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

Chapter 708: Furious Du Chuke
Wei Zheng rebuked him sternly, "You alone have taken more than 1.3 million strings of cash in less than half a month since taking office. This is simply outrageous and outrageous. For such a crime, even if your entire family is executed, it would not be too much. Hu Lixian, do you know your crime?"

"Sir, please spare my life, please spare my dog's life! I am a lieutenant, a lieutenant, and the position of Lieutenant General is not counted."

Hu Lixian was shaking all over, thinking that he had a big boss to protect him. If the sky fell, there would be someone taller to hold it up, and he was just pretending to be a tiger. But when he came to his senses, the tiger disappeared. How could a weak fox like him resist the wolf?

"Humph!"

Seeing that Hu Lixian was convinced, Wei Zheng asked: "If you can answer the questions I am going to ask honestly, you can still have a chance to survive. If you hide anything, everyone in the government will make sure you are wiped out."

"Yes, please feel free to ask me anything. I will tell you everything I know. I won't leave any room for any luck."

"Where did the one million strings of cash you donated come from?"

When Hu Lixian heard this, he was shocked and looked up at Wei Zheng. A flash of lightning flashed through his mind, and Hu Lixian understood instantly that all this was inseparable from the struggle between the princes in the court.

The King of Shu wanted to harm the Prince, but the Prince took advantage of the situation and dug a big hole to lure the King of Shu into it. Not only did he take a large sum of money from the King of Shu, but he also pulled out the nail that the King of Shu had planted in the East Palace. It was really killing two birds with one stone!

High, really high.

Hu Lixian has figured it all out now. Wei Zheng and Hou Junji surrounded the Flying Tiger Army camp tightly, preventing any information from flowing inside or outside the camp. Then they captured all the generals with lightning speed in order to target the kings. He had fallen into their trap from the beginning.

But what could be done if he knew it? Even if he understood it, he could do nothing about it. Hu Lixian was not a close confidant of the King of Shu. He was only regarded highly by the King of Shu because of his relationship with Cen Wenben and became a tutor in the Eastern Palace. Later, the King of Shu took the money just to deal with the prince.

And when the prince fights back, no one can blame anyone?

When gods fight, mortals can only protect themselves. Hu Lixian can't take care of anything else now. He can only take care of himself first and save the lives of his family, which is the most important thing.

So the King of Shu, who was telling the truth, first took out 100,000 strings of cash and asked him to bribe Wang Xuance. Later, at Wang Xuance's suggestion, he went to the King of Shu's mansion to find Li Ke and took out 1 million strings of cash in order to obtain the position of General of the Central Army.

After entering the army, at the suggestion of the King of Shu, he disrupted the Flying Tiger Army and sold military positions of all ranks to recover his capital.

Wei Zheng was secretly shocked when he heard this. Although he could imagine all this, he was also surprised by the fierce open and secret struggles among the kings.

Wei Zheng did not even dare to write these details down on paper and have Hu Lixian sign them as a confession, because the matter was too big. Not only were all the adult princes involved in the case, but once the huge amount of stolen money became known, it would be difficult for the entire court and even the people of the world to accept it.

So Wei Zheng drove everyone else out and interrogated Hu Lixian alone in his tent, not even allowing Hou Junji to participate.

After finding out all the facts, Wei Zheng said sternly: "Hu Lixian, if the news of you deceiving your superiors and selling official positions and titles spreads out, I'm afraid no one can protect you."

"However, you are lucky. The Flying Tiger Army has not yet been formed, and the officers and soldiers in the army have not yet been officially incorporated into the Tang Dynasty's military system. Everything can still be discussed."

Wei Zheng stared at Hu Lixian, his eyes flashing: "Listen carefully, if all the military schools in the army are donated voluntarily, and you are just collecting it on behalf of them, then it is not selling official positions. Although it has not been approved by the prince, it is still a good intention. As long as all the money is handed over, you can avoid punishment."

"If you used your power as a General of the Central Army to sell official positions and amass a huge fortune without the knowledge of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, then I cannot protect you. I will have to hand you over to the court for prosecution."

Wei Zheng's meaning was clear as day, and Hu Lixian immediately understood it. He was secretly glad that he had collected some silver and money, because the Flying Tiger Army had just been recruited and there were a lot of affairs to deal with every day, and even now there were still people using their connections to get people in.

He had not handed over the money to the King of Shu, so he nodded and said, "It is a donation, sir, it is a donation! Everything I have done is to help His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. I should not have done these things privately without asking the Crown Prince, but I am in a mood to help the court!"

"All that money is in my account. I have not touched a single cent. I am willing to hand it over to you for military expenses. I hope you will show mercy and spare my life!"

"Ok!"

Wei Zheng nodded in satisfaction. "In that case, go and bring all the money and notes. After I register them, you can write a statement of voluntary donation and then go home. By the way, although I will not keep a record of your file, you must be strict with yourself and abide by the law in the future. If you act rashly like this time again, you will inevitably end up being punished by the law sooner or later."

