Li Chengqian of the Tang Dynasty: Please say long live His Majesty

Chapter 171 Li Shimin: The Power of the Eastern Palace is Too Weak (Part )
Under the cover of night, at the foot of Mount Hua.

In the backyard of the post station, Quan Wanji put down the secret letter in his hand, looked at Zhang Yi across from him, and said, "I am sorry to trouble you this time. If it weren't for the sudden memorial from the Crown Prince and Ma Zhou, I wouldn't have to leave the capital so suddenly, and I wouldn't have had time to deal with so many things. You are the one who has to follow me."

After the emperor issued the decree, Quan Wanji did not dare to delay at all and immediately packed up and left Chang'an.

Originally, many things should have been handled after he left Chang'an and explained them to others at Weicheng Posthouse before returning to Qizhou.

But the sudden report from Li Chengqian and Ma Zhou forced Quan Wanji to stay away, and now he has even arrived at the foot of Mount Hua.

And Zhang Yi was forced to catch up.

"It's okay. Huashan is actually a good place too." Zhang Xi waved his hand slightly and said, "If we were in Chang'an, with the whole country at our feet, we wouldn't know when the Hundred Cavalry Division would see us. It's actually safer here."

"Yes!" Quan Wanji nodded. If they were in Chang'an, the people who came to see him would not be Zhang Yi, but people from the major old clans in Longyou.

But now in Huashan, Zhang Yi can come forward in person, which makes things much easier.

"Father said His Majesty will continue to pay close attention to this matter. Therefore, I'll ask the Chief Secretary to pay close attention to the affairs of Qizhou and appease the King of Qi. We'll try to keep this year as peaceful as possible, and at the same time, clear all the roads below." After a brief pause, Zhang Yi said, "I'll trouble you all, Chief Secretary."

"Please tell the Duke that I will do my best." Quan Wanji bowed seriously, then asked carefully, "Is there any problem with the Dou family?"

Although Quan Wanji is backed by an old Longyou clan, he is actually very close to Zhang Liang.

This time, it was Zhang Liang who was behind the scenes planning this matter, not the old clans in Longyou as Chai Lingwu thought.

"It's okay. The Dou family basically doesn't care about anything." Zhang Xi shook his head and said, "The Dou family understands your majesty's thoughts best, so they won't do anything."

"That's good." Quan Wanji felt relieved.

"Just do everything as instructed." Zhang Yi stood up and said, "Although the Crown Prince and His Majesty have shown some unexpected concern, that's all. As long as we are careful, nothing will happen."

"Yes!" Quan Wanji stood up.

"As for the Chai family, don't let them get involved in anything." Zhang Yi walked outside and said, "The King of Wei is incompetent. He might do something wrong and implicate us."

"Here!" Quan Wanji stopped at the door.

Zhang Xi waved his hand, then walked out of the room and headed towards the back door of the post station.

A dozen knights waited silently until Zhang Yi left the house, and then escorted him back to Chang'an City.

Half an hour later, Quan Wanji came out alone, then mounted his horse and headed towards Tongguan.

The moon hangs high in the sky and the jungle is quiet.

Two figures walked out from the edge of the jungle in the distance, and then they chased after Zhang Xi and Quan Wanji, one on the left and one on the right.

……

The night is deep and the palace is silent.

In Ganlu Palace, Li Shimin, wearing a green robe and a black unbleached hat, was sitting casually on the imperial couch, reading the secret report in his hand.

Li Wu, wearing a black robe and with an ordinary appearance, stood on one side.

After a moment, the emperor put down the secret report and looked at Li Wu and said, "So, Zhang Liang is behind Quan Wanji?"

"After His Majesty issued the decree today, Quan Wanji packed up his things and left the city in panic, and then went straight to Tongguan. However, when he arrived at Tongguan, the city gate was closed, so he had to stay in Tongguan. However, after sunset, he quietly returned to the small town at the foot of Mount Hua and secretly met with Zhang Yi, the son of the Duke of Yun and the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Revenue." Li Wu bowed slightly.

"Secret meeting." Li Shimin's eyes narrowed slightly, and he said softly, "Do you know what they talked about?"

"I don't know. They are very cautious and we can't get close." Li Wu shook his head slightly and said with some embarrassment: "Your Majesty, some of their methods are very similar to ours. It is difficult to get close without alerting them."

"Zhang Liang!" Li Shimin sighed softly and said, "I almost forgot that he also contributed to the establishment of the Hundred Cavalry Division."

