Li Chengqian of the Tang Dynasty: Please say long live His Majesty

Chapter 577 Du Gou, the Cripple (First Update)
In September, late autumn, the frost penetrates the bones.

In the Zhenguan Hall, Li Chengqian lowered his head and looked at the form in his hand carefully.

This is the latest statistics from the Ministry of Revenue on the changes in the total amount of taxes collected by each state and county in Henan Province over the past five years.

Later, Li Chengqian will make them into pictures.

In this way, it will be clear how much tax revenue has been stolen from Henan Province in recent years, especially in the two years since he ascended the throne, by various means.

"Your Majesty!" Xu An's voice rang out from beneath the Danbi. Li Chengqian came back to his senses and looked at Xu An: "What's wrong?"

"Your Majesty!" Xu An bowed earnestly to Li Chengqian and said, "The new Governor of Hangzhou, Duke of Lai, Du Gou, requests an audience."

Du Gou was the eldest son of the famous prime minister Du Ruhui and the elder brother of Du He, the consort of Princess Chengyang.

"Announce!" Li Chengqian looked serious.

"Summon the Governor of Hangzhou and Duke of Lai, Du Gou, to the audience." The Chief Eunuch of the Ministry of Internal Affairs shouted loudly at the entrance of Zhenguan Hall.

Soon, a thin middle-aged official wearing a purple official robe and a three-beam crown entered the hall with staggering steps.

Du Gou knelt heavily, then kowtowed and said, "I, the Governor of Hangzhou and Duke of Lai, Du Gou, pay my respects to Your Majesty. May Your Majesty live a long and healthy life."

Li Chengqian looked at Du Gou and sighed softly: "Du Da, it's been many years since we last met, right?"

"Yes!" Du Gou raised his head, looked at Li Chengqian and said, "Ever since I was fighting bandits in the waters of Dengzhou and Laizhou, my left hamstring was pierced by a needlefish, and I haven't been back to Chang'an since."

My left hamstring is ruptured.

Lame.

Yes, Du Gou is lame.

His situation is even more serious than Li Chengqian's.

After all, Li Chengqian had already started preparing to reattach his leg the year he broke it, and Du Gou's leg had been broken for more than ten years even when Li Chengqian came back.

It was also because of this that Du Gou was away from home for most of the year and rarely returned to the court.

"Your leg was broken by a needlefish, but you started helping the people to get rich by catching needlefish. This is extremely rare." Li Chengqian sighed lightly.

Compared with his younger brother Du He, Du Gou was the one who truly inherited Du Ruhui's wisdom and courage, but unfortunately, he had bad luck.

In his previous life, Du Gou had his leg broken by a needlefish while suppressing bandits. Later, he was implicated in a rebellion against Li Chengqian while crossing a river. Finally, he was dismissed from office and stripped of his title, exiled to Lingnan, and died of illness in the remote border area.

Yes, he died of illness in the frontier just like Li Chengqian.

Therefore, Li Chengqian could empathize with him.

And to be honest, Du Gou's talents and abilities were rare in the current dynasty.

If his leg had not been injured, he would at least be the Vice Minister of Six Ministries or the Junior Secretary of Nine Temples, or even higher.

And he took every step very steadily.

He might even be appointed as prime minister if he is not careful, and not only as Shizhong and Zhongshu Ling, but Du Gou will be a talent who can become Shangshu You Pushe in the future.

Looking at the entire court, the only ones who could truly compete with Changsun Wuji for the positions of Shangshu and Zuo Pushe in the future were Du Gou and Liu Rengui.

At present, Liu Rengui's position is still low, but Du Gou is already the governor of Hangzhou.

……

"Everything is due to my own fate. I have no regrets in my heart, and I have gained something. During these years in the local area, I have a very clear understanding of many local affairs." Du Gou bowed slightly.

"Not bad." Li Chengqian nodded in satisfaction and said, "There aren't many people in the court who have a deep understanding of local affairs. At most, they've served one or two terms as provincial governors, and they've inevitably been fooled by local aristocratic families and clerks. You, on the other hand, are the one who can actually get things done."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Du Gou breathed a sigh of relief.

