My father, Li Shimin, please call me Crown Prince

Chapter 305: Li Chengqian

"Your Highness, this...this...this."

Looking at the list in his hand, Liu Huaijin was trembling all over.

The prince's move was too cruel.

How many people from aristocratic families are there in the entire Luoyang city?

Liu Huaijin didn't know.

But these one or two thousand people must be the core of the aristocratic families in the entire Luoyang city.

This means that the prince wants to wipe out all the aristocratic families in Luoyang City.

Suddenly, Liu Huaijin thought of something and broke out in a cold sweat.

Only then did he understand that from the very beginning, the prince had no intention of letting these noble families in Luoyang City go.

Because Liu Huaijin had investigated dozens of them himself and spent a lot of effort to find out.

And how much time and manpower are needed to handle nearly two thousand people?

And everything has to be done in secret.

This shows that the prince had started preparations a long time ago, even before the edict to depose him was issued.

This idea is becoming clearer and clearer.

After swallowing hard, Liu Huaijin said in a trembling voice: "Your Highness, this...is it too much?"

The voice was not as smooth as before, and its intermittent nature reflected Liu Huaijin's mood at the moment.

Li Chengqian shook his head slightly: "It's not that I want so many people, but there are already so many people."

"Do you think I am wrongly accusing them?"

"Wen Zhong, show him what is beyond description."

Wen Zhong bowed slightly: "Yes, Your Highness."

Wen Zhong waved his hand casually, and several eunuchs beside him went out immediately.

Not long after, several boxes of files were brought in from the filing room next door and opened and placed in front of Liu Huaijin.

Liu Huaijin picked up a file and looked at it.

Very familiar, these files gave him a very familiar feeling.

Isn’t this the file from the warehouse of his Governor’s Office?

You have to know that he is the governor of Luoyang. Logically, all case files in Luoyang City should be under his jurisdiction.

How did it get to the prince?

But now is not the time to talk about this.

Then he picked up a file and looked at it.

What is recorded here is exactly how a certain young man from the Changsun family occupied the fertile land of the common people.

Take another file, it's about a kid from a rich family who raped someone else's wife.

Volume after volume, line after line, column after column, all of them are stories of aristocratic families using their power to coerce others, without exception.

Li Chengqian saw that Liu Huaijin's expression became increasingly ugly.

He said calmly, "Is this what they call loyalty to the emperor and patriotism?"

"I don't know about loyalty to the emperor, but where is the love in patriotism?"

"For those who are corrupt and pervert the law, what use is there for the Tang Dynasty laws? Officials protect each other and collude privately. How can the people survive? Is there still the law?"

Liu Huaijin didn't dare to respond.

In fact, these things, in his view, or in the past, were nothing.

There are always many dirty things happening among aristocratic families.

But no one will be exposed. Even the hostile families will not go too far, but help cover it up.

The same is true for his Liu family.

Now, the prince is going to bring up old issues.

These things are nothing at ordinary times, but at this juncture, they are very serious.

"So be it."

"It should be the clear justice of heaven, which will not be missed."

"Can you do this?"

Li Chengqian asked in a somewhat cold voice.

Liu Huaijin hesitated slightly, gritted his teeth and said, "Yes, Your Highness, please rest assured."

Li Chengqian smiled faintly and said, "I believe you, Commander Liu, you will not let me down."

"Okay, let's do it. We must catch them all."

Liu Huaijin nodded fiercely: "Yes, Your Highness."

He knew that he had no other way to go.

If he disobeys the prince now, the prince might use him as a sacrifice first.

There is no way the prince would let go of the position of Governor of Luoyang.

In comparison, he didn't care so much about the Luoyang Governor.
-
In Luoyang city, the night is as dark as ink, so thick that it cannot be dissolved, as if foreshadowing an impending storm.

The air in the city was filled with tension and uneasiness, and the occasional barking of dogs added a bit of weirdness.

A large number of soldiers gathered in the city.

It's at night because of the curfew.

Luoyang, like Chang'an, has a curfew.

Taking action during curfew can better prevent the aristocratic families from uniting to resist.

Unlike Chang'an, many noble families in Luoyang have a lot of guards. Although they are called guards, they are actually almost like private soldiers.

Just no armor.

During curfew, it is also convenient to defeat them one by one.

The lights in the Changsun family mansion were bright, just like daytime.

In the study, several elders sat around an ancient sandalwood table, frowning and discussing the matter of cooperating with the imperial court. On the table was a map of Luoyang City, with key locations marked with red cinnabar.

"Clan leader, in my opinion, as long as we can convince those generals from aristocratic families to stay put and cooperate with the imperial army, Li Chengqian will definitely be defeated."

