Chapter 4820 Undercurrent Revealed

Chapter 4820 Undercurrent Revealed
The next morning, Li Keshi presented the memorial he had written overnight to Li Chengqian's desk, which immediately attracted Li Chengqian's attention.

The position of General of the Sixteen Guards is not an idle position, but the most solid force in the army and a key position for various forces to fight for. Li Keshi suddenly resigned and recommended Liang Jianfang. This matter was full of weirdness and really unexpected.

The most important thing is that the defense force in Chang'an City has undergone a huge change...

"In addition to the Duke of Danyang resigning from the post of the General of the Left Guard and recommending Liang Jianfang to take over, there is also a memorial from the Ministry of War requesting that Sun Renshi take over from the Duke of Yunguo as the General of the Right Guard..."

Li Siliang, the Tongshi Sheren, was assisting Li Chengqian in sorting out the mountain of memorials and finding out all the memorials related to military appointments according to Li Chengqian's request.

Li Chengqian stroked his beard, very puzzled: "Why did this 'bird thief' suddenly resign? And recommend Liang Jianfang..."

"Bird thief" is not a swear word, but a nickname for Li Keshi. Although he is a brother of Li Jing, his personality and talents are completely different. At the beginning, an imperial censor impeached Li Keshi for not doing his job properly, saying that he "likes hunting by nature, and hunts birds all year round without stopping." He is obsessed with hunting, especially hunting birds. "On the west side of the Lishui River, birds and beasts all know him, and whenever he appears, magpies follow him and make noises." Birds and sparrows all know him, and they flee when they see him...

However, although his talents were not obvious, he made a completely opposite choice from his brother Li Jing during the "Xuanwu Gate Incident". He resolutely followed Emperor Li II and charged into the Xuanwu Gate. Due to this achievement, he was granted the title of Duke of a County. His career went smoothly during the Zhenguan period. Although he loved hunting, it was not a bad habit. He did not get involved in various struggles in the court, and had a sense of transcendence.

Li Chengqian ordered Wang De: "Call Li Junxian over... Forget it, go to the Hundred Cavalry Division camp outside Xuanwu Gate and ask Li Junxian, Li Keshi, and Liang Jianfang where they went and who they met yesterday."

"Here."

Wang De took the order and left quickly.

Li Chengqian took a sip of tea and said to Li Siliang, "You were a little rude yesterday. The Duke of Yue is a pillar of the country and has made great contributions to the country. How can you treat him rudely?"

Li Siliang was somewhat indignant: "I know that the Duke of Yue has made great contributions and has great power, but there is a difference between the monarch and his subjects. How can I shock the monarch because of my great achievements? He was rude to Your Majesty first, and I was so angry that I refuted him. Please punish me for my usurpation of power."

Li Chengqian clicked his tongue. Although he was saying words of instruction, who wouldn't like a minister who was willing to break off relations with Fang Jun, who was at the peak of his power, in order to protect himself?

Then he said gently: "You have never had any dealings with the Duke of Yue, so you don't know him. As you spend more time with him, you will find that he is not as arrogant and domineering as the outside world has rumored. I did not discuss the appointment of the Governor-General of Luzon with him in advance, so don't blame him for being angry."

Li Siliang didn't know what to say. It was truly unique that His Majesty the Emperor, the supreme ruler, could treat his subjects with such consideration, understanding and tolerance.

Unfortunately……

Thoughts turned in his mind, he sighed, his face full of respect and admiration: "Your Majesty is so generous, unprecedented in ancient and modern times. This is the blessing of a subject. I will follow your Majesty's teachings and never dare to be disrespectful to the Duke of Yue again."

Li Chengqian said happily: "Calm down and pay more attention to government affairs, see how Ying Gong and Zhong Shu Ling handle various affairs, learn with an open mind, and you will definitely gain something."

The group of young talents who have been promoted around him are all very capable. Li Jingxuan is appointed as the Dean of the Academy. He is very steady in his work and cooperates well with Fang Jun. Li Siliang has outstanding abilities but is a little too aggressive. He is not as calm as Li Jingxuan and needs more training before he can stand on his own.

The king and his ministers drank a cup of tea and dealt with some memorials. Wang De came back, panting slightly with sweat on his forehead, obviously he had been traveling all the way. He reported: "Your Majesty, General Li checked the records of yesterday. Liang Jianfang went to the manor outside the city to meet Lord Ying at around 9:00 pm. Then Lord Ying took him into the city to visit Lord Wei's mansion. After they left, they went back to their respective mansions. Lord Wei called over the Duke of Danyang... Because the meetings were relatively private, there is no way to know the content of their conversations."

Emperor Li II launched the "Xuanwu Gate Incident" to seize the throne and completely destroy Li Jiancheng's faction, but the political situation was not stable afterwards, so he created the "Hundred Cavalry Division" to monitor the remnants of Li Jiancheng. However, as the throne became more stable, the functions of the "Hundred Cavalry Division" gradually weakened.

After Li Chengqian ascended the throne, the throne was unstable and the government was in turmoil. He had to grant the "Hundred Cavalry Division" more and more extensive powers, and the supervision of officials in the court was even more severe than at the beginning of the Zhenguan period...

Li Chengqian seemed to be thinking: "Liang Jianfang, Duke Ying, Duke Wei, Duke Danyang... Could this be what Duke Wei meant?"

After thinking for a while, Li Chengqian took the red pen and circled the two memorials respectively: "Send them to the Ministry of Personnel for stamping and then send them out to the whole country."

