Li Shimin, one emperor through the ages

Chapter 42
10
After the establishment of the Tang Dynasty, the King of Qin Li Shimin personally led the expedition to crusade against those heroes who dared to compete with the Tang Dynasty.In just six years, the wise and mighty King Li Shimin of Qin almost wiped out them all one by one.Now, Yang Wengan, the governor of Qingzhou, is forced by the situation to raise troops, so he is naturally no match for the King of Qin.Before Li Shimin arrived in Qingzhou, Yang Wenqian's army was already in chaos.It should be said that Yang Wengan is capable, perhaps not worse than Li Shimin.But in terms of prestige, it cannot be compared with King Qin.Yang Wenqian's generals heard that the invincible King Qin led the attack, and they no longer had the courage and guts to fight.Everyone rushed forward, killed Yang Wenqian, and opened the gate of Qingzhou to welcome Li Shimin's army.

This was the most effortless counter-insurgency since Li Shimin led the army, and he had expected it first.Therefore, he not only asked his eldest grandson Wuji, Du Ruhui, and Fang Xuanling to follow him, but also brought along his eldest grandson Wangfei who he liked and respected so much.Li Shimin took them and was stationed in Qingzhou City under the welcome of Yang Wengan's generals and soldiers.Yang Wenqian is a competent governor. Although his governor's mansion is not luxurious, it gives people a majestic, clean and tidy feeling.Li Shimin authorized Changsun Wuji, Du Ruhui, and Fang Xuanling to deal with the rebels who surrendered, and the resettlement of Qingzhou official history, and other related matters.He himself took time out of his busy schedule to be accompanied by Princess Changsun, walked around the Dudu Mansion, and then came to the inner room where Yang Wenqian used to rest.

Li Shimin sat down opposite his beloved woman, and the attendant poured tea. They sipped carefully, looked at each other affectionately, and glanced at the new environment from time to time.I saw that apart from being as clean and tidy as the outside, several sets of calligraphy and paintings by famous artists and an exquisite guzheng added a lot of elegant charm to the room.

"I didn't expect to go out to suppress the rebellion. Is it like this?" Changsun said with a bright smile, looking at Li Shimin.

"Yes, that's it."

"Not fake?"

"No fake."

"Is that so, are you being heartless?"

"How do you say that?"

"The battle is so relaxing and comfortable, but you leave your concubine at home alone, guarding the vacant room, worrying about you, and crying for you."

"You are really ruthless, and you can't understand your husband."

"Where did you say that?"

"You clearly know that war has always been about slaughter and blood... I am too lazy to talk about it."

"The concubine thanks you and admires you."

"Where did this start?"

"I thank you for your kindness and righteousness. I admire you for knowing yourself and the enemy." Changsun stood up, walked to Li Shimin's side, stroked his shoulders, and pressed his face against his.

"Be clear." Li Shimin gently urged, stroking his delicate hand like a jade shoot.

"Given this chance, you don't forget to bring your concubines with you. This is of course a kindness and righteousness to your concubines; you already know that this expedition will not require any effort. This is naturally a way of knowing yourself and your enemy."

"My beloved concubine, I can't hide everything from you." Li Shimin said, wrapping his arms around Changsun's waist, and hugging her in his arms.He kisses her passionately, she responds even more passionately, they hold each other, and soon both are demanding more.Thus, the noble Qin King, like all strong men, gently hugged his beloved woman, strode towards the couch, and put her down gently.When both of them were naked, no one could recognize who was the all-powerful King Qin, nor who was the noble and intelligent princess.They are just a pair of young men and women, taking a break from their busy schedule, doing the most interesting things between men and women with great affection.On one side of them is a strong man with a strong body and a good mood, and on the other side is a young woman who is healthy and very interesting, like a green dragon and rain, spring flowers and dew, once, again, again.When they don't seem to be tired, they are still in love, and the rain splashes on the flower core.When they fell asleep, the sun that had set in the west yesterday had long been guarding the sky in Gyeongju.With his prestige, King Qin won a bloodless war; with his wisdom, King Qin could make himself so happy on the battlefield.The happy life in this world may only exist among the wise.

Wake up, noble King Qin!This strong man finally woke up!He opened his eyes, and saw Changsun's pure moon-like face, her long eyelashes raised upwards, and her dark eyes looking at him affectionately.He couldn't help but open his strong arms again and hug her tightly.

"It's already noon, Du Ruhui and the others have been waiting outside for a long time."

"Ah, a good night is like a dream, it is fleeting. I wish I could give up all the worldly things and just be with you and us."

"Even if you really have such a heart, King Qin, General Tiance, Situ, Daxingtai Shangshuling, Pushe, my husband, you have so many official titles, which one is not the highest authority and authority in the world?" The most important thing? The great responsibility weighs on you, so how can you just stay by my side and do common people's things?! Go, I don't blame you, I'm just proud of you, proud of you, Happy for you!"

