The revitalization of the Tang Dynasty began with the Ganlu Incident.

Chapter 106: Li Deyu's Teachings

As night deepened, at the Li residence.

After leaving the palace, Xue Yuanshang did not go directly back to his residence, but instead went back to Li Deyu's residence with him.

After all, what happened today was too sudden. Since it involved someone like Guo Zhongwen, Xue Yuanshang still had to consult his teacher on how to handle the situation.

In the study, the two sat facing each other, a wisp of sandalwood incense slowly rising and lingering in the air.

Li Deyu picked up his teacup, took a sip, looked at the silent Xue Yuanshang, and shook his head.

"Are you asking whether what Liu Hongyi and the other man said when they parted ways outside the hall was true?"

Xue Yuanshang hesitated for a moment, but couldn't help nodding and saying.

"My dear teacher, you really are..."

He only said half of what he meant, and ultimately didn't finish his sentence.

Li Deyu, on the contrary, remained very calm and said, "If you call it scheming, you could call it scheming, but to be more precise, I just had this idea in my mind, but I didn't expect things to happen so quickly."

Xue Yuanshang remained silent for a moment, because Li Deyu's words, though seemingly a denial, were actually an admission that he had deliberately suppressed the official documents in order to wait for things to escalate.

Seemingly sensing his student's thoughts, Li Deyu shook his head and said.

"You are still young. If you have the opportunity to become prime minister in the future, you will understand that sometimes loyalty is not necessarily unconditional. As ministers, we are not servants of the saints. Sometimes we must fight for what we should fight for and calculate what we should calculate."

"Between the ruler and his subjects, there are times when they need to be honest with each other, but there are also times when they need to act independently. How to grasp the balance between these two is the true test of a person's ability to stand firm in the central government."

Li Deyu greatly admired Xue Yuanshang, his student.

For this reason, he was actually grooming Xue Yuanshang as a successor who could inherit his political legacy.

He wouldn't easily pass on such valuable political experience to anyone else.

However, in the face of Li Deyu's "teachings", Xue Yuanshang did not respond, but remained silent for a moment before speaking.

"Master, I don't understand. In my opinion, a minister should share the burdens of the ruler. If that's the case, one should act openly and honestly. The court has its own laws and regulations, and I also believe that the sage is not one who does not accept advice."

"If only we could have informed His Majesty about Guo Zhongwen's case earlier..."

"Then this case will be suppressed by the Empress Dowager!"

Before Xue Yuanshang could finish speaking, Li Deyu interrupted him with the second half of his sentence.

"Do you think that Guo Zhongwen can be tried now only because the Emperor has just learned of this case?"

Xue Yuanshang frowned, a hint of doubt in his eyes: "Master..."

Seeing this, Li Deyu shook his head and said, "Have you ever wondered why Li Shengrong, the commander of the Eastern Depot, was suddenly beaten to death at this time?"

"Moreover, it happened at the time when the Sage summoned us to question Guo Zhongwen about the case. Was this a coincidence, or was it intentional?"

Upon hearing this, Xue Yuanshang hesitated for a moment, recalling his conversation with Wang Wenqian and others, and said hesitantly, "If I remember correctly, Li Shengrong was beaten to death because he leaked secrets of the Forbidden City without authorization... Could it be...?"

Seemingly realizing something, Xue Yuanshang's expression changed drastically, and he said, "Could it be that Li Shengrong and Guo Zhongwen are colluding?"

Li Deyu nodded and said, "That's most likely the case. Otherwise, the Sage wouldn't have had him beaten to death at this critical juncture."

"But what does this have to do with thoroughly investigating Guo Zhongwen's case?" Xue Yuanshang was still somewhat puzzled.

Seeing this, Li Deyu said, "You should know that when the Eastern Depot was established, the Emperor set up ironclad rules. The chief eunuch of the Eastern Depot was responsible for investigating major cases, and the two commanders were responsible for investigation and espionage. The three of them were independent and directly under the Emperor's orders. No one else was allowed to interfere."

"To put it bluntly, the Eastern Depot is the eyes and ears of the emperor, so loyalty is paramount. If we're talking about which eunuchs in the inner palace must never have any private connections with other forces, then it can only be the Eastern Depot."

"But now, Guo Zhongwen dares to extend his reach into the Eastern Depot, and Li Shengrong dares to leak information that the Eastern Depot has uncovered, which is a taboo of the sage."

"This taboo is both real and displayed for all to see. Li Shengrong's execution by flogging is a testament to the sage's resolve..."

Xue Yuanshang's eyes flickered slightly, and he finally understood: "Master means that the Emperor is using this matter to silence the Empress Dowager?"

Li Deyu nodded, a smile finally appearing on his face, and said, "If it only involves private loans within the military, then even if Guo Zhongwen violates the law to the extreme, the Empress Dowager will have no choice but to let the matter rest."

"But if he dares to collude with the Eastern Depot, he is courting death. This reason may not be out in the open, but it is enough for the Emperor to find another reason to refuse the Empress Dowager."

"Therefore, in this imperial court, whether it's the emperor or you and me, we're all just scheming against each other, caught in a machination of unpredictable events, manipulating the situation for our own benefit, that's all..."

In the end, Li Deyu returned to the original topic.

This time, however, Xue Yuanshang fell silent. Clearly, his conviction was no longer as firm as it had been at the beginning. But it wouldn't be so easy to get him to completely accept Li Deyu in a short time.

Seeing this, Li Deyu shook his head inwardly and did not insist, but said...

"So, tell me, what are your plans for this case?"

Mentioning this, Xue Yuanshang finally perked up a bit and said, "Since the Emperor has already ordered a thorough investigation, then naturally we must investigate to the end."

"As the Right Shence General, Guo Zhongwen is a good starting point. If we investigate him, we can definitely implicate many other generals. If we can continue this investigation, we can at least deter the entire army from engaging in private lending, and they will not dare to act rashly again."

"In addition, the cases that Governor Yang mentioned in the court today should not be overlooked and must be investigated further."

Putting aside other aspects, Xue Yuanshang was a radical in promoting reforms, which was both what Li Deyu valued most about him and what gave him the biggest headache.

Looking at his enthusiastic student, Li Deyu pondered for a moment before speaking.

"An investigation is fine, a thorough investigation is fine, but I still have to remind you that you can't keep pressing the issue. Yang Qinyi's words in the palace today were not only because the emperor was angry and he had no choice but to do so in a moment of desperation, but also because they reflected his bottom line."

"More than twenty generals, more than seventy assistants, plus two Shence generals—this scale is already a crippling blow to the Shence Army. If the Jingzhao Prefecture continues to pursue this matter further, it will likely cause chaos."

Unlike his previous relatively mild tone, Li Deyu's expression was noticeably more serious this time.

"Therefore, you must remember not to be too reckless, otherwise, not only may you be in danger, but it is also easy for things to go to extremes and affect important state affairs."

Xue Yuanshang pondered for a moment and understood the reasoning, then cupped his hands in greeting.

"Rest assured, teacher, I will not act rashly..."

Li Deyu nodded and said, "I'll leave the investigation to you. If nothing unexpected happens, there will be quite a stir in the court in the coming days. You'll be in the middle of it all, so you need to be careful and self-disciplined. If you encounter any difficulties that you can't resolve, come to me immediately, and I will help you."

"Thank you, Master." Xue Yuanshang bowed with his hands clasped, then rose to take his leave.

As night deepened, Li Deyu didn't see him off, but simply watched his student's figure slowly disappear into the distance...