Prince Li You of the Great Tang Dynasty begs the noble families to their deaths!

To be honest, although the Zhenguan era was very famous, the total population of the country during that period was not very large.

The entire country had a population of only 1800 million, and that was after the population growth that followed the chaos at the end of the Sui Dynasty.

With a small population, the amount of tax collected was also small, resulting in a small number of soldiers to be supported by the state. Therefore, the Tang Dynasty did not have a large military force when waging war against foreign countries, and often had to rely on the Pu Cong Army of the Pu Cong State.

Despite these inherent disadvantages, the Tang army achieved remarkable victories during the Zhenguan era, a feat that can be considered a miracle in classical warfare history.

No matter how miraculous the event, when a country uses military force, it must always proceed from a practical standpoint.

Food supplies, military provisions, weapons, warhorses, and ships all require money to support them.

In preparation for the coming year's campaign, Li Shimin summoned several key ministers to discuss countermeasures.

"This year's taxes have all been collected, and my rough estimate is that they can barely support the war against Goguryeo. My ministers, I have decided to increase taxes next year. Is this feasible?"

Changsun Wuji said, "If there is no severe drought in Guanzhong next year, increasing taxes by 30% should be feasible."

The implication is that if another drought occurs in Guanzhong next year, taxes must not be increased.

This can be considered a form of reverse advice.

Ma Zhou was far less optimistic: "Thirty percent is too much. In my opinion, Guanzhong can only increase by one to two percent."

Li Shimin nodded slightly in agreement.

Guanzhong is the area surrounding the capital, and all sorts of situations are right before our eyes. We can see them clearly once we ride out of Chang'an.

During the severe drought this year, Li Shimin personally visited the disaster-stricken areas, so he knew about the situation in Guanzhong.

"That's it for Guanzhong. What about Shandong?"

Fang Xuanling laid out the changes in Shandong in detail, and concluded: "Your Majesty, this year's taxes in Shandong have increased by a full 50% compared to last year. This is already the limit for Shandong, and it must not be increased any further. If taxes are forcibly imposed, it is highly likely to incite another popular uprising."

Lao Fang has been paying close attention to changes in public sentiment in Shandong recently, and he has keenly sensed a certain danger.

The saying "The aristocratic families are guilty, but their rebellion is justified," along with the land they were suddenly allocated, genuinely impacted many people in Shandong.

Fortunately, King Qi died early, and the unrest in Shandong was quelled in time, which prevented this year's tax revenue from being affected; in fact, it was even worse. It can be said that a bad thing turned into a good thing.

The value of King Qi's position continues to rise.

Li Shimin had already received Fang Xuanling's report on the matter and understood the intricacies involved.

"Very well, next year's taxes in Shandong will be collected based on this year's figures."

"The only places where taxes can be increased are Hebei, Jiannan Road, and Jiangnan Road."

The courtiers agreed with the emperor's judgment.

"Your Ministry of Revenue and Ministry of War should meet to discuss the specific figures for next year's levies and additional contributions."

"Furthermore, the expedition against Goguryeo requires the construction of large ships, and the Ministry of Works must also provide a proper plan for this matter."

The reason Li Shimin mentioned the navy was because Goguryeo occupied the Liaodong Peninsula, which was only 300 li away from Laizhou on the Shandong Peninsula in a straight line.

If this journey were undertaken by land, it would involve a significant detour, making it too costly. The best approach would be a combined land and sea voyage, with the navy capable of both transporting supplies and directly penetrating the heart of Goguryeo's Liaodong territory. If successful, this would be an absolute game-changer.

Li Shimin assigned the tasks one by one.

Under the coordination of important ministers such as Fang Xuanling, Changsun Wuji, and Ma Zhou, officials from the Ministry of Works, Ministry of Revenue, and Ministry of War, as well as the other three ministries, also got busy cooperating in the war against foreign aggression the following year.

Amidst the hustle and bustle, the Lunar New Year quietly arrives.

As the old year drew to a close amidst the crackling of firecrackers, the eventful seventeenth year of the Zhenguan era finally came to an end.

……

After Li Shimin moved to Daming Palace, the imperial city became much quieter.

Nevertheless, the New Year still needs to be celebrated.

Eunuchs and palace maids began preparing items such as peach wood charms, Tusu wine, firecrackers, charcoal, and a five-spice dish. These were all essential for the New Year. Peach wood charms were hung on the door to ward off evil spirits; charcoal was placed in a brazier, and on New Year's Eve, everyone would sit around the brazier to await the arrival of the New Year.

When King Li Ke of Wu entered the palace, this was the bustling scene he saw.

He came to the palace to visit his mother, Consort Yang, and his brother, Li Yin, whom he hadn't seen for quite some time. They all gathered together to celebrate the Lunar New Year's Eve.

Consort Yang bore two children for the emperor: Li Ke, the third son, and Li Yin, the sixth son. At that time, Li Yin was enfeoffed in Qizhou (present-day Fengxiang, Shaanxi). Although it was not far from Chang'an, he could only return to the capital to reunite with his elder brother and mother during festivals.

When Li Ke entered Xingqing Palace, Consort Yang was serving food to her youngest son.

"Ke'er, come quickly! There's a freshly made five-spice platter and some snacks!"

The so-called Five Spicy Dishes, also known as the Spring Festival Platter, is a special food for the Spring Festival made by the ancients using garlic, shallots, chives, seaweed, coriander, and other auxiliary ingredients. Its spicy flavor is a homonym for "new," symbolizing the new year.

Upon seeing his elder brother arrive, Li Yin was extremely excited. He leaped into the air and threw a punch.

Li Ke raised his left arm to block and used his right hand to counter-attack, and the two brothers began to spar in the hall.

Consort Yang feigned anger and said, "What are you doing? What are you doing? Can't we just have a peaceful New Year?"

Seeing that their mother had spoken, the two brothers stopped there.

"You little rascal, you've gotten quite a bit stronger."

"Haha, that's because I practiced so much."

"You don't even know how to be careful, and you've already been reprimanded by the Emperor, who has reduced your fiefdom by half."

"It's all that stinking official surnamed Liu's fault! He's always writing memorials, badmouthing me!"

"How can you talk like that? Liu Zuiben is still your teacher, so show some respect in the future."

It turned out that when Li Yin was in Fengxiang, he frequently indulged in excessive hunting and fighting, which led to several impeachments from Liu Zuiben, the chief secretary responsible for disciplining him. Emperor Taizong repeatedly reprimanded him, but he remained unrepentant. Finally, Taizong angrily rebuked him, saying, "Beasts can be tamed and subdued; iron and stone can be carved into tools. But is Li Yin even as good as beasts or iron and stone?"

When Li Shimin scolded his son, he used quite vulgar language.

Consort Yang said, "It's just that your father isn't returning to the capital this year. If he were to run into you, he would definitely give you a good beating."

Li Yin smiled and said, "I only dared to come here for the New Year because I found out that my father was staying at the Daming Palace. If my father were here, the New Year would be so boring!"

Consort Yang thought about it again and realized that it made sense.

In previous years, when the emperor was alive, every action was governed by rules, and although there were more people, there was always some restraint.

Now that the concubines and palace maids celebrate their own festivals, they can at least exchange a few more words with their own families.

"Brother, now that the Crown Prince has lost power, only the Prince of Shu is left to compete with you for the throne. Do you think your chances are good?"

"You rascal, you're getting more and more unruly! Even food can't shut you up!"

Seeing that her youngest son's remarks were somewhat dangerous, Consort Yang once again spoke up to stop him.

"Okay, okay, I won't ask anymore, I won't ask anymore..."