Tang Dynasty Swordsman.

Li Ji frowned: "What kind of mobilization is this? Are they sending reinforcements to Heyang?"

Cui Qi glanced at him: "Go ask him yourself."

Li Ji carried his official credentials, and the soldiers guarding the bridge dared not refuse to answer, thus learning the whole story. It turned out that Shi Siming had dispatched General Li Guiren with 5,000 cavalry westward, capturing Xin'an and Mianchi, and advancing directly towards Shanzhou. Lai Zhen had immediately sent Wei Boyu with the Shence Army to defend against them at Jiangzi Slope southeast of Shanxian County. However, the specifics of the battle, whether they had won or lost, remained unknown.

As for the Luoyang palace, those soldiers had no idea.

Li Ji wanted to wait by the bridge for another day or two, until he knew the outcome of the Battle of Jiangzi Slope, before leaving. However, Cui Qi said, "Since you have revealed your official credentials, how do you know that Yu Chaoen won't send someone to arrest you? Anyway, you can't get involved in the battle at the front, so you might as well go and rest."

She said it casually, assuming that Li Ji, who was always headstrong, would definitely not listen. But to her surprise, Li Ji was unusually obedient this time: "Since you ordered me to leave, then I will leave."

Cui Qi said, "How could I command you?"

Li Ji replied solemnly, "A true man should act freely and not be controlled by heaven, earth, or man. But ever since we were attacked on the road the other day, I have obeyed whatever you, Brother Cui, command." With that, he spurred his horse and rode away from the bridge, heading west. Cui Qi was stunned for a long time before he remembered to urge his horse to follow.

Continuing westward, after passing Ruicheng, they turned northwest and arrived at Puzhou. In fact, there was a place to cross the river south of Puzhou—the famous Fengling Ferry—though there was no bridge, there were ferries—but Cui Qi considered that Fengling Ferry was too close to Shanzhou and had checkpoints, fearing that Yu Chaoen's clutches could reach there. Therefore, her initial suggestion was to use the Pujin Bridge. Li Ji understood her intention and thought at the time: This little girl is indeed quite shrewd…

After crossing the Pujin Bridge, we entered Gyeonggi Province. Several days later, we finally arrived in Chang'an and entered through Tonghua Gate in the northeast of the city.

After entering the city, Li Ji asked Cui Qi, "Where are you going?"

Without turning his head, Cui Qi replied, "Naturally, I'll return to the Cui residence..."

"Shouldn't Lord Cui already be stationed in Jingzhou and Xiangyang? Is there anyone left in his residence?"

"The Third Young Master is here."

On the way, Li Ji inquired about Cui Guangyuan's family situation and learned that he came from the third branch of the Cui clan of Boling. He had a brother named Cui Guangdi, who did not serve in the government but guarded the family property—not in Boling, but in Lingchang County of Huazhou, which was now most likely captured by bandits. Cui Guangyuan had two daughters, both married, and three sons: the eldest son, nicknamed Qianling, died before reaching adulthood; the second son, Cui Gou, served as an official in Sichuan; and the third son, Cui Ju, was still studying.

Cui Qi then bowed to Li Ji to take her leave. Li Ji grabbed her reins and said sincerely, "What I said on the way was not a joke, but from the bottom of my heart. I will come to your door to ask for your help when you return to Chang'an."

Cui Qi did not respond. With a blank expression, he flicked his whip, brushed aside Li Ji's hand, and rode away.

Li Ji watched her retreating figure, sighed slightly, and then headed straight for Bai Sun Yuan.

Because he had a lot to say and wanted to find someone to talk to, and also a lot of information he hoped to find someone to ask, Li Ji thought to himself, "Who in Chang'an doesn't know that I'm close to you, Prince Fengjie? Why are you burying your head in the sand and insisting on visiting me in the dead of night? What's the point? I might as well just come to your door."

