Thief Emperor

Chapter 1124 Sprouts Breaking Through the Soil
Li Tong stood there stunned for a long time before looking up at Li Cang and saying, "Third Brother didn't lie to me?"

Li Cang laughed and said, "Why would I lie to you?"

He clinked glasses with Li Tong and said seriously, "We are both lucky ones."

After downing a cup of wine, Prince Zheng slowly said, "In Father's eyes, neither of us is particularly remarkable. The reason we were able to get such a job is because the court is newly established, and Father needs sons to work for the court so that our Li family can secure the throne."

"We are older than you and me, so we both got good jobs."

"Secondly, it is precisely because the two of us are inconspicuous."

The Third Prince said with a smile, "Second Brother and Fifth Brother are less fortunate."

He did not continue.

Because if we continue, it will become too sensitive.

Although the Third Prince put it euphemistically, he was actually saying that in their father's heart, the only ones who were truly family were the Empress and the two imperial concubines.

The other princes, at least in their father's mind, were implicitly believed not to inherit the throne.

The Second Prince and the Fifth Prince were born to Consort Liu and Consort Lu, respectively. Comparatively speaking, they had better backgrounds. If these two went out to command troops or control a certain amount of wealth, they would be more likely to succeed.

I'm afraid the Crown Prince won't be too happy about that.

It was precisely because their father had to consider the feelings of the Crown Prince, prevent brothers from fighting each other, and prevent father and son from becoming estranged, that these two princes, who were truly "illegitimate," were given two decent jobs.

Otherwise, putting everything else aside, the best candidate to guard the Northwest would naturally be the Second Prince, Prince Qin, Li Zheng.

Li Tong seemed to be deep in thought. He lowered his head and ate a few bites of food before looking up at Li Cang and asking, "Why are you suddenly telling me all this, Third Brother?"

"Nothing, just chatting."

Li Cang smiled and said, "Father has put a lot of thought into this. We brothers must not have any other thoughts under any circumstances."

He reached out and poured a full glass of wine for Prince Li Tong, saying, "Si Lang, after you arrive in Suzhou, manage it well and guard the Northwest well. You will surely have a bright future."

"Here, this cup of wine is for you, brother."

Prince Su was still young and was completely confused. After raising his cup to drink with the Third Prince, he nodded obediently and said, "Third Brother, don't worry. In a few days, I will leave the capital with General Chen. When I arrive in Suzhou, I will definitely take good care of the Northwest for Father."

The Third Prince smiled and nodded. The two brothers clinked glasses again. He patted the Fourth Prince on the shoulder and said, "The future is long. We brothers are in similar situations, so we should stay close in the future."

"If there's anything I can do to help you in the future, as your elder brother, I'll do my best without hesitation."

The fourth prince stood up, holding a wine cup in both hands, and offered a toast, saying, "Thank you, third brother."

The fourth prince stood up, pulled him down to sit, and smiled, "Why be so polite between brothers?"

"Come on, let's drink."

The two clinked glasses and drank it all in one gulp. The Third Prince said solemnly, "I wish Fourth Prince a smooth journey with General Chen."

The two clinked glasses again.

"Thank you for your kind words, Third Brother!"

…………

In the blink of an eye, several more days have passed.

Inside the Ganlu Hall, Chen Dayi, dressed in military robes, bowed to the emperor and said, "Your Majesty, I will be leaving Luoyang tomorrow to return to the Northwest Army and reorganize the troops."

At this moment, the gloom in His Majesty's heart had dissipated somewhat. He nodded and sighed, "It's been a long journey, and you've had to travel back and forth. It must have been tiring for you."

Chen Da quickly lowered his head: "This is what I should do."

He paused for a moment before saying, "The Fourth Prince said he wanted to travel with me to learn about military affairs. I would like to ask Your Majesty whether you should bring Prince Su with you."

"Take it with you, take it with you."

Li Yun said with a smile, "This is something I agreed upon with him. On this trip, you should treat him as your student and teach him properly how to lead an army."

"When you've taught him to be successful in the future, let him recognize you as his teacher."

Chen laughed and said, "I wouldn't dare. At least 80 or 90 percent of my skills were learned from Your Majesty."

"Moreover, I heard that the Fourth Prince wants to become General Li's son-in-law."

"Not in a hurry."

Li Yun said, "I've discussed it with him. We can finalize the marriage proposal next year. His daughter is still young, so it's not too late to get married in a couple of years."

“My fourth son is at the age where he needs to gain experience. You should take him with you on this trip and give him a good workout.”

"But don't be too protective. If it succeeds, it succeeds; if it doesn't, it doesn't."

Li Yun instructed, "If he really can't do it, write to me directly. Don't hesitate to tell me. The one who will guard the Northwest in the future cannot be an incompetent prince."

"Remember to tell the truth."

Li Yun looked at Chen Da and said seriously, "Otherwise, if something happens in the Northwest in the future, I'll hold you accountable."

These words made Chen Da shudder. He looked up at Li Yun and said with a wry smile, "Then I dare not bring His Highness the Fourth Prince."

