The film and television world begins with the battle for the throne in Kowloon

Chapter 1025: Court Battle (VI)

After waiting for a long time, Li Yan still didn't come until midnight. Changsun Wuji was a little angry, so he didn't communicate with Li Yan in advance.

However, looking at it now, I am afraid there may be some misunderstandings.

Changsun Wuji felt a little regretful, and he suddenly thought that his nephew had been wandering outside for 16 years. During the most critical period, he did not receive the filial guidance of his brother-in-law, nor did he live in the core of power. He might have lost his sensitivity to politics.

Maybe it wasn't intentional that I didn't go, but I just didn't think there was such a need at all.

I should have gone there in person, or sent someone to give some advice. Now, a good game of chess has been ruined at the very start.

My nephew seems to be planning to go against me, which is very bad.

My nephew and I are in the same group. We are friends, not enemies. The real opponent is not me.
At this time, seeing Fang Xuanling looking over, his eyebrows raised, with an inexplicable deep meaning in his eyes. Changsun Wuji was startled, and understood what Fang Xuanling meant, that is, to let him take the lead again. After all, his own people are better than outsiders, so he can at least negotiate a good price!

But Changsun Wuji also had concerns in his heart. Just now, the emperor and his minister had secretly intended to attack each other. If he continued to attack, would his nephew misunderstand his intentions? Moreover, if so, the crime of suppressing the emperor would fall on him.

If he had discussed it in advance and let his nephew know, even if he did not take action, those civil and military officials and aristocratic groups would not stop.

As the uncle, he took action, and his own people fought against each other, but he was able to control the situation and let the emperor retain a dignified soft landing. If he waited until those people took action, things would have been a bit of a fallout, and the consequences might have been out of control.

The complex relationship of mutual competition, checks and balances, and interdependence among the imperial power, the prime minister's power, and the aristocratic families is not something that a newborn calf can control.

Just when Changsun Wuji was in a dilemma, suddenly, a voice broke through the court that had just calmed down.

"Your Majesty, I have a report to make."

Changsun Wuji's heart tightened, and he turned around suddenly. His eyes flashed through the crowd and fell on the minister who was speaking. Then, his face froze, and his heart felt like he had stepped on air and fell into a bottomless cliff.

The ministers looked back and saw an official in a red robe walking out from the row of civil officials on the left with an expressionless face. He stood in the middle of the imperial road, holding a tablet.

When the ministers saw this man, they suddenly became serious and the whole scene became quiet.

Even Li Yan, who was sitting on the dragon throne, suddenly realized that the situation in the court had suddenly changed compared to just now, and it was very quiet. It was as if something unexpected had happened, and the scene became weird.

Li Yan frowned. He had been in a high position for a long time. In the Qing Dynasty, he fought for more than ten years before he ascended the throne. In Infernal Affairs, he also rose up little by little from the bottom. In the Turkic Khanate, he relied on powerful military force and made great military achievements.

Every time he came to power, there was an obvious characteristic, which was to take one step at a time. Although some people were not convinced, he had a solid foundation.

This time, the emperor was parachuted in, relying only on the righteous status of the eldest son, and lacking the most important link in the struggle.

I'm afraid that many people have reacted by now, and they would guess that the reason he disappeared for so many years might be to avoid being in the most difficult position in history, that is, the crown prince. He took the opportunity of the diplomatic mission to avoid the heavy blockades and the fight for the throne among the dragons that lasted for more than ten years.

This kind of gameplay has never been seen before, and it is impossible to weigh its pros and cons for the time being.

Li Yan knew that the advantage of winning by surprise was that it caught everyone off guard at the critical moment. Li Shimin was plotted against in the fight with the aristocratic family, and he suddenly appeared. In the fight between the kings, he picked a big peach.

But there are disadvantages as well. He has not been in the core power game for a long time, and his own skills, abilities, and the supporters accumulated under his command are seriously insufficient. He also lacks the momentum that can only be accumulated over time.

In the eyes of others, you are stealing and winning unfairly.

However, Li Yan did not reveal his identity as the Right Wise King for long-term considerations. As a result, his throne was considered empty in the eyes of everyone. Not only the ministers, but also Li Ke, Li Tai, Li You, and Li Zhi were dissatisfied.

Li Yan himself knew that it would not be so smooth to obtain the throne in this way. There was almost no opposition to his ascension to the throne, and all the ministers agreed. But this agreement was not necessarily entirely for himself.

Now that he had taken over the biggest piece of cake from Li Shimin, others would naturally ask for a share.

There are no shortcuts in life, and there is no free lunch in the world.

What you lacked in the past will have to be made up little by little in the future; what you should not have obtained will also be lost little by little.

However, he did not know how much loss the redistribution of benefits would cause him, and how to make up for it. If there was time, Li Yan would naturally take some actions, such as accumulating prestige through war.

But all these take time, and will others give it to you?

