Tang Dynasty, my wife Wu Zetian

Chapter 381 Princess Taiping's Tutor

Two days later, Li Yifu finally returned to Chang'an and took up his post at the Ministry of Revenue.

On the morning of the third day, Li Yifu had just arrived at the Ministry of Revenue when Du Fu came to see him.

Li Yifu invited him into his office, poured him tea himself, and said with a smile: "Master Du, I am able to return to Chang'an this time thanks to your efforts."

Du Fu bowed and said, "Before the court meeting that day, you asked me to show you the evidence. I regret that I refused. I almost failed."

"Later, in the court, if Minister Li had not forgiven the past and spoken out in support, I might not have even had the chance to speak. I apologize to you."

Li Yifu helped him up and said with a smile, "That's not necessary. We weren't familiar with each other back then, so it's normal for you to be wary. From now on, you and I will be colleagues, and we need to look out for each other."

Du Fu whispered tentatively, "Minister Li, His Majesty actually assigned both you and me to the Ministry of Revenue. Don't you think it's a bit strange?"

Li Yifu returned to the table and sat down, squinting his eyes and said, "Oh, what's so strange about that?"

Du Fu followed him and whispered, "In my humble opinion, His Majesty wants you and me to investigate the Ministry of Revenue. What do you think?"

Li Yifu's face turned serious, and he said, "Master Du, you and I just need to do our duty and don't try to speculate on the emperor's intentions."

Du Fu was slightly stunned, not quite understanding what he meant.

Li Yifu said calmly, "Master Du, please go and do your work first. I also want to go and say hello to Minister Lu."

Du Fu felt even more confused, but he had no choice but to take his leave.

After leaving the government office, Du Fu waited in the corridor outside the Ministry of Revenue.

A quarter of an hour later, he saw Li Yifu coming out and immediately followed him.

"Is there anything else that Mr. Du wants to talk to me about?" Li Yifu asked.

Du Fu smiled bitterly and said, "I am stupid and don't understand why Your Majesty asked me to come to the Ministry of Revenue. I would like to ask Minister Li for guidance."

Li Yifu said nothing, walked slowly with his hands behind his back, and Du Fu lagged behind him one step.

After exiting the Vermillion Bird Gate, Li Yifu boarded the carriage, beckoned towards Du Fu, and said, "Master Du, please come up and have a word."

Du Fu was overjoyed and hurriedly got on the carriage.

After the wheels started rolling, Li Yifu said leisurely, "Master Du, do you think His Majesty sent you and me to the Ministry of Revenue to investigate it?"

Du Fu was stunned for a moment and said, "Isn't it?"

Li Yifu asked, "Then let me ask you, who audited Du Zhenglun's case?"

Du Fu said, "Mr. Di Si."

Li Yifu asked, "Do you think that if Lu Chengqing or other officials from the Ministry of Revenue were involved in this matter, Di Renjie would not be able to find out?"

Du Fu was stunned for a moment, then said, "That's true. With Di Siqing's ability, he would definitely be able to find out."

Li Yifu said calmly, "Your Majesty has always trusted Di Renjie. Since Di Renjie found nothing wrong, would he still suspect Lu Chengqing for no reason?"

Du Fu was stunned for a moment and said, "No." Then he continued, "Since Your Majesty trusts the Ministry of Revenue, why did you ask me to come with you?"

Li Yifu said, "Your Majesty's belief is one thing, but whether or not to send someone to the Ministry of Revenue is another."

"This...I really don't understand."

Li Yifu said, "Think about it, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue has committed such a serious crime. What will the officials in the court think, and what will the common people think?"

Du Fu said thoughtfully, "They will think there is something wrong with the Ministry of Revenue."

Li Yifu said, "That's right. Your Majesty did this just to show them and to reassure them."

Du Fu finally understood.

Not everyone in the court or the country can think as highly as Li Yifu and understand the emperor's thoughts.

In order to reassure everyone, the emperor sent two people to the Ministry of Revenue. In this way, even ordinary people could see that the emperor was already investigating the Ministry of Revenue, so there was no need to worry anymore.

Du Fu said: "In this case, should we conduct a symbolic investigation?"

Li Yifu glanced at him and said, "After the investigation, can you and I still have a foothold in the Ministry of Revenue?"

Du Fu was stunned again.

The Ministry of Revenue officials were now polite to them because they thought they were investigating on behalf of the emperor.

Once the investigation is over, these people will reveal their true attitudes, and their investigation may even lead to even more resentment towards them.

