People in the early Tang Dynasty: I compete with Wu Zhao for the throne

Chapter 1301 The emperor’s methods against Empress Wu

In the middle of May, Luoyang is sultry.

In the Qianyuan Hall, a gentle breeze swept up, bringing bursts of coolness.

Empress Wu was dressed in a black brocade robe, and her eyes were calm and orderly as she processed official documents.

Slight footsteps sounded from the side. Empress Wu raised her head instantly, and then said with a relaxed expression: "Your Majesty."

"Meiniang!" Li Zhi, dressed in a green robe, walked in from the side door, waving his long sleeves in the cool breeze.

Li Zhi walked to Empress Wu and sat down with a relaxed expression. Shangguan Wan'er brought a cup of herbal tea to her.

Li Zhi picked it up and drank it in one gulp. Then Empress Wu said: "Chang'an reports that the water from Fanglin Garden has been connected to the canals in Chang'an City. Chang'an's water shortage can be alleviated somewhat."

Li Zhi nodded slightly and said, "Fortunately, I came to Luoyang early this year. Otherwise, if I were short of water, I would have enough to drink a pot."

"Your Majesty acted decisively and made arrangements for the world at the beginning of the year. This year's drought is not as severe as in previous years." Empress Wu personally took the teapot from Shangguan Wan'er, poured a cup for Li Zhi herself, and then waved her hand.

Shangguan Wan'er bowed slightly and then withdrew.

"No matter how well prepared you are, there will inevitably be omissions." When Li Zhi said this, he said with some humor: "The biggest gain this time is that the King of Nanchang leaked a trace of the secret of the power of calling wind and rain. It’s not a loss.”

Empress Wu smiled, then opened a memorial, put it in front of Li Zhi, and then whispered: "The King of Nanchang has arrived at Luoche City, defeated 30,000 Tibetan cavalry at Luoche City, and beheaded 50,000 people. Now Luoche There are only 30,000 soldiers in these cities to defend the fortified cities."

Li Zhi glanced at the memorial, then shook his head in amusement, and said: "I originally thought that they had learned their lesson. They should know that they could not defeat the King of Nanchang in an expedition in the wild, and defending the city with a large army was the right way. Who would have thought that they would do this? main idea."

"If Qinling and Zanxiruo were here, they might have made such preparations. However, if the new Tibetan Prime Minister Qu wants to show stronger ability than the Gar family, it is natural to defeat the King of Nanchang head-on. But unfortunately, he We know too little about the King of Nanchang.”

Empress Wu sighed softly, looked at the memorial and said: "To fight against the King of Nanchang, you cannot give him any extra accurate time. Once you give him time to prepare, even if his battlefield killing ability is not as good as that of Hei Te Changzhi. , but he must be the one who wins in the end.”

"This is the way to understand people's hearts." Li Zhi nodded in agreement and said: "No wonder Su Liangsi, Yang Zhirou, Pei Yan and Xue Yuanchao are unwilling to let the King of Nanchang return to the capital. Once he comes back, they will all have to ask for help." Be cautious."

"Let the King of Nanchang stay outside. With him outside, he can always shock people's hearts, so that the inside and outside can be balanced." Empress Wu smiled slightly and said: "At the worst, find a reason and let him run a few times often. ”

Li Zhi was full of approval, and then asked: "What else is there in the northwest?"

"The King of Nanchang has divided his troops. Heiji Changzhi went to Linzhi; Wang Dezhen and Yang Zhirou went to Shannan with Shi Jian and Brenzanren, and went south to Tianzhu; Tang Zhenxing and Qiu Zhenmu went to Shigatse; the King of Nanchang took With Cui Ding, it would be better to directly surround Gongren." Empress Wu also showed a hint of amusement for a moment.

Li Zhi understood immediately and said, "The troops in Luoxue City are more powerful than those under the King of Nanchang, right?"

"Yes." Empress Wu glanced at the memorial, and then said: "But the King of Nanchang was very smart. He kept moving troops from Naqu, Yangtong, Supi, and Changzhou. At the same time, his soldiers only besieged Locuse the south and west, but do not conduct offensives on the northeast and northeast."

