The Leisurely Life of the Prince of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 323 New Grandfather and Grandson

Li Shen put his hands in his sleeves, looked at a group of children playing in the distance, and said, "Royal brother?"

"Ok?"

"In fact, when we were in the East Palace, we were always taught to consider the actual environment. As the saying goes, we should adapt to local conditions. My brother... don't be impatient and don't rush for quick success."

The fighting spirit was rekindled in Li Zhi's eyes.

Di Renjie was also sitting nearby, peeling walnuts while looking into the distance and chewing like a hamster.

While eating, Di Renjie saw a group of soldiers walking along Zhuque Street. He tugged at the sleeve of the Prince of Jin and asked, "Is that the Crown Prince?"

Li Zhi looked up and said with a proud smile, "It's my brother."

Di Renjie said: "Your Highness the Crown Prince is so tall."

Li Zhi said, "My brother is now the emperor, in charge of all the officials in the country, and he is also the Shangshu Ling. Do you know the Shangshu Ling?"

Di Renjie shook his head in confusion.

Li Zhi smiled and said, "That was the position that my father held in the past. He was in charge of all officials in the court. As long as you become the Shangshu Ling, you will become the emperor in the future."

Di Renjie hesitated and asked, "Really?"

"I'm afraid that's wrong. Since ancient times, the position of Shangshu Ling has often been abandoned. When my grandfather conferred the title of Shangshu Ling on my father, he had no more titles to offer, so he appointed my father as Shangshu Ling. Moreover, before that, Shangshu Ling was above ten thousand people. Because of his great power, he was feared by emperors of all dynasties."

Li Zhi put away his smile. This Shen brother always liked to pour a basin of cold water on him inadvertently. He said, "I'm hungry."

Di Renjie's eyes suddenly lit up and he asked, "What to eat?"

Li Zhi said: "Eat noodles."

"Okay, okay." Di Renjie quickly followed and asked, "Add meat?"

Li Zhi said generously: "Add."

The expenses provided by the palace to the prince's mansion were sufficient, but Li Zhi and Li Shen lived a simple daily life without any extravagance. If the expenses provided by the palace were only used for food and clothing, Prince Jin and Prince Ji would still be considered wealthy.

Of course, if they spend the money recklessly, they will most likely be beaten by their sister.

Li Chengqian went all the way back to the palace and came to the Taiye Lake where he saw his father, the emperor, who was staring at the lake in a trance.

"Your uncle said that Duke Zheng's condition is very bad. Dongyang has also been to see him. He needs to rest for a while. I will not let him attend court these days so that he can rest and recuperate."

Li Shimin whispered, and then continued: "The people who followed me in the past have left one after another. Jingde has also retired. I also heard that Yuwen Shiji is also seriously ill. Seeing them getting old and sick one by one, sometimes I feel old too."

Li Chengqian walked over to his father and sat down, saying, "If your father wishes to retire, I can discuss this with the other ministers."

Li Shimin smiled.

The old eunuch standing beside him had a calm expression. If His Highness had said something like this in the past, he would most likely have been scolded by His Majesty or given a lecture.

But now it’s different. It seems that there is nothing wrong with what His Highness said.

Li Chengqian secretly thought that it would be good if his father's life ended here and he bid farewell to the position of emperor, or maybe this would be a perfect emperor's life.

My father is now 48 years old and has grandchildren. When he is over 50, he will no longer be in his prime.

Li Shimin asked, "How was the conversation with Xuanling?"

Li Chengqian said: "That's great. If we don't mobilize too many troops, we can conquer Goguryeo."

Li Shimin sat up straight and asked, "How many soldiers are there?"

Li Chengqian stretched out a finger.

"Ten thousand?"

"No, one thousand."

Li Shimin stroked his temple with one hand, frowned and said nothing.

Li Chengqian said, "I have read the files written by Duke Zheng during his travels. People in the important places of the Central Plains are in decline. If we want to recruit soldiers, I am afraid there will be a lot of resistance."

"I also know that when Yang Guang conquered Goguryeo, he gathered troops in Zhuo County. It is said that there were a million soldiers in the twelve routes. But I think that if we want to conquer Goguryeo, we only need to arrange a special force, not a million soldiers."

As they were talking, little Yu Tu came over quickly, climbed onto his father's knees with great effort, and sat down immediately. His father looked at the lake, and he also looked at the lake.

Li Shimin glanced at his grandson again.

Little Yutu immediately turned his head away and didn't look at his grandfather.

Empress Changsun looked at the grandfather and grandson who were not getting along with each other and chuckled with her hand covering her mouth.

Li Chengqian continued, "It just so happens that Goguryeo is in turmoil right now, and we don't know the situation yet. I think Goguryeo is not that difficult to conquer right now."

