Chapter 163: An Official Career Should Be Commander of the Jinwu Guard

Zheng Shuqing was nearly blockaded in his yamen for a whole day by the victims of old cases who had come to "petition."

It was not until about half a watch before curfew that the soldiers of the Jinwu Guard finally showed up and dispersed the crowds. Then the Jinwu Guard personnel left as well.

What "flexible law enforcement" meant was demonstrated to the fullest by those people.

However, Zheng Shuqing had nothing to say about it. Although these dirty tricks were indeed despicable, they still fell within the basic framework of court political struggle. Even if Li Longji found out about this, he would not say anything.

If anyone was to blame, it was the Jingzhao Prefecture yamen itself for being ineffectual. Precisely because too many troublesome matters had accumulated in the past, now that others were coming to make trouble, it was unexpected yet perfectly reasonable.

That said, while the Jingzhao Prefecture yamen was certainly overwhelmed, the current situation of the Jinwu Guard was not much better either. The two could be considered a pair of fellow sufferers.

The Jinwu Guard was indeed one of the imperial guards that had existed since the founding of the Tang, but compared to the other brother units of the "Sixteen Guards of the Southern Command," it possessed a dual identity as both the Emperor's personal guard and the court's guard.

In other words, when the Emperor gave orders, the Jinwu Guard obeyed the Emperor.

If the Emperor said to let the court's central command direct the Jinwu Guard, or if he gave no clear stance, then they obeyed the Chancellor.

A mere establishment of one thousand men—the Jinwu Guard was nothing but a tool to be manipulated at will by political forces!

Their political standing and circumstances during the late Kaiyuan era and the Tianbao years were also extremely awkward.

In terms of closeness, Li Longji's personal army was the Longwu Army, which had the nature of a "private bodyguard unit." Appointments and dismissals were solely up to Li Longji and required no approval from the Secretariat-Chancellery.

In terms of strength, the Jinwu Guard had only one thousand men. And it was not alone—because of the decline of the militia system, the Sixteen Guards of the Southern Command, whose troops were drawn from the militia, also had their establishment sizes cut again and again.

And an army's strength was first and foremost determined by the size of its establishment. Clearly, the Jinwu Guard's establishment was no more than two battalions of the Tang border army (one battalion had five hundred men, with one battalion commander), and could not be called a strong force.

In terms of elite quality, most of the men in the Jinwu Guard were discarded sons of official families who did not study, with mediocre martial skills. They only looked the part on ordinary days. The quality of their personnel was probably thanks to their mothers all being beauties—every one of them strikingly handsome. The Jinwu Guard's armor was also finely crafted and beautiful, so when they stood there, they certainly looked the part.

But looks were their only advantage.

Left Chancellor Zhang Shougui had the Jinwu Guard deliberately loosen the defenses around the Jingzhao Prefecture yamen, and they could only comply.

This move was to force Zheng Shuqing to voluntarily resign and apologize!

Otherwise, given the thickness of this man's skin, as long as Brother Ji did not dismiss him, he would dare to keep clinging to the position of Mayor of Jingzhao and refuse to leave!

……

However, just as the situation in Chang'an was surging with turmoil, the hunting party in the Zhongnan Mountains was bustling with activity, filled with a lively and harmonious atmosphere.

Brother Ji leading the fun goes without saying. Every day he played polo, shot slingshots, and rode horses, as if he had returned to those eventful years when he was still the Prince of Linzi.

"Good, that was a great shot!"

It was now mid-morning. Li Longji watched people play polo from the sidelines. Li Tan, the third son of Li Heng, galloped on his horse and made an extremely tricky shot. Seeing this, Brother Ji shouted loudly in praise. Several of Li Heng's other sons, such as Li Shu (that is, Li Yu) and Li Xi, all applauded on horseback.

Several other sons of Li Longji, such as Li Wan, Li Yun, and Li Sui, also watched from the sidelines with smiles on their faces.

At the very least, this scene, on the surface, appeared extremely harmonious and full of vitality.

But what the many princes and imperial grandsons present were actually thinking in their hearts, Brother Ji did not want to know, nor did he care.

On the scene, only Prince Zhong, Li Heng, had a calm expression—not at all happy, but of course not sad either. He seemed to have something of an air of "not letting joy or anger show on his face."

