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

Chapter 343: My beloved, you are fifteen this year, right? (First update)
With a creaking sound, the emperor calmly walked out of the room. Wei Zheng's voice echoed from the room immediately: "Farewell, Your Majesty!"

The emperor nodded calmly, then looked at Li Chengqian and said, "Crown Prince, you stay with Duke Zheng. Xiang'er will come back to the palace with me."

Li Chengqian bowed calmly and said, "Yes!"

Li Chengqian lowered his head and looked at Li Xiang. He said gently, "Dalang, go back to the palace with the emperor and remember to be obedient."

"Yes!" Li Xiang nodded seriously.

Li Shimin looked at this scene, smiled with satisfaction, then took Li Xiang's hand and said, "Let's go, my dear grandson, let's go back to the palace with Grandpa!"

Li Xiang followed the emperor towards the outer courtyard. When they reached the backyard door, he couldn't help but look back at Li Chengqian.

Li Chengqian nodded encouragingly.

Only then did Li Xiang completely relax.

Only after the emperor completely disappeared from his sight did Li Chengqian sigh softly, then lifted the curtain again and entered the room.

Wei Zheng glanced at Wei Wei, then looked at Li Chengqian: "Over there, the Crown Prince..."

"Xiang'er is the eldest son and is sensible enough. It's okay." Li Chengqian sighed softly, then shook his head and said, "With the power of the emperor, Xiang'er will be obedient. There will be no problem."

"That's good." Wei Zheng nodded, then looked at Li Chengqian and asked, "Your Highness, are you aware that Duke Song and Duke Shen are retiring?"

Li Chengqian was slightly stunned, then nodded slowly: "I have heard that my uncle is going to retire, but it seems that the Duke of Song's retirement is related to Hebei."

"The Tang Dynasty controlled the world with Guanzhong, and the Tang Dynasty supported Guanzhong with the world." Wei Zheng looked at Li Chengqian, sighed softly, and said, "I can see through this matter, and Duke Song can see through it too, but he has always been a very upright person.

Normally, even if he knew that His Majesty was sacrificing the power of the Jiangnan faction to pave the way for the Guanzhong scholars, he would not easily back down, but now, he suddenly backed down.

Li Chengqian looked at Wei Zheng in confusion.

Wei Zheng shook his head and said, "Xiao Yu was able to do this because he had already found a foundation for the future power of the Jiangnan faction!"

"Gu!" Li Chengqian immediately understood.

"Your Majesty, you suddenly came here today to ask me if I gave Duke Song some advice." Wei Zheng smiled and nodded, "I said it was me."

Although the conversation between Wei Zheng and the emperor was obscure, the emperor came here to test whether it was Wei Zheng who gave Xiao Yu the idea.

There are many people in the court who can persuade Xiao Yu.

Wei Zheng was one of those rare individuals.

Li Chengqian shook his head slightly and said, "One step back will open up a new world, but one step forward will lead to a complete destruction.

Now that the emperor has taken action, his methods are relatively gentle. If it had been someone else, it would have been hard to say."

Wei Zheng nodded. This other person was none other than Zhangsun Wuji.

Changsun Wuji is the leader of the entire Guanzhong faction.

Of course, he was in charge of the Guanzhong faction on behalf of the emperor.

It was the emperor who allowed him to govern the Guanzhong faction.

"Prime Minister Cen passed away at such an unfortunate time." Li Chengqian couldn't help but sigh.

Cen Wenben's death was the key to opening Pandora's box, and everyone was just going with the flow in the series of events that followed.

Wei Zheng nodded and said, "Yes, the Hebei faction, the Yingchuan faction, everyone is trying their best to ensure that they don't make mistakes, but Liu Li..."

"The Prince of Jin has been transferred to Jingzhou this time." After a brief pause, Li Chengqian looked at Wei Zheng and asked, "I'm a little confused."

Wei Zheng smiled and said, "Your Highness is a wise man."

Li Chengqian suddenly understood.

He always felt that it was strange that the emperor transferred Li Zhi to Jingzhou!
It's not that it's wrong. As Li Chengqian's younger brother and the emperor's legitimate son, there is no problem for Li Zhi to be transferred from the governor of Bingzhou to the governor of Jingzhou.

Moreover, the emperor also appointed Li Xiang as the crown prince. In addition, the previous incidents of Liu Li and Yuwen Jie had repeatedly warned Li Zhi, which was enough for Li Zhi to get his share.

However, did Li Zhian get a share?

