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

Chapter 953: Tang Dynasty Enfeoffment Order (Part )
"Three years?"

Li Shimin withdrew his gaze from the map and looked at Fang Xuanling, whose hair and beard were all white. He seemed to see his own aging appearance now: "Cheng Qian used to say that time is more valuable than gold, and gold cannot buy time."

"At that time, I was still young and didn't take it seriously."

"But recently, as I get older, I often think of this sentence, and I feel more and more that time is precious."

Li Shimin said with emotion, "Xuanling, I can still remember that year, on the north bank of the Wei River, the weather was clear and crisp in autumn, with flags flying everywhere and cavalry and infantry camps connected. I was still the King of Qin at that time, and a gentle and elegant middle-aged man came to the central army tent."

"This man is extremely talented and well-versed in both ancient and modern knowledge. He will help me accomplish great things."

"We hit it off right away and had a great time talking to each other. For nearly thirty years, we have been king and subject, and have never left each other. In a blink of an eye, we have both grown old."

Fang Xuanling's face showed a trace of reminiscence, his eyes were filled with inexplicable spirit and light, and he said excitedly: "I remember that your majesty was less than 20 years old at that time, in the prime of youth, vigorous and vigorous."

"The vigorous spirit in your words and deeds has deeply touched and impressed me. I am willing to serve Your Majesty at your service!"

"For nearly thirty years, Your Majesty has been working hard and has been humble. You have placed great trust in me and entrusted me with important tasks. Without Your Majesty, how could I have the opportunity to witness and personally participate in the creation of this prosperous Zhenguan era. I want to thank Your Majesty for making this old minister a success!"

The emperor and his minister recalled the glorious past like old friends, reminiscing about them and sighing with emotion.

Fang Xuanling used Li Shimin's words to advise, "But Your Majesty, I have something to say that I cannot help but say."

Seeing Li Shimin's puzzled look, Fang Xuanling advised: "I know that your majesty loves the crown prince deeply, but fifteen years have passed in the blink of an eye. The crown prince is afraid that he will never come back. The Tang Dynasty needs to be passed down from generation to generation and last for eternity."

"The throne has been vacant for a long time, and people are unsettled. Your Majesty must make up your mind about appointing a new crown prince."

When Li Shimin heard this, his face became solemn. In the past few years, he was still young and could suppress the matter.

But in recent years, as he got older, more and more people started to talk about it. Every once in a while, the censors would bring up the matter, but he would suppress it every time. But obviously, the ministers' voices for the appointment of a new crown prince were getting louder and louder.

If I am like this, let alone Fang Xuanling.

As the chief minister, Fang Xuanling had to implement this matter, whether out of consideration for the country's long-term future or at the request of his ministers.

"Xuanling, then who do you think would be more suitable among my princes and grandchildren if a new crown prince were to be appointed?"

Fang Xuanling was startled, and a very embarrassed look appeared on his face: "Your Majesty, if it was anything else, I might have planned for the emperor. But this matter requires the emperor to make the final decision, how can I make a fuss about it? Please don't embarrass me, old minister."

"We can only advise the Emperor to appoint a crown prince as soon as possible to stabilize the country. As for who to appoint, it is not for us to comment."

Fang Xuanling was an experienced man. He knew that if he said something wrong about this matter, not only would he not have a good ending, but it would also bring disaster to his descendants. How could he dare to make a recommendation casually?
Li Shimin looked at Fang Xuanling, who looked cautious, smiled understandingly, and waved his hand. Wang De, who was at the door, hurriedly left the imperial study, stood guard outside the door, and drove away the palace maids and eunuchs who were serving nearby.

"Xuan Ling!"

Li Shimin said frankly: "In my heart, you are not only the Zuo Pushe of the Tang Dynasty, but also my old friend. Along the way, no one knows the affairs of the court and my situation better than you. This matter concerns the future of the Tang Dynasty. You can't stay out of it, both publicly and privately."

"I want to hear your opinion. There are only two of us in the imperial study. I will not blame you for what you said, no matter if it is right or wrong."

Upon seeing this, Fang Xuanling hesitated again. As a prime minister, he had also put a lot of effort into the Zhenguan Reign. How could he not care about the subsequent emperor?
After hesitating for a long time, he cautiously asked, "In fact, all of the emperor's sons are outstanding, both civil and military. No matter who is chosen, they will not disappoint your majesty and will shoulder the heavy responsibility of the country."

In the current Tang Dynasty, although Li Shimin has many children and grandchildren, there are only three people who can really compete for the throne.

There were also three factions in the court.

First of all, the largest faction is the Eastern Palace. Although Li Chengqian is not there, the power of the Eastern Palace has not decreased. On the contrary, due to the absence of the crown prince, the Eastern Palace faction has become the emperor's party and is relied upon by Li Shimin and has many supporters.

There were Prince's tutor Zhang Xuansu, Right Junior Son of the Eastern Palace Kong Yingda, Left Junior Son of the Eastern Palace Yu Zhining, Imperial Censor Du Zhenglun, Minister of Personnel Hou Junji, Assistant Censor and Counselor Ma Zhou, Left Chancellor Linghu Defen, and General of the Left Guard Chang Sheng.

There were also a group of surrendered generals from the grassland, led by the Grand Commander of Mo Nan, Ashina Yun, and a group of young and vigorous retainers centered around Xue Rengui and Wang Xuance.

