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

Chapter 246: Beat up Li Tai! The triple conspiracy has been launched! [Seeking monthly votes]

It is well known that the main reason why the Five Surnames and Seven Families can form a united front is that they intermarry with each other and form a huge community of interests.

The people respected him as the leader, and officials also highly respected the Five Surnames and Seven Aspects.

This made them appear very arrogant when facing the Li Tang Dynasty.

It was also for this reason that Li Shimin began to use meritorious ministers, people from the Tian Ce Palace and the Qin Wang Palace after he ascended the throne.

But Li Tang's empire was too vast, so vast that even the people from the noble ministers, Tian Ce Palace, and Qin Wang Palace combined were not enough.

There was no other way, Li Shimin could only select talents through the imperial examination.

The vigorous promotion of the imperial examination system played into the hands of the Five Surnames and Seven Aristocrats, allowing their family members to spread throughout the court and the country, leading to rapid expansion.

Even if you are not in a high position, you can still have a promising future.

So, how did Li Chengqian use the Dang Renhong case against them?
First of all, as mentioned earlier, after Li Shimin ascended the throne, he pursued the "Guanzhong-based policy", which means he valued his own people.

And Dang Renhong was precisely Li Shimin's direct descendant.

Now that Dang Renhong had committed a crime, Li Shimin, in order to protect him, even went so far as to pray to God to spare his life in front of all the civil and military officials in the court.

This shows how much Li Shimin valued Dang Renhong.

However, it was precisely because Li Shimin valued Dang Renhong that Li Chengqian was able to use Dang Renhong to plot against the Five Surnames and Seven Families.

Because only by killing Dang Renhong can those people from the Five Surnames and Seven Families who colluded with him die.

After all, all of Li Shimin’s direct descendants were killed, so who do you think you are?

So, this is actually an open conspiracy.

But it's not over yet.

As mentioned earlier, the five surnames and seven families formed an unbreakable community of interests through intermarriage.

So, facing the deaths of the Qinghe Cui family, the Fanyang Lu family, and the Zhaojun Li family, how should the other families respond?

Should I try my best to protect them, or would I rather die than let my friends die?
If you try your best to protect them, you will have to spend a lot of money, and even implicate your own family. If you don't protect them, the community of interests of the five surnames and seven families will be directly broken.

This is another open conspiracy.

These two conspiracies were closely linked to each other, and even Cui Renshi, who was as steady as a rock and full of strategies before, was caught in a dilemma.

Just when Cui Renshi was in a dilemma, the voice of the fat boy Li Tai rang out crisply.

But he suddenly said, "Your Majesty, I remember the laws of the Tang Dynasty. There is an 'Eight Discussions' system for meritorious officials, namely, discussion of relatives, discussion of past ties, discussion of virtue, discussion of ability, discussion of merit, discussion of nobility, discussion of diligence, and discussion of guests. If they meet the 'Discuss Merit' clause, their sentence can be reduced or the death penalty can be spared!"

"I have heard what the Emperor said and feel that Dang Renhong and his family have made great contributions to the Tang Dynasty. Dang Renhong is also a meritorious official of the Tang Dynasty and should be considered for 'discussing merit'!"

"in addition."

Having said this, he paused, then glanced at Cui Renshi and the others with a smile, and continued, "Although the Qinghe Cui family, the Fanyang Lu family, and the Zhaojun Li family are extremely evil, it is not necessary to implicate the entire family. Executing the culprit will serve as a warning to others."

Wow!
The whole place was in an uproar!

When the ministers heard what the fat boy Li Tai said, it was like throwing a huge stone into a calm lake, causing huge waves.

Even Li Shimin did not expect that the little fat man Li Tai would stand up at this time.

And his advice was so unexpected.

Even Cui Renshi and others had their eyes light up, and they felt enlightened and their thoughts became clear.

"That's right! Your Highness the King of Yue is right! I also think Dang Renhong meets the criteria for 'discussing merits'!"

Wang Gui was the first to stand up and bowed in agreement.

"His Majesty!"

At this time, Lu Chengqing also stood up and said sincerely: "My Fanyang Lu family has produced unfilial descendants. It is my Fanyang Lu family who failed to educate them well. They really deserve to die."

