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

"hiss......"

Li Zhi sat in his seat with a somewhat stiff posture.

At that moment, from an angle unseen by others, a small, fair hand was pinching his soft waist hard.

Wu Zetian blushed deeply and lowered her head, not daring to look at the gazes around her.

Especially the strange glances that His Highness the Crown Prince occasionally casts.

The occasional praise from her older sister made her want to disappear into the ground.

And all of this is Li Zhi's fault.

"This, this clothing is clearly really strange... Li Zhi! You've ruined this young lady!"

Why did His Highness the Crown Prince design this kind of clothing?

Wu Zetian didn't even dare to think about such a question, let alone ask it. So she could only vent all her dissatisfaction and shame on Li Zhi, the instigator, who was standing to the side.

Li Zhi grinned.

"You, ouch... be gentle! This is the most normal one among my brother's drawings. There are a few with cat ears and fox tails that I didn't... Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!"

Wu Zetian's beautiful eyes held a mixture of shyness and fierceness.

Although she was still just a little girl, she had already grown into a graceful and beautiful young woman.

Listening to Li Zhi's explanation, he unleashed his full power of the Two-Finger Zen technique.

"Still talking! Cat ears, fox tail, Li Zhi! It's one thing for you to be vulgar, but to slander the Crown Prince like this! The Crown Prince works tirelessly for the country every day, how could he be like a good-for-nothing like you..."

Li Chengqian: "......"

He has excellent hearing.

Although the two little ones moved and made very soft noises, he still heard them clearly.

Hearing Wu Zetian, this little girl, speak so trustingly of him, he, with his thick skin and black heart, suddenly felt a burning sense of embarrassment, as if his conscience were being torn apart.

"Ahem... Now that everyone is here, let's begin the feast!"

He coughed twice and then began to announce.

Suddenly.

The sounds of string and wind instruments instantly filled the area around the banquet.

Behind the curtain, seemingly because the person sitting in the main seat today was Li Chengqian, the crown prince who advocated new policies and reforms, even the sound of the wind instruments was noticeably louder than at previous Mid-Autumn Festival banquets.

It sounds refreshing.

There were quite a few people invited to the banquet today.

Li Chengqian's two teachers, Li Gang, the Junior Guardian of the Crown Prince, and Yu Shinan, the Junior Tutor of the Crown Prince, were Li Chengqian's most capable ministers and teachers, so they naturally sat in the front seats at the banquet.

Following behind were Qian Lou, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard; Wang Ming, the governor of Bingzhou; Zheng Jiang, the newly appointed Minister of Personnel of Chang'an; Hou Junji, the Duke of Lu and General of Yanmen Pass; and Wu Shiyue, the Duke of Ying and President of the Royal Bank, among other future fathers-in-law.

The daughters of these people were also placed directly on either side of Li Chengqian.

Although Li Chengqian was engaged to the daughters of these people, ultimately, this behavior itself was not in accordance with the established social norms.

However, since the Crown Prince had said it was a family banquet, they were naturally happy to see such a scene.

The banquet was accompanied by music and dance, with stunningly beautiful court dancers performing to entertain the guests.

Knowing the Crown Prince's temperament, Li Gang and Yu Shinan didn't put on airs. As soon as the banquet started, they drank and laughed with those around them.

He had a dissolute and unrestrained demeanor.

Empress Zhangsun watched this scene quietly, occasionally chatting with Crown Prince Li Chengqian.

However, most of them were saying things like they would treat the girls around them better in the future.

"Brother Emperor!"

Suddenly a loud shout drew everyone's attention at the banquet.

But then the Eighth Prince, Prince Yue, Li Zhen, suddenly stood up unsteadily from his seat, his face flushed.

"Your Majesty, rest assured, give me another six months, and I will definitely be able to compile a peerless legal code for the Tang Dynasty that will be unparalleled throughout history!"

Li Chengqian looked at him, who could barely stand and was patting his chest.

