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

"Three waves surge at Yumen Pass, a thunderclap falls from the ground"—Li Shimin's words stunned Li Shen.

He knelt there, dumbfounded.

He's gone mad; he won't be his own son, he'll be his godson.

"Father, what...what are you talking about?"

Li Shen looked around, scratching his head in confusion.

Empress Zhangsun smiled without saying a word, while her elderly mother looked worried, wondering what kind of child she had given birth to.

Naturally, a mother is happy when her son is successful; his abilities bring her pride.

But this son can not only bring you honor, but sometimes he can also tarnish your reputation.

There's no one in the world who would rather be a godson than a biological son; I've truly witnessed this today.

Anything can happen to Li Shen.

"What? You've already forgotten what you just said? Should I remind you?" Li Shimin picked up his teacup, took a sip, and spoke calmly.

"Did I say that?" Li Shen looked puzzled. When did he say such a thing? Why didn't he remember?

Li Shen then began to recall what he had been doing over the past two days.

"Tenth brother, you were in court today..." Li Chengqian reminded him from behind.

"Ah~~ I remember now, Father, that was just..."

Li Shen suddenly remembered and hurriedly tried to explain.

Li Shimin interrupted first:

"Tenth Prince, if you wish to become my adopted son, that's not impossible; I can grant your wish."

Perhaps I, as your father, haven't been good enough to you."

"Father, Father, I was wrong. I was just saying it casually. Please forgive me, Father."

Li Shen wept bitterly and went forward to hug Li Shimin's leg.

This is terrifying! Are they going to kick me out of the family? Can an adopted son be as good as a biological son?

"Is that so? I heard you say that your 16 million strings of cash are enough to make you not only a minor official, but even my adopted son."

So you think I'm greedy, that I'd even adopt a son for this money, right?

Li Shimin pushed Li Shen's head with his hand while angrily rebuking him.

Li Shen stuck to it like a piece of plaster, but in his heart he was thinking, how come his father's information is so well-informed?

The court session had just ended, and his father had already received news from the day's proceedings, even knowing the details. It seemed his father wasn't just retired and doing nothing at home; he had been keeping a close eye on the court all along.

"Shen'er, it's not that I'm scolding you, but how could you make such a joke in court?"

Empress Zhangsun chided from the side.

My son is a good son, but sometimes he does things in a very unreliable way. To put it nicely, he's careless about details; to put it bluntly, he doesn't know any manners.

Empress Zhangsun genuinely liked Li Shen; otherwise, she wouldn't have cared about any other prince.

“Mother, I’m not joking. I’m only doing this to help my elder brother. If I hadn’t been so assertive today, he wouldn’t have gotten what he wanted.”

Seeing that his father was ignoring him, Li Shen immediately turned to his support group, with Empress Zhangsun being his get-out-of-jail-free card.

Of course, it can only save you from death, not from getting beaten up.

But it still has some effect.

As expected, Empress Zhangsun immediately softened upon hearing that Li Shen was doing this to help her son.

"Second Brother, since Shen'er did it to help Gao Ming, it must have been unintentional. Please don't be angry."

"Hmph, get up."

Hearing Empress Zhangsun say this, Li Shimin snorted. He was indeed a little angry, after all, it was rare in the world for a biological son to become an adopted son.

However, he also knew what kind of person Li Shen was; he liked to talk nonsense and was always outspoken.

Li Shen felt as if he had been granted a pardon and was extremely grateful.

"Haha, thank you for your mercy, Father, and thank you, Mother."

After saying that, he stood up.

Wang De ordered his men to bring over two chairs for Li Shen and Li Chengqian to sit down.

Li Shimin asked:

"How are things going with Yuanzheng's matter?"

Li Shen quickly replied:

"Your Majesty, everything is arranged. Most of the ingredients will be transported to the palace today, and the meat will be slaughtered and transported over tomorrow to ensure absolute freshness."

"Well, that's good. I really want to see what kind of good food you, Prince Ji, usually eat that makes you so proud."

Li Shimin nodded.

That time, he heard Li Shen boasting that his Prince Ji's mansion had good things, which is why he arranged for Li Shen to be in charge of the food for this year's New Year's Day.

"Father is joking. There are no good things in my household. We usually just eat simple meals, two meals a day, and barely make ends meet."

Father also knows that his son has no salary now and can only tighten his belt and reduce expenses.

Upon hearing Li Shimin's words, Li Shen immediately began to complain about being poor without even thinking.

This has become Li Shen's stress response; he can't flaunt his wealth in front of his father, otherwise he'll easily lose money.

But how could Li Shimin not see through Li Shen's little scheme? He looked at Li Shen with disdain.

"Hehe, is that so? You, Prince Ji, have fallen so low as to live a life of poverty? I think you're living a life of luxury."

Don't think I don't know what kind of life you're living at home.

Their lifestyle was one of unbridled indulgence and extravagance, rivaling even that of King Zhou of Shang, except for the lack of a "wine pool and meat forest."

Li Shimin sneered twice and began to reprimand Li Shen. The extravagance of the Prince Ji's mansion was beyond imagination, even surpassing the imperial palace, except that it was a little small.

"A pool of wine and a forest of meat?" Upon hearing this phrase, Li Shen's eyes lit up. "Hey? This is a great idea! Why didn't I think of creating a pool of wine and a forest of meat?"

If he could somehow attract a Su Daji, he could experience what it was like to be King Zhou.

Thinking of this, Li Shen looked longingly at it and chuckled.

"You scoundrel, do you really want to build a wine pool and meat forest?"

Seeing Li Shen's smug expression, Li Shimin could easily see through Li Shen's thoughts and immediately rebuked him angrily.

That scoundrel actually had this idea. If he builds it, what will people outside say about the royal family? How will he face his ancestors?

"Uh..."

Li Shen was jolted awake by the scolding. He wiped the drool from his mouth, composed himself, and cursed himself for being too smug and revealing his true feelings.

"Hehe, Father, what are you saying? How could I do something that wastes money and resources?"

"I want to save the money to benefit the people and do great things that benefit the country and its people."

Li Shen quickly put on a smiling face, determined to say something nice no matter what.

"You? Benefit the country and the people? Heh, if you don't bring disaster to the country and the people, you've done right by your ancestors and haven't wasted my teachings on you."

Upon hearing Li Shen's words, Li Shimin couldn't help but sneer, dismissing them with disdain.

This thing is a double-edged sword; if used well, it can harm the enemy; if used poorly, it can harm oneself.

So, shouldn't we polish him up a bit? Otherwise, Li Shen might just fly to the heavens and do who knows what he'll do.

(Romantic tales)