Chapter 386: Family, Country, World (Six)

It was dim and light rain fell in the sky. With snowflakes, Chang'an was shrouded in a vast rain and mist. The fire in the Yeting Palace had already been extinguished by itself. Only the blue smoke had not dissipated, curling around, dyeing the rain and mist in the north of Chang'an into blue. The battle at Xingqing Palace ended as early as the fourth hour. Just when they were exhausted from killing, another Yulin army that had not shown their face suddenly came out and easily suppressed the thousands of people. All of them were disarmed and all rushed to the school grounds to wait for the defeat. Li Longji was under house arrest, and dozens of ministers were taken back to the Daming Palace to guard the newly-dead emperor Li Yu.

The curfew has not been lifted, and the streets are still deserted. Every household is closed and there is no pedestrian. The garrisons who came from Chang'an counties in the early morning controlled the entire Chang'an City. Teams of patrolling soldiers could be seen everywhere, and the entire Chang'an was in a state of depression and tension.

In the Zichen Hall of the Ming Palace, Li Yu and the prince's body had been collected, and the coffin was parked quietly against the wall. Dozens of important officials sat in the Zichen Hall in a heavy mood. Just now, the news came from the inner palace that the queen Chen Zhenzhu also hanged herself. At this moment, the whole sky seemed to have collapsed.

"Prince Li is here!" The soldiers shouted at the door, and the ministers who were in a daze suddenly woke up. They looked at each other and suddenly remembered something more serious. The dispute over the throne was just a disrespect within the royal family, but they were in the wrong position, which was related to their own heads.

Time no longer allows them to think too much. A long black shadow appeared into the hall. Li Qing, who had been away from Chang'an for more than a month, quickly walked into the hall. The important officials immediately met him. No one took the initiative to speak. Li Qing's eyes were cold and he waved his hand gently, and his eyes finally stopped on the coffin beside the wall.

He slowly walked to the coffin and knelt down. He stared at the coffin silently. He still remembered the spring of green ten years ago. He had just returned from Nanzhao. A heroic young man appeared in front of him, making him unforgettable. He tried hard to finally help him to the throne, but in less than a year, he was killed by himself. How cruel is fate? Even Li Qing could not control it. This is power. The power like cocaine made him indulge in it and unable to extricate himself. He could not have had to establish him. He thought he could dominate his destiny, but he couldn't do it. Until he reached the peak of power and enjoyed the infinite scenery, he finally understood why Li Heng, Li Cong, and Li Lin would rather die than fight for the supreme position, or power, which made people unable to turn back.

Before he knew it, a tear fell slowly from his face, perhaps a little guilty, or a little self-blame, but if he was asked to choose again, he would still raise the butcher knife without hesitation. Since ancient times, power struggles have never pity the weak.

At this time, several ministers exchanged glances with each other. Wei Jiansu walked up and whispered: "The Prime Minister asked for grief. King Yong was crazy and killed the king and was unforgivable. But now that happened, the ministers could only hide their sorrow in their hearts. The country should not be without a king for a day. Please preside over the overall situation and establish a new emperor as soon as possible!"

Li Qing nodded silently. He kowtowed three times to the coffin, turned around and said in a deep voice: "Please go to the Secretariat immediately to discuss the establishment of a new king!"

This order was issued, and Wei Jiansu, Fang Guan, Pei Mian, and Zhang Hao were all relieved. It seemed that Li Qing did not intend to expand the situation, but Li Qing did not mention Li Longji at all. This meant that his fate would be in danger. No one dared to mention this matter again, for fear of causing trouble.

The news of the establishment of a new king spread wildly, and the atmosphere in Chang'an suddenly became subtle. In fact, everyone understood that the power of establishing a new king was in the hands of the prime minister Li Qing. The so-called joint cabinet meeting was just a cover, but who would be the emperor in the end made everyone have a strong interest, and it is not without trace. The descendants of the Supreme Emperor and his family were almost killed in both turmoils, leaving only the King Li Mao, who was unemployed in Longyou. However, his relationship with Yang Yuhuan was destined to be unable to ascend the throne. There were also several descendants of the Supreme Emperor's brothers. Among them, Ning was the eldest son of the late emperor and was chased as the "Emperor of Letter". Sining King Li Lin was Li Qing's father-in-law. With this relationship alone, almost everyone has concluded that the new emperor must be in the Sining King's Mansion.

