Tang Dynasty, my wife Wu Zetian

Chapter 460 Training Dogs in the Harem
In mid-December, Wu Zetian revised 120 simplified Chinese characters and named them "Simplified Shuti".

At a palace banquet, Emperor Gaozong (Li Zhi) took out Wu Zetian's calligraphy and showed it to his ministers, praising it highly.

After this incident, the simplified script officially spread to the scholarly circles of Chang'an and became a new popular script.

The simplification of fonts should be done gradually.

Li Zhi's plan was to have Wu Zetian modify the script part by part, gradually promoting it to the common people, first letting them become familiar with the new script, and then, through guidance, making it the mainstream script.

Of course, his actions also aroused opposition from many ministers in the court, especially Linghu Defen, the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy, who took the lead in remonstrating with him.

The old scholar submitted a memorial arguing that new fonts should not be created so casually, and that the emperor should not encourage this trend, as it would negatively impact the cultural atmosphere of the Tang Dynasty.

Li Zhi summoned Linghu Defen and bribed the old scholar in exchange for increasing the budget of the Imperial Academy.

In fact, after defeating Goguryeo, Li Zhi planned to expand the Imperial Academy.

The reason they deliberately suppressed it was because they knew that when simplified characters were promoted, a group of old scholars would jump out to oppose it, so they held onto this card tightly.

These veteran officials of the Tang Dynasty were actually all shrewd and cunning, not the kind of people who were stubborn and inflexible.

Despite being a prominent Confucian scholar, Linghu Defen was quite adaptable. Seeing that the emperor had given him ample face and he had already received the benefits, he accepted them without a word.

After reaching an agreement with Linghu Defen, Li Zhi summoned Lu Chengqing, the Minister of Revenue, and asked him to increase the budget of the Imperial Academy by 10%.

Lu Chengqing didn't try to bargain, but instead brought up another matter.

"Your Majesty, the weather is severe this year, and the Yanran Protectorate and the Hanhai Protectorate are unable to pay taxes and need the court's relief. In the long run, it seems that the court's occupation of this place will not be of any benefit."

Li Zhi glanced at him and said, "What do you think?"

Lu Chengqing said, "Why not restore the old system and let them govern themselves, without paying taxes to the court or receiving relief from the court? In this way, there would be no need to station troops in both places, which would save a lot of expenses."

Seeing Li Zhi frown, he quickly said, "The northern desert is sparsely populated and the situation is special, so it is handled specially. Other places can still be handled according to the new policy of indirect control."

Li Zhi asked, "What if the Turks and Tiele people rebel again?"

Lu Chengqing smiled and said, "With the strength of our Tang army, suppressing the rebellion is a piece of cake. Besides, I believe they dare not rebel again now."

Li Zhi shook his head and said, "My mind is made up on this matter, there's no need to say more. The northern desert region must be garrisoned, and it must be directly governed by the imperial court. These two points cannot be changed, no matter how much money is spent!"

Seeing the emperor's resolute attitude, Lu Chengqing thought for a moment and proposed a compromise.

"Your Majesty, if that is the case, why not adopt a policy to gradually relocate some of the nomadic people from the northern deserts to Guanzhong and let them cultivate the wasteland? This should be able to make up for some of the deficit."

Li Zhi waved his hand and said, "This method is feasible. Prepare a detailed edict for its implementation and bring it to me for review."

Lu Chengqing acknowledged and took his leave.

Li Zhi stood up, stretched, and felt a slight soreness in his shoulders.

Because Gao Youdao and Du Yijian were sent as envoys to the Abbasid Caliphate, Dongtai lost two capable assistants.

Although Li Zhi transferred Luo Binwang and Du Fu to Dongtai to replace the two men.

However, Luo Binwang and Du Fu were not proficient in their duties, which led to many disputes and problems, all of which were brought to Li Zhi for adjudication.

This also significantly increased Li Zhi's workload.

Furthermore, Li Zhi is now almost forty years old, and as he gets older, his energy is not what it was when he first came to the Tang Dynasty.

