Chapter 30: Constructing Roads, Visiting Li Yuan

A moment later…

Su Liang said nonchalantly, "I intend to build two major roads…"

Before Su Liang could finish, Li Shimin immediately laughed heartily, "Haha… my good son-in-law, if you want to build them, then build them; I won't stop you."

"I thought it was some major matter. The road from Taoyuan County to Changancheng is quite good. Don't just talk about two more—you can build as many as you like!!"

He then waved his hand grandly: "I approve!!"

Su Liang was speechless at this moment; Li Shimin had clearly been getting carried away lately.

Could he not just wait quietly for me to finish speaking?

After Li Shimin finished speaking…

A hint of a smile played on the corners of Su Liang's mouth as he looked at Li Shimin and asked, "Is Your Majesty certain?"

Empress Zhangsun felt a sense of foreboding upon hearing this. Since when did Su Liang need to consult with His Majesty to do things?

In the past, he would at most just send someone to notify His Majesty!

Just as she wanted to speak up to stop him, it was already too late…

Li Shimin's words had already fallen: "Certain, my word is law!!"

After saying this, he looked at Su Liang with a smile, wanting to hear exactly what kind of roads his good son-in-law wanted to build.

Su Liang chuckled upon hearing this, "Good, good, good… as long as Your Majesty agrees. The two roads I intend to build are…"

By now, Empress Zhangsun was already frowning, but she still patiently listened to what Su Liang had to say next.

"One road from Changancheng along the Yellow River all the way to Dengzhou in Shandong, and the other road from Youzhou through Qizhou to Yangzhou."

Once Su Liang finished speaking, Li Shimin's expression had already darkened.

The distance from Changancheng to Dengzhou was nearly three thousand li, and from Youzhou to Yangzhou was also a full two thousand li…

Li Shimin was completely stunned at this moment…

"This… this……"

Li Shimin could not utter a complete sentence for a long time.

Empress Zhangsun's expression was no better.

At this time, Princess Changle and Little Sizi were incomparably calm; the two did not speak or discuss it, as Su Liang had told them about a series of future plans long ago.

Until a quarter of an hour later.

Li Shimin looked at Su Liang with deep eyes and asked, "The roads my son-in-law wants to build, could they be the same as the road from Taoyuan County to Changancheng?"

"Six inches thick and four zhang wide?"

"Yes, they must be the same!" Su Liang affirmed immediately.

If you want to be rich, you must first build roads. If you are going to do it, do it well; there is no room for the slightest sloppiness. Moreover, this move is also to seek welfare for the people of the world.

Li Shimin received the answer from Su Liang and immediately fell into deep thought without a word.

Although building roads is beneficial to the people, to labor the people and waste wealth like this…

After a long time, Li Shimin slowly said, "My son-in-law, do you know that these two roads are a full five thousand li… not fifty li!!"

"Of course I know that, but some things must be done, just like when Yang Guang built the Grand Canal," Su Liang said lightly.

The Grand Canal has been flowing for over a thousand years, benefiting generation after generation of people, and it has also witnessed the long and winding history of China.

Su Liang also wants to do something similar, and he must do it!

Li Shimin fell into deep contemplation upon hearing this…

I do not know how much time passed before Li Shimin said in a deep voice, "My son-in-law, do you know how much labor is required?"

"When Yang Guang built the Grand Canal, he conscripted over three million slaves, criminals, and laborers."

"I fear your move, son-in-law, will be no less than that!"

Su Liang chuckled, "Why, didn't Your Majesty just agree?"

"Besides, building roads is much easier than digging a canal."

"Building roads is a policy that benefits the country and the people, so I will naturally agree, but the labor required…" Li Shimin left his sentence half-finished and immediately looked at Su Liang.

He could not help but think to himself: Could it be… could it be that Su Liang has some brilliant strategy?

Empress Zhangsun was also staring at Su Liang at this moment, waiting to see what else Su Liang could say.

Seeing that both were staring at him, Su Liang said to himself, "The roads built must ensure quality, just like the previous road."

