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

Guannei Road, Qizhou.

Since gold mines were discovered in the northern foothills of the Qinling Mountains in Baoji County, Qizhou has received more financial budget allocations from the imperial court. Consequently, the development of Qizhou and its surrounding counties has been significantly faster than that of other places in recent years.

The Jia family was a wealthy family in a village at the foot of the Qinling Mountains. Thanks to the skill of panning for gold and finding gold mines passed down from their deceased father, the Jia family's life got better day by day.

After all, the imperial court takes the lion's share of gold mining, leaving a portion to support local communities. People like them can earn a living through their skills.

However, these good days came to an abrupt end a few months ago.

It is said that a member of the royal family came and established a merchant guild here, specializing in buying up loose gold and recruiting craftsmen like Jia Xu. However, the prices they offered were not only low, but also full of traps.

Jia Xu rejected him.

Soon after, trouble began to ensue in their home every few days. They were either questioned by government officials or warned by people from the gold mine who suspected them of taking large slabs of gold ore.

This caused Jia Xu's entire family endless troubles, and their livelihood was greatly affected.

"Master, why don't we just let it go? Those people claim to be under the command of King Zhou; we common folk can't fight them..."

Jia Xu's wife looked gloomy and distressed, but Jia Xu, who had once been a soldier in the government army and had participated in several bandit suppression battles, glared fiercely.

He immediately launched into a tirade of curses in the Qinqiang opera.

"I risked my life for the Tang Dynasty, and today I'm earning my living through my own abilities. What kind of King Zhou is he? What kind of king is he!"

"Besides His Majesty's sons, who else is worthy of being king?! You just wait and see, if those cowards dare to cause trouble again, I'll risk my old life to run to Chang'an and sue those damn bastards!"

"If the imperial court can't handle it, I refuse to believe the Crown Prince won't either!"

At the foot of the Qinling Mountains in early winter, Jia Xu's village has already started heating their kang (heated brick beds). A cold wind is blowing outside, but it is warm and cozy inside.

However, Jia Xu's wife was quite frightened by her husband's tough personality and his unabashed shouting of such a potentially fatal threat.

He waved his hands frantically, trying to get the other person to lower their voice.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the gate to the outer courtyard.

"Jia Xu! Jia Xu, are you home?"

The familiar voice made Jia Xu's eyes widen instantly. He slammed the wine cup in his hand on the table, gritted his teeth, put on a coat, pulled out a long knife from somewhere, and walked outside.

He was still cursing under his breath.

"These damn cowards, they really came looking for trouble! If I don't teach them a lesson today, I'll write Jia Xu's name backwards!"

The woman was so frightened that she tried to stop him, but Jia Xu was a rough man who did manual labor all year round, either going up the mountain to look for minerals and refine gold or hunting and chopping wood. She couldn't possibly stop him.

"boom!"

The head constable outside only heard the door in front of him slam shut with a loud bang.

Immediately afterwards, the door was kicked open from the inside, and the wind that swept out carried sand and dust from the door, which stung the head constable's face. In a daze, he saw Jia Xu standing in front of the door with bloodshot eyes and a knife in hand, and he was instantly jolted awake.

He yelled and instinctively backed away.

"You sons of bitches! Don't you two get out of here! Do you really think your teeth are as easy to squeeze as soft persimmons?!"

The enraged Jia Xu, with his knife drawn and a fierce aura that clearly indicated he had fought on the battlefield, startled the yamen runners who were knocking on the door.

Then, Zhou Wang Li Yuanfang, who was sitting in the carriage, was so frightened that his expression changed instantly.

Seeing that this hot-tempered, seemingly single-minded fellow was actually about to draw his knife, he quickly stuck his head out of the carriage and shouted.

"Stop! Brave warrior, stop! Don't be impulsive!"

His shout finally stopped Jia Xu, who was about to actually raise his sword to strike, from his feet. He looked over and noticed that there were still several luxurious carriages at the door.

His expression changed, and he pulled his wife, who had originally wanted to stop him, behind him.

Their gazes unconsciously began to search for a way to escape.

This was his instinctive reaction.

Li Yuanfang hurriedly stepped down from the carriage and, protected by several guards, walked up to Jia Xu. Dressed in a prince's robe, he bowed apologetically to Jia Xu.

"This brave warrior was offended by one of my men. I meant no harm. I have come to apologize to him. The previous incident was due to my lax management of my subordinates..."

