Prime Minister

Chapter 1217 Price

Chapter 1217 Price

Lu Huiqing?

Guo Xuan knew that this person was the person Sima Xue Shi hated the most.

Sima Guang believed that Wang Anshi's reforms were at most stubborn and inappropriate for the times, but it was all because of Lu Huiqing that Wang Anshi was slandered by the world.

Because of his admiration for Sima Guang, Guo Xuan had a very bad impression of Lu Huiqing.

Seeing Guo Xuan lower his head, Zhang Cheng said knowingly, "It is not our place to ask about government affairs. Dad never allows us to discuss them in the mansion, or he will get angry."

Guo Xuan said: "I understand."

He also did not want to get involved in the dispute between the new and old parties.

Zhang Cheng said, "Let me take you to see my brother Zhi. Although the first and second branches of our Zhang family have separated, we still have a room for them in the prime minister's mansion. My uncle and his family often come back to live here."

"You know what, in the past when we lived under the same roof, there were bound to be some bumps and bruises. Now that we've separated, our relationship has improved."

"But some people in the court gossip that an elder brother is like a father, and my father was raised by my uncle. This is not good."

Guo Xuan said: "I don't think there is any need to be restrained about this, but there are some things that don't need to be forced. In order to uphold the rules of propriety, it is best to be able to do what you want without breaking the rules."

Zhang Cheng smiled when he heard this and said, "Really? You hit the nail on the head. It seems that Master Guo is a very knowledgeable person."

Guo Xuan lowered his voice and said, "I just thought of this. If this gets to my father's ears, he might scold me."

The two of them laughed at the same time when they heard this.

Prime Minister Zhang immediately took Guo Xuan to see Zhang Zhi.

Guo Xuan nodded and thought, it turns out that there really is no distinction between family backgrounds in this world. Before he came to the capital, Guo Lin told him that in Bianjing, every door is next to every door, every household is next to every household, and there are officials talking and laughing, and there are no ordinary people coming and going.

You are just an ordinary scholar from a poor family. Don't aim too high, nor look down on yourself.

But...but Guo Xuan felt a little unreal at this moment. When he first arrived in Bianjing, he was summoned to the residence of the current prime minister. He didn't know whether it was a blessing or a curse.

He heard a story about a frog who sat at the bottom of a well all his life, and the sky he saw was as big as the well mouth.

One day, the frog climbed to the edge of the well, took a look at the world, and went crazy when it returned to the bottom of the well.

He was also afraid that he would be like that frog.

Just like people who are used to eating plain cabbage, once they eat meat and fish, they can no longer eat plain cabbage. Just like Fan Zhongyan refused the delicious food sent by his classmates when he was studying, and would rather eat porridge by himself.

After Guo Xuan met Zhang Zhi, he was entertained by Zhang Shi's family. Zhang Shi was particularly kind to the son of this old friend. Zhang Zhi had been taught by Guo Lin in the past, so he was particularly kind to Guo Xuan. Guo Xuan felt at home when he lived in Zhang Yue's house.

What surprised Guo Xuan even more was that the food and drink in Zhang Mansion was very simple and plain, with absolutely no extravagance or waste.

Not only the third branch of the Zhang family was like this, but the first branch was also like this. Zhang Zhi's wife, Lu, was from the famous Donglai Lu family, which consisted of two Hans and one Lu, and she actually served the dishes to the table herself.

……

At the same time, Lu Huiqing visited Zhang Yue.

The two met again after a long separation, and Zhang Yue had mixed feelings towards Lu Huiqing.

The relationship between the two also had a honeymoon period. When the two were on good terms, they were really worried about the country. Lu Huiqing was very smart and had high emotional intelligence, and Zhang Yue was indeed very comfortable with him.

Otherwise, Zhang Yue would not have recommended Lu Huiqing to be the storyteller in Chongzheng Hall.

But when did the rift between the two begin?

It was when the government was considering them as reserve prime ministers that Zhang Yue felt that Lü Huiqing was secretly jealous of him. From that time on, Lü Huiqing's words became sharper, or sarcastic, and he was intentionally or unintentionally trying to put himself in front of Wang Anshi.

