Chapter 4140 Loyal to His Majesty
Heavy rain was pouring outside the window, candles were brightly lit in the barracks, and a pot of fragrant tea was filled with steam. The two cousins sat opposite each other, drinking tea, and did not speak for a long time.
It wasn't until the pot of tea was almost finished that Li Xiaogong put the tea cup on the table, looked up at Li Daozong, and asked, "What do you think of the current situation?"
"Chengfan" is Li Daozong's name. Li Xiaogong did not address the official position or title, but called the other party's name. Apparently, he told Li Daozong that this conversation was only in the capacity of each other's brothers, and they were discussing the inheritance of the family business and the future of the family's honor and disgrace. .
There is no need to be taboo or to be wary of.
Li Daozong naturally understood and understood that Li Xiaogong wanted him to express his attitude from the standpoint of the Li Tang royal family.
It is even more likely that Li Xiaogong noticed something and believed that the current situation would endanger the interests of the Li Tang royal family if it spread like this. He wanted to take some measures to stop or change it, and this would inevitably require the "second commander" within the clan. support themselves.
After thinking for a while, he did not give an answer, but asked instead: "Now the late emperor's edict is widely circulated in the palace, and regardless of who is in the edict, I just want to ask my brother, is this edict true or false?"
Li Xiaogong was silent.
Is the edict true or false? Only the devil knows! If it is true, the late emperor avoided him, the leader of the clan and his most trusted cousin, and privately awarded it to the King of Jin and kept it secret. He did not reveal it publicly until the King of Jin escaped from Taiji Palace and gathered an army to attack Chang'an. This is absolutely not true. It makes sense; but if it is said to be false, the late emperor left such a legacy and passed it down to the King of Jin, the reasons and logic are completely reasonable...
He could only say: "I don't know whether it is true or not, but we are not only ministers of the late emperor, but also ministers of the Tang Dynasty, and more importantly, ministers of the clan. In our eyes, we must care about the interests of the Tang Dynasty and the clan, and we need to be broad-minded. All over the world, instead of doing stupid things in the name of loyalty Even if the imperial edict was true, if the late emperor could foresee that the elders would be put into war between brothers in order to seize the heir, do you think the late emperor would still leave such a share? A legacy? ”
Li Daozong shook his head and said: "I don't care about that. Whether I am foolish, loyal or confused, I only recognize the legacy of the late emperor. If the late emperor passed the throne to the king of Jin, I will deem the king of Jin as the emperor. If the late emperor passed the throne to the king, Brother, I will regard you as the emperor. This country belongs to the late emperor. Whoever he gives it to, I will regard you as the emperor."
When the late emperor was still alive, everyone could have their own ideas about who should belong to the throne, or they could be forthright and argue with reason. But the late emperor had passed away, so all the disputes were unnecessary. He could only carry out the late emperor's last orders. In his opinion, there was no doubt about this.
Li Xiaogong frowned and said slowly: "So, you believe in the existence of the imperial edict, and believe that the so-called imperial edict made public by the prince of Jin is the true embodiment of His Majesty's will?"
Li Daozong was silent for a long time before asking: "In your opinion, if the late emperor was still there, or if the late emperor could leave a legacy, would he depose the prince and install the king of Jin as the crown prince?"
Li Xiaogong was a little irritated and said dissatisfied: "Who can say for sure about things that have not been put into practice? At least when he was canonizing the crown prince, His Majesty did not think that one day it would be easy to save. You said you would follow the late emperor's legacy, but the late emperor's ambition was Hasn't it changed? When he ascended the throne, the late emperor was diligent, thrifty, self-denial and loving the people, and he was the same as Queen Wende. Wearing simple clothes, there has never been a gorgeous palace. However, in recent years, the empire has been rich in finances and internal funds. His Majesty has gradually become extravagant and arrogant, and he has also achieved great successes. A battle in the Eastern Expedition has almost exhausted the foundation accumulated by Zhenguan for more than ten years. You are now Tell me about the late emperor’s legacy? I’m afraid even the late emperor himself doesn’t know what his ambition is.”
People can change. No matter how wise or powerful a person is, once he controls the resources of a huge empire, his ambition will grow wildly. Just like Emperor Yang of Sui Dynasty, who dares to say that he is ignorant and stupid? However, the unstoppable ambition was eventually buried with the collapse of the empire.
Among them are Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty's great achievements, but more importantly, he was coerced by clan politics and had to rely on the means of venting to the outside world to eliminate the clan's stranglehold on imperial power. The reason why Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty dug the canal, and why he conquered Goguryeo three times, They may not necessarily want to achieve these great achievements, but the more important purpose is to weaken the strength of the clan.
But now, once the King of Jin comes to power, it can be expected that the clan will completely occupy the court with the power of Conglong, and the flames will be even greater than in the early years of Zhenguan.
The royal family will completely lose their initiative under the pressure of the clan, which is something Li Xiaogong cannot allow.
After all, "Everything in the world is for profit." The King of Jin ascended to the throne with the help of his family members, and the family members relied on pushing the King of Jin to overturn the situation. Li Xiaogong wanted to support the crown prince to establish the status and power of the royal family, and Li Daozong wanted to carry out the legacy of the late emperor. The name of "loyalty"... is essentially all for oneself, either for fame or profit.
But who has the people of this world at heart and is always thinking about ensuring their interests?
Li Daozong held the pot and poured tea again, but remained silent.
Obviously the decision has been made, and no more persuasion is useless...
Li Xiaogong did not get up and leave. Li Daozong's attitude was unexpected. Now he had to re-examine the current situation in order to confirm his position.
