Tang Dynasty, my wife Wu Zetian

Chapter 261 Two Powerful Officials
This was the first regular court session in May. Li Zhi sat behind the dragon desk, listening to Xiao Siye's account of the Khitan's misfortunes without saying a word.

After listening to this, the ministers whispered to each other.

Yuchi Gong was the first to speak: "Who shot Li Kuge? Has he been caught?"

Xiao Siye said, "He's been captured. According to information from the Songmo Commandery, he was the leader of a small Khitan chieftain. His wife was taken away by Li Kuge, so he held a grudge and shot him to death."

Li Yifu laughed and said, "These Hu people often have such incidents, it's not surprising. But Li Kuge was killed, so we have to choose a new governor."

Xu Jingzong asked, "Have the Khitans elected their own governor?"

Xiao Siye said, "They have nominated someone named Dahe Abgu. The Khitans hope the court will allow him to succeed them as governor."

Shangguan Yi said solemnly, "The policy of restraint has changed. They can no longer just nominate someone as they please. They need to bring this person to Chang'an to be assessed by the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Personnel."

Xiao Siye said, "Commander Liu of Yingzhou is already negotiating this matter with them."

Li Zhi suddenly said, "Tell Liu Rengui to prepare for war and prevent the Khitan from rebelling!"

When the ministers heard this, they were all shocked.

Xiao Siye said, "Your Majesty, the Khitans have always been obedient and compliant. Li Kuge's death was his own fault. Why would they suddenly rebel?"

Li Zhi looked at him and said, "How Li Kuge died is just one-sided account from the Khitans. As the Minister of War, how can you believe it so easily?"

Xiao Siye clasped his hands and said, "I was negligent."

In fact, it was not that he trusted the Khitans, but that the Khitans had been honest and obedient over the years and had shown no signs of betrayal.

The leader Li Kuge had always come to Chang'an to pay homage in person, so he didn't think much about it.

Cheng Zhijie suddenly said, "Your Majesty is absolutely right. Li Kugo is an excellent archer. Such a man would never be shot to death so easily. This matter is very suspicious!"

Xiao Siye's heart trembled, and he clasped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, this situation is urgent. I will send someone to convey your order to the Yingzhou Governor's Office!"

Li Zhi waved his hand and said, "Go ahead."

After Xiao Siye left, Li Zhi glanced at his ministers.

"Do you have anything else to report?"

None of the ministers said anything.

Li Zhi stood up and said, "Let's adjourn the court." Then he left the main hall through the side door.

On the way back to the bedroom, Li Zhi asked Wang Fusheng, "Mr. Li didn't attend court again today. Is he sick again?"

Wang Fusheng smiled and said, "Your Majesty, as you know, the Duke of Ying has recently been assisting you in handling the Tubo issue. I don't think he will be attending court for ten days or half a month."

After hearing this, Li Zhi felt helpless.

Li Ji was indeed like this. Every time after helping him deal with an important matter, he would retreat into seclusion for a while.

Li Zhi could actually understand why he did so.

Li Ji held many positions, among which the General of the Left Guard was the highest military position, and the Shangshu Zuo Pushe was the prime minister.

He was equivalent to holding both military and political power at the same time, and was even more prominent than Changsun Wuji at the time.

Changsun Wuji had just been dealt with, and he might have been worried that his power was too great and would arouse the emperor's suspicion, so he often stayed away from the court just to reassure Li Zhi.

Wang Fusheng suddenly laughed and said, "I have heard that the Duke of Ying highly respects a doctrine of Taoism."

Li Zhi stepped over the threshold of the bedroom, sat down on the couch, picked up the cup of tea and took a sip, then asked, "What doctrine?"

Wang Fusheng laughed and said, "Duke Ying once discussed Taoism with someone and put forward the view that water overflows when it is full, the moon wanes when it waxes, and wealth and honor must be restrained. He often used these words to warn his family."

After listening to this, Li Zhi sighed and said, "It's rare that he can think like this. Looking through history books, there are so many heroes who have achieved great power for a while, but ultimately did not have a good end."

Li Ji and Zhangsun Wuji can be said to be two completely different representatives of powerful officials.

The results for the two people are therefore different.

At this moment, a eunuch came into the hall and bowed to Li Zhi, saying, "Your Majesty, Minister Xiao of the Ministry of War requests an audience."

