Chapter 460: Using Their Own Methods (Part 1)

Wei Tao’s arrival was within Li Qing’an’s expectations. Wei Jiansu had been taken away by the Guanzhong army. Whether he would be released or not, once the charge of colluding with the Southern Dynasty was confirmed, he would surely lose his position as Vice Minister of War. Wei Jiansu’s dismissal would be another heavy blow to the Wei family. It would be strange if Wei Tao didn’t come to see Li Qing’an.
“Ask him in!”
A moment later, Wei Tao hurried in. He bowed and said, “I pay my respects to the Great General!”
“Has Lord Wei come regarding Vice Minister Wei’s matter?”
This time, Li Qing’an didn’t beat around the bush. He got straight to the point—having already gone around the bends earlier in the morning. Now, he needed to use a straightforward approach to calm Wei Tao’s anxiety and give him hope.
Wei Tao took the teacup handed to him by a soldier and drank it all in one gulp. Anxiously, he asked, “Great General, please tell me how serious the situation is.”
“Serious?” Li Qing’an smiled. “It depends on who you ask. For us, it’s not serious—perhaps even a good thing. But for the regent and Wang Gong, it’s quite serious.”
Wei Tao was stunned. After a long pause, he hesitantly asked, “Does the Great General mean that Wei Jiansu is fine?”
“No!”
Li Qing’an denied it. “Wei Jiansu colluded with Li Longji and betrayed the secrets of the Guanzhong army. His crime is unforgivable. That’s why I didn’t stop them from taking him away. He should be captured and punished. But since Wei Jiansu has been taken away, I will compensate the Wei family—double the compensation.”
“Can the Great General be more explicit?”
“Heavenly secrets cannot be revealed!”
Li Qing’an smiled with his hands behind his back. “Be patient for a few more days. At the latest, in a month, you’ll see the result.”
……
Chengdu Prefecture had now been renamed Shu Jing, becoming Li Longji’s capital. Although there were no magnificent palaces like those in Chang’an within the city, there was a large complex of palaces in Hanlin Fang to the north. These palaces had originally belonged to the King of Shu. After entering Shu, King Li Liu had built them specially for himself. Covering over 200 acres, the complex featured flowing streams, exotic flowers and plants everywhere. The elegant and unique halls and pavilions were hidden among lush trees. Though not as grand and imposing as the Daming Palace, their refinement and luxury surpassed it.

After Li Longji took control of Chengdu, this palace was renamed Nanming Palace and became his residence. The hundreds of maids and eunuchs already in the palace were reassigned to serve him. Although Chengdu had a warm and mild climate, and although he enjoyed luxury as before, with palaces and towers sufficient to let him live a life like a god, Li Longji missed Chang’an deeply—he missed his Daming Palace, his Xingqing Palace, and his forty thousand concubines. The sense of satisfaction that came from possessing so many women gave him a sense of achievement as an emperor, a feeling he couldn’t find in Chengdu.

These days, Li Longji was in a terrible mood. He had learned that hundreds of small kingdoms in the Western Regions had sent princes or envoys to Chang’an to pay homage to the new emperor. Yet in his Chengdu, only Nanzhao had sent a prince to meet him.

It should have been his honor as Li Longji to have all nations pay homage to him, but now it had been stolen by his great-grandson—a minor emperor—while he, the old emperor who had ruled the Tang Dynasty for forty years, was pushed to the sidelines. This intense sense of loss filled Li Longji with sorrow, and he vented his anger on the maids and eunuchs all day long.

Yang Guozhong hurried past the Zichen Palace. Looking at this small palace, roughly the size of his family’s living room, he couldn’t help but smile bitterly. Could this really be called Zichen Palace? The palace ahead, which could only hold a little over a thousand people, was also called Hanyuan Palace. It seemed Li Longji had truly lost his mind, treating this place as if it were Daming Palace.

Yang Guozhong shook his head and quickly entered the inner palace. At the entrance of the inner palace corridor, he said to two guards, “Please inform the emperor that I have urgent matters to report to him at once.”

The guards looked troubled and whispered to Yang Guozhong, “Prime Minister Yang, maybe wait until tomorrow? The emperor is furious again. A maid was beaten to death today.”

“What happened this time?” Yang Guozhong asked, frowning.

“Actually, it’s nothing serious. The maid forgot to add sugar to the bird’s nest porridge he ordered, so he flew into a rage, saying the maids were also mocking him. Then he dragged her out and beat her to death.”

“Did you call Lady Wu?”

“It’s useless. I heard even Lady Wu was slapped by him. The whole harem is crying now!”

Yang Guozhong scratched the back of his head and said, “You go and report to him for me. Just say I brought him good news.”

“Alright, Prime Minister. Please wait a moment; I’ll go report it right away.”

