Tang Dynasty Xie Lu Lang

Chapter 89 The Divine Will is Profound
After returning to the palace, Gao Lishi went straight to the Hall of Eternal Life, where the emperor's bedchamber was located. Before entering the hall, he learned from the palace staff that the emperor was still overwhelmed with grief and had stopped eating. Gao Lishi couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

"The General is back. How did things go at the Prince's residence today?"

Inside the palace, the emperor was reclining on a couch behind a curtain, looking far less energetic than before. Upon hearing that Gao Lishi had returned to the palace, he summoned him into the palace to inquire about his whereabouts.

Gao Lishi first recounted the funeral arrangements for Prince Qi's residence, and then couldn't help but advise, "Although the Emperor is grieving the loss of his brother, he still has the people of the world who are grateful for his favor. I urge the Emperor to cherish his health for the sake of his family and the nation, and not to neglect his meals!"

"I have lost my beloved brother, and my heart is burning with grief. I cannot eat, which only adds to my distress."

Upon hearing this, the sage sighed and then pointed to a jade screen on the side of the hall, saying, "This was found by Huiwen years ago. Seeing this object reminds me of him, which only adds to my sorrow. I will put it away and never display it again."

Several palace servants hurriedly collected the jade screen and took it away. Seeing that the emperor was still immersed in grief, Gao Lishi said, "I saw something else at the Wang residence just now, concerning the young Zhang, the son of Yan Gongsun..."

The sage, busy with countless affairs of state and now burdened with the grief of losing a loved one, had long forgotten about this young man whom he had admired so much just a few days ago.

Upon hearing of this young man's deeds, especially his clever scheme to help others, he said, "This young man was previously silent, but now he is making headlines. It seems that he was indeed suppressed by his elders. Now that he has broken free of his shackles, those who are friendly with him are all receiving his help."

Gao Lishi, wanting to dispel the emperor's sorrow with novel personnel, and seeing that this young man was indeed perceptive, said softly, "This young man is indeed righteous. I was ordered to enter the province the other day to introduce him, but it was all part of his scheme. Now he's plotting to help Huiwen manage his family's finances and wants to use this to invite me to work with him for profit. Little did I expect that the person he's introducing and plotting with is a member of the Duke of Huo's faction..."

The sage originally didn't care much about this trick of storing money in one place and withdrawing it in another. As the ruler of the world, he would not take ordinary matters to heart. However, after hearing about the people involved, he became interested and raised his hand to Gao Lishi, saying, "Tell me in detail."

So Gao Lishi recounted the relevant events in detail. Of course, he couldn't mention that he had tried to win over Zhang Dai to seize Wang Maozhong's assets, but he didn't hide anything else.

"If this plan is followed, the flow of money and goods between the two capitals will indeed be convenient. By using Huiwen's funeral to gain fame in both capitals, the wealthy people of both capitals will surely flock to him, and Duke Huo will have it. It's rare that the boy still remembers the General's kindness and has introduced you to his cause as well."

The emperor was equally astute. After listening to Gao Lishi's description, he immediately understood. He then frowned, feigning displeasure, and said, "However, he has repaid the Grand General, and I am grateful to him as well. How will I repay him?"

Although the sage was feigning anger, it made Gao Lishi feel slightly uneasy. He described the matter so clearly mainly to highlight that Duke Huo, Wang Maozhong, would benefit greatly from it, but he did not expect the sage's focus to be so unique.

“I am but a common man, and material possessions can bring me pleasure. The sage is the emperor, and I dare not offer advice unless it is for the benefit of the country.”

Previously, this kid was of no importance, but now that he was to be recruited as a disciple, Gao Lishi put in a good word for him.

Upon hearing this, the emperor's expression softened slightly, but he then said in a deep voice, "Among those favored by the imperial family is Consort Hui. This boy spoke to the Grand General but did not mention Consort Hui to him. There is a discrepancy in the favor shown to her. This must be relayed to him."

Gao Lishi quickly nodded in agreement, but a sense of doubt arose in his heart. The Emperor was a man of deep thoughts, and even he often misunderstood the Emperor's intentions. At this moment, he really couldn't understand why the Emperor would suddenly bring up Consort Hui and concern himself with whether it was fair to reward a mere young man who had offered a plan.

The sage did not say anything more, but simply pointed to the memorial on the table and said to Gao Lishi: "After Meng Wenli took office as the governor of Henan, he reviewed the documents submitted by Zhou Liangqian, the clerk in the prefecture, and found that he had repeatedly mentioned the water and land affairs in Luonan, and dared not conceal them, but compiled them into a memorial."

I have only just reviewed this matter and learned that agricultural work on the borders of Luoyang has been severely neglected. This truly pains me and fills me with sorrow. If not for this loyal and virtuous official, I would not have known. I hereby order Meng Wenli to conduct a thorough investigation and correct any wrongdoing. Zhou Liang shall be granted a proper burial with secret artifacts. General, please entrust this matter to your subordinates for immediate execution!

Gao Lishi quickly bowed in agreement, accepted the memorial handed over by the eunuch with both hands, and then left the hall.

After Gao Lishi left, the sage raised his hand and said, "Did your servants present Zhang with a letter of thanks the other day? Where is it kept? Please bring it here for me to see."

The palace servants hurried to the room where the documents were stored, and after searching for a while, they finally found the letter of thanks and presented it to the servants.

