Tang Dynasty Xie Lu Lang

Chapter 490 Different ways do not work together

Zhang Dai never expected Pei Yaoqing to stand up for him so firmly, even at the cost of turning against Yuwen Rong, the recommender.

In his impression, these political figures were usually mild and reserved when interacting with others, and were not too direct or blatant. They would only issue edicts without mercy if there was a deep-seated grudge between them or if there was a huge gap in their status.

Pei Yaoqing and the Yuwen family naturally had no old grudges, and Yuwen Rong was the prime minister who recommended him to the court. Yet, he actually flew into a rage over Yuwen Rong's son's unreasonable accusations, even storming off – this was completely unexpected by Zhang Dai. Even after traveling a considerable distance from the Yuwen family residence, he still couldn't believe it was real.

Pei Yaoqing also noticed that Zhang Dai was looking at him with a suspicious and curious gaze. He did not explain his words and actions, but instead asked, "Do you know anyone in the neighborhood who would like to stay the night?"

Zhang Dai nodded upon hearing this, but Pei Yaoqing immediately shook his head and said, "Forget it, there's no need to bother other families. Let's find a tavern in the neighborhood and stay there for the night. We were in a bit of a rush earlier, and we haven't had our fill of food and drink yet!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Dai immediately gestured to Ding Qing to search and make arrangements, while he himself took the opportunity to ride up to Pei Yaoqing's side and said to him earnestly, "I am very grateful to Vice Minister Pei for speaking frankly at Minister Yuwen's residence earlier. However, will this interfere with the interaction between Vice Minister Pei and Minister Yuwen?"

Upon hearing this, Pei Yaoqing shook his head and said with a smile, "You don't need to thank me. I'm just using this matter to express my true feelings, hoping that Lord Yuwen can come to his senses."

At this point, he pointed to the crowd that had not yet dispersed on the long street in front of Yuwen Rong's house and sighed, "With such a bustling scene, how can people not criticize him for his power? Especially since Prime Minister Yuwen is in charge of state affairs and finances, he should be even more careful in his conduct."

The counting of money and grain is meticulous, down to the smallest detail; even a slight error requires meticulous concealment. Only impartiality and selflessness can guarantee absolute accuracy. Now, Prime Minister Yuwen is casting a wide net and gathering favors; these followers have all come seeking something. If they gain something, the national treasury will suffer greatly; if they gain nothing, they will harbor resentment and slander…”

When Zhang Dai heard Pei Yaoqing's criticism of the constant stream of visitors to Yuwen Rong's house, he realized that the old gentleman's anger earlier was not only to support him, but also to warn Yuwen Rong, or perhaps to draw a clear line between them.

It's not that Pei Yaoqing is unrighteous, but rather that Yuwen Rong and his son have indeed lost their sense of boundaries. As Pei Yaoqing said, managing national finances requires rigor and selflessness, but the Yuwen family seems to be engaging in the business of monetizing power within their own home, mingling with a bunch of scoundrels. How can they possibly manage national finances well?
Pei Yaoqing was recommended by Yuwen Rong to succeed him as the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. The Ministry of Revenue was also the main implementing agency for Yuwen Rong's various fiscal reforms. Seeing that Yuwen Rong's guests were a mixed bag, and that Yuwen Rong himself might be dragged into trouble at any moment, how could Pei Yaoqing not be nervous?

However, if he were to offer direct advice, Yuwen Rong might not take it to heart and might instead think that Pei Yaoqing was narrow-minded and intolerant.

Pei Yaoqing could only seize the opportunity to make a move, hoping that Yuwen Rong would take heed. If Yuwen Rong could restrain himself, then the two could easily clear up the misunderstanding and continue to be a well-coordinated political partnership. However, if Yuwen Rong continued to act willfully, or even escalated his actions, then they would only drift further apart.

Although Pei Yaoqing was recommended by Yuwen Rong, his qualifications were no less than Yuwen Rong's. It was only because of his awkward situation that he had been wandering around for so many years.

