Chapter 38 Life is full of ups and downs
Li Shimin was stunned and stood there, without any reaction for a long time.
Seeing him so dazed, with his eyes wide open like a frightened cat, Guanyinbi couldn't help but burst out laughing, tugged at his sleeve and said it again.
"No, I need to calm down first. I still can't accept it."
Li Shimin wiped his face with his hand, his mood suddenly plummeted from happiness to the abyss, and he was still trying to piece together his broken heart.
Life is full of ups and downs. It turns out Erfeng is the same. I suddenly feel happy, hahahaha.
[No, not to mention Erfeng, I can’t accept it either!
I have already started preparing a gift for Erfeng's baby, and you tell me that the child is gone?
I won't allow it, your face is ferocious, give birth to me now!】
[That's right, why shouldn't we be included in Erfeng's birth?! Now you're telling me we have no part in it?!]
What the hell is going on? 】
Li Shimin probably understood what his wife had done. At this time, there were only the two of them in the room, and Guanyin Bi explained:
"When I heard that Erlang was in Suiyang City, I knew that Erlang would definitely want to attack Luoyang next.
I thought if Erlang had a child at this time, the Saint would be more relieved. That's why I came up with this plan.
I was afraid that if I told the truth in a letter, people would find out, so I had to keep you in the dark as well."
[So that's how it is! Oh my god, Empress Changsun is so powerful! She deceived us so badly!
Erfeng was deceived hahaha]
[What do you think! Empress Wen and Emperor Wen, this couple is a perfect match!
A pair of black and white lotus flowers, cut open and black! 】
[How did Empress Changsun deceive the imperial physician? A doctor could have detected it by taking her pulse.]
This is actually simple. Guanyinbi quickly explained that every time the imperial physician came to take the pulse, she would ask the pregnant maid to examine her through the screen, not him in person.
"It just made Erlang happy for nothing."
Guanyinbi was a little apologetic. Li Shimin immediately shook his head and tried to smile, but his smile was uglier than crying:
"We had originally agreed to wait until the situation stabilized after I ascended the throne before conceiving a child.
That's perfect, I can also slowly think of a better name!"
"Erlang is right. We can think of names for our children in advance."
[Ahahahaha, Empress Changsun thinks Li Hua sounds unpleasant, right?
Fortunately, Li Hua didn't get pregnant this time, otherwise, Prince Li Hua would be in big trouble! 】
[Crown Prince Li Hua? Honestly, unless he can completely crush Rome, I'd want to beat him up every time I see him!]
A short absence is better than a new marriage. After not seeing each other for several months, Erfeng quickly closed the live broadcast room without saying a word, which made the audience very angry.
Modern audiences rushed to Erfeng's post to leave messages, threatening to take revenge on Li Erfeng.
[Since I can't be under your bed, I'm going to join Erfeng Sleeping Sticker!
Good news, the post has received over 200,000 likes! 】
[Oh my, look at how proud Erfeng is that she finally decided to start a live broadcast?
You're so stingy, aren't you even willing to show us your beautiful wife?】
"Why should I show you my wife? Go find your own wife!"
Li Shimin's words killed 80% of modern people. Seeing the barrage of comments attacking him, he was no match for them at all, so he quickly changed the subject:
"Come back to the point, I should go see Li Heng first and hand over the tiger talisman. I almost forgot about it just now."
【!!! You're a love-brained idiot! You just remembered it now?】
Why would you hand over your military power? With such a large army at your disposal, why not just rebel and claim the throne?
Capture Li Heng and Li Yu, then beat up Li Longji. Wouldn't that be great?
[No, you think we, Erfeng, really don't care about our reputation! Especially now, there is no reasonable excuse!]
Although Erfeng was the main contributor to the suppression of the rebellion, the son's contribution also belongs to his father. Everyone will say that the current sage commanded the recovery of the two capitals, and the situation is very good!
Once Er Feng takes action, the Jiedushi of each region will inevitably have to choose sides, and the entire country will be plunged into war again!
