Great Tang Southern Emperor

Seeing this side hall, Li Zhen was stunned. As Li Shimin, shouldn't he live in the main hall?Then suddenly, this Da'an Palace is after all the place where Li Shimin imprisoned Li Yuan. Li Zhi imitated his deeds and imprisoned him here. Face.

As a generation of sages, how could Li Shimin bear this kind of insult?It's a pity that the current form is that Li Zhi is tyrannical and he is weak. Li Shimin has almost lost all means of resistance, and has to succumb to Li Zhi's lust.It's just a surrender, Li Shimin still has his own pride after all, even if he is locked in the Da'an Palace, he will not go to live in the place where Li Yuan once lived, but chooses a relatively remote palace to live in, which is a kind of respect for Li Shimin. It is a silent struggle against governance.

"My maidservant has seen His Highness the Crown Prince, His Highness is a thousand years old, Your Highness, you are here, the flowers that His Majesty waited for are all thanked..." Wang Tingchu had already waited outside, and when he saw Li Zhen coming, he immediately paid homage to him—— Poor thing, how much pressure has he been under these days?Now that Li Zhen is here, it means that Li Zhi has failed, which is undoubtedly good news for him, otherwise, seeing Li Zhi's misbehavior, he is really worried that he will not be able to bear it and rise up to resist.

That's right, although Li Shimin was put under house arrest by Li Zhi, it doesn't mean that he has no room to resist. To be honest, an emperor like Li Shimin, especially if he was an emperor who usurped the throne through a coup d'état, must It is simply impossible to say that he is not prepared for these things.Not to mention that he himself has already realized that Li Zhi is the king of heaven in advance, and he must be on guard against Li Zhi.It's a pity that he didn't expect Li Zhi to be so insane. He exchanged the future land of Tang Dynasty for the support of the aristocratic Confucianism and Buddhism. When the three families jointly launched a coup by surprise, Li Shimin directly sat on the candle.

However, although Li Zhi obtained most of the power in Li Shimin's hands, it was only because no one knew about Li Zhi's backhand that it was impossible to talk about being taken over by Li Zhi.And this backhand is in the hands of Wang Tingchu.Originally, according to Wang Tingchu's intention, he directly took out his backhand to fight with Li Zhi, but after thinking about it for a while, Li Shimin refused. It can still successfully restrain Li Zhi, even if Li Zhi is really killed, so what?

Now the biggest crisis in Datang is not Li Zhi, but the interest group formed by the aristocratic Confucianism and Buddhism. This is the biggest crisis in Datang today.Now they have revealed their true colors. Once Li Shimin comes back to power, none of these people and forces who rebelled against him will be able to survive.This is not only known to Li Shimin, but also to the tripartite alliance, so they will never allow Li Shimin to take over.

And Li Shimin secretly left behind may be able to expel Li Zhi, but if he wants to fight against the freak of the tripartite alliance, he is still powerless.It is conceivable that once Li Shimin defeats Li Zhen and regains power, the three-party alliance that has shown its fangs will never allow Li Shimin to live, otherwise once Li Shimin is allowed to stabilize the government, they will die later.So once he regains the throne, Li Shimin, who has not had time to tidy up the court, will face a much worse situation than Li Zhi forcing the palace, and he who has not integrated his own forces will definitely not be able to resist the attack of the three-party alliance. , when the time comes, he will really be 'violently killed'.

Therefore, in order to protect himself, Li Shimin put aside his thoughts of resistance for the time being. Instead, he turned into a good baby, honestly followed Li Zhi's orders, and never stepped out of Da'an Palace. In front of the stage, with his protection, Li Shimin is absolutely safe, even if the aristocratic family wants to kill Li Shi, Li Zhi will not agree.

Li Shimin pretended to be his grandson in Da'an Palace for so long in order to wait for Li Zhen's return. Once Li Zhen brought the army back to Chang'an, his backhands would immediately mobilize and cooperate with Li Zhenli, and Li Zhen's army entered the city It's so easy, just like the knife last night—yes, the assassin who assassinated Li Zhi was sent by Li Shimin himself, and the poison used by the assassin was also provided by Li Shimin, otherwise, how could a small guard have the ability to get that? Such a weird poison?After all, the poison that can expand with breathing is not an ordinary thing, so how can a small guard get it?

Chapter 1259 Truth?lie?

Chapter 225 The truth?lie?

As for why Li Shimin is so ruthless, even his own son is not spared, this is even more a joke, you must know that Li Shimin has never been a soft-hearted master.He was able to launch the Xuanwumen Incident, killed his own brother, even the younger brother of his family, and forced his biological father to abdicate. It can be seen that he is cruel and ruthless, and it is completely opposite to the name of the sage in history. of.

