The rebellious grandson of Emperor Zhenguan of the Tang Dynasty: Please, Your Majesty, be called Cro

The atmosphere inside the Liangyi Hall was eerily suffocating.

After years of silence and forbearance, Li Chengqian finally launched an attack, which actually suppressed the imperial aura surrounding Li Shimin.

The officials and princes in the hall all had strange expressions and lowered their heads.

He dared not look directly at Li Chengqian, who was displaying his sharp wit.

If Li Xiang's previous accusations were to forcibly expose the wounds inflicted on the Tang Dynasty by Li Shimin, in order to deliberately provoke Li Shimin, he would expose the festering sores and pus hidden behind the glorious Zhenguan era to the light of day.

So Li Chengqian's questioning was a direct attack on Li Shimin as an emperor, and on Li Shimin personally, on the most shameful and selfish aspects of his heart!

Did Li Shimin not know that he was deliberately suppressing Li Chengqian and favoring Li Tai?

Did this great and wise emperor, who ushered in a golden age, truly have no awareness whatsoever of the ambition of Prince Wei, Li Tai, and the aggressive behavior of his faction?

No, of course he knows!

Li Chengqian was practically pointing his finger at Li Shimin, telling him this.

You know! You just know! Because this is what you want! This is what you're doing on purpose!

You're trying to make your two sons fight each other! You're trying to support the King of Wei and the Crown Prince in their struggle!

Because I, Li Chengqian, am a crown prince in my prime! I am the son qualified to succeed you to the throne! Therefore, you want to suppress me! You want to support the Prince of Wei to make me feel threatened and afraid! Only in this way will I obey you and be able to posed no threat to you!

Because Prince Wei, Li Tai, is ambitious to become the crown prince! So you use the position of crown prince as bait to lure the ambitious Li Tai! Make him desperately try to please you and protect your imperial power, hoping that one day you will reward him with the fat piece of the crown prince position!

Li Shimin, you are utterly inhuman! You are using your own son to raise poisonous insects, and you are using the blood of your sons killing each other to preserve your disgusting imperial power!

"His Majesty asked me why I wanted to rebel." Li Chengqian looked at Li Shimin—Li Shimin still had a tense face, trying his best to maintain his anger and dignity, but he no longer met Li Chengqian's gaze and avoided his eyes.

The mockery in Li Chengqian's eyes grew even stronger.

"Now, I can tell Your Majesty that the rebellion was for self-preservation."

"Self-help inevitably offends the root cause!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a look of madness reappeared on his face.

"I've been the crown prince for eighteen years, and I've suffered in silence for eighteen years! Eighteen whole years!"

"I'm fed up! I'm not pretending anymore!!"

"Is this answer satisfactory, Your Majesty?!"

If Li Chengqian's previous madness was a form of madness suppressed to the extreme, then...

Now, he was releasing all the pent-up frustration he had accumulated over the past eighteen years in one go, a frenzied release of pure joy!

This roar made the candlelight in the hall flicker wildly, and it also made everyone present shudder!

Li Shimin's pupils contracted sharply, his fingertips clenched tightly, his knuckles turned white, and the air pressure around him sank again.

Li Tai's face was ashen, his body trembled slightly, and his eyes were filled with fear and unease.

Li Zhi kept his head down, wishing he could shrink into a ball and desperately try to minimize his presence.

Xiao Yu, Changsun Wuji, and the others were already in a state of shock and disbelief. They never expected that the Crown Prince would have the courage to bring everything to light!

These two, father and son, in the Eastern Palace are truly...

Just before leaving the table, he simply overturned the entire chessboard used for the succession of the throne!

Li Chengqian let out a long breath, feeling that this was the first time in eighteen years that he had experienced this.

For the first time, I felt so relaxed.

He looked at Li Shimin, who was trembling slightly but unable to utter a word, and suddenly grinned.

That smile held no warmth whatsoever; instead, it cast a chilling aura over the Liangyi Hall at midday.

"Father, I understand. I am no longer the Crown Prince."

"Perhaps, I'll be beheaded tomorrow!"

"But Xiang'er is innocent. He was just standing up for his useless father."

Li Chengqian looked at Li Xiang, his gaze suddenly softening.

Since entering the palace, Li Chengqian had clearly been suffering from a limp and could not stand for long periods of time.

But he always dragged his limp leg, stood tall, and kept his back straight.

Now, when Li Xiang was mentioned, he lifted his hem and slowly knelt down.

"Xiang'er is a very filial son. As his father, I have never paid attention to him in my life, yet he was willing to give his life for me... It's a pity that I can no longer make it up to him."

"After my mother passed away, I never asked anything of Your Majesty. Now I ask Your Majesty."

"I have disturbed my mother and am willing to go down to see her and apologize. However, I beg Your Majesty to spare Xiang'er."

"All these troubles are my fault alone; they have nothing to do with Xiang'er!"

Li Xiang, standing to the side, had his pupils shrink and his face was filled with disbelief.

He turned to look at Li Shimin, shaking his head vigorously, making muffled sobs: "Waaaaaahh ...

(Damn you, Li Chengqian! You really wanted to steal it from me!)

(Li Er, don't listen to him! He's talking complete nonsense! I wasn't standing up for him at all! I just wanted to die! The things I said to you were from the bottom of my heart!!)

(Please don't let me go, kill me, kill me!)

Li Shimin saw that Li Chengqian was willing to kneel down and beg for death for Li Xiang.

Then he looked to the side, where Li Xiang, though bound by armored soldiers, was still desperately shaking his head and struggling, desperately denying his father's desire to die.

This scene of filial piety and mutual protection was particularly jarring to him, causing him a sharp pain in his heart.

He was the emperor, ruling the world and commanding respect across the land, yet...

In his entire life, has he ever experienced such sincere and pure father-son affection?

He looked at Li Chengqian, at his son who was always sinister, eccentric, and lame.

Looking at his son, who was always unruly, taciturn, and unwilling to bow his head easily in front of him.

A surge of jealousy, along with the shame and anger of not wanting to admit his defeat, filled Li Shimin's chest.

"Is this your reason for rebelling? Is this your reason for rebelling against your own father?"

"Do you even know that I am your father?!"

He roared at Li Chengqian.

Li Chengqian remained unmoved. He slowly closed his eyes, his voice as soft as a sigh, yet each word was clear and resonated throughout the entire hall:

"If there is an afterlife, I have only two wishes."

"My only wish is to be able to stay by my mother's side and be a carefree son, free from the suffering I endure today."

"My second wish is that, in every lifetime, I will never be born into an imperial family again..."

*Snap!* A series of loud sounds rang out. Changsun Wuji and the others looked in the direction of the sound and nearly jumped out of their skins!

Li Shimin, pale-faced and exhausted, listened to these heart-wrenching words.

Unable to hold on any longer, his legs buckled, and he collapsed onto the throne!