Memoirs of the Heavenly Khan

Chapter 380 My Emperor's everyday clothes for all four seasons amount to no more than eight sets.

Prime Minister's House.

Husichun, a high-ranking general among the northerners, was given important positions after betraying the Erzhu clan. He became prime minister and had the power to establish his own government.

However, unlike the prime ministers of the Han and Wei dynasties, Hu Sichun's functions as prime minister were limited.

Following the Sinicization reforms of the Northern Wei Dynasty, the Three Departments system was established in the Luoyang court, modeled after the Southern Dynasties.

The Secretariat, the Ministry of Personnel, and the Ministry of Books.

Among them, the Attendant-in-Ordinary of the Secretariat, being a close advisor to the emperor, gradually gained power and became the head of the prime ministers. The Secretariat also replaced the Ministry of Personnel as the core of decision-making.

After the Hebei Incident, the emperor lost his power, not to mention the power structure and court officials surrounding him.

Now, under Li Shuang's leadership, he holds the top positions in most of the powerful departments of the imperial court in Luoyang.

However, Li Shuang still delegated many government offices to other people.

Husichun became prime minister and established his own prime minister's office; Hebasheng became grand commander and established his own grand commander's office.

However, their specific functions have changed from controlling officials and the army to handling specific matters.

Hu Sichun's Prime Minister's Office is now in charge of the reconstruction project of Luoyang City.

Luoyang had been ravaged by war and was already in ruins. The outer city was mostly in ruins, and skeletons could be seen by wells and under trees. The once bustling markets and streets of Luoyang were deserted, and the government offices, neighborhoods and the imperial palace in the inner city had been destroyed.

Rebuilding Luoyang was undoubtedly a massive undertaking, and one that would take a considerable amount of time.

As the leader, Hu Sichun would inevitably control a large amount of resources and possess enormous power.

Among the northerners, Hu Sichun now enjoys considerable prestige. Knowing he has become prime minister and taken control of the reconstruction project in Luoyang, many northerners are now gravitating towards him.

In comparison, Hebasheng's side had much less influence. His Grand Commandant's office only controlled the handling of Xianbei prisoners of war, and his authority was much smaller.

Hu Sichun was very satisfied with all of this.

As a result, the grudge that almost led to his death at the hands of Hebasheng during the banquet that day was greatly reduced.

Hu Sichun is not a good person; even his father scolds him for betraying heaven and earth.

He betrayed his brothers, lacked integrity, was obsequious, and fickle, yet many northerners were still willing to pledge their loyalty to him.

There was no other reason than that Hu Sichun was a frugal person who was willing to share his share with his subordinates.

The Erzhu clan was notorious for its greed and corruption, but Husichun, who associated with the Erzhu clan, never acted this way and always maintained a frugal lifestyle.

This is almost a miracle.

Although Hebasheng is brave in battle and has a high reputation, and can win the loyalty of his soldiers, he is not as popular as Husichun in Luoyang.

"Hebapohu, that old bastard of the Tiele!"

While Husichun was processing documents, he heard that Hebasheng had been cursed by the Xianbei prisoners for reducing the food expenses in the prisoner-of-war camp, and he was very happy.

However, his cheerful smile vanished immediately upon seeing a document titled "Dredging of the Yongji Canal near Luoyang City".

This document was inconspicuous, sandwiched among a group of important documents, and would almost go unnoticed if one did not look closely.

Kehu Sichun was ultimately a cautious and careful person; otherwise, he would not have started his rebellion in the Six Garrisons, joined Erzhu Rongqi, and even now, after the Erzhu clan was destroyed, he is still thriving.

If you don't look closely, you might think it's just about building a small irrigation canal around Luoyang.

Hu Sichun should have kept quiet until he saw it. He couldn't sit still and stood up abruptly. He felt a chill run down his spine, and his unease and fear turned into a roar.

Who sent these documents?

Hu Sichun's subordinates entered from a side room, cupped their hands, and said:
"Reporting to the Prime Minister, some of these documents came from the Ministry of Personnel, and some were sent from the Ministry of State Affairs."

Damn it, they all come from the same place.

Hu Sichun cursed inwardly, but still maintained her composure.

"Understood, you may leave!"

The crowd was puzzled, but dared not disobey, and each withdrew.

Hu Sichun immediately took the document and left the Prime Minister's residence.

He went to find someone.

Hebasheng!
Hebasheng was furious about the Xianbei prisoners of war, which made him even more resentful of Husichun. Knowing that Husichun wanted to see him, Hebasheng had no intention of doing so.

Kehu Sichun knew Hebasheng's temper, so he came with Hebayue.

Hebasheng had no choice but to meet with him.

Inside the room, Hu Sichun gave a signal, and Hebasheng dismissed all the servants, leaving only the three of them.

