The Leisurely Life of the Prince of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 337 "Spectacle"

Li Daozon, the prefect of Jingzhao Prefecture, sat in the upper seat, listening to everyone's discussions. He felt very sleepy and groggy, and almost fell asleep several times. He sat upright as much as possible to maintain the appearance of a prefect.

It was already late at night, and after everyone finished discussing today's affairs, they left with their files.

Xu Jingzong saw that the prefect was still drowsy and said, "Prefect, how about a bowl of wine?"

Li Dao Zong then rubbed his face, regained consciousness, looked around, and asked, "Has everyone left?"

"Well, we have almost finished the discussion in the past half month. I will go to meet His Royal Highness the Crown Prince tomorrow morning."

"Okay." Li Daozon stood up and stretched his muscles.

Yan Qinli had someone bring a jar of wine from somewhere, and also brought a basket of chopped mutton, garlic, celery, and a dozen cakes.

Xu Jingzong put a few tables together and said to the clerk beside him, "You all should go back. You can take a few days off. Let's get a new group of people here."

"Here."

The clerk walked out of the door and called the remaining guards outside to leave as well.

Jingzhao Prefecture fell silent. Two oil lamps were lit, illuminating the faces of the three people.

Yan Qinli said: "After finishing the present, all that's left is next year's work."

Xu Jingzong put a piece of mutton into his mouth and said, "It depends on how His Royal Highness the Crown Prince arranges it."

Yan Qinli was silent for a moment and then smiled: "Every time I see the smiles on the faces of the villagers in Guanzhong, I feel that it is all worth it. Today, a thief took the money of the old mansion soldier and was caught by the bad commander Wei Chang. This is also very gratifying."

The three of them raised their wine bowls and drank them all.

Li Dao Zong felt much more energetic after drinking the wine. He said, "I am old now. I will have to rely on you for many things in Jingzhao Prefecture in the future."

Xu Jingzong placed the cake next to the stove. "The prefect is the King of Jiangxia. It is only with you in Jingzhao Prefecture that we have the opportunity to show our talents."

"What? Are you, Xu Jingzong, going to stay here forever?"

Xu Jingzong put down his wine bowl and said, "So what?"

Yan Qinli said: "This old Xu is so busy that he forgets everything else."

Li Dao Zong warned: "You should fight less."

"What the prefect said is right."

The three of them laughed again.

Xu Jingzong knew clearly in his heart that as long as the Prince of Jiangxia remained in Jingzhao Prefecture, he could also continue to serve as the Shao Yin of Jingzhao Prefecture. If the Prince of Jiangxia left Jingzhao Prefecture, he would probably leave as well.

For some reason, Xu Jingzong felt that he had nowhere to go if he left Jingzhao Prefecture.

On a cold night in Guanzhong, the chill wind howled through the streets of Chang'an.

Li Yifu sat in the backyard of Jingzhao Prefecture, listening to the laughter of several people inside the door. He looked up at the starry sky, lost in thought.

This time when he came to Chang'an and had discussions with Jingzhao Prefecture, he and Zhang Da'an learned a lot and felt a sense of reliance in their hearts.

The next day, the cold wind had not yet stopped, but the sky was already bright.

Li Chengqian arrived at the Secretariat early, and there were a lot of files and memorials piled on the table.

Yu Zhining was packing here, and when he saw the Crown Prince coming, he stepped forward and said, "Your Highness, these were all sent by Jingzhao Prefecture these days."

"You haven't had any rest these days?"

"I just got back today, so it's no problem."

"Has Chu Suiliang been hanging out with his uncle a lot lately?"

Yu Zhining bowed and replied, "I have been to the residence of Duke Zhao. As for what he said to Duke Zhao, I have never asked him."

"It's just a casual question, don't take it to heart."

"Here."

Li Chengqian just sat down and planned to take a look at the results of the discussions in Jingzhao Prefecture over the past few days.

Only half an hour later, the Secretary of the Central Secretariat Cen Benwen came in hurriedly.

Li Chengqian looked up and saw the person coming, and said, "Minister Cen, it's rare to see you come during this rest season."

Cen Wenben bowed and said, "Recently, Duke Zhao and Chu Suiliang and I have important matters to ask Your Highness."

After saying that, he handed over a memorial.

Li Chengqian opened it and took a look. "Please sit down first. I'll get back to you later."

"Here."

Cen Wenben and Yu Zhining sat aside and helped His Highness deal with the paperwork.

It was very quiet in the Secretariat. Li Chengqian was flipping through rolls of documents. This half month was the first time that Luoyang and Guanzhong Jingzhao Prefecture had contacted each other. Looking through the rolls of documents, it seemed that they had discussed a lot of issues.