"Fifth brother!"

The left prime minister Di Wuqi had just arrived in front of Danfeng's gate when he suddenly heard someone calling him from behind. Looking back, he saw a carriage running towards him quickly. There was a person waving to him on the window, but it was Cui Huan, the Minister of Works. Di Wuqi stopped and the carriage came for a moment. Cui Huan got off the carriage and said, "I just went to your mansion and said you have left. I tried my best to catch up with him. I almost missed the matter!"

Wu Qi was a little surprised, "What's the important thing about Brother Cui?"

Cui Huan looked around and hurriedly pulled Di Wuqi to the back of Shishi, whispered: "What has Li Xiangguo revealed about the new emperor?"

Wu Qi glanced at him, feeling a little contemptuous. Babaer chased him and thought there was something big about it. It turned out to be for this matter. He must have wanted to know Li Qing’s thoughts first, so that he could take the initiative to propose it for him, and get a little bit on the support. Thinking of this, he said unhappily: "The palace chaos happened suddenly. Who would have thought that King Yong was so crazy and dared to kill the lord; Besides, Li Xiangguo arrived this morning and I haven’t seen him yet, how could he know what he thought?"

Cui Huan seemed not to feel Di Wuqi's tone. Hearing that Li Qing had not breathed in advance, he immediately said, "I plan to propose that King Si Ning succeed to the throne, but I wonder if the left prime minister agrees?"

"Not right! Not right!" Di Wuqi waved his hand quickly, he leaned his head back and whispered: "King Sining is the son and nephew of the Supreme Emperor, and the Emperor has already established the eldest grandson of the emperor. The new emperor is either a grandson or a generation with the crown prince. Don't turn it back again. I also agree with the Ning King's family, but it may not be Sining himself, and his son and grandson can succeed to the throne."

Cui Huan nodded. Some things were difficult for Li Qing to raise directly, and someone had to tell him. Di Wuqi was Li Qing's confidant, so there should be no mistakes if he followed his position. Since he also thought it was the Ning Wang faction, then it was almost certain that the matter was decided.

As soon as the two of them turned out from behind the stone lion, they saw a Yulin army running towards him. He saw Di Wuqi at a glance and hurried forward and said, "The fifth master, the prime minister ordered you to see him quickly."

Wu Qi and Cui Huan looked at each other, and their eyes showed a sense of understanding. Needless to say, Li Qing wanted Di Wu Qi to come forward. Time was urgent, Di Wu Qi claimed the crime to Cui Huan and hurriedly followed the Yulin Army.

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A quarter of an hour later, another cabinet member, Yan Zhenqing and Zong Zhengqing Li Qiwu, also rushed to the Secretariat. Except for the whereabouts of Li Mi, the Minister of War, who was unknown after the palace chaos, all the cabinet ministers had gathered together, and everyone felt heavy in their hearts. Although Li Qing told them that An Lushan's rebellion had completely quelled, no one was happy.

The political affairs hall was silent, and several ministers were each in one place, lowering their heads to think about their own thoughts. At this time, footsteps came from outside the lobby. Li Qing stepped in, followed by the left prime minister Di Wuqi closely. Everyone hurriedly stood up to salute. Li Qing waved his hand and said anxiously: "The situation is urgent, everyone doesn't have to be polite, please sit down!"

After everyone sat down, Li Qingfang said in a heavy mood: "Although the death of the emperor is a national tragedy, no one can predict this matter. Now that the chaos is over, it is time for the great rule of the world, the stability of the court should be put first. Therefore, the minister does not intend to hold everyone here accountable for their dereliction of duty, nor does he want to slay the country again, and shake the foundation of the country. Except for ordering King Yong to commit suicide and apologize, the rest of the people will not be investigated for the time being. What do you think?"