"However, to show our loyalty to the Tang Dynasty, I, the Fanyang Lu family, would like to donate 100,000 dan of grain on behalf of the Fanyang Lu family to provide relief to the disaster victims in Hebei Province."

"Your Majesty! I, the Cui family of Qinghe, am also willing to provide an additional 100,000 shi of grain."

"Your Majesty, the Li family of Zhao Commandery also wishes to do so."

Immediately afterwards, the officials from the other aristocratic families, except Cui Renshi, also stood up and said, "We second the motion!"

"This"

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin couldn't help but look hesitant.

Although he really wanted to pardon Dang Renhong, he actually knew something about Li Chengqian's plan, otherwise he would not have let Li Chengqian handle the Dang Renhong case.

Moreover, this was also one of the conditions for Li Chengqian to "hand over the imperial seal."

But the fat guy's interference caused Li Chengqian's original plan to deviate, making him a little hesitant now. Should he continue to cooperate with Li Chengqian to complete the plan?

After all, Dang Renhong's family is really miserable!

Do we really have to sacrifice Dang Renhong in order to suppress the aristocratic families?
Can't we change our strategy?

Thinking of this, Li Shimin subconsciously looked at Li Chengqian's face.

There was no expression on Li Chengqian's face, but Li Yuan next to him was looking at Li Tai with anger.

However, as the "warrior" just said, Li Yuan has already abdicated, and he is the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty.

Moreover, Fang Xuanling and Zhangsun Wuji also said that the entire Tang Dynasty belongs to him alone, so why should he suffer?

Therefore, Li Yuan’s attitude will not have any impact on Li Shimin.

He calmed down his emotions, gathered his mind, and then slowly stood up from the ground. He glanced at the ministers below and said:

"Dang Renhong is indeed a meritorious official of the Tang Dynasty, and he also meets the criteria for 'discussing merits'. However, he actually disregarded the laws of the country and did whatever he wanted. As an official appointed by the court, he brought disaster to the people and deserved death."

Having said this, he glanced at Wei Zheng, then at the twenty-eight ministers who had stood up, and continued, "Now many ministers believe that he deserves the death penalty. I believe that what they have said is absolutely appropriate."

"but."

Then he changed the subject and continued, "Dang Renhong is already seventy years old and doesn't have many years left to live. I still want to ask you to spare his life!"

Even though Wei Zheng had told him countless times that as an emperor he should be selfless, and even though he knew that his plea for Dang Renhong would ruin Li Chengqian's plan, as a flesh-and-blood person, Li Shimin was very frank and his mind was full of personal feelings.

Seeing that Li Shimin had made up his mind to protect Dang Renhong, Cui Renshi finally felt relieved. He was the last one to step forward and said, "Your Majesty, even if it doesn't meet the criteria for 'discussing merits,' according to Tang law, Dang Renhong is over seventy years old and should not be sentenced to death."

"Ok?"

Li Shimin was slightly stunned, then turned to look at Dai Zhou, the Minister of Dali Temple.

Dai Zhou frowned deeply, but finally gave a sincere answer: "The laws of our Tang Dynasty do have provisions for reducing or exempting the punishment for those over seventy, the elderly, the young, the sick or the disabled."

Li Shimin was delighted when he heard this. Since he had the Tang Dynasty law as a basis, he could not be considered partial to his own interests and perverted the law. So he made a decision with peace of mind: "Then punish Dang Renhong according to the national law and dismiss him."

"Report——!"

Before Li Shimin could even say "pardon" Dang Renhong, a voice came from the Chrysanthemum Terrace: "Your Majesty, the commander of the Eastern Palace's Left Guard, Su Dingfang, has returned with the witness from the polo field case. Your Highness, please interrogate him privately before making a final decision!"

Wow!
The whole place was in an uproar again!

Everyone couldn't help but turn their eyes to Li Chengqian.

Li Chengqian looked at Li Shimin calmly and indifferently, and said word by word:
"Laws are what the ruler has received from Heaven. They cannot be violated for personal gain. Your Majesty, now that you favor your own party and wish to pardon them, you are disrupting the laws and betraying Heaven."