Li Yifu said slowly, "Master Du, seize this opportunity, humble yourself, and quickly repair your relationship with these colleagues. Only then will you be able to maintain your position in the court for a long time in the future."

Du Fu took a deep breath, bowed and said, "Thank you, Minister Li, for your guidance." He got out of the car and said goodbye.

Li Yifu's carriage continued to move forward and soon arrived at Xu Jingzong's residence.

After Li Yifu passed the message, he entered Xu's house and walked along the corridor to the study in the backyard.

In the study, Xu Jingzong was actually playing chess alone with a chess manual in his hand.

"Brother Li is here, please take a seat." Xu Jingzong said with a smile.

Seeing that he looked good, Li Yifu smiled and sat down, saying, "It seems that Brother Xu has had a lot of free time since leaving the court."

Xu Jingzong smiled and said, "What that rebellious son did would have resulted in the annihilation of the entire clan if it happened to anyone else. Your Majesty is so kind that he not only spared my life but also left me with a little incense. What else could I be dissatisfied with?"

Li Yifu stared at him and said slowly, "So Brother Xu asked Li Jingxuan to speak for me in the court because he was open-minded?"

Xu Jingzong didn't answer directly, but smiled and said, "Brother Li, how about a game of chess?"

Li Yifu nodded in agreement.

The two were old friends and had often played chess against each other in the past. However, after just a dozen moves, Li Yifu felt that Xu Jingzong's chess skills seemed to have reached a new level.

Li Yifu responded to the battle calmly and fought steadily, but unfortunately he still suffered a crushing defeat in more than ten battles.

Li Yifu was surprised and asked, "Brother Xu's chess skills have improved so much?"

Xu Jingzong smiled and said, "I have nothing to do, so I just play chess for fun."

Li Yifu smiled as he collected the chess pieces and said, "Really? I thought Brother Xu had heard that the Saint was obsessed with chess recently, so he was studying hard."

The two looked at each other and smiled.

Both of them are good at figuring out the emperor's thoughts, and generally, whenever the emperor starts to do something, both of them will focus their attention on it.

After not seeing each other for many years, I still feel a little emotional when I see the old friend again.

Xu Jingzong said slowly, "Brother Li, I won't hide it from you. I asked Li Jingxuan to show goodwill to you, in fact, I have some intentions of winning you over."

Li Yifu listened silently.

Xu Jingzong continued, "At my age, I no longer seek to enter the government. However, there is a thorn in my heart that I cannot feel at peace unless it is removed."

Li Yifu said slowly: "Xiao family!"

Xu Jingzong said in a deep voice, "That's right. Xiao Siye himself wanted to rebel, but he used you and me as shields. It's really hateful. If I don't take revenge, I will never be able to rest in peace!"

Li Yifu said, "But he is already dead."

Xu Jingzong said: "Xiao is still there."

Li Yifu sighed, "Then you should also know that Xiao Shuren is still in the Xiao family, and the fourth prince and the two princesses are getting older."

Xu Jingzong was silent for a while, then said, "I know it's difficult, so I want to ask you for help."

Li Yifu remained silent.

Xu Jingzong said, "Don't worry, I won't ask you to do anything risky. I just hope you can help me a little at a critical moment."

Li Yifu was silent for a long time, then looked up at him and said, "I can help you with anything, big or small, but I also need Brother Jingxuan's help with something."

Xu Jingzong said, "Tell me about it. As long as it's not too difficult, I can agree to it on his behalf."

Li Yifu said, "I heard that during the pre-Sui Dynasty, the princes had five tutors and the princesses had four tutors, but now there are fewer tutors in each category."

Xu Jingzong was stunned for a moment, then said, "That's right. Emperor Gaozu had too many descendants, so he reduced them."

Li Yifu asked, "The current sage has few descendants. Can Brother Li submit a petition to restore the old system?"

Xu Jingzong asked doubtfully, "This isn't difficult, but I don't understand why you're doing this."

Li Yifu smiled and said, "This is my own business."

Xu Jingzong narrowed his eyes and said, "Okay, I can promise you this on behalf of Brother Li."

Li Yifu bowed and said, "Then I can also agree to Brother Xu's request."

Xu Jingzong smiled and said, "If you calculate it this way, I still have the advantage."

Li Yifu smiled and said, "Not entirely."

The two continued to play chess for a total of three games. Li Yifu was defeated in all of them, but he was still in high spirits and said that he would challenge Xu Jingzong again another day.

After leaving Xu's house, Li Yifu returned to his mansion. While walking in the corridor, the housekeeper came over with a land deed.

"Alang, I've bought the house you wanted."

Li Yifu nodded and asked, "Have you sent anyone to greet the old woman?"

