After Ang Lee returned to the Tang dynasty, many people were very curious about what kind of new things he would invent. For this reason, they even began to discuss and speculate.
There were also people who proposed a lot of very crazy hypotheses according to their own needs. These too bizarre hypotheses were naturally not accepted by ordinary people and were regarded as the ideas of lunatics.
For example, some people would say that since Ang Lee could invent a machine that could fly into the sky, then he could modify the machine to fly higher than the moon and stars. In this way, he could pick the stars and the moon from the sky.
There were also people who hypothesized that Ang Lee could invent a pair of wings. After people put on this pair of wings, they could fly freely in the sky like a bird.
There were also people who thought that pigeons were too slow. They thought that Ang Lee could invent a machine that could transmit messages faster. In this way, the imperial court's decrees could be transmitted faster. If there was an urgent military situation at the border, it could also be sent back to the imperial court at the fastest speed.
In short, almost everyone was thinking about what shocking advanced products Ang Lee would come up with. They were very much looking forward to the birth of these products.
Of course, among all the expectations, the products that people looked forward to the most were the ones that could prolong life, especially the aristocrats. They hoped that they could be forever young because they had too many things and could enjoy an endless luxurious life. However, these luxurious lives would gradually become meaningless as they grew older. Once people grew old, their physical strength and energy would be much less than before, and they would not have the body to enjoy the beautiful pleasures of the world.
In particular, the fear of death was a problem that all the aristocrats kept a secret. As long as ordinary people lived a comfortable life, they also hoped that they could live a long life.
However, ordinary people did not have too many resources and did not believe that they could really live a long life. Therefore, few people pursued immortality. But the rich aristocrats were different. They had too many resources, and once they lost their lives, these resources would no longer exist. Therefore, they were very afraid of aging and death and very eager to be healthy and live a long life.
From the fact that the emperors of each dynasty sought immortality, it could be seen that they had a strong desire to live. When they were young and strong, they might not feel much about immortality, but once they grew old, they would yearn for immortality. They yearned to be young and healthy forever, to enjoy the happiness of the world forever.
Therefore, what people yearned for the most was for Ang Lee to come up with something that could greatly prolong people's lives, so that they could enjoy glory and wealth forever.
Ang Lee would help them realize some of their dreams, but there were also some that Ang Lee was destined to be unable to accomplish. For example, immortality was something that Ang Lee was absolutely incapable of accomplishing.
However, it wasn't too stressful to make some nourishing food. As long as a person paid attention to nourishing their body, their lifespan would naturally increase. In fact, the increase wouldn't be just a little bit. Extending one's lifespan by ten years wouldn't be a problem at all.
As for plucking the stars and the moon from the sky, that was completely impossible. Moreover, these people probably didn't know that the stars in the sky were very huge celestial bodies, and the moon was even bigger than their imagination. It was completely whimsical to want to pluck the stars and the moon from the sky. As for building a rocket to explore the moon, that was a mission that would never be completed.
"Hanlu, has there been any change in the Imperial Court in the past year?"
Ang Lee asked. Although he had his own channels, he had been busy opening up the Maritime Silk Road and had not used his strength to deal with the Imperial Court. Thus, Ang Lee was not very clear on the exact situation in the Imperial Court.
"Husband, there hasn't been any major changes in the Imperial Court. The only thing worth mentioning is that the Right Minister has aged, and Yang Zhao has changed his name to Yang Guozhong, receiving His Majesty's favor. In the days that Husband is not here, he is the most favored of all the officials. The officials who visit and send gifts to your residence every day are about to crush the doorstep."
Li Hanlu said.
Ang Lee smiled and said, "This is very normal. This fellow is completely basking in the glory of the Imperial Consort. If not for the Imperial Consort's relationship, Yang Guozhong definitely would not have received His Majesty's favor. It's fine. Dealing with the Imperial Court is an annoying matter. There's nothing wrong with letting him handle it."
