Chinese dining table

Chapter 1237 Raising a tiger, the tiger's claws cannot be removed
Huangmen Shilang Chen Zheng arranged a lot of people at the gate of the imperial city to watch how he teased Yun Chu, who was extremely powerful in Chang'an.

These people did not have the courage to get too close, yet did not want to miss this wonderful show, so they consciously or unconsciously appeared at the entrance of the imperial city for various reasons.

As a result, they saw Yun Chu scratching his head helplessly, and also saw Chen Zheng's head flying everywhere.

Yun Chu swung the knife with incredible speed. Even though Chen Zheng's head was cut off, his head was still able to utter a few words. It was truly a miracle.

After Yun Chu sheathed the sword, he looked around and found that there was no one around.

A bitter smile appeared on Yun Chu's face... He really didn't want to kill Chen Zheng.

You can only take advantage of the imperial power once at most. If you take advantage of it twice, you will be considered ignorant.

It is a waste to use such important power on Chen Zheng.

Now, Chen Zheng's fat body fell on the road, with his head resting on a clump of hay on the side of the road. His eyes were facing the direction of Yun Chu, with no other expression except confusion.

Yun Chu sighed, then left the imperial city and went to the Wannian County Office to immediately submit a petition to the emperor, explaining why he acted so rashly and asking the emperor to revoke the privilege of acting at his own convenience.

Overall, Chen Zheng used his own life to take away the greatest legal power that Yun Chu could currently hold, so it cannot be said that he failed.

Rumors always spread faster than the wind. When Yun Chu just returned to the Wannian County government office, Wu Sansi came here panting before he could even have a sip of water.

"Your Excellency did kill Chen Zheng after all. I heard that he used a horizontal sword?"

Yun Chu replied unhappily: "Do your job well, otherwise, I will use a knife on you next time."

Wu Sansi smiled proudly and said, "I dug two underground springs. Can you guess what I found underneath?"

Yun Chu asked, "Where does the water from the underground spring come from?"

Wu Sansi smiled and said, "It's the residence of Chen Zheng, the Minister of the Imperial Household."

Yun Chu's eyes narrowed, and he asked coldly, "Chen Zheng?"

Wu Sansi said: "There is no water vein below, but a pipe was found. I dug all the way and finally found that the pipe led to Chen Zheng's house. There is a lotus pond in his house. The water is drawn from the water diversion channel on Zhuque Street. There is also a beautiful animal head hanging to spit water. When I entered Chen Zheng's house to investigate, I found that there was no water in the lotus pond in their house. All the water passed through the pipe and formed several underground springs.

After I cut off the pipe, the spring stopped gushing water.

Now, it is certain that the ground spring was created by Chen Zheng, but now he has been killed by the Lord, otherwise we can ask him why he did this."

After hearing what Wu Sansi said, Yun Chu smacked his lips and said, "You killed the wrong person."

Wu Sansi said puzzledly: "Chen Zheng deserves death."

Yun Chu said: "Li Chunfeng is the one who deserves to die. When I was in the imperial city, I was hesitating whether to kill Li Chunfeng to establish my authority or to kill Chen Zheng to establish his authority. I couldn't make up my mind at the time, and then I met a dying eunuch. After sawing off the eunuch's leg, the murderous intent in my heart was reduced a little. I originally thought of waiting and seeing.

As a result, Chen Zheng just stood at the city gate and provoked me. I endured it three times, but finally I couldn't bear it anymore and killed him.

Now it seems that Chen Zheng is just a fool who was used as a sacrifice to seize my power.

It seems that there is a master behind Li Chunfeng. You brothers should be careful when facing Li Chunfeng in the future. In the past, the queen used the Taoist sect to do things and many people were killed. "

Wu Sansi said: "I have heard about this, but they probably don't dare to go against the queen."

Yun Chu said calmly, "Just wait and see. Now, report to His Majesty that the Water Order has filled up the pipes in Chang'an at will and is trying to create panic. I remember you have the power to make secret reports."

Wu Sansi sighed and said, "Who doesn't have one?"

After Wu Sansi left, Yun Chu closed the door of the government office, rubbed his hands, and began to brew a pot of tea for himself on this cold day. Watching the yellow rock sugar slowly melt in the boiling water, Yun Chu took a sip. The yellow rock sugar was very sweet and it dissolved the bitterness in his mouth very well.

Dealing with these trivial matters all day long consumed a great deal of his time and energy, leaving him with no time to consider Changan's new development strategy.

