Chapter 620: A Bet with Empress Changsun

"Be the one who raises the slaughter knife......"

Yuan Tiangang was at a loss for words, and he and Li Chunfeng stared at each other, neither saying another word.

After a good half hour, Li Chunfeng tentatively asked, "Mr. Chen, you don't actually intend to eradicate Buddhism, do you?"

"No!" Chen Yan waved his hand casually, "I just want to use temples to open a breach, let the world see my stance, and intimidate those who also enjoy privileges."

"Killing monks really accomplishes nothing."

"Buddhism has been wiped out twice in history; didn't they rise from the ashes again? Such a thankless, labor‑intensive task is unnecessary."

"What I need is strict future regulation of this matter, preventing temples from proliferating, stripping them of privileges, and reducing the Tang Dynasty's huge privileged class."

He paused there, snorted lightly, "It's the same old line: when your request is denied, you might as well suggest tearing the house down."

Li Chunfeng mused, "I had already guessed that, and my coming today is also to confirm it with you."

"However, if I can figure it out, those shrewd officials can probably guess it as well......"

"What good does guessing do?" Chen Yan lifted his cup, took a small sip, "What can they possibly do?"

"If even anti‑Buddhism is denied, I wouldn't mind actually eradicating Buddhism."

"Anyway, with the Great Tang Daily in hand and the growing infiltration of unsavory elements across the realm, at worst we can investigate the temples thoroughly and publish all their misdeeds."

"Expose everything publicly; I doubt they'll have anything to say then. If they dissent, we can kill them together."

Yuan Tiangang and Li Er's eyelids twitched.

It seemed that after Chen Yan returned from Weinan County to Chang'an, he had changed a bit, his murderous intent becoming somewhat heavier.

Yet recalling his recent conversation with Pei Guang, he still seemed like the Chen Yan he used to be.

Hard to articulate, unclear to explain.

Seeming to have guessed their thoughts, Chen Yan glanced at them and said lightly, "Don't find this strange; just think over what I said."

"New laws and systems are destined to be built upon countless corpses, and... most of those corpses are the innocent people you mentioned."

"Hehe......"

Chen Yan said softly, "But who in the world is truly innocent?"

Yuan Tiangang and Li Chunfeng remained silent, each recalling a line Chen Yan had spoken that morning in the Court.

When an avalanche comes, no snowflake is innocent.

"......."

"Grandfather... the things you speak of... seem beyond what a junior like me can hear," Pei Guang said with a grim face.

The three of them had not avoided him in their earlier conversation.

Pei Guang worried that having heard too much of what he shouldn't, he might later be silenced.

Chen Yan continued lying on the straw mat, patting his belly, having just eaten and drunk to fullness, feeling a bit bloated.

Hearing Pei Guang, he still wore an indifferent expression: "It's fine; the National Teacher and the Grand Historian are different, they won't speak recklessly outside, but if others come, you'd better leave quickly, understand?"

"Ah, little... I, the junior, have the honor of appearing before Empress Changsun."

Pei Guang was about to respond when, out of the corner of his eye, he saw someone enter and, frightened, hurriedly knelt on the ground.

Chen Yan was startled, then rose abruptly, smiling broadly, "Empress Changsun, have you come to see me?"

Empress Changsun was speechless to the extreme, glared at Chen Yan in irritation, and said gently to Pei Guang, "No need for formalities; open the prison door, and I will chat with Zi An."

"Yes, Empress Changsun."

Pei Guang dared not delay, quickly took out the key, opened the prison door, and slipped out quietly.

Empress Changsun, accompanied by Shen Shurong, walked into the prison alone, scrutinizing the surroundings, then sneered coldly:

"You, never having a moment's peace, this time you should have some hardship; stay here for a while."

Chen Yan replied awkwardly, "Forgive me, Empress Changsun, but you can't let me stay too long; there are many Ministry of Revenue matters, and my daughter at home is still young..."

"Shut up," Empress Changsun snapped, not understanding his meaning, becoming even angrier: "Since you know you're the Minister of Revenue, have a wife and daughter, yet still dare to call for eradicating Buddhism?"

"In my view, we should grant Cheng Yaojin the right to give you forty lashes and see if you can finally settle down!"

"Forty lashes..." Chen Yan said with a pained face, "That's too many; my body is weak, I truly can't bear it."

Empress Changsun ignored him, pondered briefly, sat down despite the mess, and asked seriously, "Zi An, I have a question for you."

"Please go ahead and ask."

"Temples... are they truly that harmful?"

Chen Yan knew Empress Changsun would ask this, stared into her eyes and said with a smile, "Your Highness, you should already have an answer in your heart, shouldn't you?"

"Before you asked me, you must have asked His Majesty, and He did not answer you?"

Empress Changsun was silent.

In fact, not answering is the best answer.

Chen Yan continued, "Your Highness, haven't you understood yet?"

"Land Annexation is so harmful because the privileged class doesn't need to actively seize land; the common people voluntarily let them annex it."

"Tang Dynasty monks today are the hidden, largest privileged class; if you send people to discreetly investigate, or go yourself, you'll see that, to some extent, temples are a gigantic leech."

"Whose blood do they suck? The common people's blood, of course."

Empress Changsun remained silent, but her expression had become far more complicated than before.

Chen Yan smiled faintly, "Empress Changsun, shall we make a bet?"

"What bet?" Empress Changsun finally spoke, her curiosity piqued by Chen Yan.

"Now, I am the Duke of Wei, a third‑rank Minister of Revenue, with two beloved princess wives; my family's lands, when tallied carefully, amount to over a hundred thousand mu."

"And most of those hundred‑plus thousand mu were acquired from the Wei family."

"Send the female official by your side, bearing your Token, to randomly pick a temple in the Tang Dynasty that has been established for over ten years with decent incense."

Let's see whose land is more— theirs or mine, the Duke of Wei's.

We'll bet on this, how about it?

Empress Changsun's ruby lips quivered slightly, and she sighed softly: "... Then what is the wager?"

"If my family's land is greater, I lose, and I guarantee I will never mention anti‑Buddhism again. If the temple's land is greater, then you lose..."

"If I lose, what will happen?"

"If you lose, you must bring Sizi back and have him stay for two months."

Empress Changsun: "......"

"......"