Chapter 149 Cui Ning’s Thoughts

In Chang'an, the atmosphere of the New Year has become stronger and stronger. The sound of firecrackers keeps ringing among the various yards. The streets are filled with people, and Chang'an people are buying New Year's goods everywhere. Children run through the streets in groups, spreading carefree laughter all the way.

On Chunming Street, hundreds of cavalry guarded a carriage and walked around. Cui Yuan was lying on the couch in the carriage, quietly watching the prosperity of Chang'an Street. In a few days, he had been the right prime minister of the Tang Dynasty for eleven years. In eleven years, in his nearly sixty years of life journey, it was not long or short, but it was definitely the most important period. He gradually restored the devastated Tang Dynasty to its vitality. Cui Yuan suddenly felt a little proud. The criticism of accusing him of replacing the country with a noble family has never stopped. However, the rapid recovery of the national strength of the Tang Dynasty was a loud slap for these people. Cui Yuan could rewrite the previous chapter in history books: The Revival of the Prime Minister.

There were more and more people in front of him, and the speed of the carriage began to slow down. Cui Yuan remembered the hot topic of recent discussions in the court: the Helong Incident.

Like Pei Jun, he had been paying attention to the whereabouts of the Tianqi Camp. At first, he thought that the Tianqi Camp wanted to get a piece of the pie in the wave of dividing the east of the river, so he ordered the army to take it seriously. But when he found that Zhang Huan had an attempt to cross the Yellow River west, he immediately ordered the army to let Zhang Huan cross the Yellow River.

Zhang Huan did not disappoint him. He took Hexi in just over a month, like a poisonous thorn penetrated deeply into Longyou. Although he knew that Zhang Huan would become a threat in the future, his first role was to kill the Wei family, which was something he Cui Yuan had dreamed of for many years.

However, he was in a bad mood these two days. It originated from two news, both related to the Pei family. First, Zhang Huan actually sent Pei Ying to the Wei family. Regardless of whether they had a marriage, the mission itself was equivalent to announcing to the people of the world that Zhang Huan would be loyal to Pei Jun.

Pei Jun was quite grateful. He immediately sent his younger brother, Pei You, the left minister of the Ministry of Revenue, and Guo Quan, the young minister of Taifu Temple, to Wuwei County the day before yesterday to negotiate the solution of the food shortage in Hexi. At the same time, Pei Jun invited the respected Guo Ziyi and Yan Zhenqing to join forces to Kaiyang County to mediate the conflict between Zhang Huan and the Wei family.

Pei Jun took the lead in everything, but Cui Yuan became a spectator. The drunkard's intention was not to drink. Of course, he knew that Pei Jun's purpose was not Hexi, but to use Zhang Huan to intervene in Longyou. When the time was right, he crossed the Yellow River to make Longyou finally become the Pei family's place.

The power contest in the entire Tang Dynasty was actually a struggle between the Cui and Pei families.

But there is another thing that makes Cui Yuan worry about, that is Zhang Huan's identity, he is the son of Prince Yu, and his ultimate goal is self-evident. If Pei Jun lets Zhang Huan grow up for his own selfishness, will it eventually become the end of the aristocratic family's government?

Choosing a representative of Li Tang who can control it has always been a tacit understanding among several major families, and Pei Jun seemed to have begun to break this tacit understanding. It seems that he has to find an opportunity to have a good talk with him.

The carriage turned around and entered Xuanyangfang. When he was two hundred steps away from his mansion, Cui Yuan suddenly found through the car window and led two old Taoist nuns into the mansion through the side door.

"What's going on?"

As an important minister of the court, Cui Yuan has always paid great attention to his reputation. Although he also has temples and Taoist temples, monks, Taoists, gods and other mixed people have never allowed them to enter his mansion. Today, two Taoist nuns appeared. "No!" He decided to make the truth come to light, and he should be punished, and never tolerated it.

The carriage stopped in front of the mansion. Cui Yuan got off the carriage and walked towards the mansion. He looked around while walking. The housekeeper followed carefully, but did not dare to talk too much.

