LFHYB -Chapter 43 The Unfilial Disciple Li Shimin

Li Shimin’s doodle assignment still ended up in the hands of his three teachers.

Yu Shinan only smiled and did not punish Li Shimin.

Gao Jiong and Yuwen Bi, seeing that Li Shimin had such lofty ambition, decided to add military strategy lessons to his curriculum.

Yuwen Bi really wanted to teach Li Shimin personally, but when it came to military strategy, he was far inferior to Gao Jiong. Although he loved arguing with Gao Jiong, he sincerely admired his abilities. So Yuwen Bi took a step back and only taught Li Shimin how to observe battlefield situations and how to actually fight and kill on the battlefield.

What Gao Jiong taught was the art of being a “commander” in the rear. What Yuwen Bi taught was the art of being a “general” on the front lines.

Li Shimin felt both happy and miserable about the extra workload.

He knocked Li Xuanba’s head like a wooden fish drum. “It’s all your fault. I don’t even have time to play anymore!”

Li Xuanba held back and held back—then couldn’t take it anymore. He jumped off the couch and ran to find their mother to complain.

Li Shimin grabbed Li Xuanba’s arm and refused to let him go tell on him.

The two brothers got into another fight.

When Lady Dou heard about it, she pressed her forehead. “Is there a single day when they don’t fight?”

Lady Wan, embroidering a small cloak, laughed. “I hear Second Young Master’s martial skills are already better than boys four or five years older than him. But Third Young Master always fights him to a draw—looks like Third Young Master is a hidden talent too.”

Lady Dou burst out laughing so hard she nearly doubled over.

The servants around them also couldn’t help laughing.

Li Xuanba’s martial training had basically been suspended. His lethal combat skills were all replaced with health‑preserving exercises, and his martial arts teacher became Physician Sun.

But Gao Jiong felt that military strategy didn’t require going to the battlefield, so Li Xuanba could learn it too, and dragged him in for extra lessons.

Yuwen Bi figured that since military strategy required understanding battlefield conditions, even if Li Xuanba didn’t have to learn it, he still had to sit in when Li Shimin studied. So Li Xuanba got another auditing class added.

Thus, Li Xuanba’s workload increased as well.

Li Shimin laughed loudly, shouting “Serves you right, A-Xuan!”, and laughed so hard that one of his baby teeth fell out. With blood and the tooth in his mouth, he kept on laughing.

Li Xuanba was grinding his teeth in anger—and also ground one loose.

They had lost teeth in the exact same spot. When they got home, they both had identical gaps in their mouths. Lady Dou laughed until her stomach hurt.

Lady Wan wiped tears from her eyes as she laughed. “Even if you two are twins, there’s no need to lose teeth in the same place.”

Li Shimin opened his big, gap‑toothed mouth and laughed without a care. “Can’t be helped. That’s just how twins are.”

Li Xuanba didn’t want to show his mouth full of gaps, and he didn’t want to speak with air leaking out either, so he kept his lips tightly closed.

Seeing the completely different reactions of Li Shimin and Li Xuanba, Lady Dou and Lady Wan bent over laughing again.

Li Xuanba was so embarrassed he wished he could disappear into the ground. Li Shimin, however, just laughed foolishly along with Mother and Aunt, completely unable to understand his little brother’s embarrassment.

After Gao Jiong had taught them military strategy for a month, Li Xuanba’s grades were far ahead of his second brother Li Shimin. In Gao Jiong’s eyes, Li Shimin had become hopeless deadwood.

Gao Jiong: “Let’s suppose there’s a battlefield—suppose there are this many enemies, suppose the terrain is like this, suppose the political situation of both courts is like that, blah blah blah… What would you do?”

Li Xuanba: “First send spies to scout the enemy. Then see if we can use schemes to sow discord. Then secretly conscript grain and troops under other pretenses and launch a surprise attack from a thousand li away, blah blah…”

Li Shimin: “Why make it so complicated? Give me ten thousand armored cavalry! I’ll personally lead them out and kill the enemy commander!”

Gao Jiong: “???”

Li Xuanba rubbed his forehead, speechless.

Li Shimin stuck to his opinion.

With veins bulging on his forehead, Gao Jiong patiently explained the military classics to Li Shimin.

But Li Shimin spread his hands. “Military books are just the opinions of people in the past. Are people in the past necessarily better than me? If I can beat them, why go through all that trouble?”

