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

Yu Shinan, Li Gang, and Kong Yingda: "..."

The three of them fell silent, staring in disbelief at the scene before them, even though, as he had claimed, he had murdered his own uncle and seized power illegitimately.

But Li Chengqian still stood tall and straight, speaking with a serious and confident expression, saying "upright and honorable".

My mind went completely blank.

Ever since the Xuanwu Gate Incident, rumors about this Crown Prince have been circulating in the aristocratic circles of Chang'an, the capital of the Tang Dynasty, and even in the surrounding prefectures and counties.

What about being physically strong, what about being inherently cruel, what about being disrespectful to one's father and ruler...?

Some people even went so far as to describe Li Chengqian behind his back as being like Wang Mang.

This made those who had been chosen as the Crown Prince's teachers feel somewhat uneasy on their way to the Eastern Palace.

However, it seems that the Crown Prince in front of us is indeed as unscrupulous as the rumors suggest.

And yet, she seems completely different from the image portrayed in rumors...

"So, Your Highness was so eager to propose the establishment of the Embroidered Uniform Guard?"

Yu Shinan stroked his beard, his expression complex and solemn.

Li Chengqian nodded.

"Since it is a reform, it will inevitably encounter obstacles, and in order to overcome these obstacles, I naturally need a steel knife that is sharp enough."

Immediately, Li Gang and the other two exchanged glances.

"But Your Highness's mention of the Embroidered Uniform Guard doesn't seem to be solely for protecting the reforms. Besides, how could His Majesty possibly agree to such a thing?"

Upon hearing this, Li Chengqian raised an eyebrow.

"Gentlemen, it seems you don't know my father very well. As his son, I can tell you with certainty... my father has never been cowardly when it comes to courage."

"Just you wait and see, the Tang Dynasty is about to become truly magnificent..."

Yu Shinan and the other two did not understand why Li Chengqian had such great confidence in his words.

"Serving a ruler is like serving a tiger"—this is the most basic and fundamental thought in the hearts of all ministers when dealing with matters related to the royal family.

however.

As a time traveler who knows the course of history and now bears the responsibility of "supporting the emperor," Li Chengqian can be said to be quite confident in handling his father-son relationship with Li Shimin.

This is no different from an open-book exam.

in other words.

As the Crown Prince's teachers, Yu Shinan and his colleagues needed to consider the possibility of suspicion from the emperor and his father.

However, Li Chengqian understood that his comrade Li Er's mind was much broader than they had imagined.

As long as what he does is beneficial to the country and enables the Tang Dynasty under his rule to enter a golden age more quickly and effectively, exert its power overseas, and make the surrounding barbarians submit.

Li Shimin was definitely the most trustworthy "boss" among all the emperors.

Time flies.

Two days passed.

In the Ganlu Hall, Emperor Li Shimin, as usual, was processing memorials.

At this moment, on the table, besides the reports and memorials from Li Daozong, the governor of Lingzhou, and Li Ji, the governor of Bingzhou, regarding the Turks, there were stacks of memorials impeaching Crown Prince Li Chengqian.

"Hmph! Throw them away! Throw away all these eyesores! Do these corrupt officials really think that my silence on this matter means I am suspicious of the Crown Prince?"

"They even want me to depose the Crown Prince... Guards, give each of those censors who submitted memorials demanding the Crown Prince twenty strokes of the cane!"

"Give him a good beating!"

The eunuch Wang De hurriedly and frantically picked up all the memorials that the emperor had angrily thrown to the ground.

He accepted the order and went out to relay it.

Li Shimin's face was grim, his mind filled with the three memorials his crown prince had sent that day.

He had been thinking about the contents of the book over and over for two days.

Li Shimin was not a fool.

Although he was once a general on horseback, it does not mean that he was a reckless man who did not know how to govern the country.

Although it is unclear whether exempting agricultural taxes is realistic.

However, he was still very clear about how wealthy the businessmen were.

If commercial taxes can be collected, the imperial court will be able to handle matters more easily in the future, whether it is building waterways, constructing cities, or providing disaster relief.

However, the difficulty lies in the fact that the complete contents of the memorials that only the Crown Prince had seen were even more explosive.

This son of mine wants more than just collecting commercial taxes.

"Wang De, what has the Crown Prince been doing these days?"

The eunuch Wang De, who had just returned, hurriedly bowed.

"Your Majesty, His Highness the Crown Prince has been getting up promptly at dawn every day these past few days, and then, together with His Highness the Prince of Yue and some of the Six Guards of the Eastern Palace, he conducts martial arts drills in front of the Xiande Hall."

