Man Tang Huacai

Chapter 416 The situation is improving

Lishan, Huaqing Palace, Kowloon Lotus Soup.

The weather was perfect in late April, and it was time for Yu Jia to return to Chang'an.

Gao Lishi stepped into the back hall and looked around. There was a mist of water around the spring, and Li Longji was leaning against the wall of the pool, seemingly sleeping.

"Sage, another memorial has been sent back from Li Xian." Gao Lishi still spoke, disturbing the saint's calmness.

This is Li Xian's ninth memorial in recent times. The imperial court does not lack information about the incident at Shiling Pass. But the real test for those in power is to sort out the various intelligences that are closest to the facts, or that are most conducive to the direction of the situation.

Li Longji has been a wise king all his life, and he is the best at distinguishing these.

He closed his eyes, letting the hot spring water steam his face, and said, "There is a secret memorial on the shelf, take a look."

"Here."

Gao Lishi carried the tray over and saw a thick pile on the shelf. He put Li Xian's memorial aside, forming a sharp contrast, and couldn't help but secretly say something bad.

After opening it and scanning it quickly, An Lushan did not write a secret note to complain, but explained in detail the causes and consequences of every time someone accused him of evil intentions in recent years.

For example, Xiongwucheng is located at the intersection of the Taihang Mountains, Yanshan Mountains and Yinshan Mountains. It is the choke point connecting Shuofang, Hedong, Hebei and the outside of the Great Wall. At that time, An Lushan made an agreement with Wang Zhongsi to jointly build Xiongwu City to resist the Khitan and Xi. As a result, Wang Zhongsi arrived first, but An Lushan's generals wanted to intercept the soldiers and horses from Hedong. Wang Zhongsi accused An Lushan of hoarding private soldiers and coveting Hedong.

According to this secret memorial, the situation at that time was that Anlushan considered Xiongwu City as a thoroughfare and proposed that soldiers and horses from Shuofang and Hedong could also be stationed in Xiongwu City to detect the changes of the enemies in the north in time. Out of national considerations, he did not expect that Wang Zhongsi had only selfish motives and thought that he wanted to intercept his troops.

On the other hand, An Lushan also admitted that He Qianqian, the general under his command who built Xiongwu City at that time, was a Hu man. He did not know etiquette and disrespected the court. He was indeed unruly and had conflicts with Wang Zhongsi. He even said some treasonous and almost treasonous things. Words of rebellion.

Looking back, he poured out his bitterness and apologized to the saint. He admitted frankly that there were many such "rebellious" generals under his command, and there were also some Hu tribes within him who were really likely to rebel at any time, such as Ba Yigu. , Tongluo tribe and so on. In short, Fanyang is a place where Hu and Han people live together, and there are many desperadoes. If they don't follow the king's laws, it will inevitably give people the feeling of a foreign land. Over the years, he has been unable to suppress these possible rebellions, and he never expected to be accused of rebellion.

The same was true for the Shiling Pass Incident. He helped Hedong resist the Khitan. His old grudge with Wang Zhongsi broke out, and his generals were indeed too unruly. He also confessed to this.

Finally, An Lushan complained in a pleading tone that he was in poor health, suffered a lot, and could no longer restrain his arrogant soldiers. I hope to return to Chang'an, often visit the saints, and bathe in the grace of the saints... This section takes up a lot of space.

The whole stack of secret notes is really long. Gao Lishi is old and his eyes are dry. After reading it, tears overflowed.

He took out his handkerchief, wiped his tears, and turned around, only to see that Li Longji had gotten up from the soup pool and was standing there with several palace ladies serving him to wipe his body.

"saint."

"Are you crying?" Li Longji said, "Hu'er is still sincere."

Gao Lishi was silent for a moment, not knowing how to refute. After waiting for a while, Li Longji asked, "Why? Do you still think he has ulterior motives?"

"I saw some alien intentions in this secret letter." Gao Lishi paused and said, "I saw... a threat."

Li Longji put on his clothes and looked at him in surprise.

"Hu'er pretended to ask for dismissal, but the implication was more like saying that if he was dismissed, those arrogant and powerful generals would rebel." Gao Lishi had no choice but to say it clearly.

"Is what he said false?" Li Longji said lightly: "Li Huaixiu, Li Yanchong, are there not many people who have betrayed me?"

"But Li Huaixiu and Li Yanchong both served as Fan Yang Jiedu in Hu'er..."

