A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Starting from the Village Chief

Chapter 774 Imperial Envoy in Luoyang
In the Tai Chi Hall.

The interpreter was reading the imperial edict.
“Li Yi, the Minister of Works, concurrently the Chancellor of the Secretariat and the Prince of Wei, may serve as the Commissioner of Customs and Traditions of the Taoist Temples in Shandong.”

It is appropriate to promote virtuous conduct to rectify human relations, and to investigate hidden matters to understand the people's sentiments.

All matters concerning the corruption or integrity of officials, the cultivation of fields, and the rise and fall of schools, shall be reported directly to the emperor, who shall bestow upon them purple ribbons and gold seals, carriages, flags, and clothing to signify their honor…

Li Yi stepped forward and accepted the imperial edict.

Emperor Li Shimin stepped down from his throne, took Li Yi's hand, and said, "Your ambition is upright, and you are loyal, selfless, and impartial. As an official, you are always able to fulfill your responsibilities."

Now that you bear a heavy responsibility and undertake an important mission, I hereby bestow upon you a copy of the Annals of Han written by Xun Yue. This book is concise in its narration and profound in its arguments, fully embodying the principles of governance and the duties between ruler and subject.

"I hereby bestow upon you another Hu bottle; though it does not weigh a thousand yi, it is still something I will use myself!"

The eunuch brought over the tray.

Above it is a copy of Xun Yue's "Han Annals" and a Hu bottle.

The Hu-style vase is full of exotic charm, resembling a lotus flower when viewed from above, with six high-relief human heads on its belly.

It has a phoenix head and dragon handle, a slender head, a trumpet-shaped foot, and honeysuckle patterns painted on it.

This is a gilded silver pot.

The six relief human heads on the phoenix-headed human-faced pot are lifelike, with full muscles, curved eyebrows, big eyes, small mouths and delicate noses, and hair parted in front of the forehead and tied in two braids, full of the style of Indian figures.

These were brought to Chang'an by Sogdian merchants from the Western Regions via the Silk Road as tribute to the emperor.

The wine jug used by the emperor.

Now it is bestowed upon Li Yiyong.

"Your Majesty, I thank you for your reward."

When the emperor's carriage toured Luoyang, Li Yi, a trusted minister, was sent to lead the way.

The emperor also specially gave him the title of "Commissioner of Customs and Traditions of Shandong Taoist Temples," which, although a temporary post, carried great power.

They could not only visit the folk customs and hardships, but also examine officials and reward or punish them.

Officials below the third rank who commit crimes can be directly dismissed from office, imprisoned, or even executed without prior notification!

As a prime minister, he was sent on a diplomatic mission.
Grant them the privilege of acting expediently.

He also specially dispatched 24,000 soldiers from the Twelve Guards of the Southern Garrison of Chang'an to prepare the way for Li Yi.

The tacit understanding between the ruler and his minister

Li Yi knew what the emperor was worried about.
A glance
He put the emperor at ease.

Although the emperor bestowed upon him a Hu bottle and Han dynasty inscriptions, but not an imperial sword, the Shandong Taoist temple's customs commissioner still wielded considerable power.

After leaving Tongguan,

The area east of the Taihang Mountains and north of the Huai River, encompassing Henan and Hebei, falls within the scope of this Shandong Circuit.

Having received the imperial decree,

I went home and prepared to leave the next day.

He was reluctant to part with his wives, concubines, and children.
Since returning to Beijing from Daibei in the summer, Li Yi has had a rare six months to spend at home with his wife and children.

The children are growing up, and after spending time with them, they all like their father.

His wives and concubines prepared many things for him, including warm clothes they had sewn themselves and warm leather boots.
There were also hand warmers made for him.

Shi Niang said that all the concubines who were not pregnant should go to Luoyang, and that some young and clever maids should also be selected.

Li Yi, however, said that his mission was important and he needed to hurry to Luoyang.

He instructed Shi Niang to select two or three concubines to go to Luoyang, preferably those without children who were willing to go to Luoyang.

Those with children should stay and take care of them; there's no need for them to go.

There are still seven or eight concubines in the household who have never given birth and are not yet pregnant, and they all volunteered to go.

As for the maids who served in the wives' and concubines' rooms, and the household entertainers, there were still many who wanted to seize this opportunity to go to Luoyang.

If she were to be favored by the emperor and then become pregnant, her status could rise from maidservant or house entertainer to concubine.

Luo San Niang also wanted to go to Luoyang.

