Strange Tales from the Northern Qi Dynasty

Chapter 254 Grandpa, Come with Me

The royal family officially decided to make Gao Wei the emperor.

Gao Yu was the left prime minister and Gao Rui was the right prime minister.

Duan Shao was stationed in Jinyang as the Grand Marshal, Lou Rui was promoted to General and stationed in Yecheng, Gao Xiaoyu was promoted to the Yin of Qingdu, Hulugu was promoted to the Governor of Bingzhou, and the royal family members served as generals of the central army and governors of the surrounding areas.

The nobles were not left behind either. Almost all of them were promoted and given the opportunity to rule a region.

Liu Taozi didn't see the angel who read the imperial edict, but he also became one of the beneficiaries, officially becoming the Duke of a County, the General of the Guards, the Grand Commander of the Six States, and the Grand Governor of Hengshuo.
It was called a conference to support the enthronement, but in fact, it was more like a conference to divide the spoils.

When Gao Zhan came to power, he promoted a group of officials. At this moment, Gao Wei was about to come to power, and the officials got another chance to be promoted.

During the discussion, every time Gao Yun opened his mouth, someone would look at Liu Taozi. Liu Taozi had a stern face and said nothing, so many people did not dare to say anything more.

His silence is indeed more effective than his speech.

In the eyes of important officials, he was probably like Dugu Yongye and others, a fierce and barbaric general who was ignorant of etiquette and laws. They should be coaxed if possible and not allowed to participate in anything.

Gao Changgong came close to Liu Taozi and looked at the happy faces of the ministers in the court, but he was worried.

"broken."

"The Prime Minister should be in charge of all state affairs, and the rest of the people should assist him."

"But now the two kings are jointly assisting in the administration, and the nobles have once again formed a group. There cannot be two masters for one thing, how can this situation last long?"

The development of the situation was completely different from what Gao Changgong had expected. Even though he reminded Gao Yin several times, nothing changed.

Liu Taozi, however, had a calm expression on her face.

"The troubles of Da Qi cannot be solved by replacing one person."

"Even if King Pengcheng is in power alone, it will be useless. His orders will not reach the locals, and may not even leave the Shangshutai."

"At the moment, it can be considered as barely maintaining."

Gao Changgong clenched his fists, not knowing what to say. How could it be maintained with difficulty?
He saw Liu Taozi get up and walk out, and couldn't help but follow him again. The court meeting was over, and all that was left were those hypocritical congratulations and flattery.

"Knowing that. We have to find a way."

Gao Changgong quickly followed Liu Taozi and said, "We can't just maintain it, we have to find a way to solve the problem."

"The Prince of Pengcheng is wise, the Prince of Zhaojun is not a villain, and the Grand Marshal is even more of a hero. Even if these people in the court have some personal flaws, they are still people who care about the country!"

"Now that there are no villains like He Shikai to do bad things, we should work together to solve the domestic crisis step by step and make Da Qi strong again!"

"We shouldn't just brush it off with the mentality that it won't be a problem for now."

Liu Taozi stopped suddenly, and Gao Changgong staggered and almost bumped into him.

Liu Taozi turned around and looked at King Lanling in front of him.

Gao Changgong lost his usual calmness, composure, and demeanor.

Perhaps in his opinion, by killing villains like He Shikai and undermining kings like Gao Zhan, as long as a few wise ministers work together and follow King Pengcheng, the world will become strong from then on.

Liu Taozi was silent for a moment, then looked at the bustling palace in the distance, "Your Majesty, even if King Pengcheng becomes the emperor, what can it do?"

"The big families only care about annexing land, and the nobles only care about wealth and beauty."

"Those who hold power are just these people. Whoever comes to power will be restrained by them."

"The King of Pengcheng was able to ascend to the throne smoothly only because he gave in. If he insists on making himself the master, removing those greedy and treacherous people, thoroughly investigating the culprits of the defeat, and catching the evil thieves who caused the border defense to erode, then can he continue to issue orders here?"

"If you want to save the country, don't be so naive and think that changing a few people can solve all problems. When I was in Jinyang before, many generals met with me privately and said they wanted to come to me and become my generals."

"I told them that under my rule, those who withheld food and fodder, accepted bribes, and killed people for fun would all be punished. I would show no mercy. I asked them to think about it again."

