Datang: Just been appointed as the crown prince, the counterattack system is here

Chapter 375 Li Chengqian: Traitors Must Die! [Seeking Monthly Tickets]

Under the eaves of the east side hall of Lizheng Hall, two white gauze palace lanterns swayed back and forth in the cold wind.

The dim yellow light cast shards of shadow like ghostly claws on the blue bricks.

The eunuch Gao Yao pushed open the wooden door of the side room. The strong smell of bitter almonds, mixed with a hint of the stench of corpses, made his throat tighten.

"Commander Yang, Xiangling's body is inside." Gao Yao's voice sounded like it had been sanded, and his slightly pale hand pointed to the low couch inside the room: "The Empress said that Xiangling has served her for so many years, and she must give her an explanation, no matter who is involved."

Yang Nannan nodded and stepped in. As her dark brocade robe brushed against the threshold, the three-foot-long embroidered spring knife at her waist clashed with the copper ring with a crisp sound.

Xiangling lay stiffly on her back on the couch, her apricot-colored dress torn three inches at the collar, with bruises from scratching on her throat, dry, black spots like blisters on her arms, dark circles under her eyes, purple lips, and bare feet covered in mud and grass.

"When did you discover Xiangling's body?" Yang Nannan picked up a silk scarf, lightly covered her face, and gestured for Gao Yao to stay away from her.

"Reporting to Commander Yang, it was discovered in the flower bed on the west side of Lizheng Hall at 3:45 PM."

As Gao Yao stepped back, he bowed and said, "She said she was not feeling well those two days, so the Empress did not have her serve her."

"Therefore, she has been recuperating in her room for the past two days."

How far is her room from the flower bed?

Yang Nannan frowned and pressed for an answer.

Gao thought for a moment and said, "It's about two hundred steps away, and that flower bed is rarely visited by people, so it's a rather secluded place."

"Ah."

Yang Nannan nodded, then tied the silk scarf over her mouth and nose, took out a pair of pig-belly gloves, pried open Xiangling's teeth, and used a silver needle to pick out half a piece of undissolved brown medicine residue: "Who prescribed her medicine? And who was in charge of decocting it?"

"The medicine was prepared by Physician Li from the Imperial Hospital, and Xiao Lan, who lives with her, was in charge of decocting it. Oh, by the way, Xiao Lan seems to be sick too."

"Do you remember how many people came into contact with her body?"

"I remember! Because I was in charge of all her affairs!"

"Then, did you touch her body?"

"This... I don't remember."

"it is good!"

Yang Nannan's expression turned serious, and she immediately turned and walked towards the door, saying to the Imperial Guards outside, "Seal this place off immediately and don't allow anyone to come near!"

After saying this, he turned to Gao Yao and said sternly, "Eunuch Gao! Inform the Empress to move her out of Lizheng Palace. At the same time, gather all those who have come into contact with Xiangling's body together and prevent them from contacting anyone, especially Xiao Lan, who should be separated from her!"

"what!?"

Gao Yao was startled and quickly ran out, asking, "Why is this happening, Commander Yang? Making the Empress move out of Lizheng Palace is a huge deal!"

"I know this is a matter of utmost importance! But now, we must! Inform the Empress immediately! Any later, and I fear it will be too late!"

Yang Nannan said in an unquestionable tone.

But Gao Yao said with a bitter face, "You have to give me a reason, otherwise how am I supposed to explain this to the Empress?"

"reason?"

Yang Nannan gave her a cold look, then said in a deep voice, "If I told you that Xiangling might have contracted smallpox, do you know what the consequences would be?"

"smallpox!?"

Upon hearing this, Gao Yao felt as if struck by lightning, his mind reeling.

But Yang Nannan didn't have time to pay attention to him. She turned to the Imperial Guards on her left and right and said, "Send one of you to inform the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review to bring a coroner over. Make sure he is properly protected and dissect Xiangling's body. I think Xiangling has not only contracted smallpox, but also erysipelas!"

"erysipelas?"

Gao Yao snapped out of his daze and asked incredulously, "Does Commander Yang suspect that Xiangling took the elixir?"

“Erysipelas isn’t necessarily caused by ingesting some kind of elixir; it could also be caused by using some kind of object containing erysipelas. Over time, combined with smallpox infection, it can lead to sudden death!” Yang Nannan said thoughtfully.

Gao Yao paused for a moment, then said, "Should we investigate that Xiao Lan? She lives with Xiang Ling, so she should know more about the situation!"

