Chapter 693: I have a showdown, what do you want to do?
Late July.
Chang'an City, Changshoufang, inside a prince's palace.
Four teenagers were sitting on an empty rooftop, chatting.
Although these four young men are young, they all wear black robes with four-clawed golden dragons embroidered on them.
In other words, they are all princes of the Tang Dynasty.
One of the young men, with a cold face and sinister eyes, complained to the other three:
"You should know what 'siblings' are by now, right? In the past, our good 'second brother' always talked about 'siblings', but now there are more than thirty brothers and sisters, and none of them are as close as his own children.
.He is worthy of being a ruthless man who kills his brothers and butchers his brothers..."
"Silence!"
When the young man said his last words, the expressions of the other three young men suddenly changed.
The oldest boy had a trace of disgust flashing deep in his eyes:
"Yuanxiang, if you dare to speak ill of His Majesty again, we can leave!"
The youngest among the boys quickly laughed and said:
"Brother Nineteen, don't be angry. Brother Twenty is just complaining. These are our own brothers here, and there are no outsiders."
Jiang Wang Li Yuanxiang saw that the Nineteenth Brother Lu Wang Li Lingkui seemed really angry, so he also apologized:
"Brother Nineteen, don't be angry. I drank two more drinks this morning and I'm a little confused."
The last young man, Secret King Li Yuanxiao, also gave a few words of advice.
Except for 'Nineteenth Brother', the other three of these four young men are all the descendants of Emperor Gaozu who were born after the Xuanwu Sect Revolution.
Because of their young age, the four of them have not become feuding yet.
Ancient people believed that a son is more precious than his mother, and a mother is more precious than her son.
Li Lingkui's mother-in-law was born in the Yuwen clan of the Guanlong Army and was given the title Zhaoyi.
During her lifetime, Yuwen Zhaoyi was deeply loved by Li Yuan and was almost named queen by Emperor Gaozu Li Yuan.
The other three young men are Jiang Wang Li Yuanxiang, Mi Wang Li Yuanxiao, and Teng Wang Li Yuanying.
The mother-in-law of Jiang Wang Li Yuanxiang was born in the Yang family of Hongnong and was named Yang Concubine.
The concubine of the secret king Li Yuanxiao was born in the Fufeng Lu family and was titled as a talented person.
The mother-in-law of Teng Wang Li Yuanying was born in the Liu family of Hedong and was given the title Baolin.
In the feudal dynasty where "son is more important than mother", Li Lingkui naturally had the upper hand over his three younger brothers.
Seeing that the arrogant expressions on the faces of the three younger brothers had subsided, Li Lingkui sat down again, but his expression was still cautious, and he warned the three of them:
"Your Majesty is a heroic god. He must have his plan for everything he does. If you dare to question His Majesty again, don't blame me for turning my back on you three brothers."
Although the three of them were not convinced in their hearts, they repeatedly expressed their compliance.
Finally, after Li Lingkui had extinguished his anger, the three of them looked at each other again and then said:
"Brother Nineteen, the effect of the Peiyuan Pill is really miraculous. I have inquired about it, and Changle's Xiaoxiao's asthma and wind disease, as well as Pheasant Nu's nearsightedness and telephobia, have been cured. We brothers don't want to do anything.
Your Majesty personally took action to help us refine the elixir, and it would be good as long as Your Majesty can give us a copy of the elixir recipe."
Li Lingkui looked at his three half-brothers with a bit of pity and a bit of suspicion in his eyes:
"You came to me, don't you just want me to ask for the elixir recipe?"
"Brother Nineteen, we four brothers will go get it together."
Li Yuanxiao was afraid that Li Lingkui would not want to go, so he quickly promised: "As long as we can get the elixir recipe and the materials needed to make the elixir, the three of us will provide it. When the elixir is successfully made, we will naturally give a share to Brother Nineteen."
Li Lingkui was also moved when he heard Li Yuanxiao's words.
His princess died after giving birth to a son, leaving him with a frail and sickly eldest son, Li Shen.
Now Li Shen is less than one year old, but he has almost become a frequent visitor to the Imperial Medical Office.
If His Majesty can give me the elixir, I will definitely spend all my money to buy medicinal materials and help my son refine a furnace of Yuan-Building elixir.
The four princes quickly reached an agreement and agreed to go to see the saint together the next day.
After Li Lingkui returned to the palace, he was still a little uneasy and feared Su Mingzhe's majesty.
However, after he saw his son Li Shen, all worries were forgotten by him.
The princess is gone, and her son's life must be saved!
The next day came in a blink of an eye.
Li Lingkui came to the entrance of the Zhuque Gate of the palace and met with three other brothers. The four of them handed over a sign requesting an audience with Your Majesty.
"Four princes, it is an unlucky time for you to come. Your Majesty is discussing matters with several ministers. Why don't you go to the side hall to take a rest first?"
The eunuch in the chamber responded to the four of them with a smile, and then, regardless of the four brothers' expressions, he led them to the side hall next to them.
As soon as the four people entered the door, they were stunned.
There were nearly ten people in the side hall waiting for His Majesty to summon him.
Moreover, the person sitting at the door was the brother-in-law of the four of them, Prince Consort Dou Fengjie of Princess Yongjia.
The four of them looked at each other and quickly greeted their brother-in-law Dou Fengjie.
"Quiet."
When Dou Fengjie saw that the four brothers were about to speak, he quickly winked at them and told them not to make any sound.
The four brothers followed Dou Fengjie's eyes and looked inside. Unexpectedly, there were two people they knew inside, namely Anyi County Duke Pei Xuanji and Xiangyang County Duke Chai Lingwu.
Pei Xuanji was the son of Pei Ju, and Pei Ju was also a hero of the Xuanwu Gate Revolution.
