The Leisurely Life of the Prince of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 411 The Father-in-law Comes to Apologize Again

When the fight broke out in the courtyard, Guo Daiju left. He saw a group of soldiers rushing towards the courtyard where the lecture was taking place.

Fairness is a rare and precious thing. Guo Daiju felt that if fairness was not the case, he should have been able to pass the imperial examination relying on his status as a member of the Yingchuan Guo family.

But because of the anonymous system, he failed the exam. But when he looked at himself again, he was just a commoner, so Guo Daiju felt that there was nothing wrong with fairness.

After calming down and leaving Huayin County, Guo Daiju saw smoke rising from the fields. There were farmers walking by the fields, and where the smoke passed, the originally golden fields turned into a charred black.

White smoke drifted from the fields into the distance.

Such a scene made Guo Daiju forget all his previous worries. Seeing the smiles on the farmers' faces, he also smiled, rode his horse and headed towards the book house in the distance.

The incident in Huayin County eventually became a big deal. In fact, it was not just Huayin County, but also Weibei where something happened.

In Guanzhong there are many common people who graduated from the remote teaching middle schools. These students have been trained during more than ten years of remote teaching. They seem to be born with hostility towards the aristocratic families and the gentry.

The conflict between the children of the gentry who came from all over the country to take part in the imperial examinations and the students of Guanzhong is becoming more and more intense. With the expansion of teaching in remote areas, this trend may sooner... sweep across the Central Plains.

The officials of various counties reported the matter to the court, and Su Tan, the director of Chongwenguan, once again met with the emperor to apologize.

The contradiction between lower-class students and aristocratic celebrities seems to have always existed.

These conflicts did not arise before because they had no power and no weapons.

With the support of teaching, the court, or the emperor's will.

They had talent and knowledge, and a stage to compete with the gentry and celebrities. The students from the lower classes became powerful, had their own ideas and weapons, and thus became the most radical and angry group of people.

Li Chengqian still sat in front of the Wude Hall. Every afternoon after court, he would come to the Wude Hall to visit his grandfather and stay with him until his grandfather took a nap.

Now that his grandfather had finally fallen asleep, Li Chengqian was looking through the memorial that Guo Luotuo had someone submit from Shuzhong.

There are more and more memorials to read recently. Li Chengqian slowly took a sip of tea and looked at the contents of the memorials. Guo Luotuo wanted to build terraces and lake fields to increase the grain-growing area in the Central Plains. With more grain, there will be more population.

The rice yield in Shuzhong is 320 kilograms per mu, which is a considerable output.

Before the farming season every year, Guo Luotuo would go out, and after autumn and into winter every year, Guo Luotuo would come back. In the past few years since he came back from the Western Regions, he, the Minister of the Ministry of Agriculture, has been living like this.

Guo Luotuo's memorial was simple, but some things were difficult to implement, such as taxation. The desire for population growth was related to taxation, and all dynasties from ancient times to the present were inseparable from the issue of taxation.

This is a very complicated issue as it concerns the foundation of the dynasty. For example, during the Han Dynasty, some people said that they wanted to slow down the tax period for children.

During the reign of Emperor Wu of Han, children were subject to tax as soon as they turned three years old. This was a huge pressure for a family, so some people at the time hoped to relax the age limit for population tax.

However, the taxes in the Tang Dynasty were still relatively light. It could be said that they were the lightest taxes since the Han Dynasty.

Under the system of rent, labor and tribute, my father learned from the lessons after the fall of the Sui Dynasty, reduced the burden on various parts of the Central Plains, developed water conservancy projects, and opened up arable land.

Of course it is impossible to collect no taxes at all. After meeting a country's basic needs, taxes should be reduced as much as possible.

To a certain extent, it provides flexible production and greater living space.

Li Chengqian always felt that advanced concepts might not be applicable to the current Tang Dynasty. Appropriate concepts should be adapted to local conditions.

After writing the comments, he had it sent to the Ministry of Civil Affairs.

"Your Majesty, Chief Su is here and he said he is here to apologize."

A sentence interrupted his thoughts. Li Chengqian frowned and asked, "Why is he here to apologize again?"

"It is said that something happened in Huayin County. Some students got into a fight."

Since ascending the throne, the father-in-law has come to apologize from time to time, but the queen doesn't care about these behaviors.

But the more times his father-in-law apologized, the more Li Chengqian felt that his own face had been damaged.

Putting down the memorial in his hand, Li Chengqian nodded, picked up the teacup and made tea for his father-in-law.

"I have come to apologize for my crime, and I ask your majesty to punish me."

Just as the tea was filled, a voice came from behind.

