Chapter 18: The Only One I Know Who Drove Him Was His Majesty
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Chapter 18: All I Know Is That His Majesty Was Driving
As for the restrictions, Li Qing’s excuse was that the balance of yin and yang could not be reversed. If he merely brought one person over, Heaven’s laws would not take notice.
Li Shimin naturally expressed his understanding. As long as Empress Changsun could be brought back, that was all that mattered.
Li Qing declared that once the Tang Dynasty entered the stage of the First Industrial Revolution, he would perform the ritual and have Empress Changsun return like a bolt of lightning.
In truth, however, it was merely an excuse. This was nothing more than Li Qing’s personal demand. Without giving Li Shimin some motivation, how could he possibly make the determination to reform the empire at the risk of burning his boats?
Besides, the level of technology represented by the First Industrial Revolution was hardly beyond the reach of the Tang Dynasty as it stood. After all, Li Qing was there to provide a safety net.
Li Shimin said nothing, but from the look on his face, Li Qing could tell that anyone who dared stand before the surging wheels of reform would be mercilessly crushed by Li Er.
Never underestimate a young man who had killed his elder brother and butchered his younger brother in his twenties, and had even enjoyed it. Once that ruthless streak emerged, what did it matter if you belonged to one of the great aristocratic clans? Even if you were a member of the Li family, so what? Anyone who blocked Li Shimin’s path would be cut down without exception.
Just look at Li Yuan. If he was given face, Li Shimin would call him Imperial Father. If not, he would send him into the earth alongside Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji.
The distance from Chang’an to Luoyang was more than three hundred kilometers, or over seven hundred li in the ancient units of measurement. Even a high-speed train from later generations would need nearly five hours to cover it.
In this era of underdeveloped transportation, even riding on horseback would require more than a day of travel, to say nothing of a horse-drawn carriage, which was slower still.
Then there was the jolting along the road, which nearly shook one’s entire body apart. If Li Qing had not installed a set of shock absorbers on the carriage, everyone would probably have suffered dislocated joints after a full day on the road.
The slow speed did not bother Li Qing. In fact, he found the experience rather novel. He sat patiently in the carriage, treating the journey as an opportunity to admire the scenery.
What surprised him was that Li Zhi was already running around everywhere on the second day, showing no sign whatsoever of having been brutally beaten the day before.
The boy was the sort who remembered the food but forgot the pain. Li Qing had seen through him by now. Not only had his physical wounds healed completely, even the scars on his heart had vanished. Whenever he had nothing else to do, he would run over to Li Shimin’s carriage.
He claimed that “Princess Xincheng misses Imperial Father,” but in reality, he and Xincheng were both staring at Li Qing. It was obvious that their longing for tasty food outweighed their longing for their father.
With a carriage that no longer jolted them about, it would have been strange if the two little ones had wanted to go back.
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Li Qing did not dislike children, especially not Li Zhi and Li Mingda, two remarkably well-mannered and emotionally perceptive youngsters. The two of them were sweeter-tongued than the other, and they knew that Li Qing indulged children. They called him Uncle at every opportunity, as though the words cost them nothing, and showered him with praise until Li Shimin’s face turned sour.
In a few more days, perhaps the two little ones would become closer to Li Qing than to their own father.
Under the guidance of this irresponsible uncle, the children had already become adept at using the tablet computer Li Qing had just created. They had begun watching animated shows from the future.
When it came to children, nothing beat Tom and Jerry. Sitting in the carriage, the two youngsters burst into laughter from time to time, completely captivated by the cat who was always trying to catch the mouse yet was constantly tricked by him, as well as the mischievous little rodent himself.
“Tom? Jerry? Those names are really strange,” Li Mingda remarked with a mischievous smile after asking Li Qing what the cat and mouse were called.
Li Zhi, however, focused on something different. He was far more interested in the music accompanying the cartoon, displaying an intense curiosity as he pestered Li Qing with question after question, looking every inch the eager and studious child.
A child with an ear for art truly was different. After all, he would one day become the gifted musician who composed the famous Tang court piece, “Music of the Shangyuan Festival.”
Whether his technical skill was truly supreme was difficult to say, but Li Zhi’s status while composing it was unquestionably supreme.
“Ever since Guanyin Maid passed away, I have rarely seen the two of them as happy as they are today,” Li Shimin said to Li Qing.
Since making children happy could earn him emotional points, Li Qing did not mind. Besides, all those emotional points were being plucked from their father. As the saying went, the wool came from the sheep. He was not losing anything.
Sometimes happiness really was that simple—especially when His Majesty Li Er was footing the bill for everyone’s entertainment.
Since the two children were in the carriage, Li Qing did not watch any bloody, violent war films with Li Shimin. Instead, he chose a few lighthearted comedies.
They spent a full three days on the road before finally returning from Luoyang to Chang’an. The journey only strengthened Li Qing’s resolve to develop technology.
If there were high-speed rail, would they really need three days? They would not even need three hours! he thought viciously.
As the largest city in the world during the age of the Tang Dynasty, Chang’an needed no further description of its grandeur and magnificence. All those famous Western cities that later generations and their shameless admirers loved to boast about were not even worthy of tying Chang’an’s shoelaces in this era.
The streets were filled with carts and horses, while buildings stood densely packed along both sides. The sight completely overturned Li Qing’s ideas about ancient cities.
Because the decision to return to Chang’an had been made rather suddenly, there was no welcoming ceremony. Everything was kept simple and proceeded in perfect calm.
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The journey had also been exhausting, so the court assembly was scheduled for the day after tomorrow. Li Shimin formally told Li Qing that at that session, he would announce Li Qing’s enfeoffment as the Prince of Qin of the Great Tang.
Li Qing did not care much. He had never placed much value on empty titles. Compared with that, he cared far more about whether the Tang Dynasty could unite the world as soon as possible.
No one was going to disturb his cultivation.
Still, so as not to slight Li Shimin, he expressed his gratitude.
In his delight, Li Shimin decided to drive personally and give Li Qing a proper look around Chang’an.
Perhaps the carriage was traveling a little too quickly. In any case, it shot through the palace gates like a streak of smoke. The guards at the entrance chased after it, intending to stop the carriage, but the moment one of them recognized Li Shimin’s face, he immediately backed away and lost all inclination to interfere.
“Why didn’t you stop him?” another guard asked in confusion.
His friend was famously upright and incorruptible. Back when he had served in the Imperial Guards, he had been a man who could not tolerate even the slightest offense. Even Duke Lu, Cheng Zhijie, had once been stopped by him for riding his horse a little too fast through the streets. How had he become so timid and hesitant now that he was stationed in the palace?
“N-No, we can’t stop him.” The guard still looked shaken.
“Why not?” His colleague was utterly baffled. “You used to be so fearless and impartial. How did you become such a coward today?”
“That person is too formidable. No matter what, I wouldn’t dare stop him.” The guard shook his head repeatedly, making it clear that it was impossible.
“But His Majesty once ordered that carriages and horses were not to pass through the palace gates…”
“No. Absolutely not. That person is far too formidable. I wouldn’t dare stop him under any circumstances.”
“Who is he, anyway? How can he be so terrifying?” his colleague asked suspiciously.
“I don’t know who is sitting inside the carriage,” the guard said, still shaken. “But I saw that the person driving him was His Majesty.”
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