Thief Emperor

Chapter 1107 The World's Food and Clothing
The third prince, Prince Zheng, Li Cang, has indeed prospered.

A few years ago, Li Yun had him follow Lord Xue to learn how to run some of the Li family's businesses. These included the grain store that Xue Fang had run for Li Yun, as well as some businesses that arose from the workshops, such as some new gadgets created according to Li Yun's ideas.

But the most important businesses were Liulichang and the imperial estates belonging to the Li family within the territory of Jingzhao Prefecture.

At first, because these transactions were too large, Li Cang had no idea where to start. However, he was quite meticulous, and with Xue Fang's willingness to guide him, Li Cang has basically taken control of the Li family's assets in the last year or two.

Although he merely managed these industries on behalf of the emperor, with the majority of the annual revenue going into the imperial treasury and being given to His Majesty the Emperor, Prince Zheng did indeed control these industries.

There's really nothing wrong with saying that the emperor gave him all his property.

After all, the emperor only takes a share of the profits and doesn't really manage things anymore.

If this Prince Zheng had been more cunning, he could have even fabricated accounts to embezzle more money for his own family, but in the Zhangwu era, he was trying to deceive His Majesty the Emperor.

It requires not only great skill, but also great courage.

Even if Prince Zheng were not greedy, the small portion of the profits that Li Yun gave him would be enough to make him the richest prince in Luoyang and even the entire court.

The Crown Prince may not be as wealthy as this Prince Zheng.

If it were the Second Prince, Prince Qin, Li Zheng, living in Luoyang and possessing such wealth, the Crown Prince would probably be losing sleep over it.

Fortunately, King Zheng's mother came from a poor background, so King Zheng had almost no chance of vying for the throne. Therefore, His Highness the Crown Prince did not have any hostility towards his third brother.

Hearing the Fifth Prince say this, Lu Bing remembered the task Li Yun had entrusted to him, and also recalled what the Crown Prince had just said. His gaze shifted as he looked at the Fifth Prince, Li Ling, and said with a smile, "How about Your Highness takes me to the Prince Zheng's residence?"

Li Ling nodded in agreement, then smiled and said, "What are you going to my third brother's house for, Uncle? Do you know my third brother?"

"We've met a few times before, but the Third Prince was still very young back then."

Lu Bing smiled at Li Ling: "I won't be able to report for my new job until after the New Year. I have about a month of free time. Since I have nothing to do, Your Highness, please take me to see it."

The Fifth Prince rolled his eyes and said with a smile, "If Uncle wants to go, I'll take you. Third Brother has a good temper and treats everyone well."

Lord Lu followed behind Li Ling, walking towards the outside of the imperial city, and asked with a smile as they walked, "Then, Your Highness, who doesn't have a good temper?"

"My second brother has a bit of a temper."

The Fifth Prince waved his hand and said, "But he treats his own brothers quite well. In a couple of years, when I'm a little older, I'd like to go to Guanzhong to visit my second brother."

Lord Lu nodded slightly and said with a smile, "In the years I've been away from Luoyang, Fifth Prince has gotten along quite well with all the princes."

"It's good."

Li Ling scratched his head and said, "My brothers and sisters are all very good to me, I don't know if they were always like that."

"It's still for my mother's sake."

Upon hearing this, Lord Lu was taken aback at first, then smiled and said, "The Empress said that Fifth Brother is very good at studying. Now it seems that Fifth Brother has indeed read a lot of books."

As they spoke, the uncle and nephew had already entered the imperial city. Lord Lu asked, "What does Your Highness plan to do in the future?"

"There's nothing I can do."

Li Ling shook his head and sighed, "I won't be able to stay in Luoyang for many more years. After I get married, I'll most likely have to say goodbye to my mother and go to Xiangzhou."

He turned to look at Lu Bing and said, "I envy my uncle. He can travel around and do things for my father and the court. With my status, I can't go anywhere."

Lord Lu shook his head slightly: "If Prince Zheng can serve His Majesty, Your Highness can naturally do the same in the future. The key is whether Your Highness has the ability."

"If Your Highness does not wish to leave Luoyang and the Empress, you can tell His Majesty that you intend to go to the Imperial Clan Palace to help Prince Chu manage it."

"In that case, I can naturally stay in Luoyang."

Li Ling thought for a moment, then waved his hand: "Let's talk about this in a few years. I don't want to think about these things right now."

The two arrived at the gate of the imperial city. Lu Bing led Li Ling into his carriage, and the two traveled to the Zheng Prince's Mansion in Luoyang.

Because it was the early days of the dynasty, although land in Luoyang was valuable, it was not particularly scarce for the royal family. The residences of several princes were not far from the capital, and the two of them soon got off the carriage at the gate of Prince Zheng's residence.

Li Ling swaggered to the entrance of the Prince's mansion, but the servants there recognized him and quickly stepped forward to greet him as "Your Highness."

Li Ling, with his hands behind his back, asked, "Is my third brother home?"

