Chapter Ninety: A Silver Tongue That Speaks with Ease

Li Shimin was instantly filled with anger. He pinched at his sleeve, his thick lips parting as he was just about to flare up and berate Li Yi, when he abruptly stopped with his hand still raised.

“No. I can’t lose my temper at that brat Li Baian!”

Li Shimin frowned slightly, thinking to himself, “If I get angry, wouldn’t I be exposing at once the real reason I want to taste the so-called Orleans Feast?”

At that thought, he let his sleeve fall again and lowered his brows to look at Li Yi, taking a deep breath to steady himself.

The more he looked now, the more Li Shimin felt that Li Yi’s harmless face was rather infuriating.

It was obvious that Li Yi understood the veiled question for what it was—a roundabout way of saying that he wanted to taste the Orleans Feast—yet he still played dumb and acted foolish before him.

Earlier, Li Shimin had already received word from the Imperial Guard that the true owner of Drunken Immortal Pavilion was none other than Li Yi.

What was more, Li Shimin had tasted the Orleans Feast himself. In all the capital, it was second to none.

The more he thought about it, the more determined Li Shimin became that he must make Li Yi suffer a little.

After a brief silence, he had already formed a plan.

“Haha!” Li Shimin suddenly laughed twice, shaking his head slightly as he teased, “I did not expect, my dear minister, that you would enjoy such good fortune in food. I suppose you must be a frequent patron of Drunken Immortal Pavilion?”

When Li Yi heard this, he felt that something about the atmosphere was not quite right.

He looked up at Li Shimin, but Li Shimin wore a full smile. Though the smile was fake, there was hardly a flaw to be found.

Li Yi frowned slightly, sensing danger.

“Your Majesty, this minister is not so blessed,” Li Yi answered quickly after a moment’s thought. “In truth, I have only been to Drunken Immortal Pavilion a few times.”

Li Shimin’s brows shot up at once. He did not believe Li Yi’s nonsense and asked in surprise, “Just how many times is a few?”

Li Yi was left speechless. Was it really necessary to ask so carefully how many times he had been to Drunken Immortal Pavilion?

At this rate, Li Shimin was clearly trying to set him up.

Could it be that I offended him somewhere before?

Thinking of this, Li Yi gave a wry smile, then put on an innocent look and said, “Your Majesty, I would not dare hide anything from you. The true owner of Drunken Immortal Pavilion happens to have some connection with me, so I went there a few more times.”

There is an old saying: one does not strike a smiling face. So while speaking with a smile on his face, Li Yi even held up several fingers.

Li Yi thought that since Li Shimin had already sent the Imperial Guard to his home, he must know some of the details already, so it would be better to explain things himself.

If Li Shimin kept pressing him, or if the Imperial Guard had already played some trick on him earlier, then his honest confession might still leave room for recovery.

After all, officials of the Tang dynasty looked down greatly upon merchants.

As for whether Li Shimin despised him or not, that hardly mattered.

Hearing this, Li Shimin immediately laughed. He had not expected Li Yi to be so frightened by him that he would confess without being forced, and he felt quite pleased with himself.

“My dear minister, then what is your relationship with the owner of Drunken Immortal Pavilion?”

Li Shimin smiled and continued, “I have heard it said among the common folk that the delicacies of Drunken Immortal Pavilion are even more delicious than the imperial dishes of the palace. Tell me, is that not laughable?”

Though he spoke half in jest, Li Yi knew exactly how sharp those words were.

At the mildest, it was a vulgar ploy by Drunken Immortal Pavilion to attract diners; at the gravest, it was an act of gross disrespect toward the royal family.

That was a crime deserving decapitation.

Who could possibly bear such a charge?

Even the current crown prince would never dare to touch upon such a forbidden matter of disrespect.

It was an advanced and bloodless method of killing.

But Li Yi had no such worries. Since he had already guessed that Li Shimin was angry, he had also prepared his response.

“Your Majesty, the rumors among the common people are indeed laughable, yet they are also true. The food at Drunken Immortal Pavilion is, in fact, more delicious than the imperial cuisine of the palace,” Li Yi said with a smile.

Li Shimin was stunned. He had never imagined that, after saying so much, this boy Li Yi would still dare to throw himself onto the blade.

Was he not afraid of losing his head?

Or did he have some means of saving himself?

Li Shimin did not understand. He put on a stern expression, narrowed his eyes, and said, “Li Aiqing, do you know that with just what you said, I could have your head?”

Yet faced with Li Shimin’s threat, Li Yi remained calm and unhurried.

A slight smile touched his face as he cupped his hands and said with neither servility nor arrogance, “Your Majesty, please let this minister finish speaking before you take my head. It will not be too late.”

“Hmm? Then speak,” Li Shimin said coldly, fixing his gaze on Li Yi.

He wanted to see what explanation Li Yi could possibly give.

If Li Yi could not talk his way out of this, then he would use the occasion to punish him properly.

Li Yi nodded and slowly said, “Your Majesty, the owner of Drunken Immortal Pavilion is the maidservant in this minister’s household. That is why I said there was some connection with me. And since I am Your Majesty’s subject, then naturally Drunken Immortal Pavilion ought to belong to Great Tang, and to Your Majesty.”

Li Shimin’s brows drew together slightly as he looked at Li Yi and asked in confusion, “If it is your maidservant, and therefore your property, why does it then belong to me?”

“Your Majesty, think about it...” Li Yi smiled and continued, “Does Drunken Immortal Pavilion not pay taxes every year? Paying taxes is naturally done to bring blessings to the people of the world. And since you are the sovereign of Great Tang, as well as the sovereign of the people, then if the taxes paid there can bring blessings to the people, would that not be the same as Your Majesty bringing blessings to them yourself?”

“Your Majesty, tell me, does Drunken Immortal Pavilion not belong to you, then?” Li Yi said with a smiling face.

Hearing these words, Li Shimin suddenly felt that Li Yi was not only superb in medicine, but also astonishingly nimble of tongue, eloquent and persuasive beyond measure.

He could even turn black into white, and was far better than his father, Li Jing.

Interesting.

“Li Baian,” Li Shimin said with a slight frown, still not abandoning the idea of punishing Li Yi, and instead continued coldly, “then how do you explain the rumors among the people?”

“Please do not be impatient, Your Majesty,” Li Yi said softly. “The reason I say the rumors are true is that I long ago wished to bring the cook from my household here and pass his skill on to the imperial chefs, but I was always hindered by my humble status and unable to gain an audience with Your Majesty, so this was delayed.”

“Now, I have already brought the cook here. If Your Majesty grants Drunken Immortal Pavilion a plaque of royal imperial cuisine, then the delicacies of Drunken Immortal Pavilion will be regarded as the work of the palace chefs.”

“Even if the common folk continue to say that the food at Drunken Immortal Pavilion is better than the imperial cuisine of the palace, that would only be because of Your Majesty’s benevolent heart, pitying the people under heaven and allowing them to taste delicacies akin to imperial fare.”

As for the rest of his words, Li Yi did not continue.

The matter had been made perfectly clear.

He had given Li Shimin such a grand step down that Li Yi did not believe Li Shimin would still punish him over such a trivial matter.

The End.