Moreover, in history, it is not that he has never killed his own son. After Qi Wang Li You failed in the rebellion, he was also given to death by his own hands. It was already such a punishment before the rebellion was successful. Now Li Zhi has not only succeeded , and also locked him in the place where he once imprisoned his father. This is undoubtedly a great shame for Li Shimin, and it will hurt him even more. It is only natural to send an assassin to kill Li Zhi.

What's more, killing Li Zhi may not be bad for him. On the contrary, from a certain perspective, Li Shimin sent people to assassinate Li Zhi because of Li Zhi's consideration—he knew too well what the crime of rebellion was, and he was very clear about it. It is clear that Li Zhi will never be able to defeat Li Zhen, even if Li Zhi has the support of a family group behind him, once Li Zhen completely loses his temper, no one in this world can be Li Zhen's opponent regardless of whether he brings back his million-dollar army .

And Li Zhen is not easy to get along with, in terms of cruelty, he is even far superior to himself. Once Li Zhi falls into Li Zhen's hands, it is really hard to think of death. Li Zhen must not hesitate to use it on Li Zhi. The cruelest punishment in the world.And once it got to this point, even Li Shimin himself would not be able to intercede with Li Zhen for Li Zhi, because facing the rebels, no amount of punishment would be excessive.Therefore, instead of letting Li Zhi die miserably after being tortured in the future, it is better to send him on the road now, so that he will suffer less—this is the last thing he can do for his children as a father .

It's a pity that the assassin was really not professional enough, and when he assassinated Li Zhi, he was a bit off the mark. As a result, Li Zhi didn't die on the spot, and was kept alive by the imperial physician. He persisted until Chen Tianlu's arrival, Li Shimin's plan was completely in vain ...

"Father owes you to take care of me these days, and you have worked hard." Looking at Wang Tingchu who was getting older, Li Zhenwen said: "You have made such a contribution to the Tang Dynasty. It must be due to your credit."

"Being loyal to His Majesty, slaves don't feel hard work, and dare not expect anything in return." He said that he didn't ask for anything in return, but Wang Tingchu had already burst into tears. At this moment, he suddenly felt that everything he had done over the years was worth it , the grievances suffered in the past are no longer seen, and some only remain the absolute loyalty to Li Shimin and Li Zhen and his son.

To be honest, Wang Tingchu is absolutely loyal to Li Shimin, and he has devoted himself to the entire Li royal family. He has been in charge of Li Yusi in these years, but he has saved Li Shimin from a lot of infamy. Tens of thousands of slaves, although most of these slaves were not from the Tang Dynasty, the high fatality rate still caused many saints and daughters in the folk to describe Li Yusi as hell, and Wang Tingchu himself was also described as the living king of Hades, who had to bear a lot of burdens. of infamy.

Originally, these infamy should be attributed to Li Shimin and Li Zhen. After all, the establishment of Li Yusi was Li Shimin's idea, and Li Zhen was the one who transported the slaves. For the two of them, this credit alone is enough for him to be named Marquis.Not to mention that he has done a lot of dirty work for Li Shimin in these years. For Datang, this is a hero who has made no less contribution than Li Jingfang Xuanling, but his status as a eunuch limits his ability. Development, otherwise, it is not a problem to be a Marquis and a Prime Minister.

It's a pity, he is a eunuch, and no matter in any era, a eunuch is a profession that people look down on, unless you really have made great contributions to the country, such as Cai Lun who improved papermaking skills, his papermaking skills are ranked fourth in China. One of the great inventions is the most important carrier of the inheritance of Chinese civilization. It has made great contributions to mankind. No one has any objections after being named a Marquis.But what credit does Wang Tingchu have for him?In the eyes of outsiders, he is just a reckless executioner, and tens of thousands of slaves die in his hands every year. Such a person should have gone to hell long ago, and still wants to be named a prince?Don't even think about it.

But outsiders don't know, Li Zhen still doesn't know?Wang Tingchu's achievements in these years are no worse than those famous eunuchs in history. Of course, he is qualified to be a marquis. Li Shimin was forced by the pressure from the government and the opposition, coupled with his guilty conscience, so he did not dare to reward Wang Tingchu— —Otherwise what would others think?Could it be that everything that Wang Tingchu has done these years was ordered by you?In this way, the blame will really fall on Li Shimin's head.

The problem is that Li Shimin is afraid of this, but Li Zhen is not. Anyway, it is well known that Wang Tingchu is Li Shimin's confidant, and his friendship with Li Zhen is just like that. Li Zhen will not cover up Wang Tingchu. After this reasoning, others will not suspect that Li Zhen is behind the scenes. .As long as it's something he thinks is right, he rarely considers other people's opinions, otherwise he wouldn't have done so many willful things arbitrarily in the past few years.

