A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Emperor Yuan Cong

Chapter 1239 Wu Huaiyu is back again

After celebrating the Little New Year in Luoyang East City,
Wu Huaiyu was ordered to return to Beijing. His two wounds had healed and he was recovering well.

At the end of the year, in the heavy snow and wind, Wu Huaiyu, accompanied by his son, left Luoyang in the east and headed west for Chang'an.

There were 800 imperial guards and followers.

Twelve groups of light cavalry advanced dozens of miles to explore the way and ensure safety along the way.

The emperor hoped that Wu Huaiyu could appear at the New Year's Day court meeting in the 16th year of Zhenguan so that the turmoil would end here and there, and he did not want any further complications.

The modified carriage is very comfortable to ride in and runs fast.

The spacious carriage is comfortably furnished. It is warm and spacious. You can lie down to sleep or sit around the stove to make tea, or read or write.

Chengsi was grinding ink, and Wu Huaiyu was writing.

Glossary.

Wu Huaiyu had already declined the emperor's reward for the umpteenth time.
"Since your majesty insists on conferring a higher title on Aye, why don't you accept it? I think Aye's achievements are sufficient."

Wu Huaiyu stopped writing and looked at his son.

"Do you really think I should take on the positions of Grand Commandant, Grand Tutor to the Crown Prince, Inspector of the Secretariat, and Director of the Ministry of Personnel?"

"This is what Aye deserves."

Wu Huaiyu shook his head.

Grand Marshal and Grand Tutor to the Crown Prince were originally the official positions of the emperor's uncle, Changsun Wuji. But now, because of his assassination, Changsun Wuji was implicated and was forced to resign from the positions of Grand Marshal and Grand Tutor to the Emperor.

A few days ago, the emperor formally accepted Zhangsun Wuji's resignation, and then two days later, he appointed him as Si Tu and Taizi Taifu.

This is very interesting. Grand Marshal, Crown Prince and Grand Tutor were originally the official positions of Changsun Wuji. Changsun Wuji even served as the Grand Commander of Yangzhou.

Wu Huaiyu was originally a minister. After returning from Anxi, he was appointed as the prince's tutor. When he was demoted from the capital, Fang Xuanling was also appointed as the prince's tutor. However, the emperor did not dismiss Wu Huaiyu from the position.
Now the official titles of Changsun Wuji and him as the Three Dukes and the Prince's Three Teachers have been exchanged.

If Changsun Wuji was really related to the assassination of Wu, then he would have resigned and the emperor would have accepted it. However, he was appointed as the Minister of Education and the Prince's Tutor, which means that the emperor had already determined that the assassination of Wu had little to do with Changsun Wuji.

That would not be a problem, but Changsun Wuji's official title was demoted, and he was swapped with Wu Huaiyu. It was as if Wu Huaiyu stepped on Changsun Wuji to get to the top.

Wu Huaiyu had reason to suspect that the emperor did this, firstly to give Wu Huaiyu a higher official title as a sign of appeasement, and secondly to deliberately create a rift between him and Zhangsun Wuji.

one stone two bird.

No good intentions.

However, this is also a normal imperial tactic. Deliberately creating some opposition among the ministers in the court and dividing the ministers is also an effective means of balance to prevent the imperial power from being hollowed out, especially now that Wu Huaiyu and Zhangsun Wuji are still important figures in the Eastern Palace Prince's Party.
The prince has been the prince for sixteen years and is no longer young.

Why did Zhangsun Wuji resign? He was such a power-hungry person who wanted to be the prime minister, but now he took the initiative to resign from the positions of Grand Marshal and Grand Tutor of the Crown Prince.
It was totally unavoidable.
In the Luoyang assassination case, Xu Luoren kept on pestering Yang Guangwu, so the emperor summoned Zhangsun Wuji to inquire about the situation. Although Xu Luoren did not find out how much Yang Guangwu had to do with the assassination case, the emperor only summoned him for questioning, which was actually a statement of his position.

Changsun Wuji had no choice but to take the responsibility and resign.

If he did not resign voluntarily, he would be very embarrassed if the emperor was unhappy.

