My father, Li Shimin, please call me Crown Prince

Chapter 162 The Prince of Tang wants to support the restoration of Persia

Life is for oneself, that's natural.

For Fang Xuanling, who had already stood at the pinnacle of power, the most important thing was to continue the development of the Qinghe Fang family.

In fact, under Fang Xuanling's care, the Qinghe Fang family is now rising rapidly.

As the prime minister of the Tang Dynasty, even if he did not deliberately protect it, the Qinghe Fang family could still get enough political protection.

Didn't the Qinghe Cui family also gradually develop under such circumstances?

Fang Xuanling had no choice but to be forced into the King of Wei's camp by His Majesty.

He wanted to retreat, but there was no way out.

But now Fang Xuanling is more clear that when he has solid evidence in his hands, he must prevent the prince from becoming desperate and rebelling.

On the other hand, Li Chengqian had actually already felt that Helan Chushi might be his weakness.

If Fang Xuanling was looking for a breakthrough in his rebellion, the best place would obviously be here in Helan Chushi.

The best way is to silence Helan Chushi, as the dead cannot speak.

But Li Chengqian couldn't just kill Helan Chushi based on his feelings or speculations, otherwise he would not be able to give an explanation to Hou Junji.

Besides, Helan Chushi now shows no signs of betrayal.

You can't kill someone just because you feel they might betray you, as this will cause even bigger internal problems.

So Li Chengqian could only send people to keep a close eye on Helan Chushi.

Fortunately, Helan Chushi is still being held in Hou Junji’s mansion and has little contact with the outside world.

On February , the dragon looked up.

It is also known as the Spring Ploughing Festival, marking the beginning of spring ploughing.

This day is also the time when the saint holds the Ji Tian Ceremony.

The Ji Tian ceremony was usually held in a special Ji Tian outside Chang'an.

These fields were usually carefully selected and organized, with fertile land and large area, able to accommodate many officials, attendants and common people who came to watch the ceremony. A solemn ceremonial guard would be arranged around the fields to demonstrate the majesty of the royal family and the importance they attached to agriculture.

A temporary viewing platform will be built on one side of the Ji Tian for important officials and royal family members to watch the Ji Tian ceremony.

Because of the previous assassination attempt on the prince, Ji Tianli was on even stricter alert this time.

The people who were able to attend the ceremony had to go through layers of screening.

Moreover, they were watching the ceremony from a very long distance, about two hundred meters away.

At this distance, you can't shoot even with a crossbow.

On the viewing platform, Li Chengqian saw a familiar figure.

Wei Zheng recovered.

The historical Wei Zheng passed away at the beginning of this year.

And now, not only is he alive and well, he is also full of energy.

"What's going on with Wei Zheng?"

Li Chengqian asked the eunuch Wen Zhong.

As the prince's eunuch, Wen Zhong actually had a lot of things to do. Basically, he had to investigate the news inside and outside the court in a timely manner, which made it convenient for him to answer quickly when the prince asked questions.

Instead of letting the prince wait, he should find someone to ask first.

There has never been an easy job for eunuchs who can serve as inner servants.

"Your Highness, the imperial physician gave Wei Zheng some medicine earlier. It's been the first month of the year here, and his condition has stabilized."

"He should be fully recovered now."

After hearing what the eunuch Wen Zhong said, Li Chengqian seemed to be thinking about something.

According to historical records, Wei Zheng should have died of illness.

But now, Wei Zheng is alive and well.

The reason for this is because Li Chengqian created Tiangong Kaiwu.

Wei Zheng participated in the compilation of Tiangong Kaiwu in the name of Prince Tai Shi. When collecting the medical chapter, a famous doctor discovered Wei Zheng's hidden illness and provided timely treatment.

So after the disease broke out, it was well controlled and he survived.

The last time he went to visit Wei Zheng, although his condition was under control, Li Chengqian felt that at most he would die a little later and would not be able to live long. Unexpectedly, he is now completely recovered and it seems that he can live for many years if nothing unexpected happens.