Li Shi greeted Li Ji in front of the main hall. Upon seeing Li Ji, he grabbed Li Ji's hand and asked earnestly, "My mother wrote a letter a while ago saying that you had gone to Luoyang again—why are you only returning today?"

Li Ji snorted coldly: "To tell you the truth, I shouldn't have returned to the capital in the last few days, but I was forced to come back!"

Seeing the indignant look on his face, Li Shi hurriedly asked, "You have been kind to Zhang Xun, how dare he mistreat you?"

Li Ji shook his head and said, "We've traveled a long way, let's ask for a drink of water first... Besides, I wonder what the situation is like in Longyou?"

Li Shi led him to the hall to sit opposite him, and told Li Ji that, as expected, the Tibetans had launched another military campaign this autumn!

Chapter Thirty-Four: The Calamity of the Eunuchs

Li Shi told Li Ji that it was a military report they had just received two days prior: the Tibetan army had re-emerged from the old site of the Anren Army and was marching towards Shanzhou, but the Hu general Hun Rijin had held Linfan City for several days without success. However, to Li Tan and Hun Shi's surprise, this time the enemy's commander was not Ma Chongying, but Da Shang Xizanmo…

Upon hearing this, Li Ji frowned slightly and asked, "How many barbarian bandits are there?"

"According to the report from the King of Qi, the number is probably over 70,000."

Li Ji had served in Li Tan's staff. While his literary skills were certainly insufficient for handling official documents like memorials, he had seen a lot of people coming and going and knew that such words could not be entirely trusted. It was common practice for local armies in those days to exaggerate the enemy's situation and inflate the enemy's troop numbers to secure reinforcements or at least more supplies when reporting military intelligence to the court. Relatively speaking, Li Tan and Yang Yan were more honest and dared not exaggerate too much, but one could only take 20% of what they said at most.

For example, when Ma Chongying invaded last year, Li Ji estimated the Tibetan army to be around 80,000, with 40% being the main force of the Yilun and Liangshang troops. However, when Li Tan reported to Chang'an, he rounded it up to 100,000. Of course, if it were another general, he might have dared to write 200,000 in the official documents.

Li Tan now reports that the barbarian army numbers 70,000, but it's estimated that at most it's only around 50,000.

Li Ji stroked his beard and pondered for a moment before analyzing to Li Shi, "If the barbarian bandits have not yet captured Linfan City, they are still in the valley and have not yet entered the plains. Therefore, it will be difficult to accurately estimate their troop numbers..."

Li Shi frowned and hurriedly asked, "Are you saying that Uncle Qi gave a false report on military affairs?!"

Li Ji shook his head: "It's not a lie..." I need to quickly defend Li Tan first, lest rumors spread later that I stabbed him in the back—"Recently, news came from within the Tibetan region that Yunma Chongying had been defeated and returned, but the Zanpu (Tibetan king) did not punish him severely, and his authority has not greatly declined. I thought he would personally lead a large army out of Longyou again this year, but unexpectedly... that fellow is not in the army. Could it be that the Tibetan rebels are openly attacking Shanzhou, but actually have other intentions?"

Upon hearing this, Li Shi was startled: "In Changwei's opinion, where will the main force of the barbarian bandits... or their powerful mobile army, launch a surprise attack? Will it be Liangzhou, or the He and Tao regions?"

Li Ji thought for a moment and replied, "After King Qi obtained Hun Shi as his advisor, he has already made comprehensive plans for the various prefectures in Longyou. Even if he cannot set up defenses everywhere due to insufficient troops, it is unlikely that the barbarian bandits will be able to invade through other routes. However, if the barbarian bandits take advantage of the situation to move north to Hexi or south to Shu, King Qi will be unable to act in time..."

