Tang Dynasty Xie Lu Lang

Chapter 377: Meat Eaters
At dawn, after getting up, Zhang Dai sent a family member with his calling card to the home of the former prime minister Wei Anshi to request a visit and inquire whether it would be convenient to receive him that day.

This is considered the basic etiquette for social interactions these days. If you want to visit someone's home, you have to send an invitation in advance. If you encounter a wealthy or powerful family that is always busy, you have to send an invitation several days in advance to inquire. Only after the host agrees will you prepare gifts and make your visit. Otherwise, you will either arrive empty-handed or be turned away at the door.

The act of visiting someone's door without sending an invitation is considered impolite unless it is something very important, the visitor is of high status, or the two people have a very good relationship.

The Zhang family mansion, which was bustling with noise last night, became lively again as soon as dawn broke. Although Zhang Yue, who had regained real power, had gone to court, visitors continued to stream in and out of his house.

"Before the lord went to court, he instructed that the list of guests to be received today should be reviewed by Liu Lang first."

Zhang Dai was still eating breakfast when the steward of the front courtyard came in and spoke to him.

Zhang said he had three sons. The eldest son was currently serving in another state, the second son had established his own power base elsewhere, and the youngest son was still unruly and incompetent. Naturally, the task of handling foreign affairs fell to Zhang Dai, the grandson.

Zhang Dai himself had just submitted a petition requesting an audience with someone, and now he had to decide who he should meet.

After breakfast, he went to the front hall and found that in less than an hour since the gates of the city opened, his family had received more than a hundred visiting cards, and new visiting cards were still being sent in one after another. This scene was even more lively than when Zhang Shuo was still the prime minister.

While the position of the examiner may hold considerable power for a time, it is ultimately just that of an examiner, and in terms of the comprehensiveness and stability of their authority, it is far inferior to that of the prime minister.

Zhang Yue's popularity soared immediately upon assuming the position of Examination Commissioner, which was certainly due to his extensive experience and high reputation. However, this phenomenon primarily reflects the severe situation in the personnel field of the Tang Dynasty at that time.

First, the constant infighting among the prime ministers in the court made all the officials in the capital feel insecure. Second, with more and more people being selected and the selection process becoming increasingly competitive, if incumbent officials did not perform well in their performance evaluations, their competitiveness would naturally decrease sharply in such a severe selection environment, making it much more difficult for them to compete for a new position.

It was only the middle of the Kaiyuan era, and the situation was already like this. Although Pei Guangting's series of reforms after he came to power received mixed reviews, they did alleviate the severe situation of the selection process. However, given the politically charged nature of the prime minister, the reforms could not escape the demise of the prime minister's policies after his death.

After Pei Guangting's death, many personnel appointments and policies implemented were halted by his rival, Xiao Song.

Later officials like Zhang Jiuling and Li Linfu did not take any remarkable measures in personnel matters. Li Linfu even resorted to the disgraceful practice of leaving no talented individuals undiscovered, which resulted in the blockage of career advancement channels and a significant loss of talent.

This period also coincided with the rise of border affairs, and the power of the various border military governors expanded rapidly. Those who had no way to advance in their careers could not obtain a position or a sense of belonging in the court, so they could only go to the border towns to seek opportunities. This laid the personnel foundation for the future separatist rule of the regional military governors.

The lessons of the past are inextricably linked; many things in this world are interconnected and interdependent, not existing in isolation. Especially during the decline of a unified regime like the Tang Dynasty, the various internal problems inevitably underwent a gradual process of development and accumulation of momentum.

What is certain is that even with the outbreak of contradictions during the An Lushan Rebellion, the development process and the accumulation of potential energy of various social problems were still different. Some problems caused permanent damage, while others were alleviated and released to a certain extent due to the arrival of the crisis, and became no longer a problem.

So, what was the fundamental reason why the Tang Dynasty could not last long?
Zhang Dai, from the perspective of a later generation, did offer some insights into this matter.

Whether it was the Tang Dynasty or other regimes in history, the core problems they faced were nothing more than two: first, insufficient productivity and a lack of abundant resources; and second, an unreasonable distribution of benefits, with some people wanting to take more than their share!

The latter, in particular, is the root cause of destroying an organization and dismantling a regime.

After all, even wild beasts that eat raw meat and drink blood will fight each other for resources. When it comes to the struggle for and encroachment on interests, humans are even more unscrupulous than wild beasts. Many rules themselves justify unreasonable encroachment.

Of course, these are all seemingly correct but ultimately meaningless statements. Repeating them a thousand times will not help solve the actual problems; it will only make people more violent, resentful, and prone to extremism.

Since arriving in this world, aside from some personnel disputes in the imperial court and the current situation, Zhang Dai's main focus has been on getting more people involved in the social division of labor and productive labor, and ensuring that they receive the rewards they deserve.

The tea plantation currently under construction is also for this purpose.

In Guanzhong, there is little idle land but many idle people. A large number of proletarians have neither basic means of production nor sufficient job opportunities. They can only maintain their miserable living conditions by being exploited by others, either as tenants or slaves.