Gao Jiong tried teaching according to his aptitude. He gave Li Shimin ten thousand troops and the enemy a hundred thousand, then asked Li Shimin to demonstrate how he would behead the enemy commander in battle.

Li Shimin put his hands on his hips and lifted his chin. “Have all the cavalry wear full armor and charge straight into the enemy formation. Won’t that smash them apart?”

Gao Jiong clutched his chest and took deep breaths. “Is that how fully armored cavalry are used?! No one sends cataphracts charging straight into an enemy formation! Cavalry are meant to skim past enemy ranks or perform close‑range shooting to force the enemy formation to deform! Even if the Overlord of Chu were reborn, he wouldn’t lead cavalry to charge straight into shielded infantry! If your ten thousand ride into a formation of a hundred thousand, you’re throwing yourself into a trap!”

Li Shimin said, “Then I’ll just charge back out.”

Gao Jiong was so angry he could barely breathe. He kept poking Li Shimin’s half‑bald little head, making it wobble back and forth. “Charge back out? You’d be surrounded on all sides. Even on horseback you wouldn’t be able to see where the formation is weak! And you think the enemy’s generals would just let you break out?”

Even as his head wobbled, Li Shimin insisted, “Maybe I could. Maybe I’m just better than all of them! I’ll charge out, then charge back in, then charge out again and in again. After enough times, no matter how strong their infantry formation’s morale is, I’ll shatter it!”

Gao Jiong’s temples throbbed painfully, and his body swayed.

Li Xuanba had been covering his mouth to laugh, but when he saw this, he hurriedly supported Gao Jiong and helped him calm down. “Teacher, don’t be angry. Second Brother is just like this. You’ve already taught him everything you can. What he does afterward—just don’t worry about it.”

Gao Jiong pointed at Li Shimin, grinding his teeth. “I refuse to believe I can’t straighten you out!”

Li Xuanba sighed: “Well… with Second Brother’s personality, there’s really no changing him. Teacher, you might as well give up in advance.”

Gao Jiong, who was nearly driven to a stroke from anger, caught a bit of the flavor in that remark. He shot uncertain, suspicious glances back and forth between Li Shimin and Li Xuanba.

Li Shimin said, “A-Xuan, can you foresee my future achievements? Tell Teacher quickly—did I really accomplish them?”

Li Xuanba replied, “I can’t say. If I tell you that you succeeded, you might lose your calm and humility, and end up becoming mediocre. If I say you failed, you could go astray, become overly cautious, and lose your own spirit. So first, focus on learning your skills, and think carefully about the path you are about to take.”

Li Shimin crossed his arms: “True, knowing the future would be boring. Besides, I’m definitely going to be even more impressive than what you foresee! Teacher, continue! I refuse to believe I can’t out-argue you!”

Gao Jiong jabbed Li Shimin hard in the forehead, leaving a red mark: “Who’s arguing strategy with you? I’ve actually led troops in real battles. What have you done? When you have real achievements, then we can talk tactics!”

Li Shimin held his forehead: “Then Teacher, you must take good care of yourself—make sure you live until I become a Great General.”

Gao Jiong: “???”

Li Xuanba rubbed his own forehead. Second Brother wasn’t wrong, but somehow, it sounded… off.

Sure enough, Gao Jiong let out a bitter laugh, and Li Shimin was assigned extra homework.

“You think you can avoid studying military texts? If you want to figure out your own path, you must first exhaust the paths of the wise ones. Copy the military texts!”

Gao Jiong was so angry that he didn’t want to see Li Shimin for the rest of the day. After giving the assignment, he sent Li Shimin off early to study under Yuwen Bi.

Yuwen Bi liked to be at the forefront of battles—so Li Shimin had to go mingle with that old rascal!

Li Xuanba stayed behind with Gao Jiong to continue receiving his training.

After drinking a bowl of calming, focus-inducing medicine, Gao Jiong’s flushed face slowly returned to normal.

He said weakly, “Dade, tell me honestly—does Erlang really lead troops in the future like this… strangely? Always putting himself at risk, relying on destiny? There’s no changing him? The precious son doesn’t know to sit still?”

Li Xuanba thought for a moment, then sighed: “Second Brother really does always take the lead in battle.” He left out the rest.

