Chapter 440 The Queen's Pearl

Li Qing'an killed Meng Yun and Luo Zhengyi in front of the prince and hundreds of courtiers at the city gate. This incident immediately caused a sensation in Chang'an and became a hot topic for Chang'an people after dinner.

The entire Chang'an City is talking about this matter. People can be heard talking about this matter in various restaurants and inns, and their opinions are different. Most of them are divided according to their own preferences and dislikes. This is the so-called "people have different opinions" and "wise have different opinions."

Those who hate Li Qing'an called him arrogant and domineering, and killed people in the face of the prince, which was comparable to Dong Zhuo in the late Han Dynasty; those who like Li Qing'an praised him for his gratitude for his gratitude, and Meng Yun and Luo Zhengyi betrayed first. This killing could enable him to establish a lofty prestige in the army; neutral people said that Li Qing'an's real purpose was to kill people and establish authority, and gave Chang'an court officials a warning, those who obey me will prosper, and those who go against me will perish.

But what is most worrying is the Southern Army. Li Qing'an almost killed their commander in front of the Southern Army. Will the Southern Army give up? But the actual situation is unexpected. The Southern Army did not react at all. Wang Sili, who came from Tongguan, took over as the commander of the Southern Army. Chen Xuanli, the former general of the Right Yulin Army, took over as the general of the Jinwu Guard. The army was extremely calm and there was no commotion due to Meng Yun's killing.

The Supreme Emperor Li Heng, who was directly loyal to Meng Yun, did not respond at all. Many people speculated that it was very likely that Li Qing'an and Li Heng reached a secret agreement, and Li Heng betrayed Meng Yun as his position as the governor.

After all, Meng Yun's death is just a small episode. The real highlight is the new emperor ascends the throne. There is no doubt that Prince Li Shi ascends the throne. It is only a matter of time now.

In the Linde Hall of the Ming Palace, Empress Shen of the Tang Dynasty officially summoned Li Qing'an. Shen Zhenzhu was born in a famous family in Huzhou, beautiful and virtuous. She was only 28 years old this year. Although her husband's death brought her a heavy blow, she saw that her son could inherit the throne and brought her great comfort. For this reason, she was full of gratitude to Li Qing'an.

"Prime Minister Li, the emperor often tells me that the prime minister is the mainstay of the Tang Dynasty. It was not until today that I understood the emperor's words. The prime minister fully supports the prince's ascension to the throne. I am very grateful."

Shen Zhenzhu did not sit behind the curtain this time. She sat on a pear wood carved ring chair, with more than a dozen maids standing around. She was wearing a plain white long skirt and her face was not covered with makeup, and she looked a little haggard.

The reason why she didn't sit behind the curtain was because Prince Li Shi was standing beside her. Li Qing'an's murder in the street just now really surprised him, but his confidant eunuch quietly told him that Li Qing'an was actually shocking the Supreme Emperor, and he woke up.

Although Prince Li Shi was less than thirteen years old, he began to receive formal education since he was six years old, and his mind matured earlier than ordinary teenagers. He understood his situation. His grandfather was competing with him for the throne, and he was able to obtain the throne in the end. This was the result of Li Qing'an's full support later. He was also full of gratitude to Li Qing'an.

Li Qingan bowed slightly and said, "Please rest assured Empress. I have discussed it with the Supreme Emperor and several important officials in the court and the people. It is better to be sooner rather than later. The prince will officially ascend the throne tomorrow morning."

Shen Zhenzhu breathed a sigh of relief. She specially summoned Li Qing'an today with her intention. She knew that although the Supreme Emperor failed to seize the throne this time, it did not mean that he would give up in the future. Although her son was named the emperor, he actually had no soldiers and no power. He was just a puppet emperor. The actual power of the court was in the hands of the Supreme Emperor and Li Xiangguo. Whether her son could be safe and secure in the future was whether Li Qing'an could fully support his son, so she must win over Li Qing'an.

Chen Zhenzhu looked at his son lovingly and said to Li Qing'an earnestly: "As King of Zhao, Li Xiangguo is a blood-related relative to Shi'er, and is similar to Shi'er's father, and he is like brothers. If the Prime Minister does not dislike him, please accept Shi'er's worship and respect him as Shangfu."

Li Shi immediately knelt down and kowtowed to Li Qing'an and said, "Father Shang is here, please accept my bow!"

