Time Travel: I am the idle king Li Shen and Li Shimin in the Tang Dynasty

Yangyang looked at her birth mother with a helpless expression. Her older sister had always played with the dog since she was little.

Such a big dog could easily knock Xixi over with a single tumble. Xixi grew up playing with Yi Er San Si every day, which gave her a lot of strength.

To be honest, he really couldn't beat Xixi. Xixi could fight with a dog, so he was no match for a dog.

Wu Meiniang felt even more helpless upon hearing this, realizing that her son was far too mature and composed.

"I'm not asking you to actually fight with your sister. I'm just telling you to eat more and get better. Your father just said it."

When you turn eight, you'll start learning martial arts. How can you do that without a healthy body? From today onwards, Linglong Pavilion will no longer offer pastries.

I will also instruct the cook not to give you any more pastries.

Wu Zetian was even more ruthless than Li Shen. Li Shen only said to eat less, but she directly cut off Yangyang's pastries.

Wu Meiniang was clever and quick-witted; how could she not understand Prince Ji's intention? He was preparing to send Yangyang to the Imperial Academy at the age of eight, so that he could study with the children of the royal family and the children of princes and generals.

This was a plan to properly nurture Yangyang, which naturally pleased Wu Meiniang.

"Mom..." Yangyang was still a child after all. When he heard that his snacks were gone, he immediately made a face and wanted to beg.

"Stop talking." Wu Meiniang's attitude was very firm. For the sake of her son, she had to be ruthless.

Yangyang was at a loss and looked at Xixi beside her:

"Why aren't you worried? If Linglong Pavilion runs out of pastries, you can plead with your mother."

Xixi smiled sweetly and stretched out her little hand:

"Two gold bars."

She's still thinking about the two gold bars her dad just gave Yangyang.

"Hmph, no way. Anyway, I won't get any food, and neither will you." Yangyang snorted and turned her head away.

Linglong Pavilion is the name of Wu Meiniang's courtyard, just like Lan Yu's courtyard is called Dayu Garden, and Lu Dingniang's place is called Xiaoyao Palace.

Upon hearing this, Xi Xi's smile widened, and she said nonchalantly:

"It's not just Linglong Pavilion that has pastries, Mother's place has them too, and there are even more varieties. I'll live with Mother from now on."

Xi Xi is very cute and mischievous, and everyone likes her very much. Because of Li Shen's doting on her, everyone loves her even more.

She would wander around aimlessly, sleeping wherever she went. Often she would stay at Lu Dingniang's place because Lu Dingniang had many good things there.

Upon hearing Xixi's words, Yangyang immediately lost his temper. His older sister was indeed very popular in the Prince Ji's mansion, or to put it bluntly, she was unruly.

At this moment, Li Shen changed his clothes and came back in. Li Xu had already been taken away by the wet nurse. Li Xu was young and had his own diet, all of which were personally instructed by Sun Simiao.

"Yangyang, what's wrong? Are you upset that your father won't let you eat pastries?"

After sitting down, Li Shen noticed that Yangyang looked unhappy, so he asked her what was wrong.

"Your Highness, it's because I don't allow him to eat pastries anymore that he's unhappy. It has nothing to do with Your Highness."

Wu Meiniang quickly explained.

"Father, Mother won't let my little brother eat pastries anymore, and Linglong Pavilion won't be serving pastries anymore either. That's why my little brother is acting like this."

At this moment, Xi Xi diligently explained to Li Shen.

"Oh, I see. Then you must listen to your mother," Li Shen replied with a smile.

According to etiquette, all the children in the Prince Ji's mansion should call Lu Dingniang "Mother" and their birth mother "Auntie," just like the rules in the palace.

But Li Shen disliked these rules intensely; he had suffered greatly from them during his many years in the palace.

Finally, only after one has made meritorious contributions will one be allowed to call one's birth mother "Mother Consort"; otherwise, one would have to call her "Auntie" in public.

Therefore, having experienced this, Li Shen established rules at home, still calling Lu Dingniang "Mother." In name, all the children of the Prince Ji's mansion were Lu Dingniang's children.

However, these children are allowed to call their birth mother "Amu" in private, so it doesn't seem so distant.

Lu Dingniang did not object, because Li Shen felt the same way, and she understood Li Shen's feelings.

As long as no one can shake her position in the Prince Ji's mansion, Lu Dingniang doesn't care about some minor changes.

For example, even after so many years of marriage, she still manages all the affairs of the Prince Ji's mansion, including all the financial power and all the properties of the Prince Ji's mansion.

Prince Ji never interfered too much, only taking charge of the overall direction, which made Lu Dingniang very satisfied.

No matter what, she was the Princess Consort of Ji, personally appointed by the Emperor. Even if Li Shen wanted to touch her, it would be impossible; the Emperor and Empress would not allow it.

Li Shen was actually aware of this as well. Lu Dingniang was the princess chosen for him by the empress, representing the will of the emperor and empress.

If he wanted to change the princess, the first thing he would do was get a good beating from his father; the royal family's dignity could not be lost.

Those scenes of pampering concubines and arbitrarily divorcing wives only appear in novels; Li Shen felt that it would definitely be quite difficult in the Tang Dynasty.

Historically, Emperor Gaozong (Li Zhi) faced numerous difficulties in deposing Empress Wang and installing Empress Wu Zetian, a significant factor being that Empress Wang had no children.

If Empress Wang had a son who became the crown prince, the outcome of this matter would have been uncertain.

A deposed empress is more troublesome than a deposed crown prince; the issues involved are far more complex.

Try asking Li Shimin to depose Empress Zhangsun. The entire court would condemn him to death, and his three legitimate sons would either be killed or all rebel.

At that time, the court will be in complete chaos, not only because of the power of the maternal relatives, but also because of the struggle between the legitimate and illegitimate heirs.

Many years after Empress Zhangsun's death, Li Shimin once considered re-establishing an empress, but ultimately failed, as he was dissuaded by Zhangsun Wuji.

If someone's son is chosen as the heir, then what about Li Chengqian?

The meal proceeded amidst laughter and cheerful conversation. Apart from Yangyang, who was somewhat sullen, everyone else seemed quite happy.

Prince Ji has been away for more than half a year, and it has been a long time since everyone has eaten together like this.

Since returning, Li Shen has been attending dinner parties every day, keeping him mentally and physically exhausted. Today, he finally has some free time.

After dinner, everyone gathered in Li Shen's study, and even Su Xiaoxiao, who was heavily pregnant, came along.

Everyone wanted to have a good talk with Li Shen.

"My lord, the profits of my Prince Ji's manor this year are better than last year, especially the spirits, which sell particularly well in the north."

This year, sales of Khitan and Mohe meat in Liaodong Province have increased several times over. Furthermore, the ginseng and deer antlers purchased from the Khitan and Mohe, as well as Korean ginseng from Liaodong Province, have also increased significantly.

It was very popular among the nobles of Chang'an, but the wealthy merchants paid more for it.

"Do you think we should expand our acquisition scope and acquire more items next year?"

Lu Dingniang quietly reported on the matters of the Prince Ji's residence. It was the end of the year, and the summary reports had already been submitted.

(I got back after 10 pm yesterday, so I was late and had to rest for a day. Please forgive me.)