Chapter 22: A Chancellor Who Can

In the winter of the 24th year of the Kaiyuan era, Li Longji took the central officials on a tour of Zhongnan Mountain, more than a hundred li outside Chang'an, ordered the Crown Prince to act as regent, and had the court attendant Li Linfu handle ordinary external affairs. Zhang Jiuling, Pei Yaoqing and others accompanied the imperial carriage.

The beloved son of Consort Wu, Prince Shou Li Chang, also joined the entourage, causing many to stare in amazement. Many schemers were speculating about Li Longji's true purpose.

A few days after Li Longji's party left Chang'an, rumors spread in the city that the sage would perform a heaven‑offering on Zhongnan Mountain, then depose the Crown Prince and install Li Chang as the new Crown Prince. In an instant, the elite circles were filled with anxiety and hidden currents.

Of course, it's the New Year; the celebrations must go on, and the rumors of a deposed Crown Prince won't halt anything. Only the high officials are affected; ordinary folk have no interest in who the Crown Prince is.

This incident brought different effects to different people and places within Chang'an.

For example, the Eastern Market of Chang'an mainly sells goods for the elite, and its surrounding residents are all high officials and nobles; the items there are beyond the means of ordinary people.

Due to the deposed Crown Prince rumors, business in the Eastern Market has taken a noticeable hit; during the New Year there is not only no crowd, but trade is considerably quieter than usual.

However, the Western Market, whose customers are commoners and modestly wealthy residents, remains completely unaffected by the rumors. Chang'an residents buying New Year goods move in and out ceaselessly.

Even merchants from the Western Regions flock from all directions, hustling to get a share of the busy season.

Chang'an is highly commercialized; items that other places, especially the countryside, must procure themselves are all sold here. For example, New Year necessities such as Tu Su wine, five‑spice platters, artificial flowers and fruits, gelatinous sweets, and the like are abundant, with a wide variety and tiered grades.

The rich enjoy their luxury, the poor their modest ways; the two are clearly separated, do not interfere, and each finds contentment.

If one ignores other parts of the Tang Empire and focuses solely on Chang'an, it indeed appears to be a golden age with nothing to criticize.

Well‑ordered, magnificent city walls.

Orderly and solemn governance.

A dazzling array of goods.

Convenient and stable life.

And the peaceful memory of years without war.

Chang'an is the bright pearl and symbol of the Tang, a city that lives in the annals and even in the nation's collective memory!

Of course, even the finest home grows stale after a while. Though Chang'an is splendid, it has long lost its novelty for Li Longji. This trip with his officials to Zhongnan Mountain is essentially the emperor granting himself a New Year holiday.

The Tang had no concept of a "Spring Festival." The first day of the year was called "Yuan Dan," "Yuan Ri," or "Yuan Zheng."

Early in the Kaiyuan era, Li Longji issued the Holiday Decree: "On Yuan Zheng and the Winter Solstice, grant seven days of leave." In other words, the New Year holiday lasted seven days—the three days before New Year's Eve, New Year's Eve itself, and the first three days (Yuan Ri, second and third). It resembled the golden week of Fang Chongyong's past life.

Li Longji himself loves to play; traveling to the surrounding mountains, admiring snow and offering to heaven during the New Year seems acceptable. An emperor doing a team‑building outing is not forbidden.

In the few days before the New Year, heavy snow fell on Chang'an, and Li Linfu's residence in Pingkang Lane was bustling with renovation to prepare for the holiday.

Pingkang Lane is not small; it measures 1,022 m east‑west and about 500 m north‑south, covering roughly 500,000 m²—nearly half the size of the Forbidden City (which spans 720,000 m²).

In the northwest corner of Pingkang Lane lies Princess Changning's residence, which alone occupies a full quarter of the lane and even includes a cuju field. However, after Emperor Ruizong ascended during the Jingyun era, Princess Changning fell from favor, left Chang'an, and the estate was sold off in parcels for new houses.

