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

A battle report from Yuchi Jingde was sent back to Chang'an from Jingyang, the front line.

This immediately brought joy to the faces of the court officials, and Fang Xuanling and others stepped forward.

"Your Majesty, our garrison in Jingyang numbers no more than five thousand, yet we have achieved such a feat. General Yuchi is certainly brave, but the Turkic army must be as Your Highness the Crown Prince previously stated."

"They are nothing but a hastily assembled rabble. If we plan well, we may be able to inflict heavy losses on the Turks!"

Just a moment ago, he was still struggling with whether or not to send his son to be with Changsun Wuji, the Crown Prince's nephew who was unstoppable when he went crazy.

At this moment, they also stepped forward to second the motion.

"Your Majesty, the Turkic leader Jieli has broken his alliance with our Great Tang, invaded our Great Tang territory, and plundered our Great Tang people. Now he even dares to send his troops to Chang'an. Your Majesty should swiftly and decisively punish him!"

Behind him, the courtiers stepped forward to second his opinion.

Even though powerful officials like Cui Minshi were reluctant for Li Shimin to accept the "gift" of the Turks, Chang'an currently had grain and military supplies that Li Shimin and his son had extorted from these powerful families.

In response to the Turkic invasion.

The forbearance that should have existed in history is nowhere to be found.

Immediately, in the Taiji Hall, Li Shimin, who had only been on the throne for about a month, began to issue orders to his generals.

The morning assembly concluded.

After the court session ended, Wang Ming, the Vice Minister of War, staggered and looked dejected.

In his hands was a newly issued imperial edict.

"Wang Ming, the Vice Minister of War, is dedicated to his duties and loyal to the country. He is hereby immediately transferred to the garrison of Taiyuan to intercept and kill the Turkic cavalry."

Taiyuan remains in charge?

If Taiyuan still had soldiers who could fight outside the city, how could the Turks have marched all the way south and killed their way to Jingzhou?

As Cui Minshi and several other officials from prominent families came out...

Wang Ming hurriedly went up to him.

"Gentlemen, gentlemen, what should I do...?"

He held the imperial edict in his hand as if it were a hot potato.

A major battle is about to break out. If the situation becomes chaotic, these aristocratic families may also be in danger of being destroyed. If they make a mistake, things could really turn out just as Pei Ji said.

The entire family was secretly wiped out by the treacherous father and son, Li Tang.

When Cui Minshi and the others saw the imperial edict in Wang Ming's hand, they took a step back. Seeing his expression, they could only sigh.

"Right now, we also need to be careful with our words and actions. His Majesty's deployment of troops around Chang'an, Jingyang, Wugong, and even Taiyuan can still be described as a strategic move to fight the Turks."

"But the fact that troops are being mobilized near the territory of my Cui family in Qinghe speaks volumes."

He sighed, "Lord Wang, please take good care of yourself."

Seeing Cui Minshi leave with those words, Wang Ming anxiously turned his gaze to Cui Mingan, who was serving as a Gentleman Attendant at the Palace Gate.

"Alas, although the Cui family of Boling has considerable control over its ancestral lands, that is only in name. How can a few servants and guards possibly be a match for the local garrison? Lord Wang, it's not that I, Cui, am unwilling to lend a hand this time, but in reality..."

"Take care of yourself."

Cui Mingan of the Boling Cui clan also left.

Subsequently, when the once so-called close-knit clans of Fanyang and Xingyang, such as the Lu family and the Zheng family, left one after another, Wang Ming was left all alone.

In the past, these aristocratic officials were always surrounded by a retinue of followers.

However, right now, ever since the Qin Prince's mansion and his father and son seized power, their reputations have been ruined. They now wield unparalleled military strength and are ready to challenge these powerful families at any moment.

"Is the Wang clan of Taiyuan truly destined to perish in my generation?"

Wang Ming's figure was desolate, but a faint sigh suddenly came from behind him.

"Why is this so?"

Wang Ming turned around instantly.

But then Pei Ji appeared behind him without him noticing.

At this moment, the other party was completely at ease. Despite being a former official of the Wude era, a member of the Pei clan of Hedong, and an old friend of the retired emperor, he should have been the one most worried about being suspected and ostracized by the new emperor Li Shimin.

At this moment, however, he showed no sign of worry whatsoever.

"Duke of Wei, Duke of Wei, save me! The Turkic army of 100,000, even if they suffer a crushing defeat and retreat, my Taiyuan garrison has only 3,000 men. How can we possibly resist them!"

Things have come to this point, a matter of life and death.

Wang Ming disregarded all pride and stepped forward to bow, pleading and begging.

Upon hearing this, Pei Ji first turned around and glanced at the Taiji Hall behind him, then let out a cold snort.

