strictlysupreme Chapter 267 Reflection
Chapter 267 Reflection
In terms of words, he couldn't possibly gain the slightest advantage over Xu Sheng.
Little did Nianyao know that her resolute refusal had started a war that could have been delayed.
Jin Hu, acting on Xu Sheng's orders, led his troops across the Xiang River to attack Wancheng.
As soon as Xu Sheng began deploying troops along the Jingjiang River, An Liangchen started preparing for battle. Jin Hu's attack from the river was already at a disadvantage, and with the Wancheng garrison's strong defense, Jin Hu naturally returned empty-handed.
Neither side gained any advantage, but rumors of war spread like wildfire, and people along the river fled with their families to avoid the fighting.
When the message was delivered to Bianjing An Liangchen by express courier, Luo An and Qin Jiu had already left Bianjing, while An Liangchen and Nan Hua had returned to the palace.
With war underway, Dongyang, possessing sufficient capacity to respond, could not afford to remain solely on the defensive. The allure of unifying the world was immense; who wouldn't desire to be its ruler?
An Liangchen immediately redeployed his troops, assigning the generals who had originally attacked Beirou to the Jingjiang River area, with Yan Zeyu in overall command.
During the morning court session, Prince Ming once again volunteered to defend Haidong County and submitted a memorial recommending his son, Yu Zhixiong, as the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy.
An Liangchen immediately agreed and also appointed several high-ranking officials from the Northern Rou region as compilers and editors in the Hanlin Academy.
This matter caused quite a stir in the court. Dongyang valued education and moral cultivation. Although the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy was a fourth-rank official, it was customary for the position to be held concurrently by the Chancellor or the Grand Tutor, in order to highlight the importance of the position, as he was in charge of the national studies and the teaching of examinations.
Military officers are important in wartime, but civil officials are needed to govern in peacetime. Now that the position of Chancellor of the Imperial Academy has been handed over to a surrendered official, it is likely that more surrendered officials from the north will enter the Imperial Academy, rise to the inner quarters, and enter the court.
As for the compilers and editors of the Hanlin Academy, although their official positions were not high, the Hanlin Academy was known as the emperor's private institution. The fact that officials and nobles from the north entered the academy meant that the emperor and the crown prince trusted them.
As a result, the rumors that Consort Yu was deeply favored, Prince Ming was deeply trusted, and the surrendered officials were highly valued quickly spread.
When Nan Hua heard the news, his already low spirits became even more oppressed, making it hard to breathe.
Her younger brother and sister-in-law died in battle for the country, making great contributions. To appease her family, the Crown Prince promoted her older brother to the fourth rank. Meanwhile, Prince Ming had no real achievements, so his son was appointed to the fourth rank.
Why? !
The crisis in Dongyang has not been resolved. An Liangchen has never been incompetent; he is more adept at weighing pros and cons. Therefore, this decision can only be explained by the fact that the Nan family is no longer of any benefit to An Liangchen, and Prince Ming is now more advantageous to him.
Nanhua grew increasingly restless in Fanghua Tower, so she went for a walk in the garden. The chrysanthemums in the garden were in full bloom.
Legend has it that when the emperor was still the crown prince, he presented a pot of chrysanthemums to his then-crown princess on the Double Ninth Festival. The crown princess then set aside a small flower garden in the garden, planted a garden full of chrysanthemums, and collected the finest chrysanthemums from all over the world.
A lover in youth, a companion in old age. Decades of devoted affection are especially rare in the royal family.
Every time Nan Hua strolled through the Chrysanthemum Garden, she would think that she and An Liangchen could grow old together like the Emperor and Empress.
In retrospect, those were probably all wishful thinking on her part. Nanfei didn't approve of her being with An Liangchen; he probably understood something long ago.
Nanfei was a source of pain for her. When he was young, everyone opposed his relationship with Duoyi. Later, when he was with Yuan Feng, few people approved of it either.
No one ever asked Nanfei: Who do you like? Who do you want to be with? She didn't ask either; she just thought that since they were married by imperial decree, they should live their lives well.
