Martial Arts: I am in the Ming Cult and I am building a dynasty

Li Yuanji's words hit the nail on the head, causing everyone in the secret room to fall silent.

After a while, Li Xiuning asked, "Master Yuan, has the elder of the family contacted other families? Is it against the rules for the Yang clan of the Sui Dynasty to use the Luohe books?"

Yuan Tiangang said in a bitter voice: "The Sui Yang clan only used the Luohe Book to seal the void, and did not use their background to attack. This was to prevent someone from breaking the rules. Even if other families knew about it, they would not object. The moves within the board can be used, but the moves outside the board should not be used lightly."

The meaning of Yuan Tiangang's words was very clear.

Yang Zhao's blockade of Chang'an and Guanzhong was an open conspiracy.

If Li wanted to escape, he had to find a way himself and fight with Yang Zhao, instead of using the power of his family to open up a void channel and escape from Guanzhong. That was an outside trick.

At this stage, whoever resorts to unconventional tactics first would be breaking the rules and would be regarded as hostile by the Sui Dynasty family.

When everyone was silent.

Li Shimin, who had been silent all this time, suddenly stood up and said, "There is no need to discuss this. The feud with Yang Zhao started with me. Tomorrow, I will solve it. I will be the only one who can sacrifice myself..."

Chapter 420: The treacherous Li Shimin and the clever Li Yuanji

On the surface, the conflict between the Li family and Yang Zhao was because Li Shimin and Li Xiuning offended Yang Zhao in Fengming Pavilion, and then continued to Madam Dou's birthday banquet, making the two sides enemies.

But in fact, the fundamental reason is that the Sui royal family has always been on guard against the Li family.

Since Yang Zhao's grandfather, people have always been wary of the Li family.

After Yang Guang came to power, the various restrictions and oppressions on the Li family became even more obvious.

If it weren't for Li Yuan, the head of the Li family of this generation, who was smooth, low-key and steady, the Li family might have fallen apart long ago and been defeated piece by piece under the suppression of the Sui royal family.

In other words, Li Yuan's methods were extremely clever, which allowed him to stabilize the trend of the three Lis uniting and prevent a complete collapse.

In this way, as long as the Li family did not openly rebel, the Sui royal family would have no reason to take action against the Li family.

The same is true.

At this time, as long as the Li family was willing to sacrifice one of Li Shimin and Li Xiuning and send him to apologize to Yang Zhao, Yang Zhao would have no reason to continue targeting the Li family.

Once Yang Zhao relaxes his targeting, the Li family can use various excuses and means to escape from this barrier little by little.

Li Shimin's words immediately made everyone in the secret room excited.

Mrs. Dou naturally didn't want to lose a son.

Li Jiancheng remained calm on the surface, but he was secretly happy in his heart that he could eliminate the threat to his family.

Li Yuanji was even more direct, and his expression was almost filled with joy. Not only could he get rid of his second brother, whom he was extremely jealous of, but he could also use this opportunity to open a loophole in Yang Zhao's attack on the Li family and escape from Chang'an.

Only Li Xiuning, after hearing Li Shimin's words, looked at him with extremely complicated eyes.

Li Xiuning is the smartest and most outstanding one in the entire Li family, except for Li Shimin. In fact, compared with Li Shimin, she only has a slight disadvantage in gender.

As soon as Li Shimin opened his mouth, he brought up the old matter again, and it was obvious that he was giving Madam Dou some advice.

For aristocratic families, abandoning a legitimate son or a daughter is almost a no-brainer.

On the surface, Li Shimin wanted to sacrifice himself, but in fact he was diverting the trouble to others.

as predicted.

Before Li Shimin finished speaking, Madam Dou said with a firm face: "No, Erlang, don't say anything more. My Li family is not at the point of sending our son to die."

"Da Lang, what do you think?"

Since Mrs. Dou said so, what could Li Jiancheng do?

Facing Madam Dou's questioning, Li Jiancheng secretly felt regretful in his heart, but his face was still quite solemn. He said, "Mother is right. Second brother, please don't have such thoughts. No matter what, my Li family is also a famous family in the Sui Dynasty. As long as we don't provoke Yang Zhao again, I believe that in the short term, he will not be able to do anything to us."

What a great opportunity, what a pity.

Li Jiancheng felt secretly sorry.

Li Yuanji was not so shy and said directly: "Why? This was originally the trouble caused by my second brother and elder sister, but they want my whole family to suffer together. Maybe, after that kid Yang Zhao has established a firm foothold, he will get rid of all of us. Isn't this making us buried with my second brother?"

It was no secret within the Li family that Li Yuanji disliked Li Shimin.

Seeing this, Madam Dou immediately scolded him angrily, "Sanlang, what are you talking about? Do you want to watch your second brother die?"

