As the court was engaged in heated disputes, Han Mo and Zong Ying were soaking naked in a pine wood tub.
"This place is truly excellent. If you hadn't led the way, I wouldn't have known there was such a good spot near the Ningbi Pond."
Taking a satisfying gulp of iced fruit wine, Han Mo felt every cell in his body groan with pleasure.
"Don't be fooled by the small facade; it's truly a hidden gem inside!"
Although it was already the end of March, the weather in Bianliang was still a bit cool.
In such weather, sipping iced fine wine while soaking in a hot bath was truly an unparalleled enjoyment.
Especially thinking of those important figures still fighting fiercely in the court at this moment, Zong Ying felt an inexplicable sense of exhilaration.
"Is that old gentleman reliable?"
Regardless, the entire Hebei region was a mess at this point.
Moreover, Han Mo himself was about to head to Neihuang to take up his post. If the Grand Marshal of Daming who was taking over wasn't reliable, he would be in big trouble.
"This shouldn't be much of a problem, right? After all, this old gentleman has served as a people's official for several terms..."
Zong Ying coughed dryly and said somewhat awkwardly.
"What do you mean, 'shouldn't be much of a problem'? Think carefully. That's a mess! There are bandits everywhere at the moment. If he can't hold the fort, he'll be in big trouble before long!"
Han Mo rolled his eyes. He hadn't been too concerned about this matter originally, but the situation was different now.
Things change, and this now concerned his own life.
"What are you afraid of? If there are any difficult matters, won't there still be you?"
Zong Ying said with a sly chuckle.
Seeing his scummy grin, Han Mo's mouth twitched.
If it weren't for his father, Han Mo would have wanted to grab the wine pot and hit him on the head right now.
"My lord, my lord!"
Just as Zong Ying was about to probe Han Mo, a follower of Zong Ying's voice suddenly came from outside the door.
"Why are you shouting so loudly? Are you trying to summon a soul!"
Zong Ying cursed impatiently.
"My lord, there's a result from the court meeting! Lord Xu has been appointed Grand Marshal of Daming by His Majesty, and our Prince has also concurrently taken on the position of Grand Marshal of Nanjing!"
"Pfft—"
"What did you say?"
Zong Ying was completely stunned. He didn't even bother to put on clothes and flipped out of the wooden tub, still naked.
Taking two quick steps to the door, he grabbed the follower by the collar.
"His Majesty, His Majesty has appointed Lord Xu as Grand Marshal of Daming, and our Prince has concurrently taken on the position of Grand Marshal of Nanjing!"
The follower was utterly bewildered and quickly repeated himself.
"I'm saying, if you keep pinching him like that, he'll lose his life."
Seeing Zong Ying's agitated state and the blue hue of the follower's face, Han Mo coughed dryly and said quickly.
"After you reply, go to the accounting office and collect two strings of coins. Tell them it's a reward from me!"
Hearing this, Zong Ying finally came to his senses and quickly released his hand.
The follower didn't dare to say anything more. After swallowing hard, he bowed to Zong Ying and turned away.
"What is going on with this matter? How can a prince concurrently hold the position of Grand Marshal of Nanjing?"
After closing the doors and windows again, Zong Ying turned to look at Han Mo.
"Why can't a prince concurrently hold the position of Grand Marshal of Nanjing?"
Han Mo poured himself another cup of wine and asked with a smile.
"But there's no precedent in the dynasty!"
"There are many things without precedent in the dynasty. Does this matter?"
Han Mo said dismissively.
Although Zong Ying tried his best to refute him, he couldn't think of a suitable reason at the moment.
Indeed, just as Han Mo had said, there were many things without precedent in the current Great Song dynasty.
"The Prince has taken on two of the four capitals' Grand Marshal positions. Is this the Emperor's intention to..."
Zong Ying originally wanted to say, "Is the Emperor going to elevate Prince Xin?"
But he stopped halfway, realizing that even he didn't believe this.
If Prince Xin were truly favored by the Emperor, he wouldn't have been idle in Bianliang for so many years.
"Don't overthink it. The Emperor simply needed a stone to fill a pit, and couldn't find a suitable one after looking everywhere. Coincidentally, someone mentioned it at this time, and the Emperor thought, yes, isn't there someone who fits perfectly?"
Han Mo spoke while looking at Zong Ying with a strange gaze.
"It's that simple?"
Zong Ying found it hard to believe.
Although the Grand Marshal of Nanjing was not as important as the Grand Marshal of Daming, it was still a high-ranking official. Coupled with Prince Zhao Zhen's identity, he would likely command respect even from the regional Pacification Commissioner when he arrived.
"It's that simple! Also, Brother Zong, don't you think there's something amiss with you? Although we are all men, and your endowment is quite good, you don't need to keep it exposed, do you?"
Han Mo said, winking at Zong Ying again.
"I..."
Zong Ying froze for a moment, looked down, and then realized.
"You mean to say that Brother Han watched me make a fool of myself like this? That's too unkind!"
Zong Ying said, then scurried back into the wooden tub as if fleeing.
Only now did he understand why his little servant had looked at him strangely.
After all this time, he had actually forgotten about this!
"If you put it that way, it's meaningless. Can you blame me for this?"
Han Mo looked equally wronged. What did this have to do with him? Who knew if this kid was a rabbit, so fond of being naked.
"I can't be bothered to talk about this with you. Tell me, is this also part of your calculations?"
Zong Ying's old face flushed, and he certainly didn't want to dwell on this issue with him.
At present, all the princes wanted to get their hands on local military power.
However, among all the princes, only Zhao Kai and Zhao Gou could manage to have some influence.
Zhao Kai's influence was due to his vast resources, years of meticulous planning, and his own capabilities, which had yielded some achievements.
In comparison, Zhao Gou was purely lucky. His maternal uncle, Wei Yuan, currently held the position of Defense Commissioner of Zhongzhou, thus securing some resources for him.
Of course, these resources were negligible compared to those of other princes.
However, Zhao Zhen was different now.
The position of Grand Marshal of Nanjing, within its scope of authority, already included the responsibility of commanding stationed troops and rectifying military affairs.
The Pacification Commissioner's Office in the Nanjing region was also to obey his orders. In a sense, Zhao Zhen had leaped to become the second most powerful prince after Zhao Kai in terms of real authority!