The film and television world begins with the battle for the throne in Kowloon

Chapter 626 Heavy losses
When he arrived at the place where Cheng Huailiang slipped into the water, Cen Wenben saw that the steep and upright yellow soil on the embankment was still being washed by the outflowing canal water. After careful inspection, he found that dense cracks appeared under a thin layer of weeds on the ground along the water's edge.

It is thought that it will not be long before the muddy water under the channel is softened by the channel water and will tilt and collapse into the water.

Imagining Cheng Huailiang, who already had a burly figure of more than 200 pounds, riding a horse and wearing Ming Guang armor, coming here, Cen Wenben himself couldn't help but shudder and shook his head with lingering fear.

When the whole story was found out, Cen Wenben couldn't help but sigh that Cheng Huailiang was really careless. He fell into the ditch while wearing armor and was drowned. Who could he blame?

A fourth-rank military commander died in such a miserable way.

From what we learned at the scene, this incident was purely an accident and there was no trace of human involvement.

Whether it was the newly discovered gap of a hundred feet in the canal or the death of a senior general of the imperial court, it was no small matter and the emperor had to be informed immediately. Cen Wenben returned to the construction site and pulled Li Ke, who was grieving beside Cheng Huailiang's body.

The two hurried back to Chang'an City and went into the palace to report to Li Shimin.

After Li Shimin learned about this, his good mood at court was instantly gone. Thinking of what happened with Quan Wanji before, he scolded Li Ke.

However, so far, this incident was just an accident that occurred during normal work, and there was no such bad incident as reselling grain in the warehouse or mutiny of the Zuotun guards as in the original drama. So although Li Shimin was angry, he did not lose his mind.

Cen Wenben saw the emperor scolding for a while, then stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, calm down. After hearing about this, I also went to the breach site to check it out. It is very close to the main channel of the Wei River, the terrain is dangerous, and there is no one living there. Except for the Yongtong Canal, there is no official road passing through there."

"It has rained a lot recently. Unless there are people patrolling every day, the breach cannot be discovered immediately. This breach was also an accident. If it weren't for this new breach, the Yongtong Canal should have been restored today."

"As for General Cheng Huailiang, he was also a little panicked by the sudden opening at the time. He was eager to check the situation and did not notice that the foundation of the ground had been soaked and scattered. He stood on a horse and stood forward. The ground he stood on was separated from the ground and collapsed into the water. In addition, he was wearing armor."

"Only Wu Qing and one soldier were present, and they were unable to come to the rescue in time, which led to this accident. No one expected this."

Having said that, Changsun Wuji and Li Yan looked at each other, put on an anxious expression, and went into the imperial study.

Before Changsun Wuji could speak, Li Yan glanced at Li Ke, who was kneeling in front of the imperial desk with his head down, suffering from repeated oppression and looking like he had lost his parents. He bowed and knelt beside him and said, "Father, I already know about this matter. This time, I am in charge of the food and grass turnover. Third brother is just helping me repair the Yongtong Canal."

"Now that such a big accident has happened, I am also guilty. Please help me, father, to punish you!"

Li Shimin had vented his anger, but he felt much better. When he saw the prince coming in, he apologized and shared the day with his brothers. He nodded slowly, feeling a little relieved: "Prince, please get up!"

"You two will act separately, one in charge of the land route and the other in charge of the water route. I know whose responsibility it is."

After Li Yan thanked him, he stood up and said, "Father, no one expected such an accident. Since taking on the job, my third brother has been working diligently and conscientiously. He has not returned home for seven or eight days and has been living and eating on the canal. The riverbank in Weinan has been repaired."

"If I had discovered this hole earlier, Third Brother would definitely not have ignored it. A few days ago, Huazhou had a day and night of heavy rain. I think this hole was just washed out, and it can't be blamed on Third Brother."

"General Cheng was loyal to the king and was eager to help the court, which is why this accident happened. General Cheng got into trouble while building a canal for the Tang Dynasty. I suggest that the emperor reward such a feat to commend General Cheng's heroic deeds."

Well.
Li Shimin was stunned. What the prince said made sense. After all, he was still angry about Quan Wanji spreading rumors.

Neither the new crack in the Yongtong Canal nor the accidental death of Cheng Huailiang can be blamed on Li Ke, let alone any guilt. Up to now, there has been no man-made accidents, only natural disasters.

Li Shimin breathed a sigh of relief, and stepped down according to Li Yan's words. He looked at the prince who was loyal and righteous and pleaded for Li Ke with approval, and then glared at Li Ke sternly, and then said: "Since the prince pleads for you, I will not punish you anymore!"

"Don't worry about this matter anymore. Go back to the Prince of Shu's Mansion and reflect on your mistakes. Think about how to be a prince in the future."

"I know, thank you for your forgiveness!"

