In the eighteenth year of Zhenguan, Li Jue, who transmigrated and became the son of the废太子 (cancelled crown prince) Li Chengqian, secretly returned to the longed-for Chang'an from Qianzho...
Upon hearing this, Li Jue pointed to himself with an incredulous expression.
"I?"
"Yes, didn't His Majesty appoint you as Minister of the Imperial Secretariat?"
"Are you kidding me, sir? My grandfather only asked me to receive an extra salary, he didn't say he wanted me to do any work!"
"Your Highness, I have already consulted His Majesty, and His Majesty says you are qualified to do this job!"
"ah?"
Xiao Yu was a little stunned when Yang Shidao said this.
What's going on? Is our Great Tang Dynasty about to have a Minister of the Imperial Secretariat who is only ten years old?
When the other students in Chongwen Academy heard this and looked at Li Jue, their eyes blazed with excitement.
The Minister of the Imperial Secretariat!
All official appointments in the Tang Dynasty required the approval of the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat!
If I can get along well with Prince Yong, won't I be able to rise to prominence and achieve great success in the future?
Only Li Zhi was seething with hatred. Why did his father give the position of Minister of the Imperial Secretariat to this grandson? The position of Minister of the Imperial Secretariat should have been his own!
Li Jue was stunned for a moment, then looked to Xiao Yu for help.
"Mr. Xiao, what should we do about this?"
Upon hearing Li Jue's plea for help, Xiao Yu immediately stepped forward.
"Yang Shidao, are you sure His Majesty sent you?"
"Sure!"
"I specifically consulted His Majesty, and His Majesty said that since the court has a Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, then let the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat sign and affix his seal!"
"this……"
Although Xiao Yu was certain that Yang Shidao wouldn't joke about such a thing, he still looked at Yang Shidao with a face full of suspicion.
"What did Fang Xiang and Gao Xiang say?"
"That's what they both meant; they said that without the Minister's signature, these official certificates couldn't be issued under any circumstances..."
Xiao Yu nodded upon hearing this, then picked up a thick stack of official documents and flipped through them. Seeing that they were all officials who had been transferred or promoted, and none of them were unfamiliar faces, he finally felt relieved.
"Your Highness, these official documents are fine; they can be signed and stamped!"
"oh!"
Upon hearing this, Li Jue immediately took out his golden seal, but just as he was about to stamp it, he suddenly looked up nervously.
"Mr. Xiao, are you sure these official documents are all correct?"
"this……"
"It's basically confirmed!"
Li Jue was so angry upon hearing this that he almost cried.
"Don't be so blatant!"
"If any of the officials above me get into trouble, I'll be held responsible!"
Xiao Yu was speechless upon hearing this, because no matter who promoted the officials, problems could arise. How many people had His Majesty wrongly appointed and executed over the years?
But you can't say these things out loud; you can only grumble to yourself.
Seeing that Xiao Yu remained silent, Li Jue became even more panicked.
He picked up the official documents one by one and carefully looked through them, but after looking at several, he still couldn't find a single name he recognized.
"What kind of random cats and dogs are these? I don't recognize any of them!"
"Your Highness, it doesn't matter if you don't recognize it. The Left and Right Ministers have already taken care of it for you. You just need to stamp and sign it!"
"no!"
"If those in power have done wrong, I cannot bear the responsibility!"
"Your Highness, if you don't sign, and important court affairs are delayed, you will still be held responsible..."
"I……"
Li Jue felt deeply aggrieved upon hearing this.
"Mr. Xiao, I need to ask for leave. I need to go see His Majesty to ask what's going on!"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yu immediately nodded.
Go!
"This matter is of great importance, and we really need to find out the truth!"
With Xiao Yu's permission, Li Jue immediately ran back to the Ganlu Hall of Taiji Palace and found Li Er to inquire.
"Grandpa, didn't you say that my official position was just for collecting a salary? Why do you still make me do things?"
Li Shimin smiled slightly upon hearing this.
"Don't you enjoy doing things?"
"Didn't you run off to the grasslands because you were lured away by the official positions there?"
"Now I'm giving you a position similar to a prime minister, aren't you happy?"
"I……"
Li Jue was nearly driven mad with anger upon hearing this.
"Grandpa, how can these be the same?"
"The Western Turks are only a few people. Even if I make a huge mess of things, nothing serious will happen."
"However, the Tang Dynasty has a population of over ten million, and a single misstep could lead to disaster!"
Li Shimin was secretly pleased to hear this. The reason he sent Yang Shidao to find Li Jue was to let him know what responsibility meant in advance!
If Li Jue stamped the document without a second thought, it would essentially mean he would be ineligible for the position of crown prince.
The fact that Li Jue rushed over to find him now is enough to prove that he is a person who understands the big picture and considers the overall situation.
Although Li Shimin was very happy inside, he didn't show it on his face and still pretended to be angry.
"How much trouble could it cause?"
"With the Left and Right Ministers overseeing things, there's basically no chance of anything major happening!"
Upon hearing this, Li Jue immediately retorted with a question.
"What if something goes wrong?"
"Something happened?"
Li Shimin snorted coldly upon hearing this.
"If anything goes wrong, I will naturally hold you accountable!"
Li Jue was so angry upon hearing this that he almost cried. He was afraid that Li Er would be unreasonable and use this as an excuse to punish him!
"Grandpa, take my position as Minister of the Imperial Secretariat back. I can't bear this responsibility!"
"I won't take it!"
"What I give away, I never take back!"
"Grandpa, if you don't take it, and I end up using the wrong person in the future, you can't blame me!"
Li Shimin smiled mischievously upon hearing this.
Why not blame it?
"I'm telling you, if any of these people make a mistake, I will punish you!"
"If anyone embezzles or accepts bribes, I will give you a hundred lashes. If anyone dares to rebel, I will give you a thousand lashes, and if..."
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