No.

Li Zhi will never be content.

As long as the emperor is alive.

As long as Li Zhi still has a chance to attack the throne, he will never give up.

Li Chengqian understood this principle, and he didn't believe that the emperor didn't understand it.

As for using Li Zhi to balance Li Chengqian, he admitted that the emperor did have this consideration, but after Li Zhi took action once in Hebei, did the emperor really not worry that he would take action a second time?

Last time, his target was Li Chengqian, so what about next time?

Shouldn't the emperor himself be the one who understands these things best?
During the Xuanwu Gate Incident, the emperor himself targeted Li Jiancheng, so-called in an attempt to protect himself.

But not long after he became the crown prince, he squeezed out Emperor Gaozu and ascended the throne himself.

Not to mention that during the time he was the crown prince, Emperor Gaozu himself was not much different from a puppet.

Therefore, the emperor had other considerations when arranging Li Zhi to Jingzhou.

If it is not targeting Li Chengqian, then it is targeting Li Zhi.

Poor Li Zhi.

Li Chengqian took a deep breath and looked at Wei Zheng. "Zhi Nu is a smart man. Although the situation in Jingzhou is not easy, he should be able to manage it as he wishes. Moreover, the agricultural reforms of the Sino-Agricultural Ministry will be extended to Jingzhou this year. I would like to send someone to take a look and see if there is anything I can do to help him."

"That's fine." Wei Zheng nodded with a smile.

Li Chengqian turned around and waved to Wei Wei, and Wei Wei held Li Shan in her arms.

Li Chengqian said, "Wu Lang is still young. Wait a few years, and then find a good place to make him a prince."

"Okay!" Wei Zheng nodded with satisfaction, and the corner of his eye lightly glanced at the curtain on the right.

There was an imperceptible tremor in the curtain.

……

The imperial carriage stopped at Chengtian Gate.

Zhangsun Wuji was the first to get off the carriage, and the emperor followed, holding Li Xiang in his arms. Standing on the ground, the emperor looked sideways at Zhangsun Wuji and said, "Wuji, how are the arrangements for Jingzhou going?"

"Everything is going as planned." Changsun Wuji bowed slightly.

"Let's also make some arrangements in Huainan and Jiangnan to prevent others from noticing anything." The emperor whispered.

"Yes!" Changsun Wuji bowed again.

"Go back and rest." The emperor held Li Xiang in his arms and walked towards Chengtian Gate, saying, "Dalang, Grandpa will take you out to play, okay?"

"Good!" Li Xiang's face was full of joy.

Changsun Wuji couldn't help but sigh as he watched the emperor holding Li Xiang and walking further and further away.

According to the emperor's plan, the work of recruiting horses began to be arranged in the northwest and Jingzhou with the help of post stations.

The prince was in charge of the northwest, while Zhangsun Wuji was in charge of the arrangements in Jingzhou.

Li Zhi, the newly appointed governor of Jingzhou, was completely unaware of this.

But this is only the first step. When the army that marched north to Mobei returns, a large number of government soldiers will return to the local area after rotation.

It is not strange or unusual for a government soldier to have horses, but if a government soldier has two or three horses, it would be troublesome.

It will have a huge impact on local noble families and powerful clans, and on local rule.

They must do something to respond.

And all of this will inevitably be resolved through conflict in the end.

Qiu Xinggong.

Qiu Xinggong, the governor of Luozhou.

Changsun Wuji sighed lightly: Zhinu, you have to be really careful.

……

The night is hazy and the lights are bright.

Only after the palace gates were locked did Su Shu give up completely. She turned to look at Li Chengqian and asked, "Father, are you really not going to let Xiang'er return to the Eastern Palace?"

Li Chengqian put down the Spring and Autumn Annals in his hand, looked at Su Shu with a wry smile and said, "What are you worried about? My father will probably bring Xiang'er with him every day when he goes to court. I can see Xiang'er every day too. If you have any problems, you can ask for Xiang'er's return."

Su Shu walked over to the couch beside Li Chengqian and sat down. She looked at him with a somewhat sad expression and said, "Xiang'er's return is only temporary. He will have to go back to the palace soon. Living with the emperor is like living with a tiger. Who knows when Xiang'er will say something wrong and anger father? Then..."

"Children speak without restraint. Your Majesty won't take it to heart." Li Chengqian turned sideways to look at Su Shu and said with a smile, "If Qingque had such an opportunity back then, he would have wished Xin'er was by your side day and night. Zhinu is childless, otherwise, he would have the same idea."

