Early Tang Dynasty: forge ahead

Chapter 494: Peeling off the cocoon
Zhang's House in Chang'an.

As the residence of a prime minister, Zhang Wenguan's door seemed a bit deserted.

When Zhang Wenguan was first promoted to prime minister, his house was always crowded with old friends and acquaintances from all over the place, coming to visit and give gifts.

But Zhang Wenguan was determined to govern the country and returned all the gifts from his old friends.

All officials in the temple, regardless of their relationship with the emperor, will be severely punished if they commit illegal acts, are lazy, or are incompetent.

This also led to Zhang Wenguan's bad popularity in the temple. Except for the members of Zhang's party, he had a stalemate with other forces in the temple, which led to the current situation at the gate.

Di Renjie knocked on the door and handed over Zhang Wencong's letter of introduction.

The Zhang brothers had a very good relationship. When the doorman saw the letter of introduction from Zhang Wencong, he directly led Di Renjie to the reception room.

"Ha ha!"

Just as Di Renjie was waiting quietly, a loud laugh was heard.

Zhang Wenguan strode into the hall and saw Di Renjie coming up to greet him. He looked at his big face with a square look and said with a smile, "My brother rarely praises people. I received his letter the other day and learned about everything in Meixiang County. He was full of praise for the ability of the Imperial Censor. I was just planning to invite the Imperial Censor to my humble abode for a chat, and then he came to visit me. What a coincidence."

In fact, Zhang Wenguan was hesitating whether to look for Di Renjie.

Zhang Wenguan’s biggest problem now is that he does not have many talents available.

Zhang Wenguan's base was in the Eastern Palace, but the owner of the Eastern Palace was Crown Prince Li Hong, so it was impossible for him to ask for help from the Eastern Palace.

The relatives and friends who were close to him all had a certain status and position, and their support for him was effective. What he needed were grassroots officials who could fight on the front lines, rather than ministers who sat firmly in the overall situation.

Zhang Wenguan felt a little aggrieved that when looking around the government, most of the capable officials who caught his eye were members of the Qingliu Party, and had an unusual relationship with Chen Qingsi.

Not to mention rising stars such as Zhang Jianzhi, Wei Yuanzhong, Shi Wuzi, Liu Qixian, Yuan Shuji, Jing Hui, and Wei Yuantong, even Li Yiyan, whom he met in Taiyuan, joined the Qingliu Party.

Zhang Wenguan thought that he could win over Li Yiyan with his current status, personal charm, and old acquaintances...

result……

The incident with Su Dingfang gave him a hard slap in the face.

Zhang Wenguan had a lot of grievances that he couldn't express.

In governing officials till now, Zhang Wenguan had to admit that Chen Qingsi's Qingliu Party helped him a lot. Li Yiyan, Shi Wuzi and even Zhang Jianzhi of the Dali Temple all made huge contributions. Without their help, governing officials would not have been so smooth.

This is also Zhang Wenguan's biggest headache now. He initiated a campaign to rectify the administration of officials, but it turned out that the people who contributed the most to the charge were not his own people, but the capable officials of the Qingliu Party.

Then this Qingliu Party official also stabbed them in the face of Su Dingfang...

This dealt a heavy blow to Zhang Wenguan's prestige.

What Zhang Wenguan lacks most now is grassroots talents with excellent abilities.

Zhang Wencong understood his brother's situation, so when he was in Taozhou, he wrote a letter to recommend Di Renjie after seeing his ability. In order to prevent Zhang Wenguan from missing out on such a talent, he also wrote a special letter to Zhang Wenguan.

Zhang Wenguan knew his elder brother's temperament very well, and he knew that the person who could be recommended by him must be an extraordinary person.

So he asked someone to look for Di Renjie's resume: Di Renjie's resume was not bad, but he had only followed Chen Qingsi for a few years, which made Zhang Wenguan feel as sick as if he had eaten a fly.

Chen Qingsi, Chen Qingsi, Chen Qingsi again?
Is it never going to end?

Zhang Wenguan was worried that what happened to Li Yiyan would happen again, and hesitated whether to meet Di Renjie, but he didn't expect him to come to him.

Doesn’t this mean that Di Renjie is not Chen Qingsi’s man?
That's right, he is really Chen Qingsi's man, and he has made great contributions to him, so why was he transferred out of the capital? Wouldn't it be better to keep such a talent by his side?

Thinking of this, Zhang Wenguan was greatly excited and met Di Renjie with an attitude of Zhou Gong spitting out food to entertain his guests.

Di Renjie was a smart man and looked very touched.

After a brief greeting, Di Renjie explained his purpose: "Mr. Zhang, I am new to the Censorate and feel a little lost. I would like to take a look at the files of the Censorate and study some old cases. However, I have not received the approval of the Chief Censor or the Chief Censor, so I would like to ask Mr. Zhang for permission."

