"Someone's here!"Behind him, two guards in embroidered court uniforms immediately stepped forward and knelt on one knee before Li Chen.Li Chen was about to give the order.Behind Wang Tenghuan came mor...Chapter 273: If You Have Money, Come

"Keep it simple, seize the throne first."

Li Chen's lips twitched upwards slightly.

Just joking, Li Yinhou being King without territory means he's just a nominal idle Prince. He has no real power as a prince, so what difference does the title make

The land, however, was tied to a major plan concerning core power. Li Chen would absolutely not agree to it.

Li Chen is not stupid.

Once the Prince was enfeoffed, having a fiefdom, Li Yinhu could legally own the tax revenue and military power of his fiefdom. What's the difference between this and being an emperor

"The Zongren Mansion officially inscribed the Eighth Prince Li Yinhu into the imperial lineage, formally bestowing upon him the title of King Zhao. A date will be set to announce this to the world. Additionally, as the Emperor is currently unable to handle state affairs, the matter of land allocation will be postponed until his recovery. The Emperor will personally decide on it once he awakens."

Prior to that, King Zhao resided in the capital city but had already been granted kingship and could not remain in the imperial palace. He was instructed to move out of the palace and have Zhao's Palace constructed within the city limits, with all aspects adhering to the established regulations.

"Speaking of which, Li Chen glanced at Zhao Qinglan with a meaningful expression and said, 'But now the national treasury is empty, and the court really can't afford the extra silver to build Zhao's Mansion. On this point, Mother must find a way.'"

Zhao Qinglan was furious upon hearing this.

So not only did he fail to secure a fief for Li Yinhu, but he also has to contribute money to build a palace

A prince's mansion isn't some ramshackle hut. Even if the land can be directly allocated by the imperial court, building it would cost at least tens of thousands of taels of silver, not to mention the furnishings and decorations, which are bottomless pits.

Zhao Qinglan said stiffly, “This palace has lived in the palace for a long time, and while I have some personal funds, it is definitely not enough to build a Prince’s Mansion.”

"Mother, you needn't worry. This matter is actually very easy to resolve."

Li Chen's tone was relaxed, as if he had been waiting for Zhao Qinglan here all along.

"I've heard that the Prime Minister's son is generous. He spent hundreds of thousands of taels of silver to build Tengwang Pavilion just to impress people. Compared to Tengwang Pavilion, wouldn't building a Zhao Palace be even more impressive"

Li Chen's gaze fell on Zhao Xuanji, who was expressionless, and he said lightly, "Grand Secretary, how are you"

Zhao Xuanji's eyebrows twitched slightly, and he said faintly, "Rumors circulating among the people are mostly inaccurate. Although Tengwang Pavilion was built in name by his son, most of the funds came from his friends in the capital who pooled their resources together. As an old official, my annual salary is only a few thousand taels. Without such support, how could I have afforded to build Tengwang Pavilion"

"If we build another Tengwang Pavilion, we can easily rebuild the Zhao Wangfu. You, Chief Minister, should handle this."

Li Chen's attitude turned cold.

Seeing Li Chen so clearly wanting him to pay for it, Zhao Xuanji's heart turned cold. "Constructing a prince's mansion is a trivial matter, but this old minister still has one question, Your Highness, please enlighten me."

Li Chen narrowed his eyes and said, "Speak."

"Although King Zhao cannot be granted land at the moment, according to the laws and rituals of our dynasty, all princes are entitled to three hundred personal attendants and one hundred household servants. Is King Zhao eligible for the same treatment"

Li Chen sneered and said, "The system of personal soldiers is only set up to protect the safety of the princes and kings who are outside. Now that King Zhao has no fiefdom and lives in the capital city, why does he need personal soldiers"

"Your Highness, you are mistaken."

Zhao Xuanji did not back down at all, saying, "Since you have bestowed the title of king, then it is only right to give King Zhao the corresponding treatment. Otherwise, wouldn't it be a laughingstock This would inevitably lead to people saying that the emperor is insincere."

After Zhao Xuanji finished speaking, he bowed respectfully.

In the great hall, everyone bowed and said, "Please reconsider your decision, Your Highness."d respectfully before Li Chen, whispering, "My lord, King Zhao is so bold as to plot a prison break. Should I have the Dongchang experts arrange an ambush to catch him red-handed"Li Chen played with t...