Thief Emperor

Chapter 1108 Two Deaths in One Day

Several days later, at the Ganlu Palace.

Prince Zheng, Li Cang, cautiously entered the Ganlu Palace. As he walked into the palace, he first looked up at the soft couch where his father often sat, but he did not see his father.

He could only look around, and then he saw that tall figure in front of the weapon rack in the Ganlu Hall.

At this moment, a tall figure, holding a large, black spear, was staring at the spear, lost in thought.

Li Cang took a deep breath, walked behind His Majesty the Emperor, and kowtowed, saying, "Your subject pays respects to Your Majesty."

His Majesty the Emperor then came to his senses, put the spear back on the weapon rack, looked back at his third son, and raised his hand: "Get up."

"Yes."

Li Cang got up and followed behind Li Yun, asking, "Is Father thinking about the past?"

"Ah."

Li Yun sighed: "As I get older, I start to reminisce about the past. Lately, I often dream about when I was young."

He looked at Li Cang and said with a smile, "Back then, I was a bit younger than you are now. I led about ten constables, along with your Uncle Jin and the others, and we plowed through all the counties of Xuanzhou."

Li Cang quickly lowered his head and said, "I have heard from my uncle, the Prince of Jin, that Father Emperor is incredibly brave and unparalleled throughout history."

Emperor Li sighed: "But the brothers from the anti-theft team back then are still alive today."

He glanced at Li Cang and said quietly, "There are less than fifty people left."

His Majesty the Emperor gazed outside the palace and said silently, "It won't be long before my fifty meritorious officials' residences change hands one after another."

Li Cang lowered his head, not daring to speak.

After a moment of reflection, His Majesty the Emperor turned to him and asked, "Are the children at home feeling any better?"

The young master of Prince Zheng's mansion fell seriously ill last month. His illness was quite severe, and it was only after Li Yun issued an edict ordering the imperial physicians from the Imperial Hospital to stay at Prince Zheng's mansion that he was saved.

Prince Zheng quickly bowed his head: "Thank you, Father. The child is almost recovered."

"That's good."

Li Yun nodded and sat back on the soft couch.

What brings you here today?

Li Cang then took out a thick document from his sleeve and bowed his head, saying, "It's almost the end of the year. This is the account from October last year to October this year. Your son has already compiled it and will hand it over to Father for review."

“If Your Majesty finds no problems after reviewing this, I will begin sending this year’s revenue into the Imperial Treasury starting next month.”

His Majesty the Emperor took the document, casually tossed it aside, and said with a smile, "I've entrusted it to you; do you think I don't trust you?"

"Is this really necessary between a father and son?"

Li Cang said solemnly, "Precisely because we are father and son, Father should take a look. Only after Father has seen it can I continue to manage the family business."

As he spoke, he took out a small wooden box from his sleeve, held it in both hands, and handed it to Li Yun, saying, "Father's birthday is approaching. This is a gift that your son asked Liulichang to prepare for Father."

He paused, then added, "It's a newly developed telescope; it's clearer than before."

Emperor Li took the box with one hand, opened it, and saw that it contained a monocular telescope. The telescope itself was nothing special, but the outer shell was inlaid with gold and jade, and the jade was of the finest quality, with a dragon-shaped coil around the tube, making it look quite luxurious.

Li Yun fiddled with it in his hand for a moment, glanced at Li Cang, and said with a smile, "Is it going through the public accounts of Liulichang?"

Li Cang said with a smile, "It's my own money, I didn't use any public funds."

His Majesty the Emperor put it aside, patted Li Cang on the shoulder, and said with a smile, "You've put your heart into this."

"How much money did you make last year?"

"Go back to Father."

He began, “We have made a lot of money, but this year is a bumper year. According to the Emperor’s requirements, we should spend money to buy grain and support grain prices during a bumper year. So a large sum of money has been spent on this.”

"After deducting expenses, a total of more than 2.7 million strings of cash were sent to the inner treasury this year."

The emperor nodded: "That's quite a lot."

Li Cang thought for a moment and continued, "If Father Emperor needs a large sum of money, several times that amount can be allocated from each of the various industries."

Emperor Li squinted, considered next year's expenses, and waved his hand, saying, "Fine, let it be."

King Zheng nodded and continued, "There's another matter. It seems that the method of making glass in Liulichang has been leaked out. Some private workshops can also make glass, but they haven't obtained the precise formula, so the glass they make doesn't look good and is somewhat rough."

He looked at Li Yun and said, "Father, should we have the Nine Departments investigate and shut down these private workshops?"

Li Yun shook his head: "Forget it, it's been so many years. If the common people can learn it, let them learn it."

“These transactions couldn’t be kept secret for long anyway, and Liulichang is our family’s property, not a government-run business, so it’s not appropriate to use the government’s power.”

His Majesty the Emperor looked at Li Cang and continued, "Keep the matter of going to sea in mind. Once I have found everything I am looking for, there is one thing among them that is very suitable for monopolization."

