Chapter 97: Prince Qing Li Cong

It was a luxuriously furnished room, with hand-embroidered Persian carpets covering the floor—soft and thick. The walls were adorned with brightly colored Shu brocades, among which hung authentic paintings of court ladies by Yan Liben and authentic calligraphy by Yu Shinan. On an ivory couch, several beautiful maids were carefully attending to a fat man in his early forties.
He was Prince Qing Li Cong, the eldest son of Li Longji, holding the positions of Minister of Works and governor of Taiyuan. At that moment, he was squinting at a ruby in his hand—a gem as big as an egg, round and smooth. After examining it for a long time, he couldn’t see anything special about it.
Frowning, he said, “Did they really offer two hundred taels of gold for you to steal this ruby?”
A man in black kneeling below replied, “Your Highness, I don’t understand either. Why would that Arab merchant offer two hundred taels of gold for us to steal this ruby? Not seeing any hidden reason, we bought a similar ruby and gave it to the merchant. We have brought this one especially for Your Highness.”
After hearing this, Prince Li Cong examined the gem curiously again but still couldn’t detect anything special. Smiling, he said, “It’s rare that you show such filial piety. Very good! Go find out the origin of this gem. You can keep twenty taels of the two hundred as a reward, while the rest must be handed over to me.”
The man in black was stunned for a moment before quickly kowtowing and saying, “Thank you, Your Highness, for your generosity. I’ll go investigate right away.”
As the man in black slowly left, a man in his fifties entered. Tall and thin, with white hair and beard, he had an air of elegance. Smiling, he greeted, “Is Your Highness looking for me?”
This man’s surname was Yan; his name was Yan Kai. He had passed the imperial examinations during the Kaiyuan era, but due to setbacks in his official career, he became an advisor to powerful officials. Starting from the previous year, he had served as Li Cong’s advisor, offering strategies and earning Li Cong’s deep trust.
“Mr. Yan has arrived. Please help me sit up.”
Two maids quickly helped the obese Li Cong sit up. Li Cong tossed the gem onto a gold tray on the table and said with a smile, “I got a strange gem today. It’s said to be very valuable, but I can’t see anything special about it. It’s just an ordinary gem.”
“Oh? Let me take a look.”
Yan Kai took the gem curiously, squinted at it for a while, and then shook his head. “This is a very ordinary ruby. At most, it’s worth two hundred guan.”
“But an Arab merchant is willing to offer two hundred taels of gold for my two men to steal this gem. Doesn’t that seem strange to you, Mr. Yan?”

Yan Kai was stunned for a moment, then took another close look before asking, “Where did they go to steal this gem?”
“I heard it was stolen from the residence of Li Qing’an, the General of Anxi.”
“Li Qing’an?” Yan Kai smiled. “If it’s him, then this gem must be fake. How could such a shrewd man let his gem be stolen so easily?”
Seeing the high regard in Yan Kai’s tone for Li Qing’an, Li Cong shook his head disdainfully and said, “Mr. Yan, you seem to overestimate this man. I don’t see anything particularly shrewd about him.”
“Your Highness, don’t underestimate him. As soon as he entered the capital, he gave An Lushan a thorough beating, leaving him speechless—that’s a real skill. Moreover, he defeated Shi Siming at Lady Yang’s residence with such brilliance that even the Emperor spoke highly of him. Last time, he even returned the petition to Your Highness, showing how skillful he is in handling matters. I heard he offended Li Linfu—this is an opportunity. I advise Your Highness to bring him under your wing; he will be extremely useful in the future.”
“Let’s discuss it later!”
Although Yan Kai held Li Qing’an in high esteem, Li Cong still didn’t take him seriously. With a snort, he took out a letter and said, “Mr. Yan, I called you here to discuss the matter in Yangzhou. This is an urgent letter from Liu Changyun. He says the local authorities there have sent many capable people to investigate the salt-related cases. I guess the Eastern Palace doesn’t want to give up easily and wants to seize the position of Transport Commissioner for Jianghuai. This matter is of great importance to me. I want you to go to Yangzhou and assist Liu Changyun in stabilizing the situation.”
After reading the letter, Yan Kai agreed, “If Your Highness gives the order, I will obey. But please grant me a few days to settle my family before I head east immediately.”
Li Cong nodded and took out a jade plaque from his waist, handing it to Yan Kai. “I’m entrusting the matter in Yangzhou entirely to you. This jade plaque can be used to deploy troops and access my treasury in Yangzhou. But be careful with it—don’t squander it, understand?”
“I understand! What about Li Qing’an…”
“I’m only interested in his gem.”
Seeing that the Prince of Qing didn’t value Li Qing’an, Yan Kai sighed secretly. “I take my leave.”
“Go! Handle the matter in Yangzhou well.”
After hesitating for a moment, Li Cong added, “Also, make sure to capture Du Bosheng. I have 100,000 taels of gold hidden in his secret warehouse—profit from salt trade I’ve earned over the years. You must retrieve it for me no matter what.”
“I will do my utmost!”
Yan Kai left. Li Cong picked up the gem again and studied it for a while, muttering to himself, “Is this fake? Then what would a real one look like?”

