Detective Di Renjie: The Mysterious Dynasty

Chapter 345: Big Leaf Suffers

Inside the Zhenguan Hall, Wu Zetian's brows were twisted into knots, and her face was as gloomy as leaden clouds, as if she had just started a fire.

Zhao Ji and Shangguan Wan'er walked into the hall one after another.

Wu Zetian caught a glimpse of Zhao Ji's figure, and the haze in her heart dissipated a little, and she spoke with a rare gentleness: "Chengyuan is here."

In the past year, the relationship between Zhao Ji and Wu Zetian was still very good, and he was not subject to any suspicion.

The old lady has made up her mind to return power to the Tang Dynasty. Zhao Ji is a grandson and relatively posing no threat. What kind of conflict could there be?
Zhao Ji bowed and said, "Your Majesty."

Wu Zetian asked with a smile on her face: "How is Mei'er doing recently? Have you asked Feng Chunlai and the others to check on her?"

Zhao Ji also smiled and replied: "Thank you for your inquiry, Your Majesty. I am really terrified. The imperial physician has checked Xiaomei and she is fine."

Wu Zetian nodded and said, "It is not easy to keep a baby. You are the only heir to Xian'er's family. You must take good care of him."

When Zhao heard this, he agreed seriously.

However, Wu Zetian's smile slowly disappeared, turning into a sad look and she let out a soft sigh.

She ordered the palace maid to hand a memorial to Zhao Ji, and then said: "The border situation is unstable. The Turks and Tibetans have repeatedly shown signs of invading the border. Although Wang Xiaojie and others have won a few small victories, there are still hidden dangers."

"You are well versed in military affairs, and you know the Turks very well. I would like to hear your opinion on what Wang Xiaojie and others reported."

Zhao Ji took the memorial respectfully, read it carefully several times, and said to himself: "General Wang and the border generals request the court to increase troops and allocate funds to repair the defenses of the passes?"

After closing the memorial, he thought for a moment and said slowly: "I don't know much about the Tibetan issue, but as for the Turkic issue, Jili Khan is still alive and will not start a war lightly and violate the alliance."

"However, General Wang mentioned that the invaders this time were the tribe of Helu, the son of the rebel chieftain Modu. Modu's rebellion has been going on for many years, and his tribe has recovered somewhat. This tribe has always been warlike, so it is inevitable that they will have ambitions again, and we really have to guard against them."

"I think that, first of all, we should send a letter to Jili Khan to restrain him. In addition, the proposals of General Wang and others should also be approved."

Wu Zetian nodded when she heard this: "The important officials in the court and I also think so. But all of these things cost money, and this year several counties were hit by disasters. Not only do they need relief, but I have also exempted these places from taxes."

"Unfortunately, something happened in the Hang Canal recently. The money and grain taxes transported by the imperial court from the Yangtze River and the Huai River were lost by half! The ships carrying official salt capsized again and again, and the ships carrying money and grain stopped to resupply, but they said that they were robbed by pirates. This is really absurd!"

"If it weren't for the effective work of the General Construction Supervisor you work for, the huge amount of money saved from repairing the damaged palace this year would have put the national treasury at a loss!"

Zhao Ji bowed and said solemnly, "Your Majesty, there must be something fishy about this matter! I have checked the official files on the grain transport over the past ten years, and the loss of official ships in the first seven years was not much."

"But the losses have been greater each year over the past three years. This year, the losses have reached more than half! Moreover, 80% of the official ships that have had accidents are concentrated in the Han Canal section, which is really suspicious."

"As your majesty said, when sailing along the Han Canal, only the salt ships capsized the most, while the ships carrying money and grain capsized less. The ships that stopped at the shore for supplies and transported taxes were robbed the most, while the salt ships and rice ships were safe and sound. This is simply unbelievable!"

"This cannot be explained by the silting up of the canal or the robbery of ships by ordinary bandits. Someone from the government must be involved!"

When Wu Zetian heard this, her face turned cold and she gnashed her teeth and shouted angrily, "He deserves to be killed!"

