Tang Dynasty Little Godfather

Chapter 237 Beating
Incomprehensible!

Gao Lishi's already not very clear eyes became even more confused.

Asking Wang Xi about this matter was absurd enough, and Wang Xi, as expected, did not offer any insightful opinion befitting a young prodigy.

Even if one were to listen to Wang Xi's words with utmost objectivity, they would still be found to be naive from the inside out, from top to bottom.

Tong Yan Wuji.

Normally, even if there's some truth to it, as an elder, a few words of praise, a promising future, would suffice, and that would be the best one can do.

But Li Longji seemed to have actually taken it to heart.

This is absolutely outrageous.

In fact, not only Gao Lishi, but even Wang Xi himself felt it was a bit outrageous.

To be honest, he really didn't expect Li Longji to ask him. His initial idea was to give Wang Maozhong a chance, but whether he could actually do it was up to Wang Maozhong to work hard.

These kids are already doing a great job to be able to do this, but they never expected that Li Longji would come to ask for their opinion.

After leaving the palace, Wang Xi rushed to the outskirts of the city without stopping.

Since the appearance of the bird wing board, Cui Gu'er and his friends found a group of craftsmen, set up tents by the river, and spent every day by the river researching various water sports.

Wang Xi also strongly agreed with this. In fact, he was the one who advocated this movement. He came here to relax and not to become a star. Staying in the academy every day to study opera would be very boring.

Here, you can enjoy water sports while studying buoyancy – wouldn't that be wonderful?

"what?"

Huangfu Sengnian looked at Wang Xi in shock, "You said...you said His Majesty specifically sought you out to inquire whether Uncle Wang is capable of serving as Minister of Works?"

Wang Xi nodded.

Wang Shuang gripped his arm tightly, "Then what did you say?"

"you still need to ask."

Wang Xi said, "Of course I support your father. In fact, His Majesty was planning to appoint your father as the Vice Minister of Works, but I said that there's nothing special about being the Vice Minister of Works. If you're going to be a minister, you should be the Minister of Works."

"Brothers."

Wang Shuang excitedly hugged Wang Xi, saying, "He truly is my brother, a loyal friend indeed."

Huangfu Sengnian asked, "But...but why did His Majesty ask you this?"

Wang Xi said, "They said it was to help me promote Taoist thought."

Even so, it's still outrageous.

Huangfu Sengnian shook his head and said to Wang Xi, "It seems that even we ourselves may underestimate your position in His Majesty's heart."

Wang Xi shrugged and said to Wang Shuang, "Brother Shuang, you can't tell your dad about this."

Wang Shuang said, "I know. I haven't been back these past few days because I'm afraid my dad will ask me about my qigong again. Originally, I was the worst student among the four of us, but now I'm even better than Xiaoman and Sengnian."

Li Jieman shuddered. "Don't let my dad know about this. Otherwise, what if he does the same thing? I worked so hard to gain weight, I can't lose it."

Wang Shuang said, "Don't worry about that, I know all about these things."

Wang Xi laughed and said, "Alright! Alright! This matter ends here. We have done everything we could. From now on, don't worry about it, lest we give ourselves away."

Wang Shuang said, "Let's go, let's go play in the water."

Li Jieman said, "I wonder if the bird-winged boat is ready yet."

Zichen Palace.

Today, Li Longji was resting, but he did not summon Wang Xi to the palace. Instead, he invited two old friends to drink with him.

It was Jiang Jiao and Wang Maozhong.

The three of them sat together on the couch, with a small table in the middle containing a pot of fine wine and two or three dishes to accompany it. There was no distinction between ruler and subject at the table.

After downing a cup of wine, Li Longji put his hand on Wang Maozhong's arm and said emotionally, "Maozhong! In recent years, you have been raising horses for me. You have worked hard and made great contributions. I have always remembered you."

Wang Maozhong hurriedly said, "Ever since I was old enough to understand, I've been doing things for Sanlang. I'm used to it. If Sanlang doesn't ask me to help with some work one day, I don't think I'll know what to do."

Li Longji laughed and said, "Don't worry, absolutely not. Looking at the court, if I had to say who I trust the most in handling matters, it would still be you, Wang Maozhong."

So many ministers, scholars, and people from noble families, couldn't raise these horses well, which led to unfavorable military campaigns year after year. Since Emperor Taizong, our Great Tang Dynasty has always relied on cavalry to conquer the world and end wars as quickly as possible to reduce the burden on the national treasury.

Whether for defense or territorial expansion, horse administration is of paramount importance, but only you, Wang Maozhong, can manage it so well.

This is not just something said after drinking. The difficulty in raising horses lies not in raising the horses themselves, but in understanding human relationships and social dynamics.

During Wu Zetian's reign, the horse administration was a complete mess. Many powerful and wealthy people seized pastures for themselves, and the country's horses became private horses.

However, after Wang Maozhong arrived, he disregarded all social niceties and withdrew everything. This is why people disliked Wang Maozhong, believing that he was abusing the emperor's favor and acting lawlessly.

Little did he know that Li Longji needed this kind of recklessness in him; otherwise, the matter could not be accomplished, and Li Longji did not want to fall out with these powerful figures.

Hearing Li Longji's praise, Wang Maozhong felt a little proud and chuckled, "That's all thanks to your wisdom and skill, Sanlang. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to do it either."

