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

Li Shimin then recounted how Cheng Yaojin faked his death.

Zhang Shigui and Chang He were also deeply saddened upon hearing this.

Zhang Shigui hated Cheng Yaojin so much that his teeth ached from the thought of being ripped off for 10,000 taels of silver.

"I never expected Cheng Yaojin to be so cunning, Your Majesty. You've fallen for his trick."

No one knows a minister better than his ruler.

Li Shimin knew that Cheng Yaojin was indeed different from other ministers, and often did things in unconventional ways.

Li Shimin sighed deeply:

"However, it cannot be said that what he said is unreasonable. Luo Cheng did indeed save my life back then."

"If Luo Cheng hadn't risked his life to save me, I'm afraid I would have been dead long ago."

Zhang Shigui advised, "Your Majesty, you are too soft-hearted. You should know that Luo Yi, the Prince of Beiping, is plotting a rebellion."

Luo Cheng is his son, so he should be implicated and punished. How could he be granted the title of Duke?

Li Shimin waved his hand: "As for the case of Luo Yi's rebellion, the evidence is still insufficient, and we cannot draw a conclusion yet."

Historically, Liu Bang executed his founding ministers, leaving behind a legacy of infamy. In this respect, I should not emulate Liu Bang, but rather learn from Qin Shi Huang.

After unifying the six kingdoms, Qin Shi Huang treated his meritorious officials very well and made proper arrangements for them.

Furthermore, Liu Bang's killing of Han Xin caused a huge uproar, and subsequently, Peng Yue and Ying Bu rebelled.

The Han Dynasty was almost overthrown.

Therefore, we must treat Luo Yi's alleged rebellion with caution.

We cannot draw conclusions without finding conclusive evidence. In other words, if Luo Yi's alleged rebellion is not handled properly, it could cause turmoil within the Tang Dynasty.

Seeing that he couldn't bring down Luo Cheng and Cheng Yaojin, Zhang Shigui changed the subject and asked, "Since we haven't captured Li Chenggan yet, should we continue the pursuit?"

Li Shimin, with his hands behind his back, revealed a ruthless look in his eyes: "Of course we must continue the pursuit and kill that rebellious son. Otherwise, I will not be able to quell the hatred in my heart."

"Your Majesty is wise. In that case, I will lead my troops to continue the pursuit of Li Chenggan." A sinister smile appeared on Zhang Shigui's face.

"Okay." Li Shimin nodded in agreement.

Chang He felt uneasy after hearing this.

He stepped forward, bowed, and said, "Your Majesty, isn't your decision a bit hasty?"

I believe that although Li Chenggan has made mistakes, he has also made contributions, and his contributions outweigh his mistakes. For example, his lifting of the sieges of Chang'an and Luoyang was a great achievement.

If it weren't for the Crown Prince's desperate resistance, Chang'an and Luoyang would probably have already fallen.

"The Crown Prince has rendered such great service, how can he be deposed and hunted down?"

To everyone's surprise, Li Shimin flew into a rage upon hearing this: "Insolence!"

Chang Datou, are you lecturing me?

Li Chenggan defied imperial orders, privately recruited troops, and cultivated his own faction.

Now, I can no longer command the armies of the Turks, Tibetans, Tanguts, and Tuyuhun; they only obey Li Chenggan.

If Li Chengqian were in a bad mood one day and gave an order, wouldn't everything be turned upside down?

Therefore, I must eliminate him before he gains sufficient power, to prevent future troubles.

"The Crown Prince is very wise and has won the support and love of all the civil and military officials. He has made great contributions, both on the battlefield in the Western Regions and in coordinating relations between the Japanese, Baekje, Goguryeo and Silla."

"What did he contribute? If it weren't for him, how could the armies of Goguryeo and Baekje have been attracted?"

Upon hearing this, Chang He thought to himself that Li Shimin had become unreasonable: "No, Your Majesty, what does this matter have to do with the Crown Prince?"

If the Crown Prince hadn't intervened, the armies of Goguryeo and Baekje would probably have already attacked.

