People in the early Tang Dynasty: I compete with Wu Zhao for the throne

Chapter 1582: Your Majesty should not inherit the throne.
In the Taiji Palace, King Han Li Yuanjia stood at the head of the royal family.

He bowed his hands solemnly, lowered his head and said nothing.

The new emperor Li Dan has already sat on the throne.

The entire Taiji Palace, as well as the square outside the Taiji Palace, were densely packed, yet extremely orderly, with all the officials above the ninth rank in Chang'an.

The number is more than five times that of Luoyang.

In fact, the lower the official rank, the more officials there are in Chang'an. Compared with Luoyang, the difference can even be as high as ten times.

Li Dan sat on the throne and looked solemnly at the five prime ministers: Liu Rengui, Dou Lu Qinwang, Dou Xuande, Wang Dezhen, and Fan Lubing.

For a moment, Li Dan felt a little amused.

When his father was alive, there were only four or five prime ministers in the court at the most.

Instead of like now, with more than a dozen people at once.

But at this moment, Li Dan also keenly captured something.

Liu Rengui was Shangshu Zuo Pushe, and Doulu Qinwang was Zhongshu Ling.

Wang Dezhen was the Shizhong, and Fan Lubing was the Zhongshu Shilang.

Dou Xuande was the Minister of Personnel.

With these people alone, Li Dan could completely form a complete government affairs hall.

Below them were the Minister of War Duan Baoxuan, the Minister of Rites Wei Daijia, the Minister of Works Huang Rensu, the Minister of Honglu Temple Yuan Ming, the Minister of Dali Temple Duguqi, the Minister of Guanglu Temple Chen Guang, the Minister of Taichang Temple Lin Renji, and the Water Conservancy Commissioner He Yiqiu.

There were also countless officials such as Vice Minister of Revenue Cen Changqian, Vice Minister of Rites Wu Sansi, Vice Minister of War Miao Chuke, Vice Minister of Justice Li Zhaode, Vice Minister of Justice Pei Judao, and Shangshu Zuo Cheng Wei Xuantong.

The three provinces, six ministries, nine temples and five academies all have people in charge.

On the right side are the kings, including King of Han Li Yuanjia, King of Huo Li Yuangui, King of Shu Li Yuanming, King of Teng Li Yuanying and others.

Following behind him were General Xue Guwu of the Left Thousand Oxen Guard and General Ma Sizong of the Left Golden Guard.

There were dozens of military generals including the Imperial Guard General Zhang Qianxu, the Left Jinwu Guard General Cheng Chubi, and so on.

Li Dan's gaze swept across the two sides of the hall. He saw General Xu Zhou of the Imperial Guard and General Wang Guo of the Left Guard. The two were guarding the doors of the side halls. But if there was any mistake, both of them would rush in and kill.

However, Li Dan looked at his ministers again.

Now that he was sitting on the throne, although the ministers bowed their heads respectfully, many of them stood straight with serious expressions. There was no doubt that today's events would not be so easily ended.

Taking a deep breath, Li Dan nodded slightly to Fan Yunxian beside him.

Fan Yunxian immediately stepped forward calmly and said loudly: "The emperor ascends the throne, and all the ministers bow in respect."

Dou Lu Qinwang, Dou Xuande, Wang Dezhen, Fan Lubing, Wu Sansi, Miao Chuke, Dugu Qi and others who had already knelt down to worship Li Dan in Luoyang did not resist at all this time and all knelt down.

However, Liu Rengui, Duan Baoxuan, Wei Daijia, Huang Rensu, Chen Guang, Lin Renji, He Yiqiu, Li Zhaode and other important officials of the court who stayed in Chang'an were still standing.

Almost one third of the people inside and outside the Tai Chi Palace stood up.

Among the remaining two-thirds who knelt down, half were Empress Wu, Li Dan, and people from all walks of life who recognized Li Dan as the new emperor of the Tang Dynasty. The remaining half were mediocre people who had no backing or position and surrendered for the sake of their own lives.

But this is not important. The left prime minister Liu Rengui standing there alone is enough to attract almost everyone's attention.

Li Dan frowned and looked to the other side. King Han Li Yuanjia glanced at Liu Rengui, then bowed deeply to Li Dan, but did not kneel down.

Li Dan immediately understood what Li Yuanjia meant.

For the sake of the overall situation, Li Yuanjia could kneel down to Li Dan and acknowledge him as the emperor, but he could not stab Liu Rengui in the back.

Liu Rengui was the regent minister in Chang'an appointed by Emperor Zhongzong himself. If he did not give in, Li Yuanjia would not give in either.

After all, Li Yuanjia also had to give an explanation to Emperor Gaozong.

