Man Tang Huacai

Chapter 534: Distant Wise Officials

Although the people generally believed that Prince Yong's contribution to suppressing the rebellion was not rewarded and he was treated unfairly by the court, this incident did not cause actual unrest.

All the common people can do is tell some "groundless" stories, read the poems written by the people in the stories, and complain.

The court's response to this public opinion was insensitive, or even very slow.

The concepts of "loyal ministers" among the people and the court are also completely different. In the eyes of the common people, an official who does practical things and benefits the people is a loyal minister; in the eyes of the court, an official who has achievements but is not respectful is a treacherous minister.

They have different positions and very different ideas, so naturally they cannot resonate with each other.

Dou Wenyang reported to Li Cong the impact of the captives' tribute, and said in a very happy tone, "Your Majesty's reputation has been greatly boosted, and the people of the country are at peace!"

Li Cong was standing high and far away that day, but he still felt that the scene of tens of thousands of people singing poems and watching the execution was out of admiration for him. Although the poems were generous and sad, when he thought about it carefully, they were appropriate for the scene.

He couldn't help but feel a little complacent, and kept weighing his achievements for the Tang Dynasty in his mind. He asked Dou Wenyang with his hands behind his back, "Since I ascended the throne, I have worked hard day and night, and now I have finally achieved some results, but I don't know which emperor in history can compare with me."

Dou Wenyang responded, "Your Majesty has conquered the four seas. In terms of military achievements, you are not inferior to the founding emperor. In terms of civil governance, Your Majesty will revive the Tang Dynasty and be even better than the founding emperor. I personally think that Your Majesty's achievements can be compared with those of Emperor Taizong."

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Li Cong appointed him the third-rank Weiweiqing, and he began to call himself "minister", trying hard to get rid of the court officials' prejudice that he was a eunuch.

"No no no."

Li Cong waved his hands modestly, not daring to admit on the surface that his achievements were comparable to those of Emperor Taizong.

Regardless of whether he can be pursued or not, he is definitely more wise than the emperor emeritus. However, the emperor emeritus compared himself to Yao and Shun, and used the method of Yao and Shun to record years, changing the year to the year. If he did not make corresponding changes, how could he let the world know about his achievements?

Having endured so much hardship and paid so much along the way, Li Cong also hopes that his efforts can be seen by others.

He considered it and expressed this idea to Dou Wenyang, who then immediately started thinking about it.

Unfortunately, the emperor has not yet taken control of the government and cannot offer sacrifices to the gods at Mount Tai because he does not have the financial resources.

In this case, the only thing that can be as meritorious as changing the year is to change the beginning of the year.

"Change the beginning of the year?"

"Yes, Your Majesty is the eldest son of the royal family. You rebuilt the Tang Dynasty and are the legitimate ruler of the world. You are a sage throughout the ages. It is Your Majesty who should determine the legitimate rule."

There was no doubt that Li Cong was the eldest son. The first thing he did after ascending the throne was to posthumously confer the title of Empress Yuanxian on his biological mother, Concubine Liu Hua, thus establishing his legitimate status.

As for "Zhengshuo", "Zheng" means the beginning of a year and "Shuo" means the beginning of a month.

Fuxi created the Shangyuan Taichu calendar, with January as the first month; Shennong improved the calendar, with December as the first month; and Huangdi took November as the first month.

The Three Sovereigns created the calendar according to the farming seasons, which benefited future generations. Their contributions will last for thousands of years, so they are called "sages."

When dynasties came to power in later generations, they all followed the sages to change the calendar. Emperor Yu inherited from Fuxi and valued white, with the first month as the first month; the Shang Dynasty inherited from Shennong and valued red, with the twelfth month as the first month; the Zhou Dynasty inherited from the Yellow Emperor and valued black, with the eleventh month as the first month.

During the Qin Dynasty, people still valued black, and they came up with the idea of ​​setting October as the first month of the year. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty summoned famous officials to revise the calendar, and in the first year of Taichu, he changed the first month of the year to the beginning of the year, called "Mengchun", thus fixing the tradition of "the beginning of the year is in spring".

