Chapter 168: Common People Can Be Ignored in Politics

Chapter 1243 The common people can be ignored in politics

Today, Chang'an City has only one focus of work, and that is the upcoming banquet at the Calyx Tower.

Starting from dawn, thousands of palace people began to decorate the Calyx Tower.

When Li Zhi got up, he discovered that the Xingqing Palace farmland that was bare yesterday had turned into a sea of ​​plum blossoms in full bloom today.

In shock, he called Ruichun and asked, "Did you plant it last night?"

Ruichun nodded and said: "Last night at midnight, the palace servants in Yeting Palace started planting, and they finished planting at midnight."

Li Zhi said: "I ask you how you got into trouble?"

Ruichun said: "Dig a hole and plant the plum tree..."

Li Zhi looked at Ruichun, who was pretending to be stupid, as if he were a fool. Ruichun said quickly: "They are all silk flowers."

Li Zhi said: "King Zhou had wine pools and meat forests, Shi Chong fought with others for wealth and hung silks on trees, and now the Emperor of Tang used silks as flowers?"

Ruichun blinked and said, "Your Majesty, this kind of thing is common in Chang'an."

Li Zhi leaned on the belly of the giant bear and said with a smile: "How is this an ordinary thing?"

"The winter in Chang'an is long, and it is rare to see green except for bamboos and pines and cypresses. However, the people of Chang'an have very high requirements for scenery. Therefore, at many banquets in Chang'an, there will be scenes decorated with silk flowers. It is said that this is a Making a living by making a living is very common in Chang’an.”

Li Zhi pointed to the bright plum blossoms outside and said: "The color is so bright, it must be made of high-quality silk. How can it be cheap?"

Ruichun sighed and said: "Chang'an Palace City is originally provided by Chang'an, but the money to supply Chang'an Palace City needs to be allocated by the Queen. Over the years, the Queen's attention has been all on Luoyang, so the money for Chang'an Palace City Decline is unavoidable, and the palace officials, eunuchs, and various craftsmen in the palace have to find ways to make money on their own.

The plum blossoms here are the palace maids. The eunuchs cut them out in their spare time, folded them into the shape of flowers, and then glued them to the branches one by one, and finally they looked like this.

If this thing is used once, it will naturally be expensive. However, with His Majesty's use today, those palace maids and eunuchs can get more people to start using this plum tree to decorate their courtyards. In this way, they will have a lot of plum trees. The income can cover the cost of making flower trees, and you can also earn some interest to support yourself. "

Li Zhi frowned and said, "The palace people support themselves?"

Ruichun said: "There are more than 6,300 palace servants, eunuchs, and craftsmen in Chang'an Palace City. If they can support themselves, wouldn't it save a lot of national money for the country? This is a good thing."

Li Zhi thought for a moment and said: "I ordered Yunchu to allocate all the annual fees for the palace to Chang'an Palace, so there is no need to go to Luoyang again."

Ruichun bowed and said, "I obey the order."

Li Zhi said: "There are flowers and trees here, what's over there at the calyx building?"

Ruichun bowed and said: "There are colored lanterns. There are many colored lanterns. When His Majesty holds a banquet, the colored lanterns will be lit. In this way, the Calyx Tower will be the palace in the sky."

Li Zhi said: "These lanterns also come from the palace?"

Ruichun smiled and said: "Exactly..."

"The functions are similar?"

"The functions are similar. To make such lanterns, the craftsmen in Chang'an Palace are more exquisite. The craftsmen from outside cannot compare with the craftsmen in the palace."

"So, the things I use are the same as those used by the people?"

"Your Majesty is overthinking. There are rules for the things your Majesty uses. For example, a palace lantern to be lit tonight in the Calyx Tower requires six hundred candles. After lighting it, the Calyx Tower will be as bright as day and the lights will be as bright as day. "Bright moon."

Li Zhi widened his one eye and said, "How much does it cost?"

