Tang Dynasty Swordsman.

The main streets and thoroughfares had been swept clean overnight, and the people had been driven out to kneel by the roadside. Many held incense tables in their hands, kowtowing and shouting, "Long live the King! Long live the King! The wise king has saved the lives of my city!"

Li Chu rode leisurely, his smug satisfaction evident in his every word. Li Ji followed behind, but couldn't help but let his mind wander—was the "wise king" whom the people were grateful to one person or two? If it was one person, which one was it?

After the entry ceremony, Chen Fu, Jia Huai, and other companions from the east sought out Li Ji and invited him to a gathering. Luoyang had just been ravaged by war and had been looted twice by rebel and Uyghur troops, so supplies were extremely scarce and had to be transported from surrounding counties. Therefore, they finally found a seemingly high-end tavern in the southern market. Chen Fu pointed to the red handkerchief on his head and, as a Shence Army general, reserved a large private room. The host, with a pained expression, served them only some coarse food and thin wine.

Jia Huai slammed his fist on the table and cursed loudly. Chen Fu threw out a string of coins, and only then did the kitchen staff finally slice a few more pieces of cured meat, steam them, and serve them. They were following the new custom of sitting together around a wide table, so only one plate of cured meat was served, placed in the center of the table. Li Ji had been eating vegetarian food these days and rarely saw meat, so he didn't stand on ceremony. He grabbed most of it with his chopsticks and stuffed it into his mouth, then drank wine repeatedly because it was so salty.

Fortunately, Pugu Huai'en somehow found out where everyone was and suddenly appeared. He ordered his soldiers to carry half a carcass of a newly hunted wild dog to the kitchen, and placed a bottle of liquor on the table, saying, "Drinking is forbidden in the army. I have been hiding this liquor for half a month. Today, I will drink with you all!"

Jia Huai and Yun Lin were both somewhat afraid of him, not daring to speak, or even look him in the eye; Chen Fu, however, hurriedly emptied the shop's inferior wine, picked up the bottle of spirits, first refilling the cup in front of Pugu Huai'en, then filling the cups of Li Ji and himself—those two are no good, not worth the master's service—then

Chapter Thirty-One, The Sixteen Princes' Residence

Pugu Huaien cursed An Lushan, instantly ruining the improving national defense situation. But then he sighed and said, "However, if we cannot completely annihilate that patricide dog An Qingxu, I'm afraid the court will not allow you western soldiers to return."

Chen Fu hurriedly said, "In the Battle of Xiangji, we killed 100,000 enemy soldiers, and in the Battle of Cijian, we killed tens of thousands more. How many troops does the An rebels still have? The troops in the two capitals and Henan are enough to suppress them, aren't they? Moreover, yesterday I visited old comrades in the army. The soldiers from Shenwei, Jintian, Wuning and other garrisons all longed to return home. Their hearts were scattered. They can't fight a war like this... Unless we send them back to kill the barbarian rebels, they will definitely fight to the death!"

The armies he mentioned were all located west of Menggu and Chiling, originally outside the Tang Dynasty's early territory. They were seized from the Tibetans around the twelfth year of the Tianbao era and immediately established military garrisons there. These so-called "armies" did not simply refer to a garrison force; they also managed the surrounding land and households. Of course, there were not many households to begin with, and most of them were Tibetans. Therefore, the soldiers recruited from various parts of Longyou, after joining these armies, often brought their families and relatives to find land to cultivate in order to assist in military operations.

Therefore, many soldiers in the garrison considered their home after three to five years, with their relatives and friends still there. Now, they were ordered to come east to defend the king, but suddenly heard that their hometown had been lost and had fallen back into the hands of the Tibetans. Who wouldn't be worried? Who would still have the heart to continue fighting the rebels?

The Dingrong and Xuanwei armies within Xiping Commandery, and even the Zhenwei and Tiancheng armies on the border, were relatively safe, as there were nearby prefectural cities and counties. Although the armies were captured by the enemy, as long as timely warnings were given, their families and friends had a good chance of escaping. However, the people under the jurisdiction of the armies outside the border were not so lucky. The reason why the Tang and the Tibetan Empire were once locked in a standoff at Menggu and Chiling was because those places were strategically important and formed natural borders. It was extremely difficult for ordinary people to travel hundreds of miles across these dangerous terrains to return to their homeland while being pursued by enemy troops.

