Chapter 956 Undercurrents
Xue Rengui led 8,000 Luoyang imperial guards to Guanzhong, and then dispatched troops from various Zhechongfu in Guanzhong, which was quite similar to the style of the Han court imperial guards in the past who went out to fight and recruited good families from the six counties.
When Xue Rengui went to war, many of Luo's sons followed him, especially the second son who had no title to inherit, many of whom followed Xue Rengui.
The prime ministers have been paying close attention to the war in Qinghai. The chief logistics officer has already arrived in Chang'an to guard the rear and provide food and fodder for Xue Rengui.
Palaces were still being built in Luoyang City. Since the capital was moved to Shendu during the Tiansheng period, Li Zhi and Wu Zhao had been building various palaces and temples.
Li Zhi's health was getting worse and worse. After appointing Xue Rengui as the commander-in-chief of the Qinghai Road, he once again became unable to work because of a headache. It was even so exaggerated that he missed three court sessions in a row.
Faced with this situation, Li Zhi had to completely entrust the government affairs to Wu Zhao, letting her decide all internal and external affairs. Then he summoned Luo Junzhuo into the inner hall. At this time, only a few people could enter his inner hall, and Luo Junzhuo was one of them. For Li Zhi, Luo Junzhuo was different from other Luo family members after all.
Looking at the extravagance in the palace, Luo Junzhuo's heart was filled with emotion. The current emperor was really different from the previous emperor. During the time of the previous emperor, this place could not be described as simple and elegant, but at least it was not luxurious. However, the current emperor and empress both admired extravagance.
Looking at the emperor lying on the sickbed, his face was pale and anyone could tell that he was at the end of his life. But if you learn a little about the situation, you will know that the emperor has been like this for many years, and no one knows how long he can live.
Luo Junzhuo put away his thoughts, came to the bedside, waved to the maids to leave, and the maids bowed and left. Luo Junzhuo said in a gentle voice: "Your Majesty, I am here."
Li Zhi slowly opened his eyes, and there was a blurry light and dizziness in front of him, which made him feel uncomfortable. It was this serious symptom that forced him to give up power to Wu Zetian over the years. If he had been in good health, there would really be no chance for Wu Zetian to rule the country.
"Zi Yang, you are here."
Li Zhi's mentality now is much better than when he forced Changsun Wuji a few years ago. After all, all those who could oppose him have been completely defeated by him.
There is no one in this world who will not change, especially the king, not to mention someone like Li Zhi who is plagued by illness. No matter how great a person's ambitions are, after suffering from illness for decades with no future in sight, it is basically impossible for him to have any other extravagant desires, and he should calm his constantly restless heart.
Before entering the palace, Luo Junzhuo could roughly guess what Li Zhi wanted to say to him. To be honest, Luo Junzhuo was somewhat relieved to be able to become this person at this time.
"Zi Yang, you and I have known each other for a long time, I can't remember clearly."
Luo Junzhuo pondered and said, "Your Majesty was born in the second year of Zhenguan, and I was born in the third year of Zhenguan. It has indeed been a long time since then. After all, even children can get married."
Speaking of children, Li Zhi smiled softly and said, "It seems that the Queen Mother has always wanted to marry Taiping into the Luo family. There are only a few children who are suitable for Taiping's age, and one of them is your child. What do you think?"
Li Zhi and Wu Zhao had two daughters. The eldest daughter, Princess Anding, was weak since childhood and was more like Li Zhi, who had poor health since childhood.
Princess Taiping is exactly like Wu Zhao, in good health. After all, Wu Zhao was a strong woman who was able to endure for so many years and give birth to children in succession. She was able to fight in the palace and handle government affairs while she was pregnant, and she also had time and energy to study. Even men are rare to have the physical and mental qualities of Wu Zhao.
Luo Junzhuo rubbed his head and said, "The Queen once mentioned to me and a few brothers that she wanted to adopt a son under the name of the eldest sister. I guess the Queen wants to marry the eldest sister, but the eldest sister has no children, or there may be some secrets that I don't know."
This is the difference between the Luo family and people outside the Luo family. The Luo family has the holy mark, so even if they haven't met for a lifetime, even if they haven't met for hundreds of years, there will be no sense of unfamiliarity. This is a kind of mysterious spiritual connection.
But to outsiders, the distinction is very clear. Even Li Shimin is no exception. Luo Juncheng, Luo Junzhuo, and Luo Junwei are all the biological children of Luo Xuanye and Li Xiuning, so he naturally treats these three people better. After all, they are his nephews.
