204 Chapter 204
◎Around the New Year.◎
Li Chengqian tilted his head and asked, "And then?"
Li Shimin said, "The Emperor Emeritus previously adopted Qingque as the heir to your third uncle, so his title was Wei. I thought of changing it this time to Yue. As for the Prince of Wei, I have also chosen a son of the imperial clan to succeed him."
"I understand. Father couldn't bear to part with his own son, so he wanted to adopt someone else's son." Li Chengqian nodded. "That makes sense."
Li Shimin: “…”
"Prince Wei is of the first rank. If Li Baoding had not inherited the title of Prince Wei, he would not have been able to obtain this rank." Li Shimin said seriously.
Li Chengqian leaned over and looked at him, his chin propped up. "Qingque was only the son of the Prince of Qin back then, and could only have been made a prince of a county. But because Uncle Chengsi was made a first-rank prince, Father must have been extremely happy back then."
Li Shimin: “…”
"In the end, Li Baoding and his son expressed their gratitude joyfully," Li Shimin said with a stern face.
"Yeah." Li Chengqian smiled. "My father was also very happy to thank you back then."
Li Shimin was embarrassed and almost lost his temper, but luckily he controlled himself as soon as he opened his mouth: "Cheng Qian, you... are you still angry with Qingque?"
Li Chengqian curled his lips and said, "I'm not mad at him, I'm mad at myself. It's you who insisted on running into the gun."
Li Shimin couldn't help laughing: "Or maybe I came at the wrong time?"
"That's right." Li Chengqian agreed.
Li Shimin was left in a state of confusion by his eldest son's self-righteous attitude. He paused for a moment before asking, "Cheng Qian, why are you so angry with yourself?"
Li Chengqian pondered for a moment and said, "Then... tell the truth."
Li Shimin thought to himself, how many lies have you told me?
Never mind, just be willing to tell the truth.
Li Shimin patted his eldest son's hand and said, "You speak, and Father is listening."
"I just think that maybe Li Tai and I are destined to fight to the death." After Li Chengqian said this, he saw Tian Khan's face change quickly.
"Don't get excited." Li Chengqian patted his hands in return. "It's just a way of describing it. We probably won't die at each other's hands."
Li Shimin didn't feel comforted at all. He rubbed his brow and said, "Cheng Qian, is it just because of Qingque's words? When I was Qingque's age, I often quarreled with my brothers. It was just a childish temper. Don't take it seriously."
Li Chengqian hesitated for a moment before continuing, "Aye, you and... well, anyway, you're not a good example."
Li Shimin: “…”
Li Shimin was so anxious and angry that he was confused. He said in frustration: "My father is not the emperor, he can't do such stupid things!"
Li Chengqian was even more hesitant to speak. He let Li Tai build a literary museum by himself and wanted Li Tai to live in the Wude Hall. God, this was an extremely wise decision, not confused at all.
It would be nice to do it again, Li Chengqian thought to himself, no matter what the result is this time, at least I can see Tian Khan get slapped in the face, how awesome.
"Cheng Qian, why don't you say anything?" Li Shimin frowned and asked, "Don't you trust Aye?"
"I believe it, I believe it!" Li Chengqian nodded perfunctorily. "I really believe you, Father."
Li Shimin glared and said, "You clearly don't believe it!"
Li Chengqian was even more perfunctory: "If you think I don't believe it, then I don't believe it."
Li Shimin said anxiously, "Cheng Qian, you... why are you so stubborn? You are the crown prince, Qing Que is a prince, you are in the Eastern Palace, he is in the Prince's Palace, you are the crown prince, he is a minister, now you brothers are all in Lizheng Palace, these things can't be revealed, when you grow up and each of you has his own palace, the rituals will be very different, and Qing Que will naturally understand the difference between you two."
Tian Khan had said this many times before, saying how he wanted to be a fair and impartial father and that he would not repeat the same mistakes. He was not the emperor emeritus, and he was trying to prove to Li Chengqian that the past would not happen again.
But it was precisely every word of Tian Khan that told Li Chengqian that the same old things would surely happen again.
Li Chengqian knew what Tian Khan had done, and he was too lazy to argue. After all, Tian Khan was full of confidence.
This is not bad, Li Chengqian thought, I can save up more materials, so that when I am crippled again one day, I will have much more to say than in my previous life.
Thinking of this, Li Chengqian nodded again, and this time he looked less perfunctory: "Okay, then I... will leave it that way."
For Li Shimin, such a statement was obviously not enough. He thought that his eldest son still lacked reassurance, and he had to give him that.
Therefore, in the New Year of this year, Li Chengqian suffered a critical blow. In his opinion, the Heavenly Khan might be a little abnormal. For some reason, he tried to show the prince's dignity everywhere.
It was clearly just an ordinary New Year reward, but the Crown Prince received many times more than his brothers - far more than the Crown Prince's quota. In the past, when the children were in front of Li Shimin, he never mentioned that the eldest brother was the Crown Prince or how good the Crown Prince was. But this year, he showed everywhere that although the Crown Prince was a brother to you, he was the heir to the throne and was fundamentally different from others.
At the New Year's palace banquet, Li Shimin even specially gave Li Chengqian a dish of venison, and he said it casually in front of everyone, as if it was an extremely ordinary thing. Li Chengqian got goosebumps on the spot.
