At this time, after all, it was in front of Emperor Xuanzong, Li Xi didn't dare to have any expression on his face, even the smile that wanted to twitch was hidden tightly, he bowed over and sat down, quietly looked up at Emperor Xuanzong, but saw that he was also looking over, and when he looked at Li Xi's eyes, he smiled and said: "My home-cooked meal, you don't think it's slow." ”

At this time, Li Xi wanted to quickly get up and kneel down to the side as the chief teacher of the Ministry of Rites, and then perform with tears in his eyes, such as "Minister, don't dare, you have to be fed by Your Majesty, and the minister is grateful, even if you die nine times, it will be difficult to repay Your Majesty Longen" and other meaty words also gave him a basket, anyway, it's just a sycophant, if you really want to talk about it, there is really no one who won't say this kind of thing.

However, that has to require a certain thickness of the skin, obviously, Li Xi does not have this condition, although he repeatedly reminded himself that at the critical moment, the skin must be thicker, if you don't show loyalty, how can people know that you are loyal? But at this time, he still couldn't pull off that face, hesitated for a moment, he slowly blushed, bowed his head and said, "Minister, thank Your Majesty for the reward, your ...... Chen Ganming Five Inner ......"

Emperor Xuanzong smiled and didn't care, he thought it was caused by Li Xi's nervousness. It is not uncommon for people to be so nervous that they stammer, not to mention that Li Xi is only so old, and it is normal for him to be old enough, so he naturally won't go to his heart.

At this time, a tall chamberlain who had been standing beside Emperor Xuanzong without saying a word suddenly spoke: "Li Maocai, this is His Majesty's favorite Bingyu Lengtao, and next to it is Cherry Biluo, which is also His Majesty's favorite food, I will reward you for tasting it." ”

Maocai, also known as Maocai, is a kind of inspection in the Han Dynasty, the original Xiucai in the Western Han Dynasty, and changed to Maocai in the Eastern Han Dynasty because of the obscurity of Liu Xiu, the emperor of Guangwu. Mao, Miya. Those who are talented are also talented people, that is, excellent talents. In the Tang Dynasty, the term was still used.

At present, Li Xi is a sesame petty official, in front of Emperor Xuanzong and Gao Lishi, he is naturally not good to call an adult, so Gao Lishi calls Li Xi Maocai. Li Xi was a student of Jinyuan County School before, and then a student of Guozixue, but he has never been tested for any national fame, so it is more appropriate to call him Maocai.

At that moment, Li Xi looked up at the past while slandering in his heart, and then remembered the reminder of the head of the Ministry of Rites, he knew that this tall chamberlain should be Emperor Xuanzong Yanjing who called him a general.

There is the Tang generation, the famous great eunuch!

Although I couldn't cry or laugh at Emperor Xuanzong's banquet when he actually took out a bowl of cold noodles and a few cakes, I thought that it was already the end of autumn now, and it was about to enter winter in a blink of an eye...... But when he heard this, he hurriedly said: "Thank you, Your Majesty, uh, thank you General for reminding me." ”

After he said this, Emperor Xuanzong waved his hand, "Eat, eat." ”

When he was trained in the Ministry of Rites, the chief would not have thought that Li Xi would be given a banquet, and he would be rewarded with a meal with His Majesty the Emperor, so he never said it, but after Li Xi studied under Zhou Qiong, he learned some similar etiquette from him, and a very important point in dealing with people is that he is silent.

So after Emperor Xuanzong finished saying this, he buried himself in eating.

Li Xi took the chopsticks in his hand, saw that Emperor Xuanzong ate very well, then looked at Gao Lishi, and looked at the palace maids and eunuchs standing on both sides of the main hall, I didn't know how to eat this meal.

In the previous life, whether it was in novels or film and television works, the emperor gave a banquet, and he ate with the emperor, of course, it was a great honor, and it could be regarded as a very important way for the emperor to win over and praise the ministers, although Li Xi's treatment at the moment obviously cannot be called a "banquet", at best, it can only be called a meal, but after all, this is eaten with the emperor Lao Tzu, so fundamentally speaking, there is no difference from that kind of large-scale banquet.

