Chapter 81

Having quietly listened all along, Zhao Hongrun silently left the Chui Gong Hall and stood on the steps outside, summoning the Zongwei Shen Yu and others who were waiting outside the hall.

"Shen Yu, you and the others go to the Ting Feng Pavilion and inform my brother Hongxuan. I will temporarily borrow his Zongwei, Zhang Ao, Li Meng, and others."

The Zhang Ao, Li Meng, and others he mentioned were the Zongwei of his younger brother, the ninth prince, Hongxuan.

"Yes." Although Shen Yu was puzzled, he still nodded in agreement: "What does Your Highness intend to do?"

Zhao Hongrun thought for a moment, then whispered to Shen Yu: "After borrowing Zhang Ao, Li Meng, and others, you and the others go to the Shang Gong Bureau..." As he spoke, he detailed his plan to Shen Yu.

"Eh?" Shen Yu's face showed a look of shock and bewilderment, as if he had realized something but could not believe it: "Your Highness, you are..."

"Go, and return quickly."

"Yes."

After dismissing Shen Yu and the other Zongwei, Zhao Hongrun returned to the Chui Gong Hall and continued to sit in the listening position, listening to the ministers inside discussing their strategies.

He could hardly believe that even though the State of Chu had invaded the State of Wei, these ministers were still thinking about seeking peace.

Indeed, it was undeniable that the State of Wei's national strength was inferior to that of Chu. If they were to get involved in a war with Chu, it was highly likely that the State of Han would take advantage of the situation. This would be like driving away a tiger from the front yard only to have a wolf enter the back yard. It would be better to negotiate with the tiger, giving it a piece of meat to send it away, so as to conserve strength to prevent the wolf from entering the back yard.

This line of thinking was not wrong, but what Zhao Hongrun found regrettable was that none of the ministers believed that they could drive away the tiger from the front yard and also prevent the wolf from entering the back yard.

In short, these ministers lacked courage.

They wanted to fight, but not to provoke the Chu army... It was laughable to think that such a difficult requirement could be fulfilled by the soldiers on the front lines.

What made Zhao Hongrun even more speechless was that the Minister of War, Li Yu, proposed fighting with the purpose of subsequently seeking peace, merely as a means to show their stance and intentions.

In short, it was purely a political maneuver.

What Zhao Hongrun could not accept was that the Minister of War, Li Yu, even suggested marrying Princess Yulong to Chu as a breakthrough for seeking peace with Chu.

For this, Zhao Hongrun only wanted to say three words to that guy: "Go to hell!"

However, he did not immediately react, because to convince these ministers, he needed to use some props.

After about half an hour, Zongwei Shen Yu stood outside the hall and coughed twice, signaling Zhao Hongrun.

Are the things here? It's time for me to make my move.

Under the surprised gaze of the grand eunuch Tong Xian, Zhao Hongrun straightened his clothes.

This rascal...

The Emperor of Wei had clearly noticed the abnormal behavior of this son.

In fact, the Emperor often paid attention to this eighth son, wanting to see if he would raise objections, but to his surprise, even when the Minister of War, Li Yu, proposed a marriage alliance, using the marriage of Princess Yulong as a breakthrough for seeking peace with Chu, Zhao Hongrun still did not express any opposition.

When something is abnormal, it must be strange!

The Emperor of Wei could imagine that this son, who had a bad temper and high intelligence, was definitely plotting something.

"Hongrun, do you have any unique insights?" the Emperor of Wei could not help but ask.

The hall immediately fell silent, and all the ministers turned to look at Zhao Hongrun, the listening prince.

Although due to the incident at the Wende Hall on the Duanwu Festival, the court had gradually come to know the abilities of this prince, knowing that he was a prince who could make the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace look bad, this was only the second time they had truly interacted with him up close.

Moreover, whether it was the last time or this time, this Eighth Prince had always just sat on the side and listened, never expressing his own opinions, so they were somewhat puzzled: This prince doesn't seem like the type who could make the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace suffer.

"Is Father asking this prince?" Zhao Hongrun pointed to himself, feigning innocence.

However, the Emperor would not be fooled by his innocent act and said coolly, "Don't talk nonsense. I just want to know what you think about the results of the ministers' discussions."

"What results have the ministers reached?" Zhao Hongrun still feigned ignorance and asked.

The Emperor frowned and glanced at the Minister of War, Li Yu. Although Li Yu was somewhat confused, he understood the Emperor's gaze and explained to Zhao Hongrun again in a low voice.

"Ah, I see." Zhao Hongrun nodded as if he had suddenly understood and said with a smile, "Marriage alliance, ceding territory, paying indemnity, and seeking peace? Is that it?"

...

The faces of the ministers looked somewhat strange. Although they knew that the prince had summarized the situation very succinctly, saying it so bluntly was too much of a mood killer.

The Minister of War, Li Yu, a man in his fifties, had his face turn red with embarrassment and explained awkwardly, "Your Highness misunderstands. It's not just about seeking peace, but also about maintaining good relations with Chu to prevent Han from taking advantage of the situation..."

