Thief Emperor

Chapter 1106 The Elixir of Immortality?

Great court meeting.

In the Taiji Hall, His Majesty the Emperor sat on the throne with his eyes half-closed, his fingers tapping the armrest from time to time, without saying a word, like a sleeping tiger.

Zhang Sui, who was appointed by imperial decree to inspect Jiangdong Circuit, was standing before the Crown Prince, receiving his questions. The Crown Prince inquired in detail about the new policies implemented in Jiangdong Circuit in recent years, as well as the taxes levied by the government offices and the revenue of the Maritime Trade Office.

Zhang Sui was confident and answered each question in turn.

His Highness the Crown Prince recounted the situation in Jiangdong Province over the past three years to everyone, then glanced back at his father. Seeing his father nod slightly, the Crown Prince turned to the assembled ministers, coughed, and said in a deep voice, "My lords, His Majesty is wise and insightful. In five years, the new policies in Jiangdong have yielded remarkable results."

"Since Jiangdong Circuit has achieved great success, it proves that His Majesty's new policies are without any problems. Starting next year, they should be gradually extended to all circuits, prefectures, and counties throughout the country."

"Fellow officials, do you have any objections?"

The prime ministers remained silent.

Since the prime ministers remained silent, the other officials naturally dared not speak either.

Originally, many officials with a traditional education would have stood up and said a few words, partly to express their opposition and partly to earn a good reputation for themselves. However, in recent years, everyone has been able to sense the direction the court is taking.

At this point, no one stood up to object.

His Highness the Crown Prince nodded in satisfaction, then turned to the Emperor and bowed, saying, "Father, all the civil and military officials agree with the new policies."

Emperor Li smiled and said, "The Secretariat."

Grand Secretary Du Qian stepped forward, bowed his head, and said, "Your subject is here."

"The Central Secretariat should draft regulations as soon as possible and gradually promote the new policies in various regions."

Du Qian bowed his head and said, "Your subject obeys."

His Majesty the Emperor looked at the Crown Prince and nodded slightly. The Crown Prince bowed and then took out a document from his sleeve and said, "The position of Chancellor of the Secretariat has been vacant for several years. After discussion between His Majesty and the Secretariat, Xu Kun, the Minister of Justice, has been promoted to the position of Attendant-in-Ordinary of the Secretariat."

In this dynasty, the position of Minister of the Secretariat and Chancellery has been merged into three separate entities and is no longer subdivided. However, the position still needs to exist, since the title of Chancellor of the Secretariat is just a vague concept and not an actual position.

For example, Minister Xu does not hold a position in the Three Departments; he still serves as the Grand Censor, participating in the administration of state affairs in the Hall of State Affairs.

This refers to the prime minister concurrently serving as the imperial censor.

Xu Kun, no longer serving as Minister of Justice, will be given the title of Minister of the Three Provinces.

In the previous dynasty, there were some rules regarding this status, but in the current dynasty, it does not affect the ranking of the Secretariat. Theoretically speaking, the ranking is determined by the order in which they enter the Council of State Affairs.

Minister Xu stepped forward, knelt on the ground, and kowtowed in greeting.

"My lord, thank you Your Majesty."

His Majesty the Emperor raised his hand.

"Get up."

After Minister Xu stood up, Emperor Li gave the Crown Prince a look, and the Crown Prince once again took out the document and read, "Fifth Prince Li Ling, hereby confer an official title."

The Fifth Prince is currently in the Taiji Hall. The officials, seeing him present, had already guessed that he would be granted a title today. Now, after hearing the Crown Prince's words, they were no longer surprised.

The fifth prince knelt on the ground, bowing respectfully.

After His Highness the Crown Prince read a long passage praising him, he cleared his throat and continued, "I hereby confer upon the Fifth Prince the title of Prince Xiang, and he shall temporarily reside in the Prince Xiang's Mansion in Luoyang. After his marriage, he shall go to the State of Xiangzhou."

At this time, Li Yun had already made up his mind to be cautious about the princes. However, this caution was limited to the princes born to other concubines. The fifth prince was the son of Consort Lu, and Emperor Li truly regarded Consort Lu as family.

This is what is meant by a child gaining status because of their mother.

With so many sons, it was impossible to treat them all equally. Naturally, a prince's treatment would differ depending on which prince's mother was favored.

Besides, if Li Ling were to bestow upon him the title of Prince, Li Yun would feel embarrassed when he met the Lu sisters.

However, apart from Consort Lu, Consort Liu, and the Empress, Li Yun would not feel embarrassed about the other concubines, meaning that he would not care about the feudal system for the other sons.

Then you can adapt to different situations.

The fifth prince knelt on the ground and kowtowed, saying, "Thank you, Father."

"Thank you, brother."

Following this imperial edict conferring the title of king, there was another edict conferring the title of Marquis of Ruyin, Lu Bing, upon him, as Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. His Highness the Crown Prince read this aloud as well.

Having reached this point, the important matters of this grand court assembly were considered concluded. His Majesty the Emperor glanced at his ministers and inquired whether there were any other important matters. When none of the ministers answered, His Majesty the Emperor stood up and stretched.

"That's all for today. If there are any matters, please hand them over to the Secretariat and the Crown Prince. If there are any urgent matters, the Secretariat and the Crown Prince can then hand them over to me."