However, she wasn't trying to take advantage of the situation to win favor; her focus was elsewhere.

"My lord, will the imperial court move the capital to Luoyang as it did in the previous dynasty?"

Li Yi held up his teacup. "Not for now, but maybe in the future."

Luo San Niang's eyes lit up. "When is 'the future'? Three or five years? Or ten years?"

"Maybe in twenty years, maybe in thirty years, but it's unlikely to happen within twenty years."

Hearing this, Luo Sanniang was somewhat disappointed, but then she asked, "Will the capital really be moved to Luoyang in twenty or thirty years?"

"Luoyang is the center of the world, with convenient transportation in all directions."

Luo San Niang immediately said, "Then our family must hurry up and make arrangements in Luoyang. The houses, shops and markets in Luoyang must be cheap now, right?"

Li Yi simply smiled at Luo San Niang's greedy behavior.

In fact, the Li family's businesses had already begun to expand into Luoyang.

the next morning,
Li Yi then set off for Luoyang.

The two capitals were 800 li apart, with post stations along the way.

The postal relay system included both horse-drawn and foot-drawn relays, while official documents and special effects were delivered by horse-drawn relays.

The requirement for the horse was to travel four post stations a day, totaling 126.

A post horse travels six post stations a day, covering 160 li.

The urgent document required the journey to be completed at sixteen post stations per day, covering 480 li.

The urgent dispatch, delivered over 800 li, was a military dispatch of utmost urgency.

Li Yi led three hundred imperial guards to Luoyang at breakneck speed, traveling six post stations a day, and arrived outside Luoyang city in just five days.

The emperor's carriage would travel at most forty to sixty li a day, and it would take at least half a month to travel from Chang'an to Luoyang.

···
The afternoon sun hung over Mangshan Mountain to the north of Luoyang, like a plate covered with a thin veil, casting a hazy glow on the city.

The wind blows from the north.
Dry and cold, it stirred up the dust on the official road and rushed towards the tall and majestic city wall.

The city wall bears many marks of varying depths from years of wind, rain, and war. Several sections of the wall are very different in color, all of which were repaired after the war, like newly healed scars.

The city gates were wide open.

Two squads of soldiers, spears and swords at their sides, stood guard in the biting wind. Some soldiers couldn't help but secretly stamp their slightly frozen feet. This winter is much warmer than usual.

Even if it gets warmer, it will soon be the twelfth lunar month.

Standing at the city gate for half a day, I was chilled to the bone by the wind.

"Travel permit!"

"Those entering the city should take out their travel permits in advance, so they don't have to search for them when they're already in line."

"Open all the goods carried by horses and mules on the vehicles for inspection!"

···
The soldiers on duty repeated themselves impatiently.

At the city gate, people lined up to enter the city, and their travel permits and goods were checked, which caused the city gate to be blocked. However, neither merchants nor ordinary people dared to complain and waited in the cold wind, rubbing their hands together.

Some people were delivering vegetables to the city, while others were delivering firewood and charcoal.
Foreign merchants...

The queue was very long, and the inspection was very slow.

They stomped their feet and rubbed their hands together while talking in hushed tones.

Inside and outside the words,

Most of the concerns were about the lack of rain and snow this year, as well as the anxiety about the continuous rise in grain prices.

On the official road in the distance,
Several riders appeared.

Many eyes turned to them, and seeing them consciously dismount and line up at the back of the queue, everyone looked away and continued talking to the people around them.

They didn't know,

These seemingly ordinary riders are led by Li Yi, the prime minister of the imperial court.

Li Yi, who held the title of "Customs Envoy of Shandong Taoist Temples,"
In five days, they traveled from Chang'an to Luoyang.
He left several hundred followers and soldiers thirty miles away, changed his own equipment, and rode an old horse into the city.

After queuing for a long time,

They finally got to them.

Li Yi used a fake identity he had prepared beforehand: a scholar from Chang'an visiting relatives and friends in Luoyang.

The soldiers checked the people passing through the station, inspected their belongings, and conducted a routine interrogation.
"Alright, we can enter the city now."

The man waved his hand, but then asked, "I heard that the emperor will lead all his officials to Luoyang for a meal next month. Is that true?"

Li Yi said, "I heard quite a lot about it when I was in Chang'an, but I don't know if it's true or not."

The soldier nodded and didn't ask any more questions.

Li Yi and his companions then led the old horse into the city.

