The Leisurely Life of the Prince of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 18: A tough morning

If it were just about selling books, then Donggong would be not far from getting out of poverty and becoming rich.

"Thank you for your hard work, uncle. I wonder what will happen next in the Red Mansion..."

"What else does the Eastern Palace need? I will give it to Your Highness."

Li Chengqian said sadly with his hands in his pockets: "At present, we have everything we need. If we need anything in the future, can we ask the emperor's uncle for help?"

Li Xiaogong nodded and said, "Your Highness, please give the Red Mansion to me."

The uncle and nephew settled the matter lightly.

We can continue to cooperate in the future.

The emperor’s uncle Li Xiaogong is a good friend of my father.

Following Li Chengqian's gaze, Li Xiaogong saw that Li Tai was still talking with several court officials. He stroked his beard and smiled, "Qingque has always been a very sensible child, always asking for advice from others."

"Uncle Royal is right. Qingque is diligent and kind of cute."

Li Xiaogong nodded and said, "What has your highness been doing these days?"

"I..." Li Chengqian smiled helplessly and said, "I have been making toilets these days."

"Toilet? Your Highness, don't you read books? Don't you learn principles?"

"I'm very busy. By the way...does the emperor need a toilet? I'll send one to you as well."

"Well, that's fine too."

Seeing that the time was almost up, Li Chengqian stood at the front of the court, which was his seat, and then he looked at his nose with his eyes and his heart with his nose, and remained silent.

Li Xiaogong wanted to say something but stopped himself. He could only sigh and walk back to the court.

There was a group of people wearing strange costumes outside the Taiji Hall. Looking up, you could see envoys from various countries wearing various clothes.

Among them there are two acquaintances, one is Lu Dongzan, and the other is the Indian monk who currently lives in Shengguang Temple.

There are not many envoys. Although all nations are coming to pay tribute, the Tang Dynasty is not yet at that level of grandeur.

When Li Ke came back, Li Chengqian asked, "Why is this monk Bo Po here?"

Li Ke quickly replied, "Your Majesty, you don't know that the Indian envoy was indeed going to come to Chang'an to pay tribute, but I heard that he died on the way when passing through Tubo. The Indian monk learned the news and came to replace him."

“It turns out he was just making up the numbers.”

Li Chengqian sighed with emotion.

Li Ke whispered, "Speaking of India, I have recently heard of a monk traveling west."

"You mean Xuanzang?"

"That's right. It's rumored that when he passed through Gaochang in the Western Regions, he claimed to be from the Tang Dynasty in the East, and said how powerful the Tang Dynasty was, so he asked the rulers of the Western Regions to let him pass. He made friends with rulers of various countries along the way."

"Haha..." Li Chengqian snorted coldly: "Xuanzang has become a super Tang fan when he is away from home."

"Father is very troubled by this monk."

"Yes, it would be better if he was not a monk." Li Chengqian whispered with emotion.

As the two brothers were talking, Li Tai walked towards them.

He bowed properly and said, "Qingque greets the two royal brothers."

Li Chengqian smiled and said, "Qingque, you are very good. I am very pleased to have such a sensible brother like you."

Hearing this, Li Tai lowered his attitude even more. He bowed and said, "I'm sorry to have embarrassed you, my brother."

Li Chengqian said: "Since the emperor has asked you to attend the court session, just listen carefully and stand beside Li Ke in the court."

"Thank you, Brother Huang."

Li Tai stood aside after hearing this.

The three brothers stood in the front row of the court, in a horizontal row. On the left were all the civil and military officials in the court, and on the right was the throne where their father was to sit.

Li Chengqian took another look at the throne and began to calculate when he could sit on it, the sooner the better.

To be precise, the Tang Dynasty has always been very strong. It is a pity that such a powerful dynasty only cares about internal strife and fighting.

There was a drumbeat outside the palace, and soon there was a loud shout, "Your Majesty has arrived!"

