Tiantang Splendid

Chapter 4912 Just because I am in this mountain

In the study, Li Tai took out a bamboo tube from a box, removed the lid, took out a scroll painting inside, spread it out carefully on the table, and pressed down the four corners with paperweights.

Fang Jun moved forward and observed carefully.

This is a landscape painting. On the paper, there are continuous mountains and stacked clouds. The layout is exquisite and integrated. The most noticeable thing is that although the mountains, rocks and trees in the painting are outlined without any texture, they are all rendered in colors, mainly green and blue... This style is obviously "green and blue landscape".

Although "blue-green landscape" was not prominent in the Sui and Tang dynasties, and was even extremely rare, there was a founder who founded a school of painting...

"This is the Five Old Peaks of Mount Lu. The ink is thick and thin, and the green and blue are interspersed. It is majestic and has delicate and graceful strokes. Could it be the work of Zhan Ziqian of the previous dynasty?"

Li Tai was surprised: "This technique was created by Zhan Ziqian. It is rare in the world. Have you seen it before, Erlang?"

Fang Jun ignored him and looked at it carefully again. It was not the famous work of Zhan Ziqian that had been passed down to later generations. It seemed that this painting must have been lost in history. As the originator of "green landscape", there were not many works of this kind passed down by Zhan Ziqian, which was enough to show its preciousness.

The inscription on the painting reads "In the early spring of the twelfth year of Kaihuang, I traveled to Mount Lu with my son. Clouds and mists covered the mountains, and the peaks piled up"...

Li Tai took the brush, ink, paper and inkstone and ground them himself: "Zhan Ziqian was a famous artist of his time, and there are many paintings that have survived, but there are very few works like this one that only have inscriptions and a lot of blank space. Erlang is a great poet and has not published any works for a long time. I wonder if you can take the trouble to do this? Good poems paired with famous paintings is also a good story!"

This naturally did not pose a problem for Fang Jun. In recent years, he has created less and less, which means there is still a lot to be "copied". He looked at the painting carefully again and regretted that there was no waterfall hanging above or pouring down, otherwise it would have been a "tribute" to Li Bai. However, the stacked mountains and mist on the paper also made the work of another person quite suitable.

He then took the brush, dipped it in ink, and began writing on a blank space in the upper left corner of the paper. His brush moved like a dragon and a snake, and the painting was completed in one stroke.

"When you look at it from the side, it's a mountain range; when you look at it from the front, it's a peak; it looks different from different distances and heights. I can't see the true face of Mount Lu because I'm inside it... Hiss! Erlang is a man of wit and intelligence, unparalleled in the world. Even Cao Zijian, who could compose a poem in seven steps, is no better than him!"

Famous paintings and good poems complement each other, especially Fang Jun's calligraphy combined with Zhan Ziqian's painting skills, the two complement each other beautifully.

Li Tai happily placed his painting there, waiting for the ink stains to dry before rolling it up for collection. He pulled Fang Jun to sit beside him and asked, "You said just now that you have a solution to my predicament? I'd like to hear the details!"

Fang Jun pointed at the painting and said, "Didn't I just write it? With your wisdom, you will surely be able to find a solution if you think about it carefully."

"Ok?"

Li Tai was stunned and turned to look at the painting on the desk...that poem?

"…I don't know the true face of Mount Lu because I am in it? Oh my, a word awakens the dreamer!"

Li Tai suddenly realized and was surprised and delighted.

The reason why he fell into a dilemma was naturally because he was in the middle of the situation. As the legitimate son of Taizong and the younger brother of His Majesty, he was involved no matter how the throne changed. He coveted it but was afraid of the backlash. He looked around in confusion and didn't know what to do.

Only by removing yourself from the situation can you stay out of it and see the whole picture.

How to break the game?

It is difficult to say, but it is also easy to say.

Fang Jun took a sip of tea and asked, "Your Highness, can you really make up your mind? If you take this step, you will never be able to get that position."

"Fuck off!"

Li Tai rolled his eyes and said dissatisfiedly: "Who told me that I would never get that position? Since I can never get it, I might as well cut it off completely and put an end to it all."

Fang Jun praised: "Your Highness has a broad mind and great courage. I admire you."

With Li Tai's identity and status, it was not easy for him to make the decision to completely cut off the throne. After all, it was the supreme position in the world. Moreover, to a certain extent, Li Tai was not completely without a chance...

In terms of ability alone, Li Zhi is first, Li Tai is second, and Li Chengqian is not up to par.

However, the inheritance of the throne cannot be simply judged by ability. Li Zhi can be regarded as a qualified emperor recognized in history books, but because he came to the throne illegitimately, he had to use most of his energy on consolidating the throne, which destroyed the foundation of the Tang Dynasty and seriously damaged its vitality. It seemed that he expanded the territory, but in fact he destroyed the foundation of the "Zhenguan Governance".

If it weren't for Wu Zetian's unparalleled ability in internal affairs, the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty would probably have ended in three generations.

In fact, if Li Chengqian or Li Tai succeeded to the throne, their achievements would not be too bad.

Emperor Taizong had led the meritorious officials of the Zhenguan period to defeat the surrounding powerful enemies one by one, but the only one he failed to conquer was Goguryeo, which he dealt a heavy blow to and never recovered. However, even so, Li Zhi only destroyed Goguryeo in form. The entire Liaodong area was still under the control of Silla, Baekje and others, which also laid hidden dangers for the future rise of Goguryeo.

