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

Chapter 422: Patriarchal Law: Imprisonment at the Lightest and Death at the Severest (Fourth Update)

In the Taiji Hall, Li Chengqian slapped the imperial desk.

With a "bang", all the memorials on the imperial desk jumped up instantly, and then fell down silently.

"He deserves to die!" Li Chengqian gritted his teeth as he stared at the memorial in front of him, his fists clenched tightly. "This is ridiculous, it's really too ridiculous. How could such a thing happen? Qiu Shenji, kill me..."

Before Qiu Shenji, who was standing at the foot of the Danbi, could speak, Li Yifu, who was standing to the side, had already bowed and said, "Your Majesty, calm down."

Li Yifu glanced at Qiu Shenji, who had an indifferent expression. Although he didn't know what the content of the secret report was, but.

"Your Majesty has said that it is inappropriate to kill people when you first ascend the throne." Li Yifu bowed and said, "If someone has committed any illegal acts, Your Majesty will have the Three Courts investigate the crime and decide on the execution."

Li Chengqian looked up at Li Yifu, took a deep breath, and calmed down. He nodded and said, "My dear, you are right."

Although he said so, Li Chengqian's eyes were still extremely cold.

Yang Yuzhi, Yang Yuzhi.

How dare he.

Li Chengqian originally thought that what Wu Shun said that day was extremely absurd, but he didn't expect that there was something even more absurd.

It was so absurd that even he couldn't bring himself to speak of it.

This matter cannot be revealed. It concerns the reputation of the Tang Dynasty and the reputation of the entire Li Tang royal family.

Li Chengqian looked at Qiu Shenji and said, "Qiu Qing, over the past two years, more than twenty maids have disappeared from Princess Changguang's villa. They're probably all dead. Find someone to pretend to be the father of one of the maids and go to Wannian County to file a lawsuit."

"Your Majesty, the matter involves the princess, and it is difficult for Wannian County to handle it. Moreover, the princess's villa cannot be entered by Wannian County." Qiu Shenji looked at Li Chengqian with some confusion.

According to Tang law, slaves and servants were treated like livestock.

However, according to Tang law, anyone who killed a cow or a horse without official approval would be sentenced to one year in prison.

Killing slaves without authorization is naturally wrong, but the law also has the right of "seven discussions" for the powerful, so the final result must be a fine.

"If the complaint in Wannian County fails, go to Yongzhou Prefecture." Li Chengqian looked at Qiu Shenji and said directly, "After your father receives the petition, he will come to the palace to see me and ask me to make a ruling on the grounds that it involves the princess. Then, I will ask the Prime Minister, the Chief Secretary, and the Minister of Imperial Clan Affairs to deal with it together."

Yu Zhining, Zhang Xuansu, and Li Baiyao were all role models who persuaded Li Chengqian to be a good crown prince in the Eastern Palace.

Now that they have come forward, even if Changsun Wuji pleads for mercy, it will probably be difficult to get them to change their attitude.

If they change it, it would be like they are contradicting themselves.

Hit them in the face.

They taught Li Chengqian not to be absurd and to be an upright and virtuous prince.

If they showed mercy in such a situation, Li Chengqian would peel off their faces in front of all the civil and military officials in the court.

"Your Majesty, what about the Censorate, the Ministry of Justice and the Supreme Court?" Li Yifu bowed.

"Yang Yuzhi is the princess's son. His family tree is classified as a foreign relative and is under the jurisdiction of the Zongzheng Temple." Li Chengqian raised his head calmly and said, "It is sufficient for the Zongzheng Temple to enforce the family law."

The clan system can lead to imprisonment at the lightest and execution at the worst.

However, the Zongzheng Temple rarely did such things, and even if it did, it was only under the emperor's secret order.

This matter now...

Li Chengqian suddenly looked up at Cen Changqian, who had just stopped outside the hall, and asked, "Mr. Cen, is there something wrong?"

"Your Majesty, Duke Zhao Jie of Kaihua County is requesting an audience outside the palace." Cen Changqian bowed gently.

Li Chengqian took a deep breath, then smiled softly and said, "He's back."

"Your Majesty!" Li Yifu and Qiu Shenqi bowed at the same time.

"You guys step aside first. I'll think about how to handle this matter." Li Chengqian raised his head. Now that Zhao Jie was back, this matter had to be handled more tactfully.

Li Yifu and Qiu Shenqi retreated behind the curtains on both sides at the same time.

Li Chengqian raised his head, looked at Cen Changqian and said, "Spread it!"

……

"Your Majesty, I, Zhao Jie, the governor of Yangzhou and Duke of Kaihua, come to see you!" Zhao Jie, dressed in a clean purple official robe, knelt on the ground and kowtowed deeply to Li Chengqian.

"Stand up." Li Chengqian looked at Zhao Jie gently and asked, "How is it? Have you met your mother since returning home?"

"Yes." Zhao Jie stood up and bowed, saying, "I saw my mother first, and only came to see Your Majesty after she fell asleep... I haven't thanked Your Majesty for saving my life yet!"

Before Zhao Jie finished speaking, he knelt down again and kowtowed deeply to Li Chengqian.

Li Chengqian sighed lightly. In his previous life, Zhao Jie was sentenced to death for following him, but his mother pleaded for him and asked Yang Shidao to plead for him as well, which eventually led to Yang Shidao being dismissed from his position. Apart from other things, although his mother remarried, she really cared about the two brothers.

"Stand up, do we need to talk about this?" Li Chengqian waved his hand. Zhao Jie's mother was Li Chengqian's aunt, so they didn't need to be too polite as cousins.

"Yes!" Zhao Jie then stood up.

"How's the situation in Yangzhou?" Li Chengqian looked serious.

