I studied in modern times

Chapter 748 Lu Huiqing: The emperor really has Zhang Zihou in his heart!

The first day of the fourth month of the second year of Yuanyou.

In Jingling Palace, there was grand music and ceremony.

Inside the Xuanguang Hall, all the ministers fell to the ground collectively.

In front of the portrait of the late emperor, the two palaces and Zhao Xu, led the late emperor's concubines, princes, and princesses, to offer wine before the spirit.

The ups and downs of the voice of Han Zhongyan, the Minister of Rites, echoed inside and outside the Xuanguang Hall.

"I believe that the witness of heaven is not far away, and sincerity can move people. Fang Bao's creation is new, and it is appropriate to lower the level of spiritual travel. Strictly follow the law, and chant the spiritual poems... A peaceful and quiet home, and blessings to the people outside!"

There is no doubt that this is a Qingci.

It was written by Su Shi. Zhao Xu specially sent someone to Dengzhou to find Su Shi and get it back.

The so-called Qingci was originally a prayer text written by Taoists to the Four Directions and Five Emperors, or a talismanic style of writing to invite gods.

At first, it was just the amusement of the idiots.

But in the Tang Dynasty, as the emperor respected Taoism, Qingci entered the political arena.

The emperor began to ask his ministers to write poems for him.

But there's a problem.

Civil officials are all scholar-officials, and scholar-officials are all Confucian scholars.

And Confucian scholars must respect Confucius!
Confucius taught: Respect ghosts and gods but keep them at a distance!
Therefore, in the eyes of many scholars, writing Qingci means rebelling against the teachings of the saints.

So, I don’t like it very much and I’m very resistant to it.

Originally, the emperors did not think that Qingci was that important.

But once the literati and officials resisted, the emperor began to take the matter seriously!
what?
You don't want to write?
very good, very powerful!

Since you respect Confucius so much, to the point of disobeying my will.

Then don’t be an official!
Go home and eat yourself!

Therefore, since the Tang Dynasty, asking ministers to write Qingci has become a means of discipline for the emperor to use on his ministers.

Whether or not a minister is willing to write poems for the emperor has become a criterion for measuring whether he is loyal.

Anyway, in the eyes of the emperor, those who are willing to write Qingci may not be loyal, but those who are unwilling to write Qingci are definitely not loyal ministers!

The Tao is above you!

Such people must never be used!
However, the literati generally felt aggrieved and tried to be perfunctory when writing Qingci.

Needless to say, this further irritated the emperors.

Especially after entering the Song Dynasty, the Zhao officials began to carefully review every Qingci written by the ministers.

Everyone above the rank of Waiting Officer must pass the test!
Anyone who dares to be perfunctory should not even think about being promoted or reused!
Therefore, the purpose of Zhao Xu asking Su Shi to write this Qingci was actually to test Su Shi.

Judging from the results, Su Shi at least passed the test.

This Qingci is written very appropriately and not perfunctorily.

After Han Zhongyan finished reading the Qingci written by Su Shi, Zhao Xu bowed again in front of the portrait of his father, and then, under the guidance of the officials of the Ministry of Rites, picked up a glass of wine, walked forward solemnly and respectfully placed it on the altar.

Thus, ritual and music flourished.

Wen Yanbo, the Minister of Military Affairs and Grand Tutor, walked up to the hall with the support of Wen Jifu and Wen Yiqing. He bowed again and then opened the prayer written on jute paper, praying to the late emperor and ancestors on behalf of the civil and military officials.

"In the second year of Yuanyou, the year Dingmao, the first day of the fourth month Renwu..."

"The spirit of Emperor Shenzong Yingwen Liewu Qinren was moved to Xuanguang Hall. The Grand Empress Dowager, the Empress Dowager, and the Emperor personally offered wine and food. The Empress Dowager, the concubines, the Grand Princess, and the princes accompanied him..."

"I respectfully accept the chariot of the immortals, and take up residence in the Pearl Courtyard. I gallop across the sea and the sky, and look like a scene from heaven and earth. I wish to return the light of the sun and the moon, and repay the kindness of the gods. I look forward to the new palace, and may the blessings be passed down to me forever!"

