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

King of Jing?

Li Tai was admiring the precious tea set in his hands, and in that instant, he had already made up his mind that even if he died, he would take all of these things with him to his grave.

Upon hearing those two words, the hand that was caressing the exquisite painting on the tea set suddenly paused.

The next moment, his eyes narrowed slightly, and a cold glint flashed in his long, narrow pupils.

The Prince of Lu, Li Yuanchang, who was standing to the side, was so frightened that his heart, liver, spleen, and lungs trembled.

"Does Seventh Imperial Uncle seem to have something on his mind?"

Seeing the latter's hesitant and nervous expression, Li Tai waved his hand dismissively.

"Speak your mind. If you can offer a solution that satisfies me, I might spare his life for now. But if you can't offer a clear solution..."

Li Tai carefully placed the teacup back into the brocade box.

Then carefully put the lid back on.

"Grandfather is currently away, and your second brother, His Majesty the Emperor, has also disappeared to who knows where... He has been smuggling government grain, and the evidence is irrefutable. Even if I were to order his execution, no one would say a word."

Hearing Li Tai's resolute attitude, he actually considered ordering the death of Prince Jing, Li Yuanjing.

Li Yuanchang hurriedly waved his hands repeatedly.

"No, no, Your Highness, King Wei, although the King of Jing has broken the law, directly ordering his execution will ultimately damage your reputation..." Seeing Li Tai's disdainful look, she said.

Li Yuanchang's heart skipped a beat again.

"Your Highness, the Prince of Jing might still be of use!"

Li Tai's expression calmed down a bit: "Tell me, what use is such a good-for-nothing?"

"Am I better suited to let him lead troops into battle, or to let him govern a region?"

"The imperial court doesn't leave a single grain of food for idle people these days."

Li Yuanchang quickly smiled apologetically.

“Your Highness is right. However, it is clear that the Prince of Jing is not qualified to lead troops into battle or govern local areas. But I do have an idea, and I wonder if His Highness the Prince of Wei would be willing to do so.”

Seeing Li Tai's impatient expression, it was clear that he disliked his hesitant manner.

Li Yuanchang quickly coughed again.

“Your Highness, the Prince of Jing has committed a capital offense and will certainly not want to die. If Your Highness can give him a chance to redeem himself, he will do his utmost to repay Your Highness’s kindness.”

"Your Highness also served in Luoyang and governed the area. Weren't there many cases of tax evasion, fraud, and deception by local powerful families?"

"If the King of Jing were given the task of collecting taxes..."

Li Tai's eyes lit up immediately. He had originally just intended to listen casually, since apart from being obedient, what difference was there between Li Yuanchang and Li Yuanjing in terms of ability?

Don't be fooled by the size of the Luwang Real Estate Chamber of Commerce.

But all of that was with the support of the Crown Prince, and the royal family needed to set a standard and benchmark for merchants across the land, especially those who built real estate.

This is what led to the current success of Luwang Real Estate.

but.

He really didn't expect that Li Yuanchang would actually give him a good idea.

He stroked his chin and suddenly gave instructions to Fan Qi, the eunuch left behind by Li Shimin.

"Go, summon the Minister of Revenue to me!"

Fan Qi went and returned quickly, and soon an old man with gray hair appeared in the Ganlu Hall.

"Your subject, Feng Deyi, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, pays respects to Your Highness, Prince Wei!"

Li Tai frowned, and Fan Qi quickly explained.

"Your Highness, the position of Minister of Revenue was previously held concurrently by Chancellor Du. Now that Chancellor Du is absent, the operation of the Ministry of Revenue is being handled by Lord Feng..."

Upon hearing this, Li Tai nodded in realization. However, the way he looked at Feng Deyi at that moment...

However, it clearly carried an obvious sense of doubt and distrust.

"I've heard that your relationship with Yu Shinan, the Crown Prince's tutor, is quite bad..."

Feng Deyi's face turned pale instantly.

He knelt down on the ground with a thud.

"Your Majesty, I have no personal grudges against Junior Tutor Yu. Our previous disagreements were merely due to differing political views, and I had no intention of targeting Junior Tutor Yu in any way. Please understand!"