Gao Jiong said, “Even if he must personally lead troops, the way he charges…”

Li Xuanba sighed again: “But he really accomplished it. He would charge into the enemy lines, find a weak spot, and lead his troops out. Then when he saw another opening, he’d charge back in. Back and forth, sleeves soaked in blood. When arrows ran out, he’d use his sword; when the sword dulled, he’d chop with his bow… He really did it.”

Gao Jiong took a deep breath, sniffed a bag of aromatic herbs meant to clear the mind, and said: “Didn’t he have brave generals under him who could take these risks instead?!”

Li Xuanba thought for a moment: “Yes, quite a few. For example, there was a general named Yuchi Jingde under him. He said that together, the two of them could face thousands of troops without fear. So he would take Yuchi Jingde and act as bait, leading enemy cavalry into traps.”

Gao Jiong nearly went black in the face and hastily sniffed more of the herbs: “No one under him tried to stop him?!”

Li Xuanba shrugged: “Second Brother never said he was going to fight. He only said he was scouting nearby. When Yuchi Jingde was forced to act as bait with him, he probably didn’t expect this either. So Teacher, don’t get angry over Second Brother anymore—you can’t exhaust your anger.”

An attendant brought another bowl of medicinal soup, and Gao Jiong gulped it down.

After taking a dozen deep breaths, Gao Jiong calmed down and said: “Even with the courage of a warlord, blades and arrows are blind. How many famous generals die suddenly on the battlefield? Even if your prophecy shows him safe, the world is unpredictable. How can he put his life in the hands of luck? I must straighten out his reckless nature!”

Li Xuanba could only salute his teacher and let him try.

Second Brother’s talent for commanding troops was innate—he basically had no famous teacher guiding him.

Now that he had a proper teacher, Li Xuanba believed he wouldn’t do worse than before.

If he could be reined in from always personally charging into the fray, that would be a good thing.

Although the Grand General’s martial skill was extraordinary and dazzling on the battlefield, even without Second Brother leading from the front, a slightly steadier main commander could still win.

In fact, Second Brother himself admitted that his way of charging was reckless and warned others not to imitate it.

Yes, he knew it was reckless—he just liked to fight in person.

Hence, he often claimed on his social media accounts that Tang Taizong was inherently a bloodthirsty, violent killer, which brought him massive attention, much to his delight.

Gao Jiong nearly exploded from high blood pressure. Li Xuanba could no longer calm him.

Li Xuanba took his leave, again asking the teacher to calm down and not get sick from anger over an unworthy disciple.

After all, this unworthy disciple had absolutely no sense of self-reflection.

Gao Jiong poked Li Xuanba’s forehead too, leaving a red mark.

He realized that both Li Xuanba and Li Shimin made his chest ache from anger—it was true, twin brothers.

After a few days of calming down, Gao Jiong, when teaching Li Shimin again, focused on introducing generals from history who had stumbled on horseback, been struck by stray arrows, or had their paths blocked by chaotic soldiers and died.

The battlefield is ever-changing. A commander must first protect himself to protect his army from collapse; only after ensuring the army’s stability and being able to maneuver can victory be pursued.

Clearly, Gao Jiong’s approach to command favored caution.

Although less well-known in the Sui dynasty, Gao Jiong had served under two wise emperors, the Northern Zhou Wu Emperor and Sui Wen Emperor, campaigning across the lands, pacifying territories, defending against the Turks, and causing their division. He was a highly capable strategist and military thinker.

His ideas were not only top-tier in this era but ahead of his time. Thus, Li Shimin deeply respected Gao Jiong and diligently learned from him.

However, how Li Shimin would apply Gao Jiong’s teachings was something even Li Xuanba could not predict.

After all, his brother really couldn’t sit still. He was the kind of person who, even after becoming emperor, would chase rabbits in the imperial gardens.

When his second brother could lead troops in battle, Li Xuanba found it hard to imagine him quietly behaving like a normal general.

A few days later, Yuwen Bi also started giving Li Shimin extra training.

Li Xuanba guessed that Mr. Gao (Gao Gong) must have gotten increasingly irritated and stressed the more he thought about things, raising his blood pressure, so he “poisoned” Mr. Yuwen as well.

A few days after that, Li Xuanba heard from the staff at Gao Gong and Yuwen Bi’s residences that both teachers were now busy searching for ways to maintain health, leaving them less time for book compilation and significantly extending their rest periods.

