Chapter 189: Beating a Drowning Dog

Zhang Lingxin was no fool; though he held his troops still, he was by no means playing deaf and dumb, doing nothing at all.

For instance, Fang Chongyong suggested sending a few scouts to Shengye Ward to have a look. That way, whatever Prince Zhong Li Heng had said would be verified as true or false at a glance. Zhang Lingxin accepted the suggestion readily and sent men to make a round through Shengye Ward. They returned to report that Wu Zhiyi, with his remnant soldiers and Prince Xue's men, were going door to door conducting searches, seemingly looking for someone.

Only then did Zhang Lingxin fully believe that this was indeed a rebellion by Prince Zhong, with Wu Zhiyi serving as the inside collaborator and Prince Xue as the outside reinforcement, seizing the opportunity to strike while the Southern Bureau imperial guards were outside the city and the main force of the Dragon Martial Army had been ordered by His Holiness not to leave their grand camp.

Though Zhang Lingxin found it somewhat hard to believe that Prince Zhong, who was usually as steady as a turtle, could be so reckless, the facts were plain before his eyes. Prince Zhong Li Heng's claim that "Prince Shou is plotting rebellion and causing chaos" had no evidence whatsoever and was basically pure fabrication.

On the contrary, the evidence of this prince stirring up trouble behind the scenes came in crop after crop, more abundant than the wild grasses outside Chang'an!

So now there was a new problem: now that the situation had been ascertained, should the Dragon Martial Army go to rescue His Holiness?

In the signing room of the Xuanwu Gate tower, Zhang Lingxin and Li Linfu, not daring to rest at all, stared at each other in extreme indecision. Fang Chongyong, meanwhile, was like an invisible man, sitting in the corner with his eyes closed, conserving his energy.

When it came to rescuing His Holiness, in many cases, simply holding one's troops still already represented one's stance—a conservative declaration of position.

When a struggle for the throne arose, the imperial guards not taking a stand was, in many cases, a good thing rather than a bad thing.

After all, Li Linfu as Right Chancellor and Zhang Lingxin as Right General of the Dragon Martial Army had not sided with Li Heng or provided resources for his rebellion.

Was that not itself a form of taking a stand?

But the problem was this: it was proper for the imperial guards and the chancellor to keep to their place, and it was equally proper for them to actively come to the sovereign's aid. These two vastly different attitudes were, in essence, both in accordance with "the rules." What everyone worried about was merely what Li Longji would think!

Li Linfu could not be certain, and Zhang Lingxin was equally uncertain.

"Right Chancellor, what do you think of detaching a portion of the Dragon Martial Army to go clear the area around Shengye Ward?"

Zhang Lingxin asked with some uncertainty. He felt a chill down his neck, as if it might be separated from his body at any moment—and not just him alone, but his entire family would be sent on their way together. As he spoke these words, his hands were trembling.

"This matter, I too am hesitating over."

Li Linfu said with a sigh.

Compared to members of the imperial clan, Brother Ji actually trusted his old officials from his days as a hidden dragon far more. As long as they were not fools courting their own ruin, those people now basically enjoyed undiminished imperial favor.

It was indeed true that Li Linfu had earned Brother Ji's trust, but it also depended on the situation and the occasion. When it came to something like rebellion, Brother Ji was not necessarily very trusting of Li Linfu.

Earlier, when Li Linfu came to the Dragon Martial Army to "take refuge," preventing Li Heng from using the authority of the outer court to control the military—that was indeed no problem and amounted to a measure of self-preservation.

But participating in the Dragon Martial Army's subsequent actions would be highly inappropriate. If Zhang Lingxin dispatched Dragon Martial Army troops to clear Shengye Ward, then regardless of whether Li Linfu opened his mouth or not, to uninformed outsiders it would naturally appear that this was Li Linfu's decision!

Afterward, when Li Longji discovered that Li Linfu could actually mobilize the Dragon Martial Army to rescue His Holiness, whether he would feel gratitude or retrospective fear—that would be hard to say!

"The Jingzhao Prefecture yamen has already mobilized the Southern Bureau's Golden Guard to head to Shengye Ward to suppress the rebellion. I trust they can get it done."