He sat there composed and unhurried, like an oddity among the rest.

Li Longji glanced at Li Heng, displeased in his heart. The moment he thought of the matter concerning Prince Zhong's wife, Lady Wei, he felt even more disgusted.

He waved Gao Lishi over and said in a low voice: "Have Prince Zhong arrange tonight's camp and meals."

Before long, Gao Lishi returned and bowed deeply to Li Longji. Sure enough, the eyesore Li Heng had already received the order and departed, having gone far away.

With the eyesore gone, Li Longji's mood immediately improved. He narrowed his eyes watching the imperial grandsons sweating profusely on the polo field, and for a moment sighed that time flew like an arrow and the years slipped by like a shuttle.

In the blink of an eye, he too was reaching the age when he would soon be knocking on death's door.

Time passed so quickly, and one's years in this world were so short. Damn it, why couldn't he live to be a hundred!

Li Longji's heart was filled with wave after wave of sighs and melancholy.

He already possessed the whole world; everything was his—except time, which was no longer his!

Just then, an officer dressed in Jinwu Guard attire came galloping on horseback and was led before Li Longji. In front of Brother Ji, the man handed a certain white jade pendant to Gao Lishi and spoke the four words "Chang'an's richest man."

Hearing this, Gao Lishi had a sudden realization, then pulled the man aside and asked: "Has Fang Chongyong been captured and taken to the Jinwu Guard yamen?"

"To reply to General Gao, indeed so."

"Wait on the side for orders."

Gao Lishi waved his hand, sending the Jinwu Guard officer away, then walked before Li Longji and handed Fang Chongyong's piece of Western Regions milky-white jade to the Tang Emperor.

"Isn't this what was bestowed upon Fang Chongyong a few years ago during the great victory in Hexi? Why is it here?"

Li Longji asked in puzzlement.

There were many things he was not very clear about; Gao Lishi handled them all, and he only asked for the general gist.

"To reply to the Sage, when Fang Chongyong was in Hexi, he was conducting some business. Among those involved, the Wang father and son of Chang'an held a very large share."

Gao Lishi said without changing his expression.

There were many people here with prying eyes, so on many confidential matters, a brief hint was enough.

Sure enough, Li Longji understood and gave a slight nod. He thought for a moment, then asked in a low voice: "How much did Fang Chongyong take from it?"

"To reply to the Sage, he only took the court's official salary."

Hearing this, Brother Ji was stunned for a moment, then asked back: "Then what was he after?"

Not only was he unclear about it, even Gao Lishi only had a half-understanding of the matter.

Gao Lishi crossed his hands in a salute to Li Longji and said: "To reply to the Sage, your servant does not know either, but it is indeed true that he did not take anything. The accounts are all very clear."

"True enough. Back then he was just a child—holding that much money, what could he even do with it?"

Li Longji nodded slightly, seeming to somewhat understand Fang Chongyong's thinking.

Without the strength to protect oneself, one should not go around carrying chests full of gold and silver treasures. The idiom "an innocent man bears guilt for possessing a jewel" was already thunderously well known! And what one needed to protect oneself in the Hexi region was an army!

Fang Chongyong was a child of just over ten—where could he conjure an army from, and how could he possibly afford to maintain one!

"We have heard that the infighting in Chang'an is very fierce right now."

Li Longji suddenly brought up a "interesting" matter.

Gao Lishi replied: "Indeed so. The Mayor of Jingzhao, on the grounds of examination fraud, arrested Zhang Shi, the son of Censor-in-Chief Zhang Yi. And the victims of the Jingzhao Prefecture yamen's unsolved cases from the past are now blocking the yamen and making trouble for Zheng Shuqing."

"Hehe, a good fierce fight is fun to watch. If they didn't fight, it would be boring."

Li Longji rubbed his whitening beard on his chin with keen interest, not finding these petty squabbles the least bit strange.

Political struggles were always this kind of bird-brained business; Li Linfu and Zhang Shougui were already being quite restrained.

"The Left Chancellor comes from a military background, so his methods are a bit heavy-handed..."

Gao Lishi suggested without batting an eye.

"Indeed, Fang Chongyong works for me. Though he has already returned, the trade route he carved out back then has never been cut off.

