Tang Dynasty: A Guide to Avoiding Pitfalls for Li Er at the Start

Chapter 304 A dignified county magistrate, actually doing needlework at home.

Just after noon the next day, Park Ji-hyeo, the envoy of Goguryeo, finally came to visit.

He was afraid of being turned away again like yesterday, so he went to inquire about it.

Knowing that Wen He liked to sleep and was quite lazy, he had an idea in mind, which is why he visited at this time.

As Zhou Fu led him toward the main hall, he and Wen He entered the room one after the other.

"I was busy yesterday and neglected the messenger."

As soon as Wen He entered, she smiled and cupped her hands in apology, but there was no trace of remorse in her words.

Park Ji-hyu looked over upon hearing the sound and was surprised.

Although I had heard that the other party was still young, I was still secretly surprised to see such a childish appearance in person.

But he quickly composed himself and bowed respectfully: "Park Ji-hye, envoy of the King of Goryeo, greets the Prince of Goyang."

"You may rise, Your Excellency." Wen He smiled and returned the greeting, then walked straight to the head of the table and took a seat, gesturing with her hand, "Please sit."

Park Ji-hyo did not sit down, but instead gestured for his attendant to come forward and take an exquisite wooden box from the other person's hand.

"This is a gift that my king specifically instructed me to bring to the county magistrate before my departure. Please accept it with a smile."

"This... isn't quite appropriate," Wen He declined verbally, but secretly gave Li Yifu a meaningful look.

Li Yifu understood immediately, stepped forward to take the wooden box, and slowly opened it in front of Wen He.

The moment the lid was opened, a dazzling light suddenly shone forth.

A fist-sized pearl lay quietly in the brocade, round and lustrous, its white color almost dazzling under the light in the hall.

Park Ji-hyo stared intently at Wen He's expression. In his view, no one in the world could resist the temptation of such a generous gift.

He smiled and said, “These are pearls that my king specially prepared for the county magistrate. In addition, there are six other pearls of this size that I intend to present to His Majesty of the Tang Dynasty.”

Wen He narrowed her eyes slightly, tapped the edge of the box lightly with her fingertips, and then gestured for Li Yifu to close the box.

"Your Excellency has gone to such lengths; surely you have something to ask of me?"

He feigned ignorance and asked in a calm tone.

Upon seeing this, Park Ji-hyo immediately stood up, cupped his hands, and raised his voice sharply: "My king ascended the throne at a young age, but the treacherous minister Yeon Tae-jo seized control of the government. Although he was devoted to Tang, he was unable to act due to the presence of treacherous officials. Now, although Yeon Tae-jo has passed away, his rebellious son Yeon Gaesomun has inherited his father's will, seized control of the government, and acted perversely. He is truly a major threat to Goryeo!"

He spoke with great emotion, as if he truly had suffered a great injustice.

"Speak the key."

Wen He, however, looked impatient and interrupted him directly, feigning arrogance.

"It's tiring to listen to people beat around the bush."

Park Ji-hyu's words caught in his throat, and his lips twitched involuntarily. He hadn't expected the young man to be so direct, and after a moment of stunned silence, he forced himself to say, "My king begs the Great Tang... to eliminate the traitor. The county magistrate previously said he would exchange him for those skills, and my king is very willing."

"You mean, you want the Tang Dynasty to send troops to Goguryeo?"

Wen He suddenly smiled, a smile with a hint of slyness.

Park Ji-hyu's expression changed drastically, and he shook his head repeatedly: "No, no, no, it's not about sending troops. All His Majesty needs to do is issue an edict to dismiss Yeon Gaesomun from his post!"

He knew very well that given Goguryeo's current situation, it was absolutely crucial not to allow the Tang army to enter the country; that would be tantamount to inviting a wolf into the house.

However, Yeon Gaesomun held military power, which Gao Jianwu could not shake. He could only rely on the prestige of the Tang Dynasty and exert pressure in the name of the emperor.

Wen He picked up her teacup, took a slow sip, and a knowing look flashed in her eyes.

Gao Jianwu had a clever plan: to exchange a few pearls for the Tang Dynasty's "Imperial Sword," thus eliminating a major threat without paying any real price.

"Does the envoy believe that the decree of the Tang Dynasty carries any weight in Goguryeo?"

Wen He put down her teacup and looked sharply at Pu Zhixiu.

"If Yeon Gaesomun were willing to listen, how could he have seized control of the government?"

Park Ji-hyo was taken aback by the question, but then retorted, "Your Excellency is unaware of the truth. Although Yeon Gaesomun is arrogant, he still holds the Tang Dynasty in awe. As long as His Majesty speaks, he will certainly not dare to disobey!"

"Oh?" Wen He raised an eyebrow. "What if he really dares to disobey?"

Park Ji-hyu's face paled, and he stammered, "Then...that would be openly opposing the Tang Dynasty. My king will unite with loyal and righteous men within the country to jointly punish the traitor. However...the Tang Dynasty will still be needed to deter them."

Ultimately, he wanted the Tang Dynasty to be his backing, but was unwilling to pay any price.

Wen He laughed, a laugh tinged with sarcasm: "The envoy seems to have forgotten that last year Yeon Gaesomun invaded our Great Tang's Liaoxi region and killed our border people. Now you expect our dynasty to 'deter' him? That's wishful thinking."

Park Ji-hyo's forehead was beaded with sweat as he quickly said, "That's all a misunderstanding. It was Yeon Gaesomun who acted without authorization, and my king has already strictly forbidden it..."

"Whether it's a misunderstanding or not, the Tang Dynasty knows the truth."

Wen He interrupted him, her tone suddenly turning cold.

"As for whether His Majesty will issue a decree, I cannot make that decision. However..."

