Chapter 3999: Advance or retreat
The imperial driver was advancing slowly, the carriages and horses were rattling, and the rain was falling.
Although the people in Chang'an City were sealed in the inner square and could not leave the city to meet him, the people outside Chang'an City and surrounding areas had also received the news of His Majesty's return to the capital. They rushed over with their families and stood on the roadside to take a look. Yu Jia, in this way, while defeating their respect and love for the Emperor of Tang Dynasty.
Many old men with white beards and hair even knelt in the mud, letting their children and grandchildren stand behind them with umbrellas to block the rain. They cried until they had tears and runny noses, and babbled about what they had said when they first heard that His Majesty had passed away. Sadness and despair, as well as the ecstasy and relief of knowing that His Majesty has "come back to life".
Under such circumstances, even though His Majesty Li Er was depressed and grumpy, he had to change his clothes and stand in the car, constantly raising his hands to signal the people gathered around him.
Feeling the sincere support and loyalty of the people, His Majesty Li Er slowly relieved his annoyance, and a smile gradually appeared on his square face. However, when he saw the prince abandoning his horse and walking in the mud, one by one he would kneel down. When Lao helped him up, his smile suddenly stopped.
It stands to reason that this is a very good thing for the prince to do. The emperor is aloof and accepts the admiration and support of all people. No matter how much he loves the people, he must also pay attention to maintaining a mysterious and arrogant temperament and drawing a clear line with the people. After all, he is the son of God and the supreme being on earth. .
The prince represents the king's courtesy and corporal. Every time he lifts up an old man, pats the shoulder and sends a word of gratitude and condolences, or promises that the court will continue to maintain clean government, diligent administration and love for the people, he will get a round of cheers. The royal family Prestige rises.
But His Majesty Li Er just looked unhappy, and the anger that had subsided slightly in his chest rose again.
Why should you harvest the reputation that I have built up through more than ten years of hard work and hard work and caring for the people? Are you so disappointed that I'm not dead? You can't wait to seize power after relying on a small team?
……
Li Chengqian was walking in the mud, his clothes were soaked, and the hems of his clothes and boots were already filled with mud. He limped forward, and from time to time he would lift up the old man who was kneeling on the ground and praising his father's merits. He smiled like a spring breeze and spoke soothingly, but he always felt a sharp gaze coming from above Yu Jia, making him feel uneasy and uneasy.
He didn't want to be so showy in front of his father, but what could he do?
The emperor's heart is as strong as stone and will never be given up easily. At present, the Eastern Palace has a deep foundation and the military power it controls is powerful. Even a man as wise and powerful as his father cannot forcefully depose him. If it is dangerous, there is no feasible strategy. It is to find his mistakes, and then launch criticism and guide public opinion, so that Yi Chu can be justified.
So at this moment, he knew that doing so would steal his father's limelight, but he had to execute it meticulously. After all, he was the prince of the dynasty, and he also shouldered the power of supervising the country. Since his father was firmly sitting on the throne, then He could only express his gratitude to the people in person and show the royal family's love for the people.
On the other hand, if you shrink your head and don't show your face, it would be a great disgrace...
A gray-haired old man was helped up by him. He thanked him with a few gentle words and told his children and grandchildren behind him to help him go home quickly. At such an age, he could be called "auspicious" and he did not dare to get exposed to the rain and get sick. If he had a meal because of this, , he, the prince, must feel guilty.
The old man held His Highness the Prince's hand tremblingly, and opened his toothless lips: "Your Highness's kindness and kindness will not make the ancient sages more beautiful than before. It is actually a blessing for the people of the Tang Dynasty. It will be determined in the future." He is a wise master, but he is only a little bit worse than His Majesty.”
Li Chengqian pulled the corners of his mouth and smiled uglier than crying: "Without virtue and incompetence, how can I dare to compare with the ancient sages? As for my father, he is a flying dragon in the sky, and I am nothing more than a springtail in the grass."
You old guy seems to have read a book, but are you praising me or trying to kill me?
The old man seemed to be very emotional and full of feelings. He pulled Li Chengqian to praise him a few more times. Fortunately, the children and grandchildren behind him still had some experience and knew that when the sage was in power, the prince should hide his capabilities and bide his time. The prince was praised as a flower by the people. It's not a good thing... I quickly helped and dragged him away.
Li Chengqian wiped the rain off his face, let out a long breath, looked up at his father's chariot, and felt sour in his heart.
Everyone in the world envies him for being the eldest son and for being the heir apparent without any trouble, but who knows that he really doesn't care about this position? It's a pity that there is an abyss behind you when you reach the top. You know that the future is full of thorns, but if you take even half a step back, you will be shattered into pieces.
A dilemma, a dilemma.
Just like a person drinking water, he knows whether it is cold or warm...
The imperial chariot slowly advanced towards Chunming Gate in the drizzle. Only three miles away from the city gate were officials from Zongzheng Temple and the Ministry of Rites coming out of the city to see him.
His Majesty Li Er ordered the emperor to suspend the official road in the middle. He wanted to discuss the matter of entering the city with the officials of Zongzheng Temple and the Ministry of Rites. As the emperor, the emperor returned from the expedition in person, and he was indispensable for the discussion of ancestor worship, heaven and so on. When Li Yuanjia, the king of Zongzheng Han, and Yi Yi When a new official boarded the imperial chariot, His Majesty Li Er was in a daze...
The official bowed his head to the ground and said: "Wei Chen, Minister of Rites, Zhou Gang, has an audience with Your Majesty."
His Majesty Li Er looked up and down several times, and just vaguely remembered that there was such a person in the Ministry of Rites. It seemed that he had just been promoted last year and had not participated in a few court meetings...
