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

"Royal sister, please stop hitting me! I really know I was wrong... Ouch, don't hit my face!"

"Royal sister, I will never dare to do it again! I... ugh!"

"Royal sister, oh!"

Li Shimin felt as if he were having a terrible nightmare. In the nightmare, his elder sister transformed into a demon, punching and kicking him, and constantly questioning him why he abandoned his wife and children to go out and enjoy himself alone.

The spear lashed at his body.

They punched and kicked him.

He, the dignified General Li Shimin, who had clearly eaten the red fruit given to him by the Crown Prince and was virtually invincible, was actually forced to retreat repeatedly by the opponent.

During this time, he tried to fight back, but each time he made a move, just like when he was learning martial arts as a child, his opponent easily saw through his weaknesses.

Not only did he counter with another move, but he also increased the force of his blows several times over.

"Stop hitting him, stop hitting him..."

On the bed, Li Shimin had a bruised and swollen face, his eyes tightly closed as if he were having a nightmare.

Suddenly he opened his eyes wide.

"Guanyinbi, save me!"

Li Shimin: "......."

The terrifying nightmare was replaced by the scene unfolding in the bedchamber.

Li Shimin was covered in cold sweat, and looked around in confusion. Just as he was about to get up, a sudden soreness from all over his body made him gasp.

"hiss!"

He touched his cheek, and even without looking in a mirror, he could clearly feel that his once handsome and dashing face was probably swollen into a pig's head.

Outside the hall, faint sounds of angry shouts could be heard.

Li Shimin, dazed, propped himself up from the bed and walked to the palace gate, where he heard his eldest son, the Crown Prince, angrily berating someone.

"Useless! You're all a bunch of damn useless trash!"

"It's better to raise a guard dog than to raise you all alone!"

"My father is in my Yangcheng Palace, beaten unconscious by treacherous people, and you're telling me you haven't found anything?! Huh?!"

"Why don't I just cut off my own head and hang it at the gate of Yangcheng Palace, so that people won't have to come and get it themselves?!"

"Investigate! If you can't find out who attacked His Majesty, all of you will die!!!"

"check!!!"

"Creak" sound.

Li Shimin pushed open the palace door, and what came into view were the Jinyiwei (Imperial Guards) and the commanders of the six guards of the Eastern Palace kneeling on the ground, as well as Wang De and other eunuchs who were close to Li Chengqian.

Li Chengqian looked furious, his face twisted with murderous intent.

"Chengqian..."

"Father! You, you're awake! You..." Li Chengqian's expression tightened instantly, and he hurriedly ran towards Li Shimin.

Upon reaching the other person, he suddenly knelt on the ground with a thud, his face filled with self-reproach and shame.

"Father, your son is utterly incompetent. A treacherous person infiltrated the palace, nearly causing your demise..."

He lowered his head, not daring to look at his father's face, which resembled that of the second senior brother, for fear that he would burst out laughing on the spot.

Empress Zhangsun, who is also the director, investor, and lead actress, is still secretly watching this situation.

"Waaaaah, Father, your son is incompetent, your son is utterly incompetent!"

Li Shimin's mind went blank for a while before he came to his senses and helped Li Chengqian up.

"Don't rush to blame yourself. You just said... the Embroidered Uniform Guard didn't find anything?"

Li Shimin looked puzzled.

Although the Embroidered Uniform Guard was derived from his Hundred Cavalry Division, he didn't know where his son had gathered all sorts of talented people, to the point that the Embroidered Uniform Guard's abilities had completely overwhelmed the current Hundred Cavalry Division.

They must have made quite a commotion last night, how could they not have found anything?

"I fought that thief for a long time last night in the garden behind Chongde Hall... and we didn't find a single clue?"

Li Shimin did not believe it.

Li Chengqian was taken aback and looked at the others behind him with a puzzled expression.

Qianlou knelt to the side, feeling ashamed and confused.

"Your Majesty, everything is normal at Chongde Hall; no signs of a struggle have been found..."

"What?! I almost had that garden demolished!"

Li Shimin snorted angrily, gritted his teeth, and endured the soreness all over his body before striding directly towards the Chongde Hall.

He had a bad feeling, but reason told him it couldn't be true.

Li Chengqian hurriedly followed behind, exchanging a glance with Wang De.

The latter smiled and nodded.

When Li Shimin, filled with rage, rushed to the Chongde Hall and arrived at the garden he remembered, he was instantly speechless at the sight before him.

In my memory, the broken flowerpot is still perfectly placed in its original spot.

The flowerbeds, ravaged and devastated by them, are still intact and bathed in the morning light.

The streetlights were not knocked askew.

There wasn't a single crack in the floorboards...

Li Shimin: "...This, how is this possible?"

Behind them, Li Chengqian and the others hurriedly caught up. They looked around and saw that everything was as usual, except for the palace maids who were watering the flowers, who were startled by the scene.

There were absolutely no signs of a fight as Li Shimin had described.

"Father, have you noticed anything unusual?"

Li Shimin shook his head slightly, but still refused to give up and continued to search around the garden.

Arriving at the side of the brick wall in his memory, where he should have knocked it down, he frowned and reached out to stroke it, causing Li Chengqian behind him to feel uneasy.

However, after observing for a long time, Li Shimin still couldn't see anything wrong.

He turned and headed toward a flower bed on one side.

Li Chengqian followed quietly behind, watching the emperor question "Li Er's world," and couldn't help but find it amusing.

Father, you can't even imagine how big and efficient my team is!

"How could this be? How could this be... I clearly met that person here, and then we fought a great battle..."

At the opportune moment, Li Chengqian approached with a look of worry and nervousness.