He glanced around and saw that everyone was silent, he nodded and said, "Since they didn't object, this matter was settled. Martial law can be lifted from noon. However, these are all trivial matters. The country must not be without a king for a day. Now I am urgently summoning you to discuss the establishment of a new king. I just exchanged opinions with the Zuo Prime Minister, and they all believe that among the royal families in the capital, the only one of the Sining Kings is the most orthodox and suitable for succession. Moreover, I and the Zuo Prime Minister think that the eldest son should be established but not the young son. I wonder if you have any other suggestions here?"

It was expected that the establishment of King Sining was a natural thing, and it was natural. Everyone had no objection. The key was to establish the eldest son or the young one. The implication was that King Sining was no longer the chance. Either Li Zhao, the eldest son of Li Lin, who was an official in another place, or he was the treasure he just obtained, but it was the important matter and no one dared to speak up easily.

This time, Li Qing did not act arbitrarily. He raised his eyes and asked Zongzheng Temple's minister Li Qiwu, "Can Zongzheng Temple agree?"

Li Qiwu is seventy years old this year. He and Li Longji are of the same generation. Because he is very smooth, he can be re-activated after several ups and downs. As Zong Zhengqing Li Qiwu, no one succeeded to the throne. What he is worried about is that Li Qing usurp the throne. Now the royal family is weak, while Li Qing holds military power and prime minister power, and has just calmed the An Lushan Rebellion. His prestige is at its peak. But his surname is Li. If he wants to take the opportunity to usurp the throne, it may not be impossible. But now he just wants to establish the King of Ning. Although King of Sining is his father-in-law, the big trouble is gone, and this small matter is already insignificant.

Besides, Li Qiwu had a good personal relationship with Li Lin, so from this point, he would not object. At that moment, Li Qiwu nodded and said, "The officials had this idea for a long time. The eldest son of King Sining, Zhao, was generous and virtuous, and could succeed to the throne as emperor!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Di Wuqi stood up and said, "I am going to oppose Li Zhao's succession!"

The words shocked everyone. Fang Guan and Pei Mian looked at each other and wanted the Sining King to ascend the throne, but they did not allow their eldest son to ascend the throne. I really don’t know what Li Qing meant, but Cui Huan immediately realized that it was true that it was the Sining King, but Li Qing wanted to establish Li Yi, who was less than half a year old, and to establish a baby less than half a year old as the emperor. Isn’t the power of the world still in his hands?

Cui Huan was not allowed to slap himself in the face. He could not even imagine this. It was a waste of his official position for so many years. In desperation, he did not wait for Di Wuqi to give a reason and stood up and said, "I also oppose Li Zhao's succession! Although Li Zhao is generous and virtuous, he is mediocre and capable, and it is still acceptable to be a successful ruler. But the prime minister just said that my Tang Dynasty went from chaos to rule, and it was just needed to lead a strong monarch to lead his subjects to re-kai's prosperity. I suggest that the new monarch who is the crown prince's generation is the new monarch, and Li Yi, the legitimate grandson of the Sining King, is the most suitable. He......"

Speaking of the word "he", Cui Huan suddenly couldn't continue to say it. He was eager to take credit and blurted out some things before he thought it through. In the end, he realized that he could not make up for it. A baby less than half a year old was not powerful enough to say that Li Qing was almost the same.

Cui Huan was very embarrassed, but did he remind the ministers here from the opposite side? Everyone gradually understood that taking children as emperors can actually control the world for decades and not be blamed for usurpation. I'm afraid that Li Qing would be the one who was fighting for this.

Fang Guan immediately stood up and laughed: "Actually, what Cui Shangshu meant was that Li Yi was young and was carefully educated by the right prime minister. In decades, he could uphold the national policy of the right prime minister and continue the prosperity of our Tang Dynasty. Are you right?"

Speaking of this, there is no point in discussing it. Everyone here is a person who has been fighting in the officialdom for decades. They all know that some things must be firmly opposed, but some things do not have to be serious. It is the latter that makes Li Yi the emperor. If they are serious, then will not be the same as Li Qing established an idiot emperor? I am afraid that Li Qing will not let them go of their dereliction of duty by then. What's more, among the seven-person cabinet, there are three of Li Qing's hard-core confidants, and he himself has taken half of them. Therefore, even a straightforward person like Yan Zhenqing remained silent in the end.

