The Leisurely Life of the Prince of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 222: The Prince's Grant
When Li Shen and Li Zhi returned, it was already late at night, almost midnight.

Late at night, the two children walked quickly into the East Palace and hurried back to their own bedrooms before their brother and sister noticed them.

The two of them walked towards the backyard, looking around and found it quiet.

"Perhaps my brother and sister are already asleep."

Li Zhi tiptoed into his bedroom, lit the oil lamp, and saw a person sitting in his bedroom.

Li Lizhi was sitting at the table, looking at him with murderous eyes.

"sister……"

Li Zhi hesitated and laughed dryly.

Li Chengqian was about to fall asleep when he heard familiar screams in the backyard of the East Palace.

I was so sleepy that I didn't pay any attention to them.
The next morning, while having breakfast, Li Zhi and Li Shen looked listless and walked with a limp.

Li Lizhi held the rice bowl and said, "Brother, I still have to teach them today."

The sisters were all in high spirits. Li Chengqian took a sip of soy milk and said, "Well, I know."

Li Lizhi was the eldest sister. She tossed her long hair, which was still a little wet after just washing, back and drank the soy milk, saying, "Xiaofu."

Hearing the words of Her Royal Highness the Princess, Xiaofu hurried forward.

"Grinding soy milk is too hard work. From now on, I will let the eunuchs from my grandfather do this kind of work."

Xiaofu quickly responded, "Yes."

"Also." Li Lizhi continued, "If they come back late in the future, just close the gate of the East Palace."

"Here."

Li Zhi and Li Shen lowered their heads, drank soy milk and ate cakes without saying a word.

When it comes to teaching her younger brother, Li Lizhi has always been strict and would never hold back when it comes to beating or scolding him.

In fact, this home is quite good. After Li Chengqian finished his breakfast, he went to the morning court.

When walking out of the East Palace, Li Chengqian burped. When he was about to reach the Taiji Hall, he met Li Tai. Many of the ministers looked depressed today.

Including Li Tai, Li Ke, his uncle and a group of military generals.

It seems that the banquet last night was very lively.

"Royal brother, why didn't you come to the banquet last night?" Li Tai asked.

"My royal brother naturally has things that need to be taken care of. The troops and horses that go to war all rely on my royal brother's sufficient food and fodder."

Li Ke said something.

Li Chengqian stood at his seat with his hands in his pockets and said, "It's not that I don't want to go, I have a lot of plans to make."

Li Tai nodded in understanding and said, "Then my brother should also pay more attention to rest. Listen carefully, the lights were still on at midnight last night."

"Well, I feel much better after drinking ginseng soup for a while. Has Qingque been sticking to losing weight recently?"

Li Tai smiled bitterly and said, "I have been running in the morning for a while, but today I was busy collecting information about river conditions in various places, so I was delayed again."

Li Ke remained silent.

Li Chengqian said: "It's not easy for you either."

Li Tai bowed and said, "I can handle it."

There is not much change in this family, and each brother has something to do.

After listening to these words, Li Ke fell silent again. It turned out that everything was very busy and not easy for him.

Today, my father arrived at the Taiji Hall late. After the ministers holding tablets paid their respects, the morning court session began.

After the reports from various departments were completed, the topic of discussion at this morning court was still the battle of Gaochang. Qu Zhisheng was on his way to Chang'an under escort.

Gaochang King Qu Wentai hanged himself. We cannot allow a dead person to perform dance in Chang'an.

The morning court debated how to deal with Gaochang King's son Qu Zhisheng and how to govern the Western Regions in the future.

Niu Jinda said: "Your Majesty, I am willing to go to the Western Regions again to conquer Yu Gushe!"

Cheng Yaojin said, "Old Niu is right. I am willing to go as well. The credit cannot be taken by Hou Junji alone."

As he was speaking, the officials who wanted to object did not speak but instead all turned their eyes to the current Crown Prince.

Li Shimin also looked at his son and saw that he had his eyes closed, ignoring the gazes of everyone.

"Cough, cough, cough..." There was a coughing sound in the hall.

The cough came from Duke of Zhao, Zhangsun Wuji.

Li Chengqian slowly opened his eyes and said to his father, "I think your father has already made up his mind."

There was a brief silence in the hall. Li Shimin looked at the civil and military officials in the court without saying a word.

Wei Zheng stood up from the court and asked, "May I ask Your Highness, how much food and fodder are left in the Hexi Corridor?"

"At most, 60,000 dan of grain, and if the grain and grass from Guanzhong are shipped out later, there will be 100,000 dan." Li Chengqian explained, "The grain and grass preparation for this battle is sufficient, but the army was originally estimated to use 600,000 dan of grain and grass for 50,000 soldiers and horses, which would last until this summer. But later, more than 60,000 soldiers and horses gathered from all over the country."

