I am Li Shen and Li Shimin, the free kings of the Tang Dynasty

Li Chengqian sighed, not wanting to say anything more, and changed the subject.

However, Li Shen could hear helplessness and disappointment in his voice.

Li Chengqian is actually very kind and righteous; he is a good older brother.

The main reason Li Shen supported Li Chengqian so much was because Li Chengqian didn't want those two brothers to be so ruthless.

Li Chengqian would remember his brotherly bond and would not wantonly kill his brothers.

Those two brothers are different; they're both ruthless. If Li Tai and Li Zhi succeed, my only options are to rebel or flee to another place.

Li Chengqian's benevolence was the quality Li Shen valued most, although this very quality might have prevented him from becoming a qualified emperor.

But Li Shen could at least make up for Li Chengqian's shortcomings during his lifetime.

Li Shen can replace Li Chengqian as the source of all evil, and can replace Li Chengqian as a knife to eliminate all obstacles in Li Chengqian's way.

Isn't this one of the reasons his father kept him in Chang'an?

Li Shen didn't consider himself a good person. His long years living at the bottom of society had left a trace of darkness in his heart.

Previously, people like Li Shen had been forced to suppress their emotions due to the constraints of morality and law.

But after arriving in the Tang Dynasty, he became a prince, the son of Emperor Taizong of Tang, Li Shimin. He was rich and powerful, standing at the top of the pyramid.

He was finally able to vent the darkness that had been building up for years and unleash the demons within him.

It's already quite good if you can uphold the bottom line of morality.

"Brother, there's no need to overthink it. Let's talk about the reward."

Li Shen offered words of comfort.

"Haha, you! If I hadn't said that, would you not have come to see me?"

Li Chengqian was amused by Li Shen. He didn't forget his reward even while comforting someone.

"Brother, what are you saying? How could I disobey your summons? Of course, the reward is very important."

I wonder how you intend to reward me, elder brother? How about a hundred or two hundred thousand strings of cash?

"One or two hundred thousand strings of cash? Why don't you take all that gold back? Even if you sold the Crown Prince's palace, you wouldn't have that much money."

"You're really bold. If you wanted money, why bother taking it out in the first place?"

Upon hearing Li Shen's words, Li Chengqian nearly died on the spot.

How dare this guy ask such a question? Does he really think he's the emperor? He hasn't even inherited the imperial treasury yet.

Li Shen laughed and said:

“Brother, this is different. When I give money to the court, it is out of my own goodwill, but the prince’s reward is legal and compliant.”

You know I'm poor right now, I've lost a lot of money. If you could give me some, it would help me through this difficult time, wouldn't it?"

"I don't have any. If you need money, you can go to your father. He has money."

Li Chengqian quickly shook his head. He only had about 100,000 strings of cash in his hands, which he had just brought back from the Prince Ji's residence a few days ago.

The money from Qian's mother hasn't been repaid yet.

"If Father is rich, do I need to tell you? This is something you can't get by deception... something you can't get by begging. Father is keeping a tight grip on the imperial treasury now, and has even issued an edict forbidding me from getting within a hundred feet of it."

Father wasn't this stingy before. I don't know what happened, but ever since you became regent, Father has changed.

This isn't the Aye we knew anymore.

Li Shen shook his head and sighed. Of course he knew that the imperial treasury was rich, very rich, but he hadn't had the chance to make a move over the years.

Since his father has had more free time, he has become particularly careful with his money and is not as easily fooled as before.

"They're not as easy to fool as before, are they?" Li Chengqian voiced Li Shen's thoughts.

"Look at what you're saying, when have I ever cheated my father out of his money?" Li Shen retorted seriously.

However, his rebuttal seemed so pale and powerless in front of Li Chengqian.

Li Chengqian gave a forced, insincere hum to express his disdain.

You haven't lied enough? Over the years, who knows how much money has ended up in your pocket? Just consider the time when your father was on his deathbed...

Instead of discussing important national affairs, he tells you to be careful not to be scammed, which shows that even his own father is afraid of being scammed.

"What kind of look is that? Are you doubting what I'm saying?"

As if sensing what Li Chengqian was thinking, Li Shen frowned and questioned him.

"Don't worry, I have never doubted your words," Li Chengqian said.

"That's good." Li Shen was very satisfied.

However, Li Chengqian continued:

"I have never believed what you said."

"Huh?" Li Shen was taken aback.

"Haha, this was specially instructed by Father." Li Chengqian laughed heartily.

Li Shen immediately looked miserable. Not only was his father not giving him a share of the family property, but now he was even slandering him everywhere.

Doesn't this ruin his plan to get some money from Li Chengqian in the future?

"Alright, enough with the nonsense. How do you plan to reward me?" Li Shen asked angrily.

"You're not short of money, so how about I reward you with an official position? Right now, the Left Minister of the Ministry of Personnel is the Duke of Zhao, so how about I give you the position of Right Minister? That's a huge sum of money."

Li Chengqian was guiding him.

Li Shen stared at Li Chengqian for a long while before speaking:

"Brother, is this a reward or an act of repaying kindness with enmity? If it is, I'd better go to the Ministry of Revenue and take the money away."

Good heavens, they actually gave me an official position? Isn't that crazy? I'm not short of money, I wouldn't even look at the prime minister's salary.

Besides, even if he became prime minister, what could he do? He didn't understand anything important, and he was good at spouting nonsense.

If he had become prime minister, he probably could have destroyed the Tang Dynasty.

He is self-aware; not just anyone can be a leader.

"Tenth brother, what's the matter with you? I only wanted your help, as you've seen today."

In the imperial court, I, as your elder brother, am powerless; seven or eight out of ten officials are from noble and powerful families. I need some assistance.

Seeing Li Shen's reaction, Li Chengqian finally spoke his mind.

He needs power and help; otherwise, he simply cannot defeat these officials.

"Brother, you've been regent for so many years, haven't you accomplished anything? Isn't Changsun Wuji your right-hand man?"

He is from your maternal family, a relative by marriage; he will definitely help you.

And those officials who came from humble backgrounds, as well as those veteran ministers and descendants of meritorious officials, will all be loyal to you.

"Why must you insist on sending your younger brother to court, Father? I truly cannot get up."

Although Li Shen didn't understand politics, he wasn't stupid either. Over the years, Wang Xuance had often reported on matters of the court to him, and through this exposure, he had come to understand some things.

Li Chengqian is just pretending to be pitiful here.

He has been regent for several years, how could he have done nothing? If that were the case, his father would have taken back control of the government long ago.

Does my older brother really think I know nothing?

* (It's a bit late today, I had something to do, please forgive me.)