Three whips break the father-son relationship, please call me prince

Chapter 214 Li Chengqian persuades Li Shimin to go out for inspection

Liangyi Palace.

Li Shimin was wearing the emperor's crown and tassels, posing with a dignified look in his eyes.

Yan Liben was painting a portrait of the emperor with great concentration and seriousness.

Li Chengqian and Wei Zheng entered one after another, but did not disturb them and found a place to sit down.

He usually would not face Li Shimin alone, but would bring other ministers with him.

Most of them are Wei Zheng.

Li Chengqian would not be used to dealing with Li Shimin one-on-one.

As time passed, Li Shimin rarely wavered, which showed how much he cared about this matter.

at last.

Yan Liben put down his brush and finished painting the portrait.

"I'm going to change clothes first."

Li Shimin stood up with the help of the eunuchs. It was obvious that his body was a little numb and he had difficulty walking.

"Your Majesty, don't you want to take a look first?"

Yan Liben asked.

"I believe in your painting skills."

After Li Shimin said this, Yan Liben smiled knowingly and showed the portrait to the prince and Wei Zheng.

Both of them were very satisfied, thinking it was worthy of being created by Yan Liben.

Not long after, Li Shimin came out and expressed his approval of the portrait.

"Prince, I sat here for almost two hours for this portrait."

Li Shimin said.

"Your Majesty cares about the people. I think the people would be grateful if they knew about it."

Li Chengqian said.

"Your Majesty loves the people like his own children. Nothing is better than this." Wei Zheng also praised him.

Li Chengqian corrected him, saying, "I don't really like the idea of ​​loving the people like one's own children."

"The people are the subjects of the emperor, so how can they be called sons?"

Wei Zheng blinked his eyes. If not, how could we tell the difference?
Chu Suiliang paused for a moment, but then he started writing again and recorded the facts.

Li Shimin smiled and asked, "What brings you here, Prince?"

"His Majesty."

"You should go out for a walk."

Li Chengqian explained the purpose of his visit.

Wei Zheng didn't know about this beforehand and was a little surprised when he heard it.

"Go deep into the people and the army, so that the common people can see your majesty and feel your majesty's grace, and the soldiers can also look up to your majesty's holy face and feel your majesty."

Li Chengqian said: "Your Majesty has been living in the palace for a long time, dealing with hundreds of things, it is far better to take a walk among the people."

"Listen to the people's opinions and look at the soldiers' military appearance."

Li Shimin was a king who loved hunting and often went out hunting to relieve his boredom.

But he seldom goes among the people.

Li Shimin was greatly surprised. He had no idea what the prince was up to.

"I want to go to the folks?"

He tentatively confirmed whether he had heard it wrongly.

"Correct!"

Li Chengqian replied bluntly.

Wei Zheng said: "Your Highness, how can His Majesty leave Chang'an at will? The safety of the country is at stake. How can the state run without a leader?"

Li Chengqian said: "If there is no leader in the court, state affairs will come to a standstill. Then what are the heads of the three provinces and six ministries for?"

"Are they just sitting there doing nothing and doing nothing?"

"If that's the case, if we rely on Your Majesty for everything, what else do we need them for?"

"Everything your majesty heard and saw in the palace was reported by the people below."

"Whatever they say is what it is. How can Your Majesty distinguish the truth from the false?"

"If you don't go among the people, how can you know the truth, how can you know what the people think? How can you see how the people live?"

He definitely wants Li Shimin to get out.

This has nothing to do with anything else except breaking the ridiculous restriction that emperors cannot leave the capital lightly.

If it were any other emperor, it would be difficult to deal with it.

But Li Shimin was different. He was a horse emperor. He could go out whenever he wanted and didn't have to care too much about what people said in the court.

Didn’t Li Shimin go to inspect the north just as he said he would?

"Your Highness, that's not the case."

Wei Zheng didn't know how to explain it. Could it be that the emperor was in Chang'an in order to hold power in his hands?

Delegate power.

This is what the emperor fears the most.

Once power is delegated, unimaginable consequences may occur.

"Wei Zheng, please stop talking."

Li Shimin smiled and said, "Your Highness is right. I am tired of staying in the palace."

"It's just right. The prince suggested it, so I'll go out and take a look."

Give me a pillow when you feel sleepy.

He had wanted to leave a long time ago, but he gave up because he was annoyed by the noisy voice of a group of ministers.

"Your Majesty, please think twice. The world cannot do without you." Wei Zheng said, "Your Majesty, please do not forget the consequences of Emperor Yang of Sui's many tours."

"What do you mean by inseparable? If I'm not in Chang'an, the world will be in turmoil?"

Li Shimin said unhappily: "What a joke."

"You are exaggerating. How can I be the same as Emperor Yang of Sui?"

"This time, I've thought it through. The Crown Prince will govern the country, and I won't bring any ministers with me."

"His Majesty!"

Li Chengqian said, "I want to go out too."

Ok?
Li Shimin hesitated. He thought that since the crown prince was in the court to supervise the country, he could go out without any worries.

Who would have thought that the prince would also leave.

How can this be done?

"Prince, if you want me to leave, you have to leave too. Who will make the decisions on all matters in the court?"

"Don't tease me."

Li Shimin said a little angrily.

"Your Majesty, do you not trust the Central Government? Or do you not trust the ability of the ministers in the court?"

"Can't they handle the affairs of the court?"

