Jiuxi

Chapter 588: 586 [Under the Sunshine]

The seventh day of the fifth month in the fifteenth year of Jianwu in the Great Qi Dynasty.

Witnessed by all the civil and military officials in the court, the successor emperor Li Zongben held a ceremony to ascend the throne and ascended the throne.

The late emperor's empress, Empress Xu, was honored as Empress Dowager Cihe, and the current emperor's biological mother, Concubine Liu Shu, was honored as Empress Dowager Renshou.

The Crown Princess Ning was enthroned as the Queen, and the three-year-old prince Li Daoming was enthroned as the Prince of Yanning.

The new emperor did not change the era name, waiting for the end of winter and the beginning of spring to make a decision, so the next six months was still the 15th year of Jianwu.

At the ceremony, the new emperor announced a general amnesty and all his ministers were rewarded.

Afterwards, the news of the new emperor's ascension to the throne was announced to the world, and the people in all provinces and cities were informed.

A few days later, in the northern suburbs of the capital.

More than a hundred knights stopped outside Chunfeng Pavilion. All the knights were fierce and brave. One could tell at a glance that they were veteran soldiers who had been on the battlefield for many years and killed countless people.

This is naturally the personal guard of Shanyang Marquis Mansion.

In the Spring Breeze Pavilion, Lu Chen, dressed in casual clothes, looked at the solemn young man standing opposite him and said gently, "Sit down and talk."

The young man was Li Gongxu, the grandson of Left Prime Minister Li Daoyan who was most valued. He said solemnly, "How dare I lose my manners in front of you, Lord Marquis?"

"Well, if you like to stand, then stand there."

Lu Chen did not force it, and then joked: "Do you really intend to stay with me forever? You really don't want to take the imperial examination? I heard Qin Zilong say that you will use all your free time to study hard, which shows that you are still a bookworm in nature."

Li Gongxu answered seriously: "My Lord, it is true that I like reading, but that does not mean that I am keen on taking the imperial examination. I did not understand before, and I just thought that nothing in the world was as important as reading. But after following my Lord on the battlefield in Jiangbei, I have changed a little."

Lu Chen said with interest: "Tell me about it."

Li Gongxu said: "Studying is for understanding, and taking the imperial examination is for realizing one's ambitions. But for the current Great Qi, joining the army is also a way to serve the country. Whether serving as an official in the court or leading troops outside, both can contribute their own strength to the Great Qi. The two are equally superior and support each other."

Lu Chen smiled and nodded, "That's true, but you should know that the old prime minister did not send you to me to let you learn how to charge into battle."

Li Gongxu bowed his head in silence.

From the subtle changes in his expression, it can be seen that this obviously precocious boy is still a little nervous.

Seeing this, Lu Chen sighed and said, "The old prime minister really has good intentions."

Li Gongxu hesitated and asked, "What do you mean, Lord?"

Lu Chen said leisurely, "I've always wanted to talk to you, but I was too busy and didn't find a suitable opportunity. The reason I allowed you to stay was because this was the first time the old prime minister asked me, and I really couldn't refuse his face. Thinking about it afterwards, I don't really understand why the old prime minister did this."

Li Gongxu became more and more puzzled.

He felt that the whole story was very clear.

The reason why Li Daoyan sent him to Lu Chen was, on the one hand, to allow him to gain experience and knowledge by following Lu Chen, instead of being trapped in the Prime Minister's Mansion all day long.

On the other hand, Lu Chen has now become a representative figure of the border army, and the relationship between the central government of Da Qi and the border army has always been a very sensitive and delicate topic. Li Gongxu has been with Lu Chen for a long time, which means that the left prime minister and Lu Chen have a more convenient and smooth communication.

In this case, neither party will make a wrong judgment.

Lu Chen looked up at the young man and smiled, "Of course I have considered the reasons you have thought of, but after thinking about it, I don't think any of these reasons can prompt the old prime minister to make such a decision. To put it simply, the old prime minister sent you here, which made me vaguely feel that he seemed to have a deep worry. You don't look like a student who went out to travel, but more like a spark that the old prime minister kept for the Jinlin Li family."

Li Gongxu was shocked.

He didn't know the details about his family's secrets, but he heard from his grandfather that his uncle Li Shizhi seemed to have done some bad things without telling the family.

Lu Chen continued, "This is a puzzle that is hard to understand. Considering the old prime minister's position in the court, the Jinlin Li family's foundation in Jiangnan, and the Li family's loyal performance in recent years, why would he need a junior like me to take care of him?"

Li Gongxu looked down, and saw that Lu Chen's eyes suddenly became as sharp as a knife, which made him dare not look directly at him.

"My Lord, my grandfather did not mention any other reasons."

The young boy bit the tip of his tongue and forced himself to calm down.

Lu Chen nodded slightly and did not ask any further questions.

He knew that Li Daoyan would never do something without a purpose, but this kind of action similar to entrusting an orphan to someone else would definitely not do him any harm.

These old guys...

Lu Chen sighed in his heart, and then he saw Qin Zilong riding his horse and galloping over, saying loudly: "My Lord, the carriage of the Duke of Huai'an is almost here."

"Okay, follow me to greet him."

At Lu Chen's command, more than a hundred riders headed north. A moment later, hundreds of riders were seen escorting several spacious carriages on the official road.

The carriage slowly stopped, Li Liangyu came out first, followed by Li Bingxue.

