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

Chapter 281: I don’t believe that Prime Minister Fang has the intention of rebellion (Part )

In the Secretariat, all sounds were quiet.

All the officials returned to their official residences and stood at the windows, watching the movements outside without blinking.

Gao Shilian, Yang Shidao, Xiao Yu, Yu Zhining, Liu Dewei, and Sun Fujia have all arrived at the Secretariat one after another.

Li Chengqian was the last to arrive.

The snow had become much lighter. Although a long path had been cleared on the road, the snow was already very thick under the eaves on both sides.

When Li Chengqian entered the Secretariat, he immediately felt a heavy sense of oppression.

The wind picked up.

Li Chengqian could sense the anxiety of the officials of the Secretariat in the official residences on both sides.

Someone reported to the Sikong, Chang'an governor, Censor Shangshu Zuo Pushe, and Jinzi Guanglu Doctor Fang Xuanling that he was plotting a rebellion.

Who is behind this?

Which Shangshu or Prime Minister is it?

A brutal political struggle between the government and the opposition is about to unfold.

In this kind of situation, if there is even a slight touch, the whole thing will be shattered into pieces.

……

Li Chengqian walked quickly into Fang Xuanling's duty room, followed by the Chief Censor, the Crown Prince's Secretary Ma Zhou and the Deputy General of the Left Guard of Chang'an Yuchi Jingde.

The ministers all had solemn expressions on their faces. When they saw Li Chengqian enter, they all bowed and said, "Your Highness, we pay our respects to you."

Li Chengqian waved his hand slightly, then looked towards the inner room. Fang Xuanling was calmly handling official documents, and the black-robed informant was looking at Fang Xuanling with a serious look.

Hearing the voices of the ministers, the black-robed accuser finally came to his senses. He turned and looked at Li Chengqian. After hesitating for a moment, he bowed and said, "I, Li Yu, pay my respects to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

"Li Yu?" Li Chengqian raised his eyebrows and asked, "A descendant of the Longxi Li family?"

"Yes!" Li Yu bowed, his face a little flustered, but he soon calmed down.

"You are accusing Prime Minister Fang of treason. Do you have any evidence?" Li Chengqian looked up at Sun Fujia, the Minister of the Dali Temple. Sun Fujia immediately handed him the official document placed aside.

"Yes!" As soon as Li Yu opened his mouth, the ministers were shocked, and then they became completely depressed.

"What evidence?" Li Chengqian opened the document and stared at Li Yu.

"I cannot speak." Li Yu bowed solemnly and said, "I would never speak lightly unless I see Your Majesty."

"You've formed a clique for personal gain, abused your power, trusted private individuals, and disregarded the court's policies..." Li Chengqian closed the document and looked at Li Yu. "Your words are at most impeachment. Without evidence, they interfere with the emperor's hearing and affect military and political affairs... Although you spoke of important matters, I cannot bring you before the emperor like this."

"Your Highness, please report this to His Majesty, and then His Majesty will make the decision." Li Yu kowtowed again, gritting his teeth.

Li Chengqian looked out of the official residence and said, "I'm afraid the snow will continue to fall for a few days. After it stops, I will send someone to Liaodong to report to the emperor. But before that, I also need to make a judgment on this matter."

The ministers couldn't help but look at Li Chengqian.

This matter is very tricky at the moment. Fang Xuanling is being accused of treason, but the evidence is being refused.

If we say that we will not deal with it, after all, someone is accusing the prime minister of treason, which is not a trivial matter. Even Li Chengqian cannot suppress it without authorization, even though he knows that this matter is extremely absurd.

After all, there is a chance that if Li Yu can really produce some solid evidence involving Fang Xuanling, then Li Chengqian will be guilty of sheltering him.

Fortunately, it was snowing heavily, which gave Li Chengqian a few days to deal with this matter.

Li Yu glanced outside. He knew how heavy the snow was today, so he could only nod and say, "Okay."

Li Chengqian smiled, then said, "From what you said, I see that you have also been to school. You can understand the documents in this room, right?"

"I don't quite understand." Li Yu glanced at the official document next to him. He knew every word on it, but he couldn't quite understand the content.

Li Chengqian looked up at Xiao Yu, who nodded slightly.

Li Chengqian then turned to look at Li Yu again and said, "You accused Fang Xiang of treason. If it's true, then Fang Xiang will be beheaded. But if it's false, according to Tang law, the person who falsely accuses someone will be punished. If you accuse someone of treason, at least three generations of your family will be implicated. You should think this through."

"Okay!" Li Yu suddenly laughed, and seemed very happy when talking about implicating the three clans.

"Very good." Li Chengqian breathed a sigh of relief, then said solemnly, "You have accused Prime Minister Fang of treason. I don't know what kind of irrefutable evidence you have that would make you believe your accusation is correct. It's snowing heavily now, and it will take several days for the snow to stop and the official roads to be cleared. I hope you can use this time to think carefully."

Li Yu looked at Li Chengqian with a confused expression.

"If after a few days you feel that you are wrong, then you can withdraw your complaint. I can consider it as a mistake and not punish you for it. I can even guarantee that no one will pursue or retaliate against you in the future." Li Chengqian looked at Fang Xuanling, who nodded slightly.

There is not much to argue about with a chess piece.

