Li Chengqian of the Tang Dynasty: Please say long live His Majesty

Chapter 142: Li Shimin’s Terrifying Methods (Part )

The night is cold and the imperial city is silent.

Li Chengqian came from Chengtian Gate in a sedan chair.

Qianniu Prison is located on the west side of the Zuo Qianniu Guard's official residence, and the Zuo Qianniu Guard's official residence is also in the southwest corner of the imperial city, and Taipingfang is to the south.

Compared to the bustling Taipingfang, the entire imperial city is much quieter.

Especially Qianniu Prison, where not many people come even on normal days.

Not to mention that families are reuniting tonight, even the number of officials on duty in the imperial city is extremely small.

But, Qianniu Prison is different after all.

Li Chengqian walked into Qianniu Prison with a calm expression, passed through three extremely strict gates, and finally came to a long corridor.

At the end of the corridor, a prison door that only allowed one person to pass through opened, and Li Chengqian saw the emperor standing behind the railing opposite at a glance.

The emperor stood behind the railing, followed by Changsun Wuji and Fang Xuanling.

Zhang Ananda stood on the steps at the left side of the door.

General Chang He of the Left Thousand Oxen Guard and General Yin Yuan of the Left Thousand Oxen Guard, dressed in red and golden armor, stood at the bottom of the steps on both sides with their hands on long swords, looking down vigilantly.

Li Tai stood at the emperor's right hand with a respectful look.

After Li Chengqian walked into the small door, he stood on the emperor's left hand.

Below the stairs on both sides is an outer prison where interrogation is taking place. Going inside and downwards, there are countless prisoners densely packed in the outer prison.

In the entire Qianniu Prison, except for the office area on the ground, all the cells are built underground.

Although the Tang Dynasty was in the Zhenguan era, there were definitely quite a few people who opposed the emperor.

Especially those who failed in the chaotic times at the end of the Sui Dynasty, many of them are still alive!
……

Li Chengqian glanced at him, then bowed to the emperor and said, "Your Highness, your son pays respect to you, Father."

The emperor turned around calmly and looked at Li Chengqian deeply.

Li Chengqian looked calm and bowed seriously. He had nothing shameful to show.

"No need to be so polite!" The emperor raised his hand slightly.

"Yes!" Li Chengqian immediately stood up and looked towards the outer prison below.

Qi Zhixuan, wearing a white undershirt, was tied tightly to a wooden frame, with his hands, legs, and mouth bound tightly, as if the interrogation had not yet begun. However, his body was already covered with deep bloodstains, and his white undershirt had long been torn to shreds.

Only on the face, no whip marks.

"Prince, do you know him?" the emperor's voice came from the side.

Li Chengqian immediately turned around and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, I know him. His name is Qi Zhixuan, the son of Qi Yu, the governor of Guangzhou. I met him once last year at the residence of the Duke of Susong County. We exchanged a few words, but I haven't seen him since... However, at that time, Zheng Xuanguo, the son of the Duke of Susong County, and I both thought he was a bit strange. I later sent someone to investigate him, but he left Chang'an the next day."

"That night, the Yongzhou government office caught fire." The emperor looked up and said calmly, "And before that, you went to retrieve Lu Hu's file."

"Yes, Lu Hu's widow had a difficult life in Chang'an. Coincidentally, she and Crown Prince Liangti were cousins, so Crown Prince Liangti came to me for help. So I wanted to retrieve Lu Hu's belongings to see if I could find anything unusual, but I haven't had the chance to look at those things yet..."

"Those things were burned." The emperor suddenly smiled and said, "No, those things were not burned. You hid them in advance."

"Yes!" Li Chengqian bowed.

"So, you sensed there would be a problem in advance?"

"I just felt something was not right, so I made some arrangements, and the result is neither good nor bad." Li Chengqian sighed softly.

"We caught a guy who refused to talk no matter what." The emperor couldn't help laughing.

"Yes!" Li Chengqian bowed, then shook his head and said, "But unfortunately, there is nothing valuable among Lu Hu's things."

"But he didn't know, did he?" Li Shimin suddenly turned to look at Li Tai and said, "So he returned to Chang'an at the end of the year, this time to assassinate you, right, Qingque?"

The emperor's sudden words startled Li Tai, who was standing on the other side. He didn't react for a moment: "Ah?"

Li Shimin's face darkened instantly. He looked at Li Tai and asked, "I'm asking you, is this person the assassin who tried to kill you that day?"

Li Tai was about to say yes, but when he glanced at Qi Zhixuan below, he couldn't help but hesitate.

"Speak!" the emperor roared suddenly.

"Yes!" Li Tai bowed quickly. He had a feeling that if he didn't speak up, the emperor might kick him.

"What is it?"

"It was he who suddenly appeared in the palace that day. When I went to the study, he suddenly shot an arrow at me from the shadows. Fortunately, the shot was not accurate and did not hit me. Then he was scared away. It was at that time that I looked at him. So, father, it was him." After Li Tai finished speaking, he quickly lowered his head.

Changsun Wuji and Fang Xuanling, who were standing by, were completely speechless.

"Prince!" The emperor suddenly turned to look at Li Chengqian and asked, "After you took over the investigation, why did you send people to Chang'an on the surface to investigate, but secretly sent people to Luoyang? How did you know that he had escaped from Chang'an and fled to Luoyang?"

"Your Majesty!" Li Chengqian came back to his senses and quickly said, "I was actually investigating a case of someone colluding with the Xueyantuo. The Qianniu Guards found some traces, but the person escaped. Later, the assassination of Qingque occurred. So I speculate that the person actually assassinated Qingque to attract the attention of the Great Wall Guards, and took the opportunity to escape from Chang'an City."