"I know!"

Hu Lixian stood up in despair and said tremblingly: "After this incident, I have learned that if you want to seek an official position and status, you must follow the right path. Even if you fail, you will not fall into a great disaster."

"I must behave myself from now on. Even if a huge pie falls on the head, I won't dare to pick it up!" Wei Zheng nodded with satisfaction: "Well, go ahead."

"Someone is coming!"

Wei Zheng sent Hu Lixian away and ordered loudly: "Next, summon the Inspector General of the Right Guard Zhou Yande to the commander's tent."

Hu Lixian, who had not walked far, shuddered and hurriedly took a few quick steps, just wanting to get away from the central army commander's tent which was like a den of dragons and tigers. At the same time, he felt both sympathy and gloating towards the other lieutenant generals.

At the Prince of Wei's mansion, Du Chuke hurried to Li Tai's study. Both of them were very anxious at the moment. Li Tai, who usually paid attention to his demeanor, treated people kindly, and acted freely and calmly, also panicked and waved his hand to send the servant away.

When there were only two of them left, he hurriedly asked, "Master Du, have you contacted Zhou Yande? What is the current situation in the Flying Tiger Army?"

Du Chuke panted and picked up someone's teacup on the table and drank it all in one gulp. He shook his head at Li Tai's expectant gaze and said, "Your Highness, the Flying Tiger Army is guarding very tightly. Hou Junji is in charge. No one is allowed to enter or leave without the emperor's decree."

"If it was Wei Zheng, it would be easier to deal with him. But Hou Junji is a complete member of the Eastern Palace faction. He has a long history and has made great contributions. He is not afraid of the emperor and does not give face to anyone."

"Moreover, our people just said that now, let alone the Flying Tiger Army, the entire Western Inner Courtyard is under martial law. That is the imperial guard system directly under the emperor, and the Ministry of War cannot mobilize it. It seems that the emperor is serious about this matter."

Li Tai said with infinite regret, "Humph, Hou Junji is just a dog of the Eastern Palace. When my father was at Xuanwu Gate, he arranged the marriage between the prince and his daughter in order to use him. Now, this brave and combative general has directly fallen into the arms of the Eastern Palace. What a pity!"

"In fact, I am not much younger than you, and I am also the legitimate son. Why didn't father give Haitang to me?"

"Hou Junji, this old fellow, is really a good thing. His daughter Haitang is said to be extremely beautiful and stunning. There is no such beauty in Chang'an. Such a beauty is also calm and extraordinary. In addition, Hou Junji is in charge of half of the imperial guards. If this Haitang flower falls into my Wei Palace, why would I do so many things in private?"

"Who says it's not?"

Seeing that Li Tai's attention shifted to the beauty, Du Chuke frowned and said, "Today's court meeting was really a shame. It was clearly our three families who challenged the prince, how come it suddenly got out of control?"

"I don't know which bastard framed me. If I find him, I will skin him alive. I had to explain for a long time, but the Emperor and old ministers like Fang Xuanling looked at me like a traitor. Later, I even forgot to attack the Crown Prince."

"It was not him who took action."

When Li Tai heard Du Chuke mention today's court meeting, he looked aggrieved and asked quickly, "Who are you talking about?"

"Oh, I was wondering if His Royal Highness the Crown Prince heard the news in advance and deliberately interfered." Du Chuke looked heavy-hearted. In fact, what he wanted to say was that Li Shimin had taken action.

Judging from the chaos in the court today, almost half of the ministers got involved, turning the highest power center of the Tang Dynasty into a vegetable market.

Without the emperor's tacit approval, how could things become so chaotic?

As an emperor who ascended to the throne by stepping on the blood of his brothers, Du Chuke never doubted Li Shimin's control over the court.

But he didn't dare to say it. If Li Tai knew that Li Shimin had taken action, he might become afraid.

Although Li Tai usually looks fearless, all his confidence comes from Li Shimin's extraordinary doting.

Li Tai dared not disobey Li Shimin in the slightest.

However, as an emperor, Li Shimin had always been aloof. Why did he personally come forward to help the prince?
Du Chuke didn't think about military expenses for the time being.
"But your highness, don't worry. Even if we can't contact Zhou Yande, there is nothing to worry about. The affairs of the Flying Tiger Army involve so many princes and dignitaries in the court. Even the emperor doesn't dare to touch it easily."

Du Chuke comforted him, "As long as it's not targeting my family, it doesn't matter. Your Highness can rest assured. The worst that can happen is the loss of Zhou Yande and some money. The ones who should be worried now are not us, but the East Palace."

"Yes, as long as we can cause trouble for the Eastern Palace, these sacrifices are worth it!" Li Tai also felt relieved.

(End of this chapter)