Chapter 112 Princess Regent
"Wenhe, what should we do next?" Guo Hao had a headache. Jia Xu was too calm.
There is no suitable candidate for tomorrow’s grand court meeting, and after the meeting, there will be a gunfight in Luoyang City.
The noble families and the players are the ones who are eager to see the world in chaos, so they might take advantage of the chaos to stir up trouble.
What he wanted was a complete Han Empire, not a destroyed Han Kingdom.
"My lord, do you still remember our plan?" Jia Xu took a sip of tea and looked very confident, which made Guo Hao feel at ease.
"Of course I remember. We can use the emperor to rule the world. But there is no emperor now." Guo Hao stared at Jia Xu with some resentment. He messed up the plan he had made.
"My lord, why don't you go and meet someone?" Jia Xu said as he walked, pulling Guo Hao.
"Who are you going to see?"
"A man fit for the office of regent."
Guo Hao was confused. Now that the prince was gone, who could be the regent?
"You will know when you go there, my lord." Jia Xu said calmly.
Jia Xu took Guo Hao all the way to the palace. At first, Guo Hao didn't know where Jia Xu was going to take him, but after arriving at the palace, Guo Hao quickly knew Jia Xu's destination.
"Are we going to Princess Wannian's bedroom?" Guo Hao was slightly surprised.
The eldest princess is the regent? Guo Hao pondered for a moment.
Speaking of it, the status of the eldest princess in the Han Dynasty was indeed very high. If it was during the prosperous times, according to the Han system "the emperor's daughters were all given the title of county princesses, and their ceremonial clothes were the same as those of marquises; the most respected ones were given the title of eldest princess, and their ceremonial clothes were the same as those of vassal kings." It can be said that their status was extremely high.
The eldest princess of the Han Dynasty even had the power to nominate the next emperor, but if powerful ministers were in power, it would make no difference whether she had this power or not.
In Guo Hao's opinion, the eldest princess as regent is indeed a good choice. After all, regent in the harem is an old tradition in the Han Dynasty.
This tradition has existed since Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang's wife, Lü Zhi. Moreover, during Emperor Liu Hong's period, Empress Dowager Dong was in charge of government behind the scenes for a period of time. The Han Dynasty's resistance to women in power was not as exaggerated as in later generations.
Speaking of which, if it weren't for the fact that there were too many dissolute princesses in the 400 years of the Han Dynasty, the reputation of Han princesses would have been almost ruined, and the princesses of the Han Dynasty would have been completely unable to get married.
It was impossible for Liu Hong to rely solely on the Queen's relatives, so he would definitely use a series of relatives such as the son-in-law of the Queen.
After all, it is better to say that it is marrying someone than getting married. After all, being a prince consort is the same as marrying into the wife's family. Princesses in the Han and Tang dynasties could keep male lovers and take concubines.
That marquis had nothing to do, so he decided to find an ancestor for his family. Moreover, the emperor might not appreciate him, so it was not worth it.
It was precisely because of such things that there was even an incident during the Han and Tang dynasties where people were unwilling to marry princesses.
After all, even if the princess wanted to marry, her partner had to be a marquis of the right age. During Liu Hong's reign, there were no young marquises. The youngest was already over 30 years old.
It was also for this reason that Liu Hong did not force his daughter to choose a husband. After all, Liu Hong still had to save face. Princess Wannian was naturally thrown aside and grew up peacefully in the harem with no sense of existence at all.
"Wait, Princess, the only child"
Guo Hao suddenly had an idea and connected all the clues together. He looked at Jia Xu with a dark face and said, "You are a poison scholar, not a pimp. Why are you always thinking about finding a wife for me?"
"You don't want me to marry the eldest princess, do you?" Guo Hao asked in a deep voice.
Jia Xu's expression remained unchanged, but he couldn't help but be shocked in his heart. Based on his understanding of Guo Hao, it was impossible for Guo Hao to think of this.
"My lord, you are worrying too much. I just think that the eldest princess is easier to control. But what you said makes sense. Why don't you consider it?" Jia Xu kept talking nonsense, and Guo Hao even doubted himself.
Am I really overthinking?
"The eldest princess is only fourteen years old. Can she really be regent?" Guo Hao said, touching his chin.
"With Queen He by my side, it's enough!" Jia Xu shook his head and said.
If Empress He's brother was not He Jin, Empress He alone would have been enough, but unfortunately Empress He was a member of the He family.
Because of Empress He's existence, He Jin's nine clans could not be executed, but Empress He was the only one left in the He family who died.
"Politics, to put it bluntly, is all about compromise. We have made so many compromises, and other people in the court can accept them, which is beneficial for us to lead the government." Seeing that Guo Hao was still worried about the eldest princess, Jia Xu couldn't help but change the subject.
The two of them talked as they walked, and soon arrived at the eldest princess's bedroom. The door to the bedroom was closed. Guo Hao walked forward and knocked on the door, then stepped back and waited.
After a long while, Empress He, who was dressed in mourning clothes, opened the palace door with the eldest princess, who was also dressed in mourning clothes.
Looking at the two people at the door, Guo Hao and Jia Xu bowed slightly.
"Meet the Queen, meet the Princess Wannian."
"General Huoqi, there is no need to be so polite." Empress He quickly asked Guo Hao to stand up.
She was not a fool. Now that He Jin was dead and the Ten Attendants were missing, the aristocratic families could not clear themselves of suspicion. The most powerful person in the entire court was Guo Hao, who also held military power. Even though she was still the queen, she did not want to neglect Guo Hao.
"I wonder what you two are doing?" Empress He had no intention of letting Guo Hao and Jia Xu enter the palace, so she asked at the door.
"A country cannot be without a ruler for a day. After His Majesty's funeral, we hope that Her Royal Highness the Princess can act as regent during this period to avoid national turmoil." Jia Xu bowed and said sincerely.
"Who is this?"
"It's my military advisor in the General of Cavalry's mansion, Jia Wenhe."
"General Huoqi, Mr. Jia, the eldest princess is still young and may not be able to handle such a heavy responsibility. We ask all the ministers to discuss this state affair together." Empress He said with a sad face. Her son was gone just like that.
The prince and the Ten Attendants disappeared without a trace. Although the Imperial Guards were still searching house to house, everyone had already acquiesced that the prince had met with misfortune.
Empress He didn't know whether Guo Hao was testing her, and she didn't dare to respond. Being regent during this period was not a good thing.
"The eldest princess is young, so we'd like to trouble the Empress to help supervise the country." Guo Hao immediately stepped forward and added.
Queen He was shocked, but still shook her head and rejected Guo Hao's request.
She didn't dare to take over. Her current status was not suitable for being regent.
"I wonder what the Queen is worried about?"
Queen He did not say anything, but just kept shaking her head.
Seeing that Queen He did not answer, Guo Hao felt helpless. In that case, he could only make other plans.
"If I become regent, will you help me?"
Just when the atmosphere became awkward, Princess Wannian stood up and stared at Guo Hao with her red eyes, as if she wanted to see through Guo Hao.
"I will! I will make the Han Dynasty even more glorious!"
Guo Hao stared into Princess Wannian's eyes and promised seriously.