"That's indeed the truth. Once war breaks out, the people will have no chance to rest and recuperate.
Besides, there is no need to rebel now, so Xuanwu Gate sounds more pleasant to the ear."
Although the Xuanwu Gate Incident he initiated was extremely risky, its impact on the Tang Dynasty was relatively small and did not affect court officials and the people. It was considered the most perfect transition of power.
[Good fellow, Erfeng, you are perfect. Why don't you ask Li Yuan, Li Jiancheng, and Li Yuanji if they are beautiful?]
[But aren’t they just shameless?]
Back then, Li Yuan and Li Jiancheng were simply taking advantage of our Erfeng's achievements. Now, it's the same thing. It's clearly Erfeng's achievements, but now it's being attributed to Li Heng for retaking the two capitals and suppressing the rebellion?
[Haha, isn't it said that the Tang Dynasty was conquered by Li Yuan half, Li Jiancheng half, Li Yuanji half, and Princess Pingyang half...
So what about us, Erfeng? So we owe two Tang dynasties?]
[It is conceivable that there will be more black fans of Li Tan in the future. If Li Heng quelled the rebellion, Li Yu, who was the commander-in-chief of the army, also pacified half of the world.
Goodness, isn't this just like Li Yuan and Li Jiancheng, is history repeating itself?]
However, Li Shimin did not care about these rumors:
"Everyone in the world will judge the world's affairs. People with discerning eyes in this world should know who has made contributions and who has made mistakes."
[That’s right!]
Li Yuan, this shameless man, fabricated his own diary and wrote it out without any mention of his own daughter, Princess Pingyang Zhao, and took all her military achievements for himself! And so what?
Isn't it that starting from the Song Dynasty, when worshipping the founding emperor of previous dynasties, everyone worshipped Li Shimin, and who worshipped Li Yuan?
[Things that ancient feudal people could see clearly: between Li Yuan and Li Shimin, Li Heng and Li Tan, who was the one who pacified the world, and whose merits and whose faults were there?
Normal people have a mirror in their hearts.
While Tianmu was chatting, Li Shimin soon met up with Li Siye and returned to Beijing to report.
However, Li Siye, Li Heng and all the civil and military officials in the court had long known that Li Shimin had abandoned his father and sneaked home to see his wife as soon as he returned.
Everyone was speechless and could only persuade Li Heng to calm down, saying that Li Shimin was a pure-hearted person and was worried about his child for the first time as a father.
Li Heng was also speechless about his love-brained son, although he wanted to say that it was extremely unfilial of him to put his wife before his father.
However, Li Shimin handed over the military command without hesitation and did not seem to be attached to power at all, which made it impossible for him to say anything wrong.
Therefore, Li Heng first praised his own Sanlang greatly, and then criticized him for only thinking about his wife, which was inappropriate.
Li Shimin quickly and humbly expressed his willingness to learn, but he lowered his head, indicating that he would do it again next time.
The two acted like a loving father and a filial son in front of all the civil and military officials in the court. After speaking in official language for a while, Li Heng began to ask what was going on with the Uighurs.
After all, it was Li Heng who made the promise to the Uighurs, and he didn't care whether the people of Luoyang were robbed or not.
But when they heard that the people of Luoyang had actually burned all the Huihe soldiers to death, they were immediately dissatisfied:
"You dare to take action before I've even dealt with them? These rioters are truly rebellious!
Order the Dali Temple to conduct a thorough investigation and make sure to catch the main culprit!
This time, the Uighur King, Prince Yehu, and 8,000 Uighur cavalrymen were all killed in the Tang Dynasty. How can we explain this to the Uighur King?"
[Who do you want to investigate? The main culprit?]
Isn't that you? If you don't agree, how could this happen?
An explanation? To whom? You, grandson, want the Tang Dynasty to give an explanation to the Uighurs?
