Traveling through Du He, Li Chengqian's rebellion begins

Will he ascend the throne on the sixteenth day of the first lunar month?

When Li Chengqian heard that his father was also in such a hurry to abdicate, the corners of his mouth lifted slightly, and a faint smile appeared on his face.

"Not bad!"

"This took even faster than I expected!"

Li Chengqian initially thought his father wanted to abdicate at the end of January, but he didn't expect him to set the time in the middle of the month. He truly deserved to be the father he respected the most.

He did not rush to answer Li Zhi's question, but instead asked Du He.

"Du He, there are only about half a month left until the sixteenth day of the first lunar month. Do you have enough time to prepare for the military review and fireworks?"

"The other coronation ceremonies are almost ready, now it's up to you."

Once Du He is ready, he can hold his coronation ceremony.

The enthronement ceremony was also simple: he received the congratulations of the officials and read the edict of accession. The rest, such as worshipping the heavens, the ancestral temple, and the imperial ancestral temple, were also simple matters.

After thinking about it for a while.

Du He nodded and said, "Your Highness, rest assured, we will definitely be able to complete it."

"it is good!"

Li Chengqian nodded happily.

He said to Li Zhi, "Zhi Nu, go back and tell Father Emperor that I will review the army on the Lantern Festival on the fifteenth of the first month, and I will hold the enthronement ceremony on the sixteenth of the first month."

There was a pause.

Li Chengqian continued, "I have already decided on the reign title, which is Hongmeng, meaning the unification of the world. Go back and tell your father."

Hongmeng?

What a grand and majestic reign title!

Li Zhi bowed and said, "Your Highness, please rest assured, I will go back and report to my father immediately."

He didn't even sit down for a sip of tea. After bowing, he turned and quickly left Mingde Hall.

Du He didn't stay in the East Palace for long. Instead, he went to find Xue Rengui and Wang Kang and asked them to speed up the training of formations and the making of fireworks.

...

A few days passed in the blink of an eye, and soon it was the twenty-third year of Zhenguan.

The New Year's Day.

A grand court assembly was about to be held in the Taiji Hall. When Li Chengqian arrived, he found that Du He was not present.

Before he could even ask any questions, Lai Ji strode in and reported.

"Your Highness, the Duke of Han just sent a guard to deliver a message saying that Princess Chengyang is about to give birth today and he needs to ask for a few days off."

"Besides Princess Chengyang, the other three concubines of the Duke of Han are also about to give birth."

hum~

As Lai Ji finished speaking, a low humming sound immediately filled the Taiji Hall.

The civil and military officials looked at each other in bewilderment, and they all prayed silently in their hearts.

"May the gods bless the Duke of Han's wives and concubines so that they may bear him two sons and two daughters!"

May the Korean prince have three sons and one daughter this time!

"..."

While the other officials were praying silently with devout expressions, Cui Shenji, Wang Jingzhi, and Xiao Kai were also praying in their hearts.

"We must have four sons!"

"May Heaven protect us!"

This time, someone has put out a betting pool: if you bet on Du He's wives and concubines to give birth to four sons, you can get five times the profit.

The three of them each bet 2000 strings of cash to produce four sons; they cannot afford any accidents.

If they bet right, they can make a lot of money!

On the imperial platform.

Li Chengqian said with concern, "Laiji, immediately send the imperial physicians and female officials from the palace to the princess's residence, and also send ten cartloads of top-quality blood-tonifying medicines there."

"Tell Du He to stay home and keep his wives and concubines company."

When the officials heard the crown prince's words, their faces were filled with envy.

The Duke of Han truly deserves to be His Highness the Crown Prince's most favored minister; just for his wives and concubines to have children, His Highness the Crown Prince has bestowed upon him so many gifts.

"According to the order!"

Lai Ji received the order and left quickly.

After a while.

Li Chengqian said in a loud voice, "My dear ministers, let's begin today's grand court assembly."

This year's grand court assembly followed the same procedures as in previous years, but there were significant changes when the tribute items from the vassal states were read out.

Last year, there were over a hundred foreign countries paying tribute, but this year there are only 20 left.

Moreover, these foreign envoys did not have the respect and longing for the Tang Dynasty as before, but were filled with fear and worry.

