The Leisurely Life of the Prince of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 476 A Long Life

"I saw that you kicked the messenger on the knee."

Jiang Shiren snorted coldly: "What did you see? Which eye of yours saw me kick him?"

"Don't try to quibble!"

Hearing this, Jiang Shiren also lost his temper. He opened his mouth and shouted, "He fell down by himself. How can you say that someone kicked him?"

The censor, who was not young anymore, said, "When two countries are at war, they don't kill envoys. How dare you commit murder in front of the palace?"

Wang Xuance said: "I saw it, the messenger really fell down by himself."

"Huh! General Wang, you can see what's happening behind you when you're walking in front? Do you have an extra eye behind you?"

I don't know which imperial censor echoed this, but Wang Xuance stepped forward and said, "I did see it. Why? Only you can see it, but I can't?"

Liang Jianfang also stopped, came over and stood behind Jiang Shiren, and said: "It's ok for you censors to be domineering on weekdays, but you dare to bully the generals under my command!"

"Liang Jianfang! You dare to shield your generals, you should also be charged."

Seeing that he was about to rush forward and had already rolled up the sleeves of his court robe, Pei Xingjian hurriedly stopped him, saying, "General Liang, in front of the main hall! In front of the main hall!"

Seeing that a fight was about to break out again, the censor was followed by many colleagues from the Censorate.

The generals and the censors stood in front of the Taiji Hall, with their swords drawn.

The one who dared to challenge Liang Jianfang was the newly appointed Imperial Counselor Sun Chuyue, a learned man of the same generation as Lai Ji and others, and also had a great reputation in the court or the Censorate.

Sun Chuyue shouted, "If you have the guts, you can kill me now, or I will go and inform His Majesty!"

"Damn it!" Liang Jianfang rolled up his sleeves and shouted, "Brothers, how dare this censor bully us!"

"Hit me!"

The two sides immediately started fighting in front of the hall.

Xu Jingzong looked at this scene and said with emotion: "I was also so high-spirited and vigorous back then."

Shangguan Yi said: "Yes, the court remains the same, and the Tang Dynasty remains the same."

Xu Jingzong looked at Shangguan Yi and Li Yifu and asked, "You two are also from the Censorate, why don't you go and help?"

With the attitude of watching the fun and not minding the trouble, Xu Jingzong asked jokingly.

Shangguan Yi sighed, "I am old and not good at fighting. Goodbye."

Li Yifu said: "I am weak and sickly, and I am afraid of being beaten to death."

Shangguan Yi was only forty years old but he said he was old. Li Yifu killed so many officials but he was still frail and sickly. Xu Jingzong sincerely sighed that there were more and more talented people in the Tang Dynasty.

The fight in front of the Tai Chi Hall became more and more fierce.

The eunuchs in the palace and the guards in front of the hall were no longer surprised and reported to His Majesty very skillfully.

Li Chengqian was sitting in front of the Xingqing Palace, drinking tea and reading documents in the sun.

The eunuch said, "Your Majesty, the generals and the imperial censors are fighting in front of the palace."

Li Chengqian asked calmly, "What did the fight start about?"

"The Dayuan envoy broke his leg, and an imperial censor pointed out that it was Jiang Shiren who did it."

Li Chengqian put down his tea bowl and asked, "Is the Dayuan envoy still alive?"

Yang, the eunuch, replied: "Don't worry, Your Majesty. I have had the Dayuan envoy knocked unconscious. He will not be able to identify him on the spot."

Li Chengqian waved his hand slightly and said, "I won't give you any instructions for the rest."

Eunuch Yang smiled knowingly and said, "I will have someone send the Dayuan envoy away and he will never appear in public again."

After he left with a few young eunuchs, Li Chengqian was still looking at the document in his hand.

The generals in this court are getting younger and younger and more energetic, which is of course a good thing, but they are prone to getting into trouble and need someone to make up for them. I hope they can be more wise in the future, they are really ignorant.

The current situation within the Arab Empire is probably not very good. If the Arab Empire was still as good as before, their Caliph would not have sent people to negotiate peace at this time, and the Tang Dynasty has not yet officially declared war.

This shows how worried they were. In the past, according to legends in the Western Regions, the Black Arabs destroyed Persia, and such power made the other Hu peoples in the Pamir Mountains fearful.

But the contest between the two countries can never be judged only on the front line. Otherwise, after the wise Zhuge Liang left Qishan, he might have pacified the Central Plains, and there would not be that kind of sighing.