After walking around, Cui Yuan did not notice the Taoist nun. He couldn't help but ask the butler with a gloomy face and said, "Who did you tell me that the Taoist priest was brought to the mansion?"

The housekeeper was startled. How could the master know about this? Seeing Cui Yuan's harsh eyes, he did not dare to hide it anymore. He could only whisper: "Report to the master, the lady has invited the Taoist nun to the mansion, but the villain doesn't know what the specific matter is."

"Ning'er?" Cui Yuan was confused, "What did she ask the Taoist nun to do? Could it be because of Li Fanyun?"

But in the second thought, he understood a little. Half a month ago, Cui Xiaofu once said to herself that Cui Ning liked Zhang Huan very much and hoped that he could fulfill it. He flatly refused at that time. If Zhang Huan was not the son of Prince Yu, he might have considered it, but Zhang Huan was the one he wanted to remove in any way to prevent him from ascending the throne as emperor. In this way, how could he marry his daughter to Zhang Huan again?

"This girl, can't she be able to think about Pei Ying?"

Cui Yuan smiled bitterly, 'There are more good men in the world than Zhang Huan, why bother with one person? I have to persuade her to go.'

He didn't change his clothes, so he hurried to the back house. Several maids and mothers who were standing downstairs chatting suddenly found that the master was coming. They were so scared that they knelt down quickly, and their faces were pale and they dared not speak.

Cui Yuan looked at them coldly and turned around and ordered: "These slaves dared to instigate the lady to ask for a nun. It was really a very evil crime. Take it out for me. Each of them beats fifty sticks and sells them all!"

Several maids and mothers kowtowed and begged for mercy. A group of vicious servants dragged them down. At this time, Cui Yuan said to several women who followed: "You go up first, drive the two Taoist nuns out, and warn them that if you dare to come again, I will tear down their Taoist temples and keep them from being official slaves."

After a long time of busyness, Cui Yuan slowly walked up to her daughter's building.

At this time, Cui Ning was sitting alone in the room, she stared blankly at the sky, and the sun was bright outside the window, but in her eyes, the sun had already penetrated behind a cold dark cloud. The dark cloud was so long that the world was full of darkness. Only her world, and the world of others, were all light and joy.

In just one month, Cui Ning has been very thin. She is silent every day, and her eyes always contain a deep feeling of despair. Every feature on her face shows that she is shrouded in bone-eroding sorrow.

Yes, she never hated Zhang Huan. She hated herself so much, hated herself for being weak, and hated herself for not leaving him like Pei Ying and losing her own happiness.

She was so focused that her father appeared behind her and she was confused.

"Ning'er!" Cui Yuan sighed, he didn't know where to start.

Cui Ning turned around and saw her father. She hurriedly stood up and gave a gentle salute, "Hello Dad!"

"Dad is very good, but my Ning'er doesn't seem to be very good."

Cui Yuan sat down slowly. He looked at his daughter's thin face and couldn't help but feel a sense of self-blame in his heart. He was too concerned about the government and ignored the changes in his daughter. He hesitated for a moment, but still couldn't help but say, "I heard from your aunt that you fell in love with someone?"

"My daughter is very good, I haven't fallen in love with anyone." Cui Ning lowered her head, but the jade pendant hanging around her neck ruthlessly exposed her lies.

Cui Yuan shook her head and smiled, "Don't hide it from Dad's. The jade pendant you hung around your neck was the one I took from Dad's study! Dad is really confused. You should guess that the person in your heart is Zhang Huan."

‘Pu!’ A tear fell from Cui Ning’s eyes. She covered her mouth and turned her head to sobbed silently.

"Child, don't cry! Don't cry!"

Cui Yuan was panicked. He was usually scheming in the court, decisive and ruthless in decision-making matters. At this moment, there was no trace of him. He looked at his only daughter at a loss, but didn't know how to comfort her.