"But if you still insist, I will send the message to Liaodong. It will take at least a month for the message to arrive there and return. Be prepared." Li Chengqian said this calmly, and Li Yu's expression suddenly changed. Li Chengqian and the other ministers in the room were all surprised by this scene.

This person dared to accuse Fang Xuanling of treason. Is his mind so unstable?

"Okay, but I hope someone can protect me." Li Yu looked at Li Chengqian. He accused Fang Xuanling of treason, and who knew if he would be killed, so someone had to protect him. This was also something Li Chengqian had to do. If Li Yu really died accidentally, everything would be Li Chengqian's responsibility.

Li Chengqian smiled, then looked at Liu Dewei and Sun Fujia beside him, and finally looked at Gao Shilian. Seeing that no one spoke, he turned to look at Li Yu and said, "I will not be responsible for your safety, and no one else is allowed to be."

Li Yu couldn't help but be stunned.

"From today on, from now on, you will follow Fang Xiang every moment. Wherever he is, you are there. Whatever he eats, you eat."

After a brief pause, Li Chengqian looked at Fang Xuanling and said, "Prime Minister Fang, I will have someone go to your residence and have someone clear out a room and put up an extra bed. From now on, when I send a letter to Liaodong, and until the imperial edict arrives, have him stay with you, eating, drinking, and sleeping together...Prime Minister Fang, please continue your official duties as usual."

From now until Li Chengqian sends a fast horse to deliver the news to Liaodong, and then the Liaodong emperor's edict is sent back, it will take at least more than a month, and Li Yu will have to follow Fang Xuanling all the time.

Li Yu was stunned when he heard Li Chengqian's arrangement, but the other people in the official residence looked at Li Chengqian with some confusion.

Let Li Yu follow Fang Xuanling at all times, then with Fang Xuanling's ability, he can guarantee Li Yu's safety to the greatest extent.

Of course, this also gave Fang Xuanling a chance to persuade Li Yu to withdraw his complaint.

However, is this really an opportunity?
"There's no need to find another room. It's enough to let him set up a bed in my bedroom." Fang Xuanling looked at Li Chengqian calmly and nodded slightly. He had already understood what Li Chengqian meant.

"Also," Fang Xuanling looked at Li Yu again and said, "The Dali Temple should also arrange for another person to accompany me. Let's call Zhang Wenguan. I have no private matters that I cannot disclose to others."

"Okay, let's do it this way." Li Chengqian looked at Sun Fujia and said, "Sun Qing, let's arrange it this way."

"Yes!" Sun Fujia and all the ministers in the hall bowed.

"In that case, Li Yu, you stay here and follow Prime Minister Fang." After Li Chengqian finished speaking, he turned around and walked outside.

"Farewell, Your Highness!" Fang Xuanling bowed calmly.

Li Yu also bowed.

The other ministers looked at Fang Xuanling, nodded calmly, and then followed Li Chengqian.

……

In the Wude Hall, civil and military officials of the fourth rank and above stood on both sides with solemn expressions.

Many people couldn't help but look at Li Chengqian who was sitting on the couch.

Someone accused Fang Xuanling of treason.

This kind of thing spread throughout the entire imperial city almost instantly.

Fang Xuanling, the then Sikong, Censor-in-Chief of the Shangshu Zuo Pushe, Governor of Chang'an, Duke of Liang, hero of the Xuanwu Gate, and prime minister for many years, was reported for treason.

The uproar caused by this incident was greater than anyone had imagined.

Although Fang Xuanling was the emperor's man, he was born in Hebei and had always had good relations with the Hebei families.

Especially his wife was from the Lu family of Fanyang.

So over the years, no one knows how many people in the court were promoted by Fang Xuanling, including his confidants in the three provinces, six ministries, nine temples and five academies.

In particular, Fang Xuanling was not a lone minister like Wei Zheng, he had his own secrets.

All the officials in the court knew this.

A burst of hurried footsteps sounded outside the hall, and then a general in red and golden armor entered the hall. He bowed to Li Chengqian and said, "Your Highness, I am Zhang Xuan, the left thousand-cow guard general. I pay my respects to you."

"Hmm!" Li Chengqian raised his head and looked at Gao Shilian, Yang Shidao, Xiao Yu, Yu Zhining, Yuchi Jingde, Zheng Rentai, Tang Jian, Liu Dewei and others, and said, "My lords, Prime Minister Fang has served our father for twenty-seven years. He has been diligent and hardworking, planning strategies and serving the country diligently. I do not believe that he has the intention of rebellion."

"Yes!" The ministers in the hall couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

Fang Xuanling was accused of treason, which had a huge impact. If it was confirmed, I am afraid that half of the court would be empty immediately.

Now that Li Chengqian expressed his trust in Fang Xuanling, the ministers who had been feeling a little uneasy immediately felt much more at ease.

"So, go investigate." Li Chengqian looked at Zhang Xuan and said, "Mr. Zhang, you know Li Yu's identity. I see that what he said is well-organized and I can tell that he has learned a lot. So, investigate all his relatives, friends, teachers, neighbors, and everyone related to him."

"Yes!" Zhang Xuan immediately bowed.

Li Chengqian's mood calmed down a bit, and he said, "Although Li Yu is from the Longxi Li family, judging by his current status, he is just a commoner without an official position. Someone like him has absolutely no chance of accessing any secrets. Therefore, there must be someone behind him directing us to find this person."

"Here!"

(End of this chapter)