"It was precisely because I realized that Pei Kuan was weak and incompetent and could easily be hijacked that I dismissed Pei Kuan and replaced him with Hu'er, the most loyal to me and capable of dealing with the frontier fortress, to guard Hebei." Li Longji raised his voice and interrupted Gao The verbosity of a strong man.

His eyes looked wise and decisive.

"I have predicted a long time ago that Hu Er will be subject to countless slanders and frame-ups. He is in that position, so it is inevitable. My only solution is to give him enough trust."

"The saint is wise, but..."

"That's enough, I'm still thinking it's time to bring Li Xian back."

Gao Lishi knew that speaking any more would only have the opposite effect, so he forced himself to keep his mouth shut.

He glanced at Li Xian's memorial on the shelf, thinking that the saint would probably not read it again, so he thought about Xue Bai's treatment.

It is very difficult to clear Xue Bai from the guilt of the Shiling Pass Incident, and it would be very risky for Gao Lishi to protect Xue Bai. But now that the situation has reached this point, it seems that except for Xue Bai, who can contain An Lushan Suggestion, I can't think of a better way.

This is ridiculous. Many people in the huge court can clearly see that An Lushan will rebel or even has already rebelled, but they cannot make the saint believe it. It was like watching the Tang Dynasty Sheji slide down from a high mountain. Everyone shouted, but no one could reach out to hold it.

~~
Li Longji had arranged singing and dancing in the opera garden today, and was about to go there after taking a bath. However, he frowned when he reached the palace gate.

Looking around, the rain is misty, covering the beautiful Lishan Mountain in the distance.

It has been raining continuously for more than ten days recently. Originally, an official in Sitianjian said that it would clear up today. It seemed that he was deceiving him.

Just as he was about to punish the Si Tianjian official, Li Longji suddenly thought of Qu Tan, the former Si Tianjian, who had said that there would be severe floods this year. At that time, Yang Guozhong reported that Qu Tan's fortune telling was always inaccurate, so he dismissed Qu Tan and settled the matter.

"Sage, your chariot is ready."

"I'm not going." Li Longji was no longer in the mood to watch the singing and dancing, and his face was gloomier than the weather. "Here comes Yang Guozhong."

In such weather, Yang Guozhong knew that he was to blame and did not dare to hold an umbrella in the palace. When he arrived in front of the emperor, his back was completely soaked.

Li Longji looked at his drowned appearance, still unhappy, and said: "If there is a waterlogging disaster this year, you are the only one I can ask!"

"I am doing my best to prevent waterlogging, saints, don't worry."

Yang Guozhong had no idea what to do about the rainy weather and could only give the shortest answer.

As for the saint's mood, he was very capable, and then said: "I am coming to see you today, and I have good news to report to the saint."

"is it?"

"Please ask a saint to take a look...it's a good news!"

Yang Guozhong emphasized his tone and carefully took out a memorial from his arms. It turned out that he was caught in the rain, but he protected the official document with his generous back.

The image of an official who worked conscientiously for state affairs appeared in the eyes of the saint.

When Gao Lishi saw it, he quickly hired someone to wipe it for him.

"Beiting Protector Cheng Ang has captured Li Xianzhong!" Yang Guozhong shouted loudly and ignored it.

Li Longji was opening the memorial casually, but he immediately cheered up after hearing the words.

"Li Xianzhong fled to Anxi?"

"Yes, he was chased by troops sent by An Sishun and defected to the Ge Luolu tribe." Yang Guozhong said: "Cheng Ang learned about this and immediately led his troops to force Ge Luolu. The Ge Luolu tribe handed over Li Xianzhong and his Family members, as well as thousands of members of his tribe..."

"it is good!"

Li Longji was overjoyed.

Shuofang's army and Anxi's army chased and blocked each other, and finally captured the rebellious Li Xianzhong.

And the significance of this matter was not just as simple as making him take a breath of bad breath. Gao Xianzhi's previous defeat in the Battle of Talos was due to Ge Luolu's betrayal. Now that Cheng Ang can intimidate Ge Luolu, it means that the Tang Dynasty's national prestige in the Western Regions remains the same.

This is a very powerful and heroic thing, far more than just handing over a Li Xianzhong.

"I want to highly reward Cheng Ang!" Li Longji issued the order without hesitation, "Order Cheng Ang to escort Li Xianzhong back to Chang'an and offer him as a prisoner under the palace!"

