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

Chapter 624: There are many people who want to be officials in this world (Part )

The winter snow spreads out endlessly.

The sound of a horn suddenly rang out between heaven and earth.

Countless Tang soldiers rushed out of the military camp on the north bank of the Taedong River and quickly formed up on the north bank of the river.

Swords and spears were like a forest, flags were fluttering, and they were so dense that you couldn't see the end at a glance.

After the snow, the sky cleared up and the morning light rushed in from the winter horizon, illuminating this cold, icy and murderous world.

Li Ji, dressed in red and golden armor, rode a tall black horse and came to the bank of the Taedong River, surrounded by countless brave generals and fierce soldiers.

The Qianniu Sword hanging on his waist always attracts countless people's attention when it swings.

That was a token given by the emperor to Li Ji, and he came to the banks of the Taedong River on behalf of the emperor.

Its appearance here is equivalent to the emperor's appearance here, looking down from high above, watching them attack Pingrang City in mid-air.

……

Wei Daijia rode back quickly from the front, his breath turning into a white mist in the air.

Rushing in front of the crowd, Wei Daijia reined in his horse, bowed solemnly to Li Ji, and said loudly, "General, the Taedong River is completely frozen over. We can cross it now."

Cross the river, cross the river.

Niu Jinda, Xue Rengui, Xue Wanche, Xue Wanbei, Ashina Zhong, Gao Kan, Liu Rengui, Li Yiyan, Pei Xingjian, Wang Fangyi, Duan Baoxuan and others who followed Li Ji suddenly became excited.

Li Ji raised his head calmly and looked towards the top of the city wall opposite.

The blue flag was held high, and a general in gray armor stood on the top of the city, staring at Li Ji.

That person was not Quan Gaisuwen, but Quan Gaisuwen's most capable general, Quan Gai Jingtu.

He is also Quan Gaisuwen's younger brother.

"It seems that Quan Gai Su Wen was really scared after being almost killed by a crossbow last year." Li Ji's gaze fell from Quan Gai Jingtu to Pingrang City behind him. He was sure that although Quan Gai Su Wen was not on the top of the city now, he must be watching from a place not far from the city gate.

This was not the first or second time that Li Ji attacked Pingrang City. If he got the slightest chance, Pingrang City would be captured.

Li Ji's expression calmed down, and he waved his hand indifferently, saying, "Let's begin."

"Yes!" The flag officer standing behind him immediately waved the command flag in his hand.

The next moment, a "creaking" sound was heard from behind.

Immediately afterwards, a number of tall and heavy crossbow carts were pushed onto the ice.

The sharp wheels immediately scratched two ice marks on the ice surface. The next moment, the soldiers with a layer of straw rope tied to the soles of the crossbow cart pushed forward quickly.

The Goguryeo people on the city wall did not seem to have expected that after the heavy snow had cleared, the Tang soldiers who had just arrived at the north bank of the Taedong River would dare to attack Pyongyang directly.

"Hurry!" The sound of drums rang out, and more soldiers stepped onto the ice from the shore, then shouted and strode towards Pingrang City.

Li Ji sat on his horse, looking upstream and downstream.

Two thousand cavalrymen climbed onto the Taedong River at the same time, and then headed towards the south bank at an extremely fast speed.

If you look closely, you will see that the warhorses' hooves are not only wrapped with burlap bags, but also tied with circles of straw ropes, allowing the horses to cross the frozen river more quickly.

Behind them, there were also more cavalrymen gathering on the shore, ready to charge towards Pingrang City at any time.

The top of Pingrang City was already in chaos, and no one would have thought that the Tang army would attack the city now.

On the surface of the Taedong River, the crossbow cart was quickly pushed to the south bank.

The Goguryeo people on the city wall might not be able to see it clearly, but the Tang soldiers on the north bank could see it clearly.

These crossbow carts are taller and larger than those they used in previous years, and the structure inside is more complex.

In the blink of an eye, the crossbow cart was pushed to the south bank of the Taedong River.

It was even pushed hard into the mud between the ice surface and the river bank. With this force, the specially designed crossbow cart stabilized instantly.

The next moment, the soldiers next to him quickly pulled the crossbow and aimed it at the top of the wall.

The Goguryeo soldiers on the wall were shocked.

In such cold weather, it is not easy to draw the bowstring, but can it be shot so far?

You know, even in summer, the Tang Dynasty's chariot crossbows couldn't possibly reach the top of Pingrang City...

