189 Chapter 189
◎Before the Chinese New Year. ◎
After the move, Li Chengqian was able to cross out the names of Yu Zhining and others as he wished. Li Shimin took it and looked at it for a while, frowning slightly: "Your uncle's name is fine, but why did you cross out Xuanling's name too?"
It was naturally impossible for these important ministers to actually serve under Li Chengqian, but the title was given to them mainly to represent the emperor's appreciation for the crown prince.
"The Minister of the Central Secretariat has heavy responsibilities. Why should he take on the empty position of the Minister of Ceremonies here?" Li Chengqian said calmly.
Anyway, even if Fang Xuanling worked in the Eastern Palace, it would not prevent his son from being close to Li Tai. If Fang Xuanling was unaware of this, he would not have to be the prime minister.
But then again, many of the highly praised ministers of the Zhenguan Dynasty were actually betting on both the Crown Prince and the King of Wei, and the source of this was still their monarch.
"Besides, what do you mean by just uncle?" Li Chengqian raised an eyebrow and asked, "Why just uncle?"
Li Shimin frowned and said, "Chengqian is closer to A'niang, so it's natural that you two are of the same mind."
Li Chengqian's forehead vein throbbed, still puzzled. "Sage, this is very strange. What does this have to do with my mother?"
"Mother," Li Shimin said, and then pointed at himself. "Saint."
Li Chengqian: "..."
"Hasn't anyone called you Grandpa?" Li Chengqian said speechlessly. "If you want to hear it, call all your brothers and sisters and have them line up to call you."
Li Shimin laughed and said, "They are them, and you are you. How can they be the same?"
Li Chengqian was silent for a moment, then said, "Okay, then please tell me when I should call you Aye and when I should call you Saint."
"If it weren't for the current court, you should never call me a saint." Li Shimin said as a matter of course.
When you are under someone's roof, you have to bow your head. Li Chengqian swallowed his anger and said, "I understand."
Li Shimin looked at him with a burning gaze, and Li Chengqian could only add two more words: "...Aye."
"Good boy." Li Shimin smiled and waved, "It would be even better if Cheng Qian could sit next to Aye again."
"You're getting too greedy, Father. Let me remind you, be careful of excessive joy leading to sorrow." Li Chengqian said expressionlessly.
Li Shimin said regretfully: "Okay, Father, I will listen to Cheng Qian."
Li Chengqian rubbed the goose bumps on his arms and said, "Is there anything else? I have other things to do."
Li Shimin said sternly, "Of course there are. Even if we reduce the number of people, we have to add more. If you are still not satisfied, please point out who you want to add."
Li Chengqian thought for a moment and said, "How about adding the Minister of War?"
The current Minister of War is Du Ruhui, who is known for his "Fang's plans and Du's decisions."
Li Shimin laughed and said, "Keming? You don't want Xuanling, but you want Keming. How strange!"
One of the reasons for choosing Du Ruhui was that he retired due to illness in the third year of Zhenguan and died of illness in the fourth year of Zhenguan. Another reason was that his son Du He was a member of Li Chengqian's rebel gang. Because of this friendship, Li Chengqian felt that he had to try his best to save Du Ruhui.
Li Chengqian shrugged without explaining, saying, "Just tell me if it's okay."
Li Shimin nodded and said, "Okay, why not? What else?"
Li Chengqian asked, "Who else? I don't know how many people there are. Why don't you tell me a few?"
Li Shimin smiled and said, "Okay."
So Li Shimin began to count from top to bottom, and Li Chengqian finally decided on a few people he was not very familiar with, but in his previous life he was not the kind of minister who would find fault with everything, and he was also not very close to Li Tai.
After he left, Li Shimin compared the two lists. Except for Changsun Wuji, the others who were crossed out by Cheng Qian must have been influenced by the future he had glimpsed.
Li Shimin didn't understand. They were obviously his important ministers, all intelligent and wise people, and had followed him for many years. Why would the future crown prince dislike them?
Li Shimin naturally knew the only reason.
What he didn't understand was what they had done, or why they actually thought he had the intention of deposing the prince?
Li Shimin suddenly thought of what the retired emperor said yesterday. He was angry when he heard it. What right did the retired emperor have to say such words? Did he think he was the same as him?
But thinking about it again today, in connection with Cheng Qian's previous words and deeds, an idea came to Li Shimin's mind. They were just emperors, so why wouldn't he make the same mistake as the retired emperor?
Li Shimin shuddered. He had promised Cheng Qian and himself that he would not let the past happen again and would not make the same mistakes again, but could he really do it?
Li Shimin...is just one person after all.
He could not tell anyone about these things, not even Changsun. Li Shimin hesitated in the Taiji Hall for a long time, and then went to the Hongyi Palace, which had just been renamed Da'an Palace, to find Li Yuan.
Did the retired emperor sincerely advise Li Shimin?
Li Yuan had not talked to his second son about his worries for many years. When his second son finally took the initiative to come to him, he was confronted with a barrage of questions.
Li Yuan: “…”
What could he do? This was his only son.
