Song Chengru hadn’t seen what that letter actually looked like, but he heard Song Chuyi recite its contents word for word. He never dreamed that Zhang Tianhe, who had sworn so earnestly back then to guard the borders well and benefit the common people, had become such an insatiably greedy figure. His goatee twitched as his earlier anger transformed into a cold laugh. Indeed, one becomes like those they associate with—having stayed in that northwestern territory for so long, watching others eat fragrant dishes and drink fine liquor, wearing thick fur cloaks and fur-trimmed capes, adorned with strings of huge pearls and gemstones, he had cast all other principles of governance behind him.
His moment of reflection lasted only an instant before he immediately recalled that extremely realistic problem at hand. If Zhang Tianhe as the Northwest Governor-General was in league with that group, then constraining and undermining Cui Shaoting as the Three Borders Commander-in-Chief was truly a very easy matter. No wonder there had been no news from Cui Shaoting all this time.
This group had silently woven a thick net behind the Cui clan. Once touched, one would be tightly entangled by these threads until one’s vital essence scattered and became a dried corpse. If not for Lai Chenglong passing along word this time, and if Song Chuyi wasn’t naturally so quick-witted, then at this very moment that blade hanging overhead would probably have already severed the heads of their entire clan. He felt somewhat afraid in retrospect. Such were the struggles of officialdom—usually calm and silent on the surface, but at critical moments someone would strike from behind. A single memorial could potentially bury the lives of nine generations of your family. But even more than fear came a surging wave of anger. He thought that having finally escaped from under the claws of a hungry wolf like Prince Duan, they should at least be able to pass through a period of peace and calm. But unexpectedly the tree wished for stillness while the wind would not cease—when the Chen family calculated against the Cui clan, they didn’t forget to deal with him as well, someone the Eastern Palace was currently trying to win over.
No one was truly a clay bodhisattva, and moreover even a bodhisattva would be angered to illness by these people. He thought it over and told Song Chuyi his plan: “Tonight I’ll discuss with your uncle and find someone trustworthy to rush to the northwest overnight to remind Shaoting he absolutely must not submit that memorial agreeing with Yang Xuan’s trade market proposal, and also warn him that the Chen family is colluding with Yang Xuan.”
This would originally have been a good method, but placed in the current situation it wouldn’t work. Because the Song and Cui families had long been watched closely, even the most reliable person sent out wouldn’t be reliable—before he even reached the northwest he would already be forced to death by the layers of checkpoints on the northwestern side. Moreover, Elder Chen was such a cautious person in handling matters that he had certainly planted assassins along the route as well.
“No, Grandfather.” Song Chuyi raised her voice to stop Song Chengru: “I have another way to contact Uncle.”
Song Chengru had always known his granddaughter’s capabilities. Even someone like Lai Chenglong, that killer deity of the Imperial Guard, could pass messages to her. When she said she could reestablish contact with Cui Shaoting who had long been out of communication, he wasn’t very surprised.
“But this memorial still must be submitted as usual.” Song Chuyi’s tone was flat and steady. When speaking of this matter she no longer had the panic of several days ago, but rather carried an almost imperceptible trace of confidence: “I will notify Uncle to submit the memorial as usual, but only two people can see this memorial—you and Chief Grand Secretary Chang. And the one who submits the memorial to His Majesty can only be Chief Grand Secretary Chang. Can you help me with this favor?”
Song Chengru immediately understood his granddaughter’s meaning. She wanted Cui Shaoting to submit a memorial, but naturally the content of this memorial wouldn’t be about the trade market—rather it would impeach Zhang Tianhe for colluding with external threats and embezzling military provisions. That letter would also be included as evidence in the memorial!
But this also required them to have someone in the Grand Secretariat who could ensure this memorial would ultimately reach Emperor Jianzhang’s hands.
Therefore both Song Chengru and Chief Grand Secretary Chang were indispensable key links in the chain—only if the two of them joined forces could they bypass Elder Chen as the Secondary Grand Secretary and send up this fatal memorial. Then Emperor Jianzhang would unveil this gorgeous robe of the northwest that was already crawling with lice, and shake out all these shameful secrets.
And given that the Song family and the Cui clan were related by marriage, Song Chengru naturally should best avoid suspicion and just play a supporting role. The urgent priority was still to persuade Chief Grand Secretary Chang, but Chief Grand Secretary Chang wasn’t so hard to persuade. Although Zhang Tianhe had been recommended by him, Cui Shaoting had also been promoted by him. Zhang Tianhe’s wolfish ambitions were now completely obvious—if the northwest truly had some incident because of his embezzlement of military provisions and it was exposed, then Chief Grand Secretary Chang would truly become a historic sinner for the ages. If he now joined forces with Cui Shaoting, he could still gain a reputation for being upright and unyielding.
Chief Grand Secretary Chang certainly wanted to return to his hometown in peace and honor. This favor—he would help.
Song Chengru once again lamented that Song Chuyi wasn’t male. Otherwise with her and Song Jue, what would the Song family need to talk about withdrawing or extricating themselves? They could at least preserve the family’s glory and wealth for two or three more generations.
He looked at Song Chuyi and slowly nodded: “I’ll have Yingshu go speak with Chief Grand Secretary Chang. Starting tomorrow, when memorials from the northwest are sent, I’ll handle transcribing them first before passing them to Chief Grand Secretary Chang, who will then present them to His Majesty.”
This way, with Elder Du and Elder Chen removed from the middle process, they would have great room to maneuver.
But how to make Elder Chen willingly not interfere was another troublesome matter. This old fox, like Song Chengru, had mixed in these circles for many years and had long since mastered the art to perfection. He could smell out even the slightest thing amiss at the first opportunity.
Song Chengru frowned in thought for a while, then suddenly clapped his hands together and laughed: “How could I forget Wang Ying who’s right before our eyes?”
Song Chuyi didn’t react at first, but after a long moment understood Old Master Song’s meaning. Elder Chen supervised the Censorate, and Wang Ying was both Fang Xiaoru’s relative by marriage and thus Elder Chen’s confidant. If they gave Wang Ying another copy of Cui Shaoting’s memorial to transcribe, Wang Ying this informant would naturally dutifully and conscientiously go report to Elder Chen and Fang Xiaoru. At that time when Elder Chen this old fox knew the content of Cui Shaoting’s memorial, he would instead need to avoid suspicion. Given his personality, he would very likely just silently watch from the side as Chief Grand Secretary Chang submitted the memorial.
“But Wang Ying also isn’t someone easily fooled. This matter will probably require Li Ru to act.” Song Chuyi recalled what Old Master Song had mentioned before about Wang Ying and Li Ru having a good relationship, and said: “Have Li Ru go and say that while transcribing official documents, he heard about Cui Shaoting’s memorial and felt the trade market was a measure beneficial to the nation and people. Then you find a way to assign the task of transcribing my uncle’s memorial to Wang Ying—he’ll definitely believe it without doubt.”
Li Ru and Wang Ying were from the same hometown. He had never really shown closeness to Song Chengru, which gave him a natural advantage—he truly was the best choice. Old Master Song stroked his beard and nodded.