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

Chapter 286: Xuanzang is returning to Chang'an (Part )
In the cold winter, the north wind is howling.

The remaining snow on the land of Liaodong was blown everywhere by the strong wind.

In the Shencheng City Lord's Mansion, flags were waving, guards were standing solemnly, and the security inside and outside was very strict.

In the back hall, Li Shimin and Zhangsun Wuji were sitting in the inner room, and Zhang Ananda was roasting a goat in front of them.

Changsun Wuji, wrapped in a blanket and drinking hot soup, said, "Su Xu reported back that if the vast Liaoze Lake west of the Liao River were filled and utilized, it would not only increase the area of ​​fertile farmland by hundreds of thousands of mu, but would also make it easier to transport food, fodder, and military equipment."

"Hundreds of thousands of acres of fertile farmland... cough cough!" Li Shimin said, coughing twice before continuing, "Hundreds of thousands of acres of fertile farmland, even if it grows well for a year, the taxes it earns will be enough to support the army for a year's conquest."

"Your Majesty, that's not how it works." Changsun Wuji, who had just recovered from his illness, looked at Li Shimin and said, "It would take several years to fill the entire Liaoze Lake, and during that time, the court would have to provide financial support to Liaodong. Even if it were filled, it would take several years to restore the land to its optimal state for farming, not to mention..."

"Alright, alright!" Li Shimin waved his hand, looked up at Zhangsun Wuji with amusement, and said, "It seems to me that you and Su Xu have the Crown Prince's intentions in both your words and deeds."

Zhang Sun Wuji smiled, looked at Li Shimin and said, "If that's the case, then I don't have to worry. It means that the Crown Prince is well aware of the advantages and disadvantages of the world. This way, I don't have to worry about the future."

Li Shimin gave Changsun Wuji a cold look.

Although Li Chengqian is the crown prince, he is only 25 years old. How can he be compared with Zhangsun Wuji, who has been the prime minister for many years?

Changsun Wuji withdrew his smile and said, "However, Your Majesty, the cultivation of fertile land is inevitable, but it is best to cultivate a certain amount each year and then devote the remaining energy to production. This way, we can ensure sufficient output with continuous investment, and avoid investing too much at once, which would make it difficult to keep up with the output."

Li Shimin nodded and said, "Let Su Xu do it. He is familiar with these matters."

After a brief pause, Li Shimin asked, "What is the current situation in the army?"

"Three soldiers died of illness yesterday." Changsun Wuji's expression darkened, and he spoke in a low voice, "When we arrived in Liaodong at the beginning of last year, everyone was fine. But after a year of fighting, now it's winter, and soldiers are dying of illness every day. Countless more have fallen ill. If it weren't for the imperial physician's diagnosis, I would have seriously suspected the plague."

"Ahem!" Li Shimin coughed twice, then looked at Zhangsun Wuji and said with a smile, "At least you're well now, which proves it's not the plague. Although I'm also ill now, my symptoms are very mild. On the contrary, it's Cen Wenben and Li Ji..."

"It's not a big problem." Changsun Wuji quickly interjected, then said, "Su Xu has organized the people to go to the mountains to find ginseng and other Qi-boosting substances. I think recovery shouldn't be a problem."

Li Shimin nodded, looked at the roasted lamb in front of him, and said, "Let's mobilize the soldiers to go into the mountains. The New Year is coming soon. Let the soldiers go out to hunt freely, replenish their energy, and have a good New Year."

"Yes!" Changsun Wuji lowered his head.

At this moment, a burst of hurried footsteps came from outside the hall, and then a Qianniu Guard in red clothes and golden armor entered the hall under the guidance of a eunuch.

The moment he saw this man, the emperor was immediately surprised: "Huai Dao, why are you here?"

The person who came was Qin Huaidao, the deputy commander of the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace.

Qin Huaidao, the eldest son of Qin Qiong.

"Your Majesty, I have an urgent report from Chang'an, six hundred miles away." Qin Huaidao bowed, then took the small box he was carrying from his back and handed it to Zhang Ananda.

Zhang Ananda took it, then turned around and put the box on the table.

When I opened the box, it was filled with memorials.

There were at least dozens of memorials inside.

Zhang Ananda looked at Qin Huaidao in surprise, and then couldn't help but look at the emperor.

The memorials in front of me are more than twice as many as usual.

Li Shimin looked at Qin Huaidao deeply and saw that he looked calm. He already had an idea in his mind. He waved his hand and Zhang Ananda took out the top book and placed it in front of Li Shimin.

Li Shimin opened the memorial and took a closer look. "At the end of November, Li Yu, a resident of Dayefang, reported to the Minister of Works that Fang Xuanling, the governor of Chang'an, the Minister of the Left, and the Duke of Liang, were plotting treason..."

