Chapter 124: Crafting Instruments and Dividing Wealth!

Li Yi lingered a while longer in the Lìzhèng Hall. Seeing that Emperor Li II had no intention of inviting him to dine together, he took his leave. Meanwhile, Sun Simiao was retained to treat Empress Changle and Empress Zhangsun, as well as to organize medical texts in the Imperial Medical Institute.

After exiting Lìzhèng Hall, Li Yi suddenly recalled something and casually beckoned a eunuch over. Many eunuchs here were familiar with Li Yi, so he felt no fear.

"Xiao Pingzi, tell me, where in the palace do they make musical instruments?"

The eunuch named Xiao Pingzi thought for a moment and replied, "Making musical instruments? That would be the Workshop for Official Instruments. General, what do you need them for?"

Since Li Yi was both a general and a doctor, he was addressed by various titles.

"Do you know the way?"

Xiao Pingzi nodded.

"Good! Take me there. Let’s go."

...

Before long, the two arrived at the Left Office of the Workshop for Official Instruments. Upon entering, a man came out to greet them. Xiao Pingzi hurriedly introduced.

"This is Lord Li Yi, Marquis of Kaiguo County, Court Adviser, General of Ningyuan, Duke of Weiguo, the eldest grandson of Yu Qilin Li Yi!"

The string of titles stunned the minor official who had come out to meet them. After all, the Left Office Director of the Workshop was only a low-ranking official, so seeing such a distinguished figure like Li Yi was quite intimidating.

"Your servant Chen Liyan greets Lord Li."

Li Yi returned the greeting. "Oh, Master Chen, please do not be so formal. I have a favor to ask."

Chen Liyan immediately looked both anxious and respectful. "Not at all, Lord. Just instruct me directly."

"Very well, haha, shall we go inside to talk?"

Chen Liyan slapped his forehead. "Ah, forgive my forgetfulness! Please, Lord, this way."

Li Yi handed Xiao Pingzi a dozen copper coins to send him off, then followed Chen Liyan into the workshop.

Once inside, Li Yi found a seat and wasted no time getting to the point—he was hungry and eager to return home for dinner.

"Master Chen, by imperial decree, I am to establish the Tang Golden Cauldron Charity Foundation. We need some musical instruments to create an atmosphere. However, these instruments are quite special. I heard your workshop can make them, so I came to try."

Upon hearing that Li Yi sought to make musical instruments, Chen Liyan immediately straightened up—this was his specialty.

"Lord Li, the Left Office of the Workshop oversees the cabinetmakers. Musical instruments, musical stands, weapons, and funeral ritual items all come from here. I dare not boast about others, but when it comes to instruments, none can compare to us. But what kind of instrument does Your Lordship wish to make?"

Li Yi reached out to gesture but quickly realized that wouldn’t clarify his meaning.

"Do you have brush, ink, paper, and inkstone? Let me draw it for you."

"Yes, yes! I will have someone prepare them right away."

Soon, the Four Treasures of the Study were brought. Li Yi stepped forward and began to sketch. After fifteen minutes, he put down his brush and held up a paper bearing a gourd-shaped design.

"Master Chen, take a look. This instrument is called a guitar. You can think of it as a kind of pipa—though it differs from the pipa. Let me explain..." Li Yi intended to make a classical guitar. He planned to open a tavern, and a tavern without music would be incomplete. Music without a guitar was equally unthinkable. Although he had only seen guitars made by others and watched videos online, he found it interesting enough to memorize. Now, in ancient times, it was uncertain whether it could be crafted, so he approached the matter with cautious optimism.

Li Yi described the detailed process of making the pipa to Chen Liyan. After hearing it, Chen Liyan was unsure. He summoned several master craftsmen specializing in musical instruments. They deliberated for half an hour before deciding on a tentative production method, uncertain if it would succeed.

"Master Chen, start making the guitar. Once the sample is ready, you can test its sound. If satisfactory, produce several more and try different versions. I will collect them in about twenty days. Also, please prepare a batch of drums of various pitches—some large like military drums and some small enough to hang at the waist—as well as several kinds of gongs. I will pick everything up together. How does that sound?"

Chen Liyan silently noted everything, then replied seriously, "Very well, Lord Li. You have my word; I will do my utmost to fulfill this task."

...

"Excellent! Then I shall leave it to you."

"My Lord, you honor me."

"Farewell!"

"Farewell!"

...

After leaving the Workshop, Li Yi returned directly to the Li residence. Upon entering, without a word, he ordered Bing Yu to prepare a large bowl of Yangchun noodles. He devoured it ravenously, washing it down with a big bowl of cold water before finally feeling rejuvenated.

"Ah~ Refreshing!"

Bing Yu quietly cleared the dishes and brewed a cup of tea for Li Yi before returning to her seat to continue reading.

Sipping the tea, Li Yi’s mind began to work again. "Bing Yu, who’s at home?"

Bing Yu set down her book and thought for a moment. "Everyone seems to be home, including the two young masters."