"Your Majesty has violated the law and is ashamed of Heaven. As the crown prince, I do not want to discourage the meritorious officials. Therefore, on Your Majesty's behalf, I will spread a straw mat in the suburbs and eat a vegetarian diet for three days to apologize to Heaven."

After saying this, he walked straight towards the fat boy Li Tai, raised his hand and slapped him without saying a word.

"Snapped!"

Li Tai was hit so hard that he spun around in circles, with stars in his eyes.

Then, he flew into a rage: "How dare you hit me!!"

After saying that, he instantly turned his head and looked at Li Shimin: "Father."

"shut up!"

Li Chengqian suddenly shouted, shocking Li Tai. He then said in a resounding voice, "As a prince, you don't think about sharing your father's worries. This is your first crime. You knew your father didn't know how to judge people, but you didn't persuade him. This is your second crime. Your father violated the law for personal gain, but you didn't stop him. This is your third crime. You didn't reward your father for his good deeds and punish his evil deeds, but you didn't understand. This is your fourth crime."

"Oh!"

After saying that, he kicked the fat boy in the stomach again. Although the kick was only half powerful, it still sent the fat boy flying more than a meter away. Then he shouted angrily, "You are guilty of four crimes together. You are unworthy of being a son!"

boom!
The whole audience was shocked!

It was chaos, total chaos, the situation was so chaotic that it was almost out of control.

Even the envoys from various countries who were watching the whole show were stunned by this scene.

They never expected that the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty would be so fierce.

He cursed the emperor and beat his younger brother, the prince.

It's so fierce!

At this moment, even Murong Shun, who had always been against Li Chengqian, had to admire Li Chengqian's dominance.

He is also a brother!
He doesn't have the courage and guts to treat his father and his younger brother, the crown prince.

Princess Sakura's beautiful eyes were filled with shimmering emotions, as if she had just gotten to know the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty all over again. She felt her whole body trembling, and her legs were clamped together, as if she was about to awaken something.

"Prince!"

Li Shimin saw Li Tai being kicked away by Li Chengqian and now lying on the ground, his life or death unknown. His anger showed signs of becoming unbearable. He said in a loud voice, "Don't be so presumptuous!"

"Your Majesty, you say I am presumptuous?"

Li Chengqian's expression grew solemn, and he said gravely, "I am the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty. Who is so presumptuous as to act in front of envoys from various countries and the entire court?"

"Qingque is just a prince. What qualifications does he have to interfere in the affairs of the imperial court?"

"If it weren't for His Majesty's favor, he wouldn't even be qualified to attend the banquet. He should be punished in the Zongzheng Temple now, right?"

"you!"

Li Shimin opened his mouth, but hesitated to speak.

Because what Li Chengqian said was all true, he couldn't refute it at all.

Moreover, he himself had made the mistake first, so how could he have the nerve to defend Li Tai? Li Chengqian walked up to Li Tai again, lifted him up like a chicken, and said coldly, "For the four crimes he just committed, I will strip him of his princely title. It's all his fault!"

"What!?"

Li Tai, who had been pretending to be unconscious, woke up instantly when he heard that Li Chengqian was going to strip him of his title.

He couldn't help but feel an indescribable sense of grievance in his heart.

In front of all the ministers, envoys from various countries, and under the noses of his father, the emperor, and his mother, the queen, the crown prince and his brother actually dared to punch and kick him, and even threatened to depose him?
This is such a great shame and humiliation for myself!
"woooooo"

The little fat boy's mentality collapsed instantly and he couldn't help crying.

At this moment, he wished he could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

He was the King of Yue, who controlled twenty-two fiefdoms and had the support of powerful families. He was a strong contender for the throne, yet he was humiliated in such an occasion?

This is worse than killing him!

Li Shimin knew he was in the wrong and stopped looking at him, but Li Yuan looked at him with great interest, thinking that they were both his grandsons, so why were there such big differences?
Originally, this action was intended to deal with the aristocratic families, but you actually stood with them. Isn't this a betrayal?
Your grandfather, your father, your brother, and the world that our Li Tang fought so hard to conquer are nothing in the eyes of others. How can you not even understand this?
Also, you are guilty already, and you don't know how to keep a low profile. Instead, you jump out and make trouble again and again. Who else should I hit if not you?
You should also thank your royal brother for not being too harsh on you, otherwise you would have been skinned alive if not killed.