Li Shimin nodded slightly and said, "I will think about it."

At night, autumn rain fell again in Guanzhong. The father and son sat in the waterside pavilion and had their meal. A map was placed on the table, and they discussed the situation of Goguryeo over and over again.

The territory of Goguryeo was actually not very large, mainly because the geographical environment was too complex.

Li Chengqian put away the map and said, "I will ask Qingque to send someone from the Literature Institute to investigate the terrain of Goguryeo. I will ask him to make the arrangements tomorrow."

Li Shimin's attention was focused on Xiao Yutu again, and he picked up his grandson when he was not paying attention.

Little Yu Tu struggled in his grandfather's arms.

Li Shimin grabbed his little face with his big hands and said, "I will personally raise you and teach you a lesson from now on."

Seeing that he couldn't struggle free, little Yu Tu cleverly reached out and grabbed the old man's beard.

The grandfather and grandson were competing with each other.

Li Chengqian left his troublesome son with his father and mother and returned to the Eastern Palace.

The next morning at the court, the emperor had lost a few strands of his beard.

There was an obvious asymmetry between the left and right sides, and Li Chengqian frowned as he looked at it.

Cen Wenben stood out from the court and said, "Your Majesty, why is your hair and beard untidy during the morning court?"

Li Shimin did not try to hide it, but replied: "My grandson was naughty and he pulled a few strands of my hair."

All the ministers in the court were smiling. His Majesty now had a grandson, which was the most joyful thing. It was a beautiful story to play with his grandson on weekdays.

In other words, Li Chengqian felt that if heaven had feelings, it would also grow old.

The emperor is also a living person.

The atmosphere at the morning court today was much better.

The emperor's words did not seem like a joke, but he really wanted to raise little Yutu himself. After all the officials had reported their affairs, Li Shimin said, "I am exhausted these days, so I will leave the government affairs to the crown prince."

With that, the morning court session ended.

Although he said he was tired today, my father's steps were actually very brisk.

When Li Chengqian led Cen Wenben, Chu Suiliang and Yu Zhining to Xingqing Hall to discuss matters, they heard laughter from Chengqing Hall next door. It was his father and little Yu Tu.

The young voice sounded very happy. I wonder what happened between the emperor and this child? Are they getting back together?
Several people in the hall were also silent. The tiredness His Majesty mentioned turned out to be from playing with his grandson.

Li Chengqian cleared his throat and said, "Recently, I read the files sent by Lord Zheng and found a case. The case was because a rich man robbed a farmer's cow. The two sides argued in court, and in the end, the rich man won the case."

The people in the hall listened quietly to the Crown Prince's story, and heard laughter coming from next door.

Li Chengqian added: "Later, Duke Zheng stepped in and returned the oxen to the farmers. It seemed that the matter was resolved, and it was fair and just."

Everyone nodded.

"But after thinking about it, I still feel that it is inappropriate. Farmers have always made a living by farming. They are not even literate and have never read books, not to mention that they do not have a very good ability to express their grievances. Therefore, when a farmer goes to a long speech to express his grievances, how can he compete with a counselor who specializes in reading?"

"If Duke Zheng had not intervened in this matter, the farmer would still have lost his oxen. Therefore, I believe that the cause of supporting education should not only continue, but also be expanded. Based on the case of Prince Teng Li Yuanying and Li Yuanxiang, I have decided to let the Censorate and the Dali Temple conduct a long-term investigation."

Li Chengqian added: "Some things cannot be forgotten once a result is achieved. They must be carried out for a long time and with perseverance. It's like catching insects on crops. If you just catch one and leave it alone, more insects will breed. Do you have any objections?"

"I have no objection."

"Okay, after the imperial examination this year, we will increase the number of staff in the Dali Temple, the Censorate, and Jingzhao Prefecture. We will increase the number of staff tenfold from the original number. We will go to Chang'an to investigate the prefectures, local governance, local customs, and local officials. From now on, I will not stop. We will continue this matter and catch those insects."

Several people responded in unison: "Yes."

When leaving Chengqing Palace, Cen Wenben asked, "Your Highness the Crown Prince wants to investigate the whole country?"

Zhang Xingcheng said worriedly: "If we really investigate like this, I'm afraid there will be trouble."

Chu Suiliang, who was walking on the side, explained: "These days, I have been reading the files brought from various places. It is true that Shandong and Hebei are in decline, but there are also people who enjoy wealth and luxury. Some things are shocking to read."

"Just like when His Royal Highness wanted to govern Luoyang, he had to conduct a thorough investigation before governing. He conducted an investigation for more than ten years and collected taxes ten times or even dozens of times. What was the purpose? Now the people of Luoyang are stable and prosperous. Censor Zhang is worried that there will be chaos, but I think the world is not afraid of chaos, but it is afraid that there will be no chaos."

