The film and television world begins with the battle for the throne in Kowloon

Chapter 598 Li Ke's Merit
The list of the ten attendants who would accompany him to the Eastern Palace was immediately placed on Li Shimin's desk, and detailed information about these ten people, such as their ages, knowledge, family background, etc., which was far more detailed than what Li Yan knew, was also sent there.

How could the emperor and the court not care about these strange young men being sent to the crown prince? What if someone with ulterior motives tried to assassinate the crown prince?
From a safety perspective, we must also conduct a thorough investigation.

Li Shimin took a look and found that most of them were children of aristocratic families. Even those who were down and out had roots. People of the same family either held positions in the court or had ancestors who had prominent families in the previous dynasty.

Yes, there are very few ordinary grassroots people who can really stand out, and it is difficult for these people to have a reputation in history. Most of them are children of wealthy families.

These young men who have families and backgrounds basically won't do anything rash, they just want to follow the prince and get a good background. Li Yan didn't appoint them to official positions, but only arranged for them to be servants and ordinary guards, and accompany him to read books and practice martial arts every day.

They were not even stuffed into the Jinyiwei. These young servants and the Jinyiwei were two completely unrelated lines.

Li Yan knew clearly that an intelligence agency like Jinyiwei would not produce any brave and intrepid generals, so he had no plan at all and would not even let them know about the existence of Jinyiwei. It was easy to get into such a place but difficult to get out.

To cram these future famous generals in would be a waste of talent and would ruin them.

Unless someone is determined not to lead troops in the future, but is a highly intelligent and strategic strategist who can plan military affairs for him, it is possible that Li Yan will assign him an important task and allow him to be in contact with this department. However, such a talent still needs to be observed slowly and decided carefully.

After reading the list, Li Shimin acquiesced. So many honorary positions in the Prince's Palace were originally used to harass the local forces of these aristocratic families. Li Yan picked some himself, and Li Shimin also looked at them. He also asked Fang Xuanling and Zhangsun Wuji to help review them.

These young men were scattered here and there. Some were respected legitimate sons of aristocratic families, while others were the downtrodden branches of rebel kings. Some were from northern aristocratic families, while others were powerful families in the south. Some had ancestors who served in the court, while others fled far away. It was a mess.

There is absolutely no pattern, and some families behind the scenes even have hostile and competitive positions.

According to Heng Lian, the prince had made a list of twenty or thirty people, but in the end more than half of them were not found, only these ten people were found.

Li Shimin smiled. Although he didn't know how Li Yan knew these young men, he probably did it casually. He didn't know who heard it from. But even his two counselors couldn't see any connection between these people. What special intentions did the prince have?

Li Shimin didn't care too much about it. It wasn't a bad thing for the prince to have some children of the same age from aristocratic families studying with him.

Today, I was talking to Li Yan about the economic war. Halfway through, Changsun Wuji rushed in and said excitedly, "Your Majesty, good news!"

Following behind was the Secretary of the Central Secretariat Cen Wenben, who had a worried look on his face, and several officials from the Secretariat, all of whom had happy faces.

The two of them stopped the topic at the right time. Li Yan bowed to Changsun Wuji, and the others bowed to the emperor and the prince.

"Auxiliary engine! What good news makes you so happy?" Li Shimin asked puzzledly.

Zhang Sun Wuji nodded to Li Yan, and then said, "News came from Suizhou that the peace talks with Jie Li have been concluded. The King of Shu only used 1,000 dan of grain and 500 pieces of silk to exchange for the 30,000 soldiers and civilians who were captured from Suizhou City. Your Majesty, do you think this is a great event?"

"Really?"

Li Shimin was overjoyed and quickly took the report from Zhangsun Wuji. He read it quickly and laughed with satisfaction, "Hahaha, great! I didn't expect it. I really didn't expect that Ke'er could accomplish the task with such a small amount of food and silk?"

"Yes, Your Majesty, this is a remarkable achievement!"

Zhang Sun Wuji praised happily, "Originally, the emperor had prepared 200,000 dan of grain and 50,000 pieces of silk, but the King of Shu only used a negligible price to exchange for 30,000 people in Suizhou City. It was really a great achievement!"

"You have saved such a large amount of supplies for the court. The emperor must reward the king of Shu generously to show his merits."

Li Yan's heart was slightly sullen. Zhangsun Wuji was indeed cunning and sly. He made a subtle comparison between Li Shimin's previous plan and Li Ke's current achievements. This made Li Shimin's previous proposal seem mediocre. In contrast, it seemed so dull and even a little foolish in comparison with Li Ke's wisdom.

You see, something that could be accomplished with 1,000 shi of grain and 500 pieces of cotton, but you spent 200,000 shi of grain and 50,000 pieces of silk. Fortunately, there is King Li Ke of Shu. Otherwise, just because of this one thing, you, old Li, would have brought such a huge loss to the Tang Dynasty.

Li Shimin's originally happy mood suddenly froze when he heard this. The smile on his face seemed a little awkward, and his excited mood slowly calmed down.

Cen Wenben, who was forcing a smile, had a hint of worry in his eyes.
Li Shimin turned around twice and said decisively: "Fuji is right. The King of Shu has made such a great contribution to the court this time. He should be rewarded generously. I think he should be rewarded with 200 households to show his contribution."

