The film and television world begins with the battle for the throne in Kowloon

Chapter 1082 Testing (Part )

As soon as Cen Wenben left, Changsun Wuji walked into Chengqing Hall with a pile of memorials.

Li Yan's mood improved a little after finishing an important matter. But when he saw another pile of memorials, his face suddenly fell: "Uncle, these memorials have been processed by the chief officials of the three provinces, especially by you, the Minister of Public Security."

"Basically, there are no problems. I just read through them. Some of them don't even need to be read. Why do they have to go through me? I only have eight hours a day except for sleeping, and six of those hours are tied up by these memorials."

"I have to attend court and eat in the remaining two hours, so I don't have any free time at all."

When Changsun Wuji saw that the emperor used a private address, he quickly changed his state. His serious expression relaxed and he acted like an elder next door. He smiled casually and piled the memorials on the imperial desk.

"Come on, it's easy enough. Your father was much more tired than you at that time."

As if thinking of the past, Changsun Wuji said with some nostalgia: "You are the emperor now, but you still think you were in the Eastern Palace? At that time, everything was handled by the emperor, and you were still young, so you just had to study every day."

"And so, your father had just prepared to let you go to court, but you found all kinds of excuses. You either wandered around the streets with your two followers or called a group of servants to your uncle's house to make trouble. You were not a decent person at all."

Li Yan was really feeling bored staying in the room. Seeing that it was sunny and windy outside, the weather was still good, so he called Changsun Wuji to come out of the study.

The two walked and talked, and came out of the side hall to a garden on the side, where they found a pavilion overlooking the lake with a pleasant view and sat down. Wang De quickly asked the eunuchs and palace maids to bring up a few plates of preserved fruits and assorted cakes and pastries, and placed them on the stone table in the middle for the two to enjoy.

Then a tea tray was brought over. Li Yan directly reached out and took a cup and placed it in front of Changsun Wuji.

Changsun Wuji quickly stood up and bowed, then took it and held it in his hand. Wang De placed an exquisite teapot on the table and stepped aside.

"Uncle, I have been back to Kyoto for almost two months, and I haven't taken a good look at the changes in Chang'an over the past decade."

Li Yan said with a scoundrel look on his face, "I am trapped in this palace every day. Apart from attending court, I stay in the imperial study. To put it bluntly, I haven't even had time to spend with my three wives, and I don't have time to bond with my three children."

"I spend every day with you old guys, and I'm not even thirty yet?"

"When I think about having to live like this for the next few decades, I feel a pang of fear in my heart. I wonder how my father managed to survive all those years?"

"How about you handle the memorials from now on, and I won't read them anymore. I think you've handled it well during this period, the government affairs are in order, and the court is proceeding step by step. Even if I come in person, I may not be able to do better?"

Changsun Wuji's heart tightened after hearing these words. He shivered uncontrollably all over and subconsciously glared at Li Yan.

But he immediately realized that the other person was the emperor, and hurriedly said, "You still know that I am your uncle. Since you call me uncle, please don't harm me and let me live for two more years. I, an old man, can't bear your constant actions."

Changsun Wuji couldn't tell whether the emperor's words were sincere or a deliberate test, but no matter what, he couldn't respond.

After a month and a half of getting along, he finally understood that this nephew was very thoughtful and courageous. He was bold and dignified, but also meticulous, and was not the kind of person who relied on his status as a marquis.

Officials from the three provinces and six ministries submitted memorials like a mountain, but they could not stop the emperor's enterprising spirit like a raging fire. This one was not kept under control, and a financial temple was created, impacting the existing management system.

This disturbed the entire court, and all the civil and military officials and aristocratic families were restless and agitated. Some wanted to raise money, some wanted to use favors to get their children into new departments, and some wanted to get a share in the remaining assets of the Tang Dynasty. They kicked down the door of these ministers every day.

Just now, the emperor called his rival Cen Wenben to the imperial study to tinker with something for an hour. No one knew what he had done. Cen Wenben walked out of the palace directly with both worry and joy, and he didn't even have time to inquire about it.

He took the memorial originally sent by the Shangshu Youcheng and delivered it personally. Just as he was trying to find out the truth, he was made to break out in a cold sweat by the emperor's repeated probing.

Changsun Wuji sighed secretly, thinking that even being a minister to Li Shimin was not this tiring.

However, before, I was only the Right Prime Minister, and besides supervising Fang Xuanling, I also did some private work for Li Shimin, watching Fang Xuanling running around all day. I really didn't realize that the Left Prime Minister had so many things to do?
The power is indeed great, but it also makes my back ache and I can’t hold on any longer.

Changsun Wuji watched his nephew pick up a fruit cake made of something else, an apricot or something else, and put it in his mouth to taste it leisurely, his eyes darting around. Looking at the surrounding lakes and mountains, sometimes seeing young and beautiful palace maids passing by, his eyes were obviously more focused.

