My father, Li Shimin, please call me Crown Prince

Chapter 146 You are just the prince's abandoned child

Yanfufang, Prince Qi's Palace.

Li You was still sleeping in bed.

For Li You now, it is undoubtedly very comfortable.

Although he was convicted of treason, the main blame was borne by his uncle Yin Hongzhi under the arrangement of the prince.

My uncle Yin Hongzhi also took the initiative to take most of the blame on himself.

As a result, in Li Shimin's mind, Prince of Qi Li You was deceived into participating in the rebellion, rather than someone who really wanted to rebel.

Of course, strictly speaking, Prince of Qi Li You did not really want to rebel and become emperor.

In history, the reason why Prince Qi Li You rebelled was because he killed the Chief Clerk of the Prince Qi's Palace, Quan Wanji. He felt he had no other options. His uncle had been arranging a rebellion, so he simply rebelled.

But now, all the people that Yin Hongzhi arranged to be around King Qi have been imprisoned.

Li You didn't feel lonely, but felt a lot more relaxed.

I usually eat, drink and have fun in Yanfufang and live a comfortable life.

Yesterday, the day before the Lantern Festival, he sent someone to the East Palace to ask the prince for instructions.

The prince allowed him to leave Yanfufang and travel in Chang'an during the three days of the Lantern Festival.

Li You couldn't wait and went straight to Pingkangfang to enjoy a happy night.

It was not until dawn that I returned to Yanfufang and continued to sleep.

"Why are you still sleeping?"

"Go, wake up the King of Qi."

King Li Tai of Wei was speechless. He had specially come here in plain clothes and disguised himself, and this time he did not come in vain.

But I didn't expect that the King of Qi didn't even get up.

"The King of Qi went to Pingkangfang last night and returned early in the morning."

The butler explained dryly.

But he didn't dare move. The King of Qi was not a good-tempered person. If he disturbed him just after he fell asleep, he would definitely be beaten up afterwards.

Of course, he had no intention of stopping the King of Wei.

"Alright, I'll go call him myself."

Li Tai pushed the door open and walked straight in.

Seeing Li You lying on the bed, he shouted, "Old Five, wake up quickly, your fourth brother is here."

I shouted a few times, but Li You was sleeping very soundly over there, like a pig, and there was no sound at all.

Li Tai had no choice but to go up and pat Li You on the face.

Li You muttered something, turned over and continued to sleep.

"Old Five, Old Five!"

Li Tai had no choice but to take action and shake it.

Li You was shaken like this and woke up in a daze. He felt someone calling him and pushing him.

He immediately became furious and cursed, "Which bastard dares to push me?"

Turning around, Li You was ready to lose his temper.

"Your fourth brother is such a bastard."

Li Tai replied unhappily.

Li You was stunned and rubbed his eyes. The chubby face was indeed his fourth brother, King Wei.

"Am I dreaming? Is this a dream?"

"Why can I still dream about Fourth Brother?"

After muttering something, Li You fell down again and prepared to continue sleeping.

"Fifth Brother, why are you acting crazy and stupid with Fourth Brother?" Li Tai was speechless and scolded.

Li You stood up and sat down obediently, smiling awkwardly, "Fourth Brother is here, I thought I was dreaming."

In fact, Li You and Li Tai have a pretty good relationship. He is only one year younger than Li Tai.

However, because he was a bastard's son, he naturally followed his elder brother and the King of Wei when he was a child.

Among Li Shimin's sons, the second son, Li Kuan, was adopted by his uncle, King Ai of Chu, Li Zhiyun, and died early.

The sixth son, Li Yin, was born in the eighth year of Wude.

Therefore, the eldest son Li Chengqian, the third son Li Ke, the fourth son Li Tai, and the fifth son Li You were not much different in age. The youngest Li You was only less than three years older than Li Chengqian.

By the time of the sixth child, Li Yin, the age difference was already seven years.

When they were young, the four of them had a very good relationship. With the eldest brother Li Chengqian as the leader and Li Tai as the assistant, they formed an early group of little tyrants in the palace.

In the 12th year of Zhenguan, Li You was supposed to go to his fiefdom, but due to his poor health, he stayed in Chang'an and did not go to Qizhou until the 15th year of Zhenguan.

"Father asked you to stay in Yanfufang so that you can reflect on your mistakes. You don't look like you are reflecting on your mistakes at all."

"You even went to Pingkangfang to have fun. If the emperor heard about this, what do you think he would think?"

"From the looks of it, you don't want to stay in Chang'an, and are ready to be exiled to Lingnan after the treason case is settled."

Li Tai said threateningly.

When Li You heard that he was exiled to Lingnan, he was so scared that he woke up from his sleep.

