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

Chapter 58 Li Tai: Erlang, remember to send a New Year gift to Duke Chen's Mansion

East Palace, early morning.

The morning light quietly spread on the floor of Chongde Hall, strangely blending in with the atmosphere of the entire hall.

Yu Zhining glanced lightly at Kong Yingda, Li Baiyao, Ouyang Xun, Yan Shigu and others sitting opposite him. Everyone's expression was very heavy.

The Prime Minister and Minister of War, Duke of Chen, Hou Junji, who had just returned from a great victory and destroyed a country and presented the captives to the Taimiao, was imprisoned in the blink of an eye.

They were somewhat frightened as they watched all this happen with their own eyes.

Yu Zhining turned sideways and looked at Li Chengqian, who was sitting at the head of the table. He bowed slightly and said, "Your Highness, today His Majesty will discuss the matter of Duke Chen. What are your plans?"

All the officials in the East Palace in the hall looked at Li Chengqian at the same time, with a hint of caution and curiosity in their eyes.

They couldn't figure out the emperor's attitude, but they could ask the prince directly about his attitude.

Li Chengqian paused for a moment, then said, "Secreting the treasures and allowing the soldiers to plunder are two crimes that have already been proven. What remains is simply the matter of dealing with Duke Chen. The key lies in one thing: whether the emperor will allow the crime to be atonement for the merits."

The ministers were startled for a moment, and then subconsciously relaxed. How could they forget that the Tang Dynasty could discuss merits.

The power of eight discussions means that even if one commits the serious crime of treason, he can reduce or exempt the punishment by discussing relatives, old friends, the virtuous, the capable, the meritorious, the noble, the diligent, and the guests.

Especially since Hou Junji was a general in the court who had just made great achievements in destroying a country.

With just one word from Li Chengqian, the officials in the Eastern Palace had a general judgment on the current matter.

Even this judgment will quickly spread throughout the court.

Li Chengqian's eyes swept over the ministers, a dark light flashing in his eyes. He said calmly, "There are rules and regulations for the court, but there is also another saying: merits are merits and faults are faults. If the merits do not outweigh the faults, how to deal with them is entirely in the hands of Your Majesty."

The ministers in the hall shuddered inexplicably.

Yu Zhining hesitated for a moment, then asked carefully, "So, Your Highness, what do you think?"

The ministers could not help but look at Li Chengqian. Li Chengqian shook his head slightly and said, "I think that the more important an official is, the more merits should be recognized and faults should be recognized. Merits should be rewarded and faults should be punished. Only in this way can we set an example for the world."

Yu Zhining pondered Li Chengqian's words, and finally nodded gently, saying, "Your Highness, what you said is indeed the right way to govern the country."

"Thank you, Master Yu." Li Chengqian bowed lightly, then stood up and said, "But regarding Duke Chen, the final decision is ultimately up to the Emperor, so there are many things that need to be considered."

"Yes!" Yu Zhining's expression became serious.

Since all this belonged to the emperor, it was not something they could consider too much.

……

Prince Wei's Mansion.

With a "bang", the teacup exploded directly on the ground.

Broken porcelain pieces and splashing tea directly hit Fang Yiai's crimson robe as he entered the room.

"Your Highness!" Fang Yiai looked at the furious Li Tai in the inner room, quickly knelt down, and earnestly pleaded, "Your Highness, please calm down."

"Calm down, calm down! The Chief Secretary has been demoted, my uncle has been reprimanded, and I'm under house arrest. How can I calm down?" Li Tai slammed his palm heavily on the table, his eyes filled with hatred. Suddenly, he turned to look at Fang Yiai and asked coldly, "Erlang, you contacted this person, what's going on?"

"Your Highness, I've already looked for that man." Fang Yiai gnashed his teeth, then kowtowed to the ground and said, "Originally, after I learned that it was the Prince of Jin who had left the city in his place, I had already asked him to stop. But he refused to give in, saying that since he had been paid, he should do the job. That's why he arranged for someone to ambush the Prince of Jin. When I found him, he said it would be impossible to be discovered because the person who did it was not one of his men and knew nothing."

"If we don't know, we can't find out anything. He underestimates Su Dingfang too much." Li Tai couldn't help but grit his teeth.

"Your Highness, there is no need to worry about this. His Majesty has already dealt with the matter and will not investigate it again." Fang Yiai looked at Li Tai carefully.

"But the Crown Prince will investigate, the Prince of Xiang will investigate, and even my uncle will investigate." Li Tai's expression became solemn. Zhao Guogong Zhangsun Wuji, his uncle, was especially frightening to Li Tai.

Thinking of Zhangsun Wuji, Li Tai couldn't help but shudder. He looked up at Fang Yiai and said coldly, "I remember you said that man was a gambler?"

"Yes, he is the commander of the Jinwu Guard, but he owes a huge gambling debt outside." Fang Yiai looked at Li Tai carefully.

"He's planning to blackmail you for a long time." Li Tai turned around and looked at the densely packed books on the bookshelf behind him, his face becoming serious.

"Your Highness!" Fang Yiai immediately realized the danger here.

"The end of the year is the time when money is needed. He should come to you once at the end of the year. You should find a way to get him out of the city..." Li Tai's voice floated in the air, and Fang Yiai immediately kowtowed and said, "Your Highness, don't worry. I will take care of it."

