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

Chapter 52: A mouthful of phlegm: This is how you assist His Majesty
In front of the Chongjiao Hall, Li Chengqian looked towards the Liangyi Hall and said softly, "I propose that the Emperor send Prince Jin Zhi to go to the Jinguang Gate on his behalf to welcome Duke Chen outside the city."

Yu Zhining was suddenly extremely surprised.

Li Tai's surprise attack certainly made him angry, but Li Chengqian's advance preparation made him feel unfamiliar.

"Go." Li Chengqian calmly handed the memorial to Gao Zhenxing. He was a Tongshi Sheren, and these matters were his responsibility.

Yu Zhining immediately came to his senses, took the memorial and said, "I will go with you. Maybe I can see His Majesty and tell him that this memorial is my opinion."

Li Chengqian smiled and nodded, saying, "I'll do as Master Yu says. However, Master Yu, don't worry too much. Prince Jin has been coming to the Eastern Palace many times this month, and I originally wanted him to take over some of the inconvenient tasks. This is perfect."

So that’s how it is…Yu Zhining’s expression suddenly became clear.

It turns out that the Crown Prince had contacted the King of Jin several times before, all for today...

Li Chengqian shook his head and said, "In the past two or three years, I'm afraid many things will be inconvenient for me, but I can't always ask Qingque to do everything. If there are any sacrifices or other things in the future, it would be bad if Qingque had an accident like today."

Yu Zhining clenched his fists slightly in his sleeves.

Today, the King of Wei acted on purpose, just to see the Crown Prince make a fool of himself tomorrow.

If he dares to do something as reckless as welcoming the army back to the capital, what else would he not dare to do?

Therefore, we must prepare in advance.

The Prince of Jin is the prince's preparation.

With the buffer of the Prince of Jin between the Crown Prince and the King of Wei, the situation will be much easier for the Crown Prince.

"In that case, I will go first." Yu Zhining bowed slightly, then turned and walked towards Liangyi Hall with the memorial.

Looking at Yu Zhining's leaving back, Li Chengqian smiled calmly.

Li Chengqian raised his head and looked at the entire inner courtyard of the East Palace in front of him.

From Chongjiao Gate to Cheng'en Gate at the back.

There is the Chongjiao Hall where classes are usually held, the Lizheng Hall where clothes are changed, and the Guangtian Hall where short rests are taken.

The Prince's Chongwen Hall is where books are stored, and the Chongren Hall is where calligraphy and various treasures are stored.

During this period, he quietly adjusted all the guards patrolling back and forth between the city walls and the palace.

Those who can truly be trusted are placed in key positions.

Those who were deeply suspicious were quietly thrown into the marginal corner, and even their connections with others were completely cut off.

While he had complete control over the entire inner court of the Eastern Palace, he also prevented others from interfering too deeply.

The Eastern Palace has three courtyards: the back courtyard, the inner courtyard, and the outer courtyard.

The only thing left was the Outer Courtyard, which Li Chengqian could not control, but there was no way, as the Zuo Chunfang and You Chunfang were both there.

There are many officials in the Left and Right Spring Offices. Except for a few who are absolutely loyal to him, most of them remain neutral between him and the emperor. When he and the emperor have a dispute, most of them will side with the emperor.

Most officials are like this.

After all, their salaries were truly given by the emperor.

However, most people in the Eastern Palace only knew that their salaries were paid by the crown prince.

……

The setting sun is slowly setting and is about to sink into the horizon.

The afterglow gradually dissipated from Li Chengqian's face. He couldn't help but raise his head and look at the clouds in the sky, as if trying to catch the last ray of light.

At this moment, Li Anyan, a disciple of Chongjiao, came quickly.

Walking up to Li Chengqian, Li Anyan quickly bowed and said, "Your Highness, His Majesty has approved it."

Li Chengqian suddenly laughed silently.

After taking a look around, Li Chengqian turned around and re-entered the Chongjiao Hall.

With a "bang", the palace door closed.

"Hahahahahaha..." Li Chengqian's uncontrollable laughter came from the hall. Li Anyan, who was standing outside the hall, looked confused.

Li Chengqian in the hall walked down to the door. After venting his emotions quickly, he quickly calmed down.

With a creaky sound, Li Chengqian walked out of the palace again, looked at Li Anyan, and said, "An Yan, tomorrow the officials of the Eastern Palace will go to greet Duke Chen. You tell Helan to protect the Prince of Jin. Do you understand?"

"Yes!" Li Anyan bowed solemnly.

