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

"The Cui clan of Boling, the Cui clan of Qinghe, the Lu clan of Fanyang, and the Li clan of Zhaojun were the ringleaders who rebelled, defied their superiors, and coerced the people, causing widespread suffering."

"Although I have a benevolent heart, there is absolutely no reason to forgive such traitors."

"With the dynasty newly established and new policies just beginning, we should impose severe punishments and harsh laws to deter the wicked and barbarian tribes..."

Today in Chang'an, those who came to the execution ground to watch were not only a large number of people and civilians.

Almost all the court officials were present.

One of them was the top window of a restaurant belonging to the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Li Chengqian quietly looked at the people in front of him. The number of people to be beheaded today, just from the Cui family of Boling alone, already exceeded eight thousand.

These were the core male members of the Cui clan of Boling, who were detained in Chang'an, as well as male members of some powerful local families in Hedong who were under their command.

Furthermore, in Boling City of Hedong Province, there are still more than 30,000 people imprisoned to this day.

Cui Mingan shivered in the cold wind, his head resting on the execution platform, while he seemed to mutter something over and over again.

He stared intently at Sun Yi, the eunuch who was announcing the imperial decree.

"May our ancestors bless us, may our ancestors bless us, may our ancestors bless us..."

Among the crowd was Wang Ming, the head of the Wang family from Taiyuan, who had come to Chang'an to report on his duties after the New Year. He shook his head slightly, his expression complicated. Zheng Jiang of the Zheng family from Xingyang, standing beside him, also looked dazed.

“How could we have imagined that our five clans and seven noble families, which have been passed down for hundreds of years and have survived several dynasties, would one day be led to the execution ground by the entire clan… Truly, the world is unpredictable.”

At this moment, Wang Ming dared not show the slightest sympathy on his face, nor did he dare to have any thoughts of shared sorrow. He was filled only with gratitude for the continued existence of his family.

Zheng Jiang remained silent.

Does the family line continue?

They are now nothing more than frogs in slowly boiling water.

This can be seen from the fact that His Highness the Crown Prince is now carrying out major educational reforms and official promotion reforms in Bingzhou.

Within two generations at most, the officialdom of the Tang Dynasty will no longer have any powerful clans controlling the government, and if the only remaining Wang and Zheng families are not wise in their patriarchs...

Or perhaps there were no talented individuals among the clansmen who could bring significant benefits to the Tang Dynasty.

It will gradually disappear into the vastness of history, just like the receding tide.

Just then, Sun Yi finally read out the final decision regarding the punishment of these people.

"The ringleader, Cui of Boling, is guilty of unforgivable crimes and his entire clan is hereby exterminated!"

"Those counties and townships in Boling Prefecture who responded to the rebellion were detained and their entire families were executed!"

"The Lu family of Fanyang, the Cui family of Qinghe, and the Li family of Zhaojun—all the male members of their families who have been detained have been beheaded!"

"Those who collude with relatives by marriage or brothers will have their property confiscated, and all men, women, and children will be exiled to Bingzhou and handed over to the Crown Prince for punishment, with no possibility of pardon!"

"All those currently detained and implicated in the case in Boling County shall be transferred to the Crown Prince of Bingzhou for punishment."

"Appreciate this!"

Before the Ministry of Justice official in charge of today's execution could even bow and shout "Receive the imperial decree," the next moment...

A series of piercing cries erupted from the mouths of the thousands of prisoners awaiting execution.

"Waaaah! My unfilial children and grandchildren! It's all my fault for being bewitched; the ancestral legacy has been destroyed in an instant!"

Cui Mingan wailed in grief. During his time in prison, his face, which he had mutilated to the point of being almost grotesque, was covered in crisscrossing scars.

It's as if I have no face to meet my ancestors.

however.

His expectation that Li Shimin and his son would spare the children of his family did not come true.

Without pardoning these people, the extermination of three generations and the execution of nine generations of their families were essentially the same thing for the Cui family of Boling.

However, among those powerful clans who were also being held around the execution ground, awaiting beheading, were the ones who responded.

One by one, the death row inmates knelt on the ground, wailing and crying.

Facing the direction of the palace, they knelt down and shouted.

"Waaah! Your Majesty is merciful, Your Majesty is merciful! This humble subject thanks Your Majesty for your leniency!"

"Your Majesty is merciful, our ancestors have blessed us! Our Jiang family line has not yet died out! Waaah..."

