Consort Wei said, "Langjun, you should go!"
Li Xian hesitated. "But … I don't know what Mother means. If I act rashly and anger Mother …"
Consort Wei said, "So what? Regardless of what happens to Yang Fan, you have to go. You didn't return to the capital peacefully. If someone else had come to pick you up, you might not be here right now, let alone become the Crown Prince. Even if the Emperor doesn't want to spare him, what can he do to you if you go plead for him? "
Li Xian said, "But I heard that Empress Mother gave a death order. If I live, he lives. If I die, he dies. That's why he did everything he could to protect me. It's not like he's loyal to the Li family. Zhongrun said that his relationship with King Liang isn't shallow …"
"You're muddle-headed!"
Consort Wei's face reddened with anger. "His goal isn't important. What's important is what he did. If you were the Emperor, would you carve out someone's heart to see if they were doing things for you out of loyalty to the Emperor? What he did was beneficial to the country, the people, and you, so he should be rewarded! It doesn't matter why Yang Fan protected you. What's important is that you were able to keep your life because of him. Now that Yang Fan is in trouble, it's fine if you don't know about it. But who in the palace doesn't know about it? If you don't stand up, how will others look at you? If you can't even protect the person who risked his life to protect you, who will be willing to work for you? The ancients know that a thousand gold pieces can buy a horse's bones. How can you not understand such a simple matter? "
Li Xian was a bit moved, but when he thought of his mother's dignity, he was still timid. He shook his head. "Wife, this matter … let's wait and see."
"Father, mother!" Following a crisp call, Li Bao'er rushed in with a flushed face, "Have you all heard about Yang Fan trampling over the camp and trampling on the Chamberlains of Imperial Insignia?"
Her older sisters were already married. She wasn't too old and could live in the palace for another two years. Otherwise, it would be unsightly for all her daughters to be married at once.
Consort Wei angrily flung her sleeves and turned to enter the inner room.
Li Guo 'er looked at her mother's back in surprise, then looked at Li Xian, asking: "Father, what happened to mother?"
Li Xian anxiously said, "Don't mention it. Your mother told me to go to your imperial grandmother and plead for Yang Fan. Your Imperial Grandmother has always been arbitrary and strict. How can I go and ask for trouble? "
When Li Guo 'er heard this, she smiled and said, "Father, don't worry, uncle has passed away."
Li Xian was startled and asked in surprise, "Eighth Brother? He … he went to the Emperor to plead for mercy for Yang Fan? "
Li Guo 'er nodded and said, "Yes! Just now I saw him hurriedly leaving the Crown Prince's palace. The young chamberlain said that Uncle went to see His Majesty to plead for mercy for Yang Fan. "
"Oh …"
Li Xian stroked his beard and thought for a moment, a strange expression appearing on his face.
In a corner of the Eastern Palace, Li Dan's sons were waiting for their father's return. They were originally going to move out of the Eastern Palace and return to the prince's residence today, but the incident of a thousand horsemen suddenly occurred.
Li Dan's second son, Li Chengyi, said, "Third Brother, didn't you say that Yang Fan is very close to the Wu clan? Why did you persuade father to plead for mercy for him?"
Li Longji was now a fifteen-year-old youth with red lips and white teeth. He had bright eyes and handsome eyebrows. His bearing was extraordinary. Hearing his second brother's words, Li Longji said, "Third Brother, you might not know, but I heard from Gao Lishi that Yang Fan is not only close to the Wu clan, but also to Aunt Taiping. It's not impossible to win this person over! "
The current Li Longji was no longer the young man who had been angry at Yang Fan for echoing the Wu Clan's words. He had been living in the palace all year round, and he had been trying to survive amidst all kinds of deceit and danger. He had already gained the ability to see through the surface of the problem.
Li Longji said, "This at least shows that Yang Fan's position between the Wu and Li clans is still uncertain. If our Li clan can plead for mercy for him and save his life in today's crisis, he will have to accept this favor no matter what. He controls a thousand horsemen, and with his support, our Li clan's position will be more stable."
Fifth Brother Li Longye was unconvinced. "Seventh Uncle should be the one to say that. He is the crown prince, so why should we let our father do it?"
Li Longji dotingly rubbed his fifth brother's head and said with a smile, "Fifth Brother, you should know that Seventh Uncle is the crown prince, so it's not convenient for him to do it. If Seventh Uncle does, Imperial Grandmother might think that Seventh Uncle is trying to buy people's hearts. Father is just a prince, so it's more convenient for him to do it than Seventh Uncle. At least there won't be any suspicion of buying people's hearts. "
Li Dan had six sons. Other than his sixth son, who had died young, he still had five surviving sons. They were different from the other descendants of the Imperial Family, who had an apathetic relationship of blood and shallow brotherhood. Thanks to Wu Zetian's care, these five brothers had been locked up together since they were young, trapped within the walls of the Eastern Palace. They had gone through thick and thin together, so their brotherhood was very sincere.
The five brothers of the Prince of Xiang's clan were like the brothers of many impoverished families among the common people. To them, brotherly respect was no joke. It was truly like feet and hands. They were extremely close, brothers united in harmony, and a deep sense of righteousness and loyalty. For the Son of Heaven's clan to have such deep brotherhood between brothers could be considered unprecedented in history.
… …
Wu Zetian slowly paced back and forth on the Lovely Spring Platform, her mind in a dilemma.
From what she had observed just now, she had already understood eighty to ninety percent of the truth of the matter. Investigate? If she really did investigate, then the thief was definitely real, but the Golden Guards' deliberate framing was also definitely real. Given her nephew's conduct and the massive difference in status, how could it be Yang Fan who had initiated the provocation?
