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Chapter 969 Li Shimin’s Plan
Li Shimin wanted to tell his son that he should be careful with Zhangsun Wuji. However, after thinking it over again and again, he did not make it clear in the end, but only reminded him in a very veiled way. I wonder if Li Zhi could understand?
One of them was an old fox who played chess and manipulated the country; the other was a young boy who was new to the world and had no experience of human affairs. If Li Zhi had been on guard, he would not have been able to hide it from Zhangsun Wuji.

In front of Changsun Wuji, Li Zhi was like a mouse under the cat's claws, allowing him to be manipulated at will.

Rather than keeping this pair and letting them be suspicious of each other and guard against each other, it is better to let them be honest with each other and cooperate sincerely.

There were aristocratic groups in the court that even he couldn't handle. It wouldn't be easy for Zhangsun Wuji to deal with them and snatch the cake from them. So he didn't put too much energy into undermining Li Zhi and controlling the government.

Changsun Wuji was four years older than himself and thirty-five years older than Li Zhi. One of them was in his twilight years while the other was like the rising sun. By the time Li Zhi really grew up, Changsun Wuji would have been old too and would not be a big threat to him.

"Yes, I understand." Li Zhi nodded desperately.

Listening to Li Shimin's obvious instructions, Li Zhi's heart was almost bursting with excitement. He suppressed his inner ecstasy and promised in an almost trembling tone: "Father, rest assured, I will not let you down."

"Let our Li family's empire become even more glorious, and pass down through the ages."

"Well, let's go!"

Li Shimin smiled slightly. He understood his youngest son's feelings very well. Such a huge bargain was picked up by him, a person who had always stayed out of the matter. A crown fell from the sky and landed on his head. Anyone would be excited and go crazy, right?
After Li Zhi withdrew, Li Shimin made up his mind and began to adjust the operation. After thinking for a moment, he called Wang De in and said, "Summon Zhangsun Wuji to come to my place. After Zhangsun Wuji leaves, summon Cen Wenben to come to see me."

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

Wang De responded respectfully and left the bedroom.

March 12, the 19th year of Zhenguan.

Li Shimin had issued an edict in advance to recall all the princes, governors-general of various states and important generals in border towns across the Tang Dynasty back to the capital.

During this period of time, he had personally met with various princes and some important military generals, and revealed some of his true plans to important ministers such as Fang Xuanling, Zhangsun Wuji, Li Jing, and Li Ji.

Although it was not stated explicitly, these people should be able to guess who Li Shimin really wanted as the crown prince?
Seeing that the ministers did not have any strong objections, he felt relieved.

The Tang Dynasty was facing border threats, and some frontier officials could not be left vacant for long. They could only stay in Chang'an for a few days at most. Therefore, Li Shimin decided to formally convene a grand court meeting tomorrow to settle the matter.

Generally speaking, except for a few holidays, the Tang Dynasty held court meetings every day, which were also held in the Taiji Hall. The scale of ordinary meetings was not that large, and only officials of the fifth rank or above in the capital, or relevant officials who were summoned in advance for government affairs, participated.

Only on the first and fifteenth day of each month would all officials in Beijing be required to participate in the grand court meetings, which would demonstrate the majesty of the imperial court and deter lawbreakers. It would also remind officials that they had a court above them and that they should not stay in their own offices all day and think that they were lawless.

Only by bringing all officials together can the power of an individual be made extremely insignificant, and people can continue to maintain a humble and prudent working style.

However, the scale of the grand court meeting was so large that many low-ranking officials could not see the emperor from beginning to end, and could only see him in the square outside the Taiji Hall.

If there is nothing going on, it would be a bit excessive to bring people here every day.

This time the court meeting was to determine the crown prince, Li Shimin decided to hold it two days in advance. On the one hand, it would make it sudden and reduce variables; on the other hand, if there were too big disagreements tomorrow, there would be a buffer. After two days of adjustment, the candidate could be officially decided on the 15th.

I have to say that Li Shimin's considerations made sense.

The sun was about to set that day. Thinking that the crown prince would be decided tomorrow, Li Shimin felt excited, nervous for no reason, and even a little panicked. He was unable to calm down and walked back and forth in Chengqing Hall, always feeling that there was something he had overlooked.

"Wang De, have all the imperial edicts been issued?"

Wang De, who was standing at the side, heard the question and replied carefully, "Your Majesty, all those with titles above Duke and Marquis, those with military posts above General of the Imperial Guard, and those with official posts above the fifth rank have been notified to arrive. As for officials below the fifth rank, the Hongwen Palace will make arrangements, and the heads of the three provinces and six ministries will give orders."

"Ah That's good"

Li Shimin replied, and then ordered: "All the princes must strengthen their guards. This is a sensitive moment. No accidents can happen."

"Your Majesty, you have already issued an order the day before yesterday to impose martial law in Chang'an City for the next few days, and ordered Duke Lu to transfer the 16th Guards into the city to strengthen Chang'an's defense. The princes' palaces have also sent three times the number of guards."