The trajectory of history changed quietly because of Li Chengqian.

For Li Chengqian, Wei Zheng's survival has more advantages than disadvantages.

Wei Zheng himself was a staunch member of the prince's party and strongly supported the system of primogeniture, although he habitually urged and even scolded Crown Prince Li Chengqian.

But as Wei Duidui, he treated Li Shimin the same way.

To a large extent, Wei Zheng, as the representative of the ministerial power, suppressed Li Shimin's imperial power. To put it in a more elegant way, it is called persuasion.

He would not follow Li Shimin in trying to balance power between the King of Wei and the Crown Prince, but would instead support the Crown Prince one-sidedly.

In the struggle for political power, they sided with the princelings.

After the Ji Tian ceremony, Li Shimin returned to the palace.

But it is also today.

A piece of news from the West spread like wildfire in Chang'an City.

That was the Persian Empire, which was destroyed.

This was not the first time that the Persian Empire was destroyed. Alexander had already destroyed it once before BC.

Today, the Sassanid Empire is considered the second Persian Empire.

It has inherited the religious and cultural traditions of ancient Persia and preserved the literary, artistic and architectural styles of ancient Persia.

It inherited the autocratic monarchy system of ancient Persia.

Ardashir I, the founder of the Sassanid Empire, was also a Persian survivor.

And now, the entire Sassanid Empire has been occupied by the Arab Empire.

In fact, the Battle of Nahawand, which took place in late autumn last year, was the final battle.

The entire Sassanid Empire had already been destroyed, but the news was delayed. It was not until February of this year that the news reached Chang'an.

Under normal circumstances, the fall of the Persian Empire would not have attracted much attention from the people of Chang'an.

After all, for the Tang Dynasty, Persia, Arabia, and Rome were all too far away.

I was so far away from Chang'an that I didn't have any specific impression of them.

But it's different now.

The key lies in Crown Prince Li Chengqian.

During the Lantern Festival, the assassination of the prince in Furong Garden caused an uproar in Chang'an.

What is even more amazing is that at this Lantern Festival poetry meeting, the prince composed a Lantern Festival poem, Qingyu'an Yuanxi.

This poem spread throughout Chang'an almost overnight.

On the third day of the Lantern Festival, there was a curfew and almost all the taverns were talking about the prince's Qingyu case, the Lantern Festival poem and the assassination attempt.

This also greatly aroused the anger of the people of Chang'an towards Goryeo.

After all, before this, the prince had been conferred the title of Prince Nongze Shengrui for designing the curved plow. The current prince is the pride of the people of the Tang Dynasty.

The act of attacking Goryeo was not only politically correct, but also won great support among the people.

As the prince's reputation spread in Chang'an, people became more and more interested in the gossip about him.

The news that the Roman princess had moved into the East Palace also spread.

People then knew that the Roman princess traveled thousands of miles to the Tang Dynasty in order to ask it to send troops to deal with the Arab Empire.

The names of countries such as Rome, Persia, and Arabia gradually entered the people's vision.

Before this, although the Silk Road had already existed since the Western Han Dynasty and people had some knowledge of Rome, this was only limited to a small number of people, and ordinary people could not read or write.

Scholars don't need to study foreign history, so why would they pay attention to these things?

But now it’s different. Gossip is much easier to spread than knowledge.

Many people think that since the prince allowed the Roman princess to live in the East Palace, she is very likely to help Rome attack the Arab Empire, also known as the Arab Empire.

Now, the Persian Empire has been destroyed by the Arab Empire. This news is still quite shocking to the people of Chang'an.

After all, Persians were also very famous in Chang'an. Persian merchants' jewelry stores, spice stores, wine shops, Hu Bing, and grocery stores were all very famous. There were even Persian merchants who opened money houses in Chang'an.

In most people's impressions, the Persian Empire was a relatively powerful country, but now it has been destroyed by another country.

On this day, all the Persians in Chang'an cried bitterly.

