Elegy of Tang Dynasty

Chapter 212 Chang’an Energy Crisis
Regarding the issue of who should be appointed as the prince, the small court meeting did not produce any clear results.There are many people who oppose the establishment of King Shou as crown prince.

As for whether the prince should be released abroad, there is no conclusion, and there has not even been a larger discussion since then.

However, on the second day after the Xiaochao meeting, Li Long, the longevity king, was officially canonized as the prince by Li Longji, and ordered to move out of the ten kings' residence and take charge of the East Palace with immediate effect.

This time, Chang'an's political landscape has undergone structural changes!From chaos to clarity.

The Crown Prince was not just given a title, but was given a whole set of "semi-artifacts"!That is, all institutions related to the East Palace!
During the Tang Dynasty, the subordinate officials of the East Palace were greatly improved on the basis of the previous dynasty.

Previously, when the Western Jin Dynasty was pregnant with the prince, there were six masters, which later became the three divisions and three young masters, namely: the prince's Taishi, the prince's Taifu and the prince's Taibao; the prince's young master, the prince's young tutor and the prince's Shaobao.

Since the Tang Dynasty, the three divisions and three young masters have become gifted officials and are no longer permanent. Instead, Zhan Shifu is responsible for the affairs of the East Palace.

James Mansion is in charge of the affairs of the East Palace Family Ling, Lingeng, Pusan ​​Temple and the Left and Right Guards, the Left and Right Siyu, the Left and Right Qingdao, the Left and Right Prison Gates, the Left and Right Inner Ten Commandments, etc. There are many branches below, which are mainly responsible for Managing the administrative affairs of the East Palace can be said to be a miniature version of the Shangshu Province of the imperial court.

In the Sui Dynasty, the standard Menxiafang for the prince was renamed Zuo Chunfang; and the original Dian Shufang was renamed Youchunfang. They were both internal institutions of the James Mansion, and their functions were similar to the miniature versions of the imperial book department and the menxia department.

The East Palace also has many "miscellaneous" agencies, which can be called a "small court". It has a lot of equipment. Even the prince's food is specially responsible for the food bureau.

There are many staff members in these agencies, and the total number is no less than hundreds.

However, except for a very few positions, other East Palace subordinate officials have almost zero power, and they are very leisurely on weekdays, and their treatment is very poor.

Since the prince has no power, why are so many institutions established for the prince?
The answer is: after the prince succeeds to the throne, it is convenient to use the manpower of James's house to quickly take over the government, so that he will not be easily ignored by powerful ministers.

The so-called "one emperor and one courtier" first came from here.

However, being a prince is a profession with an uncertain tenure and great variables.

Some people who become princes can succeed to the throne on the same day, but some people who have been princes for 40 years are still princes. There are many such people in history.Being a prince for 40 years is no choice, but can the bureaucrats attached to James's house be content and content with being "preparatory bosses" without any power for 40 years?

This is the subtlety and contradiction of the James Mansion setting.

When these subordinate officials entered the East Palace, it was like entering an official prison. They could only rely on supporting the prince wholeheartedly, hoping that the current emperor would abdicate soon so that they could fly up the branches and become peacocks.

Therefore, compared with the risk of moving the prince out of Chang'an, the matter of Prince Lishou becoming the prince was nothing more than that and not worth mentioning.Although the prince is called the "national capital", it is not impossible to change him!King Shou is the prince today, but that doesn’t mean he will always be the prince!There were two unlucky guys before him.

Except that King Shou was established as the prince and moved to the East Palace.

The aftermath of Li Heng's previous rebellion also came "as expected" and was much more violent than expected.

The censor Zhongcheng Zhang Yi was dismissed because he failed to teach his son well and was sent to be the governor of Shangzhou.

His position was taken over by Zheng Shuqing. At the same time, Zheng Shuqing was also awarded the title of deposed envoy, responsible for supervising hundreds of officials around Chang'an, which completely got rid of the dilemma of "calling everyone his godfather".

