Chapter 360 The friendship between monarch and minister
Chapter 362 The friendship between king and minister
Ten years of Tianbao, the year of Xin Mao and Rabbit.
Starting from the first day of the lunar month, the whole city of Chang'an was looking forward to the lifting of the curfew during the Lantern Festival. But on the 14th of the first lunar month, a piece of news came back from Shuofang, which made the already solemn atmosphere in the Youxiang Mansion even worse.
Li Xiu has come back from Lishan Mountain and is going to take Li Linfu to Huaqing Palace to meet the saint. This year, for the first time in the Lantern Festival, the saint did not have fun with the people at Huaqing Tower, but still stayed in Huaqing Palace.
As spring arrived, Li Linfu seemed to be in better spirits. He was not as unconscious as before the New Year. He was helped by people to lie down in the carriage. There happened to be a few fast horses galloping through the streets of Pingkangfang.
He reined in his horse in a hurry.
"Hush!"
"Slow down, don't disturb my grandpa." Li Xiu shouted.
"Juro, please forgive me. This is an urgent matter from eight hundred miles away. Please take a look at it."
Li Xiu took the official document on behalf of his father, opened it, and was shocked to see the sentence "Li Xianzhong rebelled against Tang Dynasty and fled to the north." His expression changed. Although he was not surprised, he still found it difficult to accept it.
From the beginning, he knew that he could not allow An Lushan to suppress Absi wantonly, but it was his grandfather who repeatedly said "yes" that made him feel lucky, thinking that maybe this was just a slap on Absi.
After lifting the curtain and entering the carriage, Li Xiu spread the documents in front of Li Linfu and said, "Master, Li Xianzhong has rebelled."
"Li Xianzhong?" Li Linfu murmured, his eyes cloudy.
Li Xiu was stunned for a moment, and suddenly realized that grandpa might not even remember the name given to Albus by the saint.
So did you mean "ke" or "thirst"?
Li Xiu knew in his heart that the reason why he approved An Lushan's request was because it was the easiest way. Otherwise, if he wanted to appease Abu Si, it would not be enough just to refuse to transfer him to Fan Yang. The key was the death of Brother Xie, the king of Zuo Xian.
In the final analysis, Li Xiu was still weak and did not have the courage to pursue An Lushan for killing his brother without permission, and could not seek justice for Abu Si. So he used the word "can" as an excuse to avoid these troubles.
As a result, it became even more troublesome.
"Grandpa, do you remember Li Xianzhong? That Turkic man who said he wanted to worship me as his adoptive father, he rebelled."
Only then did Li Linfu's eyes gain some brilliance, and he said in surprise: "Rebellion?"
"Yes, what should we do?"
"Zhang...Zhang Qiqiu." Li Linfu tried his best to raise his hand, making a whooshing sound in his mouth, and finally said: "I will take the blame."
Outside the carriage, Kingo Guard urged: "Juro, it's time to set off."
After all, they were going to see the saint, so they couldn't leave too late.
The carriage then set off and drove slowly towards Lishan Mountain.
…
During the bumpy ride, Li Linfu felt sleepy and restless. In his mind, some past events seemed to come back to him as the carriage bumped.
Finally, Li Xiu's voice sounded outside the carriage again.
"Grandpa, we're here."
Li Linfu suddenly became sober, and suddenly remembered that Arbus was Li Xianzhong.
He then stood up and said, "I have to explain it to the saint."
"Grandpa, don't worry. The saint is already waiting to meet me." Li Xiu quickly stepped forward to support him and comforted him: "The saint has a deep friendship with me as a monarch and his ministers. When I learned that my grandfather had no vitality, he issued an order to let me.
Face the Holy Spirit as soon as you arrive. The sooner you meet the Holy Spirit, the sooner you will recover."
Having said that, he actually came here to request an audience on behalf of his father a month ago. At that time, the saint promised to summon Li Linfu when he returned to Xingqing Palace. A few days later, he was dissuaded by Gao Lishi from returning to the palace, and he had no choice but to wait for the New Year.