Li Chengqian turned around and saw his father-in-law in court robes, so he supported him and said, "You don't have to be like this."

Su Tan said hurriedly: "I am a minister in the court, and it is my duty. If I have neglected anything, it is my fault."

Now Su Tan also has a grandson and a granddaughter. His life is pretty good. He often goes to Beiyuan to visit his grandson, and comes to the palace to visit his daughter and granddaughter during festivals.

They are originally a family, but the relationship between the monarch and his subjects is a bit of a headache.

Li Chengqian said: "The students are making trouble again. This is not the fault of Chongwenguan. I will also inquire about Jingzhao Prefecture."

Su Tan hurriedly said, "Those students fought with them for fairness. It was my fault for not disciplining them well. It has nothing to do with the students."

"At that age when you are full of vigor and vitality, if I were in your shoes, I would also fight."

Su Tan was speechless.

Li Chengqian didn't care about this matter at all.

Su Tan explained the cause of the incident again and apologized, "I was elected as the leader of the Guanzhong nobles. If the Guanzhong nobles made mistakes, it was because I failed to discipline them properly."

"It's okay. It's not your fault. There will always be conflicts between people. I am very pleased that the lower-class students can unite."

Su Tan asked: "Your Majesty, what do you mean..."

"It may be that the people in Guanzhong are so tough that the common people in Guanzhong dare to shout loudly about injustice. If we go back a hundred years, the small nobles and big clans would unite hundreds or thousands of people to protect their own means of production, or be annexed by the big clans... Haha, it's much better than in the past."

Su Tan bowed and said, "I understand."

Li Chengqian handed the old father-in-law a bowl of tea and said, "Stay for dinner tonight."

Su Tan drank the tea and said, "I still have a lot of things to sort out in Chongwen Hall, so I will take my leave now."

"In fact, my father has said before that since Su Zhushi is so dedicated to his duties and is a relative of the Li Tang Dynasty, he should also be given the title of county lord."

"I am ashamed of myself."

Li Chengqian took the tea bowl, drank the tea, looked at the sunset in the distance and said, "I will consider it."

I didn't intend to let this father-in-law answer.

Su Tan wanted to refuse but couldn't say it because His Majesty was not someone who would be swayed.

Even if the person who wants to influence His Majesty is the current emperor, it won’t work.

For an emperor like this, whatever he says, he will definitely do it.

Su Tan also knew very well that he could not change anything, and he could only accept it regardless of whether he was granted the title of county lord or not.

The current emperor is strong and benevolent. Facing such a Majesty, even the emperor's uncle like Changsun Wuji would not dare to refute him easily.

Moreover, this is true both internally and externally.

After Su Tan said goodbye, he left. When His Majesty was still the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace, he could still see the youthful spirit.

His Majesty's appearance has not changed, but the bearing and skill he displays make him an emperor who commands submission.

At night, after Li Chengqian played chess with his grandfather, the old man fell asleep and then he returned to Liangyi Hall.

As soon as he returned to the palace, little Mengji ran over quickly, "Daddy!"

Li Chengqian picked up his little daughter and asked, "Have you been good today?"

"My daughter is very well behaved. She followed her sister in writing today."

She stretched out her tender little hand and scratched the stubble on her father's chin, laughing.

Inside the palace, dinner was ready. Li Chengqian put his little daughter on a stool beside him and sat down to eat.

Ning Er served the food and said, "We dried a lot of pickled mustard greens this year. Xiaofu said we prepared too much and couldn't finish it."

Pickled plums require a lot of salt. There is no shortage of salt in the palace. My uncle’s Shuzhong Salt Field would send several trucks of salt every month, and it was impossible to eat it all.

However, the prepared pickled mustard greens can be stored for a long time.

Li Chengqian said: "I will send some to the army later."

At this point, he hesitated and said, "Most of the generals who went on the Eastern Expedition back then were tired of eating it. They wanted to feed the pickled mustard greens to their horses. It would be better to send them to Qinghai and the Western Regions."

Little Que'er took care of her sister while she was eating and helped her correct the use of chopsticks.

After dinner, Li Chengqian sat in front of the Liangyi Hall and looked at the bright moon in the night sky.

Su Wan sat down silently.

"My father-in-law came today."

Su Wan nodded, "Did someone in the palace tell me if Grandpa has gone to bed?"

Li Chengqian held his wife's hand and said, "Go to bed."

After Ning'er asked the palace maid to clean up the dishes, she also sat aside. She knew that the person His Majesty was most concerned about now was grandpa.

Li Chengqian said: "It's getting late, go to bed early."

Ning'er stood up and asked the palace maid to clean up the palace.

