Jiuxi

Chapter 602: 600 [Injury to the Survivors]

If we go back to a year ago, to the summer of the 14th year of Jianwu, the brothers of the Royal Family, who were at loggerheads with each other, were planning an event that would determine their respective destinies.

Li Zongben finally won the favor of the late emperor by his meticulous performance in countless details over the past ten years, and took the first crucial step in the battle for the crown prince.

Li Zongjian attempts to kill Lu Chen in order to win the full support of the Jiangnan clans.

But what really determined the fate of the crown prince was the rebellion that occurred late at night.

Although Li Zongjian rejected Ning Yuanfu's request and did not collude with these rebels, he still had a glimmer of hope in his heart. That is, even if they succeeded by chance, they would still need him, the third prince, to take charge of the situation in the end.

Based on this consideration, Li Zongjian did not try his best to save the emperor, which made it difficult for him to leave Qiushan Lane again in his life.

Li Zongben did not have a particularly outstanding performance, but he decided to take the palace guards to protect the emperor before Xue Nanting arrived, and then he calmly followed Xue Nanting's arrangements and asked the palace guards to assist the elite troops led by Zhang Xu to enter the city. This was enough to create an image of courage and resoluteness in the mind of the late emperor.

The biggest surprise during the rebellion was the death of the eldest prince Li Zongchao in battle, which left the late emperor with no choice and the battle for the crown prince completely lost suspense.

When making those accusations, Li Zongjian did not conceal the sarcasm on his face at all.

Li Zongben said calmly, "Are you trying to say that it was my plan to have the rebels kidnap my eldest brother? Do you have any evidence to support this?"

Li Zongjian then turned his head to look at Yuan Yuji who was standing in silence, then retracted his gaze and shook his head, saying, "Second brother has always been very careful in his actions, so I naturally have no evidence."

"There are always reasons to support your inference."

"There is indeed such a reason. Guo Congyi, Wang Yan, Ning Yuanfu, Le Qinyi and Hu Hai were indeed forced into a corner by the late emperor, but they are old foxes who have been working in the officialdom for decades. How could they raise the flag of rebellion without any plan? On the night of the rebellion, if Guo Congyi and others had not won over a prince in advance so that they could smoothly seize the righteous cause after the rebellion, then I think these people have lived a dog's life at their age."

Li Zongjian sneered, looked directly into Li Zongben's eyes, and continued, "In other words, before the rebellion, Guo Congyi and others must have been accepted by a certain prince. This matter is very interesting, because I know very well that they did not find me in advance, and Ning Yuanfu's attitude in trying to win me over that night was not firm enough, and I just brushed it off with a few words. The situation is similar with my eldest brother, otherwise he would not have died in a bloody battle outside the Ning Gate."

Li Zongben couldn't help but nodded.

Li Zongjian said coldly, "It's not me or my eldest brother, so who are Guo Congyi and others secretly colluding with? What do you think, second brother?"

"This is a pretty good analysis. It has changed my opinion of you."

Li Zongben smiled slightly, and then said: "But your analysis has a fatal flaw. Why should I collude with those traitors? Don't forget that you were imprisoned in Qiushan Lane because of the assassination case on Qingfeng Street. Regardless of whether there will be changes after many years, at least you have lost the hope of continuing to compete for the position of crown prince. As for my eldest brother, he was abandoned by the late emperor a long time ago. In short, I had a great hope of becoming the crown prince at that time. Why should I take the risk?"

Li Zongjian choked and his brows gradually frowned.

In fact, he had not intended to mention this matter. As a smart man who had experienced many ups and downs, he certainly understood the principle of being at the mercy of others, and forbearance and restraint were not difficult to do.

However, Li Zongben's cold and merciless comments made his calm mood uncontrollably agitated, and the evil fire in his heart could no longer be suppressed.

I thought this earth-shattering inference would make Li Zongben panic, but I didn't expect it to be easily refuted by the other party.

Yes, Li Zongben was sure of victory at that time, so why would he collude with a group of rebels?
Even he, who was trapped in Qiushan Lane, knew that the hope of success for Guo Congyi and others was extremely slim. Could it be that Li Zongben was not aware of this?
From any perspective, there was no need for Li Zongben to do so.

Was it really just an accident that my eldest brother died in battle?
Li Zongjian subconsciously picked up the teacup and drank half of the warm tea in one breath.

He was still able to maintain his composure, but he was already feeling a deep sense of frustration.

If it is impossible to determine that the other party has flaws in the righteous cause, then no one can shake the stability of the imperial power.

He had deliberately acted so humble before, just to paralyze Li Zongben and make the other party feel complacent and thus reveal his flaws.

But at the moment, Li Zongben is indeed impeccable.

The question is, is it true that Guo Congyi and others did not collude with a certain prince?
Li Zongjian could never figure it out. This matter was like a mystery that might haunt him for a long time.

