The Leisurely Life of the Prince of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 88 Live Clearly
The rain finally stopped, and Guanzhong welcomed the long-awaited sunshine. In late January of the eighth year of Zhenguan, the wet Guanzhong finally dried up after being exposed to the sunshine.

Li Chengqian finally had some free time, so he walked to the courtyard of the rear hall of the Eastern Palace. In fact, the Eastern Palace was very large, but there was not much space for people to live in.

Many places have been abandoned since the Wude period and no one has lived there ever since, so many places are covered with dust or are leaking rain and wind.

Li Chengqian, together with Li Lizhi, Ning'er, Princess Dongyang, Princess Qinghe and Princess Runan, cleaned up several rooms.

This was originally the inner quarters of the Eastern Palace, which is also called the Neifang Bureau in Tang history books.

This place is usually used for the Crown Prince to meet guests or manage the affairs of the Eastern Palace. To be more precise, this should be Sister Ning'er's "official office" here.

But the Eastern Palace doesn’t need so many people, nor does it need to be too large.

Sister Ning'er was also accustomed to giving instructions to the palace maids in the front hall, so this place had been vacant for many years.

The construction of the imperial palace was based on the Taiji Hall, Liangyi Hall and Ganlu Hall as the central axis, with palaces built on both sides from Chengqing Hall to Wude Hall.

Only the most important places in the imperial palace have been built, so only a part of the East Palace has been built.

Not only the East Palace, there are many places in the Imperial Palace that have not been renovated.

To the north of the East Palace, there are Yichun, Yiqiu, and Xichiyuan. A large area has not been repaired and is now overgrown with weeds.

The places chosen for my younger sisters Li Lizhi, Princess Dongyang, Princess Qinghe, and Princess Runan are not bad. They are just to the north of Chongwen Hall. My younger brothers and sisters should also have their own rooms, and all the rooms in the inner square of the Eastern Palace can be used.

The older sisters need their own space and rooms of their own.

After clearing out some debris, the four sisters poured water on the ground so that there would not be dust when cleaning.

Xiaofu, Li Zhi and Li Shen brought a ladder.

"Your Highness didn't even ask for a craftsman, and yet they dragged their feet on giving us a ladder." Xiaofu complained as he walked.

This girl probably had a quarrel with someone again.

Her loud voice could be heard from a distance.

Li Chengqian took the ladder and prepared to climb onto the roof.

Xiaofu said, "Your Highness, be careful."

Li Chengqian climbed up the ladder to the roof, checked the tiles here, replaced some broken tiles, and then replaced some better tiles from other roofs.

Li Yuan watched from a distance, looking at his grandson's clumsy movements and said, "Cheng Qian has never done anything like this before. This is really embarrassing for him."

A lot of them were damaged during the process, but fortunately, difficulties only fear those who have perseverance. The houses here are made of very good materials, and they are all palaces in the palace.

It was still very strong after all these years. After the tiles were replaced, Li Chengqian finally climbed down.

Looking at the cleaned and tidy house, I felt much better.

Ning'er and Xiaofu took branches and brushed off the dust on the prince's body.

"Like it?"

After hearing what their brother said, they looked at the house that belonged to them alone. Dongyang nodded happily and said, "I like it. My sister will also plant a jujube tree in front of the house."

Realizing that someone was pulling at his clothes, Li Chengqian looked down and saw Li Zhi and Li Shen looking pitiful, as well as the slightly younger Princess Gaoyang, with a longing look in her eyes.

"You guys want it too?"

They all nodded.

After handing these rooms over to Li Zhi and the others, Li Chengqian changed his outer clothes and said, "Okay, if you are not scared sleeping alone at night, I will arrange some for you."

Li Shen said: "Brother is not afraid anymore."

Gao Yang on the side snorted coldly: "You can't sleep at night without holding something, and you still say you are not afraid."

Li Shen added: "I'm just not afraid anymore."

Li Zhi also looked unconvinced.

The younger brother and sister started arguing again.

Li Chengqian walked back to the front hall of the East Palace, where a memorial was placed on the table.

"This was sent by the Secretariat. They said it was sent by Prime Minister Fang."

Li Chengqian sat down, took a sip of water and started to read. The East and West cities were going to start selecting scholars. Without affecting the imperial examination, the scholars selected this time could still participate in the imperial examination.

And two days later, Sifangguan, Hongwenguan, and the Academy of Literature were essentially still under the jurisdiction of the court. Even though the selection of scholars this time was not the intention of the court, the expenses were still paid by the court.

Since the Crown Prince is in charge of overseeing the expenses of the court, this matter requires the approval of the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace.

