The First National Preceptor of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 46

"Yes, we also have to thank Governor Li. Without you two, the matter of the iron furnace would probably still be nowhere to be found. But rest assured, the matter of printing books will definitely be successful and will not disappoint you two."

"That would be good. To put it bluntly, if this succeeds, it will also benefit us. Come, have a couple of drinks."

So the two clinked glasses.

“Sigh,” Zheng Xie finished his drink, sighed deeply, put down his glass, thought for a moment, and then said, “I’ve been having some unpleasant experiences lately and have been wanting to talk to someone about them.”

"Matters of officialdom?"

"Of course, although it has little to do with me, it is still somewhat unpleasant. Do you remember what I mentioned to you last time, about Han Yu being ordered by the emperor to write about the pacification of Huaixi?"

Xu Tian nodded: "Of course I remember. You said back then that it was almost finished. Now that so much time has passed, it should be finished by now."

"The matter originated from this article, which was written by Han Gong and is called 'Stele for the Pacification of Huaixi'. Some time ago, a section of it has already been circulating. It is more than a thousand words long and records the merits of all parties, showing his outstanding literary talent."

However, Li Jiedu and his generals were extremely displeased after reading it, because the article contained inappropriate remarks on merits, very little account of the contributions of the Southern Army, and some errors.

"I haven't read this article, nor do I know much about the specific events surrounding the pacification of Cai Prefecture. However, it's just an article, so even if there are some inaccuracies, it shouldn't be a big deal," Xu Tian said after hearing this.

Zheng Xie immediately shook his head: "Don't underestimate this; it's no small matter. Last year, when Cai Prefecture was pacified, Commander Li painstakingly planned for nearly a year before launching a surprise attack on a snowy night, capturing Cai Prefecture in one fell swoop. No matter when, when discussing this matter, Commander Li should be considered the greatest contributor."

"However, in Han Gong's article, he put Pei Du, who joined the war later and only had the duty of supervising the war, as the one who made the greatest contribution, while mentioning very little about the merits of the military governor.

Li Jiedu's achievements were not prominent, and the merits of his subordinates were naturally likely to be overlooked, causing great dissatisfaction among them. The amount of merit was crucial to the rewards and future promotions they would receive, making it a significant matter for each of them.

Zheng Xie paused for a moment, then continued, "Moreover, this text has already been sent to Caizhou and will soon be carved into a stele. This is not a matter for a short time; at present, it is no less significant than the inscription on Yanran Mountain during the Han Dynasty."

Once this stele is erected, it will be passed down for at least several decades or even hundreds of years, and it is not impossible for it to last for thousands of years. This is an even more solid record of history than the official history books.

The descendants of those whose names are mentioned in the inscription will be forever affected, and therefore, soldiers who have made significant contributions but were not recorded are naturally even more dissatisfied.

"I did think too simply," Xu Tian nodded in acknowledgment.

Only then did he realize that he had underestimated Han Yu's article, never expecting it to have such a great and far-reaching impact. This matter involved both interests and fame, which is what most people pursue throughout their lives.

However, he had not read the contents of Han Yu's account, so he couldn't really say much.

Although Han Yu was very famous, Xu Tian did not know him or his temperament, and did not know whether Han Yu had any personal motives in the process of writing this article.

After all, he had participated in the pacification of Huaixi with Pei Du and was a beneficiary of the event. From an outsider's perspective, there was a motive and suspicion that he was trying to gain credit for this.

"This matter is indeed quite a headache. Right now, the most frustrated person is probably Li Jiedu," Xu Tian said after analyzing the situation.