He said hesitantly, "I asked my elder brother for permission to go to Pingkangfang, and he gave me his permission."

"Even if Father blames me, he shouldn't be angry."

Being exiled to Lingnan was a terrifying thing, especially for Li You.

Lingnan is a place surrounded by mountains and filled with miasma. You can lose your life if you are not careful.

And I heard that the people living there are only barbarians, without any etiquette at all, it's like a huge cage.

People who were exiled to Lingnan basically died within a few years.

Li Tai sneered: "You have already rebelled, do you think the prince really cares about you?"

"The prince only said a few good words for you in order to show his brotherly love to his father."

"What did your uncle Yin Hongzhi tell him about his rebellion?"

Li You shook his head and said, "I don't know."

Li Tai said: "Your uncle Yin Hongzhi said that he was planning to seize the throne after your father passed away."

"This means that he wants to seize the throne from the crown prince, not from his father."

"Do you think the prince will let you go after he knows this? But you are still useful to him now. He is the prince, and now he has been conferred the title of Nongze Shengrui Prince. If he disregards the brotherhood, he will leave a stain like his father did."

"So once the prince truly ascends the throne, you will no longer be of any use."

"No, you are useless now."

"We all grew up together. How could the prince not know your character? He would have guessed long ago that you would definitely not really reflect on your mistakes, so he specially allowed you to leave Yanfufang."

"The prince has long guessed that you would go to Pingkangfang."

"If the news that you stayed out all night in Pingkangfang reaches the emperor's ears, what do you think he will think?"

Li Tai's analysis was so detailed that Li You's face suddenly turned pale.

He is now a criminal and is involved in a case of treason, but just because of his status as a prince, he is confined to Yanfufang.

The case of treason has not yet been thoroughly judged.

If the emperor knew that he was still indulging in pleasure and had no remorse at this time, he would surely be furious.

He won't be sentenced to death, but he will probably be exiled to Lingnan.

"No, my eldest brother won't do that." "He allowed me to leave last time to attend the Donggong wedding."

"Yes, my elder brother also asked me to attend the Lantern Festival Poetry Festival tomorrow."

Prince of Qi Li You murmured.

Then he looked at Li Tai and said, "Fourth brother, you are bluffing me."

Li You still has some brains.

Li Tai shook his head in disappointment and said slowly: "I came here specially to help you, but you said that Fourth Brother was bluffing you. Well, since you want to be exiled to Lingnan, Fourth Brother can't help you either."

"Think carefully, do you have a better relationship with your fourth brother or with the crown prince?"

"Don't forget how the prince took sides when you were bullied by the King of Han."

When Li You heard the name of Han King Li Yuanchang, he was stunned.

This happened a few years ago. King of Han Li Yuanchang was about the same age as the princes, so they were basically in the same group.

However, because of his age, Li Yuanchang is closest to the prince.

Once, Li You and Li Yuanchang had a conflict and an argument. Later, Li Chengqian came forward to help Li Yuanchang and severely scolded Li You.

In the end, Li Tai came out to act as peacemaker, and the matter was over.

After that, Li Yuanchang and the prince had a very good relationship.

Every New Year, when King of Han Li Yuanchang returned to Chang'an, the first place he would go to was the Eastern Palace, and he would not even go home.

Thinking of this, Li You became silent.

He had a bad relationship with Li Yuanchang and was involved in a case of treason. If Li Yuanchang spoke ill of him in front of the prince, this was very likely to happen.

On the other hand, he himself does not belong to the prince's party and is suspected of treason to seize the throne. It is indeed impossible to say that the prince does not care at all.

"Think about it carefully. After you are used by the prince, will he still help you?"

"Maybe he let you leave Yanfufang on purpose. This was all within the prince's plan, and he didn't even need to do anything."

"Do you think the prince cares about you by asking you to attend the Lantern Festival Poetry Festival?"

"Oh, he just let you appear in the eyes of the emperor. If he really wants to help you, he will naturally let you reflect on your mistakes behind closed doors during this period of time."

"When the treason case is finalized, the emperor will definitely consider how to deal with you. At that time, he will certainly ask you what you have done during this period of confinement and whether you are truly repentant."

"Think about it yourself. If the emperor knew that you often went out to play and have fun while you were confined to your room, what do you think he would do?"

"Yes, he will definitely know that it was the prince who let you out, so he will blame the prince, or even scold him, but this will not hurt the prince at all."

"However, your exile to Lingnan is a foregone conclusion. When the time comes, the prince will only need to say sorry to you. He has tried his best. What can you do? Can you blame the prince?"

"The prince is really amazing. In this case, you should thank the prince for letting you be exiled to Lingnan."

