Chapter 25: Conditions

The Crown Prince has his eyes on my daughter?

In any other unified dynasty, Hulü Guang might have been… well, perhaps not even then. In the southern Jin Dynasty, the saying "The Wangs and the Sima clan share the world" was once popular. Although the north was largely ruled by various nomadic regimes, it was equally dominated by aristocratic clans. For instance, Cui Hao, a key minister during the founding of Northern Wei, hailed from the Qinghe Cui clan, while the current Prime Minister of Qi, Yang Yin, belonged to the Hongnong Yang clan. These were prestigious, centuries-old Han noble houses. Even the Crown Prince standing before him possessed half the bloodline of the Zhao Commandery Li clan.

Although Hulü Guang was unaware of the sentiment that would emerge two hundred years later—"better to marry a woman from the five surnames than to enter the royal family"—he understood the principle well enough. The "plus-size" youth of the five surnames and seven clans were plentiful in this Great Qi; why attach oneself to the unstable power of the throne? Whether this Crown Prince could even sit firmly on the throne remained a matter of speculation. As a core member of the Jinyang military nobility, the Hulü family was well aware of Empress Dowager Lou's intentions.

Moreover, the Tianbao Emperor’s continuous suppression of the Jinyang nobility over the past nine years had left them deeply resentful. Only because the Duan family had daughters serving as consorts to Gao Yang were they somewhat spared, but for others, the Tianbao Emperor showed no mercy. Take his father, Hulü Jin, for example: the Emperor had once charged at him on horseback, leveling his spear at his chest three times. Fortunately, his father remained motionless, forcing Gao Yang to praise his bravery and reward him with a thousand bolts of silk. Had his father begged for mercy or resisted, the Emperor would undoubtedly have used the opportunity to strip him of his military power or even slaughter their entire family.

To say there was no resentment would be a lie; it was simply that the man was the Son of Heaven, with his status set in stone, and he himself held military merit, making rebellion difficult. Had this been the old Wei Dynasty, and the Emperor acted in such a deranged manner, their family would certainly have considered contending for the throne—if only to replace this madman.

As for the Crown Prince before him, who was set to inherit the entirety of this mad emperor’s legacy, honestly, Hulü Guang was not optimistic. Everyone had endured the mad emperor for so long only because he possessed the achievements of personal military campaigns and territorial expansion, earning him the title of "Heroic Emperor" from the Turks. This Crown Prince, aside from his studies of Confucian classics, had never shown a shred of heroism or the bearing of a sovereign.

Therefore… could the Crown Prince's sudden visit today be an attempt to change his usual tactics and try to win over their faction of military officers? That would mean the Tianbao Emperor’s health had reached a point where he needed to prepare for his succession.

"General?"

Hulü Guang’s heart skipped a beat, pulling him back to reality. He stroked his beard to hide his awkwardness and smiled. "They are still six or seven-year-old children. It doesn't matter if they don't read; they don't even know needlework. All they do is play all day long—what talk of marriage is there? I’ll just let them frolic for a few more years, and then find some good families to entrust them to."

"General Hulü jests. The offspring of a military family are different from common folk. Given your family’s status and prestige, who knows—your two daughters' future husbands might be princes or even emperors themselves!"

What Gao Yin said was actually the truth. The eldest daughter, Hulü Ling, would later be taken as the crown princess for Gao Yan's son, Gao Bainian, after the former's successful coup. Had Gao Bainian ascended the throne smoothly, she would have been Empress. Alas, she paid the price for her father-in-law's debts; she was beaten to death by Gao Zhan, and Hulü Ling died of starvation while waiting for a reunion with Gao Bainian, clutching his jade pendant until her final breath. The second daughter, Hulü Zhu, became the Empress of Gao Wei, only to be stripped of her title after Hulü Guang was executed.

Hulü Guang did not know this. To him, the only "Emperor" was Gao Yang or perhaps the future Gao Yin. Since his daughters were destined to marry into the highest ranks, he mused, "Does the Crown Prince come here for the sake of marriage? If you have such intentions, perhaps you could consult the Supreme Emperor’s opinion. It would bring glory to our house and honor to the Hulü name."

Gao Yin laughed heartily. "I merely happened to see them and asked in passing. I do have a matter to trouble your estate with today, General; I hope for your assistance."

"Please, Crown Prince, speak."