"Six inches thick, four zhang wide, building four lanes."

"The eight-hundred-li official road from Changancheng to Luoyang is already in good condition; we can first build a two-zhang-wide asphalt road on the official road, and after that is finished, widen the official road to four zhang."

"This way, it will not hinder traffic, and transportation will be relatively convenient."

After hearing this, Li Shimin immediately said, "I remember clearly that the fifty-li road took twenty thousand people two months to complete."

"Then five thousand li… wouldn't that require five million people? This……"

Upon hearing this, Empress Zhangsun immediately rolled her eyes at Li Shimin and said, "Er-lang, it would be fine to extend the time!"

Little Sizi also giggled at this time, "Father, are you in such a hurry? The Great Tang only has twenty million people now."

"How could Brother Su let five million people go to build roads."

Little Sizi is ten years old this year and only 1.2 meters tall, a genuine little loli.

Su Liang dotingly hugged Little Sizi and then said lightly, "The Empress is right, the construction period can be longer… but the construction period can only be six months at most; it must be finished before the scorching summer."

After hearing this, Empress Zhangsun immediately said, "Even so, that still requires over 1.6 million people. I wonder how my son-in-law plans to arrange this?"

Su Liang waved his hand and said, "No matter… no matter, I have my own plans for this!"

"Weren't there five hundred thousand refugees last year? Among them, three hundred thousand are young and strong, and most of them are unwilling to return to their hometowns now."

"The eight-hundred-li road from Changancheng to Luoyang can be handed over to them; the road can be finished in over two months."

Li Shimin recalled it carefully and it was indeed so. It was really because the welfare in Su Liang's Taoyuan County was too good that the refugees did not want to go back, and Li Shimin found it hard to drive them away.

Just as Li Shimin was pondering to himself, Su Liang's voice came.

"As for the sections from Luoyang to Dengzhou and Qizhou to Chuzhou, let the people of Henan Circuit build them. As for the rest of the roads from Youzhou to Yangzhou, let the people of Hebei Circuit and Huainan Circuit build them."

"My son-in-law, even if those three hundred thousand people are busy and go to help elsewhere, there are still 1.3 million people missing…"

Li Shimin was puzzled; he did not know how Su Liang had arranged it.

Su Liang frowned slightly and then said, "Hasn't this year's spring plowing not started yet? Let the people of Hebei and Shandong not farm this year."

"Let them all go build roads."

"This… this……" Li Shimin was completely dumbfounded.

After thinking for a while, he slowly said, "Although the Great Tang now has the curved-shaft plow invented by my son-in-law, and the cultivated land area has greatly increased, not letting the people farm, this… this is really unjustifiable…"

"My son-in-law, you must give me a reason, otherwise I cannot explain it to the court officials."

Su Liang said lightly, "There will be a great drought in Hebei and Shandong this year, so why bother farming."

"Your Majesty should have people dig new branch canals around the Yongji Canal sooner."

Li Shimin immediately asked, "How does my son-in-law know there will be a great drought in Hebei and Shandong this year?"

Empress Zhangsun also followed up, "That's right, my son-in-law knows astronomy above and geography below; we all know this."

"Could it be that my son-in-law can even know things that will happen months from now?"

"Cuiwei Palace, Hanfeng Hall." Su Liang slowly spat out a few words.

There was no other way; he had to use his trump card.

Li Shimin and Empress Zhangsun were both shocked upon hearing this.

A cold sweat broke out on Li Shimin's back, while Empress Zhangsun tugged at her sleeve and clenched her little fists.

In the eighth year of Wude, when the Taihe Palace on Mount Zhongnan was built, Li Shimin, who was still the Prince of Qin at the time, and the Princess of Qin, Zhangsun Wugou, traveled together and discussed building a palace on Mount Zhongnan in the future. The palace was to be named Cuiwei Palace, and the sleeping hall was to be named Hanfeng Hall.

