Chapter 4975: It’s better to make a success than to make a mistake
"Your Majesty, the clan is the cornerstone of the empire. Since ancient times, a stable clan will lead to a stable society, and chaos in the clan will lead to chaos. Killing the clan is tantamount to cutting off one's own arms! Of course, there are some ulterior motives and wolf-hearted dogs in the clan. Although most people are either bewitched or coerced by him, they may not actually want to rebel. Why might your Majesty be tolerant and make them repent and shed tears of gratitude?”
Liu Jie was eloquent and pointed to the core of the problem.
Li Chengqian frowned and said nothing.
Regardless of the Zhaoling case or the conspiracy case, apart from his anger, he also wanted to use these two major cases to enhance his prestige, especially the latter, which he had planned for a long time. For this reason, he even risked putting himself and the prince at risk. In dangerous places.
As Liu Ji said, if he insists on going his own way and gets involved, he will definitely have prestige. From then on, everyone in the clan and inside and outside the court will be in awe. However, the consequence of the clan's heavy damage is the imbalance of the court's power structure.
After the founding of the Tang Dynasty, the system inherited from the Sui Dynasty was nothing more than mutual restraint and balance between the clan, civil servants, and the military.
Nowadays, civilian officials are suppressed by the military and cannot get involved in all matters involving the military. As a result, the military has grown rapidly. Although the command of the military lies at the center and there will be no "strong branches and weak trunks" situation, he cannot Controlling the "Military Aircraft Department" is a huge hidden danger.
The "Military Aircraft Department" originally established for the emperor to fully control the military power has now become a stumbling block to the imperial power...
If even the clan is weakened and only the military family is left dominant, the change of dynasty may be in the Ming Dynasty.
Be it Li Ji or Fang Jun, Li Chengqian had great trust in these two people. But once the military became big and unstoppable, would the army still support the imperial power when these two men retreated?
Even more, when these two people hold the power to subvert the imperial power, will they still be as loyal to the monarch as before?
Li Chengqian sighed, feeling slightly frustrated.
The emperor claims to be the supreme being in the world and follows the law as he says, but in fact it is impossible to do whatever he wants, and everything he does is just a matter of weighing the pros and cons.
The way of choosing and giving, the supreme principle of heaven and earth, even the emperor cannot escape from.
"Who is the mastermind?"
"Li Shenfu, Li Daoli."
"Huh?"
Li Chengqian raised his eyebrows and was slightly surprised: "Only these two people? As far as I know, Li Xiaoxie has been involved in it and made suggestions. How come he is not there?"
Liu Jie respectfully said: "Your Majesty clearly knows that Li Xiaoxie has indeed been involved in it. However, during the mutiny last night, Li Xiaoxie was in the Wannian County Prison and did not personally participate in the mutiny. His identity is between the mastermind and the co-conspirator. For this reason, Wei Chen After consulting Zongzhengsi and the prince of Hejian County, the prince and the King of Han all agreed that since Li Xiaoxie did not participate in the mutiny, his crime should be reduced and he should be listed as a subordinate. "
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"What are the opinions of King Han and King Hejian?"
Li Chengqian looked directly at Liu Ji with bright eyes.
Liu Ji felt guilty and said bravely: "Yes, Your Majesty ordered Wei Chen to interrogate the case. However, Wei Chen did not know much about the situation within the clan and was afraid that it would lead to an unjust, false and wrong case, so he sincerely requested the King of Han and the King of Hejian County to Guidance.”
This kind of blame-shifting behavior must be disgusting to His Majesty, but Liu Jie can't help it. He can't offend a clan just for His Majesty's pleasure, right?
Nowadays, the military is powerful and the civil servants are severely suppressed. Only by uniting with the clan can they resist. If even the clan is completely offended by him, he may become the most humble and incompetent prime minister since the founding of the Tang Dynasty. Being ridiculed by everyone in the world.
Fortunately, Li Chengqian did not get angry because he also understood that although Liu Jie's actions were somewhat lacking in responsibility, they were not necessarily a bad thing for the clan.
The Zhaoling case and the conspiracy case, once these two major cases were widely implicated, the clan would probably be beheaded, and there would be a queue of beheadings. Although he felt bad in his heart, the clan really wanted to be beheaded. Since then, it has sunk into decline and is no longer known as the "cornerstone of the empire".
Again, it’s just about weighing the pros and cons and making trade-offs.
To seize the clan's role in stabilizing the country, one must sacrifice one's offended dignity as an emperor.
It’s actually not difficult to decide...
Even though Li Chengqian was not a qualified politician, he was given the strategy of governing the country since he was a child. There are almost too many history books throughout the ages, how could he not know the truth behind it?
"Although Li Xiaoxie did not personally participate in the mutiny, he was one of the masterminds of the rebellion before. Now he was detained because of the Zhaoling case, but he escaped... Although the law is so, it is unreasonable to deprive him of his title, and Li Shen Fu and Li Daoli were sentenced together, but their descendants were not involved in the case and were handed over to the Zhaoling case. "
That is to say, if Li Xiaoxie is investigated for the serious crime of treason, his descendants will also be dealt with in the Zhaoling case. As for whether they live or die, it only depends on what crime they should be punished in the Zhaoling case.
It can be regarded as an open policy, otherwise according to Li Xiao's crime of conspiring against the mastermind, the whole family will be buried with him...
"Here! Your Majesty's kindness and blessings to the common people will definitely make those rebellious ministers and traitors feel ashamed and regretful."
"Okay, the mastermind has decided that although Yu never asked, it can't be treated as if nothing happened. Anyone involved in this case will be demoted one level and fined for three years!"