However, when he saw Yao Chong, Yun Chu was still very pleased.

"My Lord, after four years of planning, the Yellow River Loop has achieved initial results."

The boy who was originally as pretty as a fairy has now grown into a sturdy and dark-faced young man. He speaks in a deep and quiet voice, lacking the vigor and vitality of his youth.

"Most of the Yellow River in Longzhong is in the valleys of high mountains. Although the water is abundant, it is almost impossible to use. Fortunately, the Yellow River flows down all the way, with a large height difference, which is very beneficial for the construction of gravity canals. It can irrigate some farmland. Moreover, using water wheels to draw water from the Yellow River in the valleys to irrigate farmland has achieved great results. Although it is impossible to create a fertile land for thousands of miles, it is still feasible to expand outward based on the village settlements.

The most important thing is that I discovered that the land along the Yellow River is very fertile, but the land is fragmented and difficult to manage in a unified manner.

In these places, the power of the clan is greater than the constraints of the government, which is also a problem we will face next."

Yun Chu listened quietly while Yao Chong spoke slowly. Before they knew it, the whole day had passed in such greetings.

Yun Chu basically did not interfere too much in what Yao Chong did along the Yellow River. As far as the current political situation was concerned, Yun Chu's excessive involvement would only destroy the achievements made by Yao Chong.

The main reason why Yun Chu wanted to develop the area along the Yellow River was that the villages there were sparsely distributed, the mountains were high, and the valleys were deep, making communication with the outside world difficult.

Especially along the Yellow River in Longzhong, time seemed to pass slower there than in Chang'an. While the people of Chang'an were celebrating and cheering that the Tang Dynasty was invincible, the people deep in the canyon of Longzhong still thought that their emperor's surname was Yang and the country's name was Sui.

This is the retreat that Yun Chu left for his people. Sometimes the imperial power is not as omnipresent as the emperor thinks.

"My father has been an official in Xiongjin Prefecture for four years. Can he return home?"

Before leaving, Yao Chong looked at Yun Chu with a smile, as if he didn't care much about the fact that Yun Chu had sent his father to Baekje to be an official.

"Your father was appointed as the deputy envoy of Yingzhou a year ago. This should be the position he has always dreamed of. He should not be in a hurry to come back. Besides, what is there to do in Luoyang or Chang'an now? It is better to stay in the local area and live in peace.

Why, your father didn't tell you?"

Yao Chong sighed and said, "This year, I have been guarding the bank of the Yellow River, watching the river turn yellow in the spring and clear in the winter. It's like entering another world, and I don't know what's beyond it."

Yun Chu nodded and said, "This is what people who really do things do. Just think about how you incorporated those people who have lived in Taohuayuan for a long time into the Tang Dynasty. In this regard, you are not stingy in expanding the territory."

Yao Chong shook his head and said, "The Peach Blossom Spring is not that good. Rather than saying that they are people from the Peach Blossom Spring, it is better to say that they are a group of people abandoned by the Tang Dynasty.

In the past, these people avoided wars and harsh taxes and levies, and would rather live with tigers and wolves and be neighbors with poisonous insects than accept the jurisdiction of the imperial court. They hid in the mountains and valleys, and although they lived in poverty and hardship, they could barely survive.

After I entered the Yellow River this time, I saw that the people avoided me as if I were ferocious beasts or poisonous insects. If I hadn't used food as bait and salt and linen as bridges, I would have been unable to come into contact with these people.

Even so, after accepting our kindness, these people spoke out one after another, saying that they would not tell outsiders.

Your Excellency often says, "Just do good things and don't worry about the future." I think that not all the villages along the Yellow River should be under the jurisdiction of the Tang Dynasty prefectures. I think that once they are incorporated into the prefectures, these people who have not paid taxes for decades will surely be oppressed by the court.

If so, what is the original intention of my visit to the people along the Yellow River? "

Yun Chu nodded and said, "If I don't tell you about your father's promotion and wealth, you won't tell me the truth, right?"

Yao Chong bowed and said calmly, "This is the norm in the officialdom. With your great love for me, I will certainly forgive you."

Yun Chu smiled bitterly and said, "You've taken advantage of me. Don't do this again next time. This time, just do as you said and choose to cooperate with the Longzhong government."

Watching Yao Chong leave triumphantly, a smile appeared on Yun Chu's face.

That’s right, what Yao Chong asked for was exactly what he wanted.

