The Leisurely Life of the Prince of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 46: Consensus before the Autumn Hunt

The East Palace was very busy after nightfall, and the aroma of cooked beef even wafted out of the palace.

Beef bones can be used to make soup, which can be cooked all night long. The remaining beef should be cooked and cooled first.

Li Chengqian put the cut beef into a large earthenware pot.

Ning Er came over hurriedly and said, "Your Highness, someone has come from Xingqing Palace and said that His Majesty will go hunting tomorrow."

When I arrived, I saw my father and others drinking in Xingqing Hall.

The emperor prepared for the autumn hunt for half a month, and a lot of manpower and material resources were mobilized.

Li Chengqian sat on a stool by the fire and looked up and said, "Didn't they say that it would take another three or two days to repair the Lishan Palace?"

After thinking about it again, Li Chengqian said, "A few days or three won't be a problem. It's good enough to stay in the Lishan Palace. Now no one can stop my father from riding a horse and galloping."

Ning'er nodded without saying anything.

Li Chengqian looked outside the East Palace and ordered, "Please bring the person in."

"Here."

The person who came was an elderly eunuch who often served beside my father.

He held up a roll of yellow silk and said, "Your Highness, His Majesty has ordered that Your Highness stay in Chang'an during the autumn hunt at Mount Li to supervise the government."

Li Chengqian took the yellow silk and said, "Please go to the East Palace."

The old eunuch saluted with a smile on his face, and saluted again.

Just as the old eunuch was about to leave, Li Chengqian took out three cooked salted duck eggs and handed them to him, saying, "These are salted duck eggs made by the East Palace. I hope you don't dislike them, eunuch."

The old eunuch did not refuse. He accepted the salted duck egg and bowed, saying, "This thing is only available in the East Palace. Your Majesty has also rewarded me with one. Thank you for the gift."

Li Chengqian asked in a low voice: "My father is going to Mount Li to hunt, I hope you can take good care of him."

"Your Highness, don't worry."

The old eunuch still had a smile on his face.

After the other party left, Ning Er stood aside and said, "Your Highness, there are not many duck eggs in the East Palace."

"Of course I know that there are not many duck eggs in the East Palace, but every time I go to see the emperor, he is by his side."

Ning'er spread out the cooked beef and continued to stir the sauce on the side.

Until the next morning, Donggong still wanted to eat beef noodles.

After having an all-you-can-eat beef dinner last night, Li Zhi and Li Shen looked at the bowl of beef noodles with some worry, as the smell of beef was still rising in their stomachs.

So much so that the two younger brothers, who had always loved meat, started to eat celery and radishes on their own initiative.

Li Chengqian warned Ning'er, "Tell my brothers and sisters to bring toothbrushes. If anyone refuses to brush their teeth because it's too much trouble, I won't forgive him."

Hearing this, Ning'er and Xiaofu quickly bowed and said, "Yes."

Except for Princess Changle and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, all other children in the palace will go with the autumn hunt.

In the Lizheng Hall, Empress Changsun was helping His Majesty dress in court robes.

Li Shimin said slowly: "I heard that Cheng Qian pulled up a few radishes from someone else's field yesterday."

Empress Changsun frowned and asked, "Will they report even this little thing to Your Majesty?"

"It's no big deal." Li Shimin nodded and said, "In the palace, Cheng Qian is always trembling with fear."

Empress Changsun straightened the sleeves of His Majesty, and then it was time for him to go to court.

Seeing His Majesty hurriedly leaving the Lizheng Hall, the palace maid outside the hall reported back: "Empress, everything that His Majesty needs to prepare for going to Mount Li today has been prepared."

"Hmm." Empress Chang Sun sighed, "In the past, Cheng Qian would always say something like diligent."

The maid dropped her hands in silence and said, "Your Highness is more humble than before."

Thinking about this family and then thinking about these children, whether it is Qingque or Chengqian, there are always endless worries.

Empress Changsun picked up the clothes that Chengqian had changed yesterday and said, "Go and take a look at His Majesty's travel clothes."

Many people were missing from today's morning court, especially the military generals, as some of them had already gone to Mount Li.

There was no change on the civil servants' side. Everyone stood in an orderly manner and were discussing something before the morning court session began.

Li Ke was eager to try, and said: "Brother, we must catch some big prey in this autumn hunt to impress father."

Li Chengqian put his hands in his pockets and smiled, "When do we leave?"

After thinking for a while, Li Ke said, "It's noon."

"Well, be careful when you go, and don't put yourself in danger just because of a momentary impulse."

Li Ke bowed and said, "I will definitely keep your instructions in mind."

Seeing Li Tai walking towards here, and seeing that his brother was still as fat as before, Li Chengqian sighed: "Qingque, you should exercise more when you go to Mount Li for autumn hunting this time."

Hearing this, Li Tai said seriously: "Don't worry, my brother."

"You've been busy at the Literature Museum in order to compile the Comprehensive Geography. It's not easy. Take this opportunity to relax during the autumn hunt."

