In June of the second year of Dali, Li Yu, the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty, who had just ascended the throne for one year, passed away in the imperial village of Weihe County. The court had just announced that the emperor died of an emergency, but then another message was released that the emperor was assassinated in the imperial village of Weihe County and died of poisoning and arrows.

This news was like a bolt from the blue. Chang'an City cried all over the city. From the prime minister to the common people, they all wore mourning mourning. Almost every household was paying homage to the undead of the emperor, and the whole of Chang'an was immersed in grief.

Although the city was mourning, some people applauded, especially the royal family members who took away their land and property by Li Yu, were even more celebrating and shouting that the sky was full of eyes.

From noon, the atmosphere in Chang'an City began to become tense, and the city gates were closed with a bang. Thirty thousand Southern Army and Jinwu Guard soldiers took over Chang'an's defense. Teams of Southern Army cavalry galloped on the streets. The people of Chang'an were so scared that they hid home. The shops in the east and west cities closed their doors, and Tongyifang was even more like a big enemy. Three thousand Southern Army soldiers surrounded the mansion of King Guangwu Li Chenghong and did not allow anyone to escape. But soon news came out that Li Chenghong hanged himself and died.

The death of the emperor made the people sad, and the inheritance of the throne of the Tang Dynasty became the most eye-catching problem. Undoubtedly, the prince should succeed the throne by the emperor's death. However, the prince of the Eastern Palace, Li Shi, is less than thirteen years old this year and is still young. His mind and ability cannot govern the world, and he is even less able to control the most complicated political situation in the Tang Dynasty in a century.

Then, whether to implement the system of regent or establish a new king has become the focus of debate among civil and military officials in the dynasty. Generally speaking, the new emperor ascended the throne was decided by the late emperor, but when the late emperor died before he was appointed, or a complex situation occurred, the new emperor either decided by the royal family in Taimiao, or the civil and military officials unanimously supported it. For example, Li Yu's succession to the throne was the result of the support of civil and military officials.

But this time, the decision to decide on the new emperor encountered two embarrassment. The late emperor Li Longji happened to flee Chang'an three days ago and lost the opportunity to decide on the new emperor. As we all know, Li Yu had a bad relationship with the royal family, and it was not suitable for the royal family to decide whether the candidate for the postscript was not suitable. Moreover, due to the death of Li Yu, the royal family could not escape the suspicion of murder, so it was impossible for the royal family to decide the new emperor of the Tang Dynasty.

But all officials of the court also encountered problems, that is, the number of prime ministers in the political affairs hall was insufficient. The political affairs hall originally included nine prime ministers such as Yang Guozhong, Wang Gong, Zhang Jun, Chen Xilie, Li Yan, Pei Min, Linghu Fei, Yang Shenjin, and Li Qing'an. With Yang Guozhong and Linghu Fei being dismissed, Zhang Yun and Yang Shenjin resigned. Li Yan and Li Qing'an were in other places, and there were only three prime ministers in Chang'an, namely Wang Gong, Pei Min and Chen Xilie, which was not enough to decide the new emperor's affairs.

More importantly, Li Qing'an, who had just been appointed as the right prime minister, was not far from Chang'an and could arrive in Chang'an soon. Therefore, many officials were looking forward to Li Qing'an to rush back to Chang'an to preside over the overall situation.

In the harem of Daming Palace, Li Yu's death was like a building collapse. The harem was filled with crying. Queen Shen Zhenzhu cried several times and fainted. She was rescued by the eunuchs and palace maids.

Shen Zhenzhu's tears were dry, and she stared blankly outside the palace. Although her husband's death broke her heart, as a mother, she had to resist the great grief and consider her son's fate.

Her son is Prince Li Shi, who is only a thirteen-year-old boy. Can he inherit his father's rule? Shen Zhenzhu remembers that her husband once said that if the prince was over the age of twentieth, he would naturally ascend the throne to the emperor, but if something happened to her husband and the prince was underage, then the prince's ascendance would not be so smooth.

But her husband's prophecy came true, and Chen Zhenzhu was deeply worried about his son's fate in addition to his pain.

At this time, a palace maid walked in quickly and said, "Empress, the Prime Minister Wang is already waiting outside the palace."

"Please wait in the outer hall, and I'll go see him now."

Chen Zhenzhu cleaned up a little, and then headed towards Linde Hall surrounded by a group of palace maids.