Su Shu rolled her eyes at Li Chengqian and said, "Those are just thoughts for you men. We women, including myself, Wan'er, and Princess Jin, are all trembling with fear."

"Okay, it's okay." Li Chengqian hugged Su Shu and said softly, "Father called him over, so he will naturally be more tolerant. Besides, Xiang'er is just a child who doesn't understand the world. Even if he said something wrong, how wrong could he be? That is..."

Li Chengqian paused briefly, then raised his head slightly and said, "Even if Xiang'er has angered Father, so what? At most, he will be dismissed as the Crown Prince. How could he even dethrone me from the position of Crown Prince... My beloved, things are different now than they were back then. I am still a docile son, but Zhinu may not be."

Su Shu raised her head and looked at Li Chengqian. She heard something different and asked.

"Okay, it's okay." Li Chengqian hugged Su Shu tightly, and then whispered a few words in her ear.

Su Shu looked at Li Chengqian in surprise, and then her expression completely relaxed.

……

Yiyue Palace.

Wang Youlan sat alone at the table, reading a picture book and eating red bean cake.

Familiar footsteps sounded outside the hall, and Wang Youlan looked up in surprise.

Seeing Li Chengqian walk in from outside the hall, she immediately put down her things and stood up, then bowed to Li Chengqian and said, "Greetings, Your Highness."

"My beloved concubine, what are you busy with?" Li Chengqian walked over, took Wang Youlan's hand, and held her in his arms as he sat down.

"Reading folk fantasy picture books." Wang Youlan handed the picture book on the table to Li Chengqian and said in surprise, "I'm just killing time. Your Highness, why are you here today? Shouldn't you be at the Crown Princess's place today?"

"Xiang'er was left in the harem by our father, so she's looking after Jue'er and Yu'er tonight. I just happened to come over to see you tonight." Li Chengqian glanced at the picture book, then put it down. He looked up at Wang Youlan and said softly, "My beloved, you are fifteen this year, right?"

"Yes!" Wang Youlan was slightly stunned, and then a blush rose from under her neck, then spread to her entire cheek and even behind her ears.

Li Chengqian let go of Wang Youlan and let her stand in front of him with her legs a little weak.

Looking at this woman who was usually bold but now very shy, Li Chengqian held her hand, then placed it in front of her and used her fingers to unbutton her clothes little by little.

As the skirts fell to the ground one by one, all that was left in front of Li Chengqian was a pink undergarment with the pattern of mandarin ducks embracing each other.

Li Chengqian placed his fingers on Wang Youlan's back and pulled her into his arms. He then asked in a low voice, "Did you tell your father what I asked you to tell him yesterday?"

"Did he say that?" Wang Youlan leaned close to Li Chengqian's ear and whispered softly, "Father said that although Zhang Changshi is a bit strict now, he should still be respected. As for conduct, when Yu Xiang was Yongzhou Changshi, the requirements were even stricter. So, although he still needs to be cautious now that Zhang Changshi is here, he doesn't need to be too cautious."

"Yes!" Li Chengqian nodded and said, "Your father is now the Sima of Yongzhou. The next step is to be transferred to a deputy position in the six ministries and nine temples, or to be transferred to a local governor. There won't be too many obstacles in between, but it means that many people will be jealous of him, and it is inevitable that some people will try to step on his shoulders to get to the top."

"Aye said that he would clear out everything that needed to be cleared out, and as for the rest, let's leave some loopholes." Wang Youlan raised her head, looked at Li Chengqian, and said, "Firstly, our Taiyuan Wang family is not that easy to mess with. Secondly, it can help His Highness see through some people's hearts."

Li Chengqian nodded gently and said with emotion: "My father-in-law is even more experienced than I thought."

"Yeah!" Wang Youlan giggled.

Li Chengqian looked at her fair neck and gently hooked his fingers on her back.

The tied bows suddenly opened.

At the same time, Li Chengqian hugged Wang Youlan and lay on the bed.

He gently turned sideways and looked at the four maids standing in the hall. He said calmly, "Blow out all the candles."

"Yes!" The four maids bowed at the same time, then turned around and blew out the candles.

Li Chengqian suddenly felt that Wang Youlan, who was originally a little nervous, suddenly relaxed.

Li Chengqian gently stretched out his hand and leaned close to her ear, whispering, "My dear, you look a year older, but you haven't grown much taller!"

"Your Highness~"

(End of this chapter)