Let alone ordinary civilians, even among the comrades who stayed behind in their own army, it's hard to say how many will be able to escape...

Adding to the fact that the Tang and Tibetans had been at war for over a hundred years, even counting from the time the war resumed in the first year of the Qianfeng era after Songtsen Gampo's death, it had been nearly a hundred years. Almost five generations had formed a deep-seated grudge. The Tang army had killed Tibetans all over the mountains, and the Tibetan army had killed Tangs all over the valleys. So, if Tang people were captured by the enemy, could they expect a good ending?

When the Tang people occupied Tibetan lands, they merely killed their rulers and forced their people to cultivate the land; treating them kindly was impossible, but for that era, it was considered the most civilized method in the world. Tibet, on the other hand, was still a slave society. The vast majority of the Tang people they captured were distributed among the nobles and enslaved, with no guarantee of their lives, let alone personal freedom.

—In fact, if the Tang woman from Luoyang had been abducted to the Uyghurs, her fate probably wouldn't have been much better.

Therefore, how could the troops summoned from those military towns to serve the emperor still have the will to continue fighting in the Central Plains? Chen Fu heard that quite a few deserters had already appeared.

Upon hearing this, Pugu Huai'en nodded and said, "What you say makes a lot of sense. The other day, the deputy commander (Guo Ziyi) also suggested to the marshal that the cities and armies that have fallen should be sent back to guard the remaining lands, which would also stop the barbarian bandits from continuing their advance." Then he curled his lip and said, "If the main army is suppressing the bandits in Hebei, and then barbarian cavalry appear at Dazhen Pass, threatening Jing and Long, then that would be laughable..."

Chen Fu's eyes lit up, but Pugu Huai'en immediately poured cold water on his enthusiasm: "However, there is still no alarm in Lintao, and the Shence Army is just returning to Xijing with the Emperor to help guard the palace. They are most likely unwilling to let him go."

Chen Fu spread his hands and lamented, "Even if you refuse to let them go, you should at least put them at the forefront. Our Shence Army has fought against the barbarian bandits for many years, and our soldiers are all elite. We regard the rebels as nothing, yet we send them to guard the capital... Are the Imperial Guards just scavengers? Are the Ten Thousand Cavalry just corpses?!"

Pugu Huai'en sneered, "Where are the Imperial Guards and the Ten Thousand Cavalry? They're long since exhausted and unusable. The remaining old and weak mostly followed the Emperor to Shu; whether they'll return is uncertain." He then leaned forward and lowered his voice, saying, "I've heard that His Majesty intends to recruit brave warriors from among the soldiers of Fengxiang, Xingde, and Fengyi to reorganize the Imperial Guards, and has placed the Shence Army in Shan County in preparation for the rebels' return via indirect routes..."

Chen Fu's spirits lifted slightly: "If we don't have to guard the palace with halberds every day, that's a good thing, but... what kind of rebel army would dare to launch a surprise attack on Shaanxi and then try to take Xi'an? They'd just sit around eating and playing football and slingshots in their spare time." Having said this much, he felt the atmosphere between him and Pugu Huai'en was quite harmonious, and then he clasped his hands and pleaded, "I wonder if the general would be willing to accept my service and ask the military commander for my services..."

Yesterday, while Li Ji was giving a lengthy report to the Li brothers, Chen Fu went to visit old acquaintances in the camp and inquire about their current situation. Half of the elite Shence Army followed Wei Boyu into Wei, while the less elite were temporarily placed under the command of the Momen Army, which was based in the same prefecture. Yi Tiechui belonged to the former group, but instead of guarding the palace, he served as the marshal's bodyguard.

As soon as Yi Tiechui met Chen Fu, he poured out his grievances, saying that ever since that night when he chased the traitorous general who had fled from Chang'an, he had not only never had the chance to fight on the front lines, but he was also always six or seven miles away from the front lines—how could Li Chu dare to go to the front lines himself? Li Tan wanted to go, but his brother wouldn't let him—he was standing guard all day, and his knees were almost too stiff to bend, and the muscles in his arms seemed to have lost a third of their shape…

Of course, this is not the worst situation. The worst situation is that of Lao Jing. His organizational affiliation has long been transferred to the Right Valiant Guard. Although he is a general without any troops, he still has to stand guard for the emperor every day. He is even more far away from the front line.

