"The envoy was holding up the cloth, but the road was blocked by passers-by. He had to let his subordinates come with the good news first. He was still on the way! Hearing that the passers-by were singing "The Music of the King of Qin Breaking the Formation", the spectators were like a crowd. The roads for miles are blocked!" said the chamberlain.槧
"It's no wonder!" Li Zhi laughed: "I guess there will be many people drunk in Chang'an tonight, right?"
"Yes!" The chamberlain sighed: "I have only heard about a scene like today from the elders in the palace, but have never seen it with my own eyes!"
"Pass the message!" Li Zhi said with a smile: "Starting tonight, King Wu will stay in Chang'an City for three days. If there are more than fifty people in the city, they will be given a pot of wine and a pound of dried meat to celebrate the happy event of the country!"
"According to the order!"
After the chamberlain retreated, Li Zhi picked up the victory document again and read it carefully twice. The words on it seemed to turn into pictures of victory. He suddenly felt dizzy in front of his eyes. He quickly closed his eyes, breathed evenly, and took a few breaths. After a few minutes, he recovered and said with a wry smile: "Other people feel refreshed when happy events happen, but I feel dizzy when happy events happen. How can this be possible?"
"Your Majesty, the prince wants to see you!"
"Is it Hong'er?" Li Zhi opened his eyes and smiled: "I must have heard the good news, so let him come in!"
"According to the order!"
A few minutes later, rapid footsteps came from outside. Li Zhi seemed to be able to see Li Hong's nimble footsteps just by the footsteps. At this time, he couldn't help but feel envious in his heart: "You are a young man after all. I don’t have such a good body anymore!”
"Ah, Ah, Ah!" Li Hong's face was filled with excitement: "I just heard someone say that Lu Bu from Liaodong is back and Goguryeo has surrendered. Is it true?"
"Yes, Goguryeo has finally surrendered this time!" Li Zhi pointed to the brocade mat aside: "Hong'er sat down and talked!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Li Hong thanked him and sat down and sighed: "The British Duke is indeed a minister of the Zhu Kingdom. He led the troops and destroyed Goguryeo so quickly this time!"
"Haha!" Li Zhi laughed when he heard this. He put the victory report in his hand back on the desk: "Hong'er, you are wrong this time. It was the British who led the expedition this time, but it was someone else who really made the first contribution. There is someone else!"
"Is there another person? He has made greater contributions than the British Duke?"
"Well, he's still an acquaintance of yours!" Li Zhi pointed to the good news: "Take this to show His Highness the Crown Prince!"
Li Hong took the good news from the palace maid and opened it to read. Just after reading two lines, his eyes widened: "It's Wang Jiaoyu! Wang Jiaoyu was the first to break into Pyongyang City!"
"Yes, I didn't expect it to be him!" Li Zhi said with a wry smile: "Before this expedition, I made a promise that whoever enters Pyongyang City first will be the king. This was originally intended to reward the British Duke Li Ji, but he didn't. It’s a bit embarrassing to think that Wang Wenzuo has taken the lead!”
"Awkward? Why do you say that?" Li Hong asked in confusion.
Li Zhi had nothing to hide from his son, so he explained. It turns out that the titles of the Tang Dynasty were divided into nine levels: the first is called king, with a household of 10,000 households, the first rank; the second is the heir king, the prince of the county, with a household of 5,000 households, with a rank of 1; the third is the Duke, with 3,000 households in the town. From the first rank; the fourth is the Duke of the founding county, with a settlement of 2,000 households, from the second rank; the fifth is the Duke of the founding county, with a settlement of 1,500 households, from the second rank; the sixth is the Duke of the founding county, with a settlement of 1,000 households, from the third rank; The seventh is the uncle of Kaiguo County, who has a settlement of 700 households, and is on the fourth rank; the eighth is the son of Kaiguo County, who has a settlement of 500 households, and is on the fifth rank; the ninth is the son of Kaiguo County, who has 300 households in the settlement, and is on the fifth rank.
Among them, the first and second classes are all from the clan or the heroes who surrendered at the founding of the country (such as King Wu Du Fuwei and King Yan Luo Yi); Li Ji's British Duke is in the third class. The relationship between Li Ji and Li Zhi is quite special. Not long after Li Zhi was granted the title of Queen of Jin, he was granted the title of Governor of Bingzhou. At that time, the person who was actually in charge of the Governor's Office of Bingzhou was Li Ji, who was the official and chief historian of the Governor's Office of Bingzhou; Before Li Shimin died, he deliberately expelled Li Ji from Chang'an so that Li Zhi could recall him to be kind to Li Ji after he succeeded to the throne. During the critical period when Li Zhi deposed Wang Liwu, Li Ji, who was the minister of Tuogu, said bluntly: This is your Majesty's. Family matters! For this reason, Empress Wu was very grateful to Li Ji and even sent him a generous gift to express her gratitude. Because of the above matters, Li Zhi asked Li Ji, who was in his twilight years, to command this must-win battle. He also took this opportunity to break the convention and make Li Ji the county king, which can be regarded as a reward for this kind man.
