Tang Dynasty Xie Lu Lang

Chapter 286 Promoted to a Higher Rank

After the Wang father and son came to apologize, nothing new happened. Zhang Dai also rested at home for a few days and prepared for the imperial examinations.

Time quickly came to the fifteenth day of the fifth month. On this day, not only did Zhang Shuo get up early to prepare for court, but Zhang Dai also had to go to the capital with him.

The monthly court assembly held on the first and last days of each month was quite solemn, and decisions on various matters were announced in a concentrated manner, including the matter of Zhang Dai's ennoblement.

At dawn, before the sky had even brightened, lights began to twinkle in the various wards of Luoyang. The officials, scattered throughout the wards, all rose early, tidied themselves up, and left their homes to attend the court assembly in the capital.

If one were to look down from above at this moment, the entire city of Luoyang would truly resemble a starry sky, with countless stars converging from all directions, flowing north along Dingdingmen Street, passing Tianjin Bridge, and then merging into the imperial palace.

Although Zhang Dai came to the capital with his grandfather, he did not yet hold an official position and was therefore not entitled to attend court. Instead, he was led to the Secretariat to receive his title later.

When they arrived at the Secretariat, it was still dark, but the offices of the Secretariat were illuminated as if it were daytime by lights both inside and outside. Zhang Dai was led to a side corridor to wait, while in front of the main hall of the Secretariat, the officials of the Secretariat were also lined up to wait for the court assembly.

Standing at the very front of the procession was none other than Prime Minister Yuan Qianyao, who served as the Chancellor of the Secretariat. Yuan Qianyao's expression was solemn, and his purple robes exuded an air of official authority. All the officials of the Secretariat stood in formation behind him, their breaths held high. The other prime minister, Du Xian, the Vice Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, was nowhere to be seen; he was probably still at the Secretariat, preparing to go directly to court.

When Zhang Dai met Yuan Qianyao, he remembered that he had received an IOU for 30,000 strings of cash from Yuan Fu in Bianzhou, and he hadn't had time to collect the debt since returning to the capital.

Even if he went to collect the debt, the Yuan family probably wouldn't have time to deal with him, because Yuan Fu had made such a mess in Bianzhou. Although he was being escorted back to the capital as a convicted official, the specific punishment for him had not yet been announced.

The Yuan family must have been quite busy with this matter lately. When Li Linfu suffered his downfall, Yuan Qianyao didn't step in to protect him, resulting in his demotion to Junzhou in Shannan. Now that it's his own son's turn, will Yuan Qianyao continue to stand aside?

Yuan Qianyao also noticed Zhang Dai's scrutinizing gaze, frowned and glanced at him, but quickly looked away, as if looking at him any longer would make his eyes dirty.

Zhang Dai didn't seem to care much about Yuan Qianyao's attitude. His grandfather had experienced the same chaotic state of mind Yuan Qianyao was in last year, and the situation was even more serious.

No one is without flaws. Doesn't he have any idea what level his son is at? He wants to monopolize all the good positions. He's not worthy of them. Of course he'll make a big fuss and lose face!

Given their vastly different social statuses, there was little opportunity for direct interaction. As the court session drew to a close, Yuan Qianyao led his entourage toward the inner palace. Only a few officials remained in the Secretariat, along with individuals like Zhang Dai who were awaiting investiture or handling other matters.

There were quite a few announcements at today's court meeting, but the first one wasn't about Bianzhou, but rather several military matters.

Before, Wang Jun, the governor of Liangzhou, went to the court to report that the Uyghur tribes had rebellious intentions. The emperor sent an imperial envoy to investigate, but was met with indifference from the Uyghurs. Enraged, the emperor exiled all four Uyghur leaders to Lingnan. Meanwhile, Song Guogong Li Lingwen and other court officials were also demoted because of their marriage alliance with the Uyghurs.