Li Zongben said leisurely: "I have answered your question, now I hope you can answer a question for me."

"You ask."

"Who is the mastermind behind the assassination in Qingfeng Street?"

This question left Li Zongjian a little puzzled.

The whole story of the incident had already been revealed by the left prime minister Li Daoyan, and Li Zongjian did not deny it and could not deny it, because everything Li Daoyan said was true. Li Yunyi was naturally stupid, otherwise he would not have been fooled by Li Zongjian's words and sent out his own expert like an idiot, thus being involved in this big case and ending up exiled 3,000 miles away.

Li Zongjian frowned and looked across, then said slowly, "I don't understand the meaning of your question."

Li Zongben said calmly, "So you are indeed the mastermind behind this?"

Li Zongjian remained silent.

Seeing this, Li Zongben continued, "There is one detail I don't understand. Why did you drag Li Sanlang onto the boat? He himself is certainly not worth mentioning. You only need to spend a little effort to make him run around, but how could the person behind him be that simple? In my opinion, Li Yunyi is completely incapable of sending his family's experts to cooperate with you in assassinating Lu Chen, unless someone turns a blind eye."

At this moment, Li Zongjian's heart moved, and he suddenly remembered his plan at that time.

Before the assassination on Qingfeng Street, he and Li Shizhi had been secretly communicating, and the other party had implicitly expressed that he would support him in his bid for the throne. Because he could not determine Li Shizhi's mind, he wanted to coerce Li Yunyi and cut off Li Shizhi's retreat. However, in the end, Li Daoyan took all the blame on himself, and Li Shizhi hid unscathed.

Li Zongben stared at his face, taking in every subtle change in his facial expression, and then said, "This person cannot be Li Xiang, he will definitely not cooperate with you. If he is not Li Xiang, how can he hide it from Li Xiang? Therefore, the person who is hiding behind the scenes and cooperating with you is Li Shizhi."

Li Zongjian had calmed down and just smiled mysteriously when he heard this.

In fact, he and Li Shizhi were not true allies. At the beginning, both sides just had the intention to join forces. Afterwards, Li Shizhi never extended a helping hand to him, and the connection between the two had long been broken.

Li Zongjian was even more curious about the other party's reason for asking this question, so he asked casually: "Why do you suddenly ask about this?"

Li Zongben smiled and said, "I just want to confirm how many people are behind you."

"Where is there someone behind me? If there was someone, why would I be trapped in Qiushan Lane?"

Li Zongjian became more and more carefree, tilting his head slightly and said, "Now that Your Majesty has the answer, I wonder when you will grant me death?"

The word "Your Majesty" obviously carries a hint of irony.

Li Zongben was unmoved and said calmly: "Why should I sentence you to death?"

Li Zongjian said with a more radiant look, "To be honest, I am the only one in this world who can pose a threat to your throne. You can rest assured only if I die. But for you, the Emperor of Great Qi, it is too easy to die alone. Whether it is falling into the water or contracting a serious illness, the people around you have countless ways to make me die normally."

"I just said that you are a very short-sighted person. Your eyes can only see a few feet in front of you."

Li Zongben did not mean to mock, but this sentence was still very sharp. He continued: "You think you are my biggest threat, but you don't understand the treacherous court, the human heart, and the turbulent undercurrents hidden under the seemingly calm surface. Forget it, there is no point in talking about these things. You and I are not the same kind of people."

This time, Li Zongjian felt no anger in his heart.

Li Zongben looked at him steadily, and after a long while he spoke, "Third brother, my father has passed away and will be buried tomorrow. My eldest brother passed away even earlier, and you and I are the only ones left in the royal family. This is not something to be happy about. I know you still won't give up, but for my father's sake, I will give you a chance to live. As long as you stop scheming day and night and stop imagining that you can stir up the storm by relying on a useless person like Xu Ruqing, I will not kill you."

Li Zongjian's expression changed drastically, and for the first time, there was some genuine panic in his eyes.

Li Zongben seemed a little tired and had no interest in taking advantage of the situation to mock me. He said slowly, "No matter what, we are brothers. I allow you to live and live honestly under my nose. This is the last time I remind you."

Li Zongjian lowered his head dejectedly, and after a long while he whispered, "I understand."

"Send him back."

Li Zongben waved his hand, stood up and walked towards the back hall.

Yuan Yuji expressionlessly asked Li Zongjian to stand up, and the two left one after the other.

Li Zongben stood quietly beside the large desk by the window in the back hall, whispering to himself, "Li Shizhi... you are indeed not a quiet subject. It seems that you are unwilling to stay under your father's wings for the rest of your life."

"Everyone has desires, which is a good thing. After all, people must have something to achieve something. I hope you really have the ability and skills to be of use to me."

"The political situation is in chaos. You finish your song and I take the stage, but I don't know who will be the one to make wedding clothes for others in the end."

"It's interesting."

(End of this chapter)