The person who appeared at this time was Cui Hongzhi, the Minister of Rites, one of the core representatives of the Boling Cui family in the court. Li Yan recognized him at a glance. After the systematic transformation, Li Yan's mind was very smart. In just half a month, he memorized the resumes of officials above the fifth rank in the court, and knew their appearance, origin, and current position.

If he couldn't even recognize the officials below him when he was discussing matters in the court, then he, as the emperor, would be looked down upon even more.

This is the Taiji Hall, the core hall of the entire Tang Empire.

The important officials who could stand here had worked their way up from the lower levels for many years and defeated countless opponents before they could stand here. During the long time, they had plenty of time to get to know every official, even if they met one official a day, they would have known all the officials in the Taiji Hall.

Most of the ministers even knew every official's background, how they entered the government, how they were promoted, which faction they belonged to in the court, what kind of role they played, who had favors with whom, and who had grievances with whom.

If we were to say who has the least accumulation in this area, it would be Li Yan, who had just returned to Chang'an half a month ago.

Although others can understand it in their hearts, as an emperor, it is still disappointing if he does not know the officials below.

Logically speaking, all the officials knew Li Yan's actual situation. Except for the top officials of the three provinces and six ministries, other officials should first state their official titles when reporting matters. For example, Cui Hongzhi should say: "I am Cui Hongzhi, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites. I have something to report."

But this person stood up directly without introducing his name, obviously taking advantage of Li Yan's unfamiliarity with the ministers and trying to intimidate the new emperor.

Li Yan is a newcomer, but it is not his first day in politics. After a little thought, he realized that the other party had ill intentions.

Seeing Li Yan in a daze, Fang Xuanling thought that Li Yan didn't know this person. When he was about to take the opportunity to ask, he pointed out the person's official title and name for reference, when Li Yan spoke!
"Minister Cui, what do you want to say? Feel free to tell me."

The officials were surprised. No one had stepped forward to remind him just now. Cui Hongzhi was only a fourth-rank official in the Ministry of Revenue and usually kept a low profile. He rashly stepped forward to report on the matter, and many astute people could understand his sinister intentions.

Unexpectedly, the new emperor could recognize him at a glance, which made many ministers look up to Li Yan.

Cui Hongzhi's plan failed, and he frowned slightly, but he was not discouraged. He said calmly: "Your Majesty, three months ago, Zuo Pushe submitted a memorial about the equal distribution of property among the common people. I think it is very inappropriate, and I ask Your Majesty to abolish it."

With a "boom", the entire court was in an uproar because of Cui Hongzhi's memorial.

Even Fang Xuanling and Zhangsun Wuji were trembling in their hearts, with shocked expressions on their faces. They had known that the noble families would personally rush forward after Zhangsun Wuji retreated, but they did not expect that they would abolish the "Enfeoffment Order" right away!
Almost everyone in the court, including civil and military officials, knew that this policy was aimed at the wealthy and powerful families. No one would care about the distribution of property among ordinary families.

At this time, after hundreds of years of development and several dynasties, the aristocratic families at this time had become powerful kings and princes in the Tang Dynasty. Their influence spread throughout the court and the army. They joined hands and even easily defeated the arrogant Tian Khan.

After Li Shimin's fall, the true power of the aristocratic families once again refreshed people's cognition.

Many people know that after Li Shimin fell, this decree on the distribution of property became meaningless.

But at this time, the nobles didn't even want this empty shell to exist.

This was at the cost of Li Shimin's life, in order to gain a legal basis for future generations to deal with the aristocratic families. But now, Li Shimin's body is still warm, and the aristocratic families, with the remaining power of the great victory, are going to strip away this bit of royal dignity.

The ministers knew that since Cui Hongzhi had made the memorial, it would not just be the Cui family that was involved.

Sure enough, as soon as he finished speaking, Lu Chengqing, the right vice minister of the Ministry of History, Li Deqing, the left vice minister of the Ministry of War, Pei Xiaomin, the left vice minister of the Ministry of Revenue, Wang Zhongbo, the right vice minister of the Ministry of Justice, and Zheng Yanzu, the left vice minister of the Ministry of Works, all stood up and said, "Please grant your permission, Your Majesty!"

Subsequently, some middle-level officials from the three provinces and six ministries, the Dali Temple, the Censorate, and the Hanlin Academy came forward to agree with Cui Hongzhi's opinion.

'call'

Zhangsun Wuji, Fang Xuanling, Xiao Yu, Cen Wenben, Liu Bo, Hou Junji and other ministers all had stern faces and ugly expressions.

This scene reminded them of the almost abdication attempt that also took place in the Taiji Hall half a month ago. Hou Junji took the lead that time, and more than 90% of the civil and military officials and princes of the royal family in the court were involved.

The scale of this time was certainly not as large as the last time. Only one-tenth of the ministers stood up, and no military generals or royal family members participated.

But its severity is no less than last time.

Fang Xuanling knew that these children of noble families who occupied the middle echelons of the court should not be judged by the level of their official positions. Behind each of them stood a powerful noble family with extraordinary influence.

(End of this chapter)