So Chen Fu was frustrated. He thought to himself, "Now that the matter in Luoyang is settled, and I'm returning to my post, I'll still have to accompany Yi Tiechui to stand guard for the marshal. Even if, as Pugu Huai'en just said, I might be reassigned to Shanxian in the future, I still won't get a chance to fight—well, being reassigned to Shanxian is probably..."

The military commander Wei Boyu and his group are currently in Chang'an, while as for myself and Yi Tiechui, as long as the military marshal's office remains operational, we will continue to accompany the Prince of Guangping.

As soon as Pugu Huaien appeared, he realized that the other party was after Li Ji. But did he have a chance to approach him and beg him to take him in? Although he couldn't return home, he would at least be following a fierce general like Pugu and would surely fight and make contributions. Even if he returned to Shuofang in the future, or if Pugu Huaien was appointed as some other military governor, he could still bring his relatives and friends from Lintao.

He joined the army as a young boy, accumulated merits and became a general. He has been in the army for almost twenty years. Putting aside the worry that he cannot be promoted without military merits—this time he was doing private business for the royal family. Even if he is promoted afterward, it will not be well-known in the army—he has not been able to go to the battlefield for a long time. He doesn't know how he can continue to live.

So he pleaded earnestly. Pugu Huai'en glanced at him, then turned to look at Li Ji, asking him with his eyes. Li Ji hurriedly said, "Old Chen is excellent in both archery and horsemanship—he taught me archery—and he is also honest and reliable..." As he spoke, he patted Chen Fu on the shoulder: "I have always regarded Old Chen as my elder brother."

Chen Fu quickly said modestly, "Changwei, you flatter me. Your archery skills must have already surpassed mine long ago."

Pugu Huai'en then stroked his beard and nodded, saying, "In that case, I agree. I'll go back and ask the Marshal for it." He then looked at Jia Huai and Yun Lin, asking, "What do you two have to say?"

Anyway, you can't go back to Li Fuguo's side. Besides, when I lured you back then, I said that at worst you could follow me and serve in the army.

Yunlin quickly clasped his hands and said, "I am willing to follow the general."

Jia Huai hesitated for a moment, then turned to look at Li Ji and said, "This humble man... is only willing to serve Li Zhiguo..."

Li Ji laughed and said, "I only have a nominal official position and no official rank, how can I command people to serve me? Brother Jia is joking."

Pugu Huai'en said, "Li Ji will naturally come here as well; he promised." He glanced sideways at Li Ji: "A true man keeps his word..."

Li Ji replied dismissively, "Let's see what the Marshal decides."

Pugu Huai'en misunderstood, and said, "Very well, let's see how the marshal rewards you first..."

Li Ji has rendered great service in both relieving the siege of Suiyang and rescuing Consort Shen, and Li Chu will surely reward him handsomely, perhaps even promoting him three ranks. Pugu Huai'en thought that Li Ji was worried that if he joined his ranks as a seventh-rank official, his position wouldn't be high enough, so he wanted to wait until the new official appointment was issued.

As they spoke, the fragrant dog meat was finally served. Li Ji sniffed, his mouth watering. He watched as Pugu Huai'en took a bite first, then excused himself and began to devour the meat. Pugu Huai'en only ate a couple of bites before someone from the army came to summon him, and he took his leave. Li Ji and the others saw him off at the tavern. When they returned, the atmosphere was even more relaxed, and everyone toasted and ate to their hearts' content.

However, most of the dog meat ended up in Li Ji's stomach, and he even downed half a bottle of liquor on his own.

The liquor wasn't very strong, but it had a powerful aftereffect. Li Ji had drunk quite a bit, and by the end of the banquet he was already a little tipsy. Since he had nothing else to do, he simply went back to sleep. He didn't get up until the next morning before he went to see Li Chu.

----------

After entering Luoyang, Li Chu temporarily set up his headquarters in Chengfu Ward, north of Xinzhong Bridge.