Changsun Wuji cursed in his heart, thinking secretly. He was clearly submitting memorials to the emperor no less than the emperor emeritus, so why was this kid still so vigorous and energetic? Could it be that he didn't pay attention and was just going through the motions?
That’s not right, right?
Sometimes when the emperor saw some things he didn't understand, he would call the officials from the relevant departments and ask them directly, which made the officials sweat and feel uneasy. Knowing this, the officials didn't dare to tamper with the memorials.

After a month and a half, everyone came to the conclusion that the emperor had indeed read all these memorials and read them very carefully.

Because every time he discussed matters, the emperor would be prepared to explain the whole story, and sometimes he could even remember who was on the stage. The emperor was so smart, so naturally, these officials did not dare to neglect him.

Li Yan just saw a pretty and tall palace maid passing by. He withdrew his slightly lingering gaze and noticed the bitter look on Changsun Wuji's face. He smiled and said, "Uncle, what are you talking about? I trust you, how can I harm you?"

"It's not that uncle doesn't want to help you, it's just that I can't!"

Zhang Sun Wuji shook his head, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. "You gave me the entire Shangshu Province, and let me shoulder the responsibility of the left and right Prime Ministers. This has already been very eye-catching in the court. Many officials have gossiped about it, and your mother has also scolded me many times."

"They say that I am too powerful and will bring disaster to the Changsun family sooner or later."

"If I review memorials for you again, the whole court will spit at me. They will say that I am bold and presumptuous, and have rebellious intentions. Aren't you harming me?"

Zhang Sun Wuji said patiently: "Handling memorials is your responsibility and power as an emperor, and it is also your means and method of ruling the world and governing the local areas. You are inexperienced now, and you need to maintain the stability of the world."

"That's why the three provincial officials will handle it on their behalf, and you will do the final review."

"This has also been approved by the Empress Dowager. Once your ability to govern improves, you will be the one making the decisions on these matters. We can only make suggestions, but whether we listen to them or not is up to you to make the decision. No one can replace you."

Li Yan smiled awkwardly when he heard this. How could he not know that this was a red line that no minister dared to cross. Even if Changsun Wuji was not afraid of death, he would not dare to hand it over. This was the imperial power and also his own life.

This was half a complaint and half a test.

Seeing that Changsun Wuji was really sincere, he felt a little embarrassed. He secretly sighed that it seemed that everything was excessive or insufficient. Although Changsun Wuji was greedy for power, he did not really want to rebel.

Some bottom lines would not be crossed, such as reviewing memorials and issuing orders for the emperor.

This uncle has really had a hard time during this period, and he has to face his own temptations from time to time. It's really not easy.

Although Zhangsun Wuji was punished for treason in history, anyone with a little knowledge of history knows that officials in the court are divided into three levels: officials above the third rank are important officials, those above the sixth rank are the backbone, and the rest are at the grassroots level.

There is an unspoken rule that has been accepted for thousands of years. No matter whether it is a power struggle or various needs, dealing with grassroots personnel is mostly about greed for money, dealing with middle-level personnel is mostly about forming factions, and dealing with the most important core ministers is basically about treason.

It seems that there is no reason to punish them if they are not plotting treason?
Li Yan thought about this and realized that it was easy to get into the officialdom but difficult to get out since ancient times. However, any system, if it wants to stay healthy and energetic, must absorb fresh blood and metabolize old personnel.

With the development of science and technology, it is said that a person's body cells will be renewed every 120 to 200 days. Every 6 to 7 years, all the cells in the whole person will be replaced. This is the case for humans, let alone other
There was no retirement system in ancient times, and people would generally retire when their health could no longer support them.

There are several ways for old officials to retire from officialdom. The most important group is to be promoted to a higher title, leave the actual post, and no longer be responsible for specific government affairs. They leave this memorable stage in a semi-retired manner.

The next best case scenario is that they are physically unable to bear the strain and voluntarily resign from their jobs and return home.

Of course, there is another type of ministers who are young, strong, smart and capable, but they are forced to leave because the situation develops in the form of a power struggle, in which the winner becomes a king and the loser becomes a thief.

This is the worst. In order to eliminate the trouble in the future and prevent the other party from making a comeback, they will be charged with a crime and completely drive the other party into the abyss.

The punishment could be deprivation of one's position at the lightest, exile at the worst, or even beheading, confiscation of property and extermination of the entire family.

All the cases of treason in history, as long as the whole clan was not killed and executed immediately, most of them belong to this last category. Imagine that in the era of imperial power, the emperor hated those who wanted to rebel and would never let you live.

Not even for a second, I must see you pass away in the shortest possible time before I can feel at ease.

(End of this chapter)