Although it was not excessive, Lu Huiqing hinted that you, Zhang Sanxiu, must compete with me, otherwise you will be in trouble.

Even though Lu Huiqing later had a bigger rival, Zeng Bu, he never got rid of his fear of him.

Even though Zeng Bu was eliminated by him, Lu Huiqing became the Vice-Chancellor, and then the incident of burning the three offices took place.

It was all because of Lu Huiqing's jealous, strong-willed and competitive character. He would indulge those who depended on him in every way, even eating and wearing the same clothes as them. But he would get rid of those who did not depend on him as soon as possible, even if the other person was a recognized gentleman.

Thinking of the grievances between himself and Lu Huiqing over the years, Zhang Yue couldn't help but feel a surge of emotions, and only then did he calm down.

A moment later, Peng Jingyi led Lu Huiqing in.

Lu Huiqing's hair has turned gray, and he looks even older after returning home. When they last met, he still had a lot of black hair.

It is indeed very different from the high spirits when one is successful.

"Lu Huiqing pays respect to the Prime Minister! Congratulations to the Prime Minister on conquering Liangzhou. Your achievements will be remembered for thousands of years."

Zhang Yue hurriedly stood up and helped him up, saying, "There's no need to say these words."

"Don't be so polite, just talk as usual. Ji Fu, I haven't seen you for a few years. You have a lot of white hair."

Lu Huiqing said, "I am an unlucky person. I have fallen seriously ill when I returned home this time and can hardly see the Prime Minister again."

The two sighed silently. Zhang Yue heard that Lu Huiqing was ill, but he didn't know how serious the illness was. But this humble attitude was where Lu Huiqing could bend and stretch.

The two sat down again.

When they were still friends, they admired and cherished each other. Later, there was a gap, and they hadn't seen each other for so many years, so for a while they didn't know what to say to each other.

Zhang Yue said: "The people below don't know the rules and neglected you, don't take it to heart. I didn't sleep well the whole night when I heard Ji Fu came to visit."

Lu Huiqing was deeply moved by what he heard, but saw Zhang Yue continue speaking.

"I don't know why, but it reminds me of the night when the Sansi fire broke out. I was also tossing and turning like this."

Lu Huiqing was embarrassed when he heard this, but Zhang Yue didn't seem to want to talk about it anymore, and said, "Although Zhou is an old country, its destiny is to be renewed. This reform is something that must be done, and sooner or later someone will do it."

"Jing Gong took the first step. He is truly a man of great vision and courage."

Lu Huiqing sat upright and nodded.

Zhang Yue said: "I have inherited the mantle of reform, but I have different opinions from Jing Gong on whether the reform should be radical or gradual. I believe that in any matter in the world, excess is as bad as deficiency."

"One is to enrich the country, the other is to enrich the people. How to choose? Sang Hongyang and Jing Gong both said that 'the people should not be taxed more and the country should have enough money', but in fact, since the reform, the taxes have still been imposed on the people."

"It is clearly 'only', but it is said to be 'only the best'. If you want to enrich both the country and the people, and want to have the best of both worlds, you cannot demand efficiency. Replace rapid changes with slow changes, from quantitative changes to qualitative changes, and accumulate small victories into big ones!"

Zhang Yue smiled and said, "Ji Fu was also the Vice Minister of State Affairs before. If you have any objections to the current government affairs, you can talk to me."

"I am not necessarily right. For example, the land and labor service law you advocated before is indeed a good law, so I advocate the exemption law instead."

In the Xining Reform, Wang Anshi and Lu Huiqing teamed up, Wang Anshi provided theoretical guidance, but it was Lu Huiqing who actually did the work. In terms of talent, Lu Huiqing was beyond doubt.

When Lu Huiqing heard that his method of providing agricultural labor was adopted by Zhang Yue, he was very happy. This was his ideal as a politician. However, he pretended to be clueless and nodded repeatedly. It seemed that he did not dare to express his opinion, fearing that Zhang Yue would be wary of him.

