A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Emperor Yuan Cong

Chapter 1168 Wu Situ

The palace banquet lasted all night long.

The emperor stood on the palace building, the cold wind blowing on his face made him more awake.

He was once attacked by the army of Jie Li Khan, and his horses had to drink water from the Wei River. He was forced to sign a treaty under the city walls and swear an oath on a white horse. That was when he had just ascended the throne, and it was the greatest shame of his life.

However, as time passes, looking back, he finds that the shame of that year has always motivated him to move forward.

Now both the Eastern and Western Turks had submitted to the Tang Dynasty. The Khans and Yehus had either submitted voluntarily or been captured alive and brought to Chang'an. They danced and wrestled at their own palace banquets. The Prince of Gaochang, the King of Tuyuhun, and the former King of Lingnan all sang and recited poems in his court to entertain the guests.

Someone in the hall took the opportunity to persuade the emperor to offer sacrifices to heaven and earth on Mount Tai, and Li Shimin was also very tempted.

As early as after the destruction of the Eastern Turks, many ministers had repeatedly advised the emperor to offer sacrifices to the gods at Mount Tai, but were dissuaded by Wei Zheng and others.

As soon as the cold wind blows,
Li Shimin regained consciousness.

When a king receives the mandate and changes his surname, he must ascend to Mount Tai. Why? It means to teach and instruct. When he first receives the mandate, he reforms the system to respond to the will of heaven, and the world is at peace. When things are complete, he performs the Fengshan ceremony to announce peace.

Since the fifth year of Zhenguan, ministers in the court have proposed to the emperor to confer a title on Mount Tai every year, but no decision has been made.

Whenever a dynasty is prosperous, Fengshan ceremonies are held.

For Li Shimin, the Tang Dynasty was a peaceful country with no one picking up things on the roads, doors being opened without locks, and the Jinwu guards in Chang'an City not being able to stop them.

From the Khitan and Shiwei in the east to the Tuyuhun and Gaochang in the west, all of them were subjects of the Han Dynasty. The powerful Eastern Turkic Khanate, which had the ambition to despise the Central Xia, was destroyed by Li Jing, Wu Huaiyu, Li Jing, Su Dingfang and others more than ten years ago. Now the rebellious Duolu Khan and Helu Yehu of the Western Turkic Khanate were also captured and sent to Chang'an.
All the tribes submitted and submitted.

It can be said that the time is ripe for Fengshan at this time. In terms of merit, benevolence, achievements in governing the country, foreign submission, agricultural harvest, and the appearance of auspicious signs, etc., he has met the standards for Fengshan.

Just now, the ministers proposed the Fengshan ceremony, and Li Shimin was really moved and felt that he was qualified.

But the attendant Wei Zheng only said one sentence and asked Li Shimin to walk out of the hall and go outside to feel the cold wind.

He said that during the reign of Emperor Yang of Sui, there were 8.9 million households and a population of nearly 50 million. And now, in the 14th year of Zhenguan, how many households are there in the court? The official household registration is 3.85 million households, which is nearly double the 2 million households in the beginning of Wude.
In addition, there are many vassal states and prefectures that have surrendered to the barbarians and have not been counted.
However, the official number of households today is still less than half of that during the Sui Dynasty.

The Sui Dynasty, which once had nearly nine million households and 50 million people, perished in the second generation.

Wei Zheng's words were like a bucket of cold water, which immediately sobered up Li Shimin, who was still a little dizzy.

The emperor stood on the palace tower, feeling the cold wind.

Although the Tang Dynasty is now strong in military power, its national strength has not yet recovered, and the people have not yet fully recovered. In the final analysis, the people's lives are not rich enough, and the court's reserves are not rich enough.
The external environment of the Tang Dynasty was not safe.
There is still the unruly Xueyantuo in the northern desert, and the ambitious Goguryeo in Liaodong. Even the Tibetans in the snowy land, although they were defeated last time, are still unwilling to accept the defeat.

