My father, Li Shimin, requests Your Majesty to become the Retired Emperor.

When Consort Yan said such things in front of Li Shimin, her intentions were actually quite malicious.

Her purpose was clear: to use this opportunity to discredit Li Chenggan.

Upon hearing Consort Yan's words, Li Shimin frowned: "My beloved consort, do you have any evidence to support your claim that Li Chengqian is plotting a rebellion?"

Consort Yan took out a handkerchief and wiped away her tears: "Your Majesty, I am not one to gossip."

I am merely stating the facts.

As far as I know, Li Chengqian has been secretly committing many treacherous acts.

"Oh, what exactly did he do?"

For example:

Firstly, he privately recruited so many troops within the territory of Gaochang;

Secondly, he betrothed Princess Hengyang to Ashina She'er in order to win people's hearts and minds, thereby making Ashina She'er loyal to him and thus gain control of a portion of the army;

Thirdly, under the pretext of attacking the Western Regions, he frequently mobilized his troops.

He not only transferred troops from Tibet, but also mobilized the army of Prince Li Ke of Chu.

Isn't this a violation of the imperial court's rules?

That is why Fang Xuanling submitted a memorial to His Majesty requesting the execution of Li Chengqian.

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin felt that Consort Yan's words were not entirely without merit: "I already know all of this, is there anything else?"

Do you still remember Chengxin?

"Isn't that the Joyful Boy?"

"Yes."

"Didn't I already order Li Chengqian to banish him to another region and never allow him to enter Chang'an again?"

Consort Yan sneered: "Your Majesty, you are truly a straightforward person."

Let me tell you,

Chengxin never left Chang'an.

He remained in the vicinity of Chang'an, and they even established a secret organization called Lijingmen.

"Satisfaction is the rule of Lijing Gate."

"Lijingmen? What does that organization do?"

"They specialize in tasks such as investigation, arrest, assassination, and fabricating charges against their opponents. They are extremely loyal to Li Chenggan."

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin's eyebrows shot up: "My beloved concubine, is what you're saying true?"

"Of course it's true, how could I dare to deceive Your Majesty?"

If you don't believe me, you can send someone to investigate.

Seeing that Consort Yan spoke with such certainty, Li Shimin knew that Consort Yan would not deceive him.

For some reason, Li Shimin had a very bad impression of Chengxin, thinking him to be a monster, a man who was neither human nor ghost, neither male nor female.

How dare a servant sit on equal footing with the crown prince and sleep in the same bed? What kind of decorum is this? Isn't this chaos?

If this gets out, wouldn't it be a disgrace to the Tang Dynasty?

Confucius said that rites and laws are the most important things in the world, and that there must be an order of seniority and hierarchy.

In addition, Li Shimin was also very disgusted with the secret organizations run by Li Chenggan.

Li Shimin wondered what Li Chenggan's purpose was in doing all this.

What is it that cannot be made public? Why do things that can't be shown to the public?

Li Shimin's anger was instantly ignited.

Consort Yan parted her lips slightly and continued, "Not only that, Li Chengqian also had an affair with Wei Lingfu, a Taoist priest from Huisheng Temple."

Wei Lingfu was skilled at using sorcery and unorthodox methods to bewitch the crown prince.

The Crown Prince is hanging out with people like Wei Lingfu all the time; he's bound to get into trouble sooner or later.

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin slammed his fist on the table: "Those Taoist priests are truly hateful!"

Consort Yan further fanned the flames: "It's not just me saying something alarmist, it's..."

Those Taoist priests and sorcerers are most skilled at bewitching people's hearts.

in those days,

Xu Fu, Lu Sheng, and others swindled hundreds of millions of dollars from Qin Shi Huang.

Was the demise of the Qin Dynasty unrelated to those alchemists?

During the reign of Emperor Wu of Han,

Luan Da actually married the princess by using his magical powers.

Fortunately, Emperor Wu of Han realized the error of his ways in time and had Luan Da executed.

Your Majesty, you mustn't follow in the footsteps of Qin Shi Huang!

Ever since Xu Fu tricked many young boys and girls, warships, and a large amount of gold and silver treasures into going to sea to search for immortals, Qin has been completely drained of its resources.