Xuanwu Gate is the gateway and throat of Taiji Palace, and Li Daozong guards this dangerous place. His position directly determines whether Taiji Palace will face the rebel army. When the Sixth Army of the East Palace leads a bloody battle with the Youhou Guards in the front, another army The partial master sneaked outside the Xuanwu Gate and launched a surprise attack with the help of Li Daozong... The end of the East Palace was definitely miserable.
And Li Daozong clearly told the truth about his position, either to express that he would never open the Xuanwu Gate to introduce rebels, or to test Li Xiaogong's attitude, thinking of including him. Win over...
Li Xiaogong was in a dilemma. He originally wanted Li Daozong to join him in worshiping the prince on the "big coffin" after dawn, in order to express support for the prince, maintain Zhengshuo, and have the merit of supporting the prince to ensure the interests of the royal family, but he did not expect that now On the contrary, he was indecisive and in a dilemma.
Silence fell in the barracks. The two most powerful figures in the Li Tang royal family sat opposite each other, drinking tea in silence, each thinking without saying a word.
Amidst the sound of rain, the big drum located in the corner tower of the city wall beat slowly. The melodious drum sound penetrated the wind and rain, and was powerful and deep.
Li Daozong put down his tea cup and said: "It's the fifth watch, and the 'big funeral' is coming soon. My brother is responsible for presiding over it, so he shouldn't delay. Please go by yourself."
Li Xiaogong rubbed Lian, and finally tried to persuade: "Are you serious about not considering it? As children of the royal family, you and I should consider the royal family. We cannot act arbitrarily based on our temper, otherwise you and I will not be able to bear the consequences. The ascension of King Jin is the foundation If it is unstable, the ruling and opposition parties will definitely react against it. There are many opponents, and chaos is beyond the control. In troubled times, heavy rituals are needed. If King Jin wants to secure his throne, he has to kill him ruthlessly. All threats to the throne will be eradicated one by one, and the royal family will bear the brunt... Maybe a hundred years later, you will. Become a sinner of the royal family.”
Unlike the crown prince who ascended the throne, no matter how much the King of Jin claimed the authenticity of the "edict", he could not change the fact that he had usurped it against his will. If the name is not correct, the words will not be obeyed, and if the words are not obeyed, the heart will not be convinced. How could His Majesty Li Er be willing to kill his brothers and their family members and heirs after the Xuanwu Sect incident? Because of his dishonest reputation and his unjust words, in order to cut off the threat and secure the throne, he had to kill someone with a black face and cruel heart, and his blood flowed like a river.
If His Majesty appoints the King of Jin as the Crown Prince while he is still alive, although it is unreasonable to abolish the eldest and establish the youngest, it will inevitably lead to slander and resentment from the world, but His Majesty's prestige is there, and the number of people who oppose it is limited after all. Even if they object, they will remain rational and will not ignore it. Involve the world.
However, His Majesty died suddenly and never abolished the crown prince during his lifetime. This is destined to be followed by a bloody storm after King Jin ascends to the throne.
Who poses the greatest threat to King Jin's throne?
Naturally, among the descendants of the late emperor, the first to bear the brunt are the prince and the king of Wei, who are also the legitimate sons of the late emperor, and then the princes of the clan. It is difficult for him, a prestigious prince of the clan, to stay out of the matter. After all, Li Yuanjing's rebellion is not far away...
The clans in Jiangnan and Shandong need to suppress and weaken the royal family to gain more benefits. The King of Jin needs to eradicate all brothers and uncles who may threaten the throne. You can imagine what kind of severe situation the royal family will face by then. Just thinking about it, Li Xiaogong feels his heart skip a beat. Tremble...
However, Li Daozong was stubborn but refused to give in. He had to hold on to the idea of being loyal to the late emperor regardless of the raging floods in the world.
A soldier came in from the outside and said softly: "To report to the commander-in-chief and the prince, the drums of Wude Hall sounded several times, and the 'big burial' is about to begin."
Li Xiaogong looked at Li Daozong: "Are you going there?"
Li Daozong was silent for a moment, shook his head and said: "It's better not to go. I am loyal to Your Majesty, and I will remain determined even if His Majesty is buried in heaven."
Since we are loyal to His Majesty Li Er, we should abide by His Majesty Li Er's desire to change the throne several times and make the King of Jin the emperor. However, if we go to attend the "big funeral", we need to pay homage to the prince together with all the officials. If we don't do that, we must pay homage to the prince together with the prince. He didn't want to break up in public.
So, it's better not to go.
As for not being able to see His Majesty's last face... Loyalty is in the bones and remembrance is in the heart, so why should we care about the form?
Your Majesty is alive in heaven, and you must be happy.
Li Xiaogong cupped his hands with a solemn expression, turned around and walked out of the door into the wind and rain. The soldiers quickly held up umbrellas and followed behind him to protect him from the rain.
The sky is still dark and the rain never stops,
Thunder and lightning, wind and rain, the tall and majestic Xuanwu Gate stands on the Dragon Head Plain, showing its majestic and murderous aura like a unicorn monster. Looking down from the top of this majestic and majestic capital city that has been repeatedly war-torn, it can be seen at any time Dive and fight, crushing everything into powder.
Outside the Chengtian Gate, the sound of killing shook the sky. Countless Tang Dynasty tigers who had guarded the frontier and opened up the territory fought against each other. The horizontal knives cut open Pao Ze's body and chopped off his limbs, and blood sprayed and gathered in a stream.
In the Hall of Wude, the "big burial" of His Majesty Li Er, the first generation of the British Lord, is about to begin. His body is placed in the coffin. From now on, his true face will no longer be seen in the world, leaving only a glorious and prosperous life and eternal achievements to be praised by future generations... …
Thunder rumbled in the sky and rain poured down. (End of chapter)