An old minister of his own husband and wife. But what Li Zhi didn't expect was that the first person to break into Pyongyang was not Li Ji as expected, but Wang Wenzuo.
"Hong'er, do you understand?" Li Zhi said with a smile: "It's not that I can't bear the title of county king, it's just that Wang Wenzuo's starting point is too low. Even if he has a county prince or county prince, I will make an exception. Granting the title of county king is not unreasonable! But now he doesn't even have a county son or a county man, so he suddenly jumped to the rank of county king. This is too shocking and cannot be stopped by the people of the world. !"槧
"That's true!" Li Hong sighed: "But Father, you have such good words. Since you have promised that whoever enters Pyongyang first will be crowned king, it can't be counted, right?"
"It's a little bit behind in terms of famous weapons, but we can make up for it in other aspects!" Li Zhi said with a smile: "Besides, Wang Wenzuo is still young, only in his early thirties this year, right? If he is crowned king now, how will he be able to do anything after my son ascends the throne? Him? Doesn’t it mean that he can only stay in Chang’an every day to retire? I’m afraid he himself is not willing to do this!”
"What Aweng said is true!" This time Li Hong was sincerely convinced. Those who have merit must be rewarded, and those who have committed mistakes must be punished. These are the basic rules for the normal operation of any political organization. If Wang Wenzuo is crowned king this time, then the court will have nothing to take away from him in the future. He had to come out and reward him, so naturally he couldn't be sent out to lead troops to fight. Even the Tang Dynasty was not so luxurious as to leave such an outstanding general in his thirties to be his breadwinner in Chang'an for most of his life.
"Then what title can Wang Jiaoyu receive this time?" Li Hong asked.
"It should be the son of Jianguo County or the uncle of Jianguo County!" Li Zhi said. He seemed to feel that something was missing, so he added with a smile: "It is true that this is less than Wang Wenzuo's contribution, but the matter of the reward comes first. Only after a report from the Ministry of War can we make a decision, and we can't just give him whatever he wants! You also know that Wang Wenzuo is a new recruit, so he will naturally suffer some losses in this regard. We can only find ways to compensate him in the future!"
"My child also feels that there are too few sons or uncles of Jianguo County!" Li Hong said: "My child heard that Xue Rengui was in battle and shot an enemy general in the fourth year of Xianqing. After defeating the Khitans, he was awarded the title of Prince of Hedong County. Wang Wenzuo contributed greatly to the destruction of the country. , how can it be only one level higher than Xue Rengui? As for compensation in the future, I don’t think so?"
"Oh? Why do you say that?" Li Zhi was not annoyed when his son retorted, and just looked at Li Hong with a smile.槧
"An ancient saying goes, officials are appointed for their abilities, and titles are rewarded for their merits! The reason why the soldiers are willing to face the arrows and arrows without hesitation is simply to hope for the rewards, to honor themselves, and to pass them on to their descendants. Today, the enemy is awarded the title, which is a great achievement. It has been built, the people are singing and dancing, and everyone in the world is eagerly watching, how can there be any reason to delay the reward? I think it is absolutely impossible!"
"That's right! That's right!" After hearing what the prince said, Li Zhi nodded with satisfaction: "You have indeed made progress with this opinion. As a king, you are in charge of rewards and punishments, so you must not be unfair! Reward Wang Wenzuo This matter really cannot be delayed, but I haven’t thought about it for a while!”
"Can I reward you with some gold and silk?" Li Hong asked.
"Gold and silk?" Li Zhi laughed when he heard this: "Hong'er, you really don't know that Wang Jiaoyu of yours! Is he really not short of gold and silk?"
"Is there no shortage of gold and silk? Did Wang Jiaoyu come from a wealthy family? It doesn't seem like it! When he was in Chang'an, the children didn't think he was a child of a noble family!" Li Hong asked in confusion.
"Hong'er, you don't know!" Li Zhi said with a smile: "This Wang Wenzuo's wealth does not depend on his ancestral business, but on his own way of making money! Do you still remember? The furs, medicinal materials, and gold that I gave you a few days ago Silverware!"
"Remember! That fur is really nice! But what does it have to do with him?"
"The furs and medicinal materials were all donated by Wang Wenzuo!" Li Zhi said with a smile: "According to what he said, these were all obtained in exchange from the Haidong barbarian chieftain. Do you think he would donate all of them after he got them?" I don’t want to take anything from you?”
"This -" Li Hong suddenly became speechless. Although he was still a young man, he came from a heavenly family after all. He was always influenced by words and deeds, and his knowledge was far better than that of his peers. After Li Zhi reminded him, he immediately understood that it was just Wang Wenzuo left a good impression on him and he was unwilling to speak ill of him in front of Li Zhi.
