Chapter 46

Zhao Chen, upon hearing this, smiled and shook his head, "This old minister's court attire was bestowed by His Majesty. How can it be casually taken off for a mere bet? That would make this court attire seem too worthless!"

As soon as Zhao Chen finished speaking, a murmur arose in the hall. Everyone's gaze turned to the old man in front of Zhao Chen, their expressions complex and inscrutable. Even Li Er on the dais looked at the old man with a different gaze.

The old man's face turned red with anger. His offhand remark about resigning and leaving had been seized upon by the young man in front of him, who with a light and casual remark, placed him in opposition to the entire court.

"What a sharp-tongued young man! I underestimated you!" The old man, after holding back for a long time, finally burst out laughing, pointing at Zhao Chen.

"I'm just speaking the truth!" Zhao Chen smiled and bowed to the old man, his face innocent and harmless, "If I have offended you in any way, please bear with me!"

Zhao Chen sneered, thinking of how the old man had earlier pushed Old Qin, who was already ill, to go to the Qinling Mountains to cut wood. Now it was time for the old man to taste the consequences.

He then turned his gaze to Pei Ji and the others, still smiling, "Since this old minister mentioned the bet, when I entered the palace just now, I saw many people lingering on Zhuque Street. Let's make a bet with money!"

He paused, then continued, "If I can't dig enough pits, I will pay five thousand guan. Half will go to His Majesty for disaster relief, and the other half will go to all the old ministers. What do you say?"

Li Er, sitting on the dais, had been amused by Zhao Chen's wit, but his face turned black as soon as he heard Zhao Chen openly betting in front of the entire court.

If it weren't for the fact that Zhao Chen had offered to use half the money for disaster relief, he would have been furious!

"Hehe, since you are so confident, I'll take the bet!" Pei Ji, squinting his eyes at Zhao Chen, suddenly burst out laughing, "I'll put up two thousand guan!"

"I'll put up one thousand five hundred guan!"

"I'll put up five hundred guan!"

"..."

Pei Ji led the way with two thousand guan, and the old men who had followed him to agree to the bet all scrambled to put up money. Even some who had not initially spoken up joined in, seeing the rare opportunity.

The hall quickly became chaotic, with shouts and noise. In no time, they had gathered five thousand guan.

After the eunuch in front of Li Er recorded all the bets, Zhao Chen laughed and bowed to the old men, "Thank you, all the old ministers, for your generous contributions!"

"Alright, no more suspense!" Li Er, who was secretly delighted, thought that no matter which side lost, he would have an extra two thousand five hundred guan for disaster relief. He was impatient with Zhao Chen's delay.

Zhao Chen, realizing Li Er was getting impatient, respectfully said, "Actually, the method I propose is as simple as it gets!"

Seeing the puzzled looks of the court officials, Zhao Chen suddenly turned to Pei Ji and asked, "May I ask where the vegetables are stored in your household during winter?"

"Vegetables..." Pei Ji, taken aback by Zhao Chen's seemingly random question, instinctively started to say "vegetable cellar," but as soon as he said "vegetables," he saw Zhao Chen's smiling face and a light bulb went off in his head.

"Ha ha ha, that's right! It's the vegetable cellar!" Zhao Chen, seeing Pei Ji's flustered expression, laughed happily, "In our Tang Dynasty, whether it's the residences of the high officials or the homes of ordinary people, almost every household has a vegetable cellar. Since the cellar can store vegetables, it won't be too cold inside!"

As soon as Zhao Chen said this, the hall erupted in a commotion. Everyone stared at Zhao Chen with wide eyes, their faces twitching. The method was so simple that it made them feel frustrated. Why hadn't they thought of the vegetable cellar during the entire morning session?

Cheng Yaojin and Old Qin, who had been worried that Zhao Chen had rushed out to argue because of Pei Ji's actions, couldn't help but burst out laughing when they heard Zhao Chen's solution.

Cheng Yaojin's loud laughter made the old men who had just signed the bet seethe with anger, their faces dark and their beards trembling.

Zhao Chen, inwardly sneering, ignored the resentful gazes of the old men. He had been furious with them ever since they had pushed Old Qin to go to the Qinling Mountains.

"This is a brilliant plan, and I accept my loss with no regrets!" Pei Ji, who had lost money, had a better attitude than the others who had agreed to the bet. He frowned and said to Zhao Chen, "However, the air circulation in the vegetable cellar is not always good. What if the roof collapses?"

"You don't need to worry about that, old minister!" Zhao Chen, in a good mood, patiently explained, "We just need to dig enough space below and collapse the top layer. Then we can clear the fallen roof and place it on top, effectively building a house underground!"

"Hehe, hearing this, I feel my two thousand guan was well spent!" Pei Ji, after thinking it over, sighed in admiration.

Before Zhao Chen could respond, Pei Ji turned to Old Qin and bowed, "I apologize for my earlier actions, General Qin. I will make it up to you with a drink another day!"

Saying this, he turned and returned to his position, ignoring the other officials who had agreed to the bet, as if nothing had happened.

What does this mean? Zhao Chen, stunned by Pei Ji's sudden change, was momentarily at a loss. Just a moment ago, Pei Ji had been pushing Old Qin to go to the Qinling Mountains, and now he was apologizing. It was like turning a page in a book!

The other old men who had agreed to the bet were also confused, staring at Pei Ji with wide eyes, their faces twitching.

Zhao Chen, not paying attention to the old men's expressions, was still trying to make sense of what had just happened. The more he thought about it, the more he felt like a fool for rushing out to defend Old Qin when he heard about the plan to send him to the Qinling Mountains in the dead of winter.

How foolish! He should have thought about who these people were. They wouldn't come up with such a stupid plan. He had let his concern cloud his judgment!

As he thought this, he glanced at Pei Ji and the other old men. Perhaps Pei Ji had seen his concern and used Old Qin to provoke him, but the other old men genuinely wanted to send Old Qin to the Qinling Mountains.

Yan Shigu, standing nearby, also looked awkward. He had suggested the Qinling Mountains, but now everyone seemed to have forgotten about him.

Just as he was feeling awkward, the emperor's voice rang out in the hall, "Alright, everyone return to your positions!"

Li Er was in an exceptionally good mood. Not only had he gained two thousand five hundred guan, but Zhao Chen had also solved the problem of housing for the disaster-stricken people with a simple suggestion. How could he not be happy?

Feeling cheerful, he didn't want to pursue the old men further. Since he couldn't act against them yet, he would let them stay for a while longer.

After everyone returned to their positions, Li Er said, "Now that we have a solution, who should be sent to implement it?"

As soon as Li Er spoke, the hall fell silent again. It was freezing outside, and even the short walk to the palace for the morning session was unbearable. How much worse would it be to travel from Chang'an to Lantian?

"Your Majesty, I believe one person should not be burdened with two tasks. Since this excellent plan came from the head of the Institute of Natural Studies, let him be responsible for it. This will ensure that no one else is sent and delays the work!"

Just as the hall fell silent, a voice broke the quiet, echoing in the hall.

Oh no! Zhao Chen had thought that his part was over since he had already provided the solution. But hearing this, he realized he had underestimated the shamelessness of these people.

The man who spoke was a middle-aged man with a gaunt face, holding a court tablet, standing with a righteous air, as if the shameless words had not come from him.

Looking at the old men who had just lost money to Zhao Chen, their faces were beaming with excitement, clearly eager to agree but sitting still.

Zhao Chen, looking at the man in front of him, couldn't understand when he had offended such a person. Even a fool could see that this man was targeting him.