Although the Zhenguan Dynasty was full of vigor and everything was flourishing, in terms of national strength, it was indeed not as good as the middle period of the Daye Dynasty or the founding dynasty.

Wei Zheng did not intentionally oppose Fengshan.

Wu Huaiyu led his army to capture the Western Turkic Duolu Khan, captured the rebellious Helu Yehu, and destroyed the Gaochang Kingdom. It can be said that the Tang Dynasty's power in the Western Regions was greatly enhanced.
But at this time, news reached Chang'an that the Qibi tribe, which had submitted to the Tang Dynasty ten years ago and moved east to Liangzhou, was rebelling and joining the Xueyantuo in the northern desert. There was also news that He Li of the Qibi tribe was leading the rebellion.

There was also news that the Little Khan of Beiting, Ashina Buzhen, suddenly attacked Khan Midian. This time he suddenly dispatched troops and also joined forces with the Asijie and other tribes of Suiye. These two tribes had more than 100,000 soldiers.

The rebellion of Buzhen and Asijie undoubtedly made the situation in the Western Regions more complicated, and it might even lead to collapse.

There is also news that the Xueyantuo Khan Yinan in Mobei has sent his eldest son, the young Khan Tulishikhan Yemang, to lead troops south, and a major war may also break out on the northern border.

At this time, offering sacrifices to the gods on Mount Tai is obviously inappropriate.

Wei Zheng gave a suggestion, suggesting that the details of the Fengshan ceremony be discussed first, and that an envoy be arranged to be responsible for the specific leading and organizing work, and then the Fengshan ceremony be officially held on Mount Tai two years later, that is, in the spring of the 16th year of Zhenguan.
This way there is plenty of time, all kinds of preparations can be made, and there is also enough energy to focus on the troubles at hand.

"Wei Zheng's suggestion is good. Let's hold a ceremony to consecrate the dead on Mount Tai in February of the 16th year of Zhenguan."

Li Shimin looked at Chang'an City under the night sky. Many neighborhoods were still brightly lit and very lively.
The brightest lights are in Pingkangfang in the east city, which is the most lively at night. Recently, many Hu girls from the Western Regions have arrived in Pingkangfang, attracting many people.

"Let the Minister of Rites Wei Ting be the envoy for Fengshan."

Standing on the left and right of the emperor were Zuo Pushe Fang Xuanling and Zhongshu Ling Ma Zhou. These two were the emperor's right arms and they had always supported the Fengshan ceremony at Mount Tai. This was not only to satisfy the glory of the monarch,

Fengshan was also a supreme honor for the ministers who accompanied him, and it was enough to be recorded in history.

An emperor who is qualified to perform Fengshan can only be found once every few decades or even hundreds of years, so the ministers are actually more concerned and enthusiastic about Fengshan than the emperor. Otherwise, starting from the fifth year of Zhenguan, there would not have been so many ministers submitting petitions every year to request Fengshan.

When Emperor Wu of Han performed the Fengshan ceremony for the first time, Sima Qian's father Sima Tan was among the entourage. However, he was unable to go due to illness, which made Sima Tan very angry and he died. He even held Sima Qian's hand on his sickbed and lamented in anger, "Today your Majesty takes over the throne for a thousand years and performs the Fengshan ceremony on Mount Tai, but I cannot go with him. This is fate, this is fate!"
He died after saying that.

Fang Xuanling and Ma Zhou both hoped to accompany the emperor to offer sacrifices to the gods on Mount Tai. This would be the glory of the Zhenguan period of the Tang Dynasty, the glory of the Zhenguan emperor, and the glory of them, the prime ministers of the Zhenguan period.

"The Imperial Censor Zhang Liang reported that the Imperial Censorate had received many letters accusing Wu Huaiyu of plundering a large amount of property when he defeated the Turkic Beiting and Gaochang, and that his officers and soldiers followed suit, stealing and hiding the spoils, and Wu Huaiyu was unable to stop them.

