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

Before becoming a true empire on which the sun never sets, the British Empire was completely suppressed by Spain in the field of navigation. As a result, maritime trade not only did not bring much profit, but also almost dragged down the British Empire's finances.

However, with the introduction of a system called "letters of marque" by Britain at that time, Britain rose from a peripheral island nation to a maritime empire.

This system greatly stimulated the rise of British private capital going overseas at that time.

This also led to an immediate and significant increase in Britain's influence at sea.

Currently, in the entire world, only the Tang Dynasty possesses the capability for long-distance ocean voyages, along with a few scattered Arab merchants who have spent huge sums of money to purchase ships from the Tang Dynasty, and the royal fleet of the Kingdom of Chalukya in India.

However, even these forces needed to spend a lot of money to hire Tang Dynasty people as captains.

On this vast ocean, the Tang Dynasty's powerful ships and cannons had no rivals.

Therefore, Li Chengqian would naturally not issue a system such as a "license of privateering." However, he believed that making some major adjustments to such a system would have positive benefits.

Recently, many members of the Tang Dynasty's royal family have been selling off their assets, including some stocks, in exchange for large amounts of cash.

As for the purpose, the whole of Chang'an, and even the entire Tang Dynasty, now understands it.

Chang'an, Kangpingfang, a paradise on earth.

Li Yuanli, the tenth son of Li Yuan and Consort Guo, was raising a wine cup and speaking loudly through a metal megaphone to the invited representatives of wealthy merchants and noble families of the Tang Dynasty, who were present at the event. He was outlining his upcoming plans.

In layman's terms, it's all empty promises.

"Many islands in the South Seas are rich in resources but have not been included in the jurisdiction of the Southern Seas Provincial Administration by the Imperial Court. This is an opportunity for our Xu Kang fleet. If you join my ranks now and assist me, I am willing to promise you high-ranking positions, generous salaries, and even noble titles in front of the nobles of Chang'an..."

As Li Yuanli spoke, the merchants below the stage were clearly tempted.

In their hands was a list, or rather, a catalog, that had been distributed to them.

"Founding County Magistrate - 300,000 Tang Yuan"

"Founding County Magistrate - 800,000 Tang Yuan"

"Founding County Earl – Three million Tang Yuan, one medium-sized seagoing vessel"

"Founding County Marquis..."

Each title was listed with a price tag, and the price was a relatively reasonable cost that Li Yuanli and his maternal relatives had calculated and discussed with the advisors they had assigned to him.

This document doesn't specify everything. It doesn't explicitly state how much a noble's fiefdom is, how many acres of land they own, or whether they have privileges such as tax exemption or the right to command their own private army.

Even so, it was enough for the wealthy merchants of Chang'an to start thinking about it.

However, this deal is not only being made with Xu Kangwang Li Yuanli. At this moment, the banquet halls on the other two floors of the Heaven and Earth venue are also hosting high-end cocktail parties.

The banquet was hosted by Prince Zhou, Li Yuanfang, and Prince Feng, Li Yuanheng.

One of them was backed by Consort Zhang, and the other by Consort Yin. Although the latter's attitude was somewhat off regarding the Qin Prince's residence and she was considered to be on the side of the Crown Prince, the Xuanwu Gate Incident happened so suddenly that she was unable to take any substantial action.

Neither Li Chengqian nor Li Shimin bothered to lay a hand on this woman.

This is a grand Texas Hold'em celebration.

The Zhou king's maternal clan went all in, as did the Feng king's maternal clan.

Compared to being a powerless prince within the Tang Dynasty, going overseas to be a true king requires absolutely no hesitation.

Most of the nobles in Chang'an were still observing the situation.

Or perhaps they were waiting for news from the Eastern Palace to see if the Crown Prince had any other arrangements for them, the noble families, while many military families simply didn't take the matter seriously.

With the western expedition imminent, tangible military achievements are at hand.

Only someone with a screw loose would try to take advantage of the empty promises made by those princes at this time.

