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

Chapter 491 Please Retreat and Recover from Illness (Part )

Cheng Zhijie, Yuchi Jingde and Zhang Shigui, who had changed into new clothes from head to toe, passed through Xianchun Gate, Daji Gate, Wude West Gate and arrived outside the Wude Hall.

They are all veterans in the army. Although there is nothing unusual on the outside, their secret vigilance is clearly visible.

Outside the Wude Hall, the number of guards was visibly increasing.

Zhang Shigui saw more clearly that these guards were all very young.

He was sure that these guards had all been recently transferred from the Imperial Guards, and all of them were the emperor's confidants.

Don't think that the imperial guards are all the emperor's confidants.

In recent years, the emperor has put a lot of effort into improving the spring planting in Beiyuan, and every family has a good harvest and is prosperous every year.

Who doesn’t appreciate the emperor’s kindness?

Not to mention, the emperor has been on the throne for almost a year.

Even if the emperor had authority, it had almost disappeared in the hearts of young people.

When a conflict occurs between the retired emperor and the emperor, especially when it is the retired emperor's fault, the loyalty of these young guards to the emperor will remain unwavering.

……

Li Chengqian walked up the stairs calmly.

Sun Wu, the Imperial Guard General, stepped from behind a side pillar and bowed earnestly to Li Chengqian, saying, "Your Majesty!"

"Is the Grand Emperor okay?" Li Chengqian asked sideways.

"The emperor took a nap at noon, but woke up soon." Sun Wukai looked worried.

"Yes!" Li Chengqian nodded, then walked into the Wude Hall.

Cheng Zhijie, Yuchi Jingde and Zhang Shigui followed Li Chengqian into the hall.

When they passed by Sun Wukai, they all looked at him with surprise.

You know, Sun Wukai was the most powerful guard around the retired emperor, but now, he also listens to the emperor.

How did the emperor do it?

Sun Wu forced a smile at the three of them, then bowed.

Only after all three of them entered the hall did he step back slightly.

The afternoon sun shines through Sun Wukai's body and falls into the Wude Hall.

As soon as Cheng Zhijie, Yuchi Jingde and Zhang Shigui entered the hall, they heard the clear sound of reading.

When they looked up, they saw Crown Prince Li Xiang, kneeling under the bed in the inner hall, holding the "Analects of Confucius" in his hands and reciting it sentence by sentence.

The retired emperor sat on a soft cushion, with the imperial concubine Wei serving him on the side.

Li Chengqian entered the inner hall and bowed to Li Shimin, saying, "Father, Duke Lu, Duke E, and Duke Guo have come to visit you."

When Li Shimin raised his head, his confused eyes suddenly brightened up, and he looked at Cheng Zhijie, Yuchi Jingde and Zhang Shigui like a sword.

The three of them immediately stepped forward and bowed to Li Shimin, saying, "Your Majesty, we pay our respects to you. May you live long and be in good health."

"Stand up." Li Shimin's expression became calm.

Li Chengqian stood to one side and bowed, saying, "I will not disturb the emperor and the three dukes from reminiscing about the past. Crown Prince, please follow the emperor out first."

"Yes!" Li Xiang put down the Analects, stood up, first bowed to Li Shimin, then walked towards Li Chengqian like a little adult, and followed him out of the Wude Hall.

Wei stood to one side and bowed to Li Shimin, saying, "Your Majesty, I will go and prepare tea first."

Li Shimin raised his head slightly, and Wei turned and left.

Yuchi Jingde immediately rushed to the bed, held Li Shimin's hand, and asked worriedly, "Saint, what's wrong with you?"

"Saint!" Cheng Zhijie and Zhang Shigui came forward with concern.

Li Shimin looked up at Zhang Shigui and looked at him straight.

Zhang Shigui's face was suddenly filled with guilt.

He was the general of the imperial guards, but he was not in the palace on the night of the incident.

As a result, even when something happened to Li Shimin, he had no one to rely on for help, and was eventually forced to move to the Wude Hall and be placed under house arrest.

Li Shimin lowered his gaze to the three people's python robes and asked, "Why are you all dressed like this?"

"Your Majesty," Cheng Zhijie said, bowing, "Your Majesty, I went to the Liangyi Palace to see Your Majesty first. Your Majesty asked me to change my clothes, and then I came to visit you."

