Ministers Begging Me to Ascend the Throne

Chapter 548: Chapter 290: The Imperial Jade Seal_3

Moreover, before Meng Changce arrived in the capital, all the scholars near the capital came running. They filled up every guesthouse in the capital. Those who followed Meng Changce to the capital had no place to stay.

The Emperor also considered this issue. If the scholars who followed him to the capital were ignored, they would inevitably sleep on the streets, leading to chaos. Furthermore, they are scholars, the pillars of Great Zhou, and if something happened to them, it would not only damage the court’s reputation but also cause the court to lose many talents.

To properly accommodate these accompanying scholars, the Emperor arranged for them to stay in many places such as Taoist temples, monasteries, and wellness houses.

The scholars who came didn’t expect the court to thoughtfully arrange accommodation for them, and they were extremely grateful to the court.

Under the guidance of constables from the Capital Mayor and the Imperial Guard, these scholars moved into the places arranged for them by the court.

Mr. Meng, after a long journey to the capital, needed a few days of rest and was in no hurry to start lecturing.

As for the place where he would lecture, the court had also arranged it, and it wasn’t at the Imperial College. Although the Imperial College is larger than other academies, it could not accommodate all who came to hear the lectures.

The Emperor arranged for Mr. Meng to lecture on the west side of the imperial city, where there was a large open space usually used for Imperial Guard training. A stage had already been set up there, just waiting for Mr. Meng to start lecturing.

Mr. Meng, after all, was in his eighties or nineties and was indeed tired after the long journey to the capital. Under Minister Li’s arrangement, he took a good rest first.

Zhao Yao and the Eighth Prince, after watching the excitement, didn’t follow the Crown Prince back to the palace, but instead went to find He Lianfang.

He Lianfang was not at all surprised after listening to Zhao Yao detailing the grand occasion of Mr. Meng’s arrival in the capital.

"It’s natural for a genuine great scholar to have such status and influence."

"The Crown Prince wants to become Mr. Meng’s student." Zhao Yao relayed what the Crown Prince said accurately to He Lianfang.

"If the Crown Prince can become Mr. Meng’s student, then Prince Dai would be no match for him." He Lianfang said, a sarcastic look appearing on his face, "But Mr. Meng will not accept him as a student."

"Not necessarily. The Crown Prince is quite talented. Perhaps Mr. Meng will be impressed by his talent and agree to take him as a student."

He Lianfang snorted at Zhao Yao’s words: "With the Crown Prince’s little bit of talent, he shouldn’t embarrass himself in front of Mr. Meng."

"The Crown Prince is still quite talented, right?"

"Among you brothers, he is certainly the most talented, but compared to others, he falls far short." He Lianfang sneered, "Mr. Meng will not accept him as a student."

"Then the Crown Prince will be disappointed."

"By the way, I’ve heard a few things about Southern Wei." He Lianfang didn’t continue talking about Meng Changce and changed the subject to Southern Wei. "The Pei Family has some connections with Southern Wei."

"The family of the previous dynasty’s Noble Consort Pei?"

He Lianfang nodded slightly: "That’s right."

Zhao Yao, hearing this, widened his eyes in shock and said, "The Pei Family actually has connections with Southern Wei!"

He hurriedly asked, "What connection does the Pei Family have with Southern Wei?"

He Lianfang said, "Noble Consort Pei’s grandmother seems to be from Southern Wei."

Zhao Yao suddenly realized the reason for the extermination of the Pei Family and said with a face full of shock, "The reason the Pei Family was exterminated might not just be due to being framed by the Yuan Family, but also related to their connections with Southern Wei?"

He Lianfang had thought of this too: "It should have something to do with it, but the fact that Noble Consort Pei’s grandmother was from Southern Wei was a deeply hidden secret, known by very few."

Zhao Yao became increasingly curious about Southern Wei: "What did the Southern Wei people do that made the previous dynasty’s emperor hate them so much?" Historical records indicate that Southern Wei once surrendered entirely to the previous dynasty. Afterward, Southern Wei became a part of the previous dynasty. The previous dynasty gave Southern Dynasty a fief, and conferred the then-leader of Southern Wei as a king of different surname. Later, the Southern Wei people were all killed. What happened in between, history has no record of.

"It should be related to the Jade Seal."

"The Jade Seal?" Zhao Yao was shocked, "What Jade Seal?"