Li Linfu was asked to appear in the Huaqing Palace, but it took a month.
Although Li Linfu was tired from traveling all the way, his mind became clearer due to the change of environment. He looked up at the sunset on the horizon, looking forward to seeing the saint.
Although he was unwilling to let go of his illness, he had too many things to do after his death that he wanted to ask the saint for help.
A young eunuch rushed over from the front and said with a smile: "The right prime minister is here. The saint has already made a decree and ordered the slaves to prepare a shoulder carriage for the right prime minister."
"Thank you, saint."
Li Linfu was more and more moved by your kindness, and even though he was seriously ill, he still managed to speak.
He was helped onto the shoulder carriage, crossed Wangxian Bridge, Jinyang Gate, and passed through Huaqing Palace.
During the process, he struggled twice to get up, because he felt that it was inappropriate for the ministers to walk in the palace sitting on their shoulders, but the eunuch who led the way comforted him and said: "It's okay for the right minister to sit. The saint is in the Chaoyuan Pavilion on Lishan Mountain.
The right minister prays for blessings. The road is long and steep, so sit down."
"It is too rude for a minister to sit in a sedan chair in the palace."
"The right prime minister has been managing state affairs all his life, how can he not receive this kind of preferential treatment?"
Huaqing Palace is built next to the mountain and is integrated with Lishan Mountain. When you walk in the palace and look up, you can see the Xixiuling Mountains of Lishan Mountain. There are many palaces on the ridges, which are many Taoist temples and places of worship, including the Changsheng Palace.
The group passed through Zhaoyang Gate again and boarded Yuchaan Road.
This is a wooden climbing road paved directly from Huaqing Palace to the mountain. In the past, only saints and noble concubines could walk along the Jade Chariot Road in ceremonial vehicles, while hundreds of officials would accompany them on the side path.
The jade chariot road was very long, and the eunuchs carrying the carriages changed into two groups. They were so tired that they reached the top of the third peak of Xixiuling Mountain. The sky was completely dark.
"Right Prime Minister, here we are."
Li Linfu did not fall asleep again. He was just closing his eyes and concentrating, accumulating energy to prepare for the meeting. When he felt that the sedan chair had stopped, he opened his eyes and prepared to get off the sedan chair.
However, the two eunuchs held him down gently and said, "You don't have to get up, Prime Minister, just face the Holy Spirit like this."
Li Xiu couldn't help but ask: "How can you face the saint like this?"
"The saint is there."
The Li family's father and son looked up and saw the Chaoyuan Pavilion towering in front of them. Although it only had three floors of eaves, it seemed to reach straight to the sky.
Chaoyuan Pavilion is regarded as the family temple of Li Tang Sheji, enshrining Laozi and the portraits of emperors since the founding of the Tang Dynasty. The saint once dreamed that the Supreme Lord came to Chaoyuan Pavilion, so he renamed it "Jiang Sheng Temple".
A white marble seated statue of Taishang Laojun was also carved and placed in the temple.
Li Linfu arranged for the craftsmen to carve that jade statue. In order to please the saint, he specially carved it according to the saint's appearance and made it lifelike.
At this time, the Chaoyuan Pavilion was lit with lights, and a chariot was carried to the railing on the attic.
"The saint has arrived!"
With this shout, everyone fell down one after another.
Li Linfu's movements were stiff and he was still saluting. The eunuch had already saluted him, and he quickly helped him sit back on his shoulder and said, "Sit down, right, Prime Minister. The Chaoyuan Pavilion is located at the top of Xixiuling, and it enshrines the portraits of the ancestors of the Tang Dynasty.
This is the place where vitality is most obtained. Saint Nine-Five Supreme Lord personally went to the tower to pray for your right minister. You can feel your vitality here and recover as soon as possible."
"I... thank you Lord for your kindness!" Li Linfu burst into tears of gratitude.