The second option was to appoint Xiao Song, the Vice Minister of War, as the military governor of Shuofang and also as the salt lake commissioner within the pass. Given that the domestic disaster situation had not eased, Xiao Song was put in charge of the salt lake to raise military funds for Shuofang and to defend against the southward invasion of the Turks.

The third military matter was not about border affairs, but rather about the adjustment of the army within the capital region, specifically the selection of elite cavalry to head north of the city gate to serve as the Imperial Guards.

The Imperial Guards were originally recruited from the prefectures of Guanzhong and commoners to replace the original imperial guards when the Fubing system collapsed, and were originally assigned to various guards in the capital region. Now, the imperial edict has ordered the elite Imperial Guards to be stationed at the North Gate as the Imperial Guards, which means that the Imperial Guards have also become a source of soldiers for the North Gate.

These events will all have a profound impact on the situation of the Tang Dynasty in the future, whether in a short or long period of time, but people at present rarely realize the significance they contain.

Therefore, with the announcement of various decisions, apart from those officials involved in military affairs who were somewhat affected, they did not prompt much reflection among the majority of court officials present. Their primary concern at the moment was the final handling of Bianzhou, which would directly determine the course of events in the court for the foreseeable future.

The officials were all speculating whether Prime Minister Yuan Qianyao would do his best to protect his son, but in reality, Yuan Qianyao had repeatedly submitted memorials, on the one hand to ask the emperor to resign from the position of prime minister, on the other hand to plead for his son Yuan Fu, and on the other hand to strongly request that Yuwen Rong, the governor of Weizhou, concurrently serve as the governor of Bianzhou.

Yuan Fu's actions in Bianzhou were truly disgraceful, involving nearly two thousand criminals and embezzling over a million strings of cash!

Although most of these were personnel problems that had accumulated over many years, this particular incident occurred during Yuan Fu's tenure. Even if Yuan Fu did not directly embezzle, such a crime was still punishable by death.

Of course, this is only in theory. In reality, as the son of the prime minister and the governor of Xiong Prefecture, Yuan Fu had the privilege of negotiating a redemption. As long as it wasn't a heinous crime, he wouldn't actually be executed, but his political future would inevitably be ruined. Despite Yuan Qianyao's pleas, Yuan Fu was ultimately exiled to Yazhou, directly to Hainan Island, which was one of the most severe punishments for exile.

As for Yuan Qianyao, he was also dismissed from his positions as Chancellor and Left Chancellor, but he did not retire and return home. Instead, he was reassigned as the Prefect of Jingzhao and immediately returned to the capital to take up his post.

Upon hearing this appointment and punishment, everyone couldn't help but sigh with regret.

When Yuan Qianyao was first dismissed from his post as chancellor, he was appointed as the Prefect of the Capital, where he served for three or four years before returning to the court as a Gentleman Attendant at the Palace Gate and eventually becoming chancellor. Now, after serving as chancellor, he has returned to the position of Prefect of the Capital.

However, this appointment also shows that the sage has not completely lost trust in Yuan Qianyao. Just as Zhang Yue returned to Jixian Academy to take charge of literature and history after being dismissed from his post as prime minister, Yuan Qianyao also returned to his area of ​​expertise after being dismissed from his post as prime minister.

Moreover, with the Emperor away from the capital for several years, only the veteran official Song Jing, the Minister of Personnel, is in charge of the capital. The fact that Yuan Qianyao is being sent back to the capital to serve as the Prefect of Jingzhao is also due to his steady and mature approach.

At the same time, everyone also noticed that the two chancellors who accompanied the emperor to the Eastern Fengshan ceremony in the thirteenth year of the Kaiyuan era, Zhang Yue, the Grand Secretary, and Yuan Qianyao, the Attendant-in-Ordinary, were dismissed from their posts in the past year and this year. Now, there are only two young chancellors, Li Yuanhong and Du Xian, in the current situation. It seems that the personnel situation in the Kaiyuan era is finally about to undergo a complete and thorough change!