His face sank and his tone was very unhappy: "Who is in charge of the Ministry of Rites now?"
Even if you are sick and bedridden, shouldn't you come to meet your driver despite your illness? The prince has won the battle, and only one or two of them think that the world belongs to him, and no longer have their eyes on me as the king?
This is simply unreasonable!
Zhou Gang was covered in cold sweat and glanced at His Royal Highness the King of Han next to him, hoping that the other party could change his words for him. After all, the pressure of facing His Majesty was too great... But the other party kept his eyes, nose, nose, and heart silent, so he could only curse in his heart. With a loud voice, he gritted his teeth and said cautiously: "Your Majesty clearly knows that the king of Hejian County has two positions. When the cannibal invaded the Western Regions, he rushed to Jiaohe City to sit down. Town, entrusted Duke Pengcheng to handle the ministry affairs on his behalf. However, from the beginning of the Guanlong clan's rebellion, Duke Pengcheng only visited the yamen every now and then. When the rebels broke through the imperial city and all the yamen were almost razed to the ground, he never stopped. I haven't seen Duke Pengcheng... I am a humble minister, so in the absence of the chief, I can only shamelessly come to greet His Majesty on behalf of my colleagues."
The Minister of Rites was Li Xiaogong, and the other post of Governor of Anxi was only part-time. Unexpectedly, during the Eastern Expedition, the cannibals invaded. The Anxi army was leaderless, and the Guanlong clan was ready to make moves in the Western Region. The prince could only pat someone who could calm him down. Li Xiaogong went to lead the army, and the former Minister of Rites, Pengcheng Gonglinghu Defen, temporarily took charge of the ministry.
Later, Guanlong launched an army, and Linghu Defen, as a key figure in Guanlong, assisted Changsun Wuji in advising military aircraft. Naturally, the Yamen of the Ministry of Rites had no time to go there...
When the rebels broke through the imperial city, the Sixth Army of the East Palace fought and retreated, causing the entire imperial city to be almost reduced to scorched earth. Many central yamen, including the yamen of the Ministry of Rites, were destroyed in the war. The officials in the ministry simply went back to their homes and closed their doors. Can't get out... Now that the rebels have been defeated, Chang'an has returned to the control of the East Palace. However, the ruined Yamen cannot be built for a while, and the officials of the Ministry still have not gathered.
Suddenly His Majesty returned to Beijing, and all the required ceremonies had to be organized and prepared by the Ministry of Ceremonies. The officials hurriedly gathered together, only to find that the ceremonial guards and other items were either damaged or lost, and they were unable to prepare for the welcoming ceremony...
But you can't just ignore His Majesty because of this, right? At the critical moment, Zhou Gang, as the highest-ranking official in the Yamen of the Ministry of Rites, was pushed out...
His Majesty Li Er frowned and his face was as heavy as water.
He naturally knew that Chang'an City had been severely damaged by the war, and even the Taiji Palace had been used as a battlefield to experience fierce killings, but he did not expect that even the central government offices such as the Ministry of Rites had become the "dogs of the five families" and even the government offices were gone... It can be seen from this that , the extent of damage in Chang'an is far beyond what can be described by the dry "imperial city is damaged, and many buildings have collapsed" in the intelligence, and the tragedy of this rebellion is far beyond imagination.
Fighting back hard in a desperate situation, fighting for every inch of ground, leaving corpses everywhere, and finally being able to reverse and win under the siege of an enemy ten times stronger than himself... Even if he no longer wanted to admit it, he had to sigh that the prince had done a really great job this time.
Although the greatest achievements in the victory were made by Fang Jun and Li Jing, the overthrow was about to be overthrown by civil servants who had devoted all their efforts, and there were still military generals who risked their lives to fight. Wouldn't it further highlight the excellence of the prince?
It's a pity. If the prince could show such qualities in his early years, how could he have the desire to store things easily?
Now, the prince is full of wings, directly threatening his authority as the emperor, making him unable to retreat even if he wants to...
If there were another emperor, he might be able to be broad-minded, father and son can be harmonious, and wait for the smooth succession in the future. However, His Majesty Li Er relied on the "Xuanwu Gate Incident" to kill his brother and brother and force his father to abdicate in order to take the throne. He was more wary of such situations than ever before. How could he dare to condone the crown prince's growing strength and eventually learn to do the same again? A "Xuanwumen Incident"?
The arrow is already in the string and must be fired.
However, even though His Majesty Li Er is as stone-hearted at this moment, he still has to lament the prince's unlucky fate. At first, he wanted to be transferred easily because the prince was weak and did not have the appearance of a wise ruler. Now he still wants to be transferred easily, but it is because the prince's performance is too good. , the wings are too full...
Like father and son, they are both advancing and never retreating.
……
Although His Majesty Li Er was dissatisfied, he was not angry with the same minister. Moreover, the objective reasons did exist, and this was not a problem of any one person.
After thinking about it, he said in a deep voice: "I will return to Taiji Palace tonight. As for the ceremony, I will keep it simple. I will give the Ministry of Rites three days to prepare it."
Zhou Gang complained in his heart. Now the Ministry of Rites is almost broke and has nothing. How can it prepare multiple ceremonies in just three days?
But it seems that officials of his level are under too much pressure when facing His Majesty Li Er, and they dare not disobey him at all, so they can only nod and agree: "Wei Chen will lead the Ministry of Rites to overcome all difficulties and do our best."
His Majesty Li Er ignored the cleverness in his words and turned to look at Li Yuanjia who had been silent... (End of Chapter)