Tang Dynasty Xie Lu Lang

Chapter 345 The Three Ministers Enter the Palace
Zhang Dai awoke in Xingqing Palace to the deep sound of the morning bell.

He certainly didn't spend the night on the emperor's bed; rather, after presenting his audience with the emperor the previous night, he stayed overnight in his dormitory at the Hanlin Academy because it was late. As the Left Remonstrator and Inner Court Attendant, he often stayed overnight within the Forbidden City, whether it was the Luoyang Palace or the various palaces in Chang'an.

To be honest, the officials' dormitories were not very good. Apart from a bed, there was almost nothing else in the room. Moreover, the hygiene of the bedding was also worrying. Although there were many people in the inner palace, they rarely came to the activity area of ​​the officials serving in the outer court.

Apart from a few highly respected ministers who received special imperial permission, servants of other officials were not allowed to enter the inner palace at will. Moreover, these quarters were not assigned to specific individuals; whoever was on duty and needed a room could move in.

One can imagine what it would be like to share a room and a bed in rotation. Zhang Dai contracted lice twice while staying at the palace, and it took him a great deal of effort to get rid of them.

Therefore, he brought his own bedding and supplies, storing one set in each of the three inner palaces, which he would take out when he needed to stay overnight.

To others, this was just a pretentious and frivolous habit of a rich young master, and his reputation among his colleagues was naturally not good. But the thought of his body crawling with lice made Zhang Dai feel terrified. To hell with reputation, I'd better just focus on maintaining good personal hygiene.

After getting up in the morning, Zhang Dai first drew water from the well in the corridor to wash up. Although there were clerks and servants in the Hanlin Academy, they all hung around the high-ranking officials and didn't bother with lowly eighth-rank officials like him.

The Imperial Palace has no shortage of officials. Those who can flaunt their power outside the palace have to bend over and fetch water to wash their faces and brush their teeth once they come inside. No one will pamper them.

After washing up, Zhang Dai was about to go to Xu Jian's place, the Right Attendant Gentleman of the Palace, for breakfast when he heard someone shout, "Prince Shou has arrived! Quickly come out to greet him!"

So all the officials in the courtyard, except for a few big shots in purple robes, came out to greet him, and Zhang Dai was no exception.

"Scholars, there is no need for such formalities. I have no important business here. Please return to your respective places. There is no need for you to gather here."

Prince Shou was two years older than when he was in Luoyang. Although he was still just a child, he was more dignified and polite than in previous years. After entering the Hanlin Academy, he did not arrogantly accept the worship of everyone, but stood to the side and bowed to everyone.

Seeing this scene, everyone couldn't help but sigh inwardly that although Prince Shou was not old, he was very polite and could be called a model of the royal family's knowledge and etiquette!

After everyone had left, Prince Shou walked up to Zhang Dai, looked up and said with a smile, "My mother knew that my cousin stayed on duty last night, so she instructed me to bring him some food this morning."

"There is plenty of food here, so there is no need for Consort Hui to worry about it and send His Majesty in person. I am truly flattered!"

The mother and daughter treated him like family, but Zhang Dai couldn't remain calm. Upon hearing this, he hurriedly bowed towards the direction of Consort Hui's residence, and then stood up and said to Prince Shou with a grateful expression.

Since Prince Shou had brought the meal, Zhang Dai decided not to go to Xu Jian's place for a free meal. Instead, he led Prince Shou into a separate hall and they each took their seats. The breakfast that Prince Shou had brought was exquisite, delicious, and plentiful, so Zhang Dai invited Prince Shou to eat with him, intending to chat over a meal.

However, Prince Shou was mature beyond his years and somewhat rigid. Despite his young age, he didn't have any particular hobbies. Even in casual conversation, he was very methodical and didn't know how to guide or expand the topic, making it quite boring for Zhang Dai to chat with him.

Finally, Zhang Dai simply asked directly, "Besides providing food, did Consort Hui send the King here today with any other matters to instruct her?"

There is no love or hate without a reason in this world. Although I had a good relationship with Consort Hui before, I did not always receive such treatment while in the palace. Today, Consort Hui suddenly showed me courtesy. I suppose there must be some meaning behind it.
"I...I'm still considering whether this is too much of a bother to my cousin..."

Upon hearing this, Prince Shou lowered his head somewhat embarrassed. Seeing this, Zhang Dai smiled and said, "Your Majesty, please speak freely. We are close friends, and I am Your Majesty's assistant outside the palace. If you don't tell me, who else would you tell?"

He knew that Prince Shou was cautious and discreet, not flamboyant or unrestrained, which was why he spoke so confidently. If Prince Shou were not like that, he would not have said such things, lest he be drawn into disputes beyond his control.

"It is like this, Mother said that the Crown Prince, Prince Zhong, and others are practicing music at their respective residences in preparation for the Emperor's birthday in August. I am not young anymore, and I should also have such feelings of filial piety and gratitude. My cousin is currently serving in the music department, so Mother asked me to ask him to make some preparations."

In addition to his sullen personality, Prince Shou was also somewhat introverted and didn't want to cause trouble for others, so he just lowered his head when he said this, too embarrassed to look at Zhang Dai's face.

"Just this one thing? I'll take note! When will Your Majesty be free this month?"