"You don't need to say anything more. If you do, I will list you as part of the Crown Prince's faction."

When Chang He heard Li Shimin say this, he felt a chill run down his spine and dared not speak any more, for he might lose his head if he continued.

Li Shimin paced back and forth in the hall, hands behind his back: "Chang Datou, have you finished the tasks I entrusted to you?"

"Your Majesty, what are you referring to?"

"Have Chengxin and Wei Lingfu been captured?"

When Chang He heard Li Shimin ask about this matter, his face immediately turned green.

He wiped the sweat from his forehead: "Not yet."

"Someone discovered that Chengxin and Wei Lingfu appeared in Luoyang and had contact with Li Chenggan. How did you handle this?"

"Why have we been unable to capture Chengxin and Weilingfu for so long?" Li Shimin was very unhappy.

"Your Majesty, the martial arts examination is currently underway, and Chang'an is under martial law. Our troops are scattered. Please give us a little more time. I will definitely capture them." Chang He said nervously.

Li Shimin couldn't help but feel a little disappointed: "How many times have I extended your stay?"

Are you going to keep delaying this indefinitely?

"No, no, Your Majesty, this time, I will definitely capture them."

"Were Yin Hongzhi and the four monks who rescued him captured?"

"No, not at all!" Chang He's hair was already soaked.

"Useless idiot! Useless coward! Yin Hongzhi attempted to assassinate me, his crime is unforgivable. He must be arrested and brought to justice as soon as possible."

"Understood, sir!"

Just at this time,

Gongsun Wuda returned, full of vigor and beaming with health.

After everyone finished their greetings, Gongsun Wuda said to Li Shimin, "Your Majesty, I have captured all the monks of the Great Ci'en Temple, including Xuanzang. Please decide their fate."

"Those monks are utterly despicable."

"I have treated them well, often providing them with money for their temples. I never expected that some petty thieves would emerge from the temples. I am truly disappointed. Execute them all!" Li Shimin was furious.

"promise!"

Gongsun Wuda agreed and turned to go out to carry out the order.

"Wait a minute!"

Just then, another person walked in from outside.

Everyone glanced at the newcomer and saw that it was none other than Wei Zheng.

Wei Zheng came running.

Wei Zheng was not young, and he was panting heavily from exhaustion.

Wei Zheng knelt on the ground: "Your humble servant greets Your Majesty."

Normally, Li Shimin would have helped him up with both hands, but today Li Shimin acted out of character, looked down at him, and didn't tell him to get up.

Li Shimin knew that the arrival of this old Taoist priest was definitely not a good thing.

Li Shimin snorted: "Old Wei, what do you have to say?"

"What crime have the monks of Da Ci'en Temple committed? Why were they killed?"

"What's it to you?" Li Shimin said irritably.

"As a minister of the court, it is my duty to point out Your Majesty's mistakes in a timely manner."

If Your Majesty makes the wrong decision, it will be too late to regret it later.

"Because four monks from their temple went to the Dali Temple prison and rescued Yin Hongzhi, shouldn't I kill them?"

"Your Majesty, you said that four monks rescued Yin Hongzhi. Do you know who those four monks are? What are their names?"

"We still don't know."

"If you don't know, how do you know it was done by the monks of Da Ci'en Temple?"

"This—," Li Shimin was also in a fit of anger and choked up. After a pause, he said, "I would rather kill a thousand innocent people than let one guilty person go free. Just kill them all."

"There are probably tens of thousands of monks in the temples inside and outside Chang'an. Are we going to kill all of them?"

If that's the case, then how are you any different from the historical rulers Jie and Zhou?

Only Wei Zheng would dare to say something like that.

Li Shimin's eyebrows twitched with anger, and his face flushed red: "What? You dare say I'm a tyrant like Jie and Zhou?"

"If you really do that, you will be even more cruel than the tyrants Jie and Zhou," Wei Zheng retorted forcefully, shutting down Li Shimin.

Chang He and Gongsun Wuda were both sweating bullets for Wei Zheng; the atmosphere suddenly became tense.

At this moment, if Li Shimin were to touch his lower lip with his upper lip, Wei Zheng would immediately lose his head.