"This certainly needs to be investigated, but I don't have time right now. I need to go to the medical school to find Doctor Sun and see if there's a way to deal with smallpox. Otherwise, the entire Chang'an will become an epidemic area!"

Yang Nannan solemnly uttered a sentence and then walked towards the door on her own.

After a moment of stunned silence, Gao Yao rushed towards Lizheng Hall in a panic.

If Chang'an really becomes an epidemic area, I don't know how many people will die.

At the same time, in the Prince’s Mansion.

Although Li Chengqian is not currently in Chang'an, the Crown Prince's residence has always served as the office location for the Eastern Palace.

At this moment, Ma Zhou, Sun Fujia, Cen Wenben, and other officials from the Eastern Palace faction all gathered together to discuss the recent events in Chang'an.

But Ma Zhou spoke first: "We have already sent Commander Yang to investigate the matter in the Empress's palace, but we still need to deal with the changes in the court ourselves."

"In addition, I have also sent someone to inform the Crown Prince's tutor. His idea is to wait and see. What do you think?"

“I think there’s really no need to clash with them before the Crown Prince returns. Besides, before the Crown Prince left the capital, he told us to just do our jobs!” Xie Yan, the deputy steward of the Crown Prince’s residence, chimed in.

Wang Ji, the Master of Ceremonies of the Eastern Palace, disagreed, saying, "His Highness the Crown Prince has always been one of 'I will not offend others unless they offend me, but if they do, I will deal with them with swift and decisive action.' If we back down in front of them, we will not only lose face for ourselves, but for the entire Eastern Palace. Therefore, I think Vice Chief Eunuch Xie's opinion is unacceptable!"

"That's right! Why should we compromise with them?!"

Sun Fujia agreed wholeheartedly, saying, "They didn't hold back when they dealt with Pei Ji and the others. If we hold back, they'll probably keep suppressing us in the future!"

“However, they still hold a favorable position. Although we have a large number of people, we have almost no officials of the third rank or above. We have no say in the Ministry of Personnel, the Secretariat, or the Chancellery. Even in the Grand Secretariat, we only have three seats. We don’t have much of an advantage at all!” Sun Chuyue, the Left Vice Minister of the Crown Prince’s Palace, sighed.

Upon hearing this, the officials of the Eastern Palace exchanged bewildered glances.

But Cen Wenben said thoughtfully, "Our main advantages lie in public opinion, the Six Guards of the Crown Prince's Palace, and the Embroidered Uniform Guard. But the current situation is that our biggest advantage, the Six Guards of the Crown Prince's Palace, are not in Chang'an. As for public opinion, we have to mobilize it in real time. But the current situation is that everything is being contested in secret, and we can't use the power of public opinion to deal with them at all."

"As for the Embroidered Uniform Guard, they can't possibly control the entire capital, after all, the Imperial Guard, the Hundred Cavalry Division, and even the Bad People are all spread throughout Chang'an."

"So we just have to accept our fate?" Liu Rengui, the president of the Academy of Sciences, said somewhat unwillingly.

The officials of the Eastern Palace fell silent once again.

After a short while, Ma Zhou pondered and said, "In my opinion, neither Fang Xuanling nor Li Jing should oppose the Crown Prince! Even Liu Ji is the same. The ones who are really stirring up trouble in the dark are those who are usually neutral."

"What does Minister Ma mean?" Wei Yuanzhong, the newly appointed top scholar and outstanding student of the military academy, couldn't help but ask.

Ma Zhou glanced at him and said, "These people who are usually neutral are some of the old ministers from the Wude period. Although they stayed when His Majesty reduced the number of officials, their backgrounds are very complicated."

"Moreover, judging from the investigation by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, there must be people among them who colluded with the guards."

"Therefore, I suspect that this unusual situation is very likely due to the Shouzhulang's new move, which is trying to provoke conflict between us and Fang Xuanling and his group."

"But the Shouzhulang is just a Jianghu organization. What is their purpose in doing this? Do they want to usurp the throne? How is that possible?" Sun Fujia asked, somewhat puzzled.

"Do you still remember how they colluded with the five noble families and seven powerful clans to murder the Crown Prince?"

Cen Wenben pondered for a moment and said, "There must be a reason why they have been able to exist for so long. Only by attaching themselves to the powerful and wealthy can they have achieved what they have today!"

"Does Director Cen mean that there are princes colluding with them?" Liu Rengui's face darkened.

The officials of the Eastern Palace looked at each other in bewilderment once again.

Just then, a report came from outside the door: "Minister Sun, Commander Yang has sent someone to inform you that you must immediately dispatch a coroner from the Court of Judicial Review to the palace to dissect the corpse!"