"Afterwards, when the court session begins, after washing up and having breakfast, His Highness will begin handling government affairs in the Xiande Hall until noon when he takes a two-quarters break for lunch. Then he will read books and continue handling government affairs. At Shenshi (3-5 PM), the officials of the Eastern Palace will leave the palace, and His Highness will still be handling government affairs with His Highness, the Prince of Yue, until Zishi (11 PM-1 AM)..."

He was Li Shimin's personal eunuch.

Wang De was naturally well aware of the situation inside the palace, and Li Chengqian's daily routine was indeed quite regular.

A simple inquiry with the eunuchs in the Eastern Palace would reveal the answer.

Li Shimin frowned instantly.

"Handling government affairs? Where would the Crown Prince get so much government affairs? And how could he possibly handle them until midnight?"

How could he possibly know such a thing?

Upon seeing this, Li Shimin remained silent for a long time before suddenly standing up.

"Come with me and see just how diligent my crown prince is!"

Li Shimin was somewhat displeased. If what Wang De said was true, and he worked so hard every day, wouldn't he be even less capable than his own son?

The Eastern Palace, Xiande Hall.

With the addition of Yu Shinan and others, the workload at the Eastern Palace has actually increased.

“Your Highness, this old minister is the Grand Tutor of the Crown Prince. According to His Majesty’s decree, I am here to give lectures to Your Highness.”

Kong Yingda, his old face flushed red, looked at the stack of documents that Qian Yingying had put down again, nearly half a meter high, and finally couldn't bear it any longer, about to flip the table and quit.

Hear the words.

Sitting opposite him, Yu Shinan, who, like Kong Yingda, was facing a table full of documents and books with a bitter expression, couldn't help but look up.

His gaze shifted to Prince Li Chengqian, who was also at his desk, writing and drawing, so busy that he hadn't even had a sip of tea all day.

Li Chengqian looked up in confusion.

He paused slightly as he continued writing the "Bingzhou Industrial and Commercial Five-Year Development Plan".

Why is Master Confucius so enraged?

Seeing that Li Chengqian still looked innocent and confused, Kong Yingda was so angry that his beard trembled slightly.

He staggered and stood up, leaning on the table for support.

"Your Highness, it has been two days since I assumed the position of Grand Tutor to the Crown Prince, yet in these two days Your Highness has neither inquired of me about the meanings of Confucian classics by the ancient sages, nor studied the classics yourself."

"On the contrary, you want me to write some kind of teaching materials... I don't understand!"

Kong Yingda was a straightforward person, and it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call him a teacher with a bit of a bad temper.

He originally thought that by becoming the Crown Prince's tutor, he could pass on all his knowledge and wisdom to the Crown Prince and help him become a wise and capable man.

Unexpectedly, Li Chengqian seemed to have no such idea at all.

"Since Your Highness dislikes scholarship, why did you still have His Majesty summon this old man to the palace?"

Li Chengqian blinked and pointed to the books and documents on the other person's desk.

"Does Master Confucius think that I asked you to compile these things to kill time and waste your life?"

Kong Yingda stared wide-eyed: "Isn't that right?"

Li Chengqian took a deep breath and slowly put down the quill pen in his hand.

Yu Shinan, who was standing nearby, quickly got up to persuade him.

"Your Highness, perhaps Grand Tutor Kong is advanced in years and troubled by worries, which is why he has lost his composure. Perhaps we should let him go back and rest first..."

"I am not confused!" Kong Yingda snorted coldly, dissatisfied.

Unexpectedly, Li Chengqian sneered and slowly nodded.

"Yes, I also think that Master Confucius is not confused... You are just pedantic without realizing it, short-sighted and ignorant, arrogant but powerless to save the world!"

Kong Yingda's eyes widened instantly; he hadn't expected Li Chengqian to speak to his teacher so rudely.

"What? Is Chief Protector Kong dissatisfied?"

Before Kong Yingda could react, Li Chengqian let out a cold snort.

He stepped over to the other person's desk.

Pick up a bamboo scroll containing an analysis of the Analects.

"As a Doctor of the Imperial Academy, Confucius must have been familiar with the Confucian classic, the Analects. The Imperial Academy often used it as the main content of its teaching. However, how far did the teaching progress? One Analects, plus the commentary, plus extensions."

