A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Starting from the Village Chief

Chapter 199: The Bet with Changsun Wuji
Although the New Year holiday is only seven days, three days before and after the New Year.

But Li Yi did not go to Fengyi Palace in Gaoling after the New Year. Of course, he had a legitimate reason. The King of Qin was building Changning Palace for Empress Mu and asked Li Yi, the director of Fengyi Palace, to help.

Under the warm winter sun, the snow reflects Chang Ning.

The entire palace is planned in a grand manner, built according to the terrain, and has an exquisite layout. Although it is only in its infancy now, it can be seen that the overall building rises in sequence and rises steadily.

Li Yi was wearing new deerskin boots, the soles of his boots making a crunching sound as they pressed against the snow. He looked up at the snowy scenery and suddenly heard the crisp sound of horse hooves breaking ice ridges behind him.

"Good Li Wuyi!" Li Shimin's dark cloak was covered in dustings of snow. As he dismounted, the golden and jade sash around his waist was revealed. "I came here personally to conscript men, and you're here to relax and enjoy the snow?"

Fang Xuanling, Du Ruhui and more than ten other riders came along.

Li Yi bowed and said, "Once Changning Palace is completed, it will surely become a beautiful sight in the suburbs of Chang'an."

"Let's not talk about this for a minute." Li Shimin interrupted with a wave of his hand, his brows stern. "This morning, I received an urgent report from Taiyuan. That bastard Yuanji actually used the military rations from the treasury as hunting rewards. Come on, follow me to the plateau to get some fresh air."

Horses' hooves trotted across the frozen He River, startling several wild rabbits from the dry reeds. Hou Junji, perched on horseback, drew his bow, the sound of arrows piercing the air. Li Shimin suddenly reined in his horse and turned, "Wu Yi, you know? The Turks sent a thousand war horses, hoping to exchange them for 100,000 bolts of silk?"

Li Yi gripped the reins tightly, watching the gray rabbit twitching in the snow in the distance after being shot by an arrow. "Bartering is common sense, but the price of the horse is a bit exaggerated." Before he could finish his words, a red fox suddenly jumped out of the forest ahead and tried to snatch the rabbit. Li Shimin tightened his grip on his horse, and the arrow grazed the fox's ear and pierced the tree trunk. The red fox fled in panic, disappearing in the snow and fog.

"See?" Li Shimin stroked the rhino horn decoration on the bow arm. "The Turks are like this fox. They want to eat meat, but they are afraid of being shot by arrows. Let's go! Let's go to your village and drink some hot soup."

A group of people rode horses to Wuji Castle.

The dusk dyes the western sky red,

As soon as Li Shimin entered the castle gate, he saw many preserved foods hanging and drying in the front yard of the castle.

The dark red ham was shiny with oil, the scales of the cured fish were covered with salt frost, there were strings of sausages, strips of bacon, and many cured chickens and ducks, it looked like a forest of meat.

"You?" Li Shimin was surprised.

Fang Xuanling also looked around curiously, "There are actually a lot of pig livers, pig hearts, pig tongues, etc."

Li Yi smiled and said, "I slaughtered a total of fifty pigs, twenty sheep, and a lot of chickens, ducks, and fish some time ago. I salted them and let them air-dry. Then I smoked them in the smokehouse with cypress branches and other materials. After curing, they can be stored for a long time without spoiling."

Everyone watched for a while, then followed Li Yi to the living room.
"Why is your couch so big and high?"

"This is the new kang,"

Li Shimin sat cross-legged on the ham, rubbing his palms against the wood of the kang, "It's so warm."

Changsun Wuji also exclaimed that it was wonderful.

"In fact, this kang and the fire wall have the same purpose. When I was traveling with my master in Hebei, I saw the Mohe people who migrated from outside the Great Wall using this kind of kang. It is said that they started using it in the Central Plains during the Wei and Jin Dynasties.

The smoke has gone three times, but the warmth remains.
In winter, heating a kang saves 30% of firewood compared to burning a charcoal basin. Furthermore, building a kang is simpler and more convenient than building a fire wall. People even connect the kang to the stove, killing two birds with one stone and saving even more firewood.

Li Shimin's eyes lit up, and he slapped the kang table with his palm. "Salted meat is durable, and the kang keeps out the cold. These two treasures can be used in the army," he said excitedly. "This bacon is not only easy to store, but can also be used as salt."

Li Yi moved the stove table he had asked the carpenter to make onto the kang.

Make tea around the fire and chat while drinking.