"Your Majesty, the autumn harvest is already halfway through. I was going to continue overseeing it, but Your Majesty summoned me back..." Zhao Jie hesitated. Over the past few years, under Li Chengqian's strict guidance, he had gradually begun to adapt to the role of a qualified provincial governor. "Let the Chief Secretary handle the affairs of Yangzhou. At worst, I can send a Censor to oversee them later." Li Chengqian's expression softened. "Your only duty in Chang'an now is to watch over your mother... By the way, how long will your official leave last?"

"Half a month, Your Majesty!" Zhao Jie looked at Li Chengqian with some embarrassment. He was now a governor. Although he was summoned by the emperor, if he really stayed at home to take care of his mother, he would inevitably be impeached by the censor after half a month.

"How about this, I'll give you a sinecure. You just report in every day and then take care of your mother at home." Li Chengqian smiled calmly.

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

"I think you should just be the Inspector General of Yongzhou." After Li Chengqian finished speaking, Zhao Jie looked at Li Chengqian with some surprise and said with a cupped hand, "Your Majesty, this is inappropriate, isn't it?"

"What's inappropriate about that? Wasn't the King of Wei the Governor of Xiangzhou and the Governor of Yongzhou back then?" Li Chengqian waved his hand and said, "It's just a Yongzhou Beijia, nothing special. It's a good opportunity for you to rest. Oh, at worst, you can take on the title of Crown Prince's Right Instructor. That's all that's needed, right?"

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Zhao Jie finally breathed a sigh of relief. He then looked at Li Chengqian carefully and asked, "Your Majesty, why hasn't you appointed a crown prince yet?"

"As long as my father is still here, I'm not in a hurry." Li Chengqian shook his head and said, "Xiang'er was made crown prince too early, so the court officials won't take my father too seriously."

The Supreme Emperor is the ruler, the Emperor is the ruler, and the Crown Prince is also the ruler.

If there were only the emperor and the retired emperor, the retired emperor would still be very important in people's hearts, but with the addition of a crown prince, people would subconsciously forget about the retired emperor.

"I was not considerate enough." Zhao Jie bowed.

"That's all right." Li Chengqian smiled and said, "I should have invited you to dinner at the palace, but your mother is not feeling well, so you should go back early. Oh, and remember to discipline your children. They should stay home for the next few days and report to Yongzhou Prefecture at 9:00 PM every day."

"I obey your order." Zhao Jie felt a little funny. The emperor still treated him like a child, taking care of him in every aspect.

"Okay, go down, I still have a lot of things to do here."

"I'll take my leave, Your Majesty. Take care." Zhao Jie looked at Li Chengqian earnestly and gratefully, then turned around and walked quickly out of the hall.

Only when Zhao Jie completely disappeared from his sight did Li Chengqian's expression become indifferent.

"Your Majesty!" Li Yifu and Qiu Shenqi walked out from the curtains on both sides.

"Let me tell you, father, after Zhao Jie takes up his post, you don't have to rush home after court these few days." Li Chengqian looked at Qiu Shenjie gently.

"I understand." Qiu Shenqi nodded.

He knew that the emperor wanted Zhao Jie to handle the matter of his half-brother Yang Yuzhi himself.

Kill people and kill your heart.

"Let's see what happens to him." Li Chengqian waved his hand and stood up, saying, "You guys continue to be busy. I'm going to go and relax. What a mess this is!"

"Farewell, Your Majesty!" All the ministers in the hall stood up.

Walking out of the Liangyi Hall, the cool afternoon breeze brought a sense of comfort, but Li Chengqian felt an irrepressible murderous intent in his heart.

"Your Majesty!" Xu An stepped forward gently.

"Go to Concubine Wei in Yidong Palace."

"Here!"

……

The autumn rain has just stopped, in the princess's villa outside Chang'an City.

Zhao Jie stood in front of the large pit that had been dug, looking at the white bones that appeared before his eyes, as well as the female corpse that seemed to have died not long ago.

A lot of hair was tangled in the digging hoe and mixed in the soil, and every strand seemed to be filled with coldness.

Zhao Jie turned around and looked at the Yongzhou officials who were still moving around. His body couldn't help but tremble slightly.

Suddenly, he walked quickly to the horse beside him, quickly jumped on it, and then flew towards the palace.

Soon, Zhao Jie arrived at Chengtian Gate.

Cen Changqian seemed to have just seen off an official. Seeing Zhao Jie, he stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Duke Kaihua."

"I want to see His Majesty!" Zhao Jie said as he was about to walk towards the palace.

Cen Changqian quickly reached out to stop Zhao Jie and said helplessly, "County Lord, there are court rules. Even if His Majesty is in Liangyi Palace right now, please wait for this subordinate's notification before speaking. Not to mention that His Majesty is not in Liangyi Palace at all."

"If His Majesty is not in Liangyi Palace, then where is he?" Zhao Jie stared at Cen Changqian.

"His Majesty has returned to the Eastern Palace and is in the Yidong Palace." Cen Changqian looked at Zhao Jie helplessly and said, "His Majesty usually doesn't allow anyone to disturb him when he's in the Eastern Palace. He's been in the Yidong Palace these days, and it seems he's planning to have another child with Concubine Wei."

"Princess Wei, doesn't the Queen have anything to say?" Zhao Jie suddenly frowned.

"Concubine Wei is the daughter of Duke Zheng, the Queen won't say much." After saying this, Cen Changqian bowed solemnly to Zhao Jie, then turned around and left without hesitation.

Duke of Zheng, Wei Zheng.

Zhao Jie's face suddenly turned pale.

　Tomorrow night, after this section, we will start "Three Dynasties later, King Wu replaced the Tang Dynasty"

　　
　
(End of this chapter)