Li Tai said: "Father is going on the autumn hunt, I hope my brother will take good care of Chang'an."

Li Chengqian put his hands in his pockets and said, "Actually, I want to go too."

Li Ke also sighed. His elder brother, as the crown prince, was helpless. His father was away on the autumn hunt. Who else could be left in Chang'an except the crown prince of the Eastern Palace?

Changsun Wuji stood in the court, watching the Crown Prince, the King of Wu, and the King of Wei, the three brothers talking in a low voice, and then closed his eyes and waited for the morning court to begin.

Li Shimin walked into the Taiji Hall wearing court robes, and all the ministers shouted to salute.

The morning court was officially convened, and the first thing to be decided was whether to kill Tuyuhun Khan Fuyun.

This summer, the Tang army chased Fu Yun all the way from the source of the Chishui River to Dayechuan.

It was not until the autumn that Fu Yun was escorted to Chang'an, where he was scolded by His Majesty and has been imprisoned in the dungeon ever since.

The work of people of this era is also related to the solar terms. Spring and summer are the time to do big things, while autumn is the time to settle accounts.

Of course, this is not a common problem. It is mainly related to people’s daily routines and the changing of seasons, autumn harvest and winter storage.

Major events were completed in the spring and summer, so naturally the reckoning would have to take place in the autumn.

My father wants to settle all the affairs of Tuyuhun before the autumn hunt.

After Fang Xuanling brought up the matter, the court officials began to discuss it. Some advocated killing, while others advocated not killing.

Cheng Yaojin stood out from the court and said, "Your Majesty, I think he should be killed."

This time, the generals standing in the court did not participate in the autumn hunt.

It was a bit unexpected. I thought the Cheng family would not miss this autumn hunt.

Seeing His Majesty nod, Qin Qiong, who was still serving as the commander of the Left Guard, stepped out of the court and said, "Your Majesty, Fu Yun should be killed."

It seems that the generals quickly reached a consensus.

The military generals of the Tang Dynasty were still very united, and they soon came to a conclusion after a discussion.

Li Chengqian glanced at the court and then at the civil officials, who were still discussing in low voices.

Finally, Chu Suiliang, who was then the Imperial Counselor, stood out from the court and said in a loud voice: "Your Majesty, if Fu Yun is killed, it may be difficult to govern Tuyuhun in the future." Li Chengqian nodded and observed. Civil officials did not speak as directly as military generals. Civil officials would first propose hypotheses and then consider the consequences.

The Minister of the Central Secretariat, Cen Wenben, stood out from the court, holding a tablet in his hand, and said in a loud voice: "Your Majesty, I think he should be executed."

Li Chengqian retracted his gaze and thought that the civil officials were not as united as the military generals.

Chu Suiliang said quickly: "If we kill Fu Yun, his descendants will definitely rebel, and Qinghai, which we conquered with great difficulty, may fall into chaos again."

Cheng Yaojin was not convinced and said, "If we don't kill them, how can we convince the people? If you keep talking nonsense here, how can we explain to our soldiers who died in the battle and the villagers of Liangzhou who were robbed?"

"General, don't ignore the overall situation because of momentary emotion." Chu Suiliang said.

"You..." Cheng Yaojin wanted to curse but stopped.

Chu Suiliang added: "I also heard that the Cheng family's farm slaughtered a cow yesterday!"

"You're talking nonsense!" Cheng Yaojin said angrily, "The cow fell to its death by itself."

"Haha... I have never heard of a cow falling to its death."

"Chu Suiliang, I told you to kill Fu Yun, what does it have to do with cattle?"

Everyone in the court began to discuss it again. Killing a cow was of course a very important matter. Cows were important production tools, and some counties even had to borrow cows from each other for arable land.

Seeing the quarrel getting more and more fierce, Li Shimin, who could no longer bear it, said in a deep voice: "Cheng Yaojin, shut up!"

The loud voice suddenly stopped, and the ministers lowered their heads in silence.

Speaking of killing cattle, in fact, my father, I, and even my younger brothers and sisters all ate beef. Li Chengqian still stood there, imagining himself as a wood sculpture, just staying like that.

Whether to kill Fu Yun or not is another matter, but it is not a good idea to bring up the issue of killing a cow.

It is said that it is better to get into trouble with your boss than to follow him to achieve success.

At least when Cheng Yaojin did this kind of thing, no matter how the court officials impeached him, his father would protect him. After all, he was a close friend who had fought wars together, gotten into trouble together, and slaughtered cattle and eaten meat together.

Receiving the look from His Majesty, Cheng Yaojin lowered his head in grievance and stopped his actions.

Li Shimin looked at the three brothers standing in the court and said loudly: "Ke'er, do you think Fu Yun should be killed or not?"

After hearing His Majesty asking the prince standing in front of the court, everyone fell silent and turned their attention to the three princes: the Crown Prince, the Prince of Wei, and the Prince of Wu.

