Tang Dynasty: A Guide to Avoiding Pitfalls for Li Er at the Start

Chapter 83 He did indeed commit a grave offense of disrespect.
"Arrangements? Your Highness, perhaps you shouldn't make any arrangements."

Wen He was taken aback; he knew Li Er would definitely not let him go.

They will definitely find a way to exploit him.

He truly did not want to take up an official post, at least not before his coming-of-age ceremony.

However, Li Shimin would definitely not let him be the leader. First of all, he was only ten years old, too young to command respect.

Secondly, Wen He's identity is too sensitive.

If the future crown prince's teacher does such a shady thing, he will inevitably be criticized.

What do you think of Xu Jingzong?

"Who?" Wen He was taken aback. He hadn't expected Li Shimin to suddenly mention the treacherous minister Xu.

But he quickly realized: "You mean to send Xu Jingzong?"

"Hmm, Xu Yanzu is cunning yet loyal, good at reading people, and also has the characteristics of a villain. He is indeed a hawk."

"Fly? Oh, eagle, you mean Zhi Du? You know what, he does look a bit like him, but the latter was a cruel official, while Xu Jingzong was at most a treacherous minister."

Li Shimin's comparison of Xu Jingzong to Zhi Du was somewhat insulting.

Zhi Du was a notorious cruel official in the Western Han Dynasty. He was strict in enforcing the law and did not spare the imperial relatives and powerful figures. He was known as "the Falcon".

Later, he offended Empress Dowager Dou and was imprisoned and executed.

But Zhi Du is a fairly upright person.

Xu Jingzong, according to historical records, was greedy and lustful, an absolute treacherous minister.

"Oh? A treacherous minister?" A hint of coldness flashed in Li Shimin's eyes.

Although he did not give Xu Jingzong a high position after he entered the Prince of Qin's mansion, he thought that Xu was too young and would be promoted later.

Judging from Wen He's words, it seems that Xu Jingzong cannot be used.

"Calling him a treacherous minister is just a view of later generations. In fact, there are many reasons why Xu Jingzong became like that. Isn't there a man in the court named Ouyang Xun? I heard he was ugly?" Wen He asked.

Li Shimin seemed to have thought of something and coughed lightly without realizing it: "You mustn't make up such stories. Although his rank is lower than yours, he is still a Taichang Doctor."

Seeing him trying to suppress a laugh, Wen He rolled her eyes at him speechlessly.

This is clearly because she was thinking of Ouyang Xun's appearance and couldn't hold back anymore.

He ignored him and continued speaking.

“I didn’t make this up. It was Xu Jingzong who couldn’t help but laugh when he saw him at Empress Zhangsun’s funeral. He was impeached by the censor, and then you demoted him to the position of Sima of the Hongzhou Governor’s Office. Later, although he was promoted to the position of Attendant Censor, he was only doing miscellaneous tasks such as compiling the national history.”

“What trivial matters? Compiling the national history is also an important matter, but Xu Jingzong is…” Li Shimin hesitated to continue when he mentioned the funeral of Empress Zhangsun.

He simply couldn't imagine the day his bedmate would leave him.

He let out a long sigh before continuing.

"He has indeed committed a grave offense of disrespect."

"So, he later resorted to any means to get promoted, but he was still very loyal, at least to your son and your daughter-in-law."

After Wen He finished speaking, she immediately moved a few steps behind her.

Li Shimin indeed looked up at him, his hand already raised the heel rest beside him.

"You bastard."

"I'm just talking about what's recorded in later generations, don't be angry, it's not worth getting sick from it," Wen He said with a smile.

Li Shimin snorted softly, casually put the heel rest aside, let out a long sigh, and then suddenly thought of something and laughed as well.

"Since you know this treacherous minister so well, how about I let you assist him?"

"Your Highness, do you want to kill me?" Wen He suddenly stopped smiling and looked at Li Shimin seriously.

