There were signs that a war would break out in Xijiang. The court was prepared for it and so it was not a big surprise.

But it didn’t mean that they could take it easy. The war was all about money. Even if nowadays Darui was still rich, fighting on two fronts placed a lot of stress!

And at this juncture, the actual regent, Marquess Qin, was seriously ill, which could be traced to the remaining members of the Gu family. The internal struggle of the Jiang Family was no longer a secret… Things didn’t look good with all the mess that was going on!

“It is a battle that can’t afford to lose!” Duke of Huainan Chu Xiao headed for Xue Chang as soon as he received the news of the war in Xijiang, “Prime Minister Xue, please give some advice!”

Xue Chang screwed up his eyes and stroked his moustache, “As an official of Darui, how can I not hope that Emperor’s army can pacify Xijiang as soon as possible? But I don’t know anything about the wars. The only thing I can do is to take care of the provisions for Emperor’s army!”

Chu Xiao knew that he was always a deep one. So, he cut to the chase, “There are still reminders of the Gus. And they dare to assassinate the trueborn sons of the Jiang Family! This shows that their wild ambition has reached the point where they will stop at nothing! Once the frontier is lost, I’m afraid it will be used by them… It can be a big problem!”

And with that, he lowered his voice, “Deputy Premier Jiang and Minister Jiang have long coveted the Western Army. They reluctantly give up because of Marquess Qin and Sir Jibei. Now Xijiang is at war. Once the war is lost, we can put others aside, but what will General Ruan be able to do with himself? Prime Minister Xue, he is your favorite pupil. You won’t sit idly by and watch, right?”

“Prince, you know that Chunjun is my favorite pupil. I will do my best!”

Chu Xiao was not very satisfied with Xue Chang’s answer and he wanted to persuade him again. But on second thought, he was afraid that a man like Xue Chang would annoy him if he was pushed too far. So, he said, “Prime Minister Xue, I can rest assured with your words!”

After he excused himself and left, Xue Nongying came out from the back hall, “Duke of Huainan exactly married his trueborn daughter to Jiang Yadan. His concern for the fourth branch of the Jiang Family is so urgent!”

Xue Chang gave him a measuring look, “How are you feeling today?”

“The doctor invited by Guoxi is good at acupuncture treatment. I feel less pain these days.” Xue Nongying smiled and said, “Didn’t the doctor also say before that I was young and could get better? Don’t worry too much, my grandfather!”

Cheng Guoxi married into the Xue Family in March. The reason for the delay was that Xue Nongying had not recovered very well before and did not want to ruin the life of a good girl.

Cheng Jin, Cheng Guo’s father, was promoted by Xue Chang. It was not right or just for him to break off the engagement just because of the accident that had happened to Xue Nongying. Finally, he even said, “If you look down on my daughter, you cannot take her into your family. Anyway, she will never marry into any other family except for the Xue Family! If you refuse to take her for the rest of her life, our Cheng Family will support her forever. When she dies, her tombstone will be written as Madame Cheng, the wife of Xue!”

At this point, Xue Nongying had no choice but to comply.

Fortunately, when Cheng Guoxi married into the Xue Family, whether it was because people were in high spirits when getting involved in happy events or that acupuncture treatment she found for her husband really worked, Xue Nongying’s health was improved significantly.

Now Xue Chang looked at his grandson carefully. As Xue Nongying’s face was rosy and his eyes as bright, Xue Chang breathed a sigh of relief and said with a smile, “And then let’s get to it. Easy for Duke of Huainan to say it! As an official of Zongzhengsi, he has nothing to do with the war of Xijiang, doesn’t he? He has made a name for himself in front of the fourth branch of the Jiang Family and Chunjun while he left all the problems to me!”

“Although the first branch of the Jiang Family has gone back to Kui County, their gang is still in Jing City! The third branch of the Jiang Family is still in Jing City to take care of Marquess Qin. And the court is still in their control. Originally, when Marquess Qin was well, he was in charge. With his vision and temperament, he was always generous to me. So, I didn’t have to be too constrained in my actions. But now he is ill. There are many of his children and grandchildren who don’t like me!”

Xue Chang stroked his bead and said, “The main reason is that Marquess Qin’s reputation is so strong that when something happens to him, not only there are rumors outside but the Jiang Family itself will also be in a mess. I’m worried that some people will egg the Jiang Family on to make an example of us. And we may be their target!”

During the period of the political struggle between the Empress and the Empress Dowager, Xue Chang was Prime Minister. When the Jiang Family was in charge, Xue Chang remained as Prime Minister. How could no one be jealous? Those who had followed the Jiang Family since their early years and considered that they made a great contribution to the political struggle were looking at him with dislikes for more than a day or two!

If something happened in this situation, they were likely to suggest that the Jiang Family should kill or maim one or two powerful officials or royal families to dominate the situation! Xue Chang was definitely one of the candidates!

Jiang Tianao and Jiang Tianqi had had an eye on the position of Prime Minister. And there were many people lining up behind them. Since that, regardless of the reliability of that idea, Xue Chang must prevent himself from being put into the situation.