As Wen Yanbo finished reading the last sentence of the prayer, all the ministers in the hall bowed their heads and kowtowed again.

Zhao Xu, the two palaces, and the Empress Dowager Zhu led the other concubines, the Grand Princess, and the princes to bow their heads and kowtow again.

At this moment, officials from the Ministry of Rites rang the bell of Jingling Palace.

This announced the end of the divine ceremony.

Zhao Xu turned around, tears streaming down his face, and faced the ministers, bowing slightly: "Thank you all for helping me and protecting my country!"

The ministers bowed and said, "We swear to be loyal to Your Majesty until death!"

At this point, Zhao Xu completed the process of completely taking over power from the late emperor.

From today on, he is no longer the filial son who succeeded the emperor.

But a complete king!

If he were not so young, the two palaces would still be in power.

Zhao Xu looked at the ministers and said with a trembling voice: "No need to be polite!"

The ministers bowed four times.

The Empress Dowager beside Zhao Xu watched as the ministers bowed in unison, like machines, again and again...

It's like a wave, like a tide.

She sighed slightly in her heart.

She knew that the current situation was just like the situation when Han Qi led his ministers to force Empress Cixi to retreat.

My fellow ministers, from now on there is only one king!

Even though the emperor is still young, even though he still respects the system of two palaces behind the scenes, he will discuss many things with her.

But power is like this, once lost, it can never be returned!
However, once you have tasted power, no one would be willing to give it up.

Whether it is father and son, grandparents and grandchildren, brothers, or husband and wife!
……

Now that the spirit of the former emperor in Jingling Palace has been enshrined and the affairs of the ancestral temple have been completed, it is natural for it to start dealing with human affairs.

The next day was the second day of the fourth month.

Still no rain!

Therefore, Wen Yanbo, the Minister of Military and State Affairs, Zhang Fangping, the Jiedushi of Zhangde Army, and Feng Jing, the Jiedushi of Baoning Army, all submitted petitions asking to return to their farms due to the drought.

The emperor refused to allow it, but still gave gifts as a consolation and encouragement.

Then, it was the left prime minister, Duke of Shen, Lu Gongzhu, who submitted a petition to resign due to drought.

Naturally, it is still a comfort.

During this process, An Tao, the co-director of the Privy Council, also followed suit and submitted a petition to request a county.

An Tao's behavior is more or less interesting.

Because, in the turmoil not long ago, he was the person who was most seriously injured.

He's become a meme.

During that turmoil, the idlers kept saying, "That An Tao is in charge of the Western Palace, can he be the ruler? No! He doesn't have the ability." Now it has become popular.

There were even some busybodies in the court who gave him a nickname - An Bu Neng.

Needless to say, this nickname was given by Liu Xun, who had just been appointed as the Secretary of the Central Secretariat.

Liu Chuan is really good at making memes!

Within a few days, everyone in and outside Bian Jing knew that the Prime Minister An who was in power in the Western Palace was no longer known as An Buliang.

After being played like this by Liu Fu, An Tao no longer had the face to stay in Beijing.

The reason why the county was not requested immediately was purely because the previous emperor's imperial ceremony had not been held.

Now, the imperial ceremony is over, and the late emperor's portrait and spirit tablet have been enshrined in the Xuanguang Hall.

An Tao felt that he had completed his mission as a minister of the previous emperor and fulfilled his duty and loyalty, so he simply wrote a letter of resignation and requested to be appointed to a post in another province or county.

Moreover, his attitude was very firm. He submitted a petition to be appointed as a county magistrate, and then announced that he was not feeling well and wanted to recuperate at home.

Of course, An Tao was a political wolf who had lived through the Xining and Yuanfeng eras.

Naturally, he was unwilling to suffer this loss from Liu Chu. In the postscript after his resignation, he fiercely attacked Liu Chu, calling him a villain and comparing him to Shi Zhongli of the Renmiao Dynasty.