He pulled on a rope on the wall, and a young man came in from outside. Kneeling halfway, he bowed and said, “Your Highness!”
Li Cong handed him the fake gemstone and said, “This gemstone is fake. But I want the real one. I’ll leave this task to you. You can go see the Wu brothers; they know more about this.”
The young man took the gemstone and said solemnly, “I will definitely accomplish this task!”
Li Cong walked back and forth in the room with his hands behind his back. After a while, he suddenly said, “Go and call the young prince here.”
A moment later, Li Qiu rushed over and bowed, “Father, did you call for me?”
“I sent Yan Kai to Yangzhou, but I’m still a bit worried about him. You should go there too. First, keep an eye on him, and after everything is done, bring back all the silver and money I have in the treasury to Chang’an.”
“I will obey your orders. But Mr. Yan is always cautious in his actions, and Father has always trusted him greatly.”
“It’s not that I don’t trust him to handle things.”
Li Cong stretched out his voice and said, “Moreover, I’m worried that he might misuse the silver and money I have in Yangzhou.”
…
On the first day of the new year, Li Qingan’s residence was robbed. Although there was no significant loss, he knew that since the thieves had taken the fake gemstone, they wouldn’t give up easily and would definitely come back. A gemstone was easy to hide, but he was worried about the safety of the three young women. He decided to send them away immediately.
As night fell, Li Qingan rented a carriage, packed his belongings, and set off with the three young women. The carriage entered Yishan Fang and stopped in front of Gao Lishi’s mansion.
“Elder brother, where is this?” The three young women asked in surprise as they looked at the magnificent mansion.
“This is the residence of a high-ranking official in the court. He is on good terms with me. You can stay here for a few days temporarily. Once I buy a house in a couple of days, you can move to your own home.”
At that moment, Gao Lishi’s butler came out, bowed, and said with a smile, “General Li, what brings you here today?”
Li Qingan pointed to the three young women and said with a smile, “These are my three sisters. They don’t have a place to stay for now. I’d like to have them stay at Master Gao’s mansion for a few days. Is that possible?”
The butler thought for a moment and then said, “That’s no problem at all. Let me arrange it first. It would be best if General Li went and informed my master.”
“Is Master Gao at home?”
“Yes, he just returned from the palace and is reading in his study!”
Li Qingan already had a separate courtyard in Gao Lishi’s mansion for resting when practicing ball games. The butler quickly brought over some maids to help move the belongings and led them to Li Qingan’s residence.