He was recommended as a child prodigy, and then went through a long period of waiting for selection. After reaching adulthood, he was appointed as an official and served as a clerk in the Prince Xiang's residence during the reign of Emperor Ruizong of Tang. This is the rather awkward part of Pei Yaoqing's life experience.

Unlike Yao, Song, and Zhang, who rose to prominence as early as the reign of Emperor Wuzong and became the backbone of the era, and unlike Yuwen Rong and others who gradually gained fame during the Kaiyuan era of Emperor Xuanzong, he unfortunately found himself caught in the middle of the times and became a former retainer of Emperor Ruizong Li Dan when he was still a prince.

Although the current emperor displays filial piety and brotherly love before and after his ascension to the throne, only Princess Taiping is causing trouble and acting like a villain.

However, in reality, before and after Emperor Ruizong passed the throne to Emperor Xuanzong, there was a subtle power struggle and friction between father and son, and Princess Taiping's dramatic outburst was a direct manifestation of this father-son conflict.

When Emperor Zhongzong passed away, Princess Taiping and Shangguan Wan'er drafted an edict appointing Prince Wen as the crown prince and Prince Xiang as regent. However, this edict was altered by Empress Wei and Zong Chuke, among others.

Princess Taiping then joined forces with Li Longji to launch the Tanglong Coup and eliminate the Wei clan. That night, Shangguan Wan'er personally led the palace maids to welcome the coup leaders and showed them the imperial edict to Liu Youqiu and other coup participants to show that she had not colluded with Empress Wei. However, Li Longji still executed Shangguan Wan'er.

The reason is simple: you women have already arranged all the important affairs of the world, and I'm here with my brothers, risking my life to storm the palace, just to create atmosphere.

Before I entered the palace, you presented this imperial edict to the world, and I dared not challenge you; I could only submit. But now that I've stormed the palace, what are you showing off with this outdated edict? My sword is the only true authority!
This throne was won by me through a desperate struggle, and it wasn't handed to me by you palace women with a simple "Prince's assistance in governing"!

Therefore, although the situation seemed to have stabilized and things had been restored during the Jingyun era of Emperor Ruizong of Tang, it was actually still turbulent. On the surface, it was just a conflict between Princess Taiping and Li Longji, the aunt and nephew, but Li Dan's fence-sitting attitude on major issues also made the relationship between father and son delicate and dangerous. Pei Yaoqing, as an official of the Prince of Xiang's court, was promoted several times during this period, and by the first year of Kaiyuan, he had become the magistrate of Chang'an. However, his official career stagnated thereafter. In the thirteenth year of Kaiyuan, he was appointed as the prefect of Jizhou and was appreciated again for his proper handling of the Fengshan ceremony. However, he was transferred to other prefectures for several years before he was able to return to the capital.

With such distinguished lineage and qualifications, and especially with sufficient ability, Pei Yaoqing was certainly qualified to become prime minister according to the normal rules of official promotion.

However, his appointment as prime minister was delayed until the twenty-first year of the Kaiyuan era. Moreover, it was against the backdrop of old friends in Guanzhong and famine in Chang'an that Emperor Xuanzong of Tang finally decided to appoint Pei Yaoqing as prime minister to reform the grain transport system after much deliberation, due to Pei Yaoqing's repeated proposals for reforming the grain transport system.

Pei Yaoqing's reform of the Grand Canal quickly achieved great results, allowing Emperor Xuanzong of Tang to continue to stay in Chang'an without leaving the city, and Chang'an was no longer plagued by famine.

However, Pei Yaoqing, who was so capable and honest, was soon implicated in the political struggle between Li Linfu and Zhang Jiuling and was dismissed from his post as prime minister. Soon after, exploitative ministers such as Yang Shenjin and Wei Jian were put in positions of power. Building on Pei Yaoqing's reforms, they intensified their extortion efforts, plundering the people's wealth and resources to bring to Chang'an for the emperor's extravagant enjoyment.