This is especially true for someone as emotional as Wu Zhao. Because of the existence of Luo Junwei and her trust in Su Wang and others, she has a natural trust in the Luo family, but this trust is also different.
For example, he trusts Luo Xuanyun more than Luo Xuanling, who is the direct descendant of the previous emperor, and is more distant from Luo Junzhuo, who is the direct descendant of Li Zhi. This is human nature.
In this world, no one dares to say that he can treat everyone fairly. If he does not have double standards, he is not a human being, but a saint.
Li Zhi frowned slowly when he heard this, as if he had thought of something. When Luo Junzhuo saw Li Zhi's expression, he knew that there really was something going on and the Queen Mother was really planning something.
Li Zhi recalled the conversations that the couple had had when they chatted casually before, and said to Luo Junzhuo in a low voice with a hint of solemnity: "The Queen Mother did say to me before that my cousin is now the Duke of Jincheng County, but this is not the end. She wants to give my cousin a title of Duke in the future, and it must be an old title of a great country in the Spring and Autumn Period. She wants my cousin's title to be passed down. For the Luo family, it is probably also a kind of commemoration. If possible, you can agree to the Queen Mother's request."
Luo Junzhuo nodded silently at first, and then whispered: "Is this also an explanation from your majesty to me?"
Li Zhi summoned Luo Junzhuo just to get some explanations in his current situation where his health could no longer continue. So this matter now can naturally be regarded as an explanation.
Li Zhi stopped talking nonsense after hearing this. "I summoned you this time, but I don't know what to say. I just read in history books that there are always some kings who died suddenly because they didn't make good arrangements for their funeral, which eventually caused great problems for the country.
As for the future of the Tang Dynasty, with the Queen Mother and all of you ministers here, I shouldn't be too worried. But these things about the Queen Mother make me increasingly confused. Sometimes I can't figure out what she wants to do, which makes me feel very uneasy.
This matter should have been handed over to Duke Yong, but Duke Yong is not young anymore. He is an old man from the time of the previous emperor and a fierce general. I am afraid his health has deteriorated greatly over the years. He may not live long enough. Among the new generation, I can only trust you, Ziyang.
You are my cousin, and we grew up together. Among my relatives and ex-husbands, there is basically no one who can compare to you. You also married my most beloved sister. We are a real family, closer than my brothers.
I have heard that in ancient times there were kings who wanted to entrust their children to others, but in the end they looked around and could not find anyone to entrust their children to. At least I am not at that point now.
Speaking of entrusting an orphan to someone else, this is really a bit ridiculous. I don’t even know who to entrust your care to.
Ziyang, do you know why I didn't appoint another crown prince?"
After Crown Prince Li Xian was deposed, Wu Zetian was unwilling to appoint another crown prince, believing that the two remaining candidates were unqualified. What most people could not have imagined was that Li Zhi did not insist on appointing a crown prince. If Li Zhi had insisted, Wu Zetian would not have been able to stop him.
Now it seems that Li Zhi has his own ideas. Luo Junzhuo did not speak, but quietly waited for the emperor's explanation. "The power of the Queen Mother has been the same as mine since the Tiansheng Year. If I don't speak, then whatever she says will seem to be as correct as the king.
Even if she established a crown prince, she could depose him. Even if she established an emperor, couldn't she depose him?
As for the throne of the Son of Heaven, I have been pondering over a question: Can the throne of the Son of Heaven be abdicated while I am still alive?
Can there be two people appointed by Heaven in this world?
I have heard that there has been a saying since the Zhou Dynasty that the sky has not been seen, but is it true? "
Luo Junzhuo's face became solemn when he heard this, "Your Majesty, the civilization and spiritual world of the Xia people have been completely different since the Bang Zhou Dynasty. The birth of King Su has changed everything.
'The silent darkness was split by thunder, and the golden light was dazzling, just like the God of creation splitting light and darkness and separating heaven and earth. The whole world was filled with bright colors, vividly jumping before thousands of people.'
This is by no means an empty statement. Until now, almost all etiquette systems were established at that time. The supremacy of Heaven was completely confirmed. Since the Han Dynasty, there has been only one Son of Heaven under heaven, and this is the supreme law.
According to family records, the Mandate of Heaven is chosen along with the dynasty. All Mandates of Heaven start from the first emperor. In other words, the one who received the Mandate of Heaven was Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang. The subsequent emperors, Emperor Hui of Han and Emperor Wen of Han, all inherited the Mandate of Heaven from Emperor Gaozu of Han, rather than receiving the Mandate themselves. Your Majesty, do you understand this?"
