My father, Li Shimin, please call me Crown Prince

Chapter 337: Welcoming His Royal Highness the Crown Prince into the City
The look in Wu Zhao's eyes when she looked at Li Zhi was full of encouragement.

In fact, she also knew that Li Zhi was different from the original Majesty. After the Xuanwu Gate Incident, the Majesty was able to completely control the court.

And now, even if Li Zhi killed the Crown Prince and the King of Wei, his own power is not enough to compete with Your Majesty.

However, Wu Zhao had been in the harem for many years and had long been familiar with His Majesty's temperament.

She's gambling.

The bet is that after the Crown Prince and the King of Wei are gone, with only the King of Jin as the only legitimate son, Your Majesty will have no choice but to appoint the King of Jin as the Crown Prince and inherit the throne.

The reason why Wu Zhao was confident had a lot to do with Zhangsun Wuji.

Changsun Wuji was the first meritorious official and the representative of the Guanlong clan.

He would never agree that His Majesty would choose a bastard's son to inherit the throne when there is already a legitimate son.

Only Empress Changsun's son was qualified to inherit the throne.

Therefore, killing the Crown Prince and the King of Wei at the same time would be very risky, but the benefits would also be huge.

Having come to this point, Wu Zhao's ambition has actually expanded.

In fact, before the prince started a rebellion, Wu Zhao was more interested in getting the Prince of Jin to stand on the side of the prince, to win his favor, and to look for opportunities.

If there is no chance, once the prince ascends the throne, she can rely on this goodwill and perhaps get the prince to agree to let her leave the palace and marry the Prince of Jin for the second time.

Now, Wu Zhao doesn’t think so anymore.

She wants to be a queen.

At this moment, Li Zhi's breathing became a little rapid.

But when he met Mei Niang's bright eyes, he gradually calmed down.

"it is good."

Li Zhi gritted his teeth and made a decision.
-
The side hall of Tai Chi Hall.

This is where the king and his ministers discuss matters.

But your majesty is not here today.

The prince wants to enter the city, but how to treat him after entering the city is also a troublesome matter.

Fang Xuanling was the first to break the silence: "Everyone, now the prince is at the gates of the city. Although he promised to bring only a thousand soldiers into the city, he has always been erratic and has unpredictable intentions. It is really hard to figure out."

"Your Majesty is seriously ill and in a coma. The court is in turmoil. The safety of the Imperial Palace is related to the rise and fall of our Tang Dynasty. The Eastern Palace and the Imperial Palace are very close, separated by only a wall. If the Crown Prince is allowed to move into the Eastern Palace, his every move will be difficult for us to control."

"Therefore, the Crown Prince must not be allowed to enter the East Palace."

Before it was a rebellion, now we have to guard against a coup.

If Li Chengqian goes straight from the East Palace into the inner court and controls Your Majesty, then nothing will be of any use.

So before His Majesty woke up, Fang Xuanling didn't want to see the Prince enter the East Palace.

Chu Suiliang immediately agreed, "What Prime Minister Fang said is absolutely right. The Crown Prince has acted so absurdly in the past that he even attempted to rebel and usurp the throne. Now he is leading his troops here in the name of regent. His evil ambitions are obvious."

"If he is allowed to enter the Eastern Palace, given the proximity of the Eastern Palace to the Imperial Palace, he is very likely to do something that is detrimental to Your Majesty and endanger our Tang Dynasty."

In fact, Chu Suiliang wanted to persuade everyone that while the prince only had a thousand soldiers, they should simply capture the prince and wait for His Majesty to wake up and deal with him.

But he knew that it would be difficult for others to agree with what he said.

Chu Suiliang felt a little regretful now. His Majesty should not have restored Li Chengqian's position as the crown prince. Now that His Majesty was in a coma, Li Chengqian used the crown prince's name to put them in a passive position.

Zhang Sun Wuji's eyes were deep, and he said slowly: "What you two said makes sense, but the Crown Prince is the regent appointed by His Majesty himself. If we rashly stop him, it will be difficult to convince the public, both emotionally and rationally."

"Moreover, the prince has a large army under his command. Even if he only brings a thousand men into the city, the army behind him is a great deterrent. If the situation is handled incorrectly, it may lead to a mutiny, which will cause great loss of life and bloodshed."

Upon hearing this, Chu Suiliang immediately retorted: "What Changsun Situ said is very true, but everyone knows the prince's intentions."

"Your Majesty is seriously ill and the court is unstable. For the sake of the country, we have to be on guard."

Fang Xuanling also spoke up: "The East Palace is too sensitive. If the Crown Prince enters, there will be too many variables. But the method of blocking him needs to be carefully considered, and he must not be given a handle to cause chaos."

Yuchi Jingde stood up suddenly, clenched his fists, and said in a thunderous voice: "I don't understand so many twists and turns! I only know that your majesty has been very kind to me. Now that your majesty is seriously ill and unconscious, I swear to protect this palace with my life! If the prince wants to enter the East Palace, he will have to step over my dead body!"

