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

Chapter 435: Middle-aged people with children are not courageous (First update)
Mount Li, Hall of Eternal Life.

Li Shimin leaned on the soft cushion, looked at Li Chengqian, and said, "So, there really is a party led by Prince Yin?"

"Hmm!" Li Chengqian knelt down at the foot of the couch and nodded, then shook his head. "It's just some of the remnants of the failed Xuanwu Sect who huddled together for warmth, and ultimately connected themselves with the local aristocratic families."

"No, it's not that simple." Li Shimin looked at Zhangsun Wuji with a vigilant look and asked, "Wuji, what do you say?"

"It's a bit strange." Changsun Wuji pondered, glanced at Li Chengqian, and then continued, "Xu Shouyi was only a seventh-rank official at the Imperial College, yet thousands of strings of copper coins were seized from his home, along with a large amount of gold, silver, calligraphy, and paintings. These were not things he could have."

"Not to mention the matter of Luo Binwang." Li Shimin shook his head and said, "Don't forget Luo Binwang. If all of this is connected, it means that someone is secretly controlling everything."

Li Chengqian's expression finally became serious.

Luo Binwang was under his control, and he was sure that he had nothing to do with Xu Shouyi. But it was strange that Xu Shouyi, a seventh-rank official in the Imperial College, had the courage to attack Li Shimin.

"Father, even if people like them fail in officialdom, they will only remain silent for two or three generations. Once the matter is over, no one will naturally pursue it too much. But why did he choose to attack you?" Li Chengqian looked up at Li Shimin and said, "Why does this son feel like there is someone behind him who is full of resentment towards you?"

"Yes!" Li Shimin nodded and said, "Xu Shouyi is just the son of Xu Shimo, and Xu Shimo died more than ten years ago. Even if there is any hatred, it should have been forgotten long ago."

Xu Shouyi is now the chief clerk of the Imperial College. The court has been suppressing him for a long time because of his father's affairs.

But it is limited to suppression.

"Xu Shouyi is now a man of forty, with children. He wouldn't have the guts to attack the Saint." Changsun Wuji looked at Li Shimin and said solemnly, "Saint, I have a feeling that one of our old buddies from back then is still around and seized the opportunity to attack."

"That makes sense." Li Shimin nodded and said, "There's a question here that I haven't been able to explain... I've been in power for twenty years and still haven't found Xu Shouyi. How did Lu Dongzan find him?"

Li Chengqian couldn't help but stand up immediately, looking at Li Shimin with some horror and said, "Your Majesty, what I mean is that they took the initiative to reveal their flaws and lured Lu Dongzan into taking the bait, which led to the subsequent series of events."

"Their target is me!" Li Shimin sighed softly and said, "I am old. Even though you are keeping my true physical condition a secret, I haven't handled state affairs since returning from the Eastern Expedition to Goguryeo. If it really is those old guys from back then, they know me well enough and have probably guessed my condition by now."

"They want to kill the Saint." Changsun Wuji raised his head and said solemnly, "This is their last chance."

Everyone fell silent.

The Fengshan ceremony consumes a lot of physical strength and energy. Especially given Li Shimin's current physical condition, there will only be one outcome if he forces himself to perform the Fengshan ceremony.

That is death.

Once Li Shimin died, it would be impossible for those people to overthrow the current empire, and the revenge they had taken could never be avenged.

So, they have to come.

"I didn't expect that I would have such an unexpected gain." Li Shimin couldn't help laughing.

"Investigate!" Li Chengqian's expression grew serious, and he said earnestly, "Ever since the time of Gongsun Chang and Luo Binwang, although we've conducted a thorough investigation, we've still come up with nothing. If nothing unexpected happens, it's likely Xu Shouyi and his group are helping to cover up the situation. Let's investigate these people's connections, both internally and externally, and especially look for those over fifty years old."

It has been more than 20 years since the Battle of Xuanwu Gate.

Back then, those who were able to participate in the Battle of Xuanwu Gate must have been people of sufficient status, and those people must have been quite old, at least over fifty years old now.

Of course, there are also a group of young people.

But those people basically came from noble families. For various reasons, those who survived the Xuanwu Gate Incident all joined Li Shimin's army.

Nothing is missing outside.

Only someone like Xu Shimo, who was truly ruthless in those days, would be ostracized by Changsun Wuji and Fang Xuanling, and eventually die in depression.

Their descendants will have other ideas when they have no hope for a career in the government.

"Your Majesty, rest assured. Before the Fengshan ceremony, I will find all of them." Li Chengqian swore seriously.

"Okay." Li Shimin smiled easily.

Now that Li Chengqian has become the emperor, although those people pose a threat to Li Shimin, their existence poses more of a threat to Li Chengqian.

The one who wanted to kill them all the most was Li Chengqian.

……

There was a sound of light footsteps outside the palace, and Li Shimin's expression turned serious. "So, Songtsen really mobilized his troops?"

"Yes!" Li Chengqian nodded and said, "Last month, the Zhifang Division's spies in Luoshui were able to send back some useful information, but this month, all the information they sent back is useless."

Useless news is also news.

It's just very bad news.

"Songtsen has blocked all of the Zhifangsi's channels for gathering information in Luoxie. This means the army has already begun mobilizing in Luoxie, and they're afraid of being spied on by the Zhifangsi, so they've blocked all channels of information." Changsun Wuji looked at Li Shimin and nodded, saying, "Yes, Your Majesty, they've already mobilized the troops."

"Back then, the Tang Dynasty restored Tuyuhun and finally achieved stability for two years. Then Songtsen brazenly sent troops to Tuyuhun. He then coerced the Dangxiang people and led a 100,000-strong army to attack Songzhou. His ambition was clear.