"Of course, we've only just engaged the enemy, and only one piece of military intelligence has arrived. I'm thousands of miles away, so what I'm saying is merely inference and speculation. Perhaps Ma Chongying is personally leading a large force, following far behind; or perhaps he'll only join forces with his main force after capturing Suirong City and pacifying the barbarian army. I hope I'm overthinking it, but for the sake of the court, Hexi and Shu cannot be left undefended. Hexi has few troops, with only Deputy Commander Zhou Ben stationed in Guzang... To be honest, Deputy Commander Zhou is a conscientious and responsible man, unlike Gao Sheng of Longyou in the past, but in military affairs, I'm afraid he's not qualified to command a region, especially with so few troops..."

Li Shi asked, "Do you mean you hope the court will send a great general to replace Zhou Ben? But isn't changing commanders in the midst of battle a major taboo in military strategy?"

Li Ji smiled and said, "Your Highness is thinking of Henan, isn't he? Minister Guo is a general of the state, whose prestige is known throughout the world. It would be inappropriate to recall him in the face of battle and replace him with Minister Li. However, what if the general in Henan was not Minister Guo, but another general... such as Xu Shuji? How could such a commander be easily replaced? Furthermore, there is no need to send a general to replace Zhou Ben. We can send him a deputy, such as Hun Shizhi, to Longyou."

Li Shi nodded: "Alright, I will find a way... As for Shu, the military governor of Jiannan Xichuan is Lu Yuanyu, who is not a military talent. Fortunately, Gao Dafu is appointed as his deputy as the prefect of Shu and Peng prefectures, so there may be no worries."

When he talked with Li Ji about the officials and generals in the court and the provinces, even the important ministers and important towns, the two of them basically spoke by their names. Li Shi had a high status and position, and he didn't care about anyone except the prime minister. Li Ji, on the other hand, lacked a sense of awe. However, when "Gao Dafu" was mentioned, Li Shi not only did not call him by his name, but also by his courtesy name. Instead, he used his pseudonym.

Fortunately, Li Ji knew who he was referring to—Gao Shi. I really like his frontier poems, and since his poems are so vigorous and powerful, reflecting his personality, he must not be just a theorist. The fact that young Li Ji respected him so much also shows this.

Having roughly recounted the events in the west, Li Shi was about to ask Li Ji about his experiences in Luoyang when Li Ji preemptively asked, "On my way back, I heard that rebels invaded Shanzhou, and Wei Boyu led the Shence Army to defend against them at Jiangzi Slope—I wonder how the battle went, and if there's any news?"

Li Shi smiled and said, "If you had arrived half a day earlier, you wouldn't have received any news either—I just received a report that the Shence Army won a great victory, capturing six hundred horses, and Li Guiren fled in disarray. I was also very concerned about this battle. If we hadn't won, I would have had to ask my mother to return to the capital region again..."

Li Ji breathed a sigh of relief and said with a smile, "It seems that the situation in Henan has been temporarily stabilized, and Shi Siming's plans have run out!"

If Shi Siming had defeated the Tang army in Heyang—a possibility that seemed extremely slim given the situation when Li Ji left the Tang camp—he would have undoubtedly focused all his efforts on attacking the Luoyang Palace. And if he had already captured the Luoyang Palace—which was Li Ji’s greatest concern—he would have consolidated the situation around Luoyang in order to prepare for another decisive battle with Li Guangbi.

Shi Siming has only sent Li Guiren to attack Shanzhou, and his purpose is clear: to break through the stalemate from the west, threaten Tongguan, and force Li Guangbi or Zhang Xun to reinforce the city. If either Li or Zhang fails in either attempt, Shi Siming will deploy far more than just 5,000 cavalry to the west. The very desire to break through the stalemate indicates that the situation is deadlocked, and Shi Siming has no other effective solutions.

Upon hearing this, Li Shi was quite pleased and hurriedly asked, "I know that Li Guangbi has just defeated the enemy's sharp edge in Heyang and beheaded over a thousand. Could it be that a victory has also been won in Luoyang?"

Li Shi shook his head: "Luoyang... I don't know. I just returned from the army in Heyang..."