Li Yuanji didn't dare to talk back to his mother, and muttered quietly: "It's not my fault anyway."

Madam Dou was furious and said, "Sanlang!"

Li Yuanji shut up awkwardly.

Li Jiancheng immediately came out to smooth things over, saying, "Mother, calm down. I was just angry for a moment and said something that didn't fit my words. After all, Yang Zhao targeted us because of my second brother and Xiuning. It's only natural for me to feel resentful. Don't blame me, mother. I'll figure it out."

Li Jiancheng was not a good guy either. He seemed to be pleading for Li Yuanji, but in fact he was always trying to put pressure on Li Shimin.

After hearing what Li Jiancheng said, Mrs. Dou sighed and felt helpless.

After all, in Mrs. Dou's view, everyone is a member of the same family. It is normal for her younger son to have complaints after being implicated by her second son.

However, it is impossible to ask Mrs. Dou to sacrifice her children.

It's just a temporary difficulty. At most we are trapped in Chang'an. We just need to keep a low profile and stay safe.

Seeing Mrs. Dou's frustrated expression, a gleam of light flashed in Li Shimin's eyes.

It seems impossible to push the mother forward.

Li Shimin's eyes inadvertently swept over other people, and finally chose the extremely irritable Li Yuanji.

Then, Li Shimin's expression changed, and he looked indignant and angry. He said, "Third brother, you don't have to be so weird. I will take on the grudge with Yang Zhao by myself. Don't involve my sister."

"Mother, there is no need to say more. My Li family has been passed down for hundreds of years. Even if I surrender to Yang Zhao's residence, I think he will not harm my life. At most, he will imprison me for life. As long as Yang Zhao can calm down and create a glimmer of hope for my Li family, I will have no complaints."

The tea-like words really moved Mrs. Dou to tears.

Li Yuanji, the troublemaker, looked at Li Xiuning and his eyes suddenly lit up after receiving Li Shimin's casual reminder.

I guess my mother would never agree to let my second brother die.

It would be better to trick my sister. She is just a daughter after all and she will get married eventually.

Now, my mother can’t object to anything.

After all, besides the damn second brother, the elder sister who had not been close to him since childhood was also involved in the trouble.

The more clever Li Yuanji thought about it, the more he understood.

Soon, Li Yuanji was overjoyed and said, "Mother, I have another idea. My sister is going to get married anyway, so why not marry her to Yang Zhao's son? In this way, we will become relatives with Yang Zhao. He can't lose face and keep us in Chang'an!"

Madam Dou was stunned when she heard this, with some hesitation on her face, and said, "This... If Xiuning marries, won't she be treated harshly by Yang Zhao?"

Li Yuanji frowned, and then he didn't know what he was thinking about. He said with a strange expression: "Mother, with my sister's beauty, how can she be treated harshly? At most, it's just that there are some extra tricks between the rooms, right?"

"Hehe, that's not what I meant. It's just that my sister was involved in the trouble back then, right?"

Very smart is very smart, and his thinking and thinking are very different from ordinary people.

But if you think about it carefully, it does make sense.

Madam Dou had a slightly strange expression on her face. She glanced at her extremely beautiful daughter and had some inclinations in her heart. After a slight hesitation, she said, "Xiuning, what do you think of your third brother's proposal?"

"As a mother, I think that although Yang Zhao is a bit domineering, he is also a man of extraordinary courage and ambition..."

Chapter 421 Li Shimin's Routine

In the secret room in the backyard of the Li family, in the face of great danger, the ugliness of human nature was clearly revealed.

People often say that those who are loyal are usually butchers, and those who are unfaithful are usually scholars.

Such words are not without reason. In a huge family like the Li family, everyone grows up in various kinds of family education. All they see is profit, and the interactions among relatives and friends are mostly based on human calculations.

Like the Li family, the four children of Li Jiancheng, Li Shimin, Li Yuanji and Li Xiuning, were able to get along well on the surface, which was already quite a feat.

In other families, fighting to the death and all kinds of cruelty are also common.

The aristocratic families are local emperors, and the difference between local emperors and real emperors is just that the circle of interests under their jurisdiction is slightly smaller.

Yang Guang was able to kill his brother and father for the throne.

In the Li family, at this critical moment, Li Shimin calmly diverted the trouble and plotted against Li Xiuning, Li Jiancheng added fuel to the fire, Li Yuanji added fuel to the fire, and Madam Dou made the final decision.

All of this is not surprising.

It’s just like the marriage between Li Xiuning and Chai Shao.

Li Xiuning was the eldest daughter of the Li family in Taiyuan. She was extremely beautiful, talented and pretty, and in her prime. However, Chai Shao was a widower in his forties with his wife having died and his children.