Cui Ning could no longer help it. She leaned on her father's shoulder and cried sadly. The long-term grievance and pain were vented at this moment. Cui Yuan stroked her daughter's hair, and his nose felt a little sour. Although Cui Ning was not born to her wife, she was Cui Yuan's only daughter. She loved her very much since Cui Yuan and spent more energy and time on her than anyone else. However, after Cui Yuan became the right prime minister, she was busy with government affairs and gradually less time with her. Sometimes she had never seen her daughter for even a month. She always felt a deep sense of guilt towards her.

At this moment, her daughter cried, and Cui Yuan seemed to be back to her childhood. She grabbed candy in both hands and ran to her study. While he was not paying attention, she wiped her sticky little hands on her body, but accidentally fell and handed her hands, and she burst into tears.

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Cui Yuan's heart was filled with love for his calf. He sat quietly. When his daughter's crying gradually became less, he whispered: "Dad will definitely find you the best husband, and no one is allowed to bully my daughter."

Cui Ning's heart sank suddenly. She took two steps back and looked at her father in horror, as if her father had sentenced her to death, "Dad, don't!"

Cui Yuan smiled kindly, and he waved to his daughter, "Don't worry, things are not what you think, come on! Sit down and listen to your father slowly."

Cui Ning sat down slowly, and she looked at her father nervously, feeling panicked and confused. When Cui Yuan saw her obedient, she smiled approvingly and said slowly: "Dad is also a veteran. She also had a woman she liked when she was young. Dad understands your mood, but marriage is not love. Marriage should be of equality and face the balance between husband's family and mother's family. This way your marriage can be stable and this will be more beneficial to your future children and your family. Marriage is actually a balance of interests. You are the only daughter of the head of the first family in the world and the only daughter of the Tang Dynasty's Quanguan. You even represent the entire family. Have you ever thought about how many people in the world are watching you? Children, you are the person you love the most. How could Dad not consider your happiness? If you are obedient, Dad will definitely find you the most satisfying husband."

"But, but he is also from a famous family!" Cui Ning replied in a low voice.

Seeing that she did not listen to her words, Cui Yuan felt a little unhappy, so he explained patiently: "There are many famous families in the Tang Dynasty, but not every aristocratic family is suitable for the Cui family. The key is to consider the greatest interests. Although the Zhang family is a famous family in Hedong, it has declined and has no foundation. The largest real power person in the family is just a governor. It is impossible to turn over without decades or even a hundred years. The Shannan Wang family is different. They were originally a big family in Hedong, with former officials all over the court and the country, and now they have a rich land in Jingxiang. Moreover, their eldest son Wang Yan has deep affection for you and has not married yet. He is quite elegant and has good talent and knowledge. This is your good match. This is a hundred times better than a concubine who has lost the famous family."

"But he is not a concubine of a famous family! Daddy knows his identity. He now owns Hexi land. Is this not good for Daddy?" Cui Ning's voice was soft, but her tone was very persistent.

Cui Yuan's patience gradually disappeared. Although he loved his daughter, he would never indulge her in the major affairs of her marriage. Seeing Cui Ning repeatedly insisting on her with Zhang Huan, he felt a little angry. He finally said patiently: "But do you know? Pei Jun's daughter has gone to Hexi with him. With Pei Jun's temperament, will he let his daughter lose her status? Pei Ying must be his wife. What do you think you want my daughter to be his second wife of Zhang Huan? If it spreads, wouldn't this make people laugh at all over the world!"

Cui Ning's face was pale, and she knelt down suddenly, and her voice trembled: "Dad! I don't care about being a wife and a concubine, my daughter is gone, and I'm begging her to fulfill her wishes."

"Hmph! You don't care, but I care!" Cui Yuan snorted heavily, and he said decisively: "The marriage of children is naturally controlled by their parents. This matter is decided. After the New Year, I will send someone to the Wang family to ask Ji, and you can take care of your health."

After saying that, he strode out of the door, and when he reached the door, he said to several healthy women: "From now on, I will leave the safety of the lady to you. If there is any negligence, I will never let you go!"
Chapter completed!