Zhang Wenguan looked at Di Renjie seriously and said, "I can give you permission. But you have to think carefully. Getting permission from me is equivalent to offending the Imperial Censor and the Imperial Censor-in-Chief. You have just started working and you have offended two superiors. It will be very bad for your future."

Di Renjie said, "My lord, as a Censor, I have the responsibilities and powers of a Censor. Censors have the right to read files, but they cannot be transferred at will. It is unreasonable for the Censor-in-Chief and the Deputy Censor-in-Chief to not allow me to read the old files. I do not want to offend the two superiors, but I also do not want to lose my own principles for fear of offending them."

"Well said!" Zhang Wenguan slammed the table and stood up. Such a righteous official was really rare in the government nowadays.

"The truth is confirmed!"

Zhang Wenguan looked at Di Renjie and liked him more and more. He said, "If you are being bullied in the Censorate, you can come to me and I will support you."

Di Renjie did not show much joy, but just bowed and said, "Thank you, Mr. Zhang!"

Zhang Wenguan was even happier when he saw Di Renjie, who was calm and steady, what a good talent.

With Zhang Wenguan's permission, Di Renjie was allowed to read the files of the Censorate at will on his second day on duty.

The official in charge of looking after the files of the Censorate was called the Chief Clerk of the Censorate, whose name was Hou Shouzong.

Hou Shouzong led Di Renjie into the archives office indifferently, introduced the arrangement of various archives to Di Renjie, and then pointed to the small dark room at the back and said: "Inside are some old cases that have been sealed for many years... Censor Di, the Chief Censor asked me to remind you that the Censorate was in charge of Xu Xianggong and Li Yifu in the early years. There are many old cases in it, involving a wide range of people. If you want to investigate, you have to weigh your ability. If you investigate Li Yifu's case, you are lucky. This guy has been dead for some years, and his followers have scattered. If you find a case that Xu Xianggong acquiesced to, you can only wish you good luck!"

"Just a reminder, the Imperial Censor is a disciple of Mr. Xu..."

Hou Shouzong left after he finished speaking.

Only then did Di Renjie understand why the Grand Censor and the Chief Censor did not allow him to investigate.

Without any hesitation, Di Renjie walked towards the small dark room.

People should be in their positions and do their job.

Di Renjie was not afraid of offending people. The worst that could happen was that he would be demoted and sent away. Wouldn't he be able to do things in other places?

Tongguan Canal.

Li Chongde was inspecting the progress of the canal and shuddered for no apparent reason.

"Minister Li!" Wan Guojun's voice came from behind, and a cloak was draped over him.

"It's autumn now, I'm worried about catching a cold!"

Li Chongde was stunned for a moment, and said, "Thank you..." Then he said, "I don't know why, but suddenly I felt a chill running from the soles of my feet straight up my spine."

At first, Li Chongde was very scared of Wan Guojun who suddenly appeared, and even couldn't sleep or eat.

But after spending some time together, Li Chongde found that as long as he was obedient, Wan Guojun would be a qualified second-in-command and would arrange his trivial matters properly.

Li Chongde only has a vague understanding of river management. Wan Guojun is a little better than him, but he doesn't know much either. However, as long as he is given time to think about it, he can give a reasonable answer.

Li Chongde also understood that there was someone behind Wan Guojun, but thinking that he was already on the pirate ship and Wan Guojun was respectful to him, he decided to just remain ignorant.

Because of this, the relationship between the two, though delicate, has eased, and there are no more obstacles in communication.

Wan Guojun said, "It must be because Minister Li is overworked. Minister, go back and have a rest. I am here to watch over you, so nothing will go wrong."

Li Chongde thought about it and realized that he had no hope of promotion, but suddenly he was given an important position. He was really involved in it and overworked himself.

Li Chongde said goodbye to his colleagues and left.

Wan Guojun did not slack off, but participated diligently in water control.

This time he wanted to step on Li Chongde to ascend to power. After the canal was successfully built, he would let Li Zhi know that he, Wan Guojun, was the main planner of managing the Wei River and building the canal. Li Chongde had made contributions, but was not as good as him.

In order to achieve his goal, Wan Guojun must be more diligent.

As a lowly clerk, Wan Guojun is not afraid of hardship, but is only afraid of not having opportunities.

He would even sacrifice his life for a chance.

Wan Guojun was busy until dusk, then he said goodbye to his colleagues and left.

Wan Guojun did not return to his residence to rest, but came to a small village near Tongguan. He was a bit of a drinker, so he planned to go to a small shop near the village to have a few drinks to relieve his fatigue.

Not long after entering the village, Wan Guojun felt something was wrong and walked towards an alley without saying a word.

As soon as I entered the alley, I looked around at the terrain and saw a haystack, so I hid behind it.

He touched the sword at his waist and listened attentively: Wan Guojun's father was an officer in the Ministry of Justice, and was best at catching thieves, tracking and counter-tracking.

Wan Guojun learned skills from his father and acquired a lot of skills.

