Mortal Mage

"Does General Guo know the details of the Prince's Party?" Zhang Mingxuan continued to ask.

"It's a long story, Master Zhang. I can only tell you some public things." Guo Zhuoran thought for a long time and then said, "The current queen is not the biological mother of Crown Prince Li Jing. The biological mother of the crown prince was executed by order of His Majesty himself."

"But I don't know why. The rumors in the palace are not to be trusted." He took a sip of tea and continued; "Your Majesty was the one who appointed the crown prince. For unknown reasons, the queen was executed the next day. The imperial edict was issued the next day, saying that the queen was guilty of treason and deceiving the emperor."

"Some things are just rumors and can't be taken seriously."

"In fact, if the queen committed a heinous crime, your majesty could have the Imperial Guard secretly poison her to death and then declare her dead from illness. Your majesty's behavior is very abnormal. I'm sure Lord Zhang has also experienced the power of the prince's party. Among the six ministries in the court, except for the Ministry of Revenue, the Imperial Guard, and our Feathered Guard, the other five ministers are all members of the prince's party."

Guo Zhuoran stood up, opened the door, looked around, then closed the door and sat for a while.

He knew the scope and time of the daily patrols and investigations of the Feather Guards in the city, but he felt a little nervous after hearing so much about it. "We, the Feather Guards, have reported this matter to His Majesty many times, but as long as the Crown Prince does not interfere with the Ministry of Revenue, the Feather Guards, and the Attendant Bureau, His Majesty will not interfere with the Crown Prince's behavior."

He paused and continued, "The Ministry of Revenue not only controls money and grain, but also a large amount of spiritual stones."

"We have two salaries for the Feathered Guards. One is publicly received from the Ministry of Revenue, and the other is received from the Attendant Bureau."

"Your Majesty did this for three reasons. The first is to let the world know that the Attendant Bureau is under the jurisdiction of the six ministries, not the emperor's lackeys. The second is that the money and food of the Attendant Bureau cannot support such a large organization as the Feathered Guard. The third is to transfer some money from the Ministry of Revenue to the Attendant Bureau."

"My grandfather told me about it when Zeng Xigong was a captain." Then he thought of something else and continued, "Do you know how old Shangshu Wang Mingde is?"

"Oh? Could it be that Minister Wang's age is also a secret?"

Zhang Mingxuan thought that there were all kinds of secrets in the palace, but he was more concerned about the path of cultivation. If there was a problem with Wang Mingde's age, then the royal family of the Taicang Empire might have a big problem.

"Master Zhang, each of these things is punishable by death. I have told you, Master Zhang, and you just need to know it. If I get into trouble in the court in the future, I hope you can protect me."

Guo Zhuoran wants a promise from Zhang Mingxuan.

Even if not, he needed Zhang Ming to understand that he owed him a huge favor.

"If General Guo is in trouble, don't force it."

Zhang Mingxuan's face was solemn as he responded slowly.

There is no need to harm the general for some insignificant secret. It is best if he knows something, but it is fine if he doesn't know.

"Master Zhang, you don't know our difficulties. My grandfather and father were framed because they stubbornly guarded the royal secrets. Until their death, no official was willing to advise our family, so our family fell into this state." Guo Zhuoran sighed, his eyes slightly red. "Over the years, the power of the prince's party in the court has become increasingly powerful. In fact, our secret lines in various departments have secretly rebelled. Many of the small flags of the Feather Guards have dual identities of the prince's party and the Feather Guards. The number of people is huge and chaotic, and it is difficult to make a decision. Therefore, Qianhu suppressed it and did not inform Your Majesty. However, it can be suppressed for a while, but not forever. If Your Majesty knew that the Feather Guards were bribed by the prince's party, I am afraid that the Feather Guards would be massacred."

"Your Majesty allowed the Crown Prince to control the Five Departments and used the Feathered Guards to check and balance the Crown Prince's party. Why is this?"

Zhang Mingxuan understood but could not understand why the emperor would do such a thing as taking off his pants to fart.

"How can we guess what your majesty is thinking? Besides, Lord Mingde, the Prince of the Ministry of Revenue, is not ninety years old, but probably twice ninety years old now!"

"What! How is this possible? If he is one hundred and eighty years old, such a thing cannot be hidden!" Zhang Mingxuan's face turned pale and he cried out in shock.

He picked up the tea and gulped down two mouthfuls.

"Master Zhang, how would you know as a new official? This Wang Mingde was not originally called Wang Mingde. Ninety years ago, he held a fake funeral and then worked in the Ministry of Revenue as his son Wang Mingde. During his tenure, he did not attend court, entertain guests, or go out."

"Thirty years ago, because an official leaked the secrets of cultivating immortals in the palace, His Majesty executed a large number of high-ranking officials in the court. After that, the Grand Secretaries and the Cabinet in the palace were all appointed from other places. They didn't know the specifics of the Minister of Revenue, and this old man rarely interacted with people." Guo Zhuoran continued to explain; "These new officials in the court don't know the identity of this old man! And most of the old officials in the court are His Majesty's confidants in the palace, so if I don't tell you, I'm afraid Lord Zhang will be kept in the dark."

"So, Mr. Zhang, now that I have told you all these things and you have listened to me, I have three requests to make."

"Mr. Guo, please go ahead." Zhang Mingxuan replied with a frown.

"First, Wang Han is my cousin, and he will need to rely on you more in the palace in the future. Second, although I am a general flag, I have offended many officials in recent years. I hope that Lord Zhang can help me deal with them in the future, but I don't have much money, so I'm afraid that Lord Zhang will need to spend more time on it." Guo Zhuoran pinched his nose, thought for a long time, and then continued tentatively; "Finally, Guo hopes that if Lord Zhang really encounters a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity in the future, please help me!"

"Mr. Guo, I agree to everything you said."

Of these things, Zhang Mingxuan can probably only do the first one right now, and he can't guarantee the other two.

But General Guo was just making a request, and he had no reason to refuse.

"Thank you, Master Zhang!"