Chapter 22

Regarding Zhangsun Wuji's words, Li Shimin was noncommittal, only glancing faintly at Li Chengqian:

"Gaoming, military affairs are the great affairs of the nation; sending troops depends on the timing, the geographical advantages, and the harmony of the people, not just what you want."

"Grand Master Yu has been on leave for these two days; are you being a bit unrestrained?"

A flash of light passed through Li Chengqian's eyes; Erfeng mentioned Yu Zhining at this time; is he trying to cooperate with me? No wonder he called me over today.

Thinking of this, a look of ruthlessness appeared on Li Chengqian's face:

"There is still a large amount of grain and grass in the Former Sui granaries; it can be taken out and used."

"Strike first to gain the advantage, strike later and suffer! Since Goguryeo has become a threat, we should send troops to solve it."

"I think we should raise troops to conquer immediately. If surrounding countries dare to invade the border at this time, then we will destroy them along the way; all the land in the world should belong to the Great Tang."

"Bang!"

Li Shimin slapped the desk heavily: "Crown Prince, do you know what you are saying?"

"Since the founding of the Great Tang, we have always convinced people with virtue; how can we send troops to other countries so casually? The principle of courtesy first and soldiers later has remained unchanged since ancient times."

"Simple, engrave the word 'De' on the swords of all soldiers; this can also be considered convincing people with virtue."

"Once the swords of the world are raised, the ones who suffer are the people of the world. Having finally lived a few good days, do you want to break this hard-won life?"

"Why is Father so naive?"

Li Chengqian was not afraid at all: "Have you forgotten the lesson of the Five Barbarians' Chaos? Only by killing the surrounding countries can the people of the world live a good life."

"If we give the barbarians a chance to grow, will they give up the fertile land of the Great Tang?"

"Even if we can't destroy Goguryeo this time, we must hurt them so that they will never dare to offend the Great Tang again."

Li Shimin gritted his teeth and spat out a sentence:

"You must fight?"

"Yes! Wherever the military edge points, it is the territory of the Great Tang; wherever the sun and moon shine, it is the subjects of the Great Tang."

"Now the commoners of the Great Tang have less than one mu of land per person; shouldn't we conquer some farmland for those commoners?"

"Why is Father blocking the expedition now? Is what you said about putting the people first just talk?"

"Presumptuous! Presumptuous!"

Li Shimin was furious: "Issue an edict: Yu Zhining, Kong Yingda, and Zhang Xuansu have failed to teach the Crown Prince well; they are immediately dismissed from their positions in the Eastern Palace."

"Crown Prince Li Chengqian disregards the people's strength and does not know the people's hearts; from today on, he is confined to the Eastern Palace for three months; he is not allowed to leave the palace without an edict!"

Li Chengqian stood up abruptly: "The son will not change his mind; even if the Great Tang is destroyed, the son will destroy Goguryeo in the future and make the east of Youzhou the territory of the Great Tang forever."

After saying that, Li Chengqian ignored the shocked gazes of everyone and walked toward the outside of the hall step by step, his expression becoming more and more firm.

"Clatter..."

Li Shimin's eyes turned red, and he swept the memorials on the desk to the ground:

"Rebellious son! Rebellious son! How dare he? How dare he?"

The ministers lowered their heads and remained silent; they didn't dare to speak at this time; if they said the wrong thing and were used by Li Shimin as a tool to vent his anger, it wouldn't be good.

Hou Junji silently broke into a cold sweat for Li Chengqian in his heart:

'Crown Prince, you really dare to say anything! The Emperor gave such obvious hints, and you are still so blatant; you simply don't put the Emperor in your eyes.'

After a long time, Li Shimin returned to his original calm expression:

"Zhijie, you are the Governor of Youzhou; first send some people to Goguryeo to investigate."

"Start preparing the grain and grass too! If Silla really comes to ask for help, even if we don't want to, we have to send troops."

"That's all for today; let's disperse!"

"We take our leave!"

Returning to the Ganlu Hall alone, the corners of Li Shimin's mouth rose slightly; he found that Li Chengqian was truly too intelligent; he knew how to cooperate with just a little hint.

