Yang Kai was a clever man, a very clever man.
When he saw Mou Liangbi and Zong Lianghu waiting outside, he knew that their fortunes were about to change. Although he didn't concern himself with court affairs, he wasn't ignorant. Yu Donglai had first been demoted to Vice Minister, and then had to submit his own resignation. The positions of Minister of War and Vice Minister were vacant if one was left vacant, but leaving both vacant was clearly unreasonable.
After the former Vice Minister of War, Hou Junci, was beheaded, Yu Donglai had struggled to maintain the position alone. Now that he too had fallen, His Majesty couldn't allow the Ministry of War to remain vacant and unmanaged.
At this critical juncture, the appearance of these two virtuous ministers at Changchun Garden revealed His Majesty's intentions.
The Two Virtuous Ministers.
This title had a long history.
Mou Liangbi, Zong Lianghu.
Eleven and a half years ago, they were imprisoned in the Imperial Prison, their crimes punishable by death. However, because His Majesty cherished their talents, they were only imprisoned and not executed. It should be noted that those whose crimes were far less serious than theirs were beheaded; their survival was already a great act of divine grace.
Their crime lay in their service to the Third Prince, Yang Ji.
During the struggle for the throne among the princes, the Third Prince, Yang Ji, was the most popular choice. Even on his deathbed, the late Emperor considered making him Crown Prince. However, at the last moment, the Fourth Prince, Yang Yi, now the Emperor, suddenly launched an attack. With the help of the Seventh Prince, Yang Qi, he led his army straight into Chang'an, entering the Taiji Palace in full armor and swords. The late Emperor, before his death, pointed at him and issued his will.
After ascending the throne, the Fourth Prince, Yang Yi, appeared mild-mannered, but over the years, he has quietly slaughtered almost all the former subordinates of the Third Prince and the First Prince. This is the current emperor's method. He has killed so many people, yet people still stubbornly believe he is the most lenient emperor since the founding of the Sui Dynasty. Achieving this is incredibly difficult, yet His Majesty has done it with effortless ease.
The reason why the Third Prince, Yang Ji, was the most likely to become the ruler of the Sui Dynasty was because of the guidance of two wise men behind him: Mou Liangbi and Zong Lianghu. The Third Prince was adept at making friends and performed many acts of righteousness, and many officials in the court favored him; the methods used to achieve this were all devised by these two.
Unfortunately, all his efforts were in vain.
Back then, the Third Prince, in his self-righteousness, ordered the Fourth Prince, Yang Yi, to lead troops out of the city to intercept the First Prince returning to Chang'an from the Eastern Frontier. Mou Liangbi and Zong Lianghu pleaded with him, but the Third Prince stubbornly believed that the Fourth Prince was of one mind with him and would never betray him. He even told Mou Liangbi, "If you speak ill of the Fourth Prince again, I will drag you out and skin you alive."
These words were undeniably heavy, so much so that Mou Liangbi lamented that the great undertaking was lost.
However, this also reveals the depth of His Majesty's cunning and shrewdness. He managed to make the ambitious Third Prince completely unsuspecting, even considering him his most trusted confidant, whose position surpassed that of the two loyal ministers. This demonstrates the extent to which His Majesty had deceived the Third Prince.
Mou Liangbi and Zong Lianghu could not persuade the Third Prince Yang Ji to eliminate the Fourth Prince, but they still considered a way to remedy the situation. They suggested that the Third Prince eliminate the Seventh Prince Yang Qi, who was closest to the Fourth Prince Yang Yi. After much consideration, Yang Ji refused. His reasoning was that eliminating Yang Qi would inevitably force the originally loyal Fourth Prince Yang Yi to rebel. Doing so would be a losing proposition, utterly without benefit.
Later, when the Seventh Prince Yang Qi guarded a city gate with hundreds of servants, it was Zong Lianghu who led troops to attack, attempting to slaughter all the guards. Unfortunately, he hadn't expected the Seventh Prince, Yang Qi, to be such a deeply hidden talent. He was one of the few still alive who had witnessed Yang Qi's power, and Yang Qi's domineering presence in that battle still haunted him.
Thousands of elite troops besieged a few hundred servants, yet they couldn't withstand him!