"Husband, but this Yang Guozhong specializes in promoting trusted aides and suppressing dissidents. If this continues, the Imperial Court will not be able to select the most outstanding talents. In the end, they will all become Yang Guozhong's people. Wouldn't His Majesty become a mere figurehead?"
Li Hanlu had once been the leader of a division of the Xi Tribe, so she naturally knew a little about politics. She was still somewhat worried about the Imperial Court. After all, once the Imperial Court was in turmoil, the common people of the world would suffer. She naturally did not want to see the common people suffer. She was a kind person.
Ang Lee smiled faintly and said, "You don't have to worry about this. His Majesty is not a fool. How could he give all the power to Yang Guozhong? Giving him all the work to worry about. The Imperial Court's military power is not in Yang Guozhong's hands at all! "
After a pause, Ang Lee asked with concern, "Right, how is His Majesty's health?"
Li Hanlu said, "His Majesty's health has always been very good. I haven't heard any news about His Majesty's health. Moreover, in the past year, His Majesty has gone to Luoyang three times and Pure Flowers Palace once or twice a month. Isn't this enough to prove that His Majesty's health is very good?"
Ang Lee nodded and said, "Very good. His Majesty's health is fine. This is the fortune of the Tang Dynasty. As long as His Majesty is fine, and with your husband's full support, the Imperial Court of the Tang Dynasty will not have any problems."
In Ang Lee's impression, the turmoil of every dynasty mostly occurred during the transfer of power. This was because once there was an accident during the transfer of power, it could cause a lot of chaos.
The prerequisite for a flourishing era was that an Emperor could reign for a long enough time. If an Empire frequently changed Emperors, then it would be very difficult for the Imperial Court to stabilize. Only a long-lived Emperor could solve many of the country's problems.
Li Longji had already reigned for thirty to fifty years. This was the foundation of the Tang Dynasty's prosperity. Many flourishing eras in later generations occurred when the Emperors had reigned for a relatively long time.
For example, there was a period called the Kangxi and Qianlong Flourishing Era. In this era, Kangxi and Qianlong both reigned for sixty years. It was difficult for the country not to flourish.
Kangxi had reigned for sixty-one years. Qianlong could have reigned for longer, but in order not to surpass his grandfather, he deliberately retired three years early. However, even though he retired, a lot of the country's power was still in his hands. According to the actual exercise of the country's highest power, Qianlong should have reigned for sixty-three years and four months.
In other words, the entire Qing Dynasty had a total of two hundred and seventy-six years, and the grandfather and grandson had occupied nearly half of that time. In this way, the Kangxi and Qianlong Flourishing Era was established. The remaining Emperors' reigns were too short, and they caught up with the era of rapid development in the West, which caused a huge decline.
However, it was sometimes not a good thing for a person to reign for too long, because after all, a person's energy was limited. When they were young, they might not feel much pressure when dealing with various things, but when they were very old, their energy would become insufficient, and they would become muddle-headed. In order to save their energy, they would even hand over the country's affairs to trusted ministers. In this way, it would naturally cause some problems in the Imperial Court. If the Emperor could not control it well, the ministers below might be in chaos.
For example, Li Longji was now a good example. When he was young, he had always been very powerful, but when he was old, he made mistakes. If Ang Lee had not appeared to help him, it was estimated that Fatty An would have rebelled, and the Tang Dynasty would be in danger.
Now, the threat of Fatty An had been completely eliminated. The Dragon Martial Army in the capital was equipped with advanced armored artillery vehicles, which were enough to deter the border generals and make them not dare to take risks.
Therefore, the Imperial Court of the Tang Dynasty could still maintain its powerful strength, which was inseparable from Ang Lee's efforts. If it had not been for Ang Lee's efforts, the Imperial Court of the Tang Dynasty would have begun to decline. With the development of industrialization, the Imperial Court of the Tang Dynasty not only did not decline, but also continued to go downhill. It had even become a heaven worshipped by all countries.
