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

Li Lin led Li Heng at a brisk pace, the sound of their horses' hooves particularly loud in the night.

In truth, Li Heng was filled with doubt and confusion regarding Li Lin's sudden and enthusiastic invitation. However, out of trust for his younger brother, he followed him to a grove of trees on a small road in the east of the city.

"This is it," Li Lin ordered the carriage to stop. "Your Majesty, you'd better keep your eyes wide open and see what kind of person these people who usually act all high and mighty around you really are!"

On the other side, Gao Lishi had the driver slowly stop the coachman in a dark corner not far away.

Li Longji sat in the carriage, looking at his two sons not far away with mixed feelings.

A short while later, his third son, Li Mao, appeared.

Li Mao was accompanied by three respectful men in black, who stood under a willow tree, seemingly engaged in conversation. Judging from their expressions and attire, they didn't appear to be up to anything nefarious. —Who would be having a clandestine rendezvous near the woods at night?

Li Longji could not hear Li Mao and the others, but Li Lin and Li Heng could.

A moment later, Li Heng's expression suddenly changed.

Immediately afterwards, Li Lin and Li Heng stepped forward and appeared, blocking the way of Li Mao and the others!

When Li Mao saw them, he was initially shocked.

Then, a cold smile appeared on his face, and he said through gritted teeth, "How did you all find your way here? It seems that your two imperial brothers are indeed very well-informed!"

His expression looked furious and embarrassed, as if he had been caught red-handed in the act.

Li Heng stared at him and asked, "Mao'er, what's going on?"

He had overheard Li Mao's conversation with the man in black from a short distance away. From the man in black, he learned that these were the very people who had assassinated him. And these men addressed Li Mao as "Master"...

Li Heng is still willing to give Li Mao one last chance, calling him "Mao'er," which means that he still has some affection left.

But how could Li Lin allow Li Heng to be so polite to Li Mao? Without waiting for Li Mao's response, he stepped forward and said, "Eighteenth brother, the Crown Prince has treated you well and has been praising you all these days. How could you do such a treasonous thing and try to harm the Crown Prince!"

As the three confronted each other, the men in black who had been following Li Mao suddenly knelt down as if they had planned it, and began to cry out, "Your Highness, Your Highness Prince Yong, spare our lives! It was all Prince Shou who forced us to do this. He said he wanted to assassinate Your Highness and become emperor himself... Although we felt that this was against the natural order and morality, we could not resist Prince Shou's insistence on forcing us to do this!"

Upon hearing this, Li Heng's expression became even more solemn. He shook his head at Li Mao in disbelief, unable to utter a single word.

Faced with this sudden turn of events, Li Mao remained unusually calm.

He looked at the two men with a cold smile, a hint of mockery on his lips: "My two royal brothers, things have come to this point. If you believe these people, what else can I say?"

Although this statement is not an admission of one's "crime," it conveys a sense of utter helplessness and desperation after being caught red-handed, which is almost equivalent to admitting guilt.

“Brother Crown Prince, I actually investigated Prince Shou’s horse farm long ago when I was in Chang’an. He was raising and training warhorses there so that he could one day build a private army and plot a rebellion! I’ve already collected the evidence, just to catch him off guard. Now that we’ve caught him red-handed, Brother Crown Prince, what do you suggest we do with Prince Shou?”

Li Lin was overjoyed to see things unfolding exactly as he wished, and righteously demanded that Li Heng punish Li Mao.

“No,” Li Heng, being the composed Crown Prince, shook his head and said, “This matter cannot be decided by us in a few words. We must report it to Father and investigate it according to procedure. As for how to deal with Prince Shou, it must be Father’s decision.”

The reason why the Crown Prince is the Crown Prince is that, at least for now, he is of one mind with the Emperor and greatly respects his Emperor father.

The argument grew louder, and Li Longji could hear it clearly from inside his carriage. The more he listened, the more uneasy he felt. His face turned ashen, and he asked Gao Lishi, "Gao, what exactly is going on? Did you also discover Prince Shou's rebellion long ago?"

As he spoke, he was about to get out of the car to see for himself.

"Your Majesty, please wait!"

Gao Lishi quickly stopped him, signaling Li Longji to continue observing.

Although Li Longji was an impatient man who became even less inclined to listen to advice as he grew older, Gao Lishi's special status meant he was still willing to give him some face.

The two sat in the carriage for a while before Gao Lishi said, "Your Majesty, this is the matter I wish to report to you today. However... I am not exposing Prince Shou, but Prince Yong who is stirring up trouble behind the scenes, plotting against the Tang Dynasty!"

From Gao Lishi, Li Longji heard another analysis and explanation of the recent series of events.

Li Longji's face gradually changed from ashen to black as the bottom of a pot, then slowly returned to normal. He chuckled and said, "I didn't expect that I was so dull-witted. These days I only know how to guard against Prince Shou, but I didn't expect that my own backyard is on fire. This son who seems least likely to start a rebellion is actually playing dumb to take advantage of the situation."

"Alright, I'll go take a look and see what tricks Prince Yong is planning to pull out next." With that, Li Longji, supported by Gao Lishi, walked towards the willow grove.

Several attendants followed behind him carrying chairs, as the emperor couldn't stand for long periods when traveling and needed someone to serve him a seat. It was only because he had left in a hurry today that he hadn't brought a table or snacks and fruit; otherwise, they would have been set out.

Upon seeing Li Longji's arrival, everyone except Li Mao was startled and immediately knelt down to pay their respects.

However, Li Lin reacted quickly. Before anyone else could answer, he stepped forward and said, "Father, you've come at the perfect time! All the evidence is irrefutable—Prince Shou has been secretly preparing for a rebellion for a long time. The horses in his stables are trained to the standards of warhorses. He is undoubtedly cunning. Moreover, the testimonies of these witnesses are enough to prove that he wants to establish himself as emperor!"

Li Longji looked at his son, expressionless.

He then turned to the Crown Prince and asked, "Do you think what Lin'er said is true?"

"Your Majesty, I believe this matter requires further investigation," Li Heng replied without hesitation.

Seeing that Li Longji showed no sign of being enraged by Li Mao's "betrayal," Li Lin grew anxious and was thinking of ways to stir up trouble when Gao Lishi said, "Your Highness, you can look at this evidence. These are all letters sent directly from Chang'an by my spies. Compared to Prince Yong's unsubstantiated claims, this is much more important evidence."