Why was it that less than half a year after his death, the next emperor and the next emperor he personally appointed, one died and the other was hunted down?

Behind him, Prince Huo Li Yuangui, Prince Shu Li Yuanming, Prince Teng Li Yuanying and other clan members were still standing.

Only a few royal family members who were close to Li Dan knelt down.

Among the military generals, most of them knelt down, but there were still a few standing. The most eye-catching one was General Cheng Chubi of the Left Jinwu Guard.

For many years, in people's eyes, Cheng Chubi, the general of the Left Jinwu Guard, did not agree with the new emperor chosen by Empress Wu this time.

……

On the throne, Li Dan looked solemn.

Although he had realized the difficulty of the situation, he did not expect it to be so difficult.

Especially Liu Rengui, the Shangshu Zuo Pushe, who was a role model for the whole world.

If he did not recognize Li Dan as emperor, then at least half of the provincial and county governors in the world would not recognize Li Dan.

It’s not that Liu Rengui had that much power in the court, but he served as prime minister for four terms, and that was how much influence he had on the court.

Not to mention, the world is full of ambitious people who are accustomed to speculation, as well as treacherous conspirators and greedy villains.

Once there is a banner like Liu Rengui, half of the world will not recognize Li Dan.

That would cause chaos in the world.

Li Dan glanced at Fan Yunxian, who lowered her head slightly. Further away, Ma Sizong and Xu Zhou did not move either.

There are so many people, we can't take them all away like we did in Luoyang.

Li Dan smiled bitterly, knowing that he had to face the current problem himself.

But at the same time, Li Dan was somewhat thankful that Li Xuan and Su Liangsi were not there, otherwise he would not even dare to come. Taking a deep breath, Li Dan looked at Liu Rengui and said, "Left Prime Minister, I know that my brother's death was sudden, and you and the other ministers are full of doubts. Today, why don't we be frank with each other? If you have any questions, feel free to ask directly."

Liu Rengui bowed slightly with a solemn expression, then said, "Thank you, Your Majesty."

Li Dan's expression relaxed a little. Liu Rengui was willing to call him "Your Majesty". Liu Rengui's meaning was fully expressed in this sentence.

As long as Li Dan's explanation can satisfy Liu Rengui, everything will be fine.

"Please!" Li Dan nodded.

"May I ask your Majesty." Liu Rengui bowed and stepped forward, then looked at Li Dan with a solemn expression and asked, "May I ask your Majesty, why did Emperor Zhongzong die, how did he die, why was he posthumously named Li, why did he send the general of the imperial guard to Chang'an, and massacred the entire Eastern Palace without asking for the reason, please give me an answer."

The ministers standing in the hall bowed at the same time and said, "Your Majesty, please give us an answer."

Not only them, but also many ministers inside and outside the palace who were already kneeling and kowtowing could not help but raise their heads.

They also had the same questions: why did Li Xian die, how did he die, and why after Li Xian's death, he sent Zhang Qianxu to massacre the Eastern Palace and hunt down Crown Prince Li Chongzhao?
They cannot see what is happening in Luoyang, but they can see what is happening in Chang'an very clearly.

Especially when Zhang Qianxu massacred the Eastern Palace, although he only killed all those who dared to resist, there were not many people left alive, which was almost equivalent to a bloodbath.

The severity of this incident was even worse than the Xuanwu Gate Incident.

Tang Dynasty.

No one wants another Xuanwu Gate.

Fan Yunxian, Dou Lu Qinwang, Fan Lubing and others were all silent.

Li Dan sighed in his heart. He knew that his mother wanted him to give an explanation to the ministers about what happened today.

Some of the things he said were easier to accept.

Looking at the ministers in the palace, he shook his head and said, "In fact, I don't know much about what happened that day. Everything happened too suddenly."

After a brief pause, Li Dan sighed and said, "That day was the fifteenth day of the lunar month. I and the other ministers paid homage to my father and then attended the court. After discussing my brother's escort of my father's coffin back to Chang'an, we discussed the witchcraft incident involving the Crown Prince's concubine Yang on the fourteenth day."

There were some rumors in Chang'an about the witchcraft case that occurred in the Luoyang Palace on May 14, but the details of what happened were not clear. Later, because Empress Wu closed the Hangu Pass, there was no news.

At this point, all the ministers finally understood that Li Xian’s death was actually related to the Witchcraft case.

"The Crown Prince's concubine Yang used witchcraft to curse the Queen. My brother thought that Yang should be banished to the imperial palace, and her father and brother should be exiled to Fanzhou. But my mother thought that witchcraft was a serious matter, and Yang should be beheaded immediately, and then the three clans of Yang should be exterminated."

