Merchants are always well-informed. Li Yuanying’s actions in Huxian County hadn’t escaped their ears, and even if you don’t mention such distant matters, the largest harbor in Henan Road is being built right under their noses.
Besides the dividends they haven’t received yet, those who hold the Oriental Pearl No. 1 bonds also have the privilege of pre-ordering new ocean-going ships. If not for Li Yuanying’s insistence on a year of trial navigation for cautiousness, they would have already made their move. After all, even though they don’t know what exactly is being transported from overseas, Li Yuanying is pouring money into repairing and expanding the official roads leading to Chang’an, clearly indicating a lucrative business!
Those with even better information have already learned the reason behind the influx of new faces in Henan Road: they say there’s a “Golden Island” across the sea, and Li Yuanying’s fleet brought back shiploads of gold and silver after their voyage!
This claim is undeniably enticing. After all, a voyage of only three to five days isn’t far at all. Why not give it a try? And Prince Tang is truly honest. When they wanted to pre-order ocean-going ships, he even warned them about the risks of sailing and the potential gains and losses of overseas trade, urging them to proceed cautiously.
If Li Yuanying had enthusiastically encouraged them to go to sea, they would have hesitated, fearing this and that. Now that he has clearly revealed the dangers, they are even more determined to go: who knows if he is afraid of them stealing his exclusive overseas treasure trove and deliberately keeping them away? They have to try it out for themselves. A single ship, a single crew, doesn’t cost much anyway!
As the year-long period approaches, everyone has prepared their funds and personnel.
Just at this critical moment, Li Yuanying proposed a new plan. Everyone felt, “This guy is trying to fleece us again,” but they were honest in their actions, actively writing down the amount they would use for voting.
Some people from the same county gathered together and added up their total contributions. They discovered that the combined money from each household was enough to build a comprehensive road network in their county! However, they might not have enough manpower. If every county started construction simultaneously, they wouldn’t be able to handle it. No wonder Li Yuanying chose only three counties first.
No matter how eloquently Li Yuanying presented his case, parting with such a large sum of money was always painful. The elders of a county gathered together, all feeling that they had paid more in the past two years than in the previous decade. Yet, they willingly paid this money, even eagerly anticipating what new schemes Li Yuanying would come up with next.
Someone stroked his beard and said, “Prince Tang’s actions are unlike anyone else’s.”
The others nodded in agreement.
Many of Li Yuanying’s actions seemed like play, but if you looked back carefully, every step he took was beneficial, whether by coincidence or design.
Anyway, Li Yuanying hasn’t suffered any losses during his time in Tengzhou.
Last year, when Emperor Li summoned Li Yuanying back to Chang’an, they were worried about the fate of Tengzhou and whether their investment in the harbor would go down the drain. But after the new year, Li Yuanying not only returned with a cartload of treasures, but also received gifts from various parties. Emperor Li even granted him three money furnaces, allowing him to mint his own coins.
Therefore, following Li Yuanying means a promising future!
The people of Tengzhou were convinced of this idea. After finding out the bids from others, they cunningly added ten percent, exhibiting great generosity and boldness.
People from neighboring prefectures heard about the new developments in Tengzhou. Some were envious, while others thought the wealthy and powerful families of Tengzhou were all possessed. Wasn’t it just about casting coins with their hometown’s inscription and printing some thin stamps? What’s the big deal? Look at how they’re eagerly throwing their money away!
Before long, some people went to Tengzhou to lobby Li Yuanying: “You see, the neighboring prefecture isn’t far, and it also has beautiful mountains and rivers. How about including it in the candidate list? We can’t make it this year, but we can join next year. In the meantime, you can come to our side and enjoy the scenic views and experience our place. We offer free accommodation and meals, free companionship and entertainment.”
Li Yuanying didn’t immediately agree, stating that he needed to ask his elder brother first. Even for a neighboring prefecture, he couldn’t just leave without permission, otherwise, his brother would drag him back to Chang’an and scold him. Of course, if their location happened to be on the way to the harbor, he could consider stopping by for a couple of days. After all, traveling was tiring, and resting along the way was perfectly normal.
Both sides reached a preliminary agreement. The wealthy and powerful families of Tengzhou were not happy. The competition within their prefecture was already fierce, and adding those powerful outsiders from neighboring prefectures would only make it worse! For a time, local and neighboring families, both within and outside Tengzhou, were in a state of competition, pushing the stakes higher on the bid sheets for money patterns.
This sight left everyone dumbfounded.
Wasn’t it just about the patterns on coins? Was it necessary to spend so much money? The money they contributed could buy all those thousands of “Tengzhou Coins” and take them home!
