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

Chapter 370 Before dealing with the Crown Prince, he needs to deal with his father first (Part )
The autumn light is clear and the Wei River is rippling.

The yellow-covered carriage slowly headed westward. At the end of the official road, the magnificent walls of Chang'an City were faintly visible.

"If anything happens to our father, my uncle can control it. Even if Prime Minister Yang doesn't support me, he will remain neutral." After a brief pause, Li Zhi looked at Ji Jiafu in the carriage and asked, "When will the Duke of Ying return to court?"

"The Liaodong troops were withdrawn in late autumn, having destroyed everything they could on the north bank of the Taedong River." Ji Jiafu thought for a moment and said, "At this time, the Duke of Ying has not yet returned to Liaozhou. If nothing unexpected happens, he will return to Chang'an by the end of the year."

"Not appropriate." Li Zhi shook his head and said, "He can't come back before the New Year. Find a way to have someone do something in Hebei to prevent the Duke of Ying from returning so soon."

"Yes!" Ji Jiafu bowed and agreed, then raised his head and said, "Your Highness, will this alarm the Duke of Ying? After all, he is also a veteran of the battlefield."

"Don't worry about him." Li Zhi chuckled and said, "Duke Ying is the smartest. He knows exactly what to do and what not to do. The Xuanwu Gate incident was the best proof of that."

Some people say that Li Ji supported the emperor at Xuanwu Gate.

Some people also say that when Li Ji was at Xuanwu Gate, he did nothing but closed the door and waited for everything to settle naturally.

In fact, both statements are correct and incorrect.

Before the Xuanwu Gate Incident, Li Ji was actually a general under the emperor, but he did not belong to the Qin Palace.

So at the Xuanwu Gate, Li Ji was not the core of the Qin Palace.

However, although he knew about the Xuanwu Gate Incident, he did not actually participate in the actual fighting at Xuanwu Gate because he was sent to Taiyuan by the emperor to guard against the Turks.

The Xuanwu Gate Incident, civil unrest in the Tang Dynasty.

This is the Turks' best chance.

The emperor's guess was correct. Sure enough, not long after the Xuanwu Gate Incident, Jie Li led his troops to the city of Chang'an.

Then came the Weishui Alliance.

Many people think that it was the emperor who forced Jie Li to retreat with his personal charm, but in fact this is not the case at all.

At the time of the Weishui Alliance, Li Ji had actually achieved a breakthrough in Yunzhong, and a larger encirclement was taking shape. If Jie Li had forcibly attacked the heavily fortified city of Chang'an, he would not have had to leave.

He had to stay under the city of Chang'an forever.

Li Ji did not participate in the Xuanwu Gate Incident, but he was a hero of the Xuanwu Gate who was relied upon by the emperor.

That's why.

People will make a choice, and the choice will make it impossible for you to see where the problem lies.

Therefore, as long as Li Ji knew that someone was deliberately making him stay in Hebei, even if he sneaked back to Chang'an, as long as Li Zhi had control of the situation, Li Ji would quietly return to Hebei again.

Of course, the prerequisite is that Li Ji cannot return to Chang'an openly before Li Zhi launches the attack, otherwise he will really be an obstacle.

……

"Yu Zhining must die." Li Zhi raised his head slightly and looked at Ji Jiafu.

"Your Highness!" Ji Jiafu looked at Li Zhi in surprise.

Li Zhi shook his head and said, "Although Prime Minister Yu is an upright person, he is too deeply bound to the Eastern Palace. He has been in the Eastern Palace for almost fifteen years, and he personally taught the Crown Prince.

Especially after the Crown Prince broke his leg, it was his painstaking persuasion that led to his current change of heart. He will not watch him be deposed. If the Crown Prince orders something, as long as it is not wrong, he will immediately carry it out."

"Yes!" Ji Jiafu bowed slightly. Yu Zhining has always had a good reputation among the people, but at this time, there is no choice but to send him to death.

Li Zhi looked up and said thoughtfully, "Prime Minister Chu is our man. The last prime minister left in the court is Prime Minister Fang."

Fang Xuanling eventually stood against Li Zhi.

as always.

Fang Xuanling chose Li Tai and Li Chengqian, but never chose Li Zhi.

"Prime Minister Fang." Ji Jiafu pondered for a moment, then he looked up at Li Zhi and said, "Your Highness, Prime Minister Fang is not easy to deal with!"

"Yeah!" Li Zhi nodded.

Fang Xuanling was the prime minister, and he served as prime minister for more than 20 years.