He strode out of the main hall, intending to go to the inner palace to find a concubine to massage his shoulders and relax.

The best at guiding people were Consort Yang and Consort Zheng. Li Zhi had visited Consort Yang a few days ago, and in accordance with the principle of sharing favors equally, he headed towards Chengxiang Palace.

Following the palace road, we arrived at Chengxiang Hall, only to find that none of the eunuchs or palace servants standing guard at the entrance could be seen.

Wang Fusheng frowned and was about to go in to deal with those who had left their posts without permission when Li Zhi stopped him.

"It's alright, let's go in and take a look." He entered the East Courtyard without any hindrance and did not encounter any guards.

When I stepped into the main hall, I finally found a group of palace servants and eunuchs standing outside the corridor, peering into the room, as if watching something interesting.

Laughter drifted from inside the house, accompanied by the faint sound of dogs barking.

Li Zhi was very curious, so he stepped outside the main hall and looked into the room.

A small white dog was running around inside the house, and a woman was standing next to it holding a bamboo stick with a bell hanging from it, seemingly directing the dog.

The puppy performed various difficult moves as the bamboo stick was swung, like a juggling animal.

Li Zhi had met the woman a few times; she was Liu Chong'ai's newly adopted daughter, named Xu Ling.

Li Zhi was surprised to find that she had the skill to train dogs, and her technique was superb. Not only did Consort Zheng watch with great interest, but Consort Liu was also in the room, laughing continuously.

At this moment, Wang Fusheng coughed, and finally a palace attendant noticed that Li Zhi had arrived, and hurriedly knelt down to pay his respects.

"May Your Majesty be well." In the blink of an eye, a large group of people knelt down.

The people inside the house hurriedly ran out to greet him. What was even more interesting was that the little white dog also ran out, squatted on the ground, and wagged its tail at Li Zhi.

Li Zhi was immediately in a good mood and raised his hand, saying, "No need for formalities." He stepped into the room and sat down on the couch at the head of the table.

Liu Chong'ai and Zheng Cairen followed in, with Xu Ling following behind.

Li Zhichao asked Xu Ling, "You're quite good at training dogs. Where did you learn that?"

Xu Ling lowered her head and said softly, "Your Majesty, I learned it in an opera troupe."

Li Zhi asked in surprise, "A theatrical troupe?" Consort Zheng quickly explained, "Your Majesty, Xu Ling used to be a monkey trainer in the Feiyu Troupe, and she is skilled at training pets."

Li Zhi's heart skipped a beat, and he said, "The Flying Feather Class you mentioned, could it be the Flying Feather Class that Xiao'er encountered?"

Consort Zheng replied, "That's right."

Li Zhi glanced at Xu Ling, vaguely understanding something in his heart, but he didn't ask any more questions and let Xu Ling continue performing dog training.

Xu Ling was a little nervous in front of Li Zhi and gave the wrong instructions several times.

Fortunately, the little white dog was very clever. When she gave the wrong instructions, it didn't move and would bark twice, as if it was correcting its owner.

Li Zhi watched with great interest. After staying in the deep palace for a long time, he would get a little tired of the monotonous daily life.

He had seen more interesting dolphin and whale performances on TV before, so seeing Xu Ling training dogs now felt very familiar.

After the performance, he waved his hand and ordered Wang Fusheng to reward Xu Ling with twenty bolts of Shu brocade before dismissing her.

Knowing that Li Zhi had come to see Consort Zheng, Liu Chong'ai tactfully took her leave.

Soon, Li Zhi leaned back on the brocade couch covered with a carpet, closed his eyes, and enjoyed the hand massage that Consort Zheng was giving him.

Zheng Cai Ren's hands were meticulously cared for; they were long, slender, and smooth, feeling very comfortable against the skin. Moreover, she knelt behind Li Zhi, allowing his head to rest on her soft, yielding breasts.

Although it was the dead of winter, many copper stoves were lit inside the house, creating a warm and cozy atmosphere.

Before long, Li Zhi was about to fall asleep comfortably.

Consort Zheng, not wanting to miss the opportunity to speak with Li Zhi, asked softly, "Your Majesty, what do you think of Xu Ling?"