It was obvious that Changsun Wuji did not want to be suspected of assassinating Wu, so he had no choice but to resign. Li Shimin agreed to his resignation and issued an edict to confer upon Wu Huaiyu the titles of Grand Marshal, Grand Tutor to the Crown Prince, Inspector of the Secretariat, and in charge of the affairs of the Menxia Province, and remotely appointed him as the Grand Commander of Yangzhou.

Last time, the emperor wanted to reward Wu Huaiyu, grant him a surname and title of king, and appoint him as the Minister of the Central Secretariat and the Minister of Personnel, but the Council of State discussed it for several days and nights but still failed to pass it.

But this time, the emperor directly summoned the prime minister of the Political Affairs Hall to the Yanying Palace.
The emperor's wish was immediately passed.

I heard that Zhangsun Wuji is now closed to visitors and is reflecting on himself at home. What is he reflecting on? He is reflecting on the chaos that occurred in Luozhou, where he had been the governor for five years, and on the serious dereliction of duty of Yang Guangwu, whom he had vigorously promoted.

Reflecting on the past five years, he found that many of the officials he promoted in Luoyang were incompetent.

In short, although Changsun Wuji was still the Minister of Education, one of the Three Dukes, and was also the Prince's Tutor, he suffered a great blow.

The convoy headed west.
Wu Huaiyu and Chengsi sat in the comfortable carriage, and had plenty of time to talk.

Chengsi still lacks experience and is a bit naive. Although he is quite good compared to other sixteen-year-olds,
Chengsi still cannot see the hidden worries behind the Wu family's current prosperity, and still thinks that his father's appointment as prime minister is natural and popular.

"Da Lang, after you get married next year, would you consider coming to Luoyang?"

"Come to Luoyang?"

"Become a county magistrate first,"

Although Luoyang City has not been upgraded to a capital yet, it is already in the plan. Luoyang, like Chang'an, is also one city and two counties. Luoyang City is not only the seat of Luozhou, but also the seat of Luozhou Military Governor's Office, which governs the military affairs of Luozhou and Zhengzhou.

Soon, Luoyang will be upgraded to the Eastern Capital.
Luozhou will also be upgraded to Henan Prefecture, and officials such as the prefect and the deputy prefect will be appointed. The two counties of Henan and Luoyang in Luoyang City will naturally be upgraded to Jing counties, and the county magistrate will be of the fifth rank.

Chengsi is now the Dushui Envoy, a fifth-rank official.

It was still the son-in-law of the emperor, the captain of the army, the chief of the imperial court, and the minister of the imperial court, who led the hundred cavalrymen to the north gate of the left camp.

There is also the title of founding duke of Taiyuan County.

He had these titles mainly because he was the son of Wu Huaiyu, and then the son-in-law and student of Li Shimin. He himself had no real merits or achievements, and the title of Du Shui Envoy was just a title, and he was not responsible for the specific affairs of Du Shui Jian.

There are actually many sons of aristocrats and noble relatives like Chengsi who have held high positions and titles at a young age.

"Luoyang will soon become the Eastern Capital, and it will become more and more important in the future. After you get married, you will be a real adult. I think it is necessary for you to be sent out to gain experience. The rank of Luoyang County Magistrate is not low. What's more important is that as the head of a county, you have to manage a lot of affairs, which is more suitable for training."

Chengsi never thought about this.

"You can bring the princess to live with you in Luoyang. I believe His Majesty will agree."

Wu Huaiyu did not suggest letting his son go to any other remote places. Training must be done step by step.

"I'm afraid I can't do it well." "Everyone has come step by step. If you don't have experience, just learn slowly. Don't worry, I will arrange some experienced staff to follow you and assist you."

"Aye, I actually want to lead the troops more."

Wu Huaiyu smiled, "In my Tang Dynasty, the distinction between civil and military officials is not that clear. You are still young, so you should first gain experience in the civil service. When you have more experience, you can be promoted to the border areas. Whether you are a governor or a governor, you will have the opportunity to lead troops."

One hundred and twenty miles a day,

The journey was not too tiring with the carriage.
New Year's Eve,
Wu Huaiyu finally arrived in Beijing.