"Oh? Good, I’ll go to the front courtyard."

"Mm." Bing Yu nodded gently and returned to her reading.

...

In the front courtyard hall, indeed the whole family was present—some playing cards, some reading. Most surprising were the two young boys who were playing Go, an activity as unexpected as Cheng Yaojin writing an essay.

"Grandpa, Grandma, Uncle, Aunt!" Li Yi greeted each in turn before sitting down.

Aunt Cui patted Li Yi’s shoulder. "Yi’er, you never come here without a reason! So, what is it this time?"

Li Yi smiled awkwardly. "Hehe, Aunt, don’t tease me. I’m embarrassed!"

Lady Hong Fu chuckled. "You little monkey, you even have moments of embarrassment? I know you’re busy. Just say what’s on your mind."

Li Yi grinned and then adopted a serious tone. "There are three matters. First, I will be away from home for a while."

At this, everyone’s expressions changed, especially Lady Hong Fu, who almost said no outright. Not long after Li Yi was stabbed, how could she bear to let him go alone again?

Seeing their concern, Li Yi hastened to explain, "Don’t worry. It will only be about twenty days, and there’s no danger."

Lady Hong Fu’s expression softened somewhat.

Grandfather Li Jing set his cup down. "Where exactly are you going?"

"Well, the Commercial Alliance and Charity Foundation have been in preparation for a long time and are ready to launch. But there’s still some final training needed. The special forces training has also reached a critical stage. I was recently granted a fief and residence. Since Weinan isn’t far from Chang’an, I plan to take everyone there for a period of secluded training."

Hearing this, Lady Hong Fu and Li Jing finally relaxed.

Li Jing said, "Good, this is important. Now that you have a fief, you should go see it. Fine, I approve. Do you need anything else?"

Li Yi thought a moment. "Actually, yes. Grandpa, may I borrow two hundred elite soldiers?"

Li Jing looked skeptical. "What do you need elite soldiers for?"

"For training."

"Training? You need elite troops for training?"

"Yes."

"Did you tell His Majesty?"

Li Yi scratched his head awkwardly. "I forgot."

"Forgot? You little scamp! Very well. Is it urgent?"

"Not exactly. As long as they can arrive in Weinan within ten days."

Li Jing pondered. "Alright then. Tomorrow after court, I’ll request it from His Majesty. They can go on their own."

Li Yi nodded eagerly. "Perfect!"

"When will you set out?"

"I plan to depart tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? So soon? Fine, the sooner you go and return, the better. Be careful on the road."

"Grandpa, don’t worry. With the special forces accompanying me, there will be no danger."

Li Jing recalled the day he met those nine special soldiers and glanced at the two boys playing Go. He was quite fond of them. "You little rascal, I don’t know how you trained them. I asked these two little rascals, but they didn’t say a word."

Li Yi chuckled. "Grandpa, our training methods are strictly confidential. If they got out, the consequences would be unimaginable."

Li Jing nodded approvingly. "Indeed, secrecy is essential. You’ve done well."

"Mm."

"I say, how long do you two plan to keep chatting? Do you think we don’t exist?"

Li Yi and Li Jing turned to see Lady Hong Fu looking displeased. The two immediately fell silent, for none dared to defy her.

Lady Hong Fu snorted coldly but then smiled. "Yi’er, I agree to you leaving, but you must be careful. Don’t return covered in blood like last time. Your grandmother can’t bear such shocks."

Li Yi quickly patted his chest. "Grandmother, rest assured. I will be careful."

"Good! Now, tell us the second matter."

"Oh! The second matter I should have mentioned earlier but lacked the chance. It concerns the shares of the Commercial Alliance. The shares have been taken up by families close to ours, except for our own Ye Xu and Ye Si. They were training at the time, so I didn’t call on them. Now that they’ve returned, it’s time to distribute. I currently hold fifteen percent. My idea is to divide it equally among the three of us—five percent each. How about that?"

After hearing this, Aunt Cui immediately shook her head. "No, that won’t do. Those shares belong to you. Ye Si and Ye Xu cannot have them."

Li Yi replied, "Aunt, come now. What’s yours is mine. We’re family. Don’t say that."

Li Dejian chimed in, "No, absolutely not. When you gave your title and estate to your two younger brothers, we were already embarrassed. If you give them your shares, we’ll be the laughingstock."

Ye Xu and Ye Si stood up to object, saying they wanted to earn their own estates like Li Yi, which gave Li Yi a headache. Fortunately, Li Jing spoke up.

"Enough, no more arguing. I’ll decide. Yi’er, this Commercial Alliance is your idea and your operation. It also involves the royal family, so your shares must be the largest. However, since others have shares, it wouldn’t be fair to exclude the two boys. So here’s the deal: Yi’er, you give them half a percent each. But from now on, any new property you acquire is yours alone and cannot be shared."

Before anyone could object, Li Jing waved his hand. "It’s settled. Yi’er, now tell us the third matter."