Li Zhi was an outstanding emperor in history, but he was definitely not as powerful as described in history books. If it weren't for the two generations of emperors, Wu Zetian and Li Longji, who cleaned up the mess, the Tang Dynasty would have already declined in his hands...

The Guanlong clan was destroyed without any reinforcements, shaking the foundation of the empire. It was Wu Zetian who stabilized the situation by making use of the gentry and promoting the common people.

Li Tai sighed and said, "You have really taken great pains to completely cut off my connection with that location."

*****
Wude Hall.

Li Chengqian had just finished dinner and was carefully reading the document of Li Tai's return to Beijing to report on his work, while listening to Li Junxian's report.

"…His Royal Highness the Prince of Wei entered the city from Chunming Gate and ordered his entourage not to show off in public. He returned to the palace in a low profile and closed the door to visitors. However, Duke Yue came to pay a visit shortly afterwards…"

"Oh? These two have always been on good terms, and the King of Wei doesn't want to see him?"

"Your Majesty, the King of Wei did not see him, but the Duke of Yue opened the door and entered the room himself, and the King of Wei and his wife could not avoid him."

"Ha, this is indeed the style of Duke Yue."

Li Chengqian laughed with interest: "Then what? What did the two of them talk about?"

Li Junxian shook his head and said, "His Royal Highness the Prince of Wei said that he had obtained a famous painting from Luoyang and asked Duke Yue to appreciate it. The two of them retreated into the study room. There were no outsiders present, so we have no way of knowing what they talked about. However, after Duke Yue left, His Royal Highness the Prince of Wei sat alone in the study room all night, drank a lot of wine, and did not sleep all night."

For a prince as important as the King of Wei, there are already spies from the "Hundred Cavalry Division" in the palace, who are always aware of the King of Wei's every move. If there is any strangeness, they will immediately report it to Li Chengqian's desk...

Li Chengqian thought about it, but couldn't figure out what the two had talked about: "It seems that the King of Wei is in a bad mood."

Li Junxian remained silent. It was difficult to respond to such words, because no matter what he said, it was all speculation. He could only speak based on facts and absolutely could not speculate on anything. If it affected the judgment of His Majesty, it would be dereliction of duty at best, and "misleading" at worst...

Li Chengqian didn't want to get any answer from Li Junxian. He waved his hand and warned, "Send someone to guard the Prince of Wei's mansion. There might be someone so daring as to commit treason and murder the Prince of Wei. You must ensure the Prince of Wei's safety."

From the beginning to the end, Li Tai's life has been the focus of attention from all parties. It is very likely that one party will murder him and then put the blame on the other party. Once Li Tai dies, it will definitely cause a violent shock, and even affect the whole world...

Li Junxian naturally knew the seriousness of the matter: "Your Majesty, rest assured. Since the King of Wei set foot in Chang'an City, I have already dispatched the best soldiers of the Hundred Cavalry Division to secretly protect him. We dare not slack off in the slightest."

……

After Li Junxian left, Li Chengqian sat alone in the study and drank tea for a while, thinking about the current situation. Then he asked the eunuch to add a few candles and buried his head in documents and memorials.

Wang De, the eunuch chief, tiptoed into the imperial study and whispered, "Your Majesty, the Queen sent someone over to say that she has prepared some midnight snacks for Your Highness to eat."

Li Chengqian stopped writing and looked up at the pile of memorials on the desk. He shook his head and said, "Go tell the Queen that I may have to review the memorials until very late tonight. Let her finish her meal and go to bed first."

"Here."

Wang De withdrew.

Li Chengqian put down his brush, rubbed his face, stretched his sore arms, and let out a breath.

The most important and basic criterion for being a qualified emperor is to be diligent in government affairs. However, these four words are easy to say but difficult to achieve. The empire has a vast territory, covering thousands of miles, and there are more than hundreds of millions of people under its rule. There are countless affairs to deal with every day, and the texts to read are endless. This is not just reading miscellaneous books. You have to carefully consider every sentence and every word in the memorials of the frontier officials and court ministers, otherwise you will be easily deceived.

Although he believed that he could be a qualified emperor, he admired Emperor Taizong and felt inferior to him.

Apart from handling government affairs, Emperor Taizong still had enough energy to travel and drink, and he treated the concubines in the palace equally, and from time to time he would fill up the harem to change his taste...

However, he almost exhausted all his energy and efforts when facing the vast amount of memorials. Recently, he obviously felt that he was lacking in energy and became increasingly indifferent and indifferent to sex.

Every time I faced the Queen, I would hide away, feeling guilty...

Thinking about the rumors and legends in the market town, he sighed again.

……

The next morning, Li Chengqian got up sleepily, washed his face and changed his clothes with the help of a maid, and sat at the table to eat with a listless look. He picked up a spoon and scooped a mouthful of white rice and sea cucumber porridge into his mouth, chewing it, but he had no taste.

Wang De suddenly walked in quickly from outside, changing his usual cautious image. He came to Li Chengqian and said in a hurry: "Your Majesty, something bad has happened! His Royal Highness the Prince of Wei just left the city and went to the Zhaoling Mausoleum in Jiuyi Mountain, saying that he wanted to pay tribute to Emperor Taizong and Empress Wende!"

"Danglang"

Li Chengqian sobered up instantly, threw the spoon into the bowl, and flew into a rage: "What does he want to do?!"