Li Xuanba covered his mouth with one hand, pinching his face. No, he was going to laugh out loud.

Li Shimin looked puzzled: “A-Xuan, what’s with that strange expression?”

Li Xuanba stifled a laugh: “The teachers are probably so annoyed by you that they want to live long just to see you reach the rank of Grand General, so they can keep an eye on you and make sure you don’t act recklessly.”

Li Shimin chuckled: “But isn’t their health cultivation meant to witness me charging across the battlefield, dominating famous generals of the world, and feel proud of me?”

Li Xuanba said, “I think the motivation to keep an eye on you so you don’t misbehave is stronger.”

Li Shimin shook his head: “No, it’s definitely to witness my great achievements!”

Neither of them could convince the other, so they recorded it in a little notebook to “settle the argument” in ten or twenty years.

Li Shimin confidently said: “I will definitely win.”

Li Xuanba shook his head: “Don’t be so confident. When the teachers scold you so harshly that you’re drenched in shame, you’ll come crying to me.”

Li Shimin snorted: “I won’t cry.”

Li Xuanba didn’t believe him.

They recorded this too.

Li Shimin even marked it in red ink: Future me! Even if scolded, you must not cry! Don’t embarrass the present me!

Li Xuanba carefully put the little notebook away, determined not to let his second brother get away with any tricks.

Oh, right, this would also make a great burial item—another one added to the collection.

…

After the workload increased, both Li Shimin and Li Xuanba felt that time flew. Every day consisted of listening to lessons, discussing them with friends, and completing assignments, and before they knew it, it was already July.

The soap shop and the printing shop were both thriving. Since Li Xuanba generously shared his soap formula, other shops quickly began to imitate it.

However, Li Xuanba had used the version with wood ash and lime water, without revealing the difference between common alkali and ordinary wood ash, so the soaps from other shops were inferior to Li Xuanba’s.

Moreover, Li Xuanba’s soaps had the added prestige of being “tribute items,” and the membership system played perfectly into the nobles’ vanity for exclusivity. As a result, Li Xuanba and his partners could never meet the demand—products sold out immediately upon release, and pre-orders were always full.

From nobles to wealthy commoners, displaying a soap with Li Xuanba’s shop mark while receiving guests was a source of pride.

Other shops didn’t lack the desire to secretly produce counterfeit “Li Family soaps.”

Even imperial supplies were copied, let alone the modest soap of the Duke of Tang’s residence.

But first, the quality of other soaps didn’t measure up, so it was easy to spot fakes; second, every soap Li Xuanba sold was numbered, and he knew exactly who had purchased what. Counterfeiting was difficult.

Li Xuanba’s soaps matched the numbers on the boxes exactly. Checking the number confirmed if it was from his shop. If it was a pre-ordered soap, VIP clients had special numbers that showed how many soaps they had received.

When nobles flaunted wealth, they now had another way to show off—the size of the soap box number. A larger number meant buying more, proving both wealth and status at court, since they could acquire a larger quota.

Yang Xian, eager for face, insisted on buying from the soap shop even though Yang Guang, persuaded by Empress Xiao, had already canceled his punishment and allowed him to take palace tribute directly—just for that numbered box.

Li Xuanba said: “Prince Qi, don’t buy them, I’ll send you a few.”

Yang Xian angrily said: “Do you look down on me?”

Li Xuanba replied: “Of course not. It’s just that our production capacity isn’t enough. Your high status, Prince Qi, means you buy up everyone else’s soaps. We only need to produce for you each day; once done, we close, and others can’t get the limited edition soaps.”

Yang Xian laughed heartily, finally stopping the daily rush to block the doors.

Yang Zhao, on the other hand, was exasperated, clutching his heart in frustration.

Other nobles grumbled at Yang Xian’s arrogance, and Yang Zhao ran around cleaning up his brother’s mess, completely worn out.

Yang Guang had originally instructed Yang Xian to refrain from acting and reflect quietly.

Yang Zhao petitioned the emperor, requesting that Yang Xian be given some proper work to do.

Receiving the urgent letter from the Crown Prince, Yang Guang initially thought something serious had happened in Daxing.

Seeing that the Crown Prince was troubled by Prince Qi blocking the soap shop, Yang Guang almost thought his eyes were failing him.