Hearing this, Li Ke quickly bowed and said, "Father, I think he should be killed!"

Li Shimin asked: "Why should he be killed?"

"Fu Yun looted Liangzhou and caused chaos in the Hexi Corridor. He deserves death for these crimes."

Li Shimin nodded and said, "Qingque, what do you think?"

Li Tai also stood out of the court and said slowly: "Father, I think it would be better to allow Fu Yun to hang himself."

As soon as he finished speaking, there was a lot of discussion in the class.

Li Tai took two steps on the spot and said, "Father is the Khan of Heaven, and now he commands all the Turkic tribes. If father ordered the killing of Fuyun, it would definitely be criticized. But father asked Fuyun to hang himself. A Tuyuhun Khan who hanged himself out of fear of crime, naturally no one would talk about it."

Some people in the court began to discuss, while others nodded.

Li Chengqian even vaguely heard someone say that the King of Wei was very smart to have come up with this idea.

Sure enough, everyone likes to pass the buck.

Li Shimin held his temple, sat sideways and shifted his body weight to one side, and whispered, "What do you think, Prince?"

All the civil and military officials turned their eyes to the prince, who was standing there motionless like a wooden sculpture.

The prince stood with his hands in his pockets, his eyes closed, breathing steadily, and his expression calm.

Seeing that there was no response for a long time, Li Shimin asked in a deep voice: "Crown Prince?"

Li Ke pushed it slightly with a small movement.

Li Chengqian then slowly opened his eyes and saw hundreds of eyes from many court officials looking at him, especially his uncle Changsun Wuji, whose brows were almost twisted together in anxiety.

Coming back to his senses and glancing at his father, Li Chengqian cleared his throat before taking a step forward and asking, "Are you going to kill Fu Yun?"

Li Shimin had a sullen face and said nothing, and was about to ask: Are you awake?
Li Chengqian took two steps forward and looked at the court officials behind him, his gaze especially lingering on his uncle for a moment.

Changsun Wuji also calmed down, looked at his nose with his eyes, and his heart with his nose, and stood with his hands hanging down.

"In fact, I have heard a lot. Whether it is Qingque's method or Ke's opinion, they are both good." Li Chengqian nodded and said, "Yes, very good."

Li Shimin closed his eyes and frowned even more.

The ministers lowered their heads, looked at the Crown Prince, and then glanced at His Majesty, who looked extremely displeased, with his face about to break from the tension.

How could the prince's reply be so glib?

This is not a gentleman's behavior.

Finally, Zhangsun Wuji stepped out of the court. He took a deep breath and said loudly, "Your Highness, do you think Fu Yun should be killed?"

My uncle deliberately spoke loudly, and his words even echoed in the hall for a moment.

Li Chengqian bowed and said, "Why don't we have a vote? Those who think Fu Yun should not be killed, raise your hands!"

The civil and military officials in the court looked at each other, and then Chu Suiliang and several civil officials raised their hands.

Li Shimin looked at his son and said, "Raise your hands if you think he should hang himself."

This time, more people raised their hands.

Li Chengqian glanced at the court, paused for a moment, and said loudly: "Those who think Fu Yun should be executed in Chang'an, please raise your hands!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Li Ke was the first to raise his hand, followed by Changsun Wuji, Fang Xuanling, Cen Benwen, Cheng Yaojin, Qin Qiong, and Wei Zheng all raised their hands.

Li Tai slowly raised his hand.

The King of Wei, who had just advocated that Fu Yun hang himself, raised his hand, and gradually even those who had just advocated not killing Fu Yun raised their hands.

The effect of the collective driving the individual was soon reflected in this choice.

It was very quiet in the Taiji Hall. Li Shimin looked at his son standing in front of the ministers who had raised their hands. The sunlight just happened to shine into the door of the Taiji Hall.

It was so quiet in the Tai Chi Hall that you could hear your own breathing.

Seeing his father's expression again, Li Chengqian bowed and said, "Father, killing Fu Yun was a unanimous opinion of the court. Secondly, Fu Yun caused chaos in the Hexi Corridor and his crime was punishable by death. Moreover, whoever dares to oppose it would be an enemy of the entire court of the Tang Dynasty and the Khan of the Tang Dynasty."

The prince's words reached everyone's ears.

This resolution was definitely passed in this way, simply because collective consciousness is the most powerful.

Zhang Sun Wuji said in a loud voice: "Your Majesty, please issue an order to execute Fu Yun!"

Cheng Yaojin also said loudly: "Your Majesty, please issue an order. I am willing to kill this thief with my own hands!"

Fang Xuanling, Cen Benwen, Wei Zheng and others seconded the motion, and then more and more people petitioned.

Li Shimin waved his sleeves and stood up, with a slight smile on his face, which he tried not to show.

Instead, he looked at the crowd and the crown prince before the court, and said in a deep voice: "At 3:00 pm, Fu Yun will be executed at Chengtian Gate."

Li Chengqian bowed and said, "Father, you are wise!"

(End of this chapter)