"Just say what's on your mind!"

He Basheng's words were laced with anger, and Hu Sichun, disregarding everything else, handed him the document.

Hebasheng took it suspiciously, opened it, and cursed.

"Who would be so foolish as to want to build a canal!"

Hu Sichun advised:

"Be careful!"

What do you mean?

"Without the authorization of that person in Jinyong City, who among the subordinates would have dared to build such a canal!"

Hebasheng blurted out:

"Even if we can utilize the existing waterways, the construction over these two thousand miles will be enormous. Doesn't Ohno Sou know that?"

Hu Sichun shook her head and said:

"How could I not know? Otherwise, why would the construction of the Yongji Canal be included under the overall plan for the reconstruction of Luoyang?"

Hebasheng laughed when he heard this.

This is clearly an attempt to make Husichun take the blame!
"Then congratulations, Prime Minister, on getting such a good job."

Looking at Hebasheng's gloating expression, Husichun was too lazy to even complain, and simply asked a question.

"Where did the labor for the canal construction come from?"

"It's none of my business!"

Hebasheng was too lazy to talk to Husichun anymore and was almost about to kick him out when Hebayue stopped him and asked:
"Does the Prime Minister mean that the one who intends to use Xianbei prisoners?"

Hu Sichun did some calculations for the two of them, saying:
"How can someone who has just issued the Equal Land Distribution Decree, bestowing favors upon the people, now be able to massively conscript people from various prefectures and counties to build canals?"

“Impossible!” Hebasheng immediately retorted, “I’m in charge of these Xianbei prisoners of war, how could I not know about this?”

Hu Sichun sneered and said:
"You'd better check if you've missed any less important documents!"

Upon hearing this, Hebasheng searched through the archives and finally found a document titled "Attached: Labor Service for the Dredging of Yongji Canal".

Hebasheng had no recollection of this document, but after reading it carefully, he collapsed to the ground.

"It's over. The official document has already been sent out, and it's probably under review by the Imperial Library now. It might have already been approved and is about to be implemented."

Hebasheng murmured, suddenly feeling a surge of intense emotion.

"Damn it, Ohno Sou!"

Hu Sichun ignored him and walked over to Hebasheng, patting him on the shoulder.

"Po Hu, no matter what happened in the past, we have to stand together on this matter."

Hu Sichun and Hebasheng were enemies, but they also knew when to stand together, especially in a life-or-death situation like this.

"What do you suggest?" Hearing Hebasheng's question, Husichun remained silent for a moment. Hebayue, standing beside her, spoke up:

"If this matter is leaked out and the Xianbei soldiers find out, and they start a riot, the situation might be reversed."

Hu Sichun shook her head and said:

"If they cause trouble, the first one to be punished will be Po Hu. He signed the document, leaking court secrets, which led to the Xianbei soldiers' rebellion. He is also their superior officer. If he is punished severely, he might even be beheaded!"

Heba Yue couldn't help but sigh upon hearing this.

That's so damn sneaky!

"What about that?"

“We’ll take this document to Jinyong City. If we can see the King of Qin, things will turn around.”

Hebasheng got up, grasped Husichun's hand, and said:

"We'll do as Fa Shou says!"
-
Jinyong City is located in the northwest corner of the inner city. It is a three-city complex, with Mangshan Mountain to the north and the imperial city to the south. It also draws water from the valley to form a moat, which is then channeled into the city to form a pool. It has twelve gates.

After Li Shuang officially took up residence, he used Jia City in the far north as his living quarters, Yi City in the middle as a place to garrison troops and store grain, and Bing City in the far south as the location of the Tian Ce Mansion's government offices and academy.

Jinyong City is not large and is shaped like an eye, but the surrounding lands, as subordinate lands of Jinyong City, are all under its jurisdiction.

Bingcheng is located within the inner city, close to the imperial city. The two men rode their horses through the inner city streets, intending to enter the city through the south gate.

As a military fortress, Jinyong City's walls were designed with a winding path, increasing the difficulty for enemy troops to attack and facilitating crossfire by the defenders. In addition, the walls were very thick, with even the weakest sections being four or five zhang wide, and the thickest sections reaching eight or nine zhang wide.

The south wall of Jinyong City has four gates, each nearly three zhang wide, allowing chariots to pass side by side. The city wall is also covered with bricks.

When the two tried to enter the city, they found that the guards at the city gate had been replaced by Qihu soldiers.

Both Husichun and Hebasheng were northerners and had served under Erzhurong for a long time, but they only had a superficial understanding of the Qihu language.

For a moment, they couldn't understand the Qihu soldiers' explanations at all. They tried to force their way in, but were surrounded and attacked by a group of Qihu soldiers.