The team had three generations of people, including civil officials and military generals. They were very powerful and had an absolute advantage. The only fatal thing was the absence of the crown prince, which caused the whole dragon to lose its eyes and soul and could not move. These people were mainly Li Xiang, the son of Li Chengqian and the eldest grandson of the emperor, who supported the establishment of the crown prince.

The second is the Wei Wang Party led by Wei Wang Li Tai. Its core members include Taichang Qing Xiao Yu, Shizhong Wang Gui, Gongbu Shangshu Du Chuke, Xingbu Shangshu Zhang Liang, Yuli Dafu Wei Ting, Dianzhong Yuli Cui Renshi, Zhongshu Shilang Cen Wenben, and Zongzheng Qing Dou Dan.

In addition, Shangshu Youcheng Liu Ji and Huangmen Shilang Zhu Suiliang also secretly leaned towards the King of Wei.

In addition, the King of Wei built a literary institute based on the old system of the Qin Palace on the pretext of compiling a comprehensive geographical record, and recruited outstanding talents such as Xiao Deyan, Gu Yin, Jiang Yaqing, and Xie Yan. Later, all of them were arranged to work in the court and local areas.

Li Tai had great power in the court, and almost half of the three provinces and six ministries were his people, but his power in the military was slightly weaker.

Perhaps to make up for this, Li Shimin granted Li Tai himself a large number of military positions.

At a young age, Li Tai was appointed as the Grand Commander of Yangzhou and Yuezhou, with 22 states under his fief. In addition to the title of Commander, Li Tai was also the Governor of Yongzhou, and served as the Left Wuhou General in the Sixteen Guards, and concurrently the Right Wuhou General.

The Prince's Party and the Prince of Wei's Party are evenly matched. One is strong in the lower-level military, and the other controls the three provinces and six ministries of the court. Because Li Chengqian is absent, the Prince of Wei's Party is more powerful than the Eastern Palace, and the Prince of Wei is the most popular candidate in the court.

Although Wu Wang Li Ke also had the intention of competing for the throne, he was the weakest. He only had Chai Zhewei, who inherited the title of Duke of Qiao and served as the General of the Left Tunwei, as well as the Chief Minister of Imperial Censors Quan Wanji, the Minister of the Supreme Court Sun Fujia, and the General of the Right Guard Xue Wanche.

Recently, Li Ke seems to be very close to General Cheng Zhijie of the Left Guard and Minister of War Li Ji.

There were also some people who formed a small faction by using the identity of Yang Guang's daughter to win over the former officials.

The King of Wu is the oldest eldest son in the court, ranking before the King of Wei. In addition, Li Shimin has evaluated him as a man of bravery and courage. As he grows older, the King of Wu has become more steady, and his style of doing things has the style of a great general. He is often praised by Li Shimin in the court.

In addition, in the previous few years, the Tang Dynasty had marched westwards, and King Wu, as the military supervisor, had made great contributions to the Tang Dynasty's conquest of the Snowy Plateau and the recovery of the Western Regions. King Wu's prestige rose rapidly, and many young generals from the Eastern Palace were somewhat close to Li Ke, which greatly boosted Li Ke's reputation.

Perhaps because Li Xiang was a generation younger, had never entered the court, and was just a child, the King of Wei did not list the Eastern Palace as the number one threat target, but instead fought a life-and-death battle with the King of Wu.

Although the King of Wu was weak, on the one hand he continued to win over military generals like Cheng Yaojin and Li Ji, and on the other hand he united the King of Qi Li You who was a vassal in Qi and the King of Jin Li Zhi who was gradually growing up, and he was able to fight against Li Tai on equal terms.

Fang Xuanling guessed that if nothing unexpected happened, the position of crown prince would be chosen by none other than Li Xiang, Li Tai, and Li Ke.

The remaining Li You was a bastard's son and was not well-received. Apart from feeling good about himself, he was not recognized by the court officials. The remaining Li Zhi was devoted to Taoism. Although he was close to Zhangsun Wuji, he had no foundation in the court and was not a concern.

As for the other princes, they couldn’t even call out their names, let alone have any chance at all.

Fang Xuanling knew that when Li Shimin asked about his descendants, he was actually including the eldest grandson Li Xiang. Fang Xuanling pretended to mention that all the princes were outstanding, implicitly excluding the grandson Li Xiang.

It’s not that Fang Xuanling is prejudiced, but Li Xiang is too young. He is only fourteen this year and has just grown up.

In addition, perhaps it was because the prince had just been born when his eldest grandson was in trouble. The princess carefully survived in the cracks, always looking at people's faces, and was very strict in teaching Li Xiang. Li Xiang was an honest and conscientious person who followed the rules and did not have any outstanding performance.

Among all the princes and grandchildren of the emperor, his performance was below average.

If the world is stable, he could be a king who maintains the status quo. But the Tang Dynasty now has powerful enemies outside and aristocratic families inside. The situation is very complicated and it is not something a mediocre king can handle.

If Li Shimin was in good health and lived another twenty years, he could be trained slowly. As a close minister of Li Shimin, Fang Xuanling knew Li Shimin's physical condition best. Perhaps it was because he had fought many battles in his youth and suffered too many injuries.

Perhaps it was because the work of state affairs was too exhausting.

Li Shimin, who was less than fifty years old, looked no less capable than himself, who was over sixty years old. No matter what, he could not last many more years.

Another point is that Li Shimin had recruited Taoists to make the so-called "elixir of life" more than ten years ago. Fang Xuanling knew that there was no elixir of life in the world and had advised him against it once, but Li Shimin did not take it seriously.

It is said that even if you cannot live forever, it is still possible to nourish your body.

(End of this chapter)