At the foot of Changle Slope, at Changle Posthouse,

On the frozen Chan River,

The prince personally went out of the city for more than ten miles to wait and welcome his teacher back to the capital.

"Thank you for your hard work, teacher."

"Your Highness, why did you come to greet me in person during this severe snowstorm? I am terrified."

"Not only am I here, but all the gentlemen are here today too."

Fang Xuanling, Gao Shilian, Ma Zhou, Li Ji, Yang Shidao, Zhang Liang, Xiao Yu, Cen Wenben, Liu Ji, Chu Suiliang,

Only the Minister Wei Zheng was seriously ill at home and did not come.

The Prince Situ's Grand Tutor, Changsun Wuji, didn't come either.

This reception was of a very high standard.

The prime ministers and the civil and military officials behind them all had mixed feelings when they saw the military minister getting off the carriage and embracing the prince.

On the second day after returning to the capital from the Western Regions, he was demoted to Yingzhou in the Yanying Palace and was forced to leave the capital that same day.

At that time, many people really thought that Wu Xiang had lost his power.

Who knew that this Wu Xiang would attract attention wherever he went? On the fourth day after leaving the capital, he was assassinated in Luoyang. Then, half a month later,

Wu Xiang is back again.

It has been less than a month since we left Chang'an and returned to Chang'an.

Not only did he come back, but his official rank was now even higher than before.

No matter how Wu Huaiyu resigned,

But he was still the Grand Commandant, the Grand Tutor of the Crown Prince, the Inspector of the Secretariat, in charge of the Ministry of Personnel, with a fief of 2,800 households, and the Grand Commander of Yangzhou.

This was a formal imperial edict that was approved by the prime ministers in the Council of State Affairs, then drafted by the Minister of the Central Secretariat himself, and reviewed and approved by the Palace Attendant with his seal, and then delivered to the Ministry of Chancellery for seal and issuance.

Chatting with everyone,

An imperial envoy came on horseback and read out the emperor's edict.

"Please ask the Minister Wu to come to the palace immediately to see you,"

The crown prince and other ministers were also summoned, as well as the Minister of Justice Li Daozon, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Liu Dewei, and the Imperial Censor Tang Lin.

He also summoned six secretaries of the Secretariat and six officials of the Ministry of Personnel to go to the Purple Palace.

This situation has some flavor of a trial by three judges.

The emperor also specially dispatched a carriage to pick up Wu Huaiyu and bring him into the city. He also posted a sedan chair in front of the palace gate and ordered the attendants to carry the sedan chair to escort Prime Minister Wu into the palace.

A sedan chair is a sedan chair without wheels that needs to be carried on shoulders.

The emperor had seven kinds of sedan chairs and three kinds of carriages, most of which were used for ceremonials. Only the sedan chair was often used in daily life.

Ministers were generally not allowed to ride in a sedan chair, let alone ride in a sedan chair in the palace. Only old ministers who were highly respected or ministers with illnesses could be granted the privilege of entering the palace in a sedan chair.

Wu Huaiyu is still young, but he is also injured. The emperor gave him a carriage to show his concern.

In front of the Yanying Hall, a side hall of the Zichen Hall,

The emperor stood outside the palace to welcome Wu Huaiyu's return.

The waiter got off the chariot.
As soon as Wu Huaiyu got off the sedan chair, he saw the emperor walking down the steps, "Erlang, did you have a good journey back?"

"Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. I am fine."

Li Shimin patted his arm, then took his arm and said, "I will help you to the palace."

The emperor and his ministers walked shoulder to shoulder, hand in hand, up the stairs step by step and entered the Yanying Hall.

"Give Wu Xiang a seat."

The waiter called out the names, and the prime minister and others entered the hall one by one.

The emperor sat at the top with a serious look.

"Zhang Liang, it's been almost a month since Prime Minister Wu was assassinated in Luoyang. You three departments have been jointly investigating for a long time. What is the result?"

Everyone looked at Zhang Liang.
Wu Huaiyu also looked over.
Today is New Year's Eve, and it's been almost a month since he was assassinated. There should be a result, right?

I just don’t know what kind of result the emperor will give him.

(End of this chapter)