Li Xiu prostrated himself on the ground. After hearing the saint's careful arrangements, he did not get up and kowtowed several times to thank the emperor for his kindness.
After that, he looked up and saw the saint sitting on the Chaoyuan Pavilion, motionless, as if he was overlooking the world. Only the wind blew the dragon robe, and an emperor's aura rushed towards his face.
Gradually, the wind made people feel colder and colder.
After a while, Gao Lishi personally brought a big cloak over, put it on Li Linfu with a sigh, and asked with concern: "The right prime minister has felt the vitality of the emperor, is his body and bones feeling better?"
"Old minister...I'm much better, cough cough."
Li Linfu felt uncomfortable due to the mountain wind. He suppressed his cough and worked hard to deal with it. He said, "I would like to explain something about Shuofang to Your Majesty."
"The saint is personally praying for the right prime minister." Gao Lishi said: "How about the right prime minister talking to the old slave about these state affairs?"
"Shuofang Jiedu envoy Zhang Qiqiu distributed grain and grass unfairly and treated the Turks who surrendered harshly, which caused Li Xianzhong to defect. I asked him to punish him for his crime, cough cough."
As early as last year, Li Linfu wanted to take action against Zhang Qiqiu, but because of Xue Bai's obstruction and the ongoing battle of Nanzhao, he restrained himself. Now, Zhang Qiqiu can only be held responsible for causing Absi's defection.
.
As for An Lushan, he was too powerful and deeply trusted by the saints. When Li Linfu was seriously ill, he no longer dared to antagonize him.
"Right minister, don't worry." Gao Lishi said: "I will definitely convey this to the saint."
After hearing this, Li Linfu faintly noticed that the saint seemed to want to see him no more. He raised his head again and looked at Chaoyuan Pavilion. He narrowed his old eyes and saw the saint sitting there motionless.
It was near the Lantern Festival, and the moonlight was so bright that it shone on the saint's face, giving it a sheen like white jade.
"Cough cough cough cough!"
Li Linfu suddenly coughed heavily.
He had realized one thing - the person sitting in Chaoyuan Pavilion was not a saint, but a white marble statue that he ordered craftsmen to carve in the image of a saint.
That jade statue was so beautifully carved that it was so mocking tonight.
This is the so-called love between king and subject. He worked hard for the saint for more than ten years, but when he was dying of illness, the saint did not even want to see him.
There is no "vital energy". He did not come here today to absorb the saint's vitality. Instead, he had too many things to worry about. He hoped to meet the emperor in person, explain his posthumous affairs, and fulfill his final duties.
ridiculous.
"Right Chancellor, what's going on?"
"It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter. With the saint's vitality, I'm much better now." Li Linfu laughed and said, "But the vitality is too heavy. If I continue, I won't be able to bear the weight anymore."
He seemed to be really getting better, his face even turned rosy, and his eyes had a sparkle.
"That?"
"I would like to say goodbye to the saint."
This time, Li Linfu didn't let anyone stop him. He stood up from the carriage with difficulty and effort, and slowly bowed to the white marble statue on the tall building.
He has suffered countless infamy in his life, and he also knows that after his death, he will inevitably be called a "treacherous sycophant" because he has shouldered everything for the saint. Of course, the saint also gave him the endless power he wanted.
It's a pity that the king and his ministers will never see each other again.
"The saint Shangyuan is in good health. I retire. I only wish my emperor long life!"
Li Linfu's voice was hoarse and he shouted this sentence with all his strength.
In the Chaoyuan Pavilion, the saint remained motionless and silent. The moonlight shone on that white marble face, as if he could live forever and never grow old.
~~
Because saints often lived in Huaqing Palace for several months, courtiers often had other properties in Lishan. Li Linfu was no exception, and he moved into his property in Lishan that night.
He was helped to the couch, but instead of lying down, he propped himself up and said, "I'm not going to sleep. I want to tell you a few things."
"Grandpa, are you really going to get better?"
