The emperor would rather have a

Chapter 198 Casual Chat in the Government Office
Walking along the vermilion-lacquered and carved corridor, the orange-red light shines through the openwork windows, casting dappled shadows on the ground.

Li Yi led Xian'er along the way. Thin bamboo curtains hung on both sides of the corridor, rustling softly in the breeze, their sound mingling with the gentle sound of their footsteps.

Turning a corner, the moon door of the master bedroom comes into view.

A crimson brocade curtain hung above the door, with several small copper bells adorning its corners. As Li Yi lifted the curtain, they jingled crisply.

The noise startled the maids who were busy inside the room. Two young maids dressed in light purple dresses hurriedly put down the copper basins they were carrying.

The two knelt and bowed, saying "May you have many blessings."

Li Yi nodded slightly, but his gaze had already passed over them and landed on the dressing table by the window.

Fu Erniang was sitting on a round pear wood stool, with Guo Shi standing behind her. Both of them were immersed in their morning dressing time.

Morning light streamed through the carved window lattice, shimmering on Fu Erniang's long, black hair and casting a soft halo around it.

She was wearing a loose-fitting apricot-red cross-collar ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), which had become quite loose around the waist due to her seven months of pregnancy.

Even so, her protruding belly still stretched the dress into a curve.

Guo wore a light blue, narrow-sleeved short jacket paired with a moon-white long skirt, and a silk sash embroidered with orchids tied around her waist, which made her figure appear even more slender.

"Husband, you're here. Haven't you left yet at this hour?" Fu Erniang turned around when she heard the noise and saw Li Yi. Her almond-shaped eyes immediately curved into crescent moons.

Her voice was like the melting stream in spring, clear and with a touch of languor.

After becoming pregnant, Fu Erniang's face became much rounder, but she became even more charming, with a healthy blush on her cheeks.

Li Yi's smile deepened, and he quickly walked to his wife's side: "I haven't been so busy with work lately, so I came to see my second aunt."

As he spoke, his gaze swept across the room, not seeing Zuo Ling'er, and he casually asked, "Ling'er hasn't gotten up yet?"

Fu Erniang laughed and said, "It's all my husband's fault for teaching Ling'er to do that sketching. She insists on having the maids and servants as her models, and she's been drawing all day long. I heard she was busy until the early hours of the morning last night, so how could she possibly get up this early?"

"My original intention was just to give her some entertainment. Otherwise, given her carefree nature in the mountains, she might get sick from being cooped up in the mansion for too long."

Li Yi immediately cried out that he was wronged.

"Who knew she would become so fascinated by it... But she does have some talent in painting, so let her be. Perhaps one day our household will produce a great female painter."

These words caused the women in the room to cover their mouths and chuckle.

Li Yi sat down next to Fu Erniang and gently stroked his wife's swollen belly.

He could clearly feel the baby's movements in his palm; he couldn't tell if it was a tiny hand or a tiny foot, but it was pushing firmly against his mother's belly.

The vibrant energy of the young life stirred a warm feeling in Li Yi's heart, a wondrous sensation he had never experienced in his two lifetimes.

Seeing this, Madam Guo smiled, but her hands didn't stop moving. Her nimble fingers weaved through Fu Erniang's hair, twisting strands of black hair into a bun.

Her technique was extremely skillful, clearly the result of practice. In her hands, strands of hair were manipulated into various styles as if weaving or embroidering.

After the hair bun was completed, Guo took out a gilded silver hairpin from her dressing case and gently inserted it into Fu Erniang's hair.

Fu Erniang raised her hand to touch her newly combed hair and nodded with satisfaction: "Now that Yulan is with me day and night and everything is arranged properly, my husband doesn't need to worry about me. He should focus on the affairs of the country."

Originally, she and Guo were sisters-in-law, and they usually addressed each other as "sister-in-law" and "sister-in-law." But now, they have transformed into sisters who share the same husband.

Fortunately, in terms of status, one was the wife and the other the concubine; and in terms of age, Fu Erniang was two years older than Guo Shi.

Therefore, the way we address each other naturally changed.

"Thank you for your hard work, Yulan," Li Yi said, his gaze lingering on Guo's profile for a moment. Not only was she skillful, but she was also very sensible in her actions, making him a more reliable person to look after Fu Erniang.

"It's not hard work, it's all my duty."

As Guo spoke, she gestured to the maid to hand over the bronze mirror from the dressing case.

"Let me do it." Li Yi took the bronze mirror and held it up for his wife himself.

It was a bronze mirror, polished to an extremely high shine, with a pattern of intertwined peonies carved on the back. The mirror reflected Fu Erniang's beautiful face, her eyebrows like distant mountains, and her lips like a touch of vermilion.