Touched, he quickly called Sun Yi to help the other person up.

Li Zhi, sitting next to Li Zhen, looked speechless.

"Eighth Prince, if you can't drink, then don't drink. Can't you have juice?"

Li Zhen stared wide-eyed; after drinking, he seemed like a completely different person.

His voice became louder, as if a gavel had been slammed on the table.

"Only sissies drink juice! Real men should drink hard liquor!"

Li Zhi: "......"

What you're drinking isn't even strong liquor, it's just rice wine!

Consort Xian, Li Zhen's birth mother, changed her expression and hurriedly ordered people to help Li Zhen down. She also came to Li Chengqian's side with a face full of apology.

"Your Highness, please forgive me, Zhen'er has never drunk alcohol before, he..."

"Hehe, Your Highness, rest assured. I know very well what kind of person the Eighth Prince is. He puts a lot of pressure on himself, so it's good for him to relax with a little wine. Back in Taiyuan, he never touched alcohol, simply because I said that alcohol can cloud a person's judgment."

Consort Xian breathed a sigh of relief and sat back down with a grateful expression.

Wang Ming stroked his beard.

Suddenly, he raised his cup to congratulate Li Chengqian.

"His Highness the Crown Prince has set an excellent example for all the princes and princesses, which is why all the princes of our Great Tang are so talented and wise."

“When His Highness Prince Yue was in Taiyuan Prefecture, he often visited the prefects and clerks of various counties and frequently visited the people to inquire about their views on the Tang Code. In my opinion, His Highness Prince Yue just needs to be given more time.”

"He will surely be able to compile a great Tang Dynasty legal code that will go down in history!"

"Your subject offers his congratulations to His Highness the Crown Prince!"

Wang Ming, that scoundrel, seized the initiative by flattering others.

The high-ranking officials of the Tang Dynasty who came to the banquet all stood up, raised their wine cups, and loudly congratulated Li Chengqian.

Consort Xian, Li Zhen's birth mother, smiled even more brightly.

Seeing such a harmonious scene of brothers and virtuous officials, tears of emotion welled up in their eyes.

"Sister, Zhen'er is so fortunate to have a brother like the Crown Prince; it's a blessing he could only have accumulated over countless lifetimes. I've almost forgotten what kind of person that child used to be, now that he's with the Crown Prince..."

Empress Zhangsun smiled gently and patted Consort Xian's hand.

"Don't worry, Zhen'er is a capable child. If it weren't for her character, Gao Ming wouldn't be able to manage her even if he wanted to."

Beside her, Consort Yin, who was eating a pastry, watched the harmonious scene between the emperor and his ministers.

But then he suddenly chuckled softly.

Like the Fifth Prince Li You, he only needed to squint slightly to give people the impression that his cunning, fox-like eyes had narrowed into a pair of crescent moons.

He moved closer to Empress Zhangsun and chuckled softly.

"Sister, what do you think that scoundrel Emperor is doing right now?"

"Chengdu Prefecture, huh? He certainly knows how to run around, going in such a big circle. I bet Chancellor Fang and Chancellor Du don't even bother to give him a friendly look anymore, hehehe... At least the Retired Emperor still has Chancellor Pei and the others to keep him company, but our Emperor is truly all alone now."

Consort Yin's clear, crisp laughter made Empress Zhangsun helplessly rub her forehead.

When her emperor husband was in Chang'an, he already seemed to have fallen out of favor in the harem. Now that he has run away, the situation has become even more unspeakable.

She coughed lightly.

"His Majesty's idea of ​​going out to fight and expand the territory of the Tang Dynasty is ultimately a good thing. He also cares about each and every one of his princes and princesses, including Gao Ming... Perhaps he is thinking of his loved ones while gazing at the moon right now?"

“Hiss... Ha... Hiss... Ha..."

"Water! Quickly, give me water!"

He snatched a glass of chilled juice directly from Du Ruhui's hand.

