The Flourishing Tang Dynasty: Beginning with Marrying Yang Yuhuan

Chapter 260 The Temptation of Chang'an

Yang Yuhuan stared at the fireworks outside, lost in thought. After a while, her eyes turned slightly red.

Li Ying saw Yang Yuhuan's appearance and asked, "What's wrong? Are you unhappy?"

Yang Yuhuan shook her head and said, "A few days ago, my mother wrote to me saying that Prince Di and Concubine Wei were not getting along and that Prince Wei was imprisoned in the courtyard."

Prince Di was Li Longji's fourth son, Li Yan.

Li Yan was a well-behaved prince, his only shortcoming being that he was timid and lustful.

He was at odds with his princess, but he did not dare to report it to Li Longji. Instead, he chose to secretly imprison his princess. Later, someone reported it to the police, and Li Longji scolded him.

Later, Li Yan's concubines competed for his favor and caused a "witchcraft incident."

Of course, this is something.

Li Ying asked, "Do you feel sorry for Concubine Wei?"

"In the past, Prince Di and Concubine Wei were in harmony and went out together as a pair. Now, Prince Di has many wives and concubines, and towards Concubine Wei..." Yang Yuhuan sighed quietly, "It is difficult to find a long-lasting lover in a deep palace with high walls."

Li Ying smiled and said, "Are you worried that I will be like this too?"

Yang Yuhuan shook her head, smiled sweetly, and said, "Will my dear do it?"

Just as Li Ying was about to speak, Zhang Guangsheng came rushing over and said, "Your Highness, Wei Boyu is meeting with Yang Zhao in the tavern."

In Chang'an, Li Longji was averse to border generals having private meetings with court ministers. In local areas, the military governors were also averse to the generals under their command having private meetings with court officials.

Li Heng nodded and said to Yang Yuhuan: "Then let's go and take a look?"

"Okay." Yang Yuhuan nodded with a smile.

……

In a wine shop.

Wei Boyu poured wine for Yang Guozhong and asked with a smile: "Can the Right Prime Minister really transfer me back to Chang'an?"

Yang Guozhong asked, "Are you doubting the ability of the Right Prime Minister?"

"That's definitely not the case." Wei Boyu shook his head quickly, "It's just that I'm far away in Qixi, how could the Right Prime Minister know me?"

Yang Guozhong said: "The Right Prime Minister has the whole country in his heart. The general has made many military achievements. His name can be seen on the list of meritorious soldiers every year. How could the Right Prime Minister not know?"

Upon hearing this, Wei Boyu was overjoyed and said, "Then I'll have to trouble General Yang. General Yang, please tell me how many gifts you need."

Yang Guozhong said: "The Right Prime Minister is recruiting talents for the country, why would he need to be polite? The key is that you have to let the Right Prime Minister see that you are different from other generals."

Wei Boyu was puzzled and said, "Please ask General Yang to speak frankly."

Yang Guozhong asked, "Don't you know what the Right Prime Minister wants?"

"I am just a military man, please give me some advice, General Yang." Wei Boyu said sincerely.

Yang Guozhong said, "The treasury of Qixi is full, but almost no money is sent to the court. I want to check the treasury of Qixi. General, do you have a way?"

"This..." Wei Boyu was shocked and said hurriedly: "Except for the relevant officials, everyone else who wants to see the treasury needs a warrant from His Royal Highness Prince Shou."

Yang Guozhong said: "I don't need your explanation, I just want to ask, can you do it? And what has His Royal Highness Prince Shou done over the years, you need to answer truthfully."

Wei Boyu said: "The court knows exactly what His Royal Highness Prince Shou did."

Upon hearing this, Yang Guozhong's face darkened and he said, "If that's the case, how can the Right Prime Minister see your loyalty?"

"If General Yang wants to know anything, you can ask me directly." Li Heng's voice rang out.

Afterwards, the door opened and Li Heng and Yang Yuhuan walked in, followed by Zhang Guangsheng. The guards surrounded the entire tavern.

Wei Boyu was startled when he saw Li Heng. He ran over and knelt on one knee, saying, "Your Highness, I... I..."

Wei Boyu wanted to explain, but then he thought it was useless to explain, so he simply admitted his guilt and said, "Your Highness, please punish me!"

Li Heng glanced at Wei Boyu without saying anything, then turned to Yang Guozhong and said, "I respect you as the princess's cousin and treat you with great courtesy, but you seem to be dissatisfied with me. You are neither the imperial envoy nor the inspector. Isn't this an act beyond your authority?"

As soon as Li Heng finished speaking, two bodyguards rushed in and were about to capture Yang Guozhong.

Yang Guozhong and Li Ying were about to make a move, so they knelt down in fear and said quickly: "How dare I? I have a secret order."

Li Heng raised his hand, interrupting the guards' actions, and said, "Secret order? Whose secret order is it? Take it out and let me see it."

Yang Guozhong trembled and said, "Since it is a secret order, it cannot... cannot be shown to His Highness."

Li Heng said: "If you can't produce it, then it's a false rumor..."

