In the Zichen Hall of the Daming Palace, Li Longji, the emperor of the Tang Dynasty, looked sad. Beside him, Gao Lishi, Yu Chaoen, the crown prince, Prince Qing, Prince Shou, and other princes standing in the hall were all dressed in plain clothes.
Lord Ning, Li Longji, had passed away a few hours ago. After learning the news, Li Longji immediately burst into tears and hurriedly summoned Li Linfu and other important ministers to the palace to discuss the funeral.
When Li Linfu and other ministers learned that Lord Ning had passed away, they immediately went to the Zichen Hall from their respective offices without changing into plain clothes.
Li Longji looked sad. He gently wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes and looked at the ministers. "Big Brother has passed away. I am very sad. If it weren't for Big Brother's concession, I wouldn't have sat on the throne. My country was given to me by Big Brother. Now, Big Brother has passed away, and I have lost another good brother."
"Your Majesty, I'm sorry for your loss."
"Father, I'm sorry for your loss."
All the princes and ministers saluted and tried to persuade him.
Li Longji sighed, looked at the ministers of Li Linfu, and said seriously, "Big Brother has done me a favor by giving me the throne. I think that a normal posthumous title is not enough to reflect my gratitude to Big Brother. I want to give Big Brother a posthumous title. What do you think?"
"Your Majesty, you are wise. Lord Ning has the virtue of giving up the throne, so he deserves this title."
Li Linfu hurriedly echoed loudly.
"Your Majesty, you are wise. Your Majesty, you are wise."
Since Li Longji had passed away, there was nothing wrong with giving him the title of Emperor Zichen. As long as Li Longji was willing, the ministers would not object.
Li Longji looked at Yu Chaoen beside him and said softly, "Yu Chaoen, announce to the world tomorrow that Lord Ning will be given the posthumous title of Emperor Zichen."
"Yes, everyone."
Li Longji truly had feelings for Li Longji because Li Xian had never interfered with the affairs of the court and had given up his position. As Li Longji's sons, the Crown Prince, the Prince of Qing, and the other princes all wept bitterly to express their grief over their uncle's death and thus left a benevolent and filial impression on Li Longji.
However, among the princes, Li Mao was crying the hardest. He didn't pretend to be sobbing. His tears continued to flow without stopping.
Of course, the reason why Li Mao was so sad was not because of Li Xian's death, but because he thought of his own misfortune. To be more precise, it was because he had suffered too much in the past few years.
When Li Mao's mother, Wu Huifei, was still alive, Li Longji doted on him, Li Linfu supported him, and Wu Huifei loved him dearly. Yang Yuhuan lay in his arms every day, allowing him to experience the warmth of a woman.
But since Wu Huifei's death, all of this disappeared without a trace. His mother who loved him passed away, and Li Longji began to alienate him. Li Linfu also no longer supported him and turned to support Prince of Qing. What made it most difficult for him to accept was that Li Longji had actually risked universal condemnation and forced his beloved concubine, Yang Yuhuan, to become a nun. From then on, he could no longer see his beloved concubine.
And recently, he heard that Li Longji actually had sex with his former beloved concubine, Yang Yuhuan, in the Huaqing Pool. He had been cuckolded. Li Mao should have been angry, but under Li Longji's power, his anger turned into helplessness and sadness.
Li Mao felt that he was an abandoned person. Originally, he was expected to be the crown prince and own the Tang dynasty. But now, he was nothing. He was a prince who no one cared about. He spent all his time in the Residence of the Tenth Lord, eating and waiting for death. No one could bear such a huge difference in status.
"Eighteen Wang, take a break. Don't cry anymore."
Li Gui was crying so hard that it made Li Longji feel a little guilty. Stealing his son's beloved concubine was a very disgraceful thing, so he felt a little guilty.
"Father, uncle loved me the most. Now that uncle has passed away, I am willing to observe mourning for uncle for three years. I beg father to fulfill my filial piety. I beg father to fulfill my filial piety."
Not only did Li Mao not stop crying, but he cried even more sadly. He hit his head on the ground and looked determined to observe mourning.
The princes and ministers in the hall were very clear about the things between Li Mao and Li Longji. However, they dared not talk about it. At this moment, seeing that Li Mao was determined to observe mourning for Li Xian, they sighed inwardly about Li Mao's experience and felt that Li Mao was too sad. His heart was dead and he had no pursuit for life.
"Your Majesty, if the emperor knows about Prince Shou's filial piety, he will be very pleased."
Li Linfu supported Li Mao to observe mourning for Li Xian. He knew that as long as Li Mao, a prince, often wandered in the palace, it would be difficult for Li Longji to bring Yang Yuhuan into the palace to avoid embarrassment. However, if Li Mao observed mourning for Li Xian, it would be very helpful for Li Longji to bring Yang Yuhuan into the palace. As the most favored minister of Li Longji, Li Linfu always considered for Li Longji.
Hearing this, Li Longji looked at Li Mao, who seemed to have aged ten years in a few years. He nodded and said, "It's rare that you are filial. In this case, I agree. Get up, Eighteen Wang."
"Thank you, father. Thank you, father."