Wei Zheng said in a clear voice: "Your Majesty, if we march westward, the generals will be exhausted and the food and fodder will be insufficient, which will only increase the burden. We should follow the example of the prince in governing the Hexi Corridor. In the future, we should not only store food in the Hexi Corridor, but also in Gaochang. Only when we have enough food and fodder can we discuss the strategy of marching westward."

Seeing that his son did not continue to express his opinion, Li Shimin asked the civil and military sides to continue the discussion.

No one knew when it started, but all the civil and military officials in the court subconsciously felt that since His Royal Highness the Crown Prince had money and food, anything that could be done would be carried out as long as they got the Crown Prince's support.

This morning court session ended at noon. Generally speaking, the current specific strategy is to clear up the southeastern trade route in the Western Regions.

The specific implementation plan focused on clearing out the bandits, with the Yanqi envoy taking the lead and arranging for the army still in the Western Regions to plow the trade route and clear out the horse thieves along the way.

There are benefits to doing this. It can win the hearts of the people in the Western Regions while stabilizing the trade routes.

Judging from the military report delivered yesterday, the court actually did not need to do anything. After the Tang army captured Gaochang, many horse bandits fled westward.

They either went further west and continued to make a living by looting, or joined Yu Gushe who fled westward.

The Tang Dynasty's war in the Western Regions is far from over, and it has only managed to capture Gaochang and an area in the southeast.

The grasslands along the Tianshan Mountains and the upper and lower reaches of the Ili River were still not in the hands of the Tang Dynasty.

After taking Gaochang, we have a springboard to continue our westward advance. These are all plans for the future. This will not be the only battle for the Tang Dynasty's westward advance.

Li Chengqian had a simple lunch in the East Palace. Li Lizhi went to teach her two disciples, and Dongyang had to follow Doctor Sun to visit patients.

The rest of the brothers and sisters went to visit their mother.

The East Palace was rarely quiet. After dinner, the emperor sent the eunuch an order, and he said in a loud voice: "Your Majesty has ordered that since the crown prince took charge of the allocation of money and grain, all the officials in the court have praised him for his wisdom. I hope that the crown prince will be humble and hardworking in the future. I grant him the power of the Shangshu Province, and appoint him as the general manager of the Shaanxi East Road, in charge of the agricultural construction of Luoyang, Tongguan, and Guanzhong counties. I also grant him a pair of jade bi and a golden carriage."

The old eunuch who always accompanied the emperor finished reading the decree and said, "Your Highness, please accept the decree."

Li Chengqian took the decree with both hands and said, "Thank you, father."

The old eunuch grinned and said, "Congratulations, Your Highness. I will take my leave now."

Seeing his grandson put away the imperial edict, Li Yuan pursed his lips and said, "Your father was the Grand Chancellor of the Eastern Shaanxi Province and the Minister of Chancellery."

Li Chengqian frowned and said, "According to what Grandpa said, Father is stingy?"

Li Yuan suddenly smiled and said, "Let's go and have a look. The Shangshu Province has not been taken care of for a long time."

When his father was still fighting for the country, the positions of Shangshu Ling and Tiance Shangjiang were left vacant for many years, but after clarifying the positions and tasks in the court, Li Chengqian walked into the imperial city, hesitated for a while, and went in another direction. When he arrived at the gate of the Shangshu Province, the old gate was covered with traces of frost.

There were very few officials passing by here, and Li Chengqian found that the door was still locked.

Suddenly, an official in a blue robe passed by. Seeing that he was an acquaintance, Li Chengqian called out, "Minister Du!"

The man stopped, turned around and said with a smile on his face, "Your Highness the Crown Prince."

"Do you have the key to this place?"

"How could this be possible? Your Highness must be joking."

After saying this, Du Zhenglun quickened his pace and left.

Li Chengqian followed him all the way.

Du Zhenglun had no choice but to stop and said, "Only Your Majesty has the key here. Your Highness, please don't embarrass me."

"I'm not trying to embarrass you, I'm just asking a question."

Du Zhenglun asked in confusion, "Could it be that after His Majesty gave the order, His Highness did not have the key?"

Li Chengqian took two steps forward and said suspiciously, "My father just issued an order, and you got the news so quickly. Minister Du's connections are really amazing."

Du Zhenglun hesitated to speak. He looked around and said, "I have something important to do. I will take my leave now."

"Minister Du, please come to the East Palace to have dinner with us when you are free."

Du Zhenglun, who was walking quickly, paused for a moment, and then walked away even faster.

When he returned to the gate of Zhongshu Province, Li Chengqian met Xu Jingzong, Li Daozon and Yan Qinli who were waiting there.

"Congratulations, Your Highness."

Li Chengqian put his hands in his pockets and said, "Have you heard about the decree?"

Li Dao Zong said: "The decree has just been sent to the Secretariat, and I just found out about it."