Cheng Yaojin also stood up, grinning and said loudly: "Old Hei is right! Your Majesty gave me this life, and now is the time to repay your majesty. The East Palace is adjacent to the Imperial Palace, and the prince must not be allowed in, otherwise I, Old Cheng, will be the first to disagree!"

When His Majesty was unconscious, Yuchi Jingde and Cheng Yaojin jointly took charge of the palace guards to maintain the safety of the palace.

Normally, the two of them rarely participate in important court affairs, but when it comes to the safety of His Majesty, they naturally stand up.

Fang Xuanling nodded slightly, looked at the two men and said, "The two generals are loyal. With the two generals guarding the palace, we feel much more at ease. However, this matter still needs to be carefully considered. We must prevent the prince from entering the East Palace, but we must not cause chaos."

Chu Suiliang also said: "Yes, the enthusiasm of the two generals is admirable, but the affairs of the court are extremely complicated, and we need to act with caution."

Zhang Sun Wuji sighed and said, "I am also fully aware of the pros and cons of this matter, but this matter is of great importance and needs to be carefully considered before taking any action."

"The Crown Prince's residence in the Eastern Palace is a legitimate matter as stipulated by our ancestors."

"If we try to stop them by force, it will not be a good thing."

Everyone was silent for a moment after hearing this.

The prince has lived in the Eastern Palace since he was young. To him, the Eastern Palace is his home.

Now that the Crown Prince has entered the city to supervise the country, it makes no sense for these ministers to join forces and not let the Crown Prince live in their homes.

Wei Zheng was somewhat emotional, but he still spoke: "Everyone, now we have to stop the prince from entering the East Palace, but we also cannot leave any excuses to cause greater chaos."

Although he is on the side of the Crown Prince, his loyalty to His Majesty is unquestionable.

Wei Zheng knew that if he allowed the crown prince to live in the Eastern Palace at this time, he would definitely find a way to control the Imperial Palace.

At that time, Your Majesty will have no choice but to abdicate like the Emperor Emeritus.

Chu Suiliang snorted coldly: "How can there be such a thing as the best of both worlds? The prince is now in the city to supervise the country. Isn't it because your majesty is seriously ill and he is taking this opportunity to get his hands on the throne?"

"Since he dared to do this, why should we pretend to be so hypocritical?"

"Even if the prince is dissatisfied, it doesn't matter. Once he enters the city, he has no say."

"If you are willing to take care of your reputation, then I will take care of this matter."

Chu Suiliang is different from others. He is now completely standing on the opposite side of the prince. If the prince comes to power, his official career will come to an end.

Chu Suiliang himself was well aware of this.

If possible, he really wanted to take down the prince right away, but Chu Suiliang also knew that he had no say in the court.

Every family has its own thoughts.

Wei Zheng, in particular, has always supported the crown prince's succession to the throne.

Even if the crown prince has already gathered his own troops and started a rebellion, people still say that the crown prince is excellent, his succession to the throne is legitimate, and it is a blessing for the future of the Tang Dynasty.

It seemed that rebellion, an unforgivable crime, became an insignificant matter in their mouths.

This made Chu Suiliang very unhappy.

Fang Xuanling nodded slightly, very satisfied with Chu Suiliang's attitude.

"We can announce to the public that His Majesty is in critical condition and everyone in the palace is doing their best to treat him. To avoid disturbing His Majesty, no one is allowed to approach the East Palace for the time being."

"At the same time, we must quickly mobilize the Imperial Guards to strictly guard the passage between the Imperial Palace and the Eastern Palace and all palace gates to ensure that the Imperial Palace is safe."

"As for the crown prince, you can arrange for him to supervise the country in a garden outside the palace, and all government affairs can be handled in the garden. This way, you can appease the crown prince and ensure the safety of your majesty and the palace."

Even until now, Fang Xuanling has never dealt with the prince openly. He has used many methods, either to order others around or to induce the prince to do so. In any case, he never shows up himself.

Fang Xuanling always leaves a way out for everything until he is absolutely sure.

In this way, even if the prince ascends to the throne, it is just the end of his official career. At his age, he doesn't have many years left to live, so it doesn't matter.

At least, the family would not be implicated too much. Changsun Wuji finally said, "Then let's do as Mr. Fang said. General Yuchi and General Cheng will guard the palace. When the prince enters the city, we can only wrong the prince first."

Wei Zheng asked again: "The prince will enter the city tomorrow morning. Should we welcome him?"

Just as Zhangsun Wuji was about to agree, Chu Suiliang immediately interrupted and said, "Of course we will welcome him, but since the prince lives in the other garden, I can just welcome him there."

"This will also make the Crown Prince understand that even as Regent, he cannot be completely unscrupulous."

Changsun Wuji frowned slightly.

The others also said nothing.

In a sense, this is a struggle between ministerial power and imperial power.

In the Tang Dynasty, the emperor never ruled the country alone, but rather the emperor and the aristocratic families ruled the world together.

The three provinces and six ministries greatly restricted the exercise of imperial power.

