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

"Your Highness." Li Zhi was deep in thought when the voice of his charioteer came from outside the carriage.

"Is the next step to return to the palace?"

Li Fu, the charioteer who drove Li Zhi's carriage, was the son of Li Zhi's wet nurse. Li Zhi's wet nurse came from the Yeting (a type of imperial harem), and her son was also a convict.

The honor and disgrace of mother and son were all tied to Li Zhi, so Li Fu was one of the people Li Zhi trusted the most and had the least need to guard against.

"No, I'll go to Chongrenfang instead; I need to visit my elder sister, Princess Chang Le."

Li Zhidao.

Chongrenfang was the location of the residence of Duke Zhao, Changsun Wuji. Princess Changle, Li Lizhi, was Changsun Wuji's daughter-in-law and had been bedridden in the Duke Zhao's residence for several months.

"..." Li Fu remained silent for a moment, then whispered his advice:

"Your Highness, now that the Crown Prince has been deposed, if Your Highness wishes to... advance further, now is the time to rise up."

"I've heard that the King of Wei has been either attending to His Majesty's illness or recruiting court officials to expand his power these past few days."

"Yet Your Highness has come here to see the deposed crown prince and also to seek out the ailing princess..."

"Why not treat talented individuals with respect and cultivate relationships with more important officials in the court?"

Li Zhi frowned, his tone impatient: "Shut up! How dare you say another word?"

"...This villain deserves to die."

"The reason why Li Chengqian and Hou Junji failed to accomplish their goal was because their plans were not kept secret, and they suffered as a result."

"You're talking nonsense. If someone hears you, do you expect me to stand up for you?"

"Yes. If anything goes wrong, I will bear the full responsibility."

Li Zhi's expression softened slightly, and he said gently, "I know you're just worried and confused."

"I have my own plans for these matters. You need not worry."

"Yes," Li Fu replied respectfully, saying no more.

Then the whip cracked, and Li Fu waved the whip, driving the carriage towards Chongrenfang.

Li Zhi fell into thought again.

He recalled his conversation with Consort Wu the day before.

"Sanlang, although the deposed crown prince is not dead, he has already cut off his future in front of all the officials. No one will continue to rely on him in the future."

In the end, Li Anyan, Hou Junji, and other members of the Crown Prince's faction were all implicated and executed, but only the Crown Prince Li Chengqian's family was spared.

On Dog Ridge, where the execution was carried out, blood flowed like a spring, remaining unwashed for three days. Such a gruesome sight could not help but chill the officials to the bone.

Even if someone tries to take advantage of the situation in the future, they will not side with the deposed crown prince.

"Although that mad grandson of the emperor spoke without restraint, he also revealed all of Wei Wang Li Tai's ambitions to seize the throne." Consort Wu, with her graceful figure, displayed the demeanor of a heroine at that time.

"Having heard those rebellious words, His Majesty will surely doubt his sons and be unwilling to easily appoint another crown prince."

"You must not be impatient, and you must not show the slightest covetousness. In particular, you must not befriend court officials. If you have even the slightest intention to form a faction to plot for the throne, His Majesty will definitely become wary of you, and then everything will be over."

"You just need to act as usual, appearing innocent and obedient. When His Majesty has no other choice, he will naturally think of you. You should know that after the Crown Prince incident, what His Majesty longs for most is family affection."

"And what you need to do is show His Majesty that you value relationships!"

"Don't worry that your power is too weak and you will be taken advantage of by the King of Wei... Changsun Wuji will be there to consolidate your power in the court."

"You only need to act as if you are completely obedient to him in front of him, and he will spare no effort to support you for the sake of the future power of his eldest grandson family."

Recalling the exciting and passionate conversation he had with Sister Wu that day, Li Zhi couldn't help but feel a slight flutter in his heart, and it took him a while to calm himself down.

Of course not, he only came to talk to Li Chengqian and to visit his sister Li Lizhi who was ill.

