Chapter 81

"Pay respects to Mother Consort!" Li Kuan stepped forward to greet, and Changsun slightly raised her hand to indicate that there was no need for excessive formalities. He had no choice but to step aside, allowing Li Er and Changsun to converse.

"Guanyinbi, how are the preparations for the things I asked you to prepare this evening?" Li Er asked.

"I did not let you down, Second Brother. Everything is prepared! But are you really going to give it to Er Lang now? He is still young; how can he use such a large sum of money?" Changsun was very puzzled. She knew that Li Kuan had some extraordinary qualities, but he did not seem to care much about money, and even the monthly allowance he received was more than enough for him.

"Kuan was quite anxious this afternoon. Since it will be given to him eventually, why not give it to him now? As for how he uses it, that is his own business. We don't need to ask too much. I'm sure Kuan won't waste it!" Li Er was very confident in Li Kuan.

Li Kuan seemed to understand something from their conversation. It seemed that Li Er and Changsun were going to give him a large sum of money, and Li Er knew that he had been anxious about money in the afternoon. This was truly a timely rain! Even Song Jiang wouldn't have been so timely. He was just worrying about this matter!

"But this is a huge sum of money. Can Er Lang really spend so much? The Prince's Mansion is at a critical juncture now, and it took a lot of effort to allocate this sum!" Changsun was still a bit hesitant. Although she had been mentally prepared, the sudden withdrawal of such a large sum by Li Kuan made it difficult for her to manage the various affairs of the Qin Prince's Mansion.

"Father, Mother Consort, I don't need much. A thousand taels of silver will be enough!" Li Kuan spoke up, fearing that Changsun and Li Er would take it seriously and not give him the money. Li Er wouldn't really argue with Changsun over spending money for Li Kuan without a clear purpose, which would make things worse.

"Just a thousand taels?" Changsun's eyes lit up as she asked.

"Yes, a thousand taels of silver will be enough!" Li Kuan had the system convert it. A thousand taels should be sufficient.

"Seeing you so anxious this afternoon, I thought you needed a lot more. I didn't expect it to be just a thousand taels!" Li Er was somewhat amused and exasperated. He had heard from the guards that Li Kuan had an argument with Sun Simiao in the afternoon and planned to ask about it. Instead, he heard Li Kuan complaining about lacking money. He hurriedly asked Changsun to prepare fifty thousand taels of silver, which were transported out of the city overnight. He didn't expect the boy to need only a thousand taels. This was a bit of a blunder on Li Er's part.

"Then it's settled! Someone, fetch a thousand taels of silver for the Second Prince!" Changsun quickly instructed. At this time, the Qin Prince's Mansion had many expenses. The money from previous businesses was not enough to cover even a fraction of the costs, and the Wine Immortal Inn was barely keeping things afloat. If fifty thousand taels were withdrawn, many necessary expenses would have to be reduced. She was eager to use a thousand taels to settle Li Kuan and use the rest for other matters.

"This isn't good!" Li Er was surprised to see his beloved woman become so unfamiliar over a bit of money. It seemed that family matters could truly change a person. The once virtuous and gentle Guanyinbi had now become a money-grubbing housekeeper.

"A thousand taels will be enough for me, but there are still some things I need to trouble Father with!" Li Kuan had already planned this. He wanted to give Changsun more than a thousand taels to take back for other uses. After all, this was not the time to save money. If the relationships were not properly managed, the court ministers might seize on the competition between Li Er and Li Jiancheng, and this money could silence the gossips.

Indeed, Changsun was using this money to bribe the ministers. Each of them had a large family to support. How could they survive on their court salaries alone? Even Li Er turned a blind eye to such bribes. Water that is too clear has no fish, and Li Er understood this. Changsun also understood. They needed these ministers to keep their tongues in check, or the aristocratic families might seize the opportunity to cause trouble. So, the silver was used as a form of hush money.

Li Kuan, coming from the future, had read a lot about the ways of the political world online, so he was not surprised. What surprised him was that Li Er, a prince, still had to bribe the ministers. It seemed rather humiliating, but he couldn't say much about it.

"What, do you think it's humiliating for your father to do this?" Li Er noticed the change in Li Kuan's expression and asked.

"I dare not!" Li Kuan was depressed, knowing he had been caught.

"Do you know that although this empire was won by my sword, it cannot be governed by the sword alone. Proper governance requires the cooperation of the aristocratic families. They are entrenched in various regions, with complex and intertwined relationships. They are a major cancer in the empire, but if we try to remove this cancer, it will cost the empire its life. So, we can only let it grow. Now, at this critical moment in my struggle with the Crown Prince, any unfavorable factor could be used as an excuse by the aristocratic families. Therefore, we must manage the relationships well and leave no room for criticism. Once the dust settles, if they want to cause trouble, they will have to see if I allow it!" Li Er explained, his last two sentences spoken with a commanding presence.