The atmosphere in Chang'an was very lively. The princes and princesses of the royal family were all fully engaged in the sea voyage. At this moment, in the Eastern Palace, Li Chengqian's younger brothers and sisters were also excited and had smiles on their faces.

"Hehe, we're rich! Brother Zhinu, we're going to make a fortune..."

Beside Li Zhi, Murong Yu was practically pressed against him, holding a folded stack of contracts in her hands.

Those present, including Prince Li Ke of Han, Prince Li Tai of Wei, Prince Li You of Chu, and other powerful vassal kings of the Tang Dynasty, all wore smiles.

The assets sold by those imperial uncles and aunts naturally need to be taken over by someone.

In particular, some of these industries do not allow private chambers of commerce to operate, so the responsibility naturally falls on these individuals.

"Tsk tsk tsk, it's just a pity that the Sixth and Seventh Imperial Uncles are unwilling to sell their assets." Prince Liang, Li Yin, glanced at Prince Lu, Li Yuanchang, and Prince Jing, Li Yuanjing, who were also present, with a half-smile.

If we were to say which of the wealthy merchants in Chang'an favored the most, it would be the two people in front of them.

Especially Prince Lu, Li Yuanchang.

In the very beginning, he was able to follow the Crown Prince closely, steadily carry out the tasks assigned by the Crown Prince, and at the same time, manage Luwang Real Estate to become the only real estate company in the Tang Dynasty to pass strict qualification approval and go public.

The capabilities involved are self-evident.

However, while the royal family members were all eagerly preparing to set sail and claim their own fiefdoms, the two most popular candidates, Prince Lu, Li Yuanchang, and Prince Jing, Li Yuanjing, chose to remain silent.

They acted as if they knew nothing about it, continuing with official business as usual, and running their businesses as usual...

Upon hearing this, Li Chengqian, who was sitting at the table, couldn't help but look at his two imperial uncles with amusement, especially his seventh imperial uncle, Li Yuanchang. He still remembered the fearful and nervous look on the other's face when they first met.

He showed no fear on his face, but his reverence for him was ingrained in his very bones and permeated his actions.

"Why doesn't Seventh Imperial Uncle participate in this matter? Doesn't he want a piece of land of his own?"

He had a gentle smile on his face.

However, when asked, Prince Lu, Li Yuanchang, quickly bowed and greeted the emperor with humility.

"Your Majesty, I am terrified. I fear water and dare not go to sea. Moreover, Your Majesty is now very old, and I dare not take any risks. Therefore, it is better for me to stay in the Tang Dynasty."

Li Chengqian gave the other party a deep look with a smile, then looked at Prince Jing, Li Yuanjing, who stammered and gave some barely plausible excuses.

However, it was obvious to anyone with discerning eyes that the King of Jing had listened to the advice of the King of Lu, Li Yuanchang.

This seventh prince is truly becoming more and more adept at dealing with people... and he's also increasingly aware of where the greatest benefits lie.

Li Chengqian smiled, not at all averse to this behavior. Those who know where the benefits are are also better able to understand where the greatest dangers lie, what benefits they should take, and what benefits they should never even think about.

He cleared his throat and looked at Prince Liang, Li Yin.

"Sixth Brother, how many warships have been built at Busan Port so far?"

Li Yin's eyes lit up, and he hurriedly replied, "Brother, there are already three ships that have completed their trial voyages and are equipped with cannons."

Li Chengqian nodded slightly. News had come from Dengzhou Port a while ago that two more steam-powered ships, which were the earliest steam-powered ships, had been completed.

In addition, there were some newly built treasure ships and Aunt Yu's ship.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, his gaze lingering on Prince Li Ke of Han, Prince Li Yin of Liang, and Princes Li Ke and Li Ke of Lu and Jing.

"The rest of the clan members still need time to prepare, but we don't need to now... Third Prince, Sixth Prince, and Sixth and Seventh Imperial Uncles, I plan to have you organize a fleet and manpower to go to sea... and take Australia!"