"I remember that there is a mountain to the north. You can't go there even if you walk, so there is only the east side." Li Zhi raised his eyebrows and said, "It's still a way to surround the three towers."

"More than that." Empress Wu shook her head and said: "Once Hei Te Changzhi captures Linzhi and leads his troops to return and fight back, the east side will be blocked immediately. Those who left the city will still be driven back in autumn. .”

"That is to say, the only chance for Luozhe City is during the time when Hei Te Changzhi comes back." Li Zhi understood immediately.

"The King of Nanchang built dams on the upper reaches of Longqu River and Luoche River to block water, and thinned out some of the troops. But the Tubo people in Luoche City just didn't dare to move." Empress Wu had a wry smile on her face.

"They are afraid that there are traps there." Li Zhi instantly understood the thoughts of the Tibetan people.

Empress Wu nodded and said: "Who is not worried? Even if I change my body, I still can't figure out whether King Nanchang has a trap."

Li Zhi couldn't help laughing and said: "It seems that there shouldn't be, but based on my understanding of Twenty-Seven Lang, he must have made complete preparations for the response. Even if the Tubo people send tens of thousands of people to attack, I’m afraid it’s hard to get anything, and no matter how much…”

"They won't dare to take any more." Empress Wu waved her hand and said, "Your Majesty, the overall situation of Tubo has been decided. Now it depends on when King Nanchang will conquer it."

"Yes, I also saw the new leader of Tubo come to me as soon as possible... If we talk about it in detail, he is a generation younger than Chongzhao." Li Zhi felt a little funny when he thought of this.

Songtsen Gampo and he were of the same generation, but now, Songtsen has passed away, and so have his sons and grandsons.

As for Li Zhi, his grandson was only born a few years ago, and he himself is still very young.

……

"Your Majesty, the matter of the Minister of Justice and the Minister of War needs to be settled quickly." Empress Wu looked at Li Zhi with slight worry.

Li Zhi smiled helplessly and said: "Let Pei Yan continue to take care of the Ministry of Punishment. As for the Minister of War, we will wait until the King of Nanchang takes over."

Empress Wu shook her head firmly and said: "I know what your Majesty is thinking. I just want to use Ouyang Tong to share some of the rewards from King Nanchang. But in my opinion, the focus is on King Nanchang. There is no difference regardless. On the contrary, if Ouyang Tong is promoted to Minister of the Ministry of War in advance, his military achievements can be clearly understood." "Ouyang Aiqing is indeed a man of integrity." Li Zhi nodded slowly. If Ouyang Tong was promoted to Minister of the Ministry of War in advance, , then the prestige of the King of Nanchang will not be so high that it is difficult to control it. This will be good for him and the entire court.

"Okay, that's it." Li Zhi took a breath and said, "Let the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Civil Affairs start the process. Finally, Zhongshu Province issued an imperial edict, and Ouyang Tong was promoted to Minister of the Ministry of War, and Liu Boying was promoted to Minister of the Ministry of Rites. Shangshu of the Ministry of Punishment, Wu Chengsi, the governor of Fenzhou, was promoted to Shangshu of the Ministry of Rites..."

Having said this, Li Zhi glanced at Empress Wu helplessly and said, "Mei Niang, you are satisfied now."

Empress Wu smiled as brightly as a flower, but she still rolled her eyes at Li Zhi and said, "Chengsi is done with this for the rest of his life. He is a minister of the Ministry of Rites without real power. There is no difference between leaving it empty and giving it to him."

Li Zhi shook his head helplessly, and then said: "Wei Shi, the Minister of Punishment, will be appointed as the governor of Fenzhou."

Empress Wu was slightly startled, a trace of seriousness flashed in her eyes.

Wei Beiji, the minister of punishment, succeeded Wu Chengsi and became the governor of Fenzhou.

Anyone with a discerning eye can see that the one who originally had the best chance of being appointed as the Minister of Justice by Pei Yan was Wei Baiji. However, because of Empress Wu's relationship, this position fell to Liu Boying, the Minister of Rites, but Liu Boying was actually working for Wu Chengsi. Give Way.

In particular, Wu Chengsi had just been transferred from Fenzhou Governor to Minister of Rites, and Wei Daiji was immediately transferred to Fenzhou Governor.