Li Dan said expressionlessly, "My brother and mother had an argument. In a rage, my brother said that he would rather give up the throne than save Concubine Yang. My mother was furious and asked the Imperial Guard General Zhang Qianxu to take my brother down to calm him down. Then she discussed with Prime Minister Pei how to deal with Concubine Yang and my brother. Unexpectedly, my brother ran into the guard's spear blade and hanged himself."

All the ministers who came from Luoyang in the hall bowed their heads solemnly without saying a word.

Everything Li Dan said was fabricated, but it still had some structure.

The most important point is the last one. Li Xian did run into the soldier's spear and hanged himself to death.

"Finally, my mother conducted a thorough search of the palace and finally found more witchcraft and cursed objects in Concubine Yang's palace. Not only were there objects cursing the Queen, but also objects cursing my brother and my mother. I think my brother became a little insane because of Yang's curse, so my mother ordered the beheading of Yang and then the extermination of the three clans of the Yang family." Li Dan's expression was indifferent.

This was completely throwing mud at the Yang family, and most of the ministers in the palace could hear it clearly.

No one objected, but the Yang family members in the hall couldn't help but grit their teeth in hatred.

The Yang family had been beheaded and even their three clans had been exterminated. What else could they say?

Liu Rengui bowed solemnly and said, "That is true, but since Emperor Zhongzong has passed away, the successor should be the crown prince, not Your Majesty!
So why is it that His Majesty is the successor instead of the Crown Prince? This is against etiquette."

Why was it Li Dan who succeeded to the throne instead of Li Chongzhao? This is not in accordance with the etiquette.

According to etiquette and the law of inheritance, it should be Crown Prince Li Chongzhao who succeeded to the throne, not Prince Li Dan.

This is also the point where the entire court feels uncomfortable now.

If Li Chongzhao succeeded to the throne, not only Li Xian's old ministers in Chang'an and Luoyang, but even Li Xuan, Gao Kan and others who were far away in the border states would fully approve of him, and then the whole world would respect him.

In this way, the succession to the throne will be orderly, and even if people in the world have doubts, everything will be controlled within a very small range.

Instead of what is happening now, almost all of Li Xian's old ministers who are close to him question Li Dan's succession.

Of course, the bottom line is that they invested too much energy in Li Xian, but before they could see much return, the emperor was replaced.

There were already enough people around Li Dan, and even if others squeezed in, they would only be on the periphery at most.

Naturally, as the prime minister, Liu Rengui was more concerned with upholding etiquette, law and orthodoxy.

Now Li Dan needs to give an answer.

Li Dan sighed and said, "After my brother passed away, my mother made me emperor on the grounds that the throne cannot be vacant for a day. After all, my father had just passed away not long ago, and my brother passed away too. Chongzhao is still young. In Andong, there are Silla troops stationed, and in the Western Regions, there are Western Turks and Persia making trouble. The country is in turmoil, so my mother made me emperor, and Prime Minister Pei also agreed to this."

Empress Wu was the mother of the emperor and the empress of the time.

Pei Yan was the regent minister and the minister of the Secretariat.

The two of them decided that there seemed to be no problem in making Li Dan the emperor.

"My mother was regent for three years, and I was in charge of government for three years. Three years later, Empress Wu returned to the throne, and I took charge of government." When Li Dan said this, his breathing became heavy.

"Your Majesty!" A figure stepped slightly to the left and stood out. It was none other than the new Minister of War Duan Baoxuan.

Duan Baoxuan looked at Li Dan with a cold expression, gritted his teeth and said, "Your Majesty, please forgive me for being so presumptuous. Even so, I think Your Majesty should not inherit the throne. Since the Queen Mother will be the regent for three years, why not let the Crown Prince inherit the throne? The Queen Mother will be the regent for ten years, and after ten years, the Crown Prince will rule the country himself, but Your Majesty must inherit the throne?"

Li Dan was slightly stunned, and said: "I said, the West Sea is not peaceful, and I will take care of the young..."

"The only thing that is causing unrest in the four seas is the Western Regions." Duan Baoxuan stared at Li Dan and said, "Western Regions have King Peng. If the Crown Prince succeeds, I believe King Peng will work even harder. Besides, we have countless famous generals in the Tang Dynasty. If there is unrest anywhere, we can just fight to the end. Why do we have to go against etiquette and let Your Majesty succeed?"

Duan Baoxuan's sudden angry roar echoed throughout the Taiji Hall.

Ma Sizong and Xu Zhou, who were standing at the palace doors on both sides, simultaneously tightened their grip on the long swords at their waists, with murderous intent in their eyes.

(End of this chapter)