My father, Li Shimin, please call me Crown Prince

Chapter 6: Changsun Wuji: Your Majesty should stop caring about the Crown Prince

The main hall of the East Palace.

Although the body had been dragged out, there was still a faint smell of blood.

After killing Hegan Chengji, Li Chengqian did not leave.

Instead, he asked someone to call Zhang Sizheng over.

Hegan Chengji was the leader of the assassins, and Zhang Sizheng was the deputy leader.

Soon, Zhang Sizheng arrived.

He looked a little panicked because he smelled the bloody odor in the hall.

The assassins all lived in the same place, and Crown Prince Zhaohe Gan Chengji naturally knew it.

Before Hegan Chengji came, he also told Zhang Sizheng.

This time the prince was reprimanded by His Majesty, and they have to take action again.

But now he did not see Hegan Chengji, but instead smelled the bloody odor in the hall.

"Zhang Sizheng, meet His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

Looking at Zhang Sizheng kneeling on the ground, Li Chengqian did not let him get up.

He said calmly: "I killed Hegan Chengji."

Looking at the palace guards in the main hall, Zhang Sizheng said tragically: "Why did the prince want to kill him?"

Li Chengqian asked back: "Why do I want to kill him? Don't you know the reason?"

Zhang Sizheng thought that he would die here today.

He asked, "Is it because we didn't help the Crown Prince kill Yu Zhining, the Left Minister, that His Highness thinks that Yu Zhining was the one who informed on him this time, and he wants to vent his anger on us?"

Li Chengqian shook his head and said, "The person who informed on me was not Yu Zhining, but the King of Wei."

"It's been so long since this happened, I naturally won't vent my anger on you."

"I killed Hegan Chengji because he deserved to die."

Zhang Sizheng was a little stunned. He didn't know what was going on.

"You do not know?"

"Please speak clearly, Your Majesty."

Li Chengqian looked carefully and confirmed that Zhang Sizheng did not know about Hegan Chengji's assassination of Li Tai.

Yes, Hegan Chengji is actually quite tight-lipped.

If this were not the case, historically Li Chengqian would not have told him about the rebellion.

But in order to save his own life, he betrayed Li Chengqian.

The laws of the Tang Dynasty were very rule-bound. There was no such thing as merits being merits and faults being faults. If one's merits were great enough, they could offset one's faults.

If you surrender yourself and report the crime, your sentence may be reduced as appropriate.

The reason for this is naturally because of the family background.

After Hegan Chengji informed on the prince's rebellion, he actually survived. Not only did he not die, he was promoted to a higher position and lived to be over 50 years old before he died of illness.

"You want to know?"

"If you really want to know why I want to kill Hegan Chengji?"

"I can tell you, but after you know it, I will kill you."

Zhang Sizheng certainly didn't want to die, so he kowtowed and said, "I don't want to know."

"The Crown Prince killed Hegan Chengji. There must be a reason why Hegan Chengji deserved to die."

"The prince has always been very kind to us. I think if Hegan Chengji had not done something damnable, the prince would never have killed him."

Li Chengqian said: "I am not a demon who kills people for fun, so I will not kill him for no reason."

"I called you here this time to see if you are an accomplice of Hegan Chengji."

"Now it seems that you are not, so naturally you don't have to die."

"I have something for you to do."

Zhang Sizheng hurriedly replied: "Your Highness, please give your orders."

Li Chengqian thought for a moment and said, "Take 20 to 30 people with you and set out early tomorrow morning to go to Qizhou and meet the King of Qi."

"Tell him that I have something to discuss with him, and ask him to return to Chang'an secretly."

In March of the next year, Prince Li You of Qi plotted a rebellion. It was like a farce. Before the court troops arrived, he was arrested by Du Xingmin, the military officer of Qizhou.

If Li Chengqian wants to ascend the throne through the Xuanwu Gate Succession Law, he needs to strengthen his own strength.

He had a good relationship with Prince of Qi Li You, otherwise Prince of Qi Li You's rebellion would not have implicated Hegan Chengji. Li Chengqian once asked Hegan Chengji to do some things for Prince of Qi.