Now, if Li Cong could change the "orthodox calendar" a little bit more, that would be following the will of Heaven and creating a new calendar. His contribution may not be comparable to that of the Three Sovereigns, but it can be comparable to that of Emperor Wu of Han.

Li Cong was fascinated by the thought that people in the future would celebrate the New Year according to the "orthodox" customs he had established.

"Change the calendar?"

He hesitated for only a moment, took a deep breath, made a decision, and asked Dou Wenyang, "Is it possible?"

"But, just..."

Dou Wenyang hesitated for a moment.

Li Cong suddenly became nervous, fearing that this good idea could not be realized in the end. He stared at Dou Wenyang eagerly, and heard him say, "We just have to change '载' to 年, so that it will be logical."

Since it is an innovation, a re-creation, it is natural to start with a whole set of changes. Changing the year to the year is a denial of the achievements of the retired emperor.

Only by denying the retired emperor can we affirm the greater achievements of the current saint.

Li Cong nodded repeatedly in his heart, his face froze for a moment before revealing a helpless expression. He sighed and said, "It can only be like this."

"I accept your order." Dou Wenyang said, "I will definitely get it done."

On the day he received the imperial edict, he separated the Sitiantai from the Secretariat.

The Secretariat was where Xue Bai once worked. Many great scholars worked there because Xue Bai took the lead in editing the book. Many of them were Xue Bai's teachers when he was studying in the Imperial College, and they greatly hindered Dou Wenyang's work.

Taking advantage of the fact that Xue Bai is not in the court, Dou Wenyang first tests these literary and historical officials.

As expected, scholars could do nothing about powerful eunuchs like him.

After the Sitiantai became independent, Dou Wenyang replaced all the officials with his own people.

He did not dare to go too far and promote all of Xue Bai's followers. Anyway, there were many officials promoted for merit in the court, and Xue Bai also transferred many people in Fanyang. With so many transfers and enough vacancies, this move did not cause much opposition.

Dou Wenyang immediately felt the control he had over the court when Xue Bai was away, so in addition to the original duties of the Sitiantai to observe celestial phenomena, revise the calendar, and measure time day and night, he added the power of offering sacrifices to ward off evil spirits and provide relief from disasters.

This move was intended to highlight the responsibilities of the Sitian Observatory, emphasize the role of astronomical phenomena in orthodoxy, and increase the impression that Li Cong was in charge of the destiny of heaven.

After doing all this, Dou Wenyang went to the palace and gave Li Cong 30,000 strings of cash, saying that it was to bribe officials.

Li Cong had no financial power, and after saving for so long, the emperor's treasury only had some treasures left by Li Longji, worth more than 100,000 strings of cash. Of course, he was very reluctant to part with it, but in order to gain power, he gritted his teeth and gave it to Dou Wenyang.

That night, the moon was bright and the stars were sparse, and there was no trouble in Chang'an.

But on the next day, the Sitiantai submitted a memorial stating that at night "a comet appeared in the east, between Lou and Wei, and was about four feet long."

Li Cong then summoned all his ministers and asked the Sitiantai what the astronomical phenomenon meant. The answer was that it was a time bestowed upon man by heaven and a sage was needed to announce the correct date.

"Your Majesty, this astrological phenomenon is part of the Heavenly Records. It is a sign of the universe. We should follow the old rules and follow the new destiny. If we keep the righteousness and start anew, we will be able to respond to the will of Heaven!"

These words were extremely profound. Others who did not know astronomy might not dare to say anything, or they might know that the sage was intentionally emphasizing that he had created a new prosperous era.

Li Cong was greatly surprised when he heard this. After exchanging glances with Dou Wenyang, he ordered the Sitian Observatory to observe the celestial phenomena in detail and make modifications to the calendar to suit the farming season.

Things went very smoothly. After all, the emperor established his authority, which was harmless to the country and the people, and the ministers had no reason to object. This matter was not aimed at the Xue Party, which had the most power in the court, and even the officials of the Xue Party turned a blind eye.

