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

Chapter 1817 Liu Xiyi, Zhang Ruoxu

At the end of the twelfth lunar month, the weather is freezing cold.

In the Taiji Hall, the furnace was burning hot.

Li Xuan took a look at the red-hot honeycomb coal, then looked at the two people standing in the hall in front of him.

Huangfu Xi, the doctor of the Ministry of Works, and Lü Dinglin, the doctor of the Ministry of Works.

On the left, Crown Prince Li Zhizhao was sitting behind a desk, with Crown Prince's Secretary Xing Wenwei and Crown Prince's Right Counselor Zhang Jianzhi sitting on both sides.

On the right, the Yellow Gate Assistant Minister and the Third-Rank Official of the Secretariat Cen Changqian and the Minister of Works Huang Rensu sat respectively.

Li Xuan looked at Huangfu Xi and Lu Dinglin and said, "I summoned you two here today because Yu Shenyan, the Minister of Works, was promoted to Junior Minister of Rites. Therefore, there is a vacancy for the Minister of Works. I plan to choose one of you two to take the position."

"We will follow your majesty's instructions." Huangfu Xi and Lu Dinglin looked at each other with solemn expressions.

Taichang Temple is one of the nine temples, and the chief among them.

The treatment of Taichang Temple in all matters is equal to that of the Ministry of Personnel.

The Minister of Taichang Temple is of the third rank, and the Junior Minister of Taichang Temple is of the fourth rank.

Although the Minister of Works was of the third rank, the Vice Minister of Works was of the fourth rank.

Yu Shenyan was promoted from Vice Minister of Works to Junior Minister of Rites, which was definitely a promotion.

The Ministry of Works was an unpopular government office. If one did not get promoted to the Junior Minister of Rites, one would either have to wait until he was promoted to the Minister of Revenue, or be transferred to a local post and become a Governor of Zhongzhou.

But now, Yu Shenyan has been promoted from the Minister of Works to the Junior Minister of Rites. This not only means that once he is posted outside the capital in the future, he will immediately become the Governor of a higher province, but even within the court, he will have the position of the Minister of Nine Temples to choose from. It couldn't be better.

Huangfu Xi and Lu Dinglin were only Langzhong of the Ministry of Works, a fifth rank. Now they were promoted to Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works, a fourth rank, in one go. It is unknown how much their promotion was.

But they were a little confused as to why the emperor did not promote the queen's father, Liu Yuanlang, to the position of Vice Minister of Works?

You know, that's the queen's father.

Now the emperor and empress are in harmony, and Liu Yuanlang has a good relationship with both the empress and the prince. But why doesn't the emperor promote his own father-in-law when he has the chance?

In any case, it would definitely be a huge benefit to them if the emperor did not mention Liu Yuanlang.

The two men immediately obeyed the order solemnly.

Li Xuan nodded, and then said: "This winter, many sections of roads in Ziwu Valley are in disrepair and are difficult to pass, so I decided that you two will each take half to repair them. As for which half to take, you can discuss it with Huang Qing after you go back.

Remember, it must be good, steady, and fast. I have a plan in mind, and I will go there in person when the time comes to make the final decision for you."

Whoever builds the road that best suits Li Xuan's wishes will be the next Minister of Works.

"Your Highness, we obey your order." Huangfu Xi and Lu Dinglin immediately bowed their hands solemnly, and then said, "Your Highness, we will take our leave."

Li Xuan raised his hand slightly, and the two of them immediately left the Tai Chi Hall.

Li Xuan breathed a sigh of relief, looked at the Crown Prince and Cen Changqian and others on his left and right, and said, "Attacking Silla is the first priority.

The roads in Silla get worse as you go north, in order to prevent the Tang cavalry from running rampant, so I need a Minister of Works who is good at building roads and bridges."

Everyone nodded silently, only Huang Rensu cupped his hands and said, "If your majesty needs anything, I will go with you."

"You can't go." Li Xuan waved his hand and said, "You have to stay behind and watch over the roads in Hebei and Andong for me. Let them handle the matters on the front line."

"Yes!" Huang Rensu nodded solemnly.

Li Xuan added: "I will inspect Jingzhou next year and Hebei the year after. Whoever is the Minister of Works will repair the road from Luoyang to Jingzhou for me next year. He will call on local workers and soldiers to widen the road. I want to train his abilities in all aspects."

"Yes!" The ministers nodded in agreement.

Huang Rensu hesitated for a moment, then said, "Your Majesty, why don't you consider Lecheng Earl for this matter? Lecheng Earl is also very capable in logistics."

Liu Yuanlang, Earl of Lecheng, was Liu Jinyu's father and Li Zhizhao's maternal grandfather.

After Li Xuan ascended the throne, he conferred the title of Duke of Bian on Liu Rengui and the title of Earl of Lecheng on Liu Yuanlang.

When Li Xuan was fighting in the northwest, Liu Yuanlang had helped him watch the rear and handle the deployment of military equipment many times.

Li Xuan shook his head slightly and said, "As for my father-in-law's matter, my idea is to let him accumulate enough qualifications so that he can be promoted directly to the position of Vice Minister of the Six Ministries in two years, not just limited to the Ministry of Works."

Qualifications.

The ministers nodded slightly. These were the two words that the emperor mentioned frequently during this period.

To become a Shangshu, a Prime Minister, or even a Temple Minister, the higher the position in the central government, the more likely one is to have and need to have experience in local affairs.

Take Ouyang Tong for example. He worked as a secretary of the Secretariat, and was later transferred to become the governor of Huaizhou, the minister of war, the minister of revenue, the left palace attendant, the co-director of the Secretariat, and the Shizhong.

