Chapter 313: The Case of Selling Official Positions (Part 2)

“Hurry up and tell me—what do you mean by killing two birds with one stone?”
Yan Zhuang narrowed his eyes and smiled. “It’s simple. Isn’t Pugu Huaien a Uyghur? We can punish him for colluding with the Uyghurs, forcing him to flee back to their lands. Out of revenge against the General, he will surely lead the Uyghur army to attack Beiting. That way, the General will have an even stronger pretext to attack the Uyghurs, right?”
Li Qing’an smiled delightedly. “Indeed, it’s a cunning plan. I can consider it.”
Yan Zhuang continued, “I heard his daughter is very beautiful. Why not release her back to the Uyghurs as well, so that Pugu Huaien has a way to advance?”
“Your thoughts are quite thorough. Fine! I can arrange that.”
Li Qing’an walked a few steps with his hands behind his back. After pondering for a moment, he said, “Just now, you touched on my greatest concern. I also feel that after the war with Tubo, the emperor might turn against me. What do you think I should do to deal with this crisis?”
Yan Zhuang remained silent for a long time. Suddenly, he knelt down and kowtowed heavily to Li Qing’an. “I’ve had a thought hidden in my heart for a long time. May I speak it, General?”
“Go ahead! No matter what you say, I won’t blame you.”
“General, I think there is only one path left for you.”
“Go on.”
“The General controls Anxi, recovers Hexiang, and expands the Tang Empire’s territory. The lands under his control are no less than those in the Central Plains, and he commands two hundred thousand troops—more than even Guanzhong can match. In the long term, he could achieve immortality through his achievements; in the short term, his greatness might threaten the emperor. Anyone with even a little sense knows that neither the current emperor nor future emperors will tolerate the General dominating the Western Regions. His fate is inevitable—just like Wang Zhongsì’s. There is no other way.”
Li Qing’an had expected Yan Zhuang to suggest someone else to take his place, but instead, he advised him to become independent. If Yan Zhuang knew about the hidden crown prince, would he advise him to seize power in Chang’an, just as he advised An Lushan to rebel in history?
Li Qing’an smiled and said, “What if my ambitions are even greater?”
Yan Zhuang’s eyes widened dramatically, almost popping out. His legs gave way, and he sat down. He understood Li Qing’an’s intention—to ascend to the throne. He knew An Lushan had had such thoughts too, but he never expected Li Qing’an to have such ambition as well. His lips moved, but he couldn’t utter a word.
“I was just joking. Please don’t take it seriously,” Li Qing’an said lightly with a smile.

“No! No!”
Yan Zhuang sat up like a spring, shaking his head back and forth like a rattle. “General, this is exactly what I’ve been thinking, but I never dared to say it, so I tried to persuade you indirectly to take control on your own.”
Li Qing’an’s intention was merely to wake Yan Zhuang up; he didn’t want to delve deeper into the topic. Seeing that Yan Zhuang had understood, he changed the subject and said, “Sir, you’re returning to Kucha tomorrow, right? I need to talk to Pei Yu in the morning, and we can leave together in the afternoon.”
……
When Yan Zhuang left the government office, it was already dark. He got into the carriage and headed home. The carriage sped through the darkness, and Yan Zhuang’s mind was in turmoil, unable to calm down for a long time. Today, he finally learned that Li Qing’an also had ambitions—something he had longed for for a very long time.
……
After the main forces of the Hanhai Army went north under Cui Qianyou, less than two thousand soldiers remained under the command of Deputy Commander Pugu Huai’en. These days, Pugu Huai’en had been living in constant fear. He heard news that Zhao Xing’s wife had already reported him in Suiye. The thing he feared the most had finally happened. Pugu Huai’en hadn’t expected things to escalate to this extent. It was common in the army to accept bribes in exchange for promotions, and Pugu Huai’en was used to it. He thought the same thing applied in Anxi, so at the beginning of the year, when promotions based on merits started, he ordered his trusted subordinate, Yao Guang, from the Hanhai Army, to accept bribes and grant positions, amassing over forty thousand guan in wealth.
Since Pugu Huai’en failed to get promoted himself, he relied on making money to ease his sense of disappointment. But now that he had made money, he realized just how dangerous it could be. He didn’t know that Gao Xianzhi had strictly prohibited buying and selling military positions during his tenure, and under Li Qing’an, this rule became the top prohibition in Anxi.
Pugu Huai’en eventually understood this as well, but since the money was already in his hands, it was impossible to return it. He could only desperately cover up the matter. More than a month had passed, and things seemed to have calmed down, but Zhao Xing’s wife’s sudden complaint brought everything to light again.
For several days, Pugu Huai’en lived in constant anxiety. That afternoon, as he returned to the camp after an inspection, he sensed something unusual as soon as he entered. At that moment, a bodyguard rushed over and whispered, “General, the inspector from Suiye has arrived.”
Pugu Huai’en’s mind went blank. The thing he feared had finally happened. He quickly asked, “Has Li Qing’an arrived?”
“He hasn’t come yet!”
Pugu Huai’en felt slightly relieved. As long as Li Qing’an hadn’t arrived, things wouldn’t be that bad. He hurried toward the camp, asking along the way, “How many people have arrived in total?”