Li Zhi suddenly realized what was going on and was extremely shocked. He had never expected this to happen. "What about Emperor Xiaowu of Han?"
Luo Junzhuo nodded and said: "Emperor Xiaowu of Han can be said to have inherited the Mandate of Heaven of the Han Dynasty, but even if he did not have the Mandate of Heaven of the Han Dynasty, he also had his own Mandate of Heaven, which was bestowed by the Su King.
The previous emperor was the same, but the Su Wang’s special favor is only bestowed on a few people.”
Luo Junzhuo's meaning was very clear. Logically, the Mandate of Heaven of the Tang Dynasty started with Emperor Gaozu Li Yuan, but in fact, even without Li Yuan, Li Shimin could also obtain the Mandate of Heaven. Li Zhi did not feel anything about this. In the Tang Dynasty, this was not something that could not be talked about. Most of the people of the Tang Dynasty, when they mentioned him, basically talked about Emperor Taizong Wen. Li Yuan was a very marginalized figure.
Luo Junzhuo hadn't finished his words yet, "The Han Dynasty had experienced so many emperors. By the end of the pre-Han period, the emperor at that time had already anticipated this, so he didn't dare to inherit the throne. That's why Emperor Guangwu of Han was given the throne again.
This is another order.
He did not receive the throne of emperor, which was passed on through abdication. He received the position of Son of Heaven. From here, the throne of Son of Heaven of the Han Dynasty was passed down from generation to generation with the continuation of the dynasty, and was crowned on the heads of subsequent emperors until the emergence of the dictator Emperor Ling of Han.
Everyone knew that the Mandate of Heaven of the Han Dynasty was coming to an end. After Emperor Ling of Han, there were actually two more emperors of the Han Dynasty. There was the orthodoxy of the Han Dynasty, and there were righteous men who said with regret, "As long as the noble people are still here, who says that the Han Dynasty is dead?" But the Mandate of Heaven of the Han Dynasty was gone.
Emperor Xuanlie of the Han Dynasty failed to receive another mandate until the Sui Dynasty unified the world. If I continue to talk like this, Your Majesty, do you know what the Mandate of Heaven is?
The Mandate of Heaven changes with the dynasty, but if Your Majesty really abdicates, then the Mandate of Heaven will never return to you, so Your Majesty must be cautious. "
After Luo Junzhuo's explanation, Li Zhi basically understood the reason. It is relatively easy to pass on power, but it is not easy to pass on the sacredness.
Normally, after Li Zhi died, the new emperor of the Tang Dynasty would only need to follow the normal procedures to get everything.
But if Li Zhi wanted to play tricks, it would not be that simple. The new emperor of the Tang Dynasty would have to go through a set of approval procedures.
It would be really funny if Li Zhi abandoned his destiny in the process of inheriting the throne and his son was not recognized.
In other words, the throne of the Son of Heaven, something so sacred, cannot be easily desecrated by mortals, not even the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty.
Li Zhi said with some emotion: "It seems that I have thought too much. This is indeed not a good idea. However, Hong'er and Xian'er are both impossible. The remaining two are not worthy of my abdication. There is no need."
Luo Junzhuo seemed to be hesitant to talk. Actually, there was a way. The throne of the Son of Heaven could not be easily moved, but the throne of the Emperor could actually be given away directly. But after thinking about it, he decided not to say it.
After all, no one has thought about it this way before, which means that in the eyes of most people, the Son of Heaven and the Emperor of a unified dynasty are still tied together.
In this case, there is no need for him to create any new political conventions.
With his talent, he could not confirm whether this political practice was good or bad, or whether it would have any significant impact on the world.
Li Zhi did not notice this scene. Seeing that Luo Junzhuo stopped talking, he said, "Ziyang, you have said a lot. Now it is time for me to say something. Where was I just now?
Yes, even if I establish an emperor, I am afraid the Queen Mother can depose him. Even the empress dowagers in ancient times had the power to depose and enthrone emperors, not to mention the Queen Mother who is like a king.
If we were to appoint a crown prince now, it would definitely be the third son, Li Zhe. But with his character, I can only shake my head. He really doesn't have the demeanor of me and the Queen Mother.
I have been thinking about a question. If the situation really reaches the point where the emperor is deposed, why not stabilize the situation from the beginning?
I don't know what the Tang Dynasty will be like in the future. I think the Queen Mother doesn't know either. I don't know what she is hesitating about. She is not satisfied with either Li Zhe or Li Dan, but she can't call Xian'er back. In the end, she still has to choose one of these two sons.