Having said that, His Majesty the Emperor strode away with his hands behind his back.

Although the emperor has passed away, the crown prince is still alive. As the crown prince has been involved in politics for a longer period of time, he has gained some authority. With His Highness the crown prince still alive, the court officials remain quiet.

His Highness the Crown Prince looked around and saw Marquis Lu Bing of Ruyin talking to his fifth brother, Li Ling. He walked over with his hands behind his back and asked with a smile, "What are you talking about?"

Lu Bing quickly took half a step back and bowed his head, saying, "Your Highness."

The Fifth Prince also bowed and greeted him, saying, "Elder brother."

The Crown Prince patted Li Ling on the shoulder and said with a smile, "Unbeknownst to me, Fifth Prince is growing up. Is there a girl you like? Tell your elder brother, and I'll go and propose marriage on your behalf." The Fifth Prince, being young, was a little embarrassed. He blushed slightly and lowered his head, saying, "My uncle was just asking me about this too, elder brother. I've lived in the palace for so many years; how could I possibly have a girl I like…"

His Highness the Crown Prince made a few jokes with him, then looked at Lu Bing and said with a smile, "Lord Lu, do you have some time?"

Lu Bing quickly replied, "I have no official duties at the moment, and I have time."

The Crown Prince nodded, looked at Li Ling, and said with a smile, "Fifth Prince, may I have a word with your uncle?"

As he spoke, the Crown Prince led Lu Bing to a corner outside the Taiji Hall. After hesitating for a moment, he asked, "Lord Lu, did my father send you out to sea to find something?"

Lu Bing was startled and lowered his head, saying, "Your Highness, this..."

The crown prince patted him on the shoulder and sighed, "I know this is a difficult question for you to answer, and I won't press you."

His Highness the Crown Prince looked troubled and sighed, "I've heard some things about this matter."

"Originally, as a son, I should not interfere with what my father does, but after reading through history books, I have seen how many emperors in the past died because of the elixir of immortality."

He clenched his fist and said, "My father is in his prime, strong and healthy. As his son, I don't want him to take any elixir of immortality and ruin his health for nothing."

"If Father Emperor orders Lord Lu to send people to search, Lord Lu..."

"Please help me out."

Lu Bing looked up at the Crown Prince and saw that the Crown Prince looked worried. He hesitated for a moment before saying, "Your Highness, His Majesty's desire to send people out to sea may not be to find any elixir of immortality. You don't need to worry too much."

The Crown Prince smiled bitterly and said, "Our Great Tang Dynasty is rich in resources and has the wealth of the four seas. If it is not the elixir of immortality, what else do we need to look for overseas?"

Lu Bing lowered his head, not daring to answer.

The Crown Prince sighed and said, "As a son, I cannot say these things to my father face to face."

He paused, then said, "However, I don't want my father to go down the path of alchemy. Lord Lu might say this to my father. If Lord Lu does, please tell him the whole story."

Lu Bing lowered his head: "Your Highness, rest assured, if His Majesty does not ask."

"I will definitely not tell."

As a subject, even if he is the emperor's brother-in-law, he cannot interfere in the affairs of the imperial family. No matter how close he is to the emperor, Lu Bing would not take the initiative to say anything to Li Yun about matters concerning the emperor and his son.

The Crown Prince nodded silently and said, "My fifth brother is still a young man. Now that he is about to leave the palace to establish his own residence, I am too busy with official duties to take care of him. When you have time, Marquis Lu, please take good care of him and make sure he does not make any mistakes."

"I angered Father."

The Crown Prince said solemnly, "If there's anything I can help you with, Lord Marquis, you can come to me."

Lu Bing bowed his head and said, "Your subject understands. On behalf of the Fifth Prince, I thank Your Highness."

The Crown Prince patted Lu Bing on the shoulder, then left with his hands behind his back.

Lord Lu turned around and looked at the Crown Prince's departing figure, a sense of doubt arose in his heart.

Could it be, could it be…

Is Your Majesty really sending people out to sea to find some elixir of immortality?

Thinking of this, he shook his head, banishing these random thoughts from his mind.

"uncle."

Prince Xiang, Li Ling, walked up behind Lu Bing and asked, "What did my elder brother say to you?"

Lu Bing turned to look at the Fifth Prince and shook his head: "He didn't say anything."

He smiled and asked, "Is Your Highness going to see the Empress, or leaving the palace to see the Grand Princess?"

Li Ling shook his head and said with a smile, "I was still in my mother's palace yesterday, so I won't go to see her. I want to go out of the palace to find my third brother."

"Your Highness?"

Lu Bing asked curiously, "What does Your Highness want with Prince Zheng?"

"Uncle, you don't know."

The Prince Xiang said with a smile, "My third brother has become very successful in recent years. His mansion is full of rare and interesting things. I stayed there for a few days last time and almost didn't want to come back."

At this point, he spoke mysteriously.

"I heard from others that Father Emperor gave all of our Li family's assets to my third brother."

Lord Lu frowned: "Nonsense."

"No nonsense."

"The Prince said in a low voice."

“Even the Crown Prince is now very envious of Third Brother.”

(End of this chapter)