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

Chapter 251 From now on, what does the aristocratic family have to do with our Tang Dynasty? [Monthly Ticket Bonus]

In the early morning, the mist in Chang'an had not yet dissipated. The reeds on the riverbank had lost their green color, and the silver-gray ears hung beside the bluestone, like old pen curtains with tassels.

A few clumps of wild chrysanthemums struggled out from the cracks in the rocks. The yellow stamens were condensed with dew, and when pushed by the wind, they rustled and fell like broken jade all over the clothes.

But no one noticed that both the reed ears and the wild chrysanthemums were covered with a light pink layer, and even the air was filled with a faint fishy smell.

I’m afraid that no citizen of Chang’an doesn’t know what happened last night.

Especially during the period when Li Tang dominated the world, Chang'an City experienced so many upheavals, big and small, that one could not count them on one's hands.

The events that impressed the people of Chang'an the most were the one in the ninth year of Wude, the one in the first year of Zhenguan, and the current one.

Compared to the first time when there was a lot of shouting and killing, the next two times were also very noisy, but there were very few shouts and killing sounds.

This led to a strange illusion among the people of Chang'an: the greater the noise, the less dangerous it was.

Therefore, many people in Chang'an fell asleep unknowingly in the second half of the night due to fear.

It was not until the next morning when he woke up from his sleep that he subconsciously touched his head and body, and found that he was not separated from his body. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief as if he had survived a disaster.

The capital is so big that it is not easy to live in it.

"Crench!"

In the West Market of Chang'an, a thin shop assistant's hands were shaking as he pushed open the window.

It was just dawn outside and the night watchman's stick hadn't sounded for three hours. The boss urged the waiter to check the situation outside.

He stayed awake all night guarding the door, while the boss slept soundly all night.

At this time, he was sleepy and scared, and did not dare to make any extra sound.

Suddenly, the beggar squatting in the corner said, "Are you awake?" He was so frightened that he almost lost his soul. He couldn't help but hold his chest and cursed: "Damn Sanjin! Are you a rat?"

"hey-hey."

The beggar grinned, sniffed lightly, winked and said, "Aqi, do you smell anything?"

"What is the taste?"

The man wrinkled his nose suspiciously, his expression changing: "Where does the fishy smell come from?"

"It should be coming from the Wei River." The beggar raised his hand and pointed in the direction of the Wei River, saying with lingering fear, "The noise last night was even louder than the fireworks in the Spring Festival Palace. It kept going in waves. If it weren't for those people in golden armor guarding it, I would have gone to the corner of the city wall to listen."

"Listen to shit!"

The man suddenly growled, grabbed the beggar's tattered clothes, and said viciously, "You'd better not cause any trouble, or else you'll implicate me, or I'll kill you!"

After saying that, he looked around again, adjusted his mood, and continued in a low voice: "Do you think those people wearing golden armor are vegetarians?"

"Ah!"

The beggar scoffed and touched the cold bluestone on the ground. "You kid still think it's the Wude era? Last night at midnight, I saw with my own eyes a group of guards in red armor escorting dozens of prisoners to the palace. Those prisoners' skin was whiter than the white flour in your shop, yet they ended up like this. Tell me, who are they?"

"It doesn't matter to us who it is, just..."

Before he could finish his words, the shop owner's voice came from behind him: "Aqi, what's going on outside? Can we open the shop and do business?"

"Ah? This"

The waiter reacted for a moment, then glanced around and turned back to say, "Manager Zhou, there's still a shop outside that's closed. Should we wait a little longer?"

After he finished speaking, a familiar hawker's voice suddenly rang out from the street corner: "Read the newspaper! The murder of the Crown Prince at the palace banquet of the Five Surnames and Seven Families has been uncovered! The Hebei Province corruption case has been solved!"

"Read the newspaper! The second son of the Wang family in Taiyuan killed someone in the street. His crime is extremely heinous."

"Read the newspaper! Come and read the newspaper!"

Hearing this shout, the shopkeeper Zhou behind the waiter quickly took out a few copper coins and handed them to the waiter, saying, "Qi! Quick, quick, buy a newspaper!"

"Oh, good, good!"

The clerk had just taken the copper coin and was about to call the newsboy when he saw the shopkeeper of the next shop suddenly open the door and yell at the newsboy, "Kid, give me a copy!"

"Give me three!"