The matter had been settled, but suddenly an old voice sounded.

"His Majesty."

The person who stood up was Wei Shu, who was in charge of historical affairs, concurrently serving as the chief academic officer of the Imperial College, and was given the titles of Prince's concubine and Silver and Green Guanglu Doctor.

Wei Shu was old and had difficulty walking, so he was trembling when he stood up. He glanced at the officials of the Sitiantai, and finally, his eyes fell on Dou Wenyang.

He was in the Secretariat and watched the Si Tian Tai being divided up. His learned disciples and subordinates were replaced and demoted, while those greedy people with no talent or knowledge were promoted. Therefore, he knew the behind-the-scenes of this matter best and knew that Dou Wenyang was manipulating it from behind.

"The Astronomical Bureau said that a comet appeared in the east last night, but I was enjoying the cool air in the courtyard and did not see any unusual phenomena all night. When I went to court today, I did not see any discussion of the celestial phenomena among the people."

When Wei Shu said this, his old face became solemn and he said, "If the celestial phenomenon does not appear now, the world will not be able to see it. Once Your Majesty issues an order, I am afraid that it will not be able to enhance the prestige of the court, but will become a laughing stock in the world!"

Li Cong felt guilty and subconsciously shrank his neck.

Dou Wenyang rushed to stand up, raised his hand and pointed, scolding: "It is clearly a celestial phenomenon, how can Lord Wei lie with his eyes open?!"

Wei Shu was furious, puffing his beard and glaring, saying: "I'm telling lies? How dare you, a villain, accuse me first!"

"It's late at night, everyone in the world is asleep, but Lord Wei is the only one who doesn't sleep? And he's not sleeping all night?"

"The Astronomical Bureau said it was 3:00 pm, but I didn't see it at that time. How could I say I didn't sleep all night?"

Dou Wenyang quickly interrupted, "You are looking at the clock and observing the stars? If the Sitian Observatory can see it, does that mean your eyes can see it?!"

Wei Shu cursed: "If there is no celestial phenomenon, then there is no celestial phenomenon. You treacherous eunuch, are you trying to call a horse a deer?!"

This was a very serious accusation, and this one sentence tore apart the original decency between the two parties. Dou Wenyang no longer hesitated and displayed the scolding skills he had acquired from fighting among the slaves and servants, and shouted at them with sharp teeth and sharp tongue.

"That's because you are old and confused!"

Wei Shu was indeed old, but his academic status was there and he was highly respected. Everyone was shocked when he was openly scolded like that.

Yan Zhenqing also looked serious, stepped out, and shouted at Dou Wenyang: "How dare you!"

Dou Wenyang was so angry that he didn't care about him. He hurried to the hall and continued to scold Wei Shu.

"Your old eyes are muddier than urine, what can you see? A comet flashes by faster than you can blink, what the hell can you see!"

"Eunuch, how can I allow you to speak so foul language in the court?!"

"The time bestowed by heaven is the sign of the saints' great efforts to reform and create a prosperous era. How can you slander it?!"

"If Your Majesty can truly make great efforts to reform and create a prosperous era, how can a word from an old minister destroy it?!"

The hall fell silent.

Dou Wenyang finally found Wei Shu's fatal flaw. He became more and more excited. He stood on tiptoe for a few times and didn't know how to escape. He shook his fingers a few times, spitting everywhere, and couldn't wait to shout out the words to defeat Wei Shu -

"The saint has done nothing? Wei Shu! How dare you criticize the emperor?!"

No one can answer.

Yan Zhenqing was about to speak for Wei Shu, but he fell silent halfway through his mouth.

Wei Shu's beard was trembling and his eyes gradually turned red.

He knelt down slowly and with difficulty, put down the tablet in his hand, and uttered a few words in a mournful voice.

"I beg for my bones."

Li Cong remained silent until he stood up and said comfortingly, "Why are you like this, Wei Qing? It's just that you didn't see the comet. It's not necessary to be like this, it's not necessary to be like this."

"Please have the grace of the saint and I will return home."