Alas, my foolish grandson!
Li Yuan sighed and shook his head.

Li Chengqian narrowed his eyes again: "You still dare to cry?"

"Chengqian!"

Just as Li Chengqian was about to teach Li Tai a lesson, Empress Zhangsun shook her head repeatedly with tears in her eyes, and then said almost pleadingly: "Your brother is still young and ignorant, please forgive him!"

"Humph!"

Li Chengqian snorted coldly, but said nothing more. He then casually put Li Tai down without even looking at Li Shimin. As he walked away, he said, "My fellow ministers, don't think that the law is no longer important because of this incident. If my father makes any more mistakes, you must speak frankly and not hide anything."

After saying this, he turned his head to look at Wei Zheng, Du Ruhui, and the twenty-eight ministers who had stood up, then looked at Cui Renshi, Wang Gui, and all the officials from the aristocratic families, and said solemnly: "I hope that you officials will handle the upcoming polo field case impartially and not let personal interests harm the public interest again!"

"This"

Wei Zheng, who was about to stand up and criticize Li Shimin, swallowed his words when he heard what Li Chengqian said.

The twenty-eight ministers who stood up did not understand why Li Chengqian said that, but they remained silent out of tact.

As for Cui Renshi, Wang Gui and others, when they saw Li Chengqian accusing Li Shimin to his face, punching and kicking Li Tai, and then saying such words to them, the stones that had originally fallen were instantly suspended again, and they had a vague bad premonition.

However, after Li Chengqian said this, he did not say anything more and hurriedly left the banquet hall.

Li Shimin and his ministers were left standing there at a loss.

At the same time, Su Dingfang had handed the woman in green skirt over to the imperial physician Zhen Liyan.

But Zhen Liyan was helpless in the face of the injuries of the woman in green skirt and kept shaking his head.

He stroked his beard and said, "I've never seen the kind of injuries this woman has suffered before. I really don't know how to treat her!"

"No, Imperial Physician, her injury was a gunshot wound. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince once said that gunshot wounds are easy to treat. Just take out the bullet, disinfect and suture it, and take anti-inflammatory drugs. As long as it is not a fatal injury, most of them can be healed!" Su Dingfang became anxious when he heard this and spoke quickly.

Upon hearing this, Zhen Liyan was so angry that he almost pulled out his beard. He sneered, "What does the prince know about medicine? Sterilization and suturing? It's just nonsense!"

As he spoke, he raised his finger and pointed at the woman's wound, and said angrily: "She is injured like this, and her internal organs are broken. If she hadn't taken the life-extending elixir you mentioned, she would have died long ago!"

"Do you think the prince is a god? He can even save this!"

"I"

Su Dingfang was so refuted that his face turned red and he was speechless for a while.

But with the mentality of 'try everything possible', he said in a flattering manner: "Old doctor, why don't you take another look? Even if you can't save her life, at least let her live a little longer!"

"I've already said no! She's already as good as dead, there's no way to save her!"

Zhen Liyan waved his hand impatiently to interrupt Su Dingfang, then was about to leave with the medicine box.

At this moment, Li Chengqian hurried in from outside: "Dingfang, what's the situation!?"

"This"

Su Dingfang hesitated for a moment, then looked at Zhen Liyan helplessly, and said with a face full of shame: "Your Highness, please forgive me. I have messed up."

"Oh?"

Li Chengqian raised his eyebrows, then quickly walked over to the woman in the green dress, frowning and asking, "What's going on?"

"Prince, the matter is..."

Soon, Su Dingfang told Li Chengqian the whole story.

Li Chengqian was stunned for a moment before finally realizing what was going on: "So that's how it is. I was wondering why all the carriages of the civil and military officials had her scent. Turns out she has accomplices!"

"Your Highness, what you're saying is that they knew we were going to investigate their carriage, so they deliberately exposed themselves to trap us and then killed us to silence us?"