"It's the order from the right prime minister." Yang Guozhong said hurriedly.

Li Heng said coldly, "I am a prince, a general of the first rank, a minister of state, and the governor of Qixi. You are using the right prime minister's order to pressure me? Without the emperor's order, even if the right prime minister issues a written order, you cannot act like this! How many heads do you have?"

Yang Guozhong was forced to this point and almost said that it was Li Longji's order, but Li Longji did not give him an explicit imperial decree. If he said so, Li Heng would probably accuse him of falsely conveying the imperial decree and then chop him off on the spot.

Yang Guozhong was stunned for a moment, and kept kowtowing, saying: "This humble official deserves to die, this humble official deserves to die..."

Li Heng looked at Yang Guozhong coldly.

It was Li Longji who personally ordered Yang Guozhong to come to Qixi, so he couldn't really do anything to him.

If we can scare Yang Guozhong first, we will have achieved our temporary goal.

Li Ying waited for Yang Guozhong to kowtow for a while, then gave Yang Yuhuan a wink.

Yang Yuhuan understood what he meant, and went over to help Yang Guozhong up, saying, "My brother was just too eager to make achievements, so he acted too hastily. My lord, please forgive him this time for my sake."

"Okay." Li Heng nodded. "For the sake of the princess, let's forget it this time. You said you were following the order of the right prime minister. I will write to Chang'an about this matter. You can go down first."

"Yes." Yang Guozhong quickly retreated.

Li Heng then looked at Wei Boyu and said, "General Wei, please stand up and talk."

"Yes." Wei Boyu stood up and stood there with his head down.

Li Heng asked, "General Wei, do you want to return to Chang'an?"

Wei Boyu's eyes turned red, and he said, "I also want to follow Your Highness for my whole life, but my family is in Guanzhong. I serve as a soldier in a border town, just for the day when I can return to Chang'an to serve."

Wei Boyu expressed the thoughts of most border generals.

The borderland is bitterly cold, and these frontier generals go through life and death on the borderland, always wanting to gain something for themselves.

Li Heng was silent for a while, then asked, "Have you also come into contact with Li Jingzhong's people?"

"Yes." Wei Boyu admitted, "Now if I want to go back to Chang'an to work, I can either follow the path of the right prime minister or the path of the crown prince."

Li Ying said: "Everyone has his own aspirations. I will not stop you. I just hope that you can stick to your original intention and serve your country and herdsmen in the future."

After Li Heng finished speaking, he walked out slowly.

When they got to the door, Zhang Guangsheng asked, "Your Highness, do you want to send someone to keep an eye on General Wei?"

Li Heng said, "No need. General Wei has made outstanding contributions over the years. For the sake of his future, there is no need to stop him."

"Yes." Zhang Guangsheng took the order and quietly stepped back.

Yang Yuhuan and Li Heng walked side by side and said, "My dear, aren't you worried that General Wei will betray you?"

Li Heng laughed and said, "What can he betray me?"

"That's right, my dear is a good person." Yang Yuhuan followed up, "In this matter of Yang Zhao, my dear and I are playing the good cop and the bad cop respectively. I don't know if we can scare him."

Li Ying said, "Your cousin may not be very talented, but he is like a fly, annoying as hell. You must not take him lightly." Yang Yuhuan asked, "Do you think he will do it again, my lord?"

Li Ying said: "It is very likely."

Yang Yuhuan said: "This time, the Right Prime Minister and the Crown Prince's men came to Qixi at the same time, using the bait of becoming an official in the court to stir up the situation in Qixi. We need to be especially careful."

Li Heng nodded and said, "At this time, we need to work together. You take care of the interior, and I take care of the exterior, and we will get through this difficult time together."

"Yes." Yang Yuhuan did not refuse. "Most of the soldiers in Qixi have their families with them. They are more loyal to you. But the situation is more complicated for the soldiers who come alone and those who are new to Qixi."

Li Heng asked, "Who are you going to send to monitor Du Erniang?"

Yang Yuhuan said: "I sent two servants to them."

"How did Du Erniang react?" Li Heng asked.

Yang Yuhuan said: "She is relatively sensible, but Li Jingzhong and Yang Zhao are both flies."

Li Heng said: "If Du Erniang is smart enough, she will come to us herself. If she wants to waver, we will take action then."

"I'll follow your orders, my dear." Yang Yuhuan smiled sweetly.

Li Ying smiled and said, "You are so decent in your work, why do you need my orders?"

Yang Yuhuan asked, "Then my lord, would you like to reward me?"

Li Heng asked: "What reward do you want?"

Yang Yuhuan said coquettishly, "How about you carry me on your back?"

"Okay." Li Ying nodded and lowered his body.

Yang Yuhuan climbed onto Li Heng's shoulders, leaned against him tightly, and said, "I will sing a song for you softly."

Li Ying asked, "Is this a reward for me?"

Yang Yuhuan said: "My dear, if you carry me on your back, I will sing a song for you."

Li Heng said: "Then I will carry you on my back forever."

Yang Yuhuan said: "Then I will keep singing."

Li Ying smiled and said nothing.