Fu Erniang looked at herself in the mirror from left to right, and suddenly sighed softly, "I've gained a lot of weight recently."

Li Yi couldn't help but chuckle to himself. Women always care a lot about their appearance and figure. Even if they've only gained a little weight, they'll exaggerate it as if it's some kind of huge difference.

Besides, when you're pregnant, it's impossible for you to only gain weight in your belly; you'll definitely gain weight in other places as well.

But Li Yi said, "This isn't called gaining weight, it's called becoming plump, which makes my wife even more beautiful."

Fu Erniang's cheeks flushed, and she gently punched Li Yi: "You smooth talker..." But she couldn't hide the joy in her eyes.

Just then, a maidservant came in carrying a lacquered tray with a bowl of steaming soup on it.

"My lady, this is a ginseng soup that was just cooked in the kitchen. Please have some while it's hot."

Fu Erniang wrinkled her nose: "It's ginseng again. I'm tired of eating it every day for the past few days." Despite her words, she still took the porcelain bowl.

Watching his wife sip the soup, Li Yi suddenly recalled the scene when he first met Fu Erniang.

Back then, she was still the young lady of the Fu family, and it was that bright smile that stirred his heart.

Fu Erniang slowly stood up, supporting her waist, and Li Yi quickly reached out to help her.

Gazing out the window, she suddenly murmured to herself, "Another year is drawing to a close. I heard it's snowing heavily in Jiangnan. I wonder if my elder sister is doing well in Yingzhou..."

"Rest assured, the Empress's health is no longer in danger..."

After a slight pause, Li Yi said in a low voice, "According to news from the front lines, His Majesty will soon return to the capital. At that time, the Empress will naturally be able to return to Tokyo to recuperate."

The news that the emperor was about to return to the capital was closely guarded because it involved war plans and troop movements, and only a very few people in the court knew about it.

Hearing that her husband's words involved matters of national importance, Fu Erniang gave a soft "hmm" and didn't ask any further questions.

Li Yi gently put his arm around his wife's shoulder, feeling the warmth emanating from her. In this turbulent world, to have such a warm home, with a beautiful wife and concubines by his side, was truly a great fortune.

However, if he wants to keep everything he has now, he must not slack off in the slightest.

If he were to accidentally fall from a height, not only would he be smashed to pieces, but his wives and concubines would also suffer. In this world, many heroes and powerful figures have once held high positions, only to have their families destroyed and their wives and daughters humiliated overnight…

"Husband, shouldn't you go to your shift?" Fu Erniang asked, looking up. Though there was reluctance in her eyes, she still urged, "Don't delay your business."

Li Yi nodded and gently kissed her forehead: "I'll come back early tonight to have dinner with you."

……

The city of Bianjing was shrouded in a thin mist in the early morning.

Li Yi rode his horse northward along Junyi Street. The morning market along the street was already bustling with activity. Vendors were hawking their wares, and steam rose from the restaurants, carrying the aroma of noodles that wafted through the air.

Li Yi tightened the reins, slowing the horse down to avoid the merchants hurrying along with their loads.

Compared to the chaotic outer city, the inner city's layout was relatively reasonable. However, its population density was much higher than that of the outer city, and over the years, the streets and alleys within the city were equally narrow and cramped.

However, the inner city was too difficult to renovate. It was not only home to a large number of high-ranking officials and nobles, but also contained government offices and warehouses. Changing one part would have far-reaching consequences.

Therefore, the inner city only underwent minor renovations and expansions at key intersections.

Li Yi led his personal guards northward, passing through the government office area around Kaifeng Prefecture, and then headed east at the fork in the road, following the main road to the imperial city.

The Palace Guard Office was located in the southwest of the palace, not far from the offices of the Council of State Affairs and the Privy Council, and adjacent to the Chongyuan Hall, where the emperor resided and held court.

When Li Yi arrived at the government office, all the officers of the Imperial Guard were already waiting.

Han Tong, the Inspector of the Imperial Guard, was too busy, having to oversee matters such as expanding the capital and dredging rivers inside and outside the city.

Therefore, Li Yi also took charge of the daily military affairs of the Imperial Guard.

Of course, the so-called inspection was more like supervision and did not have the authority to deploy troops. Before the emperor left Tokyo, the Privy Council had already arranged the tasks for each department.

Everyone just needs to follow the rules and make sure nothing goes wrong.

Those present were all commanders of their respective units, the lowest rank being the military commander... As for lower-ranking commanders and officers, they were not qualified to attend the morning meeting.

Although the emperor took away most of the mid- to high-ranking generals, there were still several dozen military commanders of the rank of military commander or above left in Tokyo.