"They immediately started looking for excuses to leave, and most of them left."

“In the end, a few people stayed behind and said they were truly following and willing to comply.”

"I don't know how many of these people are sincere. I promised them that they can serve as my generals, but I still have to see if they change in the future."

"I have this opportunity to choose, but does King Pengcheng have it?"

Gao Changgong also looked towards the noisy palace. At this moment, he was silent.

"If Your Majesty is interested in saving the country, why not follow me to the border, where generals and talents are most needed."

Liu Taozi left here.

Gao Changgong stayed where he was and said nothing more.

Liu Taozi walked down the stairs, turned around and walked in front of a soldier.

The soldier was stunned, "Greetings, Lord Liu!"

"Where is your Lord? Let him come to me quickly."

The soldier was quite surprised, but still turned around and left.

After a while, the soldier slowly came here, his face flushed, his eyes dodged, and he was a little frightened. He trembled and said, "Mr. Liu, my general is guarding outside the Zhuhua Gate. He said he wanted you to go over and see him."

Liu Taozi immediately asked the soldiers to lead the way for him.

The soldier was very scared at this moment.

He walked on the road with his head down, not daring to say a word.

When they arrived outside the Zhuhua Gate, they saw a group of soldiers surrounding a general. The general looked at Liu Taozi, pushed away the soldiers in front of him, and walked over quickly.

The soldier who brought Liu Taozi stopped immediately and dared not move forward.

Liu Taozhi quickly walked in front of Liu Taozi.

His whole body was shaking with anger.

The two stood facing each other, and Liu Taozhi's voice was trembling.

"How dare you let me go to see you???"

"follow me."

Liu Taozi spoke, and Liu Taozhi's anger suddenly eased.

"Where to go?"

"Takekawa."

"Just stay in your hometown with your mother. Come with me and leave. No one will dare to stop you."

Liu Taozhi slowly took off the mask on his face and looked at his son with complicated eyes.

He always mocked his son by calling him Liu Gong, but he never expected that this guy would really become Liu Gong.

The founding duke of a county, his status was higher than his.

He was a little stunned and didn't know what to say.

"At present, there is no emperor who needs your assistance anymore. The new emperor is less than ten years old. You don't have to do anything. Just follow me."

"Can't leave."

Liu Taozhi said calmly.

"I'm not so destitute as to have to live under someone else's roof and depend on you for survival."

"Don't try to be stubborn."

Liu Taozhi grinned, "You want to take your mother away, right?"

"Now that you have occupied the frontier and are preparing to rebel, you are reluctant to let your mother suffer with me here, and you are also afraid that after you start your rebellion, I will be held hostage and you will be branded as an unfilial son."

"Not at all."

Liu Taozi looked around and said calmly, "I've been to Jinyang and Yecheng."

“Not a good place at all”

"I was just chatting with General Hulujin. He said that a few years ago, Gao Yang went crazy and called him to the palace, stabbed him with a spear, and wanted to kill him for fun. He was lucky to survive."

"It must be difficult to follow the mad emperor, not dare to say a wrong word, do a wrong thing, and protect your family, right?"

"Grandpa, come with me."

Liu Taozhi trembled violently, put on the mask, and waved at Liu Taozi.

"Go talk to your mother."

After he finished speaking, he turned and left.

He returned to the soldiers again and looked around. From time to time, soldiers came to report important events to him.

Liu Taozi looked at him for a long time and then left.

The soldiers looked at Liu Taozi who was leaving, and then looked at their commander again.

"General Wei is indeed your son. He is really strong. He defeated Yang Zhong twice and is invincible."

Liu Taozhi ignored them and said nothing. Everyone stopped talking too.

A cold wind blew, and Liu Taozhi stood outside Zhuhua Gate, his hand on the hilt of the sword, motionless.

"Ah"

When Liu Taozi walked out of the palace gate, Zu Ting was already waiting there.

He walked forward hurriedly, and a soldier came over leading a green lion. Zu Ting pretended to help Liu Taozi onto the horse, but before he could get close, Liu Taozi had already climbed onto the horse.

"You get on the horse too."

"only!!"

Zu Ting quickly mounted his horse and followed Liu Taozi, "My Lord, is it as I said?"

"Very nearly."