I really want to know what the future will be like, but no matter what the future is like, the Tang Dynasty must be stable. This is why I summoned you, Zi Yang. From now on, you must keep a close eye on the Tang Dynasty for me.
The Queen Mother sometimes acts like a mad woman, and you have to stop her for me. Also, I am always worried about the princes around me.
I heard that the King of Qin had crossed the Ural Mountains through the mountain pass and completely disappeared from the sight of the Central Plains. Even the Anxi Protectorate in the Western Regions had no news of him, and even the country in Kangju had no news of them.
It's such a long distance, I have nothing to worry about, not to mention Qi. What I've always been worried about is my brother the Prince of Yan. There will always be a war between the Central Plains and Yan. What if the emperor who succeeds him in the future is incompetent, like Li Zhe and Li Dan, who are both incompetent, what should I do if something goes wrong?
My health is not good, and my life may not be long. I don’t know when I will pass away and go to see the late emperor. The Queen is a few years older than me. Although she has always been in good health, she has exhausted her energy in governing the country. I don’t think she will live much longer than me. If all of us are gone, I will not feel at ease no matter whether Li Zhe or Li Dan becomes the emperor. "
Luo Junzhuo heard this and comforted him: "Your Majesty, don't worry. The Tang Dynasty still has a group of good ministers to assist you, countless talented warriors, and countless loyal ministers."
Li Zhi shook his head and said, "If this is to deceive other people, it's fine, but don't say it to me. The most obvious characteristic of an incompetent monarch is that he doesn't know how to judge people, doesn't use people carefully, and is easily deceived by slander. As long as he has these shortcomings, even if there are many loyal, capable, and virtuous ministers in the house, he will end up like Emperor Yang of Sui, who killed all the loyal, capable, and virtuous ministers and left only the flatterers who can fawn on him."
Li Zhi was quite sober. After all, he was the crown prince who had followed Li Shimin for several years. When educating him, Li Shimin often used Emperor Yang of Sui as an example. Although he did not learn much from him, Li Zhi was famous for his unwillingness to listen to advice. It was also recognized that the Zhenguan spirit completely disappeared from Li Zhi.
But Li Zhi at least would not do something like killing ministers indiscriminately. As for Li Zhe, Li Zhi could not help shaking his head after just a little thought. Li Zhe was the kind of person who was nepotistic to an outrageous degree and would really oppose the outer court because of what the inner court said.
If Li Zhe had not been born into the royal family, he would not even be able to pass the imperial examination with his level. He would have to live among the people all his life and pray that he would not be forced to death by clerks.
…
Luo Junzhuo left Li Zhi's bedroom with an ineffective edict. It was said to be ineffective because this edict had not been reviewed by the Secretariat, and it only had the emperor's seal on it. But all secret edicts were like this. At special and critical moments, this edict could play a huge role, such as becoming a sharp sword for Luo Junzhuo to stab his political enemies.
However, after Luo Junzhuo rolled up the imperial edict and put it in his sleeve, he sighed slightly. He hoped that he would never have the chance to take out this imperial edict.
The news that the emperor's condition was getting worse could not be concealed after all. At first, only the prime minister in the Council of State knew about it. Later, the emperor did not attend every court meeting, and the news spread more and more widely, causing a huge uproar.
The ambitious man realized almost instantly that this would be a new moment, and the family's glory might lie in this. Since entering the autocratic era, the prosperity of the family depends on the favor of the royal family. Whoever can gain the trust of the royal family can suddenly rise, even the noble families are the same.
Why did those wealthy and powerful families in the Southern Dynasty decline? Wasn't it because they failed to catch up with the new imperial power when the Southern Dynasty changed dynasties? In the end, the Southern Dynasty was defeated by the Northern Dynasty and missed the opportunity again. As a result, the Jiangnan gentry became second-rate. Only a few families like the Xiao family continued their past wealth, but compared with their former glory, they were far inferior.
It seems that Li Zhi's era is about to pass. Whose era will be the future? Now it seems to be the era of the Queen Mother, but everyone knows that the Queen Mother is not young anymore and may die at any time. Besides, she is a woman after all, and it is impossible for her to become the emperor herself. So there are only two candidates left to choose from, Li Zhe and Li Dan.
Among them, more people chose Li Dan. After all, after Li Xian was deposed as the crown prince, the emperor and the empress did not appoint another crown prince. This was obviously due to their dissatisfaction with Li Zhe. So now it seems that Prince Li Dan is more likely.
