Zi Zhi Tong Jian

Chapter 43
【Translation】

Li Shimin's confidant is only the eldest grandson Wuji who still stays in the Qin Palace. He, his uncle Yongzhou Zhizhong Gao Shilian, the right-hand car cavalry general Hou Junji from Sanshui, Yuchi Jingde and others persuaded Li Shimin to get rid of Li Jiancheng and Li Shimin day and night. Yuanji and Li Shimin are still hesitant.Li Shimin asked Li Jing, the governor of Lingzhou, for advice, but Li Jing refused; he also asked Li Shi, the commander of the army, for advice, but Li Shi also declined.From then on, Li Shimin paid more attention to the two of them.At that time, it happened that the Turkic Yu Sheshe led tens of thousands of cavalry to station in the south of the Yellow River, entered the frontier fortress, and surrounded Wucheng. Li Jiancheng recommended Li Yuanji to replace Li Shimin as the governor and lead the army to conquer the Turks in the north.Gaozu followed his suggestion and ordered Li Yuanji to lead the army to rescue Wucheng with General Li Yi of Youwuwei, General Zhang Jin of Tianji and others.Li Yuanji asked Yuchi Jingde, Cheng Zhijie, Duan Zhixuan, Qin Shubao and others to go with him to review and select the elite and powerful soldiers of the Qin King's army to fill Li Yuanji's team.Li Gengcheng Wang Yan told Li Shimin in secret: "Prince Qi Qi said, 'Now you have all the brave generals and capable soldiers of King Qin, and you have tens of thousands of soldiers and horses. I will farewell for you at Kunming Lake with King Qin, and let The warriors dragged the King of Qin into the tent and beheaded him. He said that he died of a sudden illness during the presentation, and the emperor would not believe it. I will ask the emperor to persuade me to let the emperor grant me the power to handle state affairs. Yuchi Jingde Since the others are already in your hands, you should bury them alive, who dares to disobey!" Li Shimin told Changsun Wuji and the others all that Wang Jun had said, and Changsun Wuji and others persuaded Li Shimin to let him go when the incident happened. Get rid of them first.Li Shimin sighed and said: "Flesh and blood killing each other is a heinous crime throughout the ages. Even though I know that a disaster is imminent, I still want to wait for the disaster to happen before launching a righteous crusade against them. Isn't that okay?" Yuchi Jingde said : "Based on human nature, who is willing to die? Now everyone swears to support His Majesty to the death. This is a gift from heaven to His Majesty. The mechanism of disaster is about to be activated, but at this critical moment, His Majesty is still calm. Don't worry about this matter. It is true that the king takes himself very lightly, but how can he be worthy of the country? If the king refuses to follow my advice, then I will flee to the wilderness. I can't stay Being at the king's side, being slaughtered by others!"

[Original text]

Wuji said: "If you don't follow the words of respecting virtue, things will be defeated. Respect and virtue will not be the king's possession, and Wuji will go with him. You can't be a king again!" The people of the world said: "What I said You can't completely abandon it, the public will change it." Jingde said: "The king is doubtful in dealing with things today, which is not wise; he is indecisive in the face of difficulties, which is not brave. Moreover, the king has raised more than [-] warriors, and those who are outside have already entered the country. In the palace, the armor is in charge of the army, the situation has been accomplished, and the king is at peace!"

The government officials who visited the people all said: "The king of Qi is fierce and he will never serve his brother. For example, Xue Shi, the guard, said that the king of Qi said: "The name of the king is combined into the word "Tang", and the king will die." Lord of the Tang Dynasty.' Qi Wangxi said: 'But except for the King of Qin, taking the East Palace is like turning back the ear.' He and the prince have not succeeded in plotting trouble, but he already has the heart to take the prince. The confusion is endless, why not do it! If you make two people If you succeed, you are afraid that the world will not be able to return to the Tang Dynasty. With the great king's sage, taking two people is like picking up mustard ears in the field, but why do you care about the festival of the common man and forget the plan of the country!" Like people?" Said: "A sage." The crowd said: "If Shun dredged the well and came out, it would be the mud in the well, and if the granary was not covered, it would be the ashes on the granary. An Nengze will be all over the world, and the law will be passed on to future generations! With a small stick, you accept it, and a big stick walks away, covering the great cause of what remains." The people of the world ordered divination, and the staff member Zhang Gong came from outside, took the tortoise and cast it on the ground, saying: "Divination is used to resolve doubts; How can it be predicted! If it is not auspicious, it is too easy!" So he made a plan.

