The words of Changsheng hit the heart of the emperor, and he left his seat with a moved expression, "I love you so much that I have devoted myself to you, and I have devoted myself to my integrity. How can I be so virtuous and capable that I have such a gift from heaven as my auxiliary minister, and a gift from the earth for my love for you?"
Upon seeing this, Changsheng hurriedly left his seat and stood up, "The emperor praised you so much that I was so frightened. I was originally a commoner, but I was promoted by the emperor and was able to enter the temple and rank in the imperial class. However, I never repaid my kindness, and again With the emperor's blessing of marriage, relatives and friends are exempted from sin, and there are many kinds of gifts that cannot be fully detailed. The emperor's prosperous kindness to the humble minister will never be forgotten by the humble minister. Only by devoting all his energy and brains can he repay the emperor's kindness in case of any eventuality. "
Hearing Chang Sheng's words, the emperor was greatly relieved. Those in high positions may not need their subordinates to do anything for them, but they do not want their subordinates to forget their past help and support. This is because all betrayals and antagonisms are the result of forgetting what others have done to them. Started with help.
"Throughout the dynasties there have been many wise rulers and important ministers, but they have never forgotten their original aspirations. There are few who start well and finish well. There are few people without talent. I am willing to imitate Taizong and fulfill this rare relationship between you and me as a monarch and a minister with a sincere heart," the emperor said here He turned to look at the chamberlain on the side and said, "It is decreed that from this moment on, anyone who writes a letter of loyalty to the king, whether they are relatives of the emperor or the six ministers and nine ministers, will be dismissed from office and seize the title, and will never be reinstated."
Seeing the emperor's attitude, Changsheng was very moved and hurriedly bowed and raised his hands to express his solemn thanks.
The emperor immediately said, "Just as Aiqing said, Aiqing will take over the leadership of the army to fight against the rebellion. Zhenren Huguo and the Taoists of Longhu Mountain have made great contributions and deserve heavy rewards. As for how to reward them, I still have room for me and the three provinces." The six departments will discuss it in detail."
After thanking Changsheng, he said again, "In the battle at Gupo Mountain, the monks of Shaolin Temple sacrificed their lives to protect the country, and there were many casualties. I also ask the emperor to issue a commendation to rectify his name and show his merits."
Naturally, the emperor had no reason to disagree with Changsheng's proposal, and Changsheng's move also made the civil and military officials here admire him again. Because Taoist priests and monks have always been at odds with each other, as a Shangqing Taoist, Changsheng can ask for merit from the Shaolin monks. This shows that he is broad-minded and fair in his dealings.
The business was settled, the banquet continued, and the atmosphere became more harmonious. It was not until late afternoon that the banquet ended.
We haven’t seen each other for many days. The emperor wanted to stay with Changsheng to talk alone, but Changsheng refused because he was too drunk and in a daze. Everything should be done in a certain degree, especially when getting along with monarchs and ministers. As the saying goes, being near is not inferior. The emperor is the most powerful person in the world and is supreme. Because of the existence of the emperor, the ministers must not get too close to the emperor.
The emperor naturally knew that Chang Sheng was not really drunk, because before Chang Sheng left, he did not forget to plead for those civil servants who spoke ill of him behind his back. The emperor also knew that these civil servants were still useful, so he went down the hill and sent those officials to prison. All civil servants were demoted to one rank, but Dai Zui remained in office.
After leaving the hall, Changsheng waved to Wu Yusheng, who was walking not far behind him, and asked about the current situation of the disaster. Wu Yusheng was brought up by Changsheng, so naturally he would not hide anything from Changsheng. The disaster was far more serious than Changsheng imagined. The number of people reported to have died from famine in each state government alone is as many as 500,000. Changsheng used to be in charge of the Ministry of Household Affairs, so he naturally knew that the state governments below had a bad habit of making false reports and concealing reports. He said the number was 500,000, but I'm afraid it was 5 million. More than anything.
In order to distribute the rice grain to the victims as soon as possible, Chang Sheng suggested that this batch of grain and grass should be put into the national treasury first, and the remaining grain should be registered and registered. The reason why the grain team was not allowed to rush directly to various places was because the horses of the grain team were almost exhausted after running for a long distance. After a short rest, the team had to rush back to the Western Regions to continue the journey.
Regarding Changsheng's proposal, Wu Yusheng immediately nodded in agreement. He also knew that disaster relief was like putting out fires. With so much food and grass going in and out, at least ten days and a half were wasted. During this period, more victims would starve to death.
Seeing that the Ministry of Punishment and the Minister of Personnel were also nearby, Changsheng called them again and ordered them to send officials from their own departments to various places to supervise local officials in distributing food for disaster relief. He knew those local officials too well. They didn't care about the lives of the victims. They also dared to line their own pockets with rice and grain for disaster relief.