Zhang Sizheng breathed a sigh of relief, at least he would not die.

Li Chengqian found it a little ridiculous that all these assassins trained by his predecessor were afraid of death.

"Your Highness, please give me a token." "If there is no token, just go and tell the King of Qi."

Li Chengqian would certainly not leave any evidence behind.

"Yes, Your Highness."

"Okay, back off."

Zhang Sizheng looked at the armored guards with fear, then bowed and retreated.

When I got outside the hall, I realized that my whole body was soaked with sweat.
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Chang'an is very big, ridiculously big.

87 square kilometers, with an area of ​​108 blocks, which is seven times the size of Constantinople in the Byzantine Empire of the same century and four times the size of ancient Roman cities.

The permanent population is over a million.

Foreign envoys mainly lived near the West Market.

Li Shimin ordered the Indian envoy to be summoned for questioning, and the trip back and forth took an hour.

In Hanyuan Hall.

Changsun Wuji is advising Li Shimin.

"Your Majesty's punishment of the Crown Prince is too harsh. There is no need to whip him with a horsewhip. You can punish him in other ways."

"Besides, in my opinion, it is sufficient for Your Majesty to have the guards kill those male favorites and Taoist priests in front of the Crown Prince."

"Why should we punish him more severely? This will only create a rift between Your Majesty and the Crown Prince."

"Besides, keeping male favorites and alchemists is not a big deal if you really want to talk about it. At most, it is a lack of personal morality. Your Majesty should educate him more. Why make it so tense?"

Changsun Wuji said earnestly.

From today's perspective, keeping a male lover is really nothing.

After experiencing the Five Barbarians' Invasion and the absurd yet beautiful Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties.

People’s bottom line, especially the so-called character of celebrities and the elegance of aristocratic families.

Although keeping male lovers is despised by the world, no one cares about it.

"Wuji, I know what you said."

"At that time, I asked the Crown Prince to come here, intending to give him a scolding and then leave it at that."

"It's just that you didn't see it. The way the prince looked at me at that time was like looking at an enemy."

"That is why I was so angry that I whipped him with a horsewhip."

"Who knew he would be so stubborn, preferring to be whipped rather than admit his fault to me."

"If the prince had a better attitude, I would not have been able to do this."

After hearing what Changsun Wuji said, Li Shimin felt a little regretful.

In the final analysis, it’s a question of attitude.

The prince was too disrespectful to his father, the emperor. He did such a ridiculous thing, but instead of apologizing or admitting his mistake, he used the Guanyin maid to pressure him.

"Wuji, you didn't see it. Do you know what the prince said to me before he left?"

"He said he wanted to go to Zhaoling, to his mother's grave, and wait for me to give him poisoned wine and three feet of white silk."

"He also told me to stay on as emperor till the end and never pass the throne to him."

"Look, this is such a treasonous statement."

When Changsun Wuji heard this, he almost jumped up and asked quickly, "Your Majesty, the prince is not really going there, is he?"

Li Shimin said: "No, he returned to the East Palace after leaving the Purple Palace."

Changsun Wuji breathed a sigh of relief.

If the prince really does this, then Your Majesty will have no way out.

The conflict between father and son will be irreconcilable.

After thinking for a while, Changsun Wuji suggested: "Your Majesty, it would be better for Your Majesty to stay out of the Crown Prince's affairs in the future."

Faced with Zhangsun Wuji's suggestion, Li Shimin felt a little depressed.

What do you mean it's better to mind your own business? I'm his father, there's nothing I can't do about it.

However, whenever he thought of what the prince had said and the eunuch's report that the prince was hesitating outside the Purple Palace, Li Shimin felt a little powerless.

If a situation like that really happens in the future, there will be no way to resolve it.

Li Shimin remained silent. He didn't know how to respond.

Changsun Wuji also felt that it was a bit too much.

Fortunately, the eunuch came to report that the Indian envoys had arrived, which diverted the awkward atmosphere.

"Summon the Indian envoy to the court."

(End of this chapter)