He changed the subject, his gaze falling on the wooden box in Li Yifu's hand: "I accept your gift, sir. As for what happens next... allow me to consider it."

Upon hearing this, Park Ji-hyu's face immediately lit up with joy: "Thank you, Your Excellency! I, the King, will never forget your help today!"

"No need to thank me."

Wen He said calmly, "I didn't say I would help you. It's just that this pearl looks really nice, so I'm keeping it to admire. Don't misunderstand me."

Park Ji-hyu's smile froze on his face. He cursed the young man inwardly for going back on his word, but dared not show it on his face. He could only bow and say, "It was my rudeness. Everything is up to the magistrate to decide."

Wen He waved his hand: "Yifu, see the guest out."

After Park Ji-kyoo left, Lee Yi-bu stepped forward with a wooden box in his hands: "Sir, this is a pearl..."

“Sent to the palace.”

Wen He naturally wouldn't accept this. It was just a pretty-looking stone.

"Sir, would the Tang Dynasty like to help eliminate that Yeon Gaesomun?" Li Yifu asked curiously.

Wen He turned to look at him and immediately laughed.

Li Yifu scratched his head blankly, then awkwardly cupped his hands and said, "Please teach me, sir."

Wen He picked up her teacup, took a sip, let out a long sigh, and then asked him, "At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, when Cao Cao held the emperor hostage, if someone had asked Emperor Xian of Han to kill Cao Cao, could he have done it?"

“Of course not… but our Great Tang is, after all, the nominal suzerain state of Goguryeo,” Li Yifu said.

“You said it yourself, it’s only in name; Yeon Gaesomun doesn’t acknowledge it.” Wen He scoffed.

"Then why did the King of Goryeo still do this?" Lee Yi-phu asked, puzzled.

Wen He shook her head and chuckled, "Because of stupidity."

This event did indeed happen in the original history. Gao Jianwu wanted to use the name of the Tang Dynasty to get rid of Yeon Gaesomun, but he himself became Cao Mao and was assassinated.

In the end, there wasn't even a funeral.

Subsequently, Yeon Gaesomun supported his younger brother Gojang as the new king of Goryeo, and took this opportunity to spread hatred against the Tang Dynasty in Goguryeo, thereby breaking away from the so-called vassal status.

In the same year, Yeon Gaesomun launched a war against Silla and Baekje, which triggered the first war between the Tang Dynasty and Goguryeo.

At present, the Tang Dynasty cannot afford any conflict with Goguryeo, otherwise it will be attacked from both sides.

As for Gao Jianwu, Yeon Gaesomun would not kill him now, since he is not yet powerful enough.

"I'm raising a tiger too," Wen He sighed, then ordered a carriage to be prepared and he entered the palace.

When he arrived at the Liangyi Hall.

Li Shimin and the officials from the Three Departments and Six Ministries were all present.

When he learned of Goguryeo's request, there was no doubt that no one agreed.

"However, we cannot be too decisive in our refusal; we must still give the King of Goryeo some hope," Fang Xuanling said after a moment of contemplation.

Du Ruhui immediately agreed, saying, "We can use this as an excuse to strengthen the military in Liaodong and obtain some military supplies and money from Goguryeo."

The two old foxes exchanged a knowing smile.

When the two men were of one mind, Li Shimin would almost never object.

"Furthermore, I believe we can secretly leak the information to Yeon Gaesomun," Changsun Wuji then stepped forward and said.

“And Baekje and Silla.” Fang Xuanling nodded in agreement and added, “If these two countries find out, they will certainly not let go of the opportunity to harass Goguryeo. In this way, Yeon Gaesomun will also be wary and will not take action against the King of Goryeo.”

Those old foxes!

Standing there, Wen He suddenly felt like a little white rabbit.

Compared to them, I was still too naive.

Upon leaving the palace, Wen He lost a fist-sized pearl and only took one hundred strings of cash as compensation.

He did not attend the court meeting the following day, but Park Ji-hyo visited his residence again that afternoon.

With a beaming smile, they presented a large box of gifts, including several ginseng roots, a specialty of Goguryeo.

After seeing the person off, Wen He didn't even look at anything before sending all these things into the palace.

Because meeting the Goguryeo envoy had wasted a day of his time, Li Shimin specially gave him two extra days off.

But before he could even rest, news came from the wool workshop.

"The wool that was delivered before has all been processed and woven into wool yarn. In addition, we have received news from the north that the roads have been blocked by heavy snow this year, and the new batch of wool will not be delivered until at least the spring."

The one who came to deliver the message was Chen Dahai, the same one from before.

He and several other Hundred Riders from the second team had their identities revealed, so Wen He had transferred them to the first team.

"Thank you for your hard work. The brothers who guarded the wool workshop deserve credit for this." Wen He patted him on the shoulder and rewarded him.

"Thank you very much, young man." Chen Dahai bowed in thanks.

Then Wen He asked him to send some wool yarn to his residence.

A few days later.

Li Shimin unexpectedly learned some news that surprised him.

"You mean that brat has been doing needlework in the manor these past few days?"

"Yes, I have been on leave for several days. I only found out after asking that the magistrate of Gaoyang County is making winter clothes for Lady Wen. It is said that the three princes and the Crown Prince all have them."

Gao Yue was also quite surprised when she first heard the news.

A dignified son of a founding county, yet he stayed at home doing needlework.

If this gets out, people will laugh their heads off.

Winter clothes? Wool!

Li Shimin suddenly stood up from his seat.

The sudden scene startled Gao Yue, who quickly bowed and asked.

"His Majesty?"

Li Shimin's lips curled up in a high smile, his eyes gleaming, and he spoke to him.

"Go to Wanchun Palace and ask the Empress to change into civilian clothes. Also, bring Lizhi along so she can leave the palace with me."

(End of this chapter)