The land and water of Guanzhong already have their owners, and Zhang Dai, at present, cannot simply seize fertile land from the old wealthy clans to distribute to the poor. He can only find alternative paths, creating new industries and jobs to temporarily provide for some of the destitute and other unfortunate people who have been marginalized from the social division of labor. He is certainly not a noble or selfless person, but compared to those accustomed to the ways of the world, he possesses a greater capacity for empathy and the courage to drive social change.

Zhang Dai looked through these visiting cards and found nothing special about the people seeking an audience, but he did learn about the positions of various officials in the capital.

He knew perfectly well that whether these people came to visit or not wouldn't have a significant impact on their final exam results. The idea that he would remember who didn't come was just a joke; if special treatment was truly needed, he would deal with them regardless of their presence.

Zhang Shuo's appointment as the assessment commissioner this time was basically a resurgence of his political career. He mainly adhered to the principle of being kind to people. As long as the official's behavior was not too bad and was unanimously disliked by his superiors and subordinates, he would not pursue the matter to the end.

Therefore, of the hundreds of names on the list, Zhang Dai ultimately only selected some leisurely officials and scholars from various departments to host him at his home that night. They would get together and chat about current affairs, which would also serve as a form of emotional comfort to them.

As for those high-ranking officials, they didn't have many choices. Zhang Yue had been out of the political arena for a long time, and the personnel in the court had changed several times. Those who held important positions in the court now usually belonged to different factions, and they couldn't possibly switch to Zhang Yue's tutelage just because of a single examination. Gathering them at home would only invite criticism and make people accuse Zhang Yue of reverting to his old ways.

Although the truth is not far off, Zhang Shuo will undoubtedly take this opportunity to conduct many under-the-table deals. However, it is better to let people know than to let them see such things. After all, Zhang Shuo is no longer as powerful as he was in his early years, and leaving behind something for others to talk about will only bring trouble to his children and grandchildren.

Zhang Dai selected the list, and the family members who had gone to the Wei family to deliver the invitation returned to inform the Wei family that they could receive him at home after noon.

He glanced at the sky and saw that it was almost noon, so he went back to his study and selected several calligraphy works by famous contemporary calligraphers and anthologies of literature and art as gifts for his visit.

The Wei family were genuine old-timers in Guanzhong. Even before Li Hu, the ancestor of the Li family, arrived in Guanzhong, their ancestors were already prominent families in the region.

The Wei brothers were direct descendants of Wei Xiaokuan, a famous general of the Western Wei and Northern Zhou dynasties. Their family was prominent and wealthy. If you really wanted to give them valuables and treasures, they might not have any. It would be better to simply cater to their tastes and express your feelings.

In the afternoon, Zhang Dai left home and went to Pingkangfang to check on the construction progress of his residence. The craftsmen were working diligently as always.

"Are you satisfied with the current progress of the construction, Liu Lang?"

Chen Dong hurriedly stepped forward and asked with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Dai nodded and then said, "The Shangsi Festival is coming soon, so there's no need to rush the work. The craftsmen have been working hard these past few days, so let them rest at home for a day and celebrate the festival with their families. Their wages will still be paid, and each of them will receive an additional 150 coins as a festival allowance. It's not much money, but it's a token of our shared joy in celebrating the festival."

"Sixth Brother is too kind! Thank you, Sixth Brother. You're giving us money for the festival, so hurry up and thank him!"

Upon hearing this, Chen Dong was overjoyed and quickly turned around to wave and shout to the crowd on the construction site. Everyone smiled broadly, put down their work, and bowed to Zhang Dai to express their gratitude.

Amidst the crowd's expressions of gratitude, Zhang Dai arrived at the small lake in front of the hall. Seeing that the transplanted flowering trees were being carefully instructed by specialists, he felt relieved. After giving a few more instructions, he left and headed towards Anxingfang, north of Hengjie Street.

His return to Anxingfang wasn't because he wanted to see the Princess of Yunyang again, although he certainly did, but business was more important at the moment. The Wei family also lived in Anxingfang, and his sons Wei Zhi and Wei Bin resided there.

The Wei family lived in the northeast corner of the cross street in the neighborhood. When Zhang Dai arrived at their house after entering the neighborhood, it was exactly the agreed time. He saw the two Wei brothers standing in the front courtyard waiting for him, which showed that they valued his visit.

Upon seeing this, Zhang Dai quickly dismounted and bowed to the two men who came out of his house, saying with a smile, "It would be enough if just one of my family members waited at the steps; how could I dare to ask both of you to come out and greet me!"

"Young Master Zhang, there's no need for such formalities. In the past, when I visited Lord Yan, I was always grateful for your help in getting me in and out. Now that you've come to visit, I should certainly welcome you with the utmost courtesy!"

Wei Zhi was in his thirties, and his younger brother Wei Bin was also in his thirties. The two brothers smiled and went out, inviting Zhang Dai into their home from either side.

This warm and polite attitude made Zhang Dai feel flattered, and he was filled with optimism and anticipation for the purpose of his trip.

(End of this chapter)