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

Half an hour later, all the civil and military officials left Da'an Palace in fear and trepidation.

Only Li Shimin, Li Yuan, Qin Qiong and other military generals, as well as Li Chengqian, remained in the main hall.

"Shubao".

Li Shimin looked at Qin Qiong angrily and asked...

"Shouldn't you give me an explanation?"

Qin Qiong clasped his hands, bowed, and asked:

"What explanation does Your Majesty wish to hear?"

"Why did you fake your death?"

Li Shimin pointed at Qin Qiong's nose,

"When you were critically ill, I never abandoned you."

Even after your death, I personally arranged your funeral. And this is how you treat me?

Qin Qiong looked at Li Shimin and said:

"I was indeed seriously ill back then, and could have passed away at any moment. This is clearly recorded in the medical records of the Imperial Medical Academy, and it is not a fabrication."

Li Shimin gritted his teeth and asked:

"So, where did your energetic appearance today come from? Did it fall from the sky?"

"It was His Highness the Crown Prince who saved her."

Qin Qiong cupped his hands in greeting to Li Chengqian, who was eating melon seeds in the corner.

"Your Highness found a folk remedy somewhere and sent people to treat my illness. My illness was cured more than half a year ago."

Li Shimin turned to look at Li Chengqian.

Li Chengqian quickly threw away the sunflower seed shells in his hand and raised his hands, saying:

"Father, I just made a few random prescriptions, and I didn't expect them to actually work."

Li Shimin ignored Li Chengqian and turned his attention back to Qin Qiong.

"Now that you're cured, why didn't you report it to me? Why did you feign death? Why do you only obey the Crown Prince's orders? Who are you really guarding against?"

Faced with Li Shimin's aggressive questioning, Qin Qiong did not back down.

He looked at the Tang emperor before him, with whom he had once fought side by side, and said in a calm tone:

"If this old minister does not die, will Your Majesty be able to sleep peacefully on this dragon throne?"

These words were like a bomb being dropped on the entire Ganlu Hall.

Li Ji quickly looked down at his toes.

Cheng Yaojin stared at Qin Qiong in shock.

Li Chengqian stopped peeling melon seeds and secretly gave Qin Qiong a thumbs up.

Li Shimin's face turned bright red from being rebuked by those words.

Qin Qiong had an extremely high reputation in the Tang army.

How high is it?

As long as Qin Qiong raised his arm and called out, half of the generals of the Tang Dynasty would follow him without hesitation.

They were all defeated by Qin Qiong.

Li Shimin did indeed harbor some fear of Qin Qiong after he ascended the throne.

Fortunately, Qin Qiong passed away not long after Li Shimin ascended the throne, otherwise Li Shimin would really have had trouble sleeping.

"presumptuous!"

Li Shimin, enraged and embarrassed, flung his sleeves.

"I am the Supreme General of the Great Tang Dynasty. This empire was won by me with my own sword and spear. How could I possibly not tolerate a mere general like you?"

Qin Qiong remained silent, offering no rebuttal, but his expression clearly showed disbelief.

Li Shimin panicked and began frantically trying to salvage his situation:

"In the Battle of Hulao Pass, I defeated 100,000 with only 3,000 men. I was also an emperor on horseback when I was conquering the world."

"Do I need to fear your prestige? In terms of military achievements, am I inferior to you?"

Cheng Yaojin, who had been silent all along, suddenly muttered something under his breath:

"Your Majesty, what you're saying sounds a bit guilty."

Li Shimin glared fiercely at Cheng Yaojin:

"You old fool, what are you muttering about?"

Cheng Yaojin shrank back, but his words were anything but gentle:

"What I mean is, Your Majesty, think about it carefully. Back when we were fighting tough battles, wasn't it always you standing on high ground, pointing at the other side and shouting: 'Shubao, go and take it down for me!'"

Li Shimin roared in anger:

"Nonsense! Haven't I ever charged into battle?"

"How many times have you rinsed yourself?"

