Chapter 11: Teaching the Son

Li Xiang was still somewhat afraid of this father, and spoke cautiously:

"Son wishes to choose his own wife!"

"Which young lady have you taken a fancy to?"

"None, son just does not wish to marry a lady from a great aristocratic clan."

"The reason!"

"Son only wishes to entrust his heart to the mountains and rivers, and does not wish to become a tool for them to fight for power and profit."

Li Chengqian looked up at Li Xiang: "To want anything requires paying a price; nowadays, people in the world all take pride in marrying a lady from a scholarly clan.

As the eldest grandson of the Li family, if you were to marry a woman from an ordinary family, you would inevitably be mocked by others, and the Li family would lose face along with you. Are you certain you still want to do this?"

"This..."

Li Xiang's face showed difficulty; he had not thought that this would also cause the imperial family to lose face:

"Son is only born of a concubine, it should not matter much, right!"

"You should go stroll through Pingkang Fang. Not to mention great clans like the Five Surnames and Seven Clans, even a concubine-born son from the Lanling Xiao Clan—farmers and commoners in the marketplace are not even qualified to be in the same room as them.

If you were to marry an ordinary woman from a good family, your wife would not even be qualified to attend the most ordinary of banquets in the future.

Look again at the imperial concubines within Taiji Palace; which one of them does not come from a scholarly clan?"

Li Xiang lowered his head: "But son truly does not like those ladies from scholarly clans; there is an air of arrogance about them."

"No rush!"

Li Chengqian spoke to console him: "I will not let you marry so early; you can send people to inquire more.

A person's eyes can only see what is in front; sometimes what you see and hear is not necessarily true.

Arrogance, gentleness and virtue, talent, and so on can all be feigned; not all women from scholarly clans are the same.

As for fighting for power and profit, that is even less of a reason. Living in this world, one must fight for everything; the difference lies in who does the fighting.

If you want to entrust your heart to the mountains and rivers, you need a large amount of wealth as a foundation; I can help you fight for these things.

After I die, who will you find to help you fight?"

Speaking to this point, Li Chengqian paused; he did not know how the original body managed children, as it had not even taught such a simple principle.

"Kongzi set his heart on learning at fifteen; you are now fourteen, so you can also set your ambition first.

I will not interfere with what your ambition is, as long as your resolve is firm. Whatever your ambition, I will teach you how to go about it, even if you want to become an immortal or a Buddha."

"Thank you, Father!"

"Go! Everything is a result of one's own actions; as long as you do not regret it yourself, you may do whatever you wish."

Regarding Li Xiang's thoughts, Li Chengqian was perfectly clear; it was nothing more than being unable to stand the concepts held by those great aristocratic clans.

Scholarly clans viewed the concept of legitimate versus concubine-born status very heavily, and Li Xiang was born of a concubine.

Among the scholarly clans that have been passed down since the Han Dynasty, there is not one that does not value the distinction between legitimate and concubine-born. To them, a legitimate son is a legitimate son, and the family status must be inherited by a legitimate son.

If the legitimate son is not promising, at worst they find him a good marriage partner; if that really fails, they can always start over with a new child.

And behind the distinction of legitimate and concubine-born is family ritual, which is also one of the Three Rites; this is the true reason why great aristocratic clans can be passed down for a thousand years.

The fact that Confucianism could take root in this land is inseparable from the contribution of these great clans, and the fact that the concepts of propriety, righteousness, integrity, and shame could take deep root in people's hearts is also inseparable from these scholarly clans.

Li Chengqian did not want to judge whether the existence of scholarly clans was right or wrong; these scholarly clans blocked his path, so he could only slowly clear them away. At the very least, court officials could not all be of scholarly clan origin.

An hour after Li Xiang left, a guard walked in hurriedly holding a piece of paper:

"Your Highness the Crown Prince, a letter from the King of Jiang!"

Li Chengqian took the letter and scanned it quickly, then spoke with a calm expression:

"Go to the Duke of Chen's mansion and invite him to come over."

"Yes!"

Li Chengqian looked at the paper in his hand again, his eyes dark and unreadable:

'Is Li Yun cowardly or clever? He actually does not want to go to Yizhou.

Regardless of which it is, wanting to scheme against Cheng Yaojin through him will still take some effort.