When Li Heng said this, Tian Khan Li Shimin bit his back teeth and made a big score with Li Heng in his heart. Then he said with a stern face:
"Your Majesty, rest assured. The Huihe people are leading 8,000 elite troops to the Tang Dynasty. This should be the majority of their main force. If they are lost in the Tang Dynasty, the Huihe people will also suffer a great loss.
It is impossible to organize an effective force in a short period of time. Even if they are dissatisfied, they can only endure it."
Li Mi also echoed from the side, and Li Heng finally felt relieved.
In this great victory in Tokyo, An Qingxu was captured alive, and only Shi Chaoyi was left to lead the remaining rebels to resist.
Since Li Guangbi had also recovered Hebei Province at this time, the rebels were only left with their old nest in Fanyang and Yanbei area, and there were still some small rebel groups resisting everywhere, so the difficulty of recovering the area was much smaller.
After this battle, the situation was almost one-sided. No matter how stupid one was, one would not suffer a disastrous defeat.
Soon, Li Heng ordered the beheading of the entire family of the bandit leader, led by An Qingxu, and their bodies were hung on the city wall for three days.
Afterwards, a grand banquet was held in the palace to reward the soldiers who had suppressed the rebellion.
Generals such as Pugu Huai'en and Li Guangbi thought that they would be rewarded by the emperor for their contributions in suppressing the rebellion.
I don't ask to be crowned king, but for such a great contribution, I deserve to be granted a title of nobility and a title of honor, and to pass on the inheritance to my descendants and family.
However, what they received were only a few words of praise, some mansions, courtyards, gold and silver, nothing else.
On the contrary, those rebellious generals and military governors who had previously followed Shi Chaoyi and saw that the situation was not good were recruited and surrendered. They were highly praised and rewarded by Li Heng and were highly valued.
Li Heng granted them official titles, granted them noble titles, and arranged marriages. For a time, the generals and loyal officials who had risked their entire families' lives for the Tang Dynasty were deeply disheartened.
Pugu Huai'en tossed and turned all night, and early the next morning he went to Mixue Bingcheng to drink alone.
Mixue Ice City has been booming recently, and its reputation has spread throughout the Tang Dynasty.
Li Shimin had just pacified Luoyang when Mixue Ice City opened its doors three days later. From the two capitals to the Jianghuai region, all major cities now had branches of Mixue Ice City milk tea.
Whether it is a scholar who is trying to show off his elegance or a wealthy family who is discussing something, when they want to invite people to dinner, the first choice is to go to Mixue Ice City.
Because here there are not only a variety of delicious teas, but also new grape wines, fruit wines and other kinds of alcoholic beverages, just as their signboard advertisement says -
There is always a kind of Mixue that suits you in Datang.
At this time, Pugu Huai'en thought of several of his family members who died in battle and felt depressed because he killed his own son for the Tang Dynasty.
He was already drunk, and after emptying a bottle of wine, he immediately shouted:
"Waiter, bring me another bottle of wine! The higher the alcohol content, the better!"
Li Shimin happened to be eating the new dessert and milk tea at Mixue. When he heard this, he brought in two cups of milk tea and gave Pugu Huai'en a cup of oolong tea-based hangover sobering drink.
"General Pugu, you're drinking here so early in the morning. You should be careful not to hurt yourself!"
When he saw His Royal Highness the Prince of Yan, Pugu Huai'en thought that Li Shimin was also a leisurely person at this time.
Since returning, Li Heng has not even rewarded Prince Yan with a house or gold and silver, which makes him feel unfair for himself and Li Shimin.
He pounded his chest a few times and asked the waiter for another pot of wine.
"Your Highness, I feel uncomfortable if I don't drink some wine!"
It is no wonder that Pugu Huai'en was so indignant and depressed. For the Tang Dynasty, not only several relatives of his family died in battle!
When the rebellion was being suppressed, his son Puguyin saw that he was no match for the rebels, so he surrendered to the enemy in order to save his life. However, afterwards, his son secretly escaped back to his father from the enemy side together with the captured soldiers who surrendered to the enemy.
