The Leisurely Life of the Prince of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 160 The Prince Keeps His Word

As he was speaking, Li Shimin had already gotten into the carriage.

Li Chengqian bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I have enjoyed your spring outing. I, your son, respectfully bid you farewell."

"No need, you guys go first."

Father's words were heard from the carriage.

Li Chengqian stopped bowing, stepped onto the shaft and sat on the carriage.

Li Ji rode his horse aside and led the team slowly forward.

In April of the ninth year of Zhenguan, everything seemed so beautiful and so smooth, although there were some bumps in the road in early spring.

Life and work are like this, nothing is smooth sailing.

Some bumps and bruises can last forever and help us sum up our experiences and lessons.

Jingzhao Prefecture should be more tough in its work in the future.

If people think that Jingzhao Prefecture is too easy to talk to, it will cause trouble in the future. At worst, the reputation of Xu Jingzong, the fighting king of Chang'an, will become even more severe.

The only thing that was not going well was that the prince's carriage started moving, and when he looked back, his majesty's carriage was slowly following.

The two escorting troops were one in front and one behind. If you didn't know, you would think they were the same army.

Li Chengqian rested his elbow on the carriage window, leaned against it and supported his temple, and said to Li Ji beside him: "Didn't the emperor say that he came here to relax?"

Li Ji said: "Most likely they are just traveling together temporarily."

Li Chengqian nodded slowly and said, "Let's go to Xianyang County first."

"Yes." Li Ji responded and directed the team to turn and go to the other side of the fork in the official road.

However, the troops behind were still following and even overtook them. Now the two armies and two carriages were running side by side.

"Is your Majesty going to Xianyang County as well?" Li Chengqian sat in the carriage, facing the carriage road.

"Well, I suddenly want to go to Xianyang County."

The voice of the emperor's father came.

Li Chengqian asked again: "Didn't the emperor come here to relax?"

"Of course I'm here to relax."

"That means your son and your father are going the same way?"

"Ah."

"How about Father go first? I am not in a hurry."

A voice came from the opposite carriage again, saying: "Just do your job and don't worry about me."

……

The carriage entered the territory of Xianyang County and stopped. Li Chengqian got off the carriage and saw that his father's carriage was parked on the other side of the road.

Liu Rengui and Li Ke received the order from the officers and soldiers first, and hurried out of the village to greet them.

Li Ke first said: "Royal brother! Ah...Father."

Seeing that not only his brother but also his father was there, Li Ke was so surprised that his tone was not smooth.

Liu Rengui said: "I am the magistrate of Xianyang County, and I pay my respects to Your Majesty."

Li Shimin waved his hand and said, "No need to be polite, I just came out to relax."

Li Chengqian put his hands in his pockets, glanced at his father out of the corner of his eye, and walked into the village with Liu Rengui and Li Ke, only to see his father still following them.

At a distance, Li Shimin whispered, "Jingde, now I can finally see how my son wants to boost Guanzhong."

Yuchi Gong nodded secretly.

Then, Li Shimin quickened his pace.

Li Chengqian found that his father was walking almost side by side with him.

Under the guidance of Liu Rengui, we walked into a village. The official road in the village was very flat. There were houses scattered around the village, and some villagers were busy in the fields.

"Your Highness, this year Xianyang County has planted a lot of wheat, and there are also some paddy fields used to grow millet. In the early spring, the county residents were arranged to reclaim wasteland, and another 130 acres of land have been reclaimed."

Li Chengqian walked along the way and asked, "My inspection of the counties may only make the county officials tremble in fear. If the emperor comes in person, people will be scared to death."

Li Shimin said nonchalantly: "Just don't say I'm here."

"As long as Father is happy."

"Well, you can be more casual."

Following Liu Rengui, he came to a dry field where three acres of cotton were planted. He said, "Your Majesty, Your Highness, these are newly reclaimed wastelands. I follow the code of conduct of Jingzhao Prefecture and will never occupy cultivated land with surplus crops."

Li Shimin nodded in agreement.

In fact, Liu Rengui was still in a dilemma. He didn't know whether to report to the emperor or to the prince, so he just reported to them all at the same time.

I met the Crown Prince at the Dali Temple last year, but this is the first time Your Majesty has met him.

"The Lingyan Pavilion has been built. I have asked the Yan Liben brothers to paint portraits of many meritorious officials. The old man from that time has also passed away. I plan to ask Du He and other relatives of Du Ruhui to help Yan Liben and Yan Lide. After all, he has passed away, and I hope to always remember him."

Li Chengqian observed the seedlings emerging from the fields and said, "Father, please let your father make the decision on your affairs."

Yuchi Gong and Li Ji stood in the back without saying a word. The emperor and the prince...the father and son were each busy with their own things.