“Five people have arrived, all civilian officers.” As he spoke, he arrived at the entrance of a newly set up large tent. The curtain was not drawn, and one could see inside. There were five low tables inside, covered with numerous files. Sima Yaoguang was standing with his back to the entrance, explaining something to a seated person. Pugu Huaien coughed loudly and entered the tent. Everyone present stood up. Seeing him enter, Yaoguang gave him urgent eye signals for help, but Pugu Huaien ignored him. He had already made up his mind—let Yaoguang take the blame if necessary; after all, he had already received 2,000 guan. “Sir, may I ask which office you represent?” Among the five inspectors, the leader was a middle-aged man. He bowed and said, “I am Jiang Yong, head of the Anxi Army Inspection Office. By order of the general, I am here to investigate the cause of Zhao Xing’s death in the Hanhai Navy investigation team. I request Deputy Pugu’s cooperation.” As he spoke, all five took out their silver badges and placed them on the table. Jiang Yong also handed Pugu Huaien Li Qing’an’s order. Pugu Huaien sneered inwardly. Zhao Xing’s body had long been destroyed; all his wife took to Anxi was an empty coffin. What evidence could there be of the cause of death? He glanced at the order and said, “I think no investigation is needed. I can prove that Zhao Xing fell to his death after getting drunk. There is solid eyewitness and physical evidence. If you don’t believe me, just ask some of his teammates—they’ll confirm it. There’s no need to look at any files. Bring them all back!” A dozen soldiers stepped forward to carry the files, but Jiang Yong quickly stopped them, saying, “Wait!” He stepped forward and bowed to Pugu Huaien, “General Pugu, according to the Anxi Army’s regulations, the inspection officer has the authority to decide the method of investigation, and no one may interfere!” Though polite, his tone was firm. By the end, his voice grew stern, “This ‘no one’ includes General Pugu as well as Sima Yaoguang. He is under suspicion and will also be subject to a thorough investigation. Without our permission, no one from the Hanhai Navy may contact him—this ‘no one’ also includes General Pugu.” Pugu Huaien appeared impatient. Waving his hand, he said, “Do whatever you want to investigate!” After saying that, he turned and walked outside the tent. As he left, he faintly heard Jiang Yong say, “Sima Yaoguang, let’s continue. I want to know what criteria you used to compile the list of promoted personnel.”

Pugu Huaien returned to his tent, filled with frustration. Although Li Qingan hadn’t shown up, things had already reached their worst. Those inspectors were clearly there to investigate the corruption. Would Yao Guang confess to do it in order to protect Pugu Huaien? Obviously not; that meant he would eventually expose himself.

At that moment, a personal soldier rushed into the tent, anxiously saying, “General, they’ve already started searching people according to the list!”
“What!”
Pugu Huaien was shocked—had it started so quickly? He asked urgently, “How many have they found?”
“It seems over twenty people have already been taken!”

Then another soldier reported, “General, an army from Suiye has arrived east of Jinman County—about three thousand men.”
“General, another group of ten investigators has arrived, along with three hundred soldiers. They’ve entered the camp.”

One bad news after another left Pugu Huaien stunned. Especially the arrival of the army destroyed all his hopes. What should he do?

Pugu Huaien paced back and forth in the tent, hands behind his back, sweating profusely. He knew how serious this situation was. Li Qingan must already know it was his doing, which was why he sent troops. He also knew Li Qingan would never spare him. To seize control of the Shuofang Army, Li Qingan would surely kill him to silence him. Run! Escaping was his only option—but where could he go?