"Let's get down to business." Li Chengqian looked up and said, "The main reason I'm transferring you to Hangzhou this time is because the father-in-law has been transferred away from Hangzhou. I need someone I can trust to watch over the entire Wuyue region from Hangzhou for me."

"I understand, Your Majesty, that you are concerned about the grain production in Wu and Yue." Du Gou raised his head slightly and said, "The war in Andong over the past two years, coupled with the floods in the north, has made it difficult for the court to store enough grain and fodder in the north for the war as planned."

"Indeed, if the Tibetans hadn't sent me 20,000 taels of gold every year, I might have already abandoned my plan to conquer Goguryeo and focused entirely on disaster relief. But fortunately, the situation isn't that dire. With the Tibetans' gold, I can use it as a base to issue more Kaiyuan Tongbao coins. I can use them to purchase food and fodder in Jiangnan, and then transport them north." Li Chengqian looked at Du Gou and said, "This is your first priority in Hangzhou."

"I obey your order." Du Gou bowed solemnly.

"The second thing." Li Chengqian tapped the table lightly and said, "I transferred you to Hangzhou because the emperor's father-in-law was transferred to Yangzhou. In the future, the emperor's father-in-law will also be transferred out of Yangzhou, so you must be prepared to take over Yangzhou in the future."

"Yes!" Du Gou looked stern.

His current condition is not suitable for being transferred back to Chang'an, otherwise just attending court every day would be enough to cost him half his life.

Only in this way can one serve in important states and counties while away from home.

In this way, even if he is not in the court, his status in the court is no worse than anyone else's because he is trusted by the emperor.

"You must intervene in the entire Jiangnan region, including land and grain, river transportation and flooding, government administration and people's livelihood, and the training of the navy." After a brief pause, Li Chengqian said, "If any official performs his duties improperly, you can directly impeach him."

"I obey your order!" Du Gou carefully wrote down every word Li Chengqian said.

Li Chengqian nodded and continued, "The third thing is that the Shaofu has several mountains and a silk factory in Hangzhou. Previously, the father-in-law of the emperor was in Hangzhou to take care of them. Now that he has gone to Yangzhou, this matter is entrusted to you, my dear minister.

In the past two years, I have relied heavily on this silk factory to reward civil and military officials and soldiers. Now that the father-in-law has arrived in Yangzhou, a new factory will also be built in Yangzhou."

"I understand." Du Gou bowed seriously.

If the emperor built such a silk factory for his own enjoyment, Du Gou would have to give him some advice, but since he did it to reward his officials and ministers, Du Gou could not say anything.

If the emperor manages his private property properly and uses it for state affairs, everyone will praise him. Do we really have to force the emperor to use other methods to accumulate wealth?

That would not be a good thing for the people.

Li Chengqian breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Since you have returned to Luoyang, why don't you go back to Chang'an and have a good rest?"

"I obey your order," Du Gou said earnestly. Li Chengqian smiled and said to Du Gou, "Don't be so rigid. My dear minister, please spend more time in Luoyang and Chang'an. If there is anything inappropriate, please report it to me directly. Don't be too cautious."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Du Gou bowed earnestly to Li Chengqian and said, "I will take my leave!"

Li Chengqian nodded calmly, and Du Gou bowed and left.

……

Watching Du Gou's departing figure, Li Chengqian sighed softly, "Du Ruhui's eldest son, if nothing had happened to him back then, he would surely have had a chance to become prime minister. But now, even with my support, his future remains difficult."

Li Chengqian had the deepest understanding of Du Gou's situation.

Li Chengqian is now sitting on the throne. Put yourself in the prince's shoes and think about it. A lame prince who can't walk well, even if it delays the handling of a political matter, will mean the life and death of countless people in a state and county.

Unless he has advantages in other aspects to make up for this deficiency.