"Of course, I didn't blame Wang Wen either.
What Zuo means is that after going through life and death like him, it is the right thing to take some belongings for yourself. If I don't let go of this, it would be too mean and ungrateful. I am telling you this just to tell you that not only does he know how to fight, but he is also as good at making money as a merchant. I am afraid that he already has a lot of money. Instead of rewarding him with gold and silk, you might as well give him something else! "Speaking of this, Li Zhi suddenly sighed: "It's a pity that none of my daughters is suitable. Otherwise, I would have hired this son-in-law, which would not be bad!"
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While Emperor Gaozong and his son were worrying about how to reward Wang Wenzuo for his service, there was already a sea of joy in the city of Chang'an. Pedestrians on the road, even strangers, would congratulate each other and celebrate together. The wine shops on the roadside were even more prosperous and crowded as if at a court meeting. Some people simply sat on the ground with wine glasses and toasted to celebrate. On the streets, craftsmen, hired workers, policemen, and veterans covered with scars - conquerors of the Turks, Xueyantuo and Tiele people, ordinary women, orchids and groups of nimble children, batch after batch The stream keeps flowing forward. Their lively and cheerful faces, their carefree chats, and all kinds of sarcasm and laughter all illustrate their happy mood at this time.
All these various, noisy, and countless crowds filled this great city with a vague, chaotic, but cheerful noise, which was only produced by thousands of hives. It was comparable to the buzz in the streets.
Princess Pu'an returned to her residence in Chang'an City amidst such commotion. When she got off the sedan, she was exhausted.槧
"Quick, prepare hot water and serve Her Royal Highness the Princess to take a shower!" the housekeeper said loudly: "It's really crowded outside today. What will happen if it stays like this every day!"
"If it can be like this every day, I will be willing to be more crowded!" Although Princess Pu'an was tired, she was in a good mood. She smiled and said to the housekeeper: "Send the order, and everyone in the mansion will be rewarded with five hundred coins tonight. Mi Sandou, celebrating the Tang Dynasty’s victory over Goguryeo!”
"Thank you, Master, for the reward!"
The servants in the courtyard bowed down one after another to thank the princess. Princess Pu'an was about to take a shower and rest. At this time, the housekeeper heard the gatekeeper whisper a few words and said to Princess Pu'an: "Master, Princess Xiping sent someone to surrender at noon. Mingsashi said he wanted to visit you tonight!"
"Oh, Sister Fifteen is coming, that's great, please have someone prepare it!"
"yes!"
Due to fatigue, Princess Pu'an only ate two bowls of buttermilk and some dried fruits after taking a shower, and then went to rest. When she woke up, it was completely dark, and then she massaged and dressed herself with the help of her personal maid. This was also the happiest time of her day, and most of the time she would not be refused if she made a request.槧
"Princess Xiping has arrived!" the maid whispered.
"Just invite her here! My sisters, there's nothing to be polite about!" Princess Pu'an replied lazily while closing her eyes and enjoying the massage from the maid. "Sister, you really know how to enjoy it!" Princess Xiping came in. She was a fat woman with a round face. Her beauty as a girl had been completely destroyed by her bloated figure and fat face. Only occasionally could she see the remnants of her girlhood. A little trace.
"Life is too short, so why bother yourself? If you have to enjoy it, enjoy it for a day!" Princess Pu'an didn't even open her eyes: "Why do you have time to come to me today?"
Princess Xiping did not answer the question directly, but asked: "Did you hear the sound outside? Goguryeo is peaceful!"
"I'm not deaf!" Princess Pu'an opened her eyes: "How could I not know about such a big thing?"
"That's right!" Princess Xiping suddenly showed a mysterious smile: "Since Goguryeo is peaceful, then everything will be fine in the east. Brother Tianzi will always have some spare time to take care of his brother-in-law's family affairs now, right?" It turns out that Princess Xiping was a concubine of Emperor Taizong Li Shimin of the Tang Dynasty. Girl, her husband Murong Nuohebo was a Tuyuhun Khan. He was oppressed by the Tubo people a few years ago, lost his original pasture land (probably in the Hehuang Valley) and fled to Liangzhou. So the couple often traveled back and forth between Chang'an and Liangzhou, often asking Emperor Gaozong to send troops to conquer Tubo, but every time Gaozong always thought that the current situation was great.
The Tang Dynasty had no spare power to send troops to shirk the blame.
"You are looking for me this time because you want me to make a case for you in front of the emperor?" Princess Pu'an waved her hand and signaled the masseur to step back: "This is a major military and national event!"
"How can there be so many military and national events!" Princess Xiping took the wine glass, took a sip and said with a smile: "I didn't want Your Majesty to destroy Tubo, and I just wanted the Tubo people to hand over their pastureland. The Tang Dynasty had just destroyed Goguryeo. In terms of its power, the Tubo people would definitely not dare not accept it!”