Nan Hua stared blankly at the flowers, lost in thought. When Nan Fei was alive, she had never considered these things for him; now that Nan Fei was gone, she realized that she had failed in her duty.
Nanfei burned down the Yuan residence and had someone impersonate Duoyi, all to protect Duoyi. He entrusted the Crown Prince to send Duoyi to Laoshan Village because Duoyi said she had never seen the sea.
Therefore, in Nanfei's heart, Duoyi, a relative and lover from his youth, always held a place. Nanfei never told anyone, but he did his best to protect Duoyi.
Nanfei once asked her if the Crown Prince had really sent Duoyi to Laoshan Village. She didn't answer directly, and Nanfei didn't press further, but he probably already knew the answer, right?
She, or rather everyone in the Nan family, did what they thought was right, never asking about or respecting Nan Fei's feelings, let alone protecting them.
Even though Nanfei didn't approve of her being with An Liangchen, he still tried his best to protect her. He was willing to fight for Dongyang, and part of the reason must have been for her.
"Your Highness, the Crown Princess!" Chunhua tugged at her sleeve, pointed behind her, and whispered, "Consort Yu has arrived."
Nan Hua then noticed that Yu Shuxian was standing behind him with a group of palace maids, and it seemed that they had been standing there for a long time.
Yu Shuxian said in a soft voice, "Sister, I don't know what I did wrong. I bowed to you, but you ignored me."
Nan Hua, who usually paid lip service to things, was now extremely annoyed and remained silent.
Qiu Yue said, "The Crown Princess was just so engrossed in admiring the flowers that she didn't see them."
The palace maid beside Yu Shuxian said loudly, "When Consort Yu speaks with the Crown Princess, who gives a mere palace maid the right to interrupt? Such lack of manners, I wonder who taught you to be like this."
Chunhua immediately retorted, "If you're so well-versed in etiquette, you should know that the Crown Princess is the principal wife, and the concubine is the secondary wife. It's only out of politeness that the Crown Princess acknowledges your master; it's fine if she doesn't."
Nan Hua said, "Forget it, let's go back."
Chunhua said, "The Crown Princess said she's going back, why aren't you moving aside?"
The palace maid retorted sharply: "You think you can just move aside like that? Did the Crown Princess build this road? Consort Yu is pregnant now, so you have to take good care of her. You can't afford to take responsibility if something happens to her."
It was also the Shanggong Bureau's fault for not assigning the Crown Princess some trained palace maids. Commoner maids, how could they know palace etiquette? Being spoiled like this would tarnish the reputation of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess.
Chunhua and Qiuyue were brought from the Nan family by Nanhua. Nanhua and An Liangchen treated them both very politely, but now they are being called wild maids from the common people who do not know the etiquette of the palace.
Chunhua was so angry that her face turned red. Qiuyue stepped forward and slapped the palace maid across the face, saying in a deep voice, "How dare you!"
Nan Hua sneered inwardly. This was a classic case of a dog relying on its master's power. Nan Fei and Yuan Feng were dead, and now that Prince Ming had stepped in, even a mere palace maid thought she could bully her.
Nan Hua strode forward with an imposing air. Consort Yu and the palace maids had no choice but to make way for him.
The palace maid covered her face, ultimately not daring to retaliate, and said aggrievedly, "Consort Yu..."
Ultimately, their social statuses differed, and Yu Shuxian hadn't intended to make a scene. But then she thought it necessary to stand up for her maid and establish her authority, so she reached out and pulled Nanhua: "Crown Princess, your maid hit..."
Nan Hua didn't even look at her, and with a flick of his wrist, he pushed her away. Nan Hua was a martial arts practitioner who could spar with the Crown Prince, and his inner turmoil made him act on instinct, without paying attention to the force he used.
Yu Shuxian was a pampered young lady, and pregnant, so she couldn't withstand such a push. She staggered back several steps and fell into the chrysanthemum garden, unable to get up.
The palace maid rushed over to help her, and heard her clutching her stomach, saying, "It hurts, it hurts! Help me, help my child..."