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

Chapter 1749: Your Majesty's great ambitions, we will follow you till death

The night is shrouded and the palace is lit with candles.

The Liangyi Hall is located deep inside the palace, on dozens of steps, at an extremely high position. Because the Taiji Hall was burned down, one can almost see the lights of the entire Chang'an from here.

Li Xuan stood at the entrance of Liangyi Hall, looking away from Chang'an City in the distance, and said sideways: "Prime Minister Yao will be transferred to Jingzhou tomorrow. Although he will still be a third-rank official in the Secretariat, he will not be in the court after all. The Political Affairs Hall is also missing a prime minister. The four of you can take your turn and decide who is the most suitable successor?"

Lu Yuanfang, Wang Dezhen, Liu Jingxian and Zhang Da'an looked at each other, and their hearts tightened.

Lu Yuanfang was the first to step forward and said, "Your Majesty, Prime Minister Yao's transfer to Jingzhou as Prime Minister will help Jingzhou prosper and its people live in peace. As for the vacancy in the Council of State, I have four people I can recommend."

"Tell me about it." Li Xuan nodded slightly.

"Taichang Temple Minister Lin Renji, Shangshu Zuocheng Feng Yuanchang, Rites Minister Wei Xuantong, Imperial Censor Wang Jishan." Lu Yuanfang cupped his hands and said, "With the abilities and qualifications of these four people, they are qualified to be Zhongshu Shilang, a position of the third rank of Zhongshu Menxia."

"Forget about Lin Qing. He is not young anymore and there are many complicated matters in the Council of Government. I don't want to see him retire too early." Li Xuan shook his head slightly. Lin Renji was Di Renjie's old boss.

When Di Renjie was the legal officer of Bingzhou, Lin Renji was already the chief of Bingzhou. Di Renjie was 55 years old, and Lin Renji was almost 60 years old.

Lu Yuanfang bowed slightly and didn't say much.

Li Xuan waved his hands and said, "I know what Lu Qing is thinking, but the affairs of the Political Affairs Hall cannot be dealt with casually. As for Lin Qing, after the coronation ceremony next year, I will appoint him as the Prince's Junior Tutor to help me keep an eye on the Eastern Palace."

The Prince's Tutor is a second-rank official position, which ordinary people cannot get.

Even Li Xuan, who had put in a lot of effort, finally got the position of Prince's Guardian.

Now that Lin Renji has been appointed as the Prince's Tutor, I wonder how many people will envy him.

But if this happened, Lin Renji would never be able to serve as prime minister again.

Lu Yuanfang and the other three immediately understood how important it was that Li Xuan attached great importance to the position of Prime Minister in the Council of State.

"As for Feng Qing." Li Xuan shook his head and said, "He has done a good job as the Shangshu Zuocheng, but it has only been a year. I don't want to let him leave the Shangshu Province so soon."

"Yes!" Lu Yuanfang bowed. He was the only one who knew the heavy pressure that Li Xuan had put on various departments these days.

He found and reported many details of state and county affairs that most people didn't pay attention to.

I don’t know how much affairs each department has to deal with every day.

Lu Yuanfang and Wang Dezhen, one was Shangshu Zuo Pushe and the other was Shangshu You Pushe. If Feng Yuanchang had not shared the work with them, I'm afraid both of them would have been very busy.

"Then the remaining one is between Lord Wei and Lord Wang." Li Xuan said with some embarrassment, "It's the same with Lord Wei. He has only been the Minister of Rites for a short time, especially since he is also the Imperial College Priest. I still hope that he can preside over the Spring Examination next year. But Lord Wang, I still need him to sit in the Imperial Censorate and inspect the officials. After all, someone else may not have the courage to do so."

Lu Yuanfang and Wang Dezhen looked at each other. Finally, Wang Dezhen stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty has chosen Wei Xuantong to preside over the Spring Examination. This is indeed a good choice. When Wei Xuantong was the Minister of Personnel, he was already known for his ability to choose the right people. Therefore, I suggest that Wei Xuantong should not be moved for the time being. As for Wang Jishan, you can make him the Imperial Censor and the third rank official of the Secretariat. What do you think?"

Li Xuan looked at Wang Dezhen in surprise, nodded slightly, and said: "What Wang Qing said can indeed solve the problem temporarily, but the Secretariat is short of a prime minister."

"Transfer someone to be the Minister of the Secretariat, but a third-rank official in the Secretariat." Lu Yuanfang stepped forward and bowed.

Li Xuan hesitated for a moment, but then he said, "Transfer Cen Changqian to the Secretariat as the Secretary of the Secretariat, and appoint Wang Qing as the Imperial Censor, and appoint him as the Third Grade of the Secretariat. They will be in the Ministry of Personnel. Mr. Zhang, what do you think?"

Zhang Daan stood up and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, please handle it properly."

"Very good, let's do this." Li Xuan waved his hand.

……

At the Tai Chi sect, the door slammed shut.

Lu Yuanfang nodded to everyone and said, "Tomorrow is the first day of October. After you go home, you should rest early. Your Majesty has just ascended the throne, so everything is very tight."