Moreover, Li Zhen pays more attention to the thoughts of his subordinates than the issue of face - once Li Zhen really snubs Wang Tingchu, what will those people who know the inside story think of him?Will he be regarded as a person with a cold nature?Although he doesn't care much about what other people think, he still cares about the attitude of the people towards him.

Thinking of this, Li Zhen said softly: "You don't need to refuse, these are what you deserve... Are there any juniors of the same clan in your family? If there are actually any, I will decide to choose a good-natured adoptive son You, too, can inherit your title."

"Slave maid...Thank you for Your Highness's kindness...Woooooooo..." Wang Tingchu couldn't help it at this moment, his tears were pouring from excitement, he couldn't help but knelt down, and gave Li Zhen a big gift to pay homage.

"Okay, get up, and take Ben Gong to see Father." Li Zhen really couldn't bear the appearance of an old man kneeling in front of her crying, and quickly changed the subject.

Wang Tingchu immediately got up from the ground and wiped away his tears: "Yes, it's the servant who lost his temper. Your Highness, please come with the servant."

The door of the palace opened, and it was the very familiar face that greeted Li Zhen's eyes, but compared with what he saw when he came back last year, Li Shimin at this time was much older, and even his black hair, which was always black, had become The gray, originally smooth face was covered with dense wrinkles at this moment—it was only at this moment that Li Zhen realized that the once omnipotent father was already old.

Li Zhen's heart trembled: "Father~"

Li Shimin was lying on the table splashing ink, when he heard Li Zhen's voice, he quickly raised his head, and said with a smile: "Zhen'er, you are back, come and see, how is the calligraphy written by the emperor?"

"Yes." Li Zhen calmed down, walked forward quickly, took a glance and found that Li Shimin wrote Feibai style, and immediately praised: "Father Emperor's calligraphy is getting more and more exquisite, even Cai Yong who invented Feibai , It is estimated that it is not as good as the father."

"Hahaha..." Li Shimin laughed loudly: "Actually, my progress has only been made recently...Hey, during this period of time, I have nothing to do, and when I have no distracting thoughts, this calligraphy has become more and more lean. It's a pity that Wang Youjun's calligraphy has always been my favorite, especially the "Orchid Pavilion Preface" is my lifelong pursuit, but I have never seen the shadow, which is quite a pity."

Li Zhendao: "The "Lanting Preface" is in the hands of Master Biancai, but Master Biancai has never returned to the Tang Dynasty since he went abroad to preach 20 years ago, let alone life and death, and the "Lanting Preface" has disappeared with him. But don't worry, Father, after this matter is over, I will send someone out to look for Biancai, thinking about his profound Buddhist teachings, he should be able to leave his traces in the surrounding countries, and it is not difficult to find it."

Speaking of eloquence, Li Shimin suddenly asked, "What are you going to do with the culprit this time?"

"..." Li Zhen didn't choke to death with his own saliva, and looked at Li Shimin speechlessly: "Father, you changed the subject too suddenly, didn't you?"

Li Shimin said: "Don't worry about these, answer my question first."

Li Zhen was silent for a moment: "Father, do you want to hear the truth or lie?"

Li Shimin became interested: "What about the truth? What about the lie?"

The anger in Li Zhen's eyes spread endlessly: "My son's truth is that these cystic bugs of the Tang Empire and the scum of the Han nation have always had the blood of traitors flowing in their blood, and they should all be killed. Stay. And I'm going to compile a "Han Jian Lu", which includes the names and deeds of almost all the traitors in the past and present. These aristocratic families must not let go, and all of them must be recorded in the book, and they will be scolded by all ages..."

Li Shimin clapped his hands and laughed loudly: "It's really very pleasant to deal with it like this. Not only can you vent out the hatred in your heart, but even I can breathe a sigh of relief... But I still want to hear what your lies are?"

"My son's lie is... Although this group of sinners deserve death, they are their own masters. They never tire of deceit, and the winner is king. It is only natural for them to use any means for this. Of course, they will be punished by thousands of knives for colluding with foreign enemies. However, their family members did not participate in it, they only need to be demoted to common people and exiled for three thousand miles."

Li Shimin said: "Just hearing about this punishment makes me feel uncomfortable. If I were to handle this matter, I probably wouldn't do it."

Li Zhen's mouth curled up into a wry smile: "But although the truth is enough to be happy enough, the minister has to choose lies to carry out."

