Tang Dynasty: Father, if you don't rebel, I will!

"Are you really blind?"

The Eastern Palace, Xiande Hall.

Li Tai looked suspiciously at Yuan Tiangang, whose eyes were grayish-white.

He even waved his hand in front of the other person's face.

Seeing that the other party had no reaction, he frowned slightly and looked at Li Chunfeng beside him.

"Wasn't this old man perfectly normal just a couple of days ago? How come he went blind after only a few days? I remember he was quite skilled in medicine himself?"

Li Chunfeng smiled wryly and bowed.

"Your Highness, I am not clear about the details. I suddenly vomited blood on the night of the Lantern Festival, and then I became like this."

Upon hearing this, Li Chengqian, who was sitting in his seat, couldn't help but give the two of them a deep look.

Cleared his throat.

"So, Master Yuan, you've come today to say goodbye to me?"

Yuan Tiangang cupped his hands in a gesture of respect towards the direction where Li Chengqian was.

"This old Taoist priest is now blind, and I do not know if I will ever see the light again for the rest of my life. I am grateful for His Majesty's kindness in retaining my salary, but I am no longer suitable to serve in the Imperial Observatory. Therefore, I request to resign."

"Leave Chang'an."

Li Chengqian nodded slightly: "Has the Daoist priest decided where to go?"

Yuan Tiangang paused, remaining silent for a long while, then said, "Old Taoist, I plan to go to Taiyuan Prefecture..."

The voice just fell.

Li Tai, who was standing to the side, immediately widened his eyes.

"You old Taoist priest! Your true colors are showing, aren't you? Speak! Was it because my father refused to waste a single penny of his salary on you, and thus sent you to Bingzhou to be raised by my elder brother?"

"Just kill him!"

Li Chunfeng lowered his head, trying his best to appear as if he hadn't heard those words.

Li Chengqian waved his hand, signaling the boy to calm down.

His gaze fell upon Yuan Tiangang, who was now truly blind.

"It's perfectly fine for you to go to Taiyuan Prefecture, Daoist Master. I don't think you've been blind or your movements have been greatly affected since you entered Xiande Hall, so there's no need to worry or think of yourself as a cripple..."

Li Chengqian pondered for a long time.

"When I go to Bingzhou again this year, the Imperial Medical Academy and the Imperial Hospital will be built there. You can try your luck then; perhaps you'll find a way to cure the eye disease. As for what you did in Taiyuan Prefecture..."

Li Chengqian frowned in thought.

He didn't think much of treating the other person like a disabled person, finding a place to take care of them.

But this legendary Taoist figure, whose name is etched in history, would probably not accept it.

Then.

What can I arrange for the other party to do?

Just as Li Chengqian was struggling with his thoughts, Wang De strode in.

"Your Highness, the wandering monk Xuanzang requests an audience outside the palace."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Tiangang and Li Chunfeng remained expressionless, while Li Chengqian raised an eyebrow and looked at Li Tai beside him.

"Hehe, Your Majesty, you haven't been paying attention to Jingxin Temple these past few days. More than seventy of those bald monks have already starved to death, or rather, gone to hell and become true Buddhas."

As Li Tai spoke, his face was full of schadenfreude and satisfaction.

Li Chengqian then nodded slightly.

"The time is almost right; now it depends on whether Buddhism will be clever enough..."

As Li Chengqian spoke, he instructed Wang De to bring the person in.

Seeing that Li Chunfeng and Yuan Tiangang were about to get up, he waved his hand, indicating that they should sit down.

"There's no need for you two Taoist priests to avoid me; it's nothing serious."

after awhile.

Xuanzang, who looked much more haggard than on New Year's Eve, was brought in by Wang De.

"This humble monk, Xuanzang, greets Your Highness the Crown Prince."

"Hmm, has Buddhism come to a realization?"

Li Chengqian smiled enigmatically. Upon hearing this, Xuanzang took a deep breath and bowed again.

"Your Highness, the Buddhist community is now willing to pay taxes and tributes, and the monks will accept the supervision and management of the imperial court and abide by the law."

“In the future, those who wish to become monks or nuns will be reported to the imperial court. Only with the court’s approval can they enter our Buddhist community.”

Li Chengqian's lips curled into a smile.

"anything else?"

Xuanzang bowed in Buddhist homage: "The Buddhist community is willing to relinquish all land and guarantees that it will never again purchase land privately."

Li Chengqian was finally somewhat satisfied, nodding slightly, and then looked Xuanzang up and down, who seemed to have lost much of his energy.

He winked at Wang De, who was standing to the side.

The latter immediately brought a chair for the other person.

"Thank you for the seat, Your Highness."

Li Chengqian smiled and looked at the other party: "Now, because of those evil monks and illegal temples, the goodwill of the people of my Great Tang towards your Buddhist sect has dropped to freezing point."

"Although these issues may be alleviated in the future as you are better governed and abide by the law."

"However, in terms of Buddhist scriptures and doctrines, Buddhism is still far behind that of Buddhism in India."

Li Chengqian, seeing that Xuanzang seemed to have noticed something, didn't keep him in suspense.

"I've heard that you intend to go to India and travel west to obtain Buddhist scriptures?"

Xuanzang's eyes widened in surprise, while Yuan Tiangang and Li Chunfeng, sitting beside him, also became alert.

Indian Buddhism still contains many superior Buddhist teachings.

If Xuanzang really did return from his journey to the West to obtain Buddhist scriptures, and the court subsequently strengthened its control over Buddhism, given the Buddhist community's ability to persuade people to behave themselves.

I'm afraid His Highness the Crown Prince will like it very much.

"How did the Crown Prince find out? This humble monk has not mentioned it to anyone."

Li Chengqian smiled mysteriously.