"What about the Protector of Beiting?"

Yang Guozhong asked tentatively, intending to find another position for Yang's party forces. However, Li Longji was very clear about the matter and said: "Feng Changqing can take up the role concurrently."

Under such circumstances, Yang Guozhong had no choice but to accept the order.

This good news made Li Longji's mood a little brighter, and his views on things in Hedong also changed a little.

He showed a satisfied expression, patted his knees, and asked: "Has the Hedong people been drafted?"

He didn't discuss this matter with Gao Lishi just now, because Gao Lishi was the one serving him by his side, and Yang Guozhong was the prime minister.

"Sage, the Ministry of Personnel has already issued regulations, and I have brought them here." Yang Guozhong took out another official document unhurriedly.

Gao Lishi personally stepped forward to take it and unfold it in front of the saint.

He stood behind him, peeking out of the corner of his eye, focusing on a few places he cared about.

For the time being, Yang Guozhong did not deal with Xue Bai this time because he saw the number "Yan Gaoqing moved to Pingyuan Prefecture". This was Xue Bai's letter asking him, and he in turn gave Yang Guozhong's instructions.

Including the candidate for the deputy envoy of Hedong Jiedu, the Ministry of Personnel also selected Li Guangbi based on Li Xian's recommendation.

The situation seems to be changing for the better.

Afterwards, Gao Lishi's eyes fell on the words "Hedong Jiedu Envoy" on the memorial, but the candidate was blocked by the saint. He leaned slightly, his eyes narrowed slightly, and a hint of surprise flashed past.

"The candidates for the Hedong Jiedu envoy were not recommended by Li Xian?" Li Longji asked.

Yang Guozhong was deliberately stunned and said: "It all depends on the saints."

He didn't like Gao Xianzhi's temperament, so naturally he wouldn't seek an official position for him. And he knew very well that if the saint wanted to appoint Gao Xianzhi as the governor of Hedong, he could just approve Li Xian's memorial without having to ask the officials to draft it.

Sure enough, Li Longji said: "I'm asking you why."

"I think Wang Chengye is a more suitable candidate. Gao Xianzhi has an arrogant temperament and is determined to do his own thing. I am afraid that he will force An Lushan to rebel when he comes to Hedong. In comparison, Wang Chengye is calm and can take the overall situation into consideration..."

Among the generals of the Tang Dynasty, Wang Chengye was not well-known and had no well-known military exploits.

But Gao Lishi knew who Wang Chengye was and was quite familiar with him, because Wang Chengye was the general Zuo Yulin beside the saint and one of the generals in the palace guard.

Yang Guozhong's ability to recommend such a person to Hedong must be because he has established a deep relationship with Wang Chengye over this period of time, and he must be putting his own people in that important position to replace Yang Guanghui's role in Bei.

This seems to be a very smart choice, and it understands the mind of the saint. The saint did not want to believe that An Lushan would rebel, but he also wanted to see the situation clearly, so he definitely wanted to send a trusted general there. In this regard, Wang Chengye is indeed the most suitable candidate.

The question is, can Wang Chengye fight?

~~
Seven days later, Taiyuan.

The official document sent this time was not expedited at 500 miles, but it was still very fast.

When Li Xian received it, he was inspecting the city defenses and happened to see the fast horse coming from the south. He guessed that his memorial had been approved.

He works differently from other officials. He is more responsible and more worried because he is a member of the Tang Dynasty clan. He believed that this transcendental identity allowed him to play a very important role in emergency situations. The saint obviously understood this, so he trusted himself and allowed himself to act freely.

Thinking of this, Li Xian took the official document, unfolded it, and looked at it intently... The imperial court had appointed Hedong Jiedu Envoy. The saint was also very satisfied with him as the ambassador and moved him back to Chang'an to serve as Jing Zhaoyin.

After Wang Chengye takes office, Li Xian can set off.

The Xuan comfort envoy was originally sent on a temporary basis. This matter was in line with the imperial regulations, but it could be seen that the saint paid no attention to his reminder. Transferring his clan and sending General Yulin who has no outstanding military exploits shows that the saint is still checking and balancing power. To put it more bluntly, the saint would rather believe in An Lushan than Li Xian.

After receiving this official document, Li Xian wrote a letter to Xue Bai.