You must learn from Emperor Wu of Han and decisively execute those sorcerers.

"Only by keeping the Crown Prince away from them can our Great Tang Dynasty have any hope."

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin was so angry that the veins on his forehead bulged.

He paced back and forth in the hall with his hands behind his back.

suddenly,

He stopped and called out towards the door, "Someone come here!"

At this moment, a guard walked in from outside and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, please give your orders."

"Go immediately and summon Chang He, the commander of the Imperial Guards, to me."

"promise!"

The guard agreed and turned to leave.

Not long,

Chang He arrived, knelt on the ground, and shouted, "Long live the Emperor!"

Li Shimin looked down at him: "Get up!"

"Thank you, Long Live!"

After Chang He stood up, he bowed to Consort Yan again, and then stood aside with his hands at his sides.

Consort Yan, however, ignored him.

Chang He felt a burning sensation on his face:

"I wonder what Your Majesty's orders are in summoning me here?"

Li Shimin stared intently at Chang He: "Let me ask you, is Chengxin still in Chang'an?"

Chang He's head was buzzing when he heard this, because he knew that Li Shimin disliked Chengxin very much, and he didn't know why Li Shimin would bring up Chengxin again at this moment.

Chang He paused for a moment, then said, "This humble general does not know!"

"I'll ask you again, do you know about the secret organization called Lijingmen that Li Chengqian set up outside Chang'an?"

"This humble general doesn't know either."

"Does Li Chenggan often hang out with a Taoist priest named Wei Lingfu?"

"This humble general also has no idea!"

Li Shimin was so angry that his face turned green. He pointed at Chang He and said, "You don't know this, you don't know that, what do you know?"

"Is all you do at home all day, sleeping with your white peony?"

Upon hearing this, Consort Yan chuckled beside her: "I never would have guessed that General Chang is such a romantic person."

Chang He blushed.

Seeing that Li Shimin was angry, he was so frightened that sweat beaded on his forehead: "Your Majesty, I truly do not know anything about what you just said."

In my humble opinion, the Crown Prince is unlikely to associate with those people.

However, on the other hand, even if the Crown Prince were with them, it wouldn't be a big deal.

"What do you know? Those Taoist priests spend all day studying unorthodox methods and sorcery to bewitch the prince."

As the saying goes, "One who stays near vermilion gets stained red, and one who stays near ink gets stained black." If the Crown Prince spends too much time with them, how can he not run into trouble?

"However, the Crown Prince is not in Chang'an at the moment; he has already gone to Naniwa-zu."

"It is precisely because Li Chengqian is not in Chang'an that I must thoroughly investigate this matter."

If this is true, Chengxin, Wei Lingfu, and the others must be executed to uphold the law!

Chang He saw that Li Shimin was truly desperate and was about to unleash a massacre.

Chang He also realized the seriousness of the problem. If this matter was not handled properly, he would not only lose his official position, but he might also lose his head.

Thinking of this, Chang He cleared his throat and said, "Your Majesty, please rest assured, this matter will be handled by this humble general."

"I'm giving you three days to thoroughly investigate this matter."

If Chengxin and Wei Lingfu are still in Chang'an, they must be arrested and brought to justice.

"Understood, sir!"

Chang He agreed, then turned to look at Consort Yan, a smug look on his face.

Chang He thought that this woman must be behind it all, otherwise His Majesty wouldn't be so angry.

After leaving Consort Yan's palace, Chang He went to the military training ground.

He mobilized two thousand imperial guards, and then summoned Su Gui.

He put his arm around Su Gui's shoulder and recounted to her what Li Shimin had just said.

Su Gui was quite surprised to hear this.

Su Gui wondered how the Emperor could know about such a secret matter.

It seems the Emperor is paying close attention to the Crown Prince's every move.

Chang He said to Su Gui, "I'm handing over these two thousand Imperial Guards to you. Go and capture Chengxin and Wei Lingfu for me."

The Emperor was very concerned about these two men and wanted them beheaded.

Chang He did this by using a clever trick.

He thought to himself that he couldn't just go and arrest Chengxin and Wei Lingfu directly.