Li Tai's assassination was just a pretext to attract the attention of Qianniu Guards, Jinwu Guards, Dali Temple, Yongzhou Prefecture and Chang'an Wannian County, while he took the opportunity to escape.

"How did you know he fled to Luoyang?"

"At Chunming Gate, someone left the city just as the gates were opening with the token from the Prince of Wei's mansion and then fled. This is why I suspect he stole the token from the Prince of Wei's mansion and secretly went to Luoyang. Then it was Su Dingfang, Zhang Wenguan, and Li Yifu's turn. I don't know how they caught him." Li Chengqian bowed and told the truth. His words piqued the emperor's interest in Su Dingfang, Zhang Wenguan, and Li Yifu. But that was a story for later.

The emperor nodded and said, "Li Yifu has suggested that the man who was previously arrested should be brought to meet Qi Zhixuan. If they know each other, or even if that man is Qi Zhixuan's subordinate, then the group that previously attempted to murder the crown prince and now assassinated the King of Wei, and is trying to stir up internal strife in the Tang imperial family, is led by the son of Qi Yu, the governor of Guangzhou. Am I correct?"

"Your Majesty is wise." All the ministers inside and outside the court bowed in unison.

With just one sentence, the emperor completely covered up the dispute between Li Tai and Li Chengqian for the throne.

Convert everything into external contradictions.

This person is Qi Zhixuan, and the group of forces behind him.

……

The emperor looked up at Chang He and waved his hand slightly.

Chang He bowed, then quickly walked down the stairs.

A moment later, a middle-aged man who was also tied up tightly was pushed into the interrogation room.

The moment the middle-aged man saw Qi Zhixuan tied to the wooden frame, he couldn't help but struggle violently.

It still goes without saying that they are a group of people.

"Chang He, untie all his ropes." The emperor's voice came from above, and the middle-aged man was stunned.

Who is so bold as to call General Chang He of the Left Thousand Oxen Guard by his name?

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Chang He said, and the middle-aged man stopped dead in his tracks.

The ropes on his body were quickly untied, but the middle-aged man couldn't help but look up.

The emperor, dressed in a scarlet and yellow dragon robe, stood behind the railing above.

The middle-aged man couldn't help but collapse.

The emperor, the emperor, the emperor is coming.

Li Shimin stepped forward gently, looking coldly at the middle-aged man below who had been freed from all his restraints, and said calmly, "Chang Meng!"

"Yes!" The middle-aged man Chang Meng responded subconsciously, then suddenly raised his head, his face already terrified. In an instant, he turned his head to look at Qi Zhixuan who was tied to the wooden frame. Could it be that he...

He tried to protect him several times and wanted to die several times but failed, and he actually betrayed him.

"No need to look at him." The emperor's voice came from above, and Chang Meng immediately turned around to look at the emperor.

Li Shimin said calmly, "Your case was discovered by the Qianniu Guards. They found your wife and children in Dingzhou, but they were under strict surveillance and were unable to rescue them. However, I will order the Qianniu Guards to go directly to Dingzhou to rescue them... So, don't worry, your wife and children will definitely be reunited with you."

Li Chengqian and Li Tai, who were standing by, all looked at the emperor in surprise. They had no idea that the emperor had already figured out Chang Meng's background.

"So, now, I ask you, are you willing to confess everything?" The emperor's eyes gradually turned cold.

"Your humble servant...your humble servant obeys your order." Chang Meng immediately turned around and kowtowed to the ground.

"Humble soldier," Li Chengqian looked up in surprise.

This person actually used to be a soldier in the army.

Yes, it must be the soldiers in the army.

Those soldiers who retired from the army have always been the targets of recruitment by major families and nobles, and the Qi family is no exception.

However, you could normally let these people die, but in front of the emperor, they are willing to give their hearts and lungs out.

Not to mention, Chang Meng's wife and children will be sent to Chang'an soon. At this time, no one will keep the secret for the Qi family.

The Qi family is finished.

Not only the Qi family, but everything Chang Meng knew, everything Chang Meng and Qi Zhixuan had traveled all over the country together, everything they had come into contact with and knew, would all be told to the emperor at this moment.

The emperor waved his hand slightly and said, "Take the man away and interrogate him in detail. Then, assign him to the Hundred Cavalry Division to investigate all matters!"

"Yes!" Chang He bowed solemnly, then left with Chang Meng.

……

Li Chengqian stood to one side, and for a moment, he felt that his breathing was a little difficult.

In the blink of an eye, the emperor used Chang Meng, the confidant of the Qi family, and he became the emperor's most ferocious hunting dog against the Qi family.

Prestige. The emperor's prestige in the army was almost unmatched.

"Qi Zhixuan!" Li Shimin looked at Qi Zhixuan, who was hanging on the rack, with a cold gaze and asked, "Let me ask you a question. Are you willing to tell the truth? If you tell the truth, your parents, your relatives, your family members, servants, and everyone else will be able to live."

Qi Zhixuan suddenly looked up at the emperor, but then he lowered his head again.

"Li Yifu is right. Those people are willing to commit suicide to warn you, which shows that you really know a lot. Very good, then, just bear with it." The emperor's eyes turned cold, and he said, "Send men to Guangzhou immediately to arrest the Guangzhou Governor Qi Yu. Send men to Dingzhou to arrest all members of the Qi family and their clans. I want to see how many people are willing to take their lives for this crime of treason."

"I obey your order." Changsun Wuji and Fang Xuanling bowed at the same time.

Qi Zhixuan was tied to a wooden frame. He heard the emperor's voice clearly, but he kept his head down and did not move.

Li Chengqian couldn't help but narrow his eyes slightly.

(End of this chapter)