In truth, given his status, he could easily have secured a place within the palace. As long as he didn't occupy the main halls or prematurely take over the Eastern Palace, no one could find fault with him. At the very least, he should have chosen an old government office within the imperial city; the buildings there would be much larger, and the surrounding streets and alleys would be more spacious.

If he were a prince from a previous generation, he would most likely have gone straight to the capital or even the palace. Unfortunately, Li Chu was incredibly unlucky from the moment he was born, being the grandson of Li Longji...

Before reaching adulthood, princes naturally resided in the palace, depending on their birth mother or legal mother. In the early Tang Dynasty, princes were released from the palace upon reaching adulthood, often being granted the titles of Prince or Prince of the Second Rank, and appointed as governors of a prefecture. This allowed them to gain experience without interfering with or influencing the central government. As for the crown prince, regardless of his age, he moved to the Eastern Palace from the day of his investiture and was given an official residence.

But when it came to Li Longji, he had too many children and grandchildren, and he himself was old and still alive. He always felt that his sons and even grandsons were eyeing his throne with wide eyes, and he was afraid that they would collude with court officials and shake his own foundation. Therefore, although his sons and grandsons were granted the title of prince and had come of age, he refused to place them in any prefecture outside the capital. Not only that, the old man also came up with a unique idea, building the "Ten Princes' Residences" in the Yongfu and Xingning wards in the southeast direction of Daming Palace and the northeast corner of Chang'an City, enclosing all his adult sons within them.

In other words, although the brothers lived separately, they did not reside in separate houses, but were separated by walls. Furthermore, the daily needs of the princes were still provided by the palace. Not only were they not allowed to leave the residences of the ten princes without reason, but even their subordinate eunuchs and palace servants were not allowed to go to the east and west markets in the city to purchase goods on their own.

To be honest, it's no different from being in prison, and even the emperor might not necessarily come to visit you...

Gradually, more and more sons came of age, and the "Ten Princes' Residence" was renamed the "Sixteen Princes' Residence." Even the Crown Prince was no longer allowed to live in the East Palace—a spacious East Palace, larger than the Sixteen Princes' Residence, was originally built to the east of the Taiji Palace—and had to squeeze in with his brothers. From then on, the "East Palace" was just a noun and no longer represented a specific location.

Then, when his grandsons all came of age, Li Longji ordered the construction of the "Hundred Grandsons' Courtyard" near the "Sixteen Princes' Residences"—meaning that all the grandsons would have to go to jail.

Therefore, before Li Heng fled Chang'an with his father, whether as the Prince of Zhong or the Crown Prince, his main life was spent in the "Ten Years" period.

Chapter Thirty-Two: The Journey Home

Li Ji ran to bid farewell to Li Chu. Upon hearing this, Li Chu and Li Tan, who was sitting next to him, were both taken aback—"Where is Changwei going?"

"I went to Yingyang to visit my elder brother."

Now that Li Bi has returned to his hometown, it is only right and proper for Li Ji to go back to Yingyang. I promised Yuan Hun that I would protect Li Bi for the rest of my life. Even though he is no longer in danger, I think we should at least say goodbye before parting ways. Besides, I am still a little hesitant about my own future and would like to ask Li Bi for advice.

Therefore, he came here today specifically to bid farewell. Li Chu and Li Tan were both greatly surprised upon hearing this and hurriedly tried to persuade him to stay. Li Tan said, "Master Changyuan is devoted to the Dao of Immortality. Changwei is different from him. In my opinion, his actions are still influenced by worldly interests, and he also has a great sense of compassion. If that's the case, why do you want to go with him? You are still young and have a bright future ahead of you. Wouldn't it be a pity to leave the court like this?"

Li Ji quickly explained that he had only gone to visit Li Bi and would return immediately afterward—in fact, he was still hesitant about whether to come back, wanting to appease the two princes first and then hear Li Bi's opinion.

The two kings then let him go, and gave him three thousand coins and a fine horse. Li Ji thought to himself, "I've been an official for so long, and this is the first time I've ever seen money..."