"However, I am still too wronged, too wronged, to let you stay alone in an empty room for a long time, for..."

Changsun stretched out her jade hand and covered Li Shimin's mouth: "Don't repeat what my concubine said. In fact, you also know: those words are just my concubine's intention to provoke you."

"However, they are telling the truth."

"No, when you're not here, I'm happy thinking about you. It's a blessing for a woman to stand behind a great man, pray for him, and bless him. I'm already content."

"Thank you."

Changsun pursed her lips and smiled: "Go quickly, your minister is waiting for you." After finishing speaking, she was busy arranging the clothes of Li Shimin who got up, and wanted to send him out affectionately.

But Li Shimin grabbed Changsun's jade hand, stared at her and said, "Let them wait a little longer, I have something to ask you."

"Whatever you say, the concubine must know everything."

"Tell me, who is the closest to a person in this world?"

"For a man, the closest relatives should be his parents."

"and then?"

"Brother or friend."

"Brother or friend?"

"It depends."

"Depending on what kind of situation?"

"For example, who is more selfless to him, and who is more beneficial to his career."

"Well said, I know what to do."

"But, I don't want to see you fighting with the elder brother...the crown prince."

"Have to fight?"

"You are the concubine's husband. No matter what you do, the concubine can only support you and support you. Because for women, the husband is the closest person."

"Better than a woman's parents."

"Yes, although parents give birth to a daughter, it is her husband who a woman gets along day and night all her life; a woman's honor, disgrace, wealth and poverty can only be determined by her husband; a woman's happiness or misfortune is firstly due to Her husband, and then her parents and her brothers and sisters. In this way, the husband will naturally become the closest person to a woman,"

"Thank you."

"It's the second time you've said thank you today, and I hope you don't say it for the third time. What I want to hear is that you say you like me."

"This king remembers, this king knows what to do. I have to go see my minister. I... like you." After Li Shimin finished speaking, he smiled at Changsun, turned and strode away.

The Changsun family happily chased after him, and said to King Qin's back:

"I like you too."

1
Changsun Wuji, Du Ruhui, Fang Xuanling, they are all so talented, it is easy to deal with the surrender of generals and the placement of officials in Gyeongju.Qin Wang just had a good time with his concubine for more than ten hours, and all the affairs in Qingzhou have been taken care of clearly by these three capable ministers.When Li Shimin came out and saw three triumphant faces, he didn't want to ask.Changsun Wuji and the other three saw their King Qin, but they were not in a hurry to speak, and only looked at their commander gently and provocatively.

"You guys, what's the matter?" King Qin finally couldn't resist the eyes of the three of them, so he could only pretend to be majestic and asked: "Is everything done?"

"Almost." Changsun Wuji replied honestly.

"Almost? It's almost here, why don't you come back after finishing everything?"

"because……"

"Because of what?"

"Because there are some things that need to be decided by King Qin."

"What, I didn't say anything, all the placement of generals and officials will be decided by the three of you."

"However, the three of us have disagreements on the candidate for the post of governor."

"What's the difference, tell me the reasons for each."

After Changsun Wuji heard this, he turned his attention to Du Ruhui and Fang Xuanling: "You guys talk first."

Both Fang Xuanling and Du Ruhui shook their heads: "It's better for Lord Hou to speak first."

When Changsun Wuji saw him, he had no choice but to say: "I think Tian Yunyong would be the best governor of Qingzhou. He has followed King Qin for many years, is loyal to King Qin, and is full of talent, but he has been idle in the mansion. This is a rare There is a position like the governor of Qingzhou that the king of Qin chooses, so it's not a good time for a cronie like Tian Yunyong to take this position."

After hearing this, Li Shimin didn't show any reaction on his face, he only turned his attention to Du Ruhui and Fang Xuanling.I saw the two of them looking at each other, urging each other to speak with their eyes.Fang Xuanling couldn't resist Du Ruhui's calmness in the end, and said:

"What the two of us mean is this. Qingzhou is certainly a part of the world. It is natural to have Tian Yunyong, a close friend of King Qin, as the governor. However, the emperor's eyes are so sharp. Right now, he is watching King Qin's every move, especially for the governor of Qingzhou. How can he not have his ideas in the arrangement of positions? So the ministers and Du Ruhui thought that the King of Qin might as well appoint Zhang Shuwan to take up the position of governor of Qingzhou. This Shuwan is the cousin of the Emperor Zhang Aifei and has nothing to do with the King of Qin. If this person is appointed as the governor of Qingzhou, the emperor will definitely be more satisfied with King Qin."

After hearing this, Li Shimin nodded and said, "On this matter, the two of you are far-sighted, and what you said is very reasonable. Brother Wuji, I think it will be carried out in this way."