This is like roasting Liu Xun on the fire.

Shi Zhongli was the son of Shi Xizai, a minister in Emperor Taizong's palace and prime minister.

But when Shi Zhongli was in the court, he had a very bad influence because he liked to joke and give others nicknames.

If it were in the past, it wouldn’t matter.

Unfortunately, when Shi Zhongli entered the two governments, it was during the Jingyou period when the Song Dynasty was facing internal and external troubles.

Externally, Yuan Hao was ready to make moves in the northwest, and began to openly establish an institution and title, create writing, and use different clothes.

Later, he simply upgraded Xingzhou to Xingqing Prefecture, established the capital there and proclaimed himself emperor.

On the Liao side, Emperor Xingzong of Liao, Yelü Zongzhen, continued to fuel tensions between the Song and Xia dynasties, just waiting to see the show.

Internally, natural disasters continued, especially the Jingyou earthquake, which completely changed the geography of Bing, Dai and Xin states.

Tens of thousands of people died and countless livestock were killed.

However, Shi Zhongli and other ministers were helpless in the face of internal and external troubles and could not come up with any solution.

They had neither the ability to provide disaster relief nor the ability to deal with the complex international situation at the time.

Every day they only know how to blame each other and pass the buck in the court.

Shi Zhongli was laughing and having fun all day long.

So, Han Qi, who was still a young man at the time, slammed the table and said - how can we run the country well with this group of insects?

Han Qi's famous work "The Position of Prime Minister Has Not Been Recommended by the Right Person" came out of nowhere.

The memorial was submitted, and Wang Sui, Chen Yaozuo, Han Yi and Shi Zhongli were dismissed on the same day.

This is Han Qi’s famous scene—four ministers fell from the sky on a piece of paper.

In Han Qi's memorial, his characterization of Shi Zhongli almost blocked the possibility of a second Shi Zhongli - he was neutral in office, liked humor, and was not a minister!

The court is a serious political occasion, not a place for you to laugh and joke!
In his post, An Tao described Liu Fu as the contemporary Shi Zhongli.

This is what exposed the emperor's new clothes - in the past, because of Liu Jun's reputation, because of Liu Jun's family background, and because of Sima Guang, although many people were annoyed by his outspokenness, they still showed some sympathy.

Now, An Tao didn't care and just fired directly.

Liu Xun's future was shrouded in a shadow from then on.

Zhao Xu didn't feel anything about An Tao's request to leave, and even felt a little happy.

Because An Tao is a typical fence-sitter.

At the same time, the ability is really lacking!
In the past two years, he has been doing things according to procedures in Xifu and has achieved almost no results.

On the contrary, Zhao Xu had often heard rumors that this husband was corrupt.

Anyway, of the money allocated to him as an ambassador every year, in the end there was not a penny left.

The Investigation Department also reported that An Tao used the Privy Council's money to entertain guests, hire prostitutes, employ maids, and keep singing girls.

That is, out of consideration for dignity, and also considering that this guy, although he does nothing, is not a bad person, he is reluctantly allowed to keep him in the job.

Now that he had voluntarily resigned, Zhao Xu followed the procedure and tried to retain him.

However, his attempt to retain her was totally insincere.

The length of the edict of consolation did not even exceed fifty words!

It only briefly mentioned that An Tao had served as an assistant to the previous emperor, but did not praise his achievements.

An Tao was also tactful. After receiving the imperial edict, he immediately submitted a second petition asking to leave.

When An Tao's second letter was delivered to Zhao Xu, Zhao Xu was in the imperial garden behind the Funing Palace, summoning Lu Huiqing.

Just yesterday, Zhao Xu, at the suggestion of Lu Gongzhu, officially issued an edict of appointment, replacing Lu Huiqing's brother Lu Shengqing with Deng Wan, the governor of Yongxing Army.

Deng Wan was sent to Hebei to serve as the Hebei Road Transport Commissioner.

Lu Shengqing went to Yongxing Army and served as the logistics chief of the entire Northwest.

