Tang Dynasty: Taking the Empress Dowager to a brothel, Father Emperor, what a coincidence!

The Eastern Palace.

Li Chengqian fiddled with the jade thumb ring, watching Changsun Wuji and his son Changsun Chong.

"Uncle, the gift you brought today is quite substantial."

Li Chengqian pushed a roll of sheepskin map on the table in front of Changsun Wuji, his tone revealing a hint of amusement.

Changsun Wuji pointed to the intricate waterways outlined in cinnabar on the map.

"Your Highness, this is a clandestine operation in the Grand Canal transport that the Changsun family has been secretly operating for over a decade."

From the Yellow River into the Wei River, the docks, water fortresses, and transport gangs along the way were all managed by people from the Changsun family.

This route completely bypassed the land route to Luoyang and was not under the control of the Cui family of Qinghe or the Wang family of Taiyuan.

Cui Mingan believed that by sealing off Luoyang, he could cut off the lifeline of Liaodong.

But he overlooked the waterway. If His Highness's goods could be transported by sea to the Yellow River, they could be secretly smuggled into Chang'an through this hidden route.

Li Chengqian stared at the map for a while, then looked up at Changsun Wuji and asked:

"The Changsun family has been completely ransacked, yet you still have this trump card in your hand."

"Uncle, aren't you afraid that if you hand over your life and fortune, I'll turn my back on you and take down all these undercover agents?"

Changsun Wuji knelt down with a thud.

"Your Highness, this old minister is now a penniless commoner."

"This pledge of allegiance is the old minister using the last of the Changsun family's resources to buy Chong'er a way out."

Changsun Wuji pointed to Changsun Chong beside him.

"As long as Your Highness can give Chong'er a chance to make a name for himself, this old minister's life, and all the Changsun family's spies within the pass, will be at Your Highness's mercy, without any disloyalty!"

Changsun Chong also knelt down.

"Cousin...no, Your Highness! This humble subject is willing to die for Your Highness, even at the cost of fire and water!"

Li Chengqian looked at the father and son and tapped his fingers twice on the table.

"Get up. Since I promised the Empress Dowager that I would leave a way out for the Changsun family, I will naturally not go back on my word."

Li Chengqian rolled up the map and threw it into Changsun Chong's arms.

"Changsun Chong, from today onwards, you are the head manager of the Western Market of the Great Tang Royal Merchant Guild. I entrust you with full authority to handle this secret water transport route."

Changsun Chong hurriedly caught the map.

"Thank you for your grace, Your Highness! This humble subject will certainly handle the matter perfectly."

Just then, Xiao Shunzi walked in carrying a carrier pigeon.

"Your Highness, a message has arrived by carrier pigeon from Liaodong."

Li Chengqian took the secret letter that Xiao Shunzi took out of the bamboo tube.

As he watched, Li Chengqian couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"Okay, okay!"

Li Chengqian slammed the secret letter on the table.

"They completed the tasks I assigned before I left even faster than I expected."

Li Chengqian looked at Changsun Wuji and said:

"Uncle, weren't you curious about what kind of backup plan I had left in Liaodong?"

Changsun Wuji quickly bowed and said:

"This old minister dares not presume to speculate."

"It won't hurt to tell you."

Li Chengqian stood up and walked to the center of the study.

"The letter said that the blast furnace steelmaking in Liaodong has been fully put into operation, and the daily output has now exceeded the output of Chang'an City in ten days."

Changsun Wuji suddenly raised his head, his face filled with horror, and asked:

"Ten-day production? High-quality steel?"

With the current iron smelting technology of the Tang Dynasty, the Wang family's workshop in Taiyuan could only produce a few thousand catties of pig iron per month at most.

High-quality steel is a scarce strategic resource, extremely valuable.

How can such a harsh and cold place like Liaodong produce so much in a single day?

Li Chengqian ignored his shock and continued speaking.

"Furthermore, the cotton that I ordered to be planted on a large scale in Youzhou and Liaodong has also yielded a bumper harvest. Hundreds of thousands of surrendered Goguryeo female workers are working day and night to finish the first batch of 100,000 sets of winter cotton clothing, which have already been loaded onto ships."

Changsun Wuji felt his head buzzing.

He had always thought that the Crown Prince was just stationing troops in Liaodong to maintain his own power, but he never expected that the Crown Prince would actually create a treasure trove of wealth in the freezing cold.

Steel and cloth were the most valuable currencies in the Tang Dynasty.

With these resources, Liaodong no longer needed financial support from within the Great Wall; on the contrary, it could provide aid to the imperial court.

Cui Min and those old scoundrels from powerful families still dared to try to use the Luoyang trade route to strangle the Crown Prince; it was like a mantis trying to stop a chariot.

Changsun Wuji secretly rejoiced that his old bones had finally made the right bet.

If they continue down the same path as the powerful families, the Changsun family will probably be wiped out completely.

"Your Highness is wise! With such a strong foundation, the blockade by the aristocratic families will break down on its own."

