I am Li Shen and Li Shimin, the free kings of the Tang Dynasty

Li Shen brought his family to the royal villa in Dahuangzhuang and was discovered as soon as he arrived at the village entrance.

When several strong men who were on night watch saw that it was King Ji, they quickly sent someone to notify the village chief.

The village chief of Dahuangzhuang immediately sent people to inform every household that Prince Ji was coming.

The village, which should have been quiet and dark at night, suddenly became brightly lit.

Every household began to light up the lanterns.

They were all fiefs of Prince Ji's mansion, and Prince Ji was their head. Li Shen's arrival made the people in the manor extremely excited.

Li Shen hasn't been to Huangzhuang for a long time.

Everyone knows that His Royal Highness Prince Ji is very busy. The four manors under him are all managed by dedicated people. If there is any matter, they have to report to Wei Fugui, the chief steward of Prince Ji's mansion.

"Your Highness Prince Ji, everyone in the manor has arrived outside the gate, waiting to see you."

The one who spoke was the village chief Zhang Da.

He has been the village chief for Li Shen for ten years and is now over sixty years old.

Li Shen frowned. He had just arrived here a short while ago and hadn't said he wanted to see the people.

"Hey Zhang Da, it's already dark, and you're still letting people from the village come over. Isn't that a bit inappropriate?

If you want to see him, can't you meet him tomorrow during the day? Why bother mobilizing so many troops and disturbing the people?"

"Your Majesty, this is the rule, and etiquette cannot be abolished. Besides, the people haven't seen the prince for a while.

Everyone wants to see the prince." Zhang Da bowed and said.

"Meet the king? Why should the king meet? He is not a monkey."

When Li Shen heard this, he always felt like a monkey in a zoo. It was not easy for him to come here, and everyone came to see the fun.

"This..." Zhang Da was speechless for a moment.

"My dear, since all the people are here, go and meet them. They are not outsiders." Lu Dingniang came out at this time.

"Well, okay, they're boiling water anyway, so come with me, lady."

Li Shen sighed and could only come back to take a bath later.

Zhang Da was overjoyed when he heard this and led the way.

Li Shen stood inside the gate and could see the flames rising into the sky outside through the courtyard wall.

When I opened the door, what came into view was a sea of ​​people.

There were torches everywhere, making it as bright as day.

"Greetings to His Royal Highness Prince Ji!"

"Greetings to His Royal Highness Prince Ji." The voices of greeting continued one after another.

"Why are there so many people?" Li Shen took a look and was a little confused.

"Your Highness, when they learned that you were coming, the whole family came here," Zhang Da explained.

"Everyone is here? Zhang Da, do you know how dangerous this is? If there is a crowd, people will die.

If someone dies, can you bear the responsibility?"

Li Shen was a little angry.

When Li Shen heard that the whole family had come, it suddenly dawned on him that it was no wonder that he felt there were so many people.

But he soon realized the safety risks here.

It’s so dark, if there’s a stampede, who can control it?

Being scolded by Li Shen, Zhang Da was trembling with fear and quickly apologized:

"Your Highness, please forgive me. I didn't think so much. It's all my fault."

"Okay, be more careful next time and think before you do anything." Li Shen waved his hand, and then in order to make sure people could see him, Li Shen climbed up the courtyard wall alone.

Standing on the courtyard wall, Li Shen saw that there were at least a thousand people.

He thought for a moment and shouted loudly:

"Everyone is free of charge!"

"Thank you, His Highness Prince Ji."

"It's getting late today, so I won't say much. Tomorrow I will look around Zhuangzi and visit him.

If anyone has anything they want to ask me, they can raise it tomorrow.

I understand everyone's desire to see me.

However, the king has been traveling a lot today and is a little tired, and he doesn't want to disturb everyone's rest.

When you leave later, don't leave together. Follow the arrangements of the palace guards and leave in an orderly manner.

We'll talk about it tomorrow if there's anything."

In fact, the villagers just wanted to come and see Li Shen, who was their backbone and pillar.

Under Li Shen's instructions, the guards of the Imperial Guard Battalion began to guide the people to leave in an orderly manner.

Every villager was very excited and talked about how it felt to meet King Ji.

Something like majestic and handsome.

Watching the people leave, Li Shen came down from the wall. He came to Zhang Da and looked at the old and frail Zhang Da, feeling emotional.

I have grown up, and many of the people who followed me have now grown old.

In particular, Li Shen had not come to the imperial farm for a very long time. Even during the annual spring plowing and sacrificial ceremonies, Li Shen asked his eldest son Yangyang to come instead of him.

This visit made him feel like he was in another world.

"Zhang Da, I haven't been here for a long time, right?" Li Shen couldn't help but ask with emotion.

"Your Highness, it's been three years." Zhang Dalian replied quickly.

"It's been three years. You've aged a lot in these three years. You've worked hard." Li Shen patted Zhang Da's shoulder.

"This old slave has suffered a lot. If it weren't for the prince, this old slave would have died a long time ago. How could he live as well as he does now?

Everyone in Zhuangzi is grateful for the gift from His Royal Highness Prince Ji. It is the prince who has allowed all of us to live a good life.

Now, every household in the village has set up a longevity tablet for the prince, hoping that he can live a long life."

Speaking of this, Changda was somewhat excited, and his gratitude to Li Shen was beyond words.

What kind of life did they live ten years ago? Even with the emperor's fiefdom, they could only barely make ends meet. The only good thing was that they were not bullied.

But since King Ji came, their lives have changed dramatically.

Today, ten years later, the four manors under the Ji Palace, including the Dahuang Manor, are called a paradise on earth.

Many people who fled famine wanted to settle down here, but this was King Ji's territory and they could not settle down as freely as they could anywhere else.

Women from a hundred miles around all want to marry here.

Because here not only can you get enough to eat, but life is also very rich.

Every family can afford meat, new clothes, and children can go to school for free.

Moreover, Prince Ji’s mansion would give money, good farmland, and build houses for the babies born into the family.

This has made this place a well-known advanced model village in the Tang Dynasty.

“This is what I should do. Since you have followed me to Prince Ji’s Mansion, I naturally have the responsibility to make your life better.

Zhang Da, you are over 60 years old, it's time to find someone to replace you.

It’s time for you to enjoy family time.”

In fact, this is what Li Shen wanted to say. In the Tang Dynasty, being over sixty years old is considered old.

Zhang Da was a little silent when he heard Li Shen's words, but he quickly recovered and nodded:

"Your Highness is right. I am old and have difficulty walking. I know I can no longer serve the palace better.

I wonder if the prince has anyone to replace this old slave?"

"I heard from Fugui that your Dalang is a good boy, he is well educated and can read, and he has been helping you with work for the past two years.

He is already in his forties, and it may not be easy for him to pass the imperial examination. Why not let him take over as the village chief of Dahuangzhuang? What do you think?"