Because he only held a nominal seventh-rank official title without any real power. In the early Tang Dynasty, salaries were determined by the level of one's nominal rank. Later, as temporary assignments became more common, salaries were based on one's actual position, a system known as "hidden salary." The nominal rank only indicated certain privileges—such as the color of the official robes one could wear, or the size of one's residence. Therefore, Li Ji, while in the temporary capital or the military headquarters, only received publicly funded food, clothing, equipment, and travel expenses, but no salary…

Even though Li Ji was in Luoyang on official business, he pretended to let Chen Fu act as the leader, so the travel expenses were mainly kept and managed by Chen Fu.

The salaries of Tang Dynasty officials were actually not low. Li Ji's honorary title was the seventh-rank lower-ranking deputy commander of Zhiguo. If he were to be given a substantive post, he would be a left or right commander of the guards, or a separate general or chief clerk of the upper government. If converted into rice and official land, his monthly salary would be around two thousand. In times of peace, it could be exchanged for seven or eight bushels or even more of fine rice and flour. Even after deducting expenses such as clothing, travel, and housing, it would be enough to support about ten people, including master and servants.

Of course, this applies to border counties and small towns. In places like the two capitals, rice might not have been expensive before the Tianbao era, but land prices were always frighteningly high. Let alone buying a house, even renting one could easily cost half of one's monthly salary.

Even more critically, without a substantive position, one receives nothing. Furthermore, Li Heng, in his time in Lingwu, Pengyuan, and Fengxiang, indiscriminately bestowed titles and ranks to win popular support, especially honorary titles. Since no salary was provided, he distributed them without restraint, resulting in a proliferation of low-ranking honorary officials, and even mid- to high-ranking ones, becoming as rare as dolphins in the river—though this is certainly not the era two thousand years later when dolphins are endangered. If Li Ji had no connections, even with his best efforts, obtaining a ninth-rank substantive position would be an impossible task.

Li Chu and Li Tan didn't only give him three thousand coins for that reason; they simply considered that more money would be difficult to carry. Besides, if they fattened him up all at once, Li Ji might not come back—although he might not be as devoted to Taoism as Li Bi, his daily behavior showed that he didn't care much about official rank. If he had enough to eat and wear and could buy a few dozen acres of land in the countryside to live out his remaining years, he might have no other aspirations.

So before he left, Li Chu made a promise, saying, "Changwei, go and come back soon. While I am still the commander-in-chief, I will arrange a real position for you, or grant you a post with a salary. Don't worry, you will be at least a seventh-rank official, and you will get your share."

Li Ji thought to himself, "Where were you all this time? I've only just joined the Marshal's Mansion..." He then thanked him and took his leave. But as soon as he stepped out of the mansion, he slapped his forehead. He had been drunk yesterday and forgotten an important matter, so he quickly turned back.

Just then, Li Tan was walking out, and the two bumped into each other. Li Tan asked him why he had returned. Li Ji thought for a moment and realized that Li Chu was a man without much responsibility, and he would probably ignore what he said. So it would be better to talk to Li Tan and ask him for advice.

Then he clasped his hands and said, "I just remembered something—when I escorted Consort Shen out of the Forbidden City, there were hundreds of palace maids and eunuchs with me, all of whom were temporarily lodged at the Shengshan Temple..."

Li Tan smiled and said, "So that's what it was about." He then nodded and said, "That's right, doing good means seeing things through to the end."

He told Li Ji that he didn't need to worry, as Consort Shen had mentioned the matter to the Marshal, and he had already made arrangements—"The old eunuch who delivered the message has been found and brought to the Marshal's residence to be cared for. Once he recovers, he will be put to serve Consort Shen. There are also six or seven palace servants in the kitchen who are on good terms with Consort Shen, who have also been brought here to take care of Consort Shen's daily life."

"As for the others, they have all been sent back to the inner palace to continue their old duties."

Li Ji first expressed his gratitude, saying, "Your Highness's arrangements are very appropriate." Then, he changed the subject and asked, "Has Your Highness seen those palace servants?"

Li Tan shook his head: "How could it be convenient for me to meet them? They must have instructed someone else to handle the specifics. To avoid suspicion, I can't possibly meet them directly."

