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

"Steamed buns! Freshly baked, hot steamed buns!"

"Tofu pudding, a steaming bowl of tofu pudding please..."

"Goat milk, anyone want some fresh goat milk?"

Li Chengqian's carriage traveled along the main street of Taiyuan Prefecture. In just over a month, Taiyuan Prefecture had seen obvious and immediate results due to the implementation of the new policies.

First of all, there were noticeably more vendors and peddlers appearing on the streets much earlier.

Due to the issuance of the forced land allocation and acquisition orders, crops such as sorghum and soybeans, which were already in harvest season, were forcibly distributed to the people along with the land, much to the bewilderment of Li Chengqian's officials in the Eastern Palace.

Not only did they not collect any taxes in the process, but they also immediately ordered that all the silver profits from the sale of salt during this period be used for the first major business transaction since the establishment of the Bingzhou National Grain Reserve Bureau.

They purchased grain from the people at a price of 8 coins per dou (a unit of dry measure).

This has attracted many grain merchants who want to take advantage of the gap to buy grain from ordinary people at low prices and make a quick fortune.

They could only beat their chests in frustration and sigh in despair.

Li Chengqian sat in the carriage, not making a big fuss by having his left and right guards accompany him. At this moment, apart from the Embroidered Uniform Guards and the soldiers of the Six Guards of the Eastern Palace hidden among the people along the way, he was accompanied by them.

The carriage contained only him, Qian Yingying, and his two younger brothers, Li Tai and Li Ke.

“Brother, how can you still laugh? The people’s pockets are getting fuller and they can go out and do some small business. We made so much money in the salt business, but now it’s all gone.”

Li Tai sighed with a hint of resentment.

Li Ke, standing to the side, felt a sense of relief as he looked at the simple, honest smiles on the faces of the people outside the carriage.

But upon hearing Li Tai's words, he felt that his elder brother was too kind.

Distributing land to these people is already an immense blessing for them.

They even allocated the grain from the land, and ensured that grain prices in Bingzhou remained very stable.

The New Policy Reform Department alone spent at least 20 guan in just one month.

This still includes a portion of the income obtained from confiscating the assets of corrupt officials.

Li Chengqian smelled the air, which had a somewhat lacking aroma compared to the morning market in his previous life.

Limited by the availability of various spices, it would be a long and arduous task for the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty to ensure that the people could truly eat well and be well-fed, just like in later generations.

However, even so, with his cheat-like abilities, it's not impossible for him to achieve this now.

"Hehe, Qingque, you must understand that the Eastern Palace is not short of money. Xiao Rui's various businesses are about to experience a surge in revenue. However, I am the Crown Prince, not a businessman."

"Even if the Crown Prince were given a mountain of gold, in my eyes, it would not be as good as the people's prosperous life."

Li Chengqian pointed out the window to some villagers from the surrounding area who were bringing their children into the city to buy things or sell wild vegetables and game.

"Third brother, fourth brother, look at these people of our Great Tang. Although their lives are still hard, at least... in this family, they can finally buy their child a new set of clothes."

"This is what I have been trying to see all these days, working from dawn till dusk to handle government affairs, and even at the cost of killing off countless officials in Bingzhou!"

Li Chengqian wore a smile, sunlight streaming through the lifted curtains and falling on his face.

At this moment, he felt an indescribable sense of tranquility and peace.

It was as if, at this moment, he was surrounded by the crowd of people, yet he felt a greater sense of security than when he was protected by the Six Guards of the Eastern Palace.

Li Chengqian took a deep breath and murmured softly.

"Take it one step at a time. As long as enough people are killed, the new policies can always be implemented. It's just a matter of losing face, but I can bear that!"

"The steel mill will soon be able to start large-scale production, and iron farm tools can be produced quickly."

"And what about the Turks... Our Great Tang still needs more livestock, cattle, sheep, horses..."

