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

Chapter 354 Li Er is worried, the Empress is sharpening her knife, everyone seems to have gone mad!

This is Li Chengqian's direct impression of everything he has seen and heard recently.

No one knows who heard it from, but he particularly liked seeing Li Xueyan wearing that kind of modern Chinese Hanfu. As a result, Li Xueyan's clothing chain store has become the most lively place in the entire Chang'an, Taiyuan Prefecture, and even the entire aristocratic circle of Chang'an.

Even daughters of noble families like Zheng Lizhen and Wang Yuyan have made several rare visits.

"Spring has arrived, and these women are all acting strangely..."

On this day, Li Chengqian returned from outside the palace with a chill running down his spine.

Recently, Empress Zhangsun and her entourage also came from Chang'an to Yangcheng Palace in Taiyuan Prefecture.

Seeing Li Chengqian enter, he downed several cups of tea and still looked lingering fear.

These concubines of Li Er couldn't help but cover their mouths and chuckle.

Consort Wei gently shook her head: "Your Highness, your wedding is imminent. There is a big difference between having a title before marriage and taking a concubine after marriage. Besides, everyone knows that Your Highness is a person of integrity. Which noble family or aristocratic family in Chang'an would not want to marry into your family?"

"Yes, His Highness the Crown Prince is much more handsome than His Majesty was in his youth," Consort Yin said with a smile, propping her head up with her hand.

The way his eyes darted around made Li Chengqian gasp.

You're Li You's biological mother!

Empress Zhangsun gently patted Li Chengqian on the back of the head.

She rolled her eyes in annoyance: "Recently, quite a few members of the Yin clan from other branches have been asking Consort Yin about you. They're either asking about the selection of palace maids for Yangcheng Palace or asking Consort Yin if she can help make connections."

At this point, even Empress Zhangsun herself couldn't help but sigh.

“In the past, all the crown princes of the previous dynasty had their harem positions filled. Chengqian, your position as the Crown Prince's consort is still too vacant…”

Upon hearing these words, Li Chengqian felt an immense headache coming on.

"No, no, no, Mother, stop! That's enough, really enough! I've already suffered enough with Wang Yuyan and Zheng Lizhen looking so resentful and pitiful these past few days."

"The positions of Crown Princess are all occupied... I might as well train them into personal guards, nearly a hundred of them. I could lead them to conquer cities and seize territories."

Everyone looked at each other in silence.

"Hey......"

Li Er's concubines all looked at the young crown prince with helplessness and melancholy.

Throughout history, this has been the status of both the emperor's concubines and the crown prince's consorts.

All of these involve power struggles between high-level officials of a country.

Conflicts of interest and deceit abound here.

But this crown prince alone... made something so complicated seem so simple.

No one has anything to say yet.

This crown prince secured his throne not through marriage alliances with ministers.

Even the most powerful clans of the Tang Dynasty, such as the Wang family of Taiyuan and the Zheng family of Xingyang, would never dare to show the slightest rebellion, no matter how dissatisfied they were.

Not to mention His Majesty is in the prime of his life, His Highness the Crown Prince already shows signs of becoming a true dragon.

If the other princes were placed in other dynasties, they would definitely be wise and virtuous kings and rulers.

The Wang family of Taiyuan and the Zheng family of Xingyang are still trying to pull some tricks.

King Li Tai of Wei could make them, along with the ancestral graves and ancestral halls of their two clans, explode on the spot and ascend to heaven.

As for the Prince of Han... as someone who still holds some of the authority of the Embroidered Uniform Guard in the Hedong region, he still firmly holds the most detailed genealogical documents of the five surnames and seven clans.

"Judging by the time, Father should be preparing to depart from Chengdu to return soon..."

Seemingly not wanting Empress Zhangsun and the others to focus more on his marriage, Li Chengqian suddenly turned his eyes and spoke softly.

really.

Hearing that this Emperor Zhenguan was out there having a carefree and dissolute life, and even fathering twins, he was shocked.

Empress Zhangsun's expression, which had been normal just moments before, turned icy cold the next second.

He picked up the teacup and took a sip.

"It seems His Majesty is bringing back seven concubines. It looks like the Chang'an Imperial Palace needs to be expanded."

Li Chengqian couldn't believe his mother could have such composure, and smiled to himself.

"Ahem, Mother, you don't need to be nervous. Father is just playing around. Unlike Prime Minister Fang and Prime Minister Du... I heard that Madam Fang and Madam Du have been sharpening their knives in the mansion these past few days."

"What should we do? What should we do...?"

Chengdu Prefecture, Qingshu Palace.

Even though Li Shimin was about to go back for "trial," he was initially nervous and guilty for quite some time.

however.

As the day of his return to the capital approached, a piece of news arrived that instantly relieved the pressure on Emperor Zhenguan's heart.

"Hahaha! Keming, Xuanling... you're still going strong!"

"Hahaha!" The officials from Chengdu Prefecture, including Lu Shiming, all burst into laughter.

The consensus had been reached for over a year, and everyone had learned from Emperor Zhenguan that the two Tang Dynasty prime ministers were afraid of their wives.

Now, seeing the two of them standing in front of the carriage, they looked like ants on a hot plate.

They all burst into laughter, gloating.

Lu Shiming was also going to Chang'an, after all, it was the Crown Prince's wedding, and he, as Emperor Li Shimin's "right-hand man", was fortunate enough to be invited.

Seeing that Fang Xuanling and the other person were about to cry, he stepped forward and put his arms around their shoulders.

