Tang Dynasty Xie Lu Lang

Chapter 72: It is difficult to maintain a clear political position
In the Zhang family mansion, retired old man Zhang Shuo has rarely returned to his normal routine, but he has not allowed himself to be idle.

In the early morning, he first gathered his family for a lecture, then inspected the house and ordered the servants to remove any overly extravagant decorations and furnishings. It had been a busy and fulfilling day, but compared to his previous time in Zhinan Province, handling the affairs of the Secretariat, it still felt a little less fulfilling.

Zhang Dai said that the family traditions were being rectified here to relieve his post-retirement depression, but this caused the entire mansion to be in a state of panic. When Zhang Dai returned home, he sensed that something was wrong. The family members all looked at each other with shifty eyes, as if they were glaring at each other.

He was one of the few people in his family who was spared from reckoning afterwards. He was not deeply affected by the high-pressure control. After returning home, he went straight to the main hall to see his grandfather.

"I've heard the outcome of Zhou Liang's case. The court rewarded him with a fifth-rank rank, which isn't too shabby. It's a shame he died so young, otherwise, with his talent, he would have been a capable governor. But regardless, there's finally a conclusion. You haven't let this benefactor down, so you can rest assured."

Zhang Shuo had a gloomy face the whole day, and only when he saw his grandson come home did he show a slight smile. He knew that Zhang Dai was grateful and was very concerned about the family affairs of his benefactor Zhou Liang, so he said.

Zhang Dai nodded after hearing this. "Yes, at least all my hard work wasn't wasted. At noon, my grandson accompanied Zhou Liangzi to the Imperial City to receive his reward. He also saw Yuwen Zhongcheng, who wanted to recruit him."

"Humph, this guy thinks he's in power and acts aggressively. The Secretary is still trapped by my residual power and will not tolerate him in the future!"

Zhang Shuo snorted coldly at first, then turned to Zhang Dai and said, "Tell Zhou Liangzi to send me his father's biography, and I will write an epitaph to enhance his funeral ceremony."

Zhang Dai couldn't stand this topic at the moment. When he heard it, his heart skipped a beat, and he relaxed after a while.

He had originally planned to write an epitaph for Zhou Liang himself, but since his grandfather was willing to do it for him, that was even better. Although he was confident that he would surpass his grandfather in the future, for now, Zhang Shuo was still the better writer and would bring more honor to the bereaved family.

The personnel changes that took place in the court today included not only the Henan officials involved in the Zhou Liang case, but also the Zhongshu Shilang Li Yuanhong's petition to transfer Zhang Jiuling and other former colleagues of Zhang Shuo to other departments, and no longer hold important positions.

This is to gradually clean up the personnel legacy of Zhang Shuo in the court. However, special places such as Jixian Academy are not something that the prime minister of the current dynasty can interfere with at will. Zhang Shuo's influence can still be preserved in this way.

While Li Yuanhong was still conservatively eliminating Zhang Shuo's influence within the central government, Yuwen Rong, the main attacker, had made much more progress. Although Yuwen Rong's official position remained largely unchanged, his purview had been greatly expanded.

"The Secretary of State previously served in the Ministry of Revenue, and was often suppressed by the Minamoto clan and the Yuwen clan. Now he has been suddenly promoted to the provincial government. While there may be peace for a while, they will inevitably clash in the long run..."

Zhang Shuo had been a prime minister for a long time and had his own profound views on the personnel and affairs in the court. He was also willing to discuss or impart relevant knowledge to Zhang Dai.

Through Zhang Shuo's explanation, Zhang Dai discovered that this central team was not as harmonious as it seemed on the surface. The conflicts between them had already been planted. Now they had a common goal of expelling Zhang Shuo's forces, but when this goal no longer existed, they would fight each other.

In the 13th year of Kaiyuan, the court was preparing for the Fengshan ceremony, but the official in charge of the Ministry of Revenue was dismissed due to loss of funds. After that, the court appointed Li Yuanhong and Yuwen Rong to take charge of the Ministry of Revenue.

In addition to serving as the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, Yuwen Rong also held the position of Chief Censor, combining the responsibilities of supervision and finance.

When Li Yuanhong was appointed, he was initially nominated as the Minister of Revenue. However, Prime Minister Yuan Qianyao only appointed him as the Vice Minister of Revenue because of his lack of experience. He was unable to surpass Yuwen Rong in terms of title and position, and friction was inevitable during his tenure.

Now that Li Yuanhong has become the prime minister, how could he be friendly to an old colleague like Yuwen Rong who is too strong?

Zhang Dai had previously dealt with Li Linfu, leaving the position of Chief Censor vacant. Li Yuanhong immediately recommended his former subordinate, Song Yao, for the position. Although they had not yet fallen out, the seeds of conflict had been sown.

Zhang Dai had originally believed that the dismissal of Cui Yinfu and the exile of Yuwen Rong after this political struggle were the result of continued fighting among Zhang Shuo's followers. However, after listening to his grandfather's recounting of these secrets surrounding the central government, he realized that Prime Minister Li Yuanhong must have played a significant role in the situation.

The meat of the bun is not in the folds. As expected, those who can serve as prime ministers are rarely independent and solitary heroes.

Although Li Yuanhong was promoted, the Ministry of Revenue, the financial department, fell completely into the hands of Yuwen Rong. Although he lost the position of Chief Censor, his control over finances was even greater.

Although they did not seize more positions at the Secretariat level, Yuwen Rong and his men successively won two important positions: the Governor of Henan and the Governor of Bianzhou.