Looking at his own elder brother, whose face was beaming with a bright smile just a moment ago because the lives of the people had improved, he could see the light at the end of the tunnel.

The next moment, however, the atmosphere turned tense due to an even greater objective.

Li Tai and Li Ke exchanged a glance, neither daring to speak.

At this moment, they suddenly realized that compared to their elder brother, their father, the emperor, seemed somewhat inferior in diligence in governing and caring for the people, as well as in the decisiveness and ruthlessness in implementing policies...

The carriage wheels chugged along.

Just as they reached a crossroads in the west of Taiyuan City.

A burst of noise brought Li Chengqian back to his senses, who was deep in thought, his brow furrowed as he studied the geomantic map of Bingzhou.

Lift the car curtain.

What you see now, surrounded by a large number of people, is an execution ground.

Wang Ming, the son of the governor of Bingzhou, was appointed by the crown prince himself as the military commander of Bingzhou, Wang Qingyun.

At this moment, with a solemn expression, he was reading out the charges against the nearly one hundred people present.

"Cao Siming, the county magistrate of Jinyang County, concealed land, resisted the new policies, disregarded human life, and practiced nepotism in the military sergeant position in Jinyang County. On the day of his trial, he attempted to sell stolen goods to evade punishment!"

"With His Highness the Crown Prince's approval, the execution is decided: Cao Siming's entire family will be exterminated!"

As soon as these words came out.

The surrounding people cheered and shouted their approval.

Cao Siming, who was bound all over and whose body had clearly been tortured, roared angrily to the sky.

"Li Chengqian!!!"

"You'll die a horrible death!!!"

The loud noise caused Li Tai and Li Ke, who were in the carriage, to instantly turn cold.

But Li Chengqian gently raised his hand to stop him.

"Let him curse me a couple of times after his entire family is executed. Aren't there quite a few people like Cao Siming these days who wish me a terrible death?"

Li Chengqian looked disdainful.

However, Wang Qingyun, who was standing on the execution ground at this moment and in charge of supervising the execution, suddenly changed his expression.

His gaze was somewhat tense, and he instinctively looked around.

suddenly.

Upon seeing the crowd, a half-face of a man was revealed from inside a carriage, along with the murderous gazes of Prince Li Tai of Yue and Prince Li Ke of Hanzhong.

Wang Qingyun felt a sudden numbness in his back.

With a resounding slap, he delivered a powerful blow to the other man's face.

A bloody tooth flew out of Cao Siming's mouth.

however.

The latter, however, stared at Wang Qingyun with fierce eyes, his gaze filled with malice.

His smile was like that of a demon.

"Hahaha, kid, you've become the governor of a prefecture at such a young age, bringing honor to your ancestors, haven't you?"

"Don't be so smug. When we are all dead, just wait and see if the Li Tang father and son will spare your Taiyuan Wang family!"

"Do you think that just because your hands are stained with the blood of our noble families, your Taiyuan Wang clan can continue to exist?"

"You're dreaming! Hahahaha!"

Wang Qingyun took a deep breath and threw the token of the "Slaying Technique" in his hand to the ground with a snap.

He coldly squeezed out a single word from between his teeth.

"cut!"

One by one, the heads of the old, young, women and children of the Cao family in Jinyang rolled onto the execution ground as the executioner swung his sword.

The pungent smell of blood sent chills down Wang Qingyun's spine.

however.

Even so, after completing the beheading on the spot, he handed over the work to his subordinates while taking advantage of everyone's inattention to quickly walk to Li Chengqian's carriage.

"Your humble servant Wang Qingyun greets Your Highness the Crown Prince!"

“The traitor Cao Siming has no respect for the emperor and his father, and dared to insult Your Highness. As the executioner, I have failed in my duty of oversight, and I humbly beg Your Highness to punish me!”

Wang Qingyun's forehead was covered in sweat from nervousness.

Li Chengqian looked at him calmly, his brows slightly furrowed.

"Am I that frightening to you?"