Li Mao kowtowed again and again. He was still sobbing.
Li Longji sighed and looked at the princes and ministers in the hall. He said sternly, "Let the emperor be virtuous. All the princes and imperial grandchildren, as well as the officials above the fifth rank, must come to the emperor's coffin to pay their respects. For three days, all the people in the capital are not allowed to wear colorful clothes. The shops are not allowed to hang red lanterns."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
###
"Your Royal Highness, Yan Zhenqing is here. He said that he recently wrote a few more calligraphy and paintings for Your Royal Highness to appreciate."
A middle-aged eunuch with an extremely ugly face reported softly.
This eunuch was Li Jinzhong. He was later given the title of Protector of the Country. Then, he was changed to Assistant of the Country. He was a famous eunuch in history. During the An Lushan Rebellion, he persuaded Crown Prince Li Yu to inherit the throne. He was entrusted with an important task and held military power. Later, he supported Crown Prince Li Heng to ascend the throne and gained more power.
Of course, at this time, Li Jingzhong was still a nameless junior. His main task was to serve the Crown Prince and he had not yet had the chance to display his vicious methods.
Li Heng's face was extremely ugly as he rebuked, "Li Jingzhong, do you want to kill this Crown Prince? The emperor has just passed away, so how can this Crown Prince be in the mood to appreciate calligraphy? If Imperial Father knew, what would he think? Have Yan Zhenqing return."
Li Jingzhong was taken aback by these words, but he respectfully said, "Your Royal Highness, please forgive this old servant. This old servant did not think things through and deserves ten thousand deaths. However, Yan Zhenqing seems to have an even more important matter and wishes to see the Crown Prince."
"What more important matter?"
Li Heng was getting impatient.
"He said that it has to do with the Tibetan assassins. However, if Your Royal Highness does not wish to see him, this old servant can just chase him away."
Li Jingzhong was ugly, but he was very cunning. Seeing that Li Heng was getting impatient, he immediately wanted to see him out.
"Wait, let him in."
Li Heng was in charge of receiving the Queen of the East when she came to Chang 'an, and the Tibetan assassins had already tried to assassinate her several days ago. Now that Yan Zhenqing had brought news of the Tibetan assassins, he could not remain indifferent.
"Yes, Your Royal Highness."
Li Jingzhong replied and went to summon Yan Zhenqing.
"Subordinate Yan Zhenqing pays respect to Your Royal Highness. These calligraphy pieces …"
Li Heng raised his hand and looked at Yan Zhenqing. "Leave the calligraphy pieces here. Tell me about the Tibetan assassins."
Yan Zhenqing was taken aback. He quickly placed the calligraphy pieces in his hands on the table by the side. In his view, these calligraphy pieces were his painstaking efforts and were extremely precious works of art. However, in Li Heng's eyes, they were worthless. He had no interest in calligraphy pieces. He was only concerned about the Tibetan assassins.
"Your Royal Highness, do you still remember Li Wu?"
"Li Wu? Didn't he go missing last year? What does this have to do with the Tibetan assassins?"
Yan Zhenqing did not hide anything and told Li Heng that Ang Lee, who had made great contributions in Yuzhou, was Li Wu's son. He also said that Ang Lee had intercepted a secret letter from Tibet and reported the contents of the letter to Li Heng.
Hearing this, Li Heng was shocked. Tibet was plotting to annex Dongnu Province. This was not a small matter. If their scheme succeeded, the threat to the Tang Empire would increase greatly.
"I did not expect that the famous Ang Lee in Yuzhou would be Li Wu's son. Where is he? Where is the letter?"
Yan Zhenqing cupped his hands and said, "Your Royal Highness, Ang Lee is currently staying in Yuzhou. The letter is with Ang Lee."
Li Heng was overjoyed and said seriously, "Tomorrow morning, have Ang Lee bring the intercepted letter to me. If this is true, Ang Lee has made great contributions."
"Yes, Your Royal Highness. This subordinate will take his leave."
Yan Zhenqing cupped his hands and slowly withdrew.
'Tibet has not given up on their evil intentions and wants to annex Dongnu Province. If I inform my father of this matter and have him make preparations, it can be considered a great contribution.'
Li Heng calculated in his mind and a faint smile appeared on his lips.
In his years as the Crown Prince, Li Heng had always been careful. Although he had always been suppressed by Li Linfu, he had never been fatally injured. This was also related to his cautious personality. As long as he did not make any mistakes, Li Linfu would not be able to frame him.
Although Yan Zhenqing would often come to see him, this would not arouse Li Longji's vigilance. After all, Yan Zhenqing was only an eighth-rank Imperial Censor, and his political achievements were average. He had not been promoted for ten consecutive years, and he did not have any political talent. He was only good at calligraphy. Letting someone like this chat with the Crown Prince could ease the Crown Prince's dull personality. This would prevent the Crown Prince from not interacting with any officials for a long time and becoming a fool.
Yan Zhenqing was also very low-key. Other than making a name for himself in the field of calligraphy, he was unknown in the field of officialdom and would not be envied by other officials. His work was watertight and no one could find a reason to frame him.
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