"According to King Qin's order." Changsun Wuji replied respectfully.

"Okay, let's do this." Li Shimin looked at the three of them and gave the order decisively.Then he slowed down and said:
"It's just that I want to tell you now that my father is only temporarily angry with the crown prince, but he is not satisfied with this king. He will also not be satisfied if I don't have a close friend as the governor of Qingzhou."

Seeing the surprised expressions of the three honored ministers, Li Shimin continued: "Before the conquest of Yang Wengan, I had a long talk with my father, and I deeply felt that my father did not return troops against the order of the siege of Luoyang. Still brooding in my heart."

"But, it's all for the great Tang Dynasty." Changsun Wuji said.

"Imperial power is as great as the sky, and the majesty of the emperor cannot be violated!" Li Shimin said: "This king thinks that this is precisely the limitation of the emperor, and it is also the sorrow of the emperor. The king can allow him to offend, even if it is disobedience to Longyan." At this point, Li Shimin suddenly felt a little slip of the tongue, and hurriedly explained:
"This king is just an analogy."

"What the King of Qin said is very true. If my Great Tang Dynasty can be succeeded by a wise man like King Qin who puts the world first, has a broad mind, and accepts all rivers and rivers, it will be a blessing for all people and a blessing for my subjects!" Fang Xuanling looked at Li Shimin and said.

Li Shimin's heart moved when he heard this, but he immediately calmed down, smiled slightly, stared at Fang Xuanling and said, "Don't talk about this matter again, now that my father is not satisfied with both of my brothers, what should we do next?"

"In Yichen's opinion, the emperor is wise and decisive, and can take a long-term view in everything. Now that this is the case, the King of Qin only needs to calm down and move still. In the matter of the prince's private recruiting of soldiers, he can no longer attack. It is best to stand in front of the emperor for him." He said a few good words to show the brotherhood, so that the emperor can feel the love and righteousness of King Qin."

"What do you think?" King Qin turned his gaze to Du Ruhui.

"I completely agree with Xuanling's opinion. I think that the emperor has the same feelings for the crown prince and the king of Qin. What the emperor wants to see most now is that the king of Qin and the crown prince can put the brotherhood as the most important thing, put aside the past, and live in harmony Therefore, no matter who is the first to provoke the brotherhood, the emperor will take the blame. This time, the prince recruited soldiers privately. The emperor could not believe that he was planning to rebel, but he was very clear that he was aiming at the growing prestige of King Qin. The prestige of King Qin It was because of King Qin's outstanding military exploits that the prince recruited soldiers privately for this purpose, and it was the prince who provoked a dispute between brothers. The prince has already lost this move. If the emperor forgives him this time, the king of Qin will also forgive him this time, even in the The emperor went to intercede for him, to be consistent with the emperor. However, the king of Qin should try his best to use this opportunity to further eradicate the power of the prince, so that he can't steal chickens and lose a handful of rice."

"What method of eradication? Who should be eradicated first? Please tell me clearly, sir." Li Shimin listened carefully to Du Ruhui's words, and urged him to continue speaking.

"The minister interrogated several of Yang Wengan's generals, and they all said that Wang Gui and Wei Ting often came here to have secret talks with Yang Wengan. Wang Gui and Wei Ting are both the crown prince's think tank and the prince's very trusted confidantes. The two of them, It is like the left and right arms of the prince. To get rid of them, you can lose the vitality of the prince."

After hearing this, Li Shimin nodded repeatedly and said, "Okay, this is how to handle this matter. Sir, you can go and call the generals under Yang Wengan to go to Beijing with us. When the time comes, I will see the emperor and let them handle this by themselves." The facts are clear. Wang Gui and Wei Ting are the crown prince’s scapegoats, and our hard work is not in vain. It’s a long way! Qingzhou, spend so much effort to suppress the rebellion..." Speaking of this, Li Shimin himself I couldn't help laughing out loud.Changsun Wuji, Fang Xuanling, and Du Ruhui also laughed.

11
"The Canglong is still raining at dusk, and the old tree is still growing in the deep spring." Although Li Yuan is close to sixty years old, if he doesn't have such troubles in front of him, he can make a good fortune, especially after waking up in the morning, he often doesn't Let Zhang Concubine or Yin Concubine or other concubine next to him be disappointed.However, when he opened his eyes now, the person shaking in front of his eyes was either the prince in the iron stone house, or the king of Qin who was triumphantly going to conquer the rebellion.