For the emperor, it is just a meal for many people, maybe he doesn't feel like it, but Li Xi remembered in a trance that whenever this time, the ministers certainly felt very honored, but in front of the emperor, few people really ate with chopsticks, and even in front of the emperor, they only dared to sit on half of their buttocks, and they had to bow their heads between words, and they didn't dare to look up, which showed their awe. If you really shake off your cheeks and eat it, you will be snoring at that time, wouldn't it be a loss of honor in front of the king?

So at this time, seeing that Emperor Xuanzong was eating sweetly, and Li Xi was indeed hungry, he felt more and more embarrassed in his heart, not knowing whether to eat or not, or how to eat and how much to eat.

At this time, he looked around and saw that everyone in the hall hung their heads, including Gao Lishi, no one dared to look at Emperor Xuanzong's eating appearance, and unconsciously, he heard his stomach gurgling.

He was ruthless, picked up his chopsticks, picked up the bowl, simply let go, and began to eat the so-called "cold tao".

Not to mention, it is called Leng Tao, that is, cold noodles, but after all, the time is almost winter, and it is naturally impossible to be cold for the emperor to eat, so the noodles are warm and chew with an excellent taste, Li Xi was very hungry, and he ate a bowl of Leng Tao after a while, and then he picked up a "cherry Biluo" with chopsticks.

This Bi Luo is one of the important foods of the Tang Dynasty, in fact, the shape and preparation method are similar to the pies of later generations, called Cherry Bi Luo, the filling inside should naturally be cherries, don't look at Li Xi came to Chang'an and also went to a few famous restaurants, and tasted a lot of special food in various parts of the Tang Dynasty and Chang'an City, but he really hasn't eaten this cherry wrap in Bi Luo Li steamed and eaten.

Take a bite, the entrance is fragrant, and when I look down, the cherry is still bright red and bright.

Bi Luo is steamed, and the color of the cherries has not changed! And when chewed in the mouth, the sweetness of the cherry is also crisp and gluttonous...... This is no ordinary craft!

Li Xi had a great appetite, and he ate a cherry Biluo in three or five bites.

After eating one and was about to clip another one, he suddenly felt that something was wrong, looked up, and found that Emperor Xuanzong had finished eating, and was looking at himself with a smile and a groan.

Li Xi smiled awkwardly and quickly put down his chopsticks.

Emperor Xuanzong hurriedly said: "It's okay, you eat yours, just because I'm full doesn't mean you can't eat, continue, continue!" ”

No one eats it, do you want the emperor to watch there and continue to eat it yourself?

It's not right to think about it.

Li Xi smiled, picked up a few handkerchiefs and wiped his hands and face, quickly got up, and said, "Back to Your Majesty, the minister has run out, thank Your Majesty for the food!" ”

Emperor Xuanzong nodded when he heard this, threw the handkerchief in his hand to the palace maid on the side, and said, "Since you have finished eating, then let's talk about serious things!" ”

When Li Xi heard this, he hurriedly stood up respectfully.

"Actually, after seeing your piece of music, the first thing I thought of was to kill you!" Emperor Xuanzong said slowly.

Li Xi hurriedly lowered his head when he heard this, although he had long known that in order to deter the courtiers, this was the emperor's favorite trick, and according to his speculation, Emperor Xuanzong's words were still true, but when he thought of it, when this word personally popped out of Emperor Xuanzong's mouth, Li Xi couldn't help but be afraid for a while.

Fortunately, Emperor Xuanzong is a wise enough emperor and a wise man, and he is not old at the moment, and his ambition is still there, and he has not been eliminated by the drunken beauty. Li Xi said.

