The Leisurely Life of the Prince of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 354: The Three Questions of Heaven and Man in the Tang Dynasty

Yu Zhining was reciting loudly, "The Crown Prince has issued an order. Since the Tang Dynasty established its foothold in the Central Plains, the Cui family of Boling has plundered the villagers for decades. This money was plundered by local villains. Now it is confiscated by the court and used for the benefit of the people."

This is the order of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. If it were another crown prince or another emperor,

When people hear these words, they will most likely become skeptical and hesitant.

But these words came from the mouth of the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace, so people naturally believed them, because this crown prince always kept his word.

With such a prince, the court officials were very confident.

"With so much money, how many families in Hebei have been broken up?" Chu Suiliang sighed.

These days, Yu Zhining has gained a lot of experience in sorting out the files of Hebei affairs. He said: "When a person wants something and this thing is in the hands of others, he will find ways to get it. This is how plundering happens. Many things will happen during this period. This is the case with aristocratic families. When the court cannot control them, it is easy for them to make a person lose everything."

Chu Suiliang, who was about to speak, was suddenly stunned and looked outside the city gate.

At this moment, outside the city gate, a man rode his horse to the front of the city. He dismounted and strode towards Luoyang City.

Chu Suiliang's face immediately darkened. The person in front of him was none other than Xu Jingzong, the Shaoyin of Jingzhao Prefecture in Chang'an.

Now that the Prince of Jiangxia, the prefect of Jingzhao Prefecture, is not in Chang'an, Xu Jingzong is in power in Chang'an. And now Xu Jingzong also has a backer, that is Prime Minister Fang.

When the other party came closer, Chu Suiliang said, "Xu Jingzong, you are not in Chang'an to assist Prime Minister Fang, what are you doing in Luoyang?"

Although Chu Suiliang is now the Minister of the Central Secretariat, Xu Jingzong is not inferior to him in momentum. He stroked his beard and said, "Of course, I am here on the orders of Prime Minister Fang to report to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince on the affairs of Chang'an."

Chu Suiliang said, "Give it to me, and I will pass it to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince on behalf of Prime Minister Fang."

Xu Jingzong waved his sleeves and said, "No need."

"Why? You are worried that the submission of the memorial will be delayed. Xu Shaoyin is underestimating us."

"No need to do it for me, I will go to see His Highness in person."

Yu Zhining didn't want Chu Suiliang and Xu Jingzong to continue to confront each other and delay the important matters, so he hurriedly said: "Your Highness is in the palace now."

Xu Jingzong nodded and walked towards the palace.

When he arrived at the palace gate, Xu Jingzong asked the guard and found out that the Crown Prince was not in the palace.

"Your Highness knew that Xu Shaoyin would come to Luoyang today, so he asked me to wait here and follow me."

Xu Jingzong bowed slightly and followed.

It was snowing, and Li Chengqian was sitting at the east city wall of Luoyang. The soup in the hot pot was boiling in front of him, and Mr. Gu Nalu was sitting in front of him.

Behind him was Xiaofu. She killed the fresh fish, cut the fish meat, removed the fish bones, put it into a bowl, and brought it to His Highness's table.

Li Chengqian picked up a piece of fish and put it into the hot pot to cook. He said, "In the Jin Dynasty's Food Classic, it is recorded that fish sashimi is a delicacy, but I don't like fish sashimi. It tastes better after cooking."

Gu Nalu said: "I don't like fish sashimi either."

The emperor and his minister sat opposite each other. Recently, the old man had become more and more satisfied with His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, and the two of them were almost becoming good friends regardless of age.

Li Chengqian drank his tea and said, "I will be one year older this year. I don't know how long I will be the crown prince."

Gu Nalu asked, "Is Your Highness anxious to ascend the throne?"

"It's not that I'm in a hurry, but there are too many people who are concerned about this matter."

"Hahaha……"

When Xu Jingzong walked up to the city wall, he heard the old man's laughter. He followed the guards and walked closer.

In the wind and snow, the prince, who was in his prime, sat in the snow, eating hot pot and brewing tea, feeling very comfortable.

"Your Highness."

"It's been a year since we last met. Thank you for taking charge of Chang'an this year."

Xu Jingzong handed over the memorial and said, "This is the recent situation in Chang'an this year. Fang Xiang has prepared a draft. Please review it, Your Highness."

Li Chengqian took the memorial and put it aside, saying, "Xu Shaoyin looks thinner."

Xu Jingzong said: "Your Majesty..."

Li Chengqian smiled and said, "You miss Zhinu and Shendi, as well as Di Renjie and the others in Bozhou, Shandong, and you are worried that you won't be able to eat?"

Originally, Xu Jingzong was unwilling to accept Prince Jin as his disciple, but after all, they had been together for a long time, and although he was not a disciple, he was still willing to teach His Royal Highness Prince Jin how to behave in society.

"I have been thinking recently that since Xu Shaoyin is unwilling to accept Zhinu as his disciple, should I consider giving him a new teacher? How about Chu Suiliang?"