This involved the issue of redundancy and allocation of some officials in Guanzhong, and Jingzhao Prefecture and Cen Wenben had the same idea.

Li Chengqian made comments while watching.

From the morning on, the light gradually became brighter and shone into the Secretariat.

At noon, Little Sizi came with a food box and said, "It's time for my brother to eat."

Li Chengqian looked up and found that Yu Zhining and Cen Wenben were gone without him knowing when.

Li Chengqian took the food box from his sister and took out the bowl and chopsticks and said, "Why is it vegetarian today?"

Little Sizi also took out her own bowl and chopsticks, "It's rare to eat some vegetarian dishes in winter."

"Alright."

After dinner, Xiao Sizi sat at the gate of the Secretariat to bask in the sun. The warm sunlight shone on her body and she squinted her eyes comfortably.

The palace is very quiet, and silence always makes people feel a little sleepy.

Seeing someone coming, Xiao Sizi quickly bowed and said, "Minister Yu."

Yu Zhining also returned the greeting and said, "I have come to see Your Highness."

"My brother is still reading the files. Minister Yu, please go in."

Yu Zhining looked at the little princess, smiled and nodded, then walked into the palace.

Little Sizi sat cross-legged on the chair, continuing to bask in the sun, and heard some of the conversation between his brother and Cen Wenben.

Then, Cen Wenben left in a hurry.

With nothing to do, Xiao Sizi took out a book from his arms and sat in the sun to read the contents of the book.

It is the Yi Si Zhan written by Taoist Priest Li. This book is difficult to understand and one needs to ponder over every three or two sentences.

Another hour passed, and Xiao Sizi saw many officials walking into the central library, even his uncle came.

Xiao Sizi smiled at her uncle and saw him nod at her. She looked again and saw that they were all standing in front of her brother. She got down from her chair, holding a book in one hand and a chair in the other, and walked into the Secretariat.

Then, she sat quietly between her uncle and her royal brother, listening to her royal brother talking to them.

Of course the little princess didn't understand political affairs, but she was willing to listen, and everyone laughed.

Li Chengqian looked at the people present and said, "There are many small problems in the files you recorded. Many small problems cannot be ignored. Problems accumulate and become big problems. I have read the views of Mr. Zhang Xuanbi and many Confucian scholars on Guanzhong before."

"They say that Jingzhao Prefecture enslaved the villagers in Guanzhong. In fact, this is not a question of recuperation in Huang-Lao philosophy, but a question of the spiritual outlook and daily life of the villagers in each county."

"They all think Guanzhong is busy because they think the villagers in Guanzhong only know how to work in workshops and don't know about other activities. That's why Jingzhao Prefecture should work more closely with the villagers in various counties. This is the first and necessary prerequisite for the construction of workshops."

Xu Jingzong replied: "I will prepare more competitions in each county."

The competition is considered an amateur activity in each county, which can be considered a rich life.

The rapid development of Guanzhong was built on the basis of the past ten years of accumulation, and the achievements of these ten years are inseparable from the appeal and mobilization capabilities of the emperor's power.

Guanzhong was the base of the Li Tang dynasty, so the emperor's appeal reached an unprecedented level, as it was under the feet of the emperor.

However, the achievements of Guanzhong cannot be replicated by other provinces and cannot be generalized.

This aspect is inseparable from the concept of governing the country that Duke Zheng had advocated in the past.

Under the emperor's rule, the relationship between power and class is a sensitive and complex one.

Today was the first time that Li Yifu walked into the Secretariat, and it was also the second time he met His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. The Crown Prince looked like a very calm person, his voice was very calm, and his demeanor was very composed. It seemed that nothing in the world could stump this Crown Prince.

Although he had been working for the prince for such a long time, this was only the second time he had met the prince.

I can’t remember what it was like when I first met the prince. It seems like a lifetime ago now.

This was Li Yifu’s first impression of the crown prince. The fact that Tang had such a crown prince might really be a sign of God’s favor to the Tang Dynasty.

After listening to the Crown Prince's insightful explanations, he was very glad that he had followed the Crown Prince's arrangements and guarded the Hexi Corridor for three years and Luoyang for another four years.

After hearing the Crown Prince's next words, Li Yifu lowered his head again.

"Some people are worried that the government has too much power and can easily become a pair of big hands to plunder the villagers. Secondly, Jingzhao Prefecture and my uncle have the same idea. The population of the counties in Guanzhong is becoming more and more complicated. The pressure on the counties is no longer what it used to be. Whether it is public security or resettlement, it has become a problem that must be solved now."