At that moment, an inspector appeared at the entrance of the tent, followed by over twenty soldiers who had just arrived. The inspector bowed to him and said, “General Pugu, please come with me. It’s your turn.”
“I understand. I’ll be there right away.”
“No, General, please come with me immediately!”

A soldier Pugu Huaien had stationed outside to eavesdrop stepped forward quickly and whispered in his ear, “Yao Guang has confessed everything. I heard him say the general amassed fifty thousand strings of coins.”
“Enough!”

With a firm decision, Pugu Huaien suddenly drew his sword and charged at the inspector. The inspector couldn’t dodge in time and had his clavicle severed by the sword, collapsing to the ground with a scream. His soldiers were shocked and drew their swords. Pugu Huaien roared and swung his long spear at them. Skilled in combat, the soldiers couldn’t resist. They picked up the fallen inspector and fled toward the inspection tent, shouting, “Pugu Huaien has rebelled!”

Chaos erupted in the camp. Pugu Huaien mounted his horse and shouted at the soldiers, “Li Qingan wants to seize control of the Shuofang Army. I refuse to continue. Those who want to follow me, come with me!”

He shouted three times, but aside from his hundred bodyguards, no one else was willing to follow him. Meanwhile, the imperial inspector Jiang Yong shouted, “Pugu Huaien has colluded with the Uyghurs! Whoever captures him will be rewarded with a thousand strings of coins!”
Chaos erupted in the camp as people began to surround them. Realizing the situation was hopeless, Pugu Huaien sighed deeply and then waved his iron spear while shouting, “Follow me!”
He led his hundred bodyguards out of the rear camp gate and fled eastward. After escaping just over twenty miles, he was intercepted by Murong Sheng, a general sent by Li Qingan, with three thousand troops. Pugu Huaien couldn’t break through, and almost all of his bodyguards were killed or wounded. Realizing there were numerous obstacles ahead and that he could never return to Chang’an, he had no choice but to turn his horse northward and flee toward the Uyghurs.
…
Ten days later, news of Pugu Huaien’s collusion with the Uyghurs and his betrayal of the Tang Dynasty to flee to their lands was sent back to Chang’an by the imperial supervisor Bian Lingcheng as an urgent military report.
By this time, the court was no longer as complicated as it had been when Li Qingan left. As Li Yu solidified his position in the Eastern Palace and officially assumed regency, a clear divide emerged in the court. One faction was led by Li Yu, including former Eastern Palace supporters like Wei Huan and Pei Min, as well as the Prime Minister’s faction led by Wang Gong, opposing another faction led by Yang Guozhong, Wei Jiansu, Chen Xilie, and others. Zhang Yun secretly supported Yang Guozhong, leaving the two sides evenly matched.
Li Longji, who had created these two factions, paid even less attention to government affairs. He moved back to Daming Palace, doting on Concubine Mei and his former lover Wu Xianyi. Although he wasn’t cold toward Concubine Yang, his affection for her was clearly less than before. Yet this did not affect his trust in Yang Guozhong. In April, Li Linfu resigned from his position as Minister of the Secretariat and stopped interfering in court affairs. Li Longji then appointed Yang Guozhong as Right Minister of the Secretariat, officially succeeding Li Linfu, while promoting Wang Gong to Left Minister of the Secretariat and reassigning Chen Xilie as Minister of Justice, thus establishing a balance of power between the two ministries.
Li Longji was quite satisfied with his creation. He cared nothing about the impact of the factional conflict on governance or whether policies could be implemented. All he cared about was maintaining power balance and ensuring that the power of the Eastern Palace did not exceed that of the emperor. After making these arrangements, Li Longji devoted himself to enjoying life to the fullest. His only concern and anticipation was the war against Tubo—the only thing that could pull him away from his pleasures. Occasionally, he would listen to reports of major events, with his personal eunuch Yu Chaoen serving as the one to remind him.

