Chapter 40 Li Yuan: I’m Going to Turn Up the Heat on Erlang! [Please Keep Reading]

Tai'an Palace.

Li Yuan was currently enjoying a dance in the inner hall, accompanied by Consort Zhang and Consort Yin.

Further away, the musician Xiao, sent by Li Chengqian, was plucking a Pipa to provide accompaniment.

"The sound of this deer-tendon Pipa string grows more delightful the more one listens to it!"

Sipping his wine with great satisfaction, Li Yuan leaned lazily against his Hu stool and sighed with a smile.

Consort Zhang and Consort Yin exchanged a glance and chimed in with smiles, "Indeed! This was brought to the Grand Emperor with no small amount of effort by the Prince of Changle. It truly shows his utmost loyalty!"

"Hehe..."

Li Yuan smiled noncommittally, then asked nonchalantly, "You have been getting rather close to Anye lately. Is he procuring some fine treasures for you again?"

"Nothing of the sort, just some rare spices."

"Spices?"

Li Yuan raised an eyebrow, then cast a meaningful look at Consort Zhang. "Smuggling foreign spices is against the law. Don't say I didn't warn you..."

At these words, Consort Zhang wore an embarrassed expression and turned her head toward Consort Yin.

Consort Yin, however, chuckled and said, "What is the Grand Emperor talking about? You no longer manage state affairs, and as for these commercial matters, even His Majesty doesn't care..."

"Quite right! I can no longer manage them. Do as you please, fuss over whatever you wish—it has nothing to do with me anymore..."

"This..."

Consort Yin was instantly rendered speechless, thinking to herself, *What kind of remark is that? Wasn't it you who hinted that Zhangsun Anye and his cohorts should rebel? Why are you suddenly washing your hands clean of a mere smuggling matter?*

*Could it be that Zhangsun Anye and the others misunderstood his intentions?*

With this thought, Consort Yin quickly cast a puzzled look at Consort Zhang.

She saw Consort Zhang frown deeply, then say in a heavy tone, "Grand Emperor, Anye and the others..."

"Enough, you may both withdraw!"

Before Consort Zhang could finish, Li Yuan waved his hand to interrupt her. "I am somewhat tired and wish to rest for a while!"

"But..."

"Withdraw!"

Faced with Li Yuan's unquestionable tone, Consort Zhang harbored a vague sense of foreboding, yet she dared not disobey him. Reluctantly, she pulled Consort Yin out of the inner hall.

Once the inner hall was left with only Li Yuan, the troupe of dancers, and the musician Xiao, Li Yuan let out a cold, disdainful laugh and muttered, "No wonder my grandson called you a pack of utter fools. Do people like you really think you can match wits with Erlang?"

With that, he couldn't help but sigh. "Thank goodness Chengqian wrote that tactical proposal. Otherwise, a bunch of morons like you would likely have been crushed by Erlang before you even began."

*Thud, thud, thud!*

The echoes of Li Yuan's voice had barely faded when the sound of footsteps suddenly approached.

"Grand Emperor!"

"Speak."

Li Yuan looked at Du Caigan, nodding expressionlessly, and asked directly, "Tell me, what has happened?"

"Reporting to the Grand Emperor, my informants bring word that Li Youliang, the Prince of Changle, has raised the banner of rebellion. His Majesty has dispatched Li Jing at the head of an army of twenty thousand to Liangzhou to suppress it," Du Caigan said, bowing.

Li Yuan let out a cold snort and muttered darkly, "No wonder my grandson said that flies do not bite seamless eggs. If the Prince of Changle harbored no rebellious intent, how could he have been persuaded by Zhangsun Anye?"

"That may be so, but Zhangsun Anye and the others have made thorough preparations this time. It would appear the chances of success are quite high!"

Recalling something suddenly, Du Caigan added, "The Prince of Yi'an has also made a new move. No doubt it will not be long before he marches on Chang'an!"

"Oh?"

Li Yuan raised an eyebrow. "Has he raised the slogan 'Execute Zhangsun Wuji, Purge the Emperor's Close Advisors'?"

"Indeed! Not only has he proclaimed this slogan, but now everyone throughout Chang'an knows that the Prince of Yi'an intends to kill Zhangsun Wuji and purge the court!"

"Hmm, manufacturing public opinion and riding the momentum—quite a clever chess move..."

"However."

Here, his tone shifted. "Erlang is likewise a sharp-witted man. This matter will not easily defeat him."