To the court officials, Li Shimin praised the prince highly for sharing the worries of the emperor and his father and caring about the people and the country over the past year, saying that he had made great contributions.
Li Tai didn't have any special reaction to this, but occasionally Li Chengqian would catch a glimpse of his dim eyes. Perhaps the Heavenly Khan had said something to him specifically, and it was not known whether the boy had figured it out or had suffered too much of a blow. In short, he seemed to have accepted that it was impossible to achieve the fairness he wanted between him and his elder brother.
…
After the New Year, Li Shimin continued to urge the prevention of locusts. Locust plagues are very likely to occur after a severe drought. Fortunately, Li Chengqian has summarized some measures for the working people now and in the ancient times to prevent locust plagues. Li Shimin ordered them to be promulgated to all places. If there is a severe drought in the future, these methods should be used to prevent it in winter.
In addition, in the first month of the year, Li Shimin not only conferred a title on his own son, but also dismissed Zhangsun Wuji from the position of Shangshu You Pushe and changed him to Kaifu Yitong Sansi. The rank was very high, being the first rank, but it was a nominal position with no specific actual power.
However, this was only a concession made by Li Shimin due to repeated refusals from his wife and uncle, and to prevent the Changsun family from being labeled as a powerful relative of the emperor. Therefore, this did not prevent Changsun Wuji from continuing to participate in important state affairs, nor did it prevent him from remaining a trusted and important official of the emperor.
Li Chengqian counted on his fingers in the Lizheng Hall and told his mother, "Father said he treats my uncle as his son. Mother, Father wants to be a peer of grandfather."
Changsun was embroidering by the window. Upon hearing this, she laughed and said, "Don't talk nonsense. The emperor is the ruler and father, and your grandfather was also a minister of the emperor."
"Oh, I see." Li Chengqian nodded seriously, "Aye wants to be the Aye of everyone in the world."
Chang Sun almost couldn't hold the embroidery frame because of her laughter. Li Chengqian quickly took it and said, "Mother, be careful not to prick your hand."
"I told you not to talk nonsense." Zhang Sun smiled and tapped her eldest son's forehead. "You have nothing serious to do. Tomorrow I will talk to your father and ask him to arrange some more teachers for you to teach you a lesson."
Li Chengqian put down the embroidery frame and pulled his mother's sleeve, coquettishly saying, "Mother loves me the most, you will definitely be reluctant to let me go."
Chang Sun smiled and said, "Are you scared now?"
"I'm so scared!" Li Chengqian rubbed his mother's shoulder, "Mother, please forgive me this time. I will definitely not talk nonsense again!"
Chang Sun smiled and said, "I don't believe you. Come, accompany me to the garden for a walk. I've been sitting for a long time and I'm very tired."
Li Chengqian helped his mother stand up and said, "When you come back, take a medicinal bath and ask the female doctor to come and give you a massage. You will definitely sleep well tonight."
Chang Sun patted his head and said, "You are good at arranging things for A'niang, but what about you? Did you sleep well at night?"
Ever since he came back, Li Chengqian has suffered from insomnia and nightmares. Now, after Sun Simiao's treatment and his own change of mentality, his condition has improved a lot, but he still can't sleep well every night.
Li Chengqian patted his chest and said, "Do I look unwell?"
Changsun often questioned the wet nurse or palace maids who kept watch at night, so she naturally knew the true condition of her eldest son. Seeing that the child was indeed much better, and wanting to reassure herself, she did not expose his lie.
"That's good. Go to bed early next time and don't stay up late like your father." Changsun reminded again.
Li Chengqian agreed and said, "Then you should also tell Father not to stay up late."
Chang Sun said, "How can I persuade your father..."
Before she finished speaking, she saw some people walking towards her in the distance, so she changed her words and said, "It looks like the virtuous concubine."
Li Chengqian said, "This garden is too small. How come I run into someone every few steps?"
Chang Sun smiled and said, "I just said I wouldn't talk nonsense."
"I was just complaining secretly, so it doesn't count as nonsense." Li Chengqian chuckled and asked, "Mother, should I avoid my father's concubine?"
Chang Sun smiled and said, "That sounds quite sensible. But since my mother is here, it's okay for you to see her."
According to her rank, Concubine Xian should bow to the Crown Prince, but since she is the Emperor's concubine, Li Chengqian cannot just stand there and let her bow to him. He has to express his gratitude first.
Naturally, Concubine Xian did not dare to accept the prince's courtesy. She moved aside, smiled and exchanged a few polite words with the queen, then withdrew tactfully.
After the others had gone far away, Li Chengqian said again, "This is really troublesome, mother. From now on, there will only be one woman in my Eastern Palace. There absolutely cannot be a second one. It's too much trouble."
Chang Sun thought it was just a child's joke, so she just smiled and said, "You are thinking long-term. Are you urging me and your father to choose a princess for you?"
Li Chengqian quickly said, "No, no, wait until I'm twenty."
Chang Sun shook her head and laughed, "Twenty years old? I'll wait until you're thirty!"
"That's fine." Li Chengqian said.
"What good are you doing? I really need your father to find some teachers to teach you a lesson." Changsun knocked on his head.
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