"And I!"

The streets of Xishi, which had originally been closed, suddenly became bustling with activity. Many shop owners and employees opened their doors and bought newspapers from the newsboy.

"okay!"

When the newsboy heard the shouting, he ran over happily and handed everyone a newspaper.

Immediately afterwards, the guy named Ah Qi also bought one.

However, before he could pick up the newspaper to check it out, the chubby shopkeeper Zhou behind him grabbed the newspaper at an extremely fast speed.

I saw that the ink on the newspaper was not dry yet, so it must have been printed just now.

However, when Shopkeeper Zhou saw the contents of the newspaper, he was completely stunned, and a hen-like clucking sound came from his throat: "Oh my God, last year during the Laba Festival, Mr. Cui came to our store to drink Laba porridge."

"Boss, you are going to die!"

The waiter quickly said, "The Cui family is the head of the Five Clans and Seven Families. They actually dared to murder the crown prince. This is a heinous crime."

"What do you know!"

Shopkeeper Zhou glared at the waiter angrily and muttered, "There must be some injustice here. The Cui family is a famous and prestigious family. How could they do such a thing?"

Having said that, he ignored the waiter and continued reading the newspaper.

It would have been fine if I hadn't read to the end, but once I did, I was completely numb.

Because the back of the newspaper described in detail how Cui Renshi and others murdered the prince, and even listed all the evil deeds done by those in their family.

Although Manager Zhou still remained skeptical, once the seed of doubt was planted, it was difficult to pull out. Until he took the initiative to verify it, and it took root and sprouted, he would never believe it again.

Similar situations are also happening in other streets.

Many Chang'an residents could not believe this was true when they first saw the newspaper.

But as many details came together, they found that many things they had experienced before, or some things they had heard, were surprisingly similar to what was in the newspaper, and they couldn't help but start to believe what was in the newspaper.

"Damn it! I never thought the Liuzhou Li family was so cruel. I was wondering why my brother suddenly disappeared, but it turns out they took him away to practice archery! Brother! You can finally rest in peace."

"Isn't the Hedong Pei family the big family in our hometown? Their family members actually turned their maids into 'human candles'. This is too inhuman! Fortunately, my sister didn't become their maid."

"Master Zheng of the Zheng family in Xingyang, I saw him giving out porridge before, but I never thought he would take people to Mount Zhongnan to make elixirs!"

"Oh, isn't this the second daughter of the Wang family from Taiyuan, whose family tradition is poetry and literature? She actually has such a hobby! Everyone, come and see! Here's a painting of her riding a wooden donkey!"

"What an insult to society! What a beastly family! I originally wanted to rely on the Lu family to take the imperial examination! Damn them!"

As the newsboys sold more and more newspapers, the contents of the newspapers were like a bamboo pole that lifted the fig leaf of the aristocratic families, revealing all the unknown sides of the aristocratic families to the fullest.

The ordinary people, who used to be full of awe for the aristocratic families, began to despise, hate, and even become disenchanted with them.

Until the sun rose to its highest position and its sunlight filled the entire Chang'an street, the people of Chang'an did not stop discussing the crimes of the aristocratic families.

And at the same time.

The first newspaper of the morning also flew into the official residence in Chang'an City.

Although most of the fifth-rank officials in Chang'an attended the Double Ninth Festival banquet last night, some did not.

For example, Li Gang, the Prince's Junior Tutor.

Because he was quite old, and palace banquets were generally rather complicated, Li Shimin did not allow him to attend.

However, even if he did not participate, the big commotion last night could not be hidden from him.

So the moment he learned that there was a newsboy selling newspapers outside, he asked the housekeeper to buy a newspaper.

At this moment, as soon as the newspaper was handed to him, he couldn't wait to unfold it and take a look.

In the most eye-catching position on the newspaper, there were nine huge characters written in shocking detail: 'The Crown Prince was assassinated, and the five surnames and seven families were executed'.

"This"

The moment he saw these nine big words, Li Gang's cloudy old eyes widened.

Then he picked up the magnifying glass Li Chengqian gave him and carefully examined the contents of the newspaper.

It would have been fine if I hadn't looked at him, but when I did, I saw that his whole body was shaking.

"How could this happen? How could this happen?" He trembled and murmured in disbelief, "How could Patriarch Cui be so confused? Why are they doing this?"

