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

Chapter 649: Li Ji Finally Understands What the Emperor Wants to Do (Part )

The moon is bright and the stars are sparse, and the night sky is clear.

There were bonfires everywhere in the military camp.

Countless soldiers sat behind low tables with various kinds of food and wine in front of them.

There was a big pot of mutton stewing on the campfire in front.

There was also ginseng brought back from Liaodong.

Teams of soldiers with their left arms bare, holding swords and shields, danced the Qin King's Formation Breaking Dance in the open space in the center, accompanied by drums and music all around.

It was a moment of great joy.

After a while of drinking, acrobatic troupes entered the venue and performed various acrobatics, and the cheers immediately became more enthusiastic.

Li Chengqian sat at the top and watched these scenes, and he couldn't help but feel relieved.

A great victory, a great victory.

Although the destruction of Pingrang City is not as great as the destruction of a country, it is the most suitable achievement for the Tang Dynasty.

Moreover, such achievements, together with the meritorious soldiers, are enough for Li Chengqian to start pushing forward some things that were previously difficult.

……

Turning sideways, Li Chengqian said a few words in Xu An's ear.

Xu An immediately bowed, walked to Li Ji's side, and whispered a few words.

Li Ji stood up in surprise and came to Li Chengqian's side.

Xu An quickly brought another low table and some wine and food and placed it on Li Ji.

Many people noticed the movement here, and were curious about what was happening. Some also envied Li Ji for the favor he received.

Li Chengqian raised his glass to Li Ji, then put it down and asked in a low voice, "My dear, have you visited the copper mines in Goguryeo? What do you think?"

At the mention of the word "copper," Li Ji immediately became solemn and nodded, saying, "Goguryeo's copper mines are indeed abundant, but they haven't been good at mining them on a large scale. Even so, the copper in the warehouses of Pingrang City is still considerable."

Li Chengqian nodded slightly, then said, "My dear, you should know about the incident in Xingzhou where someone was casting bad coins."

"I have read the court report." Li Ji nodded and said, "Your Majesty's handling of the matter was extremely decisive."

Li Chengqian smiled and said, "We can't delve too deeply into the Huai family's affairs. Although everything has its source and is very clear, the resurrection of a deceased craftsman from the Shaofu Foundry is beyond the Huai family's ability."

"Your Majesty, do you intend to continue investigating?" Li Ji's expression became serious.

Now that the army has returned, if the emperor really wants to conduct a thorough investigation, he can find out everything under the threat of tens of thousands of troops.

Li Chengqian shook his head and said, "That's not necessary. The issue of bad money is actually very limited by region. The bad money in Hebei mostly circulates in Hebei. It's difficult for it to flow to other places."

Local protectionism is actually very useful in many things.

Li Chengqian raised his head slightly and said, "No matter how they make bad money, I plan to issue more new money in Hebei next year, a sufficient amount of new money."

"Your Majesty, is this also the case when you used new money to purchase grain from the people in Hebei this year?" Li Ji looked up in surprise.

"Hmm!" Li Chengqian nodded and said, "When ordinary people do things, bad money drives out good money. I want to do the opposite and use good money to drive out bad money."

Anything, once it becomes too much, will drive out things that are opposite to its nature.

If there are more good people, there will naturally be fewer bad people.

When there are more bad people, there will naturally be fewer good people.

"Then there may not be enough copper coins." Li Ji looked at Li Chengqian with a serious expression.

"It's only in Hebei." Li Chengqian waved his hand slightly and said, "My goal is to ease the heavy burden on the people of Hebei."

Li Ji raised his eyebrows. He didn't expect that the emperor was actually doing this thing.

"Actually, everyone in the world is burdened, but the burden in Hebei is particularly heavy." Li Chengqian sighed and said, "It's okay now, and the people can still bear it. But ten, twenty, fifty years from now, Hebei's population will swell, the burden will be heavy, and the future will be bleak. At that time, there will be a big chaos."

"Your Majesty has foresight." Li Ji bowed solemnly.

In fact, Li Ji knew that when the previous emperor was alive, Wei Zheng and others had also seen the crisis here.

However, at that time, due to countless internal and external troubles, these problems could only be solved in the future.

Now, the emperor has already started.

Now, it is the future of that year.

"The Hebei issue requires more than just me. It requires the collective efforts of everyone in the court." Li Chengqian looked at Li Ji and said, "My dear minister, you are the Shangshu You Pushe. Return to the court and rest for a while, then start working on this matter. Don't rush, take your time. We still have plenty of time."

"Yes!" Li Ji breathed a sigh of relief. He was afraid that the emperor would slap his forehead and demand a solution in a short time.

As long as you have time, you can be calm and you won't make mistakes.

In addition, Li Ji also keenly grasped some implicit information in Li Chengqian's words.

After Li Ji returns to the court, he will still be the Shangshu You Pushe, and Zhangsun Wuji will still be the Shangshu Zuo Pushe.

This is nothing for Li Ji, but it may not be a good thing for Changsun Wuji.

"Hebei's problem, ultimately, lies in future population expansion." Li Chengqian retracted his gaze, looked up at the sky, and then said, "Therefore, the migration of population to Liaodong and Andong must be continuously promoted. This matter remains your responsibility."

"I accept your order." Li Ji bowed solemnly. As long as the population migration could continue, the vast areas of Andong and Liaodong would be enough to accommodate the population of Hebei.

