"I met your stepfather this morning."

Li Mu said quietly: "Presumably, the righteous father is here to thank you...... Yesterday, His Majesty's righteous father was the Duke of England, and the minister happened to be present. ”

Li Shimin shook his head and said, "He's not here to thank you, you're a pretense, he's here to test me." ”

Test? Or did the courtiers test the emperor? That's not a good word!

Li Mu hurriedly said: "Your Majesty must not misunderstand, the loyalty of the righteous father can be seen from the sun and the moon, and he will definitely not be the kind of villain who tempts the monarch's father......"

"Don't be in a hurry just yet." Li Shimin interrupted Li Mu's words and said, "You listen to me first......

Li Shimin paused and said, "Your father-in-law, Li Ji, I have always been trustworthy. Otherwise, I would not have ordered him to defend and annex the state at the beginning of his reign, when the four sides were unstable, and guard against the Turks. But your stepfather is too cautious by nature. He came to see me today, except for thanksgiving, because he wanted to return to Bingzhou and ask me to answer. ”

Li Mu was stunned for a moment, then thought about it, and reacted.

Li Siwen is Li Ji's son, and now he has done something wrong, and it also leads to the past when Li Ji helped Li Jiancheng more than ten years ago. Although Li Shimin did not punish excessively, he even sealed Li Ji. However, Li Ji was still not at ease. He came to ask Li Shimin to send him to Bingzhou, which was a tentative move. It is one of the 'Han Kyushu' and is a military important place to defend the Central Plains. Further north, or west, were the territories of the Turks. Although the Turks are extinct, there are still many nomadic tribes, which should not be underestimated.

Such an important place, the emperor will definitely use his most trusted people to defend it. Moreover, the generals who defend the border will be in charge of the army. If the emperor is suspicious of a person, will he dare to use it? Not afraid of rebellion?

Li Ji used this method to test his position in Li Shimin's heart. If Li Shimin agrees to him, it means that the emperor's grace is still there, and he can rest assured. But if Li Shimin doesn't allow it, even if he doesn't have suspicion, according to Li Ji's character, I'm afraid he will be in a panic all day.

Li Shimin saw through this point and said that Li Ji was testing him.

Li Shimin observed Li Mu's expression, and guessed that Li Mu had already understood what was going on, and sighed: "Li Mu, I am very sad in my heart. I don't understand, why everyone in the world is so suspicious of my words and deeds? Li Siwen did something wrong, and I blamed him. Did I do it wrong? I was also worried that Li Ji would think too much and seal him, but I didn't expect that it still couldn't make him feel at ease, and in turn I had to test my mind...... Am I really like a man with a deep city? ”

How do you answer this question?

Li Mu couldn't help but cry out in his heart, this is a question that must be wrong. If you say yes, Li Shimin will be dissatisfied, and if you say no, it seems that he is a fool again.

Li Mucai would not answer such a stupid question, and said, "Your Majesty, the minister thinks that this has nothing to do with the city government. Your Majesty, as the Son of Heaven, is the Emperor. The emperor's words and deeds affect the world. It is human nature for a father-in-law to have fear in his heart. Didn't the minister also lose his temper yesterday? Chen thought, if it were anyone, I'm afraid he would be worried, right? ”

Li Shimin smiled, and instead of taking this compliment, he asked: "I didn't give him an answer right away, and now I come to ask you, do you think I should let your stepfather go to Merge State?" ”

"Hmm......" Li Mu groaned.

When Li Mu was in the Ministry of Industry before, he had seen the geographical map of mountains and rivers in Yubu. The land of this annexation is a very large area. In ancient times, the world was divided into "Kyushu", Yuzhou, Qingzhou, Xuzhou, Yangzhou, Jingzhou, Liangzhou, Yongzhou, Jizhou, and Yanzhou. After King Wu destroyed Yin Shang, he merged Xuzhou into Qingzhou, merged Liangzhou into Yongzhou, and divided the state and Youzhou with the land of Jizhou. Since then, there has been no Liang and Xu in Kyushu, but there is seclusion and harmony.

In the Han Dynasty, it led nine counties, including Taiyuan, Shangdang, Xihe, Yunzhong, Dingxiang, Yanmen, Shuofang, Wuyuan, and Shangjun. Li Tang's Longxing land Jinyang, and coal-producing Shuozhou, Taiyuan and other places, all in Bingzhou.

Li Ji was appointed to merge the state, and according to the current territory of the Tang Dynasty, he managed at least one-seventh of the territory of the Tang Dynasty, and he was not wronged. But in terms of the court, it is a big disadvantage. In the future, if there is a vacancy in the three provinces and six departments, it will definitely not give priority to the ministers of the feudal territory, and Li Ji wants to enter the center, which can be regarded as an obstacle.

But Li Ji's thoughts, Li Mu can also guess a few points. If Li Shimin let him go to Bingzhou, it will show that he still trusts him, and he doesn't have to worry about what happened back then. Second, after Dingxiang was recovered, it was re-established as Zhechong Mansion, which happened to be under the jurisdiction of the annexation state, and when he became the merger of the state, he became Li Siwen's boss, and he could take care of it to some extent.

For Li Mu, in addition to these two items, if Li Ji is in the state, his mining industry will have an internal response. Li Mu has always been worried that he has no influence in the local area, and he has not relied on it when negotiating with the Taiyuan Wang clan and others, but if Li Ji is in the state, it will be very different.

Li Mu thought for a long time, and finally spoke, "Your Majesty, if you ask the minister's opinion, the minister's opinion is that Your Majesty should allow your father-in-law to go to the state." ”

Li Shimin remained silent and continued to ask, "What is the reason?" ”

"Your Majesty, there are two reasons for being subordinate to the public, one is half public and half private, which one does Your Majesty want to hear first?"