Emperor Xuanzong sighed, "After thinking about it, I still decided not to kill you, you are young and shallow, and it is common for you to be knowledgeable, so I transferred you to Chang'an and asked you to study in Guozi School, so that you can understand reason." Recently, I heard that you are still diligent in Guozixue, and you want to think about making progress under the hard work of these people? ”

What does this mean? Li Xi's mind turned a few times to understand, and then he couldn't help but disdain in his heart.

This Emperor Xuanzong turned out to be so dead to save face!

He understands and recognizes his share of the cantata, and he thinks that he has already determined that in his lifetime, he must do his best to stifle out the several possibilities described in his cantata, leaving the next emperor a peaceful world, but what about it, the feudal town was promoted by Emperor Xuanzong, how can Li Xi, an eighteen-year-old young boy, refute it?

Therefore, he recognizes and approves, but this face can't be wanted, if Li Xi wants to be reused, then it's good, you know and be interesting, keep your head down, and naturally everything is easy to say.

Although he expressed disdain for Emperor Xuanzong's style in his heart, at this juncture, Li Xi naturally had no interest in holding his neck against the emperor, so after hearing this, he thought for a while and said: "Thank you, Your Majesty, for the selection, the ministers listened to the lectures in the Guozi School, citing Mao's poems, justice, etiquette, etc., and suddenly felt that what he had done was wrong, and he regretted it in his heart......"

He said a lot of words of repentance, Emperor Xuanzong immediately nodded with satisfaction, his heart is very good, these years with his age is getting older year by year, I don't know, the ambition of the year seems to be gradually wearing off, although I still like some ministers in my heart, but for these officials who have eyes and can do things, they are more and more fond of it.

has been working hard for decades, seeing that the world is not left behind, it can be called a great rule, if it weren't for Li Xi, a kid who suddenly poked at his weakness, he was really ready to gradually let go of the government and want to enjoy himself for a few years.

"Get up, you're still young, and it's common to make some mistakes, but you have to be cautious in the future."

Li Xi got up when he heard this.

At this time, Emperor Xuanzong said: "You have talent, I know this, and I know, you are very willing to share my worries and solve problems for the court." So for the past few days, I've been thinking about what kind of official position I should appoint you. ”

As he spoke, he got up and walked down to His Majesty, put his hands behind his back as he walked, and said: "It just so happens that a few days ago, Li Linfu recommended you, saying that you are full of poetry and literature in Chang'an, and you are famous at a young age, and you must not be a mortal, and you also said that when you served as the chief secretary in Shuzhou, you were quite famous and a capable official, and it is said that you also have the ability to manage money economically, I asked the opinions of several ministers, and they did not object, so I am ready to send an errand to you, but I don't know, do you dare to take it?" ”

Li Xi heard that his heart really came, although Emperor Xuanzong used an inquiring tone, but obviously he did not intend to let Li Xi answer, so Li Xi continued to listen - "In recent years, the population of Guanzhong has been complicated, and the consumption of grain and rice is huge, but the terrain of Guanzhong is like this, and all parts of the country want to send grain and rice over, the road is not easy, and this year is rainy, the price of grain is getting higher and higher, so in Chang'an, rice and grain are almost a price, since you are a person of economic and financial management, you must have heard of this matter, alas, every time you think about it, I am always sad and sleepless. Now, I am ready to appoint you in charge of this, what do you think? ”

Li Xi had already been mentally prepared for this, so when he heard this, he only pondered for a moment, then raised his head in the expectant gaze of Emperor Xuanzong, looked at him quietly, and asked: "The minister dares to ask Your Majesty, Chang'an is short of food, and Your Majesty must not have considered this matter on the first day, in this case, why don't you appoint other lords in the court, but choose Weichen?" ”

Li Xi's words can be described as extremely bold, since ancient times, he has paid attention to the courtesy of monarchs and ministers, and the king's ministers have to die, and there are thunder, rain and dew are all said by the king's grace, it can be said that since the emperor has planned to appoint you to do something, even if it is to ask your opinion, you should not take it too seriously, but Li Xi actually asked back on the spot, which immediately made Emperor Xuanzong frown.