"The Emperor has appointed me as Grand Commander and tasked me with establishing the Grand Commander's Office. This office cannot exist in name alone without the practical duties of a Grand Commander. However, the defense of the capital region has always been the responsibility of the Capital Grand Commander, and I fear..."

Hulü Guang understood immediately. The Crown Prince wanted to seize power, which would inevitably lead to a conflict with the Capital Grand Commander. The current official in that position was the Prince of Pingyang, Gao Yan. He was the fourth son of Gao Yang, known for his calm, cautious, and benevolent nature. Even the deranged Gao Yang relied heavily on this younger brother; such understated, diligent members of the imperial clan were the bedrock of the empire.

Being benevolent meant he was easy to bully. He wouldn't lash out; at most, he would report to Gao Yang that the Grand Commander was overstepping his bounds. But when a son complains to a father—and they are the Emperor and the Crown Prince—who could reason through that? So, Hulü Guang replied with a smile, "Do not worry. The duty of the capital troops is to maintain order and provide perimeter defense. With our Qi as solid as a rock, public security is not as urgent as it once was. Moreover, you are the Grand Commander, overseeing military affairs both inside and outside the capital—who would dare disobey? If you take over some of the Prince of Pingyang's responsibilities to lighten his load, he might even be grateful to you!"

Gao Yan would likely want to kill him for saying that, but it was exactly what Gao Yin wanted to hear. He continued, "As you say, my position as Grand Commander is superior to the Capital Grand Commander, but from the old Wei to the current Qi, the capital troops have held heavy responsibilities. How can I get these troops to serve under me?"

The troops under the Capital Grand Commander were naturally called the Capital Troops. They were composed of refugees from the six northern provinces led by the Six-Province Commander during the fourth year of Tianping in the old Wei Dynasty, the Xianbei and Gaoju infantry led by Gao Cheng, and the scattered soldiers from the northern provinces recruited on a massive scale by Gao Cheng in the early years of Xinghe. These three groups combined formed the current Capital Troops.

They were a complex lot, mostly Xianbei warriors. While their strength was not quite on par with the Bingzhou forces, they were formidable. Moreover, their status was high; having followed the Shenwu Emperor and the Wenxiang Emperor, they were unruly and difficult to command.

How to erode the authority of the Capital Grand Commander depended on how one gained command of these troops. Otherwise, if military matters were handled poorly, it would incite a mutiny.

Hulü Guang stroked his beard in silence. It wasn't that he didn't know; it was that he was wondering if he should help the Crown Prince to that extent. He was not part of the "Crown Prince party," and his impression of the Prince was lukewarm. If not for the Tianbao Emperor, he would have preferred the Prince of Changshan or even the other princes in the dungeon. But if the Emperor were to offer terms—to keep the Hulü family flourishing and favored—in exchange for supporting the Crown Prince, then that would be a different story. No matter how much he disliked the Crown Prince, one doesn't turn away from power, right?

Besides, he didn't actually dislike the Crown Prince. If he weren't the son of the Tianbao Emperor, he was actually quite a bright and handsome young man. In his heart, Empress Dowager Lou was very important, so the conditions required to betray her were quite high. The Tianbao Emperor could afford these conditions; the current Crown Prince could not.

Before understanding whether this was the Crown Prince acting on his own or at the Emperor's behest, Hulü Guang felt he could afford to play hard to get.

"That is not difficult. You could ask the Prince of Pingyang to allocate a portion of the capital troops for the Grand Commander's Office to command, and have the Grand Commander’s Office cover a portion of their military expenses. The Prince of Pingyang would likely agree to that."

Gao Yin rolled his eyes internally. This old fox had no intention of helping him.

Asking someone to carve out their own troops and hand them over—how was that any different from cutting off their own flesh? Even if Gao Yan was a saint, he wouldn't do such a thing to diminish his own power. He would likely only send the old, weak, and sick. If he weren't so benevolent, he might even hint for the capital troops to cause trouble—perhaps having 'bandits' attack the Grand Commander’s office—which would leave Gao Yin with no face left.

But to usurp the authority of the Capital Grand Commander, he needed to have a force capable of rivaling the capital troops. Otherwise, no matter how high his rank, he would have no leverage.

Gao Yin thought for a moment and spoke slowly: "I intend to launch an expedition to Eastern Yongzhou. What do you think?"