Changsun Wuji sincerely flattered him.

Li Chengqian waved his hand:

"This first batch of supplies has already been transferred from the Bohai Sea to the Yellow River. Judging by the time, it should arrive in the interior of the pass in three to five days at most."

Li Chengqian turned to look at Changsun Chong.

"Changsun Chong, you must immediately take the token and leave the city to open up that section of the Wei River waterway."

"It is imperative to ensure the safe delivery of this batch of goods to Chang'an."

Changsun Chong loudly agreed:

"Your Highness, rest assured, I will take care of it immediately. If even one item is lost, I will offer my head in retribution."

After saying that, Changsun Chong walked out.

Changsun Wuji watched his son's retreating figure with a sense of satisfaction.

"uncle."

Li Chengqian sat down again, picked up his teacup, and took a sip.

"Aren't the powerful families trying to force me to submit through economic blockade? This time, I'll cut off their lifeline."

I intend to dump all the cheap, high-quality goods from Liaodong into Chang'an.

This disrupted the ironware and cloth businesses of the established families, leaving them in ruins.

I will make them lose everything and kneel before the East Palace gates begging for mercy.

Changsun Wuji gasped in shock upon hearing this.

He knew all too well where the lifeblood of aristocratic families lay.

Once the Crown Prince's fine steel and cotton-padded clothing flood the market at extremely low prices, the industries that the aristocratic families are so proud of will crumble in an instant.

This is practically driving the aristocratic families to the brink of ruin.

......

Late at night a few days later.

A secluded private harbor on the banks of the Wei River.

The night was dark and the wind was high, with a thick fog covering the river.

Several flat-bottomed sand barges with black sails, under the cover of night, silently bypassed the patrol naval checkpoints and slowly approached the dock.

Changsun Chong, along with several hundred guards of the Eastern Palace who had changed into civilian clothes, were already on high alert at the dock.

The boat had just come to a stop when the gangplank was lowered.

A burly, one-eyed man strode off the boat and clasped his hands in greeting to Changsun Chong:

"Manager Changsun, the goods have arrived."

Changsun Chong rubbed his frozen hands and quickly called for people to come forward and unload the goods.

One by one, heavy wooden crates were carried off the ship and neatly stacked on the open ground.

Changsun Chong couldn't wait to have one of the wooden boxes pried open.

Under the torchlight, stacks of gleaming kitchen knives were neatly stacked inside the box.

Changsun Chong casually picked up a handful and flicked it with his finger.

"Clang!"

Changsun Chong then drew a guard's sword from the side, gripped the cleaver tightly with both hands, and slammed it down.

"Snap!"

The military saber, forged from refined steel, was chipped with a large nick by this unassuming kitchen knife, while the knife's blade remained intact.

"My God..."

Changsun Chong gasped.

"Such a powerful weapon, capable of cutting through iron like mud, is actually being used as a kitchen knife?"

The one-eyed man grinned:

"Manager, what is this?"

The blast furnaces in Liaodong are spewing out molten iron every day; there's plenty of this kind of steel.

"If His Highness hadn't instructed us to prioritize civilian supplies, we could have equipped our hundreds of thousands of troops with fine steel armor."

Changsun Chong swallowed hard and then had someone open another huge sack.

It was filled with snow-white, light cotton clothes.

Changsun Chong touched it and found it soft and warm, even more comfortable than the silk and cotton worn by wealthy families inside the pass, not to mention the inferior winter clothes stuffed with cattail fluff and tattered hemp worn by ordinary people.

"I'm going to be rich... This time I'm really going to be rich!"

Changsun Chong was so excited that he trembled all over.

With these goods, the Tang Dynasty Royal Trading Company could absolutely roam freely in Chang'an.

For half the night, hundreds of carriages, packed to the brim, slipped into Chang'an in batches as soon as the city gates opened.

The Eastern Palace.

Li Chengqian looked at the goods piled up in the yard and nodded in satisfaction.

"The goods are ready, but the shop in the West Market hasn't been arranged yet."

Li Chengqian turned to look at Changsun Chong.

"How's the search for the shop I asked you to find going?"

Changsun Chong looked troubled and said:

"Your Highness, the best row of shops in the West Market are all in the hands of the Cui family of Qinghe and the Wang family of Taiyuan."

They are now boycotting us and refuse to rent, let alone sell.

Even if you offered double the price, the shopkeepers wouldn't budge.

Li Chengqian sneered:

"You won't rent it? Then I'll take it myself."

Li Chengqian waved to the side.

Cheng Chumo, Fang Yi'ai, Yuchi Baolin, and their gang of纨绔子弟 (sons of wealthy and powerful families) had been eagerly waiting for this opportunity for a long time.

"Chu Mo, take the brothers and head to the West Market."

Cheng Chumo rubbed his hands excitedly and asked:

"Your Highness, what are we going to do? Buy a shop?"

"What kind of shop should I buy?"

Li Chengqian kicked Cheng Chumo in the butt.

"Go and find a place that catches my eye, and bring it to my doorstep."