Some people also impeached that Wu Huaiyu found the underground maze treasure of Gaochang King Qu Wentai and embezzled the treasure worth millions of strings of cash.

Some people also impeached Wu Huaiyu for accepting bribes from the King of Yanqi and the King of Qiuci.
He even secretly kept the Princess of Gaochang and the Princess of Yanqi."

"Many of the impeachments demanded that Wu Huaiyu and the generals who led the Western Expedition be punished."

Ma Zhou said frankly, "Your Majesty, Yu Gushe rebelled and the King of Gaochang was incompetent. Your Majesty ordered Wu Huaiyu to lead the troops to Xizhu. Wu Huaiyu led 16,000 cavalry into the Western Regions first, marched 7,000 miles, penetrated deep into the enemy's heart, captured Yu Gushe in one fell swoop, and destroyed Gaochang.

But now Cheng Yaojin and other soldiers who had just returned from the Western Expedition had just returned, and the commander-in-chief Wu Huaiyu was still guarding the Western Regions for the country. Now they were investigating and even punishing them.

I am afraid that people all over the world will suspect that Your Majesty only knows how to record his mistakes and forget his merits.

Ma Zhou did not avoid the matter just because Wu Huaiyu was his brother-in-law, nor did he fail to stand up because Cheng Yaojin was his brother-in-law's father-in-law.

He bowed deeply.
"Your Majesty, I have heard that the generals are ordered to go out to fight, and the main thing is to defeat the enemy. If they can defeat the enemy, they can be rewarded. If they fail, they can be executed even if they are honest.

Therefore, Li Guangli and Chen Tang of the Han Dynasty, Wang Jun of the Jin Dynasty, and Han Qinhu of the Sui Dynasty were all sent away with their crimes, but their rulers rewarded them for their meritorious services.

"From this it can be seen that among military officials such as generals, those who are honest and prudent are in the minority, while the majority are greedy and undisciplined. Therefore, Huang Shigong said in his military strategy that when employing generals, one should make them wise, brave, greedy, and foolish. Therefore, the wise are happy to achieve their achievements, the brave are happy to carry out their ambitions, the greedy are eager to pursue their benefits, and the foolish do not care about their own death.

I hope that Your Majesty can remember their small contributions and forget their big faults, so that they can continue to serve Your Majesty and fight for the country and guard the border."

Faced with the impeachment of Wu Huaiyu and other Western Expedition soldiers by a group of imperial censors brought by the emperor,
Ma Zhou did not defend Wu Huaiyu and his men against a series of crimes such as robbing money, dividing the spoils among themselves, usurping the Gaochang princess, and embezzling the treasures from the Gaochang underground labyrinth.
But changed the angle,
Ma Zhou argued that Wu Huaiyu was guilty. Wu Huaiyu and his men had made great contributions in the Western Expedition. Even if those things really happened, the emperor should not pursue the matter.

Because they have made great military achievements.

Li Shimin listened to the wind and did not speak immediately.

At this time Fang Xuanling also stood up, and he changed his angle again, saying that Wu Huaiyu had always had good character, had commanded troops for many years, and had made countless contributions. He had never heard of him leading troops to plunder, embezzling property, or even occupying women.
When someone reported that Wu Huaiyu had divided up the spoils of war privately, Fang Xuanling said that he knew something about it because Wu Huaiyu had divided them openly. He was the chief of the Western Expedition camp and indeed had distributed a lot of the captured property among the soldiers in the name of the camp, but the details of the rewards were recorded in a book, and a copy of the book was sent to the Ministry of War and the Political Affairs Hall. The amount of property seized by the camp and how the rewards were distributed were clearly recorded item by item and then reported to the court.

"Your Majesty, Wu Huaiyu made great contributions in this Western Expedition. The soldiers fought very hard and traveled 7,000 miles. After the war, Wu Huaiyu maintained good military discipline and upheld the prestige of our Tang Dynasty.
After the victory, it is not wrong to give some money and silk to the soldiers as rewards."