Both Li Zhe and Li Dan's people began to use various means to speak well of Wu Zetian in front of her, giving extra points to Li Zhe and Li Dan.
That’s right, this is a normal way to fight for the throne. Even Li Shimin launched the Xuanwu Gate Incident when all other methods had failed. No normal person would directly think of launching a coup.
The only difference in the fight for the throne now is that the object of flattery has changed from the emperor to the empress dowager. After all, it is the empress dowager who decides who will become the crown prince.
Of course, there was also a group of former losers and people who were disliked by Wu Zetian, who united around some other losers. For example, there was such a group of people around Li Xian.
Didn't Li Xian ever think about returning to Chang'an in his heart? Especially after his father's illness became more serious, once he was recalled to Chang'an, he would most likely directly inherit the throne, so he was trying his best. As for rebellion, he naturally didn't dare to do so, because the Duke of Liao in the north was still watching him.
Especially now Li Xian has a deep fear of his mother from the bottom of his heart. Only those who have been opponents of Wu Zhao can understand the fear of facing Wu Zhao. A sword will suddenly stab you from an angle you are completely unaware of. This sword will pierce your throat straight and then take your life, but you can't even see the person holding the sword.
After Li Xian left Luoyang, he became more and more scared the more he thought about it. The fact that he was still alive and sitting in Qi State was probably because his mother spared his life out of consideration for their mother-son relationship.
Wu Zhao's sons were all trying to find ways to make themselves the crown prince. Wu Zhao naturally knew this, but she thought differently from everyone else. She looked at these people as if they were clowns. She deliberately kept silent and let them waste their energy here. She would give them some sweet treats from time to time to make people think that her attitude had changed. She was already quite familiar with this kind of thing.
But in fact, she had already made her own choice in her heart. In the world today, only Luo Su, Luo Junwei and herself knew about it. She would naturally not leak the secret, and the other two people would definitely not leak the secret either, so no one would know about this matter.
Wu Zhao did not take these sons and those who followed them seriously, but there were indeed some people in the Tang Dynasty who really made her wary.
That is the entire aristocratic force that is becoming increasingly powerful. As time goes by, Wu Zhao discovers that these nobles who came from feudal states actually have a sense of identity.
Just like the gentry, these feudal nobles began to regard themselves as nobles like the ancient Zhou Dynasty. This is quite scary. Once a group develops a common consciousness, rules that regulate this group will gradually begin to emerge, and then become an existence that is difficult to break.
For example, the scholars have developed over thousands of years and have come to the present day. Even if all the scholars were killed, the newly-produced scholars would still be the same. At most, they would become more secretive, more powerful, and more difficult to catch, but their essence would not change.
For Wu Zetian, dealing with only the high-ranking aristocratic families was not particularly difficult. After all, these aristocrats did not have knives in their hands. As long as she continued to restrict these aristocrats in official positions and then was fair and consistent in the laws, abolishing their privileges, it would not be difficult to eradicate them completely.
But these feudal nobles are not easy to deal with. They have knives in their hands. It is not difficult to deal with the nobles of small countries alone, but if these people unite with the King of Yan, it will be difficult to deal with them.
When the late emperor placed Prince of Yan Li Ke in Mobei, he probably did not expect that it would have such a great impact on the situation in the Tang Dynasty. Almost all political decisions had to take Mobei into consideration. The influence of a prince of the Li family staying in Mobei on the Central Plains far exceeded that of the Hu tribes in Mobei.
It is equivalent to a nomadic empire with a certain inheritance system, and will become the banner and slogan of some people within it.
Wu Zhao could only use gentler means to handle state affairs and then slowly push forward her plans.
————
The history after Zhenguan was full of twists and turns, and its twists and turns were vividly described by countless novelists. The vivid characters and the complex and bizarre times were also repeatedly portrayed in film and television works. Too many people limit their perspectives to the endless changes in the situation, and therefore believe that the Tang Dynasty experienced a serious setback.
But in fact, during this historical process, the population of the Tang Dynasty continued to grow rapidly and had not yet reached its peak. Both the nominal sphere of influence and the area actually controlled maintained positive growth. The empire's military strength had not declined, and endogenous expansion continued.
The turmoil at the top of the empire was so strange that even the middle-level officials were not affected. For an empire with a population of tens of millions and tens of thousands of bureaucrats, inertia pushed it to ride the wind and waves. ——"The Rise and Fall of the Tang Empire"
(End of this chapter)
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