My cultivation disguise has been exposed by Xiao Sizi.

Since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, who among the court officials did not know the special significance of this title? Before the current emperor ascended the throne, he was the Prince of Qin!

Bestowing this title upon a sixteenth prince who was originally virtually invisible is like dropping a thunderbolt into the court!

Moreover, even the former residence of the retired emperor was bestowed upon him—what an extraordinary favor!

"What? Didn't you hear what I said?!" Li Shimin's face darkened when he saw Wang De staring blankly.

"This old servant obeys! This old servant will go and do it right away!" Wang De trembled with fear and scrambled off to deliver the decree.

……

Within two days.

The news that the sixteenth prince of the Tang Dynasty was enfeoffed as the Prince of Qin and bestowed with the largest mansion in Chang'an spread like wildfire throughout the entire city.

All the civil and military officials in the court were dumbfounded.

Prince Wei, Li Tai, has just been imprisoned, and Crown Prince Li Chengqian has recently undergone a drastic change in temperament, spending his days shirtless in the Eastern Palace practicing weightlifting, turning into a complete rogue soldier.

Now another Qin king, Li Chen, has emerged with no real power base.

Everyone felt that the waters of the Tang Dynasty were getting increasingly murky.

However, Li Chen didn't care about the outside noise at all.

Five days later, late at night.

Inside the massive royal palace, covering hundreds of acres, located north of the East Market of Chang'an City.

The craftsmen from the Ministry of Works had already completed the main renovations during the day, and the palace was now deserted.

A semi-transparent figure, like a banished immortal, floated silently in the night sky directly above the Prince's Palace.

Li Chen, dressed in a blue robe, fluttered in the night wind.

He looked down at the enormous mansion beneath his feet, a glint of shrewdness flashing in his eyes.

"The place is big enough, but it's too full of worldly, frivolous, and filthy air."

Li Chen touched his chin.

He patted the storage bag at his waist with his right hand.

"Swish, swish, swish!"

Dozens of mid-grade spirit stones radiating rich spiritual energy, along with several pieces of century-old jade marrow engraved with intricate runes, shot out instantly and hovered quietly around his body.

"rise!"

Li Chen's hands moved swiftly, forming hand seals, his fingertips leaving behind trails of dark golden afterimages.

The suspended spirit stones and chalcedony seemed to be drawn by some invisible force, transforming into dozens of streams of light that shot precisely into various locations below the palace.

At the base of the artificial hill, in the center of the lake, on the crossbeams of the main hall, at the roots of the ancient trees in the backyard...

With each spirit stone placed in its place, the ground of the palace would tremble slightly.

"Spirit Gathering Array, complete!"

Li Chen gave a low shout and pressed his hands down sharply.

Om-!

A huge, semi-transparent light shield instantly enveloped the entire palace, then quickly disappeared into the air.

The spiritual energy of heaven and earth within a ten-mile radius seemed to be summoned by some powerful force, and began to converge madly towards this royal palace.

The air inside the palace was visibly moist and fresh.

Those withered and yellowed leaves miraculously regained their vibrant green color and vitality in the short time it takes for an incense stick to burn.

In the dried-up pond, groundwater gushed out, and a faint white mist even rose from the surface.

This is not over yet.

Li Chen once again took out several small black array flags from his storage bag.

"Near the capital, there are bound to be some oblivious flies that bother people."

He sneered and threw several battle flags toward the outer wall of the Prince's Palace.

"Illusionary Array, Conceal!"

The battle flags took root on the ground, turning into wisps of black smoke that blended into the corner of the wall.

An invisible and intangible barrier instantly appeared around the entire palace. Anyone with malicious intent or attempting to scale the wall without permission would be trapped in an endless maze of illusions the moment they stepped into this area, until they collapsed from exhaustion.

After doing all this, Li Chen clapped his hands.

He felt the spiritual energy gradually filling the palace and nodded in satisfaction.

"Now, at least we have a decent villa."

Here, he can not only use his spiritual energy to cleanse and refine Xiao Sizi's marrow every day, but also pursue the coveted Golden Core Path without any scruples.

……

Two days later.

