"Hey," Li Mu responded carefully. Just as his butt was about to touch the edge of the chair, Zhang Tianai also sat down. Li Mu quickly sat up straight and glanced at Jin Chen who was cautiously opposite him.
There's nothing I can do about it.
Jin Chen pursed his lips and smiled, filled the rice bowl and handed it to Qiaoqiao first, and then handed the second bowl of rice to Zhang Tianai.
"It's your husband's turn, don't you understand the rules?"
Li Mu took the meal from Zhang Tianai and said, "Isn't this a chance for you to show off? Didn't I just say it all? The rouge is yours, and the hosta is also yours, why are you still angry?"
"The rouge was given to me by Qiaoqiao, and the hosta was given to me by Qiaoqiao. Husband, you didn't buy me anything!"
"Didn't I know you were coming back?"
"You didn't say that when you left me!"
"It was dangerous then!"
"It happens that I can face danger with you, can't I?" Zhang Tianai's eyes turned red. Li Mu didn't know what to say when he saw her like this. Talking about right and wrong with a woman is a wrong thing in the first place.
, at this time, it is better to change the subject.
He winked at Qiaoqiao, who took the words and said: "Sister Tianai, don't be angry. You don't know, my husband is talking about you every day. I think I've settled down here.
Just send you news, how could he not miss you?"
Zhang Tianai's face softened a little, but he still said: "I know martial arts. Even if I follow him, it will be a help and it won't delay him in any way."
"He will be worried about your safety." Bai Qiaoqiao held Zhang Tianai's hand and said: "Sister Tianai, we are the first to know each other. You should know what kind of husband you are. If it weren't for my physical inconvenience,
There was no way, my husband wouldn’t even stay with me at that time——"
As she spoke, Bai Qiaoqiao's eyes turned red and she said, "My husband is such a person. He would rather suffer alone than let us suffer a little bit. Sister Tianai, don't blame him, okay?"
"This..." Zhang Tianai heard Qiaoqiao's words and thought about it. It seemed that Li Mu was like this. When something happened, he would always take responsibility for himself and did not want his relatives, friends, and women to be involved. She looked at Li Mu
, reached out to hold his hand and said: "Husband, I wrongly blamed you, but I also want to help you. I know martial arts and I can protect you."
"A man, if something happens to you, do you want your woman to protect you?" Li Mu sternly refused, saying: "There is no need to discuss this matter anymore, eat, eat!"
Zhang Tianai gave the rice to Li Mu, and Jin Chen served him another bowl of rice. Under a subtle atmosphere, the family finally picked up the chopsticks.
At night, logically speaking, Li Mu should accompany Zhang Tianai. However, Zhang Tianai and Bai Qiaoqiao had not seen each other for many days, and the sisters had a lot of personal things to say. Therefore, Li Mu was kicked out of the room, and he pretended to be in the front yard.
After wandering around the shops, I took a detour and arrived at the Jinchen Room.
"Husband." Jin Chen called softly as he undressed and lay down.
"how?"
"I also want to help my husband." Jin Chen's eyes were so intense that Li Mu didn't dare to look directly at him. He seemed serious at first glance. Li Mu had a headache and muttered: "You said you two, why do you want to help me?
I don’t want your help. Can’t you just be my wife? I have to help you. I am your husband. Whatever I do is what I should do. If you can do everything, what else can you do?
What do I do?"
"But--"
"I know you are angry with Tian Ai, but why is this necessary? We are all a family, right?"
Jin Chen pursed his lips and stopped talking. Li Mu kissed her and said, "It's not me who compares. You should really learn from Qiaoqiao. How can a family be ranked higher or lower?"
Jin Chen didn't speak for a while. Li Mu looked at her and said softly: "Are you scared? It's my fault. Your tone is bad."
"No." Jin Chen shook his head and said: "I can understand your husband's thoughts, but I feel that Tian'ai, I, and Qiaoqiao want to help you, not for any distinction. In fact, we
It’s just that I don’t want you to face it alone. No matter good or bad, I want to be with you.”
"You all want to be with me?"
"We are a family."
Li Mu laughed and said, "Did you think of this yourself?"
Jin Chen shook his head gently and said honestly: "Qiaoqiao always talks about it. I heard it and I think it makes sense. She talked to me about Zhien and said that she missed her and didn't know when she would be able to bring her back."