The housekeeper said, "It has been beaten." The next day after leaving the court, Li Yifu took the land deed and went to Xingqingfang, and soon arrived at the small courtyard of Jiang Shanggong.

Before Lady Jiang arrived, Li Yifu spread out the chessboard he brought on the table and sat alone on the couch playing chess.

After more than an hour, there was a slight sound of footsteps.
Li Yifu was so engrossed in playing chess that he didn't hear anything.

After a while, the footsteps stopped beside him and said with a smile: "My husband, did you come to play chess with me?"

Li Yifu looked up and saw that the person coming was none other than Jiang Shang Gong.

She had carefully dressed up today, hiding all the traces of time under her makeup, and her forehead was decorated with leaf-shaped flowers.

Li Yifu took out the land deed from his sleeve and handed it to her.

"This is for you."

Jiang Shang Gong looked surprised and asked, "What is this?"

Li Yifu said, "The deeds to the two mansions adjacent to this one."

Jiang Shang Gong blinked and said, "Why are you giving me these? I can't use them in the palace."

Li Yifu said, "I remember you said that if you left the palace in the future, you wanted to open a music house in Chang'an City. With these two land deeds, you can connect the three courtyards and build a music house."

Jiang Shang Gong sat down opposite him and said with a smile, "I just said it casually, why don't you take it seriously? I don't plan to leave the palace."

Li Yifu said: "Whether to leave the palace or not is up to you. It's always good to have such a way out."

Jiang Shang Gong was stunned for a moment, lowered her head, and after a long silence, she said softly, "Thank you, my husband." She took the deed.

Li Yifu stared at her and said, "Yan'er, there is something else I want to tell you."

Jiang Shang Gong smiled and said, "Is there anything you want me to help you with?"

Li Yifu said slowly, "Yan'er, you are not young anymore. Sooner or later, you will lose your position as a Shang Gong. It's time to find a way out in the palace."

Jiang Shang Gong was stunned for a moment, a misty glint in her eyes, and asked, "Is this the reason you called me out?"

Li Yifu smiled and said, "What else?"

Jiang Shang Gong wiped the corners of her eyes with her sleeve and whispered, "Every woman in the palace has the same fate. What other way out do I have?"

Li Yifu said calmly, "Not necessarily. Have you forgotten Ji Yuchi and Lu Huaibi?"

Concubine Jiang shuddered and said with a wry smile, "They are blessed with great fortune. How can others compare to the wealth bestowed by God?"

Li Yifu said in a deep voice: "It's up to you to plan. If you don't try, how can you know it won't work?"

Jiang Shang Gong looked at him and said through gritted teeth, "I'll do whatever you ask me to do."

Li Yifu said: "First, you must resign your position as a palace attendant and strive for a position as a tutor, just like them."

Concubine Jiang was stunned and said, "But the Crown Prince is already so old, it's hard for him to have a tutor around. So being a tutor is useless, right?"

Li Yifu said: "At this moment, being the prince's tutor is really useless. You should focus on the princess."

"Princess Taiping?" asked Concubine Jiang in surprise.

Li Yifu said, "Indeed, after years of observation, Your Majesty favors princesses more than princes, and Princess Taiping is especially favored by Your Majesty."

"Princess Taiping is less than two years old now. You should stay by her side and teach her carefully. Only then will you have a chance to encounter that heaven-shaking opportunity in the future."

Concubine Jiang frowned and said, "Her Royal Highness's three tutors were all carefully selected by Her Royal Highness the Queen. Replacing one of them would be difficult."

Li Yifu smiled and said, "Don't worry. In a few days, Her Majesty the Queen will appoint a new tutor for Princess Taiping. Yan'er, you must seize the opportunity when the time comes!"

Concubine Jiang stared at him and nodded, saying, "Okay, if Her Royal Highness really wants to add a tutor, I will resign from my position as Concubine to Her Royal Highness the Queen and recommend myself."

Li Yifu smiled and said, "Come, play chess with me."

Jiang Shang Gong said angrily, "I don't know how to do it at all. How about I accompany my husband to do something else?"

Li Yifu said sternly: "No, just play chess. I will teach you. If you learn how to play chess in the future, it will be beneficial."

Jiang Shang Gong made a bitter face and said, "I'm already this old, not a child anymore, why should I learn to play chess?"

Having said that, he still couldn't resist Li Yifu and started learning from him.

The next morning, Shang Gong Jiang took the Shang Gong Bureau's carriage back to the palace.

As she grew older, her temper became worse and worse. The young palace maids around her were very afraid of her. When they saw her come back, they stood by in silence.