"Ah? This"

Sun Fujia reacted for a moment, then quickly glanced at everyone, finally stood up from his seat, hurriedly went to the door, and asked in a low voice, "Has something happened?"

"According to Commander Yang's investigation, the palace maid named Xiangling was not only poisoned, but may also have contracted smallpox!"

"What!?"

Sun Fujia was taken aback and turned to look at Cen Wenben and the others who had rushed over behind him.

Cen Wenben and the others also showed expressions of shock and horror.

What is smallpox?

A terrible plague that can wipe out an entire city with a single infection!
On the other side, there is Fu'ai City, formerly the capital of Tuyuhun, now Hunzhou City.

Since learning that Li Shimin had sent Hou Junji to attack Gaochang, Li Chengqian had stayed in Hunzhou City and had not gone anywhere else.

Aside from occasionally overseeing military training and communicating and cooperating with the generals of the allied forces in the Western Regions, he also studied strategies for conquering Tibet.

Although the current Songtsen Gampo of Tibet did not marry Princess Wencheng as in history, his abilities far surpass those of Murong Shun, Dayan Mangjiebo, or Yishi Dadu and Yishi Yemang.

Even Fu Yun and Yi Shi Yinan are no match for him.

Therefore, Li Chengqian was very cautious in his strategy towards Tibet.

It wasn't that he lacked confidence in defeating Tibet, but rather that he was considering how to defeat Tibet with minimal losses. This was because Tibet's terrain was higher than that of Tuyuhun, and its climate was also much colder.

Even in summer, the temperature there isn't high.

Therefore, if a large army were to conquer Tibet, altitude sickness would be a hurdle that must be overcome.

"His Royal Highness!"

Just as Li Chengqian was studying the map of Tibet and getting stuck, Pei Xingjian's voice suddenly rang out from outside the door. He frowned and turned around, saying, "Come in!"

"Your Highness, our people have made contact with Gar Tongtsen, but his condition doesn't seem to be good. Songtsen Gampo doesn't seem to trust him much anymore!"

"Oh?"

Li Chengqian raised an eyebrow, then narrowed his eyes and said, "What's going on? When I was in Chang'an, I wasn't too close to him. It shouldn't be enough to make Songtsen Gampo suspect him, right?"

"Your Highness, the problem doesn't lie with you, but rather with Lu Dongzan who dug his own grave!"

Pei Xingjian cupped his hands and said, "According to Lu Dongzan, after returning to his country, he carefully carried out your plan. As a result, the people around him betrayed him, causing him to lose Songtsen Gampo's complete trust!"

"If he weren't still useful to Songtsen Gampo, Songtsen Gampo would probably have killed him long ago!"

"How could the people around him betray him?"

Li Chengqian frowned and said, "Could it be that he told the people around him about the plan I told him?"

"That's probably true."

"idiot!"

Li Chengqian said indignantly, "How did he manage to become the Grand Master of Tibet? He can't even keep a secret about something!"

"But, according to him, the person who betrayed him was one of ours."

Pei Xingjian said helplessly, "But I've checked carefully, and none of our people went back to Tibet with him!"

"That's strange. How could someone who isn't one of ours gain his trust?"

"Yes! I asked him to tell me that person's name and where he was from. He said his name was Hegan Chengji, and he knew everything about Your Highness!"

"Who?!"

Upon hearing this name, Li Chengqian's eyes widened, and he almost doubted that he had misheard.

In the years since he transmigrated, he has been either completing the system's tasks or developing his own power, as if he had long forgotten about this person.

You should know that this guy named Hegan Chengji was one of the main reasons why the cripple's rebellion failed.

You could even say that without this guy, the cripple's fate might have been different.

However, in the years since Li Chengqian traveled through time, he has unconsciously overlooked this person.

"What's wrong, Your Highness? Do you know this man named Hegan Chengji?"

Seeing that Li Chengqian's expression was off, Pei Xingjian asked cautiously.

"Uh, this."

Li Chengqian's lips twitched, momentarily at a loss for words to describe his feelings, so he changed the subject, saying, "How did this Hegan Chengji end up working for Lu Dongzan?"

"I don't know either. I even did some research on this Hegan Chengji. He was just an ordinary soldier who participated in the war between the Tang Dynasty and the Turks. He returned to Chang'an after being wounded. While recuperating in Chang'an, he got to know some powerful and influential people and did dirty work for them. Later, when the Embroidered Uniform Guard was recruiting, he signed up to apply, but he wasn't selected. He continued to mingle in Chang'an and became somewhat well-known among the powerful and influential people there!"

