Da Tang: Father, can I resign?

Chapter 25 That kid is actually right
Li Shimin rode a horse, surrounded by hundreds of personal riders, through the Wude Gate and arrived at the East Palace, which was separated from the Taiji Palace by a wall.

As soon as he stepped in, he felt that everything had changed.

This was originally the residence of Li Jiancheng, the first crown prince of the Tang Dynasty and Li Shimin's elder brother.

After killing Li Jiancheng in the Xuanwu Gate Incident, Li Shimin forced his father Li Yuan to appoint him as the crown prince, and he lived here for some time.

Later, it was Li Chengqian...

His eldest son is the one who gives him the most headaches and is the successor to the Tang Dynasty's great cause.

"It's time to talk to him."

The imperial procession arrived at the main hall of the East Palace, the Jiade Hall.

Li Shimin sat on horseback, waiting for the eunuch to pass on the message.

After waiting for a long time, the prince still did not come out.

He tapped the saddle impatiently with his fingers, then suddenly realized something and dismounted.

The eunuchs of the Eastern Palace immediately knelt before him:

"Your Majesty, please be patient. I am already working harder..."

"Get out of the way!"

Li Shimin kicked over the eunuch who was blocking his way and rushed straight into the Jiade Hall.

No one was in the main hall. No one was in the study.

"Never in the bedroom, never in the bedroom..."

Li Shimin murmured to himself, and like a wild bull, he ran straight to the back of the palace along the familiar corridor.

Stop in front of a door.

An eunuch was shouting something at the door. When he saw the emperor in person, he immediately knelt on the ground, too scared to speak.

Li Shimin's face was gloomy. Facing the door, he suddenly had the urge to turn around and leave.

He overcame this impulse with great willpower, stretched out his right hand tremblingly, grasped the door handle, took a deep breath, and pushed it open steadily.

"Who?!"

Half-drawn curtains, ambiguous light, a messy room, and men's and women's clothes scattered all over the floor.

On the messy prince's bed, there were two people, panicked and naked.

The petite and slender one who looked like a woman shamelessly covered her chest with a quilt and snuggled up to the strong man's chest like a little bird, her face a mixture of surprise, fear, and rebellion.

"Her" delicate eyebrows and eyes reminded Li Shimin of his deceased wife for no reason.

Li Shimin felt dizzy and his stomach cramped violently. A stream of liquid surged up and gushed out, breaking through the obstruction.

He vomited all over the floor.

Nausea.

nausea!

…………

"What else do you have to say?"

Li Shimin sat on the upper seat in the Jiade Hall with a gloomy face.

Li Chengqian casually put on a guard's robe, but it was still difficult to hide the seductiveness of his body. He knelt in front of his father.

His lips trembled slightly due to nervousness, but he still forced a smile:
"I don't know what I did wrong."

"How dare you call yourself 'son'!" Li Shimin was so angry that he overturned the incense burner with one hand.

"Are you proud of being able to beg for sex from a man? You have disgraced me, the Li family, and the Tang Dynasty!"

The incense burner fell over with a sharp sound.

Li Chengqian was so frightened that his whole body shook and a look of fear flashed across his face.

Just like a little kid who has gotten into terrible trouble and is about to be beaten.

But he quickly controlled his expression and pretended to be indifferent:

"People always have some harmless hobbies. Compared with my father's hobbies, what does it matter if I wear women's clothes?
"At least I didn't kill my brothers."

"You...!" Li Shimin was so angry that he slammed the table and stood up, unable to speak. He pointed at Li Chengqian for a long time before squeezing out a few words from between his teeth:

"Well, you bunch of rebellious sons, you just like to hold on to the Xuanwu Gate incident, right?

"Did I do anything other than the Xuanwu Gate Incident? Is that what scares you so much..."

"Yes, father!" Li Chengqian's voice suddenly became strong, "Ever since I found out that my family was killing each other at the back door of my house, I have been scared every day, so scared!
"I'm afraid that one day I'll be killed by ambushed soldiers while walking in the palace! I'm afraid that I'll be poisoned to death at a dinner party! I'm afraid that I'll be suffocated to death by a pillow in my sleep, I'm afraid that I'll be executed in public for rumors of witchcraft, and I'm even afraid that I'll be pushed into the toilet and drowned!

"Everyone around me is my mortal enemy. Where can I find a safe place?"

Li Shimin was speechless for a moment.

"So." Li Chengqian's tone suddenly softened, with an indescribable charm in the corners of his eyes.

"While I am still alive, I do what I love and forget about fear and hatred for a while. Is that wrong?
"You brought us all this, Your Majesty!"