"That's how it should be!"

Li Chengqian nodded and said, "Also, I suspect they are colluding with the four Tuyuhun states. I'm afraid it's not that simple. They might even be suspected of treason!"

"Damn it! These guys deserve to die!"

Su Dingfang said as he clenched his fists.

Li Chengqian raised his hand and patted his arm, saying, "Calm down, everything is under my control. They have no way out!"

"Oh? Your Highness, could it be..."

"Hey, the triple conspiracy has been activated!"

Li Chengqian smiled slyly, then suddenly seemed to remember something. He glanced at the woman in the green dress and asked, "Is this female assassin really beyond saving?"

"Yes, that's what Doctor Zhen said. Alas, it's all my fault."

"Actually, you don't have to blame yourself. Given the situation at the time, shooting was the best option. However, you don't have to trust that stubborn old man too much. His medical skills are actually average!"

"Really? From what His Royal Highness said, it seems there's a way to cure this woman?"

As soon as Li Chengqian finished speaking, a voice with a hint of resentment and indignation suddenly came from beside him.

"Who?!"

Li Chengqian was startled and looked in the direction of the voice, exclaiming, "Who are you?!"

Zhen Liyan: “.”

Zhen Liyan: "I am the stubborn old man with mediocre medical skills that you mentioned!"

"Uh"

Li Chengqian's mouth twitched.

He was in a hurry when he rushed in just now and did not notice that there was someone at the door.

However, now was not the time to argue with this stubborn old man. Instead, he changed the subject and said, "Doctor Zhen, do you have any way to wake her up? I have a few questions for her!"

"This"

Zhen Liyan looked hesitant.

In fact, he knew that Li Chengqian was knowledgeable in medicine, but Li Chengqian had teased him last time, which made him a little unhappy.

But Li Chengqian was the crown prince after all, and even if he was unhappy, he didn't dare to quit his job.

Moreover, judging from the conversation between Li Chengqian and the others just now, this woman should be involved in a major case, so he didn't dare to refuse Li Chengqian like he refused Su Dingfang.

However, the old man was almost a hundred years old and was not afraid of death, so he stiffened his neck and said, "The Crown Prince just insulted me and now wants me to do something. How can this be justified? Even if it is Your Majesty,..."

"Alright! I'll apologize and tell you what high blood pressure is! Is that all right?"

Before Zhen Liyan could finish his words, Li Chengqian interrupted him.

"Is this true?"

"You have no joke!"

Zhen Liyan's eyes flashed, and he immediately became interested.

Because the last time Li Chengqian showed off in front of him, he was really depressed.

Especially the "high blood pressure" that Li Chengqian mentioned, he looked through all the medical books but couldn't find it, which made him doubt several times whether he was not well-trained.

Therefore, he has always been resentful towards Li Chengqian.

However, the fact that Li Chengqian took the initiative to submit to him also gave him a way out. Naturally, he would no longer rely on his seniority and confuse the emperor with his subjects.

But he said confidently: "I know a little bit about acupuncture! It won't be difficult to wake her up!"

"Then let her wake up quickly!" Li Chengqian said impatiently.

But Zhen Liyan stopped him: "Your Highness, please wait a moment! If you use the golden needle acupuncture method, her life will be gone very quickly!"

"How soon is soon?"

"At least a quarter of an hour, at most half an hour!"

"This"

Li Chengqian hesitated for a moment, then made a decisive decision: "Half an hour is enough!"

"No, I mean many."

"Alright, alright, stop talking nonsense and just fuck me!"

Li Chengqian impatiently interrupted what Zhen Liyan wanted to say and almost pushed him in front of the woman in the green dress.

Soon, Zhen Liyan took out a golden needle and pierced the top of the head of the woman in the green dress.

"Shh!"

In just a moment, the woman in green skirt sat up in shock from her dying illness.

Good guy!
This old man is really capable!

When Li Chengqian saw this scene, he was stunned.

　Don't say I'm dragging the plot, because there are many foreshadowings that need to be explained, starting from the next chapter to finalize it! A total of four chapters of climax plot! In addition, please vote, please vote, please vote

　　
　
(End of this chapter)