Holding the letter from the Crown Prince, his hands trembled slightly. The emperor, who prided himself as a wise ruler of a thousand generations, felt a rare weariness of heart for the first time.

He summoned Li Yuan, shaking the letter: “What kind of son is this? This is a debt! He was extremely clever and sensible as a child; how could he become like this?”

Li Yuan smiled wryly and handed over the letter: “When the Crown Prince delivered a message to Your Majesty, he kindly included a family letter for me. Please read my family letter, Your Majesty.”

Yang Guang took the letter from Li Yuan. It was a complaint from Li Xuanba.

Li Xuanba wrote that Teacher Gao, while teaching his second brother military strategy, was infuriated by him saying “I’ll charge with my troops and just kill the enemy commander” no matter the opponent. Teacher Gao was so angry he almost fainted, and after driving the second brother away, had to drink two bowls of bitter medicine to calm himself.

The teacher would not give up. Now he was drinking medicine while continuing to instruct the second brother. Li Xuanba worried that the teacher might fall ill from the stress caused by his brother.

Mr. Yuwen was the same, though slightly less extreme.

Yang Guang was stunned: “Wasn’t Daxiong quite sensible? How could he make someone as proud and stubborn as Gao Gong shorten his life from anger?”

Li Yuan grimaced and said, “I really don’t know. When I left the capital, Daxiong was still such an obedient, sensible child.”

Yang Guang and Li Yuan exchanged glances.

The two of them found common ground in the difficulties of being a father. Yang Guang felt much closer to Li Yuan.

He even felt some sympathy toward Gao Jiong.

His dislike and wariness of Gao Jiong stemmed precisely from recognizing Gao Jiong’s abilities.

Gao Jiong had been willing to teach Li Shimin the art of commanding troops—an enormous opportunity for Li Shimin. Yang Guang felt a twinge of jealousy, begrudging that Gao Jiong wouldn’t impart the same knowledge to his own son.

Of course, if Gao Jiong had dared to teach his son, Yang Guang would surely have suspected foul play and might have killed Gao Jiong.

But this incredible opportunity, Li Shimin had instead used it to make Gao Jiong practically spew blood from anger. Yang Guang felt so sympathetic… and yet so proud!

Truly my nephew! Well done!

Privately, Yang Guang told Yuwen Shu that if Li Dàxiong could actually drive Gao Jiong to death by anger, he would be overjoyed.

Even the flattering Yuwen Shu didn’t know how to respond.

He was genuinely curious. When Gao Jiong was dismissed by the late emperor, he had remained completely calm, much to the late emperor’s dissatisfaction. How, then, had Li Erlang managed to rile Gao Jiong to the point of seeking medical help everywhere?

“Perhaps Yuwen Bi was similarly stressed. He’s been consulting doctors for heart- and mind-calming medicinal remedies as well,” Yuwen Shu reported, following Yang Guang’s orders and keeping watch over Gao Jiong and Yuwen Bi.

Yang Guang recounted Li Erlang’s exploits to Yuwen Shu.

Yuwen Shu was silent for a long time, sighing, “If it were me, I would have expelled Li Erlang from the school. Gao Jiong and Yuwen Bi have far more patience than I do.”

Yang Guang laughed heartily.

He even sent someone to deliver fine horses and young eagles he had obtained from the Turks, as a gift to Li Shimin.

When Li Shimin received the reward, he was puzzled: “Why am I the only one getting a gift? Why not A’xuan?”

Li Xuanba sent a thought: [This is His Majesty’s reward for you nearly driving Master Gao and Master Yuwen to death.]

Li Shimin: “……”

He rubbed his face vigorously, repeatedly insisting, “I didn’t say anything wrong,” awkwardly wishing he could dig a hole and hide in it.

Li Xuanba felt very gratified. His second brother was finally embarrassed—probably won’t argue with the teachers again.

His second brother was really stubborn. Even if he disagreed, there was no need to say so aloud. Yet he insisted on debating with the teachers, using twisted logic to infuriate them.

Li Xuanba was genuinely worried about Gao Jiong and Yuwen Bi.

He had barely managed to save the two elders, and now he worried whether they might shorten their lives from anger at his brother. That’s why he had reluctantly written to Li Yuan, urging him to properly persuade his second son.

