Tiantang Splendid

Chapter 4717 Responsibility
As summer approaches, the temperature in Chang'an gradually rises. If it doesn't rain for a few days in a row, it will be as hot and unbearable as a cage.

Li Chengqian sat in the Taiji Palace, eating iced Western melons. He took a bite and sighed.

In previous years, Emperor Taizong was the most intolerant of heat, so when this season came, he would go out of the palace for a stroll, staying in the Lishan Palace for some time, and then in the Jiucheng Palace for some time. He would wait until autumn when the ground was golden and the leaves were falling, and then he would return to Chang'an with his ceremonial guard.

All kinds of memories come to my mind, some sweet, some nostalgic, some resentful... But no matter what, time has passed, loved ones have passed away, everything has gone with the wind, and the world has changed.

Liu Li, who was standing by, didn't know what was happening in His Majesty's heart. He thought that he was angry because of the memorial in front of him. After thinking for a while, he consoled him, "This Xi Junmai is indeed lawless. The household registration of the Tang Dynasty is so precious. How can it be easily granted to the Hu people? If he is not of our race, his heart must be different!"

Suddenly I felt something was wrong. The founding of the Tang Dynasty relied on the Guanlong clans, and most of the Guanlong clans came from the Six Garrisons of the Northern Wei Dynasty. They were real Xianbei people. To this day, at least half of the people in the court of the Tang Dynasty have Hu blood. Xianbei, Turks and other Hu people are high-ranking officials and have prominent titles, so the Tang Dynasty is actually a very contradictory country.

On the one hand, Emperor Taizong strictly prohibited intermarriage between Han and Hu people, but on the other hand, he married his sister and other women to Hu people. As a result, until now, no one knows what the Tang Dynasty’s policy towards Hu people is.

He had no choice but to change his words and said, "Even if this memorial has some truth in it, and some Hu people who have made outstanding contributions can be naturalized as Tang citizens, this is also a matter of the central government. It needs to be discussed by the Political Affairs Hall and the Ministry of Revenue and then submitted to Your Majesty for His Majesty's decision. How can a mere naval commander like him have any say in this? It can be seen that the navy's invincibility in recent years has bred a large group of unruly and ambitious people. We must be on guard against it."

As a civilian leader, he would naturally strike the military at any time and anywhere without leaving anything out.

Today's navy has long become a huge interest group. It not only has an invincible fleet, but also has "businesses" with profits ten or a hundred times greater. It is involved in countless domestic interests and is another powerful force in the military.

Li Chengqian came to his senses, listened to Liu Li's words, smiled and said: "Although it is a bit over the line, it is not a big deal. It is just a suggestion. Whether to choose or not is up to the central government. Soldiers follow orders and obey orders, but they are not speechless."

In fact, he was somewhat optimistic about the suggestion.

The population of the Tang Dynasty was tens of millions, and there were many talents in all walks of life. Naturally, they did not care about a few Hu people. However, these Hu people might be mediocre in the Tang Dynasty, but they would be very likely to become prominent figures in foreign countries and bring trouble to the Tang Dynasty. If they could be absorbed into the household registration of the Tang Dynasty and given good treatment, it would be like buying a horse with a lot of money. After this trend was formed, more and more Hu people would enter the Tang Dynasty. As one thing increased, the other decreased. How could the Hu people in foreign countries make a comeback?
Naturally, they were suppressed by the Tang Dynasty for generations.

Liu Li understood Li Chengqian's intentions and said, "Why don't we bring this memorial to the court tomorrow morning so that we can discuss it?"

Li Chengqian nodded and said, "Okay."

He closed the memorial and placed it on the top of the pile of memorials on the desk.

Li Chengqian suddenly remembered something: "After the morning court tomorrow, there will be a regular meeting of the Ministry of War, right?"

The charter of the "committee" is to hold regular meetings every Monday and Friday. All "committees" will arrive to discuss the pros and cons of the current military system, find a suitable framework, and then discuss various reform measures within the framework, formulate a proposed charter, and then select pilot projects for trial implementation before finally passing it to the entire army.

Therefore, despite the many regular meetings before, progress was actually very slow.

This is an extremely long process. After all, it involves military and national affairs, so it cannot be too cautious and must be done to perfection.

Li Chengqian asked, "I haven't seen Duke Yun these past two days. I wonder how the Right Jinwu Guard is doing?"

Liu Li smiled bitterly and said, "It's not that Duke Yunguo didn't come to report the specific situation to Your Majesty, it's just that it's really difficult to take a step forward and it's hard to describe in one word, so I don't have the face to see Your Majesty."

Li Chengqian frowned: "You haven't really taken charge of the Right Jinwu Guard yet?"

Deep down, he was very dissatisfied. He was dissatisfied with the xenophobia of the Right Jinwu Guard from top to bottom and the repeated exclusion of the generals appointed by the emperor. He was also dissatisfied with Zhang Liang's incompetence.

With the imperial decree and appointment from the central government, he was leading the Right Jinwu Guard in such a legitimate manner, but he was manipulated by a group of ruffians and was at a loss as to how to advance or retreat. I really don't know how such a person could have caught the attention of Emperor Taizong?
Liu Li sighed and said, "All the members of the Right Jinwu Guard are former subordinates of Fang Jun, and they obey his orders. Although Duke Yun has successfully assumed his position, everyone in the group pretends to obey his orders, and not only can he not issue orders, but he also has to face endless traps and conspiracies. If he is not careful, he will lose everything. It is really difficult for him to take any step."