His gaze was fixed on Li Shimin's head.

"Father, Your Majesty, are you really alright? Why don't you go back and rest first? I'll have someone summon the imperial physician to take another look."

"I'm fine!" Li Shimin snorted angrily, but the movement aggravated the injury on his lip, causing him to gasp for breath.

however.

His own crown prince's next words left him completely stunned.

"Father, but... but you didn't go out at all last night!"

"what?!"

Li Shimin turned his head in astonishment and disbelief, looking at Li Junxian, the commander of the Hundred Cavalry, beside him.

The latter, like a prince, had a worried expression on his face.

"Your Majesty, after dinner last night, you said you were tired and went to your bedchamber to rest early. I have been keeping watch around the area with men... You did not go out. It was just before dawn that I heard noises coming from your bedchamber, so I went in with men, but..."

Li Junxian pursed his lips, and the tension and fear in his eyes made Li Shimin's heart sink again.

"Your Majesty, you are lying on your bed covered in wounds, talking nonsense..."

After saying that, he knelt down on the ground with a thud and cried out in shame.

"Your Majesty, it is our incompetence that allowed that thief to sneak into the palace, Your Majesty..." Li Junxian's eyes were filled with tears as he suddenly drew the long sword from his waist, about to reach for his own neck.

"Snapped!"

Li Shimin reacted quickly and knocked the knife away in an instant.

The aggravation of his injuries caused him to gasp again.

"What do you mean 'die'! The matter hasn't even been investigated yet, and you're already in a hurry to slit your throat and die?! I'd rather raise a dog than you! At least a dog knows to retaliate if it gets beaten up!"

Li Chengqian thought the commander of the Hundred Cavalry Commandery had great acting skills.

Li Junxian knelt on the ground, sobbing uncontrollably.

Li Chengqian took a deep breath, went to his father's side, and asked softly.

“Father, when you were attacked in the palace last night, did you notice anything about the thief? He was able to bypass the palace patrols and the Imperial Guard sentries, and even the Hundred Cavalry Guard outside your palace. He must not be an ordinary assassin. We should capture him as soon as possible.”

He said this seriously.

Li Shimin, however, looked at everything in the garden and frowned even more deeply.

He glanced at Li Junxian, the commander of the Hundred Cavalry, who was kneeling on the ground, and pondered for a long time before slowly speaking.

"The one who attacked me was a woman..."

"what?!"

Now, everyone looked astonished, as if it had been rehearsed.

Li Chengqian also looked incredulous.

"Father, are you sure it was a woman who knocked you unconscious?"

Although Li Shimin's pig-headed face turned slightly red with embarrassment, his judgment made him grit his teeth and nod.

"I may be wrong in other aspects, but I can tell the difference between men and women at a glance. That person is definitely not a man dressed as a woman!"

Empress Zhangsun, who was hiding in the shadows, couldn't help but purse her lips upon hearing this.

"Excellent skill! His Majesty truly deserves an award..."

At this moment, in the garden behind Chongde Hall, everyone looked at each other in bewilderment upon hearing this.

It goes without saying how brave Your Majesty is. There are women in the world who can beat Your Majesty unconscious silently in your bedchamber.

Everyone, including Li Shimin, couldn't help but look around, a sense of unease creeping over them.

See this.

Li Shimin hesitated for a moment, then pulled Li Chengqian to a corner of the garden.

"Chengqian, I think I know who the assassin is."

"Who?" Li Chengqian's eyes narrowed instantly, his gaze filled with a chilling killing intent.

"Father, please speak freely. In matters like this, it is better to kill the innocent than to let the guilty go free!"

Li Shimin shook his head with a troubled expression, glanced at the crowd not far away, and then said in a low, hesitant voice, "I... I think I saw your imperial aunt."

Li Chengqian frowned: "Imperial aunt? Which one? All the imperial aunts are in Chang'an..."

Li Shimin shook his head, his expression becoming even more obscure and troubled: "This...this isn't one of those imperial aunts. I'm talking about your imperial aunt...Princess Pingyang, my elder sister..."

"what?!"

Li Chengqian looked as if he had seen a ghost. Worry, shock, anger, and confusion were all mixed on his face. He stared blankly at his father, the emperor, with a look of deep regret on his face.

"I am not confused!" Li Shimin said anxiously.

He glanced again at Wang De and the others not far away, then pulled Li Chengqian even further away and lowered his voice.

"I'm not confused. I really did see your Aunt Pingyang last night, right here in this garden. I was pondering what you said during the day, and then she just appeared out of the clouds..."

"She was dressed in the same women's army uniform, still using the same bright armor and long spear she wore back then. There's no mistake, I even fought with her... All my moves were useless against her."

"Just like... just like when she tested my martial arts skills back then..."

Li Chengqian himself even wanted to award himself an Oscar.

This kind of acting, where he was laughing hysterically inside while appearing completely bewildered and incredulous on the surface, was an exceptional performance, even for him.

at the same time.

In the Taoist temple where Yuan Tiangang of Taiyuan Prefecture resided, Yuan Tiangang sighed helplessly.

Li Chunfeng, standing beside him, also shook his head helplessly.

After seeing off the Imperial Guards, they couldn't help but exchange a glance.

Li Chunfeng sighed, "Alas, what kind of mess is this..."

Yuan Tiangang gave a wry smile: "Hehe, alright, it's rare that His Highness the Crown Prince remembers us. Let's just treat it as if we're walking through the mortal world again."

Yangcheng Palace, the bedroom where Li Shimin resided.

The imperial physician has just left.

Wang De rushed over to report.

"Your Highness, Your Majesty, Master Yuan and Master Li have arrived!"