Traveling through Du He, Li Chengqian's rebellion begins

The civil and military officials and the princes all stood up and shouted in unison.

"Congratulations to Your Majesty!"

After His Majesty left the Taiji Hall with a group of important officials, Cheng Yaojin, Yuchi Gong, Niu Jinda, and others surrounded Xue Wanche and Cui Yixuan.

These brutes rolled up their sleeves and spoke in a threatening tone.

"You bunch of scoundrels, how dare you secretly send gifts to the King of Han? Are you deliberately trying to make trouble for us?"

"If you don't give us an explanation today, no one will leave the Taiji Hall!"

"I may not be able to offend the King of Han, but I can certainly deal with you bunch of lowlifes!"

"Humph!"

Upon hearing Cheng Yaojin and Yuchi Gong's arrogant words, the ministers who had presented gifts the previous night turned ashen with rage.

Two brutes!

How dare they speak so arrogantly to them!

Before they could respond, Li Yuanjing, Li Yuanjia, Li Zhen, Li Shen, and others also surrounded them with angry expressions.

They had all found out that the imperial court's several armories contained hundreds of thousands of sets of weapons and armor.

Of these hundreds of thousands of armor sets, less than 10 were iron armor sets, and the quality of these iron armor sets varied greatly.

The militia they formed numbered at least three to five hundred thousand.

If Xue Wanche and Cui Yixuan take away all the armor, wouldn't their militia be left without any armor to wear?

This could seriously affect their interests.

The group of people who were giving gifts exchanged glances, and then Cui Yixuan, in a moment of quick thinking, shouted loudly.

"During the Lantern Festival, Queen Han gave birth to a child, and we gave a small gift to our nephews last night."

"The gifts are not expensive; they simply convey our best wishes to our little nephews."

"If you're still not satisfied, you can try giving gifts!"

Upon hearing Cui Yixuan's words, Li Mengchang, Xue Wanche, Cui Dunli, and others all echoed his sentiments.

Hearing these shameless old bastards' words, everyone else laughed.

Cheng Yaojin spat and said, "Pah, a bunch of old men over sixty years old, all of them could be Du Xinchao's great-grandfathers."

"Still calling me 'little nephew,' what a shameless thing to do!"

The others also mocked Li Mengchang and Xue Wanche, then left Taiji Hall with strange expressions.

They were merely making threats to vent their dissatisfaction; they wouldn't dare lay a hand on any official appointed by the imperial court.

...

Liangyi Palace.

Li Chengqian looked at the civil and military officials on both sides of the hall, and then said in a loud voice: "My dear ministers, the Hongmeng Dynasty has just been established, and there are still many things to be done."

"Firstly, the promotion and demotion of officials; secondly, the treatment of prisoners from India and Tibet; thirdly, the management of the territories of India; fourthly, the migration of people to the various states; fifthly, the major projects to be undertaken this year; sixthly, when to launch a campaign against the various states of the world; seventhly..."

Li Chengqian listed 15 major issues that needed to be addressed before slowly stopping.

Although the new dynasty continued the system of the Zhenguan era, Li Chengqian knew in his heart that the hearts of the princes and noble families were no longer with the Tang Dynasty.

They all wanted to follow the imperial court to expand the territory and obtain a huge fiefdom.

For Li Chengqian, relocating some powerful clans was of great significance to the stability of the Tang Dynasty in the future.

On the imperial platform.

Li Chengqian rubbed his temples and said, "My dear ministers, let's discuss the 15 points I just raised one by one."

"I already have a draft in mind, but you can offer your opinions."

As Li Chengqian finished speaking, the officials all lowered their heads and fell into deep thought.

Du He, who was sitting in the deputy seat, did not rush to speak.

Now that he is the head of all officials, he doesn't need to show off too much; he should let his subordinates do the work.

On the right side of the main hall.

Minister of Personnel Pei Xingjian cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, there has been a great deal of change in the high-ranking officials of the court. I suggest that the local officials not be changed in the short term."