“My younger brother, Qingque, was good at reading and writing from a young age. He was quick-witted and his academic performance was among the best in the Imperial Academy. However, he still needed at least three to five days to finish a single passage of the Analects before he dared to claim that he could debate it with his classmates in class.”

"This is still because Qingque had an excellent early education, and she was taught by her mother and teacher from a young age."

Li Chengqian spoke slowly and with an unusually stern and angry look in his eyes.

Suddenly, he handed the bamboo slip in his hand to Kong Yingda.

"I'll ask you now!"

"If this volume of the Analects is used for children from ordinary families who have not yet received formal education or have little literacy, how can they learn its principles in a shorter period of time?!"

Kong Yingda opened his mouth wide, his brain blank for a long while, but he could only stammer.

"This should naturally be addressed by first educating children; without education, children are like buildings without roots..."

"The people have no money! Kong Yingda! Do you really think that my words about ensuring that everyone in the world, and that all children of the people, can afford to go to school, are just empty words used to whitewash the situation and to boast about myself?!"

Li Chengqian slammed the bamboo slip in his hand onto the table.

It felt as if Kong Yingda had been whipped hard on the back, the pain burning intensely.

"I asked you to extract easy-to-understand Confucian classics, compile and edit them, so that the children of ordinary people can learn to read and write more quickly and receive enlightenment. And what about you?"

"You think that this kind of work of educating the world is a waste of your time?"

"Am I wrong to say that you are pedantic without realizing it?!"

Li Chengqian's voice was stern, and as the crown prince, the aura he exuded at this moment made everyone present swallow hard.

As for Kong Yingda, he was already drenched in sweat.

The initial resentment on his face now turned into anxiety and panic.

however.

Li Chengqian knew perfectly well that to truly make these old guys put away their arrogant seniority, he couldn't just let them off so easily.

"I'll ask you again!"

"The sages Confucius and Mencius took it as their ultimate wish to educate the world. As a descendant of Confucius, what brings you to the Eastern Palace as the Crown Prince's Grand Tutor?"

Kong Yingda immediately retorted, "Of course we must teach Your Highness the principles of the sages, so that Your Highness can govern the world with benevolence when you ascend the throne!"

Li Chengqian sneered: "Oh, Grand Tutor Kong, you keep talking about benevolent governance. Your Kong family has been chanting about it for hundreds of years, but have you never thought about becoming emperor and implementing benevolent governance for the world?"

These words startled everyone present.

Li Shimin, who arrived at Xiande Hall without alerting anyone, also had a slight change in expression.

Inside the hall, Kong Yingda's face turned pale, and he was about to defend himself.

Unexpectedly, Li Chengqian simply waved his hand.

"Hehe, I am the Crown Prince, and my father was the Emperor. If someone from your Kong family had ever been an Emperor, I might listen to the words of your predecessors. But since no one has, how to govern this world is none of your business."

"As the Grand Protector, the most you can do is to make me sympathize with the suffering of the people. But I am not blind to the suffering of the people, and I am doing it now. As for you, you could teach me to become a learned scholar."

"Do you really think I would personally teach the people and enlighten their children?!"

Kong Yingda felt a jolt in his heart, as if his head had been struck by a heavy blow.

"Hmph! Putting the cart before the horse! Instead of thinking about how to make it easier for all the people in the world to read and study, you're here pointing fingers at me... I said you lack ambition and you don't even realize it! Am I wrong?"

Li Chengqian picked up what Kong Yingda had written in the past two days from the table, glanced at it, and then casually tossed it aside as if it were trash.

"Nonsense! It's all just empty talk. You use classical Chinese phrases fluently, but you have no idea that those classical Chinese phrases require ordinary people who struggle to make ends meet every day to squeeze out a little food from between their teeth to support their children's learning!"

"If the descendants of Confucius are hoping to enlighten the people with this pedantic nonsense, then the Confucius family should just change their surname as soon as possible, so as not to disgrace their ancestors!"

Kong Yingda swayed twice, his expression blank and his eyes vacant.

Inside the hall, Kong Yingda, Yu Shinan, and Li Gang remained completely silent.

Outside the hall, Li Shimin's expression was intriguing; he seemed to want to laugh but then, as if he had just remembered something, he quickly coughed twice.

"Chengqian! How dare you be so disrespectful to Master Confucius! Apologize at once!"

He strode in, feigning anger, only to see his son turn around. He then took something from the table and slapped it into Kong Yingda's arms.

"If you want me to call you teacher, you'd better first understand what exactly I mean by 'enlightening the people'!"