Traveling through Du He, Li Chengqian's rebellion begins

After Du He finished his report, Li Shimin said with a happy look on his face.

"Although Lord Du was unable to bring the King of Wei and his followers back to Chang'an during his mission to Japan, he has made great achievements, and I am very pleased!"

"Those who have made contributions will be rewarded, and those who have made mistakes will be punished. I will reward the meritorious ministers who have been sent to Japan generously!"

A great reward?

Could it be that Your Majesty wants to promote Du He's title to Duke?

When the civil and military officials saw that Li Shimin was extremely excited, this thought immediately came to their minds.

However, Du He did a really great job during this trip to Japan.

He assisted Li Tai in annihilating the main force of Japan, robbed the money of the Japanese royal family and ministers, brought back more than 3 strong men from the Tang Dynasty, and brought back 4 Japanese women.

This does not include the 600 warships brought back!

Under the expectant gazes of the civil and military officials, the official from the Ministry of Internal Affairs walked up to the imperial platform holding the imperial edict and read it aloud.

"The Emperor of the Great Tang ordered that Du He, the Minister of Works, the General of the Left, and the Duke of Xiangyang, be granted the title of Third Rank Tongzhongshu Menxia for his meritorious service in his mission to Japan, and his title be promoted to Duke of Korea, with a fief of 1000 households!"

"Change the Prince of Wei's Palace to the Duke of Han's Palace, and reward him with a thousand gold, a thousand rolls of silk, a thousand acres of fertile land, and a hundred royal horses!"

hum~

As the eunuch finished speaking, the area below the Taiji Hall seemed to explode with a huge discussion.

"Du He, who is only 26 years old, has also become the prime minister?"

"Moreover, Du He was just promoted to Duke and was granted an actual fief of 1000 households, which is higher than the 900 households of Duke Lu and Duke E!"

"I didn't expect that His Majesty would give the Prince of Wei's Palace to Du He to be used as the Duke of Korea's Palace!"

"Your Majesty has rewarded me with so much gold and silver that I'm afraid Du He won't be able to spend it all in several lifetimes!"

"Both brothers Du He and Du Gou are dukes. What an honor it is to have two dukes in one family!"

"If I had known earlier, I would have tried to go to Japan as an envoy, otherwise this overwhelming wealth would have fallen on my head."

"Oh, I regret it!"

"..."

When Your Majesty appointed Du He to go on a diplomatic mission to Japan, these ministers were gloating, thinking that Du He would be killed at the hands of King Wei.

But the result was beyond their expectations. Du He was so capable and achieved such great achievements in just a few months.

Now that Du Hejia has been granted the third rank of Tongzhongshumenxia, he has the power to participate in state affairs and is officially one of the prime ministers.

Among the civil officials, Zhangsun Wuji, Chu Suiliang, Yu Zhining and others looked at each other, their faces all filled with astonishment.

They painstakingly arranged for Du He to go on a diplomatic mission to Japan, and not only did they fail to put Du He to death, but they also allowed him to achieve great merit.

Moreover, they did not expect that His Majesty's reward to Du He would be so great. It was completely beyond their expectations!

As everyone was astonished, Du He stood up and responded with excitement.

"My lord, thank you for your kindness!"

Li Shimin nodded with a smile on his face, then spoke loudly to Du He.

"Du He, in addition to your great contributions to Japan, your previous innovations, such as the Zhenguan Plow, movable type printing, Chinese Pinyin, and Chinese Dictionary, have also played a huge role."

"You have been performing well recently. You must keep up the good work. I hope you can innovate more magical items that benefit the country and the people!"

Li Shimin said this not only to Du He, but also to the court officials.

His meaning was very clear. Giving Du He such a huge reward was not because he, Li Shimin, had any selfish motives, but because Du He's accumulated merits were great enough.

Du He responded loudly: "Please rest assured, Your Majesty, I will stay away from arrogance and continue to make achievements!"

After Du He sat down, Li Shimin signaled to the eunuch to continue issuing rewards.

