Datang: What's wrong with my fief being a billion points larger?

Cen Wenben was completely numb. He was originally preparing to retire and planned to work for a few more years before vacating his position to an outstanding young person.

Because he has been holding the position of prime minister for a long time. If you include the time in Lingnan, it has been more than ten years, almost twenty years. Although he is not very old now, he has occupied this position for too long, and people in his family are all being promoted. It can no longer be described as a big tree attracting the wind.

Cen Wenben was very clear about the principle of retiring at the peak of one's career. If he didn't step down early, it would not be easy to retire later.

Others only saw how powerful he was and how much he was favored by Li Yuanji, but they had no idea that there was an abyss in front of him. If he was not careful, not only would he die, but his entire family would also be implicated.

He had discussed this issue with Wang Xuance and Ning Chun. Obviously, all three of them are still quite young. The oldest, Ning Chun, is only 52 years old. However, he has already started discussing retiring to his hometown and living out his days in peace.

However, now, Li Yuanji has come up with such a thing again. He was confused when he heard it. In addition, a ministry had to be set up. He had not figured out the details of this matter yet, but he knew that it would probably take a few years to implement.

At least before this matter is implemented, it will be difficult for him to retreat at the height of his career, because once this matter starts, such a big thing, unless there are unexpected events, he will have to implement it, otherwise something will go wrong.

Cen Wenben felt a little tired for a moment. He was already this old, and now he had to start all over again to learn all this. Cen Wenben was really overwhelmed. He thought he was well-read, but he could not understand what Li Yuanji said. Where could he go to reason?
He is already very busy with government affairs, and now he has to read five such large and thick books and figure them all out. Just thinking about it makes him feel uncomfortable.

Li Yuanji looked at Cen Benwen's expression of despair in life and smiled. He knew that this was indeed a bit difficult for people. After all, these had never happened before, and people at that time would not have these concepts. What he said now was enough for Cen Benwen and others to ponder for a long time.

But there is no way. Today, the times have developed to this point. Cars have appeared, and sedans are also available. These are things that must be done. It’s just that this group of people have to work harder now. Those who come after them will have it much easier because of the foundation laid now.

As for the traffic, if it is not dealt with and done well, Li Yuanji can guarantee that once cars truly enter thousands of households, not to mention other cities, even Chang'an City, which has been widened and expanded again, will be jammed in minutes.

We can't ban people from using cars, right? If we don't allow people to use cars, what's the point of making and buying cars?
Although cars have begun to be produced now, it will certainly take several years, or even longer, for them to become popular among thousands of households. Moreover, the construction of these basic transportation facilities, as well as the improvement of supporting departments, personnel, and laws, cannot be completed in a short period of time.

After a long time, Cen Wenben looked at Li Yuanji helplessly and slowly stood up.

"Your Majesty, I will study this carefully after I go down and start this matter as soon as possible."

"Okay, Jingren, go down and discuss this with Xuan Ce, Da He and the others. We need to do this as soon as possible and not delay it for too long, because even if we start to implement it, it will take a lot of time to complete it."

Cen Wenben looked at Li Yuanji who was smiling, but he couldn't smile at all. Now that Li Yuanji had admitted it himself, this matter would take a lot of time. According to his understanding of Li Yuanji, this matter would take at least two to three years, or even three to five years to be implemented.

As for going to find Wang Xuance and Ning Chun, he would go even if Li Yuanji didn't say so. How could he bear such a "good thing" alone?

Although he is the prime minister, the status of Wang Xuance and Ning Chun is no lower than that of the prime minister. He must let Wang Xuance and Ning Chun join in on this matter and share the headache together, otherwise Cen Wenben will feel unwilling.

Cen Wenben went down quickly and came to the Wende Hall, which was built by Li Yuanji for office use. It was filled with court officials. The entire hall was even larger than the Taiji Hall because it was where all the court officials worked.

Cen Wenben walked all the way to the innermost part, responding to the greetings of other officials absent-mindedly. After entering, he asked someone to invite Wang Xuance and Ning Chun over.

People of Cen Wenben's level all have their own independent work room, which is equivalent to an independent office. Not only is the space large, but all the decorations and supplies are of the best.

