Datang: Just been appointed as the crown prince, the counterattack system is here

Chapter 101 We don’t seem to be very popular! [Seeking monthly votes]

Li Chengqian and his crew's large ship finally arrived in Jiangling.

Although he missed the perfect opportunity to kill Wu Zetian.

But by accident, he completed the system task and obtained the sweet potato vine.

This was definitely a pleasant surprise for Li Chengqian, and it made his originally depressed mood improve a lot.

however.

Ma Zhou's words made his mood, which had been improving, become a little bad again.

But then Ma Zhou said, "Sir, we don't seem to be very popular!"

"How to say?"

Li Chengqian raised his eyebrows.

Ma Zhou looked around the Jiangling Ferry and said thoughtfully:
"When we were still in Nanyang, we sent someone to notify Jiangling Prefecture, but now, look at this ferry, there's not even a single person to greet us. Isn't that strange?"

"Yeah, damn it!"

Du Caigan slapped his thigh as if realizing what was happening. "If you hadn't told me, I wouldn't have realized how bold those officials in Jiangling are. How dare they refuse to welcome us?!"

"Could it be that something delayed him?" Cen Wenben pondered.

Li Chengqian smiled: "It's okay if it's early or late, but it happened just when we arrived. What a coincidence, isn't it?"

As he said that, he turned his head and looked at Li Yuan: "Grandpa, do you think it's a coincidence?"

"Coincidence! What a coincidence!"

Li Yuan sneered and echoed, then looked back at Li Chengqian: "What are you going to do?"

Li Chengqian thought for a moment, then pulled out a jade talisman from his bosom and handed it to Cen Wenben: "Mr. Cen, take my jade talisman and invite all the officials of Jiangling Prefecture, both big and small, and the local nobles to come to the post station."

"Remember, don't say anything extra, just say I'm inviting them to discuss important matters!"

"Yes!"

Cen Wenben took the jade contract and left without saying a word.

"Sir, why are you so polite to them? Why don't we go directly to Jiangling Prefecture and bring troops to hold them accountable?" Du Caigan asked with some confusion.

"Haven't you heard the saying, 'A powerful dragon can't defeat a local snake.' Do you think we can't stay here right after we get here?"

"This"

Du Caigan hesitated for a moment, then turned to look at Li Yuan.

But Li Yuan said calmly: "The water in Jiangling is indeed very deep."

"Yes! I hope that Mr. Cen's visit will allow us to clearly see who the enemy is and who can be won over."

Li Chengqian smiled.

Jiangling was the seat of Jingzhou.

During the reign of Emperor Suzong of Tang, Jingzhou was designated as the Southern Capital and renamed Jiangling Prefecture.

Those who are familiar with the Three Kingdoms period know that there were two wars in Jingzhou during the Three Kingdoms period that changed the course of history.

Therefore, Jingzhou’s important strategic position in history is self-evident.

Even in the Tang Dynasty, Jingzhou's important strategic position remained unchanged.

First of all, in terms of geographical location, Jingzhou is bordered by Bashu to the west, Xiangyang and the Han River to the north, and the Yangtze River and Wu to the east.

As for the south, it is the Guangdong and Guangxi regions.

If a warlord occupied Jingzhou, he would be able to take care of these four places at the same time.
For example, Bashu, Guangdong and Guangxi, Wu, and Jingzhou itself.

These four places are all precious lands that can be used to establish a presence.

Xiangyang was the only way for the northern regime to move south.

From a strategic point of view, as long as Jingzhou is firmly controlled, one can overlook the surrounding areas.

Another thing is the superior geographical location.

The southeastern part is divided by the Greater Khingan Range to the Miaoling Range. The southeastern part is plain, while the northwestern part is mountainous.

Jingzhou is located on the dividing line and in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. It can curb the downstream while intercepting the upstream.

Therefore.

During the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, the Grand Commander of Jingzhou was established, which not only enabled the emperor to firmly control the Yangtze River, but also indirectly control nearby strategic locations.

Therefore, the Grand Commander of Jingzhou was an extremely important position, and almost everything south of the Yangtze River was under his control.

Of course, there was no position of Grand Commander of Jingzhou during the Zhenguan period, only the position of Governor of Jingzhou.

Although the powers of the Jingzhou Governor are obviously much smaller than those of the Jingzhou Grand Governor, he is also the highest military commander of a state.

When Li Chengqian came to Jiangling this time, he had the power to dispatch officials of all ranks in Jiangling, but it did not include military power.

"Has the Crown Prince arrived in Jiangling?"

In Jiangling Mansion, three middle-aged men were chatting and laughing.

After Cen Wenben revealed his identity by holding the Prince's Jade Contract, the middle-aged man sitting in the main seat pretended to be surprised.

He was the highest military commander in Jingzhou, the governor of Jingzhou, Zhang Ping.

"Yes, the prince asked me to come to Jiangling Prefecture to inform all the officials and local nobles in Jiangling Prefecture to come to the post station to discuss important matters!" Cen Wenben nodded with a smile.

Zhang Ping frowned slightly, then picked up the teacup on the table, blew on the hot water, and said calmly, "Please tell the Crown Prince, Lord Cen, that I am not feeling well and am afraid I cannot go. I will send someone to pay my respects later!"

Hearing this, the smile on Cen Wenben's face froze instantly, and then slowly relaxed.

