Tang Dynasty: Taking the Empress Dowager to a brothel, Father Emperor, what a coincidence!

"Besides military affairs, the administration of the Andong Protectorate also needs to be managed. That place is in dire need of rebuilding and requires experienced and capable officials to govern it."

"I have a list here, all of whom I have carefully selected as pillars of the nation, and I recommend them for important positions in the Andong Protectorate."

Li Chengqian then produced another memorial.

Wang De quickly stepped down, took the memorial from Li Chengqian's hand, and presented it to Li Shimin.

Li Shimin glanced at it and his eyes began to twitch.

The list is densely packed with dozens of names.

Cui Wen of the Cui family of Qinghe, Wang Jing of the Wang family of Taiyuan, Lu Ben of the Lu family of Fanyang...

They were all scions of prominent families.

Moreover, they are all leaders of the younger generation in their respective families.

Li Shimin suddenly raised his head and looked at Li Chengqian.

Is this little brat crazy?

Why hand over the prize that was already in our mouths to a powerful family?

The powerful officials in the underground gentry were also dumbfounded.

Cui Mingan quietly nudged Wang Gui in front of him:

"Lord Wang, what is the Crown Prince up to? Who sent their granddaughter to him?"

Wang Gui frowned and said:

"Something's fishy here. How could this kid just give us such a huge benefit for nothing?"

"But I saw that list just now, and it was indeed the names of scions of our aristocratic families."

Cui Mingan said in a low voice,

"Liaodong is now a treasure trove. Although the treasuries of the three kingdoms of Goguryeo have been emptied, there is still a lot of money to be made there."

Wang Gui did not speak, but looked at Li Chengqian.

After their recent encounters, Wang Gui believed that this was definitely a trap set by the Crown Prince for the aristocratic families.

But where is the pit?

He didn't even notice.

"Gao Ming... are you sure you want to hand over Liaodong?"

Li Shimin asked incredulously.

Li Chengqian nodded.

He looked at Li Shimin and said very sincerely:

"Father, I have been living in constant fear these past few months in Liaodong. The winds and snow there are so strong that it's practically freezing to death."

Every day, I dream of returning to Chang'an to eat the braised pork hock made by my mother, and of sleeping soundly in the warm pavilion of the Eastern Palace.

Now that the war is over, I only wish to stay in Chang'an and be a carefree crown prince who is filial to his parents and enjoys playing with birds and walking dogs.

Let the adults worry about those tough tasks of fighting and governing the local areas.

"I beg my father to grant my request!"

After Li Chengqian finished speaking, he immediately kowtowed.

Everyone looked at the prince lying on the ground.

Now it's not just people from aristocratic families anymore.

All the officials in the court felt that the Crown Prince was digging a pit for himself.

Why didn't you say you were afraid when you were building the Jingguan in Liaodong?

Why didn't you say it was cruel when you ordered the burning of Pyongyang?

When you blew up the Silla palace with gunpowder, where did that fierce, ruthless energy go?

Now that you've run back to Chang'an, are you going to pretend to be living a peaceful and undisturbed life?

Li Shimin looked at Li Chengqian's obedient appearance and then at the memorial in his hand.

He wanted to find fault and refute it.

However, military power was given to Li Ji, while political power was given to aristocratic families.

His own unfilial son left him nothing.

How could Li Shimin find fault with that?

This pit was dug so deep that you have no choice but to jump in.

Just when Li Shimin was in a dilemma.

"Bullshit."

Cheng Yaojin suddenly rushed out from the ranks of military officers, pointing at Li Chengqian's nose and cursing wildly.

"You worthless coward. We followed you through thick and thin in Liaodong, risking our lives to build up such a large territory, and you just want to give it away like that?"

"You want to go back to Chang'an and be a spoiled brat? How can you face the brothers who died in Liaodong? I'll beat you to a pulp today, you coward!"

As he spoke, Cheng Yaojin bent down and grabbed his official boots, making a move to take them off and swing them at Li Chengqian's face.

Yuchi Jingde, standing nearby, was so frightened he almost jumped up.

Is this bastard insane?

He insulted the crown prince in front of the emperor and even wanted to take off his shoe to hit him.

"Old Cheng, shut up right now."

Yuchi Jingde pounced like a hungry tiger, grabbing Cheng Yaojin's waist tightly.

Niu Jinda and Li Ji, who were standing nearby, also rushed forward.

Niu Jinda covered Cheng Yaojin's mouth, while Li Ji held down his hand holding the boot.

"Waaaah... Let me go! I'm going to beat this spineless bastard to death!"

Chaos erupted in the imperial court.

The civil officials were so frightened that they all retreated, fearing that they would be harmed by these uncouth warriors.

A hint of a smile flashed in Li Chengqian's eyes as he looked at Cheng Yaojin, who was being held down tightly.