Li Shimin was so angry that he didn't say a word for a long time.

Wei Zheng continued, "If I remember correctly, Master Xuanzang was your imperial brother."

Master Xuanzang was a highly respected and accomplished monk in Buddhism.

His disciples are found all over the world, and countless people are willing to risk their lives for him.

Whenever he preached the Dharma, tens of thousands of Buddhist disciples from all over the world would come to listen to his lectures.

He is kind-hearted and has lofty aspirations.

He was determined to travel to the Western Regions to obtain the true scriptures and save all sentient beings. How could such an enlightened monk be killed?

"Uh—," Li Shimin truly lived up to his reputation as a wise ruler. After listening to Wei Zheng's words, his mind gradually calmed down. "You're right. I was just too angry. Here's what we'll do: put all those monks in the Dali Temple prison and let Dai Zhou interrogate them."

Upon hearing this, Wei Zheng straightened his back and said, "Your Majesty, I feel that doing so is also inappropriate."

"Then why?"

"Since you ascended the throne, there have been almost no prisoners in our Tang Dynasty prisons, which is one of the hallmarks of our Zhenguan Era."

"But now, by suddenly cramming so many monks into the Dali Temple, this might also affect His Majesty's reputation."

Li Shimin remained silent.

Wei Zheng then said, "In my humble opinion, Master Xuanzang should be kept here, and all the other monks should be released and sent back."

Of course, Master Xuanzang was a highly accomplished monk, and there's no need for us to imprison him or humiliate him.

I've heard he has a fiery temper. If we were to drive him to his death, His Majesty would be branded with the infamy of killing his brother.

There is a Hongfu Temple south of Chang'an City where Master Xuanzang can rest temporarily.

Gongsun Wuda had originally hoped to make a great contribution by capturing the monks of Da Ci'en Temple, but Wei Zheng ruined it with just a few words.

How could he possibly accept this?

"Your Majesty, are we just going to let those monks get away with this?"

They wounded many of our soldiers.

Wei Zheng then asked, "Who struck first, you or they?"

Gongsun Wuda said, "Naturally, it was I who gave the order; we made the first move."

"Were our people more injured, or were the monks more injured?"

"Naturally, the monks were the ones who got injured more often. We used weapons, while they used wooden sticks."

"Your arbitrary arrests without solid evidence have damaged the court's image in the eyes of the people."

Therefore, you bear some responsibility and should be arrested and handed over to the Dali Temple for interrogation and punishment according to the law.

"What? You want to punish me?" Gongsun Wuda protested immediately. "I was just following orders, what wrong have I done?"

Upon hearing this, Chang He thought to himself, "Oh no, this matter has finally come back to haunt me."

However, Chang He held Wei Zheng in high esteem.

Because Wei Zheng had helped him out of trouble many times.

Chang He steadied himself and said, "It was indeed my order, but I did not say to beat those monks."

That's the truth.

However, Gongsun Wuda said, "If we don't fight them, how can they possibly submit? How can they possibly surrender without resistance?"

Li Shimin waved his hand: "This matter is not the fault of Chang He and Gongsun Wuda; it was my decree."

Do as Lord Wei says, temporarily detain Master Xuanzang at Hongfu Temple, and release all the other monks.

Three meals a day, including vegetarian dishes, must not be missed.

Wei Zheng then asked, "Your Majesty, have you already issued an edict to depose Li Chengqian from his position as Crown Prince and to have him executed?"

Li Shimin nodded and said, "That's right, there is such a thing."

"The Crown Prince is the foundation of the nation; how can he be moved lightly? Besides, what crime has the Crown Prince committed? How can he be killed?"

However, Li Shimin was no longer listening to any of this.

He ordered the guards to come in and drag Wei Zheng out: "Get him out of here quickly, don't let him make a racket!"

Even if Wei Zheng wanted to persuade him, he had no chance and could only leave dejectedly.

Wei Zheng, Zhang Shigui, Chang He, and Gongsun Wuda had just left when Fang Xuanling arrived.