With a "buzz", dozens of crossbow carts fired at the same time. In an instant, hundreds of Fuyuan crossbow arrows had taken off into the air, and then, under the gaze of countless people, they flew over a mile of land and then fell down heavily.

"Bang, bang, bang..." Crossbow arrows flew down from the sky and pierced through the bodies of Goguryeo soldiers on the city wall, finally nailing them to death on the city wall.

As soon as the blood flowed, a thin layer of ice formed.

……

Most of the hundreds of Fuyuan crossbow arrows fell on the city wall, but a small part of them were firmly nailed into the wall.

This power far exceeded that of ordinary Fuyuan crossbows, and the Tang and Goguryeo soldiers on the city wall were all shocked.

But what followed were the wails of the Goguryeo soldiers who were still alive on the city wall and the enthusiastic cheers of the Tang soldiers.

Li Ji watched this scene calmly.

These Fuyuan crossbow carts are all equipped with the latest crossbows brought to him by the emperor.

In recent years, the emperor has still devoted himself to the "Kaogong Zhi". The "Kaogong Zhi", which has not been completed for ten years, has already been transformed into the "Jiangzuo Gongshi".

Moreover, although the Kaogongsi was under the name of the Jiangzuojian, they were actually not in the Jiangzuojian, nor even in the imperial city. Instead, they were arranged in the Daming Palace, a palace where few people went.

The city is strictly guarded inside and outside.

The emperor valued the secrets of the Ministry of Works more than anything else.

Today's Fuyuan crossbow chariots are just the tip of the iceberg.

Li Ji raised his right hand and waved it gently.

"Boom, boom, boom!" The rapid drumbeats once again clearly resounded between heaven and earth.

All the soldiers looked serious, gripped their swords and spears tightly, and then climbed up.

Soon, more soldiers set foot on the land on the south bank of the Taedong River.

Similarly, the dozen or so soldiers beside each crossbow cart also began to load the crossbows quickly.

In Pingrang City, the wailing sounds from the city walls gradually stopped.

More soldiers rushed up the city wall, holding longbows and short crossbows and aiming at the Tang Dynasty soldiers rushing down from the wall.

Just as the Tang soldiers stepped into the range of an arrow, they shot arrows without hesitation.

However, the winter cold prevented most bows and arrows from reaching the ideal distance, and only a few Tang soldiers were hit.

Just as more Tang troops continued to charge forward, the sound of crazy gongs rang out from the south bank of the Taedong River behind them.

Soon, the Tang army retreated like a tide.

Even the cavalry upstream and downstream retreated to the south bank at this time, and only the Fuyuan crossbow cart remained on the ice.

……

Li Ji was sitting on his horse and nodded calmly when he saw this scene.

He turned sideways and looked at the flag officer behind him.

The flags are waving and the drums are beating again.

Another group of thousands of soldiers began to step onto the Taedong River and head towards Pyeongrang City.

Anyone with a discerning eye can see that Li Ji is now using the method of siege to train his troops.

Everyone had to admire his courage and respect his methods.

The battlefield is where soldiers mature the fastest.

Li Ji turned sideways and looked at Niu Jinda standing beside him. "Duke of Langya, do you think Quan Gaisuwen will open the east and west gates and send his men out to attack?"

"He doesn't have the courage or the bravery." Niu Jinda shook his head and said, "The situation is unclear. He doesn't even know whether the Marshal has arranged cavalry further upstream and downstream. Once he sends people to attack, it may play into the Marshal's hands. So he may not even open the South Gate." "Yes!" Li Ji's eyes fell on the Fuyuan crossbows on the ice. The reason why he dared to be so bold was because he concluded that Quan Gaisuwen did not dare to attack.

Turning around, Li Ji said, "Duke of Langya, please make arrangements. Have all the generals familiarize themselves with the terrain on both sides of the Taedong River."

"Yes!" Niu Jinda bowed solemnly, then called on Xue Rengui, Xue Wanche, Xue Wanbei, Ashina Zhong, Gao Kan, Pei Xingjian, Wang Fangyi, Duan Baoxuan and others to follow the large group of soldiers and began to step onto the surface of the Taedong River.

Li Ji held the Qianniu sword sheath at his waist and watched as Fu Yuan's crossbow shot out and arrows flew into the air. Groups of soldiers rushed to the south bank, then rushed to within an arrow's reach of the city wall, and then quickly retreated. Everyone was quickly adapting to the battlefield.

Li Ji turned to the side and said, "Wei Shaojian."