【Translation】

Changsun Wuji said: "If Your Majesty does not follow Yuchi Jingde's advice, then there is no other hope. And Yuchi Jingde and others will definitely not follow Your Majesty. I should also follow them and stay away from Your Majesty. I will serve the king again!" Li Shimin said: "I can't completely abandon what I said, you should think about it again!" Yuchi Jingde said: "It is very unwise for the king to be indecisive and indecisive. This is not an act of a brave man. What's more, all the more than 800 warriors that the king usually keeps outside have entered the palace, are fully armed, and are fully prepared for the uprising. How can the king control it?"

Li Shimin consulted all the staff of Qin Palace on this matter, and everyone agreed: "King Qi is violent and cruel, after all, he refuses to serve his elder brother. Recently, I heard that Xue Shi, the guard, once said to the king, "The name of the king, it fits perfectly." To become a "Tang" character, the king must inherit the foundation of the Tang Dynasty after all." Qi Wang was very happy, and said: "As long as you can get rid of Qin Wang, it is easy to win the prince." It can be seen that Qi Wang and the prince have not yet succeeded in plotting to rebel , already has the idea of ​​plotting against the prince. The mind of making trouble is so insatiable, what else can he not do? If these two people succeed, then I am afraid that the world will no longer belong to Datang. With the virtuous ability of the king, Capturing these two people is as easy as picking up weeds from the ground, how can you leave the country behind in order to abide by the morals of ordinary people?" Li Shimin was still hesitant.Everyone said: "What do you think of Yu Shun, Your Majesty?" Li Shimin said, "He is a saint." Everyone said: "If Yu Shun failed to escape the filling of soil by his father and younger brother when dredging the well, I'm afraid he He has already turned into the mud in the well; if he could not escape the fire set by his father and younger brother when he was building the granary, I am afraid he would have been reduced to ashes in the granary. How can I spread my grace to the world and spread the law? What about later generations? That's why Yu Shun endured when his father beat him with a small stick, and ran away when he was beaten with a big stick, all because Yu Shun pretended in his heart that it was an important matter for the state!" Li Shimin asked people to do divination again to see if they should take action, just in time Zhang Gongjin, an aide of the Qin Palace, came in from outside, and threw all the tortoise shells on the ground and said: "Divination was originally used to decide difficult things, but now things are not doubtful. What else is there to do with divination? If the result of the fortune-telling is unlucky, is it true that no action is taken?" So, everyone began to plan how to take action.

[Original text]

The people of the world ordered Fang Xuanling to call Fang Xuanling and others secretly, saying: "If you don't listen to the imperial decree and return to the king, if you pay a private visit today, you will sit down and die, and you dare not teach." The people of the world were angry, saying that Jingde said: "Xuanling, How can you betray me if it is dark!" He took the sword he was wearing and gave it to Jingde, saying: "Go and see it, if you have no intention, you can cut off its head." Jingde went, and together with Wuji said: "The king has made up his mind. , the public should quickly join in the conspiracy. I belong to four people, and I cannot walk in groups." He ordered Xuanling and Ruhui to wear Taoist clothes and join Wuji, and respect for virtue comes from other ways.

I have not, Taibai will return to the sky.Fu Yimi played: "Taibai sees the division of Qin, and the king of Qin should rule the world." He gave it to the people of the world.So the people of the world secretly played Jianjian and Yuanji's promiscuous harem, and said: "I have no responsibilities to my brothers. Now I want to kill my ministers. It seems to be revenge for Shichong and Jiande. I have died in vain. I will never violate the king's relatives. My soul returns to the ground. I am ashamed to see you thieves!" Shang Xingzhi was astonished, and reported: "I will ask you tomorrow, and you should participate early."