In that battle, that one man displayed divine might, single-handedly defending the city gate; thousands of elite soldiers couldn't even approach the entrance. Yang Qi fought fiercely without retreating, until the Fourth Prince, Yang Yi, returned with his troops in time. Amidst the bloodshed, Yang Yi ordered the slaughter of the imperial guards besieging the city gate; thousands of heads were chopped off, simply because they had wounded the Seventh Prince.
On the day of His Majesty's ascension to the throne, he had decreed that Mou Liangbi and Zong Lianghu be executed by slow slicing. It was only after Prince Zhong, Yang Qi, pleaded with His Majesty that he changed his mind, imprisoning the two in the Imperial Prison for eleven and a half years. When they emerged, they were unrecognizable.
Back then, these two were both renowned figures of romance and debauchery.
At that time, Chang'an had the "Ten Young Masters of the Brocade Robes," ten of the most talented, wealthy, and dashing scions of prominent families, chosen by the courtesans. Mou Liangbi and Zong Lianghu were among them. There were even rumors that when they visited brothels, many courtesans wouldn't accept money, and would even give them their savings. They were also the most unique among the Ten Young Masters. Mou Liangbi fared somewhat better, as the Mou family still had a certain reputation in the southwest. Zong Lianghu's family had long since declined; although he was born with the nominal title of Right Attendant, he had always relied on the charity of relatives and friends.
After meeting Mou Liangbi, Zong Lianghu's life improved somewhat.
And their joining the Third Prince's entourage marked the peak of their lives. Rumor has it that upon hearing the news that Young Master Zong had finally risen to prominence and was about to enter officialdom, many courtesans wept with joy, repeatedly praising their discerning eye and saying that their previous gifts of gold had not been in vain.
This speaks volumes about Zong Lianghu's popularity in the brothels.
...
...
Emperor Yang Yi glanced at the two loyal ministers sitting opposite him, their faces somewhat unpleasant, and pointed to the tea on the table, saying, "Not drinking?"
This question was somewhat abrupt, even startling Prince Xu, Yang Kai, who sat beside the emperor. In that instant, Yang Kai's heart tightened. His Majesty's question to the two loyal ministers about whether they wanted tea seemed simple, but it was far more than just a matter of drinking tea. If those two didn't understand the implications, things could easily go wrong.
However, he had no connection with these two, and given the presence of His Majesty, he couldn't subtly hint at it with his eyes. He could only lower his head and pretend to savor his tea.
After asking whether they would drink, the Emperor looked at Mou Liangbi and Zong Lianghu, awaiting their answer.
After a brief silence, Mou Liangbi glanced at Zong Lianghu, who first sighed softly, then nodded.
"Drink!"
The two men picked up their teacups and, ignoring the still-scalding tea, drank it down in one gulp. They drank it like wine, finishing it in one go. Because they drank so quickly, tea dripped onto their gray prison clothes, soaking a patch. This made them look even more wretched.
The once-proud young men in fine clothes—Mou Liangbi was only thirty-eight or thirty-nine, and Zong Lianghu only thirty-five—but they looked to be in their fifties or sixties. Their hair was disheveled, their clothes tattered, their beards reaching their chests, and the black grime under their fingernails was disgusting.
The marks of time were heavy on their faces; though not yet forty, their faces were already full of wrinkles.
These eleven and a half years in prison must have been extremely difficult for them. The Third Prince was dead, leaving them without any backing. In the imperial prison, they had no relatives to bribe the guards and jailers; their survival was already a miracle. If it weren't for the Ministry of War's manpower shortage, His Majesty might not have even remembered them. And if they had died mysteriously in prison before this, His Majesty probably wouldn't have bothered to blame anyone.
The two men finished their hot tea in one gulp, then stood up and bowed to the Emperor.
They refused to sit down again.
Emperor Yang Yi's lips curled slightly upwards, then he suddenly pointed to the plate of pastries on the table and asked, "Not eating?"
First he asked if they wouldn't drink? Then he asked if they wouldn't eat?
Since they had already drunk, why wouldn't they eat?
"Eat!"
The two men nodded simultaneously, then grabbed the pastries from the plate with their dirty, blackened hands and stuffed them into their mouths.