From Li Yuan's point of view, although the crown prince annoyed him, King Qin did not let him worry.In the past, since the king of Qin could violate his imperial edict and continue to besiege Luoyang; now, of course, he can also violate his will and replace him with the prince.If so, things are terrible.Although Li Yuan already had such a premonition, he still didn't want to believe it.Li Yuan wanted to find out further what his Erlang was planning.With these questions in his mind, he didn't even look at the peerless beauty around him, got up by himself, put on his clothes, walked out of the inner room, walked through the thousand corridors, and came to the imperial study:
"Hurry up, Yin Kaishan, Minister of Xuanshi Department, come to see me." He waved his hand to Chang Shi, then sat in front of the desk, put his hands on the desk, raised his head, closed his eyes and meditated.

He heard hurried footsteps, and just as he was guessing who was coming, he heard the attendant's announcement:

"King Qi is here."

King Qi!What is Li Yuanji here for?Li Yuan was a little unhappy.Li Yuan didn't like the fourth son he had with Dou's.Compared with his older brothers, this King Qi is not only lacking in ability, but what makes Li Yuan look down on him the most is that this son seldom has the demeanor of his Li family who is not afraid of danger.In the early years when he was asked to stay in Taiyuan, when the enemy soldiers arrived, he actually tricked Sima Dewei to lead the old, weak and remnant soldiers to stay behind to defend the city, but he himself led the elite soldiers to abandon his general and his subjects, and quietly fled back to the capital.Later, during the battle against Xue Rengao, Li Yuanji once again abandoned his subordinates and fled back to Chang'an City... Such a son, where is the descendant of the Li family?Li Yuan couldn't help shaking his head when he thought of Li Yuanji.

Following the announcement, Li Yuanji came to his father.He looked at Li Yuan puzzled, wondering why he closed his eyes and shook his head.

"I will see my father." Li Yuanji knelt down on the ground.

"It's King Qi, why did you come to see me so early in the morning?" Li Yuan asked, still too lazy to open his eyes.

"I heard that the crown prince was imprisoned, so I came to beg my father, and I allowed my son to see him. He is Erchen's elder brother, and also my father's son. Even if there is any mistake, I ask my father to forgive him. "

When Li Yuan heard this, his heart felt hot.He opened his eyes and looked at Li Yuanji quietly.Seeing Shiro uncomfortable, he said slowly:

"Do you know what crime the prince committed?"

"My son heard that he defied his father's sage and recruited soldiers privately."

"Can such a crime be forgiven?"

"Can't forgive, just..."

"Just what?"

"I still beg my father to forgive the prince this time. If the prince commits another crime, I would like to be punished together with the prince."

Li Yuan suddenly opened his eyes wide, looking at the son he didn't like very much in surprise.At this moment, with just such a sentence, Li Yuan's heart was actually touched.His eyes also moistened, and he asked gently:
"King Qi, why are you doing this?"

"The crown prince is my brother. If the prince is punished alone, my son will not be happy."

Li Yuan nodded and wiped his eyes.He didn't want his son to see that even the high emperor would shed tears.

"I want to ask you, who do you like more, the Crown Prince or the King of Qin?"

"Prince." King Qi blurted out.

"why?"

"Because the crown prince never underestimated his ministers, the King of Qin has always looked down on his ministers."

"You go." Li Yuan lowered his head and waved his hands: "I allow you to go and see the crown prince."

"My son thanked the royal father."

"You have to persuade him well, from now on, don't let such a thing happen again. And you, in the future, you must not disobey my will in anything you do."

"My son obeys the order. My son and the prince will definitely not disobey the emperor's will in the future."

"Go." Li Yuan waved his hand again, lost in thought.

King Qin is certainly brave.But the crown prince and King Qi are more obedient to me.It seems that the prince should be forgiven, let him go back to Chang'an, and be his prince!Thinking of this, Li Yuan suddenly felt much more relaxed, and shouted:
"Xuan Xiangguo Pei Ji!"

11
Pei Ji came in, looked at Li Yuan worriedly, only to see that he was sitting calmly behind the desk, and then quietly heaved a sigh of relief.Pei Ji knew that for the emperor to be able to do this, he must have had an opinion on how to deal with the prince's affairs, and he had definitely forgiven the prince.So, after the ceremony of the monarch and ministers, he lowered his head slightly, and stood respectfully in front of Li Yuan, waiting for Li Yuan's holy metaphor.

"Go and make arrangements, I want to return to Chang'an immediately." Li Yuan said.

"Of order!" Pei Ji replied meekly, looking up at Li Yuan.The meaning of that gaze is very clear: what else do you have to explain?The monarch and his ministers have been friends for so many years, and many things are very understandable to each other.Li Yuan naturally knew the meaning of Pei Ji's gaze, so he stared into his gaze and asked slowly:

"How should we deal with the matter of the prince?"

"The minister is waiting for the emperor's holy metaphor."

"I want to hear your opinion."

"For the matter of the prince, we can only listen to the emperor's holy words."

"Or let him go back to Chang'an and continue to be his prince?"

"My minister obeys."

(End of this chapter)