Li Shimin's head buzzed, and anger suddenly broke through the shackles of reason.

He immediately flew into a rage:
"Kill! Kill! Kill that wild man!"

The guards did not dare to delay and immediately arrested the man who was sleeping in the same bed with the prince.

That man was the one Li Ming had met and whom he teased as the "Crown Princess".

He struggled violently and managed to break free from the guards.

"Escort!"

Hundreds of riders drew their swords and stood ready. The man said nothing and showed no expression. He bowed to the prince, turned around and walked towards the execution ground.

Li Chengqian's eyes were blank, his face was full of despair, and he murmured:

"Chengxin...wait for me..."

Historically, after Li Chengqian's male favorite Chengxin was killed, his relationship with Li Shimin deteriorated irreversibly, and his behavior became more and more absurd, to the point that he attempted to kill the king and eventually died miserably in exile.

Li Shimin was extremely disappointed with his disappointing son, and his eyes were filled with anger.

For no apparent reason, he felt dizzy.

The outline of a naughty child seemed to appear in front of me, with his hands on his hips in a cocky manner, speaking calmly in a way that was very inconsistent with his age:
"Home is no longer home, relatives are no longer relatives, the prince's heartstrings are broken. And you don't care what he is worried about. He will go crazy sooner or later. Do you want to force your heir into a useless person?"

Li Shimin closed his eyes, suppressed his most violent impulse, and roared:

"Wait!"

Li Chengqian's eyes moved and turned back to his father.

Li Shimin swallowed his saliva, tried to calm himself down, and pointed at Chengxin:

"You are a man, more of a man than he is."

Chengxin still said nothing.

Li Shimin slowly pointed his hand at Li Chengqian, his eyes still fixed on Chengxin, and said slowly:

"Your grandfather is very good, better than his grandfather."

Li Chengqian couldn't help but open his eyes wide, and his eyes became lively again.

All the eunuchs and palace maids knelt on the ground, and even the hundred elite cavalrymen who had followed Li Shimin for many years had solemn expressions.

This frank confession carries too much weight.

Chengxin's lips moved and he said calmly:

"My grandfather was killed by the Turks."

Li Shimin put down his hand and nodded:
"I don't want to see you again. I will remove your status as a lowly person in the Yuefu, appoint you as a ninth-rank benevolent and brave lieutenant, and send you to Yizhou to fight the Western Turks."

There was a flash of relief and reluctance in Li Chengqian's eyes, but more of it was surprise.

My father actually cares about my feelings?

Is this still the extremely strict father who always allowed scholars and famous ministers to teach him?

Chengxin's face was also full of confusion, and he looked at the prince blankly.

"Why don't you thank me quickly?" the prince said immediately.

Only then did Chengxin kneel down to accept the grace.

Watching his lover leave safely, Li Chengqian was overwhelmed with emotions. He finally realized what had just happened. He couldn't help but feel extremely scared and said timidly:

"Father..."

"Call me father!"

"Father."

Li Shimin frowned in disdain:

"That's more like it. What are you wearing underneath? A bellyband? Take it off! I don't care what you wear behind your back, but at least act like a man in public.

"Also, don't overthink it. As long as I'm here, no one in the world can make a fuss."

Li Chengqian burst into tears.

"I understand...Father."

…………

After leaving the Eastern Palace, Li Shimin shook his legs leisurely on horseback.

His feet were off the ground, and his intelligence took over again. He finally realized that Li Ming was really a very useful hammer.

Normally, he could use it to warn his subordinates, but at the critical moment, it also woke him up, making him pay attention to the things he had previously ignored.

Family.

Not the palace, but home.

It turns out that my family members have been living in anxiety...

This gave Li Shimin a completely new perspective and explained many problems that he had previously found incredible.

The issue that worried him most was the prince's unusual words, behavior and dress.

Li Shimin once thought that the prince had a congenital defect or was possessed by an evil spirit, which allowed the villains to take advantage of the situation.

Taking advantage of the situation in every sense.

Fortunately, that turned out not to be the case.

"It seems that Li Ming is right. Cheng Qian rebelled because he was frightened for a long time and his heartstrings were broken."

Li Shimin's mood even became cheerful.

Now that we have found the root cause of the prince's troubles, we can prescribe the right remedy.

As long as he can be cured, Li Chengqian will still be my good eldest son and the good prince of the Tang Dynasty!
"This can also be considered as Li Ming's contribution, even though that guy is really annoying.

"I can't make him king, at least not now, otherwise I will lose face."

"How should I reward him..."

(End of this chapter)