The meaning here is simply not too strong.

The emperor easily made Wu Chengsi stand on the opposite side of the entire Wei family.

Looking at the helpless emperor, Empress Wu could only sigh in her heart and nodded slightly.

Li Zhi smiled calmly, and then said: "Wei Siqian, the doctor in charge of Yousi, will be appointed as Minister of Zongzheng Temple."

Empress Wu suddenly looked surprised. Wei Siqian, the right minister, should have made great achievements, but his transfer to the minister of Zongzheng Temple seemed to have blocked his path.

"Tiao Yong Governor Shi Yang Zaisi was appointed as Weiwei Temple Minister." Li Zhi turned to look at Empress Wu calmly.

Empress Wu blinked, was this step a way to appease herself?
"The governor of Taozhou, Lu Yuanfang, was appointed as the governor of Yong. Other officials at all levels, including Zhongshu, Shangshu, and the three provinces, will discuss with the Ministry of Rites." The emperor calmly handed over the vacancies of the Minister of Punishment, the Governor of Taozhou, and the Minister of Yousi to the court. officials went to fight for it.

"Your Majesty, is this for the crown prince?" Empress Wu understood the emperor's plan somewhat.

Li Zhi nodded slightly and said: "Yang Zaisi is supported by Mei Niang. In a few years, he will be a minister and then prime minister. Lu Yuanfang is the prince's teacher and has a close relationship with the King of Nanchang. In a few years, he will be the minister of the three provinces. Then he can become prime minister, so that he can form a tripartite alliance with Pei Yan."

Empress Wu understood immediately and whispered: "Your Majesty is not optimistic about Prime Minister Xue."

"It has been so long, and the Xue family has not even gotten closer to the King of Nanchang. Otherwise, I wouldn't have had to transfer Lu Yuanfang back so early." Li Zhi sighed softly. This time the officials in the DPRK were transferred, although they were officials. The Ministry, East Palace, Menxia, ​​Zhongshu and Shangshu each recommended it, but the final decision was a matter for the emperor and the ministers.

After listening to what Li Zhi said, Empress Wu immediately understood.

The relationship between the King of Nanchang and the Pei family is nothing more than that the Pei family has a daughter who is the concubine of the King of Nanchang, and there is no other relationship.

If the Xue family can find a time to marry a daughter to the King of Nanchang, then at least the King of Nanchang will choose to be neutral between the Xue family and the Pei family when things happen in the future.

Unexpectedly, the Xue family did not think of this simplest move at all. When the emperor saw the suggestion of bringing Lu Yuanfang back, he immediately adopted it.

"In addition, Di Renjie should also be transferred to the position of doctor of the Ministry of Finance this time, and he will be the doctor of Duzhi. The original doctor of Duzhi of the household department Zhongqian Weiwei will be transferred to the position of Zhongcheng of the Censor. Cui Mi, the former Zhongcheng of the Censor, will be promoted to the official position of the Censor. Gao Zhi, the Censor, will be promoted to the official position." The emperor instantly A series of arrangements were made.

Empress Wu didn't know what to say for a moment.

Cui Mi and Qian Weiwei are both hers. Gao Zhizhou is the boss, and Cui Mi was originally the de facto leader of Yushitai, but now he is just in name only.

As for Qian Wei, Du Zhi Shu was the core of Empress Wu's control. However, the sudden transfer of Qian Wei Wei to Censor Zhongcheng directly deprived Empress Wu of her control over Du Zhi Shu and the entire household department. However, at this time, Empress Wu could not say anything against it. .

First, both Cui Mi and Qian were offered promotions, and Empress Wu simply couldn't refuse.

Secondly, the person who replaced Qian was Di Renjie, and Empress Wu herself agreed with this choice.

Di Renjie has made it all the way to this day. Although it seems that he has the help of Zhang Wenguan, Duan Baoxuan, Li Xuan and others, the favor of the emperor and Empress Wu is also indispensable.

The Duzhi doctor of Hubu was supported by Empress Wu, and his power was even higher than that of Shangshu of Hubu.

Even a certain prime minister can show off his skills.

Now this position will be taken away from Empress Wu.

(End of this chapter)