If he did that, Li Chengan would definitely come after him when he returned.

Let Su Gui handle this matter; that way, I can shirk responsibility.

Su Gui was also in a difficult position.

He thought to himself that Chengxin and Wei Lingfu were both capable subordinates of the Crown Prince.

If I were to attack them, wouldn't the Crown Prince cause me trouble when he returns?

Thinking of this, Su Gui quickly declined, saying, "General, I have other urgent matters to attend to. You should ask someone else to handle it."

"What's so important?"

"An accident has occurred at the Huainan coal mine. A cave-in has killed several people. It's urgent, and I need to go there to handle it."

After saying this, Su Gui turned to leave.

Unexpectedly, Chang He grabbed his hand: "My good brother, you can't pull back the ladder now."

I'm counting on you for this.

As for the matter at the Huainan coal mine, let Du Zhenglun handle it.

Anyway, he's got nothing better to do.

Seeing that Chang He insisted on handling the matter himself, Su Gui felt it inappropriate to refuse.

He thought for a moment and said, "Okay, I'll do my best."

but,

Whether Chengxin and Wei Lingfu are in Chang'an, and whether they can be caught, is uncertain.

If I mess this up, you can't blame me.

Upon hearing this, Chang He thought to himself that Su Gui had become cunning and shrewd.

"Good brother, just do it, don't worry about anything else."

Even if you fail to catch Chengxin and Weilingfu, I won't blame you.

then,

Su Gui led 2000 imperial guards in a thorough search inside and outside Chang'an.

The people of Chang'an, unaware of what had happened, closed their doors and windows, causing widespread panic.

It was around four in the morning.

Fang Xuanling's residence.

Li Tai visited Fang Xuanling with lavish gifts.

Fang Xuanling didn't stand on ceremony and accepted everything.

Fang Xuanling and Li Tai entered the hall and took their seats as host and guest, respectively.

Fang Xuanling glanced at Li Tai, stroking his beard, and said, "Prince Yue, it's so late. What brings you here?"

Li Tai wiped the sweat from his forehead with his robe sleeve and took a long time to catch his breath.

He has gained a lot of weight, now approaching 400 pounds, and he gets out of breath after walking just a few steps.

"Your Excellency, Li Chenggan and Songtsen Gampo recently visited Nanbojin. I believe this is a golden opportunity. What should we do?"

Li Tai made no attempt to hide anything and went straight to the point.

After listening, Fang Xuanling shook his head: "If you do that, wouldn't it be taking advantage of someone in distress?"

Upon hearing this, Li Tai blushed and said, "Your Excellency, it was difficult for us to make a move when Li Chengqian was in Chang'an."

Now that he's not in Chang'an, isn't this a perfect opportunity for us to strike?

At that moment, Fang Yi'ai poured a bowl of green tea for Li Tai and Fang Xuanling each.

Fang Xuanling picked up his teacup and gently blew on the tea leaves floating on it: "Last time, I told you to take a roundabout route and cultivate good relations with the concubines in the palace..."

How did you handle this matter?

"After hearing what you said that time, I also felt that it was a very good idea."

After I returned, I first visited Princess Yang, the wife of Prince Chao, and now I have also reached an agreement with Consort Yan.

"Oh, what agreement did you two reach?"

"Consort Yan said she was willing to do everything she could to help us if I could become the Crown Prince and successfully ascend the throne in the future,"

I hope that her son, Li Zhen, can be made King of Yue, which is the position I hold now.

"So, have you agreed?"

"I agreed."

Upon hearing this, Fang Xuanling gently placed the teacup in his hand on the table: "King Yue, as the saying goes, a promise is worth a thousand pieces of gold. A great man cannot stand without integrity."

I think you agreed to this a bit hastily. You should have discussed it with me before giving a reply.

You should know that you currently have 22 states under your rule, and if you add the state that the Tanguts surrendered, that makes 23 states.

If you successfully become the crown prince and emperor in the future, do you really want to hand over 23 prefectures to Li Zhen?

As far as this old minister knows, Li Zhen is no ordinary person.

He was a man of both literary and military talent.

