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

"Kindeokman, you don't need to show off these little tricks in front of me. I admit you have some looks, but it's unrealistic to think that you can make me forget my identity with just a few words."

Li Chengqian was only taken aback.

His face immediately showed disdain.

however.

Kim Deok-man, who always understood her identity and situation, was not angry at all; in fact, her expression became even more tender.

"Why does Your Highness harbor such hostility towards me? You have already accepted the Tibetan chieftain, and I am, after all, the Queen of Silla, with a fairly good reputation there. I can do far more for Your Highness than that Tibetan chieftain..."

Kim Deok-man said affectionately, "From now on, the military power of Silla will be completely controlled by the Tang Dynasty. I have no objection to this. All I want is for my Kim family to maintain its royal status for a long time."

"Your Highness the Crown Prince harbors great ambitions, and the Tang Dynasty possesses the power to conquer the world, yet it will only last a few decades. How could our small nations possibly survive? It is precisely because I understand this that I have remained in the Tang Dynasty..."

Li Chengqian's eye twitched.

Prince Li Ke of Han, who was standing to the side, understood the meaning behind Jin Deman's words.

Let the Kim family continue as royalty, as a mascot.

But Jin Deman's goal was to become her own brother's woman, which meant... borrowing sperm?

"Cough cough......"

Li Ke coughed twice, his expression strained.

Noticing his elder brother's flushed face and glaring gaze, he quickly straightened his expression.

He then shouted at Kim Deok-man inside the hall.

"Kin Deok-man! You're absurd! Let alone whether your Silla still has a need to preserve its royal family, how could the heirs of my Great Tang Crown Prince possibly follow your Jin surname? You..."

Jin Deman bowed slightly: "I did not say that the future King of Silla should change his surname to Jin. In the future, the Great Tang will surely become a divine kingdom on land. How can we abandon the royal family's surname and adopt the minor surname of Silla, Jin?"

"I only hope that the Silla royal family can continue to exist in the future."

Li Ke opened his mouth, but before he could finish speaking, he suddenly stopped.

After hesitating for a long time, she whispered to her elder brother beside her, in a voice that only the two of them could hear.

“Your Majesty, Your Majesty, if that’s the case, it doesn’t seem so bad… At most, she’s just securing a title of King of Silla for her own future and for your child.”

"Shut up, you!"

Li Chengqian glared at him and gave a cold snort.

He realized that he had truly become the Tang Monk of this world.

Especially in the eyes of foreign women, they don't care about titles or status; they are all eager to have a child with him.

Oh shit......

He took a deep breath and snorted coldly.

"You just said that Silla could solve the food problem for the Tang Dynasty? What do you mean by that?"

Jin Deman smiled and said, "Although much of Silla's land is barren, there are some good grain-producing areas. Moreover, with the encouragement of the Tang Dynasty and His Highness Prince Liang, the people's lives are much better than they were back then."

"It's the best time for all industries, including fishing, aquaculture, and agriculture."

"If Your Highness the Crown Prince can allow Silla to cultivate the Heavenly Treasure Gold Seed of the Great Tang, I can guarantee that, apart from the basic food needs of Silla, all other grains can be sold to the Great Tang at a low price."

She bowed again, showing utmost deference.

Li Chengqian and Li Ke, who was standing next to him, exchanged a glance.

Isn't this just turning the entire Silla into tenant farmers of the Tang Dynasty?

For a moment, Li Chengqian couldn't help but ponder.

The military power of Silla was completely controlled by the Tang Dynasty, and if the Kim clan harbored ill intentions towards the Tang Dynasty, the King of Liang could replace them on the spot, or even take their place.

If Queen Kim Deok-man, who had done a fairly good job, were to step forward and encourage the people of Silla to cultivate the land and grow grain for the Tang Dynasty, that would be a better option.

As long as they completely control Silla and keep it within the constraints of an agricultural country.

Everything seemed to be alright.

Could this be considered a form of colonization?

"Brother, I think this price is quite good. The key is, that Jin Deman is quite beautiful too..."

Dinner time.