This official position can directly remove officials below the sixth rank, and they will be executed first and then punished.In other words, when Zheng Shuqing was "inspecting", he could directly deal with some officials who he believed had violated the law without reporting it to the prime minister.

This kind of "disposal" can be dismissal from office, imprisonment, or even direct execution, and then the results will be reported.

Of course, regardless of the official position in the imperial court, the errands given will definitely have good and bad aspects, and one person will not be allowed to take advantage of all the good things.

Because Zheng Shuqing had "meritorious service", although he had an errand to "depose an envoy", he also had several "evil errands" that ordinary people would avoid.

The first is the "charcoal messenger".

The weather is getting colder, and the demand for firewood, charcoal and other materials in the imperial city and government offices in Chang'an City has increased sharply!Moreover, the number of gaps was huge, requiring dedicated personnel to organize civilians to cut down trees, transport them, burn charcoal, and then load the firewood and charcoal into warehouses for transportation to the palace and distribution to officials.

The second one is "Mining City Silver Envoy".Because Yangzhou's water transportation was suspended, prices in Chang'an soared, so the imperial court urgently needed to purchase "heavy goods" from Hebei and other places, that is, goods that were not easy to transport.Most of these heavy goods are grain, firewood and other items.

Of course, the imperial court cannot directly go to Hebei to grab grain and firewood, so it needs to use "Heshi Yin" to send it to the local prefecture and county offices, so that the local officials can find a way to use "Heshi Yin" to buy "light goods". Local "heavy goods".

To put it simply, it means exporting inflation to the outside world.

The Mining City Silver Envoy is responsible for collecting silver from the silver-producing areas of Lingnan as taxes, and then smelting the broken silver into silver cakes, engraving them and storing them in the warehouse, and then distributes them to various places, mainly Hebei, and then transports local heavy goods to Chang'an. , manage one-stop related affairs.

This errand seems simple enough, but if you add up the three errands on Zheng Shuqing and take a closer look, you will know that things are difficult to handle after a little thought.

Allowing the removal of disobedient officials, providing firewood for the palace, government offices and officials, and replacing light goods in the treasury with "heavy goods" that can be eaten and used, the difficulties Zheng Shuqing faced are almost visible to the naked eye!
In this turmoil, it was not just the former Yushi Zhongcheng Zhang Yi who was unlucky. The left prime minister Zhang Shougui was also unlucky.

Because Zhang Shougui did nothing after the rebellion, and the Ministry of War, which he was also in charge of, issued military orders to the Nanya Imperial Army outside the city that were not conducive to rescue.Therefore, Li Longji dismissed him from his post and no longer served as a minister, nor did he concurrently hold the post of Minister of the Ministry of War. Instead, he was changed to a "Censor" with no real power.

At the same time, Zhang Shougui was given the post of "Lingnan Economic and Strategic Envoy". He replaced Fang Youde, who returned to Beijing to report on his work, and was sent out as the Jiedushi Envoy.

People in the official circles generally believe that the reason why Zhang Shougui was dismissed from the prime minister was not because he "rescued him in vain" this time, but because many things accumulated and finally crushed the majestic camel.In any case, the story of the fierce battle between the two prime ministers came to an end for the time being, and Li Linfu, who understood the saint's thoughts better, won.

Li Shizhi took over the post of Zhang Shougui's minister, and at the same time also got the job of "transfer envoy" originally belonging to Wei Jian. He was based in Luoyang and took charge of the water transportation repair work, without interfering with Li Linfu's governance in Chang'an city.

Yes, since the civil unrest in Yangzhou, the Jianghuai Canal has been completely shut down.Yangzhou is the center of handicrafts and grain transshipment in the Jianghuai region, and the majority of those involved in the rebellion were the canal workers and the weavers responsible for textiles along the canal, as well as the labor households in various handicraft industries!
There were bursts of commotion and bursts of suppression. In the front, Yang Zhao scraped the ground three feet away, leaving no trace of chickens or dogs, while behind, there was Fang Youde, ruthless and ruthless killers.Under the attack of two ghosts, merchants gathered together and Yangzhou, a land of plenty and plenty, was destroyed!In addition, most of the transportation along the Jianghuai Canal was destroyed.