Now many of those buildings have been converted into brothels. To facilitate officials' after‑court "courting of courtesans," the brothels are placed right beside the lane gates, making entry and exit easy for patrons.

The southwest corner of Pingkang Lane houses many court officials' residences, such as those of Chu Suiliang and Pei Guangting, and the Imperial Memorial Office has long been stationed there unchanged.

The northeast corner's residents are more varied, with houses divided finely. On the western side is Sanqu; the rest are small independent owners who often rent to destitute scholars who have entered the Chang'an imperial examinations.

There is also a temple here called Yanghua Temple.

Sanqu is a prostitute district; the northernmost quarter houses the poorest courtesans who can only sell their bodies and dare not reveal their names. The second and third quarters host regular patrons from the elite households, enjoying a considerably more comfortable life.

The southeast corner of Pingkang Lane is where Li Linfu's residence stands, sharing a quarter of the lane's area with Bodhi Temple.

In other words, Li Linfu's mansion is not much smaller than the former Princess Changning's estate.

Expansion is impossible; the size and scale of an official's residence are fixed, and many of Pingkang Lane's residents are nobles, so Li Linfu could not risk offending them by enlarging his own house.

He was promoted and renovated his residence, which is a standard court practice, but appropriating someone else's house clearly oversteps the bounds.

Li Linfu not only avoided flaunting it; he deliberately kept a low profile. Even the outer courtyard and walls remain unchanged, though the interior furnishings have been heavily altered.

At Li Linfu's strong insistence, craftsmen knocked through the walls between side rooms, creating partitions that can hold only two people and a table. Calling it a reception room is too cramped; calling it a quiet space is too enclosed.

It does resemble a place for plotting major affairs.

The left prime minister's residence in the Tang required such a hassle to renovate, leaving the craftsmen bewildered. Yet Li Linfu was generous and wielded overwhelming power; he paid the construction fee in a lump sum lavishly, so the craftsmen could only pretend to be blind, deaf, and mute.

Anyway, seeing it, act as if you didn't see; hearing it, act as if you didn't hear; knowing it, pretend to forget—that's the proper way.

While the courtyard is being renovated, Li Linfu in his study is receiving guests.

The visitor is Xiao Jiong, a partisan of Li Linfu, who formerly served as an official in the Ministry of Revenue and was once Li Linfu's subordinate.

Why add the word "formerly"?

Because at this very New Year's juncture, he was demoted.

The reason for his demotion is also bizarre.

As Deputy Minister of Revenue, Xiao Jiong recently accompanied Deputy Director of the Secretariat Yan Tingzhi to attend an official gathering. During the event, Xiao Jiong, perhaps bored, casually took a copy of the Book of Rites and flipped through it to pass the time.

In fact, this was commonplace, as central officials in the Tang often had ample idle time and numerous trivial social obligations.

But, oh no, Xiao Jiong read aloud a passage he enjoyed, and he misread it!

Specifically, the text contains the phrase "zheng chang fu la," and Xiao Jiong mistakenly took a homophone, reading "la" as the character for "hunt" (lie).

If Fang Chongyong had made such a foolish mistake in his past life at school, it would be harmless; who can claim they never misread a character?

But at this critical moment, especially in the eyes of court officials, a misreading becomes a serious matter.

This is easy to understand; there are no trivial matters in the bureaucracy, and even the smallest issue can be fatal at certain times.

Because the Book of Rites was a required text for Tang scholars, it had to be studied in the school system, and the character "la" is not obscure or a variant.

Xiao Jiong's reading it as "fu lie" shows he has no idea what the phrase means; in short, he is a scoundrel, a fake scholar who somehow slipped into the court.

The Tang court was treacherous; even the "good men" recorded in histories may not have possessed virtuous private morals.

Yan Tingzhi was particularly unscrupulous; upon hearing Xiao Jiong's mistake, he let out a snort of laughter, making everyone aware of the incident.

More insidiously, he didn't state it on the spot but later spread the embarrassing episode as a joke, even confronting Director of the Secretariat Zhang Jiuling with the remark: "How can the Secretariat tolerate a 'Deputy Minister of Hunting'?"

