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"Bang!" Upon receiving the news of Yang Wengan's rebellion, Li Yuan was consumed by rage. He slammed his hand on the table, producing a deafening sound that made everyone present flinch. Sitting on the dragon throne, Li Yuan's face turned ashen, his brows furrowed tightly, and his eyes sparkled with fury, his anger evident in every feature.
"Yang Wengan! That ungrateful scoundrel!" Li Yuan bellowed, his voice filled with wrath and disappointment. "I treated him well, yet he betrays me and raises an army against me! How outrageous! Why would he do this?"
His voice echoed through the room, each word imbued with power and authority. He stood up and began pacing back and forth, his footsteps heavy and forceful as if he intended to crush the very ground beneath him. His hands were clenched into fists, knuckles turning white from the strain, revealing the turmoil within.
"Your Majesty, Yang Wengan said that if you release His Highness the Crown Prince, he will cease his rebellion!" a trembling official reported.
"Bang!" Li Yuan slammed the table again. "He is indeed in league with that rebellious son. Bring Li Jiancheng to me; I shall have him executed!"
"Wait, Your Majesty, do not!" At that moment, Feng Deyi rushed in, hastily trying to dissuade him.
"Minister Feng, Yang Wengan has already raised an army against me; do you still believe the Crown Prince is innocent?" Li Yuan questioned Feng Deyi sternly.
"Your Majesty, please calm your anger! The immediate priority is to dispatch troops to quell the rebellion; we can set aside the matter of the Crown Prince for now. His Highness is currently confined to his chambers and cannot escape; there is no need for such haste!" Feng Deyi understood that the Emperor was in a furious state and could not speak in favor of the Crown Prince at this moment.
Indeed, upon hearing Feng Deyi's words, Li Yuan nodded. "Very well, we shall put aside the matter of the Crown Prince for now. Who should we send to eliminate Yang Wengan?"
"Your Majesty, you could dispatch General Qian Jiulong of the Left Military Guard and Governor Yang Shidao of Lingzhou to lead the troops against Yang Wengan!" Feng Deyi suggested immediately. He hoped that the Emperor would not send Prince Qin Li Shimin to confront Yang Wengan, as that could be detrimental to Crown Prince Li Jiancheng.
"Agreed; we shall proceed as you suggest," Li Yuan replied. He then turned to the order officer: "Convey my decree: General Qian Jiulong of the Left Military Guard and Governor Yang Shidao of Lingzhou are to lead troops to Gyeongju to suppress Yang Wengan!"
"Understood!" The order officer took his leave.
"Minister Feng, please take a seat!" Li Yuan's anger had subsided somewhat by this point.
"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Feng Deyi sat down in a chair, contemplating what questions the Emperor might ask next—most likely concerning the Crown Prince.
Sure enough, before Feng Deyi could settle comfortably into his seat, he heard the Emperor inquire: "Minister Feng, Yang Wengan is rebelling under the pretext of avenging His Highness whom I have imprisoned. He claims that if I release the Crown Prince, he will cease his rebellion. What do you think? Is he not acting on the Crown Prince's orders?"
Feng Deyi shook his head. "Regardless of what name he uses for his rebellion, once he rebels, he becomes a traitor. However, this has nothing to do with His Highness because he is already imprisoned by Your Majesty; how could he possibly instruct Yang Wengan?"
"What if they had conspired beforehand?" Li Yuan pressed further.
"That is even less likely! Your Majesty must consider: if His Highness had conspired with Yang Wengan, would he dare come alone to Ren Zhi Palace to plead for forgiveness? While in Chang'an, he could have easily had Yang Wengan raise an army; wouldn’t that have been much safer?" Feng Deyi analyzed for the Emperor.
Li Yuan pondered this and found it reasonable. After a moment of contemplation, he said: "Then let us set aside matters concerning the Crown Prince for now; we will discuss it after capturing Yang Wengan!"
Feng Deyi thought about it and realized there was no other option but to agree; thus he requested leave.
The news of Yang Wengan's rebellion quickly spread throughout Ren Zhi Palace.
Li Shimin and Li Yuanji were initially thrilled upon hearing this news; they believed that this meant certain doom for Li Jiancheng. Their father intended to summon Yang Wengan for questioning—if Yang Wengan arrived, he certainly wouldn't accuse Crown Prince Li Jiancheng of treason! Therefore, their father would surely spare their elder brother.
However, now that Yang Wengan had outright rebelled, it indicated that their elder brother had indeed colluded with him in an attempt at rebellion. In this case, would their father still show mercy towards him? If you—Li Jiancheng—betrayed your father by instigating rebellion against him, why would Li Yuan show any paternal compassion towards you?
However, later news disappointed both Li Shimin and Li Yuanji. Their father had decided not to take action against their elder brother, Li Jiancheng, for the time being. It was all the doing of that old rascal, Feng Deyi! If it weren't for his interference, their father might have already killed Li Jiancheng. Then the position of Crown Prince would be vacant! Who would take that position? It would definitely be Li Shimin! This was what Li Shimin thought.
Indeed, once the position of Crown Prince became available, it would surely fall to Li Shimin. Li Yuanji thought the same way. However, this did not prevent Li Yuanji from wanting to "get rid of" Li Jiancheng first. If their elder brother were killed or deposed by their father, then his only remaining rival would be his second brother, Li Shimin.
Although Li Shimin was also strong, dealing with one opponent was certainly easier than facing two. This was how Li Yuanji reasoned.
Now the situation was not unfolding as they had hoped. What should they do? Li Yuanji approached Li Shimin and said, "Second Brother, I didn't expect Yang Wengan to really rebel. Could it be that Elder Brother is colluding with him to seize power ahead of time?"
"Fourth Brother, isn't it obvious? Who else but Elder Brother has the capability to incite Yang Wengan to rebel?" Li Shimin understood perfectly why Yang Wengan had rebelled, but he wouldn't expose it.
Li Shimin also wished to pin the blame on Li Jiancheng for instigating Yang Wengan's rebellion, hoping their father would eliminate him or at least strip him of the Crown Prince title.
"What should we do? Elder Brother is truly foolish! Second Brother, why don't we go before Father and speak a few kind words to persuade him to forgive Elder Brother this time?" Li Yuanji suggested insincerely.
Forgive? It would be a miracle if you didn't add fuel to the fire! Li Shimin understood that Li Yuanji's suggestion stemmed from the fact that their father was already "forgiving" towards Elder Brother. He was trying to play the good guy in front of their father while encouraging him to anger their father further.
"Alright! We should go! Last time when Father imprisoned Elder Brother, I didn't speak up for him; that was truly inappropriate. This time, no matter what, I must persuade Father not to punish Elder Brother too harshly," replied Li Shimin.
Not punish too harshly? Does that mean a "light punishment"? What constitutes a light punishment? Stripping him of the Crown Prince title! Li Yuanji understood this clearly and immediately said, "Let's go!"
"We pay our respects to Father!" Upon entering Emperor Li Yuan's study, Li Shimin and Li Yuanji first bowed in greeting.
"Shimin, Yuanji, there's no need for formalities! We are family; let's not stand on ceremony!" Emperor Li Yuan smiled kindly at first and then asked knowingly, "What brings you two here?"
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