Seeing that he was in good spirits, Li Xiu couldn't help but be overjoyed and said, "What Taoist Fang said is really useful. If you are contaminated with the saint's vitality, your illness will be cured."
"Call your brothers to Lishan, I want to see them." Li Linfu said.
"Grandpa?"
"Wang Zhongsi must be eliminated." Li Linfu knew that his death was not far away, and he was just reflecting on his past. He thought to himself: "Once Li Heng ascends the throne, he will never let us go. Only by getting rid of Wang Zhongsi can Hu Er
Prevent Li Heng from ascending the throne."
He was trying to balance the prince's wishes for the saint, so he offended Li Heng to death, and also bet the future of his descendants on the gambling table.
Therefore, bringing down Li Heng became his lifelong obsession and the thing he was most worried about before his death.
There are two people who want to prevent Li Heng from ascending the throne, one is An Lushan and the other is Xue Bai. Among them, Xue Bai is weak, but he has many demands. He not only wants to protect Wang Zhongsi of the East Palace line, but also
To deal with An Lushan who can cooperate.
Therefore, Li Linfu failed to cooperate with Xue Bai to the end after all. He was a person who had been floating in the power arena all his life. He valued actual interests most and could not place bets on the distant and misty future of a too young person.
However, as I was thinking about what happened after my death, the figure of that young man could not be dispelled.
"Hu'er has a cunning mind. Don't trust him too much. After getting rid of Wang Zhongsi, you can recruit Xue Bai to check and balance Hu'er. But before Wang Zhongsi's death, you can't recall him to Chang'an to avoid bad things..."
Mentioning Xue Bai, Li Xiu couldn't help but ask: "What about Yang Guozhong?"
Yang Guozhong is the person closest to him at the moment, and he is also the political opponent that the Right Prime Minister's Office has been trying its best to deal with recently.
But before, Li Linfu didn't believe that he was going to die, so he wanted to keep the phase. Today, when he knew that his life was about to end, he suddenly discovered that the phase that he cared about most in the past was actually the least important in the end.
The most important thing right now is to ensure the safety of the family after his death.
"Spit pot...hate me?"
"What?"
Even when the light came back, Li Linfu's physical strength was not enough to support him to continue thinking. The rosy color on his face had faded, and he lay down tiredly, his vision went dark, and he passed out again.
In the darkness, he realized that he was about to die, but he was extremely unwilling to do so and kept thinking about living.
This strong desire to survive kept the last ray of his spirit alive all night long, until someone whispered in his ear.
"Grandpa, uncle Guo is here."
The term "Uncle Guo" was rarely mentioned in Youxiang's Mansion. Li Linfu opened his eyes and saw Yang Guozhong standing there covered in dust with a look of sorrow on his face.
"Who are you?"
"The right minister, Yuan Ankang, is me, Yang Guozhong." Yang Guozhong rushed to the bedside and said with tears: "I haven't seen you for half a year, how can I be so haggard and haggard?"
"You're old, you're old." Li Linfu sighed, "You just arrived from Yizhou?"
Yang Guozhong looked down and saw that his mud-covered boots were stepping on the soft carpet of Xiangfu Villa.
"Yes, I just arrived at Lishan. I heard that Your Prime Minister was ill, so I came here without even putting out my riding whip. I also hope that Your Prime Minister will recover as soon as possible, share the worries of the saint, and provide generous protection for the people."
Just hearing this sentence, Li Linfu knew that Yang Guozhong had come with a prepared speech. He came here not because of their deep friendship, but because he wanted to show the world that he was worthy of entrusting Yang Guozhong with his gratitude.
"Cough cough cough."
Li Linfu suddenly coughed again and sat up with phlegm in his mouth, looking for a spit pot.
However, Yang Guozhong did not open his mouth to answer as he had done when he first arrived in Chang'an. As if he had not seen his movements, he just bowed by the couch and took his composure.
A maid came over with a spit pot. Li Linfu spit out a mouthful of thick phlegm, lay back on the couch, and murmured: "Today is different from the past."
