Chapter 4779 Intentionally or unintentionally
Li Daoli's angry aura disappeared in an instant. He turned around and sat back, talking in a low voice to the neighboring Wang Dali, turning a blind eye to the loud Xue Wanche.
Everyone in the room was quite at a loss and didn't know how to respond.
Li Xiaogong was so angry that his beard stood up. He pointed at Xue Wanche a few times and turned to Fang Jun and said, "Erlang is just about to say goodbye, right? You are tired after a busy day, so why not find a place to have a few drinks and get tipsy?" Go back to sleep... By the way, take this guy with you.”
This was exactly what Fang Jun wanted, so he stood up and said goodbye to everyone one by one with a smile, and left with Xue Wanche who was unwilling to do so.
The night was dark, and a light rain started to fall outside at some point. The cool rain washed away the sultry heat. The iron hooves of the war horses made a clattering sound on the wet bluestone pavement. There was a road facing the street near the West Market. Under the guise of a tavern, there were candles burning in the shop but there were no customers. The two of them came to the front of the shop and dismounted from their horses and entered the shop. Their respective soldiers stood under the eaves to take shelter from the rain and keep watch.
After cutting two kilograms of cooked meat, mixing a plate of vinegar and celery, frying a plate of beans, baking some biscuits, and ordering a jar of wine, the two of them sat at the table by the window, eating side dishes and drinking snacks. I drank while listening to the light rain outside the window. The streets were silent on rainy nights. The lanterns under the eaves emitted orange light and reflected on the wet road. It was quite leisurely and comfortable.
Fang Jun took a sip of wine and asked: "With your wisdom, you can't say what you just said. Who gave you the idea?"
Xue Wanche chewed the beans in his mouth and was very unhappy: "I am just honest and not stupid, why can't I say such a thing?"
"Haha, those few words penetrated deeply and pointed directly at people's hearts. They directly lifted the lid that everyone tried so hard to hide. Many things that could not be seen were exposed, making it difficult for everyone to continue to pretend to be deaf and dumb... This kind of wisdom is full of wisdom. Do you think you can speak the words? ”
"Do you think I'm right?"
"I think what's the use of being right or wrong? The key lies in how those people who took off the fig leaf with your words feel. Besides, you can just say whatever you want if it's not right. Everyone knows everything and pretends to be confused. You think it's better than Are you stupid? It’s not that they can’t say it, it’s just that they don’t dare to say it or don’t want to say it. In this way, everyone can leave a way out for each other so that there will be no change. , but when you say this, we can no longer pretend to be deaf and dumb. The most troublesome thing is His Majesty. He has to reward the ministers who are loyal to him according to their merits. Can those ministers who betray him be let off lightly? The rewards and punishments are clearly for the superiors? If you can't even achieve the most basic qualities, how can you be considered a 'wise king'? You have caused a huge problem for His Majesty."
Many things cannot be taken seriously. "It is rare to be confused" is not only a state but also an attitude.
There were two consecutive mutinies in the late years of Zhenguan and the early years of Renhe. One was about the Guanlong clan led by Changsun Wuji, and the other was about the clan and nobles who supported Li Zhi. Each time they caused huge turmoil and losses to the empire, but each time After a mutiny, the rewards and punishments were ambiguous and vague, and the merits and demerits, rewards and punishments were not completely clear except for the main responsible persons.
This was not because Emperor Taizong was confused or Li Chengqian was cowardly, but because he could only suppress the matter with this vague attitude of muddling along.
The people involved also tacitly remained silent and worked together to maintain each other's interests.
However, Xue Wanche's move of "turning the table" is likely to break this tacit understanding, especially for Li Chengqian, will those ministers who betrayed you be punished? Will those loyal ministers reward you?
How to punish and to what extent?
How to award, and to what extent?
Xue Wanche drained the wine in the glass in one gulp, wiped his mouth, and said angrily: "What do I care about? I only know that from the moment I surrendered to Emperor Taizong, I have always stood unswervingly on the side of the emperor and treated Taizong. The emperor is like this, for the current majesty The same is true for Your Majesty. For the sake of loyalty, I am willing to take risks and risk the lives of my whole family. However, now that I am not promoted to a noble title or an official position, there are too many disloyal people who have been appeased by Your Majesty and have been promoted to a noble title. So my loyalty What’s the reward? ”
Fang Jun poured wine for Xue Wanche and understood Xue Wanche's thoughts. He just wanted to use this method of turning the table to put everything under the sun for the world to see. It was clear who was loyal and who was traitorous, who was right and who was wrong, so what should be done? Those who are punished must be punished, and those who deserve rewards must be rewarded.
Xue Wanche drank another drink and sighed: "I'm not a fan of officialdom, and I don't care about my title, but I have to think about my children and grandchildren, right? Otherwise, in the future, my children and grandchildren will not be proud of me, but will be ashamed of me. Even if they don’t want to blame me for not getting them the glory they deserve, I can’t stand it!”
While Fang Jun was drinking, his thoughts changed and he asked: "Is Princess Danyang pregnant?"
This gangster is usually careless, arrogant and domineering. Apart from himself, almost no one is close to him, and no one gives him advice. The only reason he can say these very skillful words is his wife, Princess Danyang.