This extraordinary event naturally spread by word of mouth, carried by merchants all the way back to Chang’an.
By this time, Emperor Li had received Li Yuanying’s letter. Li Yuanying seemed to have held back his anger, rambling for several pages of scolding, but in the end, he boasted, “Chengqian said he would support me. Although you haven’t been good to me, you have a good son who is good to me! If it weren’t for him encouraging me to vent my anger, I wouldn’t have thought of writing to scold you.”
Emperor Li was initially amused by Li Yuanying’s letter, but his nose twitched in anger upon reading these words. He summoned Li Chengqian and scolded him fiercely.
Li Chengqian only then realized that his uncle had sold him out. He had told Li Yuanying to scold the Duke of Xun Guo, but Li Yuanying had claimed it was he who had told him to scold Emperor Li!
With an uncle like this, what could Li Chengqian do? He could only apologize and explain, “My son meant the Duke of Xun Guo. My uncle misunderstood.” He wasn’t suicidal, he wouldn’t encourage Li Yuanying to write letters scolding Emperor Li.
Emperor Li also knew that Li Yuanying’s words were unreliable, so he didn’t truly blame Li Chengqian. He simply told him to pay attention to the news from Luoyang.
Li Yuanying had said he sent Dai Ting to Luoyang, but there had been no news. Emperor Li felt that something big must have happened.
When Emperor Li instructed Li Chengqian to keep an eye on things, he immediately understood that Emperor Li favored Li Yuanying. Reassured, he promised to follow up diligently. After being dismissed by Emperor Li, he immediately ordered people to bring him the official gazettes from Luoyang so he could examine them. He then invited several people who frequently traveled to Luoyang to discuss the situation in the Eastern Palace, acting with great efficiency.
In fact, Emperor Li not only asked Li Chengqian to pay attention to the matter but also summoned others to report the situation in Luoyang promptly after dismissing him.
Luoyang was the gateway to Chang’an. If that Dai Ting was stirring up trouble in Luoyang just like in Goguryeo and Wa, he would not allow such a person to remain by Li Yuanying’s side.
Emperor Li reopened Li Yuanying’s letter and reread the two passages mentioning Dai Ting. He threw the letter aside, leaned against the armrest, and rubbed his temples.
This brat’s willingness to be submissive wasn’t solely due to Chengqian’s support but also to protect that Dai Ting.
This brother of his, who seemed carefree, was actually very cunning. He even claimed, “I sent Dai Ting,” and confidently guaranteed that he wouldn’t disrupt Luoyang. But could this boy really restrain his hawk-like subordinate?
While no news came from Luoyang, the strange events in Tengzhou reached Chang’an first.
Upon hearing that the people of Tengzhou were vying to donate money for bridge construction and road paving, Changsun Wuji and the others were all expressionless. They no longer found such “奇闻” (extraordinary news) surprising. After all, Li Yuanying had already acquired Cuiwei Palace through empty promises and clever schemes several years ago, and they were still enjoying the summer retreat in Cuiwei Palace!
Li Yuanying’s “Tengzhou Coins” were limited to a total of nine thousand, which also relieved Changsun Wuji and the others. Even if these coins flowed into the hands of ordinary people, they wouldn’t cause any chaos. Moreover, judging by the trend, ordinary people would probably find it difficult to buy these coins, and even if they managed to, they wouldn’t want to use them.
Since Li Yuanying was so cautious, Changsun Wuji felt relieved and generously praised Li Yuanying before Emperor Li, saying that his ingenuity in devising this plan was truly impressive, not in vain that Emperor Li had kept him by his side and carefully guided him for so many years.
Emperor Li and Changsun Wuji were friends from their youth and knew each other well. This brother-in-law of his always valued harmony. Before, when he saw Li Yuanying as a threat, he persuaded Emperor Li. Now that he saw Li Yuanying as no longer a threat, he praised him again, claiming it was his good teaching!
However, it must be said that Changsun Wuji had touched upon Emperor Li’s soft spot. He couldn’t help but mention Li Yuanying’s letter to Changsun Wuji: “This brat doesn’t think that way. He recently wrote me a letter, every sentence complaining that I don’t care about him and haven’t been good to him!”
Changsun Wuji: “…”
Here we go again.
Changsun Wuji held his breath and responded, and Emperor Li naturally showed him the letter from beginning to end, saying that this boy was disrespectful and unruly.
If Changsun Wuji had simply echoed, “Yes, yes,” he would have been an idiot. Emperor Li would have turned against him. Therefore, Changsun Wuji wisely said, “If Prince Tang didn’t truly regard Your Majesty as his most beloved elder brother, how dare he speak to Your Majesty like this?”
