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

Chapter 247
In the gloomy rainy night, there was silence in the station.

Li Xuan walked in the courtyard with a pensive expression, her pace was not fast, but her face was very serious, her eyes were slightly lowered, as if she was out of focus.

Qiu Zhenmu held an umbrella at the side and followed silently.

In the central hall of the backyard, the lights were bright, and Yu Ze was reading a book of Spring and Autumn by himself.

Hearing the sound of footsteps outside the door, he immediately put down the spring and autumn in his hand, stood up, walked to the door, saw Li Xuan, cupped his hands and asked, "My lord is back, is your trip going well?"

"Yeah!" Li Xuan nodded lightly, and didn't want to talk about Yu Ze in detail, but just walked around him in one step, walked to the upper seat, then looked at the ground, and continued to meditate.

Yu Ze subconsciously looked at Qiu Zhenmu.

Qiu Zhenmu shook his head slightly, he didn't know what was going on.

After coming out of Hangzhou Governor's Mansion, Li Xuan's expression has always been like this.

He has been thinking about it, and it seems that there are some unsolvable problems that have been lingering in his mind.

Yu Ze poured a cup of tea from the side, put it on the table next to Li Xuan, didn't speak, just stood there quietly.

At this moment, Li Xuan suddenly said, "Civil Yuan is indeed a righteous man, but it's a pity that he went too far."

"What's too much?" Yu Ze asked subconsciously, and Li Xuan came back to his senses in an instant.

"Uncle Yu, sit down, brother Qiu, sit down!" Li Xuan hurriedly asked Yu Ze and Qiu Zhenmu to sit down, and then said with a funny voice: "Good news, Governor Yuan has all the matters to go to the Governor's Mansion in Hangzhou today." accepted."

"Settlement of the Jiaofang Division, secondment of soldiers, prohibition and purchase of weapons, and reduction of customs duties, all the things that Governor Yuan agreed to?" Yu Ze couldn't believe it for a while.

This morning, they almost fell out with Yuan Jiazuo's nephew, but at night, Yuan Jiazuo agreed to all their requests.

"My lord, there is no deceit in this, right?" Qiu Zhenmu couldn't help but speak with a solemn expression.

"Where are you thinking, Governor Yuan has sharp eyesight, and he is clear inside and out. He can see the pros and cons of these things very clearly."

Li Xuan waved his hand and said with emotion: "After all, only Wuzhou is stable, and Hangzhou can sit back and relax. If something happens to Wuzhou, Hangzhou will inevitably be implicated. Spend a little money and weapons, and finally enjoy peace. This account, Yuan The governor still understands."

Sealing up the Jiaofang Division was to deal with the Tianyin Sect, seconded soldiers, and purchased weapons for the purpose of filing a record with the Hangzhou Governor's Office to avoid future accounts.

The rest of the tariffs were done by Li Xuan in order to win over the people of Wuzhou, which is a matter of funeral.

"Then what does the prince mean when he said that he was too honest?" Yu Ze asked what Li Xuan said just now.

Li Xuan's complexion immediately became solemn, stood up, and paced back and forth in the entire middle hall with a heavy expression: "The governor Yuan is a generous man, honest and upright, with keen insights and decisive actions, but he is more thoughtful and prudent when he does things. It is very difficult for ordinary people to find his weaknesses if he is not the main attacker; Yin religion."

Gathering his thoughts, Li Xuan knew in his heart that attacking the Tianyin Sect was the most important thing for him right now, and everything else had to be postponed.

Last time, Tianyin Sect suffered a setback in Yangzhou, and then mobilized some forces to go to Yangzhou.

Now if this matter can be replicated in Hangzhou, then the power of Tianyin Sect will naturally flow from Wuzhou to a part of Hangzhou.

In that case, the pressure on Wuzhou will be much less, but if Hangzhou does not move, Wuzhou will be somewhat passive.

Yu Ze knew the inside story, he raised his head and looked at Li Xuan, a little uncertain: "Maybe it's because there are no government soldiers stationed in Hangzhou?"

"In the early years, there were two Dudu's Mansions in the whole Wuyue land, Wuzhou Dudufu and Yuezhou Dudufu, but later the Wuzhou Dudufu was abolished, and there was only one Yuezhou Dudufu and Zhechong Mansion left in the whole Wuyue land. Troop strength." Qiu Zhenmu's military family is very clear about this.