Cen Wenben interrupted Chu Suiliang and added: "Your Highness has said that it will last for several years. Let's prepare first. We will be busy later."

Chu Suiliang sighed, he had slept in the Secretariat for three consecutive nights.

After giving instructions to a few people, Li Chengqian walked to Xingqing Hall with a memorial. Inside the hall, little Yu Tu was sitting on his father's shoulders.

As his father ran, the child opened his arms and cheered.

The eunuch wanted to remind His Majesty that the prince was coming.

But when the eunuch saw that the prince was also standing outside the palace watching, he didn't want to disturb the scene.

Until Xiao Yutu saw his father standing outside the palace, he shouted, "Dad!"

Li Shimin put him down and watched his grandson run quickly into Cheng Qian's arms with a still shaky step.

This grandson forgets the kindness of his grandfather as soon as he sees his biological father.

Li Shimin thought to himself, I have already been so good to this grandson, and turned around and ran into Cheng Qian's arms.

Li Chengqian picked up his son and said, "Actually, he's pretty easy to take care of. Give him some toys and he can play by himself for an entire afternoon."

"Toys?" Li Shimin snorted coldly, "This kid has no interest in those toys. If I don't go to see him, he will tear down my palace. He is so powerful at such a young age. He must be Xiang Yu in the world."

Little Yu Tu put one hand around his father's neck, turned his head to look at his grandfather, and said, "I am Yu Tu."

He seemed to be emphasizing that he was a little tiger, not Xiang Yu.

"I'm afraid that after a few years, this kid won't even take Xiang Yu seriously."

"The child is Yu Tu!" he emphasized again.

Li Shimin sat down with a smile and said, "Have you arranged all the affairs of the court?"

Li Chengqian held his son and sat down opposite his father. He handed over the memorial and said, "This is from the Anxi Protectorate. Pei Xingjian said that more and more Persians are fleeing to the Western Regions. He thinks Persia is dead."

"But I still have doubts. The Persian envoy mentioned the Persian prince that year, saying that this prince would come to Chang'an to ask for help, but I haven't seen him yet. The Persian monk Aroben is dead, and now I can't get any other news to confirm it."

Little Yutu climbed down from his father's arms again, climbed onto the table, and simply sat between his grandfather and his father.

Li Shimin looked at his grandson with fondness on his face, and said, "I haven't asked you yet, how are the preparations for the Eastern Expedition going?"

In fact, the father and son had talked about this matter in the Sanqing Hall three years ago.

Li Chengqian added: "At the beginning of this year, the Honglu Temple sent an envoy to Goguryeo. Now the envoy has not returned yet, so we need to wait for news."

"Has Xuanling told you everything that should be said?"

"Yes." Li Chengqian nodded and said, "The Eastern Expedition is very difficult. I can only prepare a limited amount of food and soldiers."

Li Shimin placed one hand on his knee and said solemnly, "The Central Plains is in decline. How do you plan to deal with the issue of hidden and escaped households?"

Li Chengqian poured a bowl of hot tea and told his father about his plans.

After the father and son finished their discussion, little Yu Tu fell asleep on the table.

Li Shimin glanced at his grandson happily and said, "Take him back. I plan to have a good night's sleep. This child is too noisy."

Li Chengqian picked up his still sleeping son and said before leaving: "I plan to send Ashina Simo to Liaodong first and build the Chongwen Hall there as well."

Li Shimin nodded, "I said that the power to mobilize these troops is given to you, and you don't need to ask me in the future."

The eunuchs hurried to tidy up the still somewhat messy Xingqing Hall. Only after the Crown Prince left with the imperial grandson in his arms did His Majesty go to the back hall to rest.

There are still many important matters to be dealt with in the court. The generals in the court are also busy. The troops in the various states and prefectures need to be redeployed. These matters are arranged by several generals in the court.

It was also during this late autumn that Li Chengqian met Duke Ying while practicing archery outside the East Palace.

"Your Highness."

"I see Yinggong every day in class, but this is the first time Yinggong has come to see me alone in these days."

Li Ji said: "Guo Xiaoke has passed away."

"Yeah, I heard about it. It happened at the beginning of this year."

Duke Ying now looks a lot thinner, unlike before when he was a bit fat in middle age. After General Yuchi retired, my father secretly wanted to treat Duke Ying as the number one figure in the army.

The prince's archery skills were still sharp. The arrow whizzed out and landed accurately on the center of the bull.

It is obvious that the prince has not relaxed his training in the past one or two years.

(End of this chapter)