Wang Yue waved his hand and said unconcernedly, "I don't know about that. But His Majesty sent you here as prefect to keep an eye on Wang Shanquan. Given the chance, he'll make sure you die without a body to bury. So you'd be better off building up your strength first, enough to ensure he won't dare move against you lightly. As for what happens to the realm, that's a matter for later. Why rush?"
Prefect Liu heard him out, then said to Gu Jiusi, "Worthy son-in-law, I won't bother with any of the usual pleasantries. I can arrange a Flank General's post for you. I can't arrange anything higher than that. Even for this position, I'll have to grease a few palms."
His meaning was obvious: even for this Flank General's post, Gu Jiusi would have to pay.
Wang Yue was speechless. Prefect Liu was hardly someone they could rely on. At a time like this, he was still fussing over petty calculations. If they wanted the Gu family to establish themselves, it seemed Gu Jiusi would have to do more himself.
Still, with a Flank General's post in hand, who cared how many soldiers he had under his command? Wang Yue nodded to Gu Jiusi.
Gu Jiusi promptly apologized with genuine sincerity. As he was leaving, he pulled several banknotes from his robes and set them on the table beside Prefect Liu.
Wang Yue glanced at the amount. There had to be at least two or three hundred thousand taels. It seemed Gu Jiusi was quite satisfied with the position. Whether Prefect Liu was satisfied with what the Gu family had paid was another matter.
But Prefect Liu cared about appearances and never took the money. Instead, he changed the subject and began explaining Yangzhou's power structure to