Li Xuan nodded and said: "Although there are still Hangzhou navy stationed in Hangzhou, they can attack pirates in advance and secure shipping in retreat, but those are all river and sea battles. Once they go ashore, it's hard to say how much combat power the navy can exert. , In the whole of Hangzhou, except for the officers and soldiers of the Governor's Mansion and Hangzhou County, as well as the servants, there are very few manpower that can be mobilized."

"So, Governor Yuan only wants to defend and not attack. This is also very normal, just like when I was waiting in Wuzhou." Yu Ze looked at Li Xuan and clearly expressed his opinion.

"If you look at it from the perspective of Hangzhou, it should be so, but from the perspective of the entire Wuyue land, it's a bit inappropriate."

After a slight pause, Li Xuan said: "The southeast is prosperous, the cities of the three Wus are prosperous, and Qiantang has been prosperous since ancient times. How can it be easily chaotic? It's tired."

Li Xuan frowned tightly. Compared with Dou Xuande and Duan Baoxuan who were aggressive and trying to return to the center of the two capitals as soon as possible, Hangzhou Governor Yuan Jiazuo seemed somewhat inactive.

This is very inconsistent with the image that a high-ranking official in the early Tang Dynasty should have.

There are some other things that are not right, but Li Xuan can faintly feel it, but can't figure out why.

"Returning to the capital of the gods, how can it be concluded in a few words."

Yu Ze shook his head, and said with some self-mockery: "My lord doesn't know that Duan Gong, the governor of Yuezhou, was a sage when he was still a prince. The prince Zuowei led the army, and Dou Changshi of Yangzhou was born in the Dou family of Jingzhao. , the status is precious, and there are only a few positions in the court, so how can it be Yuan's turn?"

"Hangzhou, Shangzhou, the governor of Hangzhou, a high-ranking official from the third rank!" Li Xuan sighed with emotion.

Datang 320 seven states, 320 seven state governors, only 98 in Shangzhou, 29 in Zhongzhou, and [-] in Xiazhou.

There are 98 governors in Shangzhou alone, 98 of whom are senior officials of the third rank, but there are only a few positions in the nine ministers of the six ministries of the three provinces in the DPRK and Central China.

Li Xuan suddenly laughed out loud, and said: "If that's the case, it's no wonder that Governor Yuan seems to be careless and active. If this king becomes the governor of either party, that's the case at most, but Governor Yuan is at best a helpless choice. His Not necessarily so.

There are some things that the governor of a state may not care about, but the government will not care less, and His Majesty will not care less, they will not make Hangzhou mess up.

Inspector Yuan is indeed not good at fighting, and sits in the state government, so there must be someone who is in charge of Hangzhou to manage the Tianyin Sect, so we need to find this person, let him move, and really hit the Tianyin Sect, so that Wuzhou can relax slow. "

"What the prince said is true, so who is this person?" Qiu Zhenmu followed Li Xuan's train of thought.

"Hangzhou can't be chaotic. When I came to Hangzhou, I might have drawn the attention of the Tianyin Sect to myself. That's what happened to Mr. Qi today. The person we are talking about may not have seen it, and he may have already seen it." I have my eyes on Mr. Qi, so if I want to find this person, it may not be a feasible way to start from Mr. Qi." Li Xuan pondered, thinking about various countermeasures in his mind.

"Young Master Qi, what does Inspector Yuan say?" Yu Ze couldn't help asking.

"Inspector Yuan said that he will strengthen his control." Li Xuan waved his hand, then leaned back, put one hand on the tea bowl beside him, and said in a low voice: "Inspector Yuan is an upright official, shrewd and wise, but for that Qi Young Master is too tolerant, the things that Young Master Qi has done have aroused great disgust, but tonight at the banquet, he said it lightly, the abnormality behind this cannot but make people think."

Li Xuan was contemplating along the way, and it was even more abrupt when Yuan Jiazuo's connection with what was wrong was shown.

Unless, he did it on purpose...

"As the lord said before, it may be because there is no hope of promotion that he will let things go." Yu Ze thought about it, and said cautiously: "A nephew of a concubine who accumulates money like this may ruin his reputation, but when the time comes, just give up easily." , and you can easily get rid of all stigma.”