"The Crown Prince is extremely intelligent, a rare sight in ancient times. Why would they plot to assassinate him? Could last night's incident also be related to them?"

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible! The Cui family is a prestigious family, how could they do such a thing? I want to see the prince, I want..."

"master--!"

Just as Li Gang was about to get up and go find Li Chengqian, a voice suddenly came from outside the door, announcing: "Master, Lord Wei Zheng is here!"

"Wei Zheng?"

Li Gang was stunned for a moment, then frowned slightly, thinking, why is he here?

Although he was the one who recommended me to be the Prince's Tutor, I rarely interacted with him. Why would he come to me at this time?
Could it be because of what happened last night?

Thinking of this possibility, Li Gang calmed his mind and calmed his emotions. Then he pressed down his legs that were about to move and sat back down. Then he ordered calmly: "Please invite Lord Wei in!"

"promise!"

There was a response from outside the door, and soon, Wei Zheng came to Li Gang at a leisurely pace.

But Wei Zheng was the first to speak: "Master Li, I apologize for interrupting you!"

"No problem, I'm very happy to have a personal visit from Lord Wei!"

Li Gang stroked his beard, smiled faintly, and then nodded for Wei Zheng to take a seat.

"It seems that Master Li should know what happened last night."

As soon as Wei Zheng sat down, he saw the newspaper on Li Gang's desk and couldn't help but sigh.

Li Gang was stunned for a moment, then asked in surprise and doubt: "So, what happened last night was true?"

"Ok!"

Wei Zheng nodded gravely and said, "I read the contents of the newspaper when I came here. Although some parts are exaggerated, it is basically true."

"But why? Lord Cui and the others..."

"Master Li!"

Before Li Gang could finish his words, Wei Zheng sternly corrected him: "There is no Lord Cui now. There is only the guilty minister Cui Renshi. Even though you are the Prince's Junior Tutor, you must be careful with your words and actions!"

"This"

Li Gang opened his mouth, but hesitated to speak.

But Wei Zheng continued, "I came to see Master Li today to ask if there is anything unusual about the Crown Prince's recent studies with you."

"abnormal?"

Li Gang was stunned for a moment and couldn't help but ask, "What abnormality is Lord Wei referring to?"

"It's hatred towards the aristocratic families!"

Wei Zheng said directly.

Li Gang was startled and said quickly, "You can't talk about this, Lord Wei!"

"I know, but I still want to understand why the Crown Prince harbors such deep resentment towards the aristocratic families. He's only eleven years old, and even if he knows about them, it's mostly from books, not from his personal experience. However, from the time he went to Jiangling until his return to Chang'an, he was constantly plotting against them, even..."

Having said this, Wei Zheng paused and said solemnly, "I even suspect that what happened last night was actually the result of his careful planning."

"Ah? This"

Li Gang was shocked again and was speechless for a moment.

However, thinking back carefully, he did not seem to talk to Li Chengqian about the affairs of the aristocratic families, but rather talked a lot about how to govern the world.

But he said in a deep voice, "Although the prince has never expressed his hatred for the noble families to me, he once said it directly in front of me and Your Majesty. It is the emperor's virtue to kill and frighten the world."

"Oh?" Wei Zheng raised his eyebrows. "Why?"

"The prince once said: The great roc loves its young, and when they grow up, they chase them and don't allow them to return to the nest. The strong ones spread their wings and fly into the sky, while the victorious ones fall to the ground and die. This is how the bones and blood are passed down."

"Is it cruel for the Peng to drive away its own children? If not, how could it have the talent to cry out to the sky? It is the father's sincere love."

"The Emperor establishes his authority through the use of military force, and his desire for peace and harmony under heaven is the same as the Emperor's."

When Wei Zheng heard this, he was startled at first, then revealed a look of disappointment, and said with emotion: "So the prince has such great ambitions. No wonder, no wonder!"

"Yes, when I first heard about the prince's aspirations, I also felt that he was different, so I was happy to teach him."

"but."

At this point, Li Gang changed the subject and continued thoughtfully, "According to my observation, the Crown Prince has always been obsessed with the Xuanwu Gate incident. He asked me many questions about the past between the former Crown Prince and Your Majesty. Although I didn't dare to talk too much, I did tell him a little. Will it have any impact on him?"

"Hard to say."

