The actions of the rulers of the small countries seemed to trigger a chain reaction.
The kings, who had just offered up their own small nations, also shed their beloved work gloves and hurled them fiercely at the face of the person who had just spoken.
"Duel!"
"Duel!"
"Duel!"
Li Shimin, watching this scene from atop the city walls, nearly burst out laughing.
But as a retired emperor, he still had to maintain his royal dignity at all times.
He stiffened his face and deliberately cleared his throat twice.
"My esteemed officials!"
"There's no need to be so agitated!"
"When faced with a situation, don't panic. Allow me to post on my social media first..."
Having said that, he actually took out his phone and began snapping pictures of the scene below.
This action completely bewildered the minor kings below.
"Holy crap, what is the Eastern Emperor doing?"
Fang Er, standing beside him, pressed his forehead in exasperation. "Tang doesn't even have a signal, what are you going to post on social media with?"
As expected, Li Shimin discovered this problem after taking his photos.
The lack of signal displeased him greatly!
He pulled Fang Er close and quietly instructed him.
"You need to get this signal issue sorted out quickly!"
"Such a great opportunity to show off... "
"Ahem!"
"Such a great opportunity to publicize the might of the Great Tang! And it's being missed just like that!"
"Next time, if there's still no signal, beware, I'll give birth to a few more daughters-in-law for you!"
Fang Er: "..." To read more
"You give birth, you have the final say!"
And he was indeed a little scared by this threat.
He quickly nodded in agreement.
After finishing this matter, Li Shimin once again looked out from the city walls.
"I will not interfere with whatever you intend to do!"
"But you are absolutely forbidden to act during this grand ceremony, do you understand?"
The kings below: ???
Understood!
Meaning, we'll just resort to underhanded tactics. We're not that foolish.
The man who was being targeted by the kings turned green upon hearing Li Shimin's words.
"Damn it."
"These guys are all from neighboring countries!"
"Even though the Eastern Emperor has returned the lands that were taken by the merchant caravans, if these neighboring countries all turn against me, who can withstand that?"
He tremblingly removed the ring from his middle finger and nervously asked the guard beside him.
"Is it still too late for me to pledge allegiance now?" The guard dared not make any decisions on his own and quickly reported it to his superiors.
Upon learning of this, Li Shimin repeatedly waved his hands and calmly said.
"Rest assured, I and the Great Tang have no interest in that small plot of land."
"Go back and be your king with peace of mind!"
"I guarantee that no one will lay a single sword or spear against your country!"
The ruler of the small country was then relieved.
However, he did not realize that what awaited him was indeed a situation without a single sword or spear being drawn!
When the surrounding neighboring countries all become prosperous, his country's people will gradually leave their homeland and flock to the embrace of other nations!
After all, in this era, the population in the West was pitifully small, and land was far less precious than it was here in the Great Tang!
What awaited him was an empty, desolate land...
The viewing continued. After all the rulers had presented their gifts or national territories, this segment finally concluded.
Li Shimin glanced at the position of the setting sun and immediately announced the end of the ceremony.
"Issue my decree!"
"Lift the curfew, and hold a city-wide banquet!"
"All expenses will be covered by the imperial treasury!"
"Everyone, follow me into the Ming Hall, where the banquet has already been prepared!"
With that, he was the first to turn and descend from the city walls.
Emperor Qin Shi Huang and the other emperors, having been filled with envy all day, longed for their own dynasties to have the same glory as the Great Tang. They closely followed Li Shimin, hoping to glean some of his statecraft.
Cheng Yaojin and Fang Er followed behind. Old Man Fang, however, walked towards the newly appointed Minister of Revenue and lightly patted him on the shoulder, saying meaningfully.
"Kid, cherish this opportunity!"
"Back in my day, when I was the minister, I wished I could stretch one copper coin into ten uses!"
"To raise funds, I even had to swallow my pride and ask Prince Kun for credit."
"Look at you now, with so much silver in the national treasury, your job as minister is much easier than mine!"
He paused for a moment and then seriously admonished.
"However!"
"No matter how rich the treasury is, you must learn to spend wisely and sparingly!"
"Do you understand?"
The new Minister of Revenue: "..."
"My lord, I understand everything you said before, but what does the last sentence mean?"
Old Man Fang stroked his beard and grinned, his newly replaced emerald false teeth gleaming green enough to blind people.
"If you don't understand, ponder it well, and you'll understand eventually!"
Before his words had even finished, he was already supporting his aching back and chasing after Fang Er and the others, leaving the Minister of Revenue alone on the city wall in a daze.
The grand ceremony outside had concluded.
But a grander play awaited everyone inside the Ming Hall.
Tables were set up throughout the main hall of the Ming Hall, and everyone could find their names on them.
After taking their seats, Deng Dengjie sidled up to Li Shimin and whispered a few words in his ear.
After Li Shimin nodded, Deng Dengjie straightened his back and, with a hoarse voice, shouted loudly.
"We respectfully invite the former Emperor to the hall!"
Inside the Ming Hall, the imposing generals standing against the walls immediately repeated the phrase.
"We respectfully invite the former Emperor to the hall!"
"We respectfully invite the former Emperor to the hall!"
"We respectfully invite the former Emperor to the hall!"
Important matters are shouted thrice. Resounding voices echoed from within the Ming Hall. Before long, a group of eunuchs, surrounding Li Yuan, who was clad in imperial robes, entered.
That's right, it was Li Yuan, who had been invited back from another world. However, unlike others, his treatment was different; Li Tai had personally gone to invite him, thus bypassing the sack-and-drag process.
He had been recuperating in the Chang'an imperial palace for over a month, and everything in this world was foreign to him.
"Greetings, Former Emperor!"
This was a term usually used for deceased emperors, and it felt somewhat inappropriate to address a living person this way.
But Li Shimin was now the Grand Emperor Emeritus, so addressing Li Yuan in this manner was also inappropriate.
Therefore, everyone, following Deng Dengjie's example, began to call him Former Emperor.
Li Yuan's mouth twitched unnaturally a few times, and he slowly walked over to sit beside Li Shimin.
His name was clearly written on the table, indicating it was prepared for him.
"You are dismissed! Please be seated!"
After taking his seat, Li Yuan raised his hand to signal everyone.
"Damn, if I had known Little Er had this ability, why would I have made Jiancheng the Crown Prince? What a joke!"
"No, I must depose him as soon as I return!"
"If I pass the throne to Little Er, I can also enjoy a few years of leisure."
"Choosing more consorts, indulging in pleasures, that's a divine life..."
As soon as everyone had sat down, Deng Dengjie shouted again.
"Please, Former Crown Prince Li Jiancheng enter the hall!"
"Announce! Li Shichong, Dou Jiande, Xue Ju, Liu Wuzhou, and others enter the hall!"
"Announce! Emperor Xianheng Li Zhi enter the hall!"
"Announce! Empress Shenlong Wu Zetian enter the hall!"
"Announce! Emperor Tianbao Li Longji enter the hall!"
"..."
"Announce! Emperor Tianyou Li Zhu enter the hall!"