The immortal of the Tang Dynasty, but the game starts at Xuanwu Gate?

"My method is very simple, and it can be summed up in just twelve words," Chen Huai'an said.

"Oh?" Li Shimin pressed, "Which twelve characters?"

"Dismantle the monopoly, bind interests, change the rules, and dilute slowly!" Chen Huai'an said. "His Majesty has just ascended the throne, and his foundation is not stable. Directly confronting the powerful families is the worst possible strategy."

"To deal with them, we must start with the three foundations of aristocratic families: monopoly of knowledge, monopoly of official careers, and private financial interests."

"Now, we have enough technology to undermine their foundation. We should use a new system to slowly boil them down, and use interests to divide and buy them off, turning them from monopolists who can confront the court into partners who can only profit by attaching themselves to the court."

"When the benefits of resistance far outweigh the costs of compliance, they naturally dare not act rashly!"

Chen Huai'an consistently used the term "the imperial court" in his speech, which was a euphemism.

The powerful families never opposed the court, but rather the imperial power, a fact that Li Shimin was well aware of.

After carefully considering Chen Huai'an's words, Li Shimin chuckled: "Dismantle monopolies, bind interests, change rules, and slowly dilute?"

"Boiling a toad in lukewarm water?"

"Yes, Your Majesty." Chen Huai'an nodded with a smile.

Li Shimin's eyes flickered slightly.

Li Shimin was actually far more furious than he had imagined about the aristocratic families taking action against Chen Huai'an in Chang'an.

Why did the powerful families target Chen Huai'an?

Because Chen Huai'an threatened their interests.

And who is Chen Huai'an? He was appointed by the emperor as the Minister of Works and the Minister of Revenue, and a first-rank Duke!

Even powerful families can act without hesitation against such people; they even dare to smear the fine salt that supports the work-for-relief program and helps disaster victims all over the world.

What if one day, Li Shimin himself also threatened the interests of the aristocratic families?

Are they going to turn on themselves too?

On this day, Chen Huai'an and Li Shimin talked all night long, and no one knows what they said.

"..."

The next day, there will be a court meeting.

Officials would attend court, enter the hall in order, and perform the proper courtesies.

The atmosphere at today's court assembly was somewhat strange, as news of yesterday's events had already spread.

"His Majesty!"

Wei Zheng stated frankly, "I have already heard about yesterday's events. Duke Anguo was ambushed again in Chang'an, and a total of six people were involved. If Duke Anguo hadn't had some martial arts skills, he would likely have met with dire consequences!"

"If I remember correctly, before this, the Duke of Anguo and the former Minister of Revenue, Pei Ju, were also assassinated in the street by assailants a few days ago."

"I have reason to suspect that this is not a coincidence, but a premeditated act. I implore Your Majesty to thoroughly investigate this matter and bring the mastermind behind it to justice!"

"Otherwise... if they dare to commit violence against the Duke of Anguo today, they will dare to commit violence against other court officials tomorrow. In that case, court officials will probably be living in fear every day, and who will have the energy to handle official business?"

"Indeed!" Du Ruhui said with a grim face, "Your Majesty, I also believe that a thorough investigation is necessary to find the mastermind behind this. This is not just a case of the Duke of Anguo being assassinated; it concerns the personal safety of many high-ranking officials!"

"I second that proposal..."

Almost all the civil and military officials in the court seconded the motion at that moment.

Chen Huai'an laughed.

Why are the powerful families so influential? Don't be fooled by the fact that not many members of these families hold high positions; they occupy almost all the lower, middle, and upper-middle ranks of official posts.

Your high rank is useless; almost all the officials working under you are your own people.

It's not surprising that no one in the court has come out to refute this, since there's no way to refute it. But the fact that everyone supports it is something else.

This proves that powerful families are not afraid of investigation at all!

Based on those few people alone, the powerful families were certain they wouldn't be able to trace it back to them, so they weren't afraid at all and were therefore quite fearless.

Chen Huai'an didn't want to waste time on these matters, so he bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I have something to say!"

"Please speak freely, my dear minister," Li Shimin said calmly.

"I am ashamed. I did not expect that my personal matters would cause such anger among my colleagues and waste your precious time. This is my fault." Chen Huai'an smiled and said, "Let's not talk about the matter of my being surrounded and attacked for now."

"I received some interesting news yesterday. Rumors have been circulating in Chang'an that the fine salt produced by the Ministry of Works is poisonous and that three people have already died from consuming it."

"I find it very strange that so many officials and civil servants are consuming this fine salt, including myself. If I may be so bold as to say that Your Majesty and Her Majesty the Empress are also consuming it."

"We are all fine, yet such rumors have spread. I am certain that someone is slandering me and the fine salt. I implore Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly!"

"What?!" Chen Huai'an's words shocked many officials.

"What a joke, a complete joke!" Wei Zheng's face turned ashen. "That salt is perfectly pure, without any impurities. How could it possibly be poisonous?"

"I've been eating this for so long and nothing's happened to me. This is definitely a frame-up, an attempt to destroy the foundation of my Great Tang!"

Changsun Wuji, Du Ruhui, and the others looked rather grim.

Everyone knows that whether salt is poisonous or not is actually not important; what matters is how the people think and how salt buyers across the country view it.

If this matter is not thoroughly investigated, the reputation of fine salt will be ruined, and what will happen to all the disaster victims outside?

What should be done with the displaced people and disaster victims in Shandong and other regions?

Chen Huai'an glanced back and gave Ouyang Shu a look. The latter understood and immediately stepped forward: "Your Majesty, this matter must be clarified immediately; we cannot allow rumors to spread!"

"I suggest that the Court of Judicial Review, the Imperial Medical Bureau, and the Censorate jointly investigate this case and clarify the matter publicly!"

"I am willing to reveal my identity and, along with my family, publicly drink the refined salt water to prove to the people that the refined salt is non-toxic!"

Li Shimin said coldly, "Granted!"

"Do as Ouyang Shu says. The Court of Judicial Review, the Imperial Medical Bureau, and the Censorate must cooperate fully!"

"Your Majesty, we obey!" The officials bowed.

So far, no one has come forward to refute anything.

Chen Huai'an immediately added, "Your Majesty, it's quite a coincidence. Yesterday, when I was surrounded and attacked, I should have been in dire straits, but at that moment, a sudden inspiration struck me, and I thought of a method for making paper!"

"Therefore, instead of immediately going to the government office, I summoned artisans to study papermaking techniques. After a night of experimentation, I produced cheaper and better paper!"

"If produced on a large scale, the cost of the paper would be only 20% of the original paper from the Tang Dynasty!"

These words left most of the officials in the court stunned.

Wei Zheng, Fang Xuanling, Du Fu, and Changsun Wuji all wore strange expressions.

They believed that Chen Huai'an's new papermaking technique produced paper that was cheaper and better than before.

After all, there were already methods for making long-handled swords, horseshoes, iron forging, and salt production.

Compared to these, when Chen Huai'an presented papermaking, everyone was still shocked, but not entirely unable to accept it.

But... when you were surrounded and about to be killed, you thought of papermaking... who would believe that?

Chen Huai'an didn't care what others thought and said loudly, "I want to thank those who besieged and killed me. If they hadn't sent people to besiege and kill me, I wouldn't have been able to come up with such papermaking technology."

"Here, I, Chen Huai'an, solemnly say to those who sent people to kill me... Thank you!"

"Please! You absolutely must send more men to surround and kill me!"

"Maybe after a few more visits, I'll be able to come up with even more technologies that benefit the country and its people!"

"..."