There is no rush here for now; it is better to first completely seize the military power of Liangzhou through the Yin Family.'

Cheng Yaojin was the Chief Clerk of the Jiang Prince Mansion; his role was the same as Li Shiji's, both being assistants for Li Shimin to seize local power through the Imperial Princes.

Li Chengqian had originally wanted to scheme for Li Yun to go to Yizhou, as it was a prosperous place second only to Chang'an.

Once Li Yun went to Yizhou, Cheng Yaojin, a person who had never been attacked, would also become a target for the scholarly clans to attack; even the Qinghe Cui Clan would not protect him.

Now that Li Yun would not take the bait, without Li Yun's cooperation, Li Shimin would simply not send another Imperial Prince to Yizhou. When he originally sent Li Ke, it stirred up opposition from the entire court, forcing him to change the location for Li Ke.

'Sigh! It is truly difficult to handle; how are these people all so clever.

"It enters the night with the wind, moistening things silently"; now I can only play a big game, making it so people cannot see clearly or touch it.'

Li Chengqian closed his eyes and kept thinking about how to use the struggle for the Crown Prince position to prepare for the future eradication of the scholarly clans.

Without realizing it, an hour passed. It was not until Hou Junji arrived that Li Chengqian slowly opened his eyes:

"Duke of Chen, you have come!"

"Is Your Highness the Crown Prince tired?"

Li Chengqian shook his head: "You also know about the morning court session today; it can be said that after today, the struggle for the heir apparent will become increasingly intense.

Behind Qingque are scholarly clans including the Lanling Xiao Clan and the Jingzhao Wei Clan; although I have not yet seen the shadow of the Five Surnames and Seven Clans, I believe they are already secretly helping Qingque.

Behind Zhinu are the literary groups within the Guanlong Aristocratic Group, as well as the emerging civil official group supported by Father like Chu Suiliang; most importantly, Li Shiji is also standing on his side."

Hou Junji's expression was ugly: "Your Highness the Crown Prince, Zhangsun Wuji is the head of the literary men, and Li Shiji's prestige in the military is higher than mine. With their support, the Emperor will certainly consider the Prince of Jin."

"Considering is one thing, and doing it is another. In the current situation, Father will not and dare not depose me, and Qingque and Zhinu want the throne but dare not easily make a move against me.

There is only one way to sit firmly as the Crown Prince or to become the Crown Prince; I need the help of the Duke of Chen."

"Please speak, Your Highness the Crown Prince; this subject will not shirk even at the cost of his life!"

Li Chengqian's eyes narrowed, his tone filled with determination:

"I want the situation of the various countries surrounding the Great Tang, from their customs and folkways to their court officials; the more detailed, the better."

"Does this have to do with the position of the heir apparent?"

Hou Junji was somewhat bewildered: "A bunch of barbarians, what intelligence do you need on them?

If it weren't for the Emperor not agreeing, I would have long since wiped out the countries of the Western Regions; I could even have sent their kings' heads to the Crown Prince to be used as chamber pots."

"This stuff isn't for me; it's a gift for Qingque and Zhinu."

It would have been better if he hadn't said it, but after saying it, he was even more bewildered, and Hou Junji waved his hands repeatedly:

"Your Highness the Crown Prince, don't tell me these things; I wouldn't understand them anyway. Once I return, I will arrange for people to do it.

I see it clearly now: you were able to save my life and the Prince of Qi's life with just two sentences, so you are definitely smarter than me. Following your lead is never wrong."

"Many thanks for your trust, Duke of Chen!"

Li Chengqian smiled slightly: "The Duke of Chen need not concern yourself with court affairs; just drink tea and fish every day, and live a more leisurely life.

For these next few years, the court will be the world of Qingque and Zhinu; you and I can just hide in the back and watch the show."

"Won't they join forces to deal with the Crown Prince?"

"Deal with me how? Behind me, there is only a group of soldiers, and among the twenty-four meritorious officials of the Lingyan Pavilion, only you stand on my side.

Just as I said at the court assembly, if Father truly wants to depose me, as long as it isn't for rebellion, he could depose me for any reason at all.

He isn't deposing me now because Father does not want me to die, nor does he want Qingque and Zhinu to die; that is why he is letting me sit in the position of Crown Prince for the time being."