Tang Dynasty Little Godfather

Chapter 275 Irreversible
The purpose of summoning Wang Maozhong was simple: to impart the secret method of making bamboo paper to him and then have the Ministry of Works begin production.

Although the Tang Dynasty was very tolerant of commerce, one reason for this was that commerce was not very developed at that time, so there was not much to regulate. Therefore, the Tang Dynasty government relied on itself for its own development.

The common people cannot compare with the imperial court.

Before the emergence of fertilizer mills and wineries, large-scale construction was entirely concentrated in the imperial court.

Wang Maozhong held the paper with mixed feelings of joy and anger. He was pleased because it would indeed be a great help to the Ministry of Works in construction, and at the same time, it would also reduce the burden on the imperial court. In any case, the cost of all materials needed in Guanzhong was many times higher, and the transportation costs were extremely expensive no matter where they were transported from. If Guanzhong could manufacture them itself, it would be of great help to the country and its people.

On the other hand, he thought to himself, "Those brats didn't offer it to me, but instead offered it directly to the emperor."

You're even trying to steal my flattery?

Outrageous.

Little did they know, Wang Xi and his group were thinking about how to avoid involving Wang Maozhong, as that would definitely offend Zhang Shuo.

At the same time, after reviewing Linghu Xiaozhe's resume, Li Longji decided to promote Linghu Xiaozhe to the position of Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice.

Firstly, Linghu Xiaozhe had indeed done a good job in Chang'an County, and it was said that he would be rewarded according to his merits and promoted as usual, so there was no problem with that.

Secondly, he certainly wanted officials who agreed with Taoist thought to enter the Three Departments and Six Ministries.

The reason why Li Longji is called a gifted emperor is because he showed a maturity beyond his years at a very young age.

In the first ten years, he first dealt with all the disobedient ministers, and then made all the meritorious officials of the Xiantian Coup idle at home, keeping military power firmly in his hands.

However, according to historical records, or rather, people's impressions of this era, there was no particularly impressive policy, unlike the "releasing military power over a cup of wine" or the "indiscriminate killing" of the Kuku.

There weren't any groundbreaking reforms or changes that could be written into textbooks.

It seems that during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, there were only the prosperous Kaiyuan era and the An Lushan Rebellion.

So how did he do it?
This is enough to show that he is not implementing a one-size-fits-all reform, but rather adopting a salami-slicing approach. When an opportunity arises, he will make a cut; if there is no opportunity, he will wait.

It's like boiling a frog in lukewarm water.

This shows that he is very patient, and patience is often a sign of maturity.

He was similar in promoting Taoist thought. He knew there would be great resistance in the court, but he did not take a hard line. Although he now held great power, he was still very cautious.

You, Linghu Xiaozhe, admire Taoist thought and have good abilities, so I will promote you.

This is a signal!
If you want to advance, you have to follow the leader's thinking.

However, what Li Longji didn't know was that this was actually a huge misunderstanding.

Because Linghu Xiaozhe didn't want to improve himself; on the contrary, he wanted to protect himself!
Upon suddenly hearing that the emperor was going to promote him to the position of Vice Minister of Justice, his first thought was that Zhang Shuo was returning the favor.

He got the position of Vice Minister of Justice in exchange for just one piece of paper—that's a huge windfall!

Linghu Xiaozhe excitedly shouted in front of his wife, "Look, look! Zhang Shuo is quite reasonable. He's not bullying us. We can get a vice minister of the Ministry of Justice for just one piece of paper. Isn't that worth it?"
You're so soft-hearted, what do you know?

Lady Linghu knew the truth, and she had a bad temper. Seeing her husband's smug look, she was very unhappy and started arguing with him. During the argument, she revealed the truth.

What Zhang said?
What a daydream.

This is all thanks to our daughter. It was our daughter who asked that young master of the Wang family for help and presented the paper to the emperor, which is how you got the position of Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice.

Upon learning the reason, Linghu Xiaozhe panicked even more!

what is this?
This is betrayal!

If we do that, we can't agree to the Yuan family's request in the first place. If we agree to the Yuan family's request on one hand, and then stab them in the back on the other, what will the Yuan family think? What will Zhang Shuo think?
Having offended the current Grand Secretary, how could this Vice Minister of Justice possibly continue in his position?

Fortunately, Madam Linghu is usually quite fierce, otherwise, she would have had to go through the whole competition.

Linghu Xiaozhe was so angry that he ran away from home.

This is unbearable.

How could you do that?

This is tantamount to courting death and is a major taboo in officialdom.

Meanwhile, the Yuan family also quickly learned the news, as the Ministry of Works was already preparing to produce this kind of bamboo paper.

For a moment, he was furious.

He felt that he had been played by the Linghu family.

The most bewildered of them all was Lady Zixia.

Because she's the middleman.

This was what she feared most. Although she had always been biased towards the Yuan family, which was actually biased towards herself, she believed that the relationship would soon be eased as long as everyone made more money.

Moreover, her relationship with the Linghu family is actually very important to her.

But the Linghu family's actions have inevitably pushed the situation to an irreversible point.

The relationship between the two families has completely broken down.

And she suffered the greatest loss.

However, she believed there must be some misunderstanding, and that the Linghu family wouldn't do something so foolish. So she first reassured the Yuan family, and then immediately went to the Linghu family to inquire about the reason.

It turned out that it was done by two women and two children.