But for the sake of the Li family's business and Chai's wealth, Li Xiuning still needed to marry Chai Shao.

From this we can see that Li Xiuning's status in the Li family is not actually high. Even Li Xiuning herself is very clear about her own positioning and cognition.

Offering Li Xiuning to Yang Zhao as a way of surrendering their loyalty and begging for mercy is the best option for the Li family now.

However, even though he knew all of this very well in his heart, at this moment, Li Xiuning was still trembling with coldness as he looked at the ugly faces of his mother, eldest brother, second brother, and third brother.

Especially Li Shimin's betrayal, which made Li Xiuning feel so angry that she almost vomited blood.

The blame for Fengming Pavilion was put on himself.

But it was obvious that the purpose of going to Fengming Pavilion was to let Li Shimin step on the face of Yinkui Sect and promote the reputation of the second son of Li family, but Li Shimin messed it up.

Never mind. This isn’t the first time I’ve been sent out.

After hearing what Madam Dou said, Li Xiuning's expression remained unchanged at first, and then she suddenly smiled, like a blossoming peach or plum blossom, revealing her unparalleled beauty inadvertently, and said, "My daughter will listen to you."

After saying this, Li Xiuning stopped talking, with a somewhat empty look in her eyes.

And no one noticed that Li Xiuning clenched his fists so tightly at this moment that even when his nails pierced into his palms, he did not feel any pain at all.

Finishing those words with a smile was the last bit of Li Xiuning's affection, filial piety, and politeness.

When Mrs. Dou heard that Li Xiuning agreed, she frowned and felt a little guilty. Li Jiancheng remained silent but was a little excited. Li Yuanji was very happy and even danced with joy.

Only Li Shimin, looking at Li Xiuning with a slightly empty look in her eyes, felt a flash of guilt in his heart, and his gaze moved away from Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji.

These people all underestimated Yang Zhao.

A person who was able to reorganize the Song Dynasty in just a few years.

A person who was able to take over the entire Guanzhong region and integrate into the Sui Dynasty in less than half a year of dormancy.

This is definitely a very scary opponent.

Li Shimin could even feel a vague sense of uneasiness. Even though Li Xiuning had agreed to marry into Yang Zhao's mansion, Li Shimin still had a feeling that a disaster was imminent and that he had no control over his life and death.

Would a true hero give up killing his enemies for the sake of a mere woman?

Li Shimin thought that it would not happen. At least, if it were him, he would never give up killing an enemy who might threaten him in the future just because of a so-called woman.

Offering Li Xiuning can be used as a cover, but it cannot be regarded as the real confidence.

Perhaps we can make use of Li Yuanji's cleverness and push Li Jiancheng forward as a second shield. If necessary, it is not impossible to leave my mother in Guanzhong temporarily.

For Yang Zhao, the two targets, the eldest son of the Li family and the mistress of the Li family, should be enough to attract some attention from the other party.

And considering Yang Zhao's character, he wouldn't make things difficult for an old woman.

As for the eldest brother Li Jiancheng, it all depends on fate.

Having made up his mind, Li Shimin's face suddenly showed a trace of sadness, and he said: "Mother, if my sister must marry Yang Zhao, even if it is just to be taken as a concubine, I hope that mother can discuss with Yang Zhao and take my sister to marry on the day of marriage, with a red dress ten miles long and the whole city knowing about it."

As a mature old man, after stabbing Li Xiuning in the back, Li Shimin still felt like the cat crying over the rat.

as predicted.

Li Shimin's words made Mrs. Dou more satisfied when she looked at her second son, and then she looked at Li Xiuning with some pity.

After a pause, Madam Dou said, "Erlang is right. I, the eldest daughter of the Li family, cannot be wronged too much."

Li Shimin agreed and said, "Mother, I hope I can send my sister off to marry and personally notify every wealthy family in Chang'an City to make the wedding a grand one. I can also take this opportunity to contact the people of integrity and ambition in the center of Chang'an City and outside Guanzhong to make preparations for both situations."

When Li Yuanji heard Li Shimin's words, his eyes suddenly lit up.

Second brother is really cunning. He actually wants to use elder sister's marriage to win over those aristocratic families who have not yet defected to Yang Zhao.

With the help of those people, we can definitely escape from Guanzhong.

But we need to find an excuse and cannot let Li Shimin get ahead of us.

Then, Li Yuanji's eyes turned, and he pretended to be reckless and shouted: "Second brother, the Li family's daughter is getting married, this is a family event, and since my father is not here, it should be my eldest brother who comes forward. Are you trying to take this opportunity to compete with me for power?"

Li Yuanji's words made Li Jiancheng's expression in the secret room change slightly.