Li Chengqian of the Tang Dynasty: Please say long live His Majesty

Chapter 165 Li Chengqian: You Can Be Prime Minister (Part )
The sun is warm and the water channels are flowing.

Li Chengqian was wearing a black robe with golden python threads, standing on the bank of the canal. He raised his eyes and could clearly see the Xuanwu Gate in the distance.

After just a glance, Li Chengqian withdrew his gaze and looked around.

In the densely packed fields, many soldiers and their families were working hard.

This is the imperial palace.

However, although this is the imperial palace, it is not uninhabited.

There are even large tracts of fertile land covering tens of thousands of acres, where tens of thousands of people farm and live.

This is where the North Gate Guards are located.

The North Gate Guards were stationed on the north side of the Imperial Palace, guarding the entire Imperial Palace. A total of 20,000 elite soldiers and their families all lived in the North Garden of the Imperial City.

From Xuanwu Gate to the north, all the way to the edge of the Wei River, are all forbidden gardens.

The emperor naturally did not need such a large area for entertainment and hunting, so the most fertile land on the south side of the Wei River became the farming area for the North Gate Imperial Guards.

There is an excellent harvest every year, and there is no tax to pay.

Farmhouses in the fields and country roads.

Marriage contracts are exchanged and marriage alliances are communicated.

The families of the imperial guards live on this land.

They did not enter the city of Chang'an, and everything was kept between them, thus ensuring their absolute loyalty to the emperor.

……

Li Chengqian withdrew his gaze. Li Anyan, along with the Crown Prince's attendant Zhang Daxiang and the Minister of Agriculture Zhao Yuankai, accompanied by a burly old man in his sixties dressed in a green robe, came before Li Chengqian. They all bowed and said, "Greetings, His Royal Highness."

"Please stand up." Li Chengqian nodded gently, looked at the old man and said, "My father has ordered me to select a piece of land in the Forbidden Garden and implement various agricultural improvements. I will trouble you, Mr. Song."

Song Ji, the captain of the North Gate Forbidden Army, started the army in Taiyuan at the end of the Sui Dynasty, fought during the Wude period, and was an old general in the Zhenguan period. Now he has retired and served as the captain of the North Gate Forbidden Army.

"I obey your order." Song Ji immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

It was not unusual for the prince to appear in the Forbidden Garden, but it was taboo for the prince to come into contact with the captain of the North Gate and there were a large number of imperial guards' families not far away.

Of course, having the emperor's edict is another matter.

Li Chengqian also couldn't understand what was going on with the emperor that made him intervene in the North Gate.

The Sinong Temple had its own fields, and there were countless farmlands available around Chang'an City, but the emperor insisted that he get a piece of land at the north gate.

"I have three requirements." Li Chengqian looked at Song Ji and said seriously, "First, the land can't be too good, medium quality will do."

"Yes!" Song Ji immediately bowed. This matter was easy to arrange.

"Three mu will be used, and all cultivation will be done by officials from the Eastern Palace and the Ministry of Agriculture." After a brief pause, Li Chengqian said seriously, "Regardless of whose land is used, the Eastern Palace will compensate us with double last year's harvest... No further explanation is needed, that's all."

Song Ji originally wanted to refuse, but Li Chengqian waved his hand to stop him.

"Secondly," Li Chengqian continued, still looking at Song Ji, "I need someone. Whoever had the best harvest in the entire North Gate last year, I want to ask their elders to teach the officials of the Ministry of Agriculture and the Eastern Palace how to farm..."

Zhao Yuankai, who was standing aside, was about to say something when Li Chengqian glared back at him coldly.

"Although everyone in the world knows that grain planting requires intervals, but how much interval is the most appropriate, how much fertilizer to apply, when is the most appropriate time to apply it, and how much water to apply, I'm afraid the Sinong Temple wouldn't dare to say that these things are definitely correct, right?" Li Chengqian looked at Zhao Yuankai with a deep gaze.

"Yes!" Zhao Yuankai immediately bowed and admitted his mistake.

Li Chengqian then looked at Song Ji and said, "I know that the elders of each family have secrets that are not passed down. Therefore, I hope that the elders will do their best to teach them. Not only will they themselves be able to obtain the secrets of others, but if what they say is useful, I will personally ask my father to grant them a title."

When he heard the word "title", Song Ji suddenly became serious. He wondered how many people would be tempted by this word.

"If other families have methods to teach orphans, and the Ministry of Agriculture and the Eastern Palace officials have determined that they are effective, they will be handled in the same way." Li Chengqian looked at Li Anyan and said, "Instruct the Eastern Palace's servants, doctors, secretaries, and chief clerks to carefully record all matters. There must not be any cases of corruption or abuse. If there are any, they will be expelled from the Eastern Palace immediately."

"Yes!" Li Anyan bowed and accepted the order.

"Third," Li Chengqian said with a solemn expression, "I won't be visiting the North Gate often. All matters are under the overall responsibility of the Prince's Household Affairs Office. The Sino-Agricultural Office has also assigned someone to keep an eye on it. As for the North Gate..."

"I have nothing else to do. I will watch over it myself." Song Ji bowed seriously.

"That's quite appropriate." Li Chengqian nodded, then said with emotion, "This year, we'll start by laying out everything and getting the personnel and affairs in order. Next year will be the time for the real big moves. Do you understand, gentlemen?"

"Here!" Everyone raised their hands in unison.