Li Tai's words made Li You even more frightened.

Following Fourth Brother's thinking, everything that is happening now is indeed developing in this way.

The most important thing is that there is the relationship with Han King Li Yuanchang.

Maybe it's just a guess, maybe the prince won't necessarily do that, but once his affairs are placed in front of the emperor, the situation that the fourth brother described is likely to happen.

Even if the prince really wanted to help, he could never be stopped.

Li You knew very well that his father had never been satisfied with him. During the time when he was enfeoffed in Qizhou, he often wrote letters to scold him and said many times that he wanted to demote him to a commoner.

"Okay, since you believe in the prince, then my trip here is in vain."

After saying that, Li Tai stood up and walked towards the door with a confident smile on his face.

One, Two
Before the third ring came, Li You had already hurriedly got up from the bed, not caring about not having put on his shoes yet, and quickly grabbed his fourth brother's sleeve.

"Fourth brother, save me."

"I don't want to be exiled to Lingnan. I heard that few people who went to Lingnan survived."

"I'm going to die!"

"Fourth brother, please, save me, I will do whatever you say."

Li You was like a drowning man who grabbed a life-saving straw.

Li Tai stopped and asked Li You to sit down with him.

"Fourth brother came here this time with the intention of helping you."

"It's a pity that Fourth Brother is not the Crown Prince. If Fourth Brother could become the Crown Prince, he would definitely make you the King again after he inherits the throne."

"Who told you that Fourth Brother has a good relationship with you?"

Li You was not surprised by Li Tai's words.

All the princes knew about the King of Wei's intention to seize the throne. He also understood that the premise for his fourth brother to help him was to join him in dealing with the crown prince.

"But Fourth Brother, I'm afraid that before you take the throne, I will be exiled to Lingnan."

Li You expressed his concerns.

Even if he supports King Wei, he still has to consider his own situation.

If he stabs the prince in the back at that time, the prince will be so angry that he will exile him to Lingnan, and there will be no chance of turning back.

Even if the Prince of Wei succeeded in taking the throne later, he might have died in Lingnan.

What's the point?

Li Tai smiled and said, "If the one who plotted rebellion is the crown prince, and you have made a meritorious report, you will naturally be exempted from the crime of exile. It is unlikely that you will be able to regain the throne, but it should not be a problem for you to stay in Chang'an."

"When Fourth Brother ascends the throne, you will naturally be crowned king again."

Li You frowned and asked, "Fourth brother asked me to slander the prince?"

"If my father finds out, I will be exiled to Lingnan, or even executed."

Slander is not a simple matter. You can't just fabricate some evidence and accuse the prince of treason.

At that time, my father will definitely send people to conduct a thorough investigation, and any problems in any link will be uncovered.

Even if it is really found that the prince is suspected, it is impossible to bring him down unless there is irrefutable evidence.

Slander is the most irrational and the most unsafe behavior.

Li Tai said calmly: "What if the prince is really plotting a rebellion?"

Li You was startled and asked, "Fourth brother, do you have evidence?"

Li Tai was speechless and said, "If I had evidence, why would I come to you?"

"I can be sure that the prince is already preparing for a rebellion."

"Think about it, for all these years, the prince has never demonstrated his martial arts and has practiced martial arts secretly. Why? As a prince, is it necessary for him to hide? Who is he afraid of?"

"Among the people in this government, you and me, is there anyone he needs to be afraid of?"

After hearing what Li Tai said, Li You also nodded. It was indeed unexpected that the prince knew martial arts. After all, they grew up together, but they had never seen such exaggerated martial arts.

Li Tai continued, "You should have heard the previous news. The Crown Prince was whipped by his father with a horse whip because of the matter of raising a musical child. The Crown Prince was worried about his reputation, so he demonstrated his martial arts and was recognized by the generals in the army."

"Then he reached out for military power. Now, among the Left and Right Jinwu Guards, Su Dingfang is his man, and Lu Tong has also joined him."

"The prince has put a lot of thought into attacking Goryeo, and even founded the Military Academy to train his confidants."

"Tell me, the prince is preparing these things. What does he want to do? Who is he going to deal with?"

"Do you think the prince really regards me as his target? No, the person he wants to deal with is not me, but father."

"He is imitating his father. He wants to do what his father once did."

"He wants to establish an unprecedented military achievement. What military achievement could be greater than destroying Goryeo? Even the Sui Dynasty failed to conquer Goryeo."

"When the prince's power reaches an unparalleled peak, do you think he will still be willing to be a prince?"

"The Crown Prince will certainly carry out the Xuanwu Gate Incident just like my father did in the past, and ask my father to move to Daming Palace just like my father did to my grandfather."

(End of this chapter)