Thief Emperor

Chapter 1074 The Emperor's Party

It is unknown how much time passed, or how many times Lord Du called out, before the doors of Ganlu Hall slowly opened.

The emperor, dressed in ordinary robes, stood quietly behind the door, watching Minister Du shouting at the entrance.

At this moment, His Majesty's clothes were already somewhat disheveled, and his hair was not properly combed. It was clear that in the three days since returning to the palace from the Prince of Chenliu's residence, he had stayed in the Ganlu Hall and had not gone anywhere, nor had he even bothered to groom himself.

At this moment, his eyes were bloodshot, making him look extremely intimidating, like an enraged dragon.

Minister Du glanced at Li Yun once, then knelt on the ground and kowtowed, saying, "Your Majesty, I have disturbed Your Majesty's presence. Please forgive me!"

The emperor's eyes were red, but his face remained expressionless. He simply said quietly, "What happened that made Brother Shouyi so anxious to knock on the door?"

Du Qian bowed his head and kowtowed: "Your Majesty, I am worried about you and therefore wish to see you. There are also some things I wish to discuss with you."

His Majesty the Emperor rubbed his temples, remained silent for a moment, and then said, "I'm fine."

"These past few days, these past few days..."

He said somewhat absentmindedly, "I was just thinking about some things."

Du Qian felt a chill run down his spine.

For many years, especially after His Majesty the Emperor ascended the throne, whenever they met in private, especially with acquaintances like them, he always referred to himself as "I" and rarely as "朕" (Zhen, the imperial "I").

And now, the first few words are "I, the Emperor."

Minister Du bowed his head and said, "Your Majesty, I have some matters I would like to discuss with you."

Emperor Li thought for a moment, stepped aside, and said quietly, "Then come in. I've been thinking about some issues by myself for three days now, and it's time to talk to someone about them."

Having said that, he entered the Ganlu Hall with his hands behind his back.

Du Xiangong stood up from the ground and followed the emperor carefully into the Ganlu Hall.

This was the first time in the twenty years he had known Li Yun that he felt so cautious in front of her.

After entering the inner hall of Ganlu Palace, His Majesty the Emperor reclined on the soft couch, his gaze fixed on the beams, still somewhat lost in thought.

Du Xiangong looked around and saw some wine in the Ganlu Hall.

He found a seat, sat down quietly, and said with his head bowed, "Your Majesty, I just... I just went to find out what happened, and what Wu Zetian said is not credible."

Prime Minister Du took a deep breath and continued, "Wu Ni is a member of the former Zhou royal family. Now that the former Zhou no longer exists, he naturally hates this dynasty and Your Majesty. Therefore, even after being arrested, he still harbors evil intentions and wants to sow discord between Your Majesty and the court officials."

The emperor remained silent.

Minister Du could only grit his teeth and continue, “His Majesty once taught us that no matter what we do, we must be realistic. In this major case of treason, no matter who in the court is involved or what position they hold, they should be arrested and punished, and their families should not be implicated.”

"No tolerance!"

At this point, Prime Minister Du was already quite excited. He bowed his head deeply and said, "This is the court that His Majesty created."

"Most people are on His Majesty's side."

His Majesty the Emperor turned his head and looked at Du Qian, whose eyes had already turned red, and said in a daze, "What? Is Brother Shouyi worried that I will go insane and kill indiscriminately in the court?"

Du Qian shook his head: "Your Majesty is naturally divine and would not do such a thing. What I am worried about is that Your Majesty will distrust your ministers in the future and eventually become estranged from them. Even if this matter can be resolved this time, in a few years or a decade, it will evolve into a great disaster that shakes the state and the ancestral temples!"

The emperor rubbed his head and said, "These past few days, I've been thinking about whether what Wu Heng said is true and how much of it makes sense."

"After thinking it over, although this person is a bit stupid, what he said is not without reason."

The emperor said quietly, "Whether it is a new tax or a new policy, the common people will benefit, while the scholars, officials, gentry and nobles will suffer. Even if my imperial estates and the Li imperial family pay taxes like them, it will be the same."

“If their interests are harmed, they are harmed. Just because the interests of the royal family are also harmed doesn’t mean they won’t have any complaints.”

"At most, they just don't dare to say it."

His Majesty the Emperor said slowly, "These people will continue to appear in the court. Even if they don't support Wu Zetian, there will be other rebels in the future."

His Majesty the Emperor said in a low voice, “Unless these people find other benefits to make up for the losses they suffer under the new tax law.”

Or perhaps...

His Majesty the Emperor said calmly, "Or, I can purge them one by one. Once I've killed enough, these people won't be a significant force in the court anymore."