Emperor Xuanzong was slightly unhappy in his heart, but after thinking about it, he still said honestly: "That's right, I have been thinking about this matter for several years, but this matter is not easy to do, there are quite a few ministers in the court, but I can't make up my mind who should appoint it, so since Li Linfu recommended you and said that you have economic talent, I am ready to use you, why, are you not happy?" ”

When he said the last sentence, his tone suddenly increased, and the power of the Son of Heaven suddenly filled the hall.

Li Xi was unmoved, just lowered his head, thought for a moment, raised his head again, and asked: "The minister has heard that the grain from outside Chang'an mainly depends on the grain from Jianghuai, so the minister dares to ask Your Majesty again, the year before last, last year, and this year, the grain transported to Chang'an in the Jianghuai region has its own geometry?" ”

Hearing that Li Xi not only did not answer his own question, but actually asked again, Emperor Xuanzong became more and more unhappy in his heart. You know, he has always been the only one who has asked others, but no one has ever dared to question himself so face-to-face.

However, after looking at Li Xi seriously for a moment, sensing the seriousness in Li Xi's eyes, he took a deep breath, suppressed the anger in his chest, thought about it seriously, and then replied: "The year before last, it was 480,000 stones, last year, it was 610,000 stones, and this year, it is 570,000 stones." ”

Li Xi bowed his head slightly when he heard this, and said: "If the minister is responsible for solving the supply problem of Chang'an, I think it must be based on Caoyun, so the minister dares to ask Your Majesty again, what is the position of Xu Chen?" What is the right of Yunchen? What do you need to do? ”

Li Xi once again threw out a series of questions.

Emperor Xuanzong was slightly stunned, his face was cloudy, and after a while, he said: "I mean, add Pei Yaoqing as the Jianghuai transfer envoy, don't do anything, take you as the deputy envoy of the Jianghuai transfer, and take care of this matter comprehensively." As for how to do it...... Within three years, I will ask for 3 million stone grains! How is it? ”

When Li Xi heard this, he folded his fingers and calculated.

Emperor Xuanzong was stunned at first when he heard this, and then he couldn't cry or laugh, and stretched out his hand to point at him, "What are you doing?" ”

Of course, Li Xi didn't do anything, just made such a gesture.

According to some of the descriptions and descriptions of Tang Xuanzong left in his mind, coupled with the impression of him accumulated since the time travel, Li Xi roughly grasped that Tang Xuanzong Li Longji was a talented, measured, and knowledgeable person, but with the change of life circumstances, in the early and late stages of his reign, his focus on reusing talents was still different.

In the early stage of his reign, which was basically the Kaiyuan period, he focused on appointing those outspoken and talented officials, and he liked noble gentlemen, such as Yao Chong, Song Jing, Zhang Shuo, and even Zhang Jiuling, who was about to worship the prime minister in history, belonged to this category of people, so that Zhang Jiuling had been resigned for several years. It can be seen that he has a view of talent.

But in the late Kaiyuan Dynasty and the Tianbao period, Li Longji, who was gradually aging, began to change in the focus of talent selection, perhaps subconsciously worried about the instability of the country, he began to like some people who spoke tactfully but were straightforward, such as Yang Guozhong, An Lushan and others, regardless of how later generations evaluated, at least at that time, in the eyes of Emperor Xuanzong, they were all cute people, cute, and have a certain talent, so Emperor Xuanzong could appoint them with confidence.

It is precisely because of these pre-preparations that he has prepared for two or three months in his heart that Li Xi carefully analyzed the surname of Emperor Xuanzong Li Longji and the general focus of his talents at this time, so he designed his own performance style for the surname, so there was this question and answer in the palace, and his current appearance of being holding his fingers and pounding.