Yizong had been in the wrong first, and Yang Fan had been impetuous. One was the Thousand Cavalry Camp, one was the Golden Guards, one was a close minister of the Son of Heaven, one was her own nephew. Was this case better treated as a misunderstanding, or was it better that one side deliberately framed the other and brazenly violated military discipline?
From an even longer perspective, although she was inclined to protect Wu between the Wu and Li clans, she had been forced by the general trend to return politics to Li. This was because she understood that if she completely abandoned the Li clan, the Wu clan would lose the support of the people. Her nephews also did not have a single genius who could serve as a cornerstone, so the Wu clan would inevitably be abandoned.
Thus, she had no choice but to return politics to Li and control the military to Wu. The establishment of the Thousand Cavalry Camp was to balance these two factions, to give the Son of Heaven a certain amount of power to protect himself. This was not only for the future Son of Heaven, but also for the present Son of Heaven, herself.
After she had planned out the blueprint for the future regime, she began to strengthen the process of devolving military power to the Wu clan. However, she was also afraid that the Wu clan would take the risk out of desperation and launch a coup to seize the throne, even killing the person who had supported the Wu clan single-handedly. This kind of thing was not impossible. As an emperor, even his own son had to be on guard against the army, not to mention his nephew.
Yizong took advantage of his power to bully others and pressured them step by step. If Yang Fan did not decisively rescue them and allowed his subordinates to be persecuted and killed by Yizong, how could he continue to lead the army? He also had his own difficulties. Zhang Yizhi's words about the 24 Guards of the Capital, other than the Yulin Guards, all submitting to the Wu clan were still ringing in her ears. If she severely punished Yang Fan now, would it speed up the army's shift to the Wu clan?
Although this was her goal, she did not want even the fulcrum that balanced the power of the Wu and Li clans to disappear. Furthermore, she did not want the army to start looking for another master while she was still alive. The more Chengsi's illness grew, the more the Wu clan gradually leaned toward Sansi, but what about her? She was also old, getting older and older. Could she not be abandoned by those people who only cared about profit?
The fact that Yang Fan was able to defeat the main camp of the Chamberlains of Chamberlains of Imperial Insignia with a thousand cavalrymen proved that he was indeed an elite troop. If Yang Fan, the chess piece used to balance the situation, her entire setup would fall apart.
However, if she did not punish him, she would not be able to justify it.
The dispatch and command of the Southern Palace Imperial Army was under the jurisdiction of the Political Affairs Hall. At the same time, it also needed her approval. Whenever an army of more than ten people was dispatched, unless it was an emergency, there must be an imperial edict and a tiger seal from the Emperor issued by the Shangshu Province and the Menxia Province. The Northern Palace Imperial Army was directly under the Emperor, so it was less restricted. However, it had never done something like Yang Fan. If she did not punish him …
Wu Zetian thought about it and was full of worries. At this moment, Little Hai came in and reported, "Sage, the Prince of Xiang requests an audience."
"Oh?"
Wu Zetian thought for a moment and understood why her son had come. She originally did not want to see him, but she changed her mind and said, "Tell him to come in."
Standing in front of the hall, Wu Yizong and Yang Fan watched as the Prince of Xiang, Li Dan, entered the Lovely Spring Platform. After about the time it takes for two incense sticks to burn, Li Dan came out of the hall and walked past the two of them. After a while, the eunuch Little Hai came out of the hall and stood on the steps. In a clear voice, he said, "His Majesty's verbal decree!"
Wu Yizong and Yang Fan bowed slightly. Little Hai said, "Yang Fan, quickly order the thousand cavalry to return to camp. All soldiers are not to discuss today's matter. The soldiers are to return to camp. Yang Fan is to return to the estate to await his report! "
Yang Fan secretly sighed in relief. Since he had not been punished on the spot, even if he was guilty, the consequences would not be too severe. He clasped his hands to the director of the Lovely Spring Platform and turned to leave. Wu Yizong glared fiercely at him, then suddenly turned his head to look at Little Hai. Little Hai leaned to the side and said, "The Saints summon you. Great General Wu, please."
Wu Yizong swung his sleeve and angrily walked into the hall. The moment he saw Wu Zetian, he said, "Aunt, the facts are before us. Yang Fan was audacious to the extreme and should have been executed. Aunt, how could you let him go!"
Wu Zetian's face darkened. "Did you really think that We didn't know about those shameful things you did?"
When Wu Yizong saw that Wu Zetian was angry, he shrunk his neck back and said nothing.
Wu Zetian snorted, then said, "The Golden Guards had forty thousand soldiers, but they were utterly defeated by a trifling one thousand people. You truly led a good army!"
Wu Yizong straightened his neck and said, "Aunt, that was different. Your nephew didn't think that he would be so daring. He was completely unprepared …"
Wu Zetian paused with her dragon crutch and scolded, "Then in Zhaozhou, when your hundred thousand soldiers were scared away by a mere Khitan cavalry of less than a thousand, you were also completely unprepared?"
Wu Yizong's face immediately turned red. He stammered for a moment, unable to respond.
Wu Zetian coldly glanced at him and said, "Go back and restrain your soldiers. In the future, if there is another battle, We will only hold you accountable!"
Wu Yizong stammered, "Then … then this time …"
Wu Zetian said, "This matter only happened between your two camps. Outsiders don't know about it yet, and they don't know the details. You can't make this public. You've already embarrassed yourself enough. If this goes on, how can I give you the authority to station troops in Jingdou? As for how this matter should be handled, We have our own plans. "
… …
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