The competition between the two countries is about comprehensive strength. The Arabs are probably not internally stable now. Something happened in the Arabs during this period. After the death of their prophet Muhammad, those powerful Arab nobles began to seize power.

Generally speaking, Li Chengqian felt that this node should be related to Ali, the descendant of the last pure bloodline of the prophet left in the world, and he was most likely assassinated.

It is naturally impossible for the Tang Dynasty to negotiate peace. If it negotiates peace so hastily, how will the border countries view the Tang Dynasty in the future?

Since my father came to power, whether it was the northern expedition to the Turks, the destruction of the northern desert, or the eastern expedition to Goguryeo, what was lost must always be taken back, and hatred must always be avenged.

Li Chengqian said to himself: "I should let the customs of the Tang Dynasty continue well."

His Majesty muttered this to himself, confusing the eunuchs inside and outside the palace again.

Li Chengqian picked up another document, which was written by Chu Suiliang. It seemed that this man could not think of a reason to persuade the emperor, so he found an excuse about a Silla maid to persuade him.

The advantage of this kind of advice is that if the emperor adopts it, it will not have much impact. Even if the emperor does not accept it, it will not be a burden for him.

This kind of advice will not offend the emperor regardless of whether the emperor accepts it or not.

Compared with Xu Jingzong, Chu Suiliang seemed to be smarter. He was able to have a sense of presence in front of the emperor and could also make some decisions that would not have a big impact. No matter what choice the emperor made, he was wise.

In fact, Silla slaves only began to appear in large numbers after the Eastern Expedition. They were the by-products of the victory of the Eastern Expedition.

It was more like the Tang Dynasty feasted on Goguryeo and packed up some snacks to take away, just like the Silla maids.

After these Silla slaves entered the Central Plains, they were like leftovers after the victory of the Eastern Expedition. They were constantly digested and absorbed by the Tang people and became another kind of nutrients.

This kind of nourishment can't be said to be bad, nor can it be said to be too good. In the exchanges between the Tang Dynasty and Silla, it was a situation where one side was willing to fight and the other was willing to be beaten.

In order to please the Tang Dynasty, Jin Chunqiu wanted to let all Silla women enter the Tang Dynasty and become Silla maids.

In the Tang Dynasty, where productivity was still scarce, population was a means to boost productivity. This "leftovers" was digested by the people in the streets, and the Tang Dynasty was also absorbing some of the nutrients.

And this trend will continue for a long time before it drains Silla.

Only Jin Chunqiu is still alive and well, and I don’t know how he could live so long.

Seeing His Majesty frowning as he looked at the document, the eunuchs became even more humble and even breathed carefully.

In this era when war was still classical, soldiers fought on the battlefield in exchange for wealth and social status. For example, the Battle of Talas fully reflected the war atmosphere since the Zhenguan period. When the Tang army captured the four cities in the Pamir Mountains, they took away everything they could, and the population and livestock were transported to the Ili River.

Although it is not known how much the Tang army generals took privately, judging from the customs documents, most of them were handed over to the court. As for how they obtained wealth in the war, we can only say that there must be an expert among them.

The wealth and military merits that the soldiers obtain on the battlefield naturally belong to them, but an official who is promoted through connections, no matter how upright he is, will be looked at with envy and jealousy by people and called a traitor.

Therefore, even if the generals were naughty and loved to get into trouble, their connections from top to bottom were always so good, and their connections maintained an upward and expanding trend.

Li Chengqian felt that there was no need to worry about these things. The barbaric Tang Dynasty needed the motivation to expand and constantly open up territory to obtain resources.

After reading the documents sent by various departments today, Li Chengqian left Xingqing Palace.

After His Majesty walked away, the eunuchs standing in the sun came forward to pack up His Majesty's documents, and then put the table outside the hall to dry in the sun. After dark, they moved the table into the hall.

Last year's winter was cold, but just as the Lantern Festival arrived this year, gusts of warm wind blew over Guanzhong, causing the ginkgo tree in front of the Xingqing Hall to sprout new buds early.

Li Chengqian walked to the front of the Wude Hall, looked at his grandfather who was sitting quietly in the sun, and said, "My grandson has just finished his state affairs."

Li Yuan felt the warmth of the sun and said, "I don't know what's wrong with me lately, but I always feel chilly. Erlang, bring me the blanket that the people of Kucha presented to me."

Hearing his grandfather's words, Li Chengqian nodded calmly and said, "Yes."

The eunuch at the back was quietly wiping away tears. The old man was becoming more and more confused, and was even a little unconscious. The eunuch held back his sobs and covered the old man with a blanket.