【Translation】

Li Shimin asked Changsun Wuji to secretly summon Fang Xuanling and others. Fang Xuanling and others said: "The decree of the imperial edict forbids all of us to serve the King of Qin. If we go to visit the King of Qin privately now, we will definitely be convicted and die. So we dare not accept King Qin's decree!" Li Shimin was very angry, and he said to Yuchi Jingde: "Are Fang Xuanling and Du Ruhui also betraying me?" He took off his saber and handed it to Yuchi Jingde, saying: "You go Take a peek at the situation, and if they really don't intend to come, you can cut off their heads and bring them to me." Yuchi Jingde went immediately, and together with Changsun Wuji hinted to Fang Xuanling and others: "King Qin has already Having decided on a plan of action, you'd better go to the Prince Qin's Mansion to plan big things together. The four of us cannot walk on the street together." Then let Fang Xuanling and Du Ruhui put on Taoist costumes, and together with Changsun Wuji Going to the Qin Palace, Yuchi Jingde also entered the Qin Palace by another road.

On the third day of June, Venus once again appeared in broad daylight at the noon position due south in the sky.Fu Yi secretly wrote: "Venus appeared in the division of Qin, which is a sign that King Qin is in charge of the world." Gao Zu handed Fu Yi's secret memorial to Li Shimin.At that time, Li Shimin was secretly reporting that Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji had fornicated concubines in the harem, and said: "I have never done anything wrong to my elder brother and younger brother, but now they are trying to murder me, as if to avenge Wang Shichong and Dou Jiande. Now I am wronged. If you die, you will bid farewell to your father forever. When your soul goes to the ground, if you see Wang Shichong and others, you will be ashamed!" Gaozu looked at Li Shimin and said in surprise: "Tomorrow I will interrogate this matter in court. You'd better go to the court as soon as possible." Come to court."

[Original text]

Gengshen, Shimin led Changsun Wuji and others to enter and ambush at Xuanwu Gate.Zhang Jieyu secretly learned that the people of the world expressed their opinions, and Chiyu built it.Jiancheng called Yuanji to seek him out, and Yuanji said: "It is appropriate to let the soldiers of the palace mansion stay away from the imperial court in order to observe the situation." Xuanwu Gate.In the past, Pei Ji, Xiao Yu, Chen Shuda, etc. had been called to follow suit.

After completion, Yuanji arrived at Linhu Palace, and felt the change, that is, Bama returned to the palace eastward.The people of the world call it out, Yuan Ji shoots at the people with his bow, but it is not enough again and again, the people of the world shoot at the building and kill it.Yuchi Jingde followed with seventy riders and shot Yuanji from left and right.The people of the world, Ma Yi, went into the forest and was caught by the branches, so he couldn't get up from the fall.When Yuanji arrives suddenly, the bow will be strangled, and Jingde will jump on the horse and scold him.Yuan Jibu wanted to play in Wude Hall, Jingde chased and shot him, and killed him.Yiwei chariot general Feng Yifeng Liwen Jiancheng died, sighed and said: "how can there be a life to receive his kindness, but death is difficult to escape!" There are two thousand elite soldiers from the Qi Mansion Chiqu Xuanwu Gate.Mr. Zhang would like to work hard and retreat alone to refuse, and he is not allowed to enter.General Yunhui respected Jun Hong, who was in charge of the guards, stationed at Xuanwu Gate, and stood up to fight. He said in person: "Things are unknown, and Xu Guanchang will wait for the soldiers to gather and fight in a row. It is not too late." From then on, Lu Shiheng, the general of Zhonglang, shouted in, and they all died.Junhong, the great-grandson of Xianjun.The gatekeepers fought hard with Wan Che and others for a long time. Wan Che clamored to attack the Qin Mansion, and the officers and men were terrified.After Feng Li killed Jing Junhong, he said to his disciples: "It is enough to report less to the prince!" Then he dismissed his troops and fled to the wild.

【Translation】

On the fourth day of June, Li Shimin led Changsun Wuji and others into the court, and sent soldiers to set up an ambush at Xuanwu Gate.Zhang Jieyu secretly learned of Li Shimin's general intentions, so she hurried to tell Li Jiancheng.Li Jiancheng immediately summoned Li Yuanji to plan together. Li Yuanji said: "We should lead the troops in the East Palace and Qi Wangfu well, and avoid going to the court under the pretext of being sick, so as to observe the situation." Li Jiancheng said: "The army is already on guard. You and I should visit the court so that we can inquire about the news in person." Then the two entered the court together and walked towards the Xuanwu Gate.At this time, Gao Zu had summoned Pei Ji, Xiao Yu, Chen Shuda and others to investigate the matter.

When Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji arrived at the Linhu Palace, they realized that something had changed, and immediately turned their horses around, trying to return eastward to the East Palace and Prince Qi's Mansion.Unexpectedly, Li Shimin followed them to greet them. Li Yuanji opened his bow and wanted to shoot Li Shimin, but failed to draw the bow and arrows three times in a row. Li Shimin also shot Li Jiancheng at this time, killing him.Yuchi Jingde led seventy cavalry to arrive one after another, and the soldiers around him shot Li Yuanji off his horse.Li Shimin's horse ran into the woods in fright, but was caught by a branch and fell to the ground and couldn't get up.Li Yuanji arrived quickly, snatched the bow from Li Shimin's hand, and tried to strangle Li Shimin to death, but Yuchi Jingde jumped up and shouted at him.Li Yuanji was about to walk to Wude Hall, but Yuchi Jingde chased him from behind and shot him to death.After hearing the news of Li Jiancheng's death, Feng Li, general of Yiwei chariot and cavalry, sighed and said, "How could he be grateful for his kindness when he was alive, but now he can escape his disaster when he dies!" Immediately, he and the deputy guard Xue Wanche and Xie Shufang, a Wannian man on the left chariot from Qu Zhi's mansion, led 2000 elite troops from the East Palace and Qi Wang's Mansion to the Xuanwu Gate.Zhang Gongjin had always been extremely powerful. He closed the door tightly by himself, blocking Feng Li and others from the door so that they could not enter.General Yunhui Jing Junhong was in charge of the Suwei Army and was stationed at Xuanwu Gate.He stood up and prepared to fight, but the people close to him stopped him and said: "Things are unpredictable, let's slowly observe the development and changes of the situation, wait until the troops are assembled, and then go to battle, it is not too late." Respect Jun Hong refused to obey, and immediately ran forward with Zhonglang General Lu Shiheng shouting loudly, but they all died in battle.Jing Junhong is the great-grandson of Jing Xianjun.The soldiers guarding the Xuanwu Gate fought with Xue Wanche and others. The battle lasted for a long time. Xue Wanche led his troops to march forward with clamor, intending to attack the Qin Palace, and the soldiers were terrified.At this time, Yuchi Jingde held the heads of Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji and showed them to Xue Wanche and others. The troops from the East Palace and Prince Qi's Mansion broke up immediately, and Xue Wanche fled into Zhongnan Mountain together with dozens of cavalry.After Feng Li killed Jing Junhong, he said to his subordinates: "This is enough to repay the prince a little." Then he threw away his helmet and armor and fled in a hurry.

[Original text]

Rafting above the sea pool, the people of the world envoy Yuchi Jingde to enter the guard, and Jingde holds the armor and holds the spear until he reaches the upper place.The superior was shocked, and asked, "Who is evil in today's chaos? Why are you here?" Confrontation: "The king of Qin used the crown prince and the king of Qi to make trouble, and he raised his troops to punish him. He feared alarming your majesty and sent his ministers to stay in the guard." Pei Ji and others said: "If you don't plan to see this today, what should you do?" Xiao Yu and Chen Shuda said: "Jiangcheng and Yuanji didn't plan for righteousness, and they didn't make any contribution to the world. Treacherous conspiracy. Now the King of Qin has been punished and punished. The King of Qin has conquered the universe and brought the land back to his heart. If His Majesty punishes Yuan Liang and entrusts him with state affairs, nothing will happen." The Shang said: "Good! This is my long-cherished heart." At that time, Suwei and the soldiers of the Qin government were still fighting with the second palace. Jingde asked for an order to order all the troops to be punished by the king of Qin and follow him.Sima Yu of Tiance Mansion went out from the gate of Dongshang Pavilion to announce the edict, and then the crowd decided.The emperor also sent Pei Ju, the servant of Huangmen, to the East Palace to tell all the generals and soldiers that they should all be dismissed.Shangnai summoned Shimin, caressed him and said, "Recently, I have been tempted to cast a stick." Shimin knelt down and sucked his breast, mourning for a long time.

In Guihai, Li Shimin was crown prince.

(End of this chapter)