Their mother had already tried, but to no avail. Perhaps if both parents persuaded him together, they could get him to stop.

Who would have thought the emperor would hear about this—and even reward his second brother?

Li Xuanba sighed, hands behind his back.

With a student like this second brother and a superior like Yang Guang, Master Gao and Master Yuwen really had it tough.

After that, Li Shimin did tone things down a bit.

Although Gao Jiong and Yuwen Bi could still see that Li Shimin remained unyielding, as long as he didn’t voice it, they pretended not to notice.

After enduring this period of torment, their expectations had lowered.

Teaching is a grind—either the student is being tested, or the teacher is. Gao Jiong and Yuwen Bi believed that time was on their side; Li Shimin’s temperament hadn’t yet settled and could still change.

At the very least, he should stop personally leading charges in battle! Look at the mighty generals behind you—they’re not just for show!

Li Shimin whispered to Li Xuanba: “Mighty generals? They’re just guards protecting me as I charge forward!”

Then, Li Shimin crouched into a battle stance, thrusting forward as if stabbing with a spear.

Li Xuanba perfunctorily said, “Ah, yes, yes. But remember to tell others not to imitate you, lest they lose their lives.”

Poor Li Daoxuan—this was how he had been “set up” by Li Shimin.

Li Daoxuan was Li Shimin’s cousin, known as “Little Li Shimin.” The “Little Overlord Li Xuanba” in Sui Tang Romance borrowed Li Xuanba’s name and also corresponds to Li Daoxuan’s prototype. In the Qing Dynasty, to avoid using Emperor Kangxi’s name, it was changed to “Li Yuanba.”

However, in Li Daoxuan’s case, the main general would charge ahead while the deputy general silently cut off the retreat, letting the commander die among the enemy, resulting in a catastrophic defeat. Yet because the deputy general was favored by Li Yuan, he faced no punishment—a bizarre situation almost impossible to encounter in real life. Li Daoxuan truly died unjustly.

No wonder Li Yuan earned a reputation for being “unclear in rewards and punishments.”

Li Shimin said, “I know. I am one of a kind!”

He continued in his crouched stance, shouting, “Charge! Kill!”

Li Xuanba didn’t bother responding to his brother.

Not satisfied with just posing, Li Shimin picked up two branches from the courtyard—one as a horse, one as a saber—and ran back and forth in the yard: “Forward! All soldiers, follow my command! Kill the enemy and earn glory! Kill!”

Li Xuanba yawned and shouted, “Hurry up and make it rain so my brother will calm down.”

No sooner had he spoken than thunder rumbled across the already gloomy sky.

Summer storms struck, and a downpour drenched Li Shimin head to toe.

He dropped the branches, wiped the rain from his face, and said, “A’xuan, was that necessary?”

Li Xuanba: “……Pure coincidence.”

Li Shimin threw his head back and sighed, dejectedly “sounding the retreat.”

…

Li Xuanba did not expect that after that day’s thunderstorm, Daxing would see intermittent rain for half a month, even causing urban flooding.

Reflecting on the major events of the year, he sighed.

The rain in Daxing… was still considered mild.

Records of the Five Elements in the Book of Sui notes: “In the third year of Daye, the rivers of Henan flooded, drowning over thirty commanderies.”

The Book of Sui doesn’t specify when in the third year of Daye this flood occurred; Li Xuanba now estimated it must be around this time.

Sure enough, in late July to early August, “the rivers of Henan flooded, drowning over thirty commanderies.”

Such a massive disaster quickly alarmed the capital; the victims flocked to the gates of Daxing.

Crown Prince Yang Zhao, overwhelmed, hurried to gather funds and supplies to settle the displaced outside the capital, sending urgent dispatches requesting Yang Guang return quickly to manage the situation.

Yang Guang had not returned.

Changsun Sheng reprimanded the Turkic Khagan for not showing proper respect to the Emperor of Sui. He ordered the Turkic people to mobilize the entire nation, cutting down pastures and leveling the land from Yulin to Ji (what would later become Beijing), constructing a royal road three thousand li long and one hundred bu wide for Yang Guang’s convoy to travel on.

Yang Guang rewarded Changsun Sheng handsomely and was, at that moment, filled with pride and satisfaction. Naturally, he would not “spoil the work at the last moment” by returning early at the height of his triumph, leaving the northern tour incomplete.