At that moment, he raised his head when he heard this, and replied solemnly: "Back to Your Majesty, the minister has calculated, if Your Majesty wants three million stone grains for three years...... The minister also asked for something! ”

In other words, Emperor Xuanzong did not exaggerate, this problem of food shortage in Chang'an has indeed always been a big thing in his heart, Chang'an is the national capital, the dignified capital of the Tang Dynasty, but it may be short of food at any time, if there is a war, wouldn't it be that no one has to fight, only besieged for ten days and half a month, and he can only surrender?

However, this grain transportation is indeed a big and difficult problem, he thinks left and right, there is no good way, the reason why Li Linfu's recommendation to appoint Li Xi is actually not tried to see if Li Xi can have any good way, but he didn't expect that Li Xi would be so big that he would take this matter down!

Stunned, Emperor Xuanzong suddenly laughed!

He stretched out his hand and pointed at Li Xi, leaning back and forth with a smile, "You erector, do you dare to openly ask me about the official?" ”

Li Xi nodded with an honest face, combined with his rude gulping since he entered the hall, and the action of calculating the gains and losses there with his fingers just now, in the eyes of Emperor Xuanzong, it was simply simple and cute!

So Emperor Xuanzong laughed repeatedly, at this time, Gao Lishi, who had never said a word, suddenly took a few steps forward, supported Emperor Xuanzong, frowned at Li Xi with dissatisfaction, and said angrily: "Er, this erection is too ignorant, how can you get it from the court officials?" ”

Emperor Xuanzong stretched out his hand to support his shoulder, waved his hand and said, "General don't be angry, it's okay, it's okay, I really like his appearance of a scoundrel...... Hmm, Li Xi, tell me, how did you calculate just now? Could it be that you only gave you a deputy envoy for transshipment, and you felt that you had lost money? So, what do you want so you don't lose money? ”

Li Xi saw Emperor Xuanzong's reaction, and his heart finally put back in his stomach.

It seems that his speculation is not wrong!

So at that moment, his heart suddenly became more and more bottom-up, and when he saw the question, he replied aloud: "Back to Your Majesty, the minister just asked, there are quite a number of famous ministers in the court, why Your Majesty doesn't use it, Your Majesty can't think of who to call to go, that is to say, adults have their own important tasks, can't leave, Your Majesty is not willing to overuse, so to speak, the ruler is short and long, and the minister just has to use, this so-called strange goods can live in it, how can it not be a lion to open his mouth?" ”

Emperor Xuanzong laughed again when he heard this, and listening to Li Xi's tone of a street villain, it seemed that he was really settling accounts with the emperor, but Gao Lishi looked at him in amazement, and he really couldn't understand how this great talent and famous man he knew could see the emperor in such a style.

At this time, Li Xi had already continued: "Since Your Majesty has asked, the minister will tell the truth. If you want three million stone grains in three years, just a deputy envoy of Jianghuai transit is not enough, and the minister also needs a few official positions! ”

Emperor Xuanzong looked at him with a smile and waved his hand, "You say, you say!" ”

Li Xi counted his fingers again, "Wai Lang, the branch member of the household department, the merit examiner of the Ministry of Officials, the door member of the Criminal Department, and the Zhitaifu Temple, one, two, three, four...... Oh, there is another one, please give Your Majesty a sword of the Son of Heaven, this sword in hand, if Your Majesty is here, the decision to kill is in the minister's body! ”

Emperor Xuanzong gradually put away his smile when he heard this, and after thinking for a long time, he nodded slowly and said solemnly: "I, here you go!" ”

Emperor Xuanzong personally wrote an edict, after the deputy signature of the province, he officially told the world, with Jingzhao Yin Pei Yaoqing concurrently serving as the Jianghuai transfer envoy, and selecting Li Xi as the deputy envoy of Jianghuai transfer, Bai Hanlin to study, supervise the Gyeonggi grain and Taoist affairs, and add the household department branch member Wailang, the official department examiner Wailang, the criminal department door clerk Wailang, the official residence from the six products, give the Son of Heaven sword.

Within ten months, the whole world knows.

(To be continued)