Li Yuanji attached great importance to this area and the officials there. They could enjoy services such as massage and bathing, which could be said to have everything they need.

As for fruits, snacks, and tea, they are also available, but the ones you usually order are like this. The best ones are specially supplied and divided according to your job level. The higher your job level, the more you get.

Nothing used here can be taken home and can only be eaten here, including the chairs, which are all different. There are also beds in some rooms, all made of fine wood and materials, for officials to rest when they are tired.

Although if you want to use the better ones, you need to have a higher rank, but most of the time, the lowest-level officials can enjoy it. It can be said that the environment in which officials in the court work is completely different from before.

The current office atmosphere and environment, as well as the treatment, make everyone linger and feel extremely comfortable. Although there are many things to do, there were also a lot of things to do before. Now everyone is happy like this, and everyone is very active in their work, fearing that they will be impeached by the Censorate or others for not being active enough.

Being an official nowadays is not only about the temptation of power, but also the temptation of treatment, which is extremely attractive.

Those below want to push up, want to experience what it's like to work in a single room, want to experience the majestic feeling of attending a meeting in a conference hall, want more power. The struggle still exists and has not disappeared because of these things.

Because the higher the official rank, the more services they can enjoy, this is also a kind of benefit that Li Yuanji gives to everyone.

As for the place where officials held meetings, it was in the Lizheng Hall, which was also renovated by Li Yuanji. It was similar to a meeting hall with many of them. Each ministry and department had its own meeting hall for internal meetings. Meetings convened by prime ministers such as Cen Wenben, Wang Xuance and Ning Chun were all held in the Lizheng Hall.

Cen Wenben sat and waited for a while, and then Wang Xuance and Ning Chun arrived.

"Jingren, what happened? Why did they call us over?"

Wang Xuance and Ning Chun were both a little surprised. Most of the time when the three of them met, they always had something to discuss. Now that Cen Wenben had gone to see Li Yuanji and asked them to come over, they both knew that there must be something going on.

"Xuan Ce, Da He, please sit down quickly. This time we came from His Majesty's place. His Majesty has arranged something for us to discuss together."

Cen Wenben warmly invited Wang Xuance and Ning Chun to sit down, then took out Dahongpao and started to make tea, which surprised Wang Xuance and Ning Chun for a moment.

They looked at each other and then looked at Cen Wenben with a smile.

"Jingren, His Majesty didn't give us much tea, but you usually treat it like a treasure. You didn't give us any when we came to drink it, but this time you took the initiative to make it for us.

Xuan Ce, I think we should just leave. This matter is clearly not a simple one."

"Brother Dahe is right. If His Majesty really wants us to join him, he would have sent someone to inform us. I think His Majesty has given this matter to Jingren, so we will not participate. Although this Dahongpao tastes good, I still have some, so I won't drink it here."

Ning Chun and Wang Xuance talked to each other, smiling as they prepared to leave, looking at Cen Wenben with amusement. Seeing this, Cen Wenben immediately stood up and held the two of them back.

"Xuan Ce, Da He, what are you doing? Sit down for a while, the tea will be ready soon.

This is not a difficult matter, but Your Majesty really wants us to discuss it together. Please take a seat."

Cen Wenben knew very well what these two people were planning. They wanted to take the opportunity to ask for benefits from him, and they wanted it in a fair and open manner.

This made Cen Wenben feel helpless. Li Yuanji did not send anyone to inform Wang Xuance and Ning Chun about this matter. It was obvious that he wanted him to tell them first. He also knew that the two were just joking with him, and they were considered good friends with each other.

But he had to accept the joke, and he couldn't tell Li Yuanji. If he didn't understand it, or told Li Yuanji, the matter would be different. The key point was that Li Yuanji probably wouldn't care about it.

Wang Xuance and Ning Chun looked at each other, as if they understood instantly.

"Jingren, please don't hide it from us. Something that you are unsure of must not be simple.

I won't say much, just take out your porcelain vase and we can discuss anything together."

After Ning Chun finished speaking, Wang Xuance also smiled and said, "Jingren, I'm much simpler. How about you give me the poem and painting that His Majesty wrote an inscription on before?"