Emperor Li was satisfied and said with a helpless smile, “I can’t do anything about him.”
Changsun Wuji rose to leave.
As Changsun Wuji left, he ran into Fang Xuanling. Seeing his discolored face, Fang Xuanling asked, “What’s wrong? Did you encounter any difficulties?”
Changsun Wuji shook his head, “No, nothing.” He sighed, “It’s just that Prince Tang wrote a letter to His Majesty.”
Fang Xuanling fell silent for a moment, looking at the memorial in his hand. He realized that the matters within weren’t that urgent.
He decisively turned around and followed Changsun Wuji back.
Changsun Wuji asked, “Didn’t you have something to ask His Majesty?”
Fang Xuanling said, “Not anymore.”
Changsun Wuji: “…”
These two brothers were really something. When things were bad, they were a cause for worry, and when things were good, they were still a cause for worry.
Compared to the tranquility in Chang’an, Luoyang was not peaceful recently.
This lack of peace was not for the people of Luoyang, but for the Duke of Xun Guo, Zhang Liang.
The people of Luoyang were enjoying a vibrant life, even feeling that the number of merchants coming and going had increased significantly. Every day, they witnessed various new performances and purchased goods from all over the country.
However, there were undercurrents swirling in places where ordinary people couldn’t see.
The Duke of Xun Guo’s many adopted sons, some in the military and some engaged in commerce to support the Duke’s household, discovered that the businesses they ran were all plummeting. The reason? Either their competitors had come up with new formulas or they were drastically lowering prices, attracting all the customers. They couldn’t compete with them in terms of innovation, and they couldn’t compete in terms of price wars. Naturally, their businesses were declining rapidly.
If this lack of peace was merely related to money, another matter involved life itself: whenever anyone from the Duke of Xun Guo’s household went out, including the Duke himself, they would encounter minor accidents. For example, a flowerpot would suddenly fall in front of them while walking, or the crossbeam of a privy would break while they were using it, or the hunting dog they were feeding would suddenly foam at the mouth and die in front of them.
Once, it could be considered a coincidence, but day after day, it became a bit frightening. The people of the Duke’s household were hesitant to go out.
The Duke flew into a rage and ordered an investigation, but they couldn’t find anything. The conclusions reached by his subordinates were consistent: these were all accidents!
Bullshit accidents!
The Duke of Xun Guo had always enjoyed smooth sailing and never experienced such humiliation. Hearing reports that his businesses were being suppressed and were about to collapse, he became even more convinced that someone was targeting him. He didn’t have many enemies, and the only person who had recently had a grudge against him was Li Yuanying.
Recently, Li, the wife of the Duke, had been crying and complaining to him. She said her brother was gone, the Li family had fallen, and when he followed Emperor Li to fight for the world, Li Yuanying hadn’t even been born. Why should he enjoy prosperity and be born superior to them? Was it just because he was a good at reincarnation?
The Duke initially thought Li’s brother was reckless, but after Li’s constant complaints, he felt a sense of unease. How could Li Yuanying, with no accomplishments to his name, be above them?
These recent events must be Li Yuanying’s doing. Perhaps Emperor Li was lenient on him in public but secretly gave him a nudge! Hou Junji was right. Emperor Li might not be able to tolerate them, these meritorious ministers, anymore!
The Duke’s gaze was heavy.
He didn’t act rashly or approach Li again. Instead, he summoned his favorite fortune tellers to chat and discuss the future, as if nothing had happened.
These fortune tellers were familiar with the Duke and were quite casual with him, drinking and chatting together. One of them, having drunk quite a bit, took out a secret chart and used it to calculate the Duke’s future prospects. After the calculation, he was stunned and overjoyed.
The Duke curiously asked, “What’s wrong?”
The fortune teller said, “Your Grace’s surname has the potential to rise like a soaring dragon!”
This meant that the future world would belong to the Zhang family!
A surge of excitement filled the Duke’s heart, but he didn’t reveal it on his face. He simply instructed his servants not to spread this word. It was a capital offense!
After sending the fortune tellers away, the Duke chuckled. A sinister light gleamed in his heavy eyes.
The Li family had seized the throne from the Yang family, so why couldn’t the world belong to the Zhang family?
The author has something to say:
Little Prince: We didn’t do anything, we just scared him!
Update!
Diligent!
I need to rush to catch the train home!
Obsessed with writing, I missed the train!
I suddenly realized that the comments have reached 90,000!!! It’s about to break 100,000!! Exciting!!! I’ll give out a little red envelope for this chapter’s comments!!! I’ll send it after I get home!!!
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