However, thinking of what Li Chengqian had just said, Li Shimin had another headache:

'Gaoming's words were clearly meant for those military generals; this brat really dares to say anything to get military power.'

'If I don't pass the imperial throne to him, I'm afraid he will come to take it himself.'

'Sigh, why didn't Qingque think of it? I told him so clearly, and I didn't see him go to recruit military generals.'

On the day Li Tai presented the Imperial Examination System, Li Shimin reminded Li Tai through the military power of the Yin family, but Li Tai didn't take it to heart at all.

At that time, he was thinking about being calculated by Li Chengqian, which is why he didn't take the Yin family to heart.

Just as Li Shimin was about to sit down to handle state affairs, Princess Gaoyang's excited voice appeared again.

"Father, Father, it really works! Big Brother is so amazing!"

Li Shimin was stunned, then thought of yesterday's matter, and couldn't help but laugh:

"Did that brat Fang Jun sincerely go to the temple? What did your Big Brother do?"

Princess Gaoyang took two steps in one and quickly sat down beside Li Shimin, her eyes flashing with excitement:

"It's more than sincere; he is even more devout than the daughter. He is preparing to cultivate Buddhism; he was actually reading Buddhist sutras last night and asking me for advice from time to time."

"Did the sun rise from the west?"

Li Shimin touched his chin, his eyes full of suspicion:

"This brat has always liked martial arts and hated literature; even the Lady of Liang couldn't do anything about him. How did he change all of a sudden!"

"He was beaten by Big Brother; his whole face is swollen. Even so, he was still thanking Big Brother all night last night."

"I think he is sick; whoever hits him, he listens to. If he doesn't listen in the future, I will whip him."

"Nonsense!"

Li Shimin laughed and scolded: "Your Big Brother must have said something beneficial to Fang Jun; how can anyone be so cheap that they thank others after being beaten."

"Then I will ask Big Brother; if Fang Jun doesn't listen in the future, I will do it just like Big Brother."

"Suit yourself!"

Princess Gaoyang's eyes rolled, and she looked at Li Shimin with a flattering face, her voice becoming coquettish:

"Father, help me with a favor, okay!"

"Fine! As long as I can do it, Father will help you."

"Then let Doctor Chu help me write an inscription, okay? He is qualified to help Mother write, and helping those children write will surely be better at getting the children's favor."

"Hmm?"

Li Shimin stared at Princess Gaoyang with sharp eyes until Gaoyang touched her face and stopped.

"Your fourth brother suggested it?"

Princess Gaoyang's eyes lit up: "Father, how did you know? The child matter was also said by the fourth brother."

"The fourth brother is really smart; he also suggested that I enshrine the memorial tablet at Qinglong Temple."

"I know a lot; otherwise, how could I be this Emperor?"

"I agree to this matter; I will tell Doctor Chu tomorrow, so you prepare well."

"Thank you, Father!"

Li Tai did not listen to Li Chengqian's words to find a temple outside, but directly looked for one in Chang'an City.

He felt that without destroying the plan, it was still possible to cause some trouble for Li Chengqian.

However, Li Chengqian didn't care about this at all. Whether in Chang'an or outside, as long as Chu Suiliang was transferred out of Chang'an and as long as the temple participated, his goal had been achieved.

The events that happened at the early court, plus the previous beating, had already given the court officials a strong signal: Li Chengqian had lost the qualification to become Emperor.

And this just happened to allow Li Chengqian to hide in the dark and arrange things slowly; for him, the position of Crown Prince was the same whether he had it or not.

Just as Li Shimin thought, Li Chengqian was determined to get the position of Emperor; if Li Shimin didn't give it, he would take it himself.

Li Tai was different; he always pinned his hopes on Li Shimin, and everything he did was to make Li Shimin choose him.

After learning about what happened at the early court, Li Tai wished he could sing two songs:

"Hahaha, Big Brother is truly crazy. Now Kong Yingda and the others are not there, and he is still locked in the Eastern Palace."

"His position as Crown Prince can be considered abolished; as long as I defeat Zhangsun Wuji, this position of Crown Prince will be mine!"