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

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty..."

Li Chengqian couldn't hear Li Tai's anxious and worried calls from beside him.

His eyes were fixed on the words on the letter with a ferocious and terrifying look: "Longevity Ointment," "Immortal Medicine," "Deadly Poison," and so on. He was breathing heavily and his blood was boiling.

As a soul that has traveled through time, how could Li Chengqian not know what all these things mentioned were?

The sudden and silent defection of all officials in Jiangnan and Huainan Circuits now seems to have a reasonable explanation.

But... he'd rather not have that explanation!

opium!

From Li You's letter, Li Chengqian already knew the origin of these items: they were brought by merchants from Persia and Arabia.

However, when this thing was introduced to the Tang Dynasty, it traveled via the overland Silk Road.

But now... it came from the sea. What makes Li Chengqian even more furious is that some merchants have secretly discovered the use of this thing and committed such a heinous act.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, what's wrong?" Li Tai's voice grew increasingly anxious.

Li Chengqian snapped out of his daze, suppressing the growing anxiety and madness in his heart, and handed the letter to the other party.

"Qingque... The situation in Huainan and Jiangnan is more serious than I thought. I'm afraid... suppressing the rebellion is only the beginning; the real focus will be on governing the region afterward!"

He took a deep breath; no one knew better than him just how terrifying the power of opium truly was.

It is no exaggeration to say that if he had lived a few years later, or if Chen Congyun and his gang of wicked villains had been hiding even deeper, the moment opium appeared in Chang'an, the country would have been on the verge of collapse.

The excellent situation created by the new policies over the past decade will also be lost!

Li Tai looked at the contents of the letter. Although he had never seen what those drug addicts looked like, and he didn't know exactly what the "longevity drug" was, he could tell from the description of the current situation of the two officials between the lines.

Even he couldn't help but feel a chill run down his spine.

"How could such a vicious creature exist in this world? Even the capable ministers and officials of our Great Tang Dynasty, who are well-versed in the classics, have been reduced to mere puppets, walking corpses?!"

Li Chengqian took a deep breath, his expression solemn.

"Send a letter to Chang'an, explaining the situation in both regions. If we want to completely eradicate these poisonous creatures from both regions, we cannot exclude the power of the imperial court..."

Li Chengqian said calmly.

Originally, he intended to use this as an excuse to thoroughly discipline the increasingly lax officials in the court, so that the princes and the court would compete and inflate, thus creating healthy competition.

However, the emergence of opium forced Li Chengqian to temporarily suppress the matter.

However, if Fang Xuanling, Du Ruhui and other key figures in the court knew that two officials had become puppets so quickly because of opium, they would probably not dare to be negligent in such matters.

......

"Hahaha! How delightful! How delightful!"

"Those Li Chengqian were so willful, causing our esteemed thousand-year-old family to fall to this state. Hahaha, now this is their retribution!"

"Brother Kuai, you've come at the right time. To be honest, we have long been unable to tolerate this humiliation. Our ancestors and sages of the Cui clan of Qinghe were of such high caliber that no emperor in history had ever dared to treat us so harshly, or even to the point of brandishing swords at us!"

Pyongyang Road.

Choi Joon is secretly meeting with a guest today, a guest who claims to be from Gangnam Province.

He immediately started talking about plotting something important, and even claimed to be an envoy for the lord...

If it weren't for the fact that the other party was very courteous when they arrived, and brought two boats full of money, grain, and supplies as gifts, even Cui Jun, who harbored considerable resentment towards the Tang Dynasty, would have almost ordered his men to tie this fellow up and send him to Lu Zhaojing.

However, when the latest news from Gangnam Province and Huainan Province reached Pyongyang Province, this scholar named Kuai Dong, who claimed to be a disciple of Chen Congyun, also became his guest of honor.

At the banquet, Cui Jun held the other person's hand, appearing as if they were bosom friends.

Kuai Dong stroked his beard and chuckled.

“Patriarch Cui is only temporarily trapped in shallow waters. As long as he doesn’t lose his ambition, it’s only a matter of time before he brings glory to his family here. Right now, Patriarch Cui, you are in the north, and my patriarch is in the south.”

“Master Cui, you have soldiers and generals under your command, while my lord has money and provisions. This is truly a blessing from heaven that brings us together from the North and the South!”

Cui Jun's smile deepened.