Wang Qingyun bowed his head: "Your subject dares not! Your subject is in awe of Your Highness's divine might!"

Li Chengqian pursed his lips, not bothering with any further provocations, and asked the question that had been on his mind all this time.

"Does your Wang family of Taiyuan possess a piece of land within Taiyuan Prefecture large enough to accommodate the Yangcheng Palace? I have a use for it..."

Hear the words.

Li Qingyun suddenly looked up, thought for a moment, and didn't ask Li Chengqian what he intended to do with it.

He replied hastily.

"Your Highness, there is a hundred acres of idle land on the south side of the city. It was originally used as some family workshops, but they were not managed well... If Your Highness needs it, you may return to Yangcheng Palace and wait. I will go back and retrieve the land deeds to present to Your Highness!"

Li Chengqian made a quick estimate.

One hundred qing in the Tang Dynasty would be roughly 666 hectares in later times.

hiss!

Li Chengqian was very satisfied; he would use this area as the site for his ideal Imperial University.

It couldn't be more perfect!

Thinking of this, Li Chengqian waved his hand dismissively.

"You and your son need to come to Yangcheng Palace tonight..."

Watching Li Chengqian's carriage slowly depart.

Wang Qingyun didn't dare to hesitate for a moment and hurriedly headed towards his father's residence as the governor of Bingzhou.

Li Chengqian had just returned to Yangcheng Palace in his carriage.

Before even entering the palace, one could see hundreds of people gathered at the palace gate, under the watchful eyes of the soldiers of the Eastern Palace.

"This humble commoner, Lu Kexin, greets Your Highness! We, along with our classmates from the academy, hope to find a position with Your Highness..."

That's how hastily they made their entrance.

Looking at the group in front of them, Li Tai and his companion observed that they were dressed like either old farmers from the countryside or carpenters from a workshop. However, the only exception was Lu Kexin, who, along with several middle-aged men in long robes beside him, seemed to be a group of scholars.

Just when he thought his elder brother wouldn't pay much attention to it.

But then I heard...

"Alright, you will come with me to the palace. You can tell me what skills you all have."

Li Tai, Li Ke: "???"

In the past, there were always poor families who came to serve the emperor, but they were usually sent away by their elder brothers to Confucius and his followers.

Now that these people have arrived, why is Your Majesty taking them so seriously?

Since the emperor's elder brother brought these people of unknown origin back to Yangcheng Palace.

He kept these people there, excitedly chatting away in the Shougong Hall.

When Li Tai and Li Ke entered, they found these people gathered around a map of Bingzhou Road with their elder brother, gesturing and pointing at it.

He would point to the Fen River, Qin River, Sushui River, Sanchuan River, Xinshui River, and other inland rivers within Bingzhou, saying that they could be used as inland waterways, allowing for both water and land transport and facilitating the flow of goods throughout the world.

He then pointed to some counties in Bingzhou with abundant fertile land, his expression grave, and said, "Your Highness should hurry up and start planting."

A moment later, someone pointed to some prefectures and counties where there was mostly dry land.

To suggest, "Your Highness, why not build a reservoir?"

Li Tai walked out of the Shougong Hall somewhat absentmindedly, looking at his elder brother, who was discussing matters with these people and had even neglected his two younger brothers for the first time.

For a moment, the feeling of loss was hard to hide.

"Third Brother, how come these obviously very capable people suddenly appeared?"

"Why have I never heard of this before?"

Li Ke shook his head blankly.

"Perhaps... it's because my elder brother is a chosen one, that he has emerged from his secluded mountain retreat?"

Behind him, from inside the main hall, the emperor's hearty laughter suddenly rang out.

"Very well! With you all here, I am like a tiger with wings! Starting tomorrow, I will officially appoint you to positions in the Department of New Policy Reform!"

......

On the vast grassland.

On the dark Turkic steppe, caravans of cattle, sheep, and horses, escorted by groups of Turkic cavalry on horseback, were making a tense journey southward.

