Tang Dynasty: To win Yang Guifei, they asked Emperor Xuanzong to die.

Li Longji was like that—arrogant and suspicious.

Even though Li Mao had gone through countless hardships to save him, and Xianglan's loyalty was evident throughout, he still harbored suspicions about the two. —Since Li Mao and Xianglan had been so devoted to him, the emperor, could there be something going on between them?

Otherwise, why would Li Mao risk his life to save Xianglan, who was in the one-eyed bandit's room?

Li Longji himself was a heartless man, and he projected this onto others, believing that all men should be like him. Therefore, after Li Mao returned injured from his long journey, Li Longji not only did not show any kindness, but instead did something so heartless.

However, Li Mao didn't really care about these things.

In his eyes, Li Longji's act of seizing his son's princess was bizarre in itself. And what bizarre things a bizarre person does is always understandable.

Just like this time, when it was clearly only a ragtag army led by Shi Siming that attacked Chang'an, Li Longji was terrified and fled with his men, only to end up being kidnapped by bandits...

As Li Mao was pondering this, he suddenly heard someone knocking on the door.

He immediately sat up and said, "Come in."

Unexpectedly, the person who pushed open the door was none other than Crown Prince Li Heng.

Li Mao quickly stood up and bowed, saying, "Since His Highness the Crown Prince wishes to see me, he could simply send someone to summon me directly. Why must he condescend to knock on my door in person?"

“No need for formalities. I’m not here to be polite.” Li Heng sat down directly and said calmly, “I’m just thinking about what has happened these past few days and I feel it’s time to have a chat with you, my brother.”

At this moment, Li Heng put aside his airs as the crown prince.

Li Mao was not one to be ungrateful, so he naturally put aside his politeness and said with a smile, "In that case, please have a cup of tea, Your Majesty."

After saying that, he personally poured tea for Li Heng.

Li Heng slowly began, "I've thought a lot along the way. I've been wondering how I, as the Crown Prince, have fallen to this state."

His words carried no weight at the time. When the emperor said he wanted to flee, he ignored his advice and led everyone in the escape. He had no choice but to follow. As the crown prince, he did not personally command the troops, thinking that this would lessen his father's fear of him. However, it turned out to be a shackle that bound him.

"Sometimes I actually envy you. Although you are not valued by the Emperor, you don't have to put on airs as the Crown Prince all day long, and constantly think about being a good Crown Prince so that the Emperor can rest assured and the foundation of the country can be stable."

Li Mao shook his head: "Every coin has two sides. In the battle to capture the city, I captured Shi Siming's son, and I made his son run naked on the city wall. Guess what? Without losing a single soldier, we took over the six southern gates of Chang'an!"

Li Heng: "..."

"If it were you, you probably wouldn't have the same courage as me, would you?"

Li Heng: Most people can't do that, right?

The two of them started talking back and forth, and soon they were very talkative.

The tea on the table was being drunk with the air of alcohol, giving off a feeling of "a thousand cups are not enough when drinking with a close friend."

That evening, Li Mao's opinion of Li Heng changed somewhat.

I initially thought he was a somewhat capable but ultimately cowardly crown prince, a hypocrite who refused to lower his pride. But I never imagined he also had his own troubles and his own grievances against Li Longji.

However, due to their status, they could neither speak out nor disobey.

but……

Since the Crown Prince is determined to rebel, that's wonderful.

Thinking about the "good deeds" he had secretly done for Li Longji, Li Mao felt that if he made good use of Crown Prince Li Heng, it could also become a great help in advancing his plans.

Li Mao had never forgotten that Li Longji had tried to steal his wife.

This act of saving lives was in accordance with the times. If Li Longji ever finds himself unable to sit on the throne, Li Mao will definitely be the first to bring down his father, the emperor.

After the Crown Prince left, Li Mao thought to himself.

After thinking about it, he fell asleep.

In the middle of the night, I was suddenly awakened by a scream.

"What's going on?" These days, with frequent emergencies, Li Mao had developed a conditioned reflex. He quickly jumped out of bed, grabbed his sword, and rushed out.

In the darkness of night, only a few guards could be seen running back and forth, creating an atmosphere of extreme tension.

"What's going on!" Li Mao grabbed a guard and asked sternly.

"Yes... His Highness the Crown Prince has been injured. There are assassins. The imperial physician has been summoned to examine him, but the medicines are in short supply, so he cannot prescribe anything. He needs to go out and buy more tonight."

The assassination of the crown prince is a major event of great importance.

Fortunately, Li Longji was afraid of death, so he took the imperial physician with him when he fled, which came in very handy.

Li Mao said nothing, released the guards, and hurried towards Li Heng's residence. When he arrived, Li Longji was already standing at the door, his face ashen and his eyes sharp as knives.

"Your subject pays respects to Your Majesty," Li Mao said, bowing.

Li Longji's gaze swept over Li Mao, but he did not speak.

At this moment, Li Mao disregarded all etiquette and stood up before Li Longji could tell him to rise. He asked the imperial physician beside him, "How is His Highness the Crown Prince?"

The imperial physician shook his head, his expression grave: "Your Highness, this is not good. His Highness the Crown Prince was injured by a poisoned hidden weapon. This courtyard has been uninhabited for many years, and the pharmacy's stock of medicines is already insufficient to provide a full treatment. We can only wait for someone to buy the medicines as I requested."

Li Mao frowned, a hint of worry appearing in his eyes.

At this moment, Li Longji slowly spoke: "Prince Shou, I remember that your relationship with the Crown Prince has never seemed very close. Why are you in such a hurry to come today and ask about the situation? Are you worried about the Crown Prince, or are you eager to know something?"

Upon hearing this, Li Mao felt a slight chill run down his spine, understanding the implication of Li Longji's words.

Few people know the journey from Mawei Post Station to Xianyang City, and among those who do, it seems only Li Mao and the Crown Prince have a conflict of interest. Li Longji believes that Li Mao sent someone to assassinate Li Heng so that once the Crown Prince is dead, he, who holds military power, can compete for the position of heir apparent.

Heaven knows, Li Mao really didn't have that idea.

He was a fairly fair person. Li Heng hadn't killed his own aunt or taken his son's wife. Even if he were to kill someone, he would kill Li Longji, not Li Heng!

Of course, Li Mao couldn't say this to Li Longji, so he could only reply tactfully: "Father, although I don't have a very good relationship with His Highness the Crown Prince, he is still my elder brother. Moreover, the assassination attempt concerns the safety of all of us. The assassin's whereabouts are still unknown, and I am naturally concerned about whether he is still hiding around us."