Naturally, because Deng Wan did a good job in Yongxing Army last year, Zhao Xu promoted him this time.

He was promoted from a direct scholar of Longtu Pavilion to a scholar of Longtu Pavilion, and was bestowed with a goldfish bag by the emperor. His honors were promoted to the rank of guard general, and he was further granted the title of founding marquis of Yizhang County, with a fief of 600 households.

In this way, another minister who was qualified to worship the Four Heads was born.

Lu Shengqing was also promoted a little, and was appointed as the governor of Yongxing Army as the director of Baowen Pavilion and the official of Chaofeng.

Lu Shengqing went to Yongxing Army, which actually meant that Lu Huiqing's next place of employment had been determined.

Xihe!

Today, Zhao Xu summoned Lu Huiqing because he was afraid that he was unwilling to go, so he did some ideological work on him.

Who would have thought that after being summoned, Lu Huiqing not only did not resist, but instead acted as if "I am a brick of your Majesty, I will go wherever your Majesty tells me to go."

This surprised Zhao Xu.

You know, in Zhao Xu's previous life, during the Shaosheng period, when Lu Huiqing returned to the court, he was unwilling to take up a post outside the court and tried every means to stay in the court.

But little did they know that when Lu Huiqing returned to the court this time, he didn't want to stay any longer - it was true that Lu Huiqing had a strong desire for power.

But he is not stupid!

The current situation in the court is too delicate.

He doesn't want to get involved in it!

He knew the story of Shen Sheng dying inside and Chong'er surviving outside.

Of course, if Zhao Xu wanted him to stay, he would still be willing to do so.

But the problem is...

After the imperial ceremony, something happened that scared him to death - Liang Congzheng, in accordance with the order of the Empress Dowager, gave his wife Huang the title of Lady of a County and said many words of praise and compliments.

This is obviously an attempt to win him over!
This made Lu Huiqing no longer dare to stay in Beijing.

He now wishes he could put some oil on the soles of his feet to moisturize them immediately!
You can go anywhere, as long as you don’t stay in the court!
He doesn't like being seen as a member of the Hou party!

That's political suicide!

So the meeting became a very pleasant one.

When An Tao's resignation letter was delivered to Zhao Xu by Feng Jing, Zhao Xu was taking Lu Huiqing to visit the vegetable garden opened by Wen Xunniang and others in the imperial garden.

After receiving An Tao's resignation letter, Zhao Xu only glanced at it and, without avoiding people, instructed Feng Jing: "Order the Academy of Scholars to draft another imperial edict to comfort and retain Prime Minister An!"

"No matter what, we still have to give what we deserve!"

Lü Huiqing was listening nearby, swallowing his saliva, and wondering in his heart: "The emperor seems to have a lot of opinions about An Houqing!"

Last year, Zhang Xu was appointed as the governor of Zhending Prefecture. He passed by Hedong and met Lu Huiqing once. He complained to Lu Huiqing about the affairs of the court.

According to Zhang Xu, the emperor at that time seemed to "only love" Zhang Zihou.

All matters concerning Zhang Zihou were given the green light. It was said that the Tongjiansi had even made a verbal announcement - as long as it was related to Zhang Dun, whether it was about himself, his wife and children, or his parents and brothers, it had to be sent to the emperor as soon as possible.

Anyway, it’s just preference!
Now, the emperor showed extreme indifference to An Tao's resignation in front of him.

This reminded Lu Huiqing of Zhang Xu's original complaints.

"It seems that what Zhang Suiming said might be true!"

"Young Master may really favor Zhang Zihou!"

why?
It’s no secret that Zhang Dun and An Tao are not on good terms!
It is reasonable to say that the young master dislikes An Tao because of Zhang Dun, as he loves his wife and his dog.

Otherwise, it would be impossible to explain why the young master was so indifferent about An Tao's resignation.

You know, since His Majesty ascended the throne, he has been famous for his tolerance and kindness towards his ministers.

Therefore, Lu Huiqing felt a little jealous.

(End of this chapter)