"Um"

Li Shimin felt relieved and started thinking again. Suddenly, a figure flashed through his mind: Hou Junji.

He has received many ministers in the past few days, but he did not summon Hou Junji.

Then Li Shimin sighed and shook his head. It was not that he had forgotten. As the most trusted general, he would never forget Hou Junji. There were not many of the Nine Generals of Xuanwu Gate who were still alive. Among them, Hou Junji had the deepest feelings for him.

However, Hou Junji's interests had long been tied to the East Palace, and he was completely focused on his grandson, but now he wanted to appoint another crown prince. As soon as Haitang married into the royal family, she lost her husband, and she had been guarding him for sixteen years. Whenever Li Shimin thought of this, he felt infinite guilt in his heart.

What should I say when we meet? Should I tell Hou Junji that I am going to break my promise and choose another prince as the heir. Can you be more generous, don't blame me, and continue to support me, give up your grandson, and give up the Eastern Palace?

In addition, once the crown prince is established, he will move into the East Palace. You should ask your daughter and grandson to pack up and leave as soon as possible to make room for the new crown prince.

Li Shimin couldn't say it, and he was too ashamed to face Hou Junji's disappointed eyes.

He had no choice but to avoid him and wait until the matter was settled before he could cry and play the emotional card to eliminate the resentment in the heart of his right-hand man.

As for whether Hou Junji would cause trouble, Li Shimin was not worried.

Hou Junji is not in charge of the army now. He resigned from the post of Right Guard General a few years ago and became the Minister of Personnel. On the surface, it was to merge officials, but in fact, Li Shimin wanted to eliminate Hou Junji's military power without making a fuss.

In order to establish a new crown prince in the future and reduce resistance.

In recent years, under his instructions, through the adjustments made by the Ministry of War, Hou Junji's confidants and old subordinates were either promoted or transferred, and they were broken up bit by bit. The process was extremely smooth and Hou Junji did not notice it at all.

As for those tutors in the Eastern Palace, Li Shimin didn't take them seriously.

These people had only been in the East Palace for a few months, less than half a year, and had not spent much time with the former crown prince. How much affection could they have, how much loyalty could they have? Even if there was a little affection, it disappeared with the former crown prince's accident.

After so many years, those young men have now married and had children, and have their own families. Many of them have even married into royal families.

It is true that talents are hard to come by. The first batch of East Palace servants were all outstanding. They were all sent to the grasslands and showed extraordinary talents, which made Li Shimin very happy and he had to use them.

If there was no one to take the lead, they would never get involved in this mess.

Li Shimin sighed slightly, time was too tight. If he could make arrangements calmly, he could transfer Hou Junji to the Western Regions or the Northern Frontier, and then everything would be safe.

At this juncture, if Hou Junji is urgently transferred, it would be too abrupt.

Li Shimin thought for a moment, and then ordered with a serious face: "Wang De, go to Qiyun Palace now and tell the Queen that it is my will. Ask her to bring Haitang and Li Xiang to the palace to stay for a few days in the name of wanting a daughter-in-law and grandson."

"Yes, Your Majesty, I'll go right away." Wang De responded and walked out of the room in small steps.

Bringing Li Xiang and Haitang to the palace will remove the fuel from the fire. I think Hou Junji will understand what I mean!
Li Shimin stood at the window of his study, looking at the Imperial Garden outside. The breeze from the lake brought some early spring chill and moisture, which made his mind clearer. At the same time, he also thought of nineteen years ago when he was the crown prince.

Suddenly, Li Shimin's eyes fixed and he said loudly: "Wang De, Wang De"

After shouting twice, no one responded. Instead, Ma Xuanliang outside pushed open the door and walked in: "Your Majesty, Eunuch Wang just went to deliver the imperial edict."

"Oh"

Li Shimin then remembered, so he ordered: "Ma Xuanliang, go to the Sitiantai and summon Yuan Tiangang, the director of the Imperial Observatory, to come to me, and ask him to bring all the utensils for eating."

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

Ma Xuanliang agreed. He didn't quite understand what the emperor meant by "the guy who eats" but seeing that the emperor had a stern face and no intention of explaining, he left. It was okay for him not to understand, as the person who was summoned must know.

After Ma Xuanliang left, Li Shimin's heart completely calmed down.

He thought of the night before the Xuanwu Gate incident. He was also very nervous and couldn't sleep well. No matter how Changsun Wuji, Hou Junji, Dugu Yanyun or Yuchi Gong tried to persuade him, he couldn't let go of his worry.

Is this a mutiny?

He had no confidence in overthrowing his father, the crown prince, the king of Qi, and the entire group behind them. If he failed, his entire family would be wiped out, and he would be nailed to the pillar of shame in history as a traitor.

Later, after all the ministers had gone to bed, Li Shimin secretly left the palace alone and wandered around Chang'an City.

As they were walking, it suddenly started to rain heavily. Li Shimin took shelter in a tavern and met Yuan Tiangang, who had just returned to Beijing after resigning as the magistrate of Huojing County in Shu County.

(End of this chapter)