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

"Ha ha ha ha......"

Fang Xuanling and Du Ruhui looked at each other in bewilderment.

I wonder what's wrong with Emperor Zhenguan today, who has been unhappy and sometimes clueless ever since he gave "his own woman" to the Crown Prince.

Li Shimin noticed their reactions.

"Hahaha, Kemin, Xuanling, you two come and take a look... Hahaha, those two old bastards Wang Ming and Zheng Jiang have tripped themselves up and ended up with a mouthful of mud."

The two men leaned closer and looked at the letter.

After learning the reason why Wang Yuyan, daughter of the Wang family of Taiyuan, and Zheng Lizhen, daughter of the Zheng family of Xingyang, only received one spot as a concubine in the Crown Prince's harem, both of them couldn't help but gasp.

Immediately afterwards, they all shook their heads and sighed at how foolish it was.

"Sigh... No wonder Wang Ming and Zheng Jiang, those two guys, one only managed to become the Vice Minister of War, and the other could only serve as the Minister of the Court of State Ceremonial... They deserved their fate."

If things had just gone smoothly for a few more months, it would have been time for His Highness the Crown Prince's official wedding.

At that time, given the strength and contributions of the Wang family of Taiyuan and the Zheng family of Xingyang, it would be possible.

Leaving aside the principal wife and concubines, at least the two guaranteed positions for the concubines of the second rank belong to their two families.

Now, the Duke of Ying and the Duke of Lu have gotten away with it, as their noble ladies are only ranked on the same level as the princess from the foreign country.

In a way, this is already a kind of humiliation.

"Hehe, I was worried that Chengqian would forget his status as one of the Five Clans and Seven Noble Families because of the subservience of Wang Ming and Zheng Jiang... Not bad, he is indeed worthy of being the offspring of my General Tian Ce!"

Fang Xuanling and his companion exchanged a speechless glance at the Emperor Zhenguan, who was trying to glorify himself, and decided not to listen to such foolish words.

"The Wang family of Taiyuan and the Zheng family of Xingyang are now in a very different situation. One family has a large number of its members serving as officials in the new policies of Bingzhou, with the lowest position being a county magistrate. The other family has a large number of its members serving as officials in Zhenbei Road, Longyou Road, Qinghai City, and Chishui City."

"What's even more frightening is that, after the screening process, the children of the two families who are still able to stay in officialdom are all quite capable."

"We were also worried that His Highness the Crown Prince might have become so accustomed to using it that he forgot about the threat posed by the powerful clans."

"In retrospect, we were overthinking it."

Li Shimin chuckled twice.

"Ha, the Cui family of Qinghe, the Lu family of Fanyang, and the Li family of Zhaojun have all become stray dogs clinging to life. Even if the Wang family of Taiyuan and the Zheng family of Xingyang have treacherous intentions, they should at least have the guts to oppose my Chengqian!"

"Did you really think that my Chengqian could be controlled by a woman...? Hahahaha..."

He looked at Li Shimin, who was laughing triumphantly again.

Both Fang Xuanling and the other man looked helpless.

What's there to be proud of? It's as if Your Majesty can control the Crown Prince's thoughts.

Du Ruhui looked at the contents of the letter from the Hundred Cavalry Commandery and gently shook his head.

"Now those two old fogies, Wang Ming and Zheng Jiang, must be regretting it to the point of death. They've endured all sorts of grievances in the past, but a few love letters from the Queen of Silla to His Highness the Crown Prince have thrown them into disarray... How pathetic."

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin seemed to have thought of something.

He looked at Li Junxian, who was in charge of the Hundred Cavalry Division.

"Did the Queen of Silla write a love letter to Chengqian? Did you find any details?"

Wang Xuance shook his head regretfully: "Your Majesty, please forgive us. We are incompetent. After those love letters were sent to the palace, only the princes and princesses, Empress Zhangsun, and other noble ladies saw them... After that, Empress Zhangsun ordered them to be banned directly."

"Even the Hundred Riders Division has no way to obtain it."

He glanced cautiously at the Emperor Zhenguan, and seeing that the other seemed to be deep in thought, he spoke again carefully.

"However, it is said that this Queen of Silla has a good understanding of Central Plains culture. Not only does she include a love poem of her own in every love letter, but she also cleverly expresses her admiration for His Highness the Crown Prince in terms of his new policies and achievements..."

Fang Xuanling stroked his beard, took a breath, and gently shook his head.

He gave a wry smile.

"No wonder... Although Silla is just a small country, it is rare throughout history for a king to express his love so openly. This Silla queen is probably hated to death by the Taiyuan Wang clan."

Li Shimin stroked his chin.

Imagining the scene in Taiyuan Prefecture where his crown prince was receiving love letters from the Queen of Silla, his previously smug smile began to freeze and harden at a visible speed.

Until the very end, a hint of embarrassment and...jealousy crept in.

This emotion has nothing to do with father-son affection; it's simply the competitive and vain feelings between men at play.

"Hmph, the Queen of Silla, the Zhamu of Tibet, and the princess of Sassanid Persia... My crown prince, even before his marriage, already has a harem vying for attention, a veritable garden of beauties..."

Emperor Zhenguan muttered with a hint of sourness.

