Chapter 4: Filing a Complaint

Seeing Li Tai stand up, Su Xu hurriedly spoke to stop him, then spread the book in his hand flat on the table:

"The number of people who pass the examination in the 'cultivated talent' category is already scarce, and now, because Prefects are punished for failing to recommend candidates, there are not even any scholars left to take the 'cultivated talent' examination.

The Emperor has always valued great talent; if there were a way to screen for the great talents of the world, it would surely make the Emperor feel joyful."

"What do you mean?"

Li Tai glanced at Su Xu, then shifted his gaze to the tabletop:

"The methods of selection generally consist of four types: schools, subjects, recommendations, and the Selection of Officials. Schools are for education, subjects are for advancement, recommendations are for recruiting from the sidelines, and the Selection of Officials is for distribution; the talents of the world are all contained herein..."

Just seeing the beginning, Li Tai looked at Su Xu with a solemn face:

"Are you crazy? The public proclamation is one thing; anyway, the poor and commoners of the world can't even afford to eat, so those aristocratic clans won't care too much.

Setting up granaries in schools to support the parents, wives, and children of the students—can this be done?

You are also from an aristocratic clan; do you not know the consequences of doing this?"

"If Your Highness submits this proposal and lets the Emperor feel that you have the ability and confidence to gather the great talents of the world, that is enough; as for how to do it, that is the Emperor's business.

The Crown Prince likes martial arts, and Your Highness loves literature; since the Emperor ascended the throne, he has always been resting and recuperating, and has also been urging his ministers to put the people first. This proposal will surely make the Emperor very happy."

Li Tai did not reply, but instead re-read the proposal, and only after finishing it entirely did he speak in a deep voice:

"The Three Rites are missing; are you unable to think of them, or do you dare not write them?"

"I dare not write them!"

"Then don't write them. I am going to the Taiji Palace now."

Rolling up the proposal, Li Tai sneered in his heart: 'Big Brother, the hearts of the scholars of the world are all with me; how will you compete?'

The news of Li Tai being severely beaten had already reached the ears of Li Shimin, and at this moment, he was staring at Li Chengqian with an angry face:

"Gaoming, what did you go to the Literature Pavilion for?"

"To care for my younger brother!"

Li Chengqian acted as if he did not see Li Shimin's expression and went to find a place to sit down on his own:

"Father, how do you intend to deal with the Fifth Brother? Are you preparing to avenge the Li family for the grave-digging, or are you going to show mercy?"

"Caring for your younger brother? Is beating Qingque considered caring for your younger brother?"

"How is it not? A beating is affection, a scolding is love. Do you believe that in a moment, Qingque will even thank me? And not just Qingque, you will also have to thank your son.

Father, you still haven't answered my question; how do you plan to handle the Fifth Brother?"

"Act according to the law!"

Li Shimin snorted coldly: "You can barely protect yourself, yet you still go to care about others. You truly have disappointed me!"

"Is that so?"

Li Chengqian looked at Li Shimin with a half-smile: "To act according to the law, one must catch the thief with the stolen goods and catch the adulterers in the act. It requires not only human witnesses but also material evidence.

I heard that Father sent Uncle, Minister Fang, and others to interrogate Hegan Chengji; I wonder if this is true?"

"It is. With your uncle there, no one can wrong you."

"Your son has only one question: have you ever thought about this current situation? Or was this something you intentionally caused?"

Li Shimin's expression changed, and a hint of sorrow appeared on his face:

"Gaoming, is this how you view your father?"

"I have no choice but to think this way, from the Literature Pavilion to the Wude Hall, and now to the Fifth Brother's treason case.

Not to mention the distant ones, why was it necessary to mobilize Li Shiji for this play-acting-like treason of the Fifth Brother?

To put it bluntly, if you had just sent anyone to arrest the Fifth Brother and bring him to the capital, he would have obediently come; why send a large army to encircle and suppress him?

And another point, why did the Fifth Brother have to kill Quan Wanji? Don't tell your son it was for fear of leaking secrets."

Li Shimin's expression tightened, and he stared at Li Chengqian without blinking:

"Your Third Brother was originally the Yizhou Governor, and now he is the Anzhou Governor."