Although this boy was smart, he was young after all. He only knew that he had visited the survivors along the Yellow River, but he didn't know that those who followed him were all the shopkeepers and employees of the Yun family.

After being together for four years, even if Yao Chong was smart enough, he would be influenced by the group, not to mention that those people were his companions who had been through life and death with him.

Smart people hate being forced to do things the most, so Yun Chu let Yao Chong get what he wanted by himself and let Yao Chong set his goals by himself. Then there would be no problem. Yao Chong would definitely keep the secret of a large part of the survivors hidden deep in his heart and would be moved by himself for the rest of his life.

The development of the Yellow River loop was initiated by Liushui brand, with the aim of making use of the Yellow River's water transportation and finding supply points for water transportation. As long as water transportation begins on the Yellow River, Liushui brand's goal will be achieved. As for the emergence of some unnamed villages in the middle, they are busy making money and should have no intention of managing them.

The consequences of Yun Chu beheading Chen Zheng in the street finally came.

In Luoyang, Yun Chu was attacked by the ministers. Even Wenrou and Di Renjie were dissatisfied with Yun Chu's domineering behavior. They all pleaded with the emperor to take back the authority given to Yun Chu to act at his discretion. After three days of consideration, the prince and the queen finally sent all the memorials to Jiucheng Palace to remove Yun Chu's authority to act at his discretion, for the emperor to make the final decision.

Emperor Li Zhi, who only had one eye left, looked at the pile of impeachment memorials and flipped through two of them. He then asked Ruichun, "Why did Yunchu kill Chen Zheng?"

Ruichun said without hesitation: "Chen Zheng killed sixty-seven palace slaves and dumped their bodies in Wannian County Market."

Li Zhi was stunned for a moment and asked, "Just for this?"

Ruichun said: "It's for this matter."

Li Zhi threw the memorial in his hand heavily on the table and said angrily: "I personally gave Yun Chu the power to act at his own discretion, but this idiot wasted his time just to kill Chen Zheng?
Are there any other reasons?
Yun Chu didn't use this power even when he was forced to flee with his family in Luoyang. How can a mere Chen Zheng be qualified to do so?"

Facing the furious emperor, Ruichun wiped the sweat from his forehead and whispered, "Chang'an has been relatively peaceful recently, and Yunchu is trying his best to eliminate the impact of the massacre in the imperial city on Chang'an.

He even used many of his own industries as bait to draw the attention of Chang'an people to the Yun family's ruin. Nowadays, Chang'an people are busy opening restaurants, shops, steaming wine and making disinfectants. This matter has spread to cities such as Luoyang, Chengdu, and Yangzhou, and restaurants, shops, and wine-making workshops that are exactly the same as Yun's have appeared.

I personally think that killing Chen Zheng might be Yun Chu's way of handing over power."

Li Zhi thought for a moment and denied it categorically: "Yun Chu has always acted in a domineering manner. If you want to act in a domineering manner, you must have the power to make others fear you, and taking advantage of others is one of them.

At the same time, everyone, including Yun Chu himself, should understand that the so-called advantage can only be gained once. If it happens again, it would be an act of usurpation. Based on my understanding of Yun Chu, killing a Chen Zheng... Humph, it is really a waste of talent.

Send Yunchu's memorial to me so I can take a look at it. There must be something strange in it that I haven't discovered."

The eunuch immediately hurriedly brought all the memorials that Yun Chu had submitted to the emperor since returning to Chang'an. Li Zhi closed his eyes and listened to the secretary's trembling recitation...

If it was only Yun Chu himself who asked to hand over power, the emperor would not have made such a big fuss. But now, everyone is suggesting that the emperor cancel this power, which is a big problem.

After listening to Yun Chu's chapter, Li Zhi's eyes were a little confused. He always felt that there must be something he didn't notice.

He was in a bad mood and couldn't think deeply, so he said directly to Ruichun: "Give Yunchu a private letter from me and ask him why he eliminated such an important power on Chen Zheng instead of doing something bigger."

Ruichun said: "This..."

Li Zhi turned around and said, "I am now a terrifying emperor, but Yun Chu still believes in Li Zhi."

Upon hearing this, Ruichun did not dare to delay any further and went downstairs to write a letter to Yun Chu in Li Zhi's tone.

Li Zhi sighed, leaned against the giant bear's belly and whispered, "Everyone in the world thinks that I favor Yun Chu too much, but they don't know that I am old and weak now, and I need a tiger to protect me. If a tiger has no claws, is it still a tiger?"

(End of this chapter)