Li Zhi closed his eyes, didn't think much, and only said "Not bad".

Consort Zheng smiled and said, "This child is quite well-behaved and gentle, and knows how to be considerate. He is also intelligent and learns etiquette very quickly. If it weren't for his humble background, he would be a good match for Xiao'er."

Li Zhi snorted and said, "So what if I come from a humble background? Between men and women, what matters is mutual understanding. I don't like that idea of ​​marrying someone of equal social standing."

Consort Zheng's eyes lit up, and she said, "Then what does Your Majesty think if we marry her to Xiao'er?"

Li Zhi had long guessed that Xu Ling's appearance in the palace was related to Li Xiao, and said with a smile, "If Xiao'er and Xu Ling both like each other, I think this marriage is not bad."

Consort Zheng was overjoyed: "Then I will report this matter to Her Majesty the Empress?"

Li Zhi hummed in agreement.

Consort Zheng was in high spirits after resolving her son's marriage, and she became more talkative than usual, saying with a smile, "Your Majesty, do you know the old gentleman Zhang Gongyi?"

Li Zhi said, "Never heard of him. Who is he?"

Consort Zheng smiled and said, "Recently, one of my cousins ​​married into the Zhang family. It has truly been an eye-opening experience."

Li Zhi opened his eyes and asked in surprise, "What's wrong?"

Consort Zheng laughed and said, "The Zhang family is located in Yunzhou. There are more than 900 people in the family. Nine generations have lived together and they can still get along harmoniously. Don't you think that's incredible?"

Li Zhi's heart stirred, but he didn't have a deep impression of Zhang Gongyi's words.

But he had seen the story of nine generations living together, and the protagonist seemed to be Zhang Gongyi.

The term "nine generations living together" refers to relatives within nine generations living together in one house.

Imagine, conflicts often arise between mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law, let alone when so many relatives live together, wouldn't things turn upside down?

"Is it really true that nine generations have lived together?" Li Zhi asked doubtfully.

Zheng Cairen smiled and said, "Judging from my cousin's letter, it should be true. The family genealogy records that there are nearly a thousand family members. Moreover, Zhang Gongyi is still sending people to look for family members. If they are having a hard time, he will invite them to live with him."

With nearly a thousand people of the same clan living together, Li Zhi felt overwhelmed just thinking about it. He inquired about the details in order to learn something from them.

According to Zheng Cai Ren, Zhang Gongyi established a grand hall, formulated rules and regulations, and set up instructions for his sons and nephews.

Therefore, the father was kind and the son was filial, the brothers were friendly and harmonious, the husband was upright and the wife was obedient, the mother-in-law was gentle and the daughter-in-law was compliant, and the whole family of nine hundred people held a feast every day with drums beating.

Furthermore, the Zhang family had a canteen and a tailor's workshop, where all the family's clothes and shoes were made in the same way, and the children were all supervised and sent to school together!

Li Zhi laughed and said, "If that is true, Zhang Gongyi is indeed capable of managing a household."

Consort Zheng smiled and said, "I heard that the Zhang family's motto is a hundred-character song, also known as the Song of a Hundred Tolerances!"

Li Zhi asked, "Do you remember the contents?"

"I only remember the first few lines."

"It's alright, tell me."

Consort Zheng said slowly, "Tolerance is the magnanimity of a great person, and the foundation of a gentleman. One can endure the heat of summer and the cold of winter. One can find joy in poverty and longevity in long life. The noble will fall if they cannot be tolerant, and the rich will suffer losses if they cannot be tolerant... These are all I can remember."

Li Zhi repeated it in a low voice, and sighed, "Patience is the key to success. Zhang Gongyi is indeed an extraordinary person."

Zheng Cairen said, "I heard that they have a hundred dogs. If one dog is missing, the other ninety-nine will not eat until all of them are present."

Li Zhi laughed and said, "This is almost like a military dog."

After receiving a massage and having a chat in Chengxiang Hall, Li Zhi felt completely refreshed and full of energy.

……

(End of this chapter)