He is one of the best among your father's many sons.

If you really hand over twenty-three states to him

Then he becomes your new competitor.

Why did you do this?

To everyone's surprise, Li Tai dismissed the question with a cold laugh: "Your Excellency, the Grand Secretary..."

There's a saying: "Talk is cheap, action is another matter."

Let's use Consort Yan's help for now, and then when I become emperor...

Does she still dare to challenge me?

Upon hearing this, Fang Xuanling frowned and said, "Prince Yue, if you don't keep your word, this matter will be difficult to handle in the future."

Where is your authority?

Li Tai waved his hand: "I've already agreed to this matter, there's no point in saying more."

"Alright, so what is Consort Yan's attitude?"

"She has already said that she will do her best to help us."

but,

Tonight, she did something that's giving me a real headache.

"Oh, what is it?"

"She went to the Lizheng Hall and started arguing with my mother, which actually made my mother faint."

"What? Such a thing?" Fang Xuanling was furious upon hearing this. "It seems that woman is more trouble than she's worth."

How could she do that?

Your mother's health isn't very good to begin with. What if you upset her and cause her illness?

"I told Consort Yan the same thing, but she didn't think so."

She said her son Li Xiao was cursed to death by her mother and Xu Hui.

Even if she argued with the Empress Dowager, what difference would it make?

"This woman is insane!"

Didn't the imperial physician explain it very clearly?

Li Xiao's death had nothing to do with your mother, the Empress Dowager, or Consort Xu. Why was she so impulsive?

At this moment, Fang Yi'ai interjected, "Prince Yue, since your mother has fainted from anger, why didn't you go to the Lizheng Palace to see her, but instead came here?"

"Uh." Li Tai choked.

Fang Xuanling glanced at Fang Yi'ai and thought to himself, "You're such a fool."

Li Tai stood up, put his hands behind his back, and paced back and forth in the hall: "Your Excellency, let's not talk about that now."

Let's think about how we can bring down Li Chenggan.

At this point, Li Tai made no attempt to conceal his views.

Fang Xuanling sighed: "I understand your feelings."

but,

Bringing Li Chenggan down will not be so easy.

The last time Li Chengqian led his troops to lift the siege of Chang'an was an excellent opportunity.

Therefore,

Your humble servant requests before your father that Li Chenggan be executed.

but,

Your father, out of filial piety, couldn't bear to do that, so he simply imprisoned him in the Dali Temple.

Later, your father sent Cheng Yaojin to the Dali Temple to sound out Li Chengqian's opinion.

but,

Clearly, Li Chenggan was a very intelligent person.

He didn't give himself away at all.

So, there was no other way but for your father to release Li Chenggan again.

First, he was made to reflect on his actions in the Eastern Palace, and his freedom was restricted.

Soon after, he was allowed to go on a diplomatic mission to the Wa (Japanese) Kingdom.

This shows that your father still appreciates and trusts Li Chengqian.

even,

Your father also doesn't believe Li Chengqian would rebel.

therefore,

At this moment, bringing down Li Chenggan will not be so easy.

Li Tai became anxious after hearing what Fang Xuanling said.

Li Tai thought to himself that Fang Xuanling was the greatest strategist of the Tang Dynasty.

If even he can't do it, then no one else can either.

But,

Li Tai walked up to Fang Xuanling and knelt down with a thud: "Grand Secretary, please save me."

If we can't bring down Li Chengqian this time...

After he returned from the Wa (Japanese) Kingdom, he performed another great service, which would further solidify his position.

By then, I'm afraid I'll be dead without a proper burial.

Li Tai broke down in tears as he said this.

Fang Yi'ai shook his head repeatedly after reading it: "No matter what, you are a king. How can you cry like a woman? What kind of behavior is that?"

Upon hearing this, Fang Xuanling glared at Fang Yi'ai, who shrank back in fright and fell silent.

Fang Xuanling stood up and helped Li Tai up with both hands: "Prince Yue, things haven't developed to that point yet, you don't need to be so nervous, there are still ways."

"Oh, Your Excellency, you've come up with a solution?" Li Tai groaned for a long time before getting up from the ground, his face flushed and his neck thick, feeling his blood pressure rising.