Wang Gong came to Daming Palace to meet with the Queen's order. He stood on the steps in front of Linde Hall with his hands behind his back and forth. After the Middle Tang Dynasty, the situation of the harem's interference in politics was no longer as serious as in the early stages. As the queen, Chen Zhenzhu could no longer decide the ownership of the new emperor of the Tang Dynasty. Wang Gong came to see Empress Chen, which was a big deal.

At this moment, Wang Gong was thinking about the next countermeasures. The situation in the court was extremely complex, and various forces were intertwined. Whether it was a general or an important official, there were the possibility of affecting the new emperor. However, only a few people could ascend the throne, Li Longji, Li Heng, Li Shi, and three of them. Who would ascend the throne in the end? The current situation is still confusing.

At this time, Wang Gong saw a large group of palace maids gathered in a sedan chair and entered the palace through the side door. He knew that this was Queen Chen. He quickly put away his thoughts and began to think about the response words for Queen Chen in his mind.

After a moment, an eunuch came out and said, "Prespect, the empress, please invite me!"

Wang Gong sorted out his clothes and followed the eunuch to walk into the palace quickly. In the side hall, the eunuch had already pulled up a gauze curtain. Shen Zhenzhu sat behind the gauze curtain. Wang Gong faintly saw her wiping tears. He sighed in his heart, and stepped forward and bowed to salute and said, "Your Majesty is gone, and you cannot be resurrected. Please mourn and follow the changes and take care of the phoenix body!"

Chen Zhenzhu shed tears and said, "The emperor was strong in his life, so he left us orphans and widows. The prince was young and could not yet be independent. I beg the Prime Minister to help the prince for the sake of the emperor's good deeds, so that he could inherit his father's will and ascend to the throne as soon as possible."

After saying that, Chen Zhenzhu knelt down behind the gauze curtain, "I beg for help from the Prime Minister Wang!"

Wang Gong was also so scared that he knelt down quickly, "Empress, I will kill me, I will do my best to help the prince."

Several palace maids helped Chen Zhenzhu up. Chen Zhenzhu received Wang Gong's guarantee and felt relieved, and asked: "The king and prime minister cannot have no king for a day. Do you know if the ministers in the court have the idea of ​​establishing a new king?"

Wang Gong pondered for a moment and said, "I am not hiding the empress. Now there is a huge debate in the court. Although the ministers mainly make the crown prince the king, they have been opposed by many powerful forces, such as Yang Guozhong, Zhang Yun, and the royal family who hate the emperor deeply. They all believe that the crown prince is young, and his intelligence and ability are not enough to ascend the throne. At present, the most important opinions in the court all advocate welcoming the late emperor. With the virtue and respect of the late emperor, we will be able to balance the forces of all parties and lead the Tang Dynasty out of the predicament. Now the call in the court is 28, and 80% of people support the late emperor to ascend the throne, and less than 20% support the crown prince ascends the throne."

Chen Zhenzhu was shocked. If Li Longji ascended the throne again, his son would be over. Her husband told him more than once that the late emperor had hated him to the core. If the late emperor ascended the throne again, he would make Uncle Thirteen the crown prince. The future throne would start from the thirteenth uncle. Not only would his son not be able to get the throne, but his life would be worrying. Can those uncles, who are like wolves and tigers, tolerate him?

"Prime Minister Wang, is there no way to do it?"

Wang Gong sighed and said, "I am the priest's confidant minister. The late emperor hated me to the core. Of course, I hope that the prince can ascend the throne. This is also my concern for myself. I have repeatedly thought that there may be a way to make the prince escape this disaster."

Chen Zhenzhu was overjoyed and said anxiously: "Please tell me, Prime Minister Wang!"

When Wang Gong saw Empress Chen slowly entering the trap, he couldn't help but feel proud. Although the inner palace was not easy to interfere in politics, she was the queen after all, and her attitude also represented the prince's opinion and had a very important influence.

Wang Gong said calmly: "Empress, the key to the prince's weakness is that he is still young and cannot rule independently. If an elder we trust can ascend to the throne first and give up the throne to the prince a hundred years later, the prince was already an adult, and no one could make a fuss about his age. I think, there is only one person in the world who can take on this responsibility. Did the empress think about it?"

"You mean the Supreme Emperor?" Chen Zhenzhu understood what Wang Gong meant, and actually wanted the Supreme Emperor to ascend the throne.

