A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Starting from the Village Chief

Chapter 822 Queen Yuwen Yubo
In the first month of the first year of Zhenguan,
Envoys from various countries gathered in Luoyang, and merchants from all directions brought goods from all over the world, adding much liveliness to Luoyang.

Among the vassals,
Only the Turkic Khan Li Sizhong and the King of Gaochang Qu Wentai personally came to Luoyang to pay tribute.

They also showed exceptional loyalty to the Tang Dynasty.

Tuli Khan is currently in Chang'an and insists on using the name bestowed upon him by the emperor, Li Sizhong. He has also printed and stamped a batch of name cards with the title "Li Sizhong, Grand General of the Right Guard, Prince of Beiping, and Imperial Son-in-Law of Princess Changping of the Tang Dynasty."

It didn't mention at all that he was the Turkic Khan.

As for King Qu Wentai of Gaochang, he came with Yuwen Yubo.

"I intend to have you recognize Yuwen Yubo as your sister. Are you willing?" On the banks of the Luo River, the emperor stood on the piece of land that had been bestowed upon Li Yi and suddenly asked.

This year, in the first month of the lunar calendar, the Luo River, which separates the imperial city and the outer city of Luoyang, did not freeze.

The water glistens in the sunlight.

The more than 300 mu of marshland, abandoned since the chaos of the Sui Dynasty, has become a paradise for fish and birds.

"Your Majesty's arrangement is my command." Li Yi replied without much thought.

He knew little about the Queen of Gaochang.

"The Yuwen clan was originally a royal family of the Northern Zhou Dynasty. In the fifth year of the Daye era, Qu Boya, the King of Gaochang, came to the court to pay homage to Yang Guang. Later, he followed Yang Guang to conquer Liaodong. After returning, in the eighth year of the Daye era, Yang Guang bestowed the title of Princess Huarong upon Yuwen Yubo and married her to Qu Boya as his queen. He also specially appointed Su Kui, the Honglu Shaoqing, who was highly respected and had a noble reputation, to preside over the wedding."

After Yuwen Yubo married into Gaochang, Qu Boya's principal wife abdicated the position of queen.

After Qu Boya's death, his son Wentai, following the customs of Gaochang, adopted Yuwen Yubo as his queen.

Although the Kingdom of Gaochang was located in the eastern part of the Tianshan Mountains in the Western Regions,
However, it was a Han Chinese country, which was quite unique in the Western Regions.

The group included descendants of Han soldiers stationed there, as well as people who had migrated from the Hexi Corridor, Longyou, and Guanzhong regions since the Wei and Jin dynasties to escape war. Although they had also served under the Rouran, Gaoche, Tujue, and Tiele,

However, among the city-states of the Western Regions, it was considered to be one of the stronger ones.

After the Sui Dynasty opened up the Western Regions, Gaochang also paid tribute to the emperor.

Even after the Tang Dynasty unified the Central Plains, Gaochang still maintained its tribute mission.

Even with a new king, the respectful attitude remained unchanged.

"When Wen Tai came this time, he presented black fox fur and other items. Queen Yuwen made a request to the Empress, hoping to be included in the imperial clan."

This is a good thing for the Tang Dynasty.

Although Yuwen Yubo was a member of the Northern Zhou imperial family, Emperor Yang of Sui bestowed upon her the title of Princess Huarong and arranged for her to marry the King of Gaochang.

However, since Qu Wentai and his wife are still pro-Tang, Li Shimin is willing to accept them.

It doesn't matter what the Queen of Gaochang's original surname was; she can just use the surname Li from now on.

“You are one of the Three Dukes of the Great Tang Dynasty, the Prime Minister of the Court, and the Prince of Wei. If you and she become sworn siblings, she will also be a member of the royal family in the future.”

Li Shimin felt that allowing Yuwen Yubo and Li Yi to recognize each other as siblings was still a great honor for Yuwen Yubo and the Gaochang Kingdom.

After all, Li Yi was also a member of the imperial family registered under the Zongzheng clan, and was one of the most appreciated meritorious officials in the court.

The emperor could have made the arrangements directly, but he still made a point of asking Li Yi for his opinion in person first.

Li Yi agreed, and the emperor then sent someone to inform Qu Boya and Yuwen Yubo to hold a banquet and ceremony at Li Yi's residence.

A cold wind brushed against my face.

The cold wind was like a knife.

Li Shimin pointed to the desolate marshland, withered trees and weeds, and asked, "When do you plan to start construction?"

This piece of land is quite nice.
The area was half a hamlet, more than 200 mu, and then more than 300 mu of marshland on the south bank of the Luohe River were added.

Although it looks desolate now
But this is a prime location!
With proper planning and design, there is ample space to create a very nice mansion with gardens.

Of course, such a large piece of land requires a lot of financial, material, and human resources.