Wei Hongji, the Junior Supervisor of the Palace, rode up from behind and bowed to Li Ji, saying, "General!"

"The weather in Goguryeo is like this." Li Ji nodded calmly and said, "In the coming year, Wei Shaojian will have to work harder. Once the weather is suitable, we will start immediately."

"Yes!" Wei Hongji bowed and then retreated calmly.

Liu Rengui and Li Yiyan on the side looked ahead calmly, as if they saw nothing.

After a long while, Li Ji spoke again: "Send the order, withdraw the troops."

This time, the troops were completely withdrawn. The crossbow carts were pulled out from the shore by the soldiers with great force, then turned around and transported back to the north bank.

On the north bank, someone had already placed heavy wooden boards on the shore.

Soon, the river was completely empty.

Li Ji looked up at the city wall in the distance, but there was still no sign of Quan Gaisuwen.

He couldn't help but shake his head in disappointment, then looked aside and said, "Duke of Langya, you will make the arrangements. As long as the weather is favorable, come here every few days. Make sure the soldiers can quickly adapt to the terrain and weather on both sides of the Taedong River."

"Yes!" Niu Jinda bowed solemnly.

"Xue Wanche, Xue Wanbei."

"The end will be here."

"Order you two to be on guard both upstream and downstream." Li Ji looked ahead at Pingrang City and said calmly, "If nothing unexpected happens, Quan Gaisuwen will definitely try to launch a surprise attack before spring arrives. Otherwise, after next spring, the morale of Pingrang City will completely collapse."

"Yes!" Xue Wanche and Xue Wanbei bowed at the same time.

Li Ji continued, "Liu Rengui."

"I'm here!" Liu Rengui rode out on horseback.

Li Ji looked at the large open space on the north bank of the Taedong River and said calmly, "I order you to build a group of forts on the north bank. This will be Tang Dynasty territory. Everything that needs to be prepared must be done."

"Yes!" Liu Rengui bowed vigorously.

Li Ji's expression grew solemn. "Everyone, with the army present, everyone must perform their duties. When the military orders are given, we will march forward courageously, even through mountains of swords and seas of fire."

"Yes!" All the ministers accepted the order solemnly.

"We'll have to work hard for a few years. Once we take Pingrang City, everything will be easier." Li Ji raised his head, looked towards Luoyang, and said softly, "Everyone, His Majesty is watching us. When we take Pingrang City, His Majesty will be able to relax."

"Hurry!" All the ministers shouted in unison.

……

At the end of the twelfth lunar month, the imperial city became increasingly lively.

Wensi Hall is to the east of Qianyuan Hall.

Because the construction of Qianyuan Hall was stopped, the emperor was in Zhenguan Hall and rarely came to the front yard, let alone Wensi Hall.

Liu Shi, dressed in a dark crimson official robe, entered Wencheng Gate under the guidance of an unknown eunuch in blue.

Inside and outside the Wensi Hall, countless guards stood in strict observance.

Liu Shi immediately understood that the emperor was here.

As he climbed the stairs, Liu Shi saw Zhang Daxiang, the Minister of Revenue, standing at the door waiting for him.

Liu Shi nodded slightly, and followed Zhang Daxiang into the Wensi Hall.

There was no emperor sitting on the imperial couch at the top of the Wensi Hall.

Zhang Daxiang led Liu Shi towards the west side hall.

Entering the west wing hall, there are countless densely packed bookshelves with countless documents on them.

Officials walked back and forth inside from time to time.

"This way!" The emperor's voice came from the front. Liu Shi then retracted his gaze and followed Zhang Daxiang towards the emperor.

After walking more than ten steps, Liu Shi suddenly discovered that on the bookshelf on one side, there were names of the ten provinces in the world, including Guannei Province, Jiannan Province, Henan Province, Shannan Province, Hebei Province, Huainan Province and Jiangnan Province. However, there were not many books on the bookshelves of the provinces west of Mount Xiao, such as Guannei Province and Jiannan Province.

Oh, and there is also Lingnan Road.

"Not many memorials from Guanzhong and Jiannan were sent to Luoyang. Most were disposed of by my uncle in Chang'an." Li Chengqian, dressed in a black robe with a gold dragon pattern and a black cymbal hat, emerged from the bookshelf. He nodded at Liu Shi and said, "Here are basically the tax ledgers from Henan, Shannan, Hebei, Huainan, and Jiangnan, all within the past ten years."