"I have heard that a ruler treats his subjects with courtesy and a subject serves the ruler with loyalty. In the past, Duke Mu of Qin gave wine to a barbarian who stole horses, and King Zhuang of Chu pardoned a minister whose hat tassel was torn off for molesting a palace girl. In the end, both received double the reward. Is it possible that Your Majesty is superior to Yao and Shun, but not as good as Duke Mu of Qin and King Zhuang of Chu?
If Your Majesty wishes to summon the Prime Minister back to the court, and have a high-ranking official, a prime minister, who had just made great contributions in the Western Expedition, confronted in court about a man and a woman's affair,

Even if it is true, the gain is very minor, but if it is not true, the loss is more serious.”

Ma Zhou also made another suggestion.

"I heard that the King of Yanqi gave a pair of beautiful twin princesses to Prime Minister Wu, as well as a lot of gold, harps, and silver. However, Prime Minister Wu did not touch a penny of the money, which was worth tens of thousands of strings of cash. He asked Zhang Jian to take it all back to Chang'an and present it to the emperor.

Including the beautiful pair of Yanqi princesses.

I want to ask, since Wu Lianlian did not accept the young and beautiful Princess Yanqi, how could he occupy the Princess Gaochang?"

"He refused to accept gifts worth millions of taels of silver, so why would he go to such lengths to plunder and embezzle treasures?"

"You are right," Li Shimin praised loudly to his two confidants.

The next day, the emperor kept all the impeachments and did not issue them.

When Wei Zheng heard about this,

In the morning court, he gave the emperor frank advice.

“Your Majesty, although the ministers in the court and those who hold important positions are entrusted with important tasks, they are not trusted enough, so some people may doubt themselves and be harsh in their hearts.

Your Majesty is lenient with major matters but impatient with minor offenses, and is angry and reprimanded at the last minute, which is inevitably due to love and hate.

If they are appointed to high posts and look for minor faults, the clerks will follow the emperor's orders and manipulate the law to commit crimes.

If this continues, the ruler and his subjects will only seek to avoid disaster, and hypocrisy will inevitably become the norm. "

Although Wei Zheng did not mention Wu Huaiyu or the soldiers who went on the Western Expedition,

But all the ministers in the hall knew that what Wei Zheng was talking about was the recent impeachment of Wu Huaiyu and the soldiers of the Western Expedition by many people.

Wu Huaiyu and his men led the troops on the Western Expedition and fought such a brilliant battle, which opened up thousands of miles of territory in the Western Regions for the Tang Dynasty and established two new prefectures.

With such great achievements, so many people are now beginning to investigate their crimes, and some are even impeaching them without any evidence. How can this be justified?
The emperor nodded repeatedly and praised him for his reasonable words.

The next day,

The emperor's order was passed to the Council of State Affairs, and Zhangsun Wuji was promoted to Grand Commandant, Wu Huaiyu to Minister of Justice,

Shangshu Zuo Pushe Jin Sikong.

The three ministers have completed their worship.

Then, Huangmen Shilang Liu Ji was appointed as prime minister and Zhongshu Shilang Cen Wenben, who was in charge of confidential matters, was also admitted to the government hall.

Wu Huaiyu was dismissed from his post as Minister of War, and Li Ji, the Chief Clerk of the Bingzhou Grand Marshal's Office, was summoned to the court to serve as Minister of War.

Yang Shidao was appointed Minister of Personnel again.

The Imperial Censor Zhang Liang was given the title of "Participator in State Affairs" and entered the Council of State Affairs.

Wu Huaiyu still retained the title of Tongzhongshumenxia Pingzhangshi.

Thus,
The three dukes were the Grand Marshal Changsun Wuji, the Minister of the Interior Wu Huaiyu, and the Minister of Works Fang Xuanling.