Lu Huiqing smiled bitterly and said, "I have been at home for a long time and have not been involved in government affairs. In the past, I had a bad reputation in the court. Now I just want to do some practical things in the local area and no longer ask about the affairs of the central government."

Zhang Yue thought that Lu Huiqing was quite self-aware. In history, Lu Huiqing was disliked by everyone and no prime minister at the time liked him. Even his closest accomplice Zhang Dun, who became prime minister, was unwilling to work with Lu Huiqing in the central government.

He really has very bad popularity.

Zhang Yue said: "Don't worry, Ji Fu. What you and I say don't count in the world's so-called loyalty, treachery, justice, and evil."

"Only what future generations say counts. Only what history books say counts."

Lu Huiqing said: "I have known the Prime Minister for decades, and the only confidant in my life is the Prime Minister."

Zhang Yue smiled and said, "Since you want to do practical things and lead troops to fight, how about returning to the northwest to be a general?"

Seeing Lu Huiqing's hesitation, Zhang Yue said, "The acting Privy Councilor Han Yuru is stubborn and self-willed. Are you worried that you can't get along with him?"

Lu Huiqing said: "Reporting to the Prime Minister, Lu is worried about this."

Zhang Yue thought for a moment and said, "Then you should go to Taiyuan. Taiyuan is far from Huanqing Road, and Han Zhen may not be able to control you."

Lu Huiqing was overjoyed when he heard this.

Taiyuan Prefecture was an important town, with a higher status than an ordinary governor. Only an official at the level of a grand secretary could be in charge of it, so he was almost on the same level as Han Zhen.

Zhang Yue's move was like restoring his status as a political participant.

In fact, since the last plan to build Hengshan was rejected by Emperor Zhang Yue, Han Zhen had repeatedly disobeyed Zhang Yue's wishes. Zhang Yue also planted Lu Huiqing to disgust Han Zhen and let the two of them fight each other.

After the two finished their conversation, Zhang Yue even set up a banquet in his mansion to entertain Lu Huiqing.

The two chatted and laughed at the banquet, as if the grudges of many years had disappeared.

After the banquet, Zhang Yue personally saw Lu Huiqing out.

Zhang Yue said to Lu Huiqing: "Now that we have captured Liangzhou, the Liao Kingdom is ready to make a move. If the Liao Kingdom makes any unusual moves, Taiyuan will be a vital place. Only if you, Ji Fu, are here, can I feel at ease."

"There must be an important official in Taiyuan!"

Lu Huiqing was not surprised. Zhang Yue arranged for Lu Huiqing because he valued her ability.

Lu Huiqing said: "The Prime Minister presided over the attack on Liangzhou. Since the founding of our dynasty, apart from the destruction of Northern Han, there is no greater contribution than this. Lu is sincerely convinced!"

Considering Zhang Yue's understanding of Lu Huiqing, it was quite difficult for him to say these words to him in person.

Zhang Yue waved his hand and asked, "Did Ji Fu and Wang Xianggong send any letters?"

Lu Huiqing said: "I went, but..."

Zhang Yue saw Lu Huiqing's expression and knew that he and Wang Anshi were not on good terms.

He said, "That being the case, I won't mention it. Jifu, there is one more thing. When I was compiling history, I severely criticized Zhang Zihou. Jifu, have you heard about it?"

Lu Huiqing said, "I have heard a little about this matter."

Lu Huiqing smiled bitterly in his heart when he heard this. There is no free benefit in the world. Zhang Yue must draw a clear line between himself and Zhang Dun!

When Lu Huiqing heard this, cold sweat dripped down his forehead.

He knew that although Zhang Yue and Zhang Dun were brothers, their relationship was very bad and their political views were very different.

Lu Huiqing wanted to plead for Zhang Dun, so he said, "Zihou..."

Zhang Yue's eyes turned cold as soon as he heard Lu Huiqing speak: "Lu Gong, I will send you here."

Lu Huiqing closed her eyes in pain. Was she going to fail in the end?