My cultivation disguise has been exposed by Xiao Sizi.

Do they treat a prestigious, thousand-year-old family like weeds in their own backyard, to be harvested whenever they want?!

This robber's logic, this domineering attitude that transcends all rules, has completely shattered the worldview of these native Tang people!

"Hahaha! Brilliant! Sixteenth Brother, your words have hit the nail on the head!"

Crown Prince Li Chengqian suddenly burst into laughter, his face full of excitement.

His muscles were still throbbing with excitement as he waved his thick arms and exclaimed, "This is what they call 'A gentleman loves money, but acquires it in a proper way' from the 'Rules of Wisdom'!"

"The *Lunyu*? What kind of ancient book is that?"

Qin Qiong and Cheng Yaojin were completely bewildered. They had heard of Confucius's Analects, but the Crown Prince's words seemed to indicate something else entirely.

"You guys just don't understand, do you?"

Li Chengqian explained smugly, sounding exactly like a muscle-bound thug who had been led astray.

"My sixteenth brother taught me the saying, 'A gentleman loves wealth, but he acquires it in a proper way.' It means that if I, as a gentleman, desire your money, I will use force to carve out a path and take it openly and honestly!"

"That's called convincing people with reason (physics)!"

"puff--!"

Li Shimin stumbled and nearly fell headfirst into the snow. He looked at his former gentle and refined crown prince, who had now turned into a gangster boss obsessed with "physical exorcism," and was so angry that he almost had a stroke.

"You...you scoundrel! Is this how you interpret Confucius's words?!" Li Shimin glared, puffing out his beard.

Just then.

Little Sizi, who had been nestled obediently in Li Chen's arms with half a piece of pastry in her hand, suddenly raised her little hand excitedly.

"I know! I know!"

The little girl peeked out with her delicate, rosy face, and answered in a childish yet serious voice.

"Sixteenth Brother told Sizi this! What he meant was: I like money, so taking your money is perfectly reasonable!"

Quiet.

A deathly silence.

A cold wind blew across the long street.

Qin Qiong, Qin Huaidao, Cheng Yaojin, and even the usually gentle Qin Wan'er.

These top nobles of the Tang Dynasty looked at the innocent little princess with her big, blinking eyes, their minds buzzing, and their worldviews shattered into pieces.

"I like money, so taking your money makes sense..."

Qin Qiong muttered the same sentence to himself, his lips twitching wildly.

After a brief silence, a furious roar suddenly erupted from the quiet street.

"Li! Chen! You unfilial son—!"

Li Shimin's face instantly turned a deep liver color, the veins on his forehead throbbed, and his finger pointing at Li Chen trembled.

"You've turned your older brother into a living bandit who only knows about physical exorcisms! That's bad enough!"

"How old is Sizi?! You've even turned her into a robber! You've turned Confucius into a monster!"

"Old Deng, what are you yelling about?"

Li Chen not only wasn't guilty, but rolled his eyes and retorted confidently.

"I call this seeing through appearances to the essence! Powerful families spout benevolence and morality, but what they do behind the scenes is ruthless and cruel. It's better for me to teach Sizi the truth than for him to be misled by hypocritical morals later!"

"You still dare to argue?!" Li Shimin was so angry that he jumped up and down, rolling up his sleeves in a completely unrefined manner.

"What kind of princess goes out to rob? My Tang princess should be gentle and dignified! You're turning her into a bandit leader who rules the mountains!"

"Can gentleness and elegance put food on the table? In this dog-eat-dog world, might makes right and ruthlessness are the only true principles!"

Li Chen scoffed, then casually pinched Sizi's chubby little face. "Sizi, is what your sixteenth brother taught you correct?"

"Yes! Sixteenth Brother is the best!" Little Sizi didn't understand what the adults were arguing about at all, she just clapped her little hands happily and giggled in agreement.

"You...you! I'm going to whip you with the Emperor's Sword today!" Li Shimin was so angry that he looked around for his sword, only to find that he had just handed the Emperor's Sword to the Imperial Guards behind him.

"Come on, why don't you try one? Believe me or not, I'll go and tear down all the tiles in the Taiji Hall tomorrow and use them as darts!" Li Chen retorted without backing down.

"You unfilial son! I'm going to deduct a year's salary from your Qin Prince's residence!"

"Tch, who cares about your paltry sum? The assets the Cui family just lost are enough for me to live on for eight lifetimes. What, has the mighty Emperor of the Tang Dynasty gone mad with poverty, trying to rob his own son on the street?"

Watching the Tang emperor and a prince who was also an immortal, like street ruffians glaring at each other and arguing vehemently in the quiet snowy night...

Qin Qiong, Cheng Yaojin, Qin Wan'er, and the others standing to the side exchanged bewildered glances.

"Ahem..." Cheng Yaojin broke the awkward silence first, suddenly tilting his head back and pointing to the dark sky, exclaiming loudly, "Oh my! Uncle Bao, look, tonight's moon... it's so big and round!"

Qin Qiong's eye twitched. Looking at the swirling snow and thick dark clouds, he stroked his beard stiffly and agreed, "Zhijie is absolutely right. Not only is the moon round, but the snow scene on this long street is also extremely beautiful."

Crown Prince Li Chengqian, Qin Huaidao, and Qin Wan'er turned around in perfect unison and began to carefully study the snow patterns on the bluestone slabs by the roadside, as if they contained some unparalleled military strategy or martial arts manual.

On this long street amidst the wind and snow, the most powerful and influential generals of the Tang Dynasty turned their heads in unison, their backs to the bizarre father and son arguing incessantly, collectively choosing to pretend to be deaf and dumb, treating themselves as blind and deaf background figures.