Zu Ting shook his head in disdain. "My Lord, you don't have to pay attention to these idiots. We should focus on local business right now. Lou Rui should have agreed to the deal, right?"

"Ah."

Zu Ting said aggrievedly: "I contacted the merchants in the first place just for these big deals, but Tian Zili and others looked down on me and even falsely accused me of harming the merchants and engaging in smuggling trade. It's really hateful."

Liu Taozi glanced at him and said nothing.

Zu Ting continued, "Yang Zhong will come to attack us next year. Yongfeng will definitely be the first target of the Zhou people!"

"My Lord, we must go all out. Next year, let the Zhou people open their eyes! Let them know what it means that a benevolent man is invincible!"

"This time when we come to Yecheng, we must take away enough things, otherwise it will be a waste of time."

"I've thought about it. The first thing is to negotiate a good deal, and then the talent!"

"There are many capable generals in the court, such as Prince Lanling, Prince Ande, Hulu Xian, Bao Xian and other good generals. We must take a few of them with us. Also, my lord, many of the ministers who were close to you before have been exiled to the south. If we can get them to come back and serve you, that would be a great thing!"

"You are currently in need of local officials. I think the governor of Liyang is also a good talent and can be under our jurisdiction. There are also Lu Yao, Cui Jishu, Wang Xi, Xian'an and others. They are all very talented and should not be let go!"

Zu Ting rubbed his hands, his eyes were greedy, and he looked like a profiteer.

The two great prime ministers of the Northern Qi Dynasty, Yang Yin and Zu Ting, were completely opposite in terms of personality, stature, character, and political ideas. Apart from being born into prominent families, they had almost nothing in common.

"My lord, please come back with me first."

"Mansion?"

"It's the Liu Mansion, your home."

"I found a few good friends, and they are all waiting for you."

Zu Ting led the way and took Liu Taozi back to his "home". This was the second time Liu Taozi came to this home.

There was a soldier guarding the door. When he saw Liu Taozi coming, his face looked strange and he hurriedly bowed to greet him.

The behavior of Liu Taozi and Zu Ting feels a bit like occupying someone else's mansion, but he is the general's son, so it seems that there is no such thing as occupation. Anyway, it is very strange.

There were originally few slaves in the mansion, but at this moment, there were many people running around. These were the slaves brought by Zu Ting to enrich the mansion.

When Zu Ting brought Liu Taozi to the inner room, they saw a group of people sitting there.

Their expressions were different, and it was obvious that they were all "wise men" from prominent families.

Seeing Liu Taozi coming in, several people slowly stood up.

The atmosphere was a bit strange, and Zu Ting hurriedly stepped forward with a smile, "My lord, these are the friends I told you about every day!"

"This is the former Right Prime Minister Wei, Wei Shou."

Wei Shou was not young, and had a rather reserved temperament. He looked like an ordinary old man. He greeted Liu Taozi with a smile, but his face did not look very good.

Wei Shou was so famous that Zu Ting didn't need to explain much.

He is known as the number one in the literary world, talented and strong in all aspects. Among the ministers, he may not be the best in talent, but in terms of fame, he is one of the best.

The old man took the initiative to bow to Liu Taozi, which was completely ungentlemanly.

Liu Taozi nodded in return.

Zu Ting smiled and said, "Duke Wei has been dismissed from his post. He was deceived by Gao Yuanhai, He Shikai and others and mistakenly thought they were good people. He was also deceived by Gao Guiyan and mistakenly thought he was a good person. He was also deceived by the fake Chen and mistakenly thought they were good people. Then he was dismissed."

Liu Taozi's eyebrows twitched.

Wei Shou's face turned red and he was speechless.

He was also in bad luck. First, he bowed to Gao Yuanhai, He Shikai and others, which damaged his reputation. Later, he sent people to secretly contact the Chen people to do business, and then he was beaten and dismissed. Finally, he was involved in Gao Guiyan's affairs.

The man who was once the most talented scholar in the world is now infamous, especially after He Shikai was killed, Gao Yuanhai was neglected, and Gao Yun and others came to power, his situation became even more embarrassing.

"This is the former Minister of Rites, Yuan Yuxiu, Lord Yuan."

Zu Ting introduced.

The man was dressed simply and bowed to Liu Taozi, with a look of loneliness between his brows.

