I inherited my grandfather's Tang Dynasty assets.

Chapter 27 The True Mystery of the Time-Space Gate

After leaving the temple, the two had completely calmed down.

The Crown Prince's Golden Token was no ordinary item, yet Li Chengqian gave it away as a gift, which was unreasonable and illegal.

Li Chengqian smiled faintly.

"It's alright, I will explain to my father myself. Today's actions have made me feel like the clouds have parted and the sky is clear. It's just a mere Crown Prince's decree, so I'll just give it away."

At this point, Li Chengqian glanced back at the temple and narrowed his eyes.

"Furthermore, accepting this order might not be a bad thing for me, don't you think?"

As the chief strategist of the Eastern Palace, Du He inherited Du Ruhui's excellent genes and was naturally no fool.

He suddenly came to his senses, his face filled with surprise.

"Indeed, since you have accepted the Crown Prince's decree, you have a relationship with the Eastern Palace, at least that's how it appears to outsiders. Your Highness's move is brilliant."

Li Chengqian withdrew his gaze and smiled slightly at Du He, a smile that Du He found unfamiliar.

Li Chengqian rarely smiled in the past, and those smiles were not from the heart; sometimes they were even a little creepy.

But at this moment, Li Chengqian's smile was full of composure and confidence, and there was an indescribable feeling about it. If one had to describe it, it was as if he had been reborn.

"This Shennong Temple is truly full of wonders; no wonder His Majesty values ​​it so highly."

Du He was overjoyed by Li Chengqian's transformation, and even felt like crying.

Over the years, he had witnessed everything the Crown Prince had done and had repeatedly reminded and admonished him, but to no avail.

Sometimes he would even get a severe scolding from Li Chengqian.

Du He was extremely helpless. His fate was already closely tied to Li Chengqian's. No matter how despicable Li Chengqian was, he was still his lord. If he could not become emperor in the future, it would mean that he would face the new emperor's reckoning.

The original intention of this trip was to build a good relationship with Shennong Envoy, but unexpectedly, under Shennong Envoy's frank words, Li Chengqian actually turned over a new leaf.

Du He firmly believed that as long as Li Chengqian returned and reformed, focusing his mind on national affairs and politics, the mere Prince of Wei would be no match for him, and he would never be able to shake his position as Crown Prince.

After the two left, Chen Yue called Zhao Qimei in to collect the mahjong tiles.

"Seventh Sister, there's nothing else to do right now, you should go home."

Chen Yue specifically told her this morning that she didn't need to bring dinner anymore, since she always brought more than she could finish at noon, saving her the trouble of running back and forth.

"Young master, shall I heat up your food first?"

Chen Yue waved his hand, then suddenly remembered something.

"By the way, the Crown Prince and his entourage are coming today. You must keep your mouth shut and not tell anyone, including your family. This matter is of utmost importance."

Zhao Qimei nodded vigorously; even without Chen Yue's specific instructions, she wouldn't dare to say anything to outsiders.

The charcoal stove inside crackled and burned as Chen Yue sat by the window, drinking tea and pondering the new mission.

"The so-called 'tragedy of the Tang Dynasty' should mean the regrets of the Tang Dynasty. Why did this suddenly come to mind when I was giving Li Chengqian chicken soup?"

Chen Yue gently scratched his hair. He had tried to communicate with the time portal several times, but there was no response.

"Does he only respond when I ask objective questions that are unrelated to me but related to the door? Like an instruction manual?"

Chen Yue recalled that the last time the time portal reacted, it was because he was worried about affecting history.

Following this line of thought, Chen Yue tentatively asked again.

"Ten days is too short. Could you extend my stay in the Tang Dynasty?"

A line of small print immediately appeared before his eyes.

The "Tragedy of the Tang Dynasty" quest is complete; the Time Gate has been upgraded.

"It really works!"

Chen Yue was overjoyed. This guess could now be basically confirmed. It would only answer him if it didn't involve the specific things he had done in the Tang Dynasty, but was related to the function of the time portal.

