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

Chapter 391 How dare he use those terrible things at Xuanwu Gate to deal with me (Part )
"Your Majesty, have you ever thought about abdicating?" A somewhat rough voice sounded in the Liangyi Hall.

The emperor's eyes narrowed slightly. He turned sideways to look at Li Chengqian and saw that Li Chengqian also looked stunned.

Noticing the emperor's gaze, Li Chengqian immediately turned around and shook his head vigorously at the emperor.

He had no idea what happened today.

The emperor relaxed, turned around and looked at the tall, burly man in a clean purple robe before him, and said gently, "Why does Duke E say so?"

Duke of E, Yuchi Jingde, sighed softly and said, "I am old and in poor health. I am afraid I cannot accompany Your Majesty on the Eastern Expedition to Goguryeo. Therefore, I have come here to retire. My health is really unable to support accompanying Your Majesty on the Eastern Expeditions."

Li Chengqian looked at this somewhat familiar scene and couldn't help but sigh in his heart.

In his previous life, this scene happened in the first month of the seventeenth year of Zhenguan, two months before the year he was originally deposed.

It was not known whether Yuchi Jingde had realized something or really wanted to retire. He also persuaded the emperor to delegate power to Li Chengqian, and he abdicated as the emperor and enjoyed his old age.

Li Chengqian originally tended to the latter, but now, he is somewhat inclined to the former.

It's impossible to be in the same critical moment twice.

Therefore, in the previous life, there might really be a problem in the Eastern Palace, and the news leaked to the point where even Yuchi Jingde noticed it.

But now, it is the current situation in the court and some things hidden in the dark that make Yuchi Jingde smell something different.

Yuchi Jingde, Cheng Yaojin.

These old ministers who have come all the way from the end of the Sui Dynasty still have some very special and keen senses.

No matter what the reason, Li Chengqian was very grateful to Yuchi Jingde.

Because whether it is now or in the previous life, Yuchi Jingde's ultimate goal is for the emperor to abdicate and Li Chengqian to ascend the throne.

In the end, Li Chengqian was the one who benefited.

Li Chengqian was grateful from the bottom of his heart to such an old minister who always considered his own interests.

……

"Besides, the younger generation of generals have gradually grown up. Xue Rengui, Su Dingfang, Li Dejian, and the older generation include Guo Xiaoke, Li Ji, and Li Daozong. It's time for the veterans to take a break." Yuchi Jingde smiled calmly and said, "Not to mention the Crown Prince... Your Majesty, haven't you ever thought about enjoying your remaining years in peace?"

"I think you've become senile and confused." The emperor couldn't help but laugh. He then turned sideways to look at Li Chengqian and asked casually, "Prince, what do you think?"

"Although Duke E is old, he is actually the most indispensable person among the veteran ministers in the court." Li Chengqian glanced at Yuchi Jingde, then looked at the emperor and said, "For example, when my father was fighting in the south and the north, with Duke E by his side to guide him, nothing would go wrong and there would be no chaos.

So forget about the idea of ​​Duke E retiring and begging for his remains. At worst, he can just hold court twice a month, on the first and fifteenth day of each month."

Yuchi Jingde waved his hand and said, "I appreciate your kindness, Crown Prince. In fact, a few years ago, I had already thought about retiring. If it were then, I could still hold on, but now..."

I am truly old, and the pain of my early battles often wakes me up in my dreams. That is why I advise Your Majesty to abdicate. Recovering from your injuries is one thing, but Your Majesty should forget about personally conquering Goguryeo.

Li Shimin looked serious.

It turned out that Yuchi Jingde was talking about the Eastern Expedition to Goguryeo.

He turned to look at Li Chengqian and asked, "Prince, what do you think of my personal expedition to Goguryeo?"

Li Chengqian was stunned. He looked at the emperor and bowed, "Your Majesty, when you said you would personally lead the army, wasn't it to suppress external sentiment and force Goguryeo to strengthen its military, wasting food and fodder? Does Your Majesty really want to lead the army personally?"

Yuchi Jingde looked at Li Chengqian in surprise. It turned out that the emperor's eastern expedition to Goguryeo was just a cover!
Indeed, this is a good idea!
The emperor was in poor health, but when he mentioned that he would lead the army in person, everyone inside and outside the country became frightened and trembled with fear, not daring to act rashly.

As for Goguryeo, the Tang Dynasty increased its military forces on the border and at the same time transferred food and grass from the country, which immediately made Goguryeo nervous.

The consumption of food and fodder during the military preparation period is far greater than usual.

If Goguryeo started preparing for war now, their food and fodder consumption would be a terrifying figure by the end of the year.

