Although Wei Tingyu, the son-in-law, is the next Marquis of Pingyang, there are many people who have titles but no real power. He has real power in his hands, and he has crossed the lines of civil and military affairs. Maybe he is just paving the way for his future. After all, Wei Tingyu seems to be on the path of a civil servant. He is only in his twenties, but he has reached the second rank. Even if it is just an honorary title, this is not a new dynasty. No matter how capable the young officials are, they cannot climb so fast. So the emergence of Wei Tingyu is so incredible.
Even though many people think that he was in power because of Princess Anguo - and in fact, the factor of Xiaocao was indeed involved - they have to admit that if he didn't have real ability, Emperor Xuanren would not have used him, let alone given him such great power.
Wei Tingyu had indeed done a great job in his previous assignments, and his contribution in the northern border this time was recognized by everyone in the Dingbei Army, so even if they were envious and jealous, they could only watch silently.
It's just that those who are also princes-in-law are not so easy to think open-mindedly. They don't think they are incompetent, but only think that the identity of a prince-in-law has ruined their own future, and then blame their own princesses for being useless. As long as they can be noticed by the emperor, he will definitely break the rules to promote them and will not stick to any rules. Therefore, many "family wars" have broken out. After today, it may become more serious and it is only a matter of time before it reaches Emperor Xuanren.
Once the rule that the prince consort cannot enter officialdom is broken, the royal princesses will become truly the most noble ladies. In the future, they can choose outstanding men as their husbands instead of choosing a barely better one from among those ugly ones.
Of course, this is all in the future.
The reward for Mu Bei was placed before Xiao Cao. Logically, as the commander of the Dingbei Army, Mu Bei should have been the last. However, no one was dissatisfied with this. The generals who followed them were still thinking that it was good enough if the merits and demerits could offset each other. Now that there were rewards, they could put their minds at ease.
Mu Bei didn't care about this. There was such a big hidden danger in the Dingbei Army, but he failed to notice it. It was indeed a huge failure of supervision. Fortunately, Princess Anguo returned safely without any injury, otherwise, he would have felt guilty for the rest of his life.
In the current situation, has the Mu family completed its mission of guarding the northern border? The Dingbei Army can continue to exist, so there is no need for the Mu family to be the commander of the Dingbei Army? Even if the emperor trusts them, it does not mean that others will not take action against the Mu family out of fear or jealousy? Especially since the overall situation has been determined, the Mu family is not that important anymore? If others want to scheme against them, it is estimated that there will be fewer people who will do so.
—In fact, apart from the mistakes made by the Dingbei Army, it is actually a good thing for the Mu family. If it were not for this big mistake, then after the battle against Liuqi, Mu Bei's reputation would have reached its peak. He would be truly more powerful than his master, and Emperor Xuanren would trust him. For the sake of the overall situation, the Dingbei County Prince's Mansion would have to remain silent.
Mu Bei did not accept the reward immediately, but apologized again - but he did not mention the result that led to Xiaocao's capture - he felt that he did not deserve the reward.
"Merits are merits, faults are faults. In this battle against Liuqi, everyone else was rewarded, but you, the commander-in-chief, received no rewards. How is that?" Emperor Xuanren spoke up and refuted it directly.
The rewards given to Mu Bei were relatively small. After all, he was the only king of a different surname and a first-rank governor. He had no more titles to offer, so all he was given were in-kind things. The Mu family had few members, so there was no way to extend the favor to other people.
Seeing this, Mu Bei did not delay any longer, but requested to resign from the position of commander of the Dingbei Army. If there was a need in the future, he, Mu Bei, would take to the battlefield without any shirking, but if there was no need, he would never set foot in the Northern Frontier again in his life.
The generals who came back with him had been informed by him before, and although they felt a little strange at the moment, they did not show it.
Emperor Xuanren slowly twisted the beads in his hand, "Has the Prince of Dingbei made up his mind?"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Now that the mission has been accomplished, it is better to retreat when it is time to do so. What's more, the Northern Frontier is the Mu family's glorious place, but also their sad place. According to the old empress dowager's idea, the Mu family only has this one child left, and it would be best for them to stay in the imperial city, even if they can no longer continue the glory of the Dingbei County Prince's Mansion.
"In that case, it's settled."
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Mu Bei breathed a sigh of relief. Now that the emperor had agreed, their Dingbei County Prince's Mansion was completely stable.
Some people can see it clearly, but some people also feel that the emperor is afraid of Mu Bei. Those who were originally eager to arrange a marriage for Mu Bei, suppressed their thoughts, and felt that they needed to think about it again. However, they forgot that Mu Bei had only resigned as the commander of the Dingbei Army. The palace was still there, and the governor was still there. If he took a fancy to a girl, it would not be difficult to ask the emperor for an imperial decree to grant marriage. Therefore, the initiative was never in their hands.
All the previous ones are over, and finally it’s the grass’ turn.
Speaking of the reward for Xiaocao is also a headache. As for her (tā) now, she is almost at the end of her rope. Her husband has a high status, and so does her natal family. Moreover, it is not easy for her natal family to show their rewards openly, so they can only give her convenience at other times. Therefore, in addition to the regular rewards, a house and a farm were added, as well as an annual salary of three thousand stones. This is definitely more than that of Prince Duan, making Xiaocao's wallet fatter and fatter. Unless she meets a super prodigal son, she can afford to support him for several generations.
In addition, all the children who were still unborn were pulled out. In the future, the eldest daughter would be a princess when she was born, and the eldest son would be another "Little Lord Wei". Now the title of Marquis Pingyang could be reserved for the second son.
Not to mention others, even Xiaocao was a little confused. Isn't this a bit outrageous
Emperor Xuanren didn't give Xiaocao any chance to refuse. He gave it to her if he wanted to, and others had to hold it in even if they were not satisfied.
It has been said in the past that Emperor Xuanren was not a person who favored younger generations, but now, when he did, he was simply not a human being.
—When it comes to the emperor’s favor, who can compete with Princess Anguo? !
The only thing to be thankful for is that she is a princess, and a princess of a different surname, and she is not affiliated with any prince, so she maintains a good neutral situation. It was impossible to win her over before, and it will be even more impossible in the future. Therefore, it is better to maintain a good relationship with her and let her remain neutral.
After experiencing indignation time and time again, I have become numb now. I can't do anything about her. No matter what, I am the one who is depressed. It has no effect on her at all. If I make friends with her, maybe I can get some benefits.