334. What Is Your Purpose? (Please Subscribe)

Next, in addition to Li Linfu, some officials came into the government office one after another. Google search reading

In addition to the officials under the Zhongshu Province, there were also officials from other institutions like Li Linfu reporting to him.

Among them, there were many officials who wanted to show their loyalty to Bai Gui.

But Bai Gui was not in a hurry to recruit them all,

but gave different responses according to the identity, character, ability, etc. of the visitors.

Or verbal rejection, or pretending to be a fool, or pretending to be like Goujian sleeping on firewood and tasting gall... In short, as Bai Gui gained a foothold in the Political Affairs Hall, even if he was not a powerful prime minister, there were many officials who wanted to surrender to him.

This office lasted until the afternoon.

The little eunuch in the palace came to the government office and conveyed Li Longji's oral decree, asking him to enter the palace to play polo together.

This is the treatment of being a confidant of the saint.

As long as he goes to work, he will be invited every three days for a small request and every five days for a big request.

Enter the palace.

Tingzi Hall

As in the past, Bai Gui played polo with Li Longji, Jiang Jiao and other concubines, and Bai Gui deliberately lost two polo balls to Li Longji.

He lost a lot.

Each time, he accurately controlled between two or three polo balls.

After a long time, Li Longji also saw that Bai Gui deliberately lost.

Although it was a bit scheming, a minister who knew the limits was undoubtedly liked by every emperor. The dull-witted emperor could hardly see the subtle relationship, while the smart emperor was happy and satisfied with it.

Jiang Jiao did not mention Li Linfu.

The plan to make Li Linfu the Chief Censor was planned for more than ten days, or even more than a month. The time dimension of the move was extended, which made it more seamless.

"Your Majesty, it is fun to ride a horse and play polo in the pavilion all day, but it will be boring after a long time."

Wu Huifei, who was dressed in a tight suit, got off the horse and curled her lips.

Although she had given birth to a prince, Wu Huifei's beauty was still as good as before, on the contrary, it was even more outstanding, adding a mature and attractive temperament.

"Then my beloved concubine... where do you want to go?"

Li Longji asked.

He still felt quite sympathetic towards Wu Huifei.

All the concubines who gave birth to his princes would be promoted to concubines. But because Wu Huifei's surname was Wu, it was not long before the anti-Wu craze of the court officials subsided, and the promotion to concubine would inevitably be criticized by the court officials, so this was delayed, but it was precisely because of this that he felt guilty about Wu Huifei and favored her more and more.

"Now that most of autumn has passed, it is time for autumn hunting."

"Your Majesty, why don't you go hunting together in Mount Li, and you can also go to Mount Li to soak in the hot springs..."

Wu Huifei suggested.

In the cold spring, the Huaqing Pool was granted to bathe, and the Huaqing Pool was in Mount Li. The hot springs in Mount Li have always been exclusive to the Li Tang royal family. From the emperor, the prince, the concubines, and the court officials, there are special pools for bathing. At the same time, Mount Li was also the royal hunting ground of the Tang Dynasty.

After speaking, Wu Huifei glanced at Jiang Jiao.

Although Jiang Jiao was a favorite of Li Longji and rose step by step. But in the court, he was regarded as a lucky minister. So even though he was the Secretary General, a third-rank official, his position was not solid, so he frequently showed his favor to Wu Huifei, Li Longji's favorite concubine, in order to curry favor with her.

Therefore, when he saw Wu Huifei signaling to him, Jiang Jiao hesitated for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, what the Queen said is right. Now is the right time for autumn hunting. Your Majesty has not left the deep palace for more than a month. Even if you go hunting in autumn now, the officials will not say that your Majesty is in a playful mood and delays the government."

Li Longji is a playful person. How could he hold back after living in the deep palace for a long time?

Jiang Jiao knew this, so Li Longji hesitated because he was worried that the court officials would criticize him and think that he, the emperor, wanted to neglect the government, so he dared not make a decision.

