Deposed? I couldn't be happier! I wouldn't even be a dog to the crown prince.

Li Chengqian's lazy voice was like a bucket of cold water drawn from a well, poured directly from the top of Li Shimin's head to his heels.

Li Shimin, who had just been feeling somewhat elated by the praise of his ministers, was instantly brought back to reality.

He looked at his rebellious son, who was clutching a golden abacus and had an expression that said, "I'm here to cause trouble," and his lips twitched wildly.

"Chengqian, what brings you here?"

Li Shimin forced a smile, trying to maintain his image as a benevolent father. "How can such a commotion be allowed in the court?"

"Father, what are you saying?"

Li Chengqian walked to the center of the main hall, found an open space, and put the golden abacus in his hand on the ground with a crisp "snap," which startled several timid civil officials nearby.

"As the Crown Prince Regent, shouldn't I have the right to inquire about the financial situation of the Tang Dynasty?"

He squatted down and began to fiddle with the abacus beads with a practiced ease, like the most shrewd old accountant in Chang'an.

"I overheard something at the door just now, and it seems Your Majesty is planning a large-scale 'team building' trip to Mount Tai, and maybe even brag to the heavens?"

"What do you mean by bragging!" Li Shimin blushed. "That's called the Fengshan ceremony! It's a sacrifice to Heaven and Earth, a display of national power!"

"Okay, okay, whatever you say."

Li Chengqian nodded perfunctorily, but his hands didn't stop moving. "Then let's calculate how much it will cost you to 'showcase national power' this time."

"Minister Dai, please stop crying. Come here and help me keep track of the numbers."

At this moment, Minister of Revenue Dai Zhou seemed to have found his pillar of support. He scrambled over to Li Chengqian's side, pulled out his notebook, and began to take notes.

"From Chang'an to Mount Tai, it's thousands of miles round trip. Building roads and bridges—let's say one million strings of cash for that cost, is that too much to ask?"

"When His Majesty goes on an inspection tour, with his entourage, imperial guards, civil and military officials, and attendants, numbering in the tens of thousands, the cost of food, drink, and shelter for the entire journey should easily amount to 500,000 strings of cash, right?"

"When we get to Mount Tai, the sacrificial animals, livestock, gold, silver, and jade artifacts used for the Heaven and Earth offerings must all be top-of-the-line. Afterwards, we need to grant a general amnesty, reward the officials, and win over the hearts of the people. Let's estimate this expense at at least a million strings of cash, right?"

"Crackling and popping..."

The abacus beads rattled like popping beans.

With each number Li Chengqian reported, Li Shimin's face paled a little more.

Those ministers who had been clamoring for the Fengshan ceremony just moments before now fell silent, each bowing their heads to count the ants at their feet, pretending they didn't exist.

They were so focused on following the emperor around and enjoying the limelight that they didn't even consider the costs involved.

"I'm done calculating."

Li Chengqian pushed the abacus beads aside, looked up, and gave Li Shimin an innocent smile.

"Father, congratulations. Your trip to Mount Tai is budgeted at least three million strings of cash, with no upper limit."

"Three...three million strings of cash?!"

Li Shimin gasped, feeling his heart clench.

He knew that the Fengshan ceremony was expensive, but he didn't expect it to be this expensive!

"Yes," Li Chengqian nodded. "Now the problem is, where's the money?"

"Minister Dai, please tell Father Emperor, how much wealth does our Great Tang Dynasty currently possess?"

Upon hearing this, Dai Zhou's old face fell, and his hand holding the small notebook trembled.

"Reporting to Your Majesty..."

Dai Zhou's voice was barely audible, "Last time we confiscated the property of five prominent families and seven noble clans, obtaining a total of approximately five million strings of cash. But..."

"But what? Speak quickly!" Li Shimin urged.

"However, the reward for the three armies in the Battle of Wei River cost 500,000 strings of cash; although General Bai did not ask for military funds when suppressing the rebellion in Youzhou, he spent another 300,000 strings of cash to comfort the families of the fallen soldiers and rebuild the city defenses."

"Furthermore, His Highness the Crown Prince's promotion of potatoes and fine salt involved huge upfront investments, including road construction, building workshops, and providing seed subsidies to the people... In total, it cost another 1.2 million guan."

"In addition to river repairs and disaster relief... the national treasury currently has less than two million strings of cash available for use."

