A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Starting from the Village Chief

Chapter 653 How long will His Majesty remain so muddle-headed?
"Yang Wengan has rebelled and has already captured Ningzhou."

In the Taiji Palace,

Li Yuan summoned the Crown Prince, his voice as cold as iron.

The crown prince knelt on the ground, trembling.

Yang Wengan's raising of troops undoubtedly left him with no way to defend himself.

"Your Majesty, I absolutely did not allow Wengan to raise an army." Jiancheng kowtowed, pleading guilty, his head hitting the ground with a thud.
His head was broken and bleeding profusely.

Li Yuan frowned, gritted his teeth, and glared angrily at Jiancheng, his anger still hard to quell.

"I sent Yuwen Ying to summon Wen Gan to the capital, but he directly launched a rebellion. How can I trust you again?"

Enraged, Li Yuan ignored Jiancheng's explanation and ordered Chen Fu, the Junior Supervisor of the Palace, to take the Crown Prince to Linhu Palace for guarding.

"No one is allowed to see the Crown Prince. His only food is water and barley porridge!"

"Your Majesty, I have absolutely no intention of rebelling. Yang Wengan's rebellion has nothing to do with me."

Li Yuan waved his hand, not wanting to hear Jiancheng's feeble explanation.

He summoned all the prime ministers and even sent someone to invite Prince Qin, Li Shimin.

"My beloved ministers, it pains me deeply!"

Li Yuan's hair had turned even whiter, and he looked extremely haggard.

After Prince Qin, Li Shimin, entered the hall, he knelt there quietly without uttering a single word.

However, beneath the calm surface, the heart is far from calm.

Since returning to the capital, Li Yi's ingenious plans have succeeded one after another, and now Yang Wengan has truly rebelled.

Although the poisoning was a ruse that was kept from him at first, which made him a little unhappy afterward, the result was actually very good.

Now, through those three hundred sets of armor, and with the help of Chang He, Yuwen Ying, and others, Yang Wengan has been forced into rebellion again.

Interlocking.

He is now increasingly confident in the Xuanwu Plan.

Right Minister Xiao Yu advised: "Yang Wengan has rebelled. The court should quickly send troops to quell the rebellion to prevent the devastation of the region."

Li Yuan rubbed his head.

"Dispatch General Qian Jiulong, Right Palace Attendant, and Vice Minister Yang Shidao of the Ministry of Personnel to lead troops to suppress the rebellion!"

The Chamberlain Chen Shuda advised, “Your Majesty has already summoned Li Yi, the Governor of Jingzhou and Prince of Yan, to court to serve as the Left Wing Guard General. However, Li Yi has yet to depart. I request Your Majesty to immediately send another envoy to urge him to come to court and dispatch a general to replace him to be stationed in Jingzhou and in charge of the Jingzhou troops.”

This was an implication to the emperor that Li Yi and the crown prince had close ties, and that he should be wary of Li Yi also launching a rebellion.

"Zhang Jin, the Right Guard General, was appointed as the Inspector General of Jingzhou."

"The Grand Secretary Yu Shiji was appointed as the Inspector General of Liangzhou."

Li Yuan's gaze swept over the prime ministers, finally settling on Pei Ji's face.

Pei Ji lowered his head and remained silent.

Li Yuan then looked at his second son, Li Shimin, who also lowered his head and remained silent.

Chest tightness and shortness of breath

Li Yuan waved for the prime ministers to leave.
It's another thunderstorm.
The Taiji Palace was stuffy and hot with high humidity, which made Li Yuan feel agitated.

"Your Majesty, Li Gang, Junior Guardian of the Crown Prince, requests an audience."

"What is he doing here?" Li Yuan did not have a good attitude towards Li Gang. He had initially chosen Li Gang as the Crown Prince's tutor, but Li Gang failed to fulfill his duties. Now that something had happened in the Eastern Palace, Li Yuan felt that Li Yuan bore a great responsibility.

Although Li Gang had resigned from his position as Crown Prince several years ago, he had also resigned from his position as Minister of Rites in the imperial court.

I didn't want to see him.
Finally, Li Yuan said to the eunuch, "Take him to the sea pool."

The weather was incredibly hot and humid.
Li Yuan no longer wanted to stay in the palace.
He ordered someone to bring horses, and rode them from the palace to the northern lake, boarded a dragon boat, and sailed on the lake.

There was a breeze on the lake, which finally eased the tightness in my chest.