Zhang Jiuling, a traditional scholar‑official, also looked down on those without learning (financial ability was not considered learning in their eyes). Consequently, under Zhang Jiuling's maneuvering, a central decree soon transferred Xiao Jiong to serve as governor of Qizhou.

Now on a break, Xiao Jiong certainly cannot take up the out‑of‑town post; his departure will be after the Shangyuan Festival. So he spent a fortune buying two jars of Red Lotus Spring wine, carrying them to Li Linfu to seek a solution.

"Minister Li, there's a serious matter from Zhang Jiuling!"

Xiao Jiong leaned in and said to Li Linfu in a low voice.

"Prime Minister Zhang, where is there any big matter?"

Li Linfu laughed, waved his hand nonchalantly, poured Xiao Jiong a cup of Red Lotus Spring, felt secretly angry inside, but his face showed no reaction.

His power struggle with Zhang Jiuling had already begun, entering an unending, white‑hot stage.

Li Linfu thought that Zhang Jiuling's rebuke of Xiao Jiong wasn't because Xiao misread a character, but… he was eliminating a rival! Xiao Jiong was Li Linfu's enforcer in the Ministry of Revenue. Without Xiao, Li Linfu would, to some extent, lose control over the Ministry.

As for what Zhang Jiuling was actually planning, that wasn't that important. A stone blocking the road must be moved. If Zhang Jiuling doesn't step aside, how could Li Linfu become Right Prime Minister? Anyway, it's a death battle, and this round is not lacking.

Li Linfu rose through financial management; if he can't control the Ministry of Revenue, what finances would he be managing?

"The Prime Minister position is vacant; Zhang Jiuling wants to push Yan Tingzhi into it!"

Seeing Li Linfu's indifferent demeanor, Xiao Jiong gritted his teeth and said, then slammed the cup of wine down in one gulp!

Riding a horse, Red Lotus Spring is ridiculously expensive. But the nobles love this sort of flair; they disdain cheap items, no matter how good, thinking that using them would tarnish their status! Xiao Jiong silently cursed the brewers of Red Lotus Spring as black‑hearted.

"Is that so?"

Li Linfu gave a noncommittal nod, silently weighing the pros and cons in his mind.

Among the three Prime Ministers, Zhang Jiuling remained the Right Prime Minister; Pei Yaoqing was demoted for "misappropriating" Li Longji's "pocket money", leaving the Prime Minister seat vacant.

Zhang Jiuling wanted to elevate Yan Tingzhi, who was on good personal terms with him, which is, after all, a natural human inclination.

How Li Longji will decide is still hard to predict at this point.

In Li Linfu's view, Zhang Jiuling's biggest problem is that he hasn't figured out what Li Longji actually lacks!

Times have changed; the Li Longji of today lacks only money!

For the Great Tang Empire to run smoothly, what it lacks is also money!

Money! Money! Money!

Anything besides money isn't even called a matter!

Now is the age of money; those early literary officials thought that writing essays and memorials for the emperor would elevate them to the clouds—haha, they only managed to become book‑smart fools! The times have long changed!

Can Zhang Jiuling raise money for Li Longji? If so, how much? Could he raise more than he himself does?

At this thought, Li Linfu became fully confident, believing the key to solving the problem lay in his own hands.

For Li Longji, a Prime Minister who can't raise money is useless and can be removed at any time!

A Prime Minister who can raise money is the kind of person Li Longji will need in the future. This holds true for the state and for Li Longji himself.

"I already know this matter; you should first go to Qi Prefecture to assume your post, and I will handle Yan Tingzhi's affairs."

Li Linfu gave no answer, smiled, and said to Xiao Jiong.

Xiao Jiong, after offering countless thanks, left sheepishly.

After he left, Li Linfu began to sway his silver lotus wine cup while deep in thought.

"What exactly does the Crown Prince want to do?"