"True. His Majesty has already ordered Dai Zhou, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, to thoroughly investigate the matter and has placed the entire city of Chang'an under martial law!"

"And what of the situation within the palace?"

"His Majesty has summoned all officials of the fifth rank and above currently in the capital, along with all titled princes, to the Taiji Hall!"

Hearing this, Li Yuan burst into laughter. "Erlang intends to make an example of a few to deter the rest!"

"Then... is there anything we need to do?"

"Zhangsun Anye possesses that tactical blueprint. As long as he does not act arbitrarily, there should be no major issues. All we need to do now is wait—wait for Li Xiaochan to mass his troops outside Chang'an!"

Having said this, Li Yuan looked at Du Caigan again. "Where is Chengqian now?"

Du Caigan pondered for a moment and replied, "My men once saw him leave the palace gates, though I know not where he went precisely. Should I investigate this matter?"

"What?" Li Yuan asked, his face full of astonishment. "You say Chengqian left the palace?"

He was well aware of the palace rules; underage princes were strictly forbidden from leaving the imperial grounds.

Yet Du Caigan stated with absolute certainty, "My men could not have been mistaken. The Prince of Zhongshan holds His Majesty's palace prohibition token, so the guards did not dare to stop him..."

"Ha!"

Li Yuan let out a single syllable of laughter, unable to stop himself from remarking mockingly, "What an unfilial scion!"

He didn't even need to guess; that palace prohibition token certainly hadn't been given to Li Chengqian by Li Shimin.

Yet for Li Chengqian to leave the palace at a time like this, he must have been plotting something else entirely.

Li Yuan had never doubted his brilliant grandson's intellect, so he simply waved a hand at Du Caigan and said, "Since he has left the palace, leave him be. With such a massive commotion in the city, the matter cannot be hidden from him anyway..."

"Understood!"

Du Caigan acknowledged the order and turned to leave.

Li Yuan called out to stop him once more. "Wait!"

"Does the Grand Emperor have further instructions?"

"Find a way to notify the princes stationed nearby. Have them hasten to Chang'an to defend the throne!"

Good grief!

Was this truly going to the rescue of the throne?

This was nothing less than turning up the heat on His Majesty Emperor Li Er!

A shock ran through Du Caigan's heart, but he respectfully accepted the command and withdrew.

...

Meanwhile, the Two-Yi Hall of the Taiji Palace.

Li Shimin was pacing back and forth inside the hall.

Surrounding him were several key ministers of the court, including Zhangsun Wuji, Wei Ting, Pei Ji, Fang Xuanling, and Du Ruhui, as well as military generals such as Yuchi Gong, Hou Junji, and Li Shiji.

"Your Majesty!"

Just as Li Shimin was growing impatient with waiting, the voice of Dai Zhou, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, suddenly sounded from outside the doorway. "Reporting to Your Majesty, the Prince of Yi'an fled several days ago, and even his family members have escaped!"

"What?"

Li Shimin's face was full of astonishment, and an ominous foreboding suddenly gripped him. "What is the situation in Yuezhou?"

"Replying to Your Majesty, according to investigations by the Hundred Riders, Li Xiaochan opposed the reduction of the princes' fiefs and seems to have plotted this long in advance. Within his own domain, he collected three years of taxes all at once in advance!"

"Hahahaha—!"

Li Shimin laughed out of pure fury. "Splendid! Planned long in advance! What a brilliant, long-laid plan!"

With that, he abruptly turned his head to glare at Yuchi Gong. "Yuchi Jingde, lead your division immediately to take up positions outside the city walls. Make no mistakes!"

"Yes!"

Without another word, Yuchi Gong accepted the command and strode out.

"Your Majesty..."

Pei Ji opened his mouth, hesitating as if he had more to say.

Li Shimin shot him a cold glance. "If you have something to say, spit it out!"

"This..."

Hesitating for a moment, Pei Ji sighed. "These handbills claim the intent is to purge the emperor's close advisors and execute treacherous ministers. I fear this matter is about to blow up into a colossal crisis!"

"Therefore, in this humble subject's view, it would be best to turn a major crisis into a minor one, and a minor one into nothing at all..."

"Does this remark from Minister Pei imply that I should execute Zhangsun Wuji?"

Before Pei Ji could finish, Li Shimin interrupted him in a deep, menacing voice.

The temperature within the entire grand hall plunged instantly to freezing.