The entire Li Tang royal family gathered for a meal.

After listening to Li Chengqian recount the events of the day, Li You immediately expressed his own opinion.

"Anyway, Your Majesty, your future children will all be granted the title of king. Isn't Silla a ready-made fiefdom? It saves us trouble. As long as we maintain this for two or three generations, and Sinicization is completely completed, the so-called Silla will just be a piece of our Great Tang territory."

"Do you think so?"

All the younger siblings nodded in agreement.

Li Chengqian's lips twitched as he watched.

So it turns out you're not the ones selling yourselves, but you're all having a great time!

Seeing Li Chengqian's displeased expression, Prince Li Zhen of Yue whispered words of advice.

“Your Majesty, I also think there’s nothing wrong with this. Don’t you always say that everything is for the sake of the Tang Dynasty? Father previously agreed to the marriage alliance with Langqiong Zhao of Nanzhao and sent the chieftain’s daughter to you.”

"Haven't you heard how cooperative Lang Qiongzhao has been with our Great Tang..."

The commotion caused by Li Chengqian's siblings was being observed by Li Shimin and his group at a nearby table, whose faces were filled with schadenfreude.

He was well aware of his son's pride.

It's nothing more than pride getting in the way; they feel that relying on the benefits of marriage for political gain is undignified.

Noticing the somewhat worried look on Empress Zhangsun's face, Li Shimin smiled and reached out to pat her small hand.

"Don't worry, he will understand. As the crown prince and the future ruler of the Tang Dynasty, there are some things that even emperors are helpless to do, and he must face them on his own."

"Whether it is Silla, Tibet, or Lin-yi, if they cannot be annexed for the time being, compromise and concessions are inevitable in order to seek the greatest immediate benefit."

And just as Li Shimin said.

After several days of deliberation and gathering a large amount of information about the Silla royal family, Li Chengqian finally had no choice but to reluctantly accept it.

Chang'an Daily: The Crown Prince of Tang bestows the title of Fourth-Rank Consort upon Queen Kim Deok-man of Silla!

A piece of news added even more to the already busy work of the officials of the Ministry of Rites and the Court of State Ceremonial.

The Silla delegation, upon receiving the news of the bestowal of titles, was filled with excitement.

Kim Seung-man held her older sister's hand tightly, her eyes glistening with complex emotions.

"Sister, it's finally done! The Crown Prince of Tang has finally accepted you..."

Jin Deman nodded slightly, and the pressure in her heart was relieved a lot. She looked at the things that the Ministry of Rites officials had sent in advance, things that might be used on the wedding day.

He murmured to himself, "Now, this is all I can do for Silla..."

She's sensible.

She knew that the Crown Prince had no real feelings for her and that his acceptance of her was solely driven by self-interest.

Just a few days after the imperial edict bestowing the title of Liangyuan upon her was delivered, an agreement, drafted and discussed, and even with the help of Li Yin, the Prince of Liang of the Tang Dynasty, and Jin Shengman, was drafted, was sent to the Xiande Hall of the Eastern Palace of the Imperial Palace, before Li Chengqian.

The Agricultural Support Trade Agreement between Silla and Tang Dynasty.

In the Eastern Palace, Li Chengqian casually flipped through the drafted document, then glanced at Prince Liang, Li Yin, who was now standing in the Eastern Palace with a smirk.

"Ha, Sixth Prince, you've really got your eye on me, the Crown Prince. Very well..."

"So, all that trouble that Kindeman is doing, isn't it you who's behind it all, kid!"

Li Yin rubbed his hands together, looking embarrassed and obsequious.

“Your Majesty, I have had people investigate Kim Deok-man. She is a smart woman who knows her place. All she wants is the position of Silla’s mascot. Just give it to her.”

"What we gain is a real national benefit for Silla!"

Li Chengqian snorted coldly. Although that's what he said, he was still extremely unhappy that someone who was used to being a bandit and a rogue had suddenly become a gigolo.

but.

After the Silla incident, Li Chengqian had some new ideas about the grain trade of the Tang Dynasty.