Before Xue Bai took office in Changshan County, the two made an agreement that Li Xian would provide Xue Bai with sufficient military support in Hedong.

But now something unexpected happened, and Li Xian had to be transferred early. He was a man of great promise, but he could do nothing in the face of the imperial court's transfer order. He could only express his apology and reminded Xue Bai that he must contact Wang Chengye and Li Guangbi in time to reach mutual agreement. For the tacit understanding of the horns.

"Sanlang, since you want to return to Chang'an, should you kill Yang Guanghui?" Dugu Ziwu asked.

Li Xian thought that he felt guilty towards Xue Bai and nodded subconsciously.

After a moment, he thought of another possibility, so he changed his mind and said: "The official document only needs to report that he committed suicide out of fear of crime. He is being held in custody and I will take him away when the time comes."

"Here." Seeing that Li Xian was still worried, Dugu Ziwu said, "Sanlang is returning to the capital to serve as Zhaoyin of the capital. He should be happy."

"Jing Zhaoyin?"

Li Xian thought of the official position that had been vacant since Xianyu Zhongtong was transferred.

I wonder what happened to Xianyu Zhongtong after he went north to Fanyang?

~~
Changshan County, Zhending County.

When the genius dawned, Xue Bai had woken up. He glanced at Yan Yan, who was sleeping soundly next to him, and quietly got up from the bed.

He felt very thirsty, so he poured himself a glass of water, drank it all, rubbed his numb arms, and felt that his body was stiff, so he stood there in a daze.

Recently, he has had some strange troubles, which are not big things. They just cause him some minor trouble before and after going to bed.

"Ok?"

Yan Yan snorted, rubbed her eyes, turned her head and murmured: "What are you doing standing here?"

She was too hot, so she kicked off a bit of the quilt during the night. At this time, she lazily turned her body just a little, revealing her graceful lines, hazy in the light.

"I was wondering if you are feeling better." Xue Bai replied.

Then he realized something was wrong and added.

"My uncle and aunt are leaving soon. If you go south with them, I'm afraid you won't be able to bear the hardships on the way."

Yan Gaoqing has also received an appointment order from the imperial court, appointing him as the governor of Pingyuan. And Xue Bai definitely wanted to send Yan Yan away, and had already planned for her to go south with the team, to Pingyuan County, and then to Yangzhou.

Recently, Xue Bai thought about it a lot, and finally decided to settle his family in Yangzhou first. With Lao Liang leading people to protect him, Li Bai taking care of it, and Du Jin having started a business in Yangzhou a long time ago, he was relieved.

He hoped to prevent the Anshi Rebellion, but he was not sure that the war would not spread to Chang'an.

When the separation was imminent, Yan Yan always showed some reluctance.

"Come here." She waved.

"I'm going to go to the Yamen to see what's going on."

Although Xue Bai said this, he still followed her request and lay back on the couch.

Yan Yan then put her head on his hand with a satisfied look on her face and asked, "I'm not in good health and don't want to rush. Can I stay here?"

"No, we've already agreed."

"Do you know why Qing Lan went to sleep with Yong'er last night?"

"She said she wanted to see how Yong'er puts the word 'Yong' when sleeping."

"Idiot." Yan Yan scolded and whispered: "I won't call you 'husband' anymore, I will call you a fool."

"Why?"

"The eldest lady said that we are not a real couple."

Xue Bai then wanted to teach her a lesson.

At this time, it can be seen that Yan Yan said she was scared, but she was actually very scared in her heart. She shrank subconsciously, turned around, and panted a little.

Listening to her breathing, Xue Bai didn't dare to make a fuss and whispered: "You go to Yangzhou first and wait for me to pick you up. By then you will be cured and you will have grown up..."

Yan Yan understood what he meant and remained silent.

After a while, she said dissatisfiedly: "I am no longer a child."

~~
During the period when Yan Gaoqing was here, he was of great help to Xue Bai in taking over the government affairs of Changshan County. Xue Bai also learned a lot about Fan Yang through Cui's gossip.

But after all, he was an official of the imperial court, not Xue Bai's staff, so it was impossible for Yan Gaoqing to stay forever.

On May 18th, he set out for Pingyuan County.

Xue Baixiang was sent outside the city and had a final conversation with Yan Gaoqing by the official road. What needs to be said has been said recently. At this time of year, it is nothing more than a "constant contact".

"gone."