I am in a foreign country, but my own country has been destroyed.

Whether now or in the future, the strength of a country is the greatest reliance for businessmen.

Especially for Persian merchants, they have become wanderers at this moment.

Our former homeland has been occupied by other countries.

Even your relatives and friends may have met with accidents, and even if they are still alive, they are already in dire straits.

It was also on this day that a large number of Persian merchants came to Liquanfang.

Visited the Roman delegation with boxes of generous gifts.

Because they don't know what to do, their only hope now may be to influence the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty through the Roman Princess and thus strike at the Arab Empire.

Make the Persian Empire great again.

Strictly speaking, the Persian Empire has not yet completely perished, because their emperor is not dead and is currently on the run.

East Palace, side hall.

Li Chengqian was listening to the intelligence about the Persian Empire collected by the eunuch Wen Zhong.

After the entire Persian Empire was occupied, the last monarch Yazdegerd III fled and hid everywhere.

The current direction of escape is probably towards the Harsha Empire in India.

Today's Arab territory is not connected to the Indian Harsha Empire. It is separated by small Central Asian countries such as Kapisa and the countries in the Tocharian region.

These small regimes are independent and their internal political situations are complex and ever-changing.

It used to be a buffer zone between the Persian Empire and the Harsha Empire, but now it has been replaced by the Arab Empire.

Apparently, Yazdegerd III fled to this area.

"Your Highness, the Crown Princess and the Princess of Rome request an audience."

After hearing the eunuch's report, Li Chengqian nodded and let the two in.

Crown Princess Su Yuer took Theodosius to the side hall.

Theodosius' eyes were still a little red, obviously because he had just cried.

"What's wrong?" Li Chengqian glanced at Theodosius and asked Su Yuer.

Su Yuer said: "Theodosius heard the news of the destruction of Persia. She was worried that Rome would follow in Persia's footsteps, so she was very worried."

The Persian Empire and the Roman Empire had been fighting for centuries without a clear winner, but now that the Persian Empire had been destroyed, how could Rome fare any better?

Li Chengqian smiled and said, "Don't worry about that. When people eat a lot at once, their stomachs will swell and they will have indigestion."

"The Arabs occupy all of Persia. They need to spend a lot of energy to manage these places. At least in the short term, it is difficult for them to start a war against Rome."

Li Chengqian did not say anything like "I will help" when he made a promise to Theodosius.

This doesn't make any sense.

As the crown prince of the Tang Dynasty, his every word and action will have a profound impact on the Tang Dynasty and even the world situation.

Of course, Li Chengqian does not have the power to mobilize the troops of the Anxi Protectorate now.

Although Theodosius had learned some Chinese, he still couldn't understand many words. After listening to the translation by the Sogdian female translator next to him, he felt relieved and bowed, "Thank you, Your Highness."

After the Crown Princess and Theodosius left.

Li Chengqian pondered for a moment, then said to the eunuch Wen Zhong, "Call Wang Xuance to come and see him."

Speaking of Wang Xuance, he was also a poor man.

The delegation to India should have set off long ago, but Li Chengqian knew that Wang Xuance would be influenced by Indian Buddhism and wanted to use the spread of Buddhism as his political springboard.

This was something Li Chengqian would not allow. After meeting her once before, he simply left it alone.

As for his leg disease, he did not place all his hopes on Tianzhu.

I didn’t have enough money before, so it was difficult to open a clinic on a large scale.

Cui Shengyu has now sent 30,000 gold, and there will be another 20,000 gold later, which is enough for Li Chengqian to strongly support the development of medicine, especially orthopedics, in Chang'an.

In the Eastern Han Dynasty, under such a medical environment, figures like Hua Tuo could emerge.

He just doesn't believe that vigorously supporting the development of orthopedics will not produce a doctor who can cure legs.

If there has never been a lame prince ascending the throne in each dynasty in Chinese history, then he would be the first one.

"The prince is finally willing to see me."

Wang Xuance was very excited when he got the news.

