Da Tang Si Zi: My Six Super Rich Little Nuggets!

Chapter 336 The Time-Space Chess Game: How the Rhinoceros Piece "Manipulates the Game" - P

In the twenty-first year of the Kaiyuan era, Chang'an launched a "monthly rain package," which triggered a famine.

Emperor Xuanzong was so worried that he was scratching his head. He was so busy being emperor that he was almost starving. He had to find a reliable person to solve the problem. He quickly summoned Pei Yaoqing, the Prefect of Jingzhao, and started a "brainstorming session".

Pei Yaoqing launched into a fierce analysis, then waved his hand and declared, "Your Majesty, let's dredge the canals and 'deliver' the grain from the Jianghuai region. That'll be enough to feed Chang'an!"

Li Longji's eyes lit up, and he immediately decided, "Let's do it this way!" In October, Pei Yaoqing was promoted and given a raise. He not only became a Gentleman Attendant at the Palace Gate and a Chancellor, but also served as the Transport Commissioner of Jianghuai and Henan, making him the "Logistics Director" of the Tang Dynasty.

In the twenty-second year of the Kaiyuan era, Pei Yaoqing was promoted to the position of Attendant-in-Ordinary, a position equivalent to that of a prime minister. He transformed into an "infrastructure maniac," building the Heyin Granary, Jijin Granary, and Sanmen Granary along the Yellow River, creating a super-large "grain reserve."

He collected grain from all over the country, going against the tide, and in just three years, he accumulated seven million shi of grain and saved three hundred thousand strings of cash in transportation costs. Some people advised him: "Quickly present this money to the emperor, it's a sure-fire way to get a promotion and a raise!" Pei Yaoqing waved his hand and turned to petition Emperor Xuanzong of Tang to use this money for government and market expenses, with the main goal of "opening up a new horizon."

However, no career is ever smooth sailing. In the twenty-fourth year of the Kaiyuan era, a "palace intrigue drama" suddenly unfolded in the imperial court... Li Linfu accused Yan Tingzhi, the Vice Minister of the Chancellery, of bending the law for personal gain, and Zhang Jiuling, the Chancellor, stepped forward to defend Yan Tingzhi.

When Emperor Xuanzong of Tang saw this, he was furious and immediately accused Zhang Jiuling of "forming cliques" and dismissed him from his position as prime minister.

Pei Yaoqing was targeted by Li Linfu because of his good relationship with Zhang Jiuling. He was demoted from prime minister to the honorary position of Left Chancellor. Although he was granted the title of Marquis of Zhaocheng, he was probably feeling extremely disheartened.

However, Pei Yaoqing is not one to "lie down and do nothing".

Late one night in the twenty-fifth year of the Kaiyuan era, Xiao Sizi from the Imperial Observatory stumbled into the Pei residence carrying an astrolabe, his round eyes reflecting an eerie red light: "Lord Pei! The phenomenon of Mars guarding the heart has reappeared, signifying impending punishment and misfortune!"

Pei Yaoqing was dozing off while looking at the dossier when he was startled by the little girl. It turned out that Xiao Sizi had discovered an unusual celestial phenomenon while observing the stars during the day. Combined with the news that Emperor Xuanzong of Tang was going to punish Yang Jun with a cane, she knew the danger involved and had Zi'an bring her to find Uncle Pei Yaoqing that very night.

Pei Yaoqing stroked his beard and pondered for a moment. The next morning at court, he stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, prefects and magistrates are local officials, and it is extremely disgraceful for them to be humiliated in public. Moreover, it is the height of summer. After this beating, they will probably be heading straight to meet the King of Hell. Stop it!" Li Longji remembered the accurate prediction of the lunar eclipse by Xiao Sizi and saw Pei Yaoqing's sincere appearance, so he agreed.

In the autumn of the twenty-eighth year of the Kaiyuan era, Xiao Sizi, sporting dark circles under her eyes, blocked Pei Yaoqing's carriage again: "Uncle Yaoqing! The constellation Orion is in disarray, indicating that the general on the border has lost his virtue!" Pei Yaoqing lifted the curtain and saw that the astrolabe in Xiao Sizi's arms was still damp with dew, clearly indicating that she had been observing it all night. It turned out that she had discovered the anomaly of Orion and, connecting it to Gai Jiayun's indulgence in pleasure and neglect of his duties, had come to remind Pei Yaoqing again.

Upon hearing this, Pei Yaoqing hurriedly went to the palace to advise, "Your Majesty, although Gai Jiayun is brave, he is too arrogant, and this matter is in jeopardy. Now is a critical moment to strengthen border defenses, and he is still indulging in a life of debauchery. You cannot ignore this! Either replace him with someone else, or issue an edict urging him to take office as soon as possible!"

Although Emperor Xuanzong was skeptical, he still urged Gai Jiayun to complete the task. The result was predictable: Gai Jiayun returned empty-handed, and Xiao Sizi's astrological predictions and Pei Yaoqing's remonstrances became hot topics in the court…

But who would have thought that this matter was not over yet!

One day in June of the twenty-ninth year of the Kaiyuan era, in the Imperial Observatory, Zi'an watched Xiao Sizi fiddling with the star chart and couldn't help but gossip over: "Hey Xiao Sizi, you said before that the constellation Orion's rays were chaotic, what happened to Gai Jiayun afterward? Could it really have come true?"

Little Sizi didn't even look up, her little hand tracing patterns on the astrolabe: "That's right! The 40-strong Tibetan army marched aggressively westward into Changning Bridge, heading straight for the Anxi army. If it weren't for the extraordinary performance of General Zang Xiye, the cavalry commander of Hunya Peak, leading 5000 Tang soldiers, they might have suffered a huge loss!"

Zi'an's eyes widened: "That's really impressive, so what happened next?"

"And then?" Xiao Sizi sighed. "On December 28th, the Tubo came back again and directly captured Dahua County in Kuozhou. The people in the city... sigh. What's worse is Shibao City. Such a place that is easy to defend and difficult to attack, but because Gai Jiayun was lazy every day, it was easily taken by the Tubo! Gai Jiayun couldn't even put up a resistance. He just ran away and handed over such an important strategic point to others."

Zi'an was so shocked his jaw almost dropped: "My God! Wouldn't the emperor be furious?"

"It's more than just infuriating!" Little Sizi pouted. "Emperor Xuanzong dismissed Gai Jiayun from his post, and that guy vanished without a trace, as if he'd evaporated into thin air. It wasn't until June of the eighth year of the Tianbao era that Geshu Han led a large army and paid a heavy price to retake Shibao City. Tell me, if we had listened to Lord Pei and replaced him with a reliable general earlier, things wouldn't have turned out like this!"

Zi An shook his head and clicked his tongue: "It seems that this 'border defense script' really requires a combination of stargazing and advice!"

Xiao Sizi stopped what she was doing, the astrolabe glowing strangely in her palm. She gazed at the palace walls outside the window, her eyes filled with a calmness that seemed out of place in this era: "What does it matter? Stargazing or offering advice, they're all just pawns in my game. A game where you know the ending of history isn't fun at all. I don't want to be trapped in this Tang Dynasty script..."