Wei Zheng shook his head uncertainly and was about to speak when he heard another voice behind him announcing, "Master, the Duke of Zhao, Zhangsun Wuji, and the Minister of the Central Secretariat, Fang Xuanling, are here!"

Li Gang and Wei Zheng were both stunned, and then looked at each other.

It feels like when parents suspect their child has a problem with their studies and come to the teacher one by one.

Although Li Gang served in the same dynasty as Zhangsun Wuji and Fang Xuanling, Li Gang was obviously more familiar with Wei Zheng than Wei Zheng.

Because Li Gang was the teacher of the former crown prince Li Jiancheng, and Wei Zheng was Li Jiancheng's adviser, the two had communicated a lot before the Xuanwu Gate incident and were very familiar with each other.

However, Li Gang was not very familiar with Changsun Wuji and Fang Xuanling, so when he heard that they were coming, Li Gang felt inexplicably nervous.

Wei Zheng seemed to see through his nervousness and said with a smile, "They should also be here for the Crown Prince's matter. Master Li can meet them first."

"Okay."

Li Gang nodded hesitantly, then waved to the servants.

Not long after, Changsun Wuji and Fang Xuanling arrived together.

When they saw Wei Zheng here, they were stunned at first, but then they saw the newspaper on Li Gang's desk and suddenly realized. They looked at each other and smiled bitterly in silence.

"Please take a seat, my lords!"

Li Gang raised his hand to signal, then personally poured them a cup of tea and said with a smile, "This is the Bamboo Leaf Green tea that the Crown Prince sent me in the spring. You two adults, please enjoy it first."

"Bamboo leaf green?"

Zhang Sun Wuji was stunned for a moment, then he laughed at himself and said, "I, your uncle, have never drunk it before. I didn't expect the Crown Prince to give it to the Junior Master!"

As he spoke, he picked up a cup of tea, smelled it, and said with emotion: "It is indeed different from Tuanhuang tea, with a strong bamboo fragrance and an endless aftertaste."

"If Lord Changsun likes it, I have two more jars. You can take them back and enjoy them slowly." Li Gang said with a smile.

Changsun Wuji glanced at him and didn't respond. Instead, he said directly, "Master Li, the prince shouldn't have learned anything he shouldn't have learned from you, right?"

"What do you mean, Lord Changsun?" Li Gang immediately stopped smiling and asked back, looking up.

But then Changsun Wuji snorted coldly, "The Crown Prince has never had such a murderous intent before. Ever since he started learning from you, he's completely changed. If I remember correctly, the former Crown Prince didn't have such a murderous intent either, but later on he agreed to the King of Qi's plan to poison the King of Qin."

"Master Changsun, you are slandering me! I have never taught the Crown Prince anything other than poetry, literature, and etiquette!"

Li Gang felt that he was even more wronged than Dou E. This student had a problem, so why did he not blame the student but the teacher? He even put the blame on the teacher. This was too unreasonable!

However, facing Li Gang's defense, Fang Xuanling questioned him with a serious expression: "Then how do you explain the Crown Prince's murderous intent now? He is only eleven years old. Even if he has been on the battlefield, he has only killed a few people. How could he have the heart to kill tens of thousands of people?!"

"Old man, old man"

Li Gang opened his mouth, but was speechless for a moment.

At this moment, Wei Zheng, who had been silent the entire time, suddenly spoke up again, "I understand your feelings, my Lords, but this matter has nothing to do with Master Li. I believe the Crown Prince's current state has a lot to do with His Majesty."

Changsun Wuji and Fang Xuanling frowned at the same time, then looked at Wei Zheng with burning eyes, quietly waiting for his next words.

Wei Zheng then said thoughtfully, "Do you two know the meaning of 'the power of bows and arrows can intimidate the world'?"

"I suspect that we have all been deceived by His Majesty and the Crown Prince. This Double Ninth Festival banquet may be a murder plot planned by His Majesty and the Crown Prince."

"what!?"

Upon hearing this, Changsun Wuji and Fang Xuanling's pupils suddenly shrank.

Everyone, including Li Gang, was stunned on the spot.

If this Double Ninth Festival banquet was really a murder plot between Li Shimin and his son, then from now on, would it be possible for the Tang Dynasty to give birth to aristocratic families like the "Five Surnames and Seven Families"?
It's basically impossible!
After two generations of bloodbaths by emperors, which aristocratic family could withstand it?!
(End of this chapter)