Compared to the capital city of Chang'an,
Luoyang, the former eastern capital of the Sui Dynasty, now appears dilapidated and desolate.

Although this city of Luoyang is newer than Chang'an, it was built in the first year of the Daye era, which is only eighteen years ago.

Construction of Chang'an began in the second year of the Kaihuang era, more than twenty years earlier.

But at this time, Luoyang...

Where is even a trace of the grandeur of the Eastern Capital, the center of the world, that could amaze envoys from all directions?

Chang'an, the capital of the Tang Dynasty, had long since recovered from the ravages of war.
Luoyang, however, remained half-dead, still mired in the mire.

After entering the city, Li Yi did not go directly to the Governor's Office of Luozhou to see Governor-General Jiang Guogong Qututong, but went to the market first.

The Sui Dynasty city of Luoyang also had more than one hundred wards, and three markets: the East Market was called Fengdu, the South Market was called Datong, and the North Market was called Tongyuan.

Li Yi first went to Nanshi.

However, this Nanshi is not the Nanshi Datongshi of the Sui Dynasty, but rather the former Dongshi Fengdu City.

After the Tang Dynasty took over Luoyang, the East Market was renamed the South Market.

The original Fengdu City covered four blocks and mainly dealt in silk and porcelain. It had 120 trades and more than 3,000 shops, with more than 400 stores on the four walls.

At the end of the Sui Dynasty, Li Mi appointed Meng Rang as the general. Meng Rang led 3,000 infantry and cavalry into the outer city of Luoyang at night, burning and looting Fengdu City, destroying countless shops.

King Yang Tong of Yue also transported rice from Luocang into the city and sent 5,000 soldiers to garrison Fengdu City.

After experiencing the ravages of war,
Because it was located south of the Luo River, the Tang Dynasty renamed it Nanshi (South Market) and reduced it to two wards.

In addition to still dealing in traditional silk and porcelain, Nanshi Middle School also mainly deals in grain, and has many grain warehouses owned by grain merchants.

Fengdu City once covered four blocks and had a perimeter of eight li. It was a bustling city with thousands of shops.

Today, however, only two blocks remain, the other two having been converted into residential areas. The renamed Nanshi has never regained its former bustling prosperity.

In the past, the neighborhoods around Nanshi were quite lively, with merchants settling down nearby, and even a few neighborhoods were inhabited by a large number of non-Han people.

In the afternoon,

The South Market is also open for business.

Li Yi enters the market.
The South Market feels far inferior to the East and West Markets of Chang'an.
At the central intersection, some people were selling steamed buns from carts, while others were selling mutton soup.

Li Yi felt a little hungry, so he waved his hand and said, "Steamed buns."

The vendor, who was loudly hawking his steamed buns, quickly responded and pushed his cart over. Li Yi noticed that he was a bit short and asked with a smile, "You're not surnamed Wu, are you?"

"My surname is Wang, not Wu. Would you like some steamed buns, sir? They're hot, big, and fluffy."

"Give us twenty." Li Yi and his group of five each ordered four.

The short steamed bun vendor was delighted and said, "Alright, twenty steamed buns, twenty coins each, that's four hundred coins in total."

As soon as he finished speaking,

Li Enze, standing behind Li Yi, shouted, "Seller of steamed buns, are you trying to rip us off because we're from out of town?"

In Chang'an, a steamed bun only costs two coins, but your steamed bun costs twenty coins each.
Do you think you're selling an ancient building? Your steamed buns contain half a pound of mutton and pepper! What gives you the right to sell them for ten times the price?

Upon hearing this, Wang Zhengbing smiled wryly, "Sir, sir, how could I dare to overcharge you? It's just that the price of grain in Luoyang changes every day and rises daily, so I can only raise the price of my steamed cakes accordingly. I'm just earning a little money through hard work to support my family."

"Two coins for a steamed bun is already considered expensive, and you're charging twenty coins for one? Why don't you just rob someone?"

Before the Mid-Autumn Festival, steamed buns in Chang'an cost one copper coin for two; now they cost two copper coins each—a fourfold increase. Unexpectedly, they're even more expensive in Luoyang, costing a whopping twenty copper coins each.

Li Yi frowned.

The vendor continued to argue, "Now everyone in Luoyang is saying that the emperor is leading all the civil and military officials and soldiers from Chang'an to Luoyang, at least 100,000 people are coming."
As soon as this news came out, the price of grain in Luoyang skyrocketed.

If prices keep rising like this, I won't be able to keep my small business running..."

(End of this chapter)