When Zhang Dai heard what Prince Shou said, he couldn't help but laugh again, sighing that his aunt was really good at planning ahead. The emperor's birthday was still more than half a year away, and she had already started to worry about it, and she wanted to carry on the struggle for favor and consolidation into the next generation.

“I have no classes on the 3rd and 8th of each month. After inquiring about my mother, I am free in the palace, or I go out to visit the Ningbo family and my elder brothers.” Upon hearing this, Prince Shou quickly replied, and then asked, “What are you planning to do, cousin? Won’t that be too much trouble for you?”

"It's nothing complicated. It's just about going to the Music Bureau and the Pear Garden to listen to some music and help the King compose some birthday songs. If the King wants to express his filial piety more sincerely, he can also play them himself."

Zhang Dai then jokingly added that the older the emperor got, the more restrictions he placed on his sons, making it difficult for them to curry favor and leaving them with only opportunities in sensual pleasures and music.

The Crown Prince and Prince Di each had a father-in-law holding an official position in the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, which naturally facilitated these matters. Prince Zhong, having married Zhang Ji, a prominent figure in the capital, was also able to recruit scholars to assist him.

Prince Shou, originally Prince Ning's adopted son, could have utilized the resources of Prince Ning's family. However, this involved the sage's sons vying for favor, and if Prince Ning openly supported Prince Shou, he would be courting disaster.

Zhang Dai's identity is not sensitive, and his relationship with Consort Wu Hui and her son is still there. If he doesn't help Prince Shou and lets Prince Shou have nothing to do, he will appear cold and heartless. Moreover, he is not afraid of offending the older princes at all, so he has no psychological burden.

"Me? I want to practice too? But I don't know how to sing. Should we start practicing now?"

Upon hearing this, Prince Shou immediately became flustered and nervous.

"No need for that. It's still early. For now, we'll just let His Majesty familiarize himself with the vocal repertoire. We can plan the specifics later."

Seeing that he was so nervous that he was restless, Zhang Dai couldn't help but sigh inwardly that it was really hard to judge whether the education given to him by Prince Ning was good or bad. A prince of the Tang Dynasty who should have been unruly had been taught to be as docile as a calf whose balls had been hammered.

After seeing Prince Shou off, it was already broad daylight. Zhang Dai then moved to the main hall of the Hanlin Academy to inquire about the follow-up developments of the matter he had reported.

It was only yesterday, after seeing the actual files kept by the Jingzhao Prefecture, that he realized he had been tricked. The Jingzhao Prefecture had never processed his purchase of this estate; the only record in the books was of Li Linfu's purchase of the estate, and he had entered into a long-term lease agreement with Li Linfu.

As for the land deed issued by the Jingzhao Prefecture that he obtained, it was commissioned by Li Linfu and issued by the Jingzhao Prefecture. It was a small contract that was separated from one of his residences.

Similar land deeds are mainly used by large families who live together and jointly inherit property. They are issued by the government as a certificate of ownership of a certain part of the residence when disputes arise. However, they cannot be sold independently.

Although Zhang Dai had already been appointed to an official post, he had never served in any prefecture or county, so he had no idea about the intricacies involved.

He thought he had become the owner of this piece of land, but little did he know that he was just a tenant staying at Li Linfu's house. The other party had the right to take him to court at any time, or even directly expel him.

So Zhang Dai was somewhat careless in this matter, forgetting that Li Linfu was the real deal when it came to sweet words and a dagger in his heart, and he almost fell for his trick this time.

Fortunately, he himself had ill intentions and directly brought the matter to the sight of the Sage. Coupled with the guarantee contract he had signed with Yuan Jie, things developed in a direction that was favorable to him.

Otherwise, the archives kept by the Jingzhao Prefecture alone would be completely insufficient to prove his claims, and he could easily be falsely accused by the other party.

After all, he hadn't actually paid any fees to the Jingzhao Prefecture or received a receipt. Clearly, trying to take advantage of Li Linfu carried considerable risk.

With a mix of lingering fear and relief, Zhang Dai arrived at the main hall and soon heard what he wanted to know: the Emperor had summoned the Minister of Justice, the Vice Minister of Justice, and the Censor-in-Chief to see him early that morning, and the three of them had just entered Xingqing Palace.

This is clearly the setup for a joint trial by the three judicial departments. The last time the court adopted this approach was when Zhang Dai's grandfather, Zhang Shuo, was interrogated in Luoyang! Now that the Emperor has summoned the heads of these three departments back to Xingqing Palace, he must be planning to investigate this matter thoroughly.

As the one who submitted the memorial, Zhang Dai would undoubtedly benefit from the bigger the matter became. Putting aside personal grudges such as revenge, his memorial could open up a major case, which was undoubtedly an honor for him as a courtier.

However, Zhang Dai still had some doubts, because this matter was at most a dispute and reflection arising from the unfairness of the sale of official property by the Jingzhao Prefecture, and its nature was not particularly serious. Was it a bit of an overreaction to directly involve the heads of the three departments in a joint trial?
Furthermore, there is an uncertain factor at play: the Grand Justice, one of the three chief officials, is Minamoto no Mitsuhiro, a descendant of Minamoto no Kenshin. If he were to join the trial, in what direction would he lead the case?

(End of this chapter)