"Cough cough, what's there to be afraid of? Whether you stick your head out or not, you'll get stabbed anyway. You've got kids already, don't be afraid! I don't believe your wife would actually dare to slash you with a razor blade..."

Beside Lu Shiming, a group of officials from Chengdu Prefecture echoed his sentiments.

"Just like that, Prime Minister Fang and Prime Minister Du, don't be afraid. Old Lu's wife was very fierce at first, but now? She's as docile as a cat!"

"Isn't it normal for a man to have a little fun outside of marriage?"

Li Shimin suppressed a laugh as he watched these people offer their comfort.

He coughed lightly, "Madam Fang and Madam Du are in different situations... Both of them are women who would rather die than lose their husbands. The Hundred Cavalry Division has sent word that they have been sharpening their knives for several days now."

"hiss!!!"

Lu Shiming and the others, who hadn't thought anything of it before, all froze in shock.

He stiffly and slowly turned his head to look at Li Junxian, the commander of the Hundred Cavalry, who was standing next to Li Shimin.

The latter sighed and looked at Fang and Du, whose faces were ashen, with pity.

"After hearing that Chancellor Fang and Chancellor Du had taken concubines in Chengdu, the two ladies nearly turned their mansion upside down on the spot... Lady Fang even went to the palace several times to plead with Empress Zhangsun for permission..."

Lu Shiming and the others asked in confusion, "Requesting an imperial decree? What decree? Could it be that you want to divorce Fang Xiang?"

Li Junxian lowered his head awkwardly: "This... Madam Fang requested that after she drinks poison and commits suicide, Prime Minister Fang be allowed to return and be buried with her."

"Fuck!!!"

"hiss!!!"

Lu Shiming's hands, which were around Fang Xuanling and the other man's shoulders, trembled involuntarily.

Funeral sacrifice?!

Damn... Everyone says the women of Jiannan Road are fierce, but compared to the tigress in Fang Xuanling's family, aren't these just little kittens?

Lu Shiming swallowed hard. Everyone glanced at the newlyweds sitting in the carriage, then at the anxious Fang and Du outside.

Fang Xuanling and his companion were heartbroken.

He shoved Lu Shiming aside and rushed to Emperor Li Er's side.

"Your Majesty! Your Majesty! You can't ignore this!"

"Waaah, these beauties were all sent here by you, this old minister never intended to..."

Li Shimin's brows furrowed immediately.

"You haven't thought about it? You haven't thought about how a child in a woman's womb comes to be? The imperial physicians have already made a correct diagnosis, and you still want to deny it?!"

Du Ruhui was very anxious and pulled at Li Shimin to prevent him from getting into the carriage.

"Your Majesty, I was drunk that day, which led to this situation. You..."

"Fine! Du Ruhui! You old codger, what's wrong? You dare to do it but not admit it? Don't tell me you're unintentional. Unintentional, are you still as sharp as ever at your age? Unintentional, why did you leave early and go home so many times after that?"

"What? Are you going to say that you, Du Ruhui, are a virtuous gentleman, and that the woman's unborn child was caused by me pushing you from behind?!"

Such vulgar language caused even the fair-skinned faces of Fang Xuanling and Du Ruhui, the two newcomers of Jiannan Dao, to flush slightly.

Du Ruhui's old face turned red and then pale.

At this moment, however, he was trembling and refused to get on the bus.

"Your Majesty, if I go back, I will surely die! There is absolutely no way I can survive. Please spare me! I will stay in Chengdu and serve Your Majesty faithfully..."

"I don't need your loyalty now. I want you to get on the carriage and return to the capital! If it weren't for you two despicable people making me look bad, my empress would be the one sharpening the knife!"

"Li Junxian! Go, tie them up for me, throw them onto the carriage! Let's head back to the capital!"

time.

Several cavalrymen quickly bound the two men together, gags with strips of cloth.

The carriage wheels began to turn and move forward with a gurgling sound.

Within the grand procession, two carriages emitted bursts of angry and despairing sobs.

It sounds like someone is swearing.

Fang Xuanling and Du Ruhui: "Woo (v) woo (|) woo (/), woo (v) woo (|) woo (|) woo (-)!!!"

"Waaaaaah!!!"

The changes in Jiannan Road are also particularly significant.

Previously, the roads to Sichuan were notoriously difficult, even more so than ascending to heaven. Although transportation remains inconvenient today, the extensive construction of cement roads and the implementation of bridge and road construction policies across the country have made significant progress.

The route back to Beijing was significantly smoother than before.

Even so, it would take at least half a month for such a convoy to get back to Chang'an.

however.

Li Shimin kept numbing himself, finding all sorts of excuses to justify his actions.

He thought to himself, at least Li Shimin didn't have any children outside of marriage, and taking concubines was just to encourage the officials in Jiannan Circuit...

He went on and on, until Li Shimin was almost convinced of his own abilities.

As the expression on his face gradually became more composed,

Approaching the border between Jiannan Road and Guannei Road, a fast horse suddenly came galloping up.

Soon, Li Junxian ran to Li Shimin's carriage with a nervous and complicated expression.

"What happened? Is the road blocked ahead?"

Li Shimin didn't think anything of it; they had plenty of time, and such situations were inevitable in this era.

however.

Li Junxian's next words almost made him drop the teacup he was holding.

"Your Majesty... Urgent report from the Hundred Cavalry! Her Majesty the Empress... is sharpening her knife in the palace!"

Li Shimin: "!!!"