Emperor Zhenguan, Li Shimin, gulped down the glass of juice in a few mouthfuls, and the burning sensation in his mouth immediately subsided.

"Minister Lu, where were we?"

Lu Shiming, the prefect of Chengdu, glanced at the cup carefully, silently tossed aside the water cup used by the emperor and placed it aside before replacing it with a fresh glass of juice for his senior, Du Ruhui, and coughed twice.

Looking at the bright red hot pot broth steaming with spicy aroma, he hurriedly spoke up.

Chili pepper cultivation!

"Yes! Chili pepper cultivation!" Li Shimin slammed his hand on the table, startling Fang Xuanling who was standing nearby.

The hand gripping the chopsticks trembled involuntarily at that moment.

Hey!

You promised me a holiday, and then it turned into some bullshit "Lingyan Pavilion Gathering"—that's all.

Can't you just let me eat this meal in peace?

Fang Xuanling and Du Ruhui made no attempt to hide their desire to kill the emperor, even in front of the officials of Chengdu Prefecture.

however.

Faced with these two, the two were key veteran officials who had been kidnapped by Li Shimin to Jiannan Road and were also responsible for the reform of the entire Jiannan Road government.

They didn't dare utter a single word.

Li Shimin, however, seemed to have long been accustomed to the murderous glares in their eyes, and continued to paint a rosy picture for the Chengdu officials in front of him.

"Minister Lu, the reason why the Crown Prince's new policies in Bingzhou have been so successful and effective is because every household in Bingzhou is able to eat their fill and even become prosperous through farming."

"My idea is simple. The Crown Prince said that Henan Circuit, Jiannan Circuit, and Guannei Circuit are the most suitable for growing chili peppers. However, the first two circuits are currently mainly focused on growing winter wheat, which is the perfect opportunity for Jiannan Circuit!"

"I have brought with me an agricultural professor who understands this field. On the one hand, we will plant the seeds of Champa rice to try to improve local rice varieties, and on the other hand, we will increase support for chili pepper cultivation..."

Emperor Taizong spoke eloquently.

The Chengdu officials present were stunned.

However, only Du Ruhui and Fang Xuanling secretly grimaced.

The draft, which was copied and modified from His Highness the Crown Prince's five-year plan for Bingzhou, could only be shown off to Jiannan Circuit officials like Lu Shiming, who had never been to Taiyuan Prefecture.

Lu Shiming and his other colleagues exchanged glances.

Their eyes lit up.

"Your Majesty is wise!"

Li Shimin laughed heartily.

He waved his hand and said, "I can only talk the talk. To achieve such a glorious and lasting legacy, I still need the assistance of Minister Lu and all the capable ministers of Chengdu Prefecture!"

He looked at the Jiannan Circuit officials, whose eyes clearly showed interest in each other.

"Although I have now moved my capital to Chengdu, I am still the emperor of the Great Tang Dynasty. In other words, if any of you are capable ministers or talented individuals, you can strive to bring peace and harmony to the people of Jiannan Circuit."

"I will immediately bestow upon you generous rewards... My esteemed ministers are here today, and I have a poem to present to you!"

Li Shimin suddenly stood up and, under the puzzled and surprised gazes of Fang Xuanling and Du Ruhui, suddenly spoke.

"Why shouldn't a man carry a Wu hook and seize fifty new states!"

"Please ascend the Lingyan Pavilion for a moment, for which scholar has ever become a marquis of ten thousand households?"

"An old pedant, searching for phrases and sentences, like a jade bow hanging before a curtain at dawn."

"Year after year, I see no trace of the Liaodong Peninsula; where can I find the lament of autumn winds in my writings?"

Fang Xuanling and Du Ruhui: "???"

Lu Shiming and other important officials of Jiannan Circuit were all flushed with excitement.

Only Fang Xuanling and Du Ruhui, who knew best about their emperor's literary talent, stared at each other in disbelief.

Their eyes were conveying the same meaning.

When did the emperor ever kneel before the crown prince behind our backs?