Li Ke thanked him with a grim expression, stood up and bowed again, without even looking at Li Yan, he walked out.

Seeing this, Li Shimin's face suddenly became serious again, while Li Yan looked at Li Ke with a gentle and concerned look, and he was not angry at all. Not only that, he was very happy. Li Ke had three loyal subordinates, and today he cut off the two arms of Quan Wanji and Cheng Huailiang, which was a heavy loss. In particular, the departure of Cheng Huailiang was a fatal blow to Li Ke, which would indirectly affect Cheng Yaojin's attitude and position.

Li Ke was scolded again by Li Shimin. It was as if he had lost his wife and his troops, and his vitality was seriously damaged. It would take him several years to recover.

It would be strange if he was in a good mood. He couldn't even control his emotions or pretend to be sincere in front of the emperor. How could such a person be his opponent?

Cen Wenben also sighed, with a heavy heart. He still didn't understand why the situation was very good two days ago. The prestige of the King of Shu in the court and among the people was slightly higher than that of the Crown Prince. But in less than a day, the situation took a sharp turn for the worse. He suffered a series of heavy blows and was reduced to dust!

After carefully looking at Li Yan, who looked concerned about his brother, Cen Wenben felt as if he had been upset. He took a deep breath and looked at Li Shimin.

"Prince, since the King of Shu has made a big mistake in his mission, you should take on the task of repairing the canal yourself!"

Li Shimin said with a serious face: "Recruit another 5,000 laborers from several counties near Chang'an to restore the Yongtong Canal as soon as possible so that grain ships from Luoyang can reach the capital smoothly. Otherwise, not only will the border soldiers be cut off from food, but even the people in the capital will have no rice to eat."

"Yes, father, rest assured. I will personally monitor the construction site and make sure the canal is repaired within one month." Li Yan promised calmly.

Seeing that Li Shimin had nothing else to do, Li Yan said goodbye and left!
After returning to the Eastern Palace, Li Yan called Xue Rengui and the remaining tutors. Liu Renyuan and Sun Renshi went to Tongguan and were still supervising the tax collection for him. The only older people left in the family were Xi Junmai, Gao Kan and Xiao Siye.

The three of them are eighteen or nineteen years old and have been in the Eastern Palace for two months. It is time for them to try to do something. Repairing the Yongtong Canal is not a complicated task. It is a good opportunity for them to exercise and test their talents.

When I was ready to set off, I happened to meet Changsheng who came to "report on his work".

"Your Highness, what happened?" Chang Sheng asked, pretending to know nothing.

Li Yan secretly praised Chang Sheng for his excellent work. He killed Cheng Huailiang cleanly and efficiently. He was indeed the person he had chosen. The timing, method and crime scene were all impeccable, and they had perfectly concealed their intentions.

So he pretended to be ignorant and said, "Changsheng, something happened in the Yongtong Canal. There was a hole about a hundred meters long, and Cheng Huailiang, the Lieutenant General of the Left Guard, lost his life trying to plug the hole."

"My father just dismissed the King of Shu and asked me to take over this matter. I was just about to go to the canal to take a look."

Chang Sheng said with concern, "Prince, I don't have much to do as the Eastern Palace Guard Commander. I don't even have to work at the Honglu Temple. Why don't I go to the construction site with you and see if I can help?"

Li Yan smiled in his heart and said calmly: "This is good. It just so happens that the Zuotunwei army is now leaderless, and these tutors under my command have never led troops. You have been in the army for a long time, so you can temporarily take charge of these people for me."

"If you do a good job, maybe once the canal is completed, your father will reward you for your merits by letting you take over the post of Zuotunwei." Li Yan winked and said excitedly.

Chang Sheng's heart skipped a beat, his face was agitated, he clasped his hands together to hide his expression: "I don't care about the position, I just want to serve Your Highness."

"Well, well said!"

Li Yan nodded approvingly: "Go pack up and leave together later!"

When the group arrived at the construction site of the southern section of Yongtong Canal, Cheng Huailiang's body had already been taken away by people from the Cheng Mansion.

In the tent of the Zuotunwei Army, Li Yan gathered all the officers and soldiers, as well as the officials sent by the court to build the canal and the foremen of the laborers, to learn about the current progress.

It has to be said that Li Ke did put a lot of thought into it. The previously collapsed canal has been repaired. Throughout the day today, the senior officials were busy running around, and the laborers were also busy finishing up the repair work.

Coincidentally, Li Yan ordered a large group of troops to move to the area around Longwang Temple in Huazhou, find a favorable location to set up camp, and then transfer some supplies from the Du Shuijian Hequ Bureau. In addition, he asked Chang Sheng to temporarily lead the Zuotunwei Army and send troops to various counties in Guanzhong to recruit another 5,000 laborers.

After Li Yan arranged everything, he asked his tutors to each take charge of a task and urge everyone to do their job.

(End of this chapter)