"Wang Ming, Wang Ming, your Wang family has produced many sages and important officials in the previous dynasty. Why is it that in your generation, you have become such an arrogant and disrespectful person?"

"Do you still think, like Cui Minshi and his ilk, that the world still belongs to the aristocratic families?"

Pei Ji paused slightly as he spoke.

He looked around again, then whispered in a tone of disappointment.

"How was the Tang Dynasty established? How did the current emperor ascend to the throne? Aren't you awake yet!"

Wang Ming looked sad as he clutched the imperial edict in his hand.

"But His Majesty has already issued the decree. If I let the fleeing Turkic soldiers escape, His Majesty will certainly not let me off the hook."

Pei Ji was no longer inclined to say anything more to this idiot.

The long-standing prosperity of the Taiyuan Wang clan made it clear that the other party's judgment was inferior to that of this once-dormant member of the Hedong Pei clan.

He sighed and pointed in the direction of the Eastern Palace.

"I don't want to say anything more. Lord Wang, you should understand that the one who tied the knot must untie it. If the Wang family of Taiyuan does not want to be wiped out by the defeated Turkic soldiers, have no descendants, and have their scholarly traditions cut off, they should understand the situation."

Watching Pei Ji's departing figure, Wang Ming, standing in front of the Taiji Hall, couldn't help but look towards the direction of the East Palace.

At this moment, in the Ganlu Palace.

After respectfully reporting what had happened, the eunuch Wang De carefully withdrew.

Li Shimin shook his head and chuckled.

"What a cunning old fox! He's got a knack for getting things done!"

Beside him, Empress Zhangsun placed a bowl of soup in front of him and then stood behind him, gently massaging Li Er's shoulders.

"I understand that the empress dowager should not interfere in politics, but Second Brother... are you really planning to send Chengqian to the battlefield? What if something goes wrong... he is the crown prince."

Empress Zhangsun looked worried.

However, upon hearing this, Li Shimin snorted coldly, as if he had immediately thought of something.

He slammed his hand on the table, pointed in the direction of the Eastern Palace, and began to curse.

"I would like to keep that rebellious son in the palace. Look at him now, how can I possibly control him?"

"Guanyinbi, do you believe that even if I order him to stay and guard Chang'an, he can still lead his troops out of Chang'an before my imperial edict arrives?"

Empress Zhangsun was helpless.

As the head of the harem, she was naturally well aware of the situation in the Eastern Palace these past few days.

In an ordinary imperial family, she, as the empress, could have learned from the ancients and come up with a way to mediate the conflict. But now, her husband has seized power and her son is the crown prince who has helped the emperor rise to power.

As Li Shimin spoke, he sighed again.

"In the end, it's still my fault. If Prince Qi hadn't died at Chengqian's hands that day, he wouldn't be under so much pressure now, would he?"

"This child always says he doesn't care about his reputation, but how can I not see that he values ​​his reputation more than his life? Otherwise, he wouldn't be so eager to form the Six Guards of the Eastern Palace and even want to go to the battlefield himself."

"Ever since that day at Xuanwu Gate, this child has been thinking about proving to the world that my father and I are worthy of being in power."

Empress Zhangsun paused slightly as she massaged Li Er's shoulders.

Her eyes were already brimming with tears.

East Palace.

"Your Highness, Wang Ming, the Vice Minister of War, requests an audience!"

Du He, who was directly assigned to the Eastern Palace that very day, was given a position as a seventh-rank lower-level attendant to the Crown Prince by Li Chengqian, and showed great enthusiasm.

At this moment, Li Chengqian was explaining the snow salt trade to Xiao Rui, a seventh-rank official in charge of the Crown Prince's household.

He rushed in.

Upon hearing this, Li Chengqian waved his hand dismissively, as if he had expected it.

"Let him in."

Xiao Rui carefully put away the booklet that Li Chengqian had prepared in front of him, which contained the structure and layout of the "Jimin Chamber of Commerce" and its future business operations.

Xiao Rui originally thought that because his father was a veteran official of the Wude era, this crown prince, who was supposedly going to ask the retired emperor to die, probably wouldn't give him any real work.

Unexpectedly, before I even received my official robes, I suddenly found myself with a whole host of things to do.

And these are all very important matters.

"Your Highness, are you truly comfortable entrusting the salt, paper, and sugar industries to me?"

Li Chengqian's excessive trust made Xiao Rui feel somewhat insecure.

These three skills are truly gold mines and silver mines.

Li Chengqian raised his head slightly.

"What? Does the Duke of Song intend to betray our Great Tang?"

Xiao Rui quickly straightened up: "Your Highness, what makes you say such a thing? My father is utterly loyal to our Great Tang Dynasty, I..."