"Empress, I mean this. The Supreme Emperor was the crown prince of the Eastern Palace at the beginning, with great prestige. The crown prince was his eldest grandson, and his bloodline was connected. If the crown prince could take the initiative to give the throne to his grandfather, not only would those who supported the late emperor have nothing to say, but the Supreme Emperor would also pass the throne to the crown prince after a hundred years. In this way, the crown prince could study hard in the Eastern Palace and become a great talent, inherit the will of the emperor in the future, and become the revival of the Tang Dynasty after ascending the throne."

Wang Gong was so full of words that Chen Zhenzhu was silent. Although she was very afraid and anxious at this time and had no opinion, she had one advantage, that is, she absolutely believed in her husband. Her husband told her that the Supreme Emperor had too great ambitions and actually provoked his relationship with the prince. Although Wang Gong said it nicely and had some reason, Chen Zhenzhu remembered what her husband said, and she did not dare to express her opinion easily, let alone make any public promises.

Seeing that the queen was silent, Wang Gong advised again: "Empress, the situation is very urgent. I guess the Supreme Emperor will rush back to Chang'an at the latest tomorrow. Once he returns to Chang'an and controls the political situation, it will be too late. Empress, let's make an order!"

No matter how Wang Gong persuaded him, Chen Zhenzhu would not dare to make this decision. Unless his son ascended the throne, she would never agree to anything easily.

"Prince Wang, let me consider this matter again. If I think about it, I will naturally send someone to tell the Prime Minister that I am very confused now and will lose my companion first."

Chen Zhenzhu got up and went into the inner palace, leaving Wang Gong in the side hall. Wang Gong's face sank. He didn't expect that Queen Chen would be so difficult to convince. He couldn't help but snorted heavily, turned around and left.

Unexpectedly, Chen Zhenzhu hid at the door. She wanted to see Wang Gong's reaction, and happened to hear his extremely unhappy snorting coldly. The cold snorting was completely different from the loyal he had just now. Chen Zhenzhu was so scared that she pressed her chest, as if she saw a demon with a human face and a beastly heartbeat, and her heart was pounding. Only then did she realize that Wang Gong was not kind-hearted either.

Chen Zhenzhu returned to the bedroom worriedly. In fact, what she trusted most was her husband's master Li Mi and Li Yan. Her husband told her that only these two people were loyal to him. Unfortunately, these two people were not in Chang'an. What should we do now?

At this time, her confidant maid said, "I remember that the Lord gave the Empress a golden box. Did the Empress forget?"

A sentence reminded Chen Zhenzhu. She remembered that half a month ago, her husband gave her a gold box, saying that he offended the royal family too cruelly and would not be tolerated. If something happened to him, she asked her to take a look at the gold box. At that time, she blamed her husband for being unlucky and threw the gold box aside.

Chen Zhenzhu quickly stood up and said, "Let's look for it quickly, where is the golden box?"

She and a few confidant maids began to rummage boxes and cabinets in the bedroom. Suddenly, a maid said, "Empress, I've found it!"

The golden box was in the wooden box at the head of the bed, and Shen Zhenzhu hurried forward and said, "Give it to me!"

She took the gold box and opened it quickly. There was a white brocade inside. She slowly unfolded it. She saw that her husband's handwritten handwritten letters were written by her husband, with only one sentence, "So quickly to Guo Ziyi enter Beijing."

At this moment, Chen Zhenzhu did not hesitate anymore, and she immediately ordered: "Prepare the pen and ink quickly, I want to write a letter!"

． ． ． ． ． ． ． ． ．

Chen Zhenzhu wrote a secret decree, and then put it on the queen's seal, and ordered a confidant eunuch to disguise himself as a civilian, leave Chang'an overnight, and run towards Mei County.

At this moment, the storm of Guanzhong was changing. Guo Ziyi's army was stationed in Mei County south of the Wei River. He received a message from Chang'an. When the emperor passed away, he couldn't help but cry and fell to the ground. He ordered the three armies to wear mourning. The next night, he received the edict from Empress Chen and immediately ordered the three armies to advance to Chang'an.

At the same time, Geshuhan, stationed in Qishan County, the north bank of the Wei River, also received a letter from Li Heng, ordering him to enter Beijing. He almost raised an army at the same time as Guo Ziyi. Two armies, one on the south bank of the Wei River and the other on the north bank of the Wei River, rushed towards Chang'an as if they were marching and competition.