"Ten years!" Liu Shi was startled and bowed, saying, "I, Liu Shi, the Minister of Justice, pay my respects to Your Majesty."

"Stand up," Li Chengqian said, raising his hand slightly. "It's not as complex as you think. For every county, the population, taxes, tax composition, and corvée enforcement over the past ten years have been recorded using the simplest numbers. Each county is just one book. For over a hundred counties, that's it."

"Yes!" Liu Shi's breathing became heavy. Although the emperor said it lightly, Liu Shi could feel the heaviness in it.

It seems like half of the world is here.

"These things were created by two officials who served as ministers of finance, Xue Renfang and Wang Zhenru. Later, Cui Renshi, Zhang Qing, Tang Qing, Yan Qing, as well as Liu Rengui, Li Yifu, Xu Jingzong and others joined in, and together with the entire Ministry of Revenue, they created this."

Li Chengqian glanced at Liu Shi and said calmly, "Although the Ministry of Revenue still has more detailed information, by comparing the information here ten years ago and now, we can see the tax collection situation of each state and county over the past ten years."

"Yes!" Liu Shi bowed and saluted.

"In which county has the tax revenue increased steadily over the past ten years? In which county has the tax revenue decreased for a period of time due to natural disasters, but then recovered and even increased? In some counties, after the natural disasters, the tax revenue not only showed no signs of recovery, but even decreased." Li Chengqian suddenly paused.

Liu Shi nodded and said, "I understand. Something must have gone wrong."

Li Chengqian nodded and said, "If it's because of a natural disaster that the tax collection can't be restored, then naturally the court should help. But if the natural disaster has been restored, but the tax collection still hasn't been restored, then it means that someone is stealing the tax revenue, and the amount is terrifying."

"Yes!" Liu Shi bowed seriously.

"I have only been on the throne for a short time, so it's inevitable that people will underestimate me." Li Chengqian looked up at Liu Shi and asked, "Would you be willing to investigate this for me?"

"I am willing!" Liu Shi bowed solemnly.

"Very good." Li Chengqian took the three memorials from Li Yifu and said, "This is a memorial submitted directly to the Secretariat by the registrar-generals of Ezhou, Guangzhou, and Mizhou. There are some problems with the tax remittances of these three counties. My dear minister, you are the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice. I'm afraid you will personally go and resolve them."

"I obey your order." Liu Shi bowed and took the memorial from Li Chengqian.

Li Chengqian nodded and said, "I grant you special privileges. You may act as you see fit. In critical moments, you may mobilize the local troops. Also, please go to Qiu Shenji and ask him to assign a team of Jinwu Guards to escort you... These people are very skilled."

"Yes!" Liu Shi's mouth twitched slightly. These people followed him to kill people.

"Okay, my dear minister, please take some time to deal with it. Everything will be processed before the spring." Li Chengqian raised his head slightly.

"I obey your order and will take my leave." Liu Shi bowed solemnly, then turned around and left quickly.

……

"I'm using him this time because he's done a great job in Chenzhou." Li Chengqian looked at Zhang Daxiang, chuckled, and said, "This year, the harvest is good. Several counties that weren't severely affected by the disaster before have paid significantly less tax. Can you imagine how much I'm looked down upon?"

In fact, it is not less than last year or the year before, but compared with the Zhenguan period, when the world had a bumper harvest, there is still a huge decrease, which shows that there is really a problem.

"Your Majesty, if you really take drastic measures, there will inevitably be chaos in the area." Zhang Daxiang advised cautiously.

"It's okay, just killing a few chickens." Li Chengqian shook his head and said, "Then ask the Ministry of Revenue to transfer people from Guanzhong next year. There are plenty of people who want to be officials."

Zhang Daxiang fell silent.

The Tang Dynasty ruled the world from Guanzhong, and this was true not only in the military but also in the local areas.

When taking office, people from Guanzhong can always get the position earlier than those from other places.

"Your Majesty, what should we do if something goes wrong with the officials in Guanzhong?" Zhang Daxiang couldn't help but ask.

Li Chengqian glanced at Zhang Daxiang in surprise, then said calmly, "If it's a minor offense, a warning will suffice. If it's a major offense, I'll directly issue an imperial decree to reprimand him, and the Ministry of Personnel will assess him at a lower level. If it's a serious offense, take him back to Chang'an and let the three judicial officials judge him. After all, every single offense is written in the law. The law can kill people, so no one will say I'm wrong, right?"

After all, the laws of the Tang Dynasty have never been just for show.

(End of this chapter)