Datang: Rebirth of Li Chengqian, the beginning of the treason interrogation

Chapter 24: A sudden change in the court meeting
The sky was gray and not yet fully bright. From afar, one could only see a dense crowd of people in front of the Xuanwu Gate.

These people were officials preparing to go to court. They were waiting quietly for the Xuanwu Gate to open, and no one dared to make a noise.

Today is a court meeting. During the reign of Emperor Taizong Li Shimin, there was a court meeting every three days. It was not until the reign of Emperor Gaozong that the rate was changed to once a day.

Xuanwu Gate is the main passage leading to the imperial palace and the only way for all officials to meet the emperor.

However, the opening hours of Xuanwu Gate were fixed. One of the important factors that enabled Li Shimin to successfully launch the Xuanwu Gate Incident was that he successfully bribed He Chang, the general who was in charge of guarding Xuanwu Gate at the time. In this way, Li Shimin was able to lead 800 soldiers to ambush near Xuanwu Gate in advance.

Normally, no one was allowed to carry weapons when entering Xuanwu Gate, let alone lead troops into the inner city.

There were also strict rules for officials to attend court, which was called "Dianmao". That is, they had to arrive at the Taiji Hall before the Mao hour.

Suddenly, accompanied by a dull and loud sound, the Xuanwu gate began to slowly open.

Afterwards, two teams of Royal Guards wearing armor and holding spears walked out of the gate and carefully interrogated every official who came to the court.

Li Chengqian was the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace and the first to enter the Xuanwu Gate, followed by the civil and military officials.

Li Chengqian entered the palace in a sedan chair. Because of his foot disease, he was granted special permission by Emperor Taizong Li Shimin to enter the palace in a sedan chair.

"Your Highness, the Prince of Wei, I'm sorry, but you cannot ride in the carriage."

The Imperial Guards blocked the King of Wei's carriage and demanded that Li Tai get off and walk.

"How dare you! Are you new here? Didn't you know that His Royal Highness the Prince of Wei has received special permission from His Majesty to ride in a chariot to the court?"

A sedan bearer shouted loudly, not afraid of the imperial guards.

"Crack!"

Blood splattered, and the sedan bearer's head fell to the ground. With a loud bang, the sedan chair that the King of Wei was riding in also collapsed suddenly.

"Ah, this hurts so much!"

From inside the sedan, there were cries of pain like a pig being slaughtered.

All officials were horrified. The Imperial Guards were only responsible to the emperor. This was the emperor's will. Anyone who challenged the Imperial Guards would be considered treasonous and would be executed first and reported later.

"How dare you, how dare you treat this king like this?"

Li Tai, with the help of several other sedan bearers, stood up tremblingly and shouted at the imperial guards.

"Is the King of Wei preparing to openly defy the orders of His Majesty?" The commander of the Imperial Guards held the scabbard in his hand, a chill flashing in his eyes.

They were all selected by Li Shimin from the army and were only loyal to Li Shimin. In the imperial capital, Li Shimin was the absolute initiator of orders and had absolute control over the imperial city.

The original owner, Li Chengqian, wanted to rebel. He must have been fooled to do such a stupid thing.

King Li Tai of Wei was also shocked and swallowed his saliva involuntarily. He thought that something unexpected must have happened during this period that he was not aware of.

"General, you misunderstood. I did not mean that. I will go to court on foot."

Li Tai forced a smile, but his eyes were full of gloom as he watched Li Chengqian's carriage going further and further away.

Li Tai was allowed to enter the Xuanwu Gate only after being searched. He was too fat, and after taking only a few steps, he was out of breath and sweating profusely.

The incident in front of Xuanwu Gate made all officials suspicious and the wind direction changed.

"Duke Liang, is there any rumor in the palace?" Several officials who were close to the King of Wei came over and asked Fang Xuanling in a low voice.

At this time, Fang Xuanling served as Shangshu Zuo Pushe and was granted the title of Duke of Liang.

"I don't know. Maybe I'll know after the court session!" Fang Xuanling shook his head and quickened his pace, even surpassing Wei Wang Li Tai. Fang Xuanling was a weather vane. The officials who had approached Wei Wang Li Tai before also kept their distance and surpassed Wei Wang.

Otherwise, they will all be late and the consequences will be serious.

The first rays of morning light shone down, and the tiles on the Taiji Hall sparkled, dazzling.

"Announce, all officials come to the audience!"

At this moment, a long and loud voice was heard, the gate of Taiji Palace opened, and officials entered one after another.

In April, around the time when the sun rises, it is the hour of Mao.

The first person on the left is Li Chengqian, the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty. The left is the most honorable, and the next one is Fang Xuanling, the Left Prime Minister.

Heading the right side was You Pushe Changsun Wuji, and standing behind him were all military representatives.

During court meetings, civil and military officials would also be assigned, with civil officials on the left and military officials on the right.

Before the Western Han Dynasty, the right was respected and the demotion of officials was called left-hand transfer. But after the Eastern Han Dynasty, the left was respected.

In the main hall, Emperor Taizong of Tang, Li Shimin, sat upright, his eyes as sharp as an eagle, as if he could see through everyone's heart.

He exuded an unparalleled aura of an emperor, which made people feel awed. This aura made all the officials feel pressured, and they dared not slack off in the slightest, and they were all silent.

This is the majesty of the greatest emperor of all time. His aura is so powerful that people can't help but be overwhelmed by him.

Li Shimin at this moment was completely different from what Li Chengqian had seen before. At that time, he looked dispirited, like an old man in his twilight years.

But now, he showed his true kingly demeanor, majestic and intimidating. At this moment, he was the emperor, not a father. He ruled the Tang Dynasty, and his power was so great that all the barbarians in the four directions submitted to him. He was the only emperor in history.

"Why hasn't the King of Wei come to court yet?"

Li Shimin's majestic voice was heard, shaking the court and shocking everyone.

"My son has arrived!"

Outside the Taiji Hall, Li Tai spoke with great difficulty, sweating heavily and emitting an unbearable stench.

"How disgraceful to be late for a court meeting?" Li Shimin said dissatisfiedly.

"I am fat and walk very slowly. I jogged all the way from Xuanwu Gate to Taiji Palace. It almost cost me my life." Li Tai said miserably.

"Hmph, I told you not to lose weight. Now you are even late for court. What else can you accomplish?" Li Shimin reprimanded sternly.

Before, Li Shimin was extremely fond of Wei Wang Li Tai, but now he is extremely cold to him, which makes many officials confused.

However, those who understand know that Li Shimin's favor for King Wei has not changed, and this is precisely to protect King Wei.

"It's getting late, let's get in line."

Li Shimin withdrew his gaze and looked at the old eunuch beside him.

The old eunuch took two steps forward and opened a golden imperial edict.

"Wei Wang Li Tai, Han Wang Li Yuanchang, and Chen Guogong Hou Junji slandered Crown Prince Li Chengqian for treason. All privileges of Wei Wang are now revoked and he is ordered to return to his fiefdom within three months. Han Wang Li Yuanchang and Chen Guogong Hou Junji are also stripped of their titles and demoted to commoners."

Prince Li Tai of Wei opened his eyes wide as if struck by lightning. What did Crown Prince Li Chengqian's rebellion have to do with him?
To be honest, I was really wronged.

All the officials were shocked and frightened; it happened so quickly. They hadn't heard any news of it before.

(End of this chapter)