The sun was so warm today, with no clouds or wind in the sky, that several eunuchs were sweating from the sun, but why did the old man still feel cold?

Li Chengqian grabbed his grandfather's withered hand and asked, "Are you still cold?"

Li Yuan closed his eyes and said, "It's not cold anymore."

Staying quietly beside his grandfather, Li Chengqian lifted the blanket up again and covered his grandfather's chin.

My grandfather is like a child now. He is moody and his memory is getting worse and worse.

After sitting like this for an hour, Li Yuan slowly said, "Cheng Qian."

"My grandson is here."

"How long has it been since I last drank?"

"Haven't had a drink in twelve years."

Li Yuan took a deep breath, closed his eyes again, and said slowly: "I...I want to drink."

Li Chengqian said: "Bring some wine, the best wine."

"Yes." The eunuch's eyes had already turned red from crying, and he hurried to get the wine.

The wine was poured into the bowl. Li Yuan took a sip from the bowl and said, "This is not good wine. I can't taste the wine."

The eunuch suddenly knelt on the ground, sobbing, "Your Majesty, this is the best wine."

Li Yuan snorted coldly: "Don't lie to me. I have drunk all the fine wines in the world. How could I not know what good wine is?"

After saying this, the old man put down the wine bowl, wrapped in a blanket and continued to lie on his side.

Li Chengqian sat beside his grandfather, watching his grandfather's breathing rise and fall, again and again, steady yet heavy.

Grandpa would blow air occasionally, and his beard would flutter.

At night, Dongyang came to the Wude Hall. She took her grandfather's pulse for a long time, looked into his mouth, observed his complexion, and then quickly walked out of the hall.

"How is Grandpa's health?"

Dongyang whispered, "Sister, I'm not sure either. Grandpa is too old. It all depends on him."

Li Chengqian looked at the starry sky and said, "Then let Grandpa spend the last part of his life well."

Dongyang quietly wiped away his tears and said, "Sister knows."

The next day, Li Shimin and Guanyinbi came to the palace together, and went to the Wude Hall with a group of children to accompany the old man.

The court was still very busy. The court had to build the four Anxi towns, the Anxi Protectorate, and the grain transport system. The emperor's money was transported out of the palace in carts and sent to various places.

After the money arrives at various places, it will be handed over to the villagers who are building the canal.

Yu Zhining stood in front of the city and said to Ying Gong, "Your Majesty, I never wanted those noble families to come back. Anyone can be rich, but only the noble families and officials cannot be rich."

Li Ji looked at the escorting troops going away and said, "I have been feeling uneasy lately."

The older Mr. Ying gets, the more he trusts his intuition, and often this intuition is right in the end.

In the seventh year of Qianqing, in April, just three days after Qingming Festival, many people gathered in Wude Hall.

Li Chengqian held up the wine bowl and said, "Grandpa, have a couple more sips of wine."

After drinking two bowls in a row, Li Yuan lay back on the chair with a smile on his face and said, "This tastes a bit like alcohol. I feel like I'm back to my youth, Erlang."

Li Shimin stepped forward with red eyes and said, "Father."

Li Yuan stretched out his trembling hand, placed it on his son's shoulder, and said, "I want to sing one more song."

Li Shimin said: "Father, sing as much as you can."

People... everyone wants to live for 500 years. In the Wude Hall, my grandfather sang the song he had been singing all these years with a slightly hoarse voice.

At this moment, the old man was radiant and sang loudly, and the children in the Wude Hall listened quietly.

After the last song was sung, grandpa finally lay down again. He seemed to be tired, with his eyes closed and still breathing.

The eunuchs and maids in the palace were walking around busily.

Tonight, Li Shimin asked the children and Guanyin maid to go to rest.

Only the father, son, grandfather and grandson were left in the Wude Hall.

Li Shimin asked, "Where is Li Chunfeng?"

Li Chengqian said, "Master Li is going to prepare for his funeral as a son and subject."

Li Shimin said: "Emperors in the world are all seeking immortality. Some people say that whenever rituals and laws are lost, those who claim to have the secret of immortality will appear in the world for no reason. Taoist Li said that whenever these people appear, many people will die in the world, but there has never been an emperor who has achieved immortality."

"Father, my grandfather has experienced hardships and also been very proud. Since the Northern Zhou Dynasty, he has lived through Emperor Wen of Sui, Emperor Yang of Sui, and now. His life has always been brilliant. He has never encountered a low point in his life. He has always lived with pride."

"I have heard that human life is short, but who dares to say that life is meaningless? Life is long and cannot be measured."

(End of this chapter)