Meanwhile, Du Ruhui seized the opportunity and let out a soft chuckle.

"Your Majesty, you've forgotten about the daughter of the Nanzhao chieftain Langqiong, whom you sent to His Highness the Crown Prince. Judging by the time, she should be arriving in Chang'an soon..."

"Who do you think came?"

Taiyuan Prefecture.

Li Chengqian, who had just returned from an incognito visit to Taiyuan to observe the people's conditions, looked at Kong Yingda as if he doubted his own ears.

"Your Highness, the new King Harsha has sent an envoy and a princess to request a marriage alliance with the Tang Dynasty."

Li Chengqian: "......"

"Hiss... People from the Harsha Dynasty?! And the new Harsha King? How did they get here?"

Li Gang and Yu Shinan, who were standing next to him, gasped.

Kong Yingda shook his head slightly. Although he was clearly unsure, given the current situation between the Harsha Dynasty and the plateau, the journey would surely be full of twists and turns.

Li Chengqian also frowned slightly.

He immediately sent someone to summon Qian Lou, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, but unexpectedly, the latter happened to be heading towards Yangcheng Palace at that moment.

"Your Highness, urgent report from the Tianzhu Garrison Command!"

Li Chengqian looked at Qianlou, who was filled with anxiety and self-reproach, and gently shook his head.

They didn't blame the other party.

Given the communication capabilities of that era, and the reality that the vast country of India only had about a thousand Jinyiwei (Imperial Guards) as its intelligence network, it was already quite remarkable that the Indian Garrison Command could still send intelligence.

He reached out and took the intelligence report.

His eyes flickered as he looked at the contents, his brows furrowing slightly.

King Harsha unexpectedly passed away near the end of this year.

Whether he truly died of illness or not, Li Chengqian did not care. However, the one sitting on the throne of King Harsha was not Harsha's prince, but the former minister Arunasva.

That powerful minister who also usurped the throne of King Harsha in history!

"Bring the person up..."

When the Harsha emissary was brought to the Shougong Palace along with the so-called princess,

Li Chengqian's brows furrowed almost imperceptibly: "Are you from the Harsha Dynasty?"

The members of the delegation in front of me all clearly looked like people from the highlands.

Upon hearing the questioning translated by the Ministry of Rites official, the leading envoy hurriedly kowtowed and bowed.

“King of the East, we are indeed people of the Harsha Dynasty, but we are all from the highlands, so we look similar to the Tibetans of the highlands… We carry the official documents of my king!”

A gilded letter, imbued with the spirit of Indian culture, was examined by Wang De and then presented to Li Chengqian.

It is clear that the current Harsha Dynasty must be extremely troubled by the incursions of Tibetan and other highland forces, and can even be said to be in a state of utter chaos.

Above the official document, there is also a copy of the Central Plains Chinese characters.

"We venerate the ruler of the Great Tang Dynasty in the East as the Supreme God-King of the Harsha (Day of Vigil), and pay annual tribute in the hope of ending war."

This is a plea for mercy.

However, Li Chengqian was not emotionally affected by this. There were plenty of countries that had submitted to the Tang Dynasty and paid tribute. This was just a small day of vigil, like fish on a chopping board.

Who does he think he is...?

Li Chengqian waved his hand dismissively, feeling bored.

In terms of appearance, Arunasva's daughter was not even as good-looking as the Tibetan Zanmusamaga, who had just come down from the plateau to the Tang Dynasty.

However, Li Chengqian did not think that the uncivilized "wild monkeys" of that land could be beautiful or conform to Eastern aesthetics.

"Throw it out..."

With a calm command, several burly men from the Eastern Palace's Six Guards immediately entered.

But then the envoy from the Harsha Dynasty changed his expression drastically.

He banged his head repeatedly against the floor.

They were still hurriedly chattering away...

An official from the Ministry of Rites who understood Sanskrit frowned, somewhat taken aback, as if he doubted that he had misheard something.

Li Chengqian frowned: "What did he say?"

The official quickly bowed.

"Your Highness, this...this envoy from Harsha says...he hopes that our Great Tang can stop allowing the Tibetans to capture them..."

A few snickers echoed in the hall.

Li Gang, Yu Shinan, and the others all shook their heads in disdain and sneered.

The Tang Dynasty now has so much land waiting to be cultivated, and so many people have contracted large amounts of farmland, established farms, and are preparing to become farm owners.

It was precisely when there was a shortage of slaves.

At this point, these despicable scoundrels actually said they hoped they would show leniency?

idiot......

This was the assessment of the new Harshavartha King Arunasva by everyone present at that moment.

however.

Then, the official from the Ministry of Rites said another sentence.

Everyone present, including Crown Prince Li Chengqian.

They were all stunned for a moment.

"He said that the new Harsha King Arunasva is willing to pay tribute to our Great Tang Dynasty with 200,000 slaves every year, and if we have a large shortage of slaves, he can also encourage births in the country..."

As the official from the Ministry of Rites spoke, he wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

He looked hesitantly at his colleagues beside him, whose expressions were similar, seeking help.

Did he translate it wrong?

For a moment, Li Chengqian's mind went blank.

This guy... no wonder he's the Third Brother!

As long as I kneel down voluntarily, it doesn't count as being oppressed or humiliated.