That is, Tubo was too far from the Tang Dynasty, and the plateau was full of dangers, making it difficult to attack. Furthermore, the man later pleaded sincerely, so he was finally promised the princess. Li Shimin shook his head and sighed, "I underestimated the greed of human nature."

"Songtsen was probably forced into a corner." Li Chengqian looked at Li Shimin and said, "He originally planned to develop gradually, but his offspring was his biggest weakness, and the situation has only worsened. The death of his only son has plunged the entire Tubo into a strange situation, and people are restless. Therefore, he must resort to external war to spread these problems."

"So, this war is bound to happen." Li Shimin suddenly smiled, looked at Zhangsun Wuji, and said, "Wuji, why do I feel that the emperor sees through people's hearts even more clearly than you do?"

Zhang Sun Wuji smiled bitterly and nodded, saying, "Have you forgotten, Saint, that it was Your Majesty who first pointed out the difficulties of raising an heir to Songtsen's family?"

Li Chengqian lowered his head slightly. Yes, he had been plotting against Tubo from the very beginning.

This point has never been relaxed over the years.

To sow discord between Tubo and the neighboring countries so that they would not be so afraid of Tubo.

Especially the matter of India, which took up half of Songtsen's energy.

However, once the only son died, the already tense situation in Tubo was in danger of collapsing at any time.

Especially since Li Chengqian ascended the throne at this time.

Anyone can feel the feeling that a storm is about to come.

"Emperor, are you ready for war?" Li Shimin looked at Li Chengqian and his expression became serious.

"Yes!" Li Chengqian looked up and said, "Tyuhun is the main battlefield. With the Duke of Weiguo here, there's no need to worry. Songzhou has the Duke of Nanchang. With the Duke of Nanchang here, and Pei Xingfang, Wang Fangyi and others assisting, if a war breaks out, I will have the Duke of Jiangxia personally lead the troops to support, and bring Pei Xingjian with him. The situation will be stable enough."

Li Daozon, Li Junxian, Wang Fangyi, Pei Xingjian, and Pei Xingfang.

"With these people here, even if I make a mistake in judgment and Songtsen goes to Songzhou, Songzhou can be stabilized." Li Chengqian breathed a sigh of relief.

"Songtsen's main force won't go to Songzhou." Li Shimin shook his head and said, "He's already been defeated in Songzhou. If he were still young, he would naturally be more courageous after each setback, but he is currently sensitive. So it is more likely that he will use the main force to attack Songzhou as a cover to attack Tuyuhun, and then directly attack Shanzhou and Lanzhou."

The human heart is never wrong.

"Okay, you just need to be prepared for the battle. The rest is for the generals to perform." Li Shimin smiled. He was old, otherwise he would have to go to the battlefield.

Recovering his thoughts, Li Shimin asked, "How are Chang'an's arrangements for this Luoyang Fengshan ceremony?"

"Secretary of the Central Secretariat Ma Zhou will remain in Chang'an. The Governor of Yongzhou, Gongqiu Xinggong of Tianshui Commandery, and the Imperial Guards General Zhang Shigui, Duke of Guo, will serve as deputy governors of Chang'an." After a brief pause, Li Chengqian said, "I'm not sure whether Cui Qing should stay as well."

Minister of War Cui Dunli.

Qiu Xinggong and Zhang Shigui are both veteran generals in the army. If Cui Dunli is added to the team, the implication of targeting Tubo will be too strong.

"Stay." Li Shimin nodded calmly and said, "You are here with me. It would be strange if I didn't say anything. Let Cui Dunli return to Chang'an."

"Yes!" Li Chengqian breathed a sigh of relief and continued, "Also, I left Juer in Chang'an."

"This is necessary." Li Shimin's expression became serious. He looked at Li Chengqian and said, "Only in this way can the people of Chang'an finally be stabilized."

Li Jue was Li Chengqian's second legitimate son. Li Chengqian and Li Shimin both went to Luoyang.

Even if a meteorite falls one day and kills Li Shimin, Li Chengqian and all their descendants, Li Jue must be in Chang'an as the last cornerstone.

Although this possibility is extremely small, it is a necessary precaution.

In many cases, if you take precautions, others will not take action.

If you don't take precautions, ambitions will arise.

Disasters will occur.

Taking precautions in advance is the right way.

……

"Prime Minister Fang, Duke Song, and my uncle went to Luoyang half a month ago." Li Chengqian said outside the Changsheng Palace, "At least a hundred provincial governors will be present for your father's Fengshan ceremony, as well as members of the imperial clan, relatives by marriage, and commanders from all sides. To prevent them from traveling back and forth to Chang'an and disturbing your father's peace, I have kept them all in Luoyang."

With so many court ministers in Luoyang, someone naturally needs to go there to suppress and manage them.

Fang Xuanling, Xiao Yu and Gao Shilian acted together, and the whole of Luoyang was instantly stabilized.

"Your arrangements are very appropriate." Li Shimin sat on the imperial sedan chair, looked at the officials below the mountain, and said softly, "Lu Dongzan is here too, right?"

"Yes." Li Chengqian nodded and said, "Right now, what he wants most is probably to get a glimpse of his father's health condition, so I have arranged for him to be very far back."

"Haha!" Li Shimin smiled lightly.

As long as he is alive, everyone will be worried.

He is the Heavenly Khan, and there are countless foreign chiefs crawling at his feet.

Of course, the battlefield is another matter.

An army of one hundred thousand is enough to crush all confidence.

Li Shimin turned sideways and looked at Li Chengqian who was following him down the mountain.

This battle was the time for his son to shine brilliantly.

The Tang Dynasty's inheritance is stable.

He can now comfort his father.

(End of this chapter)