Li Linfu shook his head with some helplessness, rejecting Zhang Lingxin's suggestion. At this juncture, not moving was better than moving.

This time he was truly frightened; he had dozens of people in his household. Given the enemies Li Linfu had made over his years in office, once he lost power, his fate would certainly not be pleasant.

Li Linfu believed Fang Chongyong was also afraid, but Fang Chongyong had already offended Li Heng to the death, so now he had no choice but to stand on the opposite side from Li Heng and his faction—he had no option at all.

Otherwise, no fool would voluntarily involve himself in such a matter, jumping up and down and making a fuss.

"Now that the realm is at peace, why would Prince Zhong plot rebellion?"

Unable to make up his mind, Zhang Lingxin changed the subject and asked with some puzzlement.

In his view, Li Longji's foundation of rule had not been shaken in the least. Apart from Tibet, none of the Great Tang's neighbors could defeat the Tang army—and moreover, the empire was currently in a period of relative peace with Tibet.

To come forward and plot rebellion at a time like this was simply absurd.

In Zhang Lingxin's impression, Li Heng was actually one of the more well-behaved among the various princes.

"General Zhang, you might as well simply call him Li Heng. The title Prince Zhong—Li Heng no longer deserves it. Continuing to address him that way seems to carry a suspicion of sympathizing with rebellion."

Li Linfu suggested without batting an eye.

"Haha, that's true, indeed it is. Li Heng plotting rebellion—truly deserves death."

Zhang Lingxin gave a dry laugh. He and Li Linfu each harbored their own concerns and could not fully trust each other. Right now, rather than saying they were consulting together on important matters, it would be more accurate to say they were mutually keeping watch, straightforwardly proving each other's innocence.

Just then, a Dragon Martial Army officer hurried in from outside—the man happened to be Zhang Lingxin's eldest son, Zhang Jun.

Before the other could even open his mouth, Zhang Lingxin laughed heartily: "Whatever it is, just say it in front of the Right Chancellor."

"Father, the Golden Guard and other Southern Bureau imperial guards have already entered the city and begun clearing Shengye Ward! By the look of it, they number no fewer than two thousand!"

"They have already started fighting with Wu Zhiyi and Prince Xue's men, their momentum like a rainbow. Prince Xue's defeat is only a matter of time."

Zhang Jun said excitedly.

He had to be excited, because the situation had become clear—these people of theirs finally no longer had to make a choice.

Zhang Lingxin and Li Linfu both breathed a sigh of relief at the same time.

"Right Chancellor, there is no need to hesitate anymore. Dealing with Prince Zhong admits no delay."

Zhang Lingxin said to Li Linfu with a solemn expression.

Even with the dust settled, the work they ought to do still had to be done! For instance, properly putting on a display of the art of taking sides!

"You personally lead a team, go tie up Li Heng, and bind him to the flagpole at the West Garden parade ground."

Zhang Lingxin ordered in as calm a tone as he could manage.

Before a victor had been decided, Li Heng still had the slightest chance of winning—for instance, if Wu Zhiyi and his men found Li Longji in the shortest possible time and killed him, then pinned it on Prince Shou Li Chang.

Then the Dragon Martial Army could conveniently go along with the flow and support Li Heng's ascent to the throne. So at that time, they could not be too harsh toward this "new sovereign" who theoretically still had a chance of taking the throne.

As for now, with the overall situation settled, of course they could not be polite to Li Heng.

Being polite to Li Heng at this point would amount to "sheltering" a criminal! That was serious in nature!

"Right."

Zhang Lingxin called Zhang Jun back and whispered in his ear: "Send a few subordinates who know their limits, and give Li Heng a good beating—at least enough to leave him bruised and swollen. Just don't beat him to death."

That actually works?

Zhang Jun was taken aback, not understanding why his father would give such instructions. Rebellion was rebellion—when the time came, a single blade stroke would suffice. What was the point of beating Li Heng up?

"Go. Just do as I instructed."

Zhang Lingxin waved his hand impatiently and said.

After Zhang Jun left, Fang Chongyong—who had been playing the invisible man here all along, who clearly could have offered suggestions yet insisted on pretending to be unable to speak—suddenly opened his mouth and said:

"General Zhang, you can now dispatch a detachment to the Ten Princes' Residence and arrest all of Li Heng's children and family members."