"What? Growing grain in the Harsha Empire?"

Samaga looked at the prince who had suddenly summoned her today, her mind a little confused.

They are now locked in a fierce battle with the Harsha dynasty, capturing Harsha people everywhere to serve as slaves and sell them to the Tang Dynasty.

Turning around, this Tang Dynasty crown prince actually set his sights on the lands of the Harsha Dynasty again?

"This is a matter of great importance, and I did not expect you to be able to give me an answer. I am telling you this only so that you and your brother can communicate in advance. When I get married, the new King Harsha, Arunasva, will also send his ministers. At that time, I will make things clear."

Samaga asked with a worried expression, "Your Highness, what will happen to Harsha's business in the future...?"

"The slave trade will continue as usual, without any impact whatsoever!" Li Chengqian declared firmly.

He knew perfectly well what the other person was worried about.

Tell me, which monarch in the world could tolerate his people being plundered and enslaved while his own land becomes someone else's farmland, and simply stand by and do nothing?

Anyone in that situation would surely fight to the death, right?

However, in reality, after witnessing the bizarre ideas of those Harsha Dynasty envoys a few months ago, Li Chengqian was unsure about what he was going to do next.

They were already completely confident.

As time went by, Princess Salmana of Sassanid Persia appeared before Li Chengqian more and more frequently.

She would sometimes come forward to perform a dance for Li Chengqian.

Sometimes he would say that he had made some local delicacies and invited him to try them.

Li Chengqian understood her intention.

He has yet to bestow any title upon him, and recently, the Arabs, the sworn enemies of the Sassanid Persians, have surprisingly sent an additional delegation.

"Your Highness, Crown Prince of the Great Tang Dynasty, your country is more wondrous than any of us can imagine. The Great Tang is so prosperous and powerful, all because of a wise ruler like you who is blessed by God."

"Sasanian Persia is a backward and barbaric country composed of a group of ignorant people. This barbarity flows in their blood. Please understand that Sasanian Persia is absolutely not an ally that can be relied upon."

"Our great prophet has always held the great Tang Dynasty in high esteem. We can join forces to divide Sassanid Persia, and in the future, Tang caravans passing through the peninsula will be blessed by God..."

The sight of the bearded man with a turban before him surprised even Li Chengqian.

It's not for any other reason than... the other party can actually speak Tang language!

There was no need for the Ministry of Rites' translation officials to intervene.

Although many of the words were somewhat difficult to pronounce, Li Chengqian was still able to understand them clearly.

He smiled faintly.

Allah? Prophet?

Today, Muhammad, the founder of Islam, has only established Islam a few years ago, although his forces are sweeping across the peninsula and expanding rapidly.

But that only applied to some low-level, slave-owning, and tribal forces.

"Hehe, it sounds like the envoy is very confident that I will abandon Sassanid Persia and join forces with you..." Li Chengqian chuckled, but his eyes were quite amused.

Upon hearing this, the Islamic messenger named Jafar smiled confidently.

He bowed to Li Chengqian.

“Your Highness, the Crown Prince of the Great Tang Dynasty, you are one of the few people in this world who truly possesses great wisdom. What I just said has been very clear. In the words of the Great Tang Dynasty... those fellows like Yazdegerd II of Sasanian Persia are nothing but useless mud that can't be helped to a wall.”

"Supporting them will only result in losses for the Tang Dynasty..."

Li Chengqian nodded slightly, seemingly persuaded by the other party.

however.

Just as Jafar and the group of Arab envoys were about to show signs of victory.

Li Chengqian suddenly let out a sneer.

"I can see that you are indeed very confident, but there is one thing I don't understand..."

Li Chengqian gave a half-smile.

"Muhammad led you to several victories in Mecca against those ignorant and weak nobles. Do you think you are now the masters of that peninsula?"

"If I'm not mistaken, at most two years ago, you Muslims were being beaten like rats in a ditch by those nobles, running around everywhere, right?"

"What gives you the confidence to talk about joining forces with a dragon, like a hyena that has just eaten some meat? How ridiculous!"

Jafar: "!!!"