The Qin Prince's Mansion of the Tang Dynasty has officially been opened and occupied.

There was no lavish banquet, nor were any officials invited.

A luxurious carriage, escorted by more than a dozen Imperial Guards, discreetly stopped at the gate of the Prince of Qin's residence.

Li Chen, dressed in a brand-new moon-white brocade robe, took Xiao Sizi's hand and stepped down from the carriage.

The little girl was dressed exceptionally beautifully today, with two small buns in her hair and tightly clutching the ice crystal staff that Li Chen had made for her.

"Wow--!"

As soon as she stepped through the gates of the Prince's mansion, Xiao Sizi let out a startling cry.

It was already late autumn outside, and people in Chang'an were wearing thick autumn clothes on the streets.

But as soon as he stepped into the Prince of Qin's mansion...

What greeted us was a warm and gentle breeze, like that of early spring.

The air is filled with a faint fragrance of flowers and the fresh scent of grass and trees. Taking a breath, you feel completely refreshed.

The precious flowers in the courtyard were blooming in a riot of color, defying the natural order of the seasons.

"Sixteenth Brother! It's so cool here! And there are so many flowers!"

Little Sizi excitedly broke free from Li Chen's hand and ran around in the spacious courtyard like a frolicking little rabbit.

She ran to a cluster of blooming peonies, took a deep breath, and her little face was full of delight.

"This is so much more comfortable than the palace! I want to live here from now on!"

Li Chen smiled and shook his head, not stopping the little girl from running around wildly.

In this mansion filled with spirit-gathering arrays, even if Xiao Sizi just sleeps and breathes here, the abundant spiritual energy will subtly nourish her meridians.

Just then.

A heavy thud of hooves echoed outside the gates of the Prince's Mansion.

A magnificent black horse stopped at the door.

Immediately, a burly man with muscles that made his brocade robe bulge out jumped down.

He is now known as Li Chengqian.

Without waiting for the doorman to announce his arrival, he casually stepped over the threshold and walked in.

"Sixteenth brother! Why didn't you tell your elder brother about your housewarming?"

Li Chengqian walked over laughing, carrying two jars of fine wine from the Western Regions sealed with mud.

As soon as he entered the courtyard, Li Chengqian was stunned.

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath of the air in the courtyard, and showed an expression of utter rapture on his face.

"My God..."

Li Chengqian opened his eyes, looking incredulously at the vibrant scenery around him, and then felt the refreshing sensation of his pores opening up.

"Sixteenth Brother, have you brought a celestial abode to Chang'an City?!"

Li Chen walked over and unceremoniously took the two jars of wine from his hands.

"Don't make a fuss. What, you don't have any official duties to attend to at the Crown Prince's Palace, so you're here to slack off this early in the morning?"

Li Chengqian walked to the stone table in the courtyard without any hesitation, sat down, grabbed a piece of washed fruit from the table, and took a big bite.

"Don't even mention it. Those pedantic scholars now avoid me like mice avoid a cat. My father has been busy preparing the army for war against the Turks these past few days and has no time to care about me at all."

Li Chengqian ate fruit, but his eyes darted around every corner of the palace, as if he were looking at a rare treasure.

He slapped his thigh and looked at Li Chen with excitement.

"Sixteenth brother! Let's make a deal!"

"From today onwards, I'll move into this side courtyard of your palace. That desolate place, the Eastern Palace, is cold and unwelcoming; it's not even as nice as a blade of grass here!"

Looking at the muscular prince who was stubbornly refusing to leave, Li Chen rolled his eyes in disgust.

"The rent is one hundred taels of gold per day, and no credit is allowed."

Just as the two brothers were arguing.

The undercurrents in Chang'an City began to stir quietly because of this unusual Qin Prince's mansion.

In late autumn, when all the flowers were in full bloom, the unusual nature of this mansion could not escape the notice of the powerful and influential families in Chang'an.

Countless eyes hidden in the shadows have already set their sights on this mysterious mansion.

As night falls, many uninvited guests are bound to come and try to find out the true strength of this newly powerful Prince Qin of the Tang Dynasty.