The two women refer to the two women from the Yuchi family, while the two children are Linghu Changge and Wang Xi.

Lady Zixia was so angry that she almost vomited blood.

In fact, according to common sense, this situation should never happen.

Because it's impossible!

Unfortunately, Wang Xi could see the emperor at any time and was deeply favored by the emperor.

He gets so impulsive that you can't stop him.

This has blown up!

The Wang family. "My aunt is here too!"

Wang Xi, who had just returned home from school, pretended to be surprised when he saw Madam Zixia.

Princess Xue asked, "Que'er, have you seen His Majesty recently?"

Wang Xi said, "Yes! I saw him just two days ago."

Princess Xue frowned slightly and asked again, "Why did you go to see the Emperor?"

Wang Xi said shyly, "I'm just trying to take credit."

Princess Xue asked, "What merit are you seeking?"

Wang Xi said, "Mother, do you know that our Wuming Academy recently invented a new type of paper made of bamboo? It's cheaper and more people can use it. Uncle was very happy and praised me highly."

Lady Zixia asked calmly, "Was it really invented by you?"

Wang Xi blinked guiltily, "Yes, yes!"

Madam Zixia said angrily, "Nonsense, that was clearly invented by the Linghu family."

Wang Xi asked in surprise, "How did Auntie know?"

After saying that, he quickly covered his mouth.

All I can say is, this guy's acting skills are truly...

Princess Xue slammed her hand on the table and said, "Tell me the truth now!"

"Oh."

Wang Xi nodded and said, "That's right. Sister Changge said that her uncle's family invented a kind of bamboo paper, which is very good, but they were bullied by the Yuan family and forced to hand over the secret recipe."

The child could not bear to see such a thing, so he agreed to help Sister Changge.

The child presented the paper to her uncle and even put in a good word for her father. She didn't know if her uncle had gotten her father a promotion.

Lady Zixia exclaimed in shock, "So Uncle Linghu's promotion is also related to you?"

Wang Xi asked excitedly, "What kind of promotion did you get? Is it a big one?"

Lady Zixia glared at him angrily, "You know nothing, what are you meddling in here for?"

Wang Xi was startled, pouted, and said aggrievedly, "I...I didn't know. What's wrong with me standing up for Sister Changge?"

Madam Zixia said angrily, "What is your relationship with Linghu Changge that you are helping her like this?"

"I won't tell you," Wang Xi said with a hint of smugness.

Princess Xue asked incredulously, "Aren't you with Xue Bao'er?"

Wang Xi chuckled and said, "There's no conflict between them."

Princess Xue was speechless for a moment. "You brat, what are you doing in the academy all day?"

Wang Xi quickly explained, "It's mainly studying. The rest I did in my spare time. It's because my mother gave birth to such an outstanding child that they all love me very much."

Princess Xue snorted, "This has nothing to do with Mother; it's all because of your father."

Wang Xi said, "Then you can't blame the child."

"Yes!"

Lady Zixia, who was standing to the side, suddenly changed her expression and smiled slightly, saying, "Sister, don't blame Que'er. They are still children and don't understand many things."

Princess Xue was slightly taken aback, glanced at Lady Zixia, but quickly realized what she meant and sighed, "I've heard this sentence hundreds of times, but the question is when will I finally understand?"

Wang Xi asked, feeling very wronged, "Mother, what did I do wrong?"

Princess Xue frowned. "You've been flirting with noblewomen everywhere, don't you even realize what you've done wrong?"

Wang Xi lowered his head and remained silent.

Princess Xue said, "Go to the ancestral hall and face the wall to reflect on your mistakes."

Wang Xi said, "Mother, it was Father who always said that. You have always been the heroine who saved me from the ancestral hall!"

Princess Xue almost lost her composure, her phoenix eyes glaring.

Get away! Get away!
After Wang Xi left, Madam Zixia said, "Sister, we can only put this matter on Que'er for now. If the Linghu family and the Yuan family really fall out, it will not benefit anyone."

Princess Xue seemed to have already thought of this, and said only, "But you must also guarantee that they will not blame Que'er."

Madam Zixia smiled and nodded, but at the same time said, "Now, apart from my sister, who would dare to blame Que'er? He went to the palace, and Linghu Xiaozhe was directly promoted to Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice."

Princess Xue said, "I would rather he couldn't do it. This child's mind is full of women. He is so naive, yet he is deeply favored by the Emperor. Sooner or later, he will cause a great disaster."

Madam Zixia understood immediately, "Sister, don't worry, I guarantee they will never blame Que'er."

For her, relationships have always been the most important interest.

She didn't want the relationship between the Linghu family and the Yuan family to break down. The best solution now was to make Wang Xi and Linghu Changge take the blame.

As the saying goes, children speak without restraint.

She quickly went to find Linghu Xiaozhe and explained her plan.

Linghu Xiaozhe readily agreed. He didn't want to offend Zhang Shuo, and repeatedly assured him that he would keep a close eye on his wife and would never let them run wild.

However, it's too late!

When Madam Zixia went to the Yuan family and told them her carefully prepared speech, she was met with ridicule from the Yuan family.

You've been played.

It turns out that Madam Yuchi had already approached the Dou, Xue, and Li families, as well as the parents of the nameless academy, to persuade them to leave the coal mining industry organized by Madam Zixia. She even claimed that she would build a new force around the nameless academy.

(End of this chapter)