"Oh?" Li Shimin put down the hair in his hand, and asked with great interest: "Why is this? These people are not only traitors, but also rebels, and whether they are traitors or rebels, in "Zhenguan Law" It is a felony to punish the nine clans...Since extermination of the clan is both reasonable and legal, and can make you and me feel at ease, why don't you choose this method of handling?"

"But the law does not blame the public." Li Zhen let out a wry smile again: "The major forces participating in the rebellion of the ninth younger brother this time have no less than a hundred people, just the heads of the aristocratic families, and each of them has a huge clan. There are tens of thousands of people from the nine clans. If they were all killed, wouldn't the people in the world really want to regard Erchen as a murderer?

What's more, if it is just a family of tens of thousands of people, the sons and ministers may be able to kill them all if they are cruel, but the emperor should not forget that there are two giants, Confucianism and Buddhism, who support the ninth brother. Each of the big forces has hundreds of thousands of believers and disciples. Could it be possible that my son can kill all these people? "

"Zhen'er, you finally understand this truth." Li Shimin stroked his beard and praised: "You have to remember, as a king, the most taboo is to use one's emotions, and everything must be viewed from the perspective of the overall situation. In the eyes of the monarch, there is no kindness or enmity, let alone love and righteousness. A wise monarch always has only interests in his eyes. Everything we do needs to be done from the perspective of Datang. As long as it is in line with the interests of Datang, even if This person committed the felony of beheading, and you must pardon him. And if the existence of a person does not benefit Datang, it does a lot of harm. Even if he is an innocent person, he must be killed when necessary...

Just like Wei Zheng, when he was under the command of King Xi in the past, he often had troubles with his father. Several times, his father was almost cornered by him. At that time, his father was thinking, if his father could seize the throne, Then Wei Zheng must be the one who is going to die, but after the real father ascended the throne, you should know exactly what happened. "

"I understand that if you want to govern the Tang Dynasty, killing alone is not enough." Li Zhen nodded. According to what Wei Zheng did to Li Shimin, it would not be an exaggeration to kill Li Shimin after he ascended the throne. , not to mention that after taking refuge in Li Shimin, Wei Zheng was in trouble with Li Shimin many times. He was prevented from stepping down in the court more than once, which made Li Shimin almost want to kill him several times... But now Wei Zheng is not only still alive It's good, and the official is getting bigger and bigger, because his contribution to Datang is so great that even Li Shimin is reluctant to kill him.

"However..." When Li Zhen said this, his tone suddenly changed: "Although I only intend to punish the culprit, it does not mean that I will let their family members go. After all, this is a rebellion. If this is said, it is a bit too kind, and it seems that we are too cowardly. Once this matter is quoted by later generations, wouldn’t it be more unscrupulous to rebel? So this example must not be opened.”

"Oh? Then what are you going to do, Zhen'er? Are you going to demote them into slavery?" Li Shimin was taken aback, and from Li Zhen's tone, he could tell that these people probably couldn't die, but they wanted to live on. But it was extremely difficult, but apart from being demoted to slaves, he really didn't know what other methods Li Zhen had, not to mention that Li Zhen probably wouldn't really demote everyone into the slave department, otherwise What's the difference between that and killing them?Even more vicious than killing them directly.

Moreover, he also specially issued a decree that Tang people will never be slaves (as for the Tang prisoners in the Liyu Division, they are not considered slaves, and their nature should be defined as labor reform prisoners), once Li Zhen really does this, it will be with him. "The Law of Zhenguan" is against it. With Li Zhen's wisdom, it should be impossible to do such a stupid thing.

Chapter 1260 Handling Method - Expulsion of Nationality

Chapter 226 Handling method - expulsion of nationality

Hearing Li Shimin's question, Li Zhen sneered, "Hehe...Of course it's not as simple as demoting them to slaves. What's the difference between demoting tens of thousands of people as slaves and killing them all?"

"Huh~" Seeing Li Zhen's smile, Li Shimin shuddered suddenly, "Zhen'er, don't speak with such an expression in the future, my father just looks at it, and I feel chills all over my body, as if you are about to brew some conspiracy What's more, this move is really unworthy of the king's prestige and unworthy of your status. In the future, you must not show your emotions or anger, otherwise you will be full of laughter and curses on your face. Wouldn't this be more helpful for the courtiers to see through your thoughts? ? This is a big taboo in the emperor's mind."

Li Zhen said gratefully, "My father reminded me, I understand that my son only shows such a gesture in front of my father and a few relatives."

Li Shimin smiled gratifiedly, "It's good that you understand, let's talk about your method, how are you going to deal with those people?"

Li Zhen laughed and said, "Actually, Erchen's method is very simple. Since they don't regard themselves as Han people and Tang people? Presumably they don't care about this identity. If that's the case, why don't we expel them from their nationality and ethnicity?"