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

Chapter 968 Li Shimin's Fear of Zhangsun Wuji

The throne had never been so close to Li Zhi as it was at this moment. Thinking about how he stayed in the Jin Palace and rarely went out, he pretended to be indifferent to the world. But in fact, as one of the legitimate sons, how could he not have some fantasy about the throne?

Behind the surface of appearing to be indifferent to power, Li Zhi had secretly put in a lot of effort in order to compete for the throne. He even served his uncle like a dog in order to get a chance to be a puppet, which led to the opportunity he has today.

Thinking of this, Li Zhi made up his mind to take a gamble and fight to the death.

Li Zhi pretended to think for a while, then calmed down and said, "However, I have seen ancient sages say that those who conquer others are strong and those who conquer themselves are strong. To conquer others, one must first conquer oneself. I think that no matter it is a country or a family, the real enemy is still oneself."

“Instead of seeking outside, it is better to seek within yourself.”

"I have always believed that the real hidden dangers of the Tang Dynasty lie within the country, not outside it, in the government, not in the opposition. As long as we can govern the country and ensure peace and prosperity for the people, and make them live and work in peace and contentment, and have good intentions, then no matter how powerful the enemy is, they will not be able to defeat us."

What Li Zhi said was very vague and somewhat ambiguous. At first glance, it seemed a little confusing. I don’t know what he wanted to express.
But Li Shimin nodded with satisfaction. This was the last chance. His son finally stopped hiding and began to show his own insights and talents, releasing his own brilliance.

Li Shimin suppressed his excitement and asked again: "If you were the emperor, what would you do?"

"Father, this is your son."

Li Zhi stood up in panic, his heart pounding at the same time. He looked at Li Shimin with a hint of suppressed excitement in uncertainty.

Li Shimin did not observe Li Zhi, but waved his hand nonchalantly: "There is no one else here, you don't have to worry, answer my questions."

Li Zhi was startled. Li Shimin did not observe him, nor even look at him, with a hint of impatience on his face. This meant that he did not care about his opinion. On another level, it seemed that Li Shimin had seen through him long ago, so there was no need to do anything unnecessary.

Li Zhi was terrified. He really wanted it to be the former, but he also had an eager urge to try and hope it was the latter.

He knew that this meeting might be a test from Li Shimin for him. If his performance failed to satisfy Li Shimin, he would most likely miss this great opportunity and would never be able to sit on the throne again.

Thinking of this, Li Zhi's heart was filled with heroic spirit, and he said carefully, "Father, I think that governing a big country is like cooking a small fish. The affairs of a country cannot be rushed, and must be handled with caution."

"Haste breeds change, slowness breeds perfection."

"It takes a long time to freeze three feet of ice, especially for those chronic diseases that have accumulated over hundreds of years. It takes a longer time to slowly reverse them."

"There is no rush."

"If I were the emperor, I would unite all my brothers and court officials to first consolidate the foundation and increase the imperial power, and then slowly work on solving the problems left over from history bit by bit over several decades."

“If we can slightly change the situation within one generation, we will be very lucky; if we can make a big change within several generations, it will also be a great blessing.”

After saying this, Li Zhi looked at Li Shimin nervously, feeling anxious. These words were not actually his original intention, but were taught by his uncle Zhangsun Wuji. As an 18-year-old prince, he had just reached adulthood.

There is no deep understanding of the nature of this society, and no solution to this stubborn disease.

When the previous brothers met the emperor, Li Zhi secretly met with Zhangsun Wuji and humbly asked for advice. As a member of the aristocratic family, Zhangsun Wuji had a clear understanding of the current court problems and Li Shimin's predicament.

So they hinted at the struggle between the royal family and the aristocratic families, and even some speculations that Li Shimin was in danger.

Li Zhi was terrified and worried at the same time. He was horrified that the struggle among the top leaders of the Tang Dynasty was so cruel and terrible, and he was angry that those aristocratic families acted so unscrupulously against the emperor.

Changsun Wuji knew Li Shimin best and knew that what Li Shimin was most worried about was the fight with the aristocratic families, so he secretly gave instructions and, based on Li Zhi's character, came up with this statement, the true meaning of which anyone with a discerning eye could understand.

It expresses Li Zhi's unwavering philosophy of governing the country by using softness to overcome hardness in the face of hundreds of years of stubborn problems.

Li Shimin smiled at the young boy's face, feeling relieved. He needed someone like this, smart and wise, with a strong and flexible character, who was not impatient, and who could make a drop of water wear away a stone, and who was well versed in the strategy of turning crookedness into straightness.

I think no one in the court would feel uneasy about such a person succeeding to the throne!
As to why Li Zhi had such profound insights into the court at such a young age, Li Shimin might have thought that it was because Li Zhi was in a daze and had lost his usual vigilance; or it might be that he knew the situation but no longer wanted to pursue it.

His situation means that he has few options left. If he rejects Li Zhi, he really doesn't know who to choose?
He only knew that Wei Wang Li Tai was absolutely unacceptable, not because Li Tai's act of killing his son to get the throne offended him, but because Li Tai was too deeply involved with the aristocratic family. If Li Tai came to power, the imperial power might be further weakened. The aristocratic family would expand recklessly and eventually threaten the Li family's rule.