Zhao Ji saw the opportunity and struck while the iron was hot, saying: "Therefore, I dare to suggest that the court should immediately send important officials to Yangzhou to investigate this case!"

"And to completely solve the problem of the loss of official ships over the past decades, we must change the previous method of 'long-term transportation' to a segmented transportation method..."

At this moment, a palace servant came to the palace to report: "Your Majesty, His Royal Highness Prince Liang wants to see you!"

When Wu Zetian heard the word "Prince of Liang", she immediately became furious: "Send him in!"

Zhao Ji looked at Wu Zetian's angry face, raised his eyebrows immediately, and temporarily stopped his actions, ready to watch Wu Sansi's good show.

Wu Sansi originally walked into the hall with a smug smile on his face, but when he saw Zhao Ji was also present, his face instantly darkened, as if he had eaten a fly.

He forced himself to remain calm and saluted Wu Zetian.

Wu Zetian stared at Wu Sansi coldly and sneered: "What are you doing here?"

Wu Sansi was no fool. He noticed that Wu Zetian was in a bad mood and quickly replied, "I came here because of the robbery of the official ship in Han Canal."

"Oh? Are you here for the matter of the official ship on the Han Canal?" A fierce look flashed in Wu Zetian's eyes.

Wu Sansi immediately responded, "That's right. The official ships on the Han Canal were robbed because the grain transporters were too lazy. They received the imperial government's grain transport funds, but they refused to dredge the canal. Instead, they turned into thieves, stealing and even robbing official ships. This is intolerable!"

"I think we should immediately send someone to Yangzhou to investigate this matter, eliminate the bandits along the way, ensure the smooth transportation of grain transport, and solve the urgent problem of the court."

Wu Zetian was furious when she heard this and said, "You said the official ship was robbed by the boatmen along the Han Canal? Then what do the officials in Yangzhou do for a living?"

"The grain transport ships are worn out every year. This year, a group of people robbed half of the taxes in Jiangnan. What's the point of the court supporting them?"

When Wu Sansi heard what Wu Zetian said, his face instantly became awkward. He thought for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said, "Well, Your Majesty, calm down. The officials in Yangzhou did have some omissions, but they also have their own difficulties. The people are cunning and there are many lakes and swamps along the canal, which are difficult to deal with."

"Therefore...therefore, we should send capable ministers in the court to wipe out the rebellion." After saying this, he secretly looked up and glanced at Wu Zetian.

Unexpectedly, Wu Zetian was furious. She raised her hand and threw a memorial at Wu Sansi, shouting: "Quibbling! I think you accepted bribes from the officials in Yangzhou! Come here to make excuses for them!?"

When Wu Sansi heard this, he was so frightened that his legs went limp and he immediately fell to his knees: "I am innocent, I am innocent!"

Zhao Ji witnessed Wu Sansi's miserable appearance and could hardly hold back his laughter.

Wu Zetian's anger had not yet subsided, and she continued to rebuke him, "As Prime Minister, I have high hopes for you and have entrusted the affairs of state to you. Is this how you repay me? It's been less than half a year, and the treasury is empty!"

"I can't even pay for disaster relief and military pay! The national economy is in such a difficult situation, but you are enjoying yourself at home, accepting bribes, and treating state affairs as a joke! Do you think I don't know about your dealings with Prince Ying Yuanqi?"

Wu Sansi heard this, cold sweat dripped down his forehead, and he kowtowed and confessed his guilt: "I know my guilt, I know my guilt!"

Zhao Ji watched Wu Zetian pass the buck and even felt a little sympathy for Wu Sansi, fearing that Wu Zetian would shout out "my money" and create a famous scene.

Wu Sansi knocked his forehead loudly in a hurry and said, "Your Majesty, I am indeed incompetent, but I have never accepted any bribes. It is true that I have contacts with Yuan Qi, but that is a friendship that has been formed over the years."

"His son Yuan Gui did bring me some gifts when he came to the capital this time, but they were just local products from the East China Sea and were not worth much."

