The Leisurely Life of the Prince of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 292: The Fourteenth Year of Zhenguan

Little Sizi was eating noodles while looking at the memorials on the table. His imperial sister and brother were reviewing them. Although they could not understand them, their eyes were bright.

After Xiao Sizi finished the noodles in the bowl, Li Lizhi stretched, stood up and stretched her muscles a little.

Li Chengqian turned over a page of the file and looked at it.

Su Wan held her waist with one hand and her stomach with the other and walked to the window. She opened the window slightly to let the wind from outside blow in and bring more fresh air into the hall.

In the quiet hall, there was only the occasional sound of pages turning.

Li Chengqian picked up the tea bowl beside him and took a sip of tea.

Su Wan sat down quietly and continued knitting clothes, saying, "The wind is quite strong tonight."

Ning'er whispered, "I'm afraid it's going to rain."

In the quiet hall, another half hour passed, and it really started raining outside, with freezing rain hitting the windows continuously.

Little Sizi was sitting on a chair with his feet dangling in the air.

The windows in the East Palace all have handles and are very tight. As long as the windows are closed, no wind will leak in.

Li Lizhi sorted out several volumes of memorials and said, "The number of people returning from the expedition this year should be around 70,000."

Li Chengqian nodded and said, "I have also done the statistics. This war will almost empty the reserves in Guanzhong."

“It will take at least three years to recover.”

"The army will not be back until next summer at the earliest."

"It's late at night, take Mingda to rest."

Li Lizhi took Xiao Sizi back, and Li Chengqian sat at the desk and looked at the current situation in each county.

After the soldiers from the expedition come back, according to the rule of "soldiers return to the government and generals return to the court", except for some soldiers who need to be stationed, most of them will come back to produce.

It will not be put into production until next year, and then we will have to wait another year before we can see the benefits.

Ning'er helped organize the files.

Su Wan has tidied up the bedroom again.

In fact, Li Zhi's estimate was still too optimistic. From a realistic point of view, if Guanzhong wants to recover and return to the state before the war, it will take more than three years, maybe five or six years?
In fact, Duke Zheng hoped to arrange people from various counties into workshops to participate in production.

Because now the emperor trusts Duke Zheng more and more, according to what Duke Zheng said, the country cannot be allowed to be too comfortable, so all those idle people who are used to being idle should be put into the workshops, even if they have to be tied up.

Judging from the current situation, Mr. Zheng’s opinion is correct and the effect is obvious. The productivity of various counties is increasing.

Ning'er picked up the tea bowl beside her and said, "Your Highness, it's late."

Li Chengqian said: "Well, it's late at night, I really shouldn't drink tea."

The next day, Li Chengqian did morning exercises outside the East Palace. It had rained all night, and when the rain stopped in the morning, a thin layer of ice formed on the ground.

Today is a day off, so Li Chengqian can take his time to have breakfast in the East Palace. This is a rare leisure time in the year.

Li Yuan drank millet porridge and ate it with pickled radish.

The grandfather and grandson sat together, and from time to time they could hear the sound of chopsticks hitting ceramic bowls.

"Recently, your father almost wakes up from laughing in his sleep?"

"Why did grandpa say this?"

"Now that Tianshan has been conquered, isn't your father happy?"

Li Chengqian finished the millet porridge in his bowl, put down his bowl and chopsticks, and said: "Grandson didn't see how happy father was. Maybe he has something more worrying right now."

Li Yuan picked up a piece of pickled radish with chopsticks, chewed it, and thought deeply.

The eunuch came quickly to report, bowing and saying, "Your Highness, there's a fight going on in the Secretariat."

Li Chengqian calmly drank a sip of tea and said, "Well, are you still fighting now?"

“We were stopped.”

"How many people are still in the Secretariat reviewing documents today?"

"Eight."

Li Chengqian drank his tea, looked ahead, and did not ask any more questions.

Seeing the prince frowning slightly, the eunuch whispered, "It was the Duke of Zheng and the Duke of Zhao who had a dispute. The two sides started arguing, and then the officials of the Secretariat started fighting."

"It's okay. The fight is over now. Let them continue doing what they need to do."

"Yes." The eunuch nodded and went to give another order.

Li Yuan looked at his calm grandson suspiciously again.

Li Chengqian explained: "Mr. Zheng has always required all counties to arrange all those who can work in the workshops, because now is the slack season for farming, and it is a good time to vigorously produce."

Li Yuan said: "That's a good thing."

"But uncle doesn't think so." Li Chengqian put down the tea bowl, exhaled in the cold air, and said, "Uncle thinks that Duke Zheng is exhausting all the fish, but Duke Zheng thinks that not letting people work and being too comfortable is harmful to the country."

Li Yuan thought: "I have also been the emperor for a few years. When Erlang ascended the throne, he said that we should rest and recuperate, and reduce taxes and levies."

"That's actually true. For an emperor, making such a promise can leave a good impression on his subjects."

"So you think it's Duke Zheng who's wrong?"

"It doesn't necessarily mean that Lord Zheng is wrong."

Li Yuan stroked his beard and thought.