Ruichun said regretfully: "Your Majesty is always thrifty, but the poor craftsmen are saving money again and again. On the premise of ensuring the royal dignity, such a lamp only costs one thousand guan..."

"What? A lamp costs a thousand guan? Then, six hundred candles shouldn't be cheap, right?"

Ruichun said: "The candles are made from giant whale oil in the North Sea. Only candles like this will not smoke, and after adding ambergris, they will automatically emit a fragrant aroma, even at banquets. People can stay refreshed and feel no fatigue even after feasting all night long.”

Li Zhi forced himself to calm down. Under the influence of Emperor Taizong and Empress Wende, Li Zhi had never been an extravagant and lustful emperor. Now that he heard the cost of a lamp at a banquet, it was not low. For five hundred strings, how much did this make him endure?

"Get me that two hundred and fifty!"

Li Zhi gently stroked the prickly rough hair of the giant bear, but the trembling hands still revealed the anger in his heart.

Yun Chu's hands kept beating the rhythm in the air, and he directed the one hundred Wannian County officials under his seat, dressed in white as snow and with high crowns as ink as ink, to play the newly written music.

After the song ended, Yun Chu said: "Layered, layered, this song is dedicated to His Majesty from Chang'an. I hope to keep His Majesty in Chang'an with deep affection.

At this time, we must imagine Chang'an as a beautiful and gentle woman who is pouring out her feelings to His Majesty over and over again. We must let His Majesty feel the friendship of the people of Chang'an towards His Majesty, and we must make him feel that Chang'an should be his permanent residence. .

Also, I will lead the singing. When it reaches the high pitch, the people in the first two rows should sing with me. After two lines, the people behind must also follow up, so that the momentum becomes more powerful, and your singing voice It must be big, so that the singers we arrange in Xingqingfang can hear our voices, and finally these singers will lead the residents of Xingqingfang to sing together.

That is to say, only when the whole city sings together can His Majesty be moved.

We must connect well and not mess up.

Okay, let's do it again..."

With Yunchu personally conducting, the officials of Wannian and Chang'an counties once again played the guzheng. Not to mention, in the scene of white clothes like snow, they actually played Yunchu's music like weeping.

In the era before Yunchu, it was basically impossible to gather a hundred officials who could play the guzheng in two days. Those guys might be good at drinking and eating meat, and the better ones could just hold the microphone and sing a few songs.

In the Tang Dynasty, the quality of officials was much higher than that of later officials.

Playing the guzheng and guqin is almost the basic ability of these people. Some guys can even play the flute and the dongxiao. There are even a few people in the Wannian County government who can beat the gu and the big The drum, and the head of the Ministry of Revenue in Chang'an County is famous for his pipa.

Many times, everyone knows that Yun Chu's guqin playing level is just so-so, and as for the guzheng level - well, it is just better than the cotton-beating people who are as numerous as cattle hair on the market.

However, no one says so. As long as the county lord starts playing the guzheng, everyone listens to it in fascination...

The performance will be in the evening. Yun Chu led a group of people to play the song several times, and asked a musician to conduct on his behalf. Then he returned to the official residence to take a breath and rest.

Just after drinking a cup of tea, Wu Chengsi and his brother followed in. They took Yun Chu's teapot and poured tea for themselves. After drinking it all in one breath, Wu Chengsi said: "My Lord, it is unlikely that His Majesty will stay in Chang'an."

Yun Chu nodded and said: "I know."

Wu Sansi said: "In this case, why does Your Majesty want us to focus all our work on His Majesty?"

Yun Chu said: "We want to use His Majesty's dragon power to open several work nodes that we cannot open ourselves. "

Wu Chengsi frowned and said, "Once His Majesty knows that we are using you, will it backfire?"

Yun Chu said, "Devote yourself to the country, why bother about other things?"

Wu Sansi shook his head and said, "My Lord, this is not right. We must consider the present and the future. If there is no future, what we are doing now will be meaningless."

Yun Chu looked at the Wu brothers and said, "Do we have to benefit ourselves when we do things?"

