The sounds of silk and bamboo music filled the air as Dong Xiaowan and Chen Yuanyuan, two beauties, took the stage and began to dance the dances of the Great Ming dynasty.
Li Shimin, sipping his wine and enjoying a pufferfish feast, was in high spirits.
"Boy, tell me, it's been nearly an hour. What have you been up to?"
He was asking about what Fang Er had been doing after disembarking the yacht. He had heard a brief, unclear account from Li Tai on the way over.
Fang Er had no choice but to recount the events to him. Upon hearing the story, Li Shimin slammed his palm on the table.
*Bang!*
"Well done! These people are even more detestable than the scholars of our Great Tang. Executing them would be too lenient!"
Li Shimin, having drunk a bit too much, brought his hand down heavily, causing the wine cups on the table to jolt.
Dong Xiaowan and Chen Yuanyuan, thinking they had performed a misstep, quickly ceased their dance and asked in a flustered manner,
"Your Majesty, have we danced poorly?"
The women playing the zither and flute also stopped, their faces pale as they looked at Li Shimin, eager to understand what had happened.
Old Li, feeling a bit awkward, said, "Hahahaha, it's nothing, nothing! It's not your fault. It's just that this boy and I were discussing matters. You danced beautifully, and the music was played wonderfully. Continue, please continue~"
The women breathed a sigh of relief. They had heard it was like accompanying a tiger in its lair, and it was indeed terrifying. After this brief interlude, they became more reserved, being exceptionally cautious in their singing, playing, and dancing.
After eating and drinking their fill, Li Shimin looked at them, a subtle plan forming in his mind.
"Boy, look at this Great Ming, torn by war and chaos. What do you think about bringing them all back to our Great Tang?"
Fang Er's heart stirred, but he quickly shook his head and refused, "Father, it's not that I don't want to bring them back, but I have other people I need to bring. According to my research on the Gate of Time and Space, we can only bring back ten people. I already have arrangements for those spots."
Li Shimin looked at him quizzically, "Who do you want to bring back?"
Fang Er replied, "Father, there are talented individuals in this Great Ming. I plan to bring Song Yingxing back."
Li Shimin was even more perplexed, as he had never heard Fang Er mention this name before. He pressed further, "Song Yingxing? What does he do?"
Fang Er then proceeded to describe Song Yingxing's background.
"Father, this Song Yingxing is a true genius! In this era, one could say that whatever others know, he knows, and whatever others don't, he also knows! In fields like biology, physics, chemistry, nature, and philosophy, he possesses his own unique insights. Moreover, he wrote a book called 'Tiangong Kaiwu,' which records the crystallization of Chinese technology over thousands of years. This book can be considered the world's first encyclopedia, and Song Yingxing, its author, can also be called a walking encyclopedia."
*Hiss~~~* Hearing this, Li Shimin's eyes widened instantly. "What is Song Yingxing doing now?"
"According to the timeline, he should currently be serving as an investigator in Tingzhou Prefecture, Fujian, overseeing local criminal justice."
Upon hearing this, Li Shimin was instantly enraged and slammed his palm on the table again.
*Bang!*
"Damn it! This man has the makings of a Minister of Works, and they've relegated him to a local official position? Next time I see that pig-grease collector, if I don't beat him until he shits himself, I'll be disrespecting his founding ancestors!"
The singing and dancing stopped once more. Although the eight women did not voice their thoughts, they began to mentally criticize Li Shimin.
*This Emperor seems rather unromantic!*
Seeing the women's nervous expressions, Li Shimin's heart softened, and he then looked at Fang Er.
"Boy, I don't care. They must be brought back to the Great Tang. To have such talented women here is a terrible waste of resources!"
Fang Er: "..."
*Li Tai, you brat, hurry up and look! Your father is showing excessive affection for the opposite sex and is utterly heartless!*
*System Sister, is there any way to bring back more people?*
Helpless, he had to communicate with the system.
【System: (◣д◢)!! Kid, who do you want to stab?】
"Uh, I don't want to stab anyone. System Sister, or 'Tong Jie' for short..."
【System: Hmph! Next time, you'd better be clear!】
【Bringing people back is also possible. For each person beyond the ten slots, it will cost one million points.~】
*Damn! I thought I could only bring ten, but it turns out I can bring more if I spend money.*
*Isn't this equivalent to a million taels of silver per ticket?*
*It's so cheap! Too damn cheap!*
*I'll go and collect all the silver mines in this era later!*
*What's the big deal about money? I can have as much as I want then!*
Having clarified this, he made a gesture to Li Shimin.
"Oujibak, I'll handle this matter~"
Li Shimin blinked in confusion, "What does 'Oujibak' mean?"
"Uh, it means 'no problem'," Fang Er replied, covering his face.
*I've been careless. Showing off like this, my words have slipped.*
Li Shimin savored the word and then said with satisfaction, "Oujibak, I'll leave this to you!"
With that, he stood up and walked among the eight women, looking at them and smiling.
"I wonder, ladies, if you are interested in accompanying me on a journey a thousand years back in time?"
The eight women: "???"
*Is this Emperor silly or crazy?*
*And, he seems to have mentioned the word 'thousand years' for the second time?*
Seeing their stunned expressions, Li Shimin explained with a smile.
"You might have misunderstood. I am not the Emperor of your Ming Dynasty. I am from the Tang Dynasty, and my reign title is Zhenguan!"
"What?"
Gu Hengbo couldn't believe her ears and exclaimed in surprise, covering her mouth. The reactions of the others were identical; they simply didn't believe his words. After their initial shock, their previous suspicion was confirmed.
*This Emperor must be out of his mind!*
Fang Er watched Li Shimin speechlessly from the side. *If you want to bring people back, just pay for their freedom. Why mention the Tang Dynasty?*
*Or does explaining to others how he arrived from a thousand years ago make him feel good?*
Letting Li Shimin ramble on about parallel spaces and spatial portals, he himself began to attack the food and wine on the table. He had been too busy talking with Li Shimin earlier, and his stomach was starting to protest.
When he finished eating and looked up at everyone, he saw the eight women gazing at Li Shimin with expressions of utter adoration.
"So, you are truly Emperor Taizong?"
"How magical, to be able to traverse time and move between the Tang and Ming Dynasties! It's incredible~"
"Your Majesty, can we sisters truly go and see the Great Tang?"
"Yes, yes, yes! I really want to see Tang Dynasty dances and hear Tang Dynasty music~"
Seeing the women's reactions, Li Shimin became quite smug. "Hahahaha, what's so difficult about that? When I return to the Tang, I will bring you all along and let you see my Great Tang!"