"A six-month transition period will be implemented, after which promotions and demotions will be made gradually based on their performance."

Pei Xingjian's words were immediately met with everyone's approval.

Li Chengqian nodded: "Alright, the first item is settled. Now let's discuss the second item!"

For the next three hours, everyone was engaged in intensive discussions.

The longest period of discussion was spent on matters concerning the prisoners from India and Tibet, as well as the relocation of people to vassal states.

Through the collective wisdom and efforts of everyone, many important matters were settled one by one.

On the imperial platform.

"Whoo~"

Li Chengqian took a deep breath and then said, "Due to the large-scale enfeoffment of princes this year, as well as the selection of concubines and the handling of prisoners, the main focus this year is on digesting the gains of the war."

"We'll see how things go next year and decide whether to send troops!"

"As for other major matters, the results of our discussion will prevail. Go back and refine the objectives with your subordinates, and we will continue to discuss them later."

You can't get fat in one bite. The Tang Dynasty needs to digest the gains of the war before expanding its territory step by step.

The ministers all stood up and bowed in unison.

"The minister obeys the order!"

Li Chengqian then gave them a few more instructions, asked Du He to stay, and then waved for them to leave.

After everyone bowed and left the Liangyi Hall.

Li Chengqian curled his lip and said, "Du He, now that you're the head of all officials, why have you become so reserved?"

"Didn't you offer any suggestions during the discussion just now?"

Du He smiled and said, "Your Majesty, it is precisely because I am the head of all officials that I cannot always steal the limelight from my subordinates. I must encourage them to use their brains and speak up more."

"Otherwise, if you adopt all of my suggestions, they won't feel involved."

“I only offer solutions when they encounter problems they cannot solve; that is where my value lies.”

Upon hearing Du He's explanation, Li Chengqian's lips curled slightly.

Slacking off is just being lazy, but you make it sound so noble.

However, Du He is not wrong. As the head of all officials, Du He should give his subordinates a chance to perform.

A few breaths of silence.

Li Chengqian changed the subject, saying, "Du He, do you plan to give all the armor to those 20 people who gave you such generous gifts?"

"Will other people get upset?"

Although receiving gifts is enjoyable, he is now the ruler of a country and has to consider the feelings of others.

Du He smiled and said, "Your Majesty, as the saying goes, it is not scarcity that is a concern, but inequality. The armor and lances should be distributed evenly, and those who give gifts should take a little more."

"Ah."

Li Chengqian nodded slightly.

Since Du He already knew what was going on, he didn't need to say anything more.

Du He continued, "Your Majesty, yesterday the Prince of Zhenbei approached me. He intends to give Your Majesty 2 strings of cash and me 1 strings to help him resolve the matter of Wu Meiniang."

“After the court session yesterday, the Emperor Emeritus stopped me and asked you to relinquish one-tenth of the profits from the arsenal.”

this...

Upon hearing that his father wanted a ten percent of the profits from the arsenal, Li Chengqian's face showed a hint of pain.

However, considering that his father was still working hard and had to support a large family, he could only grit his teeth and nod in agreement.

"Du He, these two things are settled then."

"I will give up 10% of the profits to Father Emperor in exchange for your help in resolving the Wu Zetian issue for Li Zhi."

His father was already quite old and not in very good health, yet he was still trying to have more children for the Li family, which made him feel rather ashamed.

Du He nodded and said, "Okay."

Let’s finish talking about business.

李承乾背负双手说道：“杜荷，后宫嫔妃共分八个等级，分别是九嫔9人、婕妤9人、美人9人、才人9人、宝林27人、御女27人、采女27人。”

"I have a new idea, and you must help me realize it!"

Seeing Li Chengqian's ambitious expression, Du He immediately had a bad feeling.

Just as Du He was stunned.

Li Chengqian continued, "I plan to take the most beautiful young woman from each country I conquer and make her one of my concubines!"

"I wish to collect beauties from all the countries under heaven!"