Otherwise, such a prince would inevitably be deposed.

As for Du Gou, his biggest problem when he worked in the central government was getting around.

Even Changsun Wuji had to walk back and forth in Taiji Palace.

Du Gou had poor legs and feet, but it was far from the point where Li Chengqian had to make an exception for him and let him walk around the palace in a sedan chair.

Therefore, he could be the governor of Luozhou, or even the governor of Yongzhou, but it was not easy to get an important position in the court.

Li Chengqian's expression calmed down, and he turned sideways and said, "Pass the imperial decree down, appointing Du Gou as the Crown Prince's Left Instructor and awarding him a mansion in Yongtaifang, Luoyang."

"Yes!" Xu An stood aside and bowed, his expression becoming serious.

The Prince's Left Tutor is responsible for instructing the Crown Prince on morality and giving him advice and praise at any time.

Fourth rank, lower grade.

"Also, give the set of rattan armor that I used in the past to Du Gou, so that he can go in and out more safely." Li Chengqian raised his hand slightly.

"Yes!" Xu An immediately turned around and walked out of the hall.

……

Du Gou, who had just arrived at Chengtian Gate, received the emperor's edict and knelt on the ground, holding the edict, the house deed and the rattan armor.

For a moment, he felt his eyes becoming moist.

He kowtowed solemnly in the direction of the Zhenguan Hall: "Your Majesty, I, Du Gou, bow to thank you for your great grace. May your Majesty live forever and the Tang Dynasty endure forever."

A scholar dies for a confidant.

That's all.

The court officials passing by could not help but whisper to each other when they saw Du Gou, who was dressed in purple robes but had an unfamiliar face.

Those who knew Du Gou quickly told them that he was the eldest son of former Prime Minister Du Ruhui, the elder brother of the imperial concubine and General Du He of the Left Guard, and the Duke of Lai and Governor of Hangzhou.

Many people looked amazed.

However, sensitive people gradually noticed a problem.

Du Gou was transferred to be the governor of Hangzhou and the inspector of the prince's left tutor.

Some time ago, Fang Yizheng was transferred to be the governor of Cizhou, taking over Du Gou's position.

There are also rumors that the position of Governor of Hangzhou was originally supposed to be given to Zhangsun Chong, the eldest son of Zhangsun Wuji, Duke of Zhao.

If you really study it in depth, you will find that the emperor has recently begun to focus on cultivating the eldest sons of meritorious officials in the court.

Invisibly, one can feel a kind of order gradually being established.

In the future, the emperor will make use of more meritorious officials and eldest sons of the emperor's family.

Under the gaze of everyone, Du Gou left the palace and finally went to the house given by the emperor in Yongtaifang.

Yongtaifang is located in the southeast of Luoyang South City, not too far from the imperial palace.

The people living there are either from Luoyang or wealthy people from outside, and the location is quite good.

Du Gou stood in front of the door, looking at the people coming from all directions and nodded with satisfaction.

Just as he pushed the door open, he suddenly caught a glimpse of a pair of eyes flashing in a house diagonally opposite.

Du Gou entered the gate and stopped.

He had a feeling that what he had just seen was definitely not an illusion.

For some reason, Du Gou thought of the emperor sitting on the imperial couch.

The emperor arranged for himself to live here, and it was definitely not for no reason.

……

In the Zhenguan Hall, Li Chengqian stretched lazily and glanced at the dim sky outside. He turned sideways and asked, "How's the investigation going on with the Censorate?"

Xu An stepped forward and bowed, "Your Majesty, the Chief Censor Gao Zhizhou and the Assistant Censor Su Liangsi have already targeted someone."

"Yes!" Li Chengqian nodded and said, "Let's continue the investigation. The hidden dangers in Luoyang must be resolved as soon as possible."

"Yes!" Xu An bowed and accepted the order.

Li Chengqian raised his head slightly and asked, "Where is General Niu Jinda of the Left Guard?"

"We'll be in Luoyang in three days."

(End of this chapter)