"If Governor Yuan thought so, it would be simple, but this matter is not that simple. That Mr. Qi's plan is very big. It is not just to simply collect money, but to deeply control all wealth, and even go further." Li Xuan recalled The young master Qi I have seen from afar, although this person's methods are a bit rough, his goals and ambitions cannot be easily ignored.

The governor of Hangzhou, the aristocratic family of Hangzhou, plus a son of Qi, and Tianyin sect.

The two sides infiltrate and connect with each other. It is not easy to unravel the secret behind all this.

"Mr. Qi has no official status after all. As a student, once Governor Yuan is transferred to another state, no matter how much wealth this Mr. Qi has, if he offends so many people now, he will definitely not end well in the end." Qiu Although Zhenmu is a military commander, he can see clearly.

"Yeah, everything will eventually go away with wind and rain." Li Xuan retracted her thoughts, sighed with emotion, and shook her head. Mr. Qi was still too young.

"In this way, Hu Changshi today forbids all students at the dock to participate in the Spring Festival within two years, wouldn't it completely cut off the last way for Mr. Qi?" Yu Ze said suddenly.

Li Xuan and Qiu Zhenmu were taken aback at the same time, and then couldn't help but suddenly came to their senses.

"That's true. There are only two ways for Mr. Qi to solve the current predicament. One is to get a Jinshi or even the number one scholar, and the other is to give up and sell all his properties, and then flee Hangzhou with the money he got." Qiu Zhenmu After finishing speaking, he looked at Li Xuan.

Li Xuan shook her head and said, "It's not that simple. Although Governor Yuan didn't say a word on this matter today, he is the governor of Hangzhou after all. As long as he is willing to speak, everyone has to obediently carry it out. will be a problem."

"However, the prince must agree to it. Today, Mr. Qi tried to use the prince as a pedal to spread his reputation, but unexpectedly, he kicked the iron board. If the prince disagrees, even if Governor Yuan nods, he will be the same when he arrives in Chang'an." He will be admitted, after all, this person has sinister intentions." At this point, Qiu Zhenmu looked at Yu Ze and asked, "Isn't it an exchange for Governor Yuan to agree so readily today?"

"No, this is a public matter. Inspector Yuan has a clear distinction between public and private affairs, and this kind of matter is still very clear." Li Xuan said with emotion, "But with Inspector Yuan around, I can't do too much. , so in the end it still depends on the struggle of all parties.”

"It's really strange to say that," Yu Ze frowned, looked at Li Xuan, and said, "My lord, that Mr. Qi still relies on Governor Yuan. Passing Governor Yuan, the money in his hands, Governor Yuan..."

Li Xuan waved his hand to stop Yu Ze from continuing: "It depends on Governor Yuan's final decision, whether he wants to keep his reputation of being honest and upright, or whether he wants to leave empty-handed, or maybe a combination of both, or this It was an illusion from the beginning."

On the surface, Yuan Jiazuo had a good impression on Li Xuan, but when it came to Mr. Qi's matter, he was somewhat indifferent, even ruthless.

Li Xuan waved his hand and said: "Forget it, this is the case for the time being, we should focus on our own affairs, first find a way to make Hangzhou City move, and hit Tianyin Sect hard. In addition, tomorrow morning Going to visit the Lu family, a handwritten letter from Uncle Yuan Fang is enough for me to wait in the land of Wuyue and get the support of the Lu family, but I must also make sufficient preparations."

When leaving Yangzhou, Lu Yuanfang secretly handed Li Xuan a letter and asked him to take it to Lu's house. This was also one of Li Xuan's biggest gains in Yangzhou City.

"Yes!" Yu Ze and Qiu Zhenmu clasped their hands together, then retreated slowly, starting to prepare for tomorrow's event.

At this moment, Xu Wan'er came in with a basin in her hand, her eyebrows lowered, her expression extremely respectful.

Wearing a green chest-length skirt and holding a water basin, she couldn't help leaning forward.

Li Xuan felt a little funny for a moment, and waved her hand directly and said, "Okay, I've already sent someone to investigate your matter, and the results will come soon."

Xu Wan'er is from Hangzhou, and so are his parents. When Li Xuan was in Yangzhou, she promised to help find her parents.

"My family knows." Xu Wan'er came to Li Xuan's side, put the water basin on the ground, half knelt down, reached out and grabbed Li Xuan's boots, and said at the same time: "My family is here to help the prince wash his feet!"

The water temperature is comfortable.

(End of this chapter)