Moreover, there was something Dai Zhou didn't dare to say.

Half of this money was Li Chengqian's "private stash" in the national treasury after the "70/30" split of the profits.

In other words, Li Shimin actually had less than one million strings of cash at his disposal.

To spend one million guan on a "party" costing over three million guan?

This isn't just putting on a brave face; it's smashing your face and stuffing a lump of iron inside!

Li Shimin sat on the dragon throne, feeling as if nails had grown under his buttocks, making him extremely uncomfortable.

The heroic ambition that had just been building, which claimed to surpass even the achievements of Qin Shi Huang and Emperor Wu of Han, deflated instantly, like a punctured balloon.

awkward.

It's so embarrassing.

The emperor publicly announced his intention to perform the Fengshan ceremony, only to discover he was penniless. If word got out, where would Li Erfeng put her face?

"Cough cough."

Li Shimin cleared his throat, trying to salvage some dignity. "Well... I was just making a suggestion. A suggestion is something we can discuss. Since the national treasury is tight, the matter of the Fengshan ceremony should be... discussed at length."

He was so embarrassed by what he said.

Li Chengqian was secretly delighted to see his father's stubborn pride causing him so much suffering, but he said it out loud with the tone of "I'm doing this for your own good."

"Father, I don't necessarily want to argue with you."

"We've just wiped out the main branches of the Five Clans and Seven Families in Chang'an, and our foundation isn't yet secure. Those scattered branches and vassal families all hate us to the core."

"If you were to empty the national treasury now to hold some kind of Fengshan ceremony, and the army were to leave, Chang'an would be left vulnerable. If they were to take the opportunity to stab us in the back, then things would get really messy."

These words served as a reminder to Li Shimin.

Yes.

Although those guys were severely weakened, they weren't all dead yet.

"Then what do you think should be done?" Li Shimin asked subconsciously.

"Simple."

Li Chengqian stood up, dusted himself off, and walked to the huge map.

His finger traced across the map, finally landing on the Shandong and Hebei region, where the powerful clans had the deepest roots.

"Father, don't you think our Tang Dynasty's treasury is still too small?"

"Every time something happens, I have to worry about money. It must be so frustrating to be an emperor."

Li Shimin nodded in deep agreement.

"Actually, the richest place in our Great Tang Dynasty is not the national treasury, nor is it my Eastern Palace."

Li Chengqian grinned, revealing a set of white teeth; his smile resembled that of a little fox ready to devour meat.

"But rather, those aristocratic families that are still barely clinging to life."

"We confiscated their property in Chang'an, but they still have hundreds of years of accumulated wealth hidden in their cellars back home."

"That's the real gold mine."

Li Shimin's eyes lit up instantly, and his breathing became rapid.

Yup!

How could I have forgotten about this!

Rather than waiting for them to come up with money to rebel, I'd rather strike first and turn their money into mine!

"You mean...?" Li Shimin asked tentatively.

"It doesn't mean anything."

Li Chengqian shrugged. "Your Majesty, I just feel that since they are so rich and so disobedient, keeping them around would only be a disaster. Perhaps..."

"To help them maintain a decent appearance?"

Li Shimin and Li Chengqian exchanged a glance, and both of them simultaneously revealed a malicious smile.

……

It was late at night.

Inside a secret manor outside Chang'an City, the lights were on.

This place was filled with managers from the collateral branches of several prominent families, including the Cui and Lu clans, who had fled from Chang'an. Each of them had a face etched with fear and resentment.

"We can't wait any longer! That brat Li Chengqian first cut off our grain supply, then our salt supply, and now he's even seized our money shops hidden in Chang'an!"

One of the Cui family stewards slammed his fist on the table. "If this continues, he'll ruin us all sooner or later!"

"That's right! That little bastard is the nemesis of our family! As long as he lives, we'll never have peace!"

An old man with a sinister face stood up, his eyes flashing with a crazed killing intent.

"Since he won't give us a way out, then we'll send him on his way first!"

"I propose that we gather the last remaining loyalists from each family and, at all costs, assassinate Crown Prince Li Chengqian!"

"Once he dies, the Tang Dynasty will be thrown into chaos! Only then will we have a chance to rise again!"

In the darkness, several pairs of sinister eyes exchanged a glance and issued a decree to kill the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty.

"Okay! Let's do it this way!"

"If Li Chengqian is not killed, the aristocratic families... will have no way to survive!"