Wei Shu was very clear that his official career was over because of what he said in public. If he did not resign, he would die.

Therefore, when he finished speaking, his voice was choked with sobs and tears welled up in his eyes, and he couldn't control himself.

He is not begging for a job, he is begging for a life.

He has spent his entire life studying history and has hardly ever participated in political disputes. Yet today his life is in danger because of telling the truth. Why must it be so?

Li Cong did not have much feeling about this matter at this time. He thought that he was not a suspicious king like Li Longji, and he did not want to appear narrow-minded in front of his ministers, so he refused to approve Wei Shu's resignation.

Anyway, a historian wouldn't have much influence on this matter.

After the court session ended, he tactfully reprimanded Dou Wenyang.

"Why do you have to scold such a highly respected person as Wei Shu?"

Dou Wenyang no longer admitted his mistake immediately as he had done before, but said, "I cannot bear to see Wei Shu forming a clique for personal gain, so in a desperate situation, I had to speak out to stop him, so as to prevent him from undermining the prestige of the Saint."

Li Cong was slightly stunned and asked, "You mean, he did it on purpose?" "Has the Saint forgotten that Wei Shu was once the teacher of Prince Yong?" Dou Wenyang said, "The night is so long, who can be sure that there was no comet passing by at night? The Si Tiantai just reported it, and Wei Shu denied it immediately without any investigation. Why? It's nothing more than fear that the Saint would establish his authority."

Li Cong was shocked. He just realized that Wei Shu was this kind of person. He seemed loyal on the surface, but secretly formed a clique and ran private businesses. He was Xue Bai's lackey. He was truly insidious.

A feeling of disgust suddenly rose in his heart, and the good impression of Wei Shu in his mind collapsed instantly.

Dou Wenyang continued, "The Saint is kind and benevolent, but Prince Yong is as strong as a tiger or a wolf. If we don't eliminate his followers while he is away from the court, he will definitely harm the Saint in the future."

Li Cong was horrified and asked, "Then, should I allow him to retire?"

Dou Wenyang's eyes flashed with murderous intent, and he said, "If we don't kill a chicken to warn the monkeys, Wei Shu will criticize the emperor and slander the saint's achievements without being punished. All officials will certainly despise the saint and turn to King Yong. Then, what will the saint do? What will the prince do?"

Li Cong's hands unconsciously stroked his knees, his eyes thoughtful. After a long while, he slowly said, "But Wei Shu is very famous in the world. If I kill him, how will people in the world look at me?"

"Then please ask the saint to send him away so that he does not interfere with the saint's major task of changing the calendar." Dou Wenyang did not force it.

Li Cong said: "Wei Shu should not be wronged."

In fact, both of them knew that no matter where Wei Shu was moved, Dou Wenyang would definitely send someone to kill him.

In this way, no one can find fault with it on the surface, but people with discerning eyes will know that the achievements in suppressing the rebellion and stabilizing the country were made by the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty, and they know that they should be loyal to the Emperor.

~~
Zhongshu Menxiasheng.

After Yan Zhenqing unfolded the sage's edict and read it, his expression became solemn and he looked even more righteous.

He turned to Dou Wenyang and without further ado, gave a clear and serious answer to the eunuch.

"No approval."

Dou Wenyang stood there waiting for so long, but only got these two words, and he couldn't help but get angry.

In the past, the safety of the country depended on Xue Bai, the great commander of the army, and he was a little bit afraid of Yan Zhenqing. Now that Xue Bai was away and the prestige of the saint was growing, he felt that Yan Zhenqing was alone in Chang'an.

Dou Wenyang also hoped to get rid of Yan Zhenqing one day and become the prime minister himself. He immediately said with a cold face and a sarcastic tone: "Mr. Yan, are you going to refuse to obey?!"

Yan Zhenqing had already made a clear judgment on whether there would be any celestial phenomena at night, but it was difficult to discuss right and wrong with a eunuch.

"Yes, there is something wrong with the sage's will. As the prime minister, it is my duty to give him honest advice."

"Humph!"