Li Shizhi took over the errand and was about to go to Luoyang on business.He will start cleaning up the canal in the north and go all the way south to Yangzhou, dredging the entire route to ensure that there are people at the ferry crossings along the canal and that freight does not stop.

As for the rest, there is nothing to say. Those who participated in rescuing the driver were all rewarded; those who failed to save the driver were many. Those who deserved to be beheaded, those who deserved to be dismissed from office, and those who deserved to be exiled were exiled.Not one of Wei Jian's family and nearby branches escaped, they were all exiled to Lingnan!

Zhang Guangsheng, whose legs were broken during the rescue process, rose to the sky in one step and became the general of Zuo Jinwu Guards. This was the vacancy created by Fang Youde's subordinate He Qichang for him;

Li Yi, the king of Xin'an, did not want to be an official when he was old, and his title and position did not change. However, his son Li Xi was named Zhao Guogong, a member of the Ministry of Punishment, Wai Lang, and was rewarded with a large amount of money and silk.

Even Yu Chaoen, the young eunuch who led Fang Chongyong's house raids, was appointed as the new "Ten Kings' House Envoy".

However, Fang Chongyong himself was only given the post of Supervisory Censor, an eighth-grade official, and was demoted based on his official position.

However, he still carries the new job "Recruiting Heroes" "invented" by Brother Ji, who is responsible for recruiting brave men across the country for use by the Forbidden Army.Well, in order to facilitate his work, Ji Ge also appointed Fang Chongyong as the "Military Supervisor" in the northwest region, which is to be responsible for some military affairs of the two Jiedu prefectures in Hexi and Longyou.

Specifically, it means "monitoring punishments and rewards, and reporting violations."Fang Chongyong stayed in Chang'an, the capital, and led two "supervisory troops" from Jiedu Prefecture.If a person does not go to the border town, he will have no power at all. Once he goes there, he can "pick up lawlessness" and make it easier for him to choose the brave ones.

For his own safety, Brother Ji took great pains to arrange a series of weird official positions for Fang Chongyong.

……

Boom boom boom!
In the early morning of this day, not long after the drumbeat of the curfew was lifted, there was a knock on the door of the Fang family's house.

The sleepy-eyed Fang Laique walked to the door and opened the courtyard door, and saw Zheng Shuqing in a thick brocade robe, rubbing his hands and waiting outside the door.

"Is your Mr. Fang here? I am talking about Mr. Fang."

Zheng Shuqing asked with a smile.

"Who are you?" Fang Laique stared at Zheng Shuqing with his dull and cute eyes and asked.

"Ahem, cough, cough, this is Zheng Shuqing, the censor Zhongcheng, and your boss Fang Langjun."

Zheng Shuqing said proudly.

"Oh, that's it. Let me take a look."

Fang Laique walked into the concierge, took out a booklet tied with a hemp rope, and kept rummaging through it.

"What are you looking for?"

Zheng Shuqing asked doubtfully.

"Well, I saw the name. You are on the list. My Alang (Fang Youde) said that people on the list will not be welcomed and cannot enter the courtyard. Please come back."

Fang Laique raised his head and said expressionlessly, and then closed the courtyard door without waiting for Zheng Shuqing to reply!
What are you doing!
Zheng Shuqing was speechless by this scene!

"Open the door, I have something big to do with your husband! It's really something big!"

Zheng Shuqing anxiously slapped the courtyard door and shouted.

"The ones who made the noise early in the morning are those who came to deliver firewood again? Didn't you tell us not to do it?"

The door of the courtyard was opened again. Anaye, who had not combed her hair and was disheveled and faceless, walked out lazily. When she saw Zheng Shuqing, she was slightly startled and said: "What did Zheng Yushi come to my house? My uncle told me, You are here to beat you out."