Your Majesty has to marshal the troops from all over the Central Plains, rectify the administration of the court, and discuss the appointment of officials from all over the country.

The prince was busy with the construction of Guanzhong and the expenses of the court.

The father and son were in this state from last winter to the beginning of this spring.

The emperor does not interfere in the prince's affairs, and the prince does not care about his father's arrangements.

In fact, this kind of tacit understanding is quite good.

It's better than the father and son quarreling again.

The other princes were fine, they were all obedient and sensible.

The crown prince is different. He will really contradict Your Majesty.

Li Chengqian looked at the growing seedlings and said, "I still think the best place to grow cotton is along the Ili River."

Li Shimin asked: "Really?"

"Well, water, soil and environment cannot be artificially created. Guanzhong can grow cotton, but the yield is still not as good as their place of origin. Now I feel like it's a drop in the bucket."

Liu Rengui said, "Your Majesty, Your Highness, I have asked Guo Siqing of the Sino-Agricultural Temple, and he said that cotton can also be grown along the Yellow River in the Central Plains, such as in Shandong and even in the south of the Yangtze River. Guo Siqing has seen cotton growing in Tongguan, but no one is interested in it."

Li Chengqian nodded and motioned for him to continue.

Liu Rengui looked at the emperor standing beside him.

Li Shimin also nodded and said, "Why not plant it?"

Liu Rengui continued, "It's because of the seeds. Guo Siqing said that not many cottons grew, only three or two flowers per plant. If we use one acre of land to grow such cotton, it will be just a drop in the bucket, as the prince said. We must first let the seeds adapt to the climate and soil of the Central Plains. Guo Siqing has sent people to various parts of the Central Plains to collect cotton seeds scattered everywhere to see if they can hybridize suitable seeds."

Li Shimin looked at his son beside him, waiting for him to continue speaking.

Unexpectedly, the boy walked to the other end in silence.

Li Chengqian looked at a wooden sign in the village, on which were a number of papers, all of which were articles from Jingzhao Prefecture.

Look up and carefully, these are all the village and county governance strategies.

The purpose of the joint lectures organized by Jingzhao Prefecture and Chongwenguan was to allow the residents of Guanzhong County to participate in the construction of Guanzhong, so that the villagers would know what they were doing and would devote themselves to it.

Li Chengqian asked, "Will anyone come here to read the articles?" Liu Rengui replied, "Hardly any, there are not many people in the village who can read."

"Ugh……"

Hearing the prince sigh, Li Shimin asked: "Why? Are you dissatisfied?"

"Father, the construction of Guanzhong cannot be accomplished overnight. Nowadays, all kinds of information are spread by word of mouth. Not only material construction, but also cultural construction is still the top priority."

Liu Rengui replied, "Your Majesty, Your Highness, I have built a library here. Jingzhao Prefecture has arranged two teachers, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, because each county will take turns to use them."

"This... Master, do you take turns using it?"

"Replying to Father." Li Ke, who had been silent all this time, finally spoke, "The teacher in the morning came to teach the children how to read and write, and left at noon, and then went to the neighboring Jingyang County. The teacher in the afternoon was also borrowed from Weinan County."

Li Chengqian said: "Jingzhao Prefecture is struggling to make ends meet. I'm sorry to make you laugh."

"Can't you find another master?"

"Jingzhao Prefecture also needs to be frugal, so naturally, few people will come if the tuition is meager."

Li Shimin said with an unhappy look: "There are still so many people who are only interested in profit."

"It's not their fault. If they hire too many teachers at once, it would be a burden. It's good this way. Keep it simple and don't be too extravagant. The counties are not rich."

After a tour of Xianyang County, I found that it is well developed, at least cleaner and tidier than before.

Some farm tools were neatly arranged in the government office of Xianyang County, and even the ground was very clean.

Cultural level and sanitary conditions are also key factors in the evaluation of model counties.

Each item will be scored by the officials of Jingzhao Prefecture, and then a total score will be used to evaluate the model county. If the scores are the same, the model county can only be evaluated by voting.

This is how Weinan County was evaluated last year.

When the prince and the emperor arrived in Xianyang County, the county residents saw the county magistrate Liu Rengui talking with the emperor and the prince, and they couldn't help but feel more respect for them.

It is very rare that the emperor and the prince would care so much about a sixth-rank official.

Liu Rengui said: "I have a request. Can Jingzhao Prefecture advance some money to build houses?"

"Row!"

"no!"

Both father and son spoke at the same time.

Liu Rengui stood there in a daze again, not knowing who to listen to.

Li Chengqian said: "The county residents should solve it themselves. Jingzhao Prefecture will not be involved in this."

Li Shimin clicked his tongue and said, "You are still so unkind, kid."