The emperor, wearing the emperor's robe and the emperor's crown, strode into the Taiji Hall.

All the ministers bowed their heads and saluted with their tablets in hand.

Until the Tang Emperor came to the throne, turned around, waved his sleeves and sat down solemnly.

Li Baiyao, the Minister of the Ministry of Rites, stepped forward and began to report on the various matters of this grand court meeting and the introduction of envoys from various countries.

The first person to come to pay tribute was Zhenzhu Yinan Khan of Xueyantuo in Mobei.

The Xueyantuo were a nomadic tribe located to the north of the Eastern Turks. Apart from the Uighurs, they were a nomadic force that could not be underestimated.

In the fourth year of Zhenguan, before the Tang Dynasty's northern expedition to the Turks, Li Shimin appointed this Yinan Khan as the Great Khan of the Northern Desert. When the Tang Dynasty went on an expedition to the Eastern Turks and the Turkic Khan Jie Li, this man led the Xueyantuo to balance the Turks in the north.

He has made some contributions and has always regarded himself as an ally of Tian Khan.

If I'm not mistaken, this person is most likely here to marry a princess.

Li Chengqian looked at his nose with his eyes, and his heart with his nose. He lowered his head and only used his peripheral vision to observe. He was like a wooden sculpture in the Tai Chi Hall.

Next came the envoys from Gaochang in the Western Regions, and then the envoys from various other Western Regions.

Further behind is the Tubo envoy Lu Dongzan.

And some small countries in the south.

After the immediate congratulatory matters were settled, envoys from various countries expressed their respect for the Tang Dynasty and how to worship the Heavenly Khan.

Li Chengqian also felt sleepy, but there was nothing he could do. He had to get up before dawn and put on cumbersome clothes. He didn't get enough sleep at all.

In the past, I could sleep until I woke up naturally. I feel a little uncomfortable after missing one or two hours of sleep.

Looking at Li Ke standing aside, he was the same, like a wooden sculpture at this moment.

Li Tai, on the other hand, was always concentrating, his eyes showing an undisguised smile to every envoy.

In fact, there were many court officials who were trying to take advantage of the situation in this hall. Li Chengqian noticed from the corner of his eye that several generals were standing there with their eyes closed. Their breathing was very obvious, and most of them had fallen asleep while standing.

There were also many people slacking off in the hall.

Next, they talked about the Tang Dynasty’s own affairs, which was the war with Tuyuhun.

The northern expedition against Jie Li Khan lasted from the winter of the third year of Zhenguan to the autumn of the fourth year of Zhenguan. Although the battle was won, it also dealt a heavy blow to the Tang Dynasty.

There was a slight recovery this time, but now we have to fight again.

Originally, Tuyuhun had always been a territory of the Central Plains, but because Emperor Yang of Sui entrusted his power to the wrong person, after someone pacified Tuyuhun, he established himself as king in the west and even occupied the West Sea and Heyuan counties, and even lost the right side of the river several times.

To this day, the Hexi Corridor, located to the west of the Loess Plateau and the strategic point between Guanzhong and the Western Regions, has not yet been fully recovered.

Among the military commanders, Niu Jinda stood out from the court and said in a loud voice: "Your Majesty, as long as you have 5,000 soldiers and horses, I am willing to help Your Majesty to wipe out Tuyuhun."

Upon hearing this, Wei Zheng, who was then the Minister of the Court and now the second-in-command of the Secretariat, also stood out from the court. He said in a loud voice: "Your Majesty, while Guanzhong is resting, how can we mobilize the food and supplies for the troops?"

It is true that, as the saying goes, food and fodder must be sent before troops move out. We must wait until the summer harvest before we mobilize our troops. It would be best to wait until the first crop of grain is harvested in Guanzhong before taking action.

Among the military officers, Li Daliang strode out and said in a loud voice: "Your Majesty, I don't need 5,000 soldiers and horses. Just give me 300 soldiers and horses and I can capture Tuyuhun Khan alive."