Puguo Huai'en knew that his son was loyal to the Tang Dynasty. However, in order to lead his troops to fight to the death, he enforced strict military discipline and let everyone know that they would not surrender to the enemy even if they died in battle.
With tears in his eyes, he personally ordered the execution of his own son!
That was his own son whom he had watched grow up and raised with his own hands!
He believed that he had done his best for the Tang Dynasty and His Majesty, but he had failed his family, and even more so, he had failed his own son who he had raised and who had called him father countless times!
Whenever he thought of the day when his son Puguyin knelt before him and cried bitterly to admit his mistake, but heard the disbelief in his eyes when he ordered his own execution, his heart ached.
Before his death, the son said that he did not blame himself and that he could understand his father. However, every time he woke up in the middle of the night, he always dreamed of the moment when his son was beheaded by his order, which made him extremely heartbroken!
As a foreign general, although he was educated by the Tang Dynasty and knew how to be loyal to the emperor and patriotic, the principles that the foreigners adhered to were straightforward and simple, that is, those who had made contributions should be rewarded and those who had made mistakes should be punished!
"My family, Pugu Huai'en, is full of loyal and brave men. We have dedicated our lives to the Tang Dynasty with a heart of patriotism, not just for these rewards.
But……"
But how could His Majesty today make people so disheartened?
As a minister, does he deserve to sacrifice his entire family's lives for the Tang Dynasty and personally chop off his own son's head for the Tang Dynasty?
Why did he do all this?
Is it just to fulfill such an emperor who does not distinguish between rewards and punishments?
"Your Highness Prince of Yan, it would be fine if the Emperor simply didn't reward us, but why does he show such love and care for those ministers who surrendered?
Take An Lushan's adopted son Zhang Zhongzhi, for example. He was afraid to surrender because Your Highness, the Prince of Yan, led the army to victory in battle.
Such a person was actually given the surname of the emperor and named Duke of Zhao by the emperor?
After the morning court today, that guy was so proud that his eyes almost reached the sky!"
Li Baochen, Li Huaixian and others were given the national surname, and their positions were even allowed to be inherited.
Tian Chengsi not only became the governor of five states, but was also appointed as the acting minister of the Ministry of Revenue and the chief censor, what a high official position!
The other Jiedushi who surrendered were also promoted, and they were in charge of more land. Some even received red-lettered iron certificates that exempted them from death.
His Majesty also personally arranged a marriage for a princess from the royal family to marry him.
Why?!
Puguo Huai'en couldn't understand it, but Li Shimin saw it clearly.
Seeing Pugu Huai'en so angry at this moment, and thinking of his family members who died fighting for the Tang Dynasty, he was speechless for a moment, unable to comfort him. He could only sigh and drink a few cups with him, and said:
"The Emperor is not unaware of the great contributions you have made to the Tang Dynasty, nor is he unaware that those traitors are villains. He understands all of this."
"Then why do you do this?"
"It's because in his heart, you meritorious officials have made such great contributions and have such high reputations that you surpass your master, which makes him wary and afraid that you will become the next An Lushan.
As for Li Huaixian, Li Baochen and others, their power, reputation and status are far inferior to yours, so the emperor gave them generous rewards, on the one hand, to win over these rebels so that more people would surrender.
On the other hand, it is also to curb your power. He wants to balance all the Jiedushi to prevent anyone from becoming too powerful and emulating An Lushan."
Li Shimin snorted coldly when he said this:
"In his heart, his royal power and the dignity of the throne are far more important than whether those of you who risked your lives for the Tang Dynasty are wronged.
He didn't care whether meritorious officials were rewarded or whether the court's rewards and punishments were clear.
After hearing this, Pugu Huai'en took the wine but did not drink it. He just sat there blankly for a long time without moving.
Pugu Huai'en remained silent for a long time, as if he was thinking a lot.
The audience at the sky screen erupted in anger, all of them were indignant:
[This is truly a first-person perspective. If it were me? I'd just flip the table and rebel!]
