Food Fairy Lord

Chapter 571 Retirement

The rumor in the court had been going on for almost three days, and there had been almost no news from the court during these three days.

That day, the sage took the memorial back and said that he would read it carefully. The sage read slowly, so naturally no one dared to hurry him. However, the two purple-robed men standing at the head of the ministers did not show much expression. Li Du still stood there silently, as if he had nothing to do with all the turmoil. Yuanzhao still submitted memorials every day and made drastic changes to everything he wanted to do.

With such a new prime minister, the court would always be in chaos, but fortunately, not many of his memorials would be approved. It seemed that no matter how different the styles of the assistant prime ministers were, the imperial pen would always have its consistent principles.

Just when many people were wondering how long this worrying situation would last, on the evening of the 24th day of the twelfth lunar month, Li Du returned to his residence in Shenjing and received a letter from the west.

The letter paper was very flexible and thick, not too delicate, and although it was white it was not bright, but rather a bit dark, like snow frozen by the wind. This was paper from the West, and Li Du was very familiar with the touch.

The handwriting above is also very strong, the thick parts are like mountains, the light parts are like clouds, and the tip of the pen is like a sword... Li Du has been very familiar with this kind of handwriting since his childhood. It is completely different from the exquisite small regular script that he is good at.

Li Du lowered his eyes and looked at the short letter. He was silent for a long time, and then he put it away and put it on the table without saying a word. The maids in green clothes stood by. Li Du took off his warm cloak and said in a calm voice: "Take a bath and change clothes."

……

Daming Palace, in the Purple Palace.

Lu Chunshui put his legs together, put his hands on his knees, and looked at the ground quietly.

This philosopher was actually the most well-known face in Tianliyuan. Zhu Wen lived in seclusion, Nan Xiu was old, and Lu Ding was estranged. Only Lu Chunshui was in his prime. He was born in a noble family, had a good character, was elegant, and held the title of Hanlin scholar. He was one of the few people who had the most audiences with the sage.

However, even Lu Chunshui could not come to this bedroom very often, and the number of times he visited alone was even fewer.

As the candle flames burned, the inner door creaked slightly, followed by the familiar footsteps. Without looking up, Lu Chunshui stepped forward from his chair, knelt on the ground, and said respectfully, "Greetings, Your Majesty."

"No courtesy, please sit down."

The Tang Emperor sat back at the table. Lu Chunshui stood up, bowed, and sat back in his chair.

He raised his head. The holy face above him was still indifferent and handsome. His slightly wet black hair was tied up with a yellow silk. He had changed out of his court robes. The emperor always wore casual clothes in this bedroom, and Lu Chunshui wore the same clothes every time he came.

Even though he was one of the few noble "close ministers" in the eyes of court officials, Lu Chunshui was actually no more familiar with this saint than others. He did see this holy face more often, but most of the time Lu Chunshui did not feel that he was facing a person, but more like a will, or a cold cliff.

Wrapped in a warm human body, all you can be familiar with are the habits of this body, light tea or strong wine, apricot blossoms or peach blossoms...only these insignificant things.

But perhaps only such a will as high as a cliff can support this empire called "Tang". Perhaps, as in the legendary history, the emperors with unicorn blood will coexist with their empire and share the unicorn's will of longevity and longevity, and will no longer make wrong decisions due to "human" confusion and emotions.

But Lu Chunshui was used to at least one thing, that is, you can be as straightforward as possible in front of this figure.

He said respectfully: "Your Majesty, I have a question. Will the theory of the two heavens really take root in our Tang Dynasty?"

Emperor Tang looked at him and said nothing.

"When I entered the Tianliyuan, I asked to see Your Majesty and spoke from the bottom of my heart. I wonder if Your Majesty remembers it?"

The Tang Emperor nodded and said, "You said, 'The Tang Dynasty was not established for the sake of Heaven's principles, but Heaven's principles must exist for the Tang Dynasty'. This is your true creed for entering the academy."

Lu Chunshui bowed: "After so many years, Your Majesty still remembers it."

"Lü Ding thought so too, but he never told me." The Emperor said in a light voice, "Please tell me."

Lu Chunshui said: "Now I am short-sighted and only feel that the natural law of the two heavens is not beneficial to the Tang Dynasty."

Emperor Tang paused but said nothing.