Li Wu bowed slightly. Before Xuanwu Gate, Zhang Liang, the Duke of Yun, was the person in charge of helping the emperor recruit heroes in Shandong.

Of course, they are called heroes, but in fact they are just killers and assassins.

After the Xuanwu Gate Incident, Zhang Liang was appointed General of the Right Guard and Governor of Huaizhou. He was then transferred to the position of Chief Censor and then Minister of the Ministry of Rites. He served as Governor of Binzhou, Xiazhou and Fuzhou. In the seventh year of Zhenguan, he was appointed Chief Clerk of the Grand Governor of Xiangzhou. In the fourteenth year of Zhenguan, he entered the court and served as Minister of Works and Right Guard of the Crown Prince.

When he was in office in the local area, he often secretly sent his men to find out the good and evil deeds of the officials under his jurisdiction, suppress the powerful and provide relief to the poor and weak.

The emperor also praised it quite a bit.

If this kind of thing happened to an official, the emperor would have been suspicious of other people's intentions. But when it happened to Zhang Liang, the emperor didn't care, because Zhang Liang was one of the founders of the Hundred Cavalry Division, and the things he did and the intelligence information he finally obtained would also be passed on to the Hundred Cavalry Division.

It means that what Zhang Liang did in the local area was no different from what the emperor himself did.

However, Li Shimin discovered for the first time that Zhang Liang had his own ulterior motives behind his back.

No, or to be more precise, he knew that Zhang Liang had some things going on in private, but he never knew that these things involved such a wide range of people.

……

"Your Majesty." Li Wu bowed slightly, then said, "Since the Xuanwu Gate Incident, the Duke of Yun has been raising the orphans of his fellow soldiers who died in battle. Roughly estimated, there are two to three hundred of them, and they require a large annual expenditure. Therefore, the Duke of Yun manages several caravans, some heading to the Turks and Xueyantuo, some to the Western Regions, some in Yangzhou, and some even connected to Goguryeo."

"Xueyantuo, Goguryeo?"

Li Shimin's brows knitted tightly together. He looked at Li Wu and asked, "How is it that Zhang Liang is also related to the King of Wei?"

"No, according to my investigation, there is no such thing." Li Wu bowed and said, "The Duke of Yun is the Prince's Right Guard Commander. He rarely even visits the Prince, and he has even less contact with the King of Wei."

"There was no previous contact." Li Shimin shook his head, looking outside the hall, and said softly, "He has connections with the Xueyantuo and Goguryeo. He might have other intentions. Let's investigate whether there are any problems with the Ministry of Works in Goguryeo's preparations for war this time. Dig deeper."

"Yes!" Zhang Ananda stood out from the shadows, bowed, and quietly turned and left.

Li Shimin's expression became solemn.

There has always been a group of people in the court who opposed his eastern expedition to Goguryeo.

Of course, people like Wei Zheng were against him personally leading the Eastern Expedition, but it's hard to say for others. Zhang Liang never formally opposed his Eastern Expedition, but that would have been even more terrifying.

Yang Xuangan was the Minister of Rites of Yang Guang, while Zhang Liang was the Minister of Works of Li Shimin.

It is clear who is causing more harm.

If Zhang Liang attacked Li Shimin from behind during his eastern expedition, Li Shimin would become the next Yang Guang.

Especially since the previous events of Xueyantuo and Qi family were related to Li Tai, this made Li Shimin even more vigilant.

Especially the Qi family, the affairs between the Qi family and Li Tai, and Chai Lingwu, Li Wu had found out very early on.

But he didn't expect that Zhang Liang was involved in this matter.

This makes many things clear.

Why did a assassin commit suicide in front of Qi Zhixuan to warn him not to talk nonsense?

Why did Qi Yu, the governor of Guangzhou, choose to commit suicide? It was all because of Zhang Liang.

Although the adult males of the Qi family were killed, some women and children survived.

Even before Qi Yu committed suicide, he had a son who escaped with several young grandchildren.

Who will protect these people?

Chai Lingwu and Zhang Liang.

……

"Zhang Liang and Chai Lingwu, both of them, and everything behind them, must be thoroughly investigated." The emperor's eyes grew cold.

"Yes!" Li Wu bowed seriously.

No one knew what Li Tai was like better than Li Shimin, but Li Shimin had to admit that he had underestimated Chai Lingwu.

"What else?"

"It's the King of Wei." Li Wu bowed, then said seriously, "The King of Wei has no relationship with Quan Wanji, but when Quan Wanji went to Huashan, someone delivered a secret letter to Wei Wenzhen, the new military commander of the Prince of Qi's palace. I did some research and found that it was the King of Wei's men."