Everything was quiet and peaceful. Yang Yuhuan was humming softly. Her light voice floated in the night of Qixi, graceful and melodious. Everything seemed to be listening to Yang Yuhuan's low singing.

……

Du has a neighboring mansion.

Li Jingzhong found Du Erniang and told her exactly what he and Li Heng had said.

Du Erniang just sneered.

Li Jingzhong said: "Your Highness the Crown Prince has good intentions. Madam Du...don't you understand?"

Du Erniang said, "Even if what you said is reasonable, if it weren't for His Royal Highness Prince Shou, my grandfather would have been beaten to death by the Right Prime Minister."

Li Jingzhong was startled, thought for a moment, and said, "This is also within the expectations of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince knows the character of the Prince of Shou and is certain that the Prince of Shou will take action."

"Really?" Du Erniang seemed to be thinking about something. "On the day when the prince and I divorced, someone wanted to kill me. Could it be that the prince wanted to silence me?"

"How could the prince do this?" Li Jingzhong quickly denied, "The prince loves you so much, he would never act like this. Besides, the prince has already divorced you, so he has nothing to do with this matter."

Li Jingzhong hurriedly said the second half of the sentence, and then revealed Li Heng's intention to undress to avoid the fire, but Du Erniang did not point it out and asked further: "Who else would kill me?"

Li Jingzhong thought for a moment and said, "It's probably the right prime minister who wants to frame the crown prince."

"Right Prime Minister." Du Erniang smiled meaningfully, "I'll remember this. I'll find a chance to report it to the authorities. You can testify and say that the Right Prime Minister is plotting to assassinate me."

"This..." Li Jingzhong was shocked.

He realized that Du Erniang had tricked him into believing something was wrong.

Li Jingzhong hurriedly said, "This is just speculation. It's not appropriate to report it to the police without any evidence, right?"

Du Erniang said: "The Crown Prince has good intentions. Now that he has the opportunity to overthrow the Right Prime Minister, why would he give up this opportunity?"

Li Jingzhong said: "To deal with the Right Prime Minister, we need to take a long-term view."

"We need to think long-term. What are you doing here?" Du Erniang stood up. "Let's take a step back. Even if what you said is true, you want to take revenge on the Right Prime Minister. Why do you have to go to Qixi to make things difficult for Prince Shou?"

In Li Jingzhong's opinion, Du Erniang used to be very simple, but suddenly she became so smart, which was beyond his expectations.

Li Jingzhong was speechless for a moment.

Du Erniang continued, "If the prince is really like you said, he should be concentrating on dealing with the right prime minister. How can I believe him if he comes to Qixi now?"

"Your servant, your servant..." Li Jingzhong was trying to find an excuse.

"Go away now. If you don't leave, I will report to the police." Du Erniang interrupted.

"Yes." Li Jingzhong was afraid that Du Erniang would really mess around, so he quickly said, "I'll take my leave."

After saying that, he left in a hurry.

Du Erniang waited until Li Jingzhong left and then found Du Youlin.

Du Youlin was reading in the room at the moment. Seeing Du Erniang, he stood up and said, "Why haven't you fallen asleep yet? You don't have to worry. A blessing in disguise. It's better to divorce the prince and stay away from the troubled Chang'an. You can marry again now."

Du Erniang sat down on the chair and said, "Grandpa, I came to see you because I have something important to discuss with you."

Du Youlin asked, "What's the matter?"

Du Erniang asked, "Among the children of the Du family's side branch who were banished here together, did anyone accept Li Jingzhong's gift?"

"It seems to be the case." Du Youlin said.

Du Erniang said, "Grandpa, you should know how our family fell into this state, right?"

Du Youlin was startled, thinking back to the past, and said, "It's all Liu Ji's fault, this traitor!"

Du Erniang said: "In the final analysis, it was all caused by the fire in the backyard. Now the children of the Du family's side branch dare to accept Li Jingzhong's gift. Do they want to repeat the same mistake?"

Du Youlin was surprised and asked, "You mean, they will bring disaster?"

Du Erniang said, "Prince Shou has already courted trouble by saving our family. No matter how generous Prince Shou is, he cannot tolerate us colluding with the Crown Prince under his control."

"Indeed." Du Youlin agreed with Du Erniang and asked hurriedly, "Then what should we do?"

Du Erniang said, "Prince Shou knows everything that Madam Du has done. He has not shown up just to give us a chance."

"He wants us to confess voluntarily?" Du Youlin suddenly realized.

Du Erniang said: "That's exactly it."

Du Youlin sighed, "But they are all descendants of the Du family after all. How can we bear to sell them out like this?"

Du Erniang said, "Isn't the prince's water deep enough? They dare to accept the prince's money. What's the difference between such people and Liu Ji? It's not a pity for them to die. Keeping them alive will only cause endless harm."

Du Youlin was stunned, and after thinking for a moment, he said, "Then I'll listen to what you say. I'll host a banquet for them tomorrow, and those who should be handed over will be handed over."

Du Erniang said, "Thank you, Grandpa."

(End of this chapter)