Yang Guozhong paced back and forth at the corridor entrance with his hands behind his back, feeling somewhat agitated. This afternoon, he had received a letter urgently sent by his eldest son, Yang Xuan—actually, it was Li Qingan who had assigned new tasks. Now, Yang Guozhong felt like he had become Li Qingan’s puppet, forced to do this and that as if it were entirely natural, treated like a servant. Yet he had no choice but to comply, as his son was in Li Qingan’s hands. This was by no means leaving himself a backdoor exit—it was clearly a hostage situation. At the thought of this, Yang Guozhong grew furious. He disliked being manipulated by Li Qingan in this way, but he was helpless.

Li Longji also troubled him. Logically, as the emperor, he should only concern himself with major matters, leaving ordinary administrative tasks to Yang Guozhong. But Li Longji wasn’t like that—he wanted to get involved in everything and hold onto all the power. If he had sufficient energy, it might not be a problem, but his poor health meant he couldn’t handle much, leaving many important matters unresolved. Over time, they simply fell through the cracks. For example, the census and tax assessment were urgent matters, but Yang Guozhong had already submitted the plans and arranged the personnel, yet Li Longji refused to approve them, delaying the process.

Worse still was Li Longji’s stubbornness. Once he took an interest in something, he would push relentlessly until Yang Guozhong was exhausted from explaining. Obsessive and stubborn, Yang Guozhong sighed secretly. Gao Lishi had told him that Li Longji had become extremely inflexible—convincing him to change his mind was almost impossible. Sometimes he was incredibly shrewd, other times utterly foolish.

At that moment, a guard rushed out and said, “Prime Minister Yang, the emperor summons you!”

Yang Guozhong felt a headache coming on. He didn’t want to see Li Longji, but that damned Li Qingan forced him to go. He adjusted his clothes and hurried toward the inner palace.

As soon as he reached Li Longji’s chamber, he heard the emperor’s scolding, “Did I say I wanted ice-brewed bird’s nest? Yesterday was yesterday, today is today. Why didn’t you ask me first? Are you mocking my ignorance and old age?”

Yang Guozhong’s neck turned icy. Gritting his teeth, he peeked into the palace and saw a dozen or so maids and eunuchs kneeling there, trembling like lambs in fear. Li Longji, hunched over with a fierce gaze, stared at them like a wild wolf.

Suddenly, Yang Guozhong didn’t want to see Li Longji anymore. He would deal with Li Qingan’s matter another day. He turned to leave, but the guard announced loudly, “Prime Minister Yang has arrived!”

Yang Guozhong barely avoided falling. He sighed inwardly, lowered his head in dejection, and turned to wait for an audience.
“The Emperor orders that Prime Minister Yang be summoned for an audience.”
Yang Guozhong had no choice but to walk toward the palace. Upon reaching the door, he heard Li Longji shout angrily, “Drag them out! Beat each one thirty times! If anyone dares to neglect me again, execute them all!”
The guards dragged more than a dozen maids and eunuchs out like wolves and tigers. Yang Guozhong jumped to the side in fear. The cries and pleas of the maids and eunuchs made his scalp tingle—he wondered if Li Longji would drag him out as well.
At that moment, Li Longji’s trusted eunuch, Yu Chaoyen, stepped forward and said to Yang Guozhong, “Prime Minister Yang, the Emperor asks you to come in.”
Yu Chaoyen had served Li Longji in Xingqing Palace. For a while, he was suspected by Li Longji and dismissed. After Li Longji fled, he remained in Xingqing Palace. When the tide of people moved south from Chang’an, Yu Chaoyen secretly escorted Wu Xianyi to Chengdu. Coincidentally, Li Longji was now tired of Gao Lishi’s constant advice and lacked a reliable high-ranking eunuch. Yu Chaoyen’s arrival filled that gap.
Thanks to Wu Xianyi’s favorable words, Li Longji, recognizing Yu Chaoyen’s loyalty in protecting his master, reinstated him, appointing him as Supervisor of Inner Eunuchs and in charge of the imperial seal. Since Li Longji had a hunched back and found it difficult to review documents, Yu Chaoyen would dictate while he wrote. Though he hadn’t yet reached Gao Lishi’s level of independence in reviewing documents, his power was considerable. It was clear that Yu Chaoyen was gradually becoming a second Gao Lishi. Yang Guozhong also tried his best to please him, sending people to Chang’an to secretly bring back his gold, silver, and valuables to Chengdu, and arranging a large mansion for him. In return, Yu Chaoyen often spoke well of Yang Guozhong to Li Longji, withholding any documents unfavorable to him, allowing Yang Guozhong to retain Li Longji’s trust even without Yang Yuhuan by his side.
Yang Guozhong stepped forward quickly and asked in a low voice, “Sir Yu, I wonder why the Emperor is angry?”
Seeing no one around, Yu Chaoyen also spoke softly, “The Emperor is annoyed because hundreds of countries from the Western Regions have come to Chang’an to pay homage. Prime Minister, be careful—never mention this matter.”
Yang Guozhong’s eyes lit up as he smiled and said, “I understand now. Thank you, Sir Yu.”
Suddenly remembering something, Yu Chaoyen asked again, “Prime Minister Yang, how did things go with that ten-acre field from last time?”
“Don’t worry, Sir Yu. It has already been transferred to your name. The land deed will be ready tomorrow.”