These people no longer cared about their own survivors, who had been exiled to Bingzhou and fallen into the hands of the Crown Prince, a man even more ruthless than the current Emperor.

What will be the result.

For these dying people, as long as they lived, there was hope to change everything.

The family line will not be broken.

On the gleaming execution platform, more than two thousand executioners were prepared for today alone.

Even when there weren't enough people in the surrounding prefectures and counties of Chang'an, Li Shimin also transferred a group of skilled soldiers from the army.

The broadsword was raised and then lowered.

The bandit leader, Cui Mingan, the head of the Boling Cui clan who had left a significant mark on history and a former imperial attendant of the Tang Dynasty, was suddenly beheaded.

"puff"

The headless corpse was splattered with blood, just like the Buddhist monks from Chang'an who had been executed a few days earlier.

However, even if a head rolls to the ground.

Cui Mingan's face was filled with fear and shame, as if he dared not face his ancestors.

"Pfft pfft pfft..."

One by one, the heads of the Cui family of Boling fell to the ground, and Zheng Jiang and Wang Ming, who was standing next to him, froze.

Even those who harbored no disloyalty towards the current Crown Prince or His Majesty couldn't help but feel a sudden chill on their necks.

Neither of them had any interest in watching any further.

They all turned and walked towards the restaurant next door.

"Your subject Wang Ming (Zheng Jiang) pays respects to Your Highness the Crown Prince..."

"No need to be polite, please make yourself at home and order whatever you like."

Li Chengqian waved his hand.

However, looking around at all the people, including the waiters and the owner of the restaurant, who were all members of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, Li Chengqian felt a pang of sadness despite the delicious aroma of the food on the table in front of him.

Wang Ming and his companion dared not act rashly in the slightest.

"Hehe, thank you, Your Highness. We have already eaten on the way. We came here today because there are some things we need to report to you."

Wang Ming gave an awkward smile.

I ask you, in this whole world, who would dare to eat and drink in a restaurant run by the Embroidered Uniform Guard? Even if they were truly innocent, they would probably still find the food made by these people who are chopping off other people's heads disgusting.

Li Chengqian remained noncommittal, his gaze shifting to a hotel chef standing to the side, whose shoulders were uneven and who clearly had a prosthetic leg.

He smiled and nodded.

"Not bad, isn't this a good job? From now on, just focus on working at this restaurant and don't worry about your wife. Besides Bingzhou Road, a wool textile factory and a dyeing factory will be built in Chang'an within a month at most. The brothers of the Embroidered Uniform Guard and their families will all be taken care of by the Prince of Han."

Hear the words.

The Imperial Guard, who had lost a leg in a trap during an investigation of Buddhism, instantly had tears welling up in his eyes and knelt down on the ground with a thud.

"Your Highness, I have caused you trouble."

Li Chengqian hurriedly reached out to help the other man up, only to see this tough guy now crying his eyes out.

I couldn't help but sigh.

"Adding to the chaos? If I consider all of you who have given so much and sacrificed for the country as trouble, then I might as well give up the Tang Dynasty."

To be honest, Li Chengqian then looked at the other retired Imperial Guards who had been assigned to the restaurant.

"Don't tell me you're useless. My Imperial Guards, even if they're retired or crippled, are still people whose names alone, even a single glance, can make the enemy tremble!"

"Live well. I have many enemies. Don't let your skills go to waste. Take good care of your family and teach your children."

"I assure you, I will never abandon you!"

Zheng Jiang and Wang Ming stood to the side, feeling as if they had walked into a wolf's den.

As the group of Imperial Guards walked out, both men had beads of sweat on their foreheads.

Sitting to the side, Prince Li Ke of Han had a half-smile on his face.

"The stove in this private room isn't even turned up very high. Why are you two so apprehensive? Could it be that you have something to hide?"

As he spoke, he pointed meaningfully out the window, towards the execution ground where heads were still rolling down.

Hear the words.

Both Wang Ming and Zheng Jiang felt a sudden tremor in their hearts.

When her gaze paused slightly upon noticing Li Chengqian's hand, which had just picked up his chopsticks, she was startled.

Wang Ming hurriedly pulled a document out of his pocket.

"Your Highness, you have misunderstood this old minister. I am not hot-tempered, nor do I have anything to hide. On the contrary, I have important matters to report to Your Highness the Crown Prince. Tuyuhun is probably quite restless!"

Upon hearing this, Li Chengqian was momentarily stunned.

He seemed to doubt his own ears.

