After treating Princess Gaoyang's injuries, His Majesty Li Er did not immediately return to Tai Chi Palace to take charge. His Majesty the Emperor is convinced of his control over the affairs of the court. Even if he is a clown, it is completely impossible to shake his country.
Of course, he has not yet decided how to deal with Changsun Chong, and he also needs to consider what will happen if the prince is involved?
In the back hall of the Fang family manor, His Majesty Li Er summoned Changsun Wuji.
The monarch and his ministers sat opposite each other.
His Majesty Li Er sipped the tea gently, his face expressionless and silent.
Changsun Wuji looked at the emperor's face and felt a little uneasy. He didn't know what important matter the emperor had announced that he was here to discuss, but there was always some inexplicable worry in his heart because the emperor's expression and behavior were really abnormal.
The emperor remained silent, which made Changsun Wuji feel on pins and needles. He had to ask tentatively: "Your Majesty, Xuan Weichen is here, what is the important matter?"
His Majesty Li Er was still sipping his tea and remained silent.
After a long time, he slowly said: "I want to make Wei King Li Tai the crown prince. What do you think?"
Changsun Wuji was stunned.
Although His Majesty has been dissatisfied with the Crown Prince for a long time, and his desire to depose the Crown Prince and replace him with Li Tai is well known, but it is the first time that he has spoken out so clearly and without any scruples. From this point of view, it must be that the mind has been made up?
Changsun Wuji hesitated and didn't know how to answer for a while.
This time, Hou Junji conspired with Li Yuanchang and kept saying that he wanted to force the emperor to abdicate and help the prince ascend the throne. He really pushed the prince into a desperate situation. Changsun Wuji didn't know the true thoughts of these two people, but such blatant behavior would definitely leave a grudge in the emperor's heart.
I am not dead yet, but I will be overshadowed by my son. The minister even wants to support his son and replace me at the cost of treason?
It can be said that when Hou Junji and Li Yuanchang shouted the words "the emperor abdicates and the prince ascends the throne", no matter whether His Highness the prince participated in this rebellion or not, there were only two endings waiting for him.
Either the emperor ascends the throne and the prince ascends the throne.
Either the rebellion fails and the prince is deposed...
As the saying goes, there are no two suns in the sky and no two masters in the country, and one mountain cannot accommodate two tigers. Changsun Wuji does not think there is a third possibility.
But……
Is Wei King Li Tai really suitable to be the crown prince?
On the surface, both the Crown Prince Li Chengqian and the King of Wei Li Tai are the direct nephews of his eldest grandson Wuji, connected by blood. No matter which one of the two becomes the emperor, the eldest son's family will be able to maintain their respected status to a great extent and have power over the entire government!
But actually, that's not the case.
In Changsun Wuji's view, the stability and extension of the court situation is necessary. This is in the interest of the country and more in line with the interests of the Changsun family. The prince cannot be deposed easily. However, the sensitive Changsun Wuji vaguely realized that the relationship between his son Changsun Chong and the prince did not seem to be as good as it seemed. If the prince ascended the throne, would there be any unpredictable impact on the future of the Changsun family?
Changsun Wuji did not think it was appropriate to make Li Tai the crown prince instead.
At that time, His Majesty Li Er single-handedly created the Xuanwu Gate Incident, killing his brother and his brother and forcing his father to abdicate. This had already broken the ancient tradition of the eldest son ascending the throne, causing Gang Chang to reverse his ethics. If he deposed the crown prince and established the king of Wei now, wouldn't it be even worse? To encourage this trend?
From now on, all the princes know that the position of crown prince cannot be inherited only by the direct eldest son, and each of them will have to fight, which will shake the foundation of the country and never have peace!
Therefore, for the sake of the overall situation, Changsun Wuji still said: "Although there is something wrong with the prince, he has not reached the stage of deposing him. Whether the prince is involved in this rebellion still needs to be investigated carefully by the three divisions. Your Majesty, will you?" How can Yi Chu be easily moved? Your Majesty, please think twice."
Everyone has selfish motives, but Changsun Wuji's words are indeed based on the overall situation and are fair and rigorous.
His Majesty Li Er put down his tea cup and raised his eyes to look at Changsun Wuji, as if he wanted to see something on the face of this old friend, brother-in-law and comrade-in-arms. His sharp gaze made Changsun Wuji's heart beat wildly.
Did you say the wrong thing?