Since the government offices couldn't accommodate so many people, Li Yi had everyone stand in the courtyard of the government office.

He first had the clerk record the names of the generals present, and then stood under the corridor and spoke to everyone... This was the daily roll call of the Imperial Guards, somewhat like roll call in schools in later generations.

The military officers were quite efficient and didn't engage in many formalities. After roll call, the officers bid farewell to Li Yi in turn, and then returned to their respective army camps to check personnel and arrange affairs.

The daily operations of the military are also carried out through this kind of layer-by-layer communication.

Li Yi recalled his days as a junior colonel, when he would stay in the barracks waiting for orders from above.

But now the situation is different; he has become the one standing above, issuing orders. These mid- to high-ranking officers of the Imperial Guard must obediently listen to his instructions.

Li Yi sat in his office for a while, flipping through the list of newly enlisted soldiers, before calmly heading to the Xuanhui Academy.

With the fighting on the front lines coming to an end, Xiang Xun, who was left to guard Tokyo, felt much less pressure and had much more free time.

When Li Yi arrived at the Xuanhui Academy, he saw Xiang Xun sitting on a low couch by the window, engrossed in reading a scroll of documents.

"Brother Xiang has a refined taste."

Upon hearing Li Yi's voice, Xiang Xun noticed his arrival and immediately put down his book, saying, "I've got some free time, so I'm reading some military books to pass the time."

"Oh, what kind of military treatise is it that has Brother Xiang so engrossed in reading it?" Li Yi immediately showed curiosity and quickly walked to the low couch and sat down.

He also collects books on military strategy in his spare time, and learns a lot from them by combining them with examples from the battlefield.

So when he heard Xiang Xun mention military books, he couldn't help but feel a little itchy to read them.

"Calling it a military treatise isn't quite accurate." Xiang Xun chuckled at Li Yi's expression and handed him the document.

"Yesterday, the King of Wei sent a memorial to the capital, in which he mentioned many insights about warfare. He also said that 'previous military strategists often spoke of yin and yang,' and that the King of Wei intends to write a military treatise that focuses solely on personnel and military formations, to be presented to the Emperor upon completion..."

Before Xiang could finish his instructions, he saw Li Yi stuffing the book into his robes. He quickly reached out and stopped him, saying, "Hey, brother, what are you doing?"

“Oh dear, Brother Xiang, don’t worry.” Li Yi coughed lightly. “King Wei has been on the battlefield for many years and must be very experienced in military matters. I’m just taking it back to make a copy so I can study it carefully later. I will return this document to you tomorrow.”

Xiang Xun smiled helplessly and tapped his fingers lightly twice on the table: "The King of Wei is your father-in-law. If you want to learn military strategy from the King of Wei, isn't it just a matter of a word? When the King of Wei finishes writing his military treatise, you can come directly to him to ask for it."

"I'm impatient, I can't wait that long."

Li Yi chuckled and then changed the subject, "The Emperor has issued an edict ordering the Han Du Yu Hou to establish a dock and construction site on the west side of the Bian River in preparation for building warships. In addition, a pool is to be dug, connected to the Bian River and diverted into it, for use in naval warfare training."

"Now, the burden on the Commander of Handu is even heavier..."

Hearing this, Xiang Xun smiled knowingly and stopped worrying about the documents.

He stroked his beard: "The Commander of Handu is most skilled in construction. Even if you or I wanted to take on the job and share the burden for the Emperor, we wouldn't have the ability, would we?"

His words were clearly somewhat teasing, but there was no one else in the office at the moment, and given the closeness between the two of them, it was harmless for them to make some jokes in private.

Li Yi echoed this sentiment. But in his heart, he was thinking: among the four who stayed behind, Wang Pu and Han Tong, one a scholar and the other a warrior, were both people with terrible tempers.

But the two of them just couldn't get along, and they both secretly disliked each other... How strange!

On the contrary, he and Xiang Xun not only got along very well, but he also got along reasonably well with Wang and Han.

It's like adding two lumps of lubricating oil between two rigid gears to ensure that the people involved can maintain maximum coordination.

It must be said that Emperor Shizong Chai Rong's methods of employing people were indeed quite skillful.

During their conversation, the two inevitably talked about the war at the front.

Xiang Xun couldn't help but sigh, "We finally managed to capture Shu and Qi prefectures, but in the end, we handed them back to the Tang army. Now, we've reached this point, and we can't capture Shouchun City after a long siege. We've basically returned most of the prefectures and counties that we've taken."

Li Yi said, "Fortunately, Guangzhou is now in our hands, and the Tang army is temporarily unable to launch an offensive."

(End of this chapter)