Chai Lingwu was the son of Chai Shao, the consort of the eldest princess in Pingyang, and Chai Lingwu married Princess Baling. The father and son were both consorts, and they were regarded as favored by no one in this dynasty.
Chai Lingwu was a bit shorter than the four princes in terms of seniority, but his importance in the eyes of the emperor was far greater than that of his four brothers.
In addition to these three people, there are six old men in the side hall, all of whom are unknown to the four brothers Li Lingkui.
The six old men sat aside, closing their eyes and concentrating, and paying no attention to other people.
When Li Lingkui saw this, his mind changed and he couldn't help but guess that these people came to see the emperor for the same purpose as his four brothers, right?
the other side.
Inside Hanyuan Hall.
Su Mingzhe was handling government affairs in Hanyuan Hall. The people discussing government affairs with him included Fang Xuanling, Changsun Wuji, Gao Shilian, Wei Zheng, Tang Jian, Li Jing, Hou Junji, Wang Gui, Li Daozong and other important ministers.
Most of these people are veterans in their sixties.
Wang Gui is the oldest, nearly seventy.
However, Changsun Wuji, who was in his forties, and Li Daozong, who was thirty-nine, became the two youngest among the important ministers.
Wait until everyone has finished discussing government affairs.
Everyone did not say goodbye, they just sat silently on the cushions and began to meditate by looking at their eyes, nose, nose and heart, and mind at ease.
Seeing that these important ministers did not speak, Su Mingzhe did not speak first either.
Everyone has been in the court for so many years, and they are all very shameless. Let's see who can resist speaking first.
At this time, I have to praise Fang Xuanling, who is indeed a moral model of the Tang Dynasty.
We agreed to play the 'silence' game together, but Fang Xuanling couldn't help but speak first:
"Your Majesty, after the court meeting last month, I misunderstood that Your Majesty was refining elixirs and was obsessed with immortality..."
"Xuanling didn't misunderstand."
Su Mingzhe raised his hand to stop Fang Xuanling from apologizing, and then directly admitted in the surprised eyes of the ministers:
"I am indeed refining the elixir of longevity. The Peiyuan Dan I gave to the prince and princess last time is a type of elixir that can prolong life."
When the ministers saw that Su Mingzhe admitted it directly, they were suddenly surprised.
People like Wang Gui, Gao Shilian, Tang Jian, and Li Jing are all very young. A cold and fever might cost them their lives.
If there really was a panacea for longevity in this world, how many people in this world would be willing to refuse it?
Gao Shilian was not very patient, and he believed that he was Empress Changsun's uncle, so he shamelessly begged:
"Your Majesty, I am old and frail. I would like to ask your Majesty for a magic pill..."
"When uncle opened his mouth, I shouldn't have declined."
Seeing Gao Shilian speak first, Su Mingzhe's eyes flashed with joy, but he still declined politely:
"It's just that the medicinal materials for refining the Peiyuan Pill are extremely scarce. Many of them are not in our country of the Tang Dynasty and need to be purchased from merchants. I can't be sure when the next time I can open the furnace to refine the pill."
Seeing what Su Mingzhe said, Gao Shilian quickly asked what medicinal materials were needed to make alchemy, and he was willing to do his best to help collect them.
Su Mingzhe casually mentioned more than thirty rare and precious medicinal materials, and also mentioned a dozen other things that were not available in the Tang Dynasty.
The ministers saw that what the emperor said was complete and complete, and it did not seem to be a lie.
Su Mingzhe continued:
"I have found substitutes for some uncommon medicinal materials. But there are currently three medicinal materials that cannot be replaced. One is Tianshan Snow Lotus, the other is Korean Blood Ginseng, and the third is Cordyceps Sinensis! These three medicinal materials are all
It is a holy medicine that can prolong life, and if you want it to have the effect of prolonging life, it must be fresh herbs picked this year."
Tianshan Snow Lotus, as the name suggests, is produced in Tianshan.
And Tianshan is in the Western Region.
Korean blood ginseng is produced in Korea.
Cordyceps sinensis is found on the plateau.
If you want to get fresh medicinal materials from these three places, you may not be able to buy them even if you spend a lot of money.
Unless... let these three places become the territory of the Tang Dynasty.
Su Mingzhe's words made all the ministers present look embarrassed.
In order to eliminate and weaken the power of the clan, Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty conquered Goguryeo three times.
Su Mingzhe also wanted to weaken the power of the clan, but he did not want to weaken the national power. After much deliberation, he could only come up with a Peiyuan Pill as bait.
If you dignitaries of the Tang Dynasty want to cultivate Yuan Dan, you should organize your own army and help me conquer the Western Regions, Goguryeo, and the plateau!
Several important ministers were all famous among men, so they naturally understood the meaning of the emperor's words.
Peiyuan Dan is just a fish bait.
It is also a bait that no one can resist.
You know, most of the courtiers are old men with white beards.
How many of these old guys are willing to accept the fate of dying?
Throughout the ages, countless heroes, emperors and generals have lost their reason and wisdom and made jokes one after another in order to prolong their lives and live for a few more years.
Now, the emperor only wants to attack the three Western Regions, Goguryeo and the Plateau.
Even if the important ministers present refuse, I'm afraid other courtiers will find ways to cause disputes at the border, right?
Finally, several important ministers looked at each other and resigned from the emperor.
The matter is of great importance, and everyone still needs to consider it carefully and discuss it.
Seeing several important ministers leaving with solemn expressions, Su Mingzhe reached out and touched his beard with a stern look on his face:
"These old guys are always talking about 'no matter how big the country is, if it is warlike, it will perish'. Today I will see if you can swallow this bait."