In Anding County, Jingzhou, Li Qing'an led 40,000 Anxi Army to station here for two days. Since Li Yu set out to inspect the imperial village, Li Qing'an led 40,000 troops to leave Pinggao County, enter Danzheng Gorge, and go straight to Jingzhou. After passing Jingzhou, it is the Guanzhong area.

He sent a team of scouts to Weinan County, and the scouts sent him information about Li Yu's death from Weinan County.

In the big tent, the personal soldiers were nervously packing their belongings and preparing to enter Beijing. Li Qing'an stood under a big tree with his hands behind his back, and his eyes turned to Chang'an.

Although Li Yu's death had nothing to do with him and was even the result he expected, he had more or less a sympathy for this tragic character, and in the end he died at the hands of his father. The sorrow of life is nothing more than this.

At this time, Yan Zhuang slowly walked behind him and sighed quite emotionally: "I didn't expect that he was really dead. It's really a bit pitiful to think about it. Does the general feel guilty for him?"

Li Qingan shook his head and said, "Game of Thrones has always been extremely cruel. Since he joined this game, it is expected that he would be killed by someone. If one day I was killed, then who would be guilty of me? His failure can only be blamed for his inappropriate employment. People like Meng Yun actually let him control the most critical military power. How unwise he doesn't know that since such a person is willing to betray me for glory and wealth, will he not betray him for higher glory and wealth? He can't even think of this, so he died not unfairly."

Speaking of this, Li Qingan sneered again, "It was that Li Heng who let me see what vicious means. People say that tigers are poisonous but he is even more poisonous than tigers. First, he asked Geshuhan to march into Guanzhong, freeze Guo Ziyi and Gao Xianzhi, and then drove Li Mao away with a trick. He naturally transferred Meng Yun back to Chang'an, and Yang Guozhong told him that Li Chenghong was the idiot, and he finally took the blame. He was step by step. His methods were indeed brilliant. I really underestimated him in the past. It seems that this person will be my strong enemy!"

After a moment of silence, Yan Zhuang said: "Does the general really plan to go to Beijing to be the right prime minister?"

Li Qingan looked at him in surprise and asked, "Why did you say that?"

Yan Zhuang hesitated for a moment and said, "General, there is a saying that I don't know whether to say it or not."

Li Qingan smiled, "You said it, when did I blame you for saying it bluntly?"

"Okay then! I'll just say it."

Yan Zhuang sighed and said, "I think the general is a little greedy for advancing east this time."

"Greed?" Li Qingan smiled and said, "Then tell me, what are the consequences of greed?"

"As the governor of Anxi, the general sent troops to occupy Lingzhou. The Uighurs did not invade and Tubo did not invade the territory. What did the general think about this? This is one of them. An Lushan invaded the inner road of the pass and was extremely cruel. The general defeated him by orders. This is true in itself. He won the righteousness for the general, but the general was unwilling to withdraw his troops. This will make people feel that the general has other intentions. Now, the general wants to be the right prime minister, but the military power in the middle is unwilling to be released. To put it bluntly, this is Sima Zhao's heart. Everyone knows that if the general only wants to occupy half of the country and establish himself as the emperor, then the general's actions are nothing to be criticized. But if the general wants to take over the Li Tang Dynasty and replace him, some of his postures are a bit hypocritical, but he must do it."

Li Qingan was silent for a moment, and then he asked, "Then what posture should I do?"

"I have been thinking about this question these days. I advise the general to abandon Lingzhou and Guannei Road and withdraw his power to the west of the Yellow River. In this way, the general will not appear so imposing and jealous. Even if he is willing, he will not dare to surrender to the general easily. If he takes a step back, the general will have a broad range of things and can be carried out calmly. These are the opinions of his subordinates. Please decide by himself."

Li Qing'an walked forward with his hands behind his back. Yan Zhuang spoke out the art of retreating. He could understand Yan Zhuang's painstaking efforts. In fact, Li Qing'an himself also felt that it was inappropriate. Since ancient times, China's laws of nature have emphasized the combination of yin and yang, and the balance of heaven and earth. Although he has his martial arts, his writing is not good. In this way, it is indeed a bit too heavy to occupy Shuofang and Guan'an Tao. To put it simply, it is like eating a few dry steamed buns in one breath, but not drinking a sip of water to moisten your throat. You will inevitably be choked. The best way is to take a sip of steamed buns and water, and be calm. This is the safe way. Yan Zhuang is right!
Chapter completed!