"Change clothes?" Li Shimin frowned.

"Yes!" Cheng Zhijie bowed and said, "The clothes we wore and everything we brought with us have all been left behind, except for the clothes that Your Majesty had prepared."

Li Shimin lowered his head, his eyes full of displeasure.

How could he not see that they came in wearing such clothes and would have to change clothes when they left?

Come naked and leave naked.

You can bring nothing in and take nothing out.

No wonder the emperor allowed them to come.

"Sage, everything is fine." Yuchi Jingde knelt on the ground, looked at Li Shimin with concern, and said, "Sage, you haven't told me what's wrong with you. Is there anything I can do to help you?"

"I'm fine, I just lost my memory." Li Shimin shook his head slightly with an indifferent expression.

"Amnesia?" Cheng Zhijie and Yuchi Jingde looked at each other with horror in their eyes.

How come the emperor lost his memory?

Cheng Zhijie bowed carefully and asked, "I wonder if the Saint still remembers which year it was?"

"The fifteenth year of Zhenguan." Li Shimin spoke calmly, then continued, "So, I said that I would let the King of Wei and the King of Jin come to see me."

Cheng Zhijie, Yuchi Jingde, and Zhang Shigui all widened their eyes in astonishment.

The fifteenth year of Zhenguan, that was eight years ago.

At that time, the Crown Prince and the King of Wei were fighting at their most intense battle, and later the King of Jin also joined in. They now finally understood why the Emperor had placed the Retired Emperor under house arrest.

In the 15th year of Zhenguan, it was because the retired emperor had the intention to depose the crown prince that the King of Wei finally launched an attack on the position of crown prince, and finally raised an army.

At this time, the emperor proposed to summon the King of Wei and the King of Jin. Doesn't this mean that he had the intention of deposing and enthroning the emperor again?

How could the emperor agree at this time?

Although the emperor had abdicated for a year, he was still Li Shimin.

If he really wanted to do something, he would definitely be deposed if the emperor did not stop him.

Cheng Zhijie, Yuchi Jingde, and Zhang Shigui all smiled bitterly with helplessness in their hearts.

Even in such a situation, the emperor still treated the retired emperor like this, which was really filial piety.

Zhang Shigui stepped forward and asked in a low voice, "It's been several days, and the Saint still hasn't recovered?"

"No." Li Shimin spoke directly, and then said: "But I have now read the contents of the memorials that have occurred over the years, and I have to admit that the prince is really amazing!"

Cheng Zhijie, Yuchi Jingde, and Zhang Shigui all lowered their heads, not daring to respond.

The prince was very powerful. How powerful was he? Naturally, he forced the King of Wei and the King of Jin to rebel, and finally he completely pacified them. How powerful was he?

No one is blind.

When things were over, looking back, although the King of Wei and the King of Jin deserved their punishment, it was also vaguely visible that the Crown Prince had often fanned the flames.

But what can they do? It was them who were tempted by the position of crown prince and even launched an attack on him.

It was only natural that the prince would fight back.

Not to mention that the prince has never been caught by anyone.

He has even been on the throne for more than a year now, so there is no need to talk about these things anymore.

……

Li Shimin looked at the three people in front of him. He knew that even if he asked them to do something, they probably wouldn't do it easily.

And judging by the clothes they were wearing.

Since Li Chengqian was able to let them change clothes to see him, if he said something he shouldn't have said, I'm afraid these three people wouldn't even be able to leave the palace.

Even though they are the only three people who can see here, there must be countless people watching in secret where they can't see.

Li Shimin asked with a hint of disdain in his eyes, "What's the situation outside the palace now?"

"Your Majesty ordered people to clean out the Zoroastrians in Chang'an City, and many of them died." Cheng Zhijie bowed slightly.

"What's the situation in the army?" Li Shimin turned his head and looked up.

Zhang Shigui bowed and said, "Your Majesty, Zheng Rentai is currently in charge of the Imperial Guard. He is the General of the Right Guard. Before that, he was the General of the Left Jinwu Guard, and before that, the General of the Left Guard. He now controls the Left and Right Thousand Oxen Guards. Outside Chang'an City, the Thousand Oxen Guards are constantly patrolling and cannot be easily moved."