The front hall of the East Palace was quiet for a moment, and then the Crown Prince's angry curses were heard.

"How many times have I told you to make the budget clear and explain the problem clearly!"

……

Dongyang and Qinghe, who were moving their clothes, were startled by their brother's angry curse. Seeing that their brother was pointing at the memorial and cursing, they hurried back to their rooms.

Li Chengqian paced back and forth, angrily saying, "What kind of world is this? Is there no one in the whole court who can make a budget?"

"Fifty strings of cash, you can't even explain the matter of fifty strings of cash, what are you doing for a living?"

"I will dismiss all of you!"

After saying this, the prince walked out of the East Palace in a rage, holding the memorial.

Li Yuan frowned and asked, "What made my grandson so angry?"

Li Lizhi was holding a stack of books and said, "My brother doesn't usually lose his temper. He only loses his temper when he encounters something that still won't change after being told several times."

Li Yuan stroked his beard and nodded, saying, "Most likely he has encountered some difficulties again."

Of course, such words cannot be said in the Secretariat.

When Li Chengqian faced his teacher and uncle, he tried to slow down his tone as much as possible and said, "Teacher, I really don't know how to approve this memorial."

Fang Xuanling said: "Ten strings of cash are used to sell paper, six strings of cash are used to arrange for the invigilators, and the rest can be used by various places..."

"In fact, the money for paper can be saved. We can use paper from Jingyang."

Chang Sun Wuji asked, "Will all the paper used in the imperial examinations and government affairs be provided by Jingyang in the future?"

"Jingyang now has a lot of paper in stock, and they think it's not being used up fast enough. Jingyang can support it in the short term."

Changsun Wuji nodded and said, "That's good."

"Cen Wenben, take someone else to take a look."

"I'll go too."

Cen Wenben took His Royal Highness the Crown Prince to personally visit the two venues in the East Market and the West Market.

In the noisy market, Li Chengqian was walking while writing on a piece of paper with a pen in his hand, saying, "Minister Cen, in fact, the budget we are making now can also be used for the imperial examination, right?"

Cen Wenben nodded and said, "Tables, papers, and hands are all fine."

Li Chengqian continued, "First, make a budget plan and determine the number of people." Cen Wenben held the file in his hand and said, "One hundred and fifty-three people."

"How many invigilators are there?"

"Thirty-five people."

Every time Li Chengqian asked a question, Cen Benwen would answer it and then write down the next sentence.

When the two walked back to the Secretariat, a budget had been prepared. The original fifty strings of cash were reduced to thirty strings of cash, because the tables could be provided by the Sifangguan, Hongwenguan, and Wenxueguan, and this time it was a small-scale exam, so the tables and labor costs were eliminated and the cost was compressed as much as possible.

Li Chengqian then asked the teacher to stamp it and ordered people to distribute it.

The money in the court is being used less and less.

In the spirit of increasing revenue and reducing expenditure, Li Chengqian firmly opposed his father building a palace at this time when the court was short of funds and there was not enough surplus under the premise that the construction of the four counties in the Hexi Corridor had not yet taken place.

The Eastern Palace set an example by building and repairing it by itself without using a single brick or tile from the Ministry of Works.

If your Majesty wants to build a palace, you can do it yourself, and I, as your son, will not stop you.

Thinking of this, Li Chengqian recalled his grandfather's words. The old man had hidden a lot of gold sand in the Wude Hall.

Even my father doesn't know the existence of these golden sands.

The gold was ground into sand and hidden in the Wude Hall.

Is this the capital prepared for the grandchildren's future?

The emperor is a thoughtful person. Even at his old age, he still saved some money for himself.

As for how much gold sand there is, no one knows, and no one knows where the emperor hid it.

My father has been to several places in the Wude Hall but has not found any golden sand. My grandfather's fearless look also shows that the sand is hidden very secretly.

The Ministry of Rites wanted to build four counties in the Hexi Corridor and asked the prince for money.

The Hongwenguan wanted to hold an examination and also asked the prince for money.

Sometimes, participating in government affairs is not like a strong man falling from the sky and having whatever you say come true.

Li Chengqian sat in the Secretariat with his hands in his pockets. It was here, in this power center of the court, that he unknowingly integrated into the court officials and took on this burden.

The burden was heavy, and the court was facing a financially stretched situation.

There is also a father who needs to spend money from time to time.

To the extent that Li Chengqian hopes that Du He can make money faster.

"Minister Cen, please bring Yu Zhining and Xu Xiaode here. I have something to say to them."

"Here."

Changsun Wuji glanced indifferently at the prince with a sad face, then walked out of the Secretariat.