"Here!"
Watching Liu Ji go out, Li Chengqian took a sip of tea and suppressed the anger in his heart.
Although he certainly didn't understand the trade-off, how could he be willing to watch helplessly as the traitors in the clan rebelled against him and turned against him because of their worries? But no matter how unwilling he was, for the sake of the foundation of the empire, the stability of the country, and his own grand hegemony, he could only choose to endure it. This feeling of anger that he had to arouse but not express was enough to make him furious and almost mad.
"Your Majesty, the Lieutenant wishes to see you."
"Let him in."
Li Chengqian took a deep breath, tried his best to suppress the rage in his chest, calmed down, and remained calm.
Fang Jun strode in, bowed his hands to the ground, and said respectfully: "I have an audience with Your Majesty."
"There is no need to be polite, Taiwei. Please sit down. Someone will come and serve tea to the Taiwei."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Fang Jun straightened up and sat down, took the tea from the waiter, and put it on the coffee table beside him without drinking it.
"Your Majesty, the Jinwu Guards on the left and the Leading Army Guards on the left and right have sealed off the city gates. Jingzhao Prefecture and Chang'an and Wannian Counties have sent out patrols and government officials to patrol the streets. Every neighborhood and market in the city is under strict control. Your Majesty, everything is calm now and there are no remnants of traitors making trouble, so your Majesty can rest assured.”
Even if the rebels have been wiped out, no one knows whether the rebels will have any backup plans. If the rebellion fails, they will wreak havoc, let alone whether someone will take the opportunity to cause chaos. A super city like Chang'an with a population of more than one million, a place where merchants from all over the world gather to gather goods and colonies, will be in chaos for a day, and the losses will be immeasurable. It must be suppressed strongly to ensure that everything is safe.
Li Chengqian said "hmm" without comment, then reached out and picked out the memorial from the imperial case, handed it to the chamberlain and told him to pass it to Fang Jun. After Fang Jun took the memorial from the chamberlain and opened it for reading, Li Chengqian said: "This is Tong'an Please take a look at the memorial that the Duke sent to the palace this morning.”
Fang Jun read the memorial at a glance and frowned.
In the memorial, Zheng Rentai said that he was suffering from chronic illness and had a splitting headache, making it difficult for him to lead the left army to guard the imperial city. He asked Your Majesty to appoint another capable person and earnestly request him to become an official...
Seeing Fang Jun's thoughtful look, Li Chengqian asked: "How does Erlang view this matter?"
Fang Jun pondered for a moment, shook his head and said: "Justice from Tong'an County is in the prime of life, strong and energetic, and I have never heard that he has any serious illness. I think these remarks are just an excuse, but his career path to officialdom has never been heard of." But his heart is very sincere...Whether he is allowed to take up an official position depends on His Majesty's mind, Qian Gang can make his own decision."
Last night Zheng Rentai led his troops to blockade Chengtian Gate, and even crossed the border to block Yanxi Gate. Many civil servants were there at that time, and everyone could see clearly. If Zheng Rentai had nothing to do with the rebels, even a fool would not believe it. The contact is extremely secretive, but as long as the "Hundred Cavalry Division" investigates with all its strength, and even the people in contact with it are arrested and interrogated, it can be hidden.
His Majesty must know that he has something to do with the rebels, and Zheng Rentai also knows that His Majesty must know this, so now Zheng Rentai wants to give himself a chance to retreat with dignity before everything is made public.
At the very least, His Majesty must be wary now and may not go to war, so he still has a chance to retreat; but when everything is made public and there is nothing to follow, His Majesty will not punish him if he does not want to...
Li Chengqian thought for a moment, sighed, and said: "Tong'an County Duke has indeed been wronged over the years. If he retires in his prime to entertain his grandson, it would seem that the court is too mean."
Fang Jun remained silent.
This is Li Chengqian's consistent operation. He would seize every opportunity to undermine Emperor Taizong's prestige. As long as the wrong things Emperor Taizong had done, he would publicize them with great fanfare. This would make him appear to have many wise points.
Of course, Zheng Rentai participated in the Jinyang Rebellion at the age of sixteen and has been under the command of Emperor Taizong. He has outstanding achievements and deep qualifications. However, he has been repeatedly ignored and suppressed a bit...
Seeing that Fang Jun was silent, Li Chengqian frowned and continued: "The honorable ministers of Zhenguan are now gradually withering away. It is difficult for rising stars to hold big positions. The Duke of Tong'an County should be allowed to support him for a few more years."
This is the plan to "forgive" Zheng Rentai for what he did in this mutiny.
Of course, "it's better to use the merits than the deeds", which is also a method of imperial control. Zheng Rentai secretly colluded with the rebels and sat back and ignored the mutiny in Tai Chi Palace. Strictly speaking, this is already a capital crime. Now His Majesty not only refuses to pursue the case, but continues to entrust him with the important task of guarding the imperial city. As long as Zheng Rentai still has the slightest sense of morality, he should devote himself to death and die.
As for the sentence "It's hard for a rising star to hold a big position", Fang Jun didn't care.
The structure of the army has already been initially formed. A mere Zheng Rentai, leading a left-leading army guard, cannot affect the overall situation.
Moreover, when the reform of the military system is completed, it will be difficult for anyone to take charge of the army alone, and all the Tang armies will become a solid whole...
"Let's go, come with me to King Qi's place. This kid refuses to correct his mistakes and makes mistakes despite repeated admonitions. He simply doesn't know what to do!" Li Chengqian stood up and greeted Fang Jun.