As for why the old man hadn't triggered it all these years, Chen Yue thought of a possibility.

His knowledge was limited. Even though he could look up information in later generations, his cultural level was too low. Therefore, after arriving in the Tang Dynasty, he tried his best to avoid contact with those high-ranking officials and nobles.

To avoid touching on areas where they lack knowledge, and to maintain their image as experts.

Furthermore, his last visit to the Tang Dynasty was ten years ago. How old was Li Chengqian then? Even if he had met him, it probably wouldn't have triggered anything.

When it comes to the regrets of the Tang Dynasty, the most lamentable is the An Lushan Rebellion that broke out in the later years of Emperor Xuanzong's reign. This was the watershed moment when the Tang Dynasty went from its peak to its decline.

Although the rebellion was eventually quelled, it came at a terrible cost.

The political and military situation has deteriorated into a major crisis.

The separatist rule of regional military governors became increasingly serious, and eunuchs seized power. For example, in order to counterbalance military generals, Emperor Daizong of Tang relied heavily on eunuchs to manage the Privy Council and command the Shence Army. Eunuchs gradually controlled the imperial guards and confidential decision-making, leading to a vicious cycle of deposing and installing emperors, and the central government almost collapsed.

Population decline and economic recession.

According to historical records, the population of the Tang Dynasty was more than 50 million before the An Lushan Rebellion, but after the war, only more than 17 million remained. The northern region was almost completely depopulated, and the area was desolate.

Culturally, it also suffered a great blow. The Tang Dynasty gradually became conservative from being inclusive and open, lost its national self-confidence, and its border defense and ethnic issues almost collapsed.

Many scholars say that the Tang Dynasty after the An Lushan Rebellion was already a dead dynasty in name only. Although it continued for another 150 years, it was just a matter of prolonging its existence.

There were many reasons for the outbreak of the An Lushan Rebellion, but without Li Longji, there would never have been An Lushan, who later rose to power.

If we trace it back, the root cause lies with Emperor Gaozong Li Zhi. Without him, there would have been no Empress Wu Zetian, and none of the subsequent events would have occurred.

"Therefore, if I'm not mistaken, the simplest and most effective way to accomplish this task is to ensure Li Chengqian's smooth ascension to the throne and his becoming a wise ruler!"

If that were the case, everything since Emperor Taizong would have changed.

That's why this task popped up when he fed Li Chengqian chicken soup. At this point, Li Chengqian had already realized his mistake, but he still had a long way to go before he became a wise and virtuous ruler.

Therefore, the task is only 10% complete!

It's working! Everything's working!

Chen Yue's eyes were incredibly bright. He reached out and opened the window, and a cool breeze immediately rushed in, making Chen Yue shiver.

Looking at the scenery outside the window, Chen Yue seemed to have vaguely grasped the true secret of the time portal.

It chose a different dimension and interface from Chen Yue, and gave him the identity of a mountain peddler. Its real purpose was not to make him honestly become a middleman, but to use the information gap it had to solve the greatest regret of this dynasty for future generations.

"Before coming here, I saw images of the Song and Ming dynasties in the time-space corridor. Could it be that one day, a time-space portal could send me there?"

Chen Yue pondered this thoughtfully, a hint of anticipation creeping into his heart...

On the fifth day of the twelfth lunar month, the first snow of the year fell in Chang'an, and the entire Zhongnan Mountain was covered in a blanket of white, looking very beautiful.

At the Wannian County Government Office, Fan Tao was hosting a banquet for Liu Boyan and Wang Xian, where they were drinking and chatting.

"Brother Wang, your talent far surpasses that of Boyan. Since you wish to enter officialdom, why not take the imperial examinations instead of wasting your years in Zhongnan Mountain?"

After the New Year, Liu Boyan will leave Chang'an to take up his post in Nanzhou.

Wang Xian wanted Chen Yue to support the Ninth-Rank Official but was rebuffed; he and Fan Tao already knew about this.