As soon as he finished speaking, all the officials in the court began to discuss again, and everyone lowered their heads and whispered to each other.

There was a constant buzzing sound in the hall, as if countless mosquitoes were flying around. Li Chengqian continued to pretend to be a wooden sculpture, motionless.

"Three hundred soldiers?" Fang Xuanling stepped out of the court and asked loudly, "Do you think this is a joke?"

Li Daliang said: "I faced tens of thousands of Turkic cavalrymen in the past and never felt afraid when defending a county alone. How can I be afraid of the tiny Tuyuhun country?"

Cheng Yaojin simply said: "Your Majesty, I don't need any soldiers, my own troops are enough! Please allow me, Your Majesty."

Wei Zheng said with a dark face: "Cheng Zhijie, please stop making trouble in the hall."

"What nonsense is this person doing? They are just barbarians from the Western Regions. One of my people is enough."

Qin Qiong, who was standing beside Cheng Yaojin, also stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, I am willing to go with Cheng Zhijie!"

"Ahahaha!" Cheng Yaojin laughed loudly and said, "Be like Second Brother Qin, with all your heroic spirit. I will go with you to capture the Tuyuhun Khan alive! Catch him and perform the Huxuan dance in the Taiji Hall!"

Otherwise, why do people say that the people of the Tang Dynasty were tough and brave? When the world was in chaos, there were so many heroes galloping across the Central Plains, such as Qin Qiong, Cheng Yaojin, and Yuchi Gong. Any one of them was a first-rate general.

At that time, heroes gathered together and there was no one in the world who could compete with them.

For example, the female general Li Xiuning led her female army to guard Weize Pass, the throat of Shanxi Province. Until thousands of years later, that throat was called Niangzi Pass and it still exists today.

It is said that the Tang Dynasty is powerful. At least now it is still full of brave generals.

There are many generals who are veterans who survived the turbulent times, and the heroic spirit they had when they fought in those turbulent times is still there.

Zhang Sun Wuji stepped out of the court and said hurriedly, "Your Majesty! We don't have enough food and supplies right now. Please think twice."

Li Shimin frowned and said nothing.

Until one person stood up in the court. He was an old man with gray hair on his temples. He bowed and said, "Your Majesty, you know that there are many people discussing the book "A Dream of Red Mansions". It contains satires on the world. I also know that this book came from the East Palace."

Everyone was arguing about who would lead the troops to conquer Tuyuhun, but then discordant movements began to appear in the court.

Cheng Yaojin said angrily, "Don't interrupt me, old man."

Yan Shigu continued, "Please, Your Majesty, issue an order to arrest Mr. Cao who wrote the Dream of the Red Chamber!"

This discordant voice came again. If it were in the past, Cheng Yaojin would have kicked this old guy out long ago. But since His Majesty is right in front of him, he has to maintain his demeanor.

Yan Shigu added: "Your Majesty, the book Red Mansions has brought disaster to the country and the people."

"Fuck your mother's fart!"

Suddenly there was a loud shout in the hall. Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and found the person who spoke was none other than the current emperor's good friend, Prince of Hejian Li Xiaogong.

Yan Shigu said: "I didn't fart."

Li Xiaogong stood up and said loudly: "A Dream of Red Mansions is just a story, how can it bring disaster to the country and the people?"

Yan Shigu asked, "May I ask the Prince of Hejian, have you ever seen the Red Mansion?"

Li Xiaogong cleared his throat and said, "I have seen it."

"May I ask, who is Wang Xifeng?"

"Wang Xi..." Li Xiaogong was hesitant to speak. He had indeed read Dream of the Red Chamber, but he only read a few words and did not read any further.

Yan Shigu said again: "Your Majesty, please issue an order to arrest Mr. Cao. I heard that Mr. Cao is in the East Palace."