Only the two of them knew about this; absolutely no third person knew, but now this…

Both of them remained silent for a long time…

"Hehe…" Su Liang smiled faintly and then said, "Is this enough?"

"Father… Mother, you should just trust Brother Su." Little Sizi also chimed in at this time.

After dozens of breaths…

Li Shimin had already calmed his emotions and said, "I believe!!"

"It's just that this matter still cannot be explained to the court officials."

"If I tell the truth, the court officials will inevitably think that this was something you and I, father-in-law and son-in-law, conspired together."

Empress Zhangsun also spoke up at this moment, "That's right… my son-in-law, we must think of a proper way."

"Not only to let His Majesty explain it to the court officials, but also to stop the gossiping tongues of the world."

Hehe…

Li Shimin was passing the buck; it was clear he wanted him to handle it.

Su Liang also knew that although the road construction project was massive, if arranged properly, no one would have any objections; at worst, the time could be extended.

But not letting the people farm, as the Empress said, was indeed difficult to handle.

After deep thought, Su Liang said, "Yuan Tiangang and Li Chunfeng are currently living in seclusion on Mount Zhongnan outside Changancheng. Why doesn't Your Majesty send someone to ask them? To hear what they think?"

Su Liang did not believe that these two, who could even tinker with [redacted], could not figure out a mere drought.

After Su Liang finished speaking, he ignored the two and played with Little Sizi on his own.

No matter how Li Shimin asked, Su Liang just ignored him.

Another quarter of an hour later, they had arrived at the Da'an Palace.

Just as they entered the sleeping hall of the Da'an Palace, they saw Li Yuan playing chess with Wu Shiyue.

Su Liang could not help but think to himself: Li Yuan's closest person is indeed Wu Shiyue, who sponsored Li Yuan's rebellion, and not a group of old officials like Xiao Yu, Pei Ji, and Dai Zhou.

The Wu family had been officials and merchants for generations, and Wu Shiyue inherited the family's commercial genes and acumen, making his fortune in the timber business.

While participating in the construction of the Eastern Capital, Luoyang, he offended the project's general supervisor, the powerful minister Yang Su, and nearly suffered an unprovoked disaster.

After this incident, Wu Shiyue realized that money was not omnipotent.

He immediately abandoned business for a military career and became close friends with Li Yuan, who was then the Duke of Tang. With the unique investment vision of a merchant, he recognized Li Yuan's political prospects and firmly threw his lot in with him.

Relying on his superior commercial wisdom, Wu Shiyue continuously supplied Li Yuan with weapons and equipment, helping him recruit soldiers and horses under the guise of trade.

As the Great Sui disintegrated, Wu Shiyue offered all his wealth to fund Li Yuan’s uprising; in the end, Li Yuan did not betray this sentiment and truly succeeded in his rebellion.

Although Wu Shiyue did not participate in the slaughter on the battlefield, his honors were no lower than the titles of any of the great founding generals of the Great Tang.

During the Wude era, Wu Shiyue was already Li Yuan's Minister of Works, later promoted to the rank of Duke of Ying, and subsequently served as governor in various regions—equivalent to a provincial governor today!!

In the fifth month of the ninth year of Zhenguan, the Retired Emperor Li Yuan passed away.

Upon receiving the news while serving as the Governor of Jingzhou, Wu Shiyue was so grief-stricken that he fell ill.

Li Er also repeatedly sent famous physicians to treat him, but Wu Shiyue still passed away due to ineffective treatment at the age of fifty-nine.

After Wu Shiyue passed away, Li Er ordered Li Ji, the Governor of Bingzhou who was then stationed in Wu Shiyue's hometown, to oversee the funeral arrangements. The coffin and funeral expenses were all paid for by the national treasury. Wu Shiyue's remains were transported back to his hometown in Bingzhou for burial, and he was posthumously awarded the title of Minister of Rites with the posthumous name "Ding."

This was undoubtedly a recognition of Wu Shiyue's immense contribution to the Great Tang!!