On these carriages, Turkic people of all ages, including women and children, were struggling to squeeze in.

"Faster, even faster, Erlun, tell the people behind us to go faster! The disguise we left behind won't fool those guys from the Shiwei tribe!"

A burly Turkic man, who appeared to be the leader of a tribe, looked tense and kept urging the group to speed up.

however.

At the most tense and critical moment for everyone in the team.

A series of chaotic shouts, accompanied by the thunderous sound of galloping hooves, instantly caused everyone, including the chieftain, to change their expressions in shock.

"Chieftain, this is terrible! It's that traitor Hala! He really isn't dead! Our plan has been exposed!"

Everyone was in a panic.

The leading Turkic leader had no choice but to grit his teeth and immediately give the order.

"All men, follow me to battle! The rest of you, drive the carts and herd the cattle and sheep towards the Tang people! Hurry!"

A cavalry force of over three hundred men pursued them from behind.

This number of cavalry might not be much against the well-equipped Tang army, but against this Turkic tribe, it was already a catastrophe.

"Peng Chi, you bastard, you really did betray the grasslands and surrender to those Tang people! Kill! Kill all these traitors!"

Tribal leader Peng Chi gritted his teeth and drew his bow and arrow.

"Kill! Stop them so our families can live!"

Just as the two sides were about to engage in a bloody battle.

Amidst another series of ground tremors, a cavalry unit, bathed in moonlight and exuding a chilling, murderous aura, suddenly charged out from behind a grassy slope, fully armed.

The fluttering banner bearing the character "Tang" startled even the Turkic cavalrymen who didn't recognize any Tang characters.

Their ready-to-charge and fight stance suddenly froze.

They all pulled on the reins.

Cheng Chumo was clad in heavy armor, holding a gleaming lance. His imposing figure was complemented by eight hundred elite cavalrymen behind him, who were practically armed to the teeth.

The moment it appeared, the tense atmosphere between the two sides cooled down.

"Who is Peng Chi!?"

A harsh rebuke came from Cheng Chumo's mouth, and Peng Chi, who heard his name called, hurriedly dismounted.

He then patted his chest and bowed respectfully to Cheng Chumo.

"General, I am Peng Chi..."

"Good! Take your people and head south to Yanmen Pass! There, someone will arrange for you to become citizens of our Great Tang!"

Cheng Chumo looked arrogant.

He had been cooped up in Taiyuan for a month and was already feeling restless.

After following Hou Junji to the northern border of Bingzhou and learning of the Crown Prince's orders and arrangements, he immediately accepted the post of "Turkic Pacification Envoy".

"Tang people! They are our Turks, what are you trying to do?"

The newcomer was both surprised and furious, but Cheng Chumo just smiled dismissively.

"Now, I'll tell you, they are now citizens of my Great Tang! And you, hunting down my citizens, are you trying to start a war between our nations?!"

As he spoke, he brandished his lance, and his warhorse, equipped with horseshoes and armored harness, trotted forward a few steps.

The cavalry behind them also stepped forward a few paces.

Instantly, these people were so frightened that they retreated one after another.

"Hahahaha!"

Cheng Chumo's loud laughter caused the Turkic cavalry opposite him to turn pale. However, the situation was now beyond their control, and they could only curse the Tang people for taking advantage of their misfortune.

We need to turn our horses around and leave this place.

"and many more!"

The Turkic cavalry leader's expression changed: "Tang people! Although you outnumber us, you can't stop us!"

Cheng Chumo smiled dismissively.

"His Highness the Crown Prince of the Great Tang Dynasty has heard that he was ambushed by Jieli and suffered heavy losses. That Jieli is also His Highness's enemy!"

"Go back and tell your Khan Tuli that if he is interested in purchasing a batch of weapons, he can send someone to Yanmen Pass of our Great Tang Dynasty to discuss the matter!"

"Armor, weapons, refined salt, or any other things you need, we can discuss that..."