"The Emperor of the Great Tang orders that the Right Wuwei General, the Right Qianniuwei General, the Commander-in-Chief of the Hundred Cavalry Division, and Duke Niu Jinda of Langya County be given an additional 100 households of food and a reward of gold and pieces of silk and satin for their meritorious service in their missions!"

"The Emperor of the Great Tang ordered that the Right Guard General and Duke of Wu'an, Xue Wanche, be given an additional 100 households, a reward of gold, and pieces of silk and satin for his meritorious service as an envoy!"

"The Emperor of the Great Tang ordered that Xue Rengui, the Right General and Duke of Longmen, be given an additional 100 households, a reward of gold, and pieces of silk and satin for his meritorious service as an envoy!"

"..."

Later, the eunuchs gave the envoy team a series of rewards, but the civil and military officials had no intention of listening to them.

The 100 additional fiefs and the little gold and silver they received were completely on a different level compared to Du He's huge reward.

It took the eunuch nearly half a quarter of an hour to finish reading out all the rewards.

After all the civil and military officials stood up to receive their rewards, Li Shimin explained some major and minor matters to everyone.

Just when everyone thought that Li Shimin would announce the end of the court meeting, Li Shimin, who looked a little uncomfortable, announced an unexpected decision.

"King Xuanchu Li Ke has returned to Chang'an. I have someone else to appoint. All the major and minor military and political affairs of Songzhou will be in the charge of Yang Sixun, the Chief Clerk of the Songzhou Military Governor's Office!"

After Li Shimin finished speaking, he announced the end of the court meeting amid the confused gazes of civil and military officials.

After Li Shimin left, Li Chengqian, with a serious expression, signaled to Du He with his eyes, and then walked out of the Taiji Hall with a worried look on his face.

Inside the Tai Chi Hall.

The atmosphere fell into silence, and it took a long time before anyone spoke.

"What is the meaning of this move, Your Majesty?"

"Earlier, you ignored the objections of the ministers and appointed Wu Wang Li Ke as the King of Chu. Now you want the King of Chu to return to Chang'an?"

"Could it be that Your Majesty wants the King of Chu to replace the former King of Wei?"

Hearing the whispers of these civil and military officials, Changsun Wuji signaled to Chu Suiliang, Yu Zhining, Yuwen Jie and others with his eyes, and then these people quickly left.

Prince of Chu, Li Ke, was supported by Your Majesty. He not only had some influence on the Crown Prince, but also had a huge influence on Prince of Jin.

Moreover, His Majesty's actions completely disrupted their original plan.

Just when Du He was about to take the officials from the Ministry of Works back, Cheng Yaojin, Hou Junji and others surrounded him again.

Cheng Yaojin said with a face full of resentment: "Du He, you have more fiefs than I do, you are just shitting on my head!"

Hou Junji also said helplessly: "Du He, why don't you become the Shangshu You Pushe? In front of you, I seem to be a subordinate!"

His actual fief was also 900 households, 100 households less than Du He's.

Feeling the resentment of these old men, Du He said with a smile.

"My fellow dukes, I'll treat you to a meal when I have time."

Cheng Yaojin's eyes sparkled as he said, "Du He, you deserve to be treated to a meal, but you need to prepare a few more Overlord Ox Hoofs!"

Du He waved his hand and said, "Duke Lu, privately slaughtering oxen is against Tang law. You must not let me make a mistake!"

Cheng Yaojin curled his lips and said, "Don't you pretend to be stupid? Didn't the oxen working in Princess Chengyang's mansion die of illness every now and then?"

You all are foodies, yet you're pretending to be.

After a fight, Cheng Yaojin, Hou Junji and others left, while Du Gou and Du Aitong came over with excitement.

They sincerely congratulated Du He, and then Du Gou said with a smile on his face.

"Second brother, bring Her Royal Highness the Princess and Linglong home for dinner tonight, and burn incense for our father and mother's spirit tablets!"

"You have two new children, and you have been promoted to Duke of Korea. You should tell your father and mother this good news!"