Tang Dynasty: Father, if you don't rebel, I will!

Taiyuan Prefecture.

Yangcheng Palace.

Behind Shougong Hall.

"Brother, oh dear, brother, listen to me, I... oh dear!"

"Waaah, I really know I was wrong, Your Majesty, oh dear..."

"Oh dear, Your Majesty, waaaah, I'll never dare to do it again..."

Slap, slap, slap! One slap after another landed squarely on the delicate, yet ill-fated, bottom of the Ninth Prince Li Zhi.

Li Zhi's mournful cries were heart-wrenching.

however.

Faced with such a scene, let alone Wang De, Sun Yi and the other eunuchs standing to the side, even if the Empress and His Majesty were here, the Ninth Prince would certainly not escape being punished today.

Li Chengqian gritted his teeth and struck the other man's buttocks with the ruler in his hand again.

It left a deep red mark.

"You know you're wrong? No, no, no, Ninth Prince, I think you don't know you're wrong, you're just scared!"

"Snapped!"

"Ah! Waaah, brother, I really know I was wrong, I will never dare to do it again, waaah..." Li Zhi cried with snot and tears streaming down his face, but Li Chengqian, who was standing next to him, remained unmoved.

Holding a ruler, he exuded a chilling aura.

Even ten Empress Zhangsuns couldn't compare...

"Ninth brother, among all my brothers, I think you are the most promising. Look, here you are! Even the fifth and eighth brothers wouldn't dare to lie to me."

"hehe......"

A cold laugh, almost squeezed out from between his teeth, seemed to chill the surrounding air even further.

"Snapped!!!"

Another, even more forceful blow came down with the paddle.

This caused Li Zhi to stiffen and tense up instantly, as if he were a live shrimp.

However, he was firmly pressed down onto the bench by two soldiers from the Eastern Palace.

"So young and already doing bad things...skipping school? And going to the gambling den?"

"Clap clap clap!"

"Ahhhhhh!"

"Gag him! Even if he dies on this bench today, it's his own fault!"

Wang De and the others had cold sweat on their foreheads.

Looking at His Highness the Crown Prince, who was furious to the extreme, there was nothing that could be done to stop him.

When Duke Yingguo Wu Shiyue entered the palace on official business and arrived at the Shougong Hall, he saw the Tuyuhun Crown Prince kneeling on the ground, the former Tuyuhun Daning King Murong Shun, and a little girl.

He was taken aback.

However, being clever, he decisively chose to ignore the pleading expression the other party was sending and headed straight into the hall.

Inside the Shougong Hall.

The cries of the Ninth Prince Li Zhi were silenced, but the crisp sound of the ruler striking him could still be heard.

This was accompanied by the angry rebukes of His Highness the Crown Prince.

Yet the sound still lingered faintly.

"Alas... this Prince Jin, how can I possibly put it... he has not grasped the Crown Prince's good intentions at all."

Li Gang, the Junior Guardian of the Crown Prince, looked helpless.

Looking at the warrior Yue who walked in, he said, "If you have something to say, just wait here for now. Going to see the Crown Prince at this time... will only bring trouble upon yourself."

Samurai looked puzzled.

"This... Elder Li, what happened?"

Li Gang shook his head, not wanting to say anything, but Yu Shinan sighed beside him.

"A few days ago, the First Official Academy organized a military training session, and those interested could sign up. For some reason, His Highness Prince Jin took the initiative to tell His Highness the Crown Prince that he wanted to participate. This initially made His Highness very happy, but then..."

"It turns out he secretly ran away with Murong Shun's daughter. If that were all, it wouldn't be so bad..."

Yu Shinan paused slightly, took a deep breath, and covered his head. Even he couldn't understand Li Zhi's thought process.

"He even tried to bribe the instructor, and when that failed, he threatened him."

"Hiss!!!" Instantly, Wu Shiyue couldn't help but gasp.

However, this was not the end of the story. When he heard Li Gang add that after Li Zhi ran away, he actually went to the gambling den with Murong Shun's daughter, he was shocked.

He completely abandoned the idea of ​​trying to persuade His Highness the Crown Prince.

The best approach in this situation is to pretend you don't know anything, pretend you've never heard of it...

Behind the Shougong Hall.

"Crack!"

Another blow landed, but Li Zhi showed no reaction.

Wang De looked down and his expression changed drastically.

"Your Highness, His Highness, Prince Jin...he's fainted!"

"What?!" Li Chengqian was shocked, and his anger vanished instantly.

"The imperial physician! The imperial physician!"

Yuan Tiangang, who was on duty today, with a pair of grayish-white eyes, walked calmly to Li Zhi's side and made a diagnosis as soon as he touched him.

"Your Highness, Prince Jin has fainted from the pain... Perhaps we should carry him away and have him examined. If the injury on his buttocks is not treated, it may leave a lasting problem."

Hear the words.

Li Chengqian took a deep breath and looked at Li Zhi, who had fainted with tears streaming down his face and his face pale.

A hint of worry flashed in his eyes.

“Carry him to my bedchamber… Master Yuan, please examine him carefully; we can’t let anything happen to this boy.”

Upon hearing this, Yuan Tiangang quickly bowed.

Li Chengqian looked at Li Zhi being carried away, but his anger had not subsided.

Skipping classes for study tours is one thing; he did the same thing when he was a student in his previous life.