This is the consensus of the aristocratic families, not just the Five Surnames and Seven Families, but also the Guanlong clans.

Simply put, the world belongs to the emperor.

But how much power the emperor has depends on how charismatic he himself is.

When Li Shimin ascended the throne, the aristocratic families also showed their power to show their authority.

Now that the crown prince wants to be regent, Chu Suiliang’s proposal is not without basis.

Of course, when Chu Suiliang said this, he was not actually referring to the aristocratic families, but to the King of Wei. He said that he did not want the prince's influence to be too great.

Chu Suiliang was also unaware of the fact that Li Tai and Li Zhi were conspiring to ambush the crown prince.

"Okay, let's do as Dr. Chu said."

"All officials are welcoming the Crown Prince at the Garden."

Changsun Wuji didn't think much about it and decided on it right away.

The Imperial Guards were urgently mobilized, and all the troops were forbidden to take rest, with a large number of them on guard in the palace.

Many people think that Chang'an City has the highest and thickest city walls, but in fact, the real imperial city is the place with the strongest defense.

Chang'an can be divided into three major areas.

Chang'an City, Imperial City, and Forbidden City.

Chang'an City is where the common people, merchants, etc. live, and outside is the city wall of Chang'an City.

Then there is the imperial city inside, where the city walls are stronger and thicker than those of Chang'an City.

The imperial city was also the main place where officials worked.

Compared with the Forbidden City, the gate of the Imperial City is slightly inferior.

If Li Chengqian launched a frontal attack and reached Li Shimin, he would have to attack Chang'an City first, then the Imperial City, and then the highest and thickest palace.

This is also the reason why the ministers did not dare to let Li Chengqian live in the Eastern Palace.

As long as the prince was outside the imperial city, even if they entered Chang'an City, a thousand soldiers would not be able to cause much trouble.

But what if the prince lived in the East Palace.

The danger of these one thousand soldiers is too great.

The walls of the palace and the East Palace could be destroyed by just a few artillery shells.

Even the artillery of the East Palace could directly fire into the palace.
-
The next day.

Big tent outside the city.

Li Chengqian sat on the tall dragon chariot.

The dragon chariot is not luxurious and its decoration is relatively simple, but its advantage is that it is big.

The length and width were about ten feet, and there were eight horses pulling the carriage in front, and it felt a bit strenuous.

Around them were a thousand elite cavalrymen wearing armor and even vests.

Su Dingfang is on the left and Pei Xingjian is on the right.

As the mighty procession approached the Mingde Gate of Chang'an, the defending general Wang Meng shouted loudly: "Open the city gate!"

"Welcome His Royal Highness the Crown Prince into the city!"

The shouting continued to spread, and many soldiers defending the city shouted together: "Welcome His Royal Highness the Crown Prince into the city!"

The middle city gate slowly opened.

Su Dingfang and Pei Xingjian led hundreds of cavalry in the front, and Li Chengqian's dragon chariot was surrounded in the middle, slowly driving into Chang'an City.

'I'm back, Chang'an.'

After several years, Li Chengqian came back again.

Looking at the familiar yet somewhat unfamiliar city gate, I felt a sense of emotion in my heart.

At the beginning, in order to protect themselves, they marched eastward to Goryeo.

Now, I can be said to have returned home in glory.

It feels a bit slow, but also a bit fast.

Because Li Chengqian himself was not sure whether Li Shimin would become seriously ill and unconscious, or even paralyzed for more than half a year, as happened in history.

After all, it was because of the death of his original body, Li Chengqian, that Li Shimin became mentally exhausted and induced the root of the disease.

However, although the current situation is also serious, I have heard from the news that it is not as serious as in history.

"Congratulations, Your Royal Highness."

Wang Meng trotted to the dragon chariot, knelt on one knee and shouted loudly.

Who could understand how much pressure he was under during this period?

On one side is the crown prince, on the other side is a court minister.

I'm really caught in the middle.

At this moment, he was very respectful, but what he was most worried about was offending the prince and being hated by him.

Li Chengqian raised his eyes and asked calmly, "Why, are you the only one here?"

Wang Meng did not dare to say more, and replied: "You are all in front to welcome His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

Li Chengqian had no intention of making things difficult for him. He waved his hand and ordered the team to move on.

Seeing this, Wang Meng finally breathed a sigh of relief.

The usually bustling Suzaku Street was now completely blocked by the imperial guards. All shops were closed and not a single person could be seen on the street.

Su Dingfang rode his horse to the side of the dragon chariot and whispered, "Your Highness, General Xue has been deployed in Quchifang."

It was naturally impossible for Li Chengqian to seize the city gate at this time.

Now there are a large number of imperial guards here, and everyone's focus is concentrated here, so a strong attack is difficult.

Night is the best time to act.

The target was not Mingde Gate, but Qixia Gate to the east.

At the beginning, Li Chengqian ordered the city gate guards to force open the Xia Gate based on the prince's order.

This time, I'm familiar with the route.

(End of this chapter)