But in the end he found out that the emperor did not come. Others might be happy, but Gai Suwen would definitely be very upset.

Especially if it happens again next year, it will be interesting if the Tang army rushes in when we relax our composure.

Great tip, great tip.

Yuchi Jingde looked at the emperor with admiration.

The emperor calmly waved his hand and said, "I do have this idea, but I have also thought about personally conquering Goguryeo. What do you think, Prince?"

Yuchi Jingde suddenly became quiet.

……

Li Chengqian's expression grew serious, and he said earnestly, "Father, Goguryeo is a hidden danger to the Tang Dynasty. I know this very well, but Goguryeo is cold and icy, and it is not a place where ordinary people can live.

During the previous Eastern Expedition to Goguryeo, Prime Minister Cen and many other loyal officials suddenly passed away upon returning to Hebei. Father also suddenly fell ill upon returning to Hebei. The weather was too harsh, and this son..."

As Li Chengqian spoke, he couldn't help but lower his head, his voice choked with sobs, and tears filled his eyes.

The emperor suddenly laughed and said, "You are worried that I will die in Goguryeo, or that after returning, I will never be able to stand up again."

Yuchi Jingde also lowered his head solemnly.

Li Chengqian raised his head, pursed his lips and said, "Since your father knows it clearly, why bother?

Although Goguryeo is not small, the Tang Dynasty is even larger. Of the three hundred prefectures in the world, I only know ten governors, and I can name no more than a hundred. And that's because these people are relatives of the royal family or hold positions in the court."

Li Chengqian took a deep breath, looked outside the hall, and said softly: "Across the world, even if there is only one state, there are countless people. If one person makes a mistake, it will lead to unpredictable disasters, let alone three hundred states.

Your son... needs your guidance. Even if you can guide the affairs of ten states in one year, it will take you thirty years.

Thirty years from now, I will ask you to come back and take care of me."

"I am already fifty years old. If not thirty years, I won't be able to get up in ten years." The emperor just felt funny for a moment.

Li Chengqian said with an embarrassed look, "Ten years means we need to control thirty states in one year, and three states in one month. Father, this is a bit difficult."

"Hahahahahahaha..." The emperor couldn't help but burst into laughter. Yuchi Jingde secretly glanced at the emperor, then gave Li Chengqian a thumbs up.

After a long time, the emperor's laughter gradually subsided. He looked at Li Chengqian and asked, "Prince, how do you think the Goguryeo incident should be resolved?"

Li Chengqian's expression grew solemn. He began to speak, "Divide the land." "Divide the land?" Li Shimin was slightly taken aback and asked, "What do you mean?"

"Goguryeo is freezing cold, and its people have been separated from the Central Plains for too long, leaving them feeling uneasy. Even if the Tang Dynasty were to forcibly conquer Goguryeo, it would take more than thirty years of careful management to bring them back." Li Chengqian sighed softly and said, "Within thirty years, the various rebellious and restorationist factions, as well as Baekje and Silla, will probably make moves."

"So you have to divide some of the land to Baekje and Silla, so that some of the Goguryeo people's anger will be directed at them, and at the same time let them collude with the Goguryeo people. Finally, after another 30 years of accumulation, you can wipe out Baekje and Silla in one fell swoop." The emperor's expression became clear. At this moment, he seemed to have forgotten that Silla was a vassal state of the Tang Dynasty.

"Your Majesty is wise." Li Chengqian bowed slightly and said, "As for things to do at the end of this year, Your Majesty might as well prepare for the Fengshan Ceremony at Mount Song, which would be a good opportunity to delay the Eastern Expedition..."

"You have thought it through thoroughly." The emperor nodded and began to think seriously.

"Your Majesty, this old minister..." Yuchi Jingde was about to speak when the emperor waved his hand and said, "I'll reconsider your retirement. We'll discuss it after the end of the year when we perform the Fengshan ceremony at Mount Song. Just hold on."

Seeing the emperor's serious expression, Yuchi Jingde bowed helplessly and said, "Okay, then this old minister will accompany Your Majesty and enjoy the blessing once more. However, the two grand court sessions per month are still..."

"Once, on the first day of every month." The emperor gave Yuchi Jingde a displeased look.

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Yuchi Jingde grinned.

At this moment, a burst of hurried footsteps could be heard outside the hall. Wang Yan, the official in charge of communication, hurriedly entered the hall and bowed to the emperor, saying, "Your Majesty, the Minister of Justice Yin Jun has an urgent report."

The emperor was slightly stunned and looked at Zhang Ananda.

Zhang Ananda walked down quickly, took the memorial from Wang Yan's hand, then quickly returned to the emperor and handed the memorial to him.

The emperor took a quick look, and in an instant, his face turned completely cold.