The Chen Congyun mentioned by this fellow is none other than the current head of the Cui clan of Qinghe. Even he couldn't help but marvel at his audacity.

He actually dared to control two channels of betrayal against the Tang Dynasty, despite being just a merchant.

Such methods are something that even his father, Cui Minshi, might not have been able to pull off, let alone him.

After all, the Tang Dynasty's imperial family is now very powerful, and the people in the court are all the imperial family's henchmen. In such an unfavorable situation for them, it would be no different from climbing to heaven for the Jiangnan Circuit and Huainan Circuit to rebel.

However, now is indeed the best time for them to start an uprising in Pyongyang.

Kuai Dong noticed the change in Cui Jun's expression and smiled slightly: "Patriarch Cui, you have seen my lord's sincerity. Now, the two regions have attracted almost all the attention of the court and the royal family. Even the Prince of Liang and the Prince of Yan have been transferred to the south. If Patriarch Cui does not act this time, I'm afraid there will be no more opportunities in the future."

He smiled slightly, giving Cui Jun no chance to hesitate, and spoke again in a low voice.

"My lord rose from humble beginnings and was able to turn the Huainan and Jiangnan regions of the Li Tang dynasty upside down. Do you think that if we are defeated and killed, the Li Tang dynasty will allow prominent families like the Cui family of Qinghe and the Li family of Zhaojun to survive?"

"Or perhaps... the head of the Cui family is willing to abandon his ancestral honors and adopt some unruly and wild surname, thus sinking into the mire?"

"Whoosh!" Cui Jun stood up angrily.

"Am I such a cowardly rat?! As a member of the Cui family, to forget the foundation laid by our ancestors through hardship and to surrender and live a life of cowardice is no different from death!"

He took a deep breath: "The Prince of Yan still has troops remaining in Yanzhou. Let's wait a few more days until Yanzhou is empty, then we will launch our uprising! At that time, we will cut off the head of that old traitor Lu Zhaojing, occupy Pyongyang Road, and plot to seize Liaodong and Silla from the east and west!"

Kuai Dong was satisfied, stood up, and clasped his hands in greeting.

"In that case, I will congratulate the Cui family head on his moment of glory on behalf of my lord! My lord will also send a batch of gifts on the day the Cui family head rises up!"

"Hahaha! No problem, no problem..."

The turmoil in Jiangnan and Huainan Circuits has gripped the attention of the entire Tang Dynasty.

The people were both terrified and bewildered. Why were those cowards from Jiangdong so audacious at this time, choosing to rebel instead of enjoying their good life?

Officials were also worried about what kind of repercussions the court would face afterward.

however.

Amidst all this anxiety, Wang Ming and his son Wang Qingyun kept their eyes fixed on the Pyongyang Road.

Liaodong Circuit, Shengjing Prefectural Government.

Cui Xiaoguo, a commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, delivered the latest intelligence, his expression calm yet laced with a chilling intent.

"They've decided to make their move. Based on the intelligence we have so far, the Lu family of Fanyang, under Lu Zhaojing's control, hasn't yet participated, but..."

Before he could finish speaking, Wang Qingyun sneered and interrupted him calmly: "Lu Zhaojing won't live much longer. After he dies, the Lu family will definitely rebel with the Cui family of Qinghe and their gang!"

He slowly stood up and looked at the geomantic map in front of him, which showed the inescapable net that had been laid long ago to target the rebellion in Pyongyang Province.

Although the support of the King of Yan and the King of Liang is now gone, the King of Han is keeping a close eye on the situation and is ready to provide assistance at any time.

In the quiet of the night, Wang Qingyun stared intently at the location of Pyongyang Road on the geomantic map.

With two rebellions underway, Zheng Jiang, the head of the Xingyang Zheng family and Minister of Personnel, will surely be disliked by the Crown Prince, while his sister Wang Yuyan is now highly regarded by the Crown Princess and Empress Zhangsun in the palace.

Once Pyongyang is pacified... the Taiyuan Wang clan can once again return to its former status as a top-tier group under the Crown Prince.

"Summon Zheng Wuyang to the governor's residence; I have important matters to discuss with him..."

And at almost the same time.

In the residence of Prime Minister Dojong in Pyongyang, Lu Zhaojing lay hunched over his desk, his hunched back and his eyes filled with solemnity as he looked at one report after another.

He sensed that something was wrong.

"Someone, bring Lu Wenhu to me..."