Disasters happened every year, and the relief granaries had long been established. Officials were in charge of disaster relief—was it really necessary for the emperor to personally oversee such minor matters? If so, what time would the emperor have left for major state affairs?

Yang Zhao had no choice but to write to his father: the relief granaries were empty! Without the emperor’s permission, he dared not open the official storehouses!

Gao Jiong and Yuwen Bi always adjusted their lessons according to the facts at hand. At this moment, they happened to be explaining the system of relief granaries to Li Shimin and Li Xuanba.

Emperor Wen of Sui had established relief granaries among the people, letting villages manage them themselves: in years of abundance, grain was stored, and in years of disaster, the stored grain was taken out to help the people.

However, when a natural disaster struck and Emperor Wen ordered the granaries to be used for relief, it turned out that the villagers had not deposited any grain into them, leaving the granaries unable to aid the disaster-stricken population.

Emperor Wen was furious. He considered the people short-sighted and in need of a lesson. He ordered officials not to open official granaries for relief.

Li Xuanba knew this story.

Emperor Wen was a very contradictory person—frugal and stingy, yet sometimes willing to actively provide disaster relief, while at other times, he would whimsically think that the people deserved to suffer and withhold aid.

Li Xuanba said, “Perhaps the late emperor truly regarded the people as his own children. Seeing that they lacked foresight, he wished to teach them a lesson, so they could learn to think ahead.”

Li Shimin looked at Li Xuanba. “Xuan, don’t mock the late emperor.”

Li Xuanba replied solemnly, “I am praising the late emperor’s wisdom.”

Li Shimin: “…Oh.”

He scratched his head. “When A-Xuan studied arithmetic, Mother took the two of us to the manor to inquire with the steward about the yields per acre of the tenant farmers, calculating the annual expenses and surplus. Even in abundant years, most tenant farmers had already consumed their grain before the new harvest matured, needing to borrow from the manor and repay it after the harvest.”

This lesson was jointly taught by Gao Jiong and Yuwen Bi. Sitting on the opposite couch, they looked gently at Li Shimin, encouraging him with their eyes to continue speaking.

Li Shimin scratched his head again. “After a natural disaster, those who need relief are mostly people like our tenant farmers, right? They would never have surplus grain to deposit in the granaries. As for wealthy households with more grain than they could consume, they could survive a disaster on their own supplies and would likely not deposit surplus in the granaries either.”

Gao Jiong asked, “Do you think the late emperor’s relief policy was wrong?”

Li Shimin said, “I dare not speak ill of the late emperor. But I think he was right: the people lack foresight. Therefore, it is the duty of the ruler and the ministers to see farther than the people. Disaster relief is the responsibility of a ruler and court officials who can think ahead.”

Gao Jiong remained silent.

Yuwen Bi sighed, his eyes slightly red, but he said nothing further.

Li Shimin lowered his head, feeling a vague heaviness in his chest. He recalled that the last time he had felt this way was on the dragon boat, seeing someone bury leftover food.

Li Shimin asked, “Teachers, does the current emperor… not open the granaries for disaster relief either?”

Gao Jiong and Yuwen Bi remained silent.

Li Shimin looked at Li Xuanba.

Li Xuanba said, “The nobles in the capital will surely build Buddhist temples and pray for the disaster-stricken.”

Li Shimin breathed a sigh of relief. “That’s really good.”

Li Xuanba asked, “Second Brother, is it really good? They build temples, but do the disaster-stricken then have grain to eat, houses to live in, or fields to farm?”

Li Shimin froze.

Li Xuanba continued, “I have never understood why, when the ministers express concern for the people, they do not directly help them but instead build splendid temples and provide robes for monks and nuns to chant sutras every day. Will the people truly be so grateful that, after someone chants sutras for them, they will no longer go hungry?”

This was a question anyone in later generations could answer.

But at this moment, whether it was the elderly Gao Jiong and Yuwen Bi or the young future Emperor Taizong, Li Shimin, they could not immediately answer Li Xuanba’s question. It was as if the question itself were extraordinary.

Li Xuanba knew they could not answer.

Even the later Tang Taizong, widely recognized as the emperor who could barely see the needs of the people, still built temples and released prisoners when praying for the populace.

Praying for the people meant money and grain went into temples; showing mercy to the people meant pardoning deserving criminals, even if it caused some disorder.