His post as county magistrate had been abolished, and he was now working in the Eastern Palace. As the diplomatic mission had not yet set out, he stayed in the Eastern Palace office, following his teacher Zhang Xuansu, and compiling "The Exploitation of the Works of Nature".

"Go quickly, don't keep the prince waiting too long."

Zhang Xuansu was also happy for his disciple, as he finally found a way out.

Although the delegation to India will definitely set off, this has a lot to do with the importance the prince attaches to it.

"is teacher."

The Eastern Palace office was right next to it, and Wang Xuance arrived soon.

"I pay my respects to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

Wang Xuance bowed respectfully, his tone somewhat excited and nervous.

Because he understood that the prince summoned him at this time definitely because of the Indian delegation.

And this incident will greatly affect his future career.

"Give me a seat."

"Thank you, Your Highness."

Li Chengqian asked, "You have heard about the destruction of Persia, right?"

Wang Xuance didn't understand why the prince asked this question, so he replied, "I heard about it."

Li Chengqian said: "The India you are on a diplomatic mission to is close to what was once Persia, and is now the Arab Empire."

"I have received news that the Persian emperor has fled to Persia and is hiding in places like Tocharistan."

"This time when you go to Tianzhu, in addition to communicating with Tianzhu and helping me find a famous doctor who can treat my leg disease, you also need to find the Persian emperor."

"If he wishes, shelter him and bring him to Chang'an."

There has never been any record of invading other countries in the history of China. In those days, the envoys of the Han Dynasty sacrificed their lives for justice and committed suicide one after another, just to have a legitimate reason to do so.

An Guo Shao Ji arrived in Nanyue and colluded with the Queen Mother to kill the Prime Minister of Nanyue and overthrow the regime. He was eventually killed, and then Emperor Wu of Han destroyed Nanyue.

She He was sent as an envoy to Wei Joseon and asked the King of Joseon to go to Chang'an to apologize, but was rejected. When he left, he killed the young King of Joseon to vent his anger. He was also promoted to the commander of Liaodong County. The King of Joseon sent troops to attack for revenge, which gave Emperor Wu of Han an excuse to destroy Wei Joseon.

When Fu Jiezi was on a diplomatic mission to Loulan, he drew his sword and stabbed the king of Loulan to death in the court of Loulan. He then shouted to the officials of Loulan: Don't move, or I will destroy your entire country.

What you think of Su Wu as a shepherd was that Su Wu suffered all kinds of grievances and shepherded sheep on Lake Baikal for nineteen years.

In fact, Su Wu was herding sheep in order to stir up civil strife among the Xiongnu people and instigate the Xiongnu Chanyu and his brothers to rebel, and to kidnap the Chanyu and take them together to the Han Dynasty.

After the matter was exposed, the Chanyu had no way to deal with Su Wu. He did not dare to kill him, but if he let him go he was afraid that he would go back and tell lies. After all, the Han envoy was famous for seeking death.

All they could do was give him a wife and send him to Lake Baikal to herd sheep.

And now, if the Persian emperor is brought to Chang'an, and the Tang Dynasty takes action against the current Arab Empire, what does that have to do with invasion? I support the restoration of Persia.

Would Yazdegerd III be willing to come to Chang'an and accept the protection of the Tang Dynasty?

Historically, Yazdegerd III fled to Merv, where he was robbed and killed by a greedy miller, and the Sassanid Empire officially came to an end.

Now he is fleeing everywhere like a frightened bird, and the Arab Empire is sending people to capture him.

I live in fear every day.

If he heard that the ancient and powerful Tang Empire in the East was willing to grant him political asylum, Yazidi III would surely cry bitterly and become a filial son and grandson of the Tang Empire.

Although the Arab Empire occupied the entire territory of Persia, it is impossible to say that it destroyed the entire Persian nation.

The Persians still have great influence, and famous Persian merchants also have huge wealth.

The Tang Dynasty supports the restoration of your Persian nation, so it must gain some benefits.

(End of this chapter)