Last year, the emperor asked Fang Xuanling to return home and reflect on himself because of a trivial matter.

Although everyone knew that the emperor and Fang Xuanling were just putting on a show, it was only after Chu Suiliang submitted a memorial of advice that the emperor "admitted his mistake". Finally, he personally went to Fang Xuanling's house, took Fang Xuanling to the palace, and treated him well, and the matter was over.

What Li Zhi really cares about now is the content of Chu Suiliang's memorial.

Xuanling supported the emperor's achievements since the beginning of the Righteous Flag, risked his life to make decisions during the Wude period, and selected talented people to govern the country at the beginning of the Zhenguan period.

Among the ministers, Xuanling was the most diligent.

"During the years when my mother was alive, my father tried to get my uncle into the Secretariat, but my mother always stopped him. As a result, the Secretariat was already under the control of Prime Minister Fang, and he had a deep foundation over the years.

Although my uncle served as the Minister of Works and Minister of Civil Affairs, and was the most trusted by the Emperor, and had the power to make suggestions on personnel matters, he was mostly at the top. The lower levels, such as household rations, criminal law, and craftsmanship, were all in the hands of the Prime Minister.

Li Zhi sighed softly and said, "Even my father is very afraid of Prime Minister Fang."

"Yes!" Ji Jiafu nodded and said, "In Chang'an City, the Left and Right Qianniu Guards, the Left and Right Jinwu Guards, the Ministry of Justice, the Dali Temple, Yongzhou Prefecture, and the two counties of Chang'an Wannian, although each party has its own personnel and key positions are also different, but when it comes to the foundation, Fang Xiang still has the deepest foundation!"

The Sixteen Generals of the Guards, the Lieutenant General, the Minister of Punishment, the Junior Secretary of the Supreme Court, the Chief Clerk of Yongzhou Prefecture, the County Magistrate and the County Magistrate of Chang'an and Wannian counties, all of them have their own backers.

But at a lower level there are Langjiang Xiaowei, Langzhong Yuanwailang, Sicheng Sizheng, Liucao Canjun, and Xianwei Zhubu.

Undoubtedly, Fang Xuanling, who has been in charge of the Secretariat for many years, promoted the most people.

It's just that he doesn't have any ambitions and doesn't act recklessly, so he usually keeps a low profile.

However, if you really want to deal with Fang Xuanling, I'm afraid you will be discovered as soon as you approach his house.

Li Zhi didn't know that even when Li Chengqian was plotting against Fang Xuanling, he never attacked her directly, but instead targeted Lu Chengqing.

If Li Zhi wanted to deal with Fang Xuanling, he naturally had to keep an eye on him and figure him out.

With Fang Xuanling's ability, it is naturally not something that can be dealt with in a short time. But after a long time, Fang Xuanling will notice it. He only needs to let the Hundred Cavalry Division take action to capture Li Zhi's men, and Li Zhi will be in big trouble.

……

Seeing that Li Zhi remained silent for a long time, Ji Jiafu said carefully: "Your Highness, how about starting with the Prince Consort?"

"Fang Er?" Li Zhi thought for a moment, then shook his head slightly. "Fang Er's matter was already let go by my father back then. Even my brother didn't make a fuss about him. If we start with Fang Er now, I'm afraid the one who will be most unhappy is my father. After all, he is Gao Yang's consort... Hey, Gao Yang?"

"Your Highness, the princess has been very close to the Crown Princess for the past two years." Ji Jiafu looked at Li Zhi with some surprise. Anyone with a discerning eye could see that the emperor's health was declining, the Crown Prince's position was secure, and the Crown Princess was getting closer and closer to the position of Empress. It would be strange if the princesses didn't actively move closer to her.

Moreover, the Crown Princess behaved in a manner similar to that of Empress Wende. She took care of the princesses, princesses, and even the children of each family, and was respected by the people.

It's too difficult to make a move on this.

Li Zhi waved his hand and said, "I'm not talking about the Crown Princess, I'm talking about Gao Yang. You don't understand her, and there are even some things you don't know. Back when she was in Luoyang, she had frequent interactions with some Buddhist monks, and there were some unclear things going on.

The situation has improved somewhat in the past two years due to the birth of two sons, but this year there seem to be some rumors again."

"I understand." Ji Jiafu nodded quickly. There were some words he couldn't listen to.

"Go check it out, check it out thoroughly." Li Zhi leaned back and said softly, "I have a feeling that Gao Yang's matter will be of great help."