How could they arrest him and drag him to the Jinwu Guard yamen just because he's feuding with the Right Chancellor for power? He isn't even the Right Chancellor's man."

Li Longji nodded slightly, speaking with a hint of displeasure.

"Your Majesty speaks truly. I have heard that after Fang Chongyong resigned from his official post, he intends to participate in this imperial examination..."

Gao Lishi continued adding fuel to the fire from the sidelines.

This was precisely the formidable power of a personal eunuch like him—frequently speaking well or ill of someone before the emperor, the emperor would naturally form a corresponding impression of that person.

These were simply human nature.

"This young son of Fang Quanzhong's is quite interesting! Hahahahahaha!"

Li Longji seemed to have thought of something amusing. He clapped his hands and said to Gao Lishi, "He wants to play, so I'll play along with him. This time, I'll just appoint him as the top scholar."

This damn thing actually works!

Gao Lishi jumped in fright, already somewhat unable to fathom what exactly was going through Li Longji's mind nowadays. His current way of thinking was as if he had regained his youth.

He was no longer as steady in his actions as before; instead, he had something of a "the bigger the spectacle, the better" attitude.

"Your Majesty, the imperial examination is for selecting talent for the nation; it is a matter of established institution..."

Gao Lishi suggested in a low voice.

Li Longji waved his hand in boredom and said:

"To serve steadily as Inspector of Shazhou for four years, and moreover bring about a state where doors need not be shut at night and trade routes running smooth—can that be called lacking talent?

He has already proven his abilities in Hexi. As for the imperial examination, I know how it works, and you know too. Who is talent and who isn't—isn't it plain as day?"

Hearing these words, Gao Lishi hastily dropped to the ground in fear and begged for forgiveness!

Li Longji helped him up and continued:

"Fang Chongyong has great ability as an official and strong competence in getting things done, but he has absolutely no skill at taking exams.

This time, I just want to see what kind of chaos this restless fellow can stir up."

Li Longji gave a cold, heh-heh laugh.

Zhang Yi's son Zhang Shi had actually been going around proclaiming that he had already passed the imperial examination—and the exam hadn't even been held yet! When he saw the dossier Li Linfu sent over, Li Longji nearly flew into a rage and dismissed Zhang Yi from office on the spot.

But he held back.

Because while Zhang Yi certainly harbored selfish motives, Li Linfu was no good bird either, and Zhang Shougui was no easy lamp to deal with.

He had heard that back when Zhang Shougui was governing Hexi, he tacitly allowed his soldiers to openly rob passing Hu merchants!

That was practically an open secret.

This man was ruthless and dark-handed, no different from Li Linfu—birds of a feather, really.

Though he had left Chang'an, Li Longji had constantly sent people to closely monitor the movements both inside and outside the city, to ensure that the power struggle between the two chancellors and various factions would not spiral out of control.

"Let Palace Censor Zhang Yi be in charge of investigating the cases related to the imperial examination. Have Zheng Shuqing release Zhang Shi, and keep the others detained."

Li Longji waved his hand grandly, wiping out the vast majority of the Right Chancellor Li Linfu's 'phase-one achievements,' and even split Li Linfu's authority to investigate the examination cases, handing it to Zhang Yi.

Well, Zhang Yi was the Palace Censor, an official of the Censorate; investigating lawlessness was his proper duty, and looking into whether the officials organizing the imperial examination had engaged in fraud was indeed justifiable.

But wouldn't this only make the situation in Chang'an tilt even further toward the Left Chancellor Zhang Shougui?

Gao Lishi was somewhat bewildered, not knowing what to say.

By all logic, Fang Chongyong's detention was in reality a slap to Li Longji's face. Though Zhang Shougui's action might have been because he didn't know the inside story, Li Longji still should have given him a rap on the knuckles!

But from the looks of it now, Brother Ji's thinking didn't seem that simple.

"Lishi, make the trip to the Jinwu Guard yamen to deliver an edict: let Fang Chongyong serve as Left Jinwu Guard General."

Li Longji dropped another bombshell!

Gao Lishi was so stunned he was speechless!

"An Inspector is a Rank Four official, and a Jinwu Guard General is also Rank Four—it's merely a lateral transfer. Do you see a problem with that, Lishi?"