Li Chengqian asked, "Grandpa, how about going fishing with your grandson today?"

Li Yuan waved his hand and said, "No, I want to sleep after fishing."

In the East Palace, the topic of today's article is dreams, and everyone has to write an article to express their personal ideals.

Seeing that Xiao Sizi was also sitting upright, Li Li questioned, "Mingda, you don't need to write anymore. You can't even write well."

Little Sizi nodded and still sat upright.

Li Zhi scratched his head and looked at the blank paper in front of him with difficulty, not knowing how to start writing.

If eyes could emit fire, the paper would most likely be pierced through in his hands.

Looking to the side, Li Zhi found that his younger brother Shen was writing furiously, and he cleared his throat.

Li Shen turned his head and looked at his brother who was watching him.

Li Zhi also looked away.

Then Li Shen lowered his head again. This was not an answer to the question.

At noon, Li Chengqian was sitting by the Taiye Lake fishing when Li Zhi brought him the essay for today's exam.

She put down a test paper, put her hands by the stove to warm them, and held the deer's head lovingly.

Li Chengqian took a piece of paper and looked at the article.

Dongyang wants to be a doctor who can cure diseases and save lives, Gaoyang wants to be a female general, Linchuan wants to be someone like the beautiful imperial sister, and Runan says he wants to learn the musical instrument.

When I saw Mingda's article again, I saw the two words "Taoist priest" written on it.

I know my younger brothers and sisters very well on weekdays, but Li Zhi's articles are the only ones that repeat the same words like "live well, live better, live better" and so on.

Li Chengqian put the test paper aside, holding the fishing rod in one hand and Lüshi Chunqiu in the other and started reading again.

People's strengths are usually related to the environment.

For example, Li Shen said that he wanted to become a master craftsman. Maybe in the future he may not become a bricklayer, but he might become a designer?

My younger brother and sister’s dreams are ordinary yet somewhat extraordinary.

What made Li Chengqian dissatisfied was that none of them dreamed of becoming emperor.

Shouldn’t being an emperor be a dream?

Ha ha……

Li Lizhi let go of the deer's head, and it lay on the princess's knees and didn't want to move away.

My mother planted some plum trees beside the Taiye Lake, and now is the season when plum blossoms are in full bloom. Sitting in the waterside pavilion, Li Lizhi looked at the calm surface of the Taiye Lake and whispered, "Brother, has Duke Zheng exhausted all the fish in the lake?"

"Did you hear that too?"

"Mr. Zheng and my uncle had such a quarrel in front of the Zhongshu Province, and now everyone in the court knows about it. My sister went to visit our mother this morning, and our father mentioned that he would exempt Yongzhou from rent and taxes for a year, and also gave rewards to the Prince of Wei's palace."

After Li Lizhi said this, she felt a little distressed.

The current Yongzhou is different from the Yongzhou in the Han Dynasty. When my grandfather ascended the throne, the provincial capital was redefined. During the Northern Wei Dynasty, Yongzhou referred to all the counties in Guanlong.

After my grandfather ascended the throne, Yongzhou included the twelve counties under the jurisdiction of Jingzhao Prefecture.

The battle in Tianshan this year caused the productivity in Guanzhong to almost stagnate. Many militiamen followed the army to the battlefield. It is true that rent and taxes must be reduced next year. This is one of the necessary actions for an emperor to support people's livelihood. He still adheres to the concept of light taxes and levies.

Li Lizhi asked again: "Is the emperor on the side of my uncle?"

Li Chengqian said: "It doesn't matter whose side your father is on. The focus of the tax revenue next year is not in Guanzhong, but in Luoyang. Do you think your father is trying to rob Peter to pay Paul?"

"Yeah, I've considered it."

Li Chengqian caught a fish from the lake and said with a smile, "We will still produce next year, and we will exempt the land rent and taxes, so that the people in Guanzhong can have a good rest for a year or so."

As the brother and sister were talking beside the Taiye Lake, heavy snow began to fall again. The 13th year of Zhenguan passed in silence.

In the first month of the fourteenth year of Zhenguan, officials in various parts of Chang'an were reciting imperial edicts.

Because Su Wan was in the most critical two months of her pregnancy, the Queen came to the East Palace on the first day of the first lunar month.

From the discovery of the pregnancy in June last summer to the first month of the new year today, the first newborn baby in the Eastern Palace was born in this one or two months.

Dongyang said to his mother, "At the earliest it will be this month, and at the latest it will probably be February."

Empress Changsun said, "Your father is planning to go hunting in Mount Li, so your mother will not go and will stay with you until the child is born."

Su Wan nodded and said, "I'm sorry to have worried my mother."

Empress Changsun supported her daughter-in-law and said with a smile, "It's obvious that this child is impatient. She is probably anxious to be born."

Su Wan smiled and nodded, saying, "It's also quite fussy in the stomach."

The Eastern Palace was peaceful. In a camp north of Xuanwu Gate was the Hundred Cavalry Battalion newly established by his father. Li Chengqian and his father were competing in archery here.