The palace became quiet again. His Majesty didn't build many new palaces nowadays. In the eyes of the people in the palace, His Majesty, the Queen, and Concubine Ning always got along well and lived in harmony with each other.

Moreover, they all lived in the Liangyi Hall and no more palaces were built. Compared with the Zhenguan period, the current imperial palace was more simple.

The next day, Li Chengqian woke up early and started his morning run.

The hour before dawn is when Your Majesty goes for a morning run every day. He never stops all year round, no matter whether it is hot summer or cold winter.

After morning jogging, half an hour before the morning court session, after having breakfast, I would start looking at the state affairs to be discussed at the morning court session. I would preview them every morning to avoid forgetting them during the meeting.

Seeing that the eldest daughter and the youngest daughter had woken up early and were eating noodles with bowls in their hands, Su Wan was taking care of them.

Li Chengqian read the memorial in front of him and changed into court clothes. "I still prefer to hold meetings in the New Palace as before. At least I can sit in front of the desk and read a few books."

Ning'er skillfully helped His Majesty put on the hair crown. She could do this even with her eyes closed. It was an action that she did not need to think about. After so many years of getting along, some things had already become habits.

Your Majesty's height, shoulder width and waist circumference have never changed.

She helped her husband tie his belt and put on his outer robe, and then said, "Your Majesty is the Khan of Heaven, the emperor of the world. You must be dignified in front of others. Mother said that Your Majesty can talk to the court officials in any way on weekdays, but you must maintain your dignity in court meetings or ceremonies."

Ning'er helped put on the complicated emperor's robe, smoothed out the slight wrinkles on his majesty's shoulders, and nodded, "Well, your majesty's shoulders seem to be a little broader."

Li Chengqian said: "Maybe he is a little stronger."

Knowing that His Majesty has been exercising for many years, and that he looks thin in clothes, but in fact he has a strong physique, Ning'er frowned again, then suddenly smiled and said, "It's time to attend the morning court."

Li Chengqian rolled up his sleeves, straightened his collar, and walked quickly towards the Taiji Hall.

Ning'er walked back into the Liangyi Hall and cleaned up the dishes in a good mood.

Today's morning court was still discussing the autumn harvest in various parts of the Central Plains. The Minister of Civil Affairs, Chu Suiliang, came back from Luoyang. He had built a granary in Luoyang and stored enough grain. He once again talked about this year's autumn harvest taxes.

If taxes are collected smoothly in various places, this should be the most substantial year for tax collection, as Hebei and Liaodong have recuperated after two years of rest.

My father once exempted taxes for most of the Central Plains. Now the deadline has come, and this year we can collect taxes according to the tax regulations of previous years.

Li Chengqian listened to the discussions of the court officials, and they started talking about whether to reduce or exempt taxes.

Some people even talked about exempting the population from taxes, collecting taxes based on the amount of land, and making some changes based on the rent, labor service and levy.

This was a very avant-garde idea. Of course, some people immediately raised objections. How should the income from land be divided if it was large or small?

Others say that taxes should be paid only after the child turns 20.

This is another very avant-garde idea.

The debate was heated, but Li Chengqian was satisfied to see that everyone could boldly say these strategies that sounded a bit absurd but could make sense. He thought that one should always try more. One should not be afraid of an uncertain future but should be afraid of standing still.

In response to this, the court officials were divided into three factions: the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the Secretariat, and the Ministry of Personnel. They each held their own opinions and argued for nearly an hour without reaching a solution.

Even the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Justice joined the debate.

The argument did not stop until Duke Ying came forward to address the court and mentioned that the Tibetan general Qin Ling had been escorted to Chang'an.

According to the agreement with Songtsen Gampo, the life of Lu Dongzan's son must be saved.

Li Chengqian looked at the civil and military officials in the court without saying a word.

The old general Cheng Yaojin stood out from the court and shouted, "Your Majesty, let Qinling be punished with hard labor."

Minister of Works Xu Xiaode stepped out of the court and said, "General, there are still a surplus of craftsmen for the construction of Chang'an. Because there are wages, people are rushing to do the work every day, and there is no room left."

Niu Jinda, who was also an old general, said, "Appoint him as a general and raise horses in Chang'an."

Xue Wanjun said loudly: "This man has no military merits, he is just a surrendered general, how can he be made a general? It's such a waste."

"Let him go to the tavern and dance for us."

"Can Tibetans dance?"

"Let him sweep the streets."

It was unknown who had said this. Li Chengqian was distracted and when he looked again he could not find the person who had spoken.

This suggestion was unanimously praised by everyone, and Qinling was asked to sweep the streets together with Ashina Helu.

I have to say...these old generals' ideas are more unconventional than each other, and the older they get, the more colorful they become.

(End of this chapter)