However, Princess Danyang has never been involved in government affairs and has a very indifferent temperament. Now she is uncharacteristically provoking Xue Wanche to raise the table and make a scene, forcing His Majesty to promote Xue Wanche to a noble rank. This can only be for the sake of her children and grandchildren.
As for these two couples who have been married for many years but have nothing to do, some people say that Princess Danyang does not allow Xue Wanche to sleep in separate rooms close to the couple. Others say that Xue Wanche has a habit of "cutting off his sleeves and dividing peaches" and has long lost his virility as a man...
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Xue Wanche was shocked and stared: "How do you know?"
Fang Jun smiled and drank: "It's not difficult to guess."
Xue Wanche put down his glass and stared at Fang Jun: "Isn't it Princess Danyang who told you?"
This time Fang Jun was stunned and puzzled: "How could it be Princess Danyang who said it? I just guessed."
"Mom! Stay away from my princess!"
"What do you mean?"
"You don't know what I mean?"
Fang Jun was annoyed: "Although we are quite different in age, we have always been friends of life and death, and our friendship is irreversible. But you don't know that I am so unbearable in your heart?"
Xue Wanche said: "It's not that I don't trust you, but your kid targets princesses specifically. Who in the world doesn't know? That one in my family is also a princess!"
Although Fang Jun always targets the daughter of Emperor Taizong, the daughter of Emperor Gaozu is also a princess. Who knows why this stick only picks princesses to target? What if one day he suddenly wants to change his taste?
Fang Jun was so angry that he slapped the table. Although he did not have any moral integrity when it came to men and women, he did regard Xue Wanche as a friend. How could he do such a disgusting thing?
"You can't play with your friends' wives, but I still have this bottom line!"
"Haha," Xue Wanche sneered: "Then what happened between you and Princess Baling?"
Fang Jun was stunned for a moment: "Princess Baling...ahem, Chai Lingwu and I are not friends!"
Xue Wanche's IQ was suddenly online, and his eyes were blazing: "That means you admit that the scandal between you and Princess Baling is indeed true?"
Fang Jun: "..."
He was actually tricked by this tough guy who is known for his low IQ? !
"I just said that I have long since severed ties with Chai Lingwu and are no longer friends. The rest is just your own imagination."
"Hey, your second roommate turns out to be a coward too. He dares to do it but dare not admit it. I despise you!"
"...I drank a little too much. I'll stay at your house tonight. You won't agree, right?"
"Dream! I will warn my princess that she will not be allowed to appear anywhere you are from now on, and stay away from you!"
Fang Jun was furious: "Xue Wanche, you are going too far!"
Doesn't this ruin his image and reputation? What is intolerable is unbearable.
Xue Wanche took it as a matter of course: "It is essential to be on guard against others, but it is not too much for you."
Fang Jun snorted angrily. There was nothing he could do to stop him. He could only pour wine and raise a toast: "This is a great event. I wish you a happy baby and a prosperous family!"
Xue Wanche clinked his glasses happily and drank it all in one gulp.
"To tell you the truth, I cried for half the night when the imperial doctor diagnosed the princess as pregnant. How could I, Lao Xue, have been married for many years without children if I am strong and energetic? I'm not afraid of your jokes. At first, I even doubted whether the princess was pregnant. Because you don’t want to marry me, let alone You are willing to give birth to a child for me, so you secretly take some contraceptive drugs... Because I don't have a child, do you know how much ridicule I have endured and how much ridicule I have endured? I am an upright man, but I have to suffer all these things because I don't have a child..."
"It's fine now. Now that I have Lao Xue, who dares to be sarcastic or sarcastic openly or secretly? His arms and legs were all broken..."
"I'm telling you..."
Xue Wanche drank one cup after another, and soon became drunk. This guy didn't feel sleepy but became more energetic when he was drunk. He pulled Fang Jun and talked for a long time, pouring out all the bitter water in his stomach.
Fang Jun regarded the other party as a friend, so he did not show any impatience. Instead, he poured wine while being a good listener, allowing Xue Wanche to pour out all the pain he had suffered because of having nothing to do over the years.
Although I can't relate to it, I can understand it.
In the era of open-mindedness in later generations, a man will suffer great psychological pressure if he has nothing to do, let alone this era where "the three most important factors of unfilial piety are not having children"?
What Fang Jun is worried about now is that Princess Danyang encouraged Xue Wanche to lift the table and lift the lid to make the matter bigger. She believed that Li Chengqian was doing things unfairly and failed to distinguish rewards and punishments purely out of self-interest. She did not care about the bad consequences of such an approach. Or was he being tricked into doing this on purpose?
The reason why many people who were involved in the two mutinies of Guanlong and King Jin have now given up their allegiance and surrendered to Li Chengqian is because Li Chengqian repeatedly stated that he would forget all the blame and suppressed those things and never mentioned them again.
If you want to reward meritorious officials like Xue Wanche, you must mention where the merit comes from. If someone has merit, then someone will have fault. Merit is supporting orthodoxy and assisting the imperial power, so what is fault?
Many people toss and turn and have trouble sleeping at night. (End of chapter)