Cheng Yaojin seriously started counting on his fingers.

"When Meiliangchuan attacked Yuchi Dasha, it was Second Brother who led the charge."

"When we fought Wang Shichong in Luoyang, you were surrounded by the chaotic army, and it was my second brother who led men to rescue you. And that other time..."

"Shut up!"

Li Shimin was so angry he wanted to strangle Cheng Yaojin right then and there.

"I was sitting in the central command, strategizing and planning."

"Yes, yes, you are a master strategist."

Cheng Yaojin curled his lip.

"But since Brother Qin came along, have you ever charged into battle again?"

Whenever they encountered a tough opponent, he would stand at the front and shout, "Qin Qiong, charge!"

Li Ji frantically tried to signal to Cheng Yaojin to keep quiet.

Cheng Yaojin pretended not to see it and continued to deliver the finishing blow:

"Now that the world is at peace, you think your second brother's contributions are too great. Why doesn't your second brother fake his death? Are you waiting for me to find an excuse to kill him?"

This statement immediately ignited a powder keg.

Li Shimin pounced on Cheng Yaojin and grabbed him by the collar.

"You old scoundrel! I'll chop you to pieces today!"

"Oh dear! Your Majesty, why are you getting so angry?"

Cheng Yaojin wrapped his arms around Li Shimin's waist.

The two started wrestling on the ground of Ganlu Hall.

"I'll kick you to death, you old bastard."

"Your Majesty, please don't use underhanded tactics! Ouch, my beard!"

Li Ji was terrified and quickly went to break up the fight.

However, he clearly favored Cheng Yaojin. On the surface, he was pulling the two apart, but in reality, he held Li Shimin's arms tightly with both hands, allowing Cheng Yaojin to take the opportunity to kick Li Shimin a couple more times.

Qin Qiong looked at the farce on the ground and sighed helplessly.

Li Chengqian sat in the corner, watching with great interest, and even poured Li Yuan a cup of tea.

"Grandpa, please eat slowly and have some water to soothe your palate."

Li Yuan took the teacup, took a sip, and swallowed the mutton in his mouth.

He casually tossed the cleanly gnawed lamb bones onto the plate and picked up a cloth to wipe his hands.

"Alright!"

Li Yuan suddenly shouted.

Li Shimin and Cheng Yaojin, who were wrestling on the ground, stopped fighting at the same time.

The two of them got up, panting, and straightened their clothes.

Li Yuan stood up and walked up to Li Shimin, looking him up and down with a look of disgust.

"What kind of behavior is it for a monarch to roll around on the ground like a scoundrel?"

Li Shimin lowered his head and dared not retort:

"Father's words are correct."

"Erlang."

Li Yuan looked at Li Shimin and continued speaking.

"Look at yourself now. You're being driven crazy by a few powerful families, and you even have to resort to acting to lure people in."

Li Shimin tried to explain, but Li Yuan raised his hand to interrupt him.

"Take another look at Gao Ming."

Li Yuan pointed at Li Chengqian,

"Without a sound, they dug up the foundation of the Taiyuan Wang family in Hedong Road."

Taking advantage of Hou Junji's rebellion in Chang'an, they uprooted the five clans and seven powerful families.

This decisiveness, this method, is far superior to what you had back then.

Li Shimin looked in the direction Li Yuan was pointing, and saw Li Chengqian blinking innocently.

"You have too many concerns as an emperor. You want both fame and power. You're living a very tiring life."

Li Yuan sighed.

"In my opinion, you shouldn't be emperor anymore."

Li Shimin suddenly raised his head, looking at Li Yuan with disbelief on his face.

How did things turn into such a deadly act?

Qin Qiong, Li Ji, and Cheng Yaojin were so frightened that they knelt on the ground.

Li Chengqian's teacup wobbled, and tea splashed onto the back of his hand.

Li Yuan looked at Li Shimin and continued:

"Abdicate and pass the throne to a more capable person."