Lu Chunshui said seriously: "Allow me to express my humble thoughts, and hope Your Majesty can solve the confusion: The establishment of the Tang Dynasty lies in enriching the country and strengthening the army, so that the surrounding countries dare not invade; enriching the country and strengthening the army lies in the governance of the sage and the five surnames; the reason why the sage and the five surnames govern prosperously is because of the guidance of the unicorn; the reason why the guidance of the unicorn is correct is that it follows the will of heaven and the time."

"So, the emperor and the five surnames all believe in the destiny of the Qilin, and all bear the blood of the Qilin. When the northern wilderness invaded the border, Lu and Li fought desperately, and they were as strong as an iron wall. When the southern country had a war, Zheng used half of his money and refused to give up a single city or town. This is because the five surnames believe that the Tang Dynasty is their own Tang Dynasty. Although half of the power of the Tang Dynasty is in the hands of the aristocratic families, the aristocratic families will never abandon the Tang Dynasty."

Emperor Tang nodded: "Yes."

Under the bond of unicorn blood, there is no stronger alliance of interests than that between the royal family and the five surnames. For hundreds of years, they have been following the guidance of heaven and have indeed reached the top of the world.

"However, the discussion of the two heavens is by no means about establishing another unrelated heaven, nor is it just about taking away the power of the five surnames." Lu Chunshui was silent for a moment and said seriously.

Li Du cared about this phase, and many people among the Five Surnames cared about the promotion of those scholars regardless of them, and cared about their own lofty and unique status, but Lu Chunshui did not care.

He pursed his lips, wrung his hands, and whispered, "The two heavens have violated the authority of the One and Only Haotian, which has caused the Five Clans to doubt their own situation and inevitably give rise to distracting thoughts, and even... the unquestionable position of the Saint, the unshakable words of the Saint... have been shaken."

The Tang Emperor said nothing.

"It is too early to say, but since there are such signs, I have to express my worries." Lu Chunshui looked at the ground with gloomy eyes and took a deep breath. "From my point of view, the authority of Haotian is not important, but the authority of Qilin is very important; the four princes of the five surnames can be in power, and the Jinyang prince of the scholar army can also be in power, but it must be selected by the blood of the unicorn - this is what I am really worried about."

"When I entered the Tianliyuan, I had a heartfelt statement with Your Majesty, which was considered extremely treasonous. Now I have something even more treasonous, and I still want to tell Your Majesty."

"Speak now."

Lu Chunshui stood up, looked straight at the holy face on the high ground, and said word by word: "It is better to have no true justice in the Tang Dynasty than to have no Qilin in the Tang Dynasty."

Emperor Tang looked outside the palace.

"Heaven is ruthless and will not assist Tang; Qilin has a destiny and will coexist with Tang." Lu Chunshui bowed his head again and said softly.

There was silence in the Purple Palace for a while, and the Tang Emperor retracted his gaze: "As for what Lord Lu said, I have figured it out a few years after I took this position." Lu Chunshui bowed his head.

"Everything that Lord Lu said is based on the fact that I can change the laws of nature. The laws of nature cannot bypass Qilin and are imposed on the Tang Dynasty... Just like the past thousands of years, it only exists invisibly. Whether people are farming or fighting, they don't need to understand any laws of nature." The Tang Emperor turned his head towards him indifferently and curled the corners of his mouth. This was probably the most gentle and kind smile Lu Chunshui had ever seen on this face in all these years.

"..."

"But the implementation of the Heaven's opinion is not because of my desire. What is right is right, and what is wrong is wrong. Since the two Heaven's opinions have arisen, I will follow them. This is not against the will of the Great Heaven."

"..."

"As for the successor you mentioned, it was originally chosen by Qilin, so I will not bother you. It is the same now." The Tang Emperor lowered his head and closed the two memorials he had just commented on, then looked at him, "Thank you, Lord Lu, for coming to advise me late at night - how was Zhier's condition after he returned that day?"

Lu Chunshui paused for a moment. "His Highness is doing fine. His injuries are minor and his mind is clear. But when he wakes up in the morning, he looks at his neck in the mirror and often thinks for a long time."

"That man's sword strike was very fierce, and the injury might not have been minor." Emperor Tang said, "Thank you two philosophers for taking care of him."

He lowered his head and reviewed it. The hall became quiet, which meant that Lu Chunshui could leave.

Lu Chunshui stood up, took two steps forward, took out a letter from his sleeve, presented it with both hands, bowed his head and said: "I came from Prime Minister Li's residence the other day, and Prime Minister Li asked me to present a letter."

"Bring it up."

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Lu Chunshui presented it to the Emperor, who took it and read it. After just a glance at it, he put it on the table and commented on it. This paragraph took quite a long time to write, probably even longer than the memorial itself.