Li Chengqian was impatient to listen to this. He was the emperor and he only needed to control the overall situation from the center. It was impossible for him to do everything personally.

"Tell Duke Yun that if he can successfully control the Right Golden Guard within three months, fine. If not, let him abdicate and let others take over."

Such an important force that guards Chang'an and protects the imperial power cannot be allowed to be leaderless for a long time and to be in strife between the upper and lower levels. If Zhang Liang does not have that ability, he should just give up his position and let someone capable do it.

Liu Li had no choice but to agree: "I will tell Duke Yun."

It is really a headache. If Zhang Liang loses his position as the General of the Right Jinwu Guard and cannot return to the Ministry of Justice to continue serving as its Minister, wouldn't he be completely away from the center from then on?
Zhang Liang had completely surrendered to him. If he ended up with a title but no official position, it would be a huge blow to Liu Li's reputation...

……

Princess Changle gave birth and recuperated in a Taoist temple in Zhongnan Mountain. She did not return to Chang'an and Taiji Palace until three months later.

In Shujing Hall, all the princesses who were waiting to be married came one after another. The little princesses Jinyang, Xincheng and others, the thirteenth son of Emperor Taizong who was adopted by Prince Yin, Prince Zhao Li Fu, the youngest son of Emperor Taizong, Prince Cao Li Ming and others all prepared various small gifts for their newborn nephew.

Princess Changle sat on the couch, hugging her son who was laughing all the time, and looked at her brothers and sisters who came up to her to marvel at her with a smile. She felt very satisfied in her heart.

One who does not raise a child does not know the kindness of parents. Now she finally understands the meaning of "having a son is everything". Men are just embellishments in her life and she does not need to own them. "If the love between two people is long-lasting, why should they be together day and night?"
As long as the child is by my side, I will be happy, watching him learn to speak, walk unsteadily, go to school, get married and have children...

At this point in life, there is nothing more to ask for.

When Li Chengqian came in, he saw Changle with a sweet and warm smile on her face. Her eyes were almost glued to the baby in her arms, with nothing else in her eyes.

"Meet the Emperor, brother."

"Your Majesty, I am your humble servant."

All the brothers and sisters stood up and saluted, and when Li Chengqian said "hmm", they said goodbye and left one after another.

Since when, the emperor's majesty has become more and more powerful, and unlike the grandeur of Emperor Taizong, he has a bit of shadow and sharpness, which makes people feel uneasy and frightened. Naturally, they don't want to get along with him.

Seeing his brothers and sisters fleeing, Li Chengqian was somewhat dissatisfied. He snorted and sat opposite Princess Changle, complaining to his biological sister, "Look at them one by one. I either conferred titles or added fiefs to them, and treated them with great care, fearing that the change in status would weaken the brotherhood. But now these guys avoid me like snakes and scorpions. Not only do they hardly talk to me, they even dislike sitting next to me."

Princess Changle smiled brightly, her temperament gentle and soft: "Your Majesty is now the king of a country, holding the sun and the moon in your hands and speaking the law of heaven. Your prestige is natural. Your brothers and sisters are still young, so they are naturally in awe of the king's majesty. Your Majesty does not need to worry about it."

Li Chengqian sighed: "What's the fear? At least you are not afraid of me, otherwise you wouldn't insist on giving birth to this child."

Princess Changle smiled faintly, her pretty face pulled down, she hugged the child in her arms tighter, and said calmly: "Your Majesty is the supreme ruler, you should be tolerant, why can't you tolerate this little baby?"

Li Chengqian was stunned and said quickly: "What are you thinking? Although I am dissatisfied with what you have done, I have never punished you for it. How can I not tolerate this child? No matter who his father is, I only know that he is your child and my nephew. He will definitely be granted a title and a high position in the future. You seem gentle but are actually stubborn. You have too many thoughts and are really hard to serve!"

Seeing Changle pursed his lips and said nothing, he could only whisper: "Are you still angry about me not giving the child a name? I think that although his father did a bit too much, they are flesh and blood after all, so it is better for his father to do this. Come, let me hold the child."

Changle looked at him: "Your Majesty, do you really think so?"

Although he was a little suspicious, he still sent the child over.

Li Chengqian took the child in his hands, looked at the child's face through the gap in the swaddling clothes, and said with a smile: "He looks quiet and delicate, more like you. He will definitely be a handsome man when he grows up."

The child was too young, so he didn't dare hold her for too long. He tore off a mutton-fat jade pendant with a dragon pattern from his waist and stuffed it into the swaddling clothes, then returned it to Princess Changle.

Then he sighed and said, "When my father was alive, he always lamented that brothers and sisters killed each other and had no control over their own lives, which made him regretful for the rest of his life. When I was very young, he taught me to love my brothers and treat my sisters well. I have always remembered those words and never forgotten them. So you had an affair with Fang Jun and even gave birth to a child, Zhi Nu rebelled to seize the throne, and the fifth brother was bewitched by Zhangsun Wuji and wrote a letter to attack me. I was able to forgive them one by one and never pursued them. This is my responsibility as a brother, and it should be my responsibility, so you can rest assured. Don't doubt my mind and character, otherwise it will make me very sad to be suspected by my own sister."

His father killed his brothers and swore blood at Xuanwu Gate, but he was magnanimous and forgave Zhinu when facing his rebellion. In this respect, he felt that he had done a good job, far better than his father.

I am also willing to maintain this responsibility and commitment as a brother, and make it a good story that will go down in history.