"I see! I understand. We must feign cooperation while secretly building our strength. Once the situation is settled, they won't be able to cause trouble!" Li Kuan finally understood.

"Exactly, that's right!" Li Er was very satisfied with Li Kuan's response and stroked his beard.

"Father, I want to use this thousand taels of silver to buy some kerosene. Is that acceptable?" Li Kuan asked.

"Kerosene? What do you need it for? It's used for defending cities, and the Xuanjia Guard doesn't have it. You'll have to go to the Sixteen Guards!" Li Er's three thousand Xuanjia were skilled in mobile warfare and were also excellent in capturing cities, but they had never been equipped with kerosene, which was used for city defense. Their goal was not defense but continuous offense until their enemies fell or they themselves fell.

"Then I will have to trouble Father to help me buy it! I don't know if the Sixteen Guards will sell it!" Li Kuan was serious because if he had to buy the things he needed himself, he would have to go to Chang'an, and one of the items he needed was quite rare. It might not even be available in Chang'an, but it was not very precious in the Western Regions. In the Central Plains, it was quite rare. He decided to use energy points to exchange for it, but now there was almost no coal left in Chang'an because the Black Stone Mountain no longer produced it, and Li Kuan didn't dare to mine underground. Transporting it from other places was not cost-effective, and no merchants were willing to do this business. So, he decided to focus on kerosene, which the system could absorb.

"Then I will try to help you!" Li Er didn't know what Li Kuan needed the kerosene for, but since the boy had been very independent since about three years ago, this time it wouldn't be without a purpose. Li Er decided to help him this time.

"It's getting late, I'll go back first!" Changsun, seeing the two of them chatting enthusiastically, couldn't help but feel a bit unhappy. She had spent two hours transporting the large boxes of silver out of the city, only to be ignored by the two of them.

"Guanyinbi, go back and rest early! No, I'll take you back!" Li Er initially wanted to let Changsun go back on her own, but seeing her sullen face, he thought it was better to take her back himself.

Li Kuan watched the two of them leave and then turned back to the camp. He was secretly moved by what Li Er and Changsun had done for him. He wiped his eyes and headed towards his tent. That night, Li Kuan slept soundly until morning and seemed to have a good dream.

The next day, as the sun rose, Li Kuan practiced his boxing in the camp. Once again, his movements synchronized with the soldiers, further solidifying his cultivation. He was almost at the peak of the Mingjing stage, meaning that Li Kuan was almost able to recover his former strength. Although he was younger and his body had not yet reached its peak, he could still exert about 60% of his former strength, which was enough to pull a three-stone strong bow and wield a twenty-pound saber in battle.

Li Er returned to the camp relatively late, around the fourth hour of the day, but he was followed by three horse-drawn carriages, each carrying a large wooden barrel. The wheels of the carriages were deeply embedded in the muddy road, indicating that the barrels were heavy.

When Li Er returned, the three young princes went to greet him. Li Kuan roughly guessed that the barrels contained what he needed, but Li Chenggan and Li Ke were curious and looked at the large barrels, which were taller than they were, wondering what was inside.

"Low-level liquid energy carrier detected. Ownership belongs to the host. Can be absorbed. Do you want to absorb it?" The system hadn't prompted this for a long time. Li Kuan had rarely absorbed energy since the Black Stone Mountain, but he had used a lot of it.

"Temporarily not absorb!" Li Kuan thought to himself. This was the first time he was absorbing petroleum, and he didn't know what would happen, so he decided to wait until Li Er handed it over to him before making any decisions.

Sure enough, Li Er directly handed the three carriages to Li Kuan: "Kuan, this is for you. If it's not enough, let me know!" This statement made the other two young princes glare at Li Kuan. All three carriages were given to Li Kuan, leaving nothing for them. How could that be acceptable!

"Father... Is this appropriate?" Li Chenggan spoke up, trying to argue.

"Ha ha... What are you jealous of? These things were bought with Kuan's money, so they are his!" Li Er laughed, looking at his eldest and third son, who were both precocious.

"Is that true?" Li Chenggan was still skeptical. How could Li Kuan have money? As the eldest legitimate son, his monthly allowance was not much, and after necessary expenses, there was hardly anything left. How could Li Kuan have money to buy so many things?

"Ha ha... Kuan, it's up to you to handle it. Convincing your brothers is your responsibility! I won't interfere!" Li Er took a hands-off approach and watched the scene from the side.

"You two, do you want the things on the carriages?" Li Kuan asked.

PS: It's now on sale. I don't know what to say, thank you to the editor Tian You! Thank you to all the friends who have supported me!