The Fierce Teacher of Zhenguan: Starting with Teaching the Crown Prince to Make a Comeback

Chapter 16 Was this deal a loss?

In the spring of the sixteenth year of the Zhenguan era, undercurrents were swirling in Chang'an.

Inside the Liangyi Hall, Li Shimin frowned as he looked at the reports from the Inner Palace Secretariat on the past few days.

The backgrounds and resumes of the officials in the Eastern Palace and the three companions, Du He, Li Anyan, and Li Yichen, have all been repeatedly verified.

They especially focused on investigating those who had been in frequent contact with the Crown Prince recently.

However, the result of the report puzzled Li Shimin.

Du He, as the son of the late prime minister Du Ruhui, was of noble status, and his family had a complicated relationship with the royal family.

An investigation revealed that he had recently expressed some grievances after drinking, possibly due to dissatisfaction with his official promotion. However, these complaints were mostly directed at the court's selection process, and no evidence was found that he had instigated the crown prince to engage in rebellious behavior.

Li Anyan was originally a subordinate of Crown Prince Li Jiancheng. He later surrendered to the emperor and was given an official position, but his background always cast a shadow over him.

The investigation revealed that this person had a gloomy personality, rarely interacted with his colleagues, and occasionally expressed dissatisfaction with his current position and nostalgia for his past battlefield exploits, but there was no clear evidence pointing to him instigating the crown prince.

After checking all the officials in the Eastern Palace, no one else was found to be suspicious.

Li Yichen's family background was the simplest and most innocent. He was from a distant branch of the Li family of Longxi, and neither his father nor grandfather held high-ranking official positions. They were practically from humble backgrounds.

Having been in the palace for three years, records show that she was of average talent and learning, with a calm and even unremarkable temperament.

According to all the palace servants and officials interviewed, this person had little social interaction other than fulfilling his duties as a companion to the emperor, and there were no complaints or outrageous remarks.

The investigation is deadlocked.

It seems that the Crown Prince's change was truly a sudden awakening of his own mind, or that the heart-piercing remarks that day were just an accidental outburst of his long-suppressed emotions.
But this conclusion is completely contrary to Li Shimin's understanding of his son.

He would never believe it.

The art of rulership emphasizes balance and control.

Since it is suspected that the officials under the Crown Prince's command are stirring up trouble, regardless of whether it can be determined who it is, replacing two people who are indeed flawed and may harbor resentment is always a prudent move.

It can serve both as a warning to others and as a means to plant spies.

"Issue the decree." Li Shimin's voice was calm, yet carried an undeniable determination.

"Du He and Li Anyan, who were tutors to the Crown Prince, have been reassigned. They are hereby transferred away from the Crown Prince's Palace. Their vacancies shall be filled by Li Baiyao, a Gentleman Attendant to the Crown Prince, and Xu Jingzong, a Compiler of Imperial Records."

These two men, Li Baiyao and Li Delin, were both renowned for their literary talent and upright character. Li Baiyao was the son of the famous minister Li Delin.

Xu Jingzong was a man of great literary talent and quick wit, both of whom were trustworthy or at least controllable by the emperor.

The imperial decree was swiftly transmitted to the Crown Prince's Palace.

When Li Chengqian received the imperial decree, he was sitting opposite Li Yichen reading.

Upon hearing that Du He and Li Anyan had been transferred, his expression changed drastically, and the fingers gripping the book tightened suddenly, turning his knuckles white.

After the eunuch who delivered the decree left, and the palace doors closed, Li Chengqian abruptly turned to Li Yichen, his voice low but unable to conceal his shock, anger, and bewilderment.

"Yichen! What does Father mean by this? Although Du He and Li Anyan are not particularly talented, they have served me for many years! Their sudden transfer and replacement with Li Baiyao and Xu Jingzong... This clearly shows that Father does not trust my old acquaintances in the Eastern Palace and wants to plant his spies!"

His breathing quickened, a hint of offended sting flashing in his eyes: "Is Father so wary of me? Even my personal attendants are being replaced one by one?" Li Yichen, far from panicking, instead showed a hint of surprise in his eyes. He chuckled, his voice low but extremely penetrating: "Your Highness, your anger—is burning in the wrong place again!"

Li Chengqian was taken aback by his reaction.