"The Turks are getting more and more unreasonable. They have sold us several batches of horses before, and the prices were always very high. The horses were also getting worse and worse. This time they even wanted 100 pieces of silk for each horse, which is a total of 36,000.

The best Turkic horses generally cost no more than 30,000 coins. Moreover, only about 10% of the horses they sent were of the best quality. The rest were worth around 20,000 coins, and many were worth around 8,000 coins. Some horses could only carry a few things and were worth only 3,000 or 4,000 coins at most.

"They are blackmailing us,"

The north wind howls outside the window, and the kang is warm inside the house.

Li Yi prepared a pot of purple bamboo tea and distributed it to several people. "The Turks are indeed very excessive. We can't completely refuse them from selling horses, but we can't just let them blackmail us either.

I think when it comes to buying and selling, you still have to lower the price.
Since they offer a price of one hundred pieces of silk per horse, let's give them a discount and buy half of the better horses and return the remaining inferior ones. They brought thousands of horses, so we only buy five hundred.

He asked for 100 pieces of silk per piece, so I gave him a 30% discount, so each piece would cost 70 pieces of silk, which is 25,200 coins."

Zhang Sun Wuji felt a little hot sitting on the kang, so he took off his thick fur robe and felt hat.
"Twenty-five thousand a warhorse is still a bit expensive. Why don't you lower the price a bit and buy all one thousand horses?"

Du Ruhui chuckled twice, "I can guess what Wuyi is thinking."

"Oh, what do you mean?"

"The Turks have plenty of horses and have traded with us several times. The price is getting higher and higher. They really want to blackmail us. If we still buy all the horses at the price this time, they will only get worse.

This time we only bought half, to express our dissatisfaction with their continuous price hikes, and also to pretend that we were in financial difficulty and could not afford to buy horses.
We are showing them our poverty and being picky. This way, unless the Turks no longer want to sell horses to us, they will only be able to choose better horses and not ask for exorbitant prices.

"Wuyi, do you really think so?" Changsun Wuji asked.

Hou Junji doubted whether this would work.

"Of course it works. Game of chance is about pulling each other back and forth, and each has its own concerns. It's certainly not easy for us to break off relations with the Turks right now, but they don't want to break off relations with us either."

"It would be better not to buy this batch of horses, or to lower the price even more." Xu Shiluo interrupted.

"Twenty-five thousand for a good horse. This price is to save face for the Turks. We can't really fall out. Don't think it's too expensive. If we don't buy the remaining half of the horses, they can't rush back thousands of miles. They will have to sell them when the time comes. The court will then arrange for private merchants to buy them privately and suppress the price.

By averaging the two, we can get a more normal price.

The Turks also gained face, we also made our position clear, and it didn't cost us any extra money, isn't that great?"

Hou Junji scratched his head. "You are so young, why is your mind so full of twists and turns?"

Li Shimin criticized this childhood friend, "This is wisdom."

Li Yi has now unknowingly become a member of Li Er's small circle. Although he is not yet a core member, Li Er has indeed accepted him into this small circle. This result is also because Li Yi intends to get closer.
Running in both directions.

The prince also tried to win over Li Yi several times, but he finally leaned towards the King of Qin. I guess many people may not understand why.

However, Li Yi had successfully won the trust and appreciation of Li Shimin by offering medicine and making several suggestions.

When Li Mi came out of seclusion this time, Li Yi accurately predicted the subsequent series of developments in advance, which made Li Shimin deeply admire him.

So today,
He also came directly to ask for advice.

"The court has received news that Liu Wuzhou of Mayi has accepted his brother-in-law Song Jingang's suggestion to 'attack Jinyang and head south to fight for the world' and is mobilizing food, fodder and troops.
Moreover, Liu Wuzhou had already obtained the support of the Turkic Shibi Khan."

The tea soup is boiling in the pot, steam is rising, and the fragrance of tea is everywhere.

Changsun Wuji said, "Although the four kings are young and energetic, they are assisted by veteran generals. Taiyuan will be fine."

Li Shimin sighed, "Yuwen Xin, who assisted Yuanji in defending Taiyuan, reported to the emperor that the bastard only knew how to hunt and play."

Fang Xuanling shook his head, "If this gets out, the people of Hedong will..."