However, before he could finish, he was interrupted by Zhao Hongrun.

"Minister Li has a good temper."

...

The ministers looked at each other, not understanding why Zhao Hongrun would say such an irrelevant thing.

The Minister of War, Li Yu, was also taken aback and said with a dry laugh, "Thank you, Your Highness, for your praise."

Zhao Hongrun smiled and said approvingly, "Do well. I believe under Minister Li's leadership, the Ministry of Rites will achieve even more."

"..." Hearing Zhao Hongrun's words, the ministers were even more confused.

And Li Yu also had a puzzled look on his face, "Your Highness, I am the Minister of War, and the Minister of Rites is Minister She You..."

"Ah?" Zhao Hongrun's eyes widened in exaggerated surprise, and he said in disbelief, "This... Aren't the officials of the Ministry of War supposed to be the most courageous in our state?"

The face of the Minister of War, Li Yu, changed slightly, and the expressions of the other ministers in the hall also became somewhat strange.

They realized that Zhao Hongrun was deliberately criticizing the Ministry of War for lacking courage and not being worthy of leading the military of the State of Wei.

However, the Minister of Rites, She You, who was innocently implicated, felt a bit uncomfortable, thinking, "Why should the officials of the Ministry of Rites be considered lacking in courage?"

After all, he had initially also advocated declaring war on Chu, but due to a lack of confidence, he was silenced by the Minister of War, Li Yu.

This rascal...

Seeing Zhao Hongrun publicly humiliate a key minister, the Emperor of Wei shook his head speechlessly and said, "Hongrun, don't be disrespectful!... What do you think about this matter?"

Zhao Hongrun smiled and said, "Opinion? I think it's great. Congratulations to Father and all the ministers for protecting our state from the aggression of a powerful enemy. ... If marrying a woman can make the powerful Chu retreat, why not? Right? ... Oh, I forgot, there's also the ceding of territory and paying indemnity... Tsk tsk tsk!"

...

The ministers in the hall remained silent, as even a fool could hear the sarcasm in Zhao Hongrun's words.

"What do you really want to say?" the Emperor said impatiently.

Zhao Hongrun smiled slightly and said, "Father, I am speaking from the heart. I sincerely congratulate our state for avoiding war... For this, I have prepared a special gift for Father and all the ministers."

"Gift?" A look of confusion flashed across the Emperor's face.

Seeing this, Zhao Hongrun clapped his hands and called out, "Shen Yu, come in."

Zongwei Shen Yu entered the Chui Gong Hall and bowed to the Emperor, the ministers, and his own prince.

At this moment, Zhao Hongrun pointed to several ministers in the hall and said with a smile, "Shen Yu, give the gifts to these ministers and to Father."

Shen Yu nodded and went out. Soon, he returned with several Zongwei carrying exquisite boxes, placing the so-called gifts in front of each minister Zhao Hongrun had pointed to, including the Emperor's desk.

These people...

The Left Chancellor of the Secretariat, Lin Yuyang, and the Right Chancellor, Yu Ziqi, exchanged glances, both feeling secretly alarmed, as those who received the gifts from the Eighth Prince were all those who had supported seeking peace with Chu.

Similarly, the other ministers, realizing this, gradually became more and more uneasy. Even those who received Zhao Hongrun's gifts did not dare to open them immediately.

"What gift?"

The Emperor muttered, curiously calling for Tong Xian to open the box.

Tong Xian walked to the Emperor's desk, bowed, and opened the box, curiously looking inside.

However, what he saw made him drop the lid of the box onto the desk in shock.

Inside the exquisite wooden box was a piece of women's clothing!

"Disrespectful!"

The Emperor was instantly furious: "How dare you insult me like this?!"

"No, Father, this is not an insult, but a sincere gift. I congratulate Father for using the brilliant strategies of marriage alliance, ceding territory, paying indemnity, and seeking peace to deal with Chu's aggression against our state... even after they have occupied our land and killed our people."

As if oblivious to the Emperor's anger, Zhao Hongrun slowly said, his tone full of sarcasm.

"From my perspective, it seems like Chu has slapped Father in the face, and Father has to smile and apologize... Hmph, entrusting the fate of a nation to a marriage alliance, in my view, this is very fitting for Father!"

"You!" The Emperor's face turned livid with anger.

However, at this moment, Zhao Hongrun did not look at the Emperor but turned and sternly ordered, "Bring them all in!"

Following his command, twenty Zongwei entered the Chui Gong Hall one after another, carrying the wooden boxes and stacking them up.

At this moment, Zhao Hongrun scanned the ministers in the hall and said coldly, "Is there any other minister who wants this gift from me?!"

"..."

The ministers looked at the wooden boxes on the Emperor's desk and the women's clothing inside, exchanging glances, and no one dared to speak.

The ministers who had already received Zhao Hongrun's "gift" looked as if they had lost a loved one, staring at the exquisite wooden boxes in front of them, not daring to open them.

ps: I have to attend a wedding tonight, so I'm posting both chapters now.

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