Li Yuan said patiently, "I've lost two sons and ten grandchildren. No matter how cruel I am, I'm just an old man." He sighed deeply, "Erlang, my father is old. In the remaining two years, even in the afterlife, I will only hope for the happiness of my descendants."
Li Shimin was inevitably moved, and he could no longer hide what was in his heart: "I'm afraid I can't do it. Throughout the dynasties, there have always been brothers fighting for the imperial power. I may not be able to stop my sons either."
In Li Yuan's eyes, the second son has always been tough. Even when he was targeted by him and the eldest and fourth sons, he never gave in and never showed weakness. Li Yuan could no longer remember such a helpless Erlang.
If the close relationship between father and son gradually fades with the passage of time, then the life-and-death struggle between brothers seems to be a common thing.
Li Yuan had no confidence either, but since his son had shown weakness, he, as a father, was forced to put on airs and pretend to believe in his son even if he didn't.
Li Yuan stepped forward, patted his second son on the shoulder, and asked, "Let me ask you, when I rescued you at Yanmen Pass, were you afraid? And when you urged me to raise an army in Taiyuan, were you afraid?"
Li Shimin shook his head: "It's different, this is different."
"How is it different?" Li Yuan said solemnly, "Aren't you still yourself? Prince Taiyuan, the second son of the Li family. Is there anything you want, anything you want to do that is impossible?"
Li Shimin was stunned for a moment, and when he spoke again, he said, "Aye, I thought... you wouldn't acknowledge my contribution."
During Li Shimin's campaigns in the south and the north, his contribution meant two completely different things to Li Yuan, because it not only meant that the Tang Dynasty was becoming more and more stable, but also meant that he would have to reward the King of Qin, who had no right to be given a title.
Therefore, every time Li Yuan acknowledged Li Shimin's achievements, he did so reluctantly.
Li Yuan waved his hands dejectedly and said, "I'm old, I'm... I'm confused."
Li Shimin bowed respectfully and said, "Thank you, Father."
"I'll remember your words. As long as you're here, I'll always remind myself."
It was a long time after Li Shimin left that Li Yuan realized that this was not a good thing to say. Was he a negative example?
...Even if it's true, it's not easy to say it so bluntly, right?
Like father, like son!
The common points between father and son were also reflected in other places. Later, Li Yuan discovered that in addition to Li Chengqian who often made him angry, Li Shimin, for some reason, also began to make him angry often.
——In Li Yuan’s opinion, even if he spoke to him in a nice tone, the father and son just came over to him to make him angry.
However, in a sense, the emperor also enjoyed the happiness of family.
…
The New Year was approaching. This was Li Shimin's first year on the throne, and there were many things to do. Li Chengqian wanted to help his mother, but was assigned the task of looking after the children.
In addition to being cared for by their biological mothers, the royal children also had wet nurses and palace maids and eunuchs to serve them. It was not Li Chengqian's turn to be Dehua, but Changsun insisted that he get along well with his brothers and sisters, so he had to agree.
In feudal society, men and women were ranked separately. Li Lizhi was the fifth among sisters, with four older sisters, the eldest of whom was four years older than Li Chengqian.
Because of their age, Li Xiujin was responsible for taking care of the younger sisters, while Li Chengqian was responsible for taking care of the brothers.
The two older girls were willing to follow their eldest sister obediently, but the others were all like wild horses running around in a mess, and the wet nurses could not stop them from running and jumping around.
Li Chengqian sat in the corridor with his chin in his hand, watching them roaring, shouting, running and jumping. Although he thought it was noisy, his mood was surprisingly much better.
Li Xiujin went over to stop the girls who were fighting with the boys, and taught them that girls should behave gracefully and not act foolishly. The girls replied sullenly, "Oh."
Li Xiujin smiled and was about to say something, but Li Chengqian came over and said with a smile: "Girls from other families have to follow the rules because their fathers and brothers are incompetent. Girls from our royal family don't have these rules."
Li Xiujin was stunned: "Prince..."
"You are the emperor's daughters. Just pretend to be so in public and don't embarrass your father. In private, you can have fun however you want." Li Chengqian smiled and waved his hand, "Go ahead and have fun!"
"Okay!" the little girls laughed happily, "Thank you, big brother!"
Li Chengqian then said to Li Xiujin and the other two, "You guys go have fun too. Don't worry about the rules."
The two younger sisters glanced at their eldest sister.
Li Xiujin said in embarrassment: "Prince, I didn't teach them this way..."
The atmosphere in the early Tang Dynasty was not as open as it was later. Moreover, no matter when, the feudal society's requirements for women were always the same. Even princesses were required to be virtuous.
"I know." Li Chengqian said, "Don't worry, I'll be there for the Saint and A'niang. If they get angry, I'll bear the consequences."
Li Xiujin shook his head and said, "I am the eldest, how can I put all the blame on the prince?"
She was just a little girl in her teens. Li Chengqian couldn't help but sigh silently when he thought that she would be getting married soon.
"Don't worry." Li Chengqian said, "We'll go see A'niang right now, so you can rest assured."
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