However, because catching thieves was dangerous, Wan Guojun's father did not want his son to follow in his footsteps, so he used all his savings to send Wan Guojun to the prison cell of the Ministry of Justice to become an officer in the interrogation room.

Wan Guojun's ruthless ability was also stimulated, and he developed a set of interrogation methods that most people could not withstand.

Although I changed jobs, I didn’t lose my ancestral craftsmanship.

I just felt like someone was following me...

Wan Guojun waited quietly for a quarter of an hour, but there was no movement. He gently drew out his sword, pointed out the tip of the sword, and used the reflection of the tip to observe the situation in the alley. The alley was empty.

"Am I overthinking?"

Wan Guojun shook his head and left.

Chang'an, Chen's house.

Chen Qingsi was playing polo with his son.

Polo is undoubtedly the best game for practicing horse riding.

Not to mention Jingjing who was playing very well, even Chen Qingsi felt that his riding skills had improved a little bit.

"My lord, my brother wants to see you for something!" Qingkong suddenly came to report. Her brother was actually another identity of Zhou Kui.

Chen Qingsi threw the polo club to Qingkong and said, "Play with Jingjing!"

Chen Qingsi walked out of the inner courtyard and led Zhou Kui to the study.

"How's the investigation going?"

Chen Qingsi sat down casually and invited Zhou Kui to take a seat.

After Zhou Kui sat down, he said, "I have indeed found out that Wan Guojun is connected to Li Yifu. Sir, do you remember that Li Yifu wanted to kill Governor Liu?"

Chen Qingsi nodded. It was because of this incident that he decided to get rid of Li Yifu and invited Qingxuzi, a Taoist nun from Maoshan who was good at magic, from Jiangnan.

Zhou Kui was one of the few people who knew about this matter. Liu Rengui himself guessed something, but he was not sure.

Zhou Kui said: "This Wan Guojun is vicious and cruel. He is very good at interrogating prisoners. Anyone who falls into his hands will confess regardless of whether they have been wronged or not, and no matter how strong their flesh and blood are, they cannot resist. It is said that there was a proud scholar who fell into his hands. He used various methods to humiliate his dignity, making him unable to live or die, until he collapsed."

"The people from the Censorate were unable to do anything to Governor Liu, so Li Yifu specially invited Wan Guojun to the Dali Temple to assist in the interrogation."

When Chen Qingsi heard this, his pupils shrank slightly.

Chen Qingsi still remembers the miserable state of Liu Rengui when he first came out of the Dali Temple.

Chen Qingsi still doesn't know what happened in the Dali Temple, and Liu Rengui has not mentioned a word about it to this day.

This just goes to show that the treatment Liu Rengui suffered was beyond imagination and unspeakable. Mentioning it would be like opening up the scar.

Chen Qingsi was very angry about this and took his anger out on Li Yifu's cronies.

When it came to beating the downed dog, he put in so much effort that Li Yifu's power was completely eliminated from the Dali Temple.

But he never expected that there was a fish that slipped through the net and was helped by the Ministry of Justice...

Regardless of whether Wan Guojun is related to Empress Wu's power, he must not be spared.

"Great! What a coincidence!"

Chen Qingsi said while gritting his teeth.

Zhou Kui said, "Because it's not a coincidence, Master. After Li Yifu was tricked and demoted, Wan Guojun returned to the Ministry of Justice and has been much more low-key. He no longer uses his notorious methods and lives in a cell in the Dali Temple. He must be afraid of being implicated, so he went into hiding."

Chen Qingsi said indignantly: "I was completely unaware. If I really knew him, there would be no point in hiding anywhere."

He reacted quickly and in order to see Liu Rengui off, he changed Gao Shi's "Farewell to Dong Da" into "Farewell to Liu Da" and gave it to Liu Rengui, which is still talked about today.

"Everyone knows about my relationship with Zhengze. With my current position, dealing with him is as easy as crushing an ant. According to common sense, he should live like a maggot and not let me know. He is coming out now with such fanfare. Isn't he afraid that Zhengze will be transferred back to the capital to confront him?"

Zhou Kui said, "I had the same idea. Since he came out, he must have something to rely on. So I sent someone to follow him. But he was very skilled in anti-tracking techniques, so our people couldn't get close to him, so we had to give up."

Chen Qingsi suddenly shook his head and said, "No, it doesn't make sense. According to you, Wan Guojun and Li Yifu don't have a close relationship. How could Li Yifu tell him about Li Chongde's handle? There must be something wrong with that link. Wan Guojun is not the key figure."

"I understand. That mysterious person knows something about both Li Chongde and Wan Guojun."

"Wan Guojun's weakness is what he did to Liu Rengui..."

"If I find out that Wan Guojun is involved, I will at least skin him alive."

"That is to say, the person behind the scenes has an extremely close relationship with Li Yifu."

"No, all of Li Yifu's followers have been driven out of the government..."

"Could it be..."

Chen Qingsi thought of a possibility!
(End of this chapter)