Li Zhi frowned and said, "Why is he here again? Let him come directly to the bedroom."

After a while, Xiao Siye came to the bedroom, still breathing slightly, and it seemed that he had just run all the way here.

Li put down his teacup and asked, "Xiao Qing, what happened again?"

Xiao Siye took out a memorial, held it in both hands, and handed it to Li Zhi, saying, "Your Majesty, this is an urgent report from the Anxi Protectorate: something has happened in Kangju."

Li Zhi took it and read it. After reading it, his eyes flashed for a moment, and he said in a deep voice: "Fu Sheng, please invite the Duke of Ying to the palace immediately."

Wang Fusheng agreed and said, "Yes."

……

Li Ji walked with his hands behind his back in the back hall courtyard of Changsun Mansion. He saw the ground was covered with fallen leaves and no one had cleaned it. It looked desolate and bleak.

Looking around, he saw that in the huge Changsun Mansion, there were few people in sight. Even the servant who led him the way was serving as a gatekeeper.

Li Ji saw this scene and snorted secretly.

He knew that Changsun Wuji was not short of money and could easily support hundreds of servants. He acted like this just to show off to others and express his dissatisfaction.

After a while, he was taken outside the study and knocked on the door and went in.

Looking up, I saw Changsun Wuji wearing a dark green robe, dressed like a shabby scholar.

Li Ji didn't say anything to him. He just walked over to the chair, sat down, crossed his legs, and said to the doorman, "Bring tea."

Changsun Wuji looked up at him and said with a smile, "This is the first time I've seen a guest like this. He's even more like the host than the host himself."

Li Ji said calmly, "Since you, the host, don't intend to entertain guests properly, I can only take the initiative myself."

Changsun Wuji asked, "How do you know I don't intend to entertain guests?"

"How can a person who is in a bad mood entertain guests well?"

"Throwing a tantrum? Who are you talking about?"

"you!"

Changsun Wuji put down the pen in his hand and laughed in silence.

"It seems that Brother Li has quite a misunderstanding of me."

Li Ji said, "Isn't it? His Majesty didn't confiscate your property. I'm afraid you have more property under your name than I do. Yet you deliberately dismissed the servants and acted pitifully. Aren't you just throwing a tantrum?"

At this time, Menzi walked into the study with a teacup, poured a cup of tea for Li Ji and Zhangsun Wuji, and then quietly left.

Changsun Wuji was not angry either. He picked up the teacup and smiled, "Why should I be angry?"

Li Ji said, "Of course you're expressing dissatisfaction. You think you're smarter than anyone else, seeing through Lu Dongzan's scheme and making the greatest contribution! Yet, His Majesty hasn't said a word about it, and hasn't offered any reward, so you're dissatisfied." Changsun Wuji shook his head and said, "You're wrong."

"Oh?"

"You think I'm angry because Your Majesty didn't reward me, but you don't know that I'm very glad that Your Majesty didn't reward me."

"Lucky?"

Changsun Wuji said slowly: "Yes, even though I have been summoned back to Chang'an by His Majesty, it does not mean that my enemies are going to let me go."

"Recently, due to the Tibetan incident, they knew that His Majesty was using me, so they haven't taken action against me yet. However, once this is over and His Majesty no longer needs me, they will definitely not let me go."

Li Ji rolled his eyes and said, "You deserve this. Who made you do so many hateful things in the past?"

Changsun Wuji did not argue with him and said slowly, "Anyone with a discerning eye knows that I made the greatest contribution to the Tubo cause, but His Majesty did not reward me. This will make them feel better and reduce their resentment towards me."

"You're quite thoughtful." Li Ji sneered, "In other words, you deliberately made the mansion look desolate and dilapidated in order to make them feel better?"

Changsun Wuji agreed.

Li Ji smiled and said, "I came to see you this time because I actually have something else to tell you."

Changsun Wuji didn't say anything, just pointed at the door.

Li Ji was stunned and asked, "What for?"

Changsun Wuji walked behind the desk, picked up a pen, and said without looking up, "You can't even understand the gesture of seeing someone off, right?"

Li Ji asked, "I haven't even told you what the matter is, and you want to send me away?"