Li Yichen's gaze was intense, his speech rapid and clear, carrying a sharp edge that seemed to tear through any pretense.

"His Majesty is wary? Of course His Majesty is wary! He's not wary of Du He, nor of Li Anyan's indelible old skin as the Crown Prince! He's wary of you! He's wary of the Eastern Palace!"

"When he brought his knife down, he cut off two old acquaintances you thought were easy to handle, and you felt pain? You felt offended?" A cold smile curled at the corner of Li Yichen's lips.

"Your Highness! His Majesty has personally removed two pieces of rotten flesh that were bound to decay sooner or later and would have injured your hands! Shouldn't you thank him?"

Li Chengqian's pupils contracted slightly, and he subconsciously retorted, "But they..."

"What are they?" Li Yichen interrupted him, his words becoming increasingly sharp.

"Du He, just because you married a princess through your father's influence, do you really think you're something special? Your words of resentment are a death sentence! Li An'an, a remnant of the previous dynasty, has the word 'traitor' written all over his body! Are these two left in the Eastern Palace waiting to be used by His Majesty as knives to pierce your heart one day? Now that His Majesty has personally cleared this landmine for you, don't you feel a sense of relief, instead you're feeling sorry for these two pieces of trash?"

"Li Baiyao? Xu Jingzong? They are indeed spies! But so what if they are spies? If His Majesty wants to see, let him see to his heart's content! Let him see how his Crown Prince studies diligently by candlelight, how composed and progressive he is! Let the ears he sent only hear testimonies favorable to you! Let the people His Majesty has placed become your mouthpieces of 'virtue and reason'! Is this a bad deal?"

"Your Highness," Li Yichen finally lowered his voice, but every word struck Li Chengqian's heart.

"Don't forget what game we're playing! His Majesty makes a move, and you have to catch it, and turn the killing intent in his moves into your chance to live! Feeling monitored? Feeling stifled? That's right! This is how the imperial family, father and son, have always played! You either smash your cup and go out to curse right now, making His Majesty happy; or you hold your breath, smile even better than him, and turn this dead end into a winning one!"

Li Chengqian's chest heaved violently, somewhat stunned by the barrage of "nonsense," but the shock and anger of being humiliated began to dissipate strangely, replaced by a cold, awakened shudder.

He remained silent for a long time, then slowly loosened his clenched fist, a complex light surging in his eyes, which finally turned into a sharp realization.

"I... understand." His voice was hoarse, yet it carried a resolute air. "If Father wants to change, then let's change. I will not only accept it, but I will accept it beautifully."

He immediately ordered people to prepare a letter of thanks, the words of which were extremely respectful, thanking his father for his concern for his studies and expressing a warm welcome to Li and Xu.

When he picked up the pen, his wrist was steady, and there was even a cold smile on his lips.

After receiving the letter of thanks from the Crown Prince, Li Shimin remained silent for a long time.

The prince's obedient and cooperative attitude left him somewhat at a loss as to how to proceed.

The pent-up force seemed to strike empty air.

He pondered for a moment, then issued another decree: "The Crown Prince has been reflecting on his mistakes behind closed doors and studying diligently without ceasing, which greatly pleases me. He is permitted to attend the grand court session tomorrow on the fifteenth of the lunar month."

Meanwhile, a summary of matters that might be discussed at tomorrow's grand court session was also sent to the Crown Prince's Palace, as a sign of "concern" and also as a test.

When Li Chengqian received the summary, his eyes swept over it, and when he saw the line "Wei Wang Tai presented the 'Kuo Di Zhi'", his face instantly darkened, and his five fingers unconsciously clenched so tightly that he almost crumpled the paper.

That deep-seated loathing and jealousy towards Li Tai surged up once again.

“The Gazetteer of the Land! It’s the Gazetteer of the Land again!” he squeezed out the words through clenched teeth, his chest heaving violently.

"He recruits scholars everywhere, his gates are always bustling with visitors! He has spent countless sums of money and grain! Now he even wants to present this book to the court! Everyone in the world only knows that the King of Wei is learned and respectful to scholars, but do they know that I, the Crown Prince, am trying to make a name for myself by stepping on me! And Father Emperor actually allows him to be so arrogant!"

(End of this chapter)