Just when Changsun Wuji was suspicious and confused, His Majesty Li Er waved, and Wang De, who was waiting at the door, immediately walked in and respectfully placed the two books on the table in front of Changsun Wuji.
Changsun Wuji was a little surprised.
"Let's see what good things your good son and my good nephew have done!" His Majesty Li Er said angrily, but then he sighed sadly.
As a father, how can the word "angry" express the complicated feelings in his heart towards his incompetent sons?
Changsun Wuji was confused. What does it have to do with his son?
After unfolding the booklet and taking a quick look, Changsun Wuji’s face turned pale with fright!
One of them is the confession of Sun Bao, the chief steward of the mansion. He details how Chang Sun Chong designed the prince to fall off his horse and break his leg, how to assassinate King Li Tai of Wei and Yu Zhining to frame the prince, etc. He confessed everything in detail and signed it; Originally, it was Zhang Sun Chong's confession that he spent a lot of money to buy the sharp archers in the army and took advantage of the chaos to assassinate Fang Jun...
"This, this, this..." Changsun Wuji was completely dumbfounded. The sudden change made him incoherent. A large amount of cold sweat poured down from his forehead. He panicked and said: "Your Majesty, someone must be framing Chong'er. Please take a closer look! Chong'er. How could he do such a thing as a beast if he had a good relationship with the prince and had a deep love for each other? As for Fang Jun, although there was quite a lot of trouble between the two, he determined that the mastermind was a gangster just based on the confession of a soldier. Son, it’s a bit sloppy…”
Changsun Wuji begged for mercy for his son, but in his heart he secretly said he was lucky!
Others may not believe these two confessions, but Changsun Wuji just took one look and was convinced! The so-called son knows better than his father, the abnormal attitude between the son and the prince, and the ever-lasting hatred between the son and Fang Jun, these things are so normal!
The reason why he was lucky was because the emperor just asked him for Yi Chu's opinion. If he agreed to depose the prince Li Chengqian, wouldn't it prove that father and son were single-minded and wanted to kill the prince?
That would really be a disaster!
As for now, at least there is still a little room for change...
His Majesty Li Er sighed, looked at Changsun Wuji, whose face was full of panic and sweat, and sighed: "You and I, monarchs and ministers, have been in troubled times since the beginning. We have gone through twists and turns, strategized and fought bloody battles, and we have just managed this beautiful river and mountain to be as solid as gold. But I don’t want to fail miserably in my children’s education!”
The eldest grandson Wuji was so ashamed that he shed tears and kowtowed to the ground: "Your Majesty's kindness is deeply felt by Wuji, and it is hard to repay him even if he is shattered to pieces! With a son like this, how can I have the dignity to serve your Majesty in the future? I will go home now and give you That beast is happy and gives an explanation to His Majesty! But it’s a pain for the child Li Zhi..."
What kind of crime is this for arranging for the prince to fall from his horse and become crippled, to assassinate the prince, and for the ministers to frame the prince? In any dynasty, it would be a heinous crime of decapitation and genocide! Changsun Wuji knew that the emperor would not be so heartless, but now that he heard the emperor's words, although he would not be held jointly and severally responsible, his son would certainly not be saved!
Changsun Wuji was a sensible man, so he did not ask for forgiveness of the Changsun family. He only expressed his position to order Changsun Chong to commit suicide to give an explanation to His Majesty Li Er and the world.
Of course, it was impossible for him to deliberately mention Princess Changle without making a last-ditch effort.
For this eldest daughter who looks exactly like her mother's eldest grandson, the Empress, she is probably in love with her. His Majesty Li Er's love for her is unparalleled. Even Princess Jinyang, who is the most favored by the emperor in the eyes of the world, is slightly less favored!
His Majesty Li Er was also confused.
He had watched Changsun Chong grow up, and he had always been smart, gentle, and suave. Otherwise, how could he marry his eldest daughter to him? How could he be nurtured and cultivated deliberately at such a young age?
But I never thought that this boy would be so vicious in his heart!
But if Changsun Chong commits suicide, what will Changle do?
It is not unusual for a royal princess to remarry, but His Majesty Li Er also knows Changle's temperament. Once the eldest grandson Chong is crowned, she may have to accompany the ancient Buddha of Qingdeng for the rest of her life...
His Majesty Li Er naturally understands the importance of national law and family ties.
But when the matter came to be decided, he was extremely entangled and unable to make a decision...