"I have something big to do with your husband. It's a big deal. If I ask him to come to the private room on the second floor of Xinghua Building today, he will definitely die!"

Zheng Shuqing clasped his hands and begged.

"Yeah, I know, I know. When he comes back, I'll ask him to go to Xinghua Tower to find you."

Anaye waved her hand and said.

Suddenly, she seemed to remember something, then lowered her voice, pointed at Fang Laique and asked, "What do you think of him?"

This guy is just a fool, what else can he do!
Zheng Shuqing looked calm and replied: "This man's bones are very strange. At first glance, he is a material that can be made."

"Look, I'll tell you!"

Anaye patted Fang Laique's head hard, looked at Zheng Shuqing with an earnest look and asked, "Do you have a daughter in your family? If you marry him, you will be a family with my husband from now on, isn't it good?"

"Well, so-and-so has no daughters, but so-and-so's brother has two daughters. I'll ask him when I get the chance."

Zheng Shuqing said with a wry smile.

If it weren't for the fact that this Hexi native girl's father is Xin'an King Li Yi, he would have thrown away his sleeves and left!For a very smart man like Fang Chongyong, why are his concubines and servants so mentally retarded?

Although Zheng Shuqing could not understand the situation at all, he was greatly shocked.

"Okay, okay, Yushi Zheng, go and get busy."

Anaye greeted her casually and closed the courtyard door. Zheng Shuqing still heard what the "little fool" was saying to her: "Look, I said it's okay for you to marry the prime minister's daughter. This one Zheng Yushi will be the prime minister in the future, and if you marry his brother's daughter, you are almost marrying the prime minister's daughter."

"Alas, only women and villains are difficult to raise. If you are close, you will feel inferior, and if you are far, you will resent them."

Zheng Shuqing couldn't help but sigh.

He found that his career path seemed to be spinning in a spiral. After finally jumping out of a small circle, he would enter a larger circle. There seemed to be no time to stop.There will always be trouble of one kind or another.

"The trees next to Chang'an have been cut down, so where can we find firewood?"

Zheng Shuqing turned around and walked away, complaining as he walked.

……

Throughout the morning, Fang Chongyong was in the military camp outside Chang'an City, watching the so-called "brave men" conducting project tests.Fang Youde specially sent his trusted subordinate He Qichang to attack Fang Chongyong.

Fang Chongyong's assessment is very simple. The first level is: follow He Qichang's three moves and not be knocked to the ground will be considered qualified.

As a result, after two hours, none of the applicants were qualified.In fact, this is not surprising, because people living in Chang'an and surrounding areas have definitely not experienced the hardships of war like in Bian Town. It is not easy to think that they can go several rounds with He Qichang.

During the prosperous Tang Dynasty, those powerful warriors gradually lost popularity in society.People love handsome young men who are pretty, can write, speak well, and put on makeup.Under the influence of such a culture, it is not surprising that Chang'an and its surrounding areas cannot find the kind of warriors who can fight one against a hundred.

After returning home full of disappointment, Anaye said that Zheng Shuqing had been here and there was something urgent.Fang Chongyong had to go to Xinghua Tower again, and then in the box on the second floor, he saw Zheng Shuqing who was waiting anxiously and seemed to be going crazy.

"The position of Zheng Yushi is very hot. He has become very popular recently and is going to be the prime minister. Why do you want to find me, an idler?"

Fang Zhongyong asked feebly.

"Hurry up, help me, it's really not possible."

Zheng Shuqing grabbed Fang Chongyong's sleeves and said excitedly in a low voice.

"Hey, you have something to talk about. What are you talking about? You are going to be the prime minister."

Fang Chongyong pulled back his sleeves and said dissatisfied.

"Isn't I now the charcoal user?"

"Well, you are delivering charcoal to the palace, what next?" Fang Chongyong asked with a yawn.

"Then there will be no trees to cut down around Chang'an."

Zheng Shuqing said helplessly.

"what?"

Fang Chongyong had a black question mark on his face, not understanding what the other party was up to.

　one more chapter

　　
　
(End of this chapter)