Li Qingan quickly helped Li Shi up and said, "Your Highness the Crown Prince, please get up quickly, and kill me!"

Chen Zhenzhu also stood up and bowed deeply to Li Qing'an, crying and said, "The lives of my mother and son are on Shang's father."

Li Qingan sighed and said, "Even if I am exhausted, I must protect the safety of the queen and the prince!"

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Leaving the Daming Palace, Li Qing'an slowly walked on the Zhuque Street in a carriage, with hundreds of personal guards escorting him. He was a little confused. At this time, he was so close to the throne he had always dreamed of. If he mobilized another 100,000 Anxi Army, it would be enough to defeat any force. He stepped onto the Hanyuan Palace with one foot, but his real feeling was that he was so far away from the throne.

When Li Yu died, people considered the successors of the crown prince Li Shi, the Supreme Emperor Li Heng, or Li Longji, and even mentioned other royal families, but no one mentioned him Li Qing'an. No one thought of the possibility of Li Qing'an ascending the throne, whether it was the court minister or ordinary people.

Where exactly is the problem here? Li Qingan was confused. When the carriage reached the vicinity of Anrenfang, Li Qingan suddenly heard a clear singing coming from not far away.

‘Chang'an Li and Anxi Li, although they are divided into two places, Anxi has battles to protect the country and finally make wedding dresses for Chang'an. ． ． ． ． ’

"stop!"

Li Qingan shouted softly. When he saw a man in green robe walking into Anrenfang, he immediately ordered to say, "Come the singer quickly!"

More than a dozen cavalrymen immediately rode their horses towards An Ren. Li Qing'an was surprised. Who could be this? He actually said that he was above his heart.

After a moment, his personal guard brought a middle-aged man, about forty years old, with a long and thin figure, beautiful eyes and eyebrows, and a bit of a fairy-like spirit. He was surrounded by more than a dozen cavalrymen around him, but he was calm and without any look of panic on his face.

When he walked to Li Qing'an's carriage, he looked proudly at the sky without going forward to greet Li Qing'an. Several personal soldiers were about to scold him angrily, but Li Qing'an waved his hand to stop the personal soldiers. He walked out of the carriage, bowed and smiled: "The song that the gentleman sang just now seems to be talking about me."

The man looked back at Li Qing'an and said lightly: "This official is thinking too much! There are so many people in the world with the surname Li, why is it you?"

Li Qingan was not angry and still smiled and said, "Do you know who I am?"

The man smiled at the sky and said, "There are only six people who can have military guards in Chang'an City, including Geshu Han, Guo Ziyi, Wang Sili, Chen Xuanli, An Baoyu and Li Qing'an. Geshu Han is a Hu person, Guo Ziyi and Chen Xuanli are old, Wang Sili left Chang'an at noon, An Baoyu led the Yulin Army. Who do you think you will be? Besides, don't the word Anxi written on your guard flag?"

Li Qingan heard that he looked down on him and teased him a little, and he couldn't help feeling unhappy, but he still restrained his anger and smiled and said, "Sir, I know that I am Li Qingan, and I dare to tease me, aren't you afraid that I will kill you?"

The man smiled slightly, "If you are the general, I will naturally be afraid of you and dare not tease the general at all, because I am afraid of death. But now you are the Prime Minister Li. If the Prime Minister Li doesn't even have such tolerance, then what are you doing in Chang'an?"

When Li Qingan heard something in his words, he couldn't help but squint his eyes and smiled, "Why did the gentleman say I'm here to Chang'an?"

"Didn't I sing just now? At least I didn't come to make wedding dresses for Chang'an, right?"

Li Qing'an looked at him for a while, and suddenly bowed to him deeply and said, "Sir, teach me!"

The man laughed and said, "The Prime Minister thought why I sang because I was poor and wanted to find a drink from the Prime Minister Li, but this is not a place to speak."

Li Qing'an nodded and said to his personal soldiers: "Give up a horse and return to the military camp immediately."

The soldiers helped the man onto the war horse, and everyone accelerated and headed towards the military camp outside Mingde Gate.

At this time, Li Qing'an's tens of thousands of troops were stationed in an empty field five miles outside Mingde Gate. Everyone returned to the military camp, and Li Qing'an ordered people to bring his middle-aged man up.

The middle-aged man walked into Li Qing'an's tent. Although he was not so respectful, he was not as rude and arrogant as on Zhuque Street. Since he had already made it clear that he was here to seek a job, he had at least become a little polite.

