Tang Dynasty Xie Lu Lang

Chapter 514: The Prime Minister's Voice

"Zongzhi is here too? Perfect timing, I have something to tell you."

Pei Guangting dismounted in the front courtyard, turned around and saw Zhang Dai following behind his wife to greet him, so he smiled and nodded to him.

Zhang Dai stepped forward, bowing as he spoke with a smile to Pei Guangting, saying, "I also have something to report to you, sir. I am in a hurry and have been bothering my aunt for quite some time. If you do not return soon, sir, I am afraid I will be banished."

“Young man, don’t joke around. Your wife is complaining that you haven’t been as attentive to her lately when you visit. If you come home in your free time, who will chase you away?”

Upon hearing this, Pei Guangting chuckled and then turned to Madam Wu, saying, "Madam, please return to the inner hall first. I will discuss matters with your nephew in the main hall and have a meal together."

As Wu listened to their conversation, her expression subtly shifted. She dared not be too harsh on Zhang Dai in front of her husband. After all, the aunt and nephew had previously maintained a relatively harmonious relationship, and if things changed too quickly, she wouldn't know how to respond if Pei Guangting asked about the reason out of curiosity.

"Sixth Master is family, so there's no need for him to avoid us. I'll just stay here and won't disturb you while you're talking."

Wu tried to make her expression appear more pleasant, and looked at her husband with a smile as she spoke.

Pei Guangting was somewhat surprised to hear this. His wife was a typical wealthy lady, who usually either went out to visit friends and socialize or stayed at home to worship Buddha and relax. She always kept her distance from his official affairs and rarely came to the main hall on her own initiative.

However, he did not think too deeply about it, only that Wu was treating her nephew Zhang Dai differently and deliberately trying to curry favor.

Zhang Dai was exceptionally talented. He had recently helped Song Jing's grandson secure the position of Xie Lu Lang and also assisted Prince Shou in shining brightly at the Celebration of His Birth. Even Consort Hui praised him highly, and his reputation was well-known both inside and outside the court.

His wife was also his aunt, so it was only natural that he would treat her with more warmth. Although he and Zhang Dai were currently in a superior-subordinate relationship, no one could guarantee that they would always remain in a position of power, and treating a young and virtuous man with courtesy was a basic awareness that every politician should have.

Pei Guangting, limited by his status and temperament, found it inconvenient and unaccustomed to expressing too much intimacy with subordinates and juniors like Zhang Dai, but he was pleased to see his wife and children maintaining a good interaction and friendship with him.

After the group entered the hall and took their seats, Pei Guangting looked at Zhang Dai and asked, "When you went to the Prince of Xin'an's house to report something the other day, what was his reaction? Did he tell you to report me? Have you reported the relevant matters to Lord Zhang Yan?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Dai understood that Pei Guangting was eager to kick Yuwen Rong out of the game.

In fact, among the three prime ministers in the current situation, the conflict between Pei Guangting and Yuwen Rong is not the most serious. Both of them are newly appointed prime ministers and have some room for cooperation, joining forces to fight against the most powerful Xiao Song.

However, Yuwen Rong was too arrogant and impatient, and didn't take Pei Guangting seriously. He thought he could rival Xiao Song, so he had no intention of forming an alliance with Pei Guangting. Furthermore, Xiao Song and Yuwen Rong didn't have much conflict in terms of authority; only Pei Guangting was somewhat suppressed by Xiao Song. Therefore, it was difficult for the alliance between Wu and Cao to take shape.

For Pei Guangting, as a relatively weak prime minister, since he could not unite with Yuwen Rong to form a relatively stable power structure, it was in his interest to kick out any of the others.

The current situation is that Yuwen Rong has been prime minister for more than two months, and he has basically offended everyone he could and everyone he couldn't. He seems to be doing very well, but in reality, he is already in a precarious situation.

If they could unite the forces of all parties and kick Yuwen Rong out of the game in one fell swoop, Pei Guangting's room for maneuver would be greatly expanded. At the very least, within the two key departments of the imperial court, the Secretariat and the Chancellery, Pei Guangting would likely no longer be confined to the Secretariat, constantly suppressed by Xiao Song, unable to independently exercise his powers as prime minister.

Zhang Dai then recounted Prince Xin'an's reaction. He left quickly without waiting for any reply from Prince Xin'an. However, Prince Xin'an must have received Pei Guangting's goodwill and was grateful to him, and would likely be very willing to cooperate with Pei Guangting.

However, the extent of each party's contribution and their respective tasks still need to be discussed and negotiated. In this matter, Pei Guangting is clearly still in a proactive position. After all, he and Yuwen Rong have not yet had a direct conflict. At worst, he can continue to be the third son. However, Prince An has already been targeted by Yuwen Rong, and if he wants to turn the situation around, he must be more proactive and enthusiastic.

As for his grandfather, Zhang Dai didn't go into too much detail, only saying that his grandfather had been busy with the Jixian Academy recently. Although he mentioned it, Zhang Dai didn't express any opinion.

But in reality, Zhang Dai didn't tell his grandfather about the situation. If he had, given his grandfather's hatred for Yuwen Rong, he probably wouldn't have stayed out of it and would have tried to mobilize forces to strike at Yuwen Rong.