This time,

Li Shimin offered Fang Xuanling a seat and personally poured him a bowl of tea. The two chatted while drinking tea.

Li Shimin glanced at Fang Xuanling and found that he looked quite well, full of energy, with a shiny forehead and a gleaming nose. It seemed that Fang Xuanling knew how to take care of his health.

Li Shimin's voice softened: "My dear minister, what brings you to see me?"

"Your Majesty, I have come here to discuss a few matters with you."

"Oh, what is it?"

"Firstly, the martial arts exam was originally scheduled to last three days, and it only lasted one day yesterday. However, so many things have happened unexpectedly."

So, will today's martial arts exam continue?

Li Shimin thought for a moment and said, "Let them continue the competition. We'll compress the time to two days, and the competition will end today to determine who is superior."

"Furthermore, Yeon Gaesomun has proposed a real duel with Ashina Simo. Would you agree?"

Li Shimin thought to himself that Yeon Gaesomun was from Goguryeo, which was an enemy of the Tang Dynasty.

Ashina Simo, however, was Li Chengqian's man and did not obey his orders.

Since they want to have a real fight, let them have it.

Li Shimin nodded in agreement.

Fang Xuanling picked up his teacup, gently blew on the tea leaves floating on it, and asked, "Your Majesty, has Li Chengqian been executed?"

Li Shimin shook his head: "Zhang Shigui said he never saw Li Chenggan at all."

"Oh, is that so? It seems Li Chengqian is very cunning. Perhaps he has already escaped from Chang'an," Fang Xuanling analyzed.

"All the city gates are closed, and the entire city of Chang'an is under martial law. How could he possibly escape?" Li Shimin countered.

"Methods like imposing martial law and closing the city gates can only deal with ordinary people. They probably won't work against Li Chenggan," Fang Xuanling shook his head. "Some people say he appeared at the Great Ci'en Temple."

"Yeah?

"Does the Great Ci'en Temple dare to harbor Li Chenggan?"

"Your Majesty, this is a complicated matter. You must know that Xuanzang and Li Chengqian have an extraordinary relationship."

In my humble opinion, the most urgent task is to send more troops to pursue and kill Li Chenggan before he has gone far.

There's a saying: "Release a tiger back into the mountains, and the consequences will be dire."

To use an imperfect analogy, what if Li Chenggan went to Ashina She'er's army and then remotely honored you as the Supreme Emperor while he declared himself the Emperor of Tang?

This situation is not unprecedented in history.

Even today, Li Chenggan still enjoys extremely high prestige and influence.

"You mean Li Chengqian honors me as the Retired Emperor and he becomes the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty?"

"Exactly."

Li Shimin thought this was a bit absurd, but he didn't rule out the possibility.

Li Shimin pondered for a moment: "Then let Chang He send additional troops to pursue and kill Li Chenggan."

Fang Xuanling took a sip of tea, then placed the teacup on the table and waved his hand: "Your Majesty, don't you know the relationship between Chang He and Li Chengan?"

Chang He's concubines, Bai Mudan and Su Wan, have become sworn sisters. If Chang He is tasked with hunting down Li Chengan, will he be able to do his utmost to achieve this?

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin blinked, thinking that Fang Xuanling's words seemed to make sense: "Then, who do you think should be sent?"

"Your Majesty, I recommend someone."

Who would you like to recommend?

"That is Qibi Heli of the Tiele tribe. His arms have the strength of a thousand catties, and his fists can pierce through thousand-year-old cedar trees."

He won three consecutive matches in the arena, defeating Murong Shun and Tuoba Chici Tuo. Li Chenggan also took a punch from him, but he was lucky to escape because he had soft armor protecting him.

Moreover, he broke Qin Ying's arm last night.

"Oh, the Tiele tribe has such a master?" Li Shimin was also an emperor who cherished talent.

"That's right. Your Majesty can directly appoint him as the vanguard, without needing to hold a martial arts contest. Let him lead three thousand troops to pursue and kill Li Chenggan. There will be no chance of failure," Fang Xuanling suggested.

Li Shimin nodded: "Alright, let's do it your way."