He bowed to Li Qing'an and smiled, "I am from Fengyi County, Tongzhou. His surname is Wei, and his name is Wei Qingping."

"Oh! Does sir have anything to do with the famous Wei Shi?"

"Just an ancestor five hundred years ago."

The man named Wei Qingping smiled and said, "I have been poor since childhood and studied poetry and books hard. After I was twenty-five, I came to Chang'an to take the exam. After taking the exam for more than ten years, I didn't have the chance to get a gold list. Instead, I met a group of poets and drinkers. They all called me the "Fengyi Crazy Student". A few months ago, Cen Shen wrote to me and asked me to go to Anxi to develop. I was a little moved. Unexpectedly, I met a general in Chang'an. I wonder if the general can tolerate me, a crazy student who does not understand etiquette?"

Seeing that Li Qing'an was calm and chatting and laughing, he had a little affection for him, and said with a smile: "Anxi is the only talent. He doesn't care about your family background and doesn't care about your appearance and behavior. If you want to have a drink with me, at least you have to show some real skills and say it! Why do you let me give you wine?"

Wei Qingping did not shy away, so he said frankly: "The general killed Meng Yun and Luo Zhengyi outside Mingde Gate. Some people called the general tyrannical and cruel, some exaggerated the general's grudges and grudges, and some said that the general's move would affect the image of the officials in the hearts of all officials. I don't think this is nothing. People who don't like the general, even if the general accompanied ten thousand smiling faces, he still doesn't like it. On the contrary, people who like the general, even if the general kills 10,000 people in the street, will still praise the general for his good killing. Killing Meng Yun and Luo Zhengyi is mixed, but I think it is inappropriate for the general as the right prime minister."

"Why?"

"It's very simple, because the position of Right Prime Minister is not so relaxed and leisurely. From Zhang Jiuling, Li Linfu, and even Yang Guozhong, each of them is busy every day. Li Linfu has to be busy until dark to return home almost every day. Although Yang Guozhong is not capable, he is also busy and even moves the memorials back home to handle. Everything is fine, and he has to be approved by the Prime Minister. If the general resigns as the governor of Anxi, it's okay to deal with government affairs with all his strength and gain a reputation as a prime minister and a military affairs of Anxi in the future. But in fact, for the general, Anxi's power is far more important than the power of the right prime minister. The general is not to gain a good reputation as a prime minister. In this way, the general has to deal with the minister and the military affairs of Anxi. Where can he get so much energy? How can he have time to consider the affairs of the world?"

Li Qing'an was like being woken up in a dream. After advancing eastward, he went smoothly, defeated An Lushan, defeated Li Heng, shocked Chang'an, became the right prime minister, and became Li Shi's Shangfu. It was extremely glorious, which made him a little forgetful.

But Wei Qingping woke him up with a blow. This person made a lot of sense. Once he became the right prime minister, his control over Anxi will definitely be weakened. Once something big happens to Anxi, he will be unable to go back to deal with it. Over time, he may lose Anxi. Moreover, his control over Anxi is far inferior to An Lushan's control over Fan Yang Hebei. Is it a bit inappropriate for him to be the right prime minister?

Li Qing'an immediately said to his side: "Go and give Mr. Wei a cup of tea."

"Thank you, General!" Wei Qingping bowed and thanked.

"Mr. Wei, please continue to say, in his opinion, how should I live in Chang'an?"

Wei Qingping smiled and continued: "In my opinion, the general can occupy a position in the political affairs hall, but cannot control the practice. The general can ask a trustworthy person to be the right prime minister to reflect the general's will. The general is behind the scenes and regulates behind the scenes. Although it is not so glorious, I believe that the general wants more than just glory."

Li Qing'an paced back and forth in the tent with his hands behind his back. At first, he was a little suspicious of the wrong origin. An unknown person talked to him about military and national affairs, with a little deep words. He doubted whether this person would be sent by Li Heng, but this person said this very reasonably, and woke him up like a wake-up call. If it were someone sent by Li Heng, he would never remind himself like this. He was very right, and he found a right prime minister agent, and he himself was invisible behind the scenes to manipulate it. In this way, he only had to consider military and national affairs, and he also had time and energy to take care of Anxi.

Li Qing'an glanced at him, remembered the song he sang, and asked, "Then let's talk about it, why did Anxi Li make wedding dresses for Chang'an Li?"

