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

Chapter 92: The Honest Niu Sengru

Feeling Li Ang's scrutinizing gaze, Niu Sengru was not flustered. Instead, he bowed again with composure and said...

"It is a subject's duty to be honest with his sovereign. Since I knew about this matter beforehand, there is no reason for me to hide it from Your Majesty."

"What a fine example of a subject's duty!"

Li Ang gave a cryptic smile and said.

"So what do you think I should do after hearing all this? Should I summon Du Cong for a face-to-face confrontation, or should I pursue charges against Du Cong for his secret collusion?"

The tone of the words was calm and even, but the content subtly revealed a sense of doubt and questioning.

However, Niu Sengru remained calm in the face of this situation and said...

"Your Majesty, I dare not presume to guess your intentions. If Your Majesty wishes to summon Governor Du for a confrontation, it is not impossible. However, at that time, we only communicated verbally, and Governor Du may not necessarily admit it."

"So, you're saying there's no evidence?"

Li Ang's tone suddenly turned somber as he stared coldly at Niu Sengru and said...

"Do you know that based solely on your words just now, I could convict you of falsely accusing a high-ranking official?"

Niu Sengru remained silent, but still composed.

After pondering for a moment, he bowed again and said.

"Your Majesty, I have heard that there is a commander in the Eastern Depot who is in charge of investigation and espionage, and can serve as Your Majesty's eyes and ears. In terms of today's matter alone, in addition to asking for my help, Du Cong must have been secretly colluding with those censors."

"Your Majesty only needs to order the Eastern Depot to investigate these censors, especially the one in the Waiting-for-Leaks Court, to find out who they have been associating with recently. This will naturally prove whether I am falsely accusing Du Cong."

These words immediately chilled the atmosphere in the hall even more.

Li Ang once again sized up this minister, whose reputation was mixed throughout history, his eyes revealing a hint of danger.

It should be noted that during this period, most of the limelight of the Eastern Depot was actually focused on Ximen Jixuan, while the two commanders were basically not very noticeable.

Li Deyu had already guessed it, which was understandable, since Li Ang's visit to his residence that day was indeed a coincidence.

However, it was quite unusual that Niu Sengru would notice such a low-profile institution upon his return to the capital.

"The Eastern Depot's duty is to investigate cases. Why should I investigate Du Cong without any reason?"

In fact, Li Ang had already sent people to investigate the day he left Xingqing Palace, but the results had not yet been returned.

However, such words are obviously not something that can be said aloud.

Niu Sengru clearly noticed the change in atmosphere, and after a moment's thought, he realized the reason for Li's change.

So he said again, "Your Majesty, this is not something I made up. It was Du Cong who mentioned it to me on the way. He said that recently there are many spies in the Eastern Depot who regularly send information about important ministers in the court to the palace to report to Your Majesty, reminding me to be careful with my words and actions. That's why I know that the Eastern Depot still has this function."

It's Du Cong again?

A hint of doubt flashed in Li Ang's eyes.

He suddenly looked at Niu Sengru, his tone questioning, and asked.

"Minister Niu, I have long heard that you are a refined and upright man. Du Cong was able to confide in you, so the two of you must have some personal relationship. Now you come before me and tell me about his private collusion. Can this be considered the behavior of a gentleman?"

Even now, Li Ang's view of Niu Sengru remains negative.

There's nothing we can do; this leader of the Niu Party, from the moment he appeared, has shown nothing likable about him, whether in his words or actions.

Upon hearing this, Niu Sengru remained silent for a moment before shaking his head.

"A subject should be loyal and a friend should be righteous. I am loyal to Your Majesty by reporting the truth to you. I am also righteous to you by not watching Du Cong go astray."

The answer was basically the same as before, but this time, Niu Sengru's words seemed to subtly reveal another meaning.

Li Ang pondered for a moment, then did not dwell on Du Cong's matter, but instead asked a question.

What is your opinion of Li Deyu?

Everyone knows that Niu and Li are at odds. On that snowy night, Li Ang asked Li Deyu this question, and naturally, he would give Niu Sengru the same opportunity.

Niu Sengru didn't hesitate much when asked this question and quickly replied, "He has talent and ambition, and in these two aspects alone, he is fit to be a prime minister. However, he is too radical and reckless in his actions and likes to take risks. If he succeeds, he can be remembered for all time; if he fails, he can be a sinner for all eternity."

Unlike Li Deyu's previous assessment, which was clearly somewhat insincere, Niu Sengru's evaluation sounded more like that of a political enemy.

However, after hearing this, a smile appeared on Li Ang's face, and he said.

"He is now the prime minister appointed by me personally. Are you saying that I have poor judgment and have entrusted the wrong person to me?"

"Your subject dares not..." Niu Sengru bowed with his hands clasped and said, "As the ancients said, governing a large country is like cooking a small fish. Sometimes you need to boil it over a high fire, and sometimes you need to simmer it over a low fire. Li Deyu has his talents, but he also has his faults. If we use his talents, it will benefit the country. But if we let his faults run rampant, I'm afraid it will lead to the collapse of the country."

"So, who is more suitable for slow cooking?" Li Ang understood the implication in the other person's words and quickly asked with a smile.

"Your Majesty, I am your subject," Niu Sengru replied succinctly and without hesitation.

"You're not being modest at all..." Li Ang looked him up and down, but his tone revealed a hint of disbelief.

Seeing this, Niu Sengru was not angry and replied, "Your Majesty, I dare to guess that this summons to the capital was suggested by Li Deyu, wasn't it?"

Upon hearing this, Li Ang finally perked up a bit: "How did you know?"

He did not deny it, because there was no need to.

Yes or no, as the emperor, Li Ang did not help Li Deyu conceal these responsibilities.

A smile finally appeared on Niu Sengru's face as he said, "Your Majesty, I have served in the same court as Li Deyu for so many years, so I can still guess some things."

Seeing this, Li Ang became even more interested and said, "Then tell me, how did you guess it?"

Niu Sengru replied, "Your Majesty, it is not difficult at all. My relationship with Li Deyu has been strained for a long time because of the Weizhou incident. According to his usual style of doing things, now that he has entered the Secretariat as the prime minister, he will surely consider how to settle me."

Niu Sengru used the word "place" very cleverly, which made Li Ang's eyes light up immediately, and he recalled his conversation with Li Deyu on that snowy night.

However, he did not show any expression, because Niu Sengru continued to speak.

"Your Majesty, I am not saying that Li Deyu is a bad person. It is just that I have disagreed with him on political issues for many years. Even if it were simply because of his so-called ambitions, I would not allow him to return to the capital and see Your Majesty so easily."

"This was my first doubt when I received the summons. Afterwards, when I returned to the capital, I found that Li Deyu was single-mindedly focused on the Shence Reforms and paid no attention to my return to the capital. This was my second doubt."

"Today in court, I deliberately used the matter of the Imperial Censor of the Waiting Room to express a contrary opinion to Li Deyu, yet he still showed me considerable tolerance. This is the third point of doubt."

"There must be something fishy going on when things are out of the ordinary. Excessive pretense in everything will only expose your flaws."

"Given these three doubts, based on my understanding of him, it is not difficult to conclude that Li Deyu is not ignoring me, but rather deliberately concealing something."

"Perhaps he set a trap, waiting for me to step into it; or perhaps he wanted to leave an image of being magnanimous and uninvolved in factional strife before His Majesty..."

"Of course, it's possible that it's both, but in either case, I must return to the capital first."

"Therefore, I dare to guess that it was he who suggested to Your Majesty that I be summoned back to the capital."