Henan Yin Zhang Jingzhong was exiled, and the court immediately appointed Yuwen Rong's former superior, Guanglu Qing Meng Wenli, as Henan Yin. Meanwhile, Yuan Qianyao's son Yuan Fu was transferred to become the governor of Bianzhou, giving him control of the key canal route.

This also shows that Yuwen Rong did not simply agree with Zhang Dai's plan for the reform of the canal transport, but also wanted to gain control of the reform. Therefore, he would rather give up the competition for the central position in order to occupy a key position in the reform of the canal transport.

Even Yuan Qianyao, the old fox, had his own son involved, indicating that this matter would become a major issue for the court. The grandfather and grandson discussed the current personnel changes, with Zhang Shuo speaking and Zhang Dai listening. This discussion also gave him a deeper understanding of Kaiyuan politics, especially the current situation.

"So, your refusal to accept the sage's offer of office a few days ago was a wise move. Resigning is easy, but clearing up the political system at the center is difficult. The current situation is turbulent and I don't know how many more times we will have to go through. Resigning now, even if it's a lowly position, is not a good idea. If you're not careful, you might be oppressed."

Zhang Shuo looked at Zhang Dai again and said with emotion, "A man of ambition does not seek short-term gains. For now, he should cultivate himself and accumulate strength, waiting for the right time to rise. My grandson is gifted and talented, and he will surely have a bright future."

Zhang Dai nodded after hearing this. He was not in a hurry to venture into officialdom, especially after listening to his grandfather's talk about the profound traces of struggle in the central government, he felt more and more that the water was deep and dangerous. It would not be too late to gain two years of experience while he was still young.

This big shot in the family is not only good at writing epitaphs, but is also good at engaging in personnel struggles. He is a good example from a positive perspective, and his negative perspective is also worthy of reference. It is always right to listen more and learn more.

The Zhang family had temporarily withdrawn from the current situation, and the discussion of these personnel matters was mainly to help Zhang Dai gain more knowledge and experience. After Zhang Shuo expressed his views on the current situation, Zhang Dai told him about the apocalypse that had taken place at King Qi's house last night.

"There's this matter? Is King Qi already in such a critical condition?"

After hearing this, Zhang Shuo's expression changed slightly, and then he looked disappointed and sighed deeply.

Although it seemed that the sage and King Qi's family were still trying their best to save King Qi's life through fasting and offering sacrifices, Zhang Shuo knew in his heart that with the start of this ceremony, it basically meant that King Qi was doomed to die!
If the star warding off evil is successful, it means that King Qi is favored by heaven. Where does that put the emperor?
It can be said that Zhang Shuo and King Qi did not have a very deep friendship. At this moment, his feelings were more due to nostalgia for the past years.

Seeing Zhang Dai hesitate to speak, he knew that this boy was a careful person, and was probably worried about the consequences of praying for the King of Qi, so he said, "Some things may need to be avoided, but it is all human nature.

"The King of Qi and I are no strangers. How could I not help someone in such distress? If you have no secrets and a clear conscience, you don't need to worry about anything else. Furthermore, this person is about to pass away, and this feeling is gone, so why continue to cling to him?"

That's because you don't know what your saint will look like in a few years!
When Zhang Dai heard his grandfather say this, he secretly complained in his heart, but he also felt a little relieved.

After all, the biggest source of suspicion is King Qi. Now that King Qi is dying, the emperor is not as abstract as he was in his later years. Of course, he will not hold on to people related to King Qi anymore.

Moreover, although King Qi was dead, King Ning and King Xue were still alive. If they and their relatives saw that even after death, they could not rest in peace, they would surely be filled with fear and worry, and might even come up with some jokes.

After a pause, he continued, "I heard that Scholar Wang Han was reprimanded by the Censorate a few days ago because of me, and he hasn't been seen since he returned. I'd like to choose a date to host a banquet in our annex. Is that possible?"

He didn't have anything important to do at the moment, so he wanted to develop his network.

Wang Han had always been friendly to him and even gave him a singing girl as a gift. Although his father had taken the favor, he had not yet reciprocated the favor. The other party was dismissed from office for helping him publicize his deeds, so Zhang Dai also wanted to host a banquet to express his gratitude.

"I allow you to live away from home because I hope you can meet people of your time and gather friends of good character, without having to ask me about social matters."

Zhang Shuo was quite open-minded. Unlike Zhang Jun, he did not habitually belittle and criticize his juniors. He did not impose too many restrictions or discipline on Zhang Dai.

He then went on to say, "Wang Ziyu is a man of exceptional talent and a broad-minded disposition. His company is truly refreshing. However, he is fond of pleasure and extravagance. He can be enjoyed in entertainment, but not in business. Excessive extravagance can lead to loss of ambition, and excessive debauchery can damage one's integrity. You should reflect on yourself and avoid excessive indulgence."

This is really a private conversation behind closed doors. Although Zhang Shuo admired Wang Han's talent, he still had reservations about his behavior and did not want his children and grandchildren to learn Wang Han's bad habits.

There were many different kinds of literati in the prosperous Tang Dynasty, but those who made achievements in the field of poetry and were famous in later generations all had some bad habits of arrogance, frivolity and rudeness.

They are often full of emotions about people and things, which is why they have created so many gorgeous poems, but they are often clumsy in current affairs, so they often fail to catch the right time and rarely achieve both literary and political success.

But it is precisely because of their existence that the spirit of the prosperous Tang Dynasty shines so brightly.

Even though Zhang Dai himself is a pragmatic person, it does not prevent him from yearning for these people. He even wants to gather these people together to form a group of trolls to praise and criticize people and things, guide the world for good, and supervise reforms.

(End of this chapter)