Once these words were spoken, Li Chengqian's eyes were filled with disbelief:

"The Feudal System of the Zhou Dynasty? So the Fifth Brother must die? Just to remind the other brothers to let them properly fight the aristocratic clans for local power?

Have you gone mad? A dragon gives birth to nine sons; who can guarantee that every one of their sons is a great talent?

You might as well burn the Zushu of those aristocratic clans; if that doesn't work, you could forcibly forbid intermarriage between aristocratic clans."

"I just said, you should look after yourself first."

Li Chengqian picked up the tea bowl on the table and took a sip, his tone indifferent:

"Your son also just said that to act according to the law, one must catch the thief with the stolen goods. Relying on a single Hegan Chengji is not enough to depose the Crown Prince.

This morning, Chengyang entered the palace to see Yin Fei. By now, a fast horse has already left Chang'an and is on its way to Liangzhou.

Father now has two choices: one is to follow the law, investigate the causes and consequences of the Fifth Brother's treason clearly, and leave the Yin Family and the Liangzhou garrison troops with no reason to mutiny.

Once you do this, as long as your son does not make a move, you will never be able to depose your son.

Of course, Father can also send troops to suppress Liangzhou and then continue with the original plan; in this way, you would be able to depose your son.

But if you do this, after Qingque becomes Emperor, your son will surely die. I wonder if Father will have the face to see Mother.

No, there is another path, which is to support Zhinu to ascend the throne; this way, both your son and Qingque can survive.

If it really comes to that, your Feudal System will be wiped out, after all, Uncle represents the powerful clans."

"I have never thought about deposing you!"

"You have been doing exactly that all along!"

Li Chengqian gave Li Shimin no face at all: "You cannot kill the Fifth Brother, the Feudal System cannot be established, and you cannot depose this Crown Prince either."

Looking at Li Chengqian's confident face, Li Shimin showed a look of suspicion; he did not know where Li Chengqian's confidence came from.

Since he was already thinking of rebellion, it meant he had no other way out; why was he so confident at this time?

Before he could ask, Li Chengqian's gaze turned toward the little fat man walking slowly toward the door:

"Yesterday, the Crown Princess went to the residence of the Aunt of Nanchang; the scroll of the Classic of Changes in Qingque's hands can solve your problem."

Before long, Li Tai walked in with a red and swollen forehead, and as soon as he saw Li Shimin, he began to wail and complain:

"Father, you must uphold justice for your son. Look at what Big Brother has beaten your son into!"

"Qingque, how old are you now? Have you no shame?"

Before Li Shimin could speak, Li Chengqian looked at Li Tai with a playful expression:

"Beating is affection, scolding is love. Big Brother is only beating you because he loves you. Look at your other younger brothers; do they have the qualifications to make Big Brother take action?"

"Shameless!"

Li Tai gritted his teeth and stared at Li Chengqian: "As the Crown Prince of a nation, you beat your own brother and even have the gall to call it 'care.' It is simply utterly shameless."

"Sigh! Big Brother is doing this for your own good!"

Li Chengqian sighed: "If Big Brother didn't give you a beating, how could I make Father feel sorry for you?

If Father doesn't feel sorry for you, how would he agree to your request?

If you don't believe me, ask Father right now and see if he will agree to you."

"I want to ask Father to hang you up and beat you!"

"Sure!"

Li Chengqian chuckled: "But are you sure you want to do this? This is a hard-won opportunity."

"This..."

Li Tai's expression froze. Thinking of the reputation he would gain from the public announcement, he could only temporarily give up on taking revenge on Li Chengqian.

'Forget it! Anyway, he will soon be deposed; there will be plenty of opportunities to beat him back later.'

Thinking of this, Li Tai looked at Li Shimin with a joyful expression:

"Father, I know you have been worried about the issue of selecting officials through the imperial examination. This is a method your son has come up with after many days of deep thought.

If it can truly be implemented, the Great Tang will no longer have to worry about having no one to employ."

As he spoke, Li Tai placed the proposal in his hands onto the table and spread it out.