[If my boss dared to do this to me, I would resign immediately and take the core secrets with me to join his rival!
Isn't this just Li Heng simply bullying loyal subordinates and not betraying the country? 】
[In history, Pugu Huai'en was even more miserable!]
More than 30 members of his family died in the war for the sake of the Tang Dynasty. Not only did he kill his own son, but he also married his two daughters to the Uighurs in order to encourage them to send troops!
Then after the Anshi Rebellion ended, Li Yu not only did not reward him, but also suspected him of collaborating with the enemy and rebelling because of the eunuchs' slander.
In the end, they were forced to join forces with the Huihe to rebel! 】
[A loyal minister and a capable general, yet a barbarian! He was ultimately forced to lose his integrity in his later years and was killed by the emperor's suspicion. What a life he must have lived!
When you die, will you think about all the sacrifices and things you have done in your life and feel that it was not worth it?
[What Li Yu did in history, I didn't expect Li Heng to do it before him, and even do it even more excessively!]
Even someone as well-versed in the ways of the court as Guo Ziyi nearly lost his integrity in his later years. How many famous ministers and generals in history ended up like Han Xin?
However, Liu Bang and Zhu Yuanzhang would reward people based on their merits at the beginning, granting them titles of nobility and titles, and only later would they gradually settle accounts. How could they be like Li Heng and Li Yu, who had unclear rewards and punishments from the beginning?
[The bottom line is that they are incompetent. They have no ability to pacify the world, nor can they control others. They only know how to be suspicious of loyal ministers and generals!]
Pugu Huai'en thought for a long time, and finally drank another cup of wine. After a long sigh, he said to His Royal Highness the Prince of Yan:
"Now I finally understand why some people, frustrated by their lack of recognition, would go to the Zhaoling Mausoleum to weep. Your Highness, Prince of Yan, I even want to go and weep in front of Emperor Taizong's spirit."
Li Shimin paused, then patted his shoulder, replaced the wine in his hand with milk tea and dessert, and comforted him:
"What's the point of crying at the mausoleum? You might as well cry in front of me.
The past is gone, don’t think about it. The future is still long, who knows what will happen?
Why don't you try the dessert in front of you first? I heard this new honey tiramisu is especially delicious, so I bought it especially for you!"
[Ahahaha! Exactly, what's the point of crying at Erfeng's tomb? It's better to cry in front of him!]
After all, he's not dead yet! 】
[That’s right, the meritorious officials under our Erfeng will not be wronged but rewarded, and each of them can enter the Lingyan Pavilion!
Did he and the First Emperor ever unjustly kill meritorious officials and generals?
Seeing that Pugu Huai'en was still full of worry and looked like he was going to get sick from anger, Li Shimin immediately stuffed a spoon into his hand and urged him:
"Hurry, hurry, eat quickly. If Madam Shen Yue comes after us later, we won't have anything to eat!"
"You know you can't eat so many sweets!"
As soon as Li Shimin finished speaking, he heard the familiar voice outside the door that frightened him, and immediately took a few bites of dessert.
Shen Yue rushed in angrily:
"You drank three cups of milk tea yesterday and ate five pieces of White Rabbit candy today? Are you really that brave?
Have your sugar-free milk tea!"
Shen Yue snatched the dessert and full-sugar milk tea from Li Shimin's hand, and then saw many empty wine bottles in front of Pugu Huai'en, and she immediately became furious.
She glared at the man fiercely and took the wine glass from his hand:
"You like drinking so much? Drinking on an empty stomach in broad daylight, I think you're going to lose your liver and your life!
Erfeng, when I talk about him, I'm not talking about you, how can you still laugh?
You members of the royal family usually eat too much sugar, and your diet is totally unbalanced. I tell you, if you don’t control yourself, you’ll end up being a fat man, and even your wife will dislike you!
If there is a genetic disease, your son may be born sick or even lame. How will you face your family in the future?"