The King of Wei is deliberately trying to force the Crown Prince to welcome the Duke of Chen outside the city tomorrow, but everything is definitely not that simple.

……

The first day of the twelfth lunar month, Dingyou. The sky is just beginning to brighten, but the morning frost has not yet dispersed.

The troops east of Wugong County had already had breakfast and then set off eastward.

The left and right Qianniu guards accompanying the army went ahead to communicate with the inside and outside.

The left and right Jinwu Guards each had a team of cavalry, holding flags of various colors, leading the way.

Hou Junji, dressed in black and golden armor, personally led the left and right guards in the center, and at the same time personally escorted Gaochang King Qu Zhisheng, Qu Zhizhan, and dozens of Gaochang nobles to Chang'an.

The left and right brave guards, the left and right mighty guards, are on both sides.

The left and right military guards and the left and right garrison guards were at the rear.

A total of three thousand cavalrymen marched towards Chang'an in an orderly and solemn manner.

Behind them are more than 30,000 guards. They will follow at the end and will not arrive near Chang'an until Hou Junji and others enter the city and return to their military camps.

Only the three thousand most elite and meritorious soldiers would be qualified to receive the admiration of millions of people in Chang'an and then be presented as captives to the Taimiao.

Of course, the entire Western Expedition army was more than just this. In order to destroy Gaochang, the Tang Dynasty mobilized an army of more than nearly 100,000.

However, some of these 100,000 troops will suppress the high pressure, while others will return to the local Zhechoufu after returning to Guanzhong. After that, the more than 30,000 people who were originally transferred from Chang'an will return to their own camps. From that moment on, they will have nothing to do with Hou Junji anymore.

Hou Junji would also hand over his military power after offering sacrifices to the Taimiao.

However, Hou Junji didn't care, because after handing over his military power, he would take a further step and become the official prime minister...

At this moment, a tall horse came quickly towards Hou Junji.

……

A Qianniu Guard reined in his horse in front of Hou Junji, handed the document in his hand to Hou Junji, and then turned and left.

Hou Junji raised his right hand, and the entire team stopped moving forward instantly.

When Hou Junji opened the document and took a careful look at it for the first time, his expression became extremely solemn.

The King of Wei caught a severe cold, and the Crown Prince recommended that the King of Jin lead the army to Jiao, and the Emperor agreed.

The King of Wei did not come, so the Crown Prince recommended the King of Jin to welcome the army back to the capital.

What’s going on? Hou Junji frowned tightly. The army returned with a destroyed country. Is this how the court treats them?
Taking a deep breath, Hou Junji tried his best to calm down.

The Crown Prince is injured and cannot come. Hou Junji knew this half a month ago, but what about the King of Wei? He was supposed to come, so how come he suddenly caught a cold?

And it happens to be today.

What does King Wei mean?
What was he doing? Was he targeting the prince? So the prince pushed Prince Jin out.

An undercurrent of struggle had already begun to unfold before Hou Junji's eyes, and he couldn't help but feel a familiar taste.

The King of Wei was the second legitimate son, but he was very aggressive in the court, and the Crown Prince had to join forces with the King of Jin.

Hou Junji's breathing became heavy. All this made him think of the past.

The King of Qin was also the second legitimate son, and he was equally aggressive back then, so the Crown Prince at the time had to join forces with the King of Qi.

It just so happens that the King of Jin and the King of Qi are both the youngest legitimate sons.

While Hou Junji was laughing, he couldn't help but feel heavy in his heart.

The current situation is really too similar to that of the past. The second son is aggressive, and the crown prince and the younger brother have to join forces to fight against him.

In the end, it was a battle of Xuanwu Gate.

You must know that it was Hou Junji and Yuchi Jingde who died together to advise the emperor, and then launched the Xuanwu Gate Rebellion, killing the crown prince and the King of Qi.

Now, does everything really have to happen again?

Don’t you think the smell of blood in this palace is strong enough?

……

"Let's go, continue!" Hou Junji's expression turned cold. He waved his hand and the army continued to move forward.

As the war horses rose and fell, Hou Junji's eyes were fixed on the direction of Chang'an City.

Today, in addition to the Prince of Jin who will come to greet him, people like Changsun Wuji, Fang Xuanling, and Wei Zheng will also come.

Hou Junji will soon be on equal footing with them, so he wants to ask, do these people really want to see the Xuanwu Gate rise again?

The well-organized army marched towards Chang'an City.

The morning sun rose rapidly, casting a long black shadow behind the army.

(End of this chapter)