Li Linfu, as if muttering to himself, stroked the long beard on his chin. In his eyes, Zhang Jiuling was nothing but a desiccated bone in a tomb; he was now troubled by another pressing matter.

……

The monkeys on both banks keep crying, and the light boat has already passed Ten Thousand Layers Mountain.

Setting out from Kui Prefecture, the high‑spirited Zheng Shuqing, accompanied by the burdened Fang Chongyong, and their party boarded an official boat, sailed down the Yangtze River to Hanyang City (Hanyang District, Wuhan) for a day's rest. Then they turned northward up the Han River to Xiangyang, where they prepared to continue north along the Bai River, taking the Wu Pass Road into Guanzhong.

However, upon reaching outside Xiangyang City, they were surprised to find the Bai River frozen, making the waterway impassable!

Thus the group could only disembark at Hanyin Post, a short distance west of Xiangyang City. The post served both water and land traffic and was enormous, with a ferry dock and over a hundred houses inside, a constant stream of arrivals and departures.

Even the stables alone were spectacular, housing dozens of post horses!

Fang Chongyong stood outside Hanyin Post, observing carefully, and discovered that inside the post were several large halls, pavilions, towers, and gardens—not the cramped "youth hostel" he had imagined. The whole structure, with white walls and black tiles, looked quite imposing.

A question rose in his mind: with a post of such scale, surely the number of horses kept must be considerable. Could the Tang central government be such a big spender, willing to fund a post this large?

It's not that he asks too many questions; the fact is the Tang Empire had over 1,600 posts! If each post consumes a few hundred guan a year, that's tens of thousands of guan in total! Posts must provide free lodging and meals for traveling officials and also handle message transmission.

Maintenance of buildings, food and drink, horse feeding, staff salaries—none of these is free. Could a post of such magnitude survive on just a few hundred guan a year? The Tang likely would be bankrupted just running these posts!

Fang Chongyong could not comprehend at all.

Zheng Shuqing seemed to notice his doubt, leaned in and lowered his voice: "Across the realm, the central government indeed forbids the posts from receiving wealthy merchants and travelers. But look at Qutang Post in Kui Prefecture—people come and go; are all the residents officials? How many officials would travel to Shu?"

Hearing this, Fang Chongyong understood instantly.

When he first saw Qutang Post in Kui Prefecture swarming with people, he thought all the residents were officials. Now he knows the answer: most of the inhabitants are wealthy merchants with connections.

Even poets without official posts have lingered at the post, sharing meals.

In fact, this is easy to understand.

In feudal society, people's pace of life is very slow; even in a southwestern gateway like Kui Prefecture, how many officials would stay here in a month? How many would frequently travel along the Yangtze to Shu?

The answer is obvious.

Just as Tang officials forbid killing cattle for beef. The ban is a ban, but meat is meat; the two coexist, and those who like meat will still eat!

The authorities forbid posts from receiving traveling merchants, yet except for the posts around Chang'an and Luoyang, which post does not rely on such "side income" to make a living? The court's death‑by‑order is never as important as livelihood.

When a person is impoverished to death, they have nothing; what use is telling them the law?

If in a year few officials pass through a post (a common situation), must all the post's staff be dismissed? And if an official does need lodging and meals, what then? Should the dismissed staff be recalled?

That would, of course, be unrealistic!

Thus, when posts take on "private work", the central court turns a blind eye, intervening only if someone reports it.

The posts downstream are also bustling, some even "outsourced" to local magnates for operation!

All things under the frosty sky vie for freedom; humans, to survive and thrive, always devise better ways.

Fang Chongyong's party entered Hanyin Post, where the post soldiers served some local Xiangyang specialties—plate of eel, scallops, carp, and other river delicacies.

At that moment, they saw a disheveled young man being shoved out of the post by the soldiers. Those soldiers were very impolite, a stark contrast to the courteous manner shown to Zheng Shuqing's party.

"That man is an official; invite him over to drink together,"

Fang Chongyong whispered his suggestion to Zheng Shuqing.