Li Gang was carried to the lakeside and boarded a dragon boat.

"Are you pleading for the Crown Prince?" Li Yuan asked.

After paying his respects to the emperor, Li Gang stated frankly, "This old minister has come not to plead for the crown prince."

"Then what brings you here?"

Li Gang slowly said, "Back then, I was the tutor of Crown Prince Yang Yong of the Sui Dynasty. When Yang Yong was deposed, I strongly opposed it because I believed that Yang Yong was an ordinary person and could still be advised and instructed, and could become a qualified crown prince."

"Talent is a tool, character is a nature. Compared to talent, I believe that the most important thing for the Crown Prince is his character."

"However, the current Crown Prince Jiancheng is only mediocre in talent and intelligence, far inferior to the King of Qin. And his character is even worse than that of the King of Qin."

The crown prince is estranged from his own family, harms virtuous and capable officials, and even disregards the perilous state of the nation. He is truly unfit for a great responsibility.

Now that things have come to this point, has His Majesty still not come to his senses?

If things continue like this, internal strife will erupt, and brothers will turn against each other. By then, it will be too late to regret it.

The only solution now is to act decisively and decisively. We should take this opportunity to formally issue an edict to depose the heir apparent and establish the King of Qin as the new crown prince.

If the crown prince commits a serious offense, he can be deposed, demoted to a king, and enfeoffed in a remote area, thus preserving his life.

If Your Majesty continues to be so stubborn, it will surely lead to even greater disaster.

By then, it was too late for regrets.

Li Yuan's face darkened; he hadn't expected the white-haired Li Gang to utter such treasonous words.

The emperor said nothing.

Li Gang raised his voice, "How long will Your Majesty remain so muddle-headed? By continuing to protect the Crown Prince, you are actually harming him."

"Deposing the eldest son and establishing the youngest is a path to chaos," Li Yuan sighed.

"The Crown Prince is unworthy of his position and will surely bring disaster upon himself!" Li Gang said. "By taking advantage of Yang Wengan's rebellion, which involves the Eastern Palace, we can issue an edict to depose the Crown Prince and establish the Prince of Qin as the new Crown Prince. Only in this way can we avert a great calamity!"

Li Yuan said, "I have decided that next year I will enfeoff the Prince of Qin in Nanning Prefecture to completely resolve this problem." Li Gang shook his head and sighed, "Your Majesty is deceiving yourself; this will surely lead to endless troubles in the future!"

“Unless Your Majesty is determined to kill the Prince of Qin, even if the Prince of Qin is enfeoffed in the south, given his abilities, he will inevitably raise an army to fight for the throne after Your Majesty passes away. At that time, who will be able to suppress the Prince of Qin?”

Li Yuan said, "The south is full of barbarians. Shimin was enfeoffed in Nanning, so he is unlikely to become a force to be reckoned with. Even if he raises an army after I leave, the army in Shu is weak, and Jiancheng can quell the rebellion."

Li Gang sighed.

Li Yuan became annoyed again.

Get rid of Li Gang.
I picked up the pipa to play a tune, but after plucking a few strings, the string broke.

Li Yuan was so angry that he smashed the expensive pipa.

Standing on the deck, he took a few deep breaths, looking at Li Gang's desolate figure on the shore.

"Summon the King of Qin."

Li Gang's words deeply stung Li Yuan. As the tutor of the Crown Prince, Li Gang said that Jiancheng was not only bad in character but also incompetent. He even accused him of alienating his family and harming virtuous people, as if passing the throne to Jiancheng would mean the Tang Dynasty would perish after only two generations.

When Li Gang left, he said that even if the King of Qin was enfeoffed in the south, he would not let the King of Qin go after Jiancheng ascended the throne.

Li Shimin was summoned to Haichi.

Li Yuan ordered his guards to row the dragon boat to Penglai Island in the pond, where the father and son sat facing each other in the Penglai Pavilion.

What is your opinion on Yang Wengan's alleged rebellion?

“Your Majesty, Yang Wengan is a scoundrel who dares to rebel, but he is not worth fearing. The officials of Qingzhou Prefecture have already captured and executed him. Even if he has deceived the soldiers for a time, as long as Qian Jiulong and others arrive and read out the imperial edict, he will be captured easily and the matter will be settled immediately.”

Li Yuan shook his head.