"Ah!"

Li Chengqian laughed to himself, thinking that it was no wonder the cripple had recruited him. It turned out that this guy was just a front man among the powerful and influential people in Chang'an! He guessed that the cripple had been introduced by an acquaintance to get such a low-ranking guy into the Eastern Palace and make him a high-ranking official.

Having transmigrated into the body of Li Chengqian, he had already cultivated his own power base and would never casually seek out outsiders, which changed Hegan Chengji's fate.

But when it comes to 'talent,' if you don't want him, someone else will.

It's estimated that this guy heard about his own story from somewhere, and happened to meet Gar Tongtsen Yulsung. After some persuasion, Gar Tongtsen Yulsung became completely convinced and eventually took him back to Tibet as a confidant.

Unexpectedly, He Gan Chengji, that scoundrel, couldn't change his ways and betrayed him again.

What goes around comes around!

Traitors deserve to die!
However, just as Li Chengqian was sighing, another report came from outside the door: "Your Highness, the Grand General of the Western Regions and Minister of War, Hou Junji, requests an audience!"

"Ok?"

Li Chengqian was slightly taken aback, wondering what was going on today? Was it a day for traitors to gather? Why was this old guy here?

Despite having countless doubts in his mind, Li Chengqian still gave the order to the door: "Let General Hou in!"

"Yes!"

There was a response from outside the door.

Soon, Hou Junji entered with his son-in-law, Helan Chushi.

"Your subjects, Hou Junji and Helan Chushi, pay their respects to Your Highness the Crown Prince!"

As soon as Hou Junji and his son-in-law entered, they greeted Li Chengqian with a smile and a bow.

Li Chengqian smiled and replied, "General Hou, no need for formalities!"

After saying that, he turned to Laifu, who was not far away, and said, "Laifu, please have a seat!"

"General Hou is coming to Hunzhou City, why didn't you inform me? You could have given me some time to prepare!"

Seeing Hou Junji and his son-in-law finally sit down, Li Chengqian pretended to complain.

Hou Junji smiled and said, "Your Highness is so busy with state affairs, how could this old minister dare to disturb you! However, I have come here for a reason, and I hope Your Highness will forgive my impudence!"

"Oh?"

Li Chengqian narrowed his eyes: "I wonder what brings General Hou here today?"

As far as he knew, Hou Junji had arrived three days earlier.

Even if I wanted to see him, now wouldn't be the time.

Hou Junji then laughed and said, "To be honest, Your Highness, I am your son-in-law, and I have always held you in high esteem. I have heard of your bravery on the battlefield of Ganzhou, and I would be willing to serve under you, even as a foot soldier."

After saying this, he glanced at Helan Chushi beside him.

Helan Chushi immediately understood and knelt down with a thud: "This humble general, Helan Chushi, is willing to serve His Highness the Crown Prince with utmost loyalty!"

"this."

Li Chengqian was slightly taken aback, thinking to himself, "Is it really that direct? What exactly is Hou Junji up to?"

Although in the original history, Helan Chushi was indeed a cripple, and it was Helan Chushi who facilitated Hou Junji's rebellion with Li Chengqian.

But Li Chengqian is no longer a cripple; how could he possibly keep these traitors by his side?

However, given Hou Junji's strategic acumen, he certainly wouldn't act so rashly, unless he had some other purpose.

For example, testing the waters?

Thinking of this, Li Chengqian immediately calmed himself down and said with a smile, "General Hou, what are you doing? With your abilities, can't you arrange a better future for your son-in-law? What are you talking about, 'vanguard'?"

"Your Highness is too modest. What future in this world can compare to being by your side?" Hou Junji said with a dismissive smile.

Li Chengqian frowned, then his smile vanished, and he stared intently at Hou Junji.

Hou Junji also stared directly at him.

After a short while, the two suddenly looked at each other and smiled.

But then Li Chengqian smiled and said to Helan Chushi, "Since your father-in-law recommends you so highly, then stay by my side and serve as a Qianniu in the Imperial Guard!"

"Thank you, Your Highness!" Helan Chushi was overjoyed and hurriedly kowtowed to Li Chengqian.

Li Chengqian waved his hand and said to Hou Junji, "Now, General Hou, shouldn't we get down to business?"

Hou Junji chuckled, then took out a map and said meaningfully, "This old minister is willing to lend the Crown Prince a hand!"

Screw you!

Don't drag me into any rebellion!
I've quit! Thanks for the invitation!

Li Chengqian nearly fainted upon hearing Hou Junji's words.

I'm asking for guaranteed monthly votes.

(End of this chapter)