As long as ordinary people have enough to eat, they basically won't do anything wrong, so the things that the emperor is worried about are unlikely to happen.

"Also," Li Chengqian smiled and said to Li Ji, "The court hasn't held an imperial examination for two years. Preparations for next year's exam are already underway. I intend to recruit more scholars from humble backgrounds. Hebei is a land of culture and education, so there should be quite a few Jinshi candidates. My dear, you will be the chief examiner next year, so please pay more attention."

"Yes!" Li Ji couldn't help but stand up, then bowed solemnly and said, "I accept your order."

Being the chief examiner of the imperial examination is not something that ordinary people can easily do. Once you become the chief examiner of the imperial examination, it means that Li Ji and the group of scholars who will pass the imperial examination next year will have a certain teacher-student relationship. This will be of great benefit to Li Ji's future.

When others saw Li Ji stand up and then bow with excitement, they immediately understood that the emperor must have given him another reward.

Li Chengqian waved his hand slightly, and Li Ji sat down again.

Li Chengqian raised his head and said, "Copper coins, immigration, the imperial examination, and the addition of a government soldier should solve some of Hebei's problems in the short term. However, in the long run, we still need to make the people of Hebei rich.

This requires strengthening trade between Hebei and Goguryeo, and gradually balancing the gap between Hebei and other places."

What Li Chengqian needs is not to be a saint, but to achieve the best possible balance between Hebei and other places.

What remains is for the whole world to move towards a prosperous era together.

Of course there will be speeds up and slow down, and this is a question of regional differences.

"I understand." Li Ji bowed vigorously.

"Okay, that's all." Li Chengqian raised his glass and toasted Li Ji again, then looked forward and said a few words to Xu An sideways.

Xu An immediately bowed and retreated.

A moment later, countless eunuchs poured out from outside the military camp, holding trays and placing golden Kaiyuan Tongbao coins in front of each soldier.

Each person only has one.

In the middle of each Kaiyuan Tongbao coin, there is a word "Victory" engraved.

The army wins, the battle wins.

One soldier couldn't help but pick it up and put it in his mouth to bite it.

"Don't bite it. This isn't a pure gold coin, it's just gold-engraved." Li Chengqian stood up, holding his wine glass, and said to everyone, "The Ministry of War, the Ministry of Revenue, and the Ministry of Personnel have already begun evaluating military merits in this battle. When you return to Chang'an, you'll see the rewards. This gold coin is just a small token of my appreciation."

The soldiers' expressions suddenly became solemn.

If this was the emperor's personal wish, that would be another matter.

His value cannot be judged solely on his surface value.

"The Liaodong War lasted three years, and the court was severely depleted. Even I can't afford to spend much money. These gold coins are just for you to keep as a souvenir." Li Chengqian smiled and said, "You will rest in Dingzhou for three days. After that, you will set off for Luoyang. During these days, many merchants in Dingzhou will come to the military camp to sell their wares. If you want to relax, you can go out for a walk. However, you are not allowed to enter Dingzhou City. Dingzhou is not as big as Luoyang."

"Yes!" All the soldiers couldn't help but laugh softly. They understood what the emperor meant.

Li Chengqian raised his glass, looked at everyone, and then said loudly: "My lords, I offer this glass of wine to you all. I also wish that in future battles, you will be able to move forward without hindrance and win every battle, just like this one."

"Move forward unhindered and win every battle." Everyone in the military camp raised their glasses.

"May the army win, may the Tang Dynasty win!" Li Chengqian drank the wine in the glass in one gulp.

"Long live the Tang Dynasty, long live the Majesty!" The soldiers in the army shouted and drank the wine in one gulp.

The night wind is intoxicating.

Stars shine.

……

The imperial carriage swayed and moved forward quietly.

Li Chengqian stood at the window and looked outside.

The sky and the earth are vast, and the mountains are undulating.

Tens of thousands of troops returned from Andong, and the emperor personally welcomed them in Dingzhou. Then the army returned to Luoyang with the emperor.

Li Chengqian turned around and walked to the short couch and sat down, then looked at the people on both sides.

Li Ji, Yu Zhining, Gao Jifu, Li Qianyou, Zhang Daxiang and Xu Jingzong sat on both sides respectively.

Pei Yan and Li Yifu sat in the back.

Li Chengqian picked up a memorial from the table and handed it to Li Ji, saying, "This is the list of lands submitted by the various counties and prefectures in Hebei. In the future, all lands awarded to Hebei soldiers for their military merits will come from this."

Li Ji took it respectfully, then opened it and began to read it carefully. However, as he looked at it, his brows couldn't help but frown.

Li Ji raised his head and looked at Li Chengqian and said, "Your Majesty, the number of lands here is a little wrong, isn't it?"

"What's wrong?" Li Chengqian looked at Li Ji in surprise and said, "The Ministry of Revenue has reviewed the amount and it's sufficient to reward the soldiers."

"Your Majesty!" Li Ji's expression grew serious, and he saluted, saying, "Your Majesty, although the local prefectures and counties have reported a large amount of land, in reality, these numbers are accurate, so the local prefectures and counties are often required to report an additional 10% or 20% to prevent a shortfall."

Li Chengqian calmed down. He looked at Li Ji and said, "My dear, are you saying that the farmland reported by the local prefectures and counties has been occupied by others?"

Land, occupation?
Li Ji was stunned.

In an instant, he finally understood what the emperor was going to do.

(End of this chapter)