...On the palace road, Li Chengqian and Zhao Yuankai rode side by side.

Li Chengqian said, "Although the Emperor said that the land at the North Gate should be used as the main resource, I believe that using only the land at the North Gate is not enough. Therefore, I plan to select three acres of farmland in Wugong and Chang'an Wannian counties respectively. I will use the same method again, consult the local farmers, learn from their years of experience, compile a book, and then implement it. I will see the results at the end of the year."

"Yes!" Zhao Yuankai nodded. This was their original plan.

"As for Wugong County, I will ask the Wugong Su family to assist. As for Chang'an and Wannian counties, I will trouble the Sinong Temple to take care of them. I will visit them occasionally." Li Chengqian smiled apologetically. He could still go to the North Gate at will, but it was not certain about other places.

"Yes!" Zhao Yuankai could understand the prince's difficulties.

"As I said, we'll start with this year's rollout. After we gain some experience, we'll implement it in Qizhou, Meizhou, and Huazhou, starting with ten acres and then moving on to a hundred acres." Li Chengqian looked toward Chengtian Gate and said softly, "Different regions have different geography, water quality, and soil quality. All methods must be adapted to local conditions."

"Yes!" Zhao Yuankai nodded in agreement. What the prince said was absolutely right.

"In the next two years, I will first go to Guanzhong. After two years, I will go to Henan, Hebei, Qi and Lu, Jianghuai, and even Jiangnan and Lingnan. I will pay attention to the topography, climate, and soil quality of the world. I will consult with the people of the world, and finally compile a farming register, which will be distributed throughout the country."

After a brief pause, Li Chengqian looked at Zhao Yuankai and said seriously, "Mr. Zhao, if in three to five years, the autumn harvest of the people throughout the country can increase by 10%, and the tax revenue can increase by 10%, then you, my dear, will be able to obtain not only the position of Shangshu but also the position of Prime Minister!"

Zhao Yuankai was stunned, and then his eyes suddenly turned red.

In the present Tang Dynasty, the tax revenue of the whole country is only seven or eight million strings of cash. If it can be increased to ten million strings of cash in a few years, and what Zhao Yuankai and the prince are doing now can make him take up one million strings of cash, let alone the six ministers, the emperor will have to give him the position of prime minister.

"Your Highness, please rest assured. I will definitely die in this matter." Zhao Yuankai nodded seriously.

"Haha!" Li Chengqian smiled and waved his hands, saying, "We are all dying for the Tang Dynasty, for our father."

"Yes!"

……

East Palace, Chongjiao Hall.

Li Chengqian sat down, picked up the hot tea, took a sip, and then let out a long sigh of relief.

Li Chengqian raised his head and looked at Li Anyan, who looked hesitant, and asked, "What's wrong? What do you want to say?"

"Yes!" Li Anyan bowed and said, "Your Highness, can this really lead to a good harvest?"

"Yes." Li Chengqian nodded and said, "Everyone in the world knows that crops need to be planted properly, fertilized, and irrigated to achieve a good harvest. However, not many people know how to do it specifically, and how much to do. Most of them are kept as a secret by the noble families of the world."

Li Chengqian raised his head and looked at Li Anyan with a subtle look in his eyes.

"Your Highness!" Li Anyan immediately understood that what Li Chengqian was doing today was to make public everything that the aristocratic families in the world knew.

This is the real reason for what happened today.

"If it weren't for the three acres of land at the North Gate, believe it or not, the fields of the Eastern Palace in other places would be completely destroyed one day." Li Chengqian sneered lightly. This was the main reason why the emperor asked him to farm at the North Gate.

Of course, the emperor would also want to see Li Chengqian’s contact with the North Gate Guards to see if he had tried to win over the North Gate soldiers.

Perhaps the captain of the North Gate Military Farm is now reporting to the Liangyi Hall about everything Li Chengqian said and did at the North Gate.

These are some of the dark thoughts that are inevitable.

"In other words, once Your Highness achieves results, His Majesty will definitely do everything possible to protect Your Highness." Li Anyan suddenly understood something.

Li Chengqian waved his hand and said, "This isn't a big deal. Even if I did something, there are many ways for me to stop it. The county officials and local gentry will only get very little out of the hands of the people."

Even if it is a good policy, it will still go through layers of castration when it reaches the fields.

"Yes!" Li Anyan nodded seriously.

Li Chengqian took out a piece of paper from under the table and quickly wrote densely on it.

He dried it, folded it, put it in an envelope, and handed it to Li Anyan, saying, "Send this letter in your name to Jiaozhou, to the Jiaozhou Governor Du Zhenglun. If we want to achieve any results in this Sinong Temple matter, we really have to rely on Governor Du."

Du Zhenglun, former Secretary of the Central Secretariat, Prince's Left Secretary, and current Governor of Jiaozhou.

"Yes!" Li Anyan immediately bowed.

"No need to be too secretive, just be normal." After a brief pause, Li Chengqian sneered and said, "By the way, take a look to see if anyone is staring at this letter."

"Yes!" Li Anyan's expression became serious.

At this moment, Gao Zhenxing, the Crown Prince's attendant, hurriedly appeared at the door. He bowed to Li Chengqian with a hurried expression and said, "Your Highness, His Majesty has ordered you to see the Emperor immediately."

"Oh?" Li Chengqian frowned tightly.

Why was he summoned suddenly?
(End of this chapter)