Li Tai chuckled, squatted down, and looked at the other person with a mocking expression.

“Minister Feng, you once held a position second only to the emperor, the Right Minister. Why is it that Pei Ji and Xiao Yu, along with the Pei family of Hedong and the Xiao family of Lanling, are thriving?”

Even Wang Gui has secured wealth and status for many of his nephews to this day.

"Why is it that among the veteran officials of the Wude era, you were the only one left, and you didn't even get the position of Right Vice Minister, but are still holding the position of Vice Minister of Revenue?"

Feng Deyi's old face trembled as he knelt on the ground, his head bowed, filled with regret and dejection.

Li Tai shook his head slightly and stood up.

"Tsk tsk tsk... Feng Deyi, Feng Deyi, have you heard before that after Kong Yingda was stripped of his title as Junior Tutor to the Crown Prince, Father Emperor was preparing to select another Junior Tutor for the Crown Prince? Father Emperor clearly suggested you at the time, but in the end, nothing came of it?"

Feng Deyi's face was already covered in cold sweat.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty is foolish and dull!"

"Ha! Still pretending! Well, if you were truly the kind of person who knew how to behave, why were you removed from your position as Right Vice Minister, yet still shamelessly hold the current position of Vice Minister of Revenue, vying for power with your juniors..."

The disdain on Li Tai's face was tinged with a hint of icy killing intent.

"My royal brother said that you are narrow-minded and have some ability, but your ability is not as great as your deep ambition! You can be used, but there is no need to use you! Using you will do more harm than good!"

Li Yuanchang was stunned. Even the eunuchs, including Fan Qi, in the Ganlu Hall were shocked to see Feng Deyi trembling and gradually collapsing to the ground like a lump of mud.

I never expected that this old minister of the Wude era, Duke of Mi, Feng Deyi, would have such a poor opinion of His Highness the Crown Prince.

The phrase "its disadvantages outweigh its advantages" directly negates all of Feng Deyi's achievements in the political arena.

Li Tai didn't even bother to glance at this old man who had been rejected by his own imperial brother.

He suddenly asked Fan Qi, who was standing to the side.

What position does Ma Zhou hold now?

Fan Qi: "Your Highness, Ma Zhou currently serves as an editor in the Secretariat, but his daily duties are as a councilor in His Majesty's cabinet..."

"Ha! My father is truly laughable. He tried to emulate my elder brother's Taiyuan Prefecture cabinet, but he's produced a hodgepodge. He holds this position concurrently, and that position is completely incompetent... He hasn't made any progress at all!"

Fan Qi, Li Yuanchang, and Feng Deyi: "..."

"By the decree of the King, Ma Zhou is hereby removed from his current position in the Secretariat and transferred to the Cabinet as a Grand Secretary to assist in government affairs."

Li Tai paused slightly, then spoke again.

"Forget about Wang Gui's retirement, I'll keep him alive with ginseng every day and make him a Grand Secretary in the cabinet!"

"Send another imperial edict to my maternal uncle, ordering Gao Shilian to be promoted to Grand Secretary of the Cabinet!"

While pondering which old ministers Chang'an could still rely on, Li Tai gave orders to Fan Qi.

As for Feng Deyi standing to the side, he really had no intention of appointing him.

This made Feng Deyi, who was already extremely panicked and horrified, even more fearful.

If the reason why Feng Deyi was dismissed from his post as prime minister and demoted, and was also excluded from the western expedition by the retired emperor, was because the news that the crown prince disliked him had spread.

Not to mention that he now holds the title of Duke of Mi.

In Chang'an's social circles, the Duke of Mi's mansion was completely finished.

Even the descendants of the Feng family, when they walk in the officialdom, are viewed with suspicion and hesitation by some colleagues, who wonder whether they should associate with members of the Feng family.

One can imagine that if he were dismissed from office again today, he would be asked to leave the Ganlu Palace.

What awaits the Feng family is utter annihilation!

"Your Highness, Prince Wei! This old minister is willing to make amends for his past mistakes! I implore Your Highness, and also Your Highness the Crown Prince, to give this old minister a chance to reform... This old minister is willing to go to Taiyuan Prefecture in person to apologize to Junior Tutor Yu!"