Yan Yan had been a little angry with Xue Bai since last night, but when it came to parting, she flattened her lips in grievance, got off the carriage, ran to Xue Bai again, and said, "You have to pick me up earlier."

"Yes, there is not much time left for you to recover."

Xue Bai said this out of nowhere, and then saw the shame and anger in Yan Yan's eyes, thinking that he had seen it wrong.

Qinglan must have cried, her eyes were red. She didn't want to be seen, so she wiped away her tears and pretended not to cry, but she still tried to persuade Xue Bai to change her mind at the last moment.

"Sir, will you leave me to take care of you? I can endure hardships."

Xue Bai waved his hand and asked Qing Lan to come forward and whispered: "I'm just telling you that I will be demoted soon and plan to go to Yangzhou to recuperate for a while."

"what?"

"Don't tell others and make others worry."

Qing Lan was still easily deceived, so she helped Yan Yan board the car.

Li Tengkong and Li Jilan then walked to Xue Bai.

"Let us accompany you to Changshan. It turns out that you are tricking us out of Guanzhong and sending us to Yangzhou?"

"Yangzhou is safer." Xue Bai didn't need to coax Li Tengkong. He told the truth and quietly held hands with her when she was unprepared.

He turned to look at Li Jilan and said with a smile: "Ji Lanzi can ask Li Bai and Cui Hao for poetry advice. Isn't it worth the trip?"

Li Jilan hesitated to speak, and finally whispered "Xue Lang farewell".

Watching the team go away, Xue Bai breathed a sigh of relief. He felt that there were too many confidantes and it was too tiring to coax them away one by one. But fortunately, he can finally concentrate on working in Changshan. Even if there are many changes in the future, he will not be too worried.

On the way back to Zhending City, he drove his horse slowly, thinking about many things in his mind. There was some rapid sound of horse hooves coming from behind.

Xue Bai felt that the sound of the horse's hooves seemed to be coming towards him. He turned his head and his eyes were immediately attracted by Li Tengkong's galloping horse.

He stopped his horse and waited by the lush grassy road, unable to describe how he felt until Li Tengkong arrived in front of him.

"I do not go."

"Listen to me, Changshan will be in danger, you can't feel at ease while I'm here..."

"Xue Bai, you didn't marry me, why should you let me listen to you?"

Li Tengkong had obviously thought of his words and blurted out. As expected, Xue Bai choked up with just one sentence.

She felt that her words had hurt him, and she was a little ashamed, but she still strengthened her heart and said: "I am free. It doesn't matter if you are angry or you can drive me away. I want to stay. It is my choice." "

Xue Bai could feel that no matter how he acted at this time, he would not be able to influence Li Tengkong's thoughts.

"If there is danger, you must go when I send you away."

Li Tengkong looked at him steadily and asked, "Why do you think of sending me away when you are in danger, instead of letting me face it with you?"

Xue Bai didn't answer, and his expression became serious.

"Okay, I promise you too." Li Tengkong took a step back in time and said with a rare coquettish tone: "Then you let me stay?"

Xue Baisui felt that he was not able to handle the women around him. As the relationship between them became closer, it became more difficult for him to make her obey.

But then again, what a master and servant want is obedience.

~~
Changshan Changshi Yuan Luqian reined in the reins and looked back. He could see Xue Bai still talking to Nu Guan on the roadside. The relationship was obviously not an ordinary friend.

"This prefect is too unstable." Yuan Luqian couldn't help but sigh.

No wonder he thought so. After all, Xue Bai started seeing his lover just after Yan Gaoqing left. This was obviously not something a calm local official could do.

This situation makes people feel even more difficult.

He was a subordinate and did not want to embarrass Xue Bai. After waiting for a while, he got back on his horse and headed for Zhending City.

When he arrived at the city gate, a man ran over and almost hit his horse. Fortunately, he was stopped in time by the guards.

"Yuan Changshi, it's me." The visitor shouted in a hoarse voice, "Save me."

"Xianyu Langjun?"

Yuan Luqian looked at him intently for a long time, and finally recognized the other person, and was quite surprised.

"Why are you like this?"

"Save me! My grandpa...is dead."

"What did you say?" Yuan Luqian quickly dismounted and asked, "Is Mr. Xianyu sick?"

"No, save me first."

Listening to this frightened voice, Yuan Luqian felt inexplicably frightened...

(End of this chapter)