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

"In just a few short years, Youzhou has undergone such a dramatic change..."

In a grand procession bearing both Goguryeo and Tang Dynasty flags, the head of the Zhao County Li family looked out the car window at Youzhou City, a city that was now vastly different from the one he remembered.

This revealed the inner thoughts of the others in the carriage at that moment.

Lu Zhaojing frowned.

"Youzhou is no longer called Youzhou. It has been renamed Yanzhou by the Tang Dynasty... It is the fiefdom of the seventh prince, Prince Yan, Li Yun." He murmured, looking at the Tang people on the streets of Yanzhou, all of whom looked happy and peaceful.

He couldn't help but sigh.

The people of the Tang Dynasty today seem to be truly wealthy, and the Tang Dynasty is indeed rich beyond measure.

Such a scene was something they had never even imagined, let alone witnessed.

After all... once the common people are prosperous, won't it be time for the powerful clans to turn their swords against them?

Even when they were second only to the emperor and above all others, they didn't give ordinary people the chance to become rich. They suppressed these lowly people in their hearts to the fields that were both land and graves.

They squeezed every last drop of the people's wealth from their bodies.

Cui Minshi also looked grim.

The Tang Dynasty's strength and wealth deepened the popular support of Li Shimin and his son, which was not good news for their aristocratic families. In fact, the stronger the Tang Dynasty became, the more tragic their future deaths would be.

The carriage, which was traveling, stopped in front of a place that looked quite large, shortly after entering Yanzhou City, in front of a sign that read "Yanzhou Guesthouse".

Li Ji sent his eldest son, Li Zhen, to personally escort these guys.

The latter's attitude was certainly not much better.

He slapped the carriage where Lu Zhaojing and the other two were sitting, and then rudely scolded them.

"Get down, get down! We'll rest in Yanzhou for a day, and continue our journey tomorrow!"

Upon hearing this, Lu Zhaojing and the others obediently dismounted from the carriage and stepped back onto the land of the Tang Dynasty. They should have been Tang people themselves, but now their hearts were filled with humiliation and resentment.

They were once the heads of five prestigious families and seven powerful clans in the Tang Dynasty.

However, they are now servants and subjects of a small and insignificant country like Goguryeo.

Their status was even lower than that of ordinary people in the Tang Dynasty...

"General Li, may I take a stroll around Yanzhou City?"

Lu Zhaojing carefully bowed to Li Zhen, a junior whom she had never even looked at before, and asked him a question.

Upon hearing this, Li Zhen gave him a disdainful look from head to toe before letting out a cold laugh.

"What? You want to find out some news about my Great Tang for your master?" He crossed his arms, adopting a superior posture, a cold smile playing on his lips.

"What else is there to ask? What do you want to know? Come on, just ask this general!"

"Do you want to know that Pyongyang has more than three hundred cannons, or do you want to know that His Highness Prince Yang of Silla has already reinforced your master's troops to the south?"

"Would you like me to fetch the marching map for you? Ah? Lord Lu~"

The final "Lord Lu" was utterly contemptuous, yet it left Lu Zhaojing and the other two speechless with bitterness.

Seeing these three old guys stammering and still acting like old turtles in the face of his sarcasm, Li Zhen felt bored and gave a cold snort of disdain.

He left those words behind and immediately headed towards the guesthouse on his own.

"You may turn around as you please, but do not offend the people of my Great Tang, otherwise... this general cannot guarantee that the officials of Yanzhou will allow you foreign barbarians to leave this city!"

Lu Zhaojing, Cui Minshi, and Li Xing looked utterly aggrieved: "..."

"Foreign barbarian subjects, foreign barbarian subjects..." Lu Zhaojing murmured this inhumane phrase over and over, his voice trembling.

He was already extremely weak and sickly; at that moment, he swayed and almost fell to the ground.

Cui Minshi clenched his fists, waiting for even the grooms who had driven for them to walk into the guesthouse with disdain.

Only then did he beat his chest and stamp his feet in indignation and regret.

"Foreign barbarian subjects! What a foreign barbarian subjects... Ah!!! The century-old family tradition of my Qinghe Cui family has now come to an end in my hands, reduced to the fate of foreign barbarian subjects!"

He gritted his teeth, his eyes filled with anger and despair: "If I had known it would turn out like this, I would have rather been slaughtered along with the entire Cui family of Boling! It would have been better than suffering this humiliation!"

"You brat! You brat..."

The three men were filled with pent-up anger, while King Yeon Gaesomun of Goguryeo, who had just alighted from another carriage, was completely oblivious to their sense of shame.

In his view, compared to the Cui family of Boling, at least these three families are still alive, aren't they?

Although my status and position are not what they used to be, at least I survived.

Seeing that he looked like he was about to go over and offer some words of comfort, Lu Zhaojing patted her heaving chest and waved to him.

"Your Majesty need not concern yourself with me... You should go up and rest. If you have any ideas, you can ask Li Zhen about the news in Chang'an."

He waved his hand dismissively, towards this disciple who, deep down, never truly considered him a disciple.

It's obvious even to a child how petty and ridiculous their words of comfort would be. What kind of profound wisdom could someone from a small country possibly possess...?

At this moment, Lu Zhaojing and the others suddenly had a completely new understanding of the identity of "Tang people".

They were once the heads of five prominent families and seven prestigious clans, holding a position of great prestige that even the emperor had to show them deference.

At the time, they believed that the Tang Dynasty's current glory was ultimately due to the support of their five clans and seven noble families. Now...

When they fell from grace, they awkwardly discovered that the Tang Dynasty seemed to be doing better without them.

Walking on the streets of Yanzhou City, the three of them stopped and started.

After several years, this was the first time they had returned to the Tang Dynasty, and now they were even curious about the small shops run by ordinary people on the street that they had never even glanced at before.