When Li Zhien was mentioned, Li Mu was startled. When Li Zhien left, the situation was very pessimistic. Li Mu did not feel that there was anything wrong with his decision. However, after the crisis was resolved, Li Mu began to regret it. Things in Silla were more complicated than expected.
complex.
There is too little information collected now to make a judgment. But his intuition tells him that sooner or later, he will have a trip to Silla. If he doesn't go, Li Zhien may not be able to come back.
Li Mu held Jin Chen's hand and said: "Qiaoqiao is such a person. She always thinks of others first, but forgets herself. I will also keep Zhien in mind. When we settle down in Luoyang,
Qiaoqiao has also given birth, so I will look for an opportunity to go to Silla and bring Zhien back. Zhien will not care about the king or princess."
"What about me?"
"Whatever you want to do, you can do it. But I don't want you to put yourself at risk. As long as you ensure your own safety, I will support you."
"Thank you, husband." Jin Chen got Li Mu's approval and felt much happier. He buried his body in his arms and fell asleep hugging each other.
At dawn the next day, after breakfast, Zhang Xun came to the door. Only then did Li Mu know why Zhang Tianai came. It turned out that it was Li Shimin who passed the order and summoned Zhang Xun to attend the coronation ceremony of Tian Khan. As the newly promoted king of Gaochang, Zhang Xun, Li Shimin's
The decree forced him to come. If he didn't come, it would be like Gaochang's break with the Tang Dynasty. This may have played into Li Shimin's mind, but if he came, there would be risks. Who knows whether Li Shimin had organized a Hongmen Banquet.
Zhang Xun originally wanted to leave Zhang Tianai in Gaochang, so that if something happened to him, Zhang Tianai would have time to leave calmly according to the escape route he had prepared long ago, but Zhang Tianai had to follow her wherever she was willing. Zhang Xun couldn't resist him, so he had to take her with him.
. I feel anxious in my heart. If I can’t go back this time, I will really be in trouble.
On the way here, he had received news about Li Mu all the time. He was frightened all the way. It was not until a few days ago that his spies reported that Li Mu had returned to Chang'an again and was granted the title of Marquis of Che, that he finally felt relieved.
After all, my son-in-law is capable.
Zhang Tianai came one day ahead of schedule yesterday. Zhang Xun's large team arrived today. They did not live in the place prepared by the Ministry of Etiquette, but came directly to Jingdongji. Although there were many people accompanying them, the placement was very easy, so it was in vain.
After he made the city order, his greatest pleasure was to build houses. He had almost built all the places in Jingdong. He only rented the houses he built but did not sell them. He planned to leave them to the Bai family as a piece of property.
The idea is a good one, but perhaps it is a problem with the business strategy. The pricing is a bit unreasonable. People are shouting about it, but not many people actually rent it out.
These houses can be lived in, and placement is not a problem. It makes Bai Nao'er feel very sad. He hired craftsmen to build the house, not just for people to live in. It's just for free, for the sake of some relatives, but there are so many
If people eat horse chews, who will pay the bill? He didn't dare to speak to Li Mu, and he was worried that Li Mu would be angry if he directly asked Zhang Xun for help, so he was unhappy.
Fortunately, Zhang Xun had already investigated Bai Nao'er's character and knew that he took money very seriously. After everyone was settled, he sent someone to give Bai Nao'er a box of gold and silver. It was equivalent to copper coins, but it was worth less.
With a few hundred coins, Bai Nao'er was now very happy, and he ordered his servants to serve him properly.
Li Mu naturally didn't care about these little incidents. His attention was attracted by a lawsuit brought by the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Speaking of which, this matter originated from him. Earlier, Li Mu presented a new policy, one of which related to land, which was to divide the land in the world, exempt from the poll tax, and divide the land into acres. This decree was approved by Li Shimin
After he went to the Western Regions, he was also vigorously promoting it. However, the resistance was very strong. Li Shimin considered the pros and cons and finally decided to implement it in batches and adapt measures to local conditions. To put it bluntly, he was still worried about the weak control of the imperial court over the local areas. If it was strong
When the order arrived, he was blocked by the local authorities, and the court did not look good.
As the capital of the Tang Dynasty, Chang'an must be one of the first 'demonstration points'. If the New Deal cannot be implemented in Chang'an, it will definitely not be implemented anywhere. Therefore, the implementation of the New Deal in Chang'an City has become a
Li Shimin would ask about the key points of the New Deal every few days. Changsun Chong, who was in charge of this matter, was also thinking very hard and did not dare to neglect it at all.