"Then why should I be wary of you? If I doubt someone, I won't use them; if I use someone, I won't doubt them."

With Li Chengqian waving his hand, Xiao Rui walked out of Xiande Hall with a complicated expression.

As soon as they stepped out of the palace gate, they saw Wang Ming, looking flustered and anxious, walking in quickly with Du He.

He had just stepped out of the palace gate.

Right behind him came Wang Ming's terrified screams.

"Your Highness, Your Highness the Crown Prince, save me!"

Xiao Rui glanced back at the hall, only to see Wang Ming kneeling directly before Li Chengqian. He couldn't help but shake his head.

Qian Yingying poured Li Chengqian a cup of chrysanthemum tea.

Currently, stir-fried tea has not yet been developed, but it's not something that can be made casually.

Chrysanthemum tea, on the other hand, is very simple.

Slightly processed chrysanthemums, a few slices of dried hawthorn, and some powdered sugar.

It tastes far superior to the brewed tea of ​​the Tang Dynasty.

Li Chengqian took a sip of tea, but his eyes were fixed on the report on the desk in front of him, which Xue Wanche had brought from the Ministry of War, regarding the recent Turkic raids on Tang territory.

North of Jingzhou, more than fifty villages have been affected so far.

More than a dozen villages were massacred.

Li Chengqian's voice turned colder.

"Why does Vice Minister Wang perform such a grand ceremony?"

Wang Ming knelt on the ground, facing two knives—the Turks' and the Tang Dynasty's royal family's—at his throat. He couldn't care less about his family's pride.

"Your Highness, please spare the Wang family of Taiyuan! From now on, the entire Wang family will follow Your Highness's lead without question!"

"Ah....."

As soon as he finished speaking, Li Chengqian scoffed.

"The Wang family of Taiyuan follows my lead, huh, they really have a lot of influence. It's a pity, I've never been used to using other people's knives. I don't like the style, and they're rusty... and they might even hurt me."

Li Chengqian's words made Wang Ming's already pale face look even more desolate.

“Your Highness, many members of the Wang clan of Taiyuan hold official positions in the court, and there are over a thousand more relatives and in-laws serving as officials in local areas. With the assistance of the Wang clan of Taiyuan, Your Highness's position as Crown Prince will undoubtedly be more secure. I…”

"Hehe, does Minister Wang mean that without the assistance of your Taiyuan Wang clan, I am unworthy of my position, is that right?"

Li Chengqian slowly put down the report in his hand.

His eyes were sharp, like a steel knife that could cut through bones.

"There are many officials in the imperial court and thousands in the local government... They are truly a powerful force in their respective regions, but it's a pity."

"So many heroes of our Great Tang Dynasty are going to die at the hands of those Turkic barbarians."

"Snapped!"

Li Chengqian slammed his fist on the table in anger and cursed.

"Those Turkic barbarians are truly despicable! Even if we drive them back this time, after our Great Tang has had a few years to recuperate, I will surely wipe them out completely! I will make sure these Turkic barbarians are killed and their entire clans are exterminated!"

"Avenge the heroes of my Great Tang Dynasty!"

Li Chengqian slowly turned his head, his gaze lingering on Wang Ming for a long while.

"Minister Wang, may you rest in peace. The Tang Dynasty will not forget you, nor will it forget... the Wang family of Taiyuan!"

Wang Ming's body trembled, and he immediately realized that he had said the wrong thing.

"Your Highness! I misspoke. The Wang family has absolutely no intention of betraying the Tang Dynasty! Please, Your Highness, understand! I am willing to defend Taiyuan for the Tang Dynasty, and the Wang family of Taiyuan is also willing to risk the lives of our entire clan to stop the Turks."

"It is not that I am afraid of death, but I am worried that our incompetence may bring shame to Your Majesty's decree."

"The loyalty of the Wang family of Taiyuan is as clear as the sun and moon, Your Highness!"

Li Chengqian remained silent, quietly sipping his tea, leaving Wang Ming kneeling trembling on the ground.

Time ticked by, but Wang Ming didn't dare to stand up.

The Wang family of Taiyuan is now in a hopeless situation.

Both His Majesty and the Crown Prince intend to warn and even sever ties between the five clans and seven noble families. With the Turks invading the border, the Wang clan of Taiyuan, which is located nearby, happens to be the most suitable target.

Meanwhile, Wang Ming's legs were going numb from kneeling, and sweat was starting to pour from his forehead.

[Ding! Simulation of the Great Qian Ancient Martial Arts Civilization has ended. The civilization has perished, but its existence has lasted for 360 years.]

[Will you conduct a civilized settlement?]