Zhang Shuo suffered more than one setback in politics, and these setbacks often came at the height of his success, with his triumphs ending abruptly. Once, he was instrumental in the rise of the new emperor but was ousted from the central government by Yao Chong; another time, after the Fengshan ceremony, he was directly overthrown by Cui Yinfu, Yuwen Rong, and others.

When Yao Chong was mentioned, Zhang Yue, though still harboring some resentment, ultimately admired him and acknowledged that Yao Chong surpassed him in both seniority and ability. Therefore, he could accept losing to Yao Chong. However, Yuwen Rong was different. Whenever this old incident was mentioned, Zhang Yue would grit his teeth in hatred.

As a result, Yuwen Rong also made several attempts to curry favor in order to ease the tension between them. For example, he tried to win over Zhang Dai several times, not only because he admired Zhang Dai's talent, but also because of his grandfather's influence. However, Zhang Dai ignored these attempts and did not respond.

Even without Zhang Shuo's involvement, Yuwen Rong's current situation was already extremely dangerous. This was because there was another important figure who also harbored considerable dislike for Yuwen Rong, though they hadn't yet been linked together: Princess Yuzhen.

Princess Yuzhen's dislike for Yuwen Rong stemmed from similar reasons to Gao Lishi's: Yuwen Rong's confiscation of temples and monasteries and his suppression of monks and Taoists. As the current emperor's own sister, her attitude could directly and decisively influence the emperor. However, since her attitude had not yet been explicitly revealed, others dared not speculate, disturb, or test her.

Under these circumstances, Zhang Dai did not want his grandfather to get involved in the matter, and preferred to focus on plotting with Zhang Wei and other veterans on how to divide the power of the North Gate.

Hearing that Zhang Shuo remained unmoved, Pei Guangting couldn't help but feel somewhat disappointed. He had relied heavily on Zhang Shuo's help when he was seeking the position of prime minister, and he knew that Zhang Shuo's followers had recently returned to the court and assumed important positions, so their influence should not be underestimated. If he could get Zhang Shuo's help, he would certainly be more confident.

Now that he is the prime minister, it is inconvenient for him to visit and talk with ministers in their homes. Other ministers who enter and leave his home will also be subject to the attention of the times, and even impeachment by the censors.

This is a limitation that comes with holding a high position. Therefore, it is very important to have a mouthpiece that can fully represent him and be taken seriously by all parties.

The most suitable person for this role should have been his son, Pei Zhen. However, Pei Zhen was dignified but also somewhat rigid, not sensitive enough to changes in power, and also inept at social interaction. Therefore, Zhang Dai became a suitable alternative.

After thinking for a moment, Pei Guangting said to Zhang Dai, "You don't need to rush back to your post lately. Just keep asking around for me what messages the Prince of Xin'an and the others have to send. Zongzhi, just come and tell them."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Dai quickly nodded in agreement. He had recently recruited many spies and henchmen, and now Pei Guangting had arranged for him to be a lackey and mouthpiece. However, at least he was a lackey of the Prime Minister, far more prestigious than the spies he had recruited himself!

"Yes, what do you have to tell me now?"

After explaining all this, Pei Guangting remembered that Zhang Dai had said he had something to do when he entered the gate, so he asked again.

Upon hearing this question, Zhang Dai hadn't reacted yet, but Wu Shi beside him couldn't help but shudder, her brows furrowing as she stared at Zhang Dai.

Zhang Dai ignored the hidden threat in Wu Shi's eyes and immediately said to Pei Guangting, "What I said is also related to the matter of Prime Minister Yuwen. The young men under Prime Minister Yuwen have been gathering guests and embezzling and soliciting bribes, accumulating huge sums of money. I have already obtained a lot of evidence and am preparing to submit a memorial to impeach them. I have come today to ask for your permission, Prime Minister."

Upon hearing this, Pei Guangting frowned and began to ponder.

Knowing Zhang Dai's true intentions, and seeing her husband seriously considering the matter, Wu felt a little flustered and immediately said, "You, my husband, want to impeach someone for this matter. Do you dare to say that you are acting out of a sense of public duty, or that you are not plotting to settle a personal score?"

Upon hearing this, Pei Guangting looked at Madam Wu with a surprised expression. He could certainly hear the dissatisfaction and anger in Madam Wu's tone, but he couldn't understand the source of this anger.

Zhang Dai hadn't simply been trying to scare Wu Shi with all that he'd said; he'd laid the groundwork to lure her into revealing her true colors in front of Pei Guangting. Now that Wu Shi had indeed fallen into his trap, he couldn't help but laugh.

"My aunt is right. My intention to impeach Lord Yuwen for corruption and bribery at this time is indeed driven by personal motives. The reason is that Li Linfu, a subordinate of Lord Yuwen, has a deep-seated grudge against me and has colluded with the sons of Lord Yuwen's family to cause trouble again..."

Zhang Dai frankly recounted Li Linfu's conspiracy and his own plans to Pei Guangting, occasionally glancing at Wu Shi, whose face was growing increasingly grim: "So what if I want to settle personal scores? Your husband wants to wipe out an entire faction. The bigger my personal grudge against them, the more he'll trust me to use him!"

"I'm not very familiar with the operation of Feiqian. Have you reported this matter to the Duke of Bohai? What is his attitude towards it? Has he given any instructions?"

Pei Guangting was a calm and composed person who did not comment on areas he was unfamiliar with. After listening to Zhang Dai's explanation, he immediately asked a question.

(End of this chapter)