The local governments, the nine central temples, the six ministries, and the three provinces all took steady steps.

There are also Wang Dezhen, Yuan Jiazuo, Duan Baoxuan, Liu Zhirou, Lai Jingye, all of whom have taken this path.

Place, center.

If you don't have enough qualifications, don't even think about becoming a minister of the nine temples or the six ministries, let alone a prime minister. A prime minister must start from a prefecture or county.

Li Xuan is firmly implementing this.

The same thing happened to his father-in-law Liu Yuanlang now. After serving as the Vice Minister of Six Ministries, he should be sent out to serve as a local governor.

……

Li Xuan briefly explained, then waved his hand and said, "Okay, that's it, you guys retreat..."

A burst of hurried footsteps suddenly came from outside the palace, and then Song Zhiwen, the Prince's groom and scholar of the Hongwen Academy, hurried in, then knelt on the ground, kowtowed and said, "Your Majesty, Guanglu Shaoqing Jiang Yan has passed away."

"What!" Li Xuan stood up suddenly and looked at Song Zhiwen in surprise.

Then, he shook his head fiercely and said, "Zhou Qian, dispatch 500 Qianniu Guards, notify Jinwu Guards and Chang'an County, and block the road. I want to go over and see immediately... What happened to him? Why did he become like this suddenly? If there is anything, I should have told him earlier so that I can see him for the last time."

Song Zhiwen wanted to speak, but in the end he just kowtowed heavily and remained silent.

Soon, Li Xuan changed into a black robe with a gold-threaded dragon robe, rode out of the Suzaku Gate on horseback, and headed quickly towards Anyefang.

On the streets of Chang'an City, the people have been separated.

Li Xuan was running at full speed, with the Qianniu Guards following closely behind him, a solemn look on his face.

Jiang Yan, during Li Xian's Eastern Palace period, Jiang Yan was Li Xian's prince servant.

Although he is not at the decision-making level, he is also a trusted and important official.

However, after Li Xian's death, he was forced to surrender under the butcher knife of Empress Wu.

It was not until later that people realized that Jiang Yan was Liu Jingxian's man, and Liu Jingxian was very close to Pei Yan.

It was precisely because of this that after Li Chongjun ascended the throne, although Jiang Yan was the Shaoqing of Guanglu, he was actually not close to the emperor.

He felt guilty.

Later, when Li Xuan ascended the throne, Jiang Yan wanted to stop him, but due to old habit, he could not open his mouth.

Li Xuan still let him serve as Guanglu Shaoqing, but although he performed his duties and attended court, he did not speak much.

It wasn't just Jiang Yan. Li Xuan had no important plans for many people in the middle and lower levels of the Eastern Palace at that time.

For example, Song Zhiwen who was running at full speed in the back.

Although he is the prince's groom now, Li Xuan has already made plans to transfer him to the local area in the future to be a Sima of the Grand Marshal's Office. That's it.

He would never be allowed to be a local governor.

There are many people like them, but with examples like Song Zhiwen, Lu Yuanfang, and Di Renjie, they still believe that Li Xuan will be important to them.

But Jiang Yan is different. He is not that persistent in his bones, but he is a kind person.

I have been blaming myself.

But this is not what Li Xuan cares about most. He cares about something else.

……

In the central hall of Jiang's residence, Li Xuan sat in the main seat.

Song Zhiwen stood at one side. The people in Jiang's mansion had already begun preparing to hang white banners and white silk, but the emperor was sitting in the center hall, so no one dared to move.

"Your Majesty!" Song Zhiwen bowed lightly, and then said: "Jiang Yan was born in the third year of Wude. He passed the imperial examination and became a military officer of the Right Guard, the military officer of Youzhou, and the Duke of Guangping, Liu Xiangdao, promoted him to the governor of Huizhou, the junior supervisor of the palace, the junior minister of the Imperial Household, the prince's servant, and the junior minister of the Imperial Household, until he died of illness today."

Li Xuan nodded slightly and said, "He was posthumously awarded the title of Earl of Yixing County, Right Instructor of the Crown Prince, and Left Imperial Attendant. His son was granted the title of Prince of Yixing County according to the system, and his posthumous title was... 'Liang'."

Song Zhiwen looked up in surprise. Jiang Yan also had a posthumous title.

"All matters concerning the funeral will be handled by the Taichang Temple and Guanglu Temple according to the regulations." Li Xuan stood up and walked out calmly. His voice was heard in the air: "Being gentle and cheerful is called good; being orderly and practicing good is called good; being careful and respectful is called good; being gentle and respectful is called good; being cautious and respectful is called good; making plans and returning to beauty is called good; being loyal and having no secrets is called good; being honest and straightforward is called good."

Song Zhiwen fell silent. For some reason, a hint of bitterness appeared on his face.

Jiang Yan was like this, and so was Song Zhiwen.

……

Song Zhiwen did not return home until Jiang Yan's body was buried all night long.

In the main hall, Song Zhiwen saw his nephew, Liu Xiyi, a doctor in the Ministry of Personnel, at a glance.

Seeing Song Zhiwen coming home, Liu Xiyi immediately stood up and bowed, saying, "Uncle!"

"What's up? Is there something wrong?" Song Zhiwen sat down at the main seat with a tired look on his face. Liu Xiyi personally poured him a cup of tea and said, "I wanted to introduce a talented person to my uncle, but I didn't expect my uncle to be so busy..."

"Forget it, tell me, who is it?" Song Zhiwen sighed and said, "It's good to read some poetry to relieve fatigue."

"Zhang Ruoxu, a scholar from Jiangnan." As soon as Liu Xiyi finished speaking, Song Zhiwen frowned.

(End of this chapter)