Palace maids, in theory, are all the emperor's women. Now that I'm an adult and living separately outside the palace, I can no longer casually interact with palace maids.

Li Ji then said, “Yang Sichu, who came in the same carriage as Consort Shen, entered the palace during the Kaiyuan era and now has a full head of white hair… In the inner palace, I have seen many palace women of such advanced age, and many more are around thirty years old, past their marriageable age, yet forced to remain alone in the palace, without a partner. They cannot help but feel sad and resentful, often weeping in a corner and grieving under the moon.”

"When I inquired about the reason, I was told that the Emperor had not visited Luoyang for a long time, causing the Luoyang Palace to become like a cold palace. Those in charge were not concerned, and often only five or six years old would they petition to release a batch of palace servants."

Many people have wasted their youth because of this…

Upon hearing this, Li Tan frowned slightly: "You want me to let them leave the palace? Not to mention that this matter is not something a military commander can comment on, with the two capitals already ravaged by war and people displaced, I'm afraid even if they leave the palace, they will have difficulty finding relatives and friends and will have nowhere to settle down." The key problem is that that would require screening them one by one, and even helping them visit their relatives. Where would I find the time for that? But this last sentence seemed to imply a reluctance to admit the difficulty, so he naturally couldn't say it aloud.

Li Ji smiled and said, "I've been thinking about this matter, and I have a clumsy plan..."

"You said."

"The palace women are all yin and lack yang, while the army is full of yang and lacks yin. Why doesn't Your Highness act as a matchmaker and let those who are in love get married?"

Li Ji's idea was inspired by Chen Fu. Chen Fu often told him about his past experiences fighting against the Western Barbarians while stationed in Lintao County, and occasionally sighed, "These brave soldiers defend their country without hesitation, yet finding a spouse is so difficult..."

While there were indeed many farmers and commoners in the various military towns, overall, they were still not as numerous as those in the inland counties. There were definitely more men than women, and the soldiers in these towns rarely had the opportunity to go out and find wives, resulting in six or seven out of ten soldiers remaining bachelors for life. Chen Fu himself only got married after the age of thirty, and that was all thanks to his rank—even if there were several women of marriageable age, without rank or status, who would be willing to marry you? As for Yi Tiechui, he still had to wait in line, and it wouldn't be his turn until all his predecessors had wives.

Therefore, Li Ji suggested: "Why not marry off the palace women who are past marriageable age to meritorious soldiers? Your Highness can send the soldiers to meet them, and if they are mutually attracted, then you can decide on the bestowal of rewards..."

You say that releasing palace women is not under your jurisdiction, but rewarding soldiers is, right? And there are precedents for distributing palace maids who are past the age of leaving the palace to meritorious soldiers.

Although such marriages, arranged by the government rather than based on personal choice, might create many unhappy couples, there was no such thing as true free love in those days. Besides, since women were past marriageable age, it was better to create a family for them than to let them grow old in the palace or be released and left destitute and homeless.

Furthermore, Li Ji suggested that it would be best to organize a matchmaking event to give them some opportunity to choose their own partners. As for whether Li Tan would adopt this suggestion or simply assign partners by drawing lots to save trouble, Li Ji could not interfere any further.

"In this way, firstly, the grievances in the palace will be resolved; secondly, the soldiers' fatigue will be relieved; thirdly, the population will increase; and fourthly..."

At this point, he suddenly realized that I had said too much and it didn't quite fit my persona... So he pretended to stammer, saying "four can" three times, but couldn't continue.

Li Tan couldn't help but sigh, "Changwei is indeed benevolent; I am far inferior to him."

Li Ji hurriedly replied, "I have only been to the inner palace and often saw palace women shedding tears. Your Highness has not witnessed this in person, so naturally you would not have considered it. How could it be because you are inferior to me?"

Li Tan agreed, saying, "I will report to the Marshal and try to make this happen. Perhaps we can ask Consort Shen to speak on my behalf; I'm sure my brother will agree." He then asked Li Ji, "Do you have anything else to say?"

Li Ji shook his head: "No more—this humble general takes his leave."

Li Tan then asked, "You've only been thinking about others, but have you carefully considered your own future?"

He then sighed deeply and said, "Not only you, Li Changwei, but even my future is uncertain..."