Before coming, he thought the officials of Jiangling Prefecture were delayed by something. Later, after hearing the conversation between Li Chengqian and Li Yuan, he realized that the matter was not that simple. So, facing this situation, he was mentally prepared.

Then, he set his eyes on another middle-aged man and said with a smile, "Prefect Pei, are you feeling unwell too?"

"I"

Jingzhou Governor Pei Xuan glanced at Zhang Ping, a hint of hesitation. But then, as if remembering something, he changed the subject, saying, "How can the Crown Prince stay at an inn? I have prepared excellent lodgings for him. Please, Lord Cen, inform him to come to the provincial capital and stay there."

"hehe."

Cen Wenben smiled, and without asking the third middle-aged man, he bowed and said, "I will tell His Royal Highness the Crown Prince the truth."

After saying that, he turned and left without any hesitation.

"and many more!"

The middle-aged man who was ignored by him called out to Cen Wenben when he was about to leave.

Cen Wenben paused, then said solemnly, "What else?"

"It's nothing, just ask Lord Cen to inform the Crown Prince that the local nobles can't go, but they will send someone to pay their respects!"

"Humph!"

Cen Wenben snorted coldly, and left without saying anything more.

The three middle-aged men who watched them leave looked at each other and burst into laughter.

"No, what on earth was your Majesty thinking? Letting a young prince come to Jiangling and give us orders?" Zhang Ping said sarcastically after laughing.

Pei Xuan was also somewhat puzzled and said, "Honestly, I'm increasingly confused by His Majesty. Does he really want to take power back? Not only did he mess up the official assessment process, but he also appointed a new crown prince."

"That's ridiculous! He's probably in an illegitimate position, and he's afraid we'll all rebel against him!"

Another middle-aged man, the head of the Cai family, the most powerful family in Jiangling, said with disdain, "This is a guilty conscience!"

"If it weren't for the precedent of Luo Yi, what would have happened if I had rebelled against him? Unfortunately, now is not the right time."

As he spoke, Zhang Ping glanced at the two of them and said solemnly, "Nowadays, almost all the officials in Jiangling come from our families. If he knows what's good for him, we can keep our distance. If he doesn't, don't even think about staying in Jiangling!"

"That's right. No one should dare to step on our heads. Li Er is nothing but a usurper! Does he think that if he sends a prince here, we will recognize him as the prince?"

"But I still can't figure out why he let the prince come to Jiangling? Is there some other purpose?"

"It must be a food issue. I heard that a lot of disaster victims have poured into Guanzhong recently. I'm afraid Chang'an will have trouble making ends meet. Hahahaha," Zhang Ping laughed.

Pei Xuan and Patriarch Cai also laughed at the same time.

"We all have official business on our hands, and we haven't rebelled. Even if he is the crown prince, he can't do anything to us. If he really doesn't know what's good for him, we can create some trouble for him and see if Li Shimin wants a son or stability in the region!"

"Oh, by the way, we still have to arrange the arrangements for the prince properly. Don't accuse us of neglecting the prince and giving him something to use against us!"

"Hahaha, it's a pity that he's too young, otherwise, I would have arranged for him to have a few beauties!"

"Beauty, he doesn't have that ability, why not send him to my room and let me take his place"

"Hey, it's easy to talk!"

Running all day.

It was almost evening when Cen Wenben came running back with a dark face.

As soon as he entered the house, he complained to Li Chengqian and Li Yuan, "Master, there's not a single good person in the entire Jiangling Prefecture!"

He came from a prominent family in the south of the Yangtze River, loved reading, and had a polite scholarly air in his bones.

Even if he is angry, he will not lose the cultivation of a scholar.

Now, I don’t know what kind of embarrassment he has encountered that can make him so angry.

"Mr. Cen, you've worked hard. Come, sit down and have a cup of tea!"

Li Chengqian expressed deep sympathy for Cen Wenben's situation and quickly poured him a cup of tea.

"No, sir, you don't know how hateful those people are!"

Cen Wenben did not sit down to drink tea, but instead told Li Chengqian about his experiences in indignation.

He didn't sit down angrily until his mouth was dry and he drank the cup of tea.

"Haha, with this information, we can investigate privately and basically determine our future direction. Mr. Cen's trip is indispensable!"

After listening to Cen Wenben's story, Li Chengqian smiled and comforted him.

In fact, when Cen Wenben went to Jiangling Prefecture, Li Chengqian asked Ma Zhou to learn about the situation in Jiangling Prefecture from the post station chief.

The officials of Jiangling Prefecture are basically from the four major families in Jingzhou.

Pei Xuan, the governor of Jiangling, was a relative of Pei Ji, so naturally he did not get along with Emperor Li II.

As for Zhang Ping, the governor of Jingzhou, although he did not have much hatred towards His Majesty Li II, he did not have much favor towards him either. He was Xu Shao's son-in-law.

And Xu Shao was Li Jing's great benefactor.

Therefore, Zhang Ping’s ability to become the governor of Jingzhou had a lot to do with Li Jing.

Naturally, he would not sell out to Emperor Li II.

Add to that the four powerful families in Jingzhou, and the situation becomes even more complicated.

In short, the water in Jiangling is extremely deep.

Thinking of this, Li Chengqian turned his head to look at Li Yuan and smiled slyly: "Grandpa?"

"Fuck!" Li Yuan said concisely.

　【Seeking monthly tickets, recommendation tickets, follow-up subscriptions, full subscriptions】

　　
　
(End of this chapter)