Looking into the Secretariat, there were still many busy officials, but my teacher, uncle, and Lord Zheng were not there.

After the court session ended, he followed his father away. It seemed that this decree was the one they had discussed.

He led the three people into the Secretariat, where officials bowed to him one after another.

Seeing that the files and memorials on the prince's desk were a little messy, Xu Jingzong rolled up his sleeves, quickly and skillfully put them in order with his hands, and then stood aside respectfully and quickly.

Li Chengqian sat down and asked, "Has any news been delivered from Luoyang recently?"

Xu Jingzong said: "Your Highness, the warehouses in Tongguan have been built, and the distribution of goods has begun. There will be results in the next two months."

Li Chengqian nodded.

Yan Qinli said: "The construction in Luoyang is still under the supervision of Censor Ma. The three largest workshops are still under construction: soap workshop, soy sauce workshop, and paper workshop. There are thirteen other workshops under construction, mobilizing 3,000 people."

"How is Duho going to sell paper?"

Yan Qinli replied: "It is said that one foot of paper is thirty coins."

Li Chengqian ordered: "One foot of new paper costs 25 cents, and recycled paper costs 10 cents."

Upon hearing the price, Yan Qinli hesitated, then replied, "I will inform Master Du He after I return."

Li Daozong handed over a memorial and said, "Your Highness, this is the city tax of the Hexi Corridor."

Li Chengqian flipped through the memorial. From last winter to now, the city taxes paid in the Hexi Corridor and the sales of various shops totaled 30,000 strings of cash.

This scale is still less than expected.

Seeing the unhappy look on the Crown Prince's face, Xu Jingzong said, "Your Highness, now the people of the Western Regions and the Turks no longer need documents to trade with each other. They bring their livestock and furs to the Hexi Corridor for trade. Some people have asked if the trade port can be placed in Gaochang."

Li Chengqian looked at the account book and whispered, "Du He should not have much money now. He has invested so much capital in Luoyang."

Xu Jingzong replied: "Indeed."

"Has the Duhe dormitory been built?"

“Most of the construction is completed, and now there are 300 households living there.”

"Merchants are always eager to expand, but we cannot do that in the court." Li Chengqian looked at the three people in front of him and continued, "The foundation is not strong enough, and the scale of the industry is not large enough. We must do things step by step. Put Gaochang aside for now and do a solid job in the construction of Tongguan and Luoyang. And after the scale of the industry is expanded, as for Gaochang, don't think about it in the next three years."

"Here."

The three of them saluted together.

Xu Jingzong and Yan Qinli left first, while Li Daozon was still standing there.

Li Chengqian said: "Uncle, the people in Jingzhao Prefecture have become a little restless recently."

Li Daozong sighed: "After they have made achievements, they are eager to achieve greater achievements."

"But we can't rush for success, otherwise we will learn a lesson. On weekdays, the emperor uncle should keep these people under control."

"I understand."

Li Chengqian smiled and said, "Thank you, uncle."

"Your Highness, there is no need to tell me this. I know what to do."

"This year, Jingzhao Prefecture will open three Chongwen Halls in Jingyang, Weibei, and Weinan, with Chang'an as the center. Staff will be directly deployed in each county. Each Chongwen Hall can accommodate about 30 people. Later, Chongwen Halls will be built in Tongguan and Luoyang."

Li Dao Zong was thinking in his mind that there would be six Chongwen Halls in the future, "I will arrange it right away."

Li Chengqian nodded and began to read the memorials.

There was nothing special about these memorials, most of them were reports on preparations for this year's summer harvest.

As dusk approached, the prince had much more free time and could walk around. When he arrived at the gate of the Chancellery again, it was already open.

Li Chengqian glanced at the eunuch standing in front of the door and understood.

Walking into the Chancellery, what caught my eye was an old scene, and the door of the official residence had been opened.

Li Chengqian walked in and saw some old furnishings, his footsteps leaving footprints on the dusty ground.

Following the footprints, I saw my father standing there.

Looking at his father standing with his hands behind his back, Li Chengqian bowed and said, "Father."

Li Shimin came back to his senses and looked at his son and said, "Don't make things difficult for Du Zhenglun. I'll leave this place to you from now on."

"I hold no official position in the Ministry of Chancellery."

After taking the keys from his father, Li Chengqian thought that his father didn't seem to intend to give him a specific official position.

Come to think of it, the prince doesn't need an official position here at all, he just needs actual power.

No matter how many honorary titles you have, they are not as good as having real power in your hands.

Soon, Li Lizhi led her younger brothers and sisters into the Shangshu Province, and she began to clean up the place.

"Father! I asked my brothers and sisters to clean up here."

Li Shimin sighed: "Just leave these matters to the people in the palace."

Li Lizhi said, "That won't work. Look at how lazy my brothers and sisters are."

(End of this chapter)