His sudden change of heart surprised the latter.

Li Shimin seemed surprised that Wen He would ask that question.

The two looked at each other for a long time before Li Shimin broke the silence with a smile.

"I will not kill you. Even if I die before you, I will leave you to Gao Ming."

“The Tang Dynasty needs you. I know there are things that can make the Tang Dynasty strong in the future. If you don’t speak up, it means the time is not right. If you don’t do it, it means you have some concerns.”

His expression was unusually serious.

Wen He didn't know if he was telling the truth or not, but at least for the moment he had to pretend to believe him.

"I will give you time, and Gao Ming will also give you time." "Your Highness."

Wen He stood up, supporting himself on the table. He took a deep breath and looked at Li Shimin, saying, "I also want the Tang Dynasty to be strong, at least to avoid such a dark era in the future."

"The Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, Your Highness, do you know that this was an era even worse than the Five Barbarian Invasions? Right after the fall of the Tang Dynasty, the world was in chaos, and people were eating each other; those people were like beasts."

Li Shimin was stunned.

He knew that the Tang Dynasty would perish, as Wen He had said before.

But he never expected that after the fall of the Tang Dynasty, it would repeat the mistakes of the Jin Dynasty.

He suddenly felt a little dizzy, staggered a few steps, and was supported by Wen He.

He covered his forehead and it took him a while to recover.

"I know."

Li Shimin nodded heavily, then suddenly grabbed Wen He's shoulder.

"I promise you today that as long as you do not betray the Tang Dynasty, I will protect the Wen family and ensure the country's survival. I do not wish for the world to suffer again."

Although it was only a verbal promise, it was already a great honor for a subject.

Although Wen He only believed half of what he said, she still bowed deeply to Li Shimin.

"Your Highness, I will certainly use all my knowledge to assist you."

Li Shimin helped him up and patted him on the shoulder with a smile.

"In a couple of days, I will have Xu Jingzong come to find you. Let's keep the name Hundred Riders."

"promise."

This was the first time Wen He had bowed to him as a subject.

Li Shimin secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

This brat has finally been subdued by me.

Little did he know, Wen He was also relieved: "Li Er has finally let his guard down around me."

The two, each with their own thoughts, exchanged a glance and then smiled.

Li Shimin then ordered a meal to be prepared.

Li Chengqian, Li Ke, and Li Tai, the three little ones, were also summoned.

As they ate, they watched with trepidation and envy as Wen He and Li Shimin chatted and laughed.

"Sir, you truly are worthy of the title." Li Chengqian expressed his sincere admiration.

Li Tai lay on the table, snorting indignantly, but inwardly he had already given up.

"I absolutely must not offend him in the future, otherwise Father will definitely beat me again."

On the other side, Li Ke remained calm and took out a box from his sleeve. He opened it and found a lifelike sugar figurine inside.

He turned to look at Wen He, hesitated for a moment, then closed the wooden box and tucked it into his sleeve.

"There's plenty of time in the future."

Neither Wen He nor Li Shimin noticed the expressions on the three children's faces.

The two were discussing matters concerning the Ministry of Works.

"The seed drill you drew before has already been built by Yan Liben and his team. They're just waiting to test it during the summer planting season. And what about the composting you mentioned? I think we can start now?"

Li Shimin really didn't give him any free time at all.

Wen He pouted: "Your Highness, young people shouldn't work too hard, or they'll age prematurely. You just said you'd give me time."

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin laughed and scolded, "You lazy brat, this is related to people's livelihood. You are not allowed to be lazy. If the output can be increased by even one bushel next year, I will give you a huge gift."

"Really? What is it?"

The gift that Li Shimin gave must have been priceless.

Wen He couldn't help but feel excited, but Li Shimin kept her in suspense.

"In your words, it's a secret."

(PS: Yes, it was Li Shimin who kept it a secret, it has nothing to do with the author.)
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(End of this chapter)