Chapter 562: Good buddy, have you been eyeing my money?

Family banquet, family banquet!

Since it's a family banquet, naturally there isn't much discussion of state affairs.

After Li Shimin and his wife arrived, everyone ate and drank, chatting occasionally, and the atmosphere was harmonious.

As the evening grew late and the banquet was about to end, Chen Yan could hardly wait to go home and lie down.

However, Li Shimin raised his hand and said, "Wait, let Zi An's family and Fu Ji stay a moment."

Chen Yan: "......"

Alright.

Even Er Feng has spoken; what else can he say?

Just keep sitting.

After the others left, only Chen Yan's family, Prince Wei, Li Chengqian's family, and Chang Sun Wujì remained in Ganlu Hall.

For some reason, Li Shimin kept them but didn't speak right away, staying silent for a while before slowly saying, "Today, the Retired Emperor did not attend."

Upon mentioning this, even Empress Changsun couldn't help a twitch at the corner of her eye, looking at her several daughters with a rather helpless expression.

Hearing this, Li Lizhi and the others lowered their heads—how embarrassing.

I know, I know!

Seeing that there were no outsiders left, Sizi immediately raised her little hand and said, "Grandfather not only lost all his money and valuables to Elder Sister, he even pawned his jade pendant and clothes to her!"

"Elder Sister Yang said, at the gambling table there are no grandfather‑grandson exemptions; if you dare to play, you must dare to lose!"

"Ah, Grandfather doesn't even have clothes to wear now, so of course he can't come~"

Everyone: "......"

Chen Yan quickly covered Sizi's mouth, chuckling, "Your Majesty, Empress, the child doesn't know better, just spouting nonsense, nonsense."

"How could the Retired Emperor possibly have no clothes? He must have just... gotten up late, after all he's old, we should understand..."

Li Shimin and his wife glanced at the sky outside, then fell even more silent.

What a late rise.

Getting up this late is too much, isn't it?

"Forget it, you lot... just be more careful from now on."

Li Shimin certainly knows why Li Yuan didn't come.

He probably doesn't want to face these granddaughters of his—after all, even his yellow robe has been pawned, leaving him too ashamed to show his face.

"Zi An, I know you've just taken office as Minister of Revenue and need to show some edge, but what you said today is rather improper."

Li Shimin then said, "We both know the state of the Ministry of Revenue; there are still many places needing funds this year. Although Dou Tang is a bit dull, his words make sense."

"For this expedition, I never intended for the Ministry of Revenue to foot the bill; now that you've spoken, it's satisfying, but if the ministry doesn't fully fund the campaign, others will only look down on you."

"If you do come up with the money, never mind whether you can actually produce it; even if you can, are we really going to have to subsist on steamed buns and cold water thereafter?"

"Your Majesty, this is the rule!" Chen Yan said seriously, "Without rules, nothing can be properly formed; especially for us who can trample rules at will, we sometimes need to uphold them all the more."

"I have something I haven't actually said yet; I know you want to launch an expedition because your privy purse has money, and now the grain seeds have been brought back."

"If we go to war, we can produce the necessary funds and grain."

"But Your Majesty, have you considered that the state and family must be separated, and public and private must be distinct? Your privy purse is your own money; you may use it as you wish, and in principle, even if you want to use privy purse funds for war, that remains your personal affair."

"But essentially, the money in the privy purse serves your own 'small household,' while the Ministry of Revenue's money serves the 'greater household'!"

"This is what the Confucians repeatedly emphasize: 'The emperor regards the world as his family,' and that 'family' refers to the world as the greater household."

"If you use privy purse funds for war, it will spread a rather dangerous political message—that you treat state affairs as your private business."

"Blurring the line between public and private, this precedent must absolutely not be opened."

"After all, you can't think only of yourself; you must consider posterity."

Li Shimin frowned upon hearing this, while Empress Changsun wholeheartedly agreed, "Er Lang, this is exactly what I wanted to say!"

"Your privy purse now boasts so many enterprises steadily earning money; after Cheng Qian inherits the throne, he will surely inherit this enterprise as well, and the same will hold when the imperial grandson succeeds."

"The privy purse will from now on never lack money; therefore these rules must be kept, for if you set this precedent, later generations will all follow you, and then what need is there to distinguish between the Ministry of Revenue and the privy purse?"

Li Shimin's brows eased, he pondered a moment, then said in a low voice, "The reasoning is sound, but if I don't put up this money, how can the Ministry of Revenue possibly come up with so much?"

Chen Yan laughed, "Your Majesty, we still have the money shop!"

"The Ministry of Revenue has no money, but the money shop has plenty; the ministry can go borrow from the money shop."

"The money shop is ours entirely, and its lending capacity is huge; even without private dealings, following the shop's rules we can secure low interest, then spread repayment over three years—just repay a portion each autumn harvest and it's settled."

"This is actually a simple matter; Your Majesty, don't overcomplicate it."

However, he put it simply, but the others still didn't quite grasp it.

Chang Sun Wujì wondered aloud, "Isn't the money shop also part of the imperial household? It's an enterprise that brings in revenue for Your Majesty's privy purse—why must we go through the money shop at all?"

"Wouldn't it be better to let the Ministry of Revenue borrow directly from Your Majesty?"

"That way, outsiders wouldn't know, the news wouldn't leak, and the Ministry of Revenue could produce the war funds, needing only to repay a portion each year."

Chen Yan shook his head, "Still the same saying: as beings who can trample rules at will, we sometimes need to uphold them all the more."

"Not only must the Ministry of Revenue borrow from the money shop, but even if the imperial household one day runs out of money and needs to use funds from the money shop, it must likewise borrow and repay."

Upon hearing this, several people fell into thought, and Empress Changsun hesitantly asked, "Your money shop seems even more important than I imagined; does your move intend to help the money shop establish its reputation?"

"As the Empress said, I do indeed have that motive." Chen Yan replied frankly:

"Think about it: if even the Ministry of Revenue needs to borrow from the money shop, and the Great Tang Daily publishes this news, everyone will know the money shop's reliability, greatly boosting its credibility, and thereafter more people will surely deposit money."

"And we can use those funds to do more things, letting the economy circulate thoroughly throughout the nation."

"In short, the money shop is not just a money shop; it aims to be the crucial link for achieving nationwide economic circulation."

Having said that, Chen Yan paused, "Let's set this aside for now and return to the topic: Your Majesty, your privy purse holds so much money......"

"Why not just deposit it all in the money shop?"

Li Shimin: "......"

Good buddy, you've been eyeing my money?

"......"