Unbeknownst to Pei Yaoqing, Zhang Dai had already reviewed Pei Yaoqing's official career over the next few years in a short period of time. When they arrived at the tavern in the neighborhood, Pei Yaoqing said with great interest, "Without wine to liven things up, conversation is dull. Tell the tavern owner to quickly send some wine so that Liu Lang and I can continue our drinking and chatting!"

Zhang Dai himself didn't really like drinking, but seeing Pei Yaoqing's boldness, he joined Pei Yaoqing in drinking and chatting. However, the quality of the wine provided by the restaurant was very average, with a sour and bitter taste that was hard to bear.

Seeing that Pei Yaoqing was also grimacing from the sour taste, Zhang Dai said with a smile, "Tomorrow, I will prepare a feast at my home and invite Vice Minister Pei to my residence to enjoy himself."

Although the wine was not good, it could still get one drunk. Pei Yaoqing was already quite drunk at this moment. Upon hearing this, he waved his hand and said, "I certainly do not like the manners of Minister Yuwen. But I also find it difficult to agree with the style of Minister Zhang Yan. My family has its own banquet, so just bring the wine!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Dai broke out in a cold sweat, sighing that Pei Yaoqing's lack of recognition wasn't solely due to the Emperor's dislike of his father's old acquaintance; the key was that Pei Yaoqing was quite adept at offending people. Even if he had entered the court earlier, his dislike for Yuwen Rong and Zhang Shuo's attitude would likely have led to his expulsion from the court!
The turbid brew in the workshop didn't taste good, and since both of them had to go to court the next day, it wasn't convenient for them to get completely drunk. So, after enjoying themselves a little, they went back to their bedrooms and, still feeling the effects of the alcohol, went to sleep.

The court session the next day was rather uneventful. However, after the session, Wei Tao, the Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, specifically sought out Zhang Dai and rode back to the capital with him. On the way, Wei Tao couldn't help but complain bitterly: "Currently, there are many vacancies in the temples and offices, and there is a lack of people to supervise the affairs, big and small. Zongzhi, you are still in office here. You can't favor one over the other and only focus on the Censorate. You should also go back and check on the temple affairs when you have free time!"

Wei Tao's statement was not an exaggeration. Although Xue Tao, who had been impeached by Zhang Dai, spent most of his time slacking off in the government office, he was still somewhat useful in public.

Now that Xue Tao has been dismissed, Wei Tao is the only one left to shoulder the responsibility in the entire Court of Imperial Sacrifices. With the Emperor's birthday approaching, Wei Tao's expertise lies in rituals and ceremonies, leaving him little time to attend to music and entertainment. Furthermore, the Court of Imperial Sacrifices has undergone some personnel changes this year, and some newcomers are not yet proficient in their duties, leaving Wei Tao in a hurry to recruit men from all over the place.

Although Zhang Dai's work focus had shifted to the Censorate, he couldn't ignore his old superior's words, so he promised to finish his Censorate duties in the morning and then go to the Court of Imperial Sacrifices in the afternoon to serve his shift.

At the Censorate, Zhang Dai's main task was to investigate the two ministries. The situation at the Ministry of Justice was similar to yesterday, and the Ministry of Revenue was also quite cooperative thanks to Pei Yaoqing.

Therefore, Zhang Dai's inspection went much more smoothly that day. After returning to Taichung to report, he went straight to the Court of Imperial Sacrifices without even having time to stay for lunch.

When Zhang Dai arrived at the Taichang Temple south of the imperial city, he saw a large number of carriages and people pouring into the government office. Curious, he beckoned to an official and asked, "Where did all these carriages and people come from?"

"Reporting to Zhang Xielu, these are all musicians and singers selected from other states, who will be performing to entertain the Emperor's birthday celebration next month!"

Upon hearing this, the official quickly replied.

No sooner had he finished speaking than a young man in the crowd jumped up, waved, and shouted, "Sixth Brother, Zhang Sixth Brother! Long time no see! How have you been?"

Zhang Dai looked in the direction of the voice and was immediately delighted to see that the young man was none other than the poet Du Fu, whom he had not seen for several years!

(End of this chapter)