Their eyes met, and all the words were expressed in this one glance.

Li Liangyu, who was standing at the side, coughed lightly and bowed, saying, "This subordinate greets the Marquis." Lu Chen said cheerfully, "Brother Li, are you trying to flatter me in front of Uncle Li?"

Li Bingxue couldn't help laughing.

Li Liangyu also laughed and said, "Where did you get this from?"

"He wants to say that from now on, you can discuss privately as equals, without being bound by titles or official positions."

Li Tianrun walked out of the carriage with a faint smile.

Lu Chen stepped forward and looked at the middle-aged man's face, and said happily: "Uncle Li's complexion is indeed much better."

"Thank you for your concern."

Li Tianrun smiled and said, "Why do you have to go out to greet him in person?"

Lu Chen said earnestly: "This is what the younger generation should do."

Li Tianrun stopped dwelling on this topic, and after sizing up his expression, he said, "It seems that the capital has been relatively stable during this period."

Lu Chen said smoothly: "I'm just a little confused."

Li Tianrun said calmly, "I will go to the palace to pay tribute to the late emperor, and we will talk about it after I return home."

Lu Chen nodded in agreement, and the group set off again.

By the time he escorted the Li family to the palace to pay tribute to the late emperor, and accompanied them to meet the new emperor Li Zongben, and returned to the Huai'an County Mansion, the sun was already setting in the sky and the sky was filled with brilliant clouds.

After coming out of the palace, Li Tianrun's expression became very solemn.

He was not the type of person who would be sad about the passing of time. Having led troops for decades, he was accustomed to separations and deaths. However, he had a special relationship with the late emperor lying in the coffin in Fuqing Palace.

Compared with Xiao Wangzhi's estrangement from the late emperor, Li Tianrun and the late emperor can be regarded as a model of harmony between the monarch and his subjects.

Over the past ten years, although the two were thousands of miles apart, they never stopped exchanging letters with each other.

The late emperor had absolute trust in Li Tianrun, and Li Tianrun never let him down.

Facing the passing of the late emperor, Li Tianrun would not act exaggeratedly, but the grief in his heart was no less than anyone else's.

It wasn't until he entered the Huaian County Mansion, which he hadn't visited for many years, that Li Tianrun's mood began to improve.

"I haven't been back for ten years, and the house hasn't changed much, except that the regulations have been improved a lot."

Li Tianrun looked a little emotional and motioned Lu Chen to sit down and talk.

Li Bingxue said, "This is what it looks like after the late emperor asked the Ministry of Works to repair it. Dad, do you like it?"

“I like it.”

Li Tianrun nodded, then looked at Lu Chen and asked, "You said earlier that you had doubts in your heart, what exactly was the reason?"

There were only three of them in the hall at the moment, and Li Liangyu had already left knowingly.

Lu Chen said softly, "Uncle Li, before the Emperor's coronation ceremony, he took me to the Cining Palace to meet Empress Dowager Xu. The Empress Dowager hoped that the Emperor could exempt the Third Prince Li Zongjian from imprisonment, or at least allow Li Zongjian to participate in the late Emperor's funeral."

Li Tianrun frowned slightly and said, "The Queen Mother's move is not appropriate."

"Yes."

Lu Chen naturally didn't need to hide anything in front of the Li family father and daughter, and said bluntly: "Although Queen Mother Xu has a high status, her influence in the court is almost negligible. She knew that the current emperor was unwilling to forgive Li Zongjian, but she still forced the emperor to abdicate at that critical moment. This is actually a very irrational decision. If this angers the current emperor, Queen Mother Xu herself will not have any worries, but I am afraid that Li Zongjian's future life will be even more difficult."

Li Tianrun pondered for a moment and said slowly, "Are you trying to say that Queen Mother Xu has a deeper meaning behind this?"

The originally relaxed atmosphere suddenly became tense.

Lu Chen laughed at himself and said, "This is what I don't understand. Judging from the situation that day, Queen Mother Xu is not the kind of person who doesn't care about anything. She is actually very measured in her words and deeds. Moreover, as the empress of the previous emperor, it is impossible for her not to understand such a simple truth. She risked angering the current emperor just to allow Li Zongjian to temporarily leave Qiushan Lane. What is the point of this?"

Li Tianrun automatically ignored the word "careless". He knew that the young man in front of him was usually calm and cautious, and would not pay too much attention to those details in the current environment.

Lu Chen continued, "To put it bluntly, Li Zongjian is just a spoiled son of the royal family. He has no prestige in the court or the army. Even if the emperor allows him to leave Qiushan Lane and go to the imperial mausoleum, even if the emperor gives Li Zongjian the opportunity to speak out, what can he do?"

"When things go wrong, there must be a monster."

Li Tianrun made a calm judgment.

Lu Chen slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air, and then said solemnly: "It's not just this matter. Although I haven't been to Beijing very often, I always feel that there is a strange atmosphere in Beijing. I have been relatively free during this period of time, and I carefully recalled what happened in the past few years. Not only did I not sort out the clues, but more doubts emerged."

Li Tianrun's expression became a little serious, and he said in a deep voice: "What do you mean?"

Lu Chen lowered his eyes and said quietly, "I found that many things were strange. I may not have noticed it at the time, but now I think it's not normal. It gives me a feeling that there is a dark hand hiding in the shadows, stirring up the situation, and because we ignored some details, we unknowingly became pawns used by that dark hand."

(End of this chapter)