When His Highness Li Hongji, Prince of Yan, was sitting in front of him and talking, Li Yuan was staring at this sharp-cut young face, seemingly thinking about something.
"...So I am really happy to see Li Yuhou today." As he was talking to himself, Li Hongji looked at Li Yuan with dull eyes suspiciously: "Li Yuhou, what's wrong with my face?" What?"
Li Yuan came to his senses, stood up quickly and said: "Your Highness, please forgive me for being rude! It's rare for me to see His Highness King Yan, so I couldn't help but take a few more glances..."
"Good manliness?" Li Hongji joked, then shook his head and said: "It doesn't seem like it. I heard that you will get married soon and you have a beautiful concubine at home."
Li Yuan could not have imagined that Li Hongji, the legendary Yan King who was decisive and decisive in killing, would actually make such a joke? He quickly explained: "Well, the general doesn't have this preference!"
Li Hongji put away his reserved smile, waved his hand, and smiled faintly: "It doesn't matter, as the Buddhists say, color is emptiness, and it will all be in vain in the end. What is the difference between male and female sex? I have no taboos, no taboos!"
Why isn’t this topic over yet? However, thinking that Li Hongji was quite friendly towards him, and that his father-in-law Zhou Zong had also moved his highness out as a reinforcement during the Chuzhou Salt Smuggling Case, he must not have come here to cause trouble, so Li Yuan gradually became bolder and spread his hands. Tsukuru said helplessly: "Your Highness is right! If your Highness pleases the general, then the general will obey your orders!"
Li Hongji showed a disdainful look: "You are quite clever! Haha, if that's the case, I guess the Zhou family and his daughter will have to fight against me!"
I saw Li Yuan grinning and saying: "Your Highness, are you looking for the future today? Do you have anything important to do?"
"It's nothing important." Li Hongji said naturally while playing with the delicate jade ring in his hand: "I came to Dongdu earlier, and Zhou Zong said a lot of good things about you! You know, this Zhou Liushou But in the past, Emperor Liezu’s arms have seen many capable people and strangers, and you can be praised by him. It seems that you are indeed outstanding."
Li Yuan quickly raised his hands and said: "Your Highness, you are ridiculous! He is not outstanding, but he is the father-in-law of the last general..."
"Okay, don't do this to me!" Li Hongji seemed a little impatient, and then replied with a stern face: "I never like to twist around! Since you are the son-in-law of the Zhou family, you will also be my king from now on. Your distinguished guest! Now I have something to ask you for your opinion."
Li Yuan's face suddenly darkened. This King of Yan was really direct and domineering. This temperament was very different from his father who was good at rhetoric and maneuvering. In fact, since that time in Chuzhou, Li Yuan had already known that King Yan and Zhou Zong had a close friendship, but he didn't expect that they would come to him like this.
But Li Yuan did not agree directly. Instead, he replied without changing his expression: "No matter how virtuous or capable a general is, it doesn't matter what your Highness says!"
Li Hongji's eyes wandered, and he looked around warily for a moment, then whispered two words: "Crown Prince."
This is indeed the problem! Li Yuan never expected that Li Hongji would be so outspoken. Was it the suggestion of his father-in-law Zhou Zong to meet today? I secretly complained in my heart. Since ancient times, the crown prince is related to the country. This is an extremely sensitive issue, and it is also a topic that the emperor is most taboo about others interfering with. Not to mention whether it was appropriate for Li Hongji to ask such a question to himself, a general of the imperial army, today, it would be extremely complicated to simply talk about the current crown prince of the Southern Tang Dynasty.
The great ancestor Li Min could be regarded as a promising founding king, but he still made a fatal mistake before his death. Just like Ma Yin, the late king of Chu, he had blind confidence in his sons, who were numerous and good enough. , and absolutely "brothers, friends and brothers"! As a result, the new king Li Jing was forced to take a few good brothers to swear an oath in the Zi Palace before he ascended the throne, and they agreed to marry each other.
So in order, the third brother Li Jingsui was named the emperor's brother and the army marshal, and the fourth brother Li Jingda was named the king of Qi and the deputy marshal of the army. Then his eldest son Li Hongji was sent to Yangzhou, the eastern capital. At first it seemed that the situation was stable.
But in the final analysis, Li Hongji was of his own blood. Li Jing could deceive others but could not deceive himself, so he recalled Li Hongji soon after and asked him to guard Runzhou and be granted the title of King of Yan.
Li Jing's move not only gave Li Hongji illusions, but also gave hope to those veterans who were loyal to the eldest son succession theory. For example, Zhou Zong, Xiao Yan, Sun Sheng and others were all out-and-out princelings. Li Hongji was also secretly angry and striving for strength. He practiced martial arts every day and recruited wise men to prepare for the fight for the throne.
The corresponding emperor's younger brother Li Jingsui, the third prince of the late emperor who obtained the right of inheritance in a daze, had a loyal and honest character, but he had no interest in political affairs. His biggest hobby was to compete with a group of literati by reciting poems. But this kind of seemingly incompetent mediocre person is the favorite of Chen Jue, the Feng brothers and others, so naturally they reluctantly formed the so-called Taidi Party.
At this time, when Li Hongji asked Li Yuan questions, it was far from the time when the conflict between the two factions was at its most acute.
Li Yuan knew very well that four years later, His Highness the King of Yan would show extraordinary military talent in the war with Zhou. Unlike his two uncles who were repeatedly defeated in battles and fled in despair, Li Hongji guarded the front line of Runzhou and refused to retreat. He decisively promoted the later famous general Chai Kehong, broke the siege of Changzhou, and killed thousands of enemies. He was the leader of the Southern Tang Dynasty. One of the few victories against the Zhou Dynasty, he established unprecedented prestige in the army.
Soon after, the ministers dismissed Li Jing and appointed him the crown prince. The emperor's younger brother Li Jingsui finally got free and took the initiative to give up the throne. Li Hongji finally got his wish and took the throne.
But history always likes to make some unexpected jokes. The prince Li Hongji, who was originally responsible for the glory of the Tang Dynasty's revival, later became worried about Li Jingsui's comeback for some reason, and then ordered someone to poison him. After the murderer surrendered, the court was in an uproar.
One month later, Li Hongji died suddenly and suddenly. The cause of death is unknown. There were rumors in the palace that Li Hongji saw the ghost of his uncle Li Jingsui and was frightened to death...
Are the theories about ghosts and gods believable?
At least Li Yuan didn't believe it. He had a particularly profound memory of this period of history in his previous life. The promising and talented Li Hongji finally became the prince, so how could his temperament suddenly change? Li Jingsui's situation has long been over, so why order someone to poison him? Moreover, the murderer unexpectedly turned himself in. One month later, Li Hongji died violently in the East Palace. These bizarre incidents one after another are simply unbelievable.
The final beneficiary was a person that no one noticed at the time, the Sixth Prince Li Congjia.
After Li Jing lost her beloved son, she desperately thought that all her first five sons had passed away. At this time, she finally noticed the sixth son, Li Congjia. This son has always been uninterested in political affairs, focusing on mountains and rivers. He has repeatedly expressed his admiration for Buddhism and will never be greedy for imperial power.
Two years later, Li Congjia ascended the throne and changed his name to Li Yu. Later generations also called him Empress Li...