However, even if Changsun Chong has been very serious about his duties, there are still things that cannot be solved. Today's public case is the most difficult one.
Ci'en Temple.
Ci'en Temple is the largest temple near Chang'an City. Its history can be traced back hundreds of years. It has been popular in all dynasties. The Great Ci'en Temple with the 'Big Wild Goose Pagoda' in later generations was the beginning of this. Throughout the dynasties, the royal family paid great attention to Ci'en Temple.
There were many rewards. Not to mention property, just this land. When Changsun Chong was making the list, he discovered that there were tens of thousands of hectares of fertile land near Chang'an City, all in the name of Ci'en Temple.
This is tens of thousands of hectares of fertile land! According to the number of monks in Ci'en Temple, Ci'en Temple is not qualified to own so much land. Changsun Chong also investigated the origin of these lands clearly. There are rewards from the royal families of the past dynasties, and dignitaries.
Donations and contributions from believers, but most of all, these monks bought them with their own money.
Land has not been cheap in all dynasties. How could a monk buy so much land with so much money? When Changsun Chong first learned the news, he was full of doubts. But with in-depth understanding, his doubts were solved.
It opened, and was replaced by shock, an overwhelming shock.
It turns out that the most profitable business in the world is to open a temple!
In the past dynasties, temples were free of corvee, taxes, and public grain. This was a treatment that was beyond the ordinary people. There were always believers giving alms, food and clothing were provided, and there was almost no place to spend money. Money only came in.
If it doesn’t go out, it will naturally accumulate. Monks are also laypeople. After accumulating a certain amount of wealth, their minds will naturally become active.
Initially, these monks were engaged in the pawn business. People who needed money would take their own valuable items and pawn them at a low price for emergencies, and then redeem them at a high price. This interest rate difference was considered interest.
In fact, this is already a very lucrative business, but people are never satisfied. Soon, they found a faster way to make money.
This method is loan sharking. When Li Mu ran a bank before, he had already investigated the interest rates of loan sharks on the market. Although the interest rate was high, it was 100% at best. That is, you would pay back twice as much as you borrowed.
Very few.
But in the temple area, 100% interest is the basic rate, and it is usually higher. The monks have developed the very promising business of loan sharking in full swing, and they lend money to almost everything. The types of loans that can be borrowed include gold, silver, cloth, grain, etc.
Oil, and even live animals. Some temples loaned cattle to farmers and charged interest.
Another characteristic of loan sharking in monasteries is that the interest rates are usually higher than those of secular moneylenders. Monks often use the power of Buddha to threaten borrowers, saying that if they do not repay, they will go to hell and never be reincarnated, etc., in order to obtain higher interest rates.
.
According to common sense, the temple is a place of practice and has nothing to do with this copper odor thing. The masters are all enlightened monks and should be kind to others. However, this group of monks in Ci'en Temple completely refreshed Changsun Chong's three views.
Observe. They hire tenants and pay them the minimum wage. The small part is regarded as Dharma protection, which is equivalent to paying protection fees. The land they lease out requires the highest rent, regardless of drought or flood.
, Don’t miss a penny, and you don’t care about the life and death of your people. If they cannot get back the money they loaned, they will take the contract to sue the officials, or even work with the police to rob them directly. I don’t know how many crimes they have committed. However, these people
, in the eyes of secular people, he is still a master who is lofty, talks eloquently, and saves all sentient beings, which makes Changsun Chong feel disgusted.
Changsun Chong had always felt that the most arrogant and domineering business person in the world was his mentor Li Mu, but after seeing the many methods of the temple, he found that his mentor was as pure as a child.
Changsun Chong couldn't take it lightly because of the young man's passion. He wanted to move Ci'en Temple several times, but every time he tried to do it, he was stopped by various forces. This made Changsun Chong deeply feel that there seemed to be a force behind him.
He cannot face the huge force alone. If he wants to solve this matter, he still has to rely on his old mentor.
This time, taking advantage of Li Shimin's opportunity to confer the title of Marquis of Li Muche, Changsun Chong felt that the time had come. He asked Li Mu for permission, and after receiving permission, he suddenly took action.
The eight hundred imperial guards who were left behind in Chang'an mobilized to surround Ci'en Temple!