Xu Jingzong hurriedly said, "Your Highness, no."

"Then Yu Zhining?"

Xu Jingzong thought for a while and said, "Although Yu Zhining is knowledgeable and talented, he is definitely not a good choice for Master Jin Wang."

"What about Mr. Li?"

"Your Highness, Master Li is old."

Li Chengqian sighed: "Then who do you think is more suitable?"

Xu Jingzong bowed and said, "I think Yan Qinli is very suitable."

"But Yan Qinli has already accepted Di Renjie as his disciple." Li Chengqian changed the subject and said hesitantly, "It's not impossible."

Xu Jingzong secretly breathed a sigh of relief, "Your Highness is wise."

"Since you are in Luoyang, stay for a while. I want Zhang Da'an to go to Hebei. You will take charge of the affairs of Luoyang Jingzhao Prefecture temporarily, and Yan Qinli will take care of the affairs of Chang'an."

"Here."

Li Chengqian nodded: "Sit down."

"Thank you, Your Highness."

The wind and snow obscured the scenery here, and the snow became heavier, drowning out the bustle of Luoyang City.

On that day, near nightfall, the crown prince ordered the court to rest. This year, the rest came in November, earlier than in previous years, and it was a real rest. All the official residences in the imperial city were closed.

Preparations for the Eastern Expedition began in the early spring of this year, and then the emperor set out on the Eastern Expedition, so the court officials became busy since then.

Half a year later, the Wei Ting case occurred, and the six ministries in the court were busy for a whole year.

Now that the crown prince has finally ordered a rest, everyone in the court can finally breathe a sigh of relief.

But the rest day that the prince talked about has always been different from the previous rest days. In addition to not having to attend the morning court and sitting in the official residence, one must also be prepared to deal with court affairs at any time at home.

Whenever something happened, he would put on his official uniform to handle state affairs. This is the reason why they say "rest without rest".

After the conversation with Mr. Gu Nalu at the east gate of Luoyang, the emperor and his minister also had a direction for the compilation of books for teaching in the Tang Dynasty.

Li Chengqian sat in the Zhenguan Hall and looked at the scrolls that the old gentleman had sent over.

In the Tang Dynasty, the ancestors of the emperor's family, that is, the Li family, were Taoist ancestors. Therefore, the teachings and arrangements were more or less influenced by Taoism.

The first page Li Chengqian opened the book on was about self-strengthening, defending the country and ensuring the safety of the people.

This basically set the tone for this book, and Chongwenguan’s future teaching mission was based on this book.

After that, it comes down to how to defend the country and how to keep the people safe.

Li Chengqian was very satisfied with the content of this book. It was the key to teaching and educating people in Chongwenguan in the next few decades.

After reading the book, Li Chengqian instructed the eunuch beside him, "Add more stories from the late Sui Dynasty, remember the hardships at that time, and never forget how much it cost to pacify the world today. Also write about the deeds of the court in pacifying the Western Regions and conquering the Tianshan Mountains in recent years."

"Here."

From Gunalut's perspective, more knowledge from books would be better, but from the perspective of the crown prince or the emperor, books that are to be widely circulated must not only be upright but also contain words that are useful to the country and the nation.

Deep down, Li Chengqian did not want to use the methods of Emperor Wu of Han, Liu Che, and there was no Three Questions of Heaven and Man in the Tang Dynasty.

Even if there is, it is a dialectic of the principles of the world, an endless dialectic.

Even if this book cannot become a masterpiece like Tiandi Lixin, Mr. Gu Nalu's first article was rejected by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.

But the old man was not angry. He really enjoyed the debate with the prince.

An old man was sitting in Chongwenguan, and the current crown prince was sitting in the imperial palace, and the two of them maintained correspondence.

In the days that followed, Li Chengqian sent it back six more times, reducing the heavy content each time.

One even hopes that this great scholar can simplify the content of Confucianism and make it more concise and comprehensive.

Except Zhang Xuanbi who dared not say a word, the other disciples of this great scholar also came to Luoyang. They were all dissatisfied with the prince because of the old gentleman's affairs.

Zhang Xuanbi looked at his teacher beside him. The great scholar was looking at the insights given by the prince with a smile on his face.

Hearing the disciples' quarrels again, Gu Na Lu stood up and said, "Stop quarreling. Books are not written overnight. It is normal to have disputes."

Seeing the old man was about to leave, Zhang Xuanbi followed him and said, "Are you leaving, old man? I have prepared a room at home."

Gu Nalu shook his head and said, "I am used to being accompanied by books. I use books as pillows and fall asleep on books. Chongwen Hall has many books, which is great."

Zhang Xuanbi personally saw the old gentleman off.

As the twelfth lunar month approached, Li Chengqian received another military report from his father, stating that he could not return home to celebrate the New Year. All matters concerning the court celebrations and royal family would be presided over by the crown prince.

