Tiantang Splendid

Chapter 4917 Ambitious
Li Shenfu returned to his mansion, took a hot bath with the help of a maid, changed into a set of soft and comfortable cotton clothes, placed a pillow on the mat by the window in the study, half-lying down, drank a sip of hot tea, and slowly exhaled, then he relaxed.

One has to admit that he is old. After going through the palace and the palace, and standing in the Wude Hall for a long time, he felt as if his skin was peeled off and his muscles were cramped. He was even more tired than when he took the red pill from a pretty maid two nights ago...

Words like "old and frail" and "lack of energy" are the most taboo for the elderly, but now these are the first words that Li Shenfu thinks of.

"Ugh……"

He sighed again, feeling very melancholy.

Li Daoli knelt down beside him and boiled water to make tea. He sent all the waiters out. Hearing the sigh, he asked curiously, "Why is Uncle sighing? Although the King of Wei has been demoted, it is what he deserves. However, Your Majesty has a deep brotherly love for you. Even the King of Jin was only imprisoned when he rebelled. I think it won't take a few days for the King of Wei to be released and a reason can be found to return his title to him."

"What do you know? Whether the King of Wei loses his title or not has anything to do with us? However, he has made a big mistake by doing this. Even if Your Majesty returns his title in the future, this stain will never be washed away in his lifetime. Offering sacrifices to ancestors without authorization and disrespecting the monarch is a great disrespect, which is only slightly lighter than the rebellion of the King of Jin. It may seem nothing at ordinary times, but it is almost impossible to ascend to that position."

Some mistakes can be made, as long as you know them and can correct them; but some mistakes cannot be made, and there is no turning back.

To put it bluntly, Li Tai's action was "usurping the imperial power". He wanted to do things that only the emperor could do. This was a matter of principle and was extremely serious.

If Li Tai still had a trace of desire for the throne, he could only fight his way out by stepping on the corpses of his brothers, just like Emperor Taizong did in the past. If he wanted to ascend the throne by "recommendation", it would be almost impossible.

Li Daoli was stunned and lowered his voice: "In other words, the King of Wei is no longer useful to us?"

There must be one emperor, and if Li Chengqian was to be overthrown, the King of Wei would have been the most suitable person to take the throne.

"The King of Wei was disrespectful, and the King of Jin was treasonous. These two most suitable candidates were abandoned. However, their status is still there. It is inevitable that the other princes will have difficulty in ascending the throne by surpassing these two and face great resistance."

Li Shenfu looked worried.

Li Daoli was a little panicked: "What should I do? There must be a candidate!"

If there is no suitable candidate recognized by the court and the public after Li Chengqian is overthrown, the crown prince will inevitably ascend the throne... Then what are you all busy about?
Are you waiting for that kid Li Xiang to ascend the throne and avenge his father's death?

Li Shenfu shook his head: "I am helpless! But the arrow is on the string and has to be shot. The plan is very detailed and can't be delayed at all. There is no time to arrange for a suitable candidate. What can I do?"

"Hmm? Procrastination?"

Li Daoli slapped his thigh and said, "What's the difficulty? Since time is tight, let's proceed according to the plan. If everything is successful, you can temporarily preside over the government and take charge of the hundreds of officials. We can choose a candidate that everyone agrees on from among Taizong's sons and then ascend the throne."

"Preside over the government? Take charge of all the ministers? No, no! I am already this old, how can I give someone a handle to covet power? We are only doing this to overthrow Li Chengqian and ensure everyone's interests, not because I want to go further. Absolutely not!"

"Oh, how can Uncle Wang be so stubborn? We must know that there should be flexibility in everything. It is better to leave the throne vacant for a while than to hastily decide on a candidate. Otherwise, one careless move may backfire! Besides, apart from Uncle Wang's prestige, qualifications, and merits, who else can take on the important task?"

Li Shenfu stroked his beard, looking embarrassed: "This, this...can everyone obey?"

"You must obey! Uncle Wang is doing this for the benefit of everyone, and he has to face criticism from the court and the public. Who dares not to obey?"

"That being said, we should at least let everyone know in advance, right? If everyone agrees, I will do my duty. If everyone disagrees, I will find another way."

"That's right! Don't worry, uncle. I will contact everyone and finalize this matter tomorrow morning."

"Thank you, my dear nephew!"

……

After Li Daoli left, Li Shenfu closed his eyes and rested, thinking about the chances of success of this action.

Li Siliang walked quietly into the study and asked in a low voice, "Will those people agree to this?"

He had just been outside the study, and heard the conversation between his father and Li Daoli clearly. He admired his father from the bottom of his heart. He was really too great...

Li Shenfu opened his eyes and snorted, "How can we allow them to refuse the current situation? The King of Wei is actually defaming himself, and everyone can see it clearly. In addition, the King of Jin was the first to rebel, and the two most qualified successors to the throne have been eliminated one after another. It is not easy to choose the right person. But the time for the rebellion is imminent, and there is no time to cherish the selection and screening. The best way is for someone to stand up and temporarily stabilize the overall situation, and then make long-term plans."

Li Siliang swallowed his saliva, his heart burning with excitement: "The three legitimate sons of His Majesty Taizong are all qualified to succeed the throne, but the other sons may not be. If father can gain more support, perhaps he can go further..."

