bookbashuk Chapter 2238: Unauthentic Li Shimin
Chapter 2238: Unauthentic Li Shimin
The two felt that His Majesty was a little strange and looked at Li Shimin.
"What's wrong with Jiro?"
"Ahem~~" Li Shimin coughed, relieved the embarrassment and said:
"Miss Guanyin, didn't I just say that even if we give money to the noble families, they may not let it go.
The best thing to do now is to find a suitable reason for the money so that the noble families will have nothing to say."
"Find a suitable reason?" Concubine Wei looked puzzled. How to find a suitable reason?
"I wonder if Erlang has any ideas?" Empress Changsun vaguely grasped something.
"I have been thinking about this, but I have never found a way to do it. However, as long as I can find an excuse to say that Old Ten's money was not embezzled by me, then outsiders will not be able to say anything."
Li Shimin shook his head. He couldn't make this excuse himself.
Concubine Wei fell into deep thought. This was not something she should have thought about, but since it concerned her son, Concubine Wei had to think hard about it.
Empress Changsun was also thinking about it. She knew Li Shimin very well, and she felt that Li Shimin's sudden visit just now was a bit strange.
Combining the current statements, she seemed to have guessed Li Shimin's intention.
Thinking of this, Empress Chang Sun asked tentatively:
"Erlang means that Shen'er should say that he was acting on orders?"
"Well...you can say that." Li Shimin did not expect the queen to see his thoughts, so he could only nod.
After hearing Li Shimin's answer, Empress Chang Sun was completely certain of her thoughts and said with a smile:
"Then whose orders does Erlang think Shen'er should obey? Shen'er is a prince, and besides the crown prince, I'm afraid the only one who can order him around is you, Erlang.
Could it be that Erlang wanted Shen'er to say that he was ordered by Gao Ming?
But Gao Ming is the crown prince, and corruption is a serious crime, so there must be a reasonable reason."
Li Shimin felt a little uncomfortable when he saw Empress Changsun's gaze. He avoided her gaze like a guilty thief.
He himself knew that what he did was not quite right.
He couldn't control his rebellious son, so he came to plot against someone else's mother.
Just thinking about the more than one million strings of cash made him a little jealous.
I kept cursing in my heart, this unfilial son didn't even think of me, his father, when good things happened to him, and only thought of me when he got into trouble.
Li Shimin didn't care about Li Shen's extortion of aristocratic families. It was not the first time he had done it anyway.
The weaker the aristocratic families are, the stronger the prince will be when he succeeds to the throne in the future.
The key point is still the issue of uneven distribution of spoils.
"Erlang, you just said that Shen'er had emptied his family's savings to build the road, but even so, he did not come to the palace to ask for money.
He is also thinking of a way out by himself, but Erlang can't..."
Seeing that Li Shimin was silent, Empress Zhangsun tried to persuade him earnestly, but she did not say anything in the end.
The implication is that Li Shen has had a hard time, you can't take his money.
"What Guanyin said is right, but this matter is indeed a bit troublesome, and I have only thought of a foolproof plan.
It is indeed not easy for Lao Shi, but a gentleman loves money and gets it in a proper way. These are all ill-gotten gains. So...so..."
Li Shimin couldn't continue speaking. He was in the wrong and everything he said was just an excuse. Empress Changsun looked at him with a smile, which made him even more embarrassed.
Concubine Wei standing by heard something. Although she didn't understand politics, as a lady from a prominent family, she was naturally knowledgeable.
She reacted from the conversation just now.
"Sister, your majesty is right. Shen'er is young and ignorant, and what he has gained is ill-gotten gains. We should not encourage him to do such things.
Otherwise, who knows what kind of trouble he will cause in the future.
Your Majesty is so kind and has come up with a way to rescue Shen'er. I am deeply grateful.
I will write a letter to Shen Er right now, asking him to act according to your Majesty's will and present all the proceeds to your Majesty as a token of gratitude."
"Well... you don't have to give it all, just a little bit will do, it's just a show for others to see.
Lest the Tenth Master misunderstand me and say that I am after his money."
Li Shimin was happy to hear Concubine Wei's words, but he declined politely because he knew that Li Shen would not give him all the money.
If that were the case, he wouldn't be Li Shen. It would be good enough if he could give half of it.
With this money, I can just fill the gap in the construction of Luoyang Palace. Otherwise, I will have to go to Prince Ji's Mansion to exchange it for copper coins.
Concubine Wei agreed and asked to wait for a moment. Then she ordered someone to bring pen, ink, paper and inkstone, and began to write a letter to Li Shen in front of Li Shimin and the Queen.
She hadn't written to Li Shen for a long time. Usually, when she wanted to know the news, she would go to Prince Ji's mansion to ask.
Lu Dingniang would occasionally come to the palace to pay her respects and talk about Li Shen.
Soon, Concubine Wei finished writing the letter, put it in an envelope with her title, and handed it to Li Shimin:
"Your Majesty, please send someone to deliver it to Shen'er."
"Haha, great. I just wrote a letter. I'll send it along as well."
Li Shimin laughed twice and handed the letter to Wang De.
Empress Changsun looked on helplessly from the side. His Majesty is no longer able to defeat Li Shen, so has he started to resort to the self-torture tactic?
Having achieved his goal, Li Shimin was very happy. He chatted with Concubine Wei for a while, had a meal with her, and then left with the Queen.
"Ji Lang, what you did.....Ah~~~~"
After leaving Daji Hall, Empress Changsun sighed to Li Shimin.
"Guanyin, I have no other choice. If that rebellious son could be obedient, I would not have to resort to such a desperate measure."
Li Shimin said awkwardly.
"Erlang, everything Shen'er does is for the imperial court. With Shen'er's help, Gao Ming will surely achieve extraordinary success in the future.
Your Majesty should treat him well." Empress Changsun advised, as she now cared mostly about her son.
"Don't worry, I have always been nice to him. Otherwise, he would have caused such a big disaster and would have been sent to the Dali Temple long ago."
Li Shimin nodded.
Empress Chang Sun said no more. She also knew that His Majesty doted on Li Shen, but in a different way.
~~~~~~
Just as Li Shimin expected, within two days, Li Chengqian received the memorial from Li Shen.
Half of the memorial detailed the results of his investigation and the process of handling the matter.
Also included were confessions from all the officials, all signed and sealed.
However, he did not mention a single word about the fact that he had asked these officials for money. He only said that since these people had made contributions, their merits and demerits would be offset and they would not be held accountable for the past.
He only executed some evil people who persecuted the people, and asked the prince to send some officials over as soon as possible to fill the vacancies in Xizhou.
After reading the memorial, Li Chengqian's face was full of helplessness. Just as his father had guessed, he avoided the important issues.
After receiving so much money from others, Li Shen didn't even want to share any of the benefits.
Moreover, this time the memorial was not sent to his father, but directly to him. I guess he was afraid that his affairs would be discovered.
(I mentioned writing a new proposal, but many people actually suggested that I write about my love history. Are you crazy? Don't hit people in the face.
I have let it go, have you not let it go yet?