"Your Highness, I beg you to give this old minister another chance! I am willing to repay you with my life!"

"Your subject, Feng Deyi, has absolutely no intention of disobeying or deceiving the emperor. I beg Your Highness, Prince Wei, to see the truth! I beg Your Highness, the Crown Prince, to see the truth!"

Li Tai looked at him calmly, with a half-smile.

"Lord Feng, if you resign from your post now, I can still address you as Duke of Mi when we meet. But if at this age you still cling to power and end up messing things up..."

"I cannot guarantee that your Duke's Mansion will still exist!"

Feng Deyi's heart pounded, already sensing the threat behind it.

This Prince Wei is clearly trying to force him to bet all his chips at this gambling table... This is an attempt to completely cut off the Feng family's escape route.

however.

Hesitation is but a fleeting moment.

Feng Deyi then suddenly slammed his head against the ground, his voice resounding and resolute.

"This old minister is willing to offer the title of Duke as payment! If I have failed His Majesty's grace or His Highness's trust, this old minister... is willing to resign from my post and accept punishment under the Tang law! If I have uttered even the slightest falsehood, may my entire family... suffer misfortune and my descendants' prosperity!"

"Good!" Li Tai exclaimed, his previously cold face suddenly softening under the astonished gaze of Li Yuanchang.

Without the slightest hesitation or embarrassment, her face instantly transformed into a smiling one full of appreciation and encouragement.

He stared blankly at Li Tai, who stepped forward and, with a friendly demeanor, helped Feng Deyi, whose face was pale and whose beard and official hat brim were covered in sweat, to his feet.

"My royal brother often says that one should not underestimate anyone in the world. As the saying goes, fortunes change every thirty years. Don't underestimate a young man's potential. Although Lord Feng is already old, as the saying goes, an old steed in its stall still aspires to gallop a thousand miles!"

"Since Lord Feng is willing to prove his innocence and refute those who look down on him with his outstanding political achievements, I will give you a chance today!"

Li Tai's passionate demeanor caused Feng Deyi's aged mind to momentarily malfunction.

They stared blankly at each other.

"Feng Deyi, listen to the imperial decree!"

Li Tai's shout startled the latter out of his daze.

He quickly bowed and greeted them.

"By exercising my power as regent, I hereby promote you to Minister of Revenue, filling the vacancy left by Chancellor Du, and placing you in charge of all affairs of the Ministry of Revenue!"

Feng Deyi's old face immediately lit up with excitement and joy, and he was about to cup his hands in greeting.

Immediately afterwards, Li Tai gave an order.

"After you take office, I request that Minister Feng immediately begin an investigation into the commercial taxes of the Guannei Circuit and the Henan Circuit, and thoroughly expose all those corrupt officials who dare to evade taxes despite such wealth and power!"

"To ensure the smooth success of the appointment of Minister Feng... I hereby appoint my sixth uncle, Prince Jing, as your deputy!"

"You two, one civil and one military... must thoroughly eradicate these two tax evasion schemes for me!"

Feng Deyi: "......."

You promoted me to the position of Minister, but you don't let me sit in an office and handle government affairs.

You want me to go out and check the accounts?!

Doing something so dangerous right off the bat?!

Feng Deyi stared blankly, while Li Tai's friendly smile faded slightly.

"Minister Feng...do you have any concerns?"

Feng Deyi noticed that this Prince Wei had silently placed one hand on a short-handled flintlock pistol on the table.

Suddenly he was excited.

He quickly clasped his hands in greeting and generously accepted the order.

"Your subject, Feng Deyi, will certainly not fail Your Majesty's grace!"

After Feng Deyi staggered away from Ganlu Hall, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead, he left in a disheveled state.

Li Tai's gaze slowly shifted to Prince Lu, Li Yuanchang, who was standing to the side.

Suddenly, a warm smile appeared on his face.

Before the other person could react, he suddenly stepped forward and grabbed them.

"Seventh Imperial Uncle, I heard that you've been involved in a lot of large-scale real estate transactions in Zhenbei Road, Bingzhou, and the two concession cities of Tuyuhun. You must have made a lot of money, right?"

Li Yuanchang: "......."