Of course, Li Zhi also has the shadow of a noble family, and Li Shimin was not unaware of the closeness between Li Zhi and Zhangsun Wuji.

Li Shimin thought of the conversation he had with the crown prince that night in Chengqing Hall sixteen years ago. He felt that he was in the same situation as Emperor Gaozu of Han in his later years, with the king of the opposite sex and meritorious officials on one side, and the ambitious first wife, Lu, and the young kings of the Liu clan on the other.

No matter what you choose, you will take huge risks?
Both Li Zhi and Li Tai have aristocratic families behind them. Li Tai has the old Guanlong aristocratic military group behind him, while Li Zhi has the shadows of Shandong wealthy families and Jiangnan Chinese behind him.

There is no doubt that his elder brother-in-law, Zhangsun Wuji, is Empress Lu, a man who is committed to breaking out of the shackles of aristocratic families and striving to become a chess player. He will definitely play a role in influencing the government in the future.

Changsun Wuji was extremely cunning, and his ability to scheme and manipulate people's hearts made Li Shimin deeply wary of him.

He had also thought about discarding these chess pieces and completely eliminating the hidden dangers.

But Changsun Wuji was too sharp and cunning. As the mastermind who planned the Xuanwu Gate Incident and supported Li Shimin to ascend to the throne, he never forgot the fate of "when the rabbit dies, the running dog is cooked, and when the birds are all gone, the good bows are put away", and he was always on guard against Li Shimin.

In addition, during the Zhenguan period, there were a series of land reforms, including fighting the Turks, digging wells to fight drought, merging officials, moving people from narrow villages to wide villages, and allocating land tax to each acre. Later, there were conquests of Tubo and the Western Regions. There were so many things to do, and Zhangsun Wuji fully supported all of these.

As a result, in the past twenty years, the Zhenguan Mill had never been fully exhausted, and Li Shimin had never found an opportunity to kill the donkey.

Later, Zhangsun Wuji even withdrew from the court, resigned from all official positions, and avoided the court under the pretext of seeking immortality and cultivating Taoism. In addition, Empress Zhangsun was still alive and the power of the aristocratic families was rampant, so Li Shimin never made up his mind.

In the final analysis, one should choose the lesser of two evils. Since there is nothing they can do to those old-established aristocratic families, the Changsun family can still play a balancing role to some extent. After all, with the close relationship between the two families, they can be considered as an object that can be used among the aristocratic families.

Li Shimin narrowed his eyes slightly. If he chose Li Tai, then Changsun Wuji would not play a big role.

If he had chosen Li Zhi, who had a slightly distant relationship with the Guanlong military aristocratic group, then Changsun Wuji's existence would be very necessary. This was also the fundamental reason why Changsun Wuji jumped up and down and tried his best to support Li Zhi.

Shaking his head, Li Shimin sighed helplessly. He had been abandoned by the aristocratic families, and they would soon choose a new spokesperson. Under such a turbulent trend, Changsun Wuji did not want to sink with his ship.

You have to abandon yourself and jump onto the new warship.

Li Shimin didn't want to care about what role his brother-in-law played in his death. There was no family affection in the power arena, and even fathers and sons didn't have much affection. How deep could the bond between a brother-in-law and a brother-in-law be?
It's nothing more than using each other for the benefit of their respective families.
If it is impossible to kill Changsun Wuji, then the only option is to continue to win him over and use him.

"Father, Father"

Li Zhi saw Li Shimin's face changing from gloomy to bright, sometimes gritting his teeth, sometimes in a state of panic, and he was very scared. Li Shimin had a terrifying power and pressure, as well as a decadent and dead air that made Li Zhi very uncomfortable.

The oppressed Li Zhi almost couldn't breathe, so he risked angering his father and woke him up from his deep thought.

"Oh, Father was thinking of something and got distracted."

Li Shimin came to his senses, rubbed his forehead, looked at his son who was cowering in front of him, and smiled what he thought was a kind smile: "Pheasant."

'Well'

Halfway through his speech, Li Shimin suddenly thought of the fact that both Li Zhi and Lu Zhi's names contained the character "雉". This coincidence seemed to foreshadow that the fates of these two people were surprisingly similar.

Li Shimin frowned slightly and shook his head to get rid of the uncomfortable feeling in his heart.

He secretly comforted himself, the prince once said that Empress Lü was a virtuous queen. If it weren't for Empress Lü's rule, the Han Dynasty would probably not have been truly stable. It was during Empress Lü's reign that the Han Dynasty completed a complete transformation and laid the foundation for the four hundred years of the Han Dynasty.

If the King of Jin could be like Lu Zhi, it would not be a bad thing for the Tang Dynasty, right?
Li Shimin suddenly became happy and said, "Zhi Nu, you should get closer to your uncle in the future. I can rest assured that he will help you. However, your uncle is old and will pass away sooner or later. You should take advantage of him while he is still here."

"Work hard to grow. Only yourself is truly reliable. Do you understand what I mean?"

(End of this chapter)