Although Yu Chaoen did not gain the power of Gao Lishi, he became Li Longji’s sole informant on external affairs. Many major issues reported by Li Yu—such as the proliferation of inferior silver coins, merchants in the two markets going on strike, land annexation in Jianghuai sparking uprisings among the people, and so on—were all suppressed by him. On the contrary, the good news reported by Yang Guozhong—such as An Lushan’s great victories, Gao Xianzhi repelling Tibetan invaders, the abundance in various treasuries, and omens appearing in certain places—was promptly passed on to Li Longji, much to his great delight.

That afternoon, Yang Guozhong hurried to Daming Palace. He waited for a while in Linde Hall when, after a cough, Yu Chaoen slowly walked in, surrounded by several young eunuchs.

“Does Prime Minister Yang have any business with me?”

Yu Chaoen had clearly gained weight and became more arrogant. When he saw Yang Guozhong, he was no longer as respectful as before; now it was he who needed others to show him respect.

Yang Guozhong cursed inwardly but dared not offend this man, so he politely smiled and said, “I’m sorry to trouble Lord Yu. I have a matter I’d like you to convey to the Emperor.”

Yu Chaoen disliked being called “Eunuch Yu” now. He wanted to be called “Old Man Yu” like Gao Lishi, but found it awkward. A lowly eunuch who flattered him well came up with the title “Lord Yu,” which he greatly approved of. From then on, all court officials addressed him as Lord Yu, even Li Yu had no choice but to follow suit.

Yu Chaoen sat down, took a sip of tea, and said slowly, “Prime Minister Yang, what’s become of those 100 hectares of salt fields in Yangzhou that I mentioned last time?”

“Lord Yu, rest assured. I sent a messenger there that very day. It’s all taken care of. The land deeds are on their way and should arrive in three to five days.”

Yu Chaoen’s eyes lit up with a smile before he asked, “You said you had a matter earlier. What is it?”

Yang Guozhong took out a booklet and handed it to Yu Chaoen, saying, “Please give this to the Emperor to review.”

“What’s in it?” Yu Chaoen asked, stretching out his voice.

Only then did Yang Guozhong realize what he was doing and quickly said, “The Uyghurs have sent envoys to demand an explanation, claiming that our Tang Dynasty’s Anxi army attacked them without permission and killed their people.”

“Is it Li Qing’an?” Yu Chaoen’s expression darkened.

Yu Chaoen didn’t have a good impression of Li Qing’an because he wanted Li Qing’an to denounce Bian Lingcheng, the military governor of Anxi. But Li Qing’an ignored him. Bian Lingcheng held a deep grudge against him; he had tried more than once to kill him to relieve his hatred, yet he simply couldn’t touch the military governor—Li Longji refused to grant him that power. A few months ago, Li Longji appointed an old eunuch named Liang Chaoyi to handle communications related to the military governor on his behalf. Liang Chaoyi, however, was loyal to Gao Lishi and never gave Yu Chaoen any attention. This made Yu Chaoen both angry and helpless. To bring down Bian Lingcheng, Li Qing’an’s accusation was necessary, but since Li Qing’an refused, it angered Yu Chaoen.

Eunuchs harbored grudges far more intensely than ordinary people. Yu Chaoen snorted and said, “Prime Minister Yang, rest assured. I’ll deliver the memorial to the Emperor right away.”

At that moment, Yang Guozhong clapped his hands, and a young eunuch brought forward a red-lacquered tray with a pillow on it. Upon seeing it, Yu Chaoen exclaimed in delight, “It’s the Immortal Pillow!”

Yang Guozhong stroked his beard and smiled, “Exactly. I heard that the Central Commander has trouble sleeping, so I fetched it from the treasury to lend to him.”

Yu Chaoen was overjoyed. He took the pillow and caressed it affectionately. He knew it was a gift from the Kingdom of Kucha, its color like agate, warm as jade. If one used it as a pillow, the ten continents, three islands, the four seas, and the five lakes would all appear in dreams. The Emperor had named it the Immortal Pillow and bestowed it on Yang Guozhong the year before last.

It was he who had given this pillow to Yang Guozhong personally. He had cherished it all along, but never thought he’d get it back. To his surprise, Yang Guozhong was so considerate as to give it to him. Of course, he knew that “borrowing” was just an excuse, and whether it would be returned depended on Yang Guozhong, to avoid giving others an opportunity to exploit him.

“Prime Minister Yang, surely you have another request of me!” Yu Chaoen joked.

“Actually, there’s nothing else. I just wanted to ask how the Imperial Concubine is doing these days.”