"Let's talk about Yu Gong first."

Li Mu said solemnly: "Your Majesty, the minister's father-in-law is an upright and loyal person. In his early years, he did Li Mi, and then Li Mi was defeated and had to surrender, and his father-in-law mastered the soldiers and horses and territories of Wagangzhai, and he could have stood on his own, or dedicated his troops and horses to the emperor and did his own steps. But he still insisted on counting these soldiers and territories on Li Mi's head, and sought a reward for Li Mi. Such a loyal person thinks that he can be trusted. ”

"And since his father-in-law returned to the Tang Dynasty, he has never done any rebellious behavior. In the Xuanwu Sect affair back then, although the father-in-law did not stand on His Majesty's side, he did not stand on the side of Prince Yin. The minister asked his father-in-law, and the father-in-law replied that he was loyal to the emperor, and the emperor at that time was the emperor. Therefore, the minister did not feel that the father-in-law had done wrong, but felt that His Majesty should trust such a courtier, and now the father-in-law has made great contributions to the destruction of the Turks, which is exactly what the minister thinks, and the minister's father-in-law is a loyal and upright minister, as long as His Majesty trusts him, he will not fail His Majesty. But the flaws in his character cannot be remedied. If His Majesty does not let him go to the annexation state, he will be in fear all day. Your Majesty will also lose a general because of this, what good will it do for Your Majesty? ”

"On the other hand, the annexation of the state is a place to be rushed, and Your Majesty also needs someone who can sit in the town to defend it. When His Majesty ascended the throne, he used the minister's father-in-law to sit in the town and annex the state, why did he use him at the beginning, but now he doesn't use it? The minister thought that His Majesty's original choice showed that in His Majesty's heart, his father-in-law was the best candidate, and it should be the same now, which was the first reason for his minister. ”

Li Shimin nodded and said; "What's the second reason?"

"Mine!"

Li Mu said loudly: "Your Majesty still remembers 'coal'? Shuozhou and Taiyuan, which produce coal, are under the jurisdiction of the state. Although the minister proposed to cooperate with the Taiyuan Wang clan and other gate valves, but in the local area, the influence of the imperial court is not as good as that of the gate valves, and the minister was worried that the cooperation would be blinded. If the father-in-law is watching in the state, it will greatly reduce the possibility of the court being blinded, and it will also increase the bargaining chips for the court when negotiating. ”

Li Shimin's brows furrowed, and this second reason was in his heart. Li Shimin has a natural distrust of the gate valve family. And Li Ji has adhered to neutrality for many years, which Li Shimin sees in his eyes. He believed that Li Ji would not be in the same stream as the Taiyuan Wang family, and in this way, he could indeed play some role in the local area.

But he still did not say anything, but asked: "What about the half-public and half-private reason?" ”

"Uh......" Li Mu was a little embarrassed, and said: "If the righteous father can sit in the town and merge the state, it can also be convenient for the ministers to do some business." Don't hide it from Your Majesty, the minister has recently engaged in some gadgets, which are considered some luxury goods, and they are going to be sold to the 'high-end people' with spending power, such as the young lady of the gate valve family, the young lady of the local family, it is useless, but it is very expensive, and there are two big gate valves in the state, dozens of big families, for the minister, it is an indispensable market! ”

"Something new?" Li Shimin still has a lot of trust in Li Mu's ability to make money, and immediately said: "Don't forget, you kid, now you are still carrying the internal order?" Don't just focus on making money for yourself and forget about my money! ”

"Of course I won't forget it! Therefore, is it said that the minister is half public and half private? Li Mu said with a smile: "Your Majesty put it down, and the business made by the ministers will have Your Majesty's share." ”

Li Shimin bowed his head and said: "This is about the same, okay, I will give you a face, and then I will issue an order, ordering Li Ji to be the governor of the state and go to his post tomorrow!" ”

Li Mu hurriedly got up and bowed, and said, "The minister has thanked His Majesty for his grace for his father-in-law." ”

"You...... He is a child with affection and righteousness. Li Ji accepted your righteous son, and counted him as a bargain. Li Shimin said, got up and helped Li Mu up, and said, "Go ahead, do something for me." And also...... This mahjong, I want a set of jade carvings for collection. Presumably...... You're not going to let me down, are you? ”

Knock! Bamboo! Lever!

Jade mahjong, you really dare to ask for it!

Li Mugang wanted to refuse, but looking at Li Shimin's expression, if he didn't agree, it seemed that something was going to happen, so he hurriedly squeezed out a 'happy' smile and said: "To serve Your Majesty, the minister is naturally willing, and the minister will arrange it immediately, and within three days, His Majesty will definitely see Jade Mahjong." ”

Li Shimin smiled with satisfaction, patted Li Mu's shoulder, and said, "I know that you will not let me down." ”

With that, he laughed and walked away. Li Mu looked at his back, and was ruthless a few times, but he didn't say anything. Li Shimin walked out of dozens of meters, stopped and asked the father-in-law behind him, and said, "Gao Gan, can you help me take a look at the expression of that kid Li Mu?" Your face is black, right? ”

Gao Gonggong stretched his neck and glanced at it, gloating: "Your Majesty, it's dark, I look so distressed, I stomp my feet there!" ”

"Knocking on Li Mu's bamboo pole, I'm so happy! Jade mahjong will definitely cost him a lot of money! ”

Gao Gonggong hurriedly patted his ass: "Your Majesty is wise!" The old slave couldn't think of such an idea. ”

"Haha......"