Chapter 415 - 409 Suspicion
Although Gou Xi was outside the city, his contact with the Emperor in the city never decreased.
Prince East Sea didn’t stop their communication, still holding a glimmer of hope that the Emperor might persuade Gou Xi to leave.
However, he definitely didn’t expect Gou Xi to discuss Zhao Hanzhang with the Emperor instead of Prince East Sea.
But when Gou Xi wanted to talk about Zhao Hanzhang, the Emperor didn’t want to discuss her.
In his view, Zhao Hanzhang was not worth mentioning; the most pressing matters were Gou Xi, Prince East Sea, and himself!
The Emperor no longer wanted to stay in Luoyang; he still planned to relocate the capital!
It had started snowing, and the weather was getting colder. The already desolate Luoyang became even more barren. The citizens lacked food and clothing. The Emperor lived in the Imperial Palace but could feel the despair gradually closing in on them.
Thus, he wanted to leave Luoyang, ideally taking the city’s citizens with him, as it might offer a lifeline.
So at this moment, why would he care about Zhao Hanzhang?
But since Gou Xi had written about her, asking nothing about her seemed like he underestimated her importance. He still counted on him to rush into Luoyang and rescue him, or compete with Prince East Sea in Luoyang.
As a result, the young Emperor summoned Zhao Zhongyu, inquiring about the Zhao Family, "I’ve heard that the Zhao Family is gathering grain and cloth in large quantities. What is the purpose of this?"
Zhao Zhongyu was startled and quickly said, "Your Majesty, these must be rumors. The Zhao Family is loyal and would never harbor disloyal thoughts!"
The Emperor also believed it was a rumor. The Zhao Family’s Clan Leader lineage was in the Capital City. If they wanted to rebel, it wouldn’t be done this way. Most likely, it’s a conflict between Yu State and He Yan State, and now Zhao Hanzhang is the Yu State Governor, hence Gou Xi’s provocation towards the Zhao Family.
The Emperor sighed deeply, looking at Zhao Zhongyu sorrowfully and said, "I naturally trust your loyalty, but outsiders are unaware."
Zhao Zhongyu’s thoughts raced. Was this outsider Prince East Sea or Gou Xi, or someone else?
It was rumored that Prince East Sea was almost chopped by the Third Lady, so he resented her greatly. His petitions to appoint the Third Lady as Inspector were repeatedly dismissed because of him;
Did Prince East Sea finally find an excuse to deal with him?
Or was it Gou Xi?
Today, Gou Xi sent a letter to the palace. As soon as his letter arrived, the Emperor summoned him. It was hard not to connect the two.
But weren’t the Third Lady and Gou Xi allies?
It was said that they cooperated well before. Gou Xi helped her expel the Xiongnu, and she assisted Gou Xi in defeating Prince East Sea, giving him all the spoils.
Zhao Zhongyu pondered with his head bowed. When he looked up, his expression was calm. "The clear know themselves, Your Majesty. The Zhao Family and I are wholeheartedly loyal to you. We are not afraid of these baseless slanders. We also ask Your Majesty to trust the Zhao Family."
Of course, the Emperor expressed his trust and then curiously asked, "It is said Zhao Family’s Third Lady was on good terms with General Gou. When Yu State was besieged by the Xiongnu, many people pleaded with General Gou for assistance, but he was indifferent. Only your Zhao Family’s Hanzhang managed to persuade him, demonstrating their deep friendship. So, have they recently... had a falling out?"
As soon as Zhao Zhongyu heard this, he understood that it was Gou Xi backstabbing.
He lowered his eyes, sighed, and said, "Now the Capital City is besieged, communications are cut off, and it has been a long time since I’ve received any family correspondence."
The Emperor and his minister merely sighed together.
Leaving the Imperial Palace, Zhao Zhongyu immediately went home, entered his study, and began writing a letter.
He didn’t know what had happened between Zhao Hanzhang and Gou Xi, but clearly, Gou Xi intended to break the alliance. Yu State and He Yan State are too close, particularly now when half of Yu State is in Gou Xi’s control, making it an unfavorable situation for the Zhao Family.
Although the Capital City was besieged, his letters could still be sent; they would merely be slower and less frequent.
The letter was sent to Zhao Hanzhang, directly warning her to be cautious of Gou Xi, and informed her that he was badmouthing her to the Emperor.
After finishing this, Gou Xi no longer concerned himself with Zhao Hanzhang and continued to focus on pressuring Prince East Sea out of Luoyang.
In his mind, Zhao Zhongyu should slightly delay Zhao Hanzhang’s actions. Her significant moves were due to the Zhao Family’s support for her.
If not, where would the Inspector Mansion’s treasury find the funds?
Not to mention her personally; such enormous amounts of resources surely required money.
Where did the money come from?
Naturally, it came from the Zhao Family.
Not only did Gou Xi think so, but many within the Zhao Family also believed so.
Thus they were always waiting for Zhao Song to speak up, waiting for the last shoe to drop. Yet Zhao Song kept silent, almost as if they truly didn’t need to shell out money.
Even Zhao Song couldn’t resist any longer. On one afternoon when snowflakes were swirling, he stormed into Xiping County, finding his son in the county government backyard pavilion enjoying hot liquor near the stove, "How much money from the clan do you plan to use to buy these supplies for the Third Lady? How do you plan to distribute it among the families, and how do you intend to persuade them, what benefits will they receive afterwards?"
Holding the wine glass, Zhao Ming paused, asking, "Father, who told you that we, the Zhao Family, need to contribute this money?"
Zhao Song frowned, "If you don’t pay, does the Third Lady have money? She’s spent so much already."
Zhao Ming replied, "I don’t know if the Third Lady has money, but she hasn’t asked me for money or indicated that Zhao Family should pay."
Zhao Song frowned deeply, "Is she waiting for you to propose it proactively?"
"Does Father think I would propose it proactively?"
Zhao Song retorted unhappily, "Certainly not!"
"Then that’s it," Zhao Ming chuckled, "She knows me as well as Father does; if even Father knows I wouldn’t bring it up, she surely knows it too."
Zhao Ming’s eyes deepened slightly, shaking the wine in the glass, "To rush is not a deal; if she expects the Zhao Family to pay this sum, she has to ask herself. This is no small amount of money."
Although the Zhao Family could afford it, it would require significant resources, as it nearly supported half of Yu State’s supplies.
But...
"Now each family is almost ready, yet she hasn’t raised the issue, indicating she doesn’t intend to request this money. She should have another source."
Zhao Song irritably stated, "Could she produce money out of thin air? Isn’t our Zhao Family her biggest support?"
"Don’t be too stubborn. Although the Third Lady is young and bashful, many things are hard to express. It’s better to offer her a way out gracefully. Currently, she’s the most capable in our Zhao Family. If she’s well, we can also feel more secure..."
Zhao Ming, who was self-indulging and drinking comfortably, suddenly sat up straight, his expression gradually becoming serious.
Zhao Song halted his speech, asking, "What’s wrong with you?"
With a firm grip on the wine glass, Zhao Ming said, "Father, do you think that, seeing Zhao Ji is incompetent, and the Clan Leader is aged, the elder son only resembling him is the Third Lady, would he secretly give her a large fortune?"
Implying that Zhao Changyu might have given to Zhao Hanzhang the property intended for the clan or the Clan Leader’s line.
Zhao Song reflexively denied, "Stop saying nonsense, your uncle isn’t that kind of person."
Having said that, Zhao Song seemed lacking in confidence. After a brief pause, he added, "Even if he secretly left something for the Third Lady, it’s due to her excellence."
Zhao Ming quietly gazed at his father.