Having said this, Li Shimin took a deep breath and stared at Li Yuan.
"Even so, does the emperor still think that the clan kings should be enfeoffed in large quantities?"
He said slowly,
"There are still many uneducated scum like Li Youliang in the clan!"
"If we send them down there, not only will they not be able to benefit the people, but they will live in a land of fish and meat and harm all people!"
"And how can local officials dare to take charge of them who are relying on the name of the royal family? If they go back and forth, the reputation of our Li Tang royal family will be ruined by them, and the people will be alienated from us!"
"By that time...Father, I am afraid that the Tang Dynasty will be in danger of subjugation..."
Li Yuan's face turned a little blue.
He was speechless for a moment, not knowing how to respond.
"So, Father, when you just told me that you were going to divide the clan kings and send them to join the vassals, I was shocked."
Li Shimin said coldly,
"When I saw the news of Li Youliang's rebellion, I was in disbelief at first, and then I became furious!"
"We gave them generous rewards and gave them the opportunity to reach the sky! But in exchange for this result?"
"A waste, an ignorant idiot prince who doesn't even have the slightest ability, dares to imitate those who rebelled against the king! I think he is really too kind to them, making them forget their roots and forget that they are What a stupid pig!"
His voice suddenly rose an octave.
Li Yuan trembled with shock!
"I came today because I wanted to discuss this matter with my father and talk about the shortcomings of the clan king!"
Li Shimin lived condescendingly and said,
"Having so many princes, not only has no effect on the court, but also creates a huge burden."
"The annual salary paid to the royal family is enough to pay officials of the three provinces and six ministries for two years! The national treasury is already empty, and they have to take a piece of the tax revenue collected. How can the country do things?"
Li Yuan: "..."
"Also, they rely on themselves as princes to be above the common people and above the king's law!"
Li Shimin continued,
"People have nowhere to redress their grievances, and officials dare not manage them. As a result, the cruelty and harm to the people continues to expand!"
"If this continues, where will the laws of the court be? Where will the hearts and minds of the people be?"
"Not to mention, the existence of a white-eyed wolf like Li Youliang, who is worse than a beast, makes me even more chilled! I must be very angry in my father's heart, right?"
Li Yuan nodded subconsciously.
"Hmm..." he responded.
"So, I have an idea - to weaken the clan king, on a large scale!"
Seeing that the time had come, Li Er finally expressed his true thoughts and said sternly,
"All princes of the clan who have no military exploits will be demoted three or more levels in a row to the rank of Duke, County Duke, or even Marquis!"
"Any underage male who is crowned king will be deprived of his title and will wait until he reaches adulthood."
"All princes, except for the direct princes, are not allowed to enjoy fiefdoms, but can only enjoy food. They have no jurisdiction or taxing rights over any piece of land in the country!"
These words were like a thunderbolt, hitting Li Yuan's head!
"Erlang, you are too..."
He instinctively showed a look of reluctance and murmured.
Those clan kings were all appointed by him personally.
Now that he has been wiped out by Li Shimin, where will he put his reputation as the Supreme Emperor in the future?
Although there wasn’t much left...
"Father, this is all for the long-term consideration of the country and the continuity of the Li Tang royal family!"
Li Shimin said sincerely,
"Don't you know about the chaos in the Seven Kingdoms during the Han Dynasty?"
"When these princes and kings were granted the title, they were naturally extremely affectionate with you and treated you as if they were their own father. But when they arrived at the title, they would forget all about you!"
"Especially after passing it down for several generations, they have long lost that sense of gratitude. Instead, they feel that those rewards were brought by them by nature and they deserve it! By then, those with evil intentions will not be satisfied with the status quo, but will complain instead. Come to the imperial court! When the time comes, we will secretly plan to rebel!"
"Even if my father doesn't think about himself, he should still think about his descendants..."
Li Yuan opened his mouth and wanted to speak.
But when he saw Li Shimin's sincere and firm eyes, he knew——
The son is not here to ask for his opinion, but already has his own plan.
Even if he could find some way to compromise, he still wouldn't be able to speak.
"...You go and do it, you go and do it."
Li Yuan waved his hand and said helplessly,
"Let's play cards, it's your turn."
He doesn't want to take care of it anymore, and he doesn't have the qualifications to take care of it anymore.
Let Li Shimin do it, he just wants to abandon everything and indulge in entertainment...
"Yes, Father."
Li Shimin held the five cards in his hand and said with a smile,
"I'm almost done. It seems like I'm going to win this one."
"two."
He threw down a card and looked at the remaining four cards in his hand, showing a confident look.
He also has a bomb, four three.
Although it was the smallest explosion, it was still enough to kill two farmers, especially when there was a card-hiding monster on the opposite side that only played one card in the whole game.
"don't want."
Li Yuan pinched the cards irritably and murmured,
"I can't beat you with this card..."
"It's boring, it's really boring..."
While he was feeling depressed, suddenly, Changsun Wujia threw down a handful of cards.
"fry."
she whispered.
Four Aces.
Li Shimin: "???"
"Did you explode?"
He was shocked and said,
"Why didn't you come out just now and only come out at the end? Isn't this giving me money in vain?"
"Guanyin Maid, do you know how to play? I am already going to win!"
"Here, let me show you my cards?"
As he spoke, Li Er proudly displayed his bomb with a winner's smile.
Li Yuan looked unhappy, threw the cards in his hand on the table, and reluctantly took out the money.
"Yeah?"
Changsun Wugou blinked and said with a smile,
"But how do I feel that I can win?"
Li Shimin curled his lips.
"Hmph! You're thinking too much!"
He said contemptuously,
"You still had 16 cards in your hand just now. Even if a bomb comes out, you still have 12 cards left."
"Can you defeat this bomb with 12 cards? Can you win?"
"If you can beat me, I will eat this table right now!"
There's no way, I'm so confident holding a bomb in my hand!
Mainly, Changsun Wujia didn't play much in the whole game. If she had good cards, she might have played out early, so why hide it?
"oh."
Changsun Wugao pursed his lips and smiled and said,
"You said, eat on the table, don't go back on it."
"Come on, plane."
Under Li Shimin's gaze, Changsun Wugou directly threw the entire pack of cards on the table.
Li Shimin: "???"
"Did you make a mistake?!" He widened his eyes and said, "Don't lie to me!"
Changsun Wuguo pointed to the cards on the table and read:
"Three eights, three nines, three tens, with three single cards."
"It complies with the 'aircraft' rules set by Ting Ming, so I won."
"Eat the table."
Li Shimin: "...!!!"
(End of chapter)
