The rebellious grandson of Emperor Zhenguan of the Tang Dynasty: Please, Your Majesty, be called Cro

Chapter 132 Li Tai's Predicament

Inside a secret courtyard deep within the Wei Prince's Mansion in Yankang Ward, Chang'an.

The doors and windows were tightly shut, and the curtains were drawn low, cutting off all light and sound from the outside world.

The flickering candlelight in the hall cast a somber glow on everyone's faces, and the air was thick with a sense of oppression and anxiety.

Prince Wei, Li Tai, sat upright in the main seat, dressed in a magnificent brocade robe. His usually gentle and composed face was now furrowed, filled with anxiety and anger.

Several people stood below him, all of them his core advisors and scions of prominent families who usually worked for him. They all looked dejected and sighed.

"Your Highness, the situation is becoming increasingly dire," a scholar dressed in a blue robe said first, his tone grave.

"In just a few days, His Majesty has taken a series of actions under the pretext of investigating old cases and rectifying officialdom, and many of us in Mo have suffered as a result."

He sighed deeply and counted on his fingers: "First was Zheng Yuandi of the Yingyang Zheng family, who originally held real power in the Ministry of Personnel and had always been in contact with the Guandong gentry for His Highness."

"The day before yesterday, he was found to have concealed his farmland and was directly demoted to a county magistrate in a remote prefecture, where he will never be able to return to the capital."

"There are also two members of the Cui family who served as Gentlemen-at-Waiting in the Secretariat. They were impeached by the censors for favoritism and have now been fined and demoted. They dare not act ostentatiously anymore."

"That's not all," a military officer sighed gruffly from the side. "Several families, including the Cui family of Boling and the Li family of Zhao County, have either been sent to other prefectures and counties or have had their posts removed."

"In the past, during court assemblies, officials who followed His Highness would gather in large numbers. Now, however, everyone is silent as a cicada in winter, secretly regarded as a faction by His Majesty."

"Yesterday, several officials from prominent families secretly sent messengers to deliver letters, requesting Your Highness to offer some protection. Your Highness, if you remain sitting idly in your residence without taking any action..."

"I fear that in the future, everyone will look down on Your Highness and will not want to associate with you."

News kept coming in, each message like a heavy hammer blow to Li Tai's heart.

He leaned back in his chair, his knuckles unconsciously clenching, wrinkling the hem of his robe.

"I know the situation is dangerous, but if Your Majesty wants to do something, who can I turn to?" Li Tai chuckled coldly, his laughter devoid of any warmth, only filled with resentment.

"How about we ask Fang Xiang to intervene?" Liu Ji suggested.

"Prime Minister Fang has been staying away from guests for some time now. He rarely interacts with outsiders except when summoned to the palace." Wei Ting shook his head, his face full of dejection.

"Even the Prince Consort Fang has rarely come to the Prince's residence lately. It's even rumored that he has a close relationship with that rebellious brat of the deposed Crown Prince."

As he spoke, Wei Ting turned to Li Tai and said, "Why doesn't Your Highness go and ask His Majesty for help?"

"His Highness is, after all, about to become the Crown Prince. His Majesty's elimination of His Highness's power is likely a warning to those who intend to attach themselves to His Highness and climb the social ladder."

"This is already going too far—His Majesty has always favored Your Highness. If Your Highness were to plead with gentle words, perhaps His Majesty would change his mind?"

"I haven't seen my father for several days," Li Tai said, his face grim.

"This—how could this be?" Wei Ting was stunned, and the others also looked at each other in surprise.

Not to mention them, even Li Tai himself, sitting in the hall at this moment, was filled with disbelief when talking about this matter.

Back then, how much his father favored him! Every day, after attending to state affairs, he would summon him to the Ganlu Hall to chat, ask him about the classics, or discuss state affairs. He could enter and leave the palace as if walking on flat ground. The emperor even granted him the Wude Hall as a residence. The relationship between the emperor and his subject, father and son, was extremely close.