“But the most important thing now is that Marquess Qin is sick!” Xue Nongying said softly, “If something happens to him, the first branch and the third branch will be unable to protect themselves. And then how will they have the strength to take over the Western Army? Speaking of which, Chunjun is so lucky. Just before the war, there was an accident in Kui County, and Marquess Qin fell ill, which has drawn the attention of the first branch and the third branch of the Jiang Family…”

Xue Chang interrupted him, “It might be more complicated than you think. You shouldn’t forget that the fourth branch of the Jiang Family has not been idle now. Even though they have the upper hand in the war in Beijiang, they have not gained an overwhelming advantage! I have counted the provisions of the Northern Army. Although they are still enough to go around now, according to the current war situation, the court will have to replenish them within three months. The war will probably last a lot longer!”

“If Marquess Qin were there, he would not have let anyone’s personal grievances affect military and state affairs. But this is not necessarily the case with the first branch and the third branch of the Jiang Family. They have such a great grudge against the fourth branch that given their nature, they are not likely to shake hands with the fourth branch. So, when the first branch and the third branch are worried that once Marquess dies, the fourth branch will vet them. The fourth branch is also worried that the two branches will choose desperate fighting in hysterics, isn’t they?”

How deadly was this for front-line soldiers when the home front was unstable in times of war?

“So, Marquess Qin’s being bedridden is a problem for all the descendants of the Jiang Family. In the end, it is because there’s no one among them who can replace Marquess Qin yet! Generally speaking, they each have their own scruples. We may not say they are evenly matched. But the gap is not very large either.” Xue Chang said indifferently, “In this situation, Chunjun must win. For not giving hope to the first branch and the third branch of the Jiang Family, if for no other reason!”

Xue Nongying was confused, “If there was no hope, would they not fight to the death?”

“Normally that would be the case. But now there is a perfect stepping stone. Kui Xiannan is critically ill. The first branch has all gone back to Kui County.” Xue Chang said lightly, “It’s a long way between the two places. They won’t be back in a short time. So, the first branch can either go forward or go back. If the Western Army loses, they can again seek military power. If the Western Army wins, especially if Chunjun can become famous in the war… Jiang Tianao can simply retire on the pretext of accompanying his old father, or observing mourning for his father!”

“Anyway, they are trueborn cousins. If Jiang Tianao backs down to the point of returning to the countryside to work as a farmer with the whole family, the fourth branch of the Jiang Family will not need to kill them all!”

“Same for Jiang Tianqi!”

“So, as long as the Western Army is defeated, not only will Xijiang be lost but there will be further strife in the court! For the sake of Darui, they must win!”

Xue Chang sighed, “The reason why Duke of Huainan came to visit me personally was not only because he was now on the side of the fourth branch of the Jiang Family, but also because he saw that if the Western Army lost this battle, Darui would be in danger of losing its vitality! At that time, it will be hard to say whether the two border forces can shock the foreign savages. But Shazhou is so far away and the timing in the war is so fleeting. Even if we want to help, we will not be able to do so!”

… The conversation between the grandfather and grandson was noted down and sent to Marquess’s Mansion soon.

Each branch made a copy, to which each responded in various ways.

In the first branch, the person in charge was not there. The trusted subordinates who stayed behind were not in a position to usurp the authority. After thanking Jiang Tianqi for sharing, he hurriedly browsed through it and then sent someone to take that to Jiang Tianao at a hard gallop.

Naturally, the third branch was furious, “That old man! You know that I do not like you as Prime Minister. And now you dare to speak out like this! Do you really think that because of your talent, no one can touch you? If you fall into my hands, I will make you regret it!”

“My father, Xue Chang has said he cannot help in the war of Xijiang. Why do you care about him?”

“How stupid you are!” With great anger, Jiang Tianqi scolded his son for his uselessness, “He is looking forward to the victory of the Western Army. Do you think he will not prevent us from taking advantage of the situation if the Western Army is defeated? This means that although Xue Chang will not be able to help Qiu Jinglan to fight in the war, he will target our branch and the first branch as we may attack Qiu Jinglan in the court. Fortunately, your grandfather has always been on guard against him and placed pawns in his mansion early on. Now your father is not able to handle things. We can read these messages directly. Otherwise, we won’t even know that this old man has got us into trouble!”

When the fourth branch received the news, the couple were getting together. So, Qiu Yelan draped her husband’s shoulders and finished reading. When she was about to speak, Jiang Yashuang suddenly said, “Do you think that if your brother wins this battle, how likely is it that the first branch and the third branch will ask themselves to return to the countryside to work as farmers?”

“It’s hard to say!” Qiu Yelan considered that, “Prime Minister Xue is presuming our two uncles based on his own experiences. It’s not likely to be right. How can one easily let go of wealth and power when he is used to it? Those who have done so throughout the ages have been the most famous men in history! I don’t think our two uncles have the courage to do so!”

Both Jiang Tianao and Jiang Tianqi did not struggle up on their own, but they were under the shade of their elders. It could be said that they got everything much easier than others. With their experiences, what kind of wisdom did it take to understand the principle of “stopping while the going was good”?

Besides, both Jiang Yayue and Jiang Yaqing were outstanding sons of their respective branches. This blood feud was not so easily forgotten.

“So, we need to prepare as well. No matter whether we win or lose the battle in Xijiang, I’m afraid there will be no peace in the mansion! If there are changes on both fronts, there is no telling what will happen in the court, Jing City, and our mansion!” Jiang Yashuang closed his eyes for a moment of contemplation and said, “Dress smartly tomorrow. And I will gather my staff to pay you a visit, just in case!”