He looked at Du Qian with a melancholy expression: "Since there is no benefit, I'm afraid Brother Beneficiary is also resenting me."

Du Qian quickly shook his head and said in a low voice, "If it were only for personal gain, how could I have followed Your Majesty in the first place? The reason I followed Your Majesty back then was because Your Majesty distributed land equally to the people in Yuezhou."

Li Yun looked at him and said quietly, "If you don't feel resentment, what about your son? What about your grandson?"

Du Qian said in a deep voice, "I am the Duke of Qin and I also serve in the Secretariat. The Ministry of Revenue pays me two salaries every year, which is enough for their expenses." "Alright."

His Majesty the Emperor waved his hand, his expression calm: "You and I both know that this is not enough."

"No amount of money can ever be enough."

Emperor Li said quietly, "Of the four words 'wealth and honor,' 'wealth' only accounts for one word; the more important thing is 'honor and honor.'"

"to be honest."

Emperor Li said softly, "It means being able to bully people."

"Moreover, no matter how generous the imperial salary is, it may not be enough to make one rich. So for the past ten years, I have turned a blind eye to some people who have taken bribes and demanded favors, as long as it is not too excessive."

At this point, Emperor Li looked at Du Qian and continued, "The matter of Wu Heng has given me a lot of inspiration."

His Majesty the Emperor tapped the table and said, "He said that if my Li family does not change the new laws, it will perish after only two generations."

"I've thought about this carefully over the past three days. Whether it's a second generation or not, it might not matter."

Emperor Li said calmly, "Anyway, since the founding of the dynasty, I have never really thought about making it last for thousands of generations."

"Whether future generations will accept my new taxes, policies, and laws is a matter for them to decide. Neither you nor I can control it. As long as the next ruler of the Li family is not a tyrannical and evil person, that's enough."

"But no matter what future generations do, no matter how they change the law."

His Majesty the Emperor said quietly, "My Zhangwu reign must implement the new laws and policies."

"I'll do it for as many years as I can."

Emperor Li's eyes were burning: "If I, Li Er, were to die one day, or be killed, I would not care about what happens afterward. But as long as I am alive, this matter must be done."

“Those who block the way, those who collude with local gentry and clans, or those who openly or secretly comply while secretly making things difficult for others.”

His Majesty the Emperor said indifferently, "Then let's see whether I killed them or they killed me."

Minister Du rose, knelt on the ground, and bowed deeply: "Your subject... will always stand with Your Majesty."

The emperor looked at him, and finally bent down to help him up. Even Li Yun couldn't help but soften when he saw that Prime Minister Du's hair had turned white. He patted Du Qian on the shoulder and said, "Brother Shouyi, what I want to create is an era in which the people can live well and commerce is extremely prosperous."

"If it can be done, the future commercial benefits will far exceed the income from the land. The descendants of the Du family can try to enter this industry and obtain wealth and honor from it."

Du Qian was taken aback: "Business?"

Emperor Li nodded: "My third son is doing this kind of work now."

At this point, His Majesty the Emperor gave a self-deprecating smile: "Of course, this is on the premise that I can do it. If I can do it, then this direction is correct. If I can't do it..."

"In a few decades, when the country restores its old system, it will be much better than it was at the end of the last year. At that time, the Du family will still be the Duke of Qin and can still enjoy wealth and honor."

Du Qian's expression was complicated as he bowed his head and said, "Your Majesty's words have been remembered."

He looked up at Li Yun, hesitated for a moment, and then said in a low voice, "Second Brother, most people in the court are your loyal followers, including me."

"Regarding last year's assassination attempt during the Longevity Festival, all those involved will be implicated and held accountable. This matter..."

He looked at Li Yun and whispered, "After I go out, I will work with Xu Ang to get it done, and we will make sure Erlang is satisfied."

Emperor Li looked at him and shook his head, saying, "You are the Grand Secretary, why do you need to get your hands stained with blood?"

As the prime minister, or rather, the prime minister, Du Qian had absolutely no need to get involved. He could remain aloof and manage everything, yet remain completely uninvolved in any of it.

This is what a true "prime minister" should do; no one but the emperor can judge him.

If Du Qian were to step down, he would then be standing alongside the emperor against certain hidden forces within the court.

Du Xiangong shook his head slightly.

"This bloodline must be stained."

His voice was low and deep: "I want to tell the court and the people that I will always..."

"It's His Majesty's faction."

Du Xiangong clenched his fist and took a deep breath.

"If they want to fight, then I, your subject, will also fight them!"

(End of this chapter)