In an instant, the emperor's eyes became sharp.

He couldn't help but subconsciously look up at Changsun Wuji, but the moment he looked up, his expression softened.

Nodding to Changsun Wuji, Li Shimin looked at the memorial in his hand again.

Changsun Wuji was a little surprised, but didn't think much about it.

After a while, Li Shimin finished reading the memorial and his expression finally calmed down.

Raising his head, the emperor looked at Qin Huaidao and said, "Okay, you can go down."

"Yes!" Qin Huaidao bowed, then turned and left.

"I will ask Liu Li to come over." Li Shimin made arrangements again, and Zhang Ananda immediately bowed and left.

Li Shimin sighed at this time and said, "In spring, summer and autumn, officials are busy, but now it's winter and there are so many messes."

"Your Majesty, what happened?" Changsun Wuji couldn't help but look at Li Shimin with some worry.

Li Shimin waved his hand slightly and said, "Wuji, let me ask you, if you were in Chang'an now and someone falsely accused you of treason, what would you do?"

"Your Majesty?" Changsun Wuji was slightly taken aback, then said angrily, "Your Majesty will pick up the knife and chop that man to death!"

Li Shimin couldn't help laughing, then waved his hand and said, "It's none of your business. Someone in Chang'an City has accused the Duke of Liang of treason."

"Fang Xuanling, is that possible?" Zhang Sun Wuji was completely stunned. He then quickly asked, "What's the situation now? How is the Crown Prince handling it? Is Chang'an in chaos now?"

Li Shimin shook his head and said calmly, "When the report was made, Chang'an was snowing heavily for three days, so the Crown Prince didn't immediately send the matter to Liaodong. Later, he took advantage of these three days to resolve the matter... Wuji, guess how he resolved it?"

"I don't know." Changsun Wuji didn't react for a moment.

"The prince let that man stay with Fang Xuanling for three days, eating, drinking, defecating, urinating, sleeping, and even handling official business without any reservations. Three days later, just when Cheng Qian was about to send the memorial to Liaodong, that man changed his mind." Li Shimin said, and couldn't help but look down at the contents of the memorial.

Although there were other reasons, the fact that Li Yu finally withdrew his complaint within three days was probably due to Fang Xuanling's openness and selflessness.

"Your Majesty!" Zhangsun Wuji's brows were still furrowed as he whispered, "Accusing someone is one thing, treason is another. Even if you withdraw the accusation, treason will still be investigated."

Li Shimin smiled, then took out Fang Xuanling's memorial from the archives and handed it to Changsun Wuji, saying, "Take a look! This is Prime Minister Fang's self-defense. It describes the course of events and his own frankness... The memorials here are basically from officials related to the court, including one from the Hundred Cavalry Division."

As Li Shimin spoke, he took out the memorial from the Hundred Cavalry Division, took a look at it, and handed it to Changsun Wuji.

After Changsun Wuji took it, he read Fang Xuanling's memorial, then read the memorial from the Hundred Cavalry Division. He seemed to understand, but then he frowned and said, "Someone has falsely accused Fang Xuanling. I can see that some tricks were used, and all parties can see that there was fighting, but this is too frivolous, isn't it?"

He accused Fang Xuanling of treason without any evidence.

This kind of thing is like playing house.

"Someone is testing me, testing my confidence in Chang'an." Li Shimin sighed softly and shook his head. "This is just a small move on their part. If I, or if the Crown Prince, fails to respond properly, countless measures will immediately follow."

"They are trying to undermine Your Majesty's trust in Prime Minister Fang!" Changsun Wuji immediately understood.

The person who acted secretly also understood that such an impeachment would never be able to bring down Fang Xuanling, so they were just testing the emperor's level of trust in Fang Xuanling.

If the emperor did not trust Fang Xuanling so much, or even imposed the slightest restriction on Fang Xuanling's power in Chang'an City, countless means would be used immediately.

"And the Crown Prince." Li Shimin sighed softly and said, "If the Crown Prince doesn't protect Prime Minister Fang, there will be a rift between the Crown Prince and Prime Minister Fang."

Changsun Wuji raised his eyebrows and subconsciously wanted to say something, but finally closed his mouth.

"With this ability to calculate people's hearts, Wuji, who do you think is doing all this... in Chang'an today?" Li Shimin raised his head and stared straight at Changsun Wuji.

Zhang Sun Wuji's cheeks twitched slightly, and then he bowed and said, "The only ones who could have such thoughts are the prime ministers and ministers in the court. However, my uncle and Prime Minister Xiao are in poor health, Yang Shidao is a coward, Yu Zhining has an upright character, Liu Dewei has always stayed away from such things, and Tang Jian hates these things the most..."