Fang Xuanling followed, and the two of them walked in the imperial city. He said, "I never asked you before, is there anything on Duke Zhao's mind these days?"

Chang Sun Wuji said: "In the past, whenever the prince encountered difficulties, he would come to me and ask for help from me or his uncle."

Fang Xuanling stroked his beard and asked, "Really?"

Inadvertently, Changsun Wuji recalled the Crown Prince's humbly asking for advice last year. He walked out of the Suzaku Gate in a confused state, and after saying goodbye to Fang Xuanling, he went to the residence of his uncle, Duke Xu.

Nowadays, my uncle is no longer obsessed with playing cards, and recently he likes to grow some flowers and plants.

He had this hobby when he was in Shu. Now the flowers and plants in Duke Xu’s mansion were sent from Shu.

Changsun Wuji walked into the yard, silently took the flowerpot from his uncle's hand, and placed it on the shelf beside him.

Gao Shilian brushed off the dirt on his hands and asked, "What are you doing here?"

"Come and see uncle."

"You've encountered some troubles." Gao Shilian pointed at his nephew and said with a smile: "Although I am no longer in the court, I know that after the prince participated in the government, your troubles will only increase."

Hearing his uncle's laughter, Changsun Wuji also smiled with shame.

"Do you know why I promised the King of Wei to give him two jars?"

"Because my uncle thinks that Your Majesty thinks too highly of the Crown Prince. He also knows that the King of Wei requested the wine to be presented to Your Majesty. The Crown Prince and the King of Wei are both my sister's children. Firstly, my uncle treats the Crown Prince and the King of Wei equally. Secondly, I hope Your Majesty will not make things too difficult for the Crown Prince, so he acquiesces to the King of Wei's actions."

Gao Shilian rubbed his waist and sat down beside him, looking at the flowers and plants in front of him, and said: "Your sister has so many children, and Li Erlang has already firmly sat on the throne and held the power of the world. Looking at the Central Plains, he can command at least 500,000 troops."

"With such a powerful emperor, no matter how outstanding the crown prince is, he will not be a threat to the emperor. Cheng Qian is a very realistic child. He clearly knows that only by becoming a person more powerful than the current emperor can he rule the world."

Gao Shilian patiently advised: "Don't stop Cheng Qian from doing something, because in a few years, maybe even Changsun Wuji won't be able to stop him. This kind of child will be a very capable person in the future."

"Looking at people again, I have never made a mistake in my ability to judge people. It was the same then and it is the same now."

Gao Shilian whispered, "These guys in the Li family are more interesting than the other."

"In fact, when His Majesty allowed the Crown Prince to participate in state affairs and supervise the allocation of money and grain, my nephew tried several times to persuade His Majesty to revoke the order. The Crown Prince is still young and is very enthusiastic about state affairs. Little did he know that the allocation of money and grain in the court has always been a difficult matter. I don't know how much trouble he must have."

In fact, as long as the prince said a word, this uncle would do anything to help him solve the problem, even if it meant asking the Changsun family to pay money.

The Crown Prince is the most beloved child of his younger sister, the current Queen, and is also the most trusted Crown Prince, even though His Majesty is so partial to the King of Wei.

"Have you asked His Majesty to take back his order?"

Hearing this, Changsun Wuji fell silent again.

Gao Shilian continued, "I knew you wouldn't say that. You are too loyal to the emperor. Your sister is doing well now, but what about you? You always think about everything and you don't have the courage to make decisions on your own. It's a pity that Du Ruhui died too early, otherwise the position of Minister of Personnel might not be yours."

"If the prince wants to take power, let him try." Gao Shilian smiled, his expression was full of happiness, and said, "This prince is so good, so young. If I live a few more years, I can watch him ascend the throne with my own eyes, and I can rest in peace in the grave in the future."

Zhang Sun Wuji whispered: "After saying so much, uncle still hopes that I can help him become the emperor."

"If you find me annoying, just leave. I find you annoying too."

Hearing that his uncle was driving people away, Changsun Wuji wisely left.

Gao Lin bowed and said, "Goodbye, Duke Zhao."

Gao Shilian supported his waist and slowly stood up, whispering, "Gao Lin."

"The old slave is here."

"Fuji is a good-for-nothing. I don't want to see him these days. I send him away every time he comes."

"Old slave understands."

"Ouch!" Gao Shilian held his waist and said, "My waist is no longer strong enough."

Gao Lin said: "It's probably your old illness that's come back. I'll give you a massage."

Gao Shilian lay down, let him hold his waist, and whispered: "They are not as wise as the prince. What will happen to the Tang Dynasty in the future?"

"Don't worry, Patriarch. The younger generation will have their own blessings."

(End of this chapter)