Li Yuanfang hurriedly apologized, while Jinyiwei guards were watching them from a short distance away.

If Jia Xu had actually made a move and caused bloodshed, the other party would definitely have to pay the price. But similarly, Li Yuanfang would probably have no further connection with the great wealth to come.

Therefore, it can be said that his attitude was quite appropriate.

As he spoke, he personally took a tray from the hands of the attendant beside him.

"I had only intended for him to come to Baoji County to establish a business buying and selling loose gold for the crafting of goldware in gold shops in Chang'an. Who would have thought that these fellows would deceive me and the local county officials, using their power to wreak havoc on the local area..."

Li Yuanfang vehemently denounced his subordinates' shameless behavior as if it were the truth, leaving Jia Xu speechless for a moment.

He stared blankly at the other person, then at the Baoji County Magistrate, who was sweating profusely and clearly startled by this scoundrel.

The latter noticed Jia Xu's gaze and quickly nodded.

"This is the ninth prince, the ninth uncle of His Majesty the current emperor and the Crown Prince, Prince Zhou! Jia Xu, why don't you put away your sword at once?! Prince Zhou has come personally to apologize to you!"

Jia Xu then snapped out of his daze, and a hint of embarrassment and awkwardness appeared on his somewhat rough face, as he hurriedly threw the knife in his hand far away.

Then he cupped his hands and bowed to King Zhou.

King Zhou helped him up, looking apologetic, and sighed, "Don't be nervous, I don't blame you. This matter is due to my lax management of my subordinates. I've heard that you were once a brave man who risked your life for our Great Tang Dynasty. It is my fault that you have been implicated. Please accept these things, brave man..."

On the tray were not only stacks of Tang and Yuan dynasty banknotes, but also some things that looked like house deeds.

Jia Xu glanced at it and saw that the top one was a house deed for a courtyard in Baoji County. Then he looked at the stacks of Tang Yuan paper money, which amounted to nearly 50,000 Tang Yuan, which was equivalent to 5,000 strings of cash in the old system.

But that's a considerable amount of money to pay as compensation.

Moreover, with the dignified Prince Zhou, a son of the retired emperor, personally coming to apologize, how could Jia Xu dare to refuse?

Situations like that of Prince Zhou, Li Yuanfang, were occurring throughout the Tang Dynasty.

The imperial court was also discussing the matter of bestowing titles upon princes. News of this came back from all over the country, and everyone was well aware of it.

This clearly shows that His Highness the Crown Prince had warned those members of the royal family beforehand. Otherwise, given their character, it would be good enough if they could compensate the people, let alone come to their door in person.

In the cabinet, Fang Xuanling sighed, his expression somewhat anxious.

"If we agree now, who knows what kind of name we will leave behind a hundred or a thousand years from now... I only hope that the Tang Dynasty will still be able to control these vassal kings in the future..."

December of the eighth year of the Zhenguan era.

Chang'an welcomed a light snowfall, and the white snow covered the city, marking the passing of another year.

Another matter spread from Chang'an.

His Majesty's decree, the Crown Prince's instruction.

The Ministry of Rites was ordered to cast the "Buwu King Ding" (a bronze vessel). From this day forward, members of the imperial family are permitted to travel abroad and claim fiefdoms. Whoever conquers foreign lands will be granted the "King Ding" and their fiefdom will be granted a long lifespan...

The noble clans and noble families in Chang'an, Taiyuan, and Luoyang were in an uproar. At this moment, the Tang Dynasty, which was preparing for the western expedition, seemed to be bursting with a powerful desire for expansion from within.

.......

The "Tang Annals: Zhenguan Political History" records: In the winter of the eighth year, the emperor issued an edict: "Imperial family members who have reached the age of learning are permitted to register at the Court of Imperial Clan Affairs, and their bloodline must remain in Chang'an. They shall prepare their own resources, recruit elite soldiers, build warships, and sail the seas to explore remote regions. If any of them pacify the barbarians and display their power overseas, they shall be granted the Wu King's Tripod and granted new land to establish a new state."

The imperial edict was issued, and the process of three departments refuting and deliberating on the matter was completed.

The court and the public were in uproar, some worried about the legacy of feudalism, like the story of the Seven Kingdoms.

Some praised the sage for establishing this system, saying: "The current emperor and the crown prince possess the capacity to encompass the entire world. Once this system is established, wherever the banners of China point, the sun and moon will all become subjects of the Tang dynasty!"