"The Imperial Jade Seal."

"The Imperial Jade Seal?" Zhao Yao didn’t understand, "Isn’t the Jade Seal in my father’s hands?"

"The Jade Seal in your father’s hands is not the Imperial Jade Seal but the Great Zhou Jade Seal crafted upon your grandfather’s order," He Lianfang said, "The Imperial Jade Seal was lost during the Chen Dynasty, and it was said to have been misplaced during a tumultuous time in the Chen Dynasty and hasn’t been found since then."

Zhao Yao was very shocked to hear this for the first time.

"So, the seal my father is using now is not the Imperial Jade Seal."

"No, the real Imperial Jade Seal has been lost for a long time and has not been found over all these years."

"What does the Imperial Jade Seal have to do with Southern Wei?"

"It’s rumored that during the Chen Dynasty’s war chaos, the Imperial Jade Seal was picked up by someone, and this person used the Imperial Jade Seal to establish Southern Wei." He Lianfang continued, "Southern Wei was a small country. The previous dynasty intended to conquer Southern Wei. Southern Wei, unable to defeat the previous dynasty, surrendered with the Imperial Jade Seal. The previous dynasty agreed to Southern Wei’s surrender and did not harm Southern Wei’s people, even granting Southern Wei a fief and letting the Southern Wei king continue to govern the Southern Wei people."

Zhao Yao astutely identified the key point: "So, the reason for the extermination of Southern Wei could very likely be that Southern Wei did not keep their promise and hand over the Imperial Jade Seal to the previous dynasty."

"Very likely," He Lianfang said, "The previous dynasty indeed did not acquire the Imperial Jade Seal."

"Southern Wei would not dare not to give the Imperial Jade Seal to the previous dynasty, especially since they had already surrendered." Zhao Yao detected a problem, "The Southern Wei king knew that if they did not give up the Imperial Jade Seal, they would be doomed. I guess the Imperial Jade Seal was stolen, leading to a situation where the Southern Wei king could not account to the previous dynasty."

Wait, years ago, Han Zhong sent people to the Pei Mansion looking for something. Could it be that the thing was the Imperial Jade Seal?

"I think so too," He Lianfang agreed.

Zhao Yao thought of Wuwei and then the Yuan Family colluding with the Xiongnu, having a guess in his heart.

"Second uncle, do you think the Imperial Jade Seal could be in Wuwei’s hands, or in the hands of the Yuan Family?" If the Imperial Jade Seal is in Wuwei’s hands, maybe Wuwei has given it to the Eighth Prince. If it’s not with Wuwei, then it could very well be in the Yuan Family’s hands. The Yuan Family was dealing with the Xiongnu during the previous dynasty’s affair and might have had something to do with the Imperial Jade Seal.

"It could be in Wuwei’s hands; they have the Imperial Jade Seal and want to reestablish Southern Wei." He Lianfang speculated, "It’s unlikely to be in the Yuan Family’s hands. If it were in the Yuan Family’s hands, the Yuan Family would have rebelled and declared themselves emperor long ago."

"Then it could very likely be in Wuwei’s hands." In this context, the Imperial Jade Seal is in the hands of the Eighth Prince. With the Imperial Jade Seal, the Eighth Prince could rightfully ascend to the throne in the future.

He Lianfang alluringly asked, "Want to grab it?"

Zhao Yao without thinking said, "No, why would I want to grab it." He said this with a disdainful expression on his face, "It’s useless to me and rather a hot potato, likely to bring me fatal disaster."

"Even if you don’t want it, it should return to Great Zhou." He Lianfang had already guessed Zhao Yao would say this, "Leaving the Imperial Jade Seal in the hands of the Southern Wei people isn’t a good thing. Once Southern Wei’s strength grows, the Southern Wei people might rebel."

"Second uncle, how do we grab it, go directly to the Xiongnu to take it from Wuwei?" Zhao Yao said, "They certainly won’t give it up and would rather die than reveal the whereabouts of the Imperial Jade Seal." The Imperial Jade Seal is in the hands of the Eighth Prince, how would he grab it. "Besides, it’s not even sure whether it’s in Wuwei’s hands or not; it’s better to continue investigating Southern Wei’s affairs first." He had to dissuade his uncle from the idea of seizing the Imperial Jade Seal.