"Jiang Qi is right. In ancient times, the emperors searched for seedlings in spring, hunted in autumn and hunted in winter, and went out to the suburbs in all seasons to show their military power to the world."

"Now the world is peaceful, but the army cannot be abandoned. My autumn hunt in Mount Li is also a continuation of the old rule of the military lecture in Mount Li in the first year of Kaiyuan. This is really in line with the times, not just my desire."

Li Longji nodded slightly and found a reason casually.

This is the difference between educated emperors and uneducated emperors. If they want to have fun, they can find a serious reason.

"Ten days off, two days later it will be the ten-day holiday."

"Bai Qing, you are an unparalleled archer, this time you will also accompany me..."

Seeing Bai Gui present, Li Longji also took the opportunity to invite him.

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Bai Gui looked up at Wu Huifei standing behind Li Longji, secretly complaining, but he could only choose to agree.

Since he left Chang'an and helped Queen Wang give birth to a prince, Wu Huifei could only be humble in the harem as Queen Wang's original wife, and she had no ability to cause trouble for him.

After all, Queen Wang was involved in the harem.

However... as Queen Wang's son grew up and became a legitimate son, the position of the previously established Crown Prince Li Ying gradually became precarious, which was also a reason for Li Linfu to get out of the East Palace.

So, in the court, there was another incident lurking, that is, to abolish the illegitimate son Li Ying and re-establish the legitimate son.

So the struggle in the palace began to focus on Queen Wang and Concubine Zhao Lifei (Li Ying's mother), and the snipe and clam quarreled, which freed Wu Huifei's hands. In addition, Bai Gui was the Minister of the Central Secretariat and a close confidant of Li Longji, who could be summoned to the palace at any time. After a few times, "the old love rekindled".

But in the palace, there were many spies, and it was not easy for the two to meet, so they could only find the excuse of the Lishan Autumn Hunt... .

...

Two days later, the Lishan Autumn Hunt.

en route.

Bai Gui, dressed in military uniform, rode slowly in front of all the officials.

Chang'an is about 20 miles away from Mount Li, and it only takes half a day to reach there. There is also a temporary palace built on Mount Li.

"Prime Minister Bai, the princess has just been rewarded with grapes by the saint, and you can go and taste them."

The little palace maid rode a horse and came around and said.

"Let the princess wait a moment, I will go there later."

Bai Gui nodded.

After the little palace maid left, the officials behind him began to whisper.

The voice was very low, and most people could not hear it.

The general idea was that he was very lucky and expressed envy. In his demeanor, he respected him as a prime minister a little more.

He had real merits, unlike Jiang Jiao who was a lucky minister. Such a prime minister, who was trusted by the emperor and loved by the princess, was basically an unshakable person in the political arena.

Bai Gui nodded slightly after hearing this.

The reason why he was in the ranks of court officials during the autumn hunt was, first, to build good relationships with the officials and not to leave the court, and second, to take this opportunity to observe the words and deeds of the officials in detail and know them well.

Of course, it was also because of his different status now.

In the past, he was a close minister of the emperor, a secretary of the Central Secretariat, and it was feasible for him to stay by the dragon chariot or go to the princess's phoenix chariot. Now he is the prime minister, the head of all officials, and it is a bit inappropriate to stay in the princess's phoenix chariot all the time.

He clamped his horse's belly and rode forward. After a while, he arrived at the phoenix chariot of Princess Jinxian.

When he opened the curtain, he found that it was not Princess Jinxian who was sitting in the phoenix chariot, but Concubine Wu Hui.

"Sister Jinxian went to Sister Yuzhen."

"Bai Xiang, come in, I will feed you grapes..."

Concubine Wu Hui smiled.

She pointed to the low table on the chariot with her bare hands. On it were several bunches of purple grapes from the Western Regions and a pot of wine.

Bai Gui frowned and walked in.

Lowered the curtain.