"Your Majesty, how can two hundred households be enough?" Changsun Wuji ignored the anxiety of Cen Wenben beside him, and smiled a little differently from Li Shimin, as if he didn't notice and continued: "I think it should be at least five hundred households, and an imperial edict should be issued to the whole country to commend the King of Shu for his achievements."

"Yes, Lord Zhangsun is right. Rewards and punishments are unclear, and orders are difficult to carry out. The King of Shu should reward them heavily." Several officials from the Secretariat behind him also had smiles on their faces, adding fuel to the flames. I don't know if they noticed the open and secret struggles between the two powerful ministers.

Cen Wenben's eyes were filled with anxiety. He forced a smile and stepped forward to say, "Your Majesty, negotiating with Jie Li is not a glorious thing and should not be publicized. Your Majesty's reward is already very appropriate. Besides, the court is not wealthy at the moment, so I think we should not add the three hundred households!"

"Your Majesty, the King of Shu is so brave at such a young age. He went deep into the tiger's den and killed Jie."

Changsun Wuji didn't care, with an inexplicable smile on his face: "Your Majesty, this is not a reward for the King of Shu alone, but a reward for people in the world who want to do things, dare to do things, and can do great things. Those three hundred households cannot be saved."

"Your Majesty, as a prince, it is the duty of the King of Shu to share Your Majesty's worries. What reward does a son need for running errands for his father?" Cen Wenben declined quickly.

Li Shimin looked at the two important officials in front of him, one insisted on rewarding him, and the other refused. He thought for a moment, then smiled slightly, glanced at Li Yan who had been standing aside without saying anything, and suddenly asked, "Prince, what do you think?"

Li Yan was stunned. Under the gaze of Changsun Wuji, Cen Wenben and other officials, he thought for a moment and said, "Father, my third brother is willing to take the risk this time. He stepped forward when no one in the court was willing to take the task."

"Not only did you save 30,000 civilians, but you also exceeded the mission assigned by my father and saved so much material for the Tang Dynasty. This is truly a great achievement and I have to reward you."

When Changsun Wuji heard this, he nodded with satisfaction and a look of appreciation on his face.

Cen Benwen, however, had a look of anxiety on his face. Just as he was about to speak, Li Yan changed the subject and said, "However, five hundred households are indeed a bit too many. I think the two hundred households mentioned by the emperor is very appropriate. If Lord Changsun thinks that it is a bit too few?"

"Father, the position of Zhonglang Jiang in the Zuotunwei Yifu is vacant. I have recommended Cheng Huailiang. If you can appoint Cheng Huailiang to this position, I believe I will be happier than getting 300 more households. I think this is the real reward for you!"

A kind smile appeared on Li Yan's face. Since you, third brother, want military power, then I will help you and help you realize your wish of expanding your strength.

Li Shimin is only in his early thirties now, he is in the prime of his life, and now is his era. As a prince, if anyone stands out too quickly, it will only infringe upon his rights and interests. No matter who it is, he will be ruthlessly defeated. Only the future belongs to him.

Therefore, Li Yan's strategy for seizing the throne was very clear. He would go with the flow and not suppress his brothers Li Ke, Li Tai, and Li You. Instead, he would constantly push them up.

Let them surface, help them strengthen their current strength, let their ambitions expand, and then push them to the opposite side of Li Shimin.

Finally, when they realized that they were a threat to Li Shimin, it was too late and they could only be ruthlessly killed by Li Shimin.

To ripen them in advance, let them emerge earlier, grow earlier, mature earlier, and make their maturity period conflict with Li Shimin's maturity period. In this way, they will wither earlier without any action by themselves, and finish their lives quickly, even faster than Li Shimin.

However, he did the opposite and suppressed his own growth cycle, staying in the germination stage for a long time and avoiding Li Shimin's maturity period.

This is called staggered development. When Li Shimin was old, she herself would grow up slowly. When Li Shimin died, she would mature. This would perfectly coordinate with Li Shimin's growth and decline, and develop in an upright and natural way.

He thought that he didn't even have time to hide, while Li Ke was vying to stand out, to make achievements, to fight for military power, and to protect Zhang's strength.

Li Yan's kind smile and eyes seemed to reveal the wisdom of seeing through the world. In his heart, he shook his head slightly. He was still young and inexperienced. He didn't know the importance of things. Without the experience and knowledge of life, he didn't know how to grow up too early and could only wither like grass.

Therefore, a person's vision and wisdom are different, and the decisions they make when faced with choices will also be very different.

Of course, it doesn't mean that having a long-term vision is always right. Many people have suffered great losses because of their long-term vision. They cast a long line and the line broke, the fish escaped, and the rod broke. They thought that there was something wrong with the strategy, but in fact, it is not the case. The shoes must fit the feet.

Any strategy must be in line with the actual situation of the parties involved. It is more important to find one that suits you than to blindly pursue a better one. If you don't have this vision and strength, you can't learn to look at the long-term. It's not that the strategy is wrong, it's that your ability can't control it.

If you are an ordinary person with mediocre talent and weak strength, and sacrifice the present and look too far into the future, you will end up losing the present and not being able to grasp the future. It is better to be quick to achieve success and get some immediate benefits.

The subtlety of this cannot be appreciated unless one has a certain level of life experience.

(End of this chapter)