The strange phenomena reported by the officials and the celestial phenomena observed by Li Chunfeng all foreshadowed the emergence of a new emperor in the Tang Dynasty.

evening.

After Li Chengqian led his officials to worship at the Imperial Ancestral Temple, he had just returned to the Taiji Hall with his officials to prepare for a banquet when Lai Ji came in to report.

"Your Highness, Princess Chengyang has given birth to a baby boy, named Du Xinchao."

wow~

When the officials heard that Princess Chengyang had given birth to a baby boy, a huge uproar broke out.

Finished!

There aren't many baby girls left for them!

On the imperial platform.

Li Chengqian excitedly said, "Du Xinchao's name is good. Du He has put in a lot of effort. Reward him with a hundred gold pieces, a thousand acres of fertile land, and appoint Du Xinchao as the Marquis of Weinan County!"

"Ma Zhou, draft an imperial edict immediately after the banquet!"

What?

A newborn baby was granted a noble title?

This...this is just too outrageous!

In fact, none of these officials knew that in addition to rewarding Du He and his sister's son, Li Chengqian was also secretly placing bets.

Moreover, he bet 10 strings of cash that Du He's wives and concubines would give birth to four sons!

Ma Zhou stood up respectfully and replied, "As you command!"

The banquet that followed was supposed to be lively and bustling, but most of the officials wore forced smiles, and even the wine in their glasses didn't taste good.

After the banquet, the officials brought generous gifts to Du He's door to celebrate the birth of his son.

Over the next seven days, Du He's three concubines gave birth to sons one after another, all of whom were boys!

East Palace.

Inside the Chengen Hall.

Li Chengqian threw his head back and laughed wildly: "Hahaha, Du He is really damn capable, she actually gave birth to four more boys."

"Not bad!"

"Truly worthy of being my lucky minister!"

Having just washed up, Su Wan entered the main hall wrapped in a white fox fur coat.

After hearing her husband's words, Su Wan asked in confusion.

"Your Highness, why are you so happy?"

Li Chengqian explained with a smile, "I bet 10 strings of cash that Du He's wives and concubines gave birth to four sons, and now I've earned 50 strings. Don't you think I should be happy?"

what!

The Crown Prince actually bet 10 strings of cash!

When Su Wan heard this news, her mouth dropped open.

What kind of trust does the husband have in the Duke of Han to dare to spend so much money?

Su Wan asked worriedly, "Your Highness, you've won so much money, will the bookmaker be able to come up with the money?"

Li Chengqian waved his hand: "The bookmakers are Prince Jing, Li Yuanjing; Prince Jiang, Li Yun; Prince Han, Li Yuanjia; and Prince Jiang, Li Yuanxiang, among others. They can easily raise this amount of money."

That's alright!

Su Wan said with a smile, "Congratulations, Your Highness, another large sum of money has come into the imperial treasury."

Once the Crown Prince ascends the throne and becomes Emperor, the amount of money needed will increase more than tenfold, so she can feel more at ease with more money in the imperial treasury.

Li Chengqian smiled and stroked his short beard.

The next day.

A meeting of hundreds of officials.

When Du He entered the Taiji Hall, he found Hou Junji, Yuchi Gong, Cheng Yaojin, Lu Chengqing, Zhang Jian, Tang Jian, and other ministers looking at him with resentment.

Du He touched her cheek, her mind filled with doubt.

"what's going on?"

"Is my face dirty?"

As Du He took a few steps forward, a smiling Choi Shin-ki approached and began to explain to her in a low voice.

After listening.

Du He's lips curled slightly.

Good guy!

It turns out that these gamblers had all lost a lot of money. For example, Yuchi Gong lost 2500 strings of cash, Cheng Yaojin lost 2000 strings, and Tang Jian lost 1500 strings.

These gamblers are really big spenders.

They deserved to lose.

Du He shook her head and ignored them, instead sitting on the cushion to wait for Li Chengqian's arrival.

Not long after, Li Chengqian strode into the Taiji Hall with an imposing presence.

"Welcome to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

Amid the cheers of the officials, Li Chengqian strode up to the imperial platform, his joy evident on his face.

Du He raised an eyebrow: "Could it be that Li Chengqian made a fortune from this?"

"I'll have to ask him after the court session."