Seeing that everyone's opinions were gradually unified, Li Qing stood up and said bluntly: "The original minister also means to establish Li Yi, the legitimate grandson of the Sining King, but it is not entirely for myself. For the past hundred years, my Tang Dynasty has been balancing the power of the monarchs with the power of the prime minister, so many famous prime ministers emerged from generation to generation. However, after Tianbao, the prime minister gradually declined, and the power of the monarchs was the dominant emperor, which made the previous emperor not aware of the sufferings of the world, and did not know the critical situation, blocked the audio-visual, so that An Lushan and others could steal Hebei for more than ten years, and eventually rebellion broke out. Therefore, the original minister planned to restore the system of decentralization of the monarchs in the early Tang Dynasty. Lords, the emperor was young, and it was the time when we were showing our skills. Why don't you do it?"

Seeing that everyone bowed their heads and thoughtlessly, Li Qing said decisively: "Since that is the case, our cabinet unanimously supports the great-grandson of King Ning as the new emperor, and will be issued to the world tomorrow!"

In Xingqing Palace, Li Longji was placed under house arrest in his quiet room before dawn. All the guards were killed and fled. In the end, the remaining few people were driven out of the palace. Instead, they were dozens of brightly-clad Yulin soldiers. They were guarding the door of the quiet room and were not allowed to approach. Even Yang Yuhuan was restricted to the inner palace and could not go out for a step.

At this time, Li Longji had a wide hair and a dark complexion, and the flesh on his face was hanging loosely. He didn't know where his helmet fell, but he was still wearing armor. He sat in the corner without moving, staring at the gray sky outside the small window with his eyes blank.

"The Prime Minister is here!"

Someone shouted, and the soldiers outside the door immediately lined up in two neat rows, straightening their waists and not moving. After a moment, Li Qing walked over quickly. He waved his hand gently and signaled that the person following him stayed outside the door for the time being.

Li Qing slowly walked into the room, looked at Li Longji silently for a moment, then sat cross-legged opposite him, without saying a word, Li Longji glanced at him coldly, ignored him, and still looked out the window.

The two sat silently for about a quarter of an hour. Li Longji finally spoke first. His voice was hoarse and very low, "Who did you make the emperor?"

"Let the emperor's great-grandson!"

Li Qing took out a signature and pushed it over, "This is the unanimous support of the cabinet!"

"Cabinet?" Li Longji smiled coldly and said, "Isn't the so-called cabinet just your hands to cover the sky?"

Li Qing smiled faintly and repeated: "It is to let the emperor's great-grandson become the emperor!"

"What!"

Li Longji was shocked. Only then did he hear clearly that he was the great-grandson rather than the legitimate grandson, that is, it was not the son of Li Lin, but the grandson of Li Lin. He heard that King Yong said that Li Lin had a precious grandson not long ago. In this way, the new emperor was only a few months old. The fire in Li Longji's eyes gradually became ignited. He laughed angrily: "Okay! OK! Li Qing, you are indeed amazing. You actually made the young children the emperor. Do you really think that there is no one in my Tang Dynasty? It will let you cover the sky with one hand!"

Li Qing looked at him with sympathy, shook his head and said, "Now the military power in the world is in my hands, and most of the officials in the court are promoted by me. If I say I am the prince, can't I ascend the throne to the throne? I still need to establish a child?"

"You! You are so bold!"

Li Longji suddenly roared like thunder, staring so hard that his eyes were about to fall off. He rushed towards Li Qing. Li Qing reached out and pressed him down, then pushed him gently, overthrew him to the ground, and said coldly: "You don't have much time to come, so think about your funeral! I came today because of the friendship between the monarch and his ministers for many years. I told you that I will not usurp the throne, but the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty will begin in my hands. It will surpass your Kaiyuan prosperous era. What a pity! You can no longer see that day...."
Chapter completed!