married Queen Wang, securing the support of the Wang family for his ascension to the throne. He later relied heavily on the Zheng family to balance the Wang family at court. The Xie family produced a Grand Tutor, equally influential as the left and right prime ministers, while the Cui family controlled the vast majority of the nation's academic resources. These four families both achieved and challenged each other, forming a five-way balance with Emperor Xuanning, seemingly fostering a harmonious relationship between the emperor and his subjects.

However, Emperor Xuan Ning was old after all, and he suddenly had an idea. Since none of the princes came from the bloodline of the four great families, and none of their families had a sense of belonging to the Nangong royal family, was there a possibility that instead of a five-point balance, it would be him against four?

Taifu Xie blatantly used the secrets of the Southern Dynasty he had investigated to inform on the emperor and seek credit, not hiding the fact that his family was more powerful than the emperor. What could he do? He was let off with a few words of sarcasm. Would he dare to deal with the Xie family?

Once the Xie family is dealt with, what will the other three families think? At this point, will the other three families become a whole and work together to fight against the imperial power?

It’s chilling to think about it.

In this way, there has never been a multi-party balance in his court. It has always been just him and the aristocratic families playing against each other.

He needs someone to join in and help him resist some of the power of the aristocratic families.

He Daban looked at his expression. Having been with him for many years, he knew how many male and female worms there were in Emperor Xuanning's stomach.

"Your Majesty, will you still sleep in Qifeng Palace tonight?"

"Ok!"

Emperor Xuanning responded softly, then suddenly asked, "There are too few servants in Qifeng Palace. Have you added some?"

He Daban said, "Her Majesty's rank has been elevated, and logically the number of palace servants should be increased accordingly. However, Her Majesty has objected. She claims the treasury is empty, and that harvests have declined in many areas this autumn. She's worried about potential disasters before winter arrives, and she believes she has more than enough servants in the palace. Furthermore, His Majesty is afraid of noise, and more people would inevitably create more noise."

Emperor Xuanning suddenly remembered that it was no wonder that he could sleep well in Qifeng Palace but found it noisy when staying with other concubines. It was indeed because there were so many people.

"That's it, then. We have a small group, but we can't afford to run out of money. We can't have the same situation as in previous years where we had a shortage of ice in the summer and carbon in the winter."

He Daban agreed loudly back then, but he couldn't help but complain in his heart, "Don't you know what the virtuous concubine lacked in previous years? Now I remember that it can't be lacking. No wonder people say that the royal family is ruthless and only cares about interests."

"What has Zhao Ling been doing these days?"

He Daban laughed. "What can the princess do? Isn't she helping Your Majesty invest... well, replenishing her private treasury? She's been visiting the Rongjia Village workshop from time to time to check on the production progress. I heard that she, Miss Cui, and Miss Tang have formed an actuarial firm to handle external audits. Miss Tang and Miss Cui are responsible for the audits, and she's responsible for balancing any problems. The three of them share the profits, 433."

Emperor Xuan Ning smiled for the first time in a day, "She really loves to make trouble."

He Daban also laughed, "Princess Zhao Ling has been brave since she was a child, but it's a pity that she is not a prince..."

He shut up suddenly.

Emperor Xuanning also heard that if Zhao Ling was a prince, she might be able to do something great. But if she was a prince, would he still favor her?