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

"Minister Tang, please wait."

Just as everyone was walking outside, Li Shen's voice rang out, and everyone stopped and looked over.

"What brings Your Highness Prince Ji here?"

Tang bowed respectfully and asked.

Tang Lin was no ordinary person; his grandfather was a bureaucrat in the Guanlong Group. Although the Tang family of Beihai could not be considered a prominent clan,

However, they were also a prominent family in the local area.

He had long heard of Prince Ji, Li Shen, though he had never met him, his fearsome reputation was already well-known.

Even powerful clans couldn't afford to offend them, let alone a small family like the Tang family. The Langya Wang clan was far more powerful than the Tang family, yet they couldn't even hold their heads high in front of Prince Ji and had to humbly beg for peace.

"Hey? Why aren't you leaving yet? I have some confidential matters to discuss with Minister Tang. This is not for your ears."

Seeing the others standing there staring at him, Li Shen immediately spoke up loudly.

"Hehe, does Your Highness Prince Ji perhaps have found another way to make money?" Changsun Wuji laughed.

"Yes, but I can't tell you. Minister Tang, let's talk in private."

Li Shen readily admitted it, and without waiting for Tang Lin's agreement, he went to the wall alone to avoid the others.

Changsun Wuji glanced at it, then turned and left. The others also glanced at it, especially Tang Jian, who looked at Tang Lin several times with envy in his eyes.

“Your Highness Prince Ji, it’s just the two of us here, so please speak frankly.”

Following Li Shen to the wall, Tang Lin felt somewhat like a thief.

"Minister Tang, I've heard that you've written two legendary books called something like 'The Records of Retribution in the Underworld,' is that correct?"

Li Shen didn't waste any words and asked directly.

Tang Lin nodded.

"Your Highness, regarding the matter at hand, I wonder if Your Highness has found anything amiss?"

Tang Lin's first thought was whether he had violated some taboo and offended Prince Ji.

He had long heard that Prince Ji was capricious, suffered from a brain disease, and acted strangely, often doing things that ordinary people could not understand.

Li Shen smiled upon hearing this.

"Don't be nervous, this is a good thing, a very good thing."

"Good news? What does Your Highness mean by this?" Tang Lin was a little confused.

"Then I won't beat around the bush. I've taken a liking to your two novels and am planning to buy the rights. What do you think?"

"Copyright? This... may I ask what copyright is?"

Tang Jian was a little confused by Li Shen's words. He vaguely guessed that Li Shen meant to buy his two legendary books, but he didn't understand the copyright.

Li Shen smiled lightly:

"Hehe, so what does this copyright mean? It means that since you wrote these two legendary books, the content of the novels belongs entirely to you."

You have absolute ownership of this legend, understand?

What I want to buy is ownership of both of your legendary books.

“Your Highness, this legend has already been printed. You don’t need to buy it here; it’s available for sale elsewhere.”

Tang Lin still didn't understand what Li Shen meant.

"No, no, no." Li Shen held up one finger and shook it.

"Minister Tang, what I mean by purchasing the copyright is that after the purchase, no one else is allowed to sell or print it."

Only I, the King, may create and sell these two legendary books. Anyone else who wishes to sell them must obtain my permission.

Otherwise, it would be an infringement of these two legendary works, a usurpation of their ownership rights, and in that case, I would have the right to retaliate against the infringer and demand compensation.

"No, it's not retaliation, it's reporting to the authorities, reporting to the authorities! Don't let my father find out!"

Li Shen suddenly realized he had misspoke and quickly corrected himself. After all, they were still in the palace; they had to be careful, as walls could hear them.

As he spoke, he glanced at the imperial guards standing guard not far away. The guard felt like dying; at such close range, he could hear everything even if he didn't want to.

At that moment, he was wondering if Prince Ji would kill him to silence him.

Tang Lin pondered for a long time before speaking:

"Your Highness Prince Ji, there are no legal provisions in the Tang Code concerning the kind of infringement you mentioned, and this has always been the case."

Moreover, regardless of who writes the book, everyone hopes that someone can help them publish it, as this is also an opportunity to make a name for themselves.

Therefore, Prince Ji's suggestion to buy the copyright for the book is completely unnecessary; we can simply print it ourselves. I should thank Your Highness Prince Ji for bringing me fame.”

As he spoke, Tang Lin bowed to Li Shen. Scholars all like to make a name for themselves. Whether it is poetry, lyrics, or songs, the more widely they are sung, the greater their reputation will be.

One of the reasons why brothels and pleasure boats attracted so many talented men was the sheer number of people.

Brothels and pleasure boats are merely platforms for gaining fame; one can't simply write a good poem and recite it casually on the street, can one?

Wouldn't he be arrested as a madman?

In Tang Lin's view, the fact that Prince Ji was interested in his legend and willing to publish a book about him was already helping him; there was no reason to buy it with money.

Li Shen frowned. It was indeed illogical to talk to these people about infringement; they simply didn't have that awareness and might even be smug about it.

In their eyes, this was an opportunity to make a name for themselves, but in Li Shen's eyes, it was all glittering gold.

"No, a gentleman does not take what others love. This is something you painstakingly wrote. How can it be taken by someone else?"

If someone claims to have written this book, wouldn't that ruin all your hard work?

Rest assured, as long as you sell the legendary copyrights of these two books to me, I will definitely credit you, Tang Lin, as the author.

As for how many people will know about it, that depends on whether people will read your book.

Li Shen made a decisive decision: he didn't need them to understand; they just needed to sell it to him.

In ancient times, it was impossible to protect 99% of copyrights, but Li Shen was one of those 1%.

Because Li Shen is evil, because he is fierce, because he is lawless.

Tang Lin was moved by Li Shen's words.

"Thank you, Your Highness. I will sell these two volumes of the Records of the Underworld to Your Highness."

"Clap!" Li Shenyi clapped his hands. "Good, great! So, how much are you planning to sell it for?"

Tang Lin thought for a moment and then held up two fingers.

"Two million strings of cash? Minister Tang, are you out of your mind?"

Upon seeing Tang Lin's two fingers, Li Shen nearly grabbed a knife and killed Tang Lin. He couldn't earn that much money selling books himself.

Upon hearing Li Shen's words, Tang Lin was even more shocked than Li Shen. His mouth gaped open and his eyes were glazed over. Was he crazy, or was Prince Ji crazy?

"No, no, Your Highness, you misunderstand. What I meant to say was..."

Tang Lin quickly tried to explain, but Li Shen suddenly shook his head again:

"Two hundred thousand strings of cash is a bit too much. I will offer a maximum of fifty thousand strings of cash. Take it or leave it."

Li Shen's eyes flashed with a fierce light, and his tone was threatening.

The words Tang Lin wanted to explain stuck in his throat, and he stared blankly at his hands.

Li Shen grabbed his fingers.