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

There are less than two months left until the wedding of Princess Xiangcheng and Xiao Rui, the eldest son of the Duke of Song.

However, both the royal family and the Duke of Song's mansion had already begun preparations long ago.

Now that the country is strong and uses Li Shimin's private funds, neither Li Chengqian nor Empress Zhangsun showed any sign of stinginess.

Princess Xiangcheng was Li Shimin's first daughter.

His birth mother had passed away long ago.

However, she was also a royal princess whom Empress Zhangsun treated as her own daughter. She herself carried the same virtuous shadow as Empress Zhangsun. In terms of both appearance and character, she was definitely the best choice for the powerful and noble families of the Tang Dynasty to marry.

"Your Majesty, how about giving us shares in some industries? We can't give shares in industries like the Great Tang Railways that are vital to the nation, but the royal family also has many chambers of commerce preparing for listing, so we could choose some..."

Ganlu Temple.

Li Chengqian's brothers, along with his uncles Li Yuanchang and Li Yuanjing, who were of similar age, gathered here.

Hearing Li Zhi's suggestion, Li Chengqian nodded slightly.

"These are all minor matters, but in the end, they are still gold and silver. The Xiao family is a prestigious clan, and mere wealth cannot bring much status to the Empress."

Li Tai stroked his chin, pondered for a long time, and said, "Then why not choose a fiefdom?"

"Where to choose?"

Everyone's eyes were fixed on a huge geomantic map in front of them, with almost everyone's gaze lingering on the Guannei Road, Hedong Road, and Henan Road.

On the other hand, Prince Jing, Li Yuanjing, stood timidly behind Prince Lu, Li Yuanchang.

He hesitated, as if he wanted to say something.

Li Yuanchang gave him a wink, encouraging him to speak up directly.

Li Yuanjing glanced at Li Tai's back, but shook his head vigorously.

Li Zhen noticed this and frowned: "Does Sixth Imperial Uncle have something on his mind? Why don't you tell everyone?"

Everyone turned their heads.

Li Yuanjing was so frightened that he almost wet his pants on the spot.

Now, he is clearly traumatized by his nephew, especially by Prince Wei, Li Tai.

Now, Prince Jing, Li Yuanjing, has a reputation that is almost completely ruined in the officialdom of Henan and Guannei Circuits, and he himself has survived countless assassination attempts.

All of this was thanks to his good nephew, Li Tai.

Li Tai smiled faintly: "Why is Sixth Imperial Uncle looking at me so nervously? Just say what you have to say. With the Crown Prince here, even if he wanted to deal with you, it wouldn't be my turn."

Li Chengqian glanced at his younger brother speechlessly.

I always felt that Qingque harbored some inexplicable hostility towards his uncles, such as Li Yuanchang and Li Yuanjing.

He took a deep breath and tried to soften his voice as much as possible.

"King Jing, speak your mind. The marriage of my eldest sister in Xiangcheng is, in the end, a family matter of my royal family. Sixth Imperial Uncle, you may speak freely about your thoughts. I will not blame you if you say something wrong."

Prince Jing, Li Yuanjing, glanced nervously at Li Tai, who was quietly sipping his tea, before carefully pointing to a spot on the geomantic map.

"Your Highness, I believe that Xizhou County is a suitable fiefdom for Xiangcheng."

Upon hearing "Xizhou Prefecture," Li Chengqian and the others exchanged glances, their expressions shifting slightly as they pondered the matter.

Li Yun pondered.

“Your Majesty, I think that Xizhou Prefecture is indeed very suitable. Although it has not yet been developed, it will surely be a fertile land for our Great Tang in the future.”

Li Tai thought more deeply: "After the wedding, the Duke of Song will definitely have to set off back to the Western Regions. As the bridgehead for the development of the Western Regions by our Great Tang, if a city is established as the fiefdom of the Princess of Xiangcheng, it will make the Duke of Song more attentive to her."

"Let the Imperial Sister and Xiao Rui settle in Taiyuan Prefecture and receive a fiefdom remotely. This will not only prevent them from affecting the implementation and development of the new policies in the area, but also enhance the Imperial Sister's future status in the Duke of Song's mansion."

Li Zhi raised his hand: "We can even build a princess's residence for my elder sister in Xizhou County, and whether she lives there or not is up to her own personal preference."

Li Tai shook his head: "It's not just Xizhou Prefecture that needs a princess's residence; Taiyuan Prefecture and Chang'an should also have one..."

"Hahaha, do you expect me to find out about this for you? Don't ask me, I don't know. Anyway, you know best how much dowry I prepared for that girl in Xiangcheng. Your Song State Duke's Mansion can handle it yourselves."

In the Duke of Song's mansion, Li Yuan calmly played chess with Pei Ji.

Without even glancing at Xiao Yu, who was anxiously pacing like an ant on a hot pan, Pei Ji's face was filled with schadenfreude.

"Tsk tsk tsk, the Emperor Emeritus prepared a dowry, His Majesty the Emperor prepared a dowry, the Empress will undoubtedly receive one, and then there's His Highness the Crown Prince... tsk tsk tsk."

"Your Majesty," this old minister said, "I think this bird's nest in the Song State Duke's mansion is probably not destined to welcome a phoenix. Hahaha."

Xiao Yu was so angry that he blew his beard and glared at his opponent.

"Compared to His Majesty and His Highnesses, even if I were to calculate the price of gold at every possible rate, I still couldn't come up with such a large dowry..."

