Tang Dynasty Little Godfather

Chapter 109 The road is boundless
Even Wang Shouyi, the father, found it hard to accept, let alone others.

It should be noted that most people have almost forgotten about this matter, and most people believe that the On Yip Department would never be handed over to Wang Shouyi.

Given the circumstances at the time, the emperor only needed to nod his head, and the position would inevitably be given to Wang Shouyi without any resistance.

Since the emperor did not agree at the time, it proves that he would not give it to them.

Li Qiao, Wang Shouyi, and Princess Xue all shared this view.

Suddenly, the emperor issued an edict to establish the Anye Bureau in the Guanzhong region as a trial, and appointed Wang Shouyi to manage the Anye Bureau.

This caught everyone off guard.

What is this situation?

Wu Mansion.

"Brother Yuwen."

Upon seeing Yuwen Rong, Wu Xin immediately went to greet him, asking, "What exactly happened?"

Yuwen Rong frowned and said, "I have inquired repeatedly, but I have not received any information."

Wu Xin blinked. "Could it be that His Majesty had planned this all along?"

Yuwen Rong said, "When the Prince of Sipu recommended Wang Shouyi, no one objected. If Your Majesty really intended to do so, you would have given him the title back then. Why wait until today?"

Even if His Majesty were to deliberate deeply, he would consult the ministers' opinions. Furthermore, I have been almost constantly discussing the matter of reverting hidden households to their original residences with His Majesty these past few days, yet His Majesty has not mentioned it. Moreover, to my knowledge, His Majesty has not consulted anyone during this period. Therefore, I believe something must have happened that we are unaware of.”

Upon hearing this, Wu Xin was filled with worry and asked, "Brother Yuwen, then what should we do?"

Yuwen Rong sneered: "Don't worry, Grand Master Wu, this job is not easy. Many capable officials have given it their all, but without exception, they have all failed."

If he fails to perform well and ruins His Majesty's grand plan, Wang Shouyi will be in deep trouble. However, the most urgent task is to find out exactly what happened.

Wu Xin understood and nodded, saying, "I'll send someone to my younger sister to inquire right away; she might know."

Since there are no clues in the outer courtyard, it is highly likely that the incident occurred in the inner courtyard.

Yuwen Rong nodded and said, "That would be perfect."

No sooner had Yuwen Rong left than Li Linfu arrived.

Upon seeing Wu Xin, Li Linfu also looked puzzled. "Chancellor Wu, what exactly happened?"

Why did the wind suddenly change direction?

Wu Xin sighed: "I don't know either. Yuwen Rong came before, but he didn't know what happened either."

"Alas, this task itself is no longer important. The key question is what exactly happened, and why His Majesty suddenly issued an edict assigning this task to Wang Shouyi."

His biggest worry now is that the emperor, for some reason, is starting to side with the royal family.

This is tantamount to uprooting the Wu family!

Now the entire Wu family is counting on Consort Wu to turn their fortunes around.

This is really dangerous!
Just then, a servant came to Wu Xin's ear and whispered a few words in his ear.

"I see."

Wu Xin stood up and said, "Li Zhongyun, please sit for a moment, I have something to attend to."

Li Linfu quickly stood up and said, "Please make yourself at the Martial Master's request."

After Wu Xin left, Li Linfu looked worried. He thought to himself, "I can't be that unlucky. I just got on the good side of the Wu family, and now they're about to fall out of favor. Luckily, I was careful. I can still rely on Hongxiu to get on the good side of the Wang family."

He's not the kind of person who values ​​loyalty; he's the kind of person who can take opportunism to its extreme.

He's willing to curry favor with anyone who can help his career, but he can also discard you immediately once you're no longer of any use to him.

After a while, Wu Xin returned to the hall, but his face was full of worry.

Li Linfu asked, "Master Wu, has something happened?"

He was also extremely panicked inside.

Wu Xin sat down and said, "I finally know what happened."

"what happened?"

Li Linfu hurriedly asked.

Wu Xin said, "Just now my younger sister sent someone to tell me that I must find out about that opera."

"drama?"

"It's the vivid teaching method of the nameless academy."

"what?"

Li Linfu asked, "Why is that?"