"This is a good thing." Zhang Da'an raised his eyes and looked forward and said, "Emperor Suzong Jing was young, and the court officials did not have much respect for him and were mostly lax. Your Majesty has a sharp eye and can see the thoughts of the officials at a glance, so you strictly enforced the administration of officials in the early days of your reign... If you don't do it now, it will be difficult in the future."

Everyone nodded in agreement at the same time. Official administration was something that could only be done for a while, not forever.

Li Xuan seems to be holding on very tightly now, and all the ministers are also very obedient. In fact, it is mostly because he has just ascended the throne, and their eyes are very vigilant.

If any of the ministers is lazy in handling state affairs, he will inevitably be regarded by the new emperor as passively resisting. When the time comes, the butcher's knife will be raised again and killing will be around the corner.

The officials in the court have been very adaptable from the time of Empress Wu until today.

"Okay, goodbye everyone." Lu Yuanfang nodded and went to his carriage first.

The others also got on their carriages.

As soon as they passed through the Suzaku Gate, teams of Jinwu Guards followed closely behind the prime minister and escorted them home.

In the autumn wind, Lu Yuanfang slightly lifted the curtain of the carriage.

The hustle and bustle of Chang'an city gradually disappeared in the market town, just like the whole world.

The emperor was concerned about the congratulatory letters sent to Chang'an by the provincial governors all over the country, and the prime ministers were also concerned. After all, they had long been deeply bound to Li Xuan.

I don’t know how many letters were sent from the hands of these prime ministers to all corners of the world.

As for Lu Yuanfang himself, he sent personal letters to all the governors of various places in Jiangnan, as well as the governors of places coming from Jiangnan. He even contacted the Yu family, the Gu family and other Jiangnan aristocratic families, ensuring that at least fifty or sixty congratulatory letters were delivered to Chang'an on time.

With the joint efforts of all the prime ministers, except for a few marginal states and counties such as Guangzhou, Zhenzhou, Yazhou, Jiaozhou, Chaozhou, Quanzhou, etc. which were too far to reach due to the long distance, almost all the governors of the Tang Dynasty sent congratulatory letters, acknowledging Li Xuan's legitimate throne and obeying his command.

This is also the reason why Li Xuan, although he clearly had other plans today, finally agreed to the suggestions of Lu Yuanfang and others.

Yes, Lu Yuanfang could see that Li Xuan had been prepared for Yao Lingzhang's resignation as prime minister this time. Even Cen Changqian was transferred to the Secretariat and Wang Jishan was transferred to the Ministry of Personnel. The emperor was prepared for everything. The only uncertainty was Wei Xuantong.

Once Wei Xuantong is transferred to the position of Grand Censor, who will take over the vacant position of Minister of Rites?

The reason why the emperor did not insist today was that he knew that the candidate he put forward might not be accepted by the ministers.

But who is this person?

Lu Yuanfang looked up at the night sky of Chang'an above his head. There were no stars or moons in the sky, and it was as dark as ink.

There were people who made a strong emperor like Li Xuan feel embarrassed to speak.

Liu Yuanshen, Junior Minister of the Imperial Clan, Liu Yuanlang, Imperial Secretary of the Left... no, the Liu brothers, the Empress's maternal family, were deeply influenced by Prime Minister Liu and are not that impetuous.

The Right General of the Imperial Guard, Qu Chongyu... No, the Minister of Rites, is not as good as the Right General of the Imperial Guard.

Then it must be the royal family... the King of Han, or the King of Zheng?

No, it's the King of Han. Lu Yuanfang couldn't help but narrow his eyes. In this way, the King of Han was appointed as the Minister of Rites, and the King of Huo was appointed as the Minister of Imperial Clan Affairs. The two princes, the royal family, directly controlled all the rituals. In this way, the power of the royal family in the court was too great, and it was easy to impact the imperial power, unless...

The emperor wanted to drive someone out.

If the King of Han is transferred back to Chang'an from Dingzhou, then someone must be transferred to Dingzhou.

Who else could it be.

Lu Yuanfang smiled gently. Every family has its own problems.

……

Early in the morning, Liu Jinyu, wearing a bright yellow phoenix robe, walked out of the Lizheng Hall with Li Xuan.

Crown Prince Li Zhizhao was already standing to one side.

Li Bi and Li Dazhi were guarded on both sides, and surrounded by hundreds of imperial guards.

"Let's go." Li Xuan and Liu Jinyu sat in the imperial carriage and waved their hands gently forward. A large group of people immediately headed towards the Liangyi Palace.

After leaving Xianchun Gate, Cui Ding and Zhou Qian followed the guards all the way to Liangyi Palace.

All officials above the ninth rank in Chang'an bowed their heads in awe until the emperor and empress sat on the imperial couch. The eunuchs on each side shouted at the same time, "Kneel!"

All the officials knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, may your Majesty live forever. Your Majesty, may your Majesty live forever. Your Majesty, may your Majesty live forever. Your Majesty, may you live forever."

"Everyone, please stand up." Li Xuan raised his hand, and the ministers stood up and bowed, saying, "Thank you, Your Majesty."