An elder of the tribe twirled his beard, a calculating gleam in his eyes.

"That's right, but the minds of those generals are hard to predict. We need to put more thought into it."

The patriarch of the Changsun family nodded slightly, his eyes deep, as if he was thinking about something.

The clan leader and the family head are two different things.

In name, the clan leader is more senior than the family head, but it also depends on the situation.

At least for now, the Changsun family mainly follows Changsun Wuji's attitude.

At this moment, a burst of hurried footsteps came from afar, breaking the solemn atmosphere in the study.

A panicked eldest grandson suddenly opened the door and stumbled in. "Chief, something terrible has happened! A lot of soldiers suddenly showed up outside and surrounded our mansion!"

The patriarch of the Changsun family turned pale in an instant, and the teacup in his hand fell to the ground with a "click" and shattered into pieces.

The other elders also stood up in shock, their faces filled with horror and disbelief.

"How is it possible? Our plan is so thorough, how could it leak out?"

The elder who was twirling his beard spoke in a trembling voice, beads of sweat appearing on his forehead.

Everyone understood what the soldiers' siege meant at this time.

They just started plotting yesterday, and it’s been less than a day and the prince already knows about it?

If it weren't for this, why would the prince send troops here?

"Don't panic yet!"

The clan leader tried to remain calm and shouted, "Call the guards in the mansion immediately and guard all the entrances and exits! Quick!"

The eldest grandson's son ran out tumbling and crawling. Soon, noisy shouts and the sound of weapons clashing were heard in the mansion.

The guards of the Changsun family, armed with weapons, rushed out from every corner and formed a battle formation in the courtyard, ready to resist the impending attack.

Liu Huaijin rode on a tall horse and looked coldly at the Changsun family mansion in front of him.

He waved his hand and shouted, "Charge! Don't let any traitor go!"

The soldiers rushed into the mansion like a tiger descending from a mountain. Although the guards of the Changsun family fought hard, their resistance seemed so fragile in front of the well-trained and well-equipped regular army.

Of course, this is not a fight to the death, and there is basically no intention to kill many people.

As long as I can rush in, it's fine.

Liu Huaijin understood that if he killed a large number of people from the Changsun family, his life would not be easy in the future.

So I had specifically instructed you not to kill anyone beforehand.

Even so, the soldiers in armor were like tigers among a pack of wolves.

It’s not that the guards’ fighting ability is not high. Those who can become guards of the Changsun family all have some skills.

However, the armor has too high a defense, so there is no need to worry too much and just charge forward.

During the fierce battle, the patriarch of the Changsun family hid in the study, his heart filled with fear and unwillingness. He was racking his brains to think of how to get out, when suddenly, the door of the study was kicked open with a "bang", and Liu Huaijin walked in with a long sword in his hand and several soldiers.

The head of the Changsun family widened his eyes and said with forced calmness: "Liu Huaijin, you are so brave! My Changsun family has made great contributions for generations, and you dare to lead troops to intrude. Aren't you afraid of His Majesty's blame?"

Liu Huaijin frowned slightly, a hint of helplessness flashed in his eyes, he slowly said: "Patriarch, I, Liu Huaijin, am also helpless. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has given an order, I have to obey. You also know that I am helpless in this officialdom, His Royal Highness's order is like a mountain falling, I cannot disobey."

"Hmph, stop using the crown prince to pressure me!" The head of the Changsun family roared angrily, "You are just trying to accuse me of something, and you can always find a pretext! My Changsun family is loyal to the royal family, so what excuse do you have?"

Liu Huaijin had no choice but to take the stack of files handed over by the soldier and slowly said, "Take a look at these."

As he said this, he threw the file onto the table in front of the head of the Changsun family.

The patriarch of the Changsun family looked at Liu Huaijin in confusion, his eyes fell on the stack of files, hesitant for a moment, and finally reached out to pick it up. When he opened the file, his face instantly turned livid.

What is recorded above is exactly the evil deeds committed by the children of the Changsun family over the years: occupying the people's fertile land, forcibly taking other people's wives, corruption and abuse of power, collusion between officials and businessmen... Every one of them is shocking.

"These... these are just small matters, which are nothing in normal days! You are deliberately targeting my Changsun family!"

The patriarch of the Changsun family roared angrily and slammed the file on the table.

Liu Huaijin sighed and said, "Patriarch, I don't want to be your enemy either, but under normal circumstances, these may not be a big deal, but now that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince wants to rectify Luoyang, these give His Royal Highness an excuse to take action."

"The names of the Changsun family are on the list, and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is determined to investigate this matter thoroughly. I am helpless, so I ask everyone whose name is on the list to follow me. As long as you cooperate, I will definitely say a few good words for them in front of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

"Besides, with the relationship between the Changsun family and the prince, nothing will happen."