A further step from a prince is a prince, but his meaning is obviously more than that.

"presumptuous!"

Li Shenfu was furious and shouted angrily, "We started the rebellion out of our own interests, but more importantly, it's because Li Chengqian is indecisive, employs treacherous people, and is unworthy of being a ruler! If we follow your way, wouldn't our upright actions be aimed at usurping the throne and plotting rebellion? It's so stupid!"

Some things can only be said and not done, while some things can only be done and not said.

His son usually looked quite smart, but unexpectedly he was a good-for-nothing. At the age of thirty, he couldn't even figure out what he could say and what he couldn't do, and what he could do and what he couldn't say. It was extremely disappointing.

Li Siliang smiled and apologized: "Yes, yes, it's my father's fault. It was my son who was rebellious."

But I couldn't help but complain in my heart: Why are the two father and son so hypocritical? Do you really think I don't know what you want in your heart...

*****
In the early years of Renhe, the New Year is approaching.

There have been many consecutive heavy snowfalls since the beginning of winter. Although "auspicious snow means a good harvest" and the large amount of snowfall alleviates the drought in early spring and is more suitable for spring planting, the frequent heavy snowfalls have caused many houses inside and outside Chang'an to collapse and thousands of people to suffer. The Jingzhao Prefecture was quite tense for a time.

Ma Zhou flew into a rage in the Jingzhao government office, angrily shouting, “Jingzhao has been providing assistance to the people in its jurisdiction for years. Many dilapidated and dangerous houses have been repaired, reinforced, and even torn down and rebuilt. The investment in manpower and material resources is extremely huge, but dozens of houses in Xiuzheng and Dunhua have collapsed. The most abominable thing is that the assistance to the affected people was delayed, resulting in one person freezing to death... Wannian County has an unshirkable responsibility!”

Li Anqi, who was sitting below, was helpless but unable to refute. He could only lower his head and said in a muffled voice: "I know I was wrong. Before the New Year, I will arrange for people to patrol all the neighborhoods in the jurisdiction again. If they find dangerous houses, dangerous houses, and the elderly, widows and widowers, they will provide immediate assistance."

He had just taken over as Wannian County Magistrate, replacing Lai Ji, and this hadn't happened yet before the personnel issues in the government office were sorted out...

But he is now the real county magistrate for ten thousand years after all, and he cannot shirk his responsibilities if something like this happens in his jurisdiction.

Ma Zhou vented his anger, and seeing that Li Anqi did not shirk his responsibility, he felt better and said, "It's not that I'm harsh, but we as officials should benefit the people. How can we sleep peacefully in our houses when the people's houses collapsed and they were freezing in the snow? I'm not asking you to repair the houses for the people yourself, I'm just supervising the officials. Check the account books of previous years carefully after you go back. If you find any corruption, punish them severely. No matter who is involved, you are not allowed to bend the law for personal gain. If anyone asks you to show some leniency, you can blame me and let him talk to me!"

The county government is the place where corruption among clerks is most likely to occur. These clerks seem to be of low status or even have no rank, but they are often involved with many people, either this royal palace or that nobleman, and a mere county magistrate cannot afford to offend any of them.

So, "If you are unlucky for three lifetimes, you will be a county magistrate in a suburb; if you are evil for three lifetimes, you will be a county magistrate in a provincial capital; if you are full of evil, you will be a county magistrate in the capital." Being a county magistrate in a suburb of the capital is not something that ordinary people can handle...

Li Anqi was immediately overjoyed: "Don't worry, Governor. I will go back and thoroughly check the account books and investigate corruption. Anyone involved will be severely punished!"

As the saying goes, "A new official starts with three things to do." How can one successfully control power without starting something new?

Now with Ma Zhou's support, all those who dared not and could not move were moved, and the entire Wannian County Government would no longer have any constraints...

……

After Li Anqi returned to the county government office, he immediately sent people to the Ministry of Revenue to invite several experienced accountants to take out the account books of the past five years from the warehouse and put them in the side hall. He ordered people to close and lock the door and check the account books immediately.

The whole county government was in a panic.

County Magistrate Duan Yuanliang walked into Li Anqi's duty room with a gloomy face and asked in confusion: "County Master, it is only a few days before the end of the year when the government office is closed and sealed. Is there anything that cannot be discussed after the New Year? Do you have to make the government office have a bad New Year?"

Li Anqi was surprised and said, "I am just following the order of the prefect to check the account books. Why do some people think that this year is not a good year?"

Facing the head of a county, Duan Yuanliang was not afraid at all. He sneered and said, "Why do you ask when you already know the answer? We all know what you want to do."

When the new official took office, he found that all the power in the county government was controlled by assistant officials and clerks. He was unwilling to accept this and now he just wanted to make room for change with the help of the prefect.

Li Anqi said angrily, "You have embezzled public funds, bent the law for personal gain, and misappropriated the money used to repair dangerous houses in your jurisdiction, causing the collapse of people's houses and even freezing to death in the snow. Now you are trying to stop me from checking the accounts. Do you still have the law in your eyes? Are you relying on Duke Xun behind you to do whatever you want?"

Duan Yuanliang's heart sank, thinking to himself that this was not good.

(End of this chapter)