After Hou Shu belonged to the Northern Song Dynasty, except for the various titles and rituals that were lowered by a grade, there were no obvious changes in Shuzhou in other aspects. Meng Chang and his ministers still maintained the practice of daily deliberations.

On this day, Meng Chang sat on the top of the hall to discuss with the ministers in the robe of the Nine Dragons Pan Pattern as usual, and when it was about to end, Xu Kuangzhang and Xu Kuangyu gave each other a look, and the two of them stood up together and bowed their hands and said: "Lord, the old minister has something to do!" Please also ask the prince to be fulfilled. ”

"Oh? Tell me what's going on. Meng Chang saw that his father-in-law rarely had something to ask for him, so he hurriedly asked.

Xu Kuangzhang and Xu Kuangyu brothers are both literate and martial, originally held important positions in the court, and Meng Chang's Yue family, the strength is very outstanding, but both of them are very low-key, although they are high but do not seize power, they can stand up when Shu is in trouble, unite the ministers to go to the national disaster, and after Shu is too peaceful, they have asked for their own positions, and they have advanced and retreated, which is respectable and admirable, and the reputation of the court is particularly good.

The two of them usually never talked about anything together in public, but this time they stood up at the same time, and all the courtiers in the council suddenly opened their ears, expecting that what they were about to say must be something extraordinary.

"Lord Wang, what our two brothers are playing today is for the affairs of the prince of the palace!"

Sure enough, as soon as they spoke, someone gasped and showed a clear expression.

The so-called high morality is nothing more than that! It's just that it doesn't infringe on its own interests. If it touches your own vital interests, aren't your faces the same thick? Some people thought of this directly in their hearts, and even put a look of disdain on their faces.

People in the whole Shu land, who doesn't know that the prince has always been affectionate and righteous to the princess, and loves and respects him? The eldest prince Meng Xuanzhe captured Zhao Guangyi, the king of Jin, and made great contributions to Shu. But until now, he can't be established as the prince, isn't it because the princess just gave birth to a son not long ago, and the prince loves the house and Wu, so he is a little eccentric? Everyone felt aggrieved for the eldest prince, and the princess and the Xu family had always had a good image, and they had also made a lot of contributions to Shudi, so everyone invariably chose to remain silent on this matter.

Unexpectedly, the Xu brothers actually stood up and found out about this matter by themselves. Are they so eager? Didn't the eldest prince decide to stay away from the court? The other princes are not very competitive, and this palace will not be inherited by their grandchildren in the future? What are they doing in such a hurry?

In an instant, all the courtiers in the palace had these thoughts in their hearts. Someone even stood up directly and said to Meng Chang: "Lord Wang, I'm afraid this is inappropriate, right?" ”

"Eh~ It's a bit ......" Meng Chang also thought of this. Although he originally intended to let Rui'er and his son Ah Bao inherit his throne, he also felt sorry for his eldest son, so he hesitated and did not make a final decision. Now that the people of the father-in-law's family have directly picked out this matter, he didn't think about it so much, but he just felt that it was not a good time to do that thing, so he deliberately vaguely past.

"Lord, the matter of the prince should not be delayed, please allow the old minister to finish his words!" Xu Kuangzhang and Xu Kuangyu insisted on talking.

Originally, in the eyes of others, this was the prince stepping down the steps for the Xu family brothers, but these two old ministers, who seemed to be so knowledgeable about the overall situation on weekdays, actually made a mistake in this matter. Suddenly, someone felt that they didn't know how to lift up. The eldest prince has already given in, do they have to be so aggressive?

Xu Kuangzhang and Xu Kuangyu didn't care what others thought, they tidied up their clothes, and then knelt on the ground together, and asked Meng Chang in unison: "Lord, please make the eldest prince Meng Xuanzhe the prince!" ”

What the? Didn't they do it all for their grandchildren? Everyone in the hall was dumbfounded.

"I didn't hear clearly, you say it again." Meng Chang thought he had misheard.

"Please make the eldest prince Meng Xuanzhe the prince!" The loud voices of Xu Kuangzhang and Xu Kuangyu entered everyone's eardrums, making everyone wake up from the shock just now.

Meng Chang frowned and looked at the two old men kneeling under His Highness, thinking that Rui'er had just called them into the palace for a reunion a few days ago, and it was impossible for them to do this for no reason. Either way, they couldn't have done anything bad to Rui'er and Po. Could it be that they are like this today because this is what Rui'er meant? Why did Rui let them do this? Isn't it...... Was she coerced in some way?

Thinking of his eldest son, Meng Chang knew that he had always been ambitious. Meng Chang knew that he was a little biased, but because of this, did Xuan Zhe threaten his nominal concubine? Did he do such a thing for the sake of power?

Meng Chang's face was covered with dark clouds.

"Why?" He asked solemnly.

"Back to the prince, because Shu is now at an important turning point, the people of Shu need an adult, good enough, and prestigious son to enhance their confidence in the future, and the prince also needs reliable people who can help you stabilize the situation." Brothers Xu Kuangzhang and Xu Kuangyu replied calmly.

"Is that all there is to it?"

"Yes!"

Meng Chang frowned and looked at them for a while, then said, "Okay, get up!" The son of the world should not stand lightly, let the king think again. ”

Meng Chang decided to go back and quickly ask Rui'er what was going on. But at this moment, he heard the shrill voice of the chamberlain.

"The princess has arrived!"

Xu Rui wore a formal suit today, held the child in her arms, and walked in from outside the palace gate in full view of everyone.

She walked to the position where Meng Chang was bowing, Ying Ying leaned down and bowed: "Please make His Royal Highness the eldest prince the prince as the prince as soon as possible!" ”

"Rui'er, you get up first, this matter can be taken slowly, let's talk about it later......"