"Rumour has it in Chang'an that the King of Qi often orders hundreds of slaves, maids, and concubines to fight each other in armor for fun, resulting in numerous casualties, with the seriously injured simply abandoned in mass graves to fend for themselves." Li Yi tapped his fingers lightly on the table. "Although Taiyuan City has ample food and fodder, the people's morale is like dry firewood and withered grass—" He suddenly clenched his fists. "A single spark could set the whole prairie on fire."

If Liu Wuzhou launched a large-scale attack, Yuwen Xin, Dou Dan, and Liu Dewei would definitely not be able to defeat Song Jingang, Yuchi Gong and other powerful generals. The four kings in Bingzhou would not only be of no help, but they would also abandon the city and flee at the critical moment.
If this commander flees, Bingzhou will surely fall."

Zhangsun Wuji disagreed. "Yuwen Xin and Liu Dewei are both experienced generals. Besides, Taiyuan is the birthplace of the dragon. They still have tens of thousands of troops and ten years' worth of food and fodder. Taiyuan City has high walls and is well-preserved. Defending it for a year or two shouldn't be a problem."

Li Shimin said, "I think what Wuyi said makes sense. An incompetent general can tire out the entire army. Yuanji is just a playboy who has not grown up. He is young and unfamiliar with military affairs, let alone fighting. If he encounters a powerful enemy and the situation is unfavorable, he is very likely to abandon the city and flee."

"Wuyi, what do you think I should do?"

Li Yi said, "Your Majesty, please write to His Majesty and ask him to strengthen the defense of Taiyuan, replace the generals, or even offer to go to Taiyuan in person to replace the King of Qi."

Li Shimin shook his head. He knew that even if he proposed it, the emperor would not agree. Otherwise, he would not be in such a situation now.

"Don't be discouraged, Your Majesty. You must submit a petition if necessary. If His Majesty doesn't listen, there's no need to worry. If you don't need it this time, you will definitely need it next time."

"Are you saying that Taiyuan will definitely fall?"

"Definitely."

"Taiyuan is the birthplace of the Tang Dynasty. We must not lose it. Can't we protect it?"

"Of course we can protect it, but if Your Majesty doesn't use the King and refuses to replace the King of Qi, then we are doomed to lose."

Li Shimin gritted his teeth and clenched his fists.

"So many soldiers, so much food, so much equipment, how could they be lost?"

Zhangsun Wuji asked, "If the King of Qi loses Taiyuan, will Your Majesty allow the King of Qin to lead the war?"

"No, not necessarily. I think it is more likely that Prime Minister Pei will be sent to lead the army, and then several experienced generals will be transferred to follow the expedition. However, Prime Minister Pei is not good at military affairs, and he probably cannot stop Song Jingang, Yuchi Jingde and others." Li Yi said. What he said were all things that happened in history.

Fang Xuanling couldn't help but frown, "Taiyuan was lost, and yet Your Majesty didn't let the Prince of Qin take command, but instead let Pei Jian take charge?"

"It's very likely." Du Ruhui supported Li Yi's opinion.

"Then there's nothing we can do?" Li Shimin asked unwillingly.

"Everything depends on the saint," Li Yi said.

Li Shimin sighed. Li Yi understood people's hearts. After the last battle in Longyou, Li Shimin had also understood a little bit.

"If Yuanji loses Taiyuan and Pei Ji is defeated again, then Hedong will be completely lost. How can the situation be reversed then?"

"Then it will depend on the king to take action and turn the tide."

Li Shimin was worried, and Fat Wuji comforted him, "Wuyi may not be right. I think the opposite of him. Taiyuan City is strong and will not be lost.
Even if it was lost, Your Majesty would not send Prime Minister Pei to lead the troops."

As Changsun Wuji said this, he wanted to make a bet with Li Yi.

"Wuyi, do you dare to bet with me?"

"What does Lord Changsun want to bet on?"

"Let's bet on whether Taiyuan City can hold on!"

Li Yi smiled and said, "What's the stakes?"

"If I lose, I'll give you a silk shop in the East and West Markets of Chang'an. If you lose, all these preserved goods will belong to me! Do you dare?"

"Why not? It's a deal." Li Yi said.

"I'll add a lucky charm," Li Shimin took off a gold knife from his belt and threw it on the table.

"Which side is the king betting on?"

Li Shimin said, "I won't bet on either side. I'm just going to give you some extra spice. Whoever wins will get this golden knife."

There were hurried footsteps outside, and a guard from the Prince of Qin's Mansion arrived and handed Li Shimin a letter.

After reading it, Li Shimin said, "Come back another day to taste Wuyi's cured meat. I have to return to the capital immediately."

(End of this chapter)