Only then did he report his experiences in Heyang to Li Shi in detail. He did not exaggerate his battles on the battlefield and his two surrenders, but he added some embellishment to the story of being driven out of the Tang camp, as if he had been kicked out by Li Guangbi, merely to vent his resentment.

After hearing the whole story, Li Shi couldn't help but raise his eyebrows and widen his eyes. He roared in anger, "How dare that scoundrel Yu Chaoen act so recklessly? If I were to gain power, I would surely tear this traitor to pieces to vent my hatred!"

Li Ji hurriedly said, "No need for Your Highness, please let me do the killing."

After his initial anger subsided, Li Shi couldn't help but sigh deeply: "Gao Lishi, Bian Lingcheng, and even Li... Yu Chaoen, how many eunuchs, relying on the emperor's favor, caused chaos in the army and ruined the country! I don't understand why the sage never realized this..."

Li Ji curled his lip and analyzed: "A ruler who resides above the nine heavens, but whose heart is filled with pride and laziness, will inevitably become deaf and blind, and easily misled by petty people—like Li Linfu, Yang Guozhong, and An Lushan in the past. But does the ruler truly not know their evil deeds? It is only because of his laziness that he is unwilling to put in the effort to control them, and thus he uses eunuchs as his confidants in the vain attempt to restrain them."

"Generally speaking, in the minds of rulers, eunuchs have no family, no offspring, and no faction; their honor and disgrace rest solely on the ruler's shoulders. They are easy to dismiss and kill, so they can be used with confidence and will not leave any future troubles. However, taking today's matter as an example, does Li Fuguo not have wives and concubines? Even if he has no real son, does he not have adopted sons? Many court officials are subservient to this old scoundrel, and even Li Kui refers to him as 'Five Fathers.' Doesn't that count as forming a faction?"

Li Shi stroked his beard and pondered, repeatedly digesting Li Ji's words.

Li Ji continued, “In the Former Han Dynasty, there were the disasters caused by Shi Xian and Hong Gong, who even harmed the imperial tutor; in the Later Han Dynasty, there was the rebellion of the Ten Attendants, who killed the Grand General. History is full of lessons from the past, yet rulers never seem to heed them. Why? Because they think it’s easy to dismiss or kill them. However, if eunuchs are used to control court officials, they will not be misled by the court officials, but rather by the eunuchs. Once they are misled, how can they be dismissed or killed at will? Moreover, even in the Han Dynasty, eunuchs were not allowed to command troops… They were not often used, probably only Jian Shuo—so if eunuchs gained military power, they would be even more difficult to control.”

His last words were aimed at Yu Chaoen. Although Yu Chaoen was currently only a military supervisor and couldn't be said to have truly controlled the army, he was only one step away. As for Wang Jiahe, Dou Wenchang, Huo Xianming, and others, they were minor figures and could be disregarded for the time being.

Li Shi nodded: "Chang Wei is right. If a ruler uses eunuchs, it is because they cannot control the court officials, but they can manage their subordinates. Why use eunuchs who are physically disabled? It is always due to their laziness. When the Emperor Emeritus was in his prime, I did not hear of Gao Lishi daring to act recklessly! If I were to... if the Crown Prince were to ascend the throne in the future, I would strongly remonstrate with him to abolish the eunuchs' duties of participating in politics and supervising the army, and only use them for cleaning the palace."

Li Ji thought to himself, "I hope so." In truth, the rise of eunuchs to power was perhaps unavoidable in the grand scheme of history. Throughout history, the power of the prime minister and the emperor had always been in conflict—not for dominance, but for the power of execution. Once the entire court system became too powerful to control, the emperor had no choice but to bring in a new group of people to restrain it. Capable and ambitious emperors would establish an inner court—like Emperor Wu of Han—but emperors lacking in ability or ambition could only rely on eunuchs.

Because everyone feels that those around them are more reliable than outsiders. Moreover, eunuchs and court officials come from completely different backgrounds. It always feels like they would be easier to manage than inner court officials who are also scholars, and that the inner and outer courts would not collude.