Wu Chengsi said firmly, "In front of others, my brothers will definitely say that we don't need to benefit ourselves. In front of my Lord, I will only say that when the Wu family does things, they can benefit others while benefiting themselves, but they must never benefit others at the expense of the interests of the Wu family."

Yun Chu nodded. The Wu brothers spoke from their hearts. He couldn't beat them up just because they told him what they thought from their hearts. This was unreasonable.

Yun Chu forcibly suppressed the urge to beat the two brothers and whispered, "You want money?"

Wu Chengsi said seriously, "Enough is enough. "

Yunchu said again: "You want power?"

Wu Chengsi said: "Just protect yourself."

Yunchu smiled and said: "You are really not greedy."

Wu Sansi said: "Guochao and mine must be clearly distinguished. The reason why I work for Guochao is that I need Guochao's protection. If Guochao is ruthless and unrighteous to me, I will be ruthless and unrighteous to the people of the world."

Yunchu said: "You mean that if Guochao is close to you, you will restrain your desires. If Guochao has ill intentions towards you, you will damage the interests of the people to feed Guochao, so that Guochao will always be kind to you?"

Wu Chengsi stood up and saluted: "My lord, please forgive me for not entering the big pit. "

After Wu Chengsi finished speaking, he stood up with Wu Sansi, clasped his fists and bowed, and then left Yunchu's official residence.

When they left, Ruichun came in. Ruichun's face was not very good. The Wu brothers pretended not to see it and hurried away with their heads down.

"His Majesty is dissatisfied with the extravagance of the Hua'e Tower banquet."

Ruichun took a sip of tea and immediately said to Yunchu.

Yunchu said: "Have you told His Majesty about the Chang'an Palace?"

Ruichun said: "I told you, but His Majesty is still dissatisfied."

Yunchu shook his head and said: "It's not that His Majesty is dissatisfied with the Chang'an Palace, but His Majesty feels that our group of people are purposefully guiding his way of doing things."

Ruichun stood up and said: "Let's go, His Majesty wants you, an idiot, to meet him. "

Yun Chu sighed, put on his fur coat and followed Rui Chun to Xingqing Palace.

"Northern Wei·Yang Xuanzhi's "Luoyang Jialan Ji·Fayun Temple": "Shi Chong of the Jin Dynasty was a commoner, but he could still make pheasant heads and fox armpits, paint eggs and carve firewood. What's more, I am the Heavenly King of the Great Wei, and I am not extravagant?

Yun Chu, why do you think so?"

As soon as I saw Li Zhi, he scolded me.

Yunchu said: "The point is not about carving firewood and painting eggs, but whether Shi Chong paid the labor for helping him carve firewood and paint eggs. If not, Shi Chong should be beheaded. If he did, I would be very relieved."

Li Zhi said: "You have been deliberately tempting me to be extravagant and licentious all these years. What's the reason?"

Yunchu looked at Li Zhi for a long time before saying: "Your Majesty is extravagant and licentious?"

Li Zhi pointed to the silk flower plum tree outside and said: "What is this?"

Yunchu said: "This is a consumption, but it is not for your Majesty's personal enjoyment."

Li Zhi frowned and said: "I just went to Hua'e Tower, Yunchu, it's too luxurious."

Yunchu said in surprise: "Did you use the national treasury?"

Li Zhi said angrily: "That's also my money."

Yunchu said: "Your Majesty's money was given to craftsmen, to chores, to whalers..."

Li Zhi thought for a while and said: "The truth still makes sense. Even Confucius didn't say anything bad about Guan Zhong's art of carving wood and painting eggs to enrich the people. However, when it comes to my actual implementation, I still It’s a pity.”

Yun Chu smiled and said, "Your Majesty won't feel bad if the money is hidden in the treasury."

Li Zhi said: "I won't feel bad if it is used for state affairs."

Yun Chu said: "Can't it just be given to the people?"

Li Zhi was stunned and said after a long while: "I never thought about this..."