After being reborn as a man, the woman improved her family's fortunes through education.

Chapter 670 The Fifth Prince's Big Move 1

While things were peaceful and quiet at the Jiang family's residence, the atmosphere at the Fifth Prince's mansion was rather strange.

Zhao Hongjing was surrounded by a group of advisors, but no one spoke at this moment.

They could only wait quietly for the Fifth Prince's next order. There was nothing they could do; the treasure-hunting team had lost contact, and they were unfamiliar with the south. What suggestions could they offer?

"Your Highness, what should we do next?"

Wow! Warrior!

Song Jinyang spoke up despite the pressure. It wasn't that he was stupid, but sometimes it takes courage and being different to stand out from a crowd.

The Fifth Prince indeed raised his eyes. "Did I raise you all for nothing? When problems arise, all you do is ask me what to do? Who's the strategist here, you or me?!"

As everyone expected, the Fifth Prince did indeed lose his temper.

Ninety-nine point nine percent of the people were there to laugh at Song Jinyang, and the remaining zero point one percent was probably Song Qingyu, who wasn't even there.

Hey! We're going to take you down, you little rascal!

Song Jinyang, who had somehow developed a thick skin, didn't seem embarrassed at this moment.

It's as if they're convinced that "as long as I don't feel embarrassed, it's others who are embarrassed."

"Your Highness, it's not that we don't have ideas and solutions, it's just that we don't know whether we should say them. If you give the order, our advisors will naturally speak freely and without reservation."

!!!

Very good, all the strategists present have been implicated.

Song Jinyang smiled, showing no awareness of betraying others, and seemed to be looking forward to hearing everyone's suggestions.

"Oh? Since you all have solutions, let's talk about them one by one! Why keep them to yourselves?"

Whether the Fifth Prince believed Song Jinyang's words or not, he had his strategists line up and present their countermeasures one by one.

The strategists looked at each other, wishing they could rip out Song Jinyang's tongue.

You're so good at talking! You've really shown off!

You're a strategist too, so why don't you set an example?

"Your Highness, since Young Master Song says so, he must have already come up with a plan, and may even be impatient to come up with one. We can put our plan aside for now and listen to Young Master Song's plan first."

Song Jinyang paused, knowing without turning around who had said it—the old bald monk who had recently joined the Fifth Prince's faction, utterly hypocritical.

Ha~ You think you can really hold yourself together? How naive!

"Since Master Liaokong has said so, it would be too ungrateful of me to refuse. Alright, let me, Song, offer my suggestion first."

However, I'm sure you all have better solutions, so please don't laugh at me for this."

"Young Master Song is too modest. Everyone has witnessed your talent. You say you're just throwing out a brick to attract jade? I'm afraid that with such excellent examples before us, it would be better for us mere mortals to embarrass ourselves."

Song Jinyang stopped wasting time arguing with Kong Duo and respectfully bowed to the Fifth Prince before speaking again.

"Actually, my solution is simple: just gather some more people and investigate along the same route taken by the previous group..."

"Hahaha, I thought it was some kind of divine skill or brilliant strategy, but it's just this?!"

Song Jinyang turned around. "Master, I've only said half of what I wanted to say. Why don't you hold off for now?"

Liao Kong was rebuffed. He touched the top of his head, which had grown a little hair, and snorted coldly.

"Hmph! Young Master Song, please continue!"

"Firstly, we can gather manpower to go down to the south again. Secondly... Your Highness, isn't this an opportunity to get closer to the Ouyang family?"

Don't forget who our treasure-hunting team went south with. Although Young Master Ouyang Jue is from a collateral branch of the Ouyang family, in a large family, honor and disgrace are intertwined, and they don't distinguish so clearly.

The Ouyang family probably doesn't know about their younger relative's disappearance yet, right? Now you have a perfect reason to come and ask for help.

Of course, it's not that I'm actually begging the Ouyang family, but as a prince, if you lower your stance a little, the Ouyang family will give you face.

What good is it if the Empress Dowager is in the palace? What good will it do if she becomes the Grand Empress Dowager in the future? In the end, it is still unknown who will be in charge of the Great Zhou. Shouldn't the Ouyang family think about their own way out and backup plans?

To put it bluntly, after the Empress Dowager passes away, what will the Ouyang family be able to rely on?

Since the Empress Dowager's generation, no woman from the Ouyang family has entered the palace. Now, the Ouyang family is looking for a husband for their eldest daughter, which means that the Ouyang family does not intend to send any more noble ladies into the palace.

And Miss Ouyang has never had any interaction with any of the princes, the only one she has had some interaction with is Your Highness..."

Song Jinyang said all he had to say, leaving the Fifth Prince to process it all.

Of course, the Fifth Prince was not slow to react; he may have even thought of this before Song Jinyang said these things.

However, due to his status, he couldn't say it himself.

Song Jinyang was just a minor strategist, so it didn't matter what shocking things he said.

What you're saying... sounds somewhat useful.

The Fifth Prince, Zhao Hongjing, had long planned to make Ouyang Yan his princess consort; otherwise, he wouldn't have gone to such lengths to...

Hmph, anyway, we finally managed to vacate the position of the Fifth Prince's consort, not just for fun.

"Your Highness, these are just my humble opinions. You might as well listen to the opinions of other advisors."

After all... I was just throwing out an idea to get the ball rolling~

Song Jinyang emphasized the phrase "throwing a brick to attract jade," forcing the other strategists to offer their advice.

What? You're saying you don't have any strategies?

Then what kind of strategist are you? Are you just here to eat at the Fifth Prince's residence?

"Alright, everyone, tell us."

The Fifth Prince made the final decision, and the people below dared not pretend to be mute any longer.

Liao Kong was the first to step forward. "Your Highness, what Young Master Song said earlier makes sense, but I don't quite agree with Your Highness personally taking the lead."

A prince is a prince, and a subject is a subject; there is a distinction between the noble and the lowly, and they should not be confused.

Of course, it is acceptable to show goodwill to the Ouyang family, but there is no need for Your Highness to act subserviently.

Since Ouyang Jue is a member of a collateral branch of the Ouyang family, let this collateral branch approach the main branch. Whether they cry or beg, the main branch will naturally lend a hand.

The main branch of the Ouyang family wants to find Ouyang Jue, so they need to know his exact whereabouts. Currently, the only person who knows Ouyang Jue's exact location is Your Highness.

Liao Kong also proposed a theory similar to Song Jinyang's, namely the "special nature of the Fifth Prince," which allowed the Fifth Prince to change his attitude from "actively going to the Ouyang family's door" to "passively waiting for the Ouyang family to come to his door."

Upon hearing this, Song Jinyang couldn't help but glance at Kong a few more times.

Hmph, that bald monk has a bit of talent, but that's about it; he's just parroting others' ideas!

The others present were somewhat regretful. They could have imagined this too; they should have spoken up sooner rather than now, still racking their brains…

Sigh~ I miscalculated~