The patriarch of the Changsun family sneered.

"A few nice words?"

"You have already laid siege to the city, and you are still saying these hypocritically? I think you just want to wipe out my Changsun family! Other families have done the same thing, so why are you targeting my Changsun family only?"

Liu Huaijin's eyes flashed with a hint of pity, but he quickly regained his determination, took a step forward, and said, "Patriarch, now that things have come to this, resistance is useless. If you persist, more people will die in vain."

"If you don't think about yourself, you should at least think about the descendants of the Changsun family. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has made up his mind this time. Not only is the Changsun family targeted, but other families involved in the case are also under investigation."

The patriarch of the Changsun family was silent for a moment. He looked at everything in the study, his heart filled with resentment and despair. He knew that Liu Huaijin was right, and resistance was futile now.

"Okay, how many people? You tell me."

"But if my Changsun family is innocent, they will never let this go!"

The patriarch of the Changsun family said while gritting his teeth.

Liu Huaijin took out another list and handed it to the patriarch Changsun.

When Patriarch Changsun saw this, he felt dizzy and almost fainted.

With trembling hands, he stared at the list intently, his eyes full of anger and unwillingness, as if he wanted to burn a hole in it with his gaze.

Then he suddenly raised his head and glared at Liu Huaijin, veins popping out on his forehead, and shouted loudly: "Liu Huaijin, are you really going to be so heartless? My Changsun family has no grudges against you in the past or in the present, why do you want to kill us all?"

"More than two hundred people, what are you doing?"

"Or do you want to take revenge?"

Liu Huaijin replied: "This is the list given by the prince."

He lowered his head slightly, avoiding the clan leader's burning gaze, and his voice was filled with a barely perceptible bitterness: "Clan leader, I, Liu Huaijin, am only following orders. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has made up his mind, and no one on the list can be left out. I also know that this move is too heavy for the Changsun family, but if I don't carry it out, my life will be in danger."

The head of the Changsun clan said, "Liu Huaijin, have you ever thought about how you will cope with the future even if you follow the prince's words and take away these two hundred people from my Changsun clan? My Changsun clan has a deep foundation in the court, and Changsun Situ is even more powerful. How could he let it go?"

The clan leader tried to use his power to intimidate Liu Huaijin, hoping to buy a glimmer of hope for the Changsun family.

Liu Huaijin frowned slightly, a trace of struggle flashed in his eyes, but he soon became firm again: "Patriarch, at this point, I have no choice. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince now has his own troops in Luoyang, and I dare not disobey his orders. As for the future, I can only take it one step at a time. Moreover, all this is because the Changsun family participated in the rebellion, and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince had to resort to this last resort in order to maintain the stability of Luoyang."

The clan leader angrily retorted: "Treason? We are just discussing how to protect ourselves, how can we talk about treason?"

"This is clearly a false accusation by the prince!"

Just then, a soldier hurried in and whispered something in Liu Huaijin's ear.

Liu Huaijin's face changed slightly, and he turned to the clan leader and said, "Clan leader, the resistance outside has been basically quelled. Please take the people on the list and follow me as soon as possible. Otherwise, once the soldiers lose their patience, the situation will become even more difficult to deal with."

Among these soldiers, in addition to those from the Governor's Office, many are from the Prince's Divine Martial Army.

Following here also means surveillance.

The patriarch of the Changsun family gritted his teeth and thought secretly in his heart.

He knew that if he did not cooperate at this moment, the Changsun family's mansion would probably be completely razed to the ground, and more family members would die.

After thinking for a moment, he took a deep breath, tried to calm himself down, and said, "Okay, I'll go with you. I want to see the prince."

"Also, my people must not be allowed to come to any harm."

Liu Huaijin nodded slightly: "Don't worry, clan leader, as long as you don't resist, I will ensure everyone's safety."

The clan leader slowly walked to the door of the study and shouted loudly to the outside: "Stop! Put down your weapons and stop resisting!"

The originally fierce fighting sounds gradually subsided, and the guards of the Changsun family put down their weapons one after another, their faces full of confusion and unwillingness.

The clan leader walked out of the study and looked at the wounded clan members, feeling a pang of sadness in his heart. He turned to Liu Huaijin and said, "Liu Huaijin, I hope you can keep your promise."

Liu Huaijin didn't say anything, but just waved his hand, signaling the soldiers to gather the Changsun family. More than 200 Changsun family members were surrounded by soldiers, some of them had terrified eyes, some were full of anger, and some were full of despair.

Led by Liu Huaijin, the group slowly walked out of the Changsun family's mansion.

(End of this chapter)