Lu Chunshui stood respectfully beside him, but when the Emperor Tang stopped writing he did not hand the memorial to him.

"I will return this memorial to the emperor." The emperor said casually, "You can go now."

……

On the twenty-fifth day of the twelfth lunar month, the streets were covered with frost in the early morning, and the end of the year was approaching.

When the court was going to court this morning, everyone was slightly startled that only a purple robe was left in front of the ministers, and the dignified old man in clean and upright clothes was gone.

The news did not spread until the court meeting was held. It turned out that Prime Minister Li had been overworked for a long time and had caught a sudden chill in recent days. He fell ill at home, and the emperor had personally sent palace maids to express his regards.

So after the court session today, countless people went to the prime minister's house without even taking off their official robes. Although few were able to enter, many people still walked in the snow to express their greetings, and many people handed over gifts and cards of greeting. For a while, the house was almost crowded with people.

However, people did not know until the next day that this prime minister of the Tang Dynasty had submitted a letter of retirement to the sage the day before. The sage refused the letter on the grounds that he was busy with court affairs and still needed his help. Someone in the court saw the imperial edict of approval, which was a large page filled with sacred symbols.

On the second day, Prime Minister Li wrote another letter, saying that he was old and had been away from the capital for too long. He only wished to return to his roots and enjoy the rest of his family. The sage again rejected his letter.

It was not until the third day that Li Xiang wrote three letters to ask for retirement that the emperor finally gave the reply of "reluctantly allowing him to return to his hometown to recuperate", meaning that after the old man had recuperated, he could still return to Beijing to serve as prime minister.

However, among the many memorials that had been approved in the past few days, there was another letter from Li Xiang a few days ago. The content of the letter was not too eye-catching, at least it did not attract much attention in the recent trend. It was Li Du's casual advice, saying that the position of Shangshu Ling had been vacant for many years, so it would be better to abolish it.

The red pen said: "Not necessary."

A saint does not need any checks and balances.

As the stars fell at night, Li Du stood on the roof of the small building wearing a cloak, gazing at the capital city in front of him. The lights in the cold night looked like a sea of ​​stars.

In the past three days, the movements of the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Rites have been particularly intense, so the retrial of Prime Minister Xu Ji's case has begun to be promoted, and the "New Imperial Examination Law" has also been revised and prepared. When Prime Minister Xu's reputation is restored, the "New Law" can be formally proposed and can be easily completed before next year's imperial examination.

As for the official letters submitted by Di Jiu, Guan Zhiyi, and Yu Ziqian, they were still returned to the respective departments for review. The sage commented: "Be strict and be cautious."

Of course, the names mentioned in the text should be checked, but don't get involved with names that are not mentioned or things that are just hearsay.

The sudden departure of Prime Minister Li caught the entire court off guard. Many people who gathered around the big tree had not yet been properly resettled. But Li Du did not see anyone tonight, nor did he want to see anyone again. He held a short note in his hand and stood alone on the small building for a long time.

There were figures moving around in the house, and the sounds of things being moved and put away were all there.

After a long while, someone came up and reminded, "Sir, it's late."

Li Du nodded, raised the letter in his hand, and placed it on the candle beside him until it burned out.

The final appearance of these words illuminated by candlelight is actually just like an ordinary family letter.

"A Letter to My Brother on the 24th Day of the Twelfth Month"

"After not seeing you for so many years, I am glad to receive a letter from you, brother.

I learned about the changes in Chang'an that you mentioned last night. The lake and pond were half frozen, and the defeat of Linzi was inevitable. The changes in Tianlun were not just what you saw, nor were they limited to one city or one dynasty. They were complicated and obscure, and I'm afraid no one in the world could understand them. It was just that the world was reshuffled, and all living things were insects and ants. I told my brother about this a few years ago.

Brother, you are sixty-eight this year. You have been away from home and country and served in the court for dozens of years. Do you still remember the wall of the old house? A few days ago, I asked someone to demolish the west wall of my father's library. It had always been covered with brocade. When I took a look that day, I found that the inside had rotted away. Jing'er and Zhang'er ran and played there every day, which was a problem.

The younger generations miss my brother very much. The plum orchard at home has bloomed. I remember that my brother was very happy when I was young and hoped that he would come back to enjoy it with us.

I write this with my divine will. "

Li Du watched the flying ashes disappear, tightened his cloak, turned around, and said in a calm voice: "Be restrained tonight, I will attend the court for the last time, and return to Xilong before the New Year."

(End of this chapter)