"But your great kindness to me has not changed." Yang Guozhong pointed his finger to the sky and swore: "Your prime minister only needs to rest in peace and recuperate. If anything happens at home, I will treat it as my own business. The two families share weal and woe and share the same spirit." branch."
Li Linfu felt tired and stared at Yang Guozhong for a long time, thinking that he had made too many enemies in his life and there were countless people who hated him. In comparison, Yang Guozhong had always been quite respectful to him.
"I'll leave it to you to handle state affairs."
Although Yang Guozhong did not need Li Linfu's consent to become prime minister, with this sentence, the process of taking over government affairs would be much smoother. Yang Guozhong couldn't help but be overjoyed, said a few more words, and left.
A meeting consumed Li Linfu's last strength.
He thought that he had kept the position for his whole life, and finally took advantage of a scoundrel like Yang Guozhong. He felt sad, and felt that the position was not worth it, and his whole life seemed cheap.
"Grandpa." Li Xiu stepped forward and said, "Brothers and sisters will be here soon. Who do you want to see? Go and invite me."
Only then did Li Linfu realize that he still had important things to say last night, and today he was delayed by Yang Guozhong. He tried to open his mouth, but he was still angry.
"Xue Bai...Xue Bai..."
At this time, numerous footsteps could be heard in the courtyard.
Li Xiu looked back and knew that it was impossible to let nearly a hundred family members rush in, so he quickly ordered someone to stop them.
"Grandpa, who do you want to see? Let's invite them one by one."
The luster in Li Linfu's eyes had faded, and he finally murmured: "Xue Bai..."
"Grandpa?"
"Grandpa?"
Li Xiu called out several times, his eyes widened in disbelief, and he stretched out his hand to look under Li Linfu's breath, but his whole body froze there.
He turned around blankly and looked at the family members walking towards him, wondering what the Li family should do next.
The prime minister who had been in charge of the Tang Dynasty for seventeen years died.
No one knows what Datang will do in the future.
~~
Yang Guozhong left Li Linfu's other business and rushed to Huaqing Palace to meet the Holy Spirit without changing his clothes. He still looked as dusty as before.
Along the way, he thought about the swearing he had just made in front of Li Linfu, and secretly thought that he had now learned the skill of the honey-belly sword, and was even better than Li Linfu.
All the way into the temple, the saint happened to come out of the soup and summoned him directly.
Compared with Li Linfu's old illness, Li Longji seems to be full of energy.
"I pay my respects to the saint and wish him good health."
"No gift." Li Longji put on his robe and sat down in the warm spring-like palace. He looked at Yang Guozhong and could see that he deliberately didn't change his clothes so as to take credit. He just thought it was funny and said, "Thank you for your hard work, my dear.
The Battle of Nanzhao was a great victory, thanks to your good planning."
"It is all thanks to the sage's personal secret strategy and strategic planning. The sage and heaven cooperate to bless our Tang Dynasty soldiers, so we can achieve this victory."
Li Longji was happy to hear this, smiled casually, ordered someone to bring the wine glass, and asked: "Why don't you wait for a while and escort Ge Luofeng back to report the victory? What are you doing running back in such a hurry?"
The reason why Yang Guozhong was able to come back was naturally approved by Li Longji. The reason why he asked this was just to tease him about his impatience.
He then giggled twice and responded honestly: "I heard that your prime minister is seriously ill, and I am worried that there is no one around the saint to share his worries."
"That's fine."
In fact, during the days when Li Linfu was ill, Li Longji was already tired of having to worry about state affairs. Looking around the court, Yang Guozhong, although not the most talented and virtuous, was the most considerate of the Sacred Heart.
What's more, during the battle at Nanzhao, it was obvious that Yang Guozhong was a blessed commander.
"First sort out the achievements of this southern expedition, how to reward the soldiers, and draw up a charter."
"I obey the decree."