The appointment and removal of the Sixteen Guards Generals is no trivial matter and the procedures must be rigorous.

"Here."

Li Siliang held the memorial in his hand and walked out of the Imperial Study, heading for the Menxia Province not far away. He walked very fast, and only nodded to the pedestrians he met on the road, not daring to chat in order not to waste time. The head of the Menxia Province was the Palace Attendant Ma Zhou, who also served as Jingzhao Yin. He ran back and forth between the Menxia Province and Jingzhao Prefecture every day. If he arrived too late, Ma Zhou might have gone to Jingzhao Prefecture, which would only cause trouble...

*****
Today is the meeting time of the "Committee". Several military leaders gathered together and gradually became familiar with each other. The solemnity and rigor of the past were gone. They joked or whispered to each other, drank tea, listed their opinions one by one, and discussed with each other. The atmosphere was quite harmonious.

At noon, the meeting came to an end. The kitchen of the Ministry of War had already prepared wine and food. Everyone stayed to have a meal. The Ministry of War not only had a sufficient budget, but also because every day there were people from various Zhechoufu who came to Beijing to report on their work or do business, they would bring local specialties, and these specialties could be reimbursed by the logistics department...

Therefore, the food in the Ministry of War is definitely unique among the three provinces and six ministries.

While they were eating, a clerk walked quickly into the dining hall and handed two documents to the Minister of War Cui Dunli. Cui Dunli put down his bowl and chopsticks, looked down, then stood up, walked to Fang Jun, and handed them to Fang Jun with both hands.

Fang Jun took a closer look. It was a document issued by the Ministry of Personnel, which stated that Sun Renshi succeeded as the General of the Right Jinwu Guard, and that Li Keshi resigned and was succeeded by Liang Jianfang as the General of the Left Guard...

Putting down the documents, Fang Jun looked up at Li Jing and Li Ji who were sitting opposite him drinking wine and eating sea cucumber with scallions. He hesitated for a moment and said with a smile, "Duke Danyang is young and energetic, but he resigned at this time. It's a pity. If he retires now, there will be only a few heroes who followed Emperor Taizong in the bloody battle of Xuanwu Gate. Time flies, and the world has changed. It's really sad. Come on, let's toast to those days of war and swordsmanship!"

This sentence caused everyone to recall the past. After all, following Emperor Taizong to achieve great things was the proudest thing in the lives of almost everyone present. Now, time has passed, the merits are still there, but the people have long passed away. For a moment, they were filled with emotion and raised their glasses.

Li Jing said with a smile, "My brother is lucky. He fought in front of Emperor Taizong's horse and won a lifetime of honor. However, young people are emerging now. We are old and should give up our positions. Maogong personally recommended Liang Jianfang. How can I not give him this face? Besides, my brother has no ambition. He only likes to shoot birds. This time he resigns and can fulfill his lifelong ambition. It's a pity that the birds in and around Chang'an will suffer."

Everyone laughed. Speaking of Li Keshi's nickname "Bird Thief", it was quite strange.

Of course, although he was smiling on his face, his heart was shaken. Li Jing and Li Ji completed a transfer of the sixteen generals of the guards. Was there any exchange of interests?
The most important thing is that Your Majesty actually approved the result of this "private transfer" and announced it to the world. The meaning of this is becoming more and more confusing...

Everyone drank a cup, and Pei Huaijie said: "Duke Yue is wrong. Although there are indeed only a few generals left in the court from the Xuanwu Gate, there is still one in front of us. Come on, let's toast to the Duke of Tong'an!"

Everyone responded loudly and raised their glasses. No matter what the relationship between them was, as long as the Tang Dynasty still existed, the achievements of the "Nine Generals of Xuanwu Gate" would be glorious and absolutely "politically correct" and must be affirmed at any time and in any occasion.

Moreover, although both Li Keshi and Zheng Rentai participated in the "Xuanwu Gate Incident", the former only took part in the battle as part of Emperor Taizong's deployment, while the latter accompanied Emperor Taizong all the way, charging into battle and guarding him, and their achievements are incomparable.

If it weren't for the close relationship between the Zheng family of Xingyang and Li Jiancheng, and the conflict of interest that caused Emperor Li II to be suspicious of him, Zheng Rentai's achievements would be enough to be comparable to those of Yuchi Gong and Cheng Yaojin. Why did he remain unknown for so many years?

But no matter what, the achievements are real and must be respected.

Zheng Rentai's cheeks flushed slightly. The "Xuanwu Gate Incident" was the most proud work of his life. Although the Zheng family of Xingyang was suspected of hedging their bets at that time, his achievements could not be erased in any way. Even though it wasted some time, now that bad times have turned into good times, what else is there to be dissatisfied about?
Not to mention that the current "double agent" position has climbed up to Fang Jun's thigh, secretly standing at the center of power in the court, and the entire Xingyang Zheng family has benefited from it...

The atmosphere in the cafeteria was very harmonious. Pei Huaijie, who had always been excluded, did not encounter any ridicule today and seemed to be in high spirits. After all, who would like to be treated as a "black sheep" and not fit in with the group all day long?
But everyone was alert. The sudden change of leadership of the two armies caused a huge change in the defense situation in Chang'an City. No matter whether it was caused by a reason or appeared suddenly, it meant that a storm was brewing and huge turmoil was about to form. It would come as no surprise that everyone present would be swept up in it.

I just wonder if this huge change is from top to bottom or from bottom to top?