"Tuyuhun? Our Great Tang has just destroyed the Eastern Turks, and our military strength is at its peak. How dare Tuyuhun provoke our Great Tang?!"

Not only did Li Chengqian not believe it, but Li Ke was also stunned at this moment.

There was only one thought in my mind.

Is that old bastard Murong Fuyun suffering from a brain disease?

Wang Ming hurriedly shook his head and respectfully handed the document to Li Chengqian.

“Your Highness, it’s not exactly a provocation… It’s Murong Shun, the son of the current Tuyuhun Butabo Khan Murong Fuyun, the hostage who was sent back to Tuyuhun by the current Emperor Emeritus. After I returned to Chang’an to report on my duties, he suddenly sent an envoy with a secret letter, saying that he wanted Your Highness’s protection.”

"However, this protection was intended to allow him to accumulate power in a region of Eastern Turkic territory."

Li Chengqian opened the letter.

Li Ke, who was standing nearby, came over and frowned when he saw what was on the screen.

"Your Majesty, this Murong Shun's request for protection is probably a pretense. He really wants to take advantage of the fact that our Great Tang has not yet fully consolidated its control over the Eastern Turkic territory, so he can get a share of the spoils!"

Li Chengqian remained silent.

In the letter, Murong Shun described how he was ostracized in Tuyuhun, and how he had studied Han culture in Chang'an since childhood, and how he admired the Celestial Empire.

As Wang Ming said, his ultimate goal was to ask the Tang Dynasty for protection and even support.

This allowed him to secure his position in Tuyuhun.

"Knock knock knock..."

Li Chengqian squinted, tapping the table lightly with one finger.

However, the corners of his mouth slowly curved into a smile, as if he had thought of something interesting.

Historically, the Tang Dynasty also supported this guy named Murong Shun, but unfortunately, just as he said, he was too Sinicized.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that he was a true native of Chang'an.

In Chang'an and the Tang Dynasty, this would be nothing unusual, but in Tuyuhun, especially as the son of the Khan, he would be the most repulsive person in everyone's eyes.

Unfortunately.

This guy is hopeless.

The Tuyuhun people truly did not treat him as one of their own, nor did they regard him as the son of the Khan.

Even though in history, with the support of his own father Li Shimin, he became Gandou Khan.

In the end, however, he died at the hands of his own men.

"Tsk tsk tsk... It's alright, A Dou is good, A Dou has his uses, doesn't he?"

Li Chengqian mumbled something in a language the others couldn't understand.

Li Chengqian then turned to look at Zheng Jiang at that moment.

"What business does Lord Zheng have?"

Zheng Jiang hurriedly took out the documents he had prepared.

"Your Highness, the Japanese have already sent someone back to deliver the message. It will take at least one or two months for them to return... However, some Japanese people within our Great Tang territory have responded to this news and are saying they want to go to Bingzhou Road for exchange and learning."

Li Ke raised an eyebrow and said, "Do those guys have any money on them? If not, what's the point of them learning? They should just get lost."

Zheng Jiang smiled faintly.

"Your Highness, these people are mostly from prominent families in Japan. They have been in our Great Tang for some time now, so there's no need to worry about their finances; they have plenty..."

He wore a smile, however, knowing that this so-called study abroad and exchange program was nothing more than a slaughterhouse for Japanese people.

It was so eerie.

Li Chengqian nodded in satisfaction: "Approximately how many people?"

"Most of these people brought servants with them, and in the end, at least fifty people enrolled."

Upon hearing this, Li Ke's eyes blazed with fervor.

He looked excitedly at his elder brother, the emperor.

"Brother, what did we agree on back then? How much would we charge per person?"

Li Chengqian smiled faintly and held up two fingers: "Twenty thousand strings of cash."

"hiss!!!"

"Doesn't that mean that just these people within our Great Tang territory alone could bring us one million strings of cash?!"

One million strings of cash!

Upon realizing this number, both Zheng Jiang and Wang Ming felt their hearts surge with excitement.

However, this was only the beginning.

Li Chengqian smiled faintly.

"No need to rush. The rules are set now. These first fifty people are the best breeding ground. We need to fatten them up and get them to write back to us so that we can attract more Japanese nobles and descendants of famous families."

"Those people have been in Japan for so many years, constantly exploiting and oppressing the local population. The wealth they've accumulated is absolutely enormous..."

Li Chengqian glanced at the names listed on the document Zheng Jiang handed him.

A smile played at the corners of his lips.

"It seems we should head back to Bingzhou!"