They couldn't use their own manpower to target the prince, but they had too many ways to deal with a Qianniu guard.

Li Tai didn't ask any more questions.

"What do you think about Duke Chen's situation?" Li Tai turned around and looked at Fang Yiai. Fang Yiai took a deep breath and said, "I think that although Duke Chen has something wrong, it is not serious."

"Hmm!" Li Tai looked puzzled.

"Duke Chen is charged with two crimes: stealing treasures and allowing his soldiers to plunder." Fang Yiai stood up slightly and said seriously, "The first charge is too light, and the second is too serious."

"If it's too light, then the punishment won't be too severe. If it's too severe, then there won't be any punishment." Li Tai looked at Fang Yiai in surprise and asked uncertainly, "Is that what you mean?"

"Yes!" Fang Yiai bowed, then said, "Your Highness, allowing the soldiers to plunder damages the image of the Tang Dynasty. His Majesty is most concerned about this. Therefore, he will not punish Duke Chen for this crime. However, His Majesty will not easily forgive Duke Chen for taking the treasures for himself. His position as Prime Minister..."

"The Minister of Personnel is still here, right?" Li Tai looked at Fang Yiai seriously.

"I can't guess that." Fang Yiai shook his head. Although he had some abilities, he was afraid that even the prime minister could not predict the emperor's future actions.

"But no matter what, the position of Prime Minister is gone!" Li Tai narrowed his eyes, pondered for a long time, and then spoke carefully: "My father asked me to concentrate on editing books in the palace, so I won't go anywhere. However, it's almost the end of the year, and the royal family needs to prepare gifts to send to the various princes' palaces and dukes' palaces... Erlang, don't miss anything."

"Yes!" Fang Yiai kowtowed heavily.

……

In front of Chengtian Gate, the sedan chair landed.

Just as Li Chengqian was about to stand, Yu Zhining's voice rang out, "Your Highness, if you can help Duke Chen, then do so. He... is, after all, an important official of the state."

Seeing Yu Zhining's serious expression, Li Chengqian nodded gently and said, "I know the truth about this matter, but Master Yu, this matter is not my fault, nor the emperor's, but Duke Chen himself."

Yu Zhining was slightly stunned

After Li Chengqian finished speaking, he stood up from the sedan chair and walked towards the palace.

He rarely told the truth.

……

In the Liangyi Hall, the afternoon light shot straight into the hall, and while bouncing back, it also illuminated the interior of the hall.

The emperor sat on the imperial couch, and Li Chengqian knelt at the foot of the steps.

Fang Xuanling sat at the top seat on the left, followed by Gao Shilian, Yang Shidao and Imperial Censor Wei Ting.

Changsun Wuji sat at the top seat on the right, followed by Wei Zheng, Li Jing and the attendant Chu Suiliang.

Li Shimin sat on it and looked at the ministers on his left and right with a cold gaze, and all the ministers bowed their heads.

Finally, Li Shimin looked at Fang Xuanling and asked expressionlessly, "Duke Liang, how is the trial going today?"

"He admitted that he had taken some things, but they were nothing valuable. The allegation of looting by his soldiers was completely fabricated." Fang Xuanling glanced at the emperor and continued, "He believed that someone was jealous of his achievements and deliberately framed him."

The emperor on the imperial couch immediately snorted twice, but that was just two snorts.

Li Chengqian raised his eyes slightly.

He downplayed the minor offenses and simply denied any serious crimes. Hou Junji had truly figured out the emperor's thoughts, but...

"But after a thorough investigation, he's not the only one with problems." Fang Xuanling looked at Zhangsun Wuji and Wei Zheng across from him, then said helplessly, "There's also the marching commander Xue Wanjun. After a thorough investigation, the censor impeached him for abducting a Gaochang woman, but the matter hasn't been thoroughly investigated yet..."

"That's not right." Changsun Wuji suddenly interrupted Fang Xuanling and said calmly, "The two Gaochang women who were abducted by Xue Wanjun are now in Chang'an. Whether it's true or not, we'll know once we ask them."

Li Chengqian looked up in surprise and looked at Changsun Wuji.

Today's interrogation by Fang Xuanling, the Ministry of Justice, the Dali Temple, and the Censorate only ended in the morning, and it's only this afternoon, and Changsun Wuji not only got the news, but also found solid evidence?

"I find this inappropriate," Wei Zheng said, looking at the emperor. "I've heard that 'a ruler should treat his subjects with courtesy, and a subject should serve the ruler with loyalty.' Now, I'm being asked to debate with a woman from a fallen nation in the court. If this is true, regardless of Xue Wanjun's dignity, how will other nations view our Tang Dynasty in the future?"

Li Chengqian sat calmly. It sounded like Wei Zheng was trying to absolve Xue Wanjun of the crime in disguise. In his previous life, he thought that Wei Zheng had changed his temperament, but in fact, it was just the opposite.

Wei Zheng's words had actually cut off Xue Wanjun's future from the root.

There was also Changsun Wuji before. Changsun Wuji seemed to be forcing Xue Wanjun to confess, but in fact he was saving him.

On the contrary, Fang Xuanling is not a good person.

Xue Wanjun robbed a girl from Gaochang, but did Hou Junji do the same?
Li Chengqian knew the answer in his heart: robbed it.

The emperor should also know this.

(End of this chapter)