"Father, it is better to teach a man to fish than to give him a fish."

Li Shimin said nothing more, expressing his agreement. However, he felt a little uncomfortable and walked to the other side.

Liu Rengui had heard some rumors that the emperor and his son were not very harmonious. Could it be true?

After his father and brother walked away, Li Ke explained, "County Magistrate Liu, don't worry about it."

"Have your Majesty and your Highness always been like this?"

"In fact, father and brother are still very harmonious. Um... they have always been very harmonious."

Liu Rengui said: "I heard that Your Majesty and the Crown Prince are not on good terms. I am very worried."

Li Ke smiled awkwardly.

Xianyang County didn't grow grapes, so there was no need to look at the grapes in Jingyang County. They were no different from previous years. Li Chengqian got on the carriage and said, "Let's go to Weibei."

Li Ji led the team and the carriage drove slowly towards Weibei.

Seeing that his father's carriage had caught up, the two carriages drove side by side. It was already three quarters past noon. Li Chengqian took out a bowl of cold noodles and two cakes from the food box beside him and ate them while sitting in the carriage.

Li Shimin looked at the carriage beside him. When the wind blew up the curtain, he saw his son eating.

Only then did he realize that he was also starving. Li Shimin swallowed his saliva and came out without preparing any food.

The prince had a habit of bringing food with him when he went out, so he would never go hungry and did not have to eat out.

Donggong has always been very considerate when it comes to eating.

Li Chengqian noticed his father's gaze, still chewing a piece of biscuit, and asked, "Father, don't you bring food with you when you go out?"

Li Shimin swayed with the carriage and said, "I'm not hungry."

After that, Li Chengqian happily ate two more mouthfuls of noodles, his chopsticks making crisp sounds as they touched the bottom of the bowl. "It's a long way to get to Weibei, father, do you plan to not eat?"

Li Shimin swallowed again.

Li Chengqian wrapped two of the cakes in cloth and stretched out his hand from the window of the carriage, "Father, please try Xiaofu's new thousand-layer cake."

His son's hand was stretched out. Li Shimin hesitated for a moment, then quickly reached out and took the cake into his carriage.

The father and son withdrew their hands at the same time.

The carriages were still driving side by side, and both Li Ji's troops and Yuchi Gong's troops could be seen clearly.

Everyone lowered their heads, trying to forget this scene.

Your Majesty eating the prince's food, this is really...

Li Shimin ate his cake and asked, "I heard that your Chongwen Academy has not yet recruited any students."

"My reputation is too bad, no one is willing to serve me."

"How come I heard that you didn't want it?"

"There are some people that I cannot accept. Chongwen Hall is a place for officials of Jingzhao Prefecture to study. In the future, it will become a training place. Officials at all levels can study in Chongwen Hall."

"Besides, there is no rule that says that you must recruit famous people to build a literary museum. As the saying goes, too many chickens will not lay eggs, and too many people will make things more complicated. Let's be simple and capable, and take it slow."

Li Shimin ate the cake with a smile on his face again.

After eating two thousand-layer cakes to fill his stomach, Li Shimin felt much more comfortable. He glanced sideways and found that his son was actually sleeping while reclining in the carriage.

Li Shimin looked at the scenery on the other side.

The troops marched along the official road along the Wei River, and their speed increased a lot.

After the carriage crossed the wooden bridge and approached the border of Weibei, you can see the Longshou Canal. Originally, this was a saline-alkali land. After Emperor Wu of Han ordered people to open up the Longshou Canal here, the thousands of hectares of wasteland here were turned into fertile fields.

"Your Highness, we have arrived in Weibei."

Li Chengqian woke up from his sleep and felt uncomfortable sleeping in the carriage.

Grape racks have been set up in the distance, and from afar one can see groups of villagers walking around. The Minister of Agriculture, Guo Luotuo, is here.

The carriage stopped, and Li Chengqian said with a smile: "Father, this is the 5,000 acres of grape fields in Weibei. Grapes will become cheaper and cheaper in the future. I said that I want to make grapes affordable for every villager in Guanzhong, even if they only buy a bunch and taste it."

His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is very ambitious. He hopes that grapes can become cheaper in Guanzhong so that everyone can afford to eat them.

This son is like that, he always does what he says.

The prince never breaks his word and always keeps his word.

He said soap would be popular in Guanzhong, and now soap is popular beyond Guanzhong.

He said that people from the Western Regions should not be allowed to make a lot of money in Guanzhong by growing grapes, so Guanzhong started to grow grapes.

He said that he wanted his younger brothers and sisters to be healthy, and now the children in the Eastern Palace rarely get sick.

He also said that he wanted to double the tax revenue in Guanzhong, make Guanzhong prosperous, and sweep across the Western Regions.

(End of this chapter)