Their topic began to deepen, and Wei Qingping's crazy attitude was gone, and he began to show his sincerity to surrender to Li Qing'an. He said sincerely: "The general must be confused at this time. He is obviously a prince of the royal family, so why is he not nominated for the throne? Some even nominated Sining King Li Lin to inherit the throne, some people nominated Siqi King Li Zhen, and other princes, but there is no general. Why is this?"

“I would also like to know why this is?”

The cynical smile on Wei Qingping's face completely disappeared. He looked solemn and said word by word: "Because the general is not the descendant of Li Shimin, but after Jiancheng's crown prince."

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On the eve of the eve of the ascension of the Crown Prince Li Shi, Li Longji was also making his last attempt. Zheng County was about 80 miles southwest of Chang'an. It was a medium-sized county. At this time, Li Longji was stationed in Zheng County under the escort of three thousand cavalry. Li Longji was anxious. He had just arrived in Hanzhong and received the news of Li Yu's death. He was anxious and regretful. If he was in the capital at this time, he should be the one who came to take charge of the overall situation. With his prestige and influence, he would be effortless to ascend the throne again, but he left Chang'an at this critical moment, so that he was wrong with this best opportunity.

But Li Longji was not willing to give up. He had to try his best to make the eighty-mile journey, if he could rush to Chang'an tomorrow before dawn.

But the situation in front of him was frustrating. Geshuhan led 30,000 Longyou Army to block his way forward. Now his only way is to use his prestige to influence Geshuhan. Even if he can't pull Geshuhan back, at least he will not block his own path.

The person sent by Li Longji to deliver the letter had been there for more than an hour, and there was no news, which made him anxious. At this time, there was a sound of running outside the county government, and the guards he sent were back.

"How is it? Have you met Geshuhan?"

"Report to the Emperor, I saw General Geshu and gave him the Emperor's letter."

Li Longji waved his hand and asked the person next to him to go down. He slowly sat down and said, "You must tell me in detail what he had expressed and what he said, and no detail should be missed."

"Yes! I understand."

The guard lowered his head and thought for a while and said, "I can feel that General Geshu looked at the letter from the emperor and looked ashamed. He said that he had to do something, and he would never dare to be disrespectful to the emperor. I hope the emperor can understand his situation at that time."

"What was the situation at that time?"

Li Longji's eyes began to shimmer. He felt that Geshuhan had not completely betrayed him. The key now was to know what the situation was at that time? Li Longji closed his eyes and pondered for a moment. He remembered that he was eager to reduce the vassal states and sent the prince to the major vassal states to take power. He was the first to attack An Sishun. As a result, Geshuhan was frightened and led his army to hide in Dafeichuan. Later, he fell ill. Perhaps he felt that he had no hope of waking up, so he defected to Li Heng.

"What then?" Li Longji asked again.

"General Geshu then said that even if he let the emperor go over, the emperor would not be able to enter Chang'an. Li Qing'an's scout had long discovered the movement of the emperor. As long as the emperor approached Chang'an, he would be ambushed by the Anxi army."

Li Longji nodded. He had gradually calmed down now. He believed that what Ge Shuhan was telling the truth. How could he have brought so many troops back to Chang'an? Even the Chang'an City could not get close to Chang'an? With the cruelty of the third brother, he would definitely take the opportunity to kill himself. Not only would he not get the throne, but he would even lose his life in the end.

Once he calmed down, his eagerness to return to Chang'an to fight for the throne became weak. However, he lost the east corner and accepted the sun. Geshuhan's attitude made him hope to retake Geshuhan into the account.

"What's next? What did he say?"

"Afterwards, Geshuhan hopes that the emperor can take care of the dragon body. If the emperor needs his help or lacks anything, please speak up just by speaking. He will definitely help him with all his strength. In the end, General Geshu kept sending me out of the military camp."

At this time, Li Longji, based on his decades of political experience, had already judged that Geshuhan was not absolutely loyal to Li Heng. What he said and did to him today was obviously trying to find a way out. Li Longji smiled proudly. As long as Geshuhan was not absolutely loyal to Li Heng, he would be used by him sooner or later.

However, Li Longji really doesn't understand why Geshuhan was shaken by Li Heng? Could it be that Li Heng failed to ascend the throne, or Li Heng failed to fulfill his promise, which made him feel disappointed?
Chapter completed!