The servant at the door bowed his head and said, "Your Highness, our Prince has gone to Liulichang and is expected to return in the evening."

" Went to Liulichang again?"

Li Ling stroked his chin: "Has Liulichang come up with something new and interesting again?"

The two servants lowered their heads, not daring to answer.

Li Ling wasn't angry; she just smiled and said, "Go tell Third Brother that I plan to stay at his house for a few days."

“He’ll come back if he has time.”

After saying that, Li Ling led Lu Bing straight into the Zheng Prince's residence. Not long after they entered, the Zheng Princess came to the front yard to greet them. She bowed to Li Ling and said with a smile, "I heard that Fifth Prince was also enfeoffed as a prince today. Congratulations!" Li Ling waved his hand and said with a smile, "It's nothing special."

He stepped aside and introduced, "This is my uncle. He just returned to Luoyang not long ago and wanted to visit my sister-in-law's house, so I brought him along."

"Please don't take offense, sister-in-law."

Princess Zheng was born into the Lu clan of Fanyang. It was the matchmaker, Consort Lu, in the palace who brought them together. She was Lu Yuzhen's niece.

Princess Zheng glanced at Lu Bing before bowing slightly and saying, "So it's Lord Lu. My apologies for my rudeness."

Lu Bing quickly clasped his hands in greeting and said, "Greetings, Your Highness. You are too kind."

Princess Zheng led the two to the main hall and had tea served. She then said with a smile, "I have already sent someone to call the Prince back. Please wait a moment; he will be back shortly."

After saying that, she chatted with the two of them for a while, then brought out several two- or three-year-old children from the Prince Zheng's residence to meet Li Ling.

About half an hour later, a young man of medium build, dressed in a blue robe, hurriedly returned from outside. As soon as he entered the main hall, he glanced at the two people and bowed to Lu Bing, saying, "I apologize for not being able to greet Lord Lu."

As he spoke, he glanced at Li Ling, who was playing with a glass hand-held piece, and frowned, saying, "Lord Lu is coming, why didn't Fifth Brother give us a heads-up beforehand?"

In terms of status, the two princes are certainly far superior to Lu Bing, but in terms of actual power and ability, the two of them combined are probably not as good as Lu Bing alone.

Having gained experience over the years, Li Cang did not hesitate to place Lord Lu before his fifth brother.

Li Ling put down the hand-held object in his hand and said with a smile, "My uncle suddenly decided to come and see Third Brother."

He chuckled and said, "My stomach hurts, I need to go to the restroom."

Prince Xiang, Li Ling, was clearly a smart man. He knew very well that his uncle's sudden visit to Prince Zheng's residence was probably for a reason.

Because once a person reaches Lu Bing's age, or rather, once a person reaches middle age, they become quite "boring".

If there's nothing going on, I rarely think about seeing anyone or getting to know anyone new.

After Li Ling left, Li Cang watched his retreating figure, shook his head slightly, and said to Lu Bing in a low voice, "You're about to establish your own household and get married, yet you're still so unserious."

He pulled Lu Bing down to sit, and asked with a smile, "Lord Lu, do you have something to discuss with me?"

Lu Bing nodded. He hesitated for a moment before asking, "A few days ago, I went to see His Majesty, and His Majesty asked me to come see Your Highness to help you arrange the personnel for the voyage and the relevant matters."

Upon hearing this, Li Cang suddenly understood, and he said with a smile, "So that's what it is."

"My father assigned me to handle this matter three years ago, and I've recently made most of the arrangements. The third fleet will set sail next spring. Does Lord Lu have any capable helmsmen to recommend?"

"I know a few."

Lu Bing thought for a moment, then looked up at Li Cang and asked, "Your Highness, may I ask a question?"

"What is Your Majesty seeking at sea?"

Prince Zheng reached out and poured tea for Marquis Lu, then looked at Lu Bing and said with a smile, "What does Marquis think my father is looking for?"

"I do not know."

Lu Bing shook his head and said, "However, someone told me that His Majesty might be looking for..."

"The elixir of immortality."

King Zheng shook his head slightly.

“That makes me think less of my father.”

Prince Zheng took a sip of tea, his expression calm: "I asked my father about this matter, and he answered me. I can tell you, Lord Lu, that my father is definitely not looking for any elixir of immortality."

"My father never believed in these things."

King Zheng said with a smile, "More than ten years have passed since the founding of the kingdom, and which eminent monk or Taoist priest has ever stepped into the imperial city?"

Lord Lu nodded first and said, "I have been away from Luoyang for a long time and am not quite familiar with it anymore."

Prince Zheng glanced at him, then looked toward the doorway and sighed slowly: "My father said that there is a crop overseas that can produce downy fluff comparable to fur."

"There is another crop that can produce several thousand kilograms of food per acre."

"These things are all overseas."

Prince Zheng withdrew his gaze and looked at Lu Bing.

"My father is searching for..."

"The world is well-fed and clothed."

(End of this chapter)