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

Li Xiang’s prison break plan was as simple as it could be, so plain as to be almost sloppy – climb over the wall!

The Imperial Guards kept the main gate and side gates tightly guarded, but they didn't pay much attention to the courtyard wall. In Li Xiang's eyes, this was a blatant hint: the wall can be scaled!

The more Li Xiang thought about it, the more confident he felt, and he wasn't worried at all.

As for what to do after climbing over the wall, he didn't have time to think about it carefully, nor could he figure it out.

Previously, she had already exhausted all her tricks and performed all sorts of self-destructive actions in the Eastern Palace, but now she has run out of ideas and really doesn't know how to continue "acting up".

Who cares, let's get out of here first!

There's an old saying that people thrive when they move, but trees die when they're moved. It's better than being stuck in this dilapidated house, picking peach leaves every day.

Besides, isn't escaping from prison itself an incredibly thrilling act of suicide? That's much more interesting than eating mushy soup noodles.

In order to place this deposed crown prince under house arrest, the walls of this residence had already been raised by the imperial guards to a height of more than ten feet—about four meters by Tang Dynasty standards.

To an ordinary person in the Tang Dynasty, such a height would have made it impossible to fly away, enough to trap a person firmly in the courtyard.

But for Li Xiang, this was no big deal at all.

A bed sheet, tied into a simple parachute, is enough to take down this courtyard wall that's only a little over four meters high!

It was no problem at all for him, who often climbed over the school wall to go online.

Li Xiang deftly tied the four corners of the bed sheet around his waist, gripped the edges tightly, and used the cracks in the bricks at the top of the courtyard wall to flip and leap down. With a light, weightless feeling, his feet landed steadily in the grass at the base of the wall, only slightly tearing his shoes and not getting hurt at all.

He dusted off his clothes and muttered in a low voice, "Just as I expected, no guards. Perfect!"

Climbing over the towering courtyard wall, Li Xiang quickly looked around. The alleyways paved with blue bricks were spotless; there were hardly any imperial guards or even passersby. This, however, filled him with a strange sense of loss: if he had encountered some hot-headed imperial guard who, seeing him flee over the wall, might have impulsively swung his sword and killed him on the spot?

He was killed by the imperial guards arranged by Li Shimin, which can be considered an indirect death at the hands of Li Er, saving him from racking his brains to court death again.

Well, since no one has noticed, I might as well wander around for a bit. He completely relaxed and started strolling around with light steps, enjoying this rare moment of unrestrained freedom.

Since he transmigrated to this Tang Dynasty, he has never been truly free: first he was trapped in the Eastern Palace, and although he had the title of imperial grandson, he was restricted in every way;

Later, he was confined to a residence in Longqingfang and was not even allowed to step out of the courtyard.

Even after leaving the East Palace, they were confined to a tightly sealed carriage, unable to see even the full sunlight outside.

This was the first time he had the opportunity to properly examine Chang'an, the historically famous and once-prosperous city of the 8th century.

The present-day Chang'an is the masterpiece of Yuwen Kai, the chief architect of the Sui Dynasty. This top architect in Chinese history had an extreme obsession with orderliness—everything had to be neat, square, and orderly.

The tall city walls are straight and square, enclosing the entire capital; the layout of each ward within the city is meticulous, arranged in an orderly manner like squares on a chessboard.

Even the houses within the market area were built according to regulations. Although each house had its own unique charm with its upturned eaves, the overall structure remained neat and uniform, exuding an air of order and grandeur.

The neighborhoods were separated by high walls, as high as the walls of the house he had just climbed over. Once night fell, a curfew would be imposed on time, the neighborhood gates would be closed, and pedestrians would be prohibited from coming and going.

It is said that this rule was set by Emperor Wen of Sui. Presumably, as a relative of the emperor who usurped the throne, he was illegitimate in his accession and was always afraid that someone in the capital would cause trouble. Closing the gates of the city would quickly trap those who would cause trouble and prevent the chaos from spreading.

"This rule probably suits Li Er's wishes as well," Li Xiang pondered to himself, stroking his chin. "After all, his throne wasn't exactly legitimate."

Although Longqingfang is located in a remote area with few people and appears quite deserted, it is still pleasing to the eye to see the square and well-arranged houses along the street with their gray tiled roofs reflecting the sunlight.

Li Xiang slowed his pace, strolling leisurely along the alleyways, looking at the foxtail grass growing in the corners of the walls, the bamboo baskets hanging under the eaves, and the children occasionally peeking out from the doors. He felt that this lively atmosphere was much more endearing than the exquisite palace or the desolate courtyard.

After strolling for about half an incense stick's time, a lively chattering sound came from under the old locust tree not far ahead, mixed with the laughter of women.

Li Xiang's heart stirred, and he slowed his steps, quietly circling behind the locust tree. Using the thick trunk as cover, he peeked out and eavesdropped—it turned out to be several women from the marketplace, carrying vegetable baskets and sewing kits, gossiping and chatting together.

"The one imprisoned in that room is the Crown Prince who was deposed a few days ago!" A plump woman in a blue cloth dress spoke first, her voice not low and her tone full of mystery.

"My husband works in the government office, and he secretly passed on a message to me saying that the former crown prince is a madman who goes crazy all the time!"

"Oh my, really?" Another plump woman's eyes widened, and she stopped sewing.

"I've also heard that the former crown prince was quite eccentric when he was in the Eastern Palace! He didn't like studying or attending court, but preferred to hang out with those street ruffians. He even imitated the Hu people by wearing braids and clothes, and set up a tent in the Eastern Palace, pretending to be the leader of the Hu people, making the eunuchs shout and yell at him!"

"What's so special about this!" A young woman with her hair in two buns chimed in, her tone exaggerated.

"My husband works in the Right Guard Army. He said the former Crown Prince even plotted to assassinate the Emperor! He secretly raised hundreds of assassins, hiding them in a secret compartment in the Eastern Palace, and even forged many weapons, just waiting for an opportunity to take action and overthrow the current Emperor!"

"I heard that night, the palace was covered in blood, and you could hear the clash of weapons even in the middle of the night!"

"My God! That's terrifying!" Another freckled woman covered her mouth, her eyes filled with horror.

"Fortunately, His Majesty is wise and discovered it early, otherwise our Chang'an city might have been stained with blood again! More than ten years ago at Xuanwu Gate, what happened was..."

The freckled woman covered her mouth, looking as if she were trying to keep something to herself.

"What is this crown prince after? He's already the crown prince, yet he still rebels. Tsk tsk, I wonder how many people he's killed."

"A few days ago on Dog Ridge, I don't know how many nobles' heads were chopped off. Even General Hou, who destroyed Gaochang, was beheaded!"

"Tsk, who knows? That's why they say he's a mad prince," another woman said.

"I also heard that the deposed crown prince was possessed by an evil spirit! And his son went mad along with him! The commotion that day wasn't just his doing; more than half of it was caused by his son..."

"I heard that his son is a reincarnation of a wicked star, three zhang tall and three zhang in circumference, with a blue face and fangs, and breathes fire..."

"Now I'm imprisoned inside these high walls!"