Concubine Jiang was in a bad mood before because she was confused about the future.

Now that he had a backbone in his heart, his thoughts were clear, and he was much more friendly to the young palace maids under him, which made all the women flattered.

She had breakfast first and then went to Lizheng Hall to do her job.

When he arrived outside the hall, he saw several palace maids and eunuchs, including a few tutors, peeking into the hall.

From this we can see that Empress Wu was definitely not in the palace, otherwise they would not have the courage to do so.

When Lady Jiang coughed, all the palace maids and eunuchs were startled and stood up straight without looking away.

Concubine Jiang was curious, so she came outside the hall and looked inside.

When I saw it, I was shocked.

The seventh prince Li Xian was seen kneeling on all fours, crawling around like a pony.

Princess Taiping rode on his back, shouting, "Brother, faster! Faster!"

Concubine Jiang frowned and asked a tutor, "Where is Her Majesty the Queen?"

The tutor replied, "Your Highness has gone to the Colored Silk Courtyard."

Empress Wu has been very interested in dancing recently and often goes to the Caisiyuan to practice singing and dancing. Concubine Jiang also knows this.

"Why don't you stop Her Royal Highness the Princess and His Royal Highness the King from making such a fuss?" she asked again.

The guardian whispered, "We tried to stop it, but Her Royal Highness the Princess chased us away."

Although Princess Taiping was young, she was very willful and was not even afraid of Empress Wu.

These tutors had been staying with Empress Wu for a long time and were not very courageous to begin with, so how could they dare to disobey the princess?

When Jiang Shanggong saw them shrinking back, an idea suddenly came to her mind.

The reason why Ji Xichi was able to be canonized as a county lady was because she dared to point out the prince's mistakes, and was therefore appreciated by the late emperor.

If I want to take the path of Tong Bao Fu, I must learn the courage of Ji Qichi.

Now that she had a way out, she was no longer afraid of being driven out of the palace. She immediately entered the palace, picked up Princess Taiping from Li Xian's back, and then pulled Li Xian up.

Li Xian's face turned red, he stood up and ran away.

"Your Highness, His Royal Highness the King of England is your brother. You cannot ride on his back like this." Jiang Shanggong said with a stern face.

Princess Taiping was held by her without struggling. She stared at her with her round eyes and said, "My brother has escaped. I want you to be my horse!"

Concubine Jiang said, "Your Highness, as a princess of the Tang Dynasty, you should be dignified and respectful. It's fine for a servant to be a horse, but you can't ride a human being as if it were an animal. This is unbecoming of a princess."

Princess Taiping threatened fiercely, "If you don't let me ride, I'll tell Yeye and let him punish you!"

Concubine Jiang was startled and took a deep breath. She said, "I have strictly followed my duty. If Your Majesty wants to punish me, I have nothing to say."

Princess Taiping looked at her, tilted her head, and asked in confusion, "Why are you different from them? As long as I say this, they will obey me."

Concubine Jiang said, "Your Highness, it is unbecoming of a princess to threaten others like this."

Princess Taiping was young after all, and seeing that her tricks were useless, she had no choice but to say, "I won't ride you, just play with me."

Jiang Shang Gong felt relieved and asked, "What do you want to play?"

Princess Taiping put her finger in her mouth and sucked on it twice. She said, "Ye Ye likes to hold some small stones and move them around. Do you know what they are?"

Jiang Shang Gong was stunned for a moment and said, "Are you talking about Go?"

Princess Taiping smiled and said, "Yes, if you teach me how to play, I can play with Ye Ye in the future."

Fortunately, Concubine Jiang had learned Go from Li Yifu yesterday and had mastered the basic rules. She smiled and said, "Okay, I'll teach you."

He brought Princess Taiping to a side hall, ordered someone to bring a chessboard and chess pieces, and taught her how to play.

More than an hour later, Wu Meiniang came back.

After hearing what had just happened, she came to the side hall, stood outside the door, and looked at Jiang Shanggong who was teaching Princess Taiping how to play chess, her heart full of surprise.

She usually only cared about teaching Li Dan etiquette and did not discipline her daughter much. Because Li Zhi doted on her too much, her daughter became more rebellious than Li Xian in the past and had no knowledge of etiquette.

Wu Meiniang was often secretly troubled by this.

Seeing that Jiang Yan could actually make Princess Taiping sit upright and learn Go, he felt quite satisfied.

"Give my agate Go set to Jiang Yan later," she ordered.

Zhang Da Hai was surprised and replied, "Yes," her heart filled with envy.

(End of this chapter)