The prime ministers of the Political Affairs Hall were Fang Xuanling, the Left Prime Minister, Gao Shilian, the Right Prime Minister, Ma Zhou, the Minister of the Central Secretariat, and Wei Zheng, the Palace Attendant.
As well as the Huangmen Assistant Minister Liu Ji, who participated in the government affairs, and the Zhongshu Assistant Minister Cen Wenben, who was in charge of the confidential information.

The Imperial Censor and Minister of State Affairs Zhang Liang, the Special Advancement and Minister of State Affairs Xiao Yu,

In addition, Wu Huaiyu, the Minister of the Secretariat,
There are nine prime ministers in total.
Wu Huaiyu was on a diplomatic mission abroad, guarding the Western Regions and Hexi.

The six ministers, whether it was Yang Shidao, the son-in-law of the Ministry of Personnel, Li Ji, the Ministry of War, Xu Jingzong, the Ministry of Rites, Tang Jian, the Ministry of Civil Affairs, Li Daliang, the Ministry of Justice, and Duan Lun, the Ministry of Works,
However, none of them entered the government hall and were given titles and appointed as prime ministers.

Although the emperor's uncle, Zhangsun Wuji, was promoted to Grand Marshal, the head of the Three Dukes, he was not recalled to the central government. He still served as the governor of Luozhou in Luoyang.

The Xueyantuo troops in the northern desert moved unusually.

Eight thousand tents of the Qibi tribe in Hexi Liangzhou defected.
The Asiqie tribe in the Western Regions rebelled again with Buzhen.

Although the common people in Chang'an City could not feel the unrest thousands of miles away, Emperor Li Shimin had to face it seriously.
The emperor personally inspected and trained the Northern Courtyard Imperial Guards in Beiyuan. Seeing that many of the Northern Courtyard Imperial Guards were not in good order, he was furious and ordered General Zhang Shigui to beat the Zhonglang Jiang and others who led the troops with sticks.
He was also angry that Zhang Shigui's beating was too light, so he ordered him to be arrested and tried for punishment.

The emperor behaved like this because he has been under a lot of pressure recently.

The Left Yulin General Cheng Yaojin and the Right Longwu General Fan Xing hurriedly pleaded for Zhang Shigui.
"A general's job is to be the country's minions; to make him bear the rod is not enough for future generations to follow, let alone to send him to trial and punish him for a light beating."

After persuasion from other generals, Li Shimin finally released Zhang Shigui.

"I thank your majesty for your forgiveness. I request to lead the troops into Hexi to intercept the Qibi rebels and capture Qibi Heli to atone for my sins!"

Li Shimin shook his head. "I absolutely do not believe that Qibi Heli will defect. I believe the memorial sent by Wu Huaiyu. Some people in the Qibi tribe want to defect. They have taken the Qibi tribe hostage and also Qibi Heli hostage."

"Wu Huaiyu has sent Liu Demin and Guo Xiaoke to intercept the Qibi tribe. I believe they can do it,"

Zhang Shigui said, "Then I will go to the Western Regions to serve and assist Prime Minister Wu in suppressing the rebellion of Buzhen and Asijie."

The emperor still shook his head.

"Chang'an is thousands of miles away from Suiye in the Western Regions. It will be too late when you lead your troops there. I still trust Wu Huaiyu. Let him take charge of the Western Regions."

The emperor thought for a while,
"You go with Li Ji to the south of the desert and summon the troops of the Eastern Turkic tribes such as Simo and She'er to defend the south of the desert. If the Xueyantuo dare to cross the desert and go south,
Then destroy them.”

The emperor did not appoint Cheng Yaojin and Fan Xing, two generals of the Northern Court who had just made great contributions in the Western Regions, but instead appointed Zhang Shigui, who was about to be taken away for interrogation and punishment.
He also appointed Li Ji, who had just been appointed Minister of War but was still in Bingzhou, as the leader.

(End of this chapter)