Seeing Gao Lishi motionless, Li Longji asked with a smile.

Of course there was no problem with that, but Zheng Shuqing was also a Junior Rank Three Capital Prefect—so why was he always getting pushed around!

Wasn't it precisely because official rank did not equate to actual authority? Even among Rank Three officials, the differences within were enormous.

A Jinwu Guard General was someone who could look askance at people with 'transcendent rank' within Chang'an. In this patch of Chang'an territory, its actual power far exceeded that of a same-Rank Four Inspector!

The official positions within the Jinwu Guard actually followed the Tang dynasty's 'inhumane' principle of setting up offices—it was riddled with 'mechanisms' and left plenty of traps.

On the surface, the Left Jinwu Guard Commander's rank should be above that of the Left Jinwu Guard General. But the former was a position concurrently held by frontier garrison generals or military commissioners, and the people holding the title were never in Chang'an.

And the latter was the true commanding officer of the Jinwu Guard in Chang'an!

One left, one right—two Generals, each commanding five hundred men. Often one managed the Imperial City and the other the Outer City, regularly rotating duties.

"To answer Your Majesty, Fang Chongyong's qualifications are still shallow; might he... stir up some trouble?"

Gao Lishi asked with some uncertainty. In fact, the person currently serving as Left Jinwu Guard Commander was none other than Wang Zhongsi—Fang Chongyong's prospective father-in-law!

Theoretically speaking, he would be directly supervising him, which made for quite a bizarre pair of official appointments.

Gao Lishi kept a straight face, barely keeping himself from laughing out loud.

Li Longji waved his hand and said, "Go deliver the edict. Just tell Genu that this matter only needs to go through the formalities."

He did not over-explain why he wanted to play it this way.

In fact, appointing officials of Rank Six and above all required the chancellor's side to draft it first; after Brother Ji approved it, it would be sent to the Chancellery for review, and only after the entire procedure was completed could it be issued as an edict.

But no one could stop Brother Ji's dominance in personnel appointments—back then, only Zhang Jiuling dared to stand up to him!

"Then how should the current Left Jinwu Guard Central General, Li Mi, be arranged?"

Gao Lishi asked a very key question.

Li Mi had served in the military for many years and was already nearly fifty this year; he could be called a veteran general who had fought from the early Kaiyuan era all the way to Tianbao.

"Transfer him to Palace Censor and Acting Administrator of Jiannan Circuit, and let him go to Chengdu to take up his post."

Li Longji waved his hand grandly, leaving Li Mi a substantive position at a border garrison.

……

"Lord Fang, have you thought it through? What do you think of my proposal?"

In a certain signing room within the Jinwu Guard yamen in Chang'an's Imperial City, Zhang Xiancheng looked at Fang Chongyong with a calm expression and asked.

"Is the money from the Hexi trade route really that important to you?"

Fang Chongyong could not help but ask.

"This money is not for me, but for... never mind, there's nothing more to say. Today Zheng Shuqing was too frightened to leave the yamen. It's not that safe outside, either.

You'd better stay here for now. Once the Sage returns, you can go back. You can take your time thinking about this matter—I can wait."

Zhang Xiancheng sighed with some helplessness.

"You cannot possess something that does not exist in the first place. I have already told you, the so-called shares are all your own fabrication."

Fang Chongyong also sighed helplessly—why was it that when he told the truth to this Young Master Zhang, the man simply refused to listen?

"Enough! Don't treat me like a fool! I've done the accounting—some of the money is missing, and it could only have been you who took it!"

Zhang Xiancheng suddenly flew into a rage and shouted at Fang Chongyong.

Just then, firelight flickered outside the door and shadows of people moved about, as if many people were heading this way.

"Zhang Xiancheng, as Recording Officer of the Left Jinwu Guard, why aren't you staying where you're supposed to be handling your duties? What are you doing here in the middle of the night?"

A middle-aged general with tightly furrowed brows, wearing the Jinwu Guard military uniform but not armored, pointed at Zhang Xiancheng and scolded with displeasure.

He was the Left Jinwu Guard Central General, Li Mi.

Behind him, unmistakably, followed a smiling Gao Lishi, who was nodding gently at Fang Chongyong.

(End of this chapter)