Li Xuan nodded, looked to one side, and nodded slightly.

Ouyang Tong stood up, first bowed to Li Xuan, then looked at the ministers and said, "Yao Lingzhang, the Imperial Court Minister, accepts the decree."

"Your servant Yao Lingzhang accepts the order." Yao Lingzhang immediately walked out of the train, bowed and knelt on the ground.

Ouyang Tong unfolded the imperial edict and said loudly: "In the first year of Kaiyuan, on the day of Gengyin on the first day of the tenth month of the Yiyou year, the emperor said:

Yu Xi!

The Purple Star in the sky is in the Qingjin on the earth, the prime minister is the most important, and all government affairs are of priority. If you don’t have special talents, how can you say that you have both?
Yao Lingzhang, the Jinzi Guanglu Doctor, the Huangmen Shilang, and the Tongzhongshu Menxia Sanrank, is a man of pure national spirit, clear and wise in rituals and music, with a broad mind and a deep public spirit.

However, the Chief Secretary of the Grand Marshal's Office of Jingzhou shall be the third rank official of the Secretariat, and the rest shall remain the same.

Admire this. "

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace. Long live the emperor." Yao Lingzhang kowtowed heavily to the ground.

"Yao Qing." Li Xuan lowered his head slightly and looked at Yao Lingzhang who was somewhat grateful.

"I'm here!" Yao Lingzhang raised his head and bowed, his expression restrained and his eyes full of emotion. When he expressed that he didn't want to face Li Xuan in Chang'an again, Li Xuan still let him continue to serve as prime minister.

This kind of mind is not something that ordinary emperors can possess.

"Shannan Road is adjacent to Yuezhou. Yuezhou has developed quite slowly in recent years. As the prime minister, if you have time, you should go there more often to see the situation and write a few memorials." Li Xuan said as he looked at the ministers. Many of them had begun to figure out Li Xuan's intentions.

The Jingzhou Grand Marshal's Office does not care about Yuezhou, but Li Xuan asked Yao Lingzhang to pay more attention to Yuezhou. What is his plan?

"I obey your order." Yao Lingzhang kowtowed again.

Li Xuan turned and looked at Ouyang Tong.

Ouyang Tong bowed, picked up another imperial edict, and said, "In the first year of Kaiyuan, on the day of Gengyin on the first day of the tenth month of the Yiyou year, the emperor said:

Yu Xi!

The duties and responsibilities are heavy, and the expectations for the rites and exams are urgent. If you do not have a bright moral character, no one can fully foresee them.

Wang Jishan, the Jinzi Guanglu doctor and the Yushi doctor, was a man of eight yuan in virtue, had a high reputation and made two contributions. He was kind and had many talents.

He can be ranked with the third rank of Zhongshu Menxia, ​​and should be transferred to the Department of Nine Laws, and return to the post of Dian Baigong, with the same title as before.

Admire this. "

Wang Jishan immediately walked out quickly and kowtowed solemnly: "I thank your majesty for your great grace. Long live your majesty."

"My Lord." Li Xuan looked at Wang Jishan and said seriously, "I can entrust you with the responsibility of impeaching the ministers and officials, and the atmosphere in the court."

After hearing Li Xuan's words, all the ministers immediately forgot to listen to Wang Jishan's thanks.

The Imperial Censor was a third-rank official in the Secretariat.

Wang Jishan was originally the General of the Left Thousand Oxen Guard, and later served as the Minister of the Supreme Court, the Minister of Justice, and later the Imperial Censor.

Under his command, the censors in the Censorate stared at the ministers like mad dogs. Now that he has become the prime minister, he continues to serve as the chief censor.

The ministers could immediately imagine how difficult their future would be.

……

Li Xuan sat on the imperial couch with an indifferent look. He turned to look at Pei Ju and said, "Ministry of Revenue."

Pei Judao immediately stood up and said, "I am here."

"The autumn taxes have been sent to Chang'an and Luoyang one after another. The Ministry of Revenue must calculate the tax revenue of the court this year as accurately and as detailed as possible. I want to know the exact number." Li Xuan stared at Pei Ju and said.

Pei Judao immediately bowed and said, "I accept your order."

Li Xuan nodded, looked at the ministers and said, "Governing a country can be quantified, and the total amount of taxes is the quantitative standard. I know that the court has been in turmoil in the past two years and it is difficult to settle taxes, but now those days are over. In the future, the Tang Dynasty will become increasingly stable and prosperous, so I hope to see this number get higher and higher."

"We, the ministers, will follow His Majesty's instructions." The ministers bowed solemnly.

"The Palace Department." Li Xuan looked to the side.

Zheng Xuankai immediately stood up and said, "I am here."

"After this year's tax revenue is counted and processed, I will erect a screen on the left side of the hall. I want all the officials in the court to see their efforts for the past year." Li Xuan leaned forward slightly and said in a cold voice, "Comparing year by year, I believe that in the future, the Tang Dynasty will be more prosperous in my hands and in your hands."

"Your Majesty has great ambitions and we, your subjects, will follow you till death." All the ministers bowed their hands, and the whole hall was filled with laughter.

(End of this chapter)