At this time, the six ministers were following behind Chang Sheng. After explaining to the Ministry of Punishment and the Ministry of Officials, Chang Sheng called the Minister of War and ordered him to immediately issue an official document from the Ministry of War, asking all prefectures to send troops to protect the food convoy. The reason for this move was also It is by no means redundant. A person who is extremely hungry can do anything. If there is no protection by officers and soldiers, the food team will be robbed by bandits in the middle of the journey.
Changsheng, the Minister of the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Industry, did not let go. He had previously agreed to the emperor's move of the capital. Moving the capital was not a trivial matter. The Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Industry must send people to Luoyang to conduct on-site inspections to determine many details of building the palace and moving the capital. At the same time, he also Let the Ministry of Household Affairs ensure the expenditures of the Ministry of Industry and the Ministry of Rites as much as possible. In fact, he could ignore this matter completely, but he had to let the emperor know that he strongly agreed with his move of the capital to Luoyang.
It is said that the words above will break the legs below. This is indeed true. In fact, many major events closely related to people's livelihood are just a few words from people in high positions. Chang Sheng likes to be concise and concise when explaining things, because if he says If you say too many words, the people below may not grasp the key points. If you say a few words less, they can still remember it.
Before leaving the palace, Changsheng explained everything that needed to be explained, including the accommodation and reception of the convoy drivers and the soldiers who were guarding the food. These people worked really hard, sleeping in the open air every day, and the journey was dusty.
The reason why Changsheng arranged everything so quickly was to avoid suspicion and to explain things in front of other officials without making any mistakes. If he contacted the six ministers in private, outsiders would not know what he said to them, and it would still be the same. Well, after leaving the palace, these people don't have to go to the palace to see him.
Changsheng's palace is located on the west side of the palace. There were people greeting him all the way. Changsheng had no time to talk to Datou and others. After returning to the palace, everyone sat down in the main hall to talk.
His big head and short legs meant that his legs couldn't reach the ground when he was sitting on a high chair, so he crossed his legs and stepped on the chair, "The emperor is quite good at doing things, and he didn't let us get angry and hold our breath."
Changsheng glanced at Datou, "Fan Jingming and Liu Tianlin went to the Western Regions, and you just pointed at their noses and scolded them. Can they not come back and tell the emperor?"
"If we don't say anything, they will think that we don't know anything," Datou said, holding a cup of tea, "I think it's a good idea to save them from mumbling behind our backs in the future."
"You talk too much, and you may betray Eunuch Zhou." Changsheng said casually.
"What are you selling? The emperor is just suspicious at most, and there is no real evidence," Datou said, "Besides, Eunuch Zhou has a lot of money, and you also gave him a house. He will be with you like a tiger, so he should leave the palace as soon as possible to retire. It’s not a bad thing for him.”
After finishing speaking, Yu Yi said, "My lord, you just told the minister of the Ministry of Industry not to be stingy with money, to build the Luoyang Palace, and not to wrong the emperor, but to delay time?"
Changsheng took a sip of tea, put down the cup, sighed and nodded, "Yes, you also saw what happened just now. If I don't agree, the emperor will definitely be suspicious, and I can only agree against my will."
Before a few people could answer, Changsheng said again, "Don't blame the emperor for being too suspicious. To be fair, the emperor is still a wise ruler of the country. Except for matters related to the throne, he still manages to employ people without suspicion."
Yang Kai and the others nodded and curled their lips, "That's indeed what happened, but now the imperial court is so poor that they go out to beg for food. How much money will it cost to build a palace? Besides, I've been to Luoyang, There is a royal palace left by the previous dynasty there, and the reconstruction will not be delayed for long."
Yang Kai said casually, "If Luoyang doesn't fall during the construction process, it won't be delayed for long."
"What do you mean?" Datou was stunned for a moment, and then realized, "Hey, this is really a trick. I asked Zhu Quanzhong to come in and then set him on fire."
Seeing that the two of them were getting more and more outrageous, Changsheng didn't bother to interrupt.
"Your Majesty, when are you going to Luoyang?" Datou asked.
"Anything is fine." Changsheng said casually. He missed Zhang Mo very much, but was afraid to meet Zhang Shan because Zhang Shan was upright and he would have firmly opposed the emperor's move to the capital earlier, but now he was against him. After meeting, Zhang Shan was sure He will be scolded for flattering and spoiling the emperor.
"Didn't you say you wanted to go for a walk on the way?" Datou said. "If we go to Luoyang, we won't be able to get away."
"What a stroll, we are going out to find spiritual objects and improve our cultivation." Shi Xuanming corrected.
Yang Kai said, "Once we take over from Zhenren Zhang to lead the troops to confront Zhu Quanzhong, we will indeed not be able to move around at will."
Seeing that everyone wanted to go out for a walk, Changsheng nodded in agreement, "Okay, let's sharpen the knife and chop wood. Let's go out for a walk before rushing to Luoyang..."