Li Longji laughed and said, "There are no outsiders here, so don't be modest. I have seen your methods and admire them very much. Therefore, I am planning to promote you to Minister of Works soon."

Wang Maozhong was overjoyed and was about to express his gratitude when Li Longji raised his hand and said, "Don't rush to express your gratitude. Although I have this intention, the prime ministers will not agree."

Wang Maozhong was furious and exclaimed, "I knew it! They look down on my background, thinking that I was born a servant and can't be on equal footing with them. But they don't even consider that if they were truly capable, it wouldn't be my turn!"

At this moment, Jiang Jiao suddenly said, "Sanlang, I used to support Mao Zhong, but now it seems that Zhang Xiangong and the others are right. Mao Zhong is indeed not suitable."

Wang Maozhong pointed at Jiang Jiao and said, "Brother Jiang, even you think of me like that?"

Jiang Jiao said excitedly, "I'm saving you. With your temper, you're only suited to staying on the grasslands raising horses. You're not suited for the imperial court at all."

Before Wang Maozhong could speak, Li Longji suddenly said, "Why is Maozhong unsuitable? You should explain why."

Jiang Jiao said, "Sanlang, look at his temper. How can he get along with Master Zhang and the others? In the ranch, he is the boss and he makes the decisions. So what?"

However, above the Ministry of Works are the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Rites, and the Three Departments. No matter how capable he is, with discord between superiors and subordinates, this matter cannot be accomplished.

Ultimately, the policies were drafted by the three provinces.

Li Longji frowned.

Wang Maozhong panicked when he saw this, realizing that his prize had been snatched away. Just as he was about to explain, Li Longji suddenly said, "Actually, Maozhong is just impatient, and his impatience stems from wanting to do good. He only recognizes right and wrong and has no ill intentions."

Wang Maozhong's eyes welled up with tears, "Sanlang understands me best."

After saying that, he turned to Jiang Jiao and said, "Don't ask me to drink next time. I can't drink with you."

Jiang Jiao said, "But in the imperial court, there is not only right and wrong, but also a distinction between superiors and subordinates. If we do not take this into account, and the three provinces and the six ministries become outwardly united but inwardly at odds, it will ruin Sanlang's ambitions."

Wang Maozhong said, "I'll just do my job and not argue with them. I don't want to argue with them either. They're the ones who bully me all the time."

Jiang Jiao said, "It's common for superiors to make things difficult for their subordinates, and Zhang Xiangong will definitely make things difficult for you. The question is whether you can tolerate it?"

"I."

Wang Maozhong's face was tense.

Li Longji hurriedly said, "Forget it, forget it, Mao Zhong, I also think that Doctor Jiang is right. They will definitely make things difficult for you. Let's not put up with this. You continue to help me take care of the horses. Let's keep to ourselves."

Wang Maozhong became extremely anxious and said, "Sanlang, a true man can bend and stretch, I can also endure it."

Jiang Jiao waved her hand: "It's not worth it."

Li Longji nodded and said, "That's right."

Wang Maozhong pointed at Jiang Jiao and said, "Stop interrupting." Then, with a thought in mind, he turned to Li Longji and said, "Sanlang, I want to go to the Ministry of Works because I believe that Taoist thought can help the country improve its construction. In my opinion, if Taoist thought is applied to the Ministry of Works, it will be of great benefit to the country. It's worth it."

Moreover, I know perfectly well that it's better to prove that Taoist thought is truly effective than to argue with them; then they'll have nothing to say.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Jiao gasped, "Mao Zhong! A scholar should be viewed with new eyes after three days' absence. You actually managed to understand this principle? Could it be that a master is guiding you from behind?"

Wang Maozhong waved his hand and said, "Go away, go away, who are you looking at?"

Li Longji smiled and nodded, "It seems that Mao Zhong has made great progress recently. Very well, I will promote you to Minister of Works."

Wang Maozhong, however, was not happy. He glanced at the two men and said, "I know, you two conspired to make fun of me."

Jiang Jiao chuckled and said, "If it were anyone else, Sanlang wouldn't bother with this. You should understand Sanlang's good intentions. The Minister of Works is secondary; the key is this Taoist philosophy."

Wang Maozhong suddenly got off the bed, clasped his hands in a salute, and said, "Don't worry, Sanlang, if I don't do a good job, I'll bring my head to you."

"There's no need for that," Li Longji chuckled. "I have absolute faith in your abilities. I'm just worried that your temper might cause discord with your colleagues. This isn't like raising horses; you can't handle it all by yourself."

Wang Maozhong said, "I've got it."

"Come on, let's keep drinking."

Li Longji then summoned Wang Maozhong to his bedside. After a cup of wine, he asked, emboldened by the alcohol, "Minister Wang, what are your plans when you go to the Ministry of Works?"

Without hesitation, Wang Maozhong shouted, "When I get there, I'll send all those officials to the Wuming Academy to study Taoist thought."

Li Longji was taken aback, stunned for a moment, then suddenly laughed heartily, "Good! That's the arrogance I want from you. Haha!"

Jiang Jiao said, "Sanlang, don't be so happy. You'll get scolded later."

Li Longji, however, took it in stride, saying, "My biggest takeaway from being emperor for these ten years is that if you want to get anything done, you're bound to get scolded. Hehe."

(End of this chapter)