This was a complicated and detailed job, and Li Longji was too lazy to take care of it personally, but for Yang Guozhong, it was a fat job.
Moreover, Li Longji's attitude obviously meant that he agreed to hand over the position of Prime Minister to him.
At this time, a eunuch hurried over and whispered to Gao Shili. Gao Lishi then stepped forward and whispered: "Sage, your right prime minister has died."
Li Longji sighed slightly, thinking that Li Linfu died at this time, delaying the Lantern Festival.
Yang Guozhong frowned and lowered his head, thinking about what kind of expression he should put on.
What he didn't expect was that the sage was far more practical than he was, and he immediately said: "It is decreed that Yang Guozhong be appointed Zhongshu Ling and concurrently Minister of the Ministry of Personnel."
"According to the decree."
Gao Lishi received the order and asked: "Should the grace given to the right prime minister also be issued together with the edict?"
"Let's do it."
Li Longji waved his hand casually. There will be no royal banquet during the Lantern Festival this year. He has other interests and cannot bear to deal with them.
Yang Guozhong and Gao Lishi then went to the Li family's villa and announced the decree to present Lieutenant Li Linfu, the governor of Yangzhou, and Banjian, the secret weapon of Xiyuan.
It turned out that the posthumous gift had been prepared long ago, just waiting for Li Linfu's death.
But after all, the saint is a king with deep kindness. It should be noted that these swords and the secret weapon of Xiyuan are special favors. Since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, only Fang Xuanling, Li Jing, Yuchi Jingde, Xiao Yu, Cen Wenwen and others have enjoyed this honor.
Among them, the only ones who also gave gifts to the three princes were Fang Xuanling and Li Jing.
The fact that Li Linfu received such generous treatment after his death was not only due to the friendship between the emperor and his ministers, but also because the saint concluded his coffin and praised him for assisting the saint in creating the Kaiyuan and Tianbao era.
In short, the deceased is gone, and it will be Yang Guozhong's turn to rule the world.
The first thing before him was the reward for those who had made meritorious service in the Southern Expedition.
~~
Yunnan County, Yaozhou.
That day, after finishing his official duties, Cui Guangyuan invited Xue Bai for a drink again.
After becoming the governor of Yunnan, his attitude towards Xue Bai changed slightly, and he quite hoped that Xue Bai would be promoted soon.
"I heard today that Xian Yu Zhongtong will also be transferred back to the court." Cui Guangyuan said: "It is said that in order to reward him for his merits, he will be moved to the position of Jing Zhaoyin."
Xue Bai actually got the news and nodded while holding the wine glass.
In the battle of Nanzhao, Xianyu Zhongtong actually did not have much credit, but he was promoted a lot. It was just someone in the court who was good at maneuvering the camp.
Cui Guangyuan said: "I have offended him, and now it is even more inappropriate to return to Chang'an. I will stay in Yunnan, but why has your reward never been received? Logically speaking, it is impossible for the court to treat you poorly."
"I won't treat you lightly, otherwise I would have given you the reward long ago." Xue Bai said, "It's just that it's not easy to give the reward, so I keep delaying it."
"Why?"
"They're afraid of me."
Xue Bai knew that Cui Guangyuan wanted him to leave, so he did not hide it and confessed his speculation about the situation in the court.
"Now that Yang Guozhong and Li Linfu are vying for the throne, they are not sure who I will help, so they are unwilling to let me return to the court. But once the battle for the throne is settled, they will have to face a new opponent, and they must be able to use it.
I."
Cui Guangyuan smiled when he heard this and asked: "I'm afraid we'll have to fight to invite you back then?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the sound of horse hooves could be heard outside the small government office.
After a while, Diao Bing ran over and said: "Lang Jun, the Yima is here!"
He rushed to Xue Bai and handed over an official document.
Before Xue Bai took it, he just looked at the seal on it and understood what was going on. He picked up the wine glass in front of him and slowly poured the wine on the ground.
He has never had a drink with Li Linfu, so this is a toast to Li Linfu...