"Yes!" Ji Jiafu bowed immediately.

"Also, be careful." Li Zhi raised his head and continued, "There are too many forces in Chang'an City, and too many people are eyeing me. Our actions now are crucial. We must not be discovered by them... No!"

Li Zhi suddenly sat up, looked at Ji Jiafu and said, "Have someone watch outside the palace. Find a time to clear out the people outside the palace... Inform the Jinwu Guards and tell them that someone is planning to assassinate me. Clear them out first, otherwise something bad will happen at a critical moment."

"Yes!"

"Also, get a stand-in, it'll be useful at critical moments."

"Yes!"

……

East of Chang'an City, outside Chunming Gate.

Hundreds of Jinwu Guards stood on both sides of the city gate, holding long spears and standing solemnly.

Du He and Fang Yiai, both wearing light purple official robes, stood tall and straight, their faces solemn. They simultaneously bowed to Li Zhi as he emerged from the carriage and said, "Your Highness, the Prince of Jin, is here to pay his respects."

Li Zhi's gaze swept calmly over Du He and Fang Yiai, lingering briefly above Fang Yiai's head. Then, with a broad smile on his face, he raised his hand and said cordially, "Please stand up, my two consorts. Why did you bother your two brothers-in-law to come and fetch me today?"

Du He bowed earnestly and said, "Originally, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was also going to come to fetch Your Highness, but the court is discussing the issue of sending troops to Kucha these days, and the Crown Prince is busy, so he asked us to come and greet Your Highness."

"I see." Li Zhi nodded and said, "Let's go to the palace quickly. Father is still waiting for us."

"Yes!" Du He and Fang Yiai bowed together, then turned around, mounted their horses, and headed towards the city under the escort of hundreds of Jinwu guards and two hundred Jinwangfu guards.

After passing Chunming Gate and entering Chang'an Street, the bustling sounds of the city on both sides immediately reached Li Zhi's ears.

Li Zhi lifted the carriage curtain, looked outside, and said with emotion: "It's still the sounds of Chang'an City that make me feel more at home."

Du He and Fang Yiai followed on both sides, nodding slightly, their expressions becoming a little solemn.

Li Zhi's gaze swept over the two of them again, then he retracted his head and went back into the car.

Looking at Ji Jiafu, Li Zhi shook his head slightly with a serious expression.

Has the relationship between the Crown Prince and Prime Minister Fang reached such a point of neglect?
Yes, Fang Yiai was the prince's consort and the prince's brother-in-law.

But he is also the son of the prime minister.

No matter how close the prince is to Fang Xuanling, he should still pay attention to such matters.

Don’t they think about what the emperor would think?
Du He is the General of the Left Guard, a nominal position. He has always had a good relationship with the prince, but what about you, Fang Yiai? You are the Junior Supervisor of the Ministry of Finance!
The one who manages the money.

Don't you think about your dad...

wrong.

Li Zhi suddenly looked through the curtain of the car and looked at Fang Yiai on the other side.

That's not right.

If he was the prince and really had something going on with Fang Xuanling, he shouldn't have asked Fang Yiai to pick him up so blatantly.

If there is nothing between them, there is no need to cover it up like this.

Unless... unless the one who asked Fang Yiai to pick him up was not the prince, but the emperor.

For some unknown reason, Li Zhi shuddered all over.

Even if the prince wants to send a son-in-law, he must report to the emperor for approval.

Emperor, what does this mean?

Was he telling him that the hearts and minds of the court officials were on the prince's side, warning him not to act rashly, or was it something else?

Li Zhi's mind was in chaos.

However, no matter what it was, it gave Li Zhi a bad feeling.

Until he came to Suzaku.

……

On the Vermillion Bird Gate, Li Zhi looked at the countless guards with sharp spears and golden armor on their heads, and his breathing couldn't help but pause.

His eyes looked towards the Tai Chi Hall at the end of the entire palace road.

Imagine sitting on the imperial couch, looking at his emperor with majestic eyes.

At this time, Li Zhi finally realized a very serious problem.

Now, his various plans are actually aimed at the prince, and only a small part is aimed at the emperor.

However, if the part targeting the emperor cannot be carried out, then the part targeting the prince cannot be carried out either.

Therefore, before dealing with the crown prince, he needs to deal with his father first.

Yes, that's how it should be.

However, it was not until he stood in front of the Suzaku Gate that Li Zhi suddenly realized a problem.

A very serious problem.

His father was actually much more powerful than he thought.

(End of this chapter)