Tang Taizong was also a feudal emperor, with all the limitations that entailed. Otherwise, what would a marketing account like his live on? Repeating “Taizong revised the history,” perhaps?

Just as Gao Jiong and Yuwen Bi were about to speak, a sobbing sound came from the room.

Gao Jiong, Yuwen Bi, and Li Xuanba quickly looked at Li Shimin.

Li Shimin first whimpered, then covered his eyes and cried openly.

“Brother? Why are you crying?” Li Xuanba was startled and hurriedly handed his elder brother a cloth to wipe his tears.

Li Shimin sobbed, “Hearing what you said, A-Xuan, thinking of people who have nothing to eat while the nobles give their money to temples thinking they are helping, I cannot help feeling sorrowful and tearful. Why is it like this? Why, before you mentioned this, did I never realize it was wrong, and even thought about donating more to temples? A-Xuan, this time, let’s tell Mother we won’t donate to temples, okay?”

Li Xuanba sighed. His elder brother truly could be moved to tears by reading history—such an emotional heart.

He said firmly, “No!”

Li Shimin sniffled. “Why not?”

Gao Jiong, with a stern face, said, “All the nobles donate to temples. If you don’t, are you trying to say they are not nobles? If the emperor does not provide relief, and your Tang Guo Gong Mansion does so in secret, are you trying to win the people’s favor on the emperor’s behalf?”

Yuwen Bi sighed and shook his head. “It’s enough that you have this heart.”

Li Shimin cried, “So… we just do nothing?”

Gao Jiong said, “I will remonstrate with His Majesty and request that he open the official granaries!”

Yuwen Bi said, “I will do the same! Daxiong, Dade, you’re still young. These matters aren’t your responsibility. Although Gao Gong and I are old, we are not dead yet. The current court affairs are our responsibility.”

Li Xuanba’s face turned pale. “No! If Mr. Gao and Mr. Yuwen go to remonstrate, His Majesty will surely hold a grudge against you!”

Li Shimin wiped his tears vigorously, smearing his face with both tears and snot. Then he immediately kowtowed. “Please, sirs, do not go. I was impulsive. This isn’t your responsibility. Please, take care of yourselves first.”

But Gao Jiong and Yuwen Bi shook their heads.

Li Xuanba gritted his teeth. “Sirs, His Majesty will not only fail to provide disaster relief, he will conscript the people to build the Great Wall. There’s no way to persuade him!”

Gao Jiong and Yuwen Bi suddenly stood up.

Gao Jiong picked up Li Xuanba and said, “What? Build what?”

Li Xuanba replied, “Build the Great Wall. Once he learns of the suffering in Henan, he will conscript the people to construct it.”

Li Shimin blankly said, “Using labor instead of relief… does that mean the people will at least survive?”

Li Xuanba: “…Yes, that’s right.”

Li Shimin breathed a sigh of relief. “Teachers, you can rest easy! His Majesty is not indifferent!”

But Gao Jiong and Yuwen Bi felt a sinking in their hearts.

They recalled Li Xuanba’s previous prophecy—they were destined to die this year for “slandering the court.”

Had they, by intervening, stopped His Majesty from building the Great Wall?

Gao Jiong and Yuwen Bi were filled with sorrow, yet speechless.

They sent Li Shimin and Li Xuanba off, then sat dazedly facing each other.

“Gao Gong, should we really try to avoid this death?”

“And if we don’t avoid it? According to Dade’s prophecy, His Majesty will be indifferent and kill us if we remonstrate.”

“But doing nothing… it feels so wrong!”

Gao Jiong sighed softly. “Who doesn’t feel wrong?”

Yuwen Bi’s tears fell.

Both men were children of noble families, raised in wealth and luxury. Deep down, they didn’t care much for the common people—they didn’t grieve for them as genuinely as Li Xuanba and Li Shimin did.

They grieved for the Sui dynasty.

When disasters strike without relief, and the people are conscripted to build the Great Wall—wouldn’t that be courting death?

If the people cannot survive, they will inevitably revolt. The realm has just been pacified; if the people rise, ambitious men will surely seize the opportunity.

So now, the mighty Sui dynasty, ablaze like fire under oil, only has less than twenty years of fortune left?

Even though they had prepared themselves for the fall of Sui, watching it step by step into the abyss and being powerless to act—it was unbearably hard.