Li Ji and the others were dumbfounded.
Was this still the scene of suppressing rebels?
Why did a drama of forced buying and selling, including giving away a daughter, ensue?
And it was as a concubine, or a co-equal wife, without even daring to ask for the title of main wife.
Tsk, tsk, tsk, our Prince of Qin has fallen!
Alright, please stop talking. Chang Le is treated as a sister. She is only nine years old. Are you so eager to marry her off?
Two ships on credit, that’s all. I don’t want anything else. Repay them when the national treasury has money, alright?
Sixty million guan, you first think about how to explain it to Old Man Fang.
Fang Er was at his wit’s end. Facing Li Shimin, who had suddenly turned into a rogue, he could only choose to compromise.
Marrying Chang Le? That's a joke. A nine-year-old girl, in later generations, would get the death penalty for sure!
You really don't want anything? Li Shimin asked, staring at him with wide eyes.
No!
That won't do. If you don't want anything, I feel uneasy! After speaking, Li Shimin's eyes rolled, and then he suddenly slapped his thigh.
How about I betroth Gaoyang to your Xiao Fang Xin?
Fang Er: ……
What, either be your son-in-law, or your in-law?
What kind of logic is this!
Can it be done to let Fang Xin be a驸马? Absolutely not!
Otherwise, when he grows up, he will definitely pull my pipes!
After thinking for a moment, he finally thought of a solution.
Your Majesty, stop thinking. Fang Xin can’t even crawl yet. It’s a bit inappropriate to set a marriage engagement so early.
How about this, I’ll ask you for a piece of land as Fang Xin’s foundation. What do you think?
Li Shimin was happy: Good! You name it, anything except Chang’an, and you can have it at will!
Fang Er took out a map from his pocket, a world map.
After unfolding it, he let his right index finger roam on it and then stopped at the location of Taiwan.
I want this place!
Yizhou? That is a land beyond civilization. Are you sure you only want such a desolate place? Li Shimin couldn't understand why Fang Er, instead of choosing a prosperous place within the country, chose an island overseas.
Yizhou, that was the name for Taiwan at that time. For any good youth from the 21st century, that place was a fixation!
Yes, it’s here. Fang Er confirmed.
Ninth Brother! I’ll say it, you write it down!
Seeing Fang Er’s firm attitude, Li Shimin said to Li Xiaogong beside him.
By imperial decree, Fang Xin, son of the Duke of Shenyang, is enfeoffed as the Earl of Jinghai, granted the territories of Yizhou and Qiongzhou, to be inherited by his descendants!
Fang Er was stunned. Li Shimin not only gave him Taiwan but also casually included Hainan. He quickly waved his hand to refuse.
No, no, no, I only want Yizhou.
No, Yizhou is too small. I feel bad about it!
Then, then, then, then let’s include this place! Qiongzhou can be excluded. Fang Er looked at the map for a while and pointed to the location of the Philippines in later generations.
Luzon? Why are you only drilling into the sea, kid? Li Shimin looked at the location Fang Er pointed to in astonishment.
I have to run far away, otherwise, if you keep extending credit like this, I’ll go bankrupt sooner or later! Fang Er mumbled casually.
Li Shimin, Li Ji, Li Xiaogong, and others were first stunned, and then they all burst into laughter.
No one said anything disrespectful about his words. Instead, it made everyone unconsciously think of his age. After all, he was only twenty in his virtual age. To dare to complain to his face, this was the reaction a young man should have.
Those were two treasure ships worth sixty million guan!
Trying to escape? Hahahaha, you run ahead, and I’ll lead the army to chase you!
By then, I’ll plant the Tang flag on this ball under our feet, and let’s see where else you can run!
Li Shimin stroked his beard and smiled, while signaling Li Xiaogong to change the previously mentioned Qiongzhou to Luzon.
At this time, Luzon was not yet a vassal state of the Tang Dynasty. The last time it came to the Central Plains for trade was during the previous Sui Dynasty. Let Fang kid mess around himself.
Just as the two 'Er' were haggling, the surrounding four peaks, which had been attacked by rockets, finally began to experience landslides.
Just like the consequences caused at the Kong Family Manor in Langya Commandery, countless giant rocks broke away from their original positions and rolled down the hillside.
Anything in their path, whether it was trees or rebels, was crushed and rolled over by the falling rocks like crushing dry weeds.
The four peaks were trembling. The bandits who survived the artillery fire watched everything in despair.
Run! Hurry and run!
What are you stunned for! If you don’t run, you’ll be buried alive!
Who will save me, save me out~~!
Damn it, what kind of person did the boss recruit this time? Hundreds of brothers were killed by the explosion just now, and now they are going to be buried alive.
Wuwuwuwu, I don’t want to die. I just snatched a girl yesterday, and I haven’t even broken her in yet!
Ah~~ my leg!
Screams and curses, mixed with the rumbling sound of falling rocks, made people’s hair stand on end.
Li Shimin and the others’ attention was also drawn over. Looking at the scene that resembled mountains collapsing and the earth splitting, they couldn’t help but feel secretly happy.
Such formidable weapons, from today onwards, two of them will be mine!
The sun-never-sets Tang Dynasty is just around the corner!
It took a full half hour for things to calm down. The originally lush four peaks had become a mess.
Blood flowed from countless scattered rocks.
The screams and groans of the bandits were everywhere. Of those who survived such a scene, less than one in ten remained!
The Protectorate Army and the Skyfire Army began to enter the four peaks and pulled out the surviving bandits, handing them over to the Xuanjia Army outside for custody.
Fighting was fast, but cleaning up was slow.
Early the next morning, Li Shimin became impatient. He said to Fang Er, Li Xiaogong, and the others: Leave some troops here, and accompany me to visit the Kong family!
Yes!
Everyone cupped their hands and received the order.
Li Xiaogong left Lian Haolong with ten thousand Protectorate troops to clean up here. With so many corpses, if they were not buried, an epidemic could break out, which would be troublesome.
Then, they began to reorganize the army and transfer, bringing along the more than one hundred civil officials whose movements were restricted.
Eight thousand Skyfire Army, three thousand Xuanjia Army.
Ten thousand Dengzhou Protectorate Army, ten thousand Central Protectorate Army.
More than thirty thousand people in total, marched mightily towards the northwest.
Before they even reached Qufu, a small team of cavalry rushed towards them. Among them were people from the Hundred Guard Division and agents from the Eastern Depot. It was unclear how they had mixed together.
Reporting to Your Majesty! The Kong family has been acting unusually in the past few days. A large number of scholars are rushing to Qufu.
It is estimated that in the past two days alone, at least a thousand Confucian scholars have checked into the main lineage of the Kong family!
Among these people, there are officials, scholars, from Shandong circuit, from Huainan circuit, a mixed bag of people.
Li Shimin and Fang Er, Li Xiaogong, Li Ji, and Liu Hongji exchanged glances and immediately guessed the Kong family’s plan.
What, are they planning to use the principle that the law does not punish the masses?
Or are they planning to stage a scene of forcing the emperor to abdicate in front of the Kong family’s gate?
Heh!
They are quite calculating, but this time, they might have miscalculated me!
Li Shimin sneered and looked in the direction of Qufu, still twenty li away!
Speed up the army! I want to have a good talk with the Kong family today!