Chapter 214 The most ruthless imperial family
"Xuan, the seventh prince Li Zi, the ninth prince Li Jun, the thirteenth prince Li Dong, the eighteenth prince Li Hao, the twenty-eighth prince Li Jian. By the way, has Li Jian come back?"
"The twenty-eighth prince is still on the way."
An eunuch immediately replied.
Li Jian is not a cultivator, so he cannot run back as fast as the prince. If he lets the cultivator take him back, he will vomit to death on the road before he reaches halfway.
"Forget it, let others come first."
These princes had actually been crowned kings and given fiefs, but their fiefs were all in the south. After the Red Lotus Rebellion, the emperor let them run back and live directly in the palace. Since they had lost their fiefs, he was too lazy to call them by their titles, and it was more convenient to just call them by their ranking.
Several eunuchs immediately rushed out. The prince was disheartened and lay on the ground trembling.
The emperor's words seemed to indicate that he was going to take away his position as the Crown Prince directly, and now he has recruited four more princes. Who knows if they have any ideas?
Soon, the four princes hurried to the imperial study one by one. Each of them was stunned after entering the room. Their information was not well-informed enough, and they could not be sure what had happened in Jiangning, when the prince returned to Beijing, and why he was kneeling here.
"The Duke of Yue wrote a memorial, denouncing some people in the court for colluding with the governor of Jiangning to embezzle salt taxes. You can take a look at it first."
The emperor threw the memorial in his hand away. The seventh prince hurriedly picked it up, read it carefully, and handed it to the ninth prince.
After reading it, the four people all had mixed expressions, frowning as they pondered the various possibilities of the matter, but each of them tried hard to suppress the joy that was about to overflow from their faces.
The prince is finished!
"Li Zi, tell me."
Li Zi hurried forward and said, "Reporting to the Emperor, I think that although the evidence against Duke Yue is solid, it involves too many court officials and still needs to be carefully verified."
"What happens after verification?"
"It is not tolerated by the law!"
Li Zi gritted his teeth. What a great opportunity. If he didn't take the opportunity to kill these princelings and completely crush the power of the Eastern Palace, leaving them to revive? Although his power was not great, his father was in his prime, and he had at least 20 years left for him to make plans. The future was promising!
"Li Jun, go ahead."
"I think this is strange."
"The evidence is irrefutable. I believe that once we investigate, it will be true."
Li Jun nodded: "It may be true that the court officials are corrupt, and it may also be true that the Duke of Yue has ulterior motives."
"What's the evidence?"
"No, I would like to ask for your permission and go to Jiangning to take a look in person."
"Well, let me think about it."
Li Jun raised the corner of his mouth. His reply must be better than the Seventh Prince's. The Seventh Prince's ambition was too obvious.
"Li Dong."
The Thirteenth Prince Li Dong hurried forward. He had already prepared a speech in his mind: "I think the focus is not in the southeast, but in the East Capital."
The Seventh Prince and the Ninth Prince looked at him together and said, "Damn, why didn't we think of this just now?"
"You mean Prince Fu?"
"Yes, Li Tong's shadow is everywhere behind this matter. How can the Duke of Yue, a mere Duke, plan so carefully? If Prince Fu had taken action, the situation would have been very different. Prince Fu's hand has extended to the southeast, which is a real threat."
The emperor hesitated for a moment and said, "I understand, Li Hao."
"My son is here."
"Tell me what you think."
"I have no idea."
The emperor raised his eyelids and looked at Li Hao: "Why don't you have any ideas?"
"As far as I know, among the twenty-seven people listed in the memorial submitted by the Duke of Yue, at least twenty of them are the Crown Prince's men."
The prince raised his head suddenly: "Li Hao! You are slandering me!"
"Go on!" the emperor snorted coldly, and the prince was so frightened that he quickly lay down.
"This move is nothing more than an attempt to strike at the East Palace, shake the position of the Crown Prince, and provoke a power struggle among the princes. From what I have learned, political strategies are like chess. If you follow the opponent's chess moves, no matter how you respond, you will end up in a dead end. Therefore, I think you should not have any thoughts about this memorial."
The emperor smiled slightly: "You mean, don't bother?"
"How can we ignore the Duke's memorial? I agree with my seventh brother. These people embezzled salt taxes, which is intolerable under the law. They should be imprisoned or executed. However, the position of the Crown Prince in the Eastern Palace cannot be changed."
The prince looked up in surprise again, looking at his younger brother whose appearance he could hardly remember.
"Li Huan, do you know why I asked Li Jian to go with you?"
"My son, you are stupid."
"That's right. You're so stupid that it gives me a headache. Li Jian is well-versed in the law and is calm and decisive when faced with things. If you could listen to his opinions more, even if the result remains the same, at least you wouldn't be chased back like a dog, and you wouldn't be stupid enough to touch the academy before you are sure of victory!"
When the emperor finished speaking, his voice suddenly rose, and his spiritual power pressed the prince to the ground like a giant dragon, causing his bones to crackle.
The four princes were so frightened that they quickly knelt down together, trembling all over.
"You tortured Wang Yan, making the world think that the royal family is just relying on force to oppress others. Are you more powerful than the academy? You coerced a geisha, making the world think that the royal family is just lustful clowns. You have brought shame to the royal family!"
"Son, I just wanted to take this opportunity to anger Mr. Liu and find an excuse to kill him!" The prince spurted blood from his mouth and tried desperately to explain.
"Then did you kill him?" After his spiritual power subsided, the prince spat out another mouthful of blood, raised his head, his eyes bloodshot: "I didn't kill him, but he was already useless."
"Abandoned?"
The emperor sneered: "The third master of the academy, Wei You, is not a monk. Do you think he is a useless person?"
The prince was stunned, his lips trembling, and he did not reply.
"There are so many smart people in the world, but I have never seen anyone who can surpass you, Mr. San. You are a cultivator, but you are also a prince. If you think that cultivation is everything, then I will give you a fiefdom and you can start a sect."
The prince shuddered when he heard this: "My son, I know I was wrong."
The emperor stood up and walked back to the screen. "According to the report that just arrived today, the Red Lotus Cult has won battle after battle and is heading straight for Qiantang. If Qiantang is not protected, it will only be a matter of time before Pingjiang and Jiangning fall. In Sichuan and Chongqing, a few fools have risen up and proclaimed themselves kings. Behind them is the shadow of the King of Shu."
Several princes looked at each other in shock. They had lived in the deep palace for a long time, and even if they read the palace bulletin every day, they could not have a deep understanding of the situation in the world. After hearing this, had the situation deteriorated to this extent?
"Humph, the Liao Kingdom sent someone to say that their envoys will arrive next month and want to discuss opening up trade with me. We are facing internal and external troubles."
Several princes wanted to say something, but none of them dared to speak.
"Are you going to bury this beautiful land in my hands?"
"Your Majesty." A eunuch suddenly interrupted the emperor's thoughts.
"What's the matter?"
"The abbot of Dabei Temple, Master Yanhui wants to see you."
The emperor's eyes widened. According to previous news, the abbot of Dabei Temple came out of seclusion and went straight to Dongdu, forcing the head of Tianji Pavilion to return from Jiangning. After that, no new news came.
And why did Yan Hui suddenly appear in Xijing at this time?
What does he want to do now?
The emperor recalled that twenty years ago, the steps of the palace under his feet were covered with blood, countless corpses filled the palace, and a fire burned for three days.
Behind the fire, on top of the pile of corpses, the vague figure of a monk was sitting.
The emperor gritted his teeth, waved his hand to let the princes go out, and then looked at the eunuch who delivered the message.
"please!"