Chapter 3939 Vow not to bow
Li Chengqian followed his advice and immediately ordered people to go to Xuanwu Gate to inform Fang Jun...
The chamberlain put on a new cup of tea, and Li Jing held the pot and poured tea for the prince. He asked thoughtfully: "Does your highness really want to let go of Guan Long and let the eldest grandson Wuji return home to live in seclusion and retire as an official?"
He understood that the prince had no choice but to do this, and hoped that Guan Long could become the helper of the East Palace. After all, the powerful families in Shandong and Jiangnan had to be used and guarded against. If they were not careful, they would be sidelined, making everyone in the court become his party members.
However, after the mutiny in Guanlong, the name of rebellion cannot be shied away from. If it is forgiven, the rewards and punishments are unclear. How to explain the soldiers who died in the bloody battle for the sake of the empire? How to comfort the soldiers who have mutilated limbs, injured bodies and deeply hate Guan Long?
It seems that with a little help, he can stabilize the court and hold the imperial power tightly in his hands after ascending the throne, but the consequences will be too great...
Li Chengqian took a sip of tea, put down the cup, and slowly tasted the sweetness of the tea. After a long time, he whispered: "I know the meaning of Duke Wei. Such a move is no different from drinking poison to quench his thirst. In the short term, it can help me control the court." , to achieve a balance of power to a certain extent, but in the long run, the emperor’s majesty will no longer exist, the reward and punishment system will collapse, and the consequences will be endless.”
Li Jingqi said: "In this case, why is Your Highness so insistent? With the six rates of the East Palace and the combat power of the Youtun Guards, it is certainly impossible to defeat the hundreds of thousands of Eastern Expedition troops, but if you guard Guanzhong and protect the imperial authority, it will not be possible. Difficult.”
Li Chengqian shook his head: "It's not just Li Ji that Gu is worried about... Li Ji's behavior this time is quite strange, completely different from his past style. Some people say that he wants to sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight, and only waits for Guan Long to destroy Gu. Send the army back to Beijing, put down the rebellion in one fell swoop, and establish a new crown prince, to achieve the goal of monopolizing power... I used to think so, but now, I feel it is not that simple. "
Li Jing was confused: "Why did Your Highness say this?"
Although it has not been confirmed, this guess is most consistent with Li Ji's series of behaviors, otherwise it cannot be explained anyway.
Li Chengqian glanced at the decadent courtyard outside the window and said in a deep voice: "Duke Wei still remembers when my father launched the Xuanwumen Incident to kill Prince Jiancheng and Prince Yuanji of Qi, and then quickly pacified the Taiji Palace and isolated Emperor Gaozu's Yuan from the Forbidden Army. How can we defeat the overall situation by controlling Emperor Gaozu in one fell swoop? ”
Li Jing nodded.
Although he did not participate in the "Xuanwu Sect Change" and stayed out of the incident, he was very aware of the various processes during it. Hearing this, he frowned and said: "Of course I remember that your Majesty planned the strategy and quickly pacified the palace, which was far better than that of the Xuanwu Sect. That fight was astonishing. ”
It is not difficult to kill Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji. With the strength of the "Tiance Mansion" and the Guanlong clan standing behind them, anyone would be killed with one strike. The most difficult part is still in the Tai Chi Palace. After all, the reason why Li Jiancheng secretly planned to attack His Majesty Li Er was because he got the approval and even the help of Emperor Gaozu.
Looking at the "Xuanwumen Incident" now, it is that His Majesty Li Er and the generals in the Tiance Mansion under his command refused to be killed, so they fought to the death. However, if they had failed, it would have been an attempted rebellion, and the Prince of Qin's Mansion The three clans will be annihilated, as well as the generals of Tiance Mansion. There is a record in the history books that "the King of Qin conspired to rebel and punished him"...
Therefore, it is useless to kill Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji. The real decision-maker is sitting firmly in the palace, and that is Emperor Gaozu. Nowadays, everyone knows that the reason why the Tang Dynasty conquered the world and conquered all the princes was because His Majesty Li Er was brave and fearless, and used his troops like a god. He conquered most of the country, rendering Emperor Gaozu as a man who first relied on his birth to gather power, and then relied on An incompetent man who wants his son to conquer the world... But how is that possible?
In the chaotic times of the late Sui Dynasty, heroes were vying for the throne. Wang Shichong, Dou Jiande, Du Fuwei, Xiao Xian, Liang Shidu, Liu Wuzhou, Li Mi... which one was not an outstanding figure in the world? Not to mention that there are Turks, Shiwei, Khitan and other powerful foreign tribes outside the territory who are eager to break through the border and invade the Central Plains at any time. They can fight their way out in the troubled times where these heroes are coming together. The great ancestor Li Yuan is naturally a talented person.
If such an emperor is not completely controlled, even if the Xuanwu clan kills Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji, I am afraid that after dawn, everyone in the Qin Palace, including the Guanlong clan, will be surrounded and killed by the Qinwang's divisions.
Therefore, His Majesty Li Er's method of quickly pacifying the palace was both fast and stable. It was a more thrilling contest than the fight between Xuanwumen's disciples. It was so difficult that it was not on the same level at all...
Li Chengqian smiled bitterly, shook his head and said: "It's not that mysterious... In fact, before my father led the troops to the inner palace, the entire Taiji Palace had already been under his father's command. Even Emperor Gaozu was under house arrest in the palace. When his father entered, Palace, the situation has been decided.”
Li Jing didn't know this. He asked curiously: "Why is this?"