For this reason, Hejian Prince Li Xiaogong hurried to Luoyang City to meet the prince.

Qianyang Palace, Li Xiaogong rushed all the way from Chang'an, and the first thing he did was to see the prince and come into the palace.

Inside the palace, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince sat at the top without saying a word.

Li Xiaogong didn't know what to say for a moment.

The uncle and nephew were in a difficult situation. It would be fine for His Majesty to go to the war, but the retired emperor was still alive, and the royal family kings from all over the country should come to pay congratulations to the retired emperor and the crown prince.

It has been so in previous years, and it should be so this year even if Your Majesty is not in the court.

However, this year, not a single prince from the royal family came.

Seeing that the prince still did not speak, Li Xiaogong said unhappily: "How can this be so unreasonable? They are really unreasonable."

Li Chengqian sighed, "I'm afraid this year's twelfth lunar month will be the quietest in previous years."

Li Xiaogong said: "These people should go to the Western Regions to plant trees!"

Li Chengqian added: "After all, they are all my father's brothers and sisters."

So what if they are brothers and sisters? The prince just wants to capture them. What happened to Li Yuanying and Li Yuanxiang?
In addition, Prince Jiang and Prince Guo are still under house arrest in the Zongzheng Temple for two years. It is so miserable.

"Uncle Emperor?"

"Your Highness, please speak."

"You said my uncles and aunts are worried that they may never come back?"

Li Xiaogong said, "Your Highness is wise. I will arrange for people to go to each family and ask them why they did not come to pay their respects."

The reason why the various royal princes did not dare to come to Luoyang was very clear: the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace was too cruel.

How pure and kind the prince was when he was a child, but what a terrible person the current prince of the East Palace is.

Not to mention the affairs of Prince Jiang and Prince Teng, just in the affairs of Hebei, this prince killed more than a thousand people and exiled more than four thousand people.

The blood shed in front of Luoyang City can never be washed away.

There are so many trees in the Western Regions that it’s impossible to plant them all.

A vast poplar forest has formed to the west of the Hexi Corridor.

The prince also ordered people to continue planting trees all the way to Shazhou and Guazhou.

The Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace has become a shadow in the hearts of the royal princes.

Li Chengqian walked out of the palace with his hands in his pockets, "Uncle."

Li Xiaogong stood aside, looking quite angry, "Your Highness, I will go right away..."

"Don't bother them, just don't come."

"I understand. Then they don't need to come again in the future."

"Uncle, forcing them to come here is not a good idea. I am worried..."

"Don't worry, Your Highness. I am here and will do my best to be filial to the Emperor."

"That's not what I'm worried about. I'm worried that if I force them to come to pay their respects, these uncles and aunts might die of worry on the way to Luoyang."

Li Xiaogong's steps froze in place.

Li Chengqian added: "Maybe it won't be like this, and I won't be worried, but what if it happens? Even if there is only one case, how can I explain it to my father?"

After taking two steps, he saw someone standing at the back without moving, so Li Chengqian asked, "Uncle?"

"Ow..."

Li Xiaogong came back to his senses a little.

"Uncle, hurry up. Grandpa is old and he will go to sleep after eating. If we hurry over, we can still catch up."

"Here."

Outside the residence of the retired emperor, Princess Linchuan stood at the door and saw her two younger brothers walking towards her, chatting and laughing.

Seeing that Zhinu and Shendi had returned safely, she stepped forward and said, "Well, you've both grown taller."

Li Zhi and Li Shen, who were already fifteen years old, bowed and saluted.

Lin Chuan said with satisfaction: "Go see Grandpa."

Li Zhi and Li Shen walked into the courtyard and greeted their grandfather and uncle.

All the dishes were ready on the dining table, and Li Lizhi and her mother were arranging the dishes.

Li Yuan was missing a few teeth when he smiled. He said, "They have all grown up. Zhinu has also grown this tall."

Li Lizhi snorted coldly: "He has been having fun in Bozhou, and he still knows to come back. He might as well continue to have fun outside."

Li Zhi said: "Sister, my brother has been writing letters to mother."

Li Shen chuckled.

"Oh? Why did I hear that the King of Jin had made friends with dozens of knights in Bozhou, and they were running rampant in the countryside in groups?"

"Is that so?" Li Zhi said seriously, "Someone must have slandered my brother."

Noticing his sister's questioning gaze, Li Zhi lowered his head and said, "I just made some good friends."

After so many years, this family hasn't changed much. The only change is that everyone has grown up.

Ning'er saw everything.

A palace maid came hurriedly and said, "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and the Prince of Hejian are here."

Li Yuan was quite happy, with all his grandchildren around him, and said loudly: "Let's eat."

……

PS: There is one more chapter to be updated, but I will leave it unfinished for now and try to make it up tomorrow night.

This Mid-Autumn Festival, dealing with all the relatives is really exhausting.

Xiao Zhang wishes you all peace, happiness and prosperity in this Mid-Autumn Festival.

(End of this chapter)