At that time, his popularity in the court was growing, and everyone in the court and the public tacitly agreed that he was the first choice for the crown prince. How glorious he was!

But ever since the Xia Sacrifice Banquet—no, ever since Chengqian was deposed—everything has changed.

Nowadays, he often prepares a carriage to enter the palace to request an audience, but he often waits outside the hall for a long time, only to be told by the eunuch, "His Majesty is busy with official duties and has no time to meet you."

Occasionally, if he was lucky enough to be allowed to enter the palace to meet the emperor, Li Shimin would only give him a few perfunctory words, his gaze distant, and he would not give him a chance to speak.

He tried several times to plead for the disgraced and punished officials from powerful families, using their father-son relationship as leverage, but each time Li Shimin deliberately or unintentionally changed the subject. After several attempts, he didn't even have a chance to plead.

He knew perfectly well that his father's actions were not simply about rectifying officialdom, but were clearly aimed at the powerful clans of Guandong behind him, and at him, Li Tai!

The once deeply entrenched supporters are now being uprooted one after another by the Emperor, using the charges on that black book.

The once powerful faction of the King of Wei was soon in turmoil.

"Since the Emperor has made it clear, he has obviously decided that I will succeed him as the Crown Prince."

"But why, then, must I be stripped of my influence in the court?"

"Could it be, as that brat said, that Father Emperor's true intention was to fear the Crown Prince? Father Emperor loves me, but he uses me as a whetstone to sharpen and restrain Chengqian."

"Now that Chengqian is deposed, is it my turn to take his place?"

Upon thinking of this, Li Tai suddenly felt uncomfortable all over his body.

He believed that he far surpassed the deposed Crown Prince Li Chengqian in both ability and reputation. He must have stood out by virtue of his own abilities, which led his father to believe that he was a promising talent, and ultimately ousted Chengqian.

How could she possibly admit that she was merely a tool to control Li Chengqian?

"It's all Chengqian's fault and that brat—they've already been expelled from the Eastern Palace, yet they still manage to cause so much trouble—" Li Tai grumbled.

"At this point, we cannot allow the situation to deteriorate any further," Li Tai said.

"Very well, I will go to the Emperor's presence now and persuade him with both emotion and reason. I must ensure that Father Emperor does not further escalate the turmoil in the court."

Now that things have come to this, there is no other way. Wei Ting, Liu Ji, and all the other officials took their leave, and Li Tai, showing courtesy to his subordinates, escorted them to the outside of the courtyard.

After seeing everyone off, Li Tai returned to his courtyard with a heavy heart, only to be startled when a person suddenly emerged from a corner.

"Zheng Langzhong?" Li Tai was taken aback. This man was Zheng Renzhe, the Left Assistant Secretary of the Secretariat. "You haven't left yet?"

"Your Highness." Zheng Renze's expression was serious as he furtively glanced behind Li Tai.

Please go to a quiet place.

"I was just about to enter the palace when Physician Zheng asked me to avoid the crowd. What does this mean?" Back in his room, Li Tai looked at Zheng Renzhe with a solemn expression.

It was already afternoon. Li Tai's plan was to enter the palace now, and by the time he wanted to leave, the palace gates would be locked, and Chang'an would be under curfew. At that time, his father would naturally allow him to stay overnight in the palace.

This would give him more opportunities to persuade Li Shimin.

"Your Highness, you must not enter the palace. If you enter now, everything will be over!" Zheng Renze was extremely nervous. He crawled a few steps forward and grabbed Li Tai's sleeve.

"Your Majesty has received word that His Majesty is currently discussing the appointment of Prince Jin as Crown Prince at tomorrow's morning court session."

"If Your Highness enters the palace now, you will surely be imprisoned by His Majesty until the dust settles tomorrow, at which point you will be exiled to your fiefdom."

"In that case, the situation is hopeless!"

Zheng Ren said anxiously.

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