Before he saw Wu Huifei, he had already noticed the maids serving beside the phoenix chariot. These were Wu Huifei's confidants.

Ever since Princess Jinxian ran into Wu Huifei giving gifts at the Linyi Marquis's residence last time, and Wu Huifei gave birth to a prince...,

Princess Jinxian, Bai Gui and Wu Huifei began to cooperate secretly and exchange interests.

However, Bai Gui and Princess Jinxian, who made friends with the concubines in the harem, must have made friends with more than just Wu Huifei. They both maintained good relations with several concubines in the harem.

Wu Huifei's face, or the faces of other concubines, were not so big.

Finished eating grapes.

Discussing matters in person.

Half an hour later, Bai Gui got off the phoenix chariot and prepared to leave.

"If you are smart..."

"Just listen to me!"

Bai Gui wiped the grape juice from the corner of his mouth with a silk cloth. The grapes from the Western Regions are sweet and have a long aftertaste. He put down the silk cloth and said in a deep voice: "I have practiced Taoism for many years, and I can still see the general situation of the saint's body. Unless he encounters a disaster, the saint can still die of old age. Therefore, now I will re-establish the East Palace... I advise you not to fight..."

"If you fight, even if I help you, but on Queen Wang's side, the legitimate son is more important than anything else. I am weak in the court and can't provide you with much help. It is unlikely that you will succeed."

"Even if you succeed, you know the fate of Emperor Wu of Han's crown prince Liu Ju..."

He looked at Wu Huifei deeply and said.

As expected, Wu Huifei also had the idea of ​​getting involved in the crown prince's East Palace.

Although it was a bit overestimating her own abilities, for the concubines in the harem, the biggest goals in life are two, one is to compete for favor, and the other is to let her son compete for favor and become the crown prince. It is normal to have such an idea.

Anyone facing the position of the emperor will be tempted.

"I will remember what Bai Xiang said."

Wu Huifei was not an unreasonable person. When she heard Bai Gui say this, she also extinguished the fluke in her heart.

It would not be pleasant to be a prince under an older emperor. Maybe the prince can't survive the emperor. And Liu Ju, the prince of Emperor Wu of Han, was feared by Emperor Wu of Han, so he was forced to rebel and committed suicide.

"But... what is Bai Xiang's purpose?"

"I am very curious about what your purpose is, Bai Xiang?"

Wu Huifei's beautiful eyes flowed, and she inserted the hairpin diagonally. She sipped the lip balm she carried with her, adding a bit of beauty, and she asked casually.

She didn't believe that Bai Gui was a loyal minister, as he usually showed.

If he was a loyal and upright minister, it would be impossible for him to have such a deep relationship with the concubines in the harem!

"What do you think, Wu Jieyu?"

Bai Gui asked back.

He sat up from his knees, his expression indifferent, and lifted the curtain of the phoenix chariot, looking at the scenery along the way.

"I don't understand!"

"If you say that Prime Minister Bai is ambitious, with Prime Minister Bai's talent and military achievements, it is not impossible to establish another country after destroying Tubo. But Prime Minister Bai returned to Chang'an..."

Concubine Wu Hui smiled.

This is one of the reasons why Li Longji trusted Bai Gui so much.

If Bai Gui really had ambition, he could rebel when he led his troops to the battle. Even if he couldn't take the country, he could still cede land and become king for a while.

"The troops attacking Tubo are not my private troops. Even if they rebel, the people of the world are still concerned about Li Tang, and it is not advisable to bring chaos to a country!"

Bai Gui shook his head.

It is not easy to lead troops to rebel when going to war. Of course, there are ways to overcome this difficulty. However, the cost of doing so is too high. Similarly, Li Tang has not yet gone against the grain. On the contrary, Li Tang has been deeply rooted in the hearts of the people for a hundred years. Therefore, if you do this, the soldiers under your command will not obey you at the first time, and the cost-effectiveness is too low.