Chapter 299: You Seem to Have Changed Again

"I sometimes truly can't understand how your brain works; why is it that for the thorny problems that I and many ministers find difficult, you can always give an answer with ease?"

Li Shimin was puzzled.

Last time he said to first implement a progressive tax law, but it turned out to be hard to make work, so now he immediately proposes an acreage tax law as a transition.

Could it be that they are truly old?

In every respect they have been outdone by the younger generation.

Seeing this, Chen Yan instantly looked at Empress Changsun, his eyes conveying: it's your turn to step in.

Unexpectedly, Empress Changsun acted as if she hadn't seen anything, making no move at all.

Chen Yan was a bit stunned.

Isn't Empress Changsun the best baby‑soother?

Why is the baby now sulking, and you do nothing?

Chen Yan hinted several more times, but Empress Changsun remained unmoved.

Helpless, Chen Yan could only take matters into his own hands.

"His Majesty, actually people are all the same: one head, two legs," Chen Yan thought out his words and said patiently:

"In fact, you shouldn't be bound by convention; sometimes, if you look at something from a different angle, you'll see another side."

"How to put it, for example, last time you said you had never considered a roundabout method like Labor-to-Land Redistribution to solve the Land Annexation problem."

"You couldn't think of it?"

"No, actually you could have thought of it!"

Huh?

What does that mean?

Li Shimin's mind filled with question marks.

Can I think of it?

Then why didn't I think of it myself?

Chen Yan said earnestly, "His Majesty, let me ask you a question in which you excel."

"What is the second stratagem among the Thirty‑Six Stratagems?"

"Besiege Wei to rescue Zhao, does that need asking?" Li Shimin answered without hesitation; for someone who had spent years fighting, the Thirty‑Six Stratagems were second nature.

Moreover, this was indeed his strong suit.

"I tell you, this Besiege Wei… hmm?"

"Besiege Wei to rescue Zhao…"

Li Shimin seemed to understand something, his expression briefly frozen as he fell into thought.

"That's right." Chen Yan smiled, "For example, you have three thousand elite soldiers, the opponent has thirty thousand elite soldiers; would you really try to stand toe‑to‑toe with them?"

"Only the Country Squire would stand toe‑to‑toe with them," Li Shimin said instinctively, "How foolish is that?"

After speaking, he suddenly realized, "I understand your meaning now."

Chen Yan: "......"

I'm glad you get it.

But I vaguely recall you just said last time that I would become another Country Squire in the future…

Empress Changsun couldn't help laughing, "Zi An, it seems that from now on I should learn a couple more moves from you; you know more than I do."

Chen Yan: "......"

Li Shimin: "......"

One sentence left both grown men completely dejected.

Putting aside whether the Empress's learning from Chen Yan is appropriate, just that your remark is easily misunderstood, okay?

What does "knowing more" mean?

Specify which aspect you actually know more about!

"......"

After deciding, Empress Changsun whispered, "Zi An, I heard that your Weinan County now produces a large amount of silk each day; with this silk, Weinan County can be described as earning gold by the bushel each day."

"The cause of everything is that you have been acting extensively in the name of the Government, which is seriously inconsistent with your previous style."

"You seem to have changed again."

Chen Yan, after a brief silence, said, "Her Majesty, why do you say 'again'?"

"Is my wording wrong?" Empress Changsun's expression was intriguing, "Last time, when His Majesty returned, he told me, 'You must raise troops.'"

"Before mentioning raising troops, you also said a bunch of nonsense; I was quite interested, so I asked His Majesty what nonsense you said."

"After learning from His Majesty what nonsense you said, I clarified many things."

"You didn't lie; you truly have no great ambition!"

Empress Changsun asserted, then disregarding Chen Yan's embarrassment and Li Shimin's carefree laughter, she went on endlessly detailing the various things Chen Yan had done.

"This could be seen even before His Majesty bestowed the marriage; back then you were hard to evaluate, and calling you a dandy was no problem."

"And the whole beginning stemmed from His Majesty's marriage grant, from your fight with Gao Yang, and from His Majesty colluding with Cheng Yaojin to cheat you."

"If I'm not mistaken, you were far less composed than you appeared then; you were panicked, which is why you resorted to the salt‑making method to save your life."

"Then came Sizi's severe illness; you were probably moved by sympathy for the child, and combined with the Imperial Physician's conservative treatment, it sparked your discontent, which is why you healed Sizi."

Upon hearing this, Chen Yan's complexion changed slightly.

Empress Changsun spoke gently, but he caught the implication.

Initially, Chen Yan did not want to handle this matter.

When he heard Sizi was gravely ill, he hesitated for a while before deciding to take a look.

He didn't expect that with a single glance he would see the Country Squire surnamed Wang, who, fearing responsibility, haphazardly gave Sizi a needle injection, making him feel that the Country Squire surnamed Wang had somewhat failed his duty as a healer; prompted by his grandfather's teaching, he raised his voice to stop him and got himself involved.

Empress Changsun's words still did not stop, continuing to elaborate on what followed.

"Later, you planned to open a restaurant. At first I couldn't understand why you didn't open it earlier or later, yet you opened it now?"

"It wasn't until I saw that Gao Yang sent people to investigate your specific situation that I understood: during last year's severe drought you privately donated a large sum of money and grain; I calculated that this sum accounted for eighty percent of your income over the past few years."

"You ran out of money, so you need to open a restaurant to earn money."

At this point, Empress Changsun suddenly smiled, "Perhaps there's another reason: you know you can't back out of the marriage contract with Gao Yang; to marry, a family without money naturally cannot."

"Oh?" Li Shimin laughed heartily: "Hahaha— I never expected, you lad, that when you first opened the restaurant, there was actually this layer of reason behind it."

"Seems you lad still know how to save face."

Chen Yan, hearing this, almost lost his composure, stiffening his neck and said, "Can such a grand wedding be treated as child's play?"

"Moreover, you're marrying a Princess; if the ceremony is small, wouldn't you be embarrassed alongside me?"

"Ah, yes, yes, you're right." Li Shimin's face full of mockery, mimicked Chen Yan's way of speaking.

Chen Yan's face darkened; he no longer wanted to speak.

Empress Changsun, however, still would not let Chen Yan off, continuing, "The later matters, I suppose I need not elaborate; you, in order to marry Li Lizhi, have indeed fought hard."

"You forced yourself to take on a huge pile of tasks."

"However, whether it's raising funds to cope with the flood disaster or assuming the post of County Magistrate of Weinan County, your actions seem more like completing a mission. I estimate that once you marry Li Lizhi, you will certainly no longer work as diligently as before."

"Defamation!!!" Chen Yan, frantic, jumped up.

"Her Majesty, I will accuse you of defamation; you are defaming me!"

"His Majesty, Her Majesty is defaming me!"

"......"