Li Qing’an went to Gao Lishi’s study. A guard announced his arrival, and after a moment, Li Qing’an was allowed in. He stepped into the study quickly and bowed to Gao Lishi, saying, “Qing’an brings his New Year greetings to Master Gao!” Gao Lishi put down his book and laughed, “Qilang, you’re the first guest to come to my residence this year!” “Master Gao, I’ve encountered some trouble and would like your help.” “Is it because you were removed from your position as inspector?” Li Qing’an shook his head. “That was just a temporary role. It doesn’t bother me. I have another personal matter for your assistance.” “A personal matter? Go ahead and tell me.” “It’s this: I have a very rare gemstone that I obtained while serving in Anxi…” Li Qing’an then explained in detail the origin of the Light Eye and how people kept trying to find it. Gao Lishi was greatly surprised. “Qilang, could it be the national treasure of the Shi nation you’re talking about?” “I don’t know either. I heard this gemstone is the incarnation of their supreme god. Maybe it is!” Li Qing’an took out the Light Eye and placed it in front of Gao Lishi. Out of curiosity, Gao Lishi picked up the gemstone and examined it closely under the light. Indeed, a flame rose from it, growing stronger the more it burned. It was indeed the first time he had seen a gemstone with such flames. Though he had seen many treasures, he wasn’t particularly impressed despite his curiosity. After looking at it for a while, he returned the gemstone to Li Qing’an and said with a smile, “This is their sacred object of their religion. It may be precious to them, but to us, it’s just a rather rare gemstone.” Li Qing’an put away the gemstone and added, “I’m not afraid of anything, but I’m worried they might harm my family—three young women. I’d like to temporarily place them in Master Gao’s residence. Is that possible?” Gao Lishi smiled slightly and asked, “Qilang, are they your sisters?” “One is my stepsister, and the other two…” “No need to say more. I understand!” Gao Lishi laughed and waved his hand, then called out to someone outside. An old servant entered, bowed, and said, “My lord, please give your orders!” “Tell the butler that General Li’s family is now my family. Have them stay in the Furong Pavilion and arrange for someone to take good care of them.” After the servant left to convey the message, Li Qing’an quickly thanked him, “Master Gao, thank you so much. Once I buy a house, I can settle them there.” “Qilang wants to buy a house?” Gao Lishi asked with a smile.

“I heard that housing prices in Chang’an rise in tandem with rice prices. Since rice prices are said to be going up again, I thought I’d go check out some houses these days—after all, one must settle down and start a family.”
“I own at least seven houses in Chang’an.”
Gao Lishi smiled, took a map of Chang’an from the table, and spread it out. Pointing to Guangfu Fang beside Zhuque Street, he said, “Among them, there’s a fairly nice house in Guangfu Fang, covering eight mu of land, shaded by trees, with a small river flowing through it—the scenery is quite pleasant. If Seventh Brother is interested, I’ll sell it to you at a low price.”
Li Qing’an was overjoyed and quickly stood up to thank him, saying, “Then I shall gladly accept your kind offer.”
He then asked with a smile, “I wonder how much lower the price could be?”
Gao Lishi raised one finger and said with a smile, “Just one guan. I’ll sell it to you for just one guan.”
One guan was merely symbolic; in reality, it meant Gao Lishi was giving him the house for free. If it were Li Linfu, Li Qing’an wouldn’t have taken it, but since it was Gao Lishi offering it, he could accept it. Refusing outright would have been awkward.
Li Qing’an thanked him repeatedly, but Gao Lishi waved his hand, told him to sit down, and then picked up the teapot to pour him a cup of tea.
“Seventh Brother, regarding Cui Ping’s matter you mentioned last time, I happened to approve his transfer from the Ministry of Personnel for the emperor the day before yesterday. He was originally the magistrate of Shenzhou, so I transferred him to be the county magistrate of Xuyi in Sizhou. It’s a higher-ranking county, so I think this should fulfill his wishes.”
“Thank you so much, Lord Gao!”
Gao Lishi took a sip of tea from his cup. After pondering for a moment, he smiled faintly and said, “Seventh Brother, lately, the crown prince and I often talk about you…”