The emperor handed the memorial to Li Chengqian and said, "Summon Lord Yin to the throne."

"Here!"

"Your Majesty, I'll take my leave!" Yuchi Jingde immediately bowed.

"No need, you stay." The emperor looked at Yuchi Jingde and shook his head gently: "You don't need to be shy about this matter!"

"Yes!"

……

Lord Yin stood in the hall, bowed earnestly to the emperor, and said, "Your Majesty, urgent news from Yizhou: while they were tracking down Xu Fu, they discovered a murderer who had just returned from Songzhou. He was carrying a forged customs clearance disc with Gongsun Chang's name on it."

"Gongsun Chang, this name sounds familiar!" Yuchi Jingde was not clear about many details of the Li Zhi case.

In other words, he was deliberately avoiding suspicion.

"A sorcerer who had been in and out of the Eastern Palace and Prince Qi's Mansion in the past." The emperor looked at Yuchi Jingde with cold eyes.

Yuchi Jingde was stunned for a moment, then his face darkened instantly. He said in a deep voice, "These guys, it's been twenty years, and they're still not dead?"

Yuchi Jingde also fought his way out of the Xuanwu Gate back then.

He killed Li Yuanji with his own hands.

It was Li Jiancheng who was killed by him with the help of the emperor.

Not only that, the subsequent massacres in the Eastern Palace and Prince Qi's Mansion were also committed by Yuchi Jingde.

Even Li Yuanji's Prince of Qi's Mansion is now Yuchi Jingde's Duke of E's Mansion.

After the Xuanwu Gate Incident, the emperor awarded the entire Prince of Qi's Mansion to Yuchi Jingde.

In addition, although many things are not recorded in history books, Yuchi Jingde was deeply involved in the later hunt for the remnants of Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji throughout the world.

Gongsun Chang was one of the few people who escaped from what happened back then.

After all, at that time, he was just a warlock.

That's why he was able to survive.

"His shadow appeared a while ago. Although Wei Ting committed suicide, it seems that he is also related. I just don't know whether it is true or not." The emperor raised his head and said indifferently: "Xu Fu and Wu Chang are two very secretive men under the command of the Prince of Jin. Xu Fu has a Sichuan accent, so the Yizhou government sent people to investigate. Unexpectedly..."

"Wu Chang." Yuchi Jingde raised his head and frowned at the emperor: "Your Majesty, could this guy be Gongsun Chang?"

"It should be him." The emperor turned to look at Li Chengqian and asked, "Prince, did you send someone to Qizhou a while ago?"

"Yes!" Li Chengqian nodded and said, "There's news about Gongsun Chang in Qizhou, so I sent Wei Daijia, Dai Zhide, and Zhang Wenguan to investigate, but they came back with nothing."

"Silly child, he is distracting your manpower and diverting your attention." Li Shimin's face turned completely cold.

"Father!" Li Chengqian quickly knelt down and said with a folded hand, "This young slave must be unaware of this matter."

"I don't know, of course he doesn't know. He's just a fool being used." The emperor sneered, looking outside the palace, and said coldly: "And there's that guy named Xu Fu, who would be a decent person? Prince, have you sent people to Yizhou to investigate?"

"Yes!" Li Chengqian nodded, then said hesitantly, "Years ago, a fire broke out at the Tibetan embassy in Pingkangfang. Inside, a body was burned beyond recognition... During the Yongzhou government's investigation, they discovered strangers with Yizhou accents appearing around, so I sent people to Yizhou to investigate. However, they should have just passed Hanzhong and haven't reached Yizhou yet!"

"Songzhou, Yizhou, Tibetan Embassy." Yin Jun suddenly looked up at the emperor and said, "Your Majesty, could it be that 'Xu Fu' is from Tibet?"

Li Chengqian was shocked. He had never thought that Tibetans were involved in this.

"That should be the case. When Songtsen arrives in Chang'an in May, I will ask him about it." Li Shimin sneered and said, "If he doesn't give me a reasonable answer, then he can forget about returning."

Li Chengqian, Yuchi Jingde, and Yin Jun all bowed their heads.

"And that rebellious son." The emperor suddenly gritted his teeth and said angrily, "I can forgive his rebellion. He was used by the Tibetans because he was incompetent, but he actually used those terrible things at Xuanwu Gate to deal with me... Prince, go, ask him now, does he still regard me as his father? He actually has those... those..."

The emperor's tone suddenly became rapid, and his whole body couldn't help but tremble, and then his eyes went dark.

With a "bang", the emperor's forehead hit the table.

"Father?"

"His Majesty!"

"Send it to the imperial doctor quickly."

(End of this chapter)