When asked about going to sea, Li Cang first responded, then said with a smile, "A few days ago, Fifth Brother brought Lord Lu to my home and mentioned this matter."

Li Cang said with a smile, "In recent years, when Father went out to sea to search for things, many people thought that Father was looking for some kind of elixir of immortality."

Li Yun chuckled, unconcerned.

"Let them think what they want."

He said calmly, "I don't care."

Li Cang began, "Why doesn't Father Emperor issue a clear edict to explain things clearly to the court and the public..." "Explain to them what?"

Li Yun was somewhat displeased and said calmly, "I never need to explain myself to anyone, and besides, this thing..."

"Too far."

He shook his head and said, "I don't know when it will be done. My son and I will do our best to get it done. We can announce it to the public once it's done."

"What if it doesn't work out..."

Li Yun chuckled self-deprecatingly: "Just consider it as me going to find the elixir of immortality."

He looked at the third prince, about to continue speaking, when the head eunuch, Gu Chang, cautiously entered and bowed to Li Yun, saying, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty..."

Li Yun looked at him and asked, "What's wrong?"

Gu Chang bowed his head and said, "Lord Tao has passed away."

Li Yun frowned and asked, "When did this happen?"

About half an hour ago.

His Majesty the Emperor raised an eyebrow, remained silent for a moment, and then said, "Go and send a message to the Crown Prince, asking him to go and visit the Tao family on my behalf."

“Take three thousand strings of cash from the imperial treasury to pay for their funeral.”

Gu Chang responded and left respectfully.

After he left, Li Cang lowered his head and said, "Father, shall we go and take a look at the Tao family?"

"What are you going to do?"

Li Yun frowned: "Your elder brother has already given them enough face by going."

At this point, the emperor grunted, "That old man..."

Tao Wenyuan has been too afraid to die for the past few years.

He was afraid that Li Yun would think that he himself didn't want to live anymore and didn't want to serve as an official in the Zhangwu Dynasty.

So he always tried his best to live. Even when he was bedridden, he clung to life, not daring to die, hoping to live a little longer so that he could tell His Majesty the Emperor that he, Tao Wenyuan, was completely obedient to His Majesty inside and out.

Almost five years have passed since the last time the two had a falling out. This old man has endured five more years.

Hearing Li Yun's tone, Li Cang knew that his father did not like Tao Xiangong, so he obediently lowered his head and remained silent.

After a while, he cautiously said, "A few days ago, I visited the home of my uncle, the Prince of Jin."

“The eldest son of the Prince of Jin is of working age. I think that if Father has no other duties for him, he should follow me to manage the imperial estate and Liulichang.”

Upon hearing this, Li Yun turned to look at his third son and frowned, saying, "Is this your own thought, or did Li Zheng teach you to say it?"

Li Cang quickly lowered his head and said, "That's what I thought myself."

Emperor Li glanced at him: "You were making this decision on your own, why are you suddenly asking to drag a brother along with you?"

Li Cang smiled wryly and said, "There are too many things to do, and sometimes my son can't keep up."

Li Yun waved his hand: "The Prince of Jin has his own things to do, so let's leave this matter aside. If you're too busy, I'll find you a helper later."

Li Cang quickly bowed his head: "Thank you, Father Emperor."

Emperor Li, with his hands behind his back, was about to speak when a palace attendant in purple robes cautiously entered the Ganlu Hall: "Your Majesty, an urgent report from the Nine Departments."

The palace servant knelt on the ground, bowing deeply and kowtowing: "News has come from the Jiangnan Division, saying... saying... that the Duke of Ningguo has passed away..."

The Duke of Ningguo was Zhou Liang.

Zhou Liang was initially granted the title of Duke of Xuan. After resigning from his post in Jinling, he returned to Qingyang Prefecture to retire. Li Yun was very grateful to him and, in order to bring him good fortune and peace, changed his title to Duke of Ning.

Not long ago, the title of Duke of Xuan was bestowed upon Meng Qing.

After hearing the palace servant's words, Emperor Li remained silent for a long time before quietly asking, "When did this happen?"

"Three...three days ago."

Emperor Li waved his hand, remained silent for a long time, and then said, "I understand, you may leave."

"Yes."

The palace servant cautiously withdrew. Li Cang was still standing behind his father. When he looked up again, he felt that his father, who was still tall, had a strangely desolate look in his back.

After a long while, Li Cang finally mustered his courage, lowered his head, and said, "Father, let me return to Qingyang on your behalf..."

"Perfect timing, I'll take the opportunity to check on next year's sea voyage plans."

Emperor Li still did not answer, but walked to the window with his hands behind his back, looked out the window, and remained silent for a long time.

Li Cang lowered his head and said, "Your subject will not delay matters concerning the Imperial Treasury."

His Majesty the Emperor turned to look at his son, said nothing, then looked out the window again, remaining silent.

After an unknown amount of time, King Zheng, Li Cang, finally heard a long sigh.

"Ugh."

(End of this chapter)