It's nothing more than teaching him a lesson, then adjusting his schedule to make things a little easier.

But... he used his power to intimidate officers, and at such a young age, he was hanging out in casinos...

Li Chengqian never imagined that Emperor Gaozong of Tang, Li Zhi, who should have been emperor in history, would turn out like this.

Is it really because the world is different?

Seeing that his own Crown Prince was standing there silently, staring straight in the direction Li Zhi was being carried away, Wang De finally managed to get some gentle shoving from Sun Yi and Gao Hai.

They were forced to step forward.

He stepped forward and spoke softly.

"Your Highness, the Duke of Ying is requesting an audience while he is away, and he has come with official business..."

Li Chengqian then came to his senses and calmed himself down a bit.

Then they arrived at the Shougong Hall.

"Your subject, Wu Shiyue, greets Your Highness the Crown Prince. May Your Highness enjoy good health!"

Li Chengqian waved his hand somewhat listlessly and sat down in his usual seat for handling official business.

"What business does the Duke of Ying have?"

Wu Shiyue presented the document in his hand.

"Your Highness, the one-year government bonds you issued last year are due for redemption, but..."

As the president of the Royal Bank, how could he not be aware of the current situation in Bingzhou?

Every place needs money. Although the westward expedition increased the circulation of goods in the market and provided more commercial tax revenue to the Tang Dynasty from the already rapidly developing commerce of Bingzhou.

But... that's nearly 40 million guan of national debt.

If all of these promises were fulfilled at once, the entire head office would face enormous pressure.

Li Chengqian casually flipped through the documents in his hand, on which Wu Shiyue had already roughly compiled a list of the recipients of this batch of national bonds.

"Your Highness... are you truly going to keep your promise?"

Samurai asked cautiously, knowing that the prince must be in a bad mood at the moment, so he spoke with utmost care.

"Pay it back! Why not? Since I promised to pay it back in a year, I will definitely pay it back in full, including principal and interest!"

Upon hearing this, Wu Shiyue's expression tightened: "But, but if we were to cash out everything, I'm afraid the head office doesn't have that much cash to settle accounts right now."

Li Gang and Yu Shinan also looked over from the side.

Li Chengqian, however, was not in a hurry. Looking at the hesitant Wu Shiyue, he said, "If you have any thoughts, Duke Ying, you can speak them directly. I can still distinguish between public and private matters."

Samurai Yue was startled.

He naturally knew that Li Chengqian was referring to the time he had just reprimanded Li Zhi.

He quickly lowered his head, hesitated for a moment, and then spoke.

"Your Highness, although the official reports of victory will not arrive for several days, the Kingdom of Gaochang has been completely conquered by our Great Tang. Now, especially in Longyou, a large number of merchants and businessmen are flocking to our Great Tang, all wanting to participate in the auction of the war spoils."

"However, as Your Highness previously stated, all merchant guilds eligible to participate in the auction must possess certain pledged assets, and all their cash flow must be processed through banks. Many of them do not meet the requirements regarding pledged assets..."

Li Chengqian nodded, but Li Gang, who was standing to the side, immediately saw through Wu Shiyue's thoughts.

"Does the Duke of Ying mean to suggest that these soon-to-be-redeemed government bonds also be considered part of the collateralized assets?"

Samurai Ge hurriedly nodded.

“That’s right! Currently, more than 60% of the government bonds on the market are held by those chambers of commerce. This is their entry ticket to participate in the new policy’s major infrastructure projects, as well as the construction of Zhenbei Road and the Tuyuhun concession area.”

"The other 20% were in the hands of wealthy people in Chang'an and other places."

"The last 20% actually ends up in the hands of ordinary people..."

"If we consider these soon-to-expire national bonds as entry tickets to the development of the profits from the Western Expedition, and since they are pledged and cannot be exchanged, in my opinion, these national bonds will not only not become worthless after they expire, but will also circulate on the market at a higher price!"

Li Gang and Yu Shinan couldn't help but exchange a glance.

He sighed inwardly, thinking that the old man, Duke Ying, was indeed a businessman by birth.

This kind of tactic of getting something for nothing and shifting debt is something they do with ease.

Who wouldn't want a piece of the profits from the westward expedition?

The large merchant guilds now active in Bingzhou, Longyou Road, and Zhenbei Road were all once small businesses that benefited from the wars with the Eastern Turks and Tuyuhun.

And thus become an entity that surpasses some of the major chambers of commerce in Chang'an?

With these government bonds, smaller chambers of commerce could also get involved and share in the war profits.

These things are like waste paper to the banks.

In the business world of the Tang Dynasty, however, it will be revered as something surpassing even gold...

While Li Chengqian was handling official business...

Upon hearing of what Li Zhi had done, several princes and princesses who had rushed back from the Imperial University or other places all came to Li Chengqian's palace.

The fifth prince, Li You, who had previously launched a rebellion, looked at Li Zhi, who was now lying on the bed unconscious, having just had medicine applied to his buttocks.

His face showed utter disappointment and frustration.

"Ninth Prince is muddle-headed! It's one thing for him to act foolishly on ordinary days, but why is he now so audacious as to deceive his elder brother? This..."

Outside the Shougong Hall.

Until dusk, Murong Shun dared not have the slightest thought of getting up or leaving.

Even his only beloved daughter had collapsed from exhaustion.

All he could do was kneel there, his face filled with trepidation.