The situation was awkward, and just then, Hou Jing walked out of the city gate.

Hou Jing greeted him with a smile.

"What brings the Prime Minister and Grand Commandant here today? Is there any official business?"

Holding the documents, Hu Sichun asked:
"Does the General know about the Yongji Canal?"

"Huh?" Hou Jing picked at his ear and said loudly, "I've been a little hard of hearing lately. What did the Prime Minister say?"

I'm talking about the Yongji Canal!

"what?"

Hu Sichun spoke loudly, and Hou Jing answered even louder.

Looking at this scene, Hu Sichun knew exactly what it meant.
"nothing!"

"Oh!"

"How is the King of Qin?"

"His Majesty is ill and recuperating. He will be unable to attend to state affairs for the time being. If there is anything you need, please go to the palace to see His Majesty!"

Looking for His Majesty?
It was as if a new door had opened before Hu Sichun's eyes.

"Thank you, General!"

Hou Jing, looking bewildered, picked at his ear and said:

"Why is he hard of hearing again? Should we take him to a doctor?"

Hu Sichun ignored Hou Jing and dragged Hebasheng to the palace.

……

The palace was not far from Jinyong City, separated only by a neighborhood.

However, at this time, this neighborhood was also incorporated into the auxiliary buildings of Jinyong City. In other words, the imperial palace was right next to Tiance Mansion.

It will be much easier for Hu Sichun and Hebasheng to see Yuan Baoju.

Emperor Yuan Baoju had little to do in his daily life. Apart from showing his face at the grand court assembly in Taiji Hall at the beginning and middle of each month, he rarely stayed in Xianyang Hall and devoted himself to the inner palace.

The harem of the Luoyang Imperial Palace was built with extreme luxury. Although it had been damaged at one time, with concubines and palace maids being raped and humiliated by Erzhu, and many things being looted, it has now been restored to its former appearance, and repairs are underway.

Hu Sichun, the chief commander of the Luoyang reconstruction project, was well aware of this.

Yuan Baoju was in the Nine Dragons Palace, frolicking with a group of imperial concubines.

Seeing the two enter, Yuan Baoju's rosy face lit up with joy, and he asked:

"What brings you two gentlemen here?"

Although everyone knew that the emperor in front of her was a puppet, Hu Sichun still fawned over him.

"Your Majesty, I have come to see if there is anything else Your Majesty needs."

“I am a simple man. I wear no more than eight sets of clothes for all four seasons. I am not like those extravagant and debauched monarchs.”

After Yuan Baoju finished expressing his opinion, Hu Sichun said something.

"Your Majesty is truly a wise ruler!"

Yuan Baoju nodded, sat down on the ground, and said:
"Everything else is fine, but the ice in the ice well is almost gone, and we need to collect a new batch. The wine in the cellar is also almost finished, so it's time to buy more. We should add some more livestock to the animal pen, plant some trendy fruits and vegetables in the imperial vegetable garden, and it would be best to find a new cook. Also, shouldn't we select some palace maids to fill the harem?"

Hebasheng watched from the side, shocked.

Hebasheng had thought that Yuan Baoju would be very unhappy as a puppet emperor, but in fact, he could not have imagined Yuan Baoju's happiness.

Hu Sichun agreed to all of them, then took out a document from his sleeve and said:
"Your Majesty, the Grand Canal is currently congested, and transporting grain costs a thousand gold pieces a day. To demonstrate the grandeur of the new dynasty, should we open a new canal to connect Hebei and ensure the transport of grain?"

Yuan Baoju asked:
"Will it cost a lot of money and food?"

"It won't cost much money or grain. Luoyang's current reserves are sufficient. The waterways along the way are either natural water systems or canals dug in previous dynasties, and most of them are existing waterways."

"Wouldn't that burden the common people?"

"Most of the labor service can be carried out by convicts and prisoners of war, without the need to conscript many civilians."

After asking the first two less important questions, Yuan Baoju asked the question that concerned him the most.

"Have you asked the King of Qin?"

"Not yet, but I've heard that the King of Qin has been slightly unwell recently and is temporarily not attending to state affairs. I don't think the King of Qin will have any objections to this."

After listening, Yuan Baoju waved his hand and said:

"Then let's do it!"

"I will take your orders!"

Hu Sichun and Hebasheng walked out of the palace, with the sounds of Yuan Baoju and the concubines laughing and joking behind them.

"Fa Shou, what's the point of us looking for him?"

Hu Sichun sighed and said:

“If we don’t go after him, we’ll be the ones who get scolded; if we do go after him, the entire court will be the ones who get scolded.”

"What's the difference?"

He Basheng was puzzled, but Hu Sichun was somewhat helpless and said:
"That's still better than letting those Xianbei people just curse us!"

"..."

……

(End of this chapter)