Li Linfu's health was not good, but there was not much problem in dealing with government affairs. Moreover, Yang Guozhong helped him share most of the burden, so his pressure was even less. Although he did not want anyone to help him share the burden, this was the Emperor's idea. In addition, he was really old and weak, so there must be someone to share the burden with him.
Although the evaluation of these two people in history was not very good, thinking that they were both great treacherous ministers, and that it was because of them that the Imperial Court of the Tang Dynasty eventually declined, Ang Lee did not think so. They were just sharing the Emperor's worries. Occasionally, they formed cliques for their own interests, which was not too bad. Moreover, if they wanted to stabilize their position, they must work hard to expand their power. Otherwise, once they were bitten by others, they would be finished, and even their descendants would be implicated.
There was a saying that there was no runner-up in a political struggle. This was to describe the cruelty of the struggle in the Imperial Court. Once a minister reached a high position, if he could not stabilize his position, then he was very likely to be pulled down by others. Even if he was framed for no reason, no one would speak up for him. Thus, not only would it cause a tragedy of his own death, but it might also implicate his descendants.
After all, an official had to deal with government affairs, and dealing with all kinds of government affairs would inevitably offend people, especially many officials who were very eager to climb up. In the process of climbing up, they would inevitably offend a lot of people, and they would also be opposed by many people. When they climbed to the highest position, the number of people they had offended was probably uncountable. Therefore, they were very afraid of being plotted against by their enemies. When they were in a high position, they had enough strength to protect themselves, but once their official position was lost, then the only external condition that could protect themselves would not exist, and they might face great danger.
In order to not let themselves be in danger, officials who climbed to a high position would try to cultivate their confidants. Those who were close to them would be promoted and put in important positions. Those who opposed, disliked, or were not united with them would be severely suppressed. In this way, many ministers in the Imperial Court would be on their side, and their position would be consolidated and their safety would be greatly improved.
Therefore, many senior officials appointed their confidants and excluded their dissidents in the final analysis to protect themselves and to protect their vested interests and prevent their interests from being taken away by others.
Ang Lee was naturally very insightful about how to deal with government affairs, and it was inevitable that he would be able to handle it with ease. However, Ang Lee did not like to deal with government affairs because his ability in this area was not too outstanding. Many officials in the Tang dynasty could replace Ang Lee, but when it came to research and development, Ang Lee was the only talent. No minister could replace Ang Lee. Therefore, the most important thing for Ang Lee to do was to put most or all of his energy into scientific research and development.
The speed of the train was not to be underestimated. A few days later, Ang Lee arrived in Luoyang. After a short stay in Luoyang, Ang Lee arrived in Chang 'an after another day.
However, Ang Lee arrived in Chang 'an at a very bad time. It was about ten o' clock in the evening. At this time, the senior officials of the Imperial Court would probably be asleep. Even if they were not asleep, they would probably be ready to go to bed. Therefore, no one would come to welcome Ang Lee. However, Ang Lee did not care about this. He let the train leave in the morning so that he could reach Chang 'an in the middle of the night when there were few people. Then, he could come back quietly without having to deal with such a scene as the welcoming ceremony.
At this time, Chang 'an of the Tang Dynasty had become a real city that never slept. At night, many places were extremely lively. People of all races and colors mingled together to have fun. Many foreigners who came to the Tang Dynasty for the first time were somewhat immersed in pleasure.
Many businessmen would choose to transport goods in and out of the city gate at night, especially when the goods were large. They would choose to transport at night so as not to affect the pedestrians during the day. After all, even if the curfew was lifted, there were still much fewer people at night than during the day.
Some of the more smelly goods would also choose to enter and exit the city gate at night when there were fewer people. For example, the excrement of the toilet room could not be transported during the day. It had to be transported at night.
Ang Lee had real estate both inside and outside Chang 'an. However, the real estate in the city was a little cramped. Therefore, Ang Lee and his family basically lived in a villa outside the city. Therefore, when Ang Lee returned to the capital, he naturally went straight to the villa outside the city.
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