Compared to the tragic and perilous situation when Zhang Shuo stepped down, Yuan Qianyao's downfall seemed somewhat foreseeable, yet it occurred rather suddenly, especially in a way that greatly surprised people.

Last year, Zhang Shuo was subjected to a full-scale attack by the Censorate. A slight misstep could have resulted in his death and the extermination of his clan, but he managed to escape unscathed. Originally, everyone thought that after Zhang Shuo stabilized his position, he would definitely launch another attack on Yuan Qianyao and bring him down as well.

The development of events is quite in line with this speculation. From last year to this year, the situation in the court has been unstable. The three officials of the Censorate who participated in impeaching Zhang Shuo have all been dismissed from their posts.

Although Yuan Qianyao was somewhat criticized during this process, he remained in a state of being unable to be selected and steadily stayed in the position of the head of the Secretariat.

Just when everyone thought that Zhang Shuo had run out of tricks and had no choice but to let Yuan Qianyao go, they did not expect that a fierce offensive brewing by the local prefectures and counties would sweep Yuan Qianyao out of the central government!
"It is said that it was Yan Gongsun Zhang Dai who personally went to Bianzhou to investigate the crimes of the Genji clan's son, and only after reporting this to Yan Gongsun did he launch this offensive!"

The court assembly continued, but the officials could no longer contain their desire to share. Some officials of lower rank or in more secluded places couldn't help but whisper among themselves.

Someone else wisely whispered, "I knew Zhang Dai was no ordinary man. Not to mention his petition to save his family last year, after passing the imperial examination this spring, he didn't stay in the capital to further his reputation, but instead left for the east. He certainly has a ruthless plan in mind. Lord Yuan was cautious for half his life, yet he was defeated by a mere child. Judging from this, Lord Yan is ultimately the more skilled one!"

Putting aside the whispers of these armchair strategists, even though Yuan Qianyao was mentally prepared, he couldn't help but feel a sense of loss after hearing the edict that he had been dismissed from his post as prime minister.

Although he wasn't as power-hungry as Zhang Yue, he wasn't entirely without ambition for fame and fortune. In the Tang Dynasty's officialdom, officials were divided into two categories: prime ministers and everyone else. Without the position of prime minister, no matter how high one's rank, it was difficult to exert any crucial influence on the political situation.

The only saving grace was that the Emperor granted his final request for recommendation, appointing Yuwen Rong as the governor of two prefectures, fully responsible for overseeing disaster relief efforts in Henan and Hebei. Yuan Qianyao believed that with Yuwen Rong's abilities, he would certainly live up to expectations and complete the task brilliantly, perhaps even gaining a position in the imperial court through this achievement!
The court session did not end until noon. The assembled officials returned to their respective offices to attend to their official duties, but some officials, overwhelmed with emotion, gathered together and continued their discussions.

Yuan Qianyao, who was dismissed from his post, was surrounded by many people, most of whom were comforting the former prime minister.

Yuan Qianyao served as prime minister for much longer than Zhang Shuo. Although he was not as flamboyant as Zhang Shuo, many officials in the court received his favor and promotion. Although it is said that people are forgotten after leaving the officialdom, the fading of favor is not so quick, and words of comfort are always said before parting.

In this world, some things fall while others rise. Zhang Dai waited in the Secretariat for a whole morning, and was already starving, before he finally saw Prime Minister Du Xian return to his office and begin to summon and announce the edicts of conferring titles.

"Fanyang County Boy? No, not County Man?"

When Zhang Dai heard the officials of the Secretariat read out the imperial edict conferring upon him a title, he was immediately surprised. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Du Xian said in a deep voice in the hall, "He is indeed the Viscount of Fanyang County. Zhang Dai, why don't you quickly dance to express your gratitude!"

"Your subject Zhang Dai thanks Your Majesty for your great kindness!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Dai no longer cared about being surprised and hurriedly rose from his knees to dance in gratitude.

(End of this chapter)