Cen Wenben replied: "Your Highness, there are now more than 30,000 people who have moved into Lantian County, and nearly 50,000 people in the counties of Weibei. If the counties have built houses for them, they will also build their own houses."

Chu Suiliang added: "These people's demands are also very simple, as long as they can live and not starve to death."

"Wrong." Li Chengqian denied the words and said, "It is too cruel to say that they will not starve to death. People move to Guanzhong to earn money through hard work."

Chu Suiliang bowed and said, "I made a mistake."

"It's okay. It won't hurt to share your opinions."

The reason of working and getting paid can attract so many people to Guanzhong. People’s demands are really simple.

It is so simple that the court can do it without any effort, and it would be even better if it could be done more fairly and justly.

But I dare not think too much about this reason. If I think too much, how can I know how these people who moved to Guanzhong spent their years in the past.

If they think about it a little more, they will feel like they are being stabbed in the back, and it is far from the time for them to be complacent.

When it comes to the imperial examination, there are still three hundred redundant officials who don't know how to be placed.

Li Chengqian asked, "Uncle, how do you think we should arrange this?"

The conversation suddenly stopped, Changsun Wuji stroked his beard and thought for a long time without speaking.

Li Chengqian took a sip of tea.

Zhang Sun Wuji said: "Why not add more officials to the counties in Guanzhong to supervise them and let the people who moved to Guanzhong register their household registration. Although they may not be able to get land, they can make a living by working."

The population of Guanzhong has long exceeded one million, and is still rapidly heading towards two million and three million or more.

Li Tang's base became increasingly powerful, and the manpower that could be mobilized became even greater.

Guanzhong, with a population of three million, can accomplish many things and create many wonders.

This wonder was not built by the emperor, but a new "wonder" created by millions of people. This is what their lifelong pursuit is all about.

Li Chengqian nodded and said, "My uncle is right. Minister Cen is worried that the government has too much power. The county magistrate can ban workshops built in the counties with a single word, and the imperial examinations held every two years will lead to redundant officials. As early as last year, someone told me about this."

"The population of Guanzhong has expanded several times, and management and governance are complex issues."

"According to the results of the discussions in Jingzhao Prefecture these days, the problems Luoyang is facing have reached a point where they must be resolved, right?"

Li Chengqian called again: "Zhang Da'an? Li Yifu?"

Upon hearing this, the two stepped forward and said, "That's right."

Changsun Wuji closed his eyes and breathed heavily, feeling tremendous pressure. These things were closely related to the Ministry of Personnel.

Why has Guanzhong become like this?
Changsun Wuji felt bitter in his heart. The prince was testing the abilities of the court officials, and each time he was testing them was more difficult than the last.

If the prince thinks you are useless, he will abandon you.

My uncle's words came back to my mind again.

Before Changsun Wuji could come up with a countermeasure, the prince beside him spoke first.

"The original 12 counties of Guanzhong and Zuofu, including Weibei, and the 75 counties of Tongguan remain unchanged. Under them, the townships and wards are re-established, and more personnel are assigned. Three hundred households form a township, and one hundred households form a ward. They are managed separately, and more personnel are assigned. Township heads and ward heads are appointed."

After that, Li Chengqian asked again: "What do you think, uncle?"

Before Changsun Wuji could speak, Cen Wenben said, "Your Highness, should we discuss this matter again in the court meeting?"

Zhang Sun Wuji let out a long sigh, "No need to discuss, let's arrange it this way. I will call together the officials of the Ministry of Personnel. From today on, they will no longer have a day off."

Cen Wenben bowed and said, "Yes."

Li Chengqian instructed: "The Ministry of Personnel should arrange personnel, Jingzhao Prefecture should keep up with the construction, and the Censorate should strengthen supervision. Thank you all for your hard work."

Everyone bowed together, said goodbye to the prince, and went about their business.

With such a hasty arrangement, the newly established townships may just be a makeshift team.

There's nothing wrong with a makeshift team; it's generally a necessary step.

If in the future there could be more counties and towns in Guanzhong, more place names, more people, and more stories that are a little different from previous history books, it would be a benefit to future generations.

The vision is always ambitious, but we have to take one step at a time.

Guanzhong will still be very busy in the future, and its officials will be very tired, and this situation will probably continue for many, many years.

After everyone left, little Sizi, who was leaning on her brother's shoulder, slowly woke up. She rubbed her eyes and saw that it was already dusk outside.

"Uncle, what do you think of Li Yifu?"

Chang Sun Wuji said: "I have heard about him. He is a man who will do anything to get what he wants."

Li Chengqian said: "Let's not talk about his character. He is very positive. He can only achieve his ideals by working for the country. To this end, he will try his best and use any means necessary."

(End of this chapter)