"You are right, Qingque and Zhang Liang are indeed unrelated." Li Shimin sneered lightly, but Chai Lingwu had intentionally or unintentionally linked Zhang Liang and Li Tai together. Li Shimin had already seen a possibility that might happen in the future.

Li Shimin looked up with an indifferent expression and said, "Tell the Taishan Prefecture's Zhechou Duwei Yin Lingming to keep an eye on Qizhou's every move."

"Yes!" Li Wu looked solemn.

Although Prince Li You of Qi was the governor of Qizhou and the governor of Qizhou, Quan Wanji was the chief secretary of Prince Qi, and Yin Hongzhi was the chief secretary of Qizhou, there was still a third force in Qizhou, and it was a force that the emperor could absolutely control, that was the several Zhechoufu in Qizhou.

No matter how chaotic they are in Qizhou, once the Zhechoufu soldiers arrive, they can all be completely wiped out.

"Are there many people in the Hundred Cavalry Division who are close to Zhang Liang?" The emperor turned sideways and looked at Li Wu.

Li Wu immediately cupped his hands and said nervously, "Your Majesty, everyone in the Hundred Cavalry Division is absolutely loyal to Your Majesty. Even the majority of the adopted sons of the Duke of Yun are loyal to Your Majesty. Otherwise, this investigation wouldn't have been so thorough."

"It's none of your business." Li Shimin waved his hand and said, "Zhang Liang may not dare to betray me now, but in the future, it's hard to say. Who knows when he will suddenly make a move and do something like that? By then, the Hundred Cavalry Division and the gates of Chang'an will be completely open to him."

"Yes!" Li Wu suddenly became solemn and said with a folded hand, "After I return, I will immediately clean up the mess and transfer all personnel related to the Duke of Yun out of the Hundred Cavalry Division..."

"No, no, no!" Li Shimin waved his hand again and said calmly, "That would alarm him too much. Go and recruit more people. Expand the Hundred Cavalry Division to the Thousand Cavalry Division. Distribute the personnel and transfer some of them out. Replace the personnel at the city gates with soldiers. Transfer the replaced ones to the Left and Right Guards to prepare for the expedition to Liaodong."

Li Shimin was certain that whether it was the Hundred Cavalry Division or various key locations, the vast majority of people were loyal to him, and only a few would betray him at critical moments.

However, even for these people, no one knows what their choice will be until the last moment.

The key point is that these people are very likely to be deceived by Zhang Liang.

"Zhang Liang, maybe it's him. He doesn't know what he will do in the future." Li Shimin sighed, closed his eyes and shook his head slightly.

What Zhang Liang is doing now can be considered as mistakes at most, but his mistakes are already very serious. If he takes one more step forward, he will be doomed.

But Li Shimin had to be on guard.

"It's been some time since Dai Zhide, the Crown Prince's Right Guard, was transferred to the position of Chief Justice of the Dali Temple." Li Shimin tapped the table gently and said, "Issue an imperial decree to transfer Xue Wanbei, the Imperial Palace Doctor and Imperial Charioteer, to the position of Crown Prince's Right Guard."

"Yes!" Zhang Ananda had returned without him noticing when, and bowed solemnly.

Xue Wanbei is the fifth brother of Xue Wanshu, Xue Wanjun and Xue Wanche.

Like his brother, he is brave and strong.

Xue Wanbei was appointed Lang Jiang of the Crown Prince's Right Guard, and Zhang Liang was the Crown Prince's Right Guard Commander.

……

"We need to keep a close eye on Qizhou." Li Shimin paused for a moment, then said, "If Zhang Liang has no contact with the King of Wei, we can ignore him. But if Zhang Liang and the King of Wei do have any contact..."

"I know what to do!" Li Wu said, cupping his hands. "Many of the adopted sons under the Duke of Yun are loyal only to Your Majesty."

Zhang Liang's tentacles can infiltrate the emperor through his old subordinates, but the emperor can also infiltrate Zhang Liang's side through his adopted son.

"That's all." Li Shimin raised his head, looked outside the hall, and said softly, "I hope they won't use the King of Qi to do anything... King of Qi, King of Qi, Crown Prince?"

Li Shimin suddenly thought of something, and he slowly stood up and said, "Okay, that's all for today. I need to go to Concubine Yin.

Zhang Liang, Chai Lingwu, and the Prince of Qi, all need to be closely monitored, and I need to find out everything about what's behind them."

"Here!"

(End of this chapter)