"Yes."

Li Tai sat down in a chair, wiped the sweat, tears, and snot from his face with his sleeve, and hurriedly asked, "Your Excellency, what plan have you come up with?"

With his hands tucked into his sleeves, Fang Xuanling spoke slowly and deliberately: "To bring down Li Chenggan, we must find his weakness."

Do you know which people your father most opposes Li Chengqian associating with?

Li Tai stroked his large head, thought for a moment, and said, "Once, Chengxin and Li Chenggan ate and lived together."

The emperor was furious and wanted to kill Chengxin.

Li Chengan pleaded for Chengxin's life, and only then did the emperor spare Chengxin.

However, Li Chengqian ordered Chengxin to be exiled to a distant place, and without the imperial decree, Chengxin was never to return to Chang'an.

"So, did Li Chengqian really do that?"

Li Tai shook his head: "I am not aware of this matter yet."

Fang Xuanling smiled slightly: "So-called human relationships and worldly wisdom are all knowledge."

Although the old minister did not see it

However, according to the analysis of the veteran officials, Chengxin will not leave Chang'an.

"Oh, are you serious?"

"That's certainly true."

"The two of them are like fish and water."

Chengxin cannot do without Li Chenggan, and Li Chenggan cannot do without Chengxin.

Fang Yi'ai interjected again: "Who doesn't know that Chengxin is Li Chengqian's male favorite?"

"A male concubine? Is that even possible?"

Fang Xuanling slowly paced back and forth: "This is not surprising; there are many such cases in history."

Think at the beginning,

Emperor Gaozu of Han, Emperor Wen of Han, and even Emperor Wu of Han all had male favorites.

These emperors not only liked beautiful women, but also handsome men.

This kind of thing is immoral and shameful; it can't be brought to light.

but,

Li Chenggan insisted on doing this, which was his own death.

Therefore, we should make a big deal out of this matter.

On the one hand, he allowed those concubines to speak ill of Li Chengqian in front of your father, the Emperor, all day long.

At first, your father might not listen, but in time he will definitely listen.

Back then, because Consort Li refused the marriage proposal between Chen Ajiao and Liu Rong,

Princess Guantao harbored resentment.

She spoke ill of Consort Li in front of Emperor Jing of Han all day long.

At first, Emperor Jing of Han didn't quite believe it either, thinking that Consort Li wasn't that kind of woman.

It turns out that

Princess Guantao's words to Emperor Jing of Han had an effect.

finally,

Emperor Jing of Han made up his mind and deposed Consort Li and Crown Prince Liu Rong.

Therefore,

Those concubines carry considerable weight in the Emperor's eyes; you must not underestimate them.

If Princess Chao and Consort Yan speak ill of Li Chengqian in front of your father all day long,

Over time,

Your father will listen to you.

This is great news for you.

Upon hearing this, Li Tai's expression softened slightly: "Your Excellency, you are truly a brilliant strategist."

Fang Xuanling waved his hand: "This is nothing. Once you understand the ways of the world, you will gradually become invincible."

Three Kingdoms period

Cao Cao had many strategists under his command, one of whom was named Jia Xu.

someone said,

Zhuge Liang and Sima Yi were the most intelligent people during the Three Kingdoms period.

but,

In my humble opinion, Jia Xu is the most intelligent.

"Oh, why is that?"

"Because Jia Xu was adept at interpersonal relationships and had a keen understanding of people's hearts."

He was worldly-wise and insightful, and his judgments were always accurate. He lived to be over 70 and died peacefully in his sleep, which was a very good ending.

Looking back at Yang Xiu, Kong Rong, Xun Yu, and Cui Yan, they were all foolish men who thought themselves clever, and ultimately, they were all killed by Cao Cao.

Upon hearing this, Li Tai seemed to understand something, his eyes shining: "You're absolutely right. According to you, Jia Xu is still the most powerful."

Fang Xuanling nodded: "Yes, Jia Xu is so remarkable not because of anything else, but because he can see through people's hearts and understand human relationships."

Even veteran officials can't compare; therefore, you should learn from Jia Xu.