Emperor Li was speechless and said, "How can you be so timid?" Chen Da smiled bitterly and said, "Let alone me, even if it were Prime Minister Du, he would probably be quite frightened upon hearing the words 'keeping accounts'."

Li Yun waved his hand: "I was just joking with you."

"We're brothers, do you really think we'd keep accounts?"

"Take good care of him. I only have one request."

Emperor Li said solemnly, "You can't let my lively son die. As long as he can come back alive to get married, anything else is fine."

Chen Da hurriedly patted his chest and said with a smile, "Even if I die, Your Highness will be safe and sound."

"You can't die either."

The emperor's face was stern: "If you die, wouldn't that mean I've lost a great general?"

This was just a joke between old buddies. Chen Da laughed heartily, clasped his hands in a fist salute to the emperor, and said, "Your subject obeys!"

After saying this, he bowed his head and said, "Your Majesty, I will not disturb you any longer. I will take my leave."

The emperor grunted and sighed, "Take care on your journey and come back soon. When you are stationed in Luoyang, we old brothers can get together often to chat and have a drink."

Upon hearing this, Chen Da felt a lump in his throat, bowed his head and replied, "Yes," then bowed respectfully and withdrew from the Ganlu Hall.

He had just stepped out of Ganlu Hall when he saw Prime Minister Du walking towards him. Chen Da quickly stepped forward, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "Prime Minister Du."

Du Qian glanced at Chen Da, first bowing in return, then stepped forward and patted Chen Da on the shoulder, saying with a smile, "Bo Zhong, are you here to bid farewell to His Majesty?"

"Yes."

Chen laughed and said, "I will be leaving Luoyang in the next year or the year after."

Lord Du nodded.

"Bo Zhong has made outstanding contributions to the Western Regions and will be remembered in history."

"Don't dare."

Chen Da hurriedly replied, "Speaking of opening up the Western Regions alone, I have done less work than Prime Minister Du."

Du Qian was speechless. The two exchanged a few polite words before bowing and parting ways. After saying goodbye, Prime Minister Du went into the Ganlu Hall and met His Majesty the Emperor. He presented the prepared documents to His Majesty with both hands and said, "Your Majesty, these are documents drafted by the Secretariat according to Your Majesty's requirements. First, they severely reprimand the local government offices, ordering them to start investigating all matters related to human trafficking from now on."

"Secondly, restrict workshops in Jiangdong Province and prohibit the use of slave laborers."

"In particular, it is strictly forbidden for any workshop to use trafficked people for work. Once discovered, they will be severely punished."

Li Yun took the document, read it carefully, and only after he had read it completely did he put it on the table and say, "Let's do it this way."

Du Qian glanced at Li Yun and said, "Your Majesty, the Provincial Governor of Jiangdong Circuit has also sent documents these past few days, saying that merchant ships have brought back some people from Southeast Asia, who are being sent to work in workshops by local merchants..."

Emperor Li narrowed his eyes and after a while, he spoke: "Jiangdong Circuit, including Jinling Prefecture and all its counties, must clarify the household registration by the end of this year and register all citizens of the Great Tang Dynasty without any omissions."

Upon hearing Li Yun's words, Du Qian immediately understood and said nothing more.

Although the emperor did not express his opinion, this statement was in fact a statement: as long as the people of the Tang Dynasty were not disguised as people from Southeast Asia to work, the court would not interfere for the time being.

As for whether or not they will intervene in the future.

That's a matter for the future.

At least in this nascent stage, the imperial court would not interfere.

Minister Du then reported some information about the situation in Jiangdong to Li Yun, and then said, "Zhang Sui is very familiar with the affairs of Jiangdong. My idea is to send Zhang Sui to Jiangdong again to supervise for a period of time, and then let him return to Huainan next year."

Li Yun nodded: "Alright, the Secretariat will issue the document for him."

Minister Du glanced at Li Yun, and after a while, said in a low voice, "Your Majesty, the workshops that have appeared in these places contribute a lot of tax revenue to the Jiangdong government every month. I have roughly calculated it in the past few days."

"If all regions can achieve the same level of income as Gangdong Province after the new policy is implemented in the future."

Prime Minister Du turned his head to look outside the hall and murmured, "The court's annual revenue is about to increase dramatically."

Li Yun nodded and said quietly, "The future potential of commercial tax far exceeds that of land tax."

So right now…

His Majesty the Emperor said quietly, "These commercial workshops should be allowed to develop first."

At this point, Li Yun looked at Du Qian and added, "But we can't be too hasty; we must proceed steadily. Jiangdong Road..."

"Some problems have already arisen."

Du Qian thought for a moment and then said, "Your Majesty possesses the heart of a sage. These issues are problems for Your Majesty, but they are not problems for the court."

Li Yun thought for a moment before finally humming in agreement.

"good."

He looked at Du Qian and gave a self-deprecating smile.

"I am indeed somewhat sentimental."

(End of this chapter)