Wu Xin said, "Because His Majesty liked her very much, he even specially summoned Wang Xiaoque to the palace that day to discuss Dream of the Red Chamber and opera, and even let Wang Xiaoque stay overnight in the palace."

Later, when His Majesty went to see his younger sister, he praised Wang Xiaoque highly and was fascinated by her opera.

Therefore, my younger sister hopes I can quickly figure out this opera. This is probably why Wang Shouyi was able to get that job.

Upon hearing this, Li Linfu's eyes flashed rapidly, and he was overjoyed. After a moment's thought, he suddenly said, "Chancellor Wu, I have a plan that can help Consort Wu."

Wu Xin hurriedly asked, "What brilliant plan does Li Zhongyun have?"

Li Linfu said, “My uncle has a close relationship with the Prince of Sipu. I am not very talented, but I happen to be proficient in music. I can ask my uncle to find the Prince of Sipu and help me get a job in the Ministry of Rites. At the same time, I can rely on Hongxiu to build a good relationship with Wuming Academy. Then I can take the opportunity to learn opera and use it to help Consort Wu.”

"That's wonderful, very little indeed!" Wu Xin was overjoyed upon hearing this and cupped his hands in greeting, saying, "I entrust everything to Li Zhongyun."

"Don't dare! Don't dare!"

Li Linfu added, "However, if we want to succeed, we will need the secret assistance of the Martial Master."

Wu Xin hurriedly replied, "Don't worry, Li Zhongyun, I will do my best to assist you."

As Li Linfu stepped out of the Martial Academy, a smile crept across his face, and he laughed heartily, "Truly, there's always a way out!"

Imperial City.

"Letting Wang Shouyi take charge of Anye Bureau is like feeding rats. I really don't know why His Majesty made this decision," Pan Haoli said with a shake of his head.

Zhang asked with a smile, "What makes Imperial Censor Pan say that?"

Pan Haoli said, “Minister Zhang may not be unaware of why there are so many hidden households in the world. It is because their relatives and clansmen have wantonly annexed state land, leaving the state with no land to grant to the people, which has led to the people fleeing to other places. Now they are letting the relatives handle this matter. If they can handle it well, it will truly be a great wonder of the world.”

Many officials nearby nodded in agreement, indicating that they would unite to submit a memorial to the throne to prevent this appointment.

Zhang then spoke up, saying, "I have a different opinion."

Pan Haoli cupped his hands and said, "I would like to hear your insights."

Zhang said, "This Anye Bureau does indeed contain huge profits, but as everyone knows, the Wang family is extremely wealthy in Chang'an. So, for the Wang family, is money more important or power?"

He paused slightly at this point, "Furthermore, according to that imperial edict, the authority of the Anye Bureau was very limited, only to appease and assist the hidden households, and to help the people in terms of the regulations for returning to their place of origin, without the power to issue orders or commands, and it did not involve land."

Even so, His Majesty has already stated that the Anye Administration will only be established in the Guanzhong region for the time being. Why don't you all observe the situation first before making any further decisions?

He definitely supports Wang Shouyi in this matter, aiming to check and balance Yuwen Rong, since this matter won't fall on his shoulders anyway.

Upon hearing this, everyone agreed that it made sense.

Pan Haoli said, "Alright, we'll do as you say, Master Zhang. If Wang Shouyi dares to line his own pockets, I will definitely not let him off the hook."

At this point, he suddenly sighed, "But I'm afraid it might affect the Empress!"

The impressions of Wang Shouyi and Empress Wang in the minds of the ministers were completely opposite. Empress Wang was virtuous and kind, a model for the harem, especially with the contrast of women like Empress Wu and Empress Wei, which made the ministers admire her. On the other hand, Wang Shouyi was dissolute, greedy, and lustful, a typical relative of the empress.

Han Xiu said irritably, "What can we do? They brought this on themselves."

However, no one expected that all of this was actually a scheme orchestrated by the four boys.

These four culprits are now hiding in the former site of the nameless academy.

Since the Nameless Academy moved to its new location, the old Nameless Academy has been vacant again. The Wang family has so many properties that they simply can't take care of it. And since this round of enrollment expansion, the secret meeting room of Wang Xi and his group at the new academy is no longer so safe. So they used the old Nameless Academy as their secret base.