"I plan to wait until next year when there is a shortage of food, and then hire craftsmen and people to clear these three hundred acres of marshland. We will first build a long dike along the Luo River, plant willows on both sides, and build several stone bridges on the dike."

The long dike separated the Luo River from the marshland.
This abandoned swamp, once repaired, can be transformed into a beautiful landscape like West Lake, becoming a scenic spot in Luoyang where scholars and commoners alike can come to stroll and enjoy themselves. Hiring laborers to build during times of food shortage is essentially a form of work relief.

The emperor understood Li Yi's thoughts and did not think that he was waiting for a famine to hire people cheaply.

"At that time, we should hire more people to carry out major repairs on Luoyang City."

The emperor looked at the Luo River.
"Wu Yi, what do you think about the imperial court moving the capital to Luoyang?"

"Your Majesty, in the long run, Luoyang, situated in the center of the empire, with its convenient waterways and land routes, is the best choice for a capital. Moreover, the situation is different now compared to the Qin and Han dynasties; taxes and population are gradually shifting towards the more prosperous Guandong region, and this trend will continue in the future, moving towards the Yangtze River basin..."

"However, I believe that it is not advisable to move the capital within the next ten years."

The Tang Dynasty is newly established, and everything needs to be rebuilt; there's no rush to move the capital. It's not too late to propose moving the capital when the country is prosperous and the people are at peace.

The emperor stayed in Luoyang for a while. Although Luoyang had not yet recovered from the war, he had indeed felt that it was much more convenient than Guanzhong.

"Your wife is about to give birth, isn't she?"

"About two months left."

Li Yi had several pregnant wives and concubines in Chang'an, and he told them to stay in Chang'an to rest and prepare for their pregnancies, and not to come to Luoyang for the hardship.

"The Empress mentioned your wife, Shi Niang, today. She specially sent several experienced female officials from the palace, along with some tonics and a few female doctors, to Luoyang to visit your wife. They will stay there to help take care of her until your eldest son is born."

Li Yi laughed and said, "We still don't know if it's a boy or a girl."

Li Shimin said, “I’ve heard that you have some secret arts. You’ve married many wives and concubines and had quite a few children these past few years.”

At least two or three children are born every year.

You have no idea how many families in Chang'an envy you.

Some noble families, despite having many wives and concubines throughout their lives, often struggle to have children; some only have two or three children in their entire lives, while your family has two or three a year.

"Everyone says that you, Li Yi, have mastered the secret of fertility. You used to be away fighting for many years, and you rarely saw your wives and concubines. But every time you reunited, you were able to get your wives and concubines pregnant."

Speaking of these things, Li Shimin was somewhat envious.
The Li family is actually quite good at having children. They come from a military family, are healthy, and have even married wives from military families for generations.

Emperor Emeritus Li Yuan now has more than thirty children.

Before he became emperor, he had ten children when he was in his fifties. After he became emperor, even at his advanced age, he still had several children every year.

Li Shimin had seven or eight children in total.

However, both the retired Emperor Li Yuan and the current Emperor Li Shimin had several children who died young.

Li Yi had more than a dozen children in six years, and several more were about to be born, yet there was no news of any of Li Yi's wives or concubines miscarrying or the infants dying.

This was something even the emperor envied greatly.

Although nobles and royalty could take many concubines, the ability to bear children did not necessarily mean they would be easy to raise, and having many wives and concubines did not necessarily guarantee a high chance of pregnancy.

Conditions and limitations.

Li Yi is someone many people envy; everyone says he has a secret technique.

In this respect, Li Yi had to admit that he did know some secret techniques, but they were all basic common sense from later generations, such as ovulation calculation, pregnancy care, and newborn care.
Even things like maintaining good health and avoiding alcohol during the preconception period may seem ordinary, but they are all valuable experiences.

Li Yi's knowledge of infant care is better than that of many people in this era.

The Li family's children were conceived well and born strong. They were also well cared for, so the children were generally healthy and could receive timely care and treatment even for minor illnesses.

"Chengqian, this child, is probably too young. He traveled a long way to Luoyang, and now he's suffering from the change in environment. His health has been poor ever since," the emperor said, his face full of worry as he spoke of the young crown prince. "Wuyi, you are the Crown Prince's Grand Tutor..."
"Could the Crown Prince stay at your residence for a while? When you have time, could you also give him some pointers?"

Seeing the emperor's expectant gaze, Li Yi could not refuse.

Li Chengqian is just a child of a few years old. He is the Crown Prince and the eldest son of Li Shimin and Empress Zhangsun. Li Shimin places great hopes on him.

The current Chengqian is still like a blank sheet of paper, very pure, and has not been tainted by the faults recorded in history books that angered and displeased Li Shimin.

He couldn't help but think,
At this point, would Crown Prince Chengqian have the opportunity to take a different path?
(End of this chapter)