"Wei Ting, our Imperial Censor." Li Shimin's face was full of sneers.

There are only a few people in Chang'an who have the ability to sow discord so precisely. Based on their abilities, motives, and personalities, we can easily guess who they are.

"He has now been demoted to a commoner." Zhang Sun Wuji sighed and nodded, "Yes, it's him. He wants to be reinstated."

"Is that all?" Li Shimin asked indifferently.

Changsun Wuji lowered his head and said softly, "Your Majesty, there is no evidence. According to Chang'an, the Prince of Jin is very honest in Chang'an and has never met Wei Ting. I think all these things are planned by Wei Ting alone."

"Hmph!" Li Shimin snorted coldly, and then fell silent.

Changsun Wuji didn't know what to say for a moment.

At this moment, Liu Li walked in from outside, bowed to the emperor and said, "Your Majesty!"

Li Shimin glanced at Liu Li and said, "Three things."

"Yes!" Liu Li immediately bowed, then quickly walked to the desk on the inside and picked up the pen to prepare to write.

"First things first." Li Shimin looked outside the hall, pondered for a moment, and then slowly spoke: "Promote General of the Left Thousand Oxen Guard, Zhang Xuan, to the rank of Lieutenant General of the Left Thousand Oxen Guard. All matters will be subject to the orders of the Crown Prince."

Liu Li wrote quickly on the paper.

Changsun Wuji was sitting on one side. He knew clearly that the emperor did this to let Zhang Xuan continue to investigate the things behind Chang'an.

The prince said that he would not pursue Li Yu, but it was because Li Yu was just a chess piece that could be discarded at will. He himself did not have much value, so he let him go, but those who manipulated Li Yu must be investigated.

In other words, once evidence is found, not only will Wei Ting be punished, but even Li Zhi will be in trouble.

"The second thing!" Li Shimin glanced at Zhangsun Wuji, then continued, "I have been away from Chang'an for the past two New Years, neglecting the ancestors of heaven and earth. Therefore, this year, the crown prince will offer sacrifices to the Xianling Mausoleum on my behalf. At the same time, on the second day of the first lunar month, sacrifices will be offered to the heavens and the earth in the north and south..."

"Your Majesty!" Changsun Wuji couldn't help but speak.

Li Shimin waved his hand and said, "Ahem... That's as it should be. I have to have the Crown Prince tell my father that I have taken Liaodong back. Next year, I will be able to bring King Go Zang of Goryeo back to offer sacrifices to my father."

"Yes!" Changsun Wuji bowed helplessly. The emperor had already carried Emperor Gaozu out. What could he say?

"The third thing." Li Shimin glanced at Zhangsun Wuji, then said, "Issue an imperial decree to dismiss Dou Dan from his position as Minister of the Imperial Clan and appoint him as Palace Attendant. Li Baiyao, Junior Minister of the Imperial Clan and Right Secretary of the Crown Prince, will be appointed Minister of the Imperial Clan and Chief Clerk of the Prince of Jin."

Liu Li wrote quickly, and only after he finished did he look at the emperor in surprise.

What is the emperor doing?
Everyone in the court knew that Li Baiyao was the prince's confidant. The prince managed the royal family, and many of his tasks were carried out through Li Baiyao.

Now, he is the Minister of the Imperial Clan, and the Inspector of the Chief Clerk of Prince Jin. Where in the world is there a Minister of the Imperial Clan serving as the Chief Clerk of a prince?

Isn't it obvious that Li Baiyao is being used to replace the Crown Prince to look after Prince Jin?
"Prince Jin has difficulty studying, so I will send someone to teach him." The emperor seemed to notice Liu Li's gaze, turned around and looked at him calmly.

"Yes!" Liu Li immediately lowered his head.

……

Watching Liu Li leave, Li Shimin took a deep breath and looked emotional.

"Your Majesty!" Zhangsun Wuji was about to persuade him, but Li Shimin simply waved his hand and said, "Nothing!"

"Yes!" Changsun Wuji immediately lowered his head.

At this moment, Zhang Ananda brought a bowl of medicine and placed it in front of the emperor.

The emperor has caught a cold these past two days, but the symptoms are mild.

After finishing the medicine, Li Shimin continued to read the memorial in his hand. Snow disaster, canal repair...

"Eh!" Li Shimin suddenly sat up, slapped his forehead and said, "How could I have forgotten this?"

"Your Majesty, what's the matter?" Changsun Wuji looked at the emperor with some curiosity.

"Xuanzang is going back to Chang'an."

(End of this chapter)