"Hey! Xiaoman, why is your mouth blue?" Wang Xi looked Li Jieman up and down.

Li Jie said, "You still have the nerve to ask? Isn't it all because of you?"

Wang Xi asked, puzzled, "What does this have to do with me?"

Li Jie pouted, looking extremely aggrieved, and said, "After my father returned from your house, he gave me a severe lecture, saying that I went to Pingkangfang far more often than you, yet you were able to learn music, while all I knew was how to find women."

Wang Xi said, "That's the truth!"

Li Jieman snorted: "What facts? You're working so hard, isn't it all for the teacher?"

Wang Xi nodded and said, "That's right!"

Li Jieman said, "That's it! The teacher said it was yours, so why should I study music?"

Wang Xi said, "That's not wrong either."

Li Jieman blinked his small eyes. "No, I also need to find a music master so I can study music diligently."

"good idea!"

Wang Xi patted Li Jieman on the shoulder, "Brother, I support you."

"go away!"

Li Jieman brushed his hand away, "What are you showing off for? I don't believe that you, Wang Xiaoque, can do it, but I, Li Xiaoman, can't."

Wang Xi said earnestly, "Xiaoman, it's true that you think this way, but every wrong has its perpetrator and every debt its debtor. Your father beat you, so you have to find a way to get revenge."

"Do you even need to tell me?" Li Jie said, "If you lie to my father again next time, I won't feel guilty anymore."

Wang Xi said, "That's right."

Wang Shuang, standing to the side, yawned and asked, "Can we celebrate now?"

Wang Xi laughed and said, "Come on, let's drink, let's drink."

"Done!"

Wang Xi, Li Jieman, Wang Shuang, and Huangfu Sengnian stood up, raised their cups, and drank them down in one gulp.

Setting down his wine cup, Wang Xi continued, "Once my father goes to Anye Bureau, we can transfer Monk Nian's father here as his deputy."

Li Jieman's expression suddenly changed, and he chuckled, "I really didn't expect that our father's career would be entirely in our hands."

"Don't get too cocky."

Huangfu Sengnian said, "This is no easy task. It's uncertain whether our father can complete the mission. The current land issue is caused by us relatives of the imperial family and nobles. Moreover, I think Yuwen Rong must be very unhappy, and we must be careful that he doesn't try anything funny."

Wang Xi laughed and said, "This is just a smokescreen I set up to make the ministers in the court think that we are here to seize Yuwen Rong's power, thereby reducing the resistance from my father's side, while not damaging the relationship between my Wang family and the outer court. In reality, the Anye Bureau is only providing funds to help hidden households return to their original places of residence, and the money comes from charity performances. This does not involve land issues, and the main task will still be handled by Yuwen Rong."

Our father will merely assist him from the sidelines, making Yuwen Rong's work twice as effective. Then, we will naturally reconcile with Yuwen Rong, rather than clashing with him.

Huangfu Sengnian asked curiously, "Brother Que, when did you learn these political maneuvering techniques?"

Wang Xi sighed, "Although I don't want to admit it, the truth is that behind every successful man, there is a woman. And that woman is my mother."

"Princess?"

"Ah."

Wang Xi nodded and sighed, "Since the fight at the Imperial Academy last time, my mother has told me a lot, and I have learned a lot from her."

"I see."

Huangfu Sengnian nodded and no longer had any doubts.

Li Jieman rested his chin on his hands and said, "But in this way, wouldn't the power still be in Yuwen Rong's hands?"

Wang Xi said, "Our father is not capable of shouldering this heavy responsibility right now. But it doesn't matter. This is the most pressing issue at the moment. As long as we can do our job well, His Majesty will definitely see it."

Moreover, the court is very wary of us, the relatives of the imperial family, and keeps a close eye on us. We must keep a low profile in terms of power, constantly accumulate small achievements, stabilize our position, and wait for the situation to change.

Besides, our father has been idle for many years. If we try to get them a major responsibility, they might not be able to handle it. We have to take things one step at a time.

(End of this chapter)