The Emperor had torn aside the thank-you letter that Zhang Jun had painstakingly written, not even bothering to read it. Now, however, Gao Lishi's mention of Zhang Jun's son reminded him of this, and he glanced at the letter. Seeing that it was filled with accounts of Zhang Jun's upbringing, the Emperor couldn't help but smile and say, "This must be Zhang Jun's handwriting. It has inherited his father's style, with rich and ornate language, but lacks his true essence and grandeur. Though skillful, it lacks talent—a pity indeed."

While criticizing Zhang Jun, the emperor frowned and fell into deep thought. He then took out a memorial from his desk, in which Li Yuanhong, the Vice Minister of the Chancellery, requested that Zhang Jiuling, the Secretary of the Chancellery, be reassigned as the Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices.

This memorial had been kept in the palace for many days, and the emperor had not yet given his reply. At this moment, he held in one hand the letter of thanks that Zhang Jun had drafted for his son, and in the other hand the memorial from Li Yuanhong. After thinking for a while, he finally approved Li Yuanhong's memorial.

However, the emperor immediately picked up his pen again and drafted an edict appointing Zhang Jun as a secretary in the Imperial Secretariat. But after finishing writing it, he did not issue it directly. Instead, he sealed it with lacquer and instructed the eunuch, "Keep this safe and present it to me in six months."

Appointing Zhang Jun as a drafter in the Imperial Secretariat at this moment would be too deliberate, and even the Emperor is unsure whether this appointment will be necessary in six months. This is merely a note to the Emperor for future reference.

After leaving the Hall of Eternal Life, Gao Lishi headed towards the Secretariat, pondering to himself. He noticed that the Emperor had many cases to attend to, yet he had specifically entrusted this matter to him. He suspected that the Emperor was conveying some kind of message through this.

The memorial submitted by Meng Wenli was presented to the emperor by him, and he hadn't paid much attention to it at the time. Now, recalling its contents more carefully, he realized it mainly concerned the matter of encroachment on fields and flood control in Luonan, as reported by the former registrar Zhou Liang. It seemed that the emperor intended to use this as an opportunity to rectify similar phenomena around Luoyang.

The imperial court spent a great deal of money on this Fengshan ceremony, so much so that the treasury is now empty. The emperor is staying in Luoyang and it is inconvenient for him to return west, which naturally makes the emperor quite anxious.

If the phenomenon of illegal occupation of land and water around Luoyang can be cracked down on and cleaned up, even if the gains cannot fill the treasury, it can immediately alleviate the predicament.

The previous downfall of half the officials in Henan Prefecture had already shocked the court officials. This momentum could be used to intimidate the officials in the outer court and prevent them from questioning or opposing. Zhou Liang had already passed away, and praising him would both let the officials know the direction of the political winds and try to avoid causing any further personnel disputes.

As for having Gao Lishi inform his subordinates about this matter, it was probably to allow Gao Lishi to control the emotions of the eunuchs. Since the reigns of Empress Wu and Emperor Zhongzong, the power of the eunuchs had gradually increased, and they had seized a lot of fertile land and beautiful houses around Luoyang, including a large amount of land owned by Gao Lishi.

Although Gao Lishi knew that he was the most favored by the emperor and that the rest were insignificant, he still had relatives, followers, and subordinates who flocked to him only for power, position, and wealth. With their support and reliance, Gao Lishi was able to maintain his influence and have the ability to carry out the tasks entrusted to him by the emperor.

Therefore, sometimes he not only has to consider the emperor's will, but also the demands of his subordinates. Otherwise, once his influence dissipates, even if he remains loyal and selfless, he can be loyal to anyone, but what the emperor needs are people who are both loyal and capable of solving his problems.

He dared not neglect the emperor's will, so he could only try to provide his disciples with some compensation in other ways.

Originally, Zhang Dai's suggestion was just a side effect to strike at Wang Maozhong, but now it seems he needs to take it more seriously and extract the profits to compensate the palace officials for their losses.

However, this would inevitably lead to a greater and more direct conflict with Wang Maozhong, and their relationship would become more strained... Wait, was this also within the sage's expectations?
Upon realizing this, Gao Lishi was startled again. He then recalled that the Emperor in the palace seemed completely unconcerned about Wang Maozhong's potential huge profit. So, this profit had already been calculated by the Emperor to lure the eunuchs and the Northern Army into a fight?
So, when the emperor proposed that Consort Hui be involved, it was to use Consort Hui's relationship with Zhang Dai to understand, guide, and control this struggle for interests.
Gao Lishi thought about it more and more and felt that this was possible. After all, the eunuchs and the Northern Palace Guards had always been at odds. If they were to cause trouble in the Forbidden City, it would inevitably make the palace uneasy.

However, if this conflict were channeled into a lucrative business in the marketplace, it would maintain competition and conflict between the two while minimizing the impact on the inner palace.

"The Emperor's will is truly profound!"

Realizing this, Gao Lishi let out a long sigh. His admiration for the sage stemmed not only from his status and position, but also from the fact that the longer he served the emperor, the more he appreciated the sage's shrewdness and wisdom. Even something as seemingly insignificant as this, done casually by the sage, had been a source of great difficulty for him, and he dared not claim to have fully grasped its meaning even after much contemplation.

Gao Lishi was immersed in the heartfelt admiration of being controlled by the sage. Then he thought of Zhang Shizi, whose talent had just begun to emerge, and how he was already being used by the sage at will. He couldn't help but sigh that all the talented people in the world under this sage's rule, who seemed to have their own talents, were actually just pawns in the sage's scheme to build the world and play a game with Heaven.

The more he imagined it, the more admiring he became, completely unaware that the newly brought-in pawn had already planned to poach his men and secure retirement benefits for his subordinates.

(End of this chapter)