Of course, this is all an illusion...

Given Li Yu's weak character and mediocre abilities, it's unlikely he could completely solve the eunuch problem. Being able to limit their power to a manageable level would be quite an achievement. Perhaps we can only hope for Li Shi in the future… I hope you, little one, don't follow in your grandfather's footsteps.

Oh, actually, if Li Shi's first twenty years in power were similar to his grandfather's, that wouldn't be bad. As for what happened after that, not only was it too far in the future for Li Ji to bother thinking about, but also, how many emperors throughout history, if they lived long lives, wouldn't gradually become senile and incompetent as they grew old? The lack of sufficient checks and balances on imperial power would inevitably lead to similar disastrous consequences. It's impossible to expect Li Shi to be an exception and remain wise and powerful until his fifties or sixties—if he could even live to that age.

Since the issue of eunuchs had been brought up, Li Ji seized the opportunity to ask, "Now that Yu Chaoen has been released to oversee the outer armies, who is in charge of the Shence Army in the palace now?"

Li Shi said, "I was just about to tell you this—'The sage used Dan Tingyao.'"

"Who is he?" He guessed he was a eunuch, but Li Ji really didn't know much about the eunuchs in the palace.

Li Shi smiled bitterly: "Naturally, they are the Empress's cronies... Now we know that Zhu Guanghui, the Director of the Palace Attendants' Office, Chen Xianfu, the Palace Attendant, Ma Yingjun, the Palace Attendant, Duan Hengjun, the Director of the Palace Inspectors' Office, along with Dan Tingyao, are all the Empress's confidants, and are known as the 'Five Traitors'..."

"So many eunuchs!"

Li Shi replied, “The number of eunuchs in the palace today is less than half of what it was during the Tianbao era. For example, the quota for Inner Attendants was six, but now there are only two… Even so, there are more than three hundred with official ranks, and no fewer than twenty of them are in the rank of vermilion or purple…”

"...Fortunately, it seems that Dan Tingyao cannot completely control the Divine Strategy in the palace yet—he is ultimately not as good as Yu Chaoen, who has never commanded troops before."

After a pause, Li Shi said, "Now that the Imperial Guards have returned to Chang'an, we still need to pay more attention to the Imperial Guards. Your banquet for the Shence Army generals the other day was a brilliant move, and it's something we can do often."

Li Ji spread his hands: "How can I use it often? My salary is ultimately limited..." Such private activities cannot be accounted for through public accounts, or always through public accounts.

Li Shi smiled and said, "With the God of Wealth by your side, why are you afraid of not having money?"

Li Ji frowned: "Your Highness, are you referring to Yan... or Kang Laohu?!"

Li Shi nodded, patted Li Ji on the shoulder, and said with a smile, "Old Hu Kang is worth hundreds of millions. If he needs anything, he can just ask for it directly. Even if he hosts banquets for the brave and valiant generals of the Shence Army every day, he won't go broke in ten or twenty years."

Li Ji thought to himself, "That's great! Now that you've spoken, I don't need to worry about Yan Zhuang anymore. I can treat that old Hu like an ATM. You should have said so earlier! I'm rich now!"

After exchanging a few more words, Li Shi asked Li Ji, "This time, the scale of the Battle of Heyang is much larger than that of the Battle of Longyou. What are your thoughts, Changwei?"

Li Ji replied, "This is truly eye-opening!" He then sighed softly, "I originally thought that with my fine steed, spear, mace, and 30,000 soldiers, I could roam the world freely... Well, as long as the court provides enough money and provisions, any rebels or barbarian bandits could be eliminated by the Emperor..."

Li Shi asked with a smile, "And what about now?"

Li Ji replied, "After the Battle of Heyang, I realized that the rebels were mostly brave and strong from our Tang Dynasty, and their strength should not be underestimated. If I want to quell the flames of war in all directions for the court, I fear I will need no less than 100,000 men under my command."