"Hehe...this guy's busy..."

Cui Minshi's smile was somewhat unnatural, mainly because the "brother" he was referring to was a carpenter who was directing several apprentices in the shop as they made furniture.

The latter only realized that a guest had arrived when he heard his voice.

He immediately stepped forward to greet them.

"Gentlemen, are you looking to have furniture made? Please feel free to look around; everything displayed in the shop can be made. However, if you have other requirements... you may have to wait a while. Our shop has taken on several orders recently, and we may not have enough staff available."

"If you can wait, sir, we can give you a 10% discount..."

Lu Zhaojing stood at the back of the three people. Feeling a little tired, he sat on a recliner. The old carpenter's craftsmanship was truly excellent. The recliner swayed gently a few times, which made Lu Zhaojing feel a little drowsy.

Li Xing pointed to the group of boys who looked to be around thirteen or fourteen years old.

"These are all your apprentices? It seems you're quite capable, brother."

The carpenter laughed and pointed to the wall on one side of the shop, looking quite smug.

"Sir, this is our livelihood, how could we be weak? See this plaque given after passing the government's assessment: Fourth-Rank Wood Craftsman!"

Li Xing was taken aback. Fourth rank?

Are carpenters now ranked in the Tang Dynasty?

Perhaps sensing their confusion, and noting that their accents were clearly not from Yanzhou, the old man instructed his apprentice to prepare tea while simultaneously inviting Li Xing and the others to sit down.

"Are you gentlemen doing business in the south?" the old carpenter asked.

Li Xing nodded: "Hehe, yes, I'm involved in the grain business."

Upon hearing this, the old carpenter nodded slightly, but then sighed and spoke with a hint of pity.

"The grain trade, those gentlemen, I'm afraid business isn't going well. Nowadays, the price of grain is strictly controlled by the government. The government buys grain at high prices, and the people basically choose to sell to the government."

He gently shook his head, and then, amidst the three people's strange gazes, he actually encouraged them.

"Grain trading is impossible now, but there are plenty of other businesses that can be done. The Tang Dynasty is undergoing a major upheaval! Both His Highness the Crown Prince and His Majesty are truly capable and sage rulers!"

"Recently, the Yanzhou government has had quite a few construction projects. To be honest, the business I mentioned earlier is from the Yanzhou official school—tables, chairs, benches, and blackboards. Right now, every carpentry workshop in Yanzhou with a sixth-rank or higher carpentry qualification has taken on this order..."

The carpenter was a smooth talker. Although he could tell the three weren't there to place an order, he was happy to take a break. Seeing that they were from out of town, he launched into a long, enthusiastic description of how wonderful Yanzhou City was these days...

"His Highness the Crown Prince is a good elder brother, and all the princes are outstanding talents of the country. I am also from the previous dynasty, tsk tsk tsk... Tell me, if the son of Emperor Yang of Sui in the previous dynasty had half, no, even one-tenth, of the current Crown Prince's abilities!"

"The previous dynasty could have fallen? Goguryeo would have been conquered long ago! Perhaps, this old man's carpentry shop could have acquired a few Goguryeo slaves."

Upon hearing the term "Goguryeo official slave," Lu Zhaojing, who had been lying quietly on the recliner as if asleep, suddenly clenched her hands on the armrest.

A hint of embarrassment flashed in Cui Minshi's eyes as he stood to the side.

They hurriedly interrupted the old carpenter, who was about to bring up the topic of their defection from the Tang Dynasty.

"Ahem, brother, you just said that there are quite a few government projects in Yanzhou. Are you referring to the construction of houses and paving of roads in the city?"

"Haha, what you said is true, but it will be difficult for you to get involved now. Yanzhou City was already being eyed by real estate developers long ago when the Crown Prince ordered it to be changed from Youzhou to Yanzhou and made it the fiefdom of the Prince of Yan."

"If you go east of the city, you'll find the first official school of Yanzhou Prefecture, the Datang Railway University, and various government offices there. These were all built by Lu Wang Real Estate. We also had the opportunity to train apprentices and earn a living."

"If you gentlemen want to do this kind of business, I'm afraid Yanzhou Prefecture is out of the question. However, you could take on some bridge and road repair projects."

Lu Zhaojing opened her eyes, her brows furrowing slightly.

"Railway University? Is the railway the kind of road that the Tang Dynasty Daily talks about, the kind that runs on trains? I remember, aren't those things in Chang'an and Taiyuan?"

"Why is the Railway University located in Yanzhou Prefecture? Could it be His Highness the Prince of Yan's idea?"

The group all turned their gazes toward the old carpenter.

"Haha, you lot really should go and take a look at Chang'an and Taiyuan. When doing business, you have to travel all over the country, and information is very important. Sometimes one wrong step can lead to a series of mistakes! It is true that Yanzhou Prefecture has not yet built a railway, but the route has already been planned."

"This is common knowledge throughout Yanzhou Prefecture. The Prince of Yan has told the Prefect of Yanzhou and the Ministry of Works that the railway from Yanzhou Prefecture to Shizhou must be completed by the end of the sixth year of the Zhenguan era at the latest..."

From Yanzhou Prefecture to Shizhou...

The three men who came out of the carpenter's shop all had furrowed brows.

Lu Zhaojing took a deep breath and let out a long sigh of weariness.

"The railway from Taiyuan to Chang'an will eliminate any worries about logistics for the western expedition. Now, according to what the carpenter said, the railway from Taiyuan to Shizhou will probably be completed in the fifth year of Zhenguan this year. If this speed is maintained, a railway from west to east will be completed."

"The Tang Dynasty was practically an invisible Great Wall that appeared out of nowhere..."

"What is the point of us clinging to life now?"