After saying this, everyone's eyes turned to the Crown Prince Li Chengqian of the Eastern Palace.

Even his father looked over. Li Chengqian sighed and stood up, saying, "Mr. Cao left the East Palace a long time ago. Besides..."

After a pause, Li Chengqian observed Yan Shigu, "The Red Mansion is just a story, but I want to ask what crime it has committed?"

Yan Shigu said: "When the Tang Dynasty was first established, the government was clean and honest, but the officials in the book Dream of the Red Chamber were all corrupt officials."

Li Shimin finally spoke up. As an emperor, he said with a sullen face, "I will arrange for someone to conduct a thorough investigation."

Yan Shigu bowed and walked back to the court.

After the incident, the grand court meeting returned to normal. The next thing to be discussed was how the snowstorm last year was, how the fields in various places were this year, and the tax collection in previous years.

These things are told step by step.

The morning court session was very long and it was almost noon, but there was no sign of it ending.

Li Chengqian felt overwhelmed when he thought about having to attend the morning court every day.

Finally, when no one reported anymore, Emperor Li Shimin finally said the words "withdraw from the court".

Li Chengqian then breathed a sigh of relief. After the emperor left, the ministers in the Taiji Hall started arguing again about the Tuyuhun issue.

The civil and military parties were arguing over when and how Tuyuhun should send troops.

The civil servants and military commanders of the Tang Dynasty were all tough and would often start fighting after arguing with each other.

Cheng Yaojin shouted angrily: "Old bastard! Who are you calling a bastard?"

You can vaguely see spit flying in the air.

Zhang Sun Wuji said: "You are not worthy of being my advisor! I am talking about you!"

"Changsun Pifu, fight to the death with a certain family!"

"come!"

Both sides were shouting and cursing at each other. If Qin Qiong hadn't pulled Cheng Yaojin and Fang Xuanling hadn't pulled Changsun Wuji, the two would probably have fought on the spot.

Li Chengqian was about to leave when he noticed Li Xiaogong standing beside him.

The two of them smiled at each other in tacit understanding at the same time.

Li Xiaogong said: "Your Majesty always said that the court should be clean and the ministers should be united and harmonious, but it's a pity that it hasn't changed in so many years."

Li Chengqian stood with his hands in his pockets, watching Changsun Wuji, whose neck was red, still cursing at Cheng Yaojin, and said sadly, "My uncle is really stubborn."

"I am hungry. I will go to your highness's East Palace for a meal."

"It just so happens that I am hungry too."

The uncle and nephew walked out of the Taiji Hall, leaving the group of civil and military officials in the hall to shout and curse at them.

Li Xiaogong said: "Your Highness is fifteen this year, and it is time to find a crown princess to give Your Majesty a grandson as soon as possible."

"I'm only fifteen, isn't it too early?"

"Humph." Li Xiaogong snorted coldly, "I am already the father of two children at the age of fourteen."

"Fourteen years old..." Li Chengqian bowed and saluted quickly, "It seems that the emperor's uncle is extremely talented, and ordinary people really can't compare to him."

Walking down the steps of the Taiji Hall and standing in the sun, the Tubo envoy Lu Dongzan was still standing here.

Li Chengqian looked back at the noisy Taiji Hall and sighed, "I'm sorry to have embarrassed you, Brother."

Lu Dongzan bowed and said, "After today's congratulations, I will go back."

"Um……"

Li Chengqian fumbled in his sleeve for a moment, took out a piece of yellow and white soap, and handed it to Lu Dongzan, "I said I would give you a gift when you leave."

Lu Dongzan asked suspiciously, "What is this?"

Li Chengqian had a smile on his face, full of hope for the East Palace to get rid of poverty and become rich. "Soap, I believe it won't be long before this thing becomes popular in the Tang Dynasty."

"Thank you, Your Highness."

"Give Songtsen Gampo my regards."

(End of this chapter)