Cen Wenben looked at Wang Xuance and Ning Chun, was stunned for a moment, and immediately stopped.

"Xuan Ce, Da He, don't go too far. You are asking for too much. And you have all these too. Why are you thinking about mine? Aren't you a little too cruel?"

How could Cen Wenben agree to this? Li Yuanji developed a hundred pieces of the porcelain that Ning Chun mentioned. It took him almost a year to make these hundred pieces. The best materials were used and the craftsmanship was the best. However, because it was too time-consuming and costly, they did not make any more.

Now each of them has two pieces, and now this person just asks for one piece directly. How could Cen Wenben be willing to do that?

As for the paintings and poems with inscriptions written by Li Yuanji as mentioned by Wang Xuance, these were paintings painted by Li Yuanji himself, and then he added poems to them before Li Bai and his group came out. There were not many in total. Wang Xuance and Ning Chun each had one, and Cen Wenben had two.

Just like that, Wang Xuance was already thinking about it, and Cen Wenben was also unwilling.

These were things he intended to pass down from generation to generation as heirlooms, so how could he give them to Wang Xuance and Ning Chun?

Cen Wenben's words have undoubtedly made it clear that these two things will definitely not be given. If Wang Xuance and Ning Chun want them, they have to think about other things and not think about such precious things.

These are indeed very precious. There are only so many of them in the entire Tang Dynasty. Who wouldn't want to keep them as heirlooms?
There are Li Yuanji's handwritten inscriptions on the porcelain, and the poems and paintings are even more painted and written by Li Yuanji himself, especially the poems above, which are particularly worthy of being painted and more precious.

Wang Xuance and Ning Chun were not annoyed when they heard this. They had already expected Cen Wenben to refuse. Such a precious thing, let alone Cen Wenben, even if it were them, they would not be willing to give it to others at any time.

The two looked at each other, and Wang Xuance immediately spoke.

"Jingren, if that's the case, then I'll take a step back and give me two jars of your family's fine wine. Is that okay?"

Ning Chun followed closely behind: "Jingren, I'm also very simple, give me two boxes of this Da Hong Pao, is that okay?"

Cen Wenben looked at the two people with smirks on their faces, pointed at them and laughed. He finally understood that these two people were eyeing these things of his.

His wine was a reward from Li Yuanji. Since he seldom drank it, he kept three jars of it. According to Li Yuanji, the longer the wine is kept, the more fragrant it becomes. Cen Wenben had kept these jars for several years.

Wang Xuance and Ning Chun actually both had some, but they liked to drink more than him, especially Wang Xuance, who liked to drink more than them. Although Cen Wenben didn't know how much the two of them had, from their daily conversations, he knew that Wang Xuance must not have much left.

Now that Wang Xuance has set his sights on his wine, this must be the case.

As for Dahongpao, he really didn't have much left. Li Yuanji gave him ten boxes, each box weighing three taels, and now he only had five boxes left. Ning Chun asked for two boxes, and he was helpless.

He knew that he and Ning Chun both liked drinking tea more, and Ning Chun's family also liked it very much.

Now that these two people asked him for these, he really couldn't refuse anymore. After all, he had already refused once. These two were rewards given to them by Li Yuanji from time to time. Although they were still precious, they were undoubtedly much more ordinary than what the previous two people asked for.

"Alright, you two are really thieves. You just stared at these and didn't leave me any more. I won't tell you if there's anything else in the future."

"Haha, don't blame us. You took a lot from us before. You're still talking about it today. If you keep talking, we'll have to increase our amount."

"Okay, okay, it's my fault. I'll have someone deliver it to you when I get back, okay?"

The three of them burst into laughter. They had been doing this for several years. They always gave each other things and it had become a habit.

After a while, Ning Chun immediately said, "The tea is ready, pour it quickly, take a sip first, and then we'll start talking."

Cen Wenben shook his head helplessly. If he had known this, he would not have taken out the Dahongpao to make tea, and it would have been a waste for these two people.

After drinking tea, Cen Wenben immediately told the two what Li Yuanji said. Both of them blinked, and then they looked at the five thick books and felt that they were missing something. (End of this chapter)