Li Shimin nodded slightly. Being unable to move easily does not mean that no one can move. It just means that very few people can move.

Of course, he was able to turn the tables at Xuanwu Gate with only 800 men, so he might be able to do the same now.

Li Shimin glanced down at his legs, closed his eyes slightly, and then asked, "Liang Jianfang, Qiu Xinggong, Ashina She'er, Xue Gu Wu Ren, Zhishisili, Qibi Heli, Ashina Zhong, where are they?"

"Liang Jianfang went to Luoyang and hasn't returned yet. Qiu Xinggong and his son Qiu Shenji are currently investigating the Zoroastrians in Chang'an." After a brief pause, Cheng Zhijie said, "Qiu Shenji is a close confidant of the emperor, and Qiu Xinggong is now being watched closely."

"As for Ashina She'er, Xue Gu Wu Ren, Zhishi Si Li, Qibi He Li, Ashina Zhong, and the others," Zhang Shigui continued, "Your Majesty has sent people to Bingzhou and the northwest. If my guess is correct, if they make any move, Your Majesty will definitely massacre their entire clans."

"Saint," Yuchi Jingde finally spoke, looking at Li Shimin and saying, "Saint, take good care of your health. Don't worry about the things outside. Your Majesty has handled government affairs very well over the years, and this has been praised by the Saint himself."

Seeing Yuchi Jingde's somewhat worried eyes, Li Shimin looked up at Cheng Zhijie, and Cheng Zhijie lowered his head slightly.

Zhang Shigui, who was standing beside him, said at this moment, "Is there no hope for the Saint's recovery?"

Li Shimin gave Zhang Shigui a cold look, and Zhang Shigui immediately shut up.

"Okay, seeing you three, I feel a lot more relieved. You can go down." Li Shimin waved his hand.

Cheng Zhijie hesitated for a moment and asked, "What can we do for the saint?"

Li Shimin thought for a moment, shook his head, and said, "Nothing more."

"Sage!" Yuchi Jingde spoke up, saying, "I must say one more thing. Sage, there's no need to worry about other things. Your Majesty governs the entire country well, and the army is stable. Everything is following the path of the Zhenguan era of prosperity. This is what the Sage wishes to see."

"Go, go, go..." Li Shimin waved his hands impatiently.

Cheng Zhijie, Yuchi Jingde, and Zhang Shigui didn't know what to say for a moment, but they just felt uncomfortable all over.

Finally, the three of them bowed and said, "We will take our leave. Your Majesty, take care."

……

Outside the Wude Hall, Li Chengqian stood at the bottom of the steps with a calm look.

"Your Majesty!" Cheng Zhijie, Yuchi Jingde and Zhang Shigui walked down the steps and bowed earnestly to Li Chengqian, with a hint of pain in their eyes.

"Everyone, go back." Li Chengqian waved his hand and said, "You are not allowed to talk about the emperor's illness to anyone. The three of you are veteran ministers and should know that at this time, even the slightest thing can lead to a catastrophic disaster. I still hope that the three of you can help me stabilize the situation."

"I will definitely do my best." Cheng Zhijie, Yuchi Jingde, and Zhang Shigui bowed solemnly.

Li Chengqian waved his hand gently, and the three of them bowed and said, "I'll take my leave."

The three of them sighed softly, then walked towards the Liangyi Hall together.

Along the way, the three people felt very heavy-hearted.

Cheng Zhijie, Yuchi Jingde, and Zhang Shigui walked into the east side hall of Liangyi Palace at the same time, but they were stunned.

There was only Xu An in front of him.

Xu An bowed and said solemnly, "His Majesty has said that the three heroes must not be humiliated. Please wear these three dragon robes back home together. The situation is difficult now, so let's fight this hardship together."

The corners of Cheng Zhijie's mouth trembled slightly, and he bowed to Xu An and said, "Please report back. I, your Majesty, thank you for your great grace."

Xu An bowed, then turned and walked out of the Liangyi Hall, and soon disappeared.

Cheng Zhijie, Yuchi Jingde and Zhang Shigui looked at each other, their emotions surging and their eyes complicated.

(End of this chapter)