Zu Ting smiled and introduced: "My lord, you don't know that Yuan Gong is called Qing Lang. He has been in the Shangshutai for ten years. He is a rare person who does not accept bribes and is honest and frugal. He was originally ordered to inspect the government offices in Henan, and he did an excellent job. However, this position was recommended to Your Majesty by me in the past. Later, because of me, he was dismissed and almost killed."

Yuan Yuxiu glanced at Zu Ting, seeming to want to say something but stopping himself.

He was actually being cheated.

Zu Ting then introduced several other people in succession, and they were all indeed Zu Ting’s good friends.

Some were cheated by Gao Guiyan, some were cheated of money, and some were cheated of farmland.

Anyway, none of them are clean. Except for Yuan Yuxiu who was deceived by Zu Ting, the others all have some problems.

Liu Taozi sat at the top seat, and everyone else sat around her.

Among them was a scholar who frowned and was not very respectful when facing Liu Taozi. His name was Chen Shanzang.

Liu Taozi couldn't help but look at him a few more times, and then listened to the other scholars showing off their knowledge.

Zu Ting secretly sat next to Chen Shanzang and nudged him with his elbow, "Don't be rude to the general."

Chen Shanzang's face flushed, "I have no connection with the general. You were the one who sent people to arrest me. You were rude first!!"

"Your father and I are old friends. I am helping you. With your character, you are bound to be harmed by others. Follow the general to the frontier. That is a good place for you. You can be ordinary, but you are not a bad person and have not done any evil deeds. You are more than qualified to be an assistant officer at the frontier. If you don't follow the lord now, it will be too late in the future. Listen to me, follow the general, go to the frontier, do your job well, and it will only benefit you."

Chen Shanzang was very angry.

"How dare you mention my father? Before he passed away, he left us an IOU and told us not to forget it. You refused to acknowledge the IOU and finally asked us to report the matter to the police. You even stole thousands of volumes of my father's books."

Zu Ting said with a smile: "What can I do with those books if I leave them to you? You don't have the talent, so it's a waste to keep them. It's better to let me use them. Don't talk about the past. You have the worst talent among all the people present. I asked you to come here only for your father's sake. Don't say anything more, just listen to me."

Liu Taozi still used the same old thing and talked seriously about the situation under his rule.

"You are all famous people. I don't want to humiliate you. However, everyone under my rule is honest. In Yecheng, if you are cheated by someone accidentally, you will only be dismissed and beaten. But if it were under my rule, such a thing would be punished by death."

Wei Shou's face turned red and he stammered. He never expected that his reputation as a hero in his lifetime would be ruined in his later years.

However, the other few people all expressed that they would absolutely follow Liu Taozi wholeheartedly.

Everyone talked for a while, but it was getting dark.

They couldn't continue the discussion, so they just considered today as the day to get to know Liu Taozi. Everyone stood up and bowed one by one to say goodbye.

Zu Ting sent them to the door.

Soon, Zu Ting returned to Liu Taozi's side, "My lord, these people are not good people, but they are really talented. They are all people who cannot gain a foothold in Yecheng at the moment. If you can use them, you can take them to the border. They will definitely play a great role. If you think they are not useful, it doesn't matter. I can continue to look for them for you!"

Zu Ting said this and secretly shook his sleeves.

The next moment, Liu Taozi suddenly made a move and grabbed Zu Ting's arm.

Zu Ting was stunned. Liu Taozi calmly pulled Zu Ting over, took out a small wine cup from his sleeve with one hand, and then threw it in front of him.

Zu Ting was a little embarrassed, "How did this wine cup get into my sleeve?"

Liu Taozi held Zu Ting's hand tightly and looked at the soldiers beside him.

"There is a package on Qingshi, please bring it to me."

Zu Ting was a little frightened, "My Lord, it's not that I know I'm wrong."

The soldier quickly brought the heavy package to Liu Taozi.

Liu Taozi picked up the package, put it in Zu Ting's hand, and let go of his hand.

Zu Ting slowly unwrapped the package and saw a golden glow inside.

"My grandfather was very talented and accomplished a lot."

"If you want money, I'll give it to you. I'll give you as much as I have."

"Just don't let this vulgar behavior taint your talent."

(End of this chapter)