Since the relationship had been torn apart, Dou Wenyang no longer showed any mercy and said sternly, "I think you don't want to be the prime minister anymore."

There was nothing much to say to Yan Zhenqing, so he said some harsh words and turned away.

Recently, he has accepted money from many capable officials and promised them some positions, and has gathered a group of cliques around him. He can instruct the censor to impeach Yan Zhenqing and dismiss him from his position as prime minister.

At this moment, he had already made up his mind to use this incident to get rid of Yan Zhenqing and take back the power of the government.

Looking at Dou Wenyang's leaving back, there was no grief or anger in Yan Zhenqing's eyes, only deep sorrow.

He sighed, walked out of the Zhongshu Gate and headed towards the Imperial College.

Leaving the imperial city and entering Wubenfang, it was time for school to be over. Students poured out of the school, some walking in twos and threes, some making appointments to go to brothels. Some were talking loudly about the most popular stories in Chang'an City, while others were chasing each other, running, laughing and playing.

Yan Zhenqing stopped and watched the young man running and jumping, envious of his vigorous energy.

Recalling my youth, I also had... It turns out that there has never been such a situation. When I was young, I was like I am now, old and studying by lamplight at midnight.

He really hoped that Datang was still a young and vigorous man, rather than a middle-aged and elderly man who was depressed after a serious illness.

Walk past the Palace of the Sage of Lu and go into the Imperial Academy.

In a government room, Wei Shu was sitting at the head of the table, chatting with Zheng Qian and Su Mingyuan.

As soon as Yan Zhenqing entered the room, he looked at Wei Shu for a while without saying anything. However, when Wei Shu saw his expression, he knew that he was in great danger.

"I was asking them whether the celestial phenomenon had occurred." Wei Shu opened his mouth and said slowly, "The sky is great, and the affairs of the astronomical department must not be manipulated by eunuchs. Whether a comet appeared or not, how can we just lie about it?"

At this point, the first thing he talked about was not his personal future and life, but right and wrong.

He was a historian, recording all the happenings in the world, but he only sought to be truthful.

"No one in the Imperial College saw the comet last night. This shows that the eunuchs are unscrupulous in their actions. If this continues, the government will be ruined..."

Yan Zhenqing just listened silently.

Wei Shu was worried about state affairs, and he kept talking about it for a long time. He asked, "You are the prime minister, why don't you say anything?"

"What else can I say?" Yan Zhenqing said with emotion, "The sage used eunuchs and changed the calendar. His intention was to restore the emperor's majesty, and even more so to seize power. From whom did he seize power?"

He didn't say the word "I", but the answer was very clear. The first thing Li Cong wanted to take away was his power as prime minister.

"Everyone in the court says that Prince Yong intends to usurp the throne. As his father-in-law, I must be his ally, and I must be handling the government affairs to help him. In fact, I have never heard him talk about usurping the throne, let alone competing for the throne."

Having said this, Yan Zhenqing sighed.

"I am a loyal minister to the emperor, not a follower of Prince Yong... Do you believe me?"

Zheng Qianxian replied, "I am a doctor of the Imperial Academy and the teacher of Prince Yong. If Prince Yong intends to usurp the throne, we should be the first to be supported. If he seizes the throne, we will be the ministers of the Eastern Palace and will be among the Three Dukes in the future."

He smiled, raised his arms, and continued, "But now we are just small officials, small officials."

Su Mingyuan couldn't help but laugh.

This is a smile with a clear conscience.

Yan Zhenqing was busy dealing with state affairs every day, taking good care of the Tang Dynasty which had just recovered from a serious illness. He was busy and tired, and he hadn't laughed so heartily for a long time.

The four of them laughed, and gradually, the laughter died down. No one spoke for a long time, and sadness appeared in their eyes again.

"Since Chang'an was besieged, we have been busy defending the city and suppressing the rebellion. We have held great power and have not been able to take care of the saint's wishes. We have accidentally become powerful officials. I have made several memorials to the saint, asking him to be close to virtuous officials and stay away from villains, but the saint regards me as a great enemy. In this case, how can I advise the saint?"