Li Shi had a sudden inspiration and immediately raised his hand: "If I am able to make the decision in the future, I will surely send the Changwei General with 100,000 troops to sweep away the flames of war and make a name for myself in history!"

Li Ji glanced at him and, seeing the little guy still holding his hand up, asked, "Do you want to make a vow with a high five?"

Li Shi nodded. Li Ji then raised his hand and clapped his hands together with Li Shi's with a "snap": "Just as Your Highness said, I will repay you with my life!"

Li Shi was quite pleased. "I've finally scratched your itch, Li Changwei, by issuing a blank check. Hanging this carrot in front of your eyes will win you over." Li Ji, however, thought to himself: "You can just take it as a joke. Wait until you give me 100,000 men first... Besides, even if I'm shattered to pieces, I'll serve my country and protect my people. I would never be blindly loyal to a feudal monarch."

Chapter Thirty-Five: The Tibetan Invasion Again

Zou Qingluan got up early in the morning and instructed the servants to sweep the courtyard and living quarters. At the same time, she sent the cook out to call the vegetable farmer to the door.

Despite its vast size, Chang'an City lacked a dedicated vegetable and fruit supply base. Most nobles, including the imperial family, owned fields and estates outside the city, transporting vegetables and fruits into the city daily. Only when they couldn't consume them all would they send people to sell them in the East and West Markets. As for ordinary people, or lower- and middle-ranking officials like Li Ji, they could only rely on small farmers outside the city.

Most of the fields around Chang'an were planted with vegetables and fruits. Farmers harvested them every morning and carried them into the four gates of Chang'an to sell from house to house. In fact, given Qingluan's status, she could have easily ordered the cook to go out and buy them, but she was used to cooking herself, and the cook had become her assistant. Therefore, she often had to choose the vegetables herself before she felt at ease.

Not long after the cook left, she summoned a vegetable farmer to the door. Qingluan stood inside the door and watched, instructing the cook on what to choose. In the end, she spent fifteen coins to buy some cabbage, celery, houttuynia cordata, and cucumber.

Seeing the cook enter carrying a basket full of vegetables, Qingluan checked it again to make sure everything was in order before she couldn't help but sigh, "It's still autumn, and all kinds of vegetables are edible. If this were in Longyou, this basket would only cost two coins..."

The cook replied, "Even in Chang'an during the Tianbao era, it cost at most three coins. But thankfully, it didn't rise as fast as rice and wheat..."

—This cook is a local of Chang'an who lived through the peaceful and prosperous period of the Tianbao era.

Then she asked Qingluan, "Are these vegetables steamed, boiled, or served cold?" Qingluan smiled and said, "They're so fresh, they'll be served cold. Go pick some scallion leaves from behind the house, chop them up, mix them with soy sauce, and pour it over the vegetables." The cook was delighted to hear this.

China has a long tradition of eating cooked food, but during the Tang Dynasty, regardless of social status, people preferred to eat fresh vegetables raw, except for those preserved by pickling. However, some fruits, such as pears, were preferred cooked. Nevertheless, given the vast territory and varying customs across regions, in Longyou, where Qingluan originated, cooked food was the primary mode of consumption.

This custom likely originated in the Western Regions, and further back, its source may be in North India. The tradition involved boiling vegetables until very tender, then mixing them with ghee and various spices. In contrast, Chinese cuisine at that time was relatively bland, with less emphasis on spices. Even cooked dishes were typically boiled in salt water or steamed and then topped with soy sauce.

Therefore, the cook from Chang'an did not like to eat cooked dishes. However, when she heard Qingluan say that we would not steam or boil the vegetables today, but eat raw vegetables, she was overjoyed.

She picked up her basket and went to fetch water to wash herself. Qingluan secretly planned that for lunch she could cook some thin porridge, served with steamed buns and lettuce with black bean sauce…