Upon hearing such serious consequences, Li Shimin was so frightened that he sat up straight.
Pugu Huai'en, who was standing next to him, saw for the first time that the invincible Prince of Yan was being scolded like a quail by a young lady. He was so shocked that his eyes widened.
This military doctor lady is so brave! Is she really brave?
What a bold and ruthless man he is! Even he, a murderous general, feels inferior to him!
For a moment, both of them were like a class teacher scolding elementary school students, and were scolded by Shen Yue.
Shen Yue took the two of them to show off in front of the owner of Mixue, and promised to become a special care VIP member who would quit drinking and have a sugar-free diet in the future. Only then did Shen Yue leave with satisfaction.
Li Shimin looked at Pugu Huai'en, who was even more depressed because he had no wine to drink, and laughed a few times. Before leaving, he comforted him:
"General, don't be too pessimistic. Just rest at home and take care of yourself these days. Once you get through this period, maybe you'll have better days in the future."
Li Shimin left after he finished speaking. Pugu Huai'en stood there in a daze, pondering his words.
The current emperor will definitely not reflect on himself. Does His Royal Highness the Prince of Yan want him to wait for a few years until Crown Prince Li Yu ascends the throne?
But is the prince necessarily a wise monarch who clearly distinguishes rewards and punishments?
Damn it, King Yan, why don't you just say what you mean? You're always half-hearted and half-revealed. You riddlers are so annoying!
No matter how curious Puguo Huai'en was, Li Shimin continued to work as a leisurely prince and make friends with people of ambition everywhere.
However, after a few days of such leisurely days, Li Longji returned to Chang'an.
Behind the scenes, Li Heng and Li Longji were fighting each other fiercely, but on the surface they were still models of loving father and filial son.
Li Heng led everyone out of the city to welcome his father to show his filial piety, and relocated his father back to his former palace, Xingqing Palace.
Xingqing Palace was built during the reign of Li Longji. He handled state affairs, held banquets and had fun here, and also received officials and people's homage.
Li Heng's action was to show everyone his filial piety as a good eldest son.
After all, in his opinion, the world already belonged to him, Li Heng, and his father would not be able to change the situation if he just served as the emperor. However, Li Longji did not think so.
At this time, Li Longji was accompanied by Chen Xuanli, Gao Lishi and others. Suddenly one day, Li Shimin received an imperial decree saying that Li Longji missed his grandson and asked him to go over to accompany him to the garden.
Li Shimin had a premonition that Li Longji was going to stir up trouble again. Sure enough, not long after they met, Li Longji first recalled the relationship between grandfather and grandson, and then began to sow discord:
"I heard that you, Sanlang, have made great contributions. It's a pity that your father only values his eldest son and doesn't care much about you, Sanlang. He didn't even give you an official position."
[Haha, you still think you can be the emperor, right?
The sky cleared up, and Li Longji felt that he was capable again? 】
[The key is that he's courting death and dragging our Erfeng into this! Do you think there are any Li Heng's spies listening in on him?]
After hearing this, will Li Heng be afraid of Er Feng and directly give her poisoned wine to kill her? Is this forcing Er Feng to stand on his side, or die?
Li Shimin listened to a few words coldly and guessed what his grandson would say next.
The current Li Longji is no longer the emperor he was when he left Beijing, and Li Shimin is too lazy to flatter him anymore.
He sat cross-legged opposite Li Longji, without any courtesy, and spoke coldly:
"Isn't it enough that you sacrificed your own son, Prince Yong, for your own selfish reasons? You don't feel any guilt towards your own son, do you?
When it comes to filial piety and father-son love, do you still have the nerve to talk about it?
I would like to ask you, Emperor Taizong worked hard to create great achievements, but the great Tang Dynasty has been dragged down to this point by you, his great-great-grandson. The people are living in poverty and the world is plunged into chaos. Do you have the face to do this?
"Don't you feel the slightest bit of guilt or remorse towards your great-grandfather? Are you worthy of your great-grandfather?"
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