The purpose of seeking out Li Chengqian was to let his father, the Emperor, see that Li Zhi was simple-minded, didn't know what taboo meant, and only knew how to care for his brother in distress.

Going to find Li Lizhi was to let the Emperor see that he cared for his elder sister, and more importantly, to find an opportunity to show it off in front of Changsun Wuji.

By showing Li Zhi's helplessness and cowardice, Changsun Wuji would be more devoted to him.

They supported him, intending to manipulate him...

Ah, how could ordinary mortals like Sister Wu possibly fathom such a brilliant plan?

This kind-hearted and intelligent Wu Jie, who only plans for him, is the person he trusts and relies on the most.

-----------------

Li Chengqian's position as crown prince has long since changed hands, but the current emperor has retired to the Taiji Palace to recuperate, and the position of the new crown prince remains undecided. In the vast city of Chang'an, undercurrents still surge and storms are brewing.

But all these unpredictable twists and turns were now irrelevant to Li Xiang. At this moment, he was cornered by a more pressing and severe problem:

His living conditions have plummeted yet again!

The fall was so horrific that he almost couldn't bear it anymore.

If we say that when we were in the Eastern Palace, we could barely make ends meet, it was roughly equivalent to a remote mountain village in later times that had no water, no electricity, and no internet. It was hard, but we could still maintain a decent life.

In Li Xiang's view, being imprisoned in Longqingfang was like a direct regression to his ancestral ways, living like a primitive man!

At least in the Eastern Palace, if you were thirsty, a eunuch would fetch you water; if you were hungry, the kitchen would deliver food.

Although the water was groundwater drawn from some old well and had a slightly astringent taste, the food was either a large bowl of mushy "soup noodles" or "fish sashimi" teeming with parasites, making it difficult to swallow.

Even so, boiling the water can remove some of the off-flavors, and even if you hold your nose, you can still force yourself to drink the soup and get by.

But when we arrived at Longqingfang, even those things were gone.

When thirsty, one can only drink the well water, which has a strong earthy smell and is so turbid that you can see the fine sand at the bottom.

I was hungry, and all I could find were burnt-smelling soup noodles that barely filled my stomach, but they had no flavor whatsoever.

Even worse, heating water for bathing became a luxury—the firewood supplied to the house was rationed. April in Chang'an still held a chill, and even with careful use, it wasn't enough for warmth, let alone boiling water for drinking!

What devastated Li Xiang the most was that there wasn't even any bamboo strips left!

When you need to use the outhouse, you can only tear leaves off the trees to use as a temporary measure!

However, most of the trees planted in this house are peach trees, and the few trees with leaves have been almost completely stripped bare by him in the past few days.

In a few days, am I going to end up like the third brother next door...?

No! Absolutely not!

Li Xiang, who had lived his whole life as a city dweller and considered himself a germaphobe, could never accept this!

Who on earth wanted to time travel? Come out! He promises he won't kill them!

When forbearance reaches its limit, there's no need to endure it any longer. Li Xiang gritted his teeth, his mind already made up—he would escape!

In the past few days, he had secretly observed and drafted an escape plan.

Imprisoning the deposed crown prince was not something that could be done overnight. As the saying goes, "You can be a thief for a thousand days, but you can't guard against a thief for a thousand days." After a few days, the Right Guard of the Imperial Guards guarding the courtyard walls gradually became lax.

The Imperial Guards only hastily raised the courtyard walls and tightened their guard at the gate; they did not completely surround the entire residence.

After all, all land under heaven belongs to the emperor. Even if the deposed crown prince really escaped, there are ward walls outside the courtyard walls, and beyond those ward walls are the city walls of Chang'an. Beyond those city walls, the territory of the Tang Dynasty still exists.

Moreover, His Majesty has already uprooted the Crown Prince's faction, leaving it completely eradicated.

In the eyes of the Imperial Guards, the deposed crown prince would never be so unwise—even if he did escape, where could he possibly go?

Even if they manage to escape, they'll most likely have lost the life they've managed to save.

The world is so vast, there is simply no place for him to hide.