Chapter 469: w.a.n.g Chong"s Request!
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
In the past, w.a.n.g Gen would have a.s.suredly voiced his opinion. The Great Tang had sufficient strength to deal with any force, whether it was Mengshe Zhao, Ü-Tsang, the Eastern and Western Turkic Khaganates, Goguryeo, or the Abbasid Caliphate.
If it didn"t have this strength, the Great Tang would not have its current prosperity.
Every person of the Great Tang firmly believed this point.
But this time, w.a.n.g Gen was quiet. For some reason, w.a.n.g Gen heard the message from w.a.n.g Chong that Old Eagle had relayed to him.
"No matter what happens, please tell Big Uncle to not issue any opinions!"
This was a message from several days ago. It seemed like w.a.n.g Chong had already expected this to happen.
Chong-er, just what did you see? Just what reason has you so deeply concerned about this matter before the court?
w.a.n.g Gen"s eyes were unfocused, his mind in turmoil.
w.a.n.g Chong had been acting too strangely as of late, but no one dared to say that he had gone crazy. At the very least, he had found out what happened in the southwest a long time ago, much earlier than the Imperial Court.
It was hard to say if his nephew had already antic.i.p.ated all this.
After all that he had experienced, w.a.n.g Gen found himself more and more unwilling to disregard his nephew"s advice.
"Lord w.a.n.g? Lord w.a.n.g…?"
Whispers could be heard as the gathered ministers looked curiously at w.a.n.g Gen. In the past, Lord w.a.n.g had always been wise and astute, bold and decisive. But today, he had twice been absentminded and slow to respond.
The hawkish officials found it even more strange.
w.a.n.g Gen and King Song were stalwart hawks. To be more precise, they were the banners under which the hawks gathered. Although w.a.n.g Gen himself was a civil official, the w.a.n.g Clan was an authentic clan of ministers and generals that wielded immense influence in the court.
There was no reason for w.a.n.g Gen to show any hesitation on this matter.
"On this matter…"
"Court is over!"
w.a.n.g Gen was interrupted by a sharp voice from above. Bzzzz!A ma.s.sive pressure descended upon the officials, causing them all to lower their heads in panic.
But before they could react, this ma.s.sive pressure retreated like the tide.
When they raised their heads, they discovered that the beaded curtain had been raised and that imposing figure had vanished.
"This is…"
"What"s happened to His Majesty?"
……
The officials were all lost. Seldom did the Sage Emperor leave before the ministers had finished debating. For a moment, no one could understand the Emperor"s intent and all were bewildered as to what to do next.
That"s good. I managed to dodge this problem!
On the other hand, w.a.n.g Gen internally sighed. The Emperor"s stance was unfathomable, but at least he did not need to make his own stance known.
I should go and see Chong-er!
Seeing the furrowed brows of a few of the hawkish ministers and thinking about where his own decision was trending, w.a.n.g Gen hurriedly left the hall.
This court session had been very uncomfortable. He had to find out as quickly as possible why w.a.n.g Chong didn"t want him to express a stance.
……
The pressure exerted by the Court of Judicial Review and Chamberlain of Dependencies was unimaginable. Although w.a.n.g Chong knew that it wouldn"t be easy for his big uncle to get in, it was quite a few days until w.a.n.g Chong was actually able to see him.
Candles guttered in the gloomy prison.
w.a.n.g Gen was dressed in black informal wear and appeared calm, but the anxiety on his face was impossible to conceal.
"Big Uncle!"
w.a.n.g Chong"s eyes lit up at the sight of his big uncle and he hastily stood up. This was his first meeting with his big uncle in many days.
"Chong-er."
w.a.n.g Gen nodded his head, his gaze taking in w.a.n.g Chong"s emaciated look, a tinge of heartache manifesting on his brow.
Of the grandsons of the w.a.n.g Clan, the one w.a.n.g Gen regarded most highly was not his own son, nor was it w.a.n.g Chong"s two older brothers, but w.a.n.g Chong, this nephew of his that once ranked least in his estimations.
w.a.n.g Gen truly found it hard to bear this haggard appearance. But by gritting his teeth and hardening his heart, w.a.n.g Gen quickly calmed down.
w.a.n.g Chong had killed many Hu in Drunken Sparrow restaurant, attacked the soldiers of Youzhou, and killed Zhang Shougui"s subordinate in front of his face. This was far too serious an incident, one that had even dragged in An Sishun, Vice Protector-General of Beiting.
Although An Sishun was only Vice Protector-General, the Beiting Protector-General had always been a vacant post, as it was common practice for the members of the imperial clan to control it from afar. In other words, An Sishun was actually the most influential figure in the Beiting Protectorate.
Although w.a.n.g Chong had gotten into conflicts with him in the past, none of them had been this big.
The Old Master had already issued an order that no one was allowed to involve themselves in this matter. w.a.n.g Chong had to bear the punishments for his mistakes.
Otherwise, it would have been impossible for w.a.n.g Chong to be locked up in this prison managed by the Imperial Army, Chamberlain of Dependencies, and Court of Judicial Review.