"Lord Wang, Shu is in an eventful season, and it can't be delayed. The concubine begs His Majesty to immediately appoint His Royal Highness the Great Prince as the prince! Xu Rui avoided Meng Chang's hand that helped her up, bowed her head and said firmly, looking like she wouldn't get up if Meng Chang didn't agree to her.

"......" Meng Chang was speechless, he pondered for a while, then looked into Xu Rui's eyes and asked seriously, "Have you thought about it?" Are you sure you want to? "If this matter is decided in front of everyone, there will be no room for turning around in the future. Rui'er has sealed her own retreat!

The other courtiers in the hall also held their breath and stared at Xu Rui tightly, waiting for her answer. The question of whose head the prince will fall on is now completely decided by the princess.

"The concubine has thought about it, please be sure to agree to the concubine's request!" Xu Rui replied without thinking about it. It does look like I thought it out in advance, and I don't plan to change my mind.

"Good! This king promises you! Meng Chang stood up solemnly and said: "From today on, Xuan Zhe is the son of my Meng family, and he will inherit all the inheritance of my Meng family in Shu in the future, and all your ministers must do their best to assist him in the future." In addition, the king will also repair a letter and send it to Bianjing City to inform Emperor Song of this matter. ”

If the book is repaired to Bianjing, then this matter cannot be changed at all. The courtiers in the palace, you look at me, I look at you, and quietly pass their eyes to each other. It's a shame that they misunderstood the second elder of the Xu family before! The Xu family really doesn't care about those fame and fortune!

"Concubine thank you, Your Majesty!" Xu Rui sincerely bowed to the ground.

Meng Xuanzhe has been depressed at home these days, under the pretext of having a lot of official affairs, carrying limes on his back and borrowing wine to drown his sorrows, and often watching a place sit for several hours. Where can't you see the clue of lime? knows that his ambition is unfulfilled and his heart is depressed, and he also knows that he is unwilling to fight for that position because of himself, and he is also soft-hearted, so he can only be more gentle and considerate to him in life.

On this day, Meng Xuanzhe was hiding in the study in the front yard and drinking alcohol, Meng Chang sent the most powerful internal supervisor named Liu'an to pick up Meng Xuanzhe to the palace, Lime hurriedly asked people to hurry up to inform Meng Xuanzhe, so that he had time to prepare, and then he took Liu'an to see her husband.

Meng Xuanzhe knew that this matter was about to end, so he didn't change his clothes in frustration, and followed Liu'an away with a drunken body. Before leaving, he hugged Lime tightly, attached it to Lime's ear, and said softly in a voice that only she could hear: "Ling'er, when I come back, I will take you to see the beauty of Shuchuan." ”

Lime looked up at him, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Why are you here like this?" Meng Chang frowned as soon as he saw Meng Xuanzhe. Why does his suave eldest son look like a sloppy drunkard today? His clothes were crumpled, his head was slumped, and he smelled of alcohol.

"Son-in-law to meet my father!" Meng Xuanzhe answered the question, looking unconcerned.

Meng Chang was angry, pointed at Meng Xuanzhe with his right hand, and said directly to Liu'an, who was standing next to him: "Go, let people clean him up and come to me again." ”

Liu'an took the order and hurriedly dragged Meng Xuanzhe away. After a while, Meng Xuanzhe was cleaned up and decent, but he still looked sluggish.

Meng Chang didn't know what was going on with his son in his heart, so he didn't care about him anymore, and looked at the scenery outside the window with his hands behind his back and said indifferently: "The fold that made you the son of the world has been sent to Bianjing, and it should be approved soon." ”

"What?" Meng Xuanzhe's spirit instantly lifted.

"You have to thank the princess, who insisted that I make you the son of the world at once."

"Princess? She? She didn't want to ......" Meng Xuanzhe stammered, unable to adapt to such a big turn for a while.

"What she wants more is Po's freedom." Meng Xuanzhe recalled the conversation with Xu Rui last night and said: "Not everyone loves power, power often means more pressure and more responsibility. The more power you have, the harder it is for you to be happy. She wants Po to grow up freely and be able to choose a more comfortable life in the future. ”

"A more comfortable life?" Meng Xuanzhe thought of Lime, and once said that she wanted to travel all over the mountains and rivers of Shu. It's really two sisters, and they even have the same thoughts? Did you misunderstand her that day?

"Zhe'er, my father has always known your intentions, and he also knows that you have been wronged. In the future, this Shu land will be handed over to you, I hope you will not disappoint your father, and you can also let your father unload this burden from his shoulders as soon as possible. Meng Chang looked at Meng Xuanzhe's face full of kindness.

"Father!" Meng Xuanzhe's nose was sour, and he almost burst into tears. The father in front of him seems to be the way his father taught him when he was a child! I don't know when they started to become estranged from father and son?

Zhang Ye returned from the Northern Song Dynasty and immediately went to the palace to see Meng Chang. In addition to successfully concluding an agreement with the Northern Song Dynasty, he also brought back two pieces of news. One is that Zhao Guangyi, the king of Jin, got drunk during a royal hunt and "accidentally" shot the Northern Song Dynasty Emperor Zhao Kuangyin's favorite "Mrs. Ruyi". The other is that the Northern Song Dynasty agreed to the complete autonomy of Shu, but set up a separate position of governor of Shuzhou, responsible for assisting Meng Chang in managing Shu. This candidate is debatable, but it must not be without.

This second thing □□ very important, Zhang Ye didn't dare to make the decision, and came back early on the grounds that he wanted to come back for instructions. 166 Reading Network