"That's none of our business. Who told your eldest son to be so capable, falling in love with Princess Xiangcheng? If you ask me, Your Majesty... why don't you just let that old bastard Xiao Yu write a contract of servitude and go to the Western Regions to work until he dies?"

"After all, it's all for their own son. I think the Duke of Song will definitely agree to this small matter."

"Hahahaha!"

In Chang'an recently, the most discussed topic has been the dowry of Princess Xiangcheng, who is about to get married.

Zhuque Avenue has already begun its decoration process.

The bright red, festive silk was purchased and prepared by the royal family six months ago.

Furthermore, according to His Highness the Crown Prince's wishes, Princess Xiangcheng's marriage will be the first joyous occasion of the fourth year of Zhenguan, and the celebration should be shared with the people. A banquet will be prepared to invite all the people of Chang'an.

The people were very excited about it.

But this was a hardship for Xiao Rui, the future prince consort who was preparing for his wedding.

"Your Highness, I have been serving you tirelessly since the very beginning of your new policies. I have been working day and night, tirelessly devoting myself to these policies. I have shed blood for these new policies, and I have shed tears for Your Highness... Waaah!"

Inside the Ganlu Hall, Xiao Rui no longer cared about his image.

He was devastated when he received the message sent by Princess Xiangcheng.

It's common knowledge that royal women are hard to marry.

However, as members of the Tang Dynasty's elite social circle, they were more concerned about the princess's married life.

Given Princess Xiangcheng's personality and character, Xiao Rui was full of anticipation for their future married life.

However, before he could even marry his beloved princess, Xiao Rui was already truly shown what a troublesome brother-in-law was like.

"Ahem, you found out?" Li Chengqian was a little embarrassed by the other person's crying.

At the same time, one can't help but sigh inwardly at what it means to "turn one's elbow to one's own side," and mutter a sour remark under one's breath.

"Lord Xiao, you're quite capable. My elder sister is actually helping you like this...tsk tsk tsk."

Xiao Rui felt so wronged.

However, this appearance only elicited a cold snort from Li Tai, who was standing to the side.

"Instead of crying, you should hurry up and make preparations. There's still a month until the wedding. With the resources of the Duke of Song's mansion, it's not like they can't raise the money..."

“Your Highness, the dowry that the Emperor Emeritus prepared for the Princess alone, just in terms of gold and silver, amounted to over a million strings of cash… Even if I sold the Duke of Song’s mansion, I still couldn’t come up with such a large dowry!”

"Hiss! So many?!"

Even Li Tai was a little unsettled.

They really didn't know about this. They never expected that the Emperor Emeritus would provide such a large dowry for this illegitimate granddaughter.

Millions of strings of cash—that's enough for him to fight his way far west...

Seeing Xiao Rui crying and sobbing, the princes, including Li Chengqian, felt a little embarrassed. If they were to arrange such a lavish dowry, it would seem like they were deliberately making things difficult for and mocking the Song State Duke's Mansion.

Everyone's eyes turned to Li Chengqian.

"Ahem, I was just worried that my elder sister, the Princess of Xiangcheng, had been mistreated here... Alright, I'll take back part of it. But what if you treat my elder sister badly in the future?"

Li Chengqian's ambiguous smile and the cunning glint in his eyes made Xiao Rui, who knew him very well, feel a sudden unease.

"Your Highness, what makes you say that? My feelings for Princess Xiangcheng are mutual, and to have gained her favor is my..."

"Alright, alright, save those sweet words for when you're kneeling on the washboard after your wedding. What I want to ask you now is, if you treat my elder sister badly, how should I deal with you?"

Xiao Rui straightened his chest and raised his head: "Your subject is willing to die!"

however.

Li Chengqian's smile widened as he gently shook his head.

"Tsk tsk tsk, I can't bear to kill Lord Xiao because of his abilities... Here's what I'll do, I'll set a plan for you."

"If my elder sister suffers even one instance of grievance from you in the future, one day of her monthly leave will be deducted..."

Xiao Rui's eyes widened in horror: "Your Highness, I... I only have three days off a month these days!"

He stared at the prince as if he were looking at a demon. Given the intensity of his work in the Department of Commerce, those three days off were not for rest, but for recuperating!

"That's none of my business. Anyway, if you make my royal sister suffer a single injustice, you'll lose a day. If she suffers three injustices... tsk tsk tsk, then Lord Xiao can peacefully dedicate his life to serving the Tang Dynasty."

Dedicate my life to serving the Tang Dynasty...

How could Your Highness, a man of such cruelty and horror, utter such a thing?!

Open all year round!

Overtime hours coincided with working hours!

Seeing his pale face and frightened appearance, Li Chengqian couldn't help but shake his head with a smile.

"Alright, I haven't finished speaking yet. This is under the condition that you treat my elder sister badly. If you take good care of my elder sister and you two will have a harmonious marriage in the future... I can give you a maximum of ten days of leave per month."

A holiday on January 10th?!

"Hiss!!! Your Highness, is this true?"

Xiao Rui's eyes widened. The feeling of going from hell to heaven in an instant made his head spin.

He used to be the eldest son of the Duke of Song's mansion. Before he held an official position, he spent his days doing nothing and hated nothing more than a leisurely life.

Now... January 10th holiday, doesn't that mean you work two days and then get one day off?

There are too many, too many, hahaha, I can't even imagine, I simply can't imagine...

"Your Highness, may I...may you draw up a written agreement?"