In my dream of returning to the Tang Dynasty, I snatched Wu Zetian from my lap.

The next day.

After the rain, a magnificent rainbow rose in the sky above Liangzhou.

Li Yuanchang, dressed in a black python robe, stood tall and imposing, appearing at the Liangzhou Prefecture government office.

His every step he took inside exuded a powerful sense of oppression.

"Your subject greets Your Highness, the Prince of Han!"

The unified sound was deafening, startling the flock of birds in the trees outside the government office.

"Fellow colleagues, there's no need for formalities, please have a seat."

Li Yuanchang, with a flick of his sleeve, displayed an air of dominance despite being a newcomer to the world. This was a skill born from his second life and his experience of witnessing grand occasions.

The high-ranking officials of Liangzhou Prefecture all responded with "Yes," and then stood up and sat down.

Liangzhou Prefect Gao Shen smiled and said, "We were unaware that His Highness the Prince of Han had arrived in Liangzhou. We were unable to greet him yesterday, and we hope His Highness will forgive us."

"Yes, His Highness the Prince of Han has traveled a long way, and we have been unable to welcome him. We have truly failed to fulfill our duty as hosts."

Upon hearing this, Li Yuanchang smiled knowingly.

"Honoring as a host?"

"Lord Lee Ji, are you implying that I am merely a guest?"

"No, no, no!!"

"Your Highness, I had no such intention!" Li Zhi immediately explained, "Your Highness, what I meant was that we are people from Liangzhou, while the King of Han comes from Chang'an."

"It's just a literal geographical meaning."

The other officials nodded in agreement, smiling and trying to smooth things over.

Although he spoke sincerely, Li Yuanchang still understood the underlying meaning in his words.

You come from Chang'an, you don't know this place, you need us.

These linguistic tricks might work on an eighteen-year-old boy, but they wouldn't work on Li Yuanchang.

"Lord Li, please don't be nervous. Of course, I wouldn't misunderstand you."

"I came to Liangzhou to govern this place."

He emphasized the superior-subordinate relationship, which made many officials' eyes flicker and the atmosphere become slightly tense.

Then, he changed the subject and got straight to the point.

"I think it would be better if you gentlemen reported to me on the situation on the ground?"

Immediately, the officials in the hall exchanged glances, instantly becoming alert, as this gave them the feeling of being "inspected."

Almost everyone's eyes were drawn to the three highly respected officials at the front: Gao Shen, Li Zhi, and Lu Qi.

"Your Highness!" The eldest among them, Gao Shen, stepped forward, his hair white, but he was in high spirits.

"certainly."

"His Majesty has specially appointed His Highness to be stationed in Liangzhou. As his subordinates, we should naturally report to His Highness on the situation of the city, four counties, and thirty-one villages in Liangzhou."

"However, Your Highness."

Upon hearing this, Li Yuanchang smiled knowingly once again.

"As you know, the New Year is approaching, and the statistics from various departments such as the Treasury and the Military have not yet been submitted. According to past practice, each prefecture needs to send memorials and annual revenue to Chang'an before the Lantern Festival."

"Generally speaking, the six departments will complete their year-end statistics in December and transfer them to Chang'an."

"If the statistics are not completed, reporting the situation is as good as not reporting it at all."

"Your Highness, please grant us some time to prepare a more detailed report for your review."

The six departments are: the Department of Merit, the Department of Granary, the Department of Household Registration, the Department of Military Affairs, the Department of Justice, and the Department of Civil Service.

These six departments were essentially the same as the Six Ministries of Chang'an, only at a much lower level, being just one of the departments in one of the hundreds of prefectures in the Tang Dynasty.

"December?"

"It's only the eighth day of the eleventh month today," Li Yuanchang said indifferently, though he was displeased.

It takes a whole month to prepare just to report on something. How could someone get pregnant in the middle of the night? I wonder what those account books have been altered to.

"Your Highness, that is indeed the case."

"As you know, Liangzhou is different from big cities like Chang'an and Luoyang. The annual tax revenue is limited, and they dare not support too many people, so their efficiency is indeed not high."

"I submitted a memorial to the Ministry of Revenue last year requesting a grant, but we haven't received a reply yet," said Chief Secretary Li Zhi with a worried expression.

"Yeah yeah!"

Immediately following, a large group of officials began to complain.

After a brief exchange, Li Yuanchang realized that the Liangzhou officialdom was basically led by these three old men.

They seemed to have discussed it beforehand and were working together towards a common goal.

"Enough!" Li Yuanchang, too lazy to listen anymore, shouted in a low voice.

Immediately, the entire audience fell silent, bowing their heads and clasping their hands in unison.

"Since there's no overall situation, surely there must be some localized issues, like those from the first half of the year?"

"Bring over the records and account books of the six departments of Liangzhou City!" Li Yuanchang said.

The three men exchanged glances, and then sent out a minor official.

"Your Highness, burn it, burn it."

"Burned?!" Li Yuanchang's voice rose.

The minor official knelt down with a thud and cried, "Your Highness, it's absolutely true. A fire not long ago burned down the warehouse, and some past files were also destroyed."

"We are working hard to rewrite the files. Each county has backups, but it will take some time to verify them before we can complete the files."

Li Yuanchang laughed in anger, his sharp gaze sweeping over Gao Shen and the other two.

The three of them kept their eyes down, seemingly oblivious to the world around them, as if it were none of their business.

"Good, very good!"

"This fire could have been started earlier or later, but it happened right before I arrived. It seems my fate isn't strong enough!"

Gao Shen and his two companions immediately took the lead in kneeling down, and the other officials followed suit, all weeping and pleading.

"Your Highness, I had absolutely no such intention!"

"The fire was an accident, and we didn't want it to happen either."

"If we are guilty, we are willing to bear the full responsibility."

"I hope Your Highness can calm down."

"That's right, Your Highness, please calm your anger!" All the officials bowed and pleaded, seemingly united in their resolve.

"presumptuous!"

"You are all united against His Highness!" Wang Hongzhi angrily rebuked.

The guards of the Imperial Guard drew their swords in unison, the sounds of their blades clashing echoing.

In an instant, the government office was shaken, and everyone was in danger.

"Your Highness, what is this all about?"

"We have absolutely not deceived our superiors or concealed anything from our subordinates!"

"..."

Li Yuanchang's eyes were icy cold; this was a united front against him!

Even if he were naive, he couldn't possibly believe that the burning of all the files in an entire prefecture was an accident, especially considering the situation in Liangzhou.

But he couldn't just kill these people; if he did, he, the King of Han, would have no authority whatsoever in Liangzhou.

Only acts of rebellion, which are equivalent to counterterrorism, do not require evidence; however, local governance still requires evidence.

Otherwise, no sooner had Li Yuanchang committed this killing than a memorial appeared in the Liangyi Hall of Chang'an accusing him of indiscriminate killing of innocent people and tyrannical governance.

If this matter falls into Li Tai's hands, even a slight push could lead to his own utter ruin.

Li Yuanchang took a deep breath and, with utmost composure, calmly said, "Why draw a knife in the main hall?"

"Since it's already been burned, then let it be burned."

Guo Chao had no choice but to lead his men to sheathe their weapons and retreat.

The clash of swords in the hall dissipated, and the dozens of Liangzhou officials finally breathed a sigh of relief.

However, they clearly underestimated Li Yuanchang's methods and his determination to make a name for himself as a new official.

"By the way, has the magistrate of Yangping County arrived today?" he suddenly changed the subject.