"Relax—after a while, once things have settled down, no matter what the Old Master says, I"ll think of a way to get you out of here… My words are also useless against your grandfather, but even he has to listen to King Song"s words."
In the end, w.a.n.g Gen still found it a little difficult to accept his nephew"s circ.u.mstances.
"Big Uncle, I know that you want to help me, but I"ve never worried about these things."
Though these words made him feel warm, w.a.n.g Chong still shook his head. Everything had its price, and when he had decided to kill An Yaluoshan, w.a.n.g Chong already knew what he would have to pay.
w.a.n.g Chong had never regretted his decisions. He was more concerned about something else.
"Big Uncle, tell me, is the Imperial Court in complete turmoil right now! …You don"t need to hide it from me. I can guess," w.a.n.g Chong said, worry in his eyes. In this period of time, what he antic.i.p.ated the most was news from his big uncle.
The tragedy from his last life was playing out once more in this one. w.a.n.g Chong could smell the coming of a storm on the wind.
"Aye!"
w.a.n.g Gen sighed and nodded.
"The court is currently united in favor of war. The voices from the court and the people are too loud. Even many old ministers in favor of peace couldn"t hold on and changed their minds. I can"t last for much longer either. Chong-er, you must tell me what exactly you want me to do."
The clouds of war were currently gathered thick over the capital. In the few days in which w.a.n.g Gen was attempting to arrange a visit with w.a.n.g Chong, he had been visited by countless officials, both civil and military.
Every one of them was asking for w.a.n.g Gen to give his opinion. Only w.a.n.g Gen knew how much pressure he had endured in this time.
w.a.n.g Gen had always favored this nephew of his, but this matter was no game!
Bang!
The moment w.a.n.g Gen finished speaking, he heard a loud boom. Under w.a.n.g Gen"s flabbergasted gaze, w.a.n.g Chong got down on both knees and bowed, his eyes red.
"Chong-er, what are you doing?"
w.a.n.g Gen"s eyes were wide, his face frozen. It was obvious that w.a.n.g Chong"s display had caught him by complete surprise.
"Big Uncle, I know that you have many questions and are facing many difficulties, but only you can help me with this matter."
w.a.n.g Chong had a very solemn expression as he kneeled. Based on the memories from his last life, there was no doubt that this matter had already reached the critical juncture.
In his last life, the w.a.n.g Clan had declined ages ago and lost any right to intervene in this war, but this time was different. Whether or not the tragedy of his last life could be avoided would be decided soon, and he could not allow the slightest error.
"Chong-er, what exactly do you want to do?" w.a.n.g Gen said gravely, looking down at his kneeling nephew. The intuition he had refined from decades in the court told w.a.n.g Gen that w.a.n.g Chong was planning something.
"Big Uncle, if the time comes for the final decision, I ask that no matter what, you and King Song must oppose the war together. The war with Mengshe Zhao must not happen at this time!" w.a.n.g Chong sternly said, his head sinking even lower toward the ground.
"What?!"
Shock covered w.a.n.g Gen"s face.
"Chong-er, do you know what you"re saying? Jiange is a ruin, and many people have died. This isn"t some simple decision. If the w.a.n.g Clan opposes an attack, it"ll be universally condemned!"
w.a.n.g Gen had truly been stunned by w.a.n.g Chong"s request. He had always believed that w.a.n.g Chong had asked him to delay any opinion because he had something important to tell him, but not this.
To abstain, remain silent, and not express a stance was completely different from objecting.
"…Moreover, our w.a.n.g Clan and King Song have always been the leaders of the hawks, and all of them follow us blindly. It"s precisely because of this that we can build so many connections in the court. The w.a.n.g Clan can remain silent, can abstain, but it absolutely cannot s.h.i.+eld Geluofeng and object to the war. If I do as you say, the reputation the w.a.n.g Clan acc.u.mulated over the decades will vanish into nothing. No! I cannot agree to your request!"
w.a.n.g Gen swept his sleeve. He didn"t even need to think. He had never expected that this would be w.a.n.g Chong"s request.
If he did this, the w.a.n.g Clan would forfeit all of its hard-earned reputation. Like rats leaving a sinking s.h.i.+p, no one would ever heed the call of the w.a.n.g Clan or agree with its decisions again.
If he did this, the fall of the w.a.n.g Clan would be right around the corner.
It hadn"t been for no reason that many of the doves had changed their stances.
"Big Uncle, if we don"t object, then it truly will be a catastrophe!"
w.a.n.g Chong lowered himself to the ground, pain in his voice.
"The Great Tang was founded more than three hundred years ago, but its collapse might be today!"
In the vast Central Plains, among the countless people living within, the only people who had the foresight and understanding to deal with this crisis were him and the w.a.n.g Clan. If not even the w.a.n.g Clan could take the proper measures, what hope would there be for the Central Plains?
Without the powerful Great Tang, just who in this vast world would be able to resist when that calamity descended?
He had already failed in his past life. Was he fated to fail in this life as well?
"Chong-er, just what are you saying?"
w.a.n.g Gen stood in a daze, completely stunned by w.a.n.g Chong"s words.
He had watched w.a.n.g Chong grow up, but never had he seen him like this.