"He came to the capital this time because, firstly, Yuan Qi could not leave his residence without permission and came to see Your Majesty in person. He missed you so much that he sent his son to make the pilgrimage on your behalf. Secondly, Yuan Qi heard that the Han Canal was blocked and the state affairs were difficult, so he was willing to donate his family property to the national treasury for emergency relief. This can be said to be ruining one's family property to help the country in times of difficulty! Your Majesty!"

Before he could finish his words, Wu Sansi burst into tears and looked extremely embarrassed.

Upon hearing this, Wu Zetian temporarily suppressed her anger, but still asked half-believingly, "Is that true?"

Wu Sansi kowtowed several more times and explained anxiously, "It is indeed so. How dare I deceive Your Majesty? If Your Majesty does not believe me, you can immediately summon Yuan Gui to the palace for a confrontation."

Wu Zetian sneered, her eyes full of disdain, and waved her hand gently: "Get up!"

Wu Sansi felt as if he had been pardoned. He kowtowed a few more times before getting up and wiping the sweat from his forehead.

Seeing Wu Sansi in such an embarrassed state, Wu Zetian's eyes were filled with disgust.

She turned to look at Zhao Ji and said, "Chengyuan, you just mentioned the matter of grain transport, why don't you continue talking about it."

After hearing this, Zhao Ji sorted out his thoughts for a while and then continued, "In the past, the grain transport, taxes, salt and rice were concentrated in Yangzhou, and a group of ships were sent to Chang'an and Luoyang. Each transportation took a long time."

"Boats from the Yangtze and Huaihe Rivers often capsize because of the different depths and hydrology of the rivers they pass through. In addition, the journey is too long and they need to resupply along the way, so they often stop. When they stop too much along the coast, it naturally attracts thieves."

"If the canal transport from Yangzhou to Luoyang and Chang'an is divided into several sections and warehouses are set up at the end of each section, these drawbacks can be solved."

"Each section of the ship's journey is shortened, which saves time. With multiple round trips, the cargo volume can be multiplied several times. At the same time, the boatman only sails in the river where he is familiar with the water, which makes it less likely to have accidents, and the so-called loss is reduced."

"If the journey is shortened, the fleet can save energy and stop less often. If we rely less on land routes and send more naval escorts along the way, the problem of thieves will also be solved."

"Establishing warehouses along the way will also benefit state affairs. Once there is a famine or a border war, there is no need to transport grain from as far south as the Yangtze River. It can be said that this is killing two birds with one stone."

After hearing this, Wu Zetian nodded repeatedly and praised: "Well, it is indeed a good strategy, good!"

Then, he looked at Wu Sansi with a look of disappointment: "Look at Chengyuan, and then look at yourself. You are old, but you are not as good as a young man in his twenties!"

Wu Sansi was naturally dissatisfied, but he didn't dare to say anything in rebuttal after being scolded. He could only nod and say, "Yes, yes, your majesty is teaching you..."

Wu Zetian looked at Zhao Ji again and said, "In that case, Chengyuan intends to go to Jiangnan in person to facilitate this matter, and go to Yangzhou to deal with the Han Canal boat capsize and the bandit incident?"

Zhao Ji bowed slightly, retreating to advance, and said: "Your Majesty, this is a major matter that involves the national economy and people's livelihood, and involves countless officials in the court and the local areas. How can I handle it properly with my shallow qualifications? I think only an old and important official can do this!"

As soon as these words were spoken, Wu Sansi's right eyelid twitched inexplicably and an ominous premonition arose in his heart.

Wu Zetian understood the meaning of the music and smiled: "Who are you referring to?"

Zhao Ji said bluntly: "Among all the civil and military officials in the court, if we talk about ability and prestige, the one who can do this is none other than Di Gong!"

When Wu Sansi heard that Di Renjie was going to be reinstated, he could not help but jump up and said, "Your Majesty, I think this is not appropriate!"

However, Wu Zetian ignored Wu Sansi's objection.

She slowly stood up, pondered for a moment, and then slowly said: "The issue of grain transport concerns the lifeblood of the country... We can't make a hasty decision! Let's discuss it in the court in two days."

(End of this chapter)