"Finished eating?"
The Emperor asked a third time.
The two men nodded again, eating faster and faster. Four plates of pastries were laid out on the table, enough to fill two burly men. The pastries were dry, and swallowing them in large mouthfuls could easily cause choking, but the two men, like hungry wolves, devoured all four plates in almost no time. Mou Liangbi puffed out his cheeks, looking at the Emperor, and hiccuped repeatedly. Zong Lianghu kept rubbing his chest, seemingly choking.
Yang Kai couldn't help but laugh. He glanced over and saw that the Emperor was laughing too.
These two unruly fellows, after eleven and a half years in prison, had finally become wise and understood the situation. They knew that now, they had no other way out but to obey the Emperor's orders.
"Are you full?"
The Emperor asked again.
"Yes, we're full."
The two men answered with their heads bowed. The Emperor waved his hand and said, "Su Buwei, take those two to bathe and change into clean clothes before coming back. The smell in my room will probably linger for three days."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Su Buwei quickly replied, smiling as he led the two subdued men out of the study. As Mou Liangbi stepped out of the room, he took a deep breath and stretched his body. Zong Lianghu glanced at him, then suddenly couldn't help but laugh, his cloudy eyes filled with tears.
"The smell in this garden is wonderful!"
Mou Liangbi said.
"It's better outside,"
Zong Lianghu said.
...
...
"How did Your Majesty know that these two would obey?"
Prince Yang Kai asked the Emperor with admiration. The Emperor smiled and said, "There are no outsiders here, so you can still call me Fourth Brother… The reason I knew they would obey, instead of refusing to beg for mercy like they did eleven years ago, is simple… because they've served eleven and a half years in prison and haven't died."
Yang Kai paused, then carefully considered the Emperor's meaning.
"Yes…"
He sighed, "For two criminals to survive in prison is truly remarkable. They must have gone to great lengths. For someone of their status and crimes to survive requires immense willpower and wisdom."
"They don't have great wisdom, but it's more than enough."
The Emperor laughed, "Since they value life, how dare they disobey me? If they weren't afraid of death, they would have died countless times during those eleven and a half years. The fact that they're alive shows they still have a will to live." "His pleas and expectations."
The Emperor rose, stretched, and said, "The affairs of the Ministry of War can be left to those two, but I didn't call you here just to chat. I know you've become lazy and complacent these past years, and you haven't been interested in returning to court to help me... But from today onward, you really need to get your mind to it. While I can let you handle the affairs of the Ministry of War, there's something even more difficult that I'm entrusting to you."
"Your Majesty, I obey your orders."
Yang Kai quickly stood up and bowed his head. "I have secretly transferred millions of shi (a unit of dry measure) of grain from seven granaries north of the Yangtze River. I have also transferred enough weapons and armor from the three imperial palaces of Jinyang, Beining, and Shuntian to equip 500,000 men, all to the Northwest. Furthermore, I have secretly mobilized 400,000 troops from the Northeast, Eastern Frontier, and Southwest, who have already been deployed to the Northwest. Most officials in the court are unaware of this; I will mention it in court when the time is right… Now, I need someone to go to the Northwest to oversee the situation."
He looked at Yang Kai and said, "This important task is best left to you."
Yang Kai's heart jolted, and his eyes widened instantly.
"Your Majesty... are you really going to wage war against the Northwest?"
The Emperor nodded, his voice resolute: "Every emperor of the Sui Dynasty has expanded its territory. Now that the empire is in my hands, how can I merely cling to what my ancestors left behind without striving for progress? I will not only push the borders of our Sui Dynasty outwards, but also westwards! I want to show the late Emperor that the Sui Dynasty was entrusted to me... he did not choose the wrong person."
Yang Kai was deeply troubled. He instinctively wanted to advise the Emperor against rashly launching a war against the Mongols, but seeing the unusual glint in the Emperor's eyes, he swallowed his words.
"I have already selected several talented young men to assist you. I will issue an edict to transfer them to the Northwest. Once you arrive, they will naturally come to your aid."
The Emperor walked to Yang Kai's side, patted his shoulder, and said, "Twelfth Prince, don't disappoint me!"