Li Chengqian asked three times in a row, and Li Shimin could not help but ponder, and said: "How should we deal with the big matter?"

"The three provinces and six ministries should discuss this together." "What if they can't make up their minds?"

"Joint vote."

Li Shimin: "?"

"I believe in your talents and abilities. No matter how big the problem is, they can handle it properly."

That's not the problem.

They can solve it.

What do I, the emperor, need do? What do you, the crown prince, need do?
Li Shimin was a little suspicious. Who had given the prince some kind of magic potion? Could it be that he didn't even understand this principle?
"What you said is really ridiculous," Li Shimin commented unhappily.

"May I ask, Your Majesty, how many matters can one person handle? And how many matters were handled by the ministers in the end?"

Li Chengqian said: "Besides, if the news is sent by express horse, His Majesty will also be able to know it."

He knew that the most important thing was the power to make decisions.

If an emperor does not hold the power of decision in his hands and gives it to others, it is no less than a mere formality for the emperor to exist.

How to demonstrate the emperor’s supreme authority?

But does one have to be in the capital to have the power to make decisions?
That's really a joke.

The emperor's supreme authority should be irreplaceable and cannot be ignored no matter where he is.

This is actually a misunderstanding.

And it is a man-made illusion.

This is because, as long as the emperor is confined to the capital, he cannot see or hear anything outside the capital and has to rely entirely on reports from below. In this way, the outside world is truly beyond the emperor's majesty.

On the contrary, it is the local officials who do whatever they want and plunder and rob people.

How did the practice of deceiving the holy ears come about?

I am sure that your emperor is in Chang'an and I don't know the specific situation there.

They can make the decision themselves.

If Li Shimin didn't go out, how could Li Chengqian go out?

Therefore, starting from Li Shimin, the rule that the emperor was not allowed to go out easily was broken.

The purpose is to let Li Shimin run around and walk everywhere.

Could it be possible that the central government of the imperial court would just stop doing anything just because Li Shimin was not around?
The world will continue to turn around no matter who leaves.

If it doesn't turn, then there is a problem.

"In addition, all matters discussed in the court, big or small, must be signed by all those who participated, executed, and drafted them."

"This way, no matter what problems there are later, there will be traces to follow."

Processes, traces, everything is done according to rules and regulations.

Good things can be rewarded afterwards, and bad things can be held accountable afterwards.

run?
As long as you sign and are on the list, no one can escape.

Li Shimin fell into deep thought and it was difficult for him to make a decision for a while.

"Prince, how about you stay?"

He said in a negotiating tone.

Li Shimin became more and more confident in Li Chengqian.

He did not get involved in military power and only took care of the affairs of the court. There was no worry at all that he would not do a good job as regent.

"Your Majesty, if you want to go to Shandong, I will go to Jiangnan."

"If you want to go to Jiangnan, I will go to Shandong."

Li Chengqian said: "I am going out."

Li Shimin was very troubled by Li Chengqian's attitude.

Why can't you eat anything?
"Wei Zheng, what do you think?"

Wei Zheng was very unhappy. It was you who told me to shut up just now, and now it’s you who asked me to speak?

Did you think of me?
I don’t know what to do either.

Wei Zheng turned his head away and ignored Li Shimin.

This country bumpkin!
Li Shimin glared at Wei Zheng and asked, "Chu Suiliang, what do you think?"

"Your Majesty, there have been such rules in the past dynasties, but our Tang Dynasty is now adhering to the spirit of exploration and development, which does not mean that our Tang Dynasty cannot do it."

"Your Majesty is so powerful that the people support you. The people live and work in peace and prosperity, and the world is at peace."

"Look at the world, this may also be what the people are looking forward to."

Chu Suiliang said: "Of course, it is a bit far to travel to Shandong and Jiangnan at once."

"Why not take a look within Chang'an first?"

This is a compromise suggestion.

The emperor was away, but not far away.

"Alright."

"What do you think, Prince?"

Hearing this, Li Chengqian smiled, knowing that taking this step would not be so easy.

Li Shimin had concerns, and the officials were a little spineless.

Every time the emperor travels, it always involves huge expenses.

It also placed a considerable burden on the imperial court and local governments.

But things need to be interpreted from multiple perspectives.

Emperors do not have to be extravagant when they travel. When the First Emperor toured the south, it was said that he was ambitious, extravagant and spent huge amounts of money.

But from an economic point of view, if there is expenditure, someone must gain.

It's impossible for it to disappear for no reason, but where did the money spent go?

"It's just right. Your Majesty can go to Old Wang's house and take his portrait to him."

“That’s a good story.”

Li Chengqian said.

"Well, let's take a look in Chang'an first."

Li Shimin said: "I will not be extravagant on this trip."

"Ministers, concubines, etc., don't need to follow, everything should be kept simple and convenient."

Wei Zheng didn't know what to say.

Your Majesty and the Crown Prince have to decide this together.

The ministers in the court wanted to object, but they didn't know where to start.

He hoped that other ministers could persuade Li Shimin to change his mind.

But it's obviously impossible.

After Fang Xuanling, Zhangsun Wuji and others learned about it, they did not try to persuade him.

Instead, Li Shimin listened to his instructions in person.

What followed was the Tang Empire News, which reported the news that the Holy Emperor was inspecting various places in Chang'an.

For a time, government offices all over Chang'an were in a state of panic, and everyone saw enemies as enemies.

(End of this chapter)