"You don't need to worry about that. I only want to ask you, have you decided to go to India to obtain the scriptures?"

Xuanzang remained silent for a long time, then took a deep breath and nodded solemnly.

"Yes! This humble monk does indeed have this plan, and has already begun preparations."

"it is good!"

Li Chengqian slammed his hand on the table and suddenly beckoned to Li Ke, who was standing to the side.

The latter was taken aback, but after noticing Li Chengqian's gaze, he immediately understood and took out a Jinyiwei token from his pocket.

The token was casually tossed to Xuanzang, who was looking completely bewildered.

"Since you are first and foremost subjects of my Great Tang Dynasty, and only secondarily disciples of Buddhism, then as the Crown Prince of Great Tang, I shall arrange some matters for you..."

Xuanzang looked at the Embroidered Uniform Guard token in his hand, which seemed to exude a chilling aura and the smell of blood.

As if realizing something, he couldn't help but swallow hard.

"Your Highness, this humble monk..."

"Ok?"

Standing beside Li Chengqian, Li Ke narrowed his eyes, one hand lightly resting on the embroidered spring knife at his waist, his eyes filled with chilling killing intent as he looked at the relatively handsome bald monk in front of him.

During this period, tens of thousands of Buddhists died at the hands of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

And then those evil monks from various places were brought to Chang'an.

According to the emperor's decree, they were to be handed over to the Embroidered Uniform Guard for execution.

That number is far more than three or four hundred thousand.

If Xuanzang is too shameless today, Li Ke would not mind letting this fool also ask Buddha about the Western Paradise.

Xuanzang: "......"

"Your Highness, this humble monk is but a monk. Although I know a little martial arts, I can only protect myself at best. I'm afraid I might jeopardize Your Highness's important plans..."

He looked conflicted and troubled.

He was on his way to the Western Paradise to obtain Buddhist scriptures, and he passed through a large number of countries in the Western Regions.

The meaning behind Li Chengqian giving him the badge of the Embroidered Uniform Guard is self-evident.

"Hehe, it's alright. I'm not asking you to kill or set fires. Xuanzang, as a holy monk appointed by the Tang Dynasty royal family to go to India to obtain Buddhist scriptures, it's perfectly reasonable for you to record the local customs and draw up a map of the area along the way, isn't it?"

"If we can make friends with nobles from some Western Region countries along the way and establish friendly relations with our Great Tang, wouldn't that also be a way to promote Buddhism and spread peace?"

Li Chengqian was smiling, but his smile was not seen by Xuanzang and Li Chunfeng at that moment.

But it was full of malice.

Is this Crown Prince setting his sights on the lands of the Western Regions again?

Li Chengqian ignored the gazes of the crowd and smiled faintly.

Wang De placed a stack of documents, seemingly prepared in advance, in front of Xuanzang.

Upon seeing these documents and the contents recorded on them, the latter's pupils suddenly contracted.

“You are a person of firm resolve. If other members of the Buddhist community knew that you were going to India to obtain scriptures, they would certainly be willing to offer you some assistance. However, they are ultimately no match for the Tang Dynasty royal family.”

"These are things that the Lonely Man has prepared. They include the general route and the taboos of some countries along the way. They can help you a lot and make it easier for you to reach India."

"Just have the Buddhist monks prepare some martial monks to accompany you."

After Li Chengqian finished speaking, he looked at Xuanzang, who was staring blankly at the documents in front of him.

"This, this humble monk..."

“If you’re going to say that you can’t draw maps or gather information, the Embroidered Uniform Guard will teach you. Xuanzang, what else do you have to worry about?” Li Ke said coldly.

"If you are unwilling, you can leave directly. This kind of thing is not something that only your Buddhist sect can do."

"The westward journey of the Taoist sect and the exchange between the two religions should not pose any problem."

"You agree, right, Master Li, Master Yuan?"

Li Chunfeng was still somewhat at a loss, but the blind Yuan Tiangang smiled slightly.

“Your Highness is right. Many people in our Taoist sect also want to travel to India. If the Buddhist monks are unwilling to accept the court’s orders, our Taoist sect has never rejected serving the court, let alone such an important matter that will go down in history.”

"Your Highness..."

He bowed slightly in the direction of Li Chengqian.

"I can also contact some friends in the Taoist community and go to India to investigate the Western Regions for Your Highness."

Li Chengqian smiled slightly: "That's not impossible. Whether it's Sun Wukong or Erlang Shen, as long as they can accomplish what I asked them to do, I have no problem with Buddhism or Taoism."

The crowd couldn't understand what Sun Wukong was referring to when Li Chengqian spoke of him.

However, Xuanzang also sensed the distance in Li Chengqian's words and hurriedly stood up to pay his respects.

"Your Highness, Xuanzang is willing to go!"

Xuanzang, this "Tang Monk," left with the Imperial Guards.

In the days to come, he will undergo extensive "special agent training" to become a Buddhist imperial guard dressed in monk's robes and flying fish armor, assisting Li Chengqian in completing the preliminary explorations in the Western Regions and India.

And they tried to get the intelligence back.

This is a very large project, which is destined to require the cooperation of thousands, or even tens of thousands of people.

at the same time.

Li Chengqian, however, rode in a carriage and headed towards Jingxin Temple.

“Lizhi, you shouldn’t have come along. That place is no good…” Li Tai looked at his younger sister, Princess Chang Le, in the carriage with a headache.

Upon hearing this, the latter gave a light snort and grabbed the arm of his elder brother, Li Chengqian, who was standing to the side.

"Mind your own business! My brother hasn't said anything, you're just being nosy!"

Li Tai: "...I am also your elder brother."

Chang Le responded with a funny face.

Li Chengqian gave the other person a helpless tap on the head.