Li Chengqian had nothing to hide, and said frankly: "Emperor Gaozu had an internal force beside him. The person in charge of this force was Wang Shoushi, the chamberlain, and Wang Shoushi had defected to his father's family a long time ago. Prince Jiancheng and Qi Wang Yuanji wanted to attack and kill his father and Gaozu. The emperor gave It was Wang Shoushi who tacitly agreed to inform his father, so the "Xuanwu Gate Rebellion" was essentially a mutiny involving internal and external cooperation. His father killed Jiancheng and Yuanji under the Xuanwu Gate, and the troops loyal to Emperor Gaozu in the Taiji Palace had also been purged. "< br>
Li Jing was stunned. He didn't expect that there was such a secret behind the "Xuanwumen Incident"...
Li Chengqian held the pot and poured a cup of tea, took a sip, and exhaled: "Since his father ascended the throne, Wang Shoushi and the dead soldiers under him have disappeared, and I haven't seen him for many years. Now, Baiqisi 'But traces of Wang Shoushi were discovered. This man had been in the Eastern Expedition army and had sent people to sneak into Taiji Palace several times... Gu suspected that he was acting on the orders of his father. "
When he said this, Li Jing immediately understood: "That so-called edict really exists?"
Li Chengqian nodded and said: "That should be the case. At least Wang Shoushi was acting on his father's orders, so Li Ji's various strange behaviors have different interpretations."
Li Jing does not want to get involved in political affairs, but he is not stupid.
If there is really a confidant of His Majesty Li Er who controls the dead men and acts in accordance with the imperial edict, and Li Ji has to obey it, then the most important command in the edict must be "depose the prince and establish a new crown prince", so it should be closed long The nobles raised their troops to revolt, under the pretext of deposing the prince. Li Ji commanded hundreds of thousands of troops, but stood idly by and watched the rebels wreak havoc in Guanzhong. For a time, he forced the East Palace into a desperate situation. He only waited for the complete destruction of the East Palace before sending his troops back to Beijing to establish a new government. Crown Prince.
It seems that the process is no different, but the essence is very different.
The previous speculation was that Li Ji wanted to establish a new crown prince and take over all the power. Now it is very likely that His Majesty has decreed that he will depose the prince before he dies...
Li Jing was silent, not knowing how to comfort him.
Being so despised by his father, when he was about to die, he would rather destabilize the central government, overthrow the government, and involve hundreds of thousands of Chang'an people in the military disaster, and depose the prince... For the prince, this is so sad and sad. defeat?
It’s so shocking...
He also understood the prince's insistence on keeping Guan Long. The Guanlong clan raised an army and their crimes were punishable. If the prince was still in power, they would still be of some use and could survive. But if the prince stepped down and a new king came to the throne, they would still be able to survive. , in order to clean up the court, it is necessary to kill the chickens to scare the monkeys, uproot Guanlong, and fill the court from Jiangnan and Shandong, all under control.
Therefore, if Guan Long wants to survive and ensure the continuity of the inheritance, they can only stand firmly on the side of the prince. Even if the edict leaks out in the future, they will have to fight side by side with the prince.
Li Jing's mind was shaken, and after a long time he asked in a low voice: "Your Highness...what are your plans?"
If Li Ji, Wang Shoushi and others had come up with the edict to depose him, would the prince have been willing to give up the throne and watch the throne that was about to be handed over to others?
This is not only a matter of life and death for the prince, but also the family members of the East Palace, civil and military officials, and even the army that was completely loyal to the prince during this mutiny.
Li Chengqian put down the teacup, straightened his back, looked at Li Jing with eyes blazing, and said word by word: "This is just our guess. At that time, my father was injured in the army, and Li Ji and others sent back the news that he was seriously injured. Coma, in this case, how could it be possible to leave a legacy?"
Li Jing was silent for a moment, his heart pounding for a long time, and then he slowly nodded and said: "Your Highness's words are reasonable. This so-called edict may not exist."
Does the edict exist?
This is not important. What is important is whether the prince is willing to admit it. What is more important is who has the stronger fist. If the East Palace is in disarray and the prince has no ambition, even without this edict, Li Ji, who holds the army, and Wang Shoushi, who represents His Majesty Li Er's most loyal force, can easily save it.
On the contrary, as long as Donggong's fist is strong enough and everyone is united, what if this edict really exists?
Legal principles can always only be used as a supplement, just like the Xuanwu Gate Incident. Prince Jiancheng was justified and righteous, but His Majesty Li Er turned back and cut off all his followers. He killed everyone in the government and the public, and sat in the Tai Chi Palace. On the throne, who else dares to mention "treason"?
When the First Emperor passed away, his son Fusu was hanging alone outside. When Hu Hai prepared the imperial edict and sent it to Fusu, who didn't know what was going on? The reason why Fusu committed suicide by drinking poison was not so much "obeying his father's orders", but more probably because Meng Tian around him was unwilling to command Xianyang and help the country Zuo for him.
As long as the fist is strong enough, any imperial edict or edict will be a piece of waste paper!
Li Chengqian raised his eyebrows, raised one palm, and swore to the sky: "I am alone in danger, and with the help of Duke Wei, I can support the country and maintain the orthodoxy. When we succeed in the future, we will share wealth and honor, and we will not be incompetent." ! If you violate this oath, you will be punished by heaven and earth!”
Li Ji stood up from the table, knelt down on one knee, and said in a deep voice: "Your Highness is magnanimous and kind, and you are the Lord of the ages. If I have the honor to follow Your Highness, I will go through fire and water, even if I die!"
The king and his ministers swore an oath and looked at each other with a smile.
What about the edict?
What he has come to this day is the result of bloody battles in the East Palace. How can he bow his head just because of a mere edict?
Absolutely impossible. (End of chapter)