Changsun Wuji said, "Even if you don't tell me, I know why you came."

Li Ji smiled slightly and said, "Then tell me about it?"

Changsun Wuji said, "You want me to persuade Lu Dongzan to submit to the Tang Dynasty. In this way, the Tubo issue will be easily resolved."

Li Ji smiled and said, "Since you know the importance of persuading him, why don't you give it a try?"

Zhang Sun Wuji sighed, "Because I know him very well, no matter how I persuade him, he will not agree."

"No way?"

Changsun Wuji raised his head and looked straight at him.

"If you, Li Ji, were captured alive by another nation and they urged you to betray the Tang Dynasty, would you agree?"

Li Ji remained silent. He would never betray the Tang Dynasty, even if it had already fallen.

Then it would be impossible to persuade Lu Dongzan.

"Forget it, let's not talk about this matter. But you guessed wrong just now. I didn't come here for this."

Changsun Wuji asked curiously, "Then why did you come to see me?"

Li Ji smiled and said, "I am here on the orders of His Majesty to tell you something."

Zhang Sun Wuji's eyes flashed: "What's the matter?"

Li Ji's expression grew more serious as he said, "Just now, news arrived from the Anxi Protectorate."

Changsun Wuji asked, "What news?"

Li Ji said: "There is civil unrest in a country in the Western Regions!"

"What country?"

"Kangju. A Kangju governor suddenly rebelled against the king. His army captured the Kangju capital in less than a month."

Zhang Sun Wuji's eyes flickered: "Less than a month?"

Li Ji's expression was solemn.

"Yes, according to the Anxi Protectorate, the rebels are well-equipped and powerful. They also have some mercenaries with rich combat experience. The Kangguo army is simply unable to resist."

Chang Sun Wuji said slowly: "The Arabs must be supporting us from behind."

Li Ji nodded and said, "That's obvious. However, since they didn't directly send troops, it doesn't constitute a violation of the contract, so we can't blame them."

Changsun Wuji lowered his head and fell into deep thought.

The emperor asked Li Ji to tell him about this matter, explaining that it was very likely related to Tubo, so the emperor came to seek his opinion.

Thinking of this, he asked, "How is the negotiation between the Honglu Temple and the Arabs going?"

"As long as they withdraw their troops, Your Majesty will allow them to attack India, and the Tang Dynasty will not interfere."

"Do they agree?"

"No, they just asked for instructions from their own country."

"The Arabs are so far away, how long will it take to get the results?"

Li Ji said, "So Your Majesty will not wait any longer and will give them an ultimatum: they must withdraw their troops within one month, or else we will engage in war."

Chang Sun Wuji took a deep breath and said, "The Arabs are deliberately causing trouble in the Western Regions to put pressure on us and make us wait for the results of their request!"

Li Ji smiled slightly and said, "Your Majesty and I think so too."

"What is the current situation in Kangguo?"

"The king suffered a crushing defeat and fled to the neighboring Shi Kingdom. He then went to the Anxi Protectorate and begged the Tang Dynasty to help him restore his kingdom."

Changsun Wuji pinched his chin and said, "Su Dingfang's elite Anxi Army is still in Tubo territory. We are currently short of troops in the Western Regions."

The Tang Dynasty only left more than 30,000 troops in Anxi, of which the most elite 10,000 soldiers were taken to Tubo by Su Dingfang.

Li Ji nodded in agreement.

Changsun Wuji turned his head to look at him and said, "What did your Majesty say?"

Li Ji said, "Your Majesty's intention is, let them fight their own battles, and I'll fight mine. Let them stir up trouble in Kangguo, and we will directly attack Tubo and attack the Arab army in Gar City."

Zhang Sun Wuji pondered for a moment and said, "I agree with your majesty. Don't worry about Kangguo."

Li Ji said with a half-smile, "Are you agreeing with His Majesty, or do you really think so?"

Changsun Wuji glared at him.

"The Western Regions are different from Tubo. Although the Tang Dynasty has established a Protectorate in the Western Regions, it is only a Protectorate in name only. It has not been divided into prefectures and counties, and no taxes are collected. It is obvious at a glance which is more important."

Li Ji nodded and said solemnly: "Okay, I will convey your opinion to His Majesty." He bowed and said goodbye.

(End of this chapter)