"I am not worried about Yang Wengan, but I am worried about Jiancheng. I fear that many people will follow him, especially Li Yi, the Governor of Jingzhou and Prince of Yan, and Youliang, the Governor of Liangzhou and Prince of Changle, who are closely related to Jiancheng."

This must be quelled as soon as possible; you must go there yourself!

Li Shimin looked up at his father.

Li Yuan sighed, "Li Gang came to see me just now and said a lot. I think it's more appropriate to hand over this country to you."

"Once you have pacified the Northwest and returned to the capital, you will be made Crown Prince."

When Li Shimin heard the words "I will make you the crown prince" again, he felt no emotion at all, and even wanted to laugh a little.

He no longer believed the emperor's promises.

Being let down once is enough.

Li Yuan took Li Shimin's hand, saying, "I cannot follow the example of Emperor Wen of Sui and execute his own son."
At that time, I will enfeoff my eldest son in the south, demote him to the King of Shu, and establish the state of Nanning.

The Shu army was weak.
After I pass away, when you ascend the throne, if Jiancheng is able to serve you, you must also protect his family.

Even if he refuses to serve you, it will be easy for you to quell the rebellion.

As he said this, Li Yuan stared intently at his second son, observing his reaction.

Li Shimin remained calm.

"Your Majesty, I believe that although Yang Wengan was born into the Eastern Palace Guard, his rebellion has nothing to do with the Crown Prince. My elder brother is the Crown Prince; how could the Crown Prince rebel?"

"Your subject is willing to go to Ningzhou to quell the rebellion, capture Yang Wengan alive and bring him back to the capital, so that he can explain things clearly to Your Majesty."

Li Yuan was somewhat surprised.

The father and son chatted for a while longer. Li Shimin then left on a dragon boat, while Li Yuan stood alone on the island's pavilion, watching his son depart into the distance.

When Li Shimin landed, Fang Xuanling, Du Ruhui, Changsun Wuji, and Gao Shilian were waiting for him, along with Hou Junji, Xu Luoren, Qiu Xinggong, and Zhang Gongjin.

"Why has His Majesty suddenly summoned the King again?"

Facing these trusted confidants, Li Shimin did not hide anything and simply relayed the emperor's words.

“This must be a test!” Du Ruhui said bluntly.

Li Shimin nodded, "I think so too."

The group walked toward Xuanwu Gate and passed Linhu Hall.

The crown prince was temporarily placed under house arrest here.

"King Qin,"

When Ren Can, the Imperial Kitchen Attendant, saw Li Shimin arrive, a look of panic flashed in his eyes. He immediately rushed to Li Shimin's side, knelt down, and held Li Shimin's feet to express his loyalty.

Li Shimin knew this man; his elder brother, Ren Gui, was the teacher of Crown Prince Jiancheng and was now the governor of Xuzhou.

Ren Can has always been a confidant of the Crown Prince.

At this moment, the Crown Prince's confidant knelt on the ground.
Holding Li Shimin's feet, he said, "Your Majesty, we will follow the orders of the Prince of Qin today. If you want us to get rid of the Crown Prince, now is the perfect opportunity."

"This humble servant is willing to go through fire and water for Your Majesty, even unto death!"

Upon hearing his words, Li Shimin showed no joy whatsoever; instead, he kicked him away in disgust and loudly ordered him to leave.

Then he left without looking back.

Changsun Wuji jogged to catch up and couldn't help but say, "Yang Wengan's rebellion on behalf of the Crown Prince is known to all. Using the Eastern Palace officials to get rid of Jiancheng is exactly in accordance with the will of Heaven."

Li Shimin simply shook his head.

Fang Xuanling said from behind, "Lord Changsun is muddle-headed. Some things can only be done, not said. Ren Can said those things in front of more than ten people. Even if he really took action to eliminate the Crown Prince,..."
But wouldn't this matter still fall on the King of Qin's shoulders?

How could His Majesty stand idly by?

If the crown prince is killed, will the King of Qin become the crown prince?
There was also an emperor.
If someone dared to eliminate the crown prince directly, the result would not be that the emperor would appoint the Prince of Qin as the crown prince, but rather that the Prince of Qin would either be imprisoned or demoted to a commoner and exiled.

They might even be executed.

Li Yi had told them about their Xuanwu Plan long ago that the emperor was the primary target.

Du Ruhui said, "How could Lord Changsun know that Ren Can might also be arranged by His Majesty to deliberately test the Prince of Qin?"

(End of this chapter)