It is also a great merit.

"But General Zhang and the Right Chancellor cannot personally go; you still need to hold down Xuanwu Gate."

Oh right!

Both Zhang Lingxin and Li Linfu "suddenly saw the light," nearly snapping their fingers in applause.

Beating a drowning dog—this move was truly brilliant! Moreover, Fang Chongyong had already hinted quite explicitly who would be the more suitable choice to lead the team.

It was him, this fake monk who had been running errands back and forth until his legs nearly broke!

"In an emergency, exceptions must be made. I shall have you temporarily act as Dragon Martial Army Commander, leading five hundred soldiers to the Ten Princes' Residence to make arrests."

Zhang Lingxin looked at Fang Chongyong and said.

In fact, he and Li Linfu, right up until now, still had to "keep an eye on each other," neither allowing the other out of his sight; otherwise, when Brother Ji later investigated and assigned blame, it would be hard to prove their own innocence.

Rescuing the sovereign was one merit; preventing Li Heng's scheme from succeeding was likewise a merit—one could not say that just because Zhang Lingxin and Li Linfu had not sent anyone to rescue Brother Ji, they had done nothing at all in the course of quelling this rebellion!

"Please, General Zhang, grant me the Dragon Martial Army seal, and Right Chancellor, write an official order and stamp it. Only with the seal and the written order can I go to the Ten Princes' Residence and persuade its garrison to assist in the search and arrest."

Fang Chongyong clasped his hands in salute and said.

He wanted a double guarantee.

Zhang Lingxin giving him the Dragon Martial Army seal was proper—after all, it was proof of identity. But given Li Heng's nature as an old schemer, he had most likely already bribed the officials and garrison of the Ten Princes' Residence! It was even highly possible that the Commissioner of the Ten Princes' Residence had long since thrown in with Li Heng! The Dragon Martial Army seal alone might not be enough to make certain red-eyed people lay down their resistance.

Without a written order from Li Linfu, Fang Chongyong felt this trip would indeed lack a certain "backing."

"Would this Chancellor's managing the affairs of the Ten Princes' Residence be overstepping a bit too far?"

Li Linfu asked in return with a smile, his words laden with meaning.

"I believe His Holiness would mostly prefer a chancellor who can take action after something goes wrong. Sending the Dragon Martial Army to rescue the sovereign risks accidentally injuring His Holiness, so naturally it is better to adopt other methods.

But raiding the Ten Princes' Residence will not cause His Holiness any embarrassment at all.

The Right Chancellor should still make a show of his stance.

The Left Chancellor does not handle affairs, but the Right Chancellor does—so naturally, the Left Chancellor and the Right Chancellor carry different weight in His Holiness's heart."

Fang Chongyong said unhurriedly.

Li Linfu of course had no authority over the Ten Princes' Residence, but he represented the attitude of the central outer court! This written order would be enough to sway the stance of many neutral observers sitting on the fence.

The Ten Princes' Residence was vast; each prince was allotted a staff of five hundred palace attendants and palace maids, and the guards were numerous as well. With these people actively cooperating, matters would proceed much more smoothly.

Without Li Linfu's endorsement, Fang Chongyong would indeed have felt somewhat unable to stretch his hands freely in carrying out the "raid."

"Mm, that does make sense. This Chancellor shall write an official order now and stamp it with the central court's seal."

Li Linfu nodded slightly, called for paper and brush, and in the name of the central outer court, directly wrote out an official order to seal the Prince of Zhong's residence and issue a citywide manhunt for the Prince of Zhong's heirs and family, then handed it to Fang Chongyong.

"Then I shall go attend to the matter now."

Fang Chongyong clasped his hands in salute, turned, and left.

After he had gone, Li Linfu then said to Zhang Lingxin with a smile, "We should prepare as well; we may be summoned to see His Holiness shortly."

"Yes, let us hope His Holiness does not assign blame."

Zhang Lingxin said with a sigh.

The designation of the Dragon Martial Army, he feared, could no longer be preserved.

There is still more today.

(End of this chapter)