"Your Excellency, you are too modest. Aren't you the foremost strategist of the Tang Dynasty? How could you possibly be inferior to Jia Xu?"

"When it comes to coming up with ideas and offering suggestions, this old minister is barely qualified."

However, this old minister is greedy and has not yet seen through the allure of fame and fortune.

My sons are all useless; it's hard to say what the future holds for our Fang family."

Li Tai quickly comforted him, "Don't think like that. With Xiao Wang around, I guarantee that your Fang family will prosper for generations to come."

Fang Xuanling looked at Li Tai and said, "That would be best. I hope you won't forget what you said today."

"Definitely not."

Fang Xuanling nodded slightly: "You shouldn't always talk back to your father and mother."

As far as this old minister knows, Chengxin has not only not left Chang'an...

Moreover, he and Wei Lingfu jointly established an organization called Lijingmen.

They recruited some Turks and orphans and trained them.

"Turks?" Li Tai was surprised.

"Yes."

"My father was most opposed to the Turks and once ordered all the Turks in Chang'an to be expelled."

That time, they almost ousted Ashina She'er as well.

"It would be great if Ashina She'er could really be driven out."

Now, Ashina She'er has become Li Chengqian's right-hand man.

Upon hearing this, Li Tai thought to himself that Li Chengqian was really lucky. He wondered why so many capable people were willing to serve him.

"Is this message reliable?"

"Very reliable."

How do you know?

Fang Yi'ai took a step forward: "King Yue, you don't need to worry, what my father said is true."

On one occasion,

I went to the south of the city to find Qiu Tianjiao.

They happened to discover Chengxin and Wei Lingfu by chance.

Upon hearing Fang Yi'ai's words, Fang Xuanling glared at him fiercely, thinking to himself, "You good-for-nothing! Why are you going to see Qiu Tianjiao again?"

Why do you just blurt things out like that?

At this point, Fang Yi'ai realized that he had let something slip and shouldn't have mentioned Qiu Tianjiao.

Princess Gaoyang was already his wife. Even though they had not yet consummated their marriage, he was now the son-in-law of the Tang Dynasty. How could he possibly be involved with Qiu Tianjiao?

Fortunately, Li Tai didn't care much about these things.

What he cared about were Chengxin and Wei Lingfu: "So, Chengxin really didn't leave Chang'an?"

"That's absolutely true," Fang Yi'ai said with certainty.

Li Tai clapped his hands together: "That's great! It seems that heaven wants us to achieve something great."

"Alright then, Fang Yi'ai, you and Changsun Chong will lead several hundred servants to the south of the city to capture Chengxin and Wei Lingfu, what do you say?"

"It's good, but I was injured by that brat Qin Ying last time, so I'm afraid I might not be a match for them." Fang Yi'ai said, his face showing difficulty.

Upon hearing this, Li Tai glanced at Fang Xuanling, as if to say, "What should we do if Fang Yi'ai declines?"

Fang Xuanling pondered for a moment: "Since the King of Yue has asked you to do it, then do it. Why all the nonsense?"

"I understand."

Fang Yi'ai listened to his father's words and quickly agreed.

Those Turks were tall, strong, and robust; they were no ordinary people.

"I've remembered it."

Fang Yi'ai agreed and turned to leave.

"Wait!"

Fang Xuanling called him back again.

Fang Yi'ai stopped and turned around to ask, "Father, is there anything else you need?"

"Su Gui is still in the city; he's one of Li Chengqian's men."

If Su Gui gets there before us, things will get complicated.

Fang Yiai smiled: "That kid Su Gui is just a greenhorn, nothing to be afraid of."

Last time, didn't I trick him into going to a restaurant, get him drunk, and then remove his token?

This time,

I still managed to trick him.

"Learn from your mistakes. Last time, Su Gui was able to fall for your trick because he wasn't on guard."

This time, however, things might be different.

"Father, don't worry. I know Su Gui's abilities better than anyone else."

Seeing Fang Yi'ai's confident tone, Li Tai said, "After the matter is accomplished, I will certainly reward you handsomely!"

"Thank you, King of Yue!"

After Fang Yi'ai finished speaking, he left happily.