It must be said that Wu Shiyue is worthy of being the Great Tang's number one investor, and he even indirectly brought about a generation of female emperors.

However, this cannot be blamed on Wu Zetian.

There was the first female emperor of the Wa nation, Empress Suiko, and later the first queen of Silla, Queen Seondeok.

With precedents in neighboring countries and the heirs of the Tang Emperor Li Zhi being so cowardly, Wu Zetian had no choice but to take on the heavy responsibility.

Everyone was just about to pay their respects...

Li Yuan put down a chess piece and waved his hand to interrupt, "No need for formalities. Nowadays, I am just a leisurely old man."

"Since an old friend is here today, it is just like when you are in the Furong Garden; there is no need to be reserved."

He then looked at Su Liang and chuckled, "Haha... Little Su, don't you also call Li Er 'old man'? From now on, just call me 'Grandpa Li'!"

Li Er was astonished upon hearing this. Had the Retired Emperor not been expressing inconsolable grief and ignoring worldly affairs?

How could he still have such leisure and interest, and even be managing affairs within the Furong Garden?

Su Liang's power was now so great it threatened the throne; as the Retired Emperor, Li Yuan would naturally not be at ease, so it was normal for him to plant his own people in the Furong Garden.

Su Liang was not surprised by this and chose to turn a blind eye.

What shocked Su Liang was the "Grandpa Li" in Li Yuan's words... Grandpa Li!!

In an instant, Su Liang smiled awkwardly, "Haha... Your Majesty, you jest. How could I be so disrespectful of the hierarchy?"

"Oh... could it be that you look down on this old man?" Li Yuan chuckled, his eyes squinting into slits.

"I wouldn't dare... I wouldn't dare... Your Majesty is joking," Su Liang said immediately.

"Fine, from now on, if there are no outsiders, just call me Grandpa Li. I am of your grandfather's generation, after all."

"I intend to move to the Furong Garden, and I don't want to break your rules."

"Calling me 'Retired Emperor' is not comfortable," Li Yuan said, enunciating every word.

No one dared to disturb them, nor did anyone want to.

At this moment, Li Er had other thoughts; his father was clearly complaining that the construction of the Daming Palace was too slow.

When Li Er originally bestowed the Furong Garden upon Su Liang, he had already begun building a palace for Li Yuan. It was initially named "Yong'an Palace," intended for the Retired Emperor Li Yuan to live in long-lasting peace and security, but was later renamed Daming Palace at Su Liang's suggestion.

Su Liang heard another layer of meaning in Li Yuan's words: for the current Retired Emperor and the Great Tang's Heavenly Strategy General to live together would inevitably lead to misunderstandings.

This... this was clearly a warning to him!!

Just as Su Liang was pondering this, Li Yuan's voice came again...

"Little Su, don't overthink it... don't overthink it. What gift did you bring today?" Li Yuan chuckled.

"Hurry and take it out for me to see!"

After Su Liang regained his composure, he immediately took out several sets of gold playing cards he had redeemed from the system.

He then respectfully handed them to Li Yuan and said, "This item is called poker; it is more interesting than mahjong."

"Not only are there many ways to play, but it also allows multiple people to play together."

As Su Liang's voice fell, the number of people surrounding him grew...

Not only were Li Er, Empress Zhangsun, Changle, and Little Sizi there, but Wu Shiyue and others on the side also crowded around.

Su Liang had promised Li Er yesterday that he had something good to offer the Retired Emperor. Li Er had not seen it yet and was looking at Su Liang with anticipation.

Yesterday, Su Liang had given the ladies many gifts, and they were immersed in a sea of joy, so they hadn't had time to ask for details.

At this moment, everyone was gathered around Su Liang, all wanting to see just how fun it was.

Su Liang then began to introduce it to everyone in a measured tone...

He explained various ways to play, such as Fighting the Landlord, Fried Golden Flower, and Guan Dan, in great detail; he even introduced "Go Fish" for the young children.

In less than half an hour.

The Da'an Palace became completely lively......