Yu Chaoen nodded in satisfaction and led Yang Guozhong into the hall. Inside, Li Longji paced back and forth with his hands behind his back, his face still showing signs of anger. When Yang Guozhong entered, he quickly knelt down and said, “Your servant Yang Guozhong pays his respects to Your Majesty! Please calm your anger; I have two pieces of news to report.”
Li Longji slowly sat down and waved his hand, saying, “My dear minister, no need to kneel anymore. I know you are loyal.”
“In reply to Your Majesty, I have been kneeling before you since the fifth year of Tianbao, and I’ve grown accustomed to it.”
“Hmm! Time reveals a person’s true nature. I remember that in the past, censors accused you of deliberately trying to please me. Only over time did I realize that you truly knelt before me. Unlike some who speak nicely but have different intentions in mind—one can see a person’s face but not their heart!”
Yang Guozhong’s heart skipped a beat, and he quickly said, “Then let me first share the first piece of news.”
“Go ahead! What is it?”
“Two days ago, I met a Tocharian merchant who came to the Tang Dynasty with the prince of his country. The prince went to Chang’an to pay homage…”
Yu Chaoen beside him was shocked. Hadn’t he been told not to mention this? Why bring it up now? Yu Chaoen secretly glanced at Li Longji, seeing his darkened expression, and inwardly groaned—what should he do?
“And then?” Li Longji’s expression grew even darker, as if he was about to lose his temper again.
Yang Guozhong, however, remained calm and said, “I was very angry at the time and questioned the merchant. The emperor of the Tang Dynasty was clearly in Chengdu—why didn’t they come here to pay homage? The merchant said that their king actually didn’t want to come, but if they didn’t, Li Qing’an would send troops to attack them. Out of fear of Li Qing’an’s tyranny, these kings had no choice but to send envoys.”
At this moment, Yu Chaoen breathed a long sigh of relief and secretly gave a thumbs up. Yang Guozhong was truly clever—he had hit on Li Longji’s weak point. This man was worth befriending.
Indeed, Li Longji’s expression improved significantly. He grunted heavily, clearly dissatisfied, and said, “I’ve long known that Li Qing’an is nothing but a local tyrant in Anxi. These small countries clearly come to pay homage to him!”
Though his words were full of dissatisfaction, the knot in his heart had been untied. He couldn’t help but laugh and said, “Where is this merchant? I really want to meet him.”
Yang Guozhong, already confident, calmly replied, “Your Majesty, that merchant went to Zizhou yesterday. I’ll send someone to find him right away.”
“Good! I look forward to meeting him.”
Then Yang Guozhong moved on to the main topic of the day. He took out a letter and said with a smile, “Congratulations, Your Majesty! I have good news to report.”
Li Longji, in high spirits, took the letter and asked, “Who sent this letter? What good news is it?”

“Your Majesty, this is a letter from Cui Huan, the Minister of War in Chang’an. He wishes to pledge his loyalty to You Majesty.”
“Oh! Is that so?”
Li Longji was overjoyed. Cui Huan was the head of the Cui family. If he pledged allegiance to him, it meant the entire Cui family would be under his control. The Cui family’s members held positions throughout the Tang Dynasty and represented a powerful local force!
Delighted, Li Longji opened the letter and read it carefully twice. Cui Huan’s tone in the letter was extremely earnest, expressing his willingness to serve his former lord.
“I knew Cui Huan was a man of loyalty and righteousness. It was worth my effort to write to him last time. Good. I hope all the former officials in Chang’an will be like him.”
Seeing that Li Longji believed him, Yang Guozhong cautiously suggested, “Your Majesty, I think it would be better if Cui Huan served You Majesty in Chang’an. After all, Cui Yuan is already the prime minister. If Cui Huan joins him, it may be difficult to arrange his position.”
Li Longji nodded. Yang Guozhong was right. It was indeed inappropriate for two members of one family to hold the position of prime minister. Having Cui Huan act as an insider in Chang’an would be more advantageous for him.
“Then let’s follow the prime minister’s advice and keep Cui Huan in Chang’an.”
Li Longji immediately turned to Yu Chaoyen and said, “Prepare paper and ink. I want to write a letter myself to encourage Cui Huan.”