Li Chengqian rode on horseback, drew his bow and aimed at a gold nugget hanging twenty steps away. He pulled the bowstring to its full extent and shot an arrow. The arrow brushed past the gold nugget, causing the gold nugget hanging on a thin rope to sway continuously.

"Your Highness has great archery skills!" Li Xiaogong clapped his hands and shouted from the side.

Yuchi Gong said solemnly, "Your Majesty has not ridden or shot for a long time."

Changsun Wuji also nodded.

Duke Zheng stood aside in silence.

Qin Qiong and Li Ji just smiled and said nothing.

Li Shimin held the bow in his hand, watched his son's horse stop, and thought that Cheng Qian was quite competitive.

After thinking for a moment, Li Shimin spurred his horse, drew his bow on horseback, and also aimed at the gold nugget.

The arrow was released and hit the gold nugget accurately.

"Cheers!" Everyone shouted loudly, louder than the Crown Prince's previous shouts.

The wooden frame hanging the gold nugget was moved back another ten steps, this time to thirty steps.

Li Xiaogong stretched his legs and gently touched the arm of Cheng Yaojin, who was sitting by the fire grilling meat, with his toes.

"Do it!"

"Have you found a wife for your boy?"

"Looking for it." Cheng Yaojin replied unhappily.

The sound of horse hooves rang out again, and under the gaze of everyone, the arrow shot by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince hit the target accurately again.

Then, your Majesty's arrow also hit the target.

Who proposed this competition? It’s actually a long story.

Li Xiaogong looked at Changsun Wuji and Duke Zheng standing beside him.

His Royal Highness the Crown Prince stands on the side of Duke Zheng, while His Majesty stands on the side of Changsun Wuji.

In order to prevent the dispute between the two parties from becoming a quarrel between the emperor and the crown prince, Li Xiaogong proposed this competition.

It would be fine if the prince and the emperor didn't quarrel.

Li Xiaogong felt that he had saved the Tang Dynasty once again, sincerely.

After several rounds of competition, the gold nugget had been moved fifty steps away. Not to mention hitting it with an arrow, even if you look at it now, the gold nugget is only the size of a soybean.

"Scared?"

Hearing his father's words, Li Chengqian said, "It's a bit difficult."

Li Shimin smiled and said, "Even if there is a little wind when your arrow is shot out, it will be deflected."

How about forgetting it?

This is probably what my father meant.

Li Chengqian took out a thinner arrow from the quiver, tested the bowstring, and said, "It doesn't matter. It's just a temporary victory or defeat. I won't care even if I lose."

"Good." The gray-haired Li Yuan smiled and said, "This is the son of my Li family."

After saying this, Li Chengqian rode his horse across the training ground, drew his bow, and the arrow was steady on the bowstring.

He slowly relaxed his hand holding the bow and took a deep breath until the arrow head coincided with the soybean-sized gold nugget in the distance, then he released the arrow.

The slender arrow made an even more shrill sound of breaking through the air.

"Ding!"

The metal arrow made a crisp sound when it touched the gold nugget.

There was another round of cheers on the training ground.

Li Shimin's eyes were still on the gold nugget that was swinging in the distance due to the impact. He remained silent and took out an arrow from the quiver. Compared with ordinary arrows, it was lighter and thinner.

These are the arrows used by the children of the East Palace during training.

The fact that Cheng Qian's arrow was able to hit the gold nugget was probably due to this slender arrow.

Li Shimin rode up on his horse, and under the gaze of everyone, the Tang emperor drew his bow, aimed at the gold nugget in the distance and shot an arrow, which passed by the gold nugget.

Perhaps the wind caused by the arrow slightly moved the thin wire, causing the gold nugget to swing slightly, but no sound of the metal arrow hitting the gold nugget could be heard.

There was silence on the training ground, and no one knew what to say.

Li Chengqian rode his horse slowly towards the wooden rack, picked up the gold hanging on the rope and said, "Thank you, father, for giving me the gold."

Originally, this piece of gold was the expense for the emperor's hunting trip to Mount Li, and it became the prize for this archery competition.

Li Chengqian held the gold high in his hand and said loudly, "It is precisely because my father advocates frugality that we are going to Mount Li for hunting to reduce expenses. I understand your father's good intentions!"

Zhang Sun Wuji said in a clear voice: "Your Majesty is wise!"

Yuchi Gong, Qin Qiong, and Li Xiaogong also shouted: "Your Majesty is wise!"

The soldiers on the parade ground shouted again and again.

Li Shimin was standing on his horse in the parade ground. When he saw his son riding towards him, he smiled and whispered, "I don't need you to help me out."

Facing the smiles of the crowd, Li Chengqian rode his horse beside his father and said, "Your Majesty is wise."

"While I am away at Mount Li, I will leave the government to you."

"I have prepared food and grass in Mount Li, so please rest assured, father."

Li Shimin smiled and said, "Even Lord Zheng said that only the prince can supervise the government and preside over the overall situation."

"Mr. Zheng is overpraising me."

The father and son are in harmony, and the emperor's family is like this, which makes everyone feel at ease.

(End of this chapter)