"Have Qibi Heli bring Li Chenggan back. If he dares to resist, execute him on the spot."

"Don't worry, with Qibi Heli personally in charge, success is assured," Fang Xuanling paused, "but there's still one matter that urgently needs to be resolved."

Which matter are you referring to?

"Now that Li Chengqian has been deposed, our Great Tang cannot be without a crown prince for even a day. Your Majesty should select a new crown prince."

In fact, Li Shimin hadn't slept all night and was also thinking about this issue.

Logically speaking, Li Tai would be a more suitable candidate, as he was born to Empress Zhangsun, was older, and was skilled in both literature and martial arts.

However, Li Shimin also felt that Li Tai was a bit too fierce.

Once Li Tai becomes the crown prince and inherits the throne, it will be difficult for Li Zhi and the other princes to survive.

Li Shimin was an emperor, and at the same time, he was also a father. No father doesn't love his son, and as long as the son hasn't committed a serious mistake, he will love him very much.

Li Shimin naturally did not want to see the brothers Li Tai and Li Zhi kill each other.

Li Shimin asked, "Where is Li Tai?"

"He's right outside the door."

"Then let him in; I have something to ask him."

"promise!"

Not long after, Li Tai swayed his large body as he walked in from outside and knelt on the ground: "Your subject pays respects to Your Majesty!"

Li Shimin looked down at him, frowned, and asked, "Have you gained weight again?"

Upon hearing this, Li Tai thought to himself, "I only have this one flaw, so why do you keep bringing it up?"

"Reporting to Your Majesty, Xue'er served me tea some time ago, but I never expected that that wretched girl to have put laxatives in it. I have had diarrhea that won't stop."

During that time, I lost twenty pounds.

However, after treatment, my diarrhea cleared up, and I gained forty or fifty pounds.

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin thought to himself, "You've gained another twenty or thirty pounds with this back and forth." He said, "From now on, you should eat more light food and less oily food."

"No, I feel uneasy if I don't have meat for even one meal. Besides, I feel sleepy after eating, and I gain weight very quickly," Li Tai said, expressing his worries.

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin said, "In the end, all this fat on you is from eating. You're not much different from the pigs in that pen."

Get up!

"Thank you, Father Emperor!"

Li Tai groaned for a while before getting up from the ground and then bowing to Fang Xuanling.

Fang Xuanling nodded slightly.

Li Shimin looked intently at Li Tai: "I'm asking you, do you want to be the crown prince?"

Li Tai had not expected that his father would confront him about this matter so directly.

Li Tai's heart began to pound. He desperately wanted to be the crown prince.

He had been waiting for this day for a long time.

"Father, if you wish to appoint me as the Crown Prince, I will accept the offer without hesitation and will do my utmost to assist you in governing the country."

Li Shimin nodded and said, "As you probably already know, I have already deposed Li Chengqian."

"Li Chenggan's crimes are heinous, and Father Emperor's decision to depose him is a wise one." Li Tai was overjoyed to learn that Li Chenggan had been deposed, and he couldn't resist adding fuel to the fire.

"Then, I must ask you, if you become the crown prince and inherit the throne, how will you treat Li Zhi and your other brothers?"

Li Tai knew this question was crucial; if he answered correctly, he might be immediately made crown prince.

If you answer incorrectly, you may never have a chance to become the crown prince again.

His eyes darted around, he thought for a moment, and said, "Father, rest assured, if you appoint me as Crown Prince, I will ascend the throne as Emperor after your passing."

"After my death, I will surely pass the throne to Li Zhi."

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin smiled, a smile he hadn't shown in a long time: "Qingque, you are such a sensible child. If you say that, I am relieved."

Hearing this, Li Tai felt smug and stole a glance at Fang Xuanling.

To everyone's surprise, Fang Xuanling frowned, seemingly not very satisfied with Li Tai's answer.

Li Tai thought to himself, "Since my father is so happy about what I said, there must be no problem, right?"

But why was Fang Xuanling frowning?

It seems that Fang Xuanling has grown old and no longer understands the art of power. I'm only saying this to please my father.