After hearing this, Wei Shu said worriedly: "Hui Yi laughs generously, Yi laughs generously!"

What they wanted to stop was not the change of calendar, but the behavior of the sage listening to the eunuchs and talking nonsense in order to establish his authority.

This is just like the emperor who constantly created auspicious signs and changed the year into a year. Past events are a lesson for future generations. But it has only been a short time, and the saint is about to repeat the same mistake. How can he not be heartbroken.

No one knew that these seemingly followers of Prince Yong did everything out of loyalty to the sage.

Of course, they were not loyal to Li Cong as a person, but to the saint.

"The sage wants to transfer Wei Gong to be the governor of Lianzhou." Yan Zhenqing began to talk about business, saying: "I have rejected the imperial decree, but Wei Gong made a mistake in public, so I am afraid that he will be demoted for the time being..."

Su Mingyuan said quickly: "It would be fine if he was demoted, but judging from the intentions of that powerful eunuch, it is clear that he wants to harm Lord Wei!"

Wei Shu knew that he could not escape death, and with tears streaming down his face, he began to make arrangements for his funeral arrangements and asked his friends to take good care of his family.

Yan Zhenqing comforted him, "Don't worry, I will not let anything happen to Lord Wei. Lianzhou is too far away. Guangling Governor Li He is serving as the Governor of Henan Province, and Guangling County has a vacancy. How about asking Lord Wei to temporarily serve as the Governor of Yangzhou?"

"Governor of Yangzhou?"

"I will definitely keep Lord Wei safe."

When Wei Shu heard this, he felt as if he had escaped death. He quickly agreed and sighed.

After a while, he couldn't help asking, "But can the saint agree?"

Yan Zhenqing stroked his beard and said nothing.

Before coming, he had already thought about it. In fact, whether the saint agreed or not, the source of his power was not the position of prime minister.

But it was Xue Bai who was far away in Fan Yang.

~~
Dou Wenyang couldn't wait to find Li Cong and file a complaint against Yan Zhenqing.

This time, not only did they want to get rid of Wei Shu, they also wanted to suppress Yan Zhenqing.

He had thought about it on the way here. It would be difficult to dismiss Yan Zhenqing, but he could take back most of Yan Zhenqing's power and appoint a prime minister to approve imperial edicts.

"Can you really do it?"

Li Cong was very confused when he heard this.

Dou Wenyang immediately made an impassioned speech, saying: "Prince Yong has just arrived in Fanyang and has not yet established a firm foothold. Even if the saint suppresses his followers at this time, he will never raise an army."

This is a psychological game. He can be sure that Xue Bai will not resort to force just because some of Yan Zhenqing's power is taken away.

Then dare to do it.

He explained the reason to Li Cong, who suddenly understood, rubbed his hands, and looked delighted.

"Then appoint another prime minister. Do you have any candidates?"

With longing, the two were still discussing, but a eunuch came hurriedly and handed over a memorial.

Li Cong rarely saw such a situation, and shouted, "What's going on?!"

"Your Majesty, it is a memorial from Prime Minister Yan."

"Is he going to give me advice again?"

"Prime Minister Yan... resigns."

When Li Cong heard this, his expression changed immediately.

He took the memorial and read it, only to find that Yan Zhenqing's memorial was more like a letter, and it talked about ordinary things, saying that he would go to Yangzhou to bring his family back and send his daughter to Fan Yang to reunite with his son-in-law.

Li Cong could not focus on the beautiful handwriting and the hidden emotions. He only felt threatened.

He wished Yan Zhenqing would retire.

But this letter is not about retirement at all, it is a provocation and a deterrent.

A minister dared to intimidate the king.

"I have long known that Yan Zhenqing has ulterior motives." Dou Wenyang read the memorial and immediately jumped up and said in a sharp voice: "As a subject, he is so domineering. He is becoming more and more blatant now!"

"What should I do?" Li Cong asked, "I can't just approve his resignation, right?"

Dou Wenyang was stunned, opened his mouth, and felt guilty.

The fear of Xue Bai prevailed again.

(End of this chapter)