Cheng Yaojin's outburst conveniently provided his father with a way out.

Is Liaodong a place that anyone can go to?

They only recognize the crown prince there now.

If you dare to change generals, these murderers will dare to cause trouble.

Fang Xuanling then moved closer to Wei Zheng and said:

"His Highness the Crown Prince's tactic of feigning retreat to advance is truly masterful."

Wei Zheng nodded slightly and said:

"The more cleanly he withdraws, the less His Majesty dares to take over."

Wei Zheng glanced at Li Shimin and continued,

"Those arrogant and fierce soldiers and generals in Liaodong have just conquered three kingdoms; their killing intent is at its peak, and their ambitions are extremely high. Besides the crown prince who led them to victory, who else could possibly keep them in check?"

Fang Xuanling sighed:

"General Li Ji may be highly respected, but he ultimately didn't roll among the corpses with these bastards. Forcibly replacing him now will surely throw the army into chaos."

With just a few words, the two old foxes completely exposed Li Chengqian's open scheme.

At this moment, Li Shimin, sitting on the dragon throne, was having a headache from Cheng Yaojin's nagging.

"What kind of behavior is this? Drag Zhijie back immediately!"

Li Shimin shouted a loud rebuke.

Several imperial guards rushed in to help Yuchi Jingde and the others, dragging and pulling Cheng Yaojin back to the ranks of the military officers.

Although Cheng Yaojin stopped causing trouble, he still glared at Li Chengqian with resentment, muttering profanities under his breath.

Li Shimin picked up the memorial again and glanced at it with a grim expression.

When he raised his head and swept his gaze across the assembled officials below.

My heart suddenly skipped a beat.

At this moment, the faces of Cui Minqian and other powerful officials were filled with greed.

Li Shimin instantly regained his senses.

This rebellious son of his is not only digging a pit for himself, but also for the powerful families.

He decided to remove this rebellious son at this point and replace him with Li Ji.

The Liaodong army certainly wouldn't dare do anything to Li Ji.

But those members of powerful families are probably going to be dragged away to vent their anger.

If all the leading figures of the younger generation of aristocratic families died in Liaodong.

That family was basically half ruined.

"Brilliant!"

Although Li Shimin also wanted to eliminate the aristocratic families, he dared not gamble with it now.

"I understand your filial piety. You suffered in Liaodong and want to return to Chang'an to fulfill your filial duties; this is only natural."

Li Chengqian raised his head, his face full of emotion, and said:

"Thank you for your understanding, Father. As for my military command..."

"but."

Li Shimin interrupted him directly.

"The border is not yet stable, and the new policies have just been implemented. The three kingdoms of Liaodong have just been pacified, the people are restless, and everything needs to be rebuilt. This is the most critical moment."

Changing generals on the eve of battle is a major taboo in military strategy!

As the crown prince, you should be sharing the nation's burdens; how can you be so greedy for the comforts of Chang'an?

Li Chengqian said anxiously:

"Father, I really can't do it."

Those government affairs are so complicated that they give me a headache every day.

The scions of those prominent families on the list are all highly learned individuals; they will certainly be better than me.

Upon hearing this, Cui Mingan's eyes lit up even more, and he quickly took a step forward, ready to second the motion.

Li Shimin reacted swiftly, giving Cui Mingan no chance to speak.

"Nonsense!"

Li Shimin shouted and threw the memorial back in front of Li Chengqian.

"You conquered Liaodong, and you proposed the establishment of the Andong Protectorate. The one who tied the knot must untie it; if you don't shoulder this responsibility, who will?"

"As for the people you recommended..."

Li Shimin gave Cui Mingan a cold glance.

"They have lived in Chang'an for a long time and are unfamiliar with border affairs. Going there would only cause trouble. Let's not mention this matter again."

Cui Mingan froze on the spot.

What does that mean? The meat that was almost in my mouth just disappeared like that?

Li Chengqian continued, looking aggrieved:

"Father, I no longer wish to govern Liaodong. I wish to relinquish military power to the Ministry of War..."

"shut up."

Li Shimin waved his hand.

"The matter of military power will not be discussed for the time being."

You will continue to hold the position of Grand Commander of the Andong Protectorate, overseeing all military and political affairs in Liaodong.

No one may interfere in Liaodong affairs without my decree.

After speaking, Li Shimin turned to look at Wang De.

"Court adjourned!"

Without giving anyone a chance to refute, Li Shimin got up and ran away.

Wang De quickly flicked his whisk and shouted that the court was adjourned.

The courtiers looked at each other in dismay. No one had expected that such a dramatic drama of handing over military power would end with the emperor forcibly returning military power to the crown prince.

Cui Mingan looked at the memorial on the ground with a pained expression.

Should I think of a way to get a share of the pie in Liaodong?