Wentang

Chapter 137 Accepting Apprentices ([-]-character chapter, three in one)

There is no doubt that Li Shimin made great contributions to the establishment of the Tang Dynasty. After the founding of the country, he personally participated in four major battles and established the status of the lord of the Central Plains of the Tang Dynasty.

The first game was Ping Xueju, which was Li Tang Liguo's first tough battle.At this time, the sphere of influence of the Tang State was only in the Guanzhong and Hedong areas, and it had little advantage among the princes.If this battle is lost, there will be no prosperous Tang Dynasty.

Xue Ju is a character with both wisdom and courage, and he calls himself the Overlord of the Western Qin Dynasty.Since ancient times, those who dare to claim the title of overlord are either fools or really fierce people, and Xue Ju belongs to the latter.

What is the evidence?He defeated Li Shimin head-on and captured Murong Luohu, Liu Hongji and others.It can be said that this is one of the few fiascos Li Shimin has experienced in his life.

However, when he was preparing to attack Chang'an, he died of illness, and it was said that he was shot to death by Liu Ya. Regardless of how he died, he died anyway.In response to that sentence, he died before he left his teacher.

Li Shimin took advantage of Xue Ju's death to make a comeback, wiped out Xue Ju's forces and leveled the threat from the West.This battle gave Li Tang a firm foothold, and he has the qualifications to fight for world hegemony ever since.

The second battle was to defeat the forces of Song Jingang and Liu Wuzhou.In the fourth game, the remnants of Dou Jiande Liu Heita, Xu Yuanlang and others were killed.

These people are just heroes for a while, and their structure and ability are not enough to unify the whole country. Even if they are not wiped out by Li Shimin, they will be wiped out by others.

What's more, Liu Heitai and Xu Yuanlang were captured by Li Jiancheng.So I won't say much about these two battles.

The focus is on the third battle of Pingdou Jiande and Wang Shichong.

Dou Jiande and Wang Shichong, both of them are relatively strong among the princes.Wang Shichong's ability may be lacking, but he occupies the most prosperous Luoyang, so he should not be underestimated.

Especially Dou Jiande, who believed in Rannuo and advocated heroism, during his reign he gave the people a rest and recuperation, and released the captured court ladies and prisoners of war to return them to their hometowns.

While others are still thinking about how to squeeze the power of the people and resort to military action, he is already thinking about how to resume production. This is the difference between a hero and a king.

Yue Shan always thought that he was the most personable person besides Li Tang.

Unfortunately, since Shengyu and He Shengliang, there is still a Li Shimin in this world.He was captured alive by Li Shimin while rescuing pig teammate Wang Shichong.

Li Tang captured and forced many princes to surrender, including Li Mi, Wang Shichong, Luo Yi, Du Fuwei, etc. Most of these people survived.Some were also crowned princes, some became Li Yuan's guests, and some became Li Tang's chief officials.

But only Dou Jiande was directly executed.

Why?Because Li Tang also knew that people like Li Mi and Wang Shichong were just tyrants with a bad reputation among the people, and it would be difficult to make a comeback once they failed.

Dou Jiande is different. He has a very high prestige among the people. In today's words, he has won the hearts of the people. As long as such people are given a chance to ascend to the top, there will be a lot of people who respond.

This can be seen from the deeds of Liu Heita and others later.

Liu Heikai was just a general under Dou Jiande. He gathered the remnant party to rebel under the banner of avenging Dou Jiande, and quickly recruited [-] troops to fight the Tang Dynasty with a bruised nose and a swollen face.Li Shimin took command twice to defeat him.

If Liu Heita is replaced by Dou Jiande, I am afraid that the momentum will only be greater, and the time for the unification of the Central Plains will be delayed by several years or even ten years.

This is not to brag about how powerful Dou Jiande is, but to say how important Li Shimin's defeat of Dou Jiande is and how great his achievements are.

This battle defeated Dou Jiande, the only king with the ability to contend for world hegemony, and completely established the pattern of Li Tang's unification of the country.

Can credit be converted into strength?Not really.

When Li Shimin was fighting abroad, he didn't have the time to manage his own small forces, but Li Jiancheng could.

From the beginning of the founding of the Tang Dynasty, Li Jiancheng has been assisting Li Yuan in handling state affairs at the center. He has enough time to manage his own power and is capable of placing his cronies in various key departments across the country.

Take Dou Jian as an example. Li Shimin killed Dou Jiande. Logically speaking, Dou Jiande's base team should fall into his hands. After he picks out the outstanding talents, the rest will belong to the court.

But in fact, Li Jiancheng took advantage of his position in the center to pack and absorb Dou Jiande's top team.Li Shimin can only do it and see that there is nothing he can do.

As Gyeonggi, Chang'an City is the core of Li Jiancheng's sphere of influence. When Li Shimin returned to the center after going out to fight, he found that he was struggling in Chang'an City.

In history, Zhao Kuangyin had the same experience as Li Shimin.

He led troops to pacify the countries all the year round, so he handed over the rear area to his younger brother Zhao Kuangyi.When he unified the country and returned to Gyeonggi, he discovered that the entire Kaifeng city had been managed by Zhao Kuangyi like an iron barrel.

Even without Zhao Kuangyi nodding the court's will, he couldn't leave Gyeonggi.

Zhao Kuangyin knew that this situation was very dangerous, so he wanted to move the capital several times, but he had to give up because of the counterattack of Zhao Kuangyi's group.

The founding king of a generation didn't even know how he died in the end, the throne was taken away by his younger brother, and his own children died inexplicably.

Why was Zhao Kuangyi able to seize power so arrogantly?Because Kaifeng City is full of his people.

There is another example, Ming Chengzu Zhu Di.

Why did he move the capital to Beiping after the successful mutiny?
On the one hand, it is to resist the northern nomads; the other reason is that Jinling has been run by Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Yunqi for decades, and there are people loyal to Zhu Yunqi everywhere.

If he dared to live in Jinling ostentatiously, he might have his head cut off while he was sleeping one night.

If there is a large-scale encirclement and suppression, it will delay for several years, and such internal friction is not good for the country, and may cause more serious consequences.

Simply move the capital directly and put Gyeonggi in Beiping, my base camp, and all problems will be solved easily.In the past few years, those who were loyal to Zhu Yunqi will naturally perish by themselves.

From this, it can be imagined that Li Jiancheng has been operating in Chang'an City for more than four years and nearly five years, and how huge his sphere of influence is.

It was at the end of the fourth year and the beginning of the fifth year of Wude that Li Shimin really concentrated on running his own small power. household.

The most important thing is that he has obtained a dispensation that Tiance Mansion can set up its own officials.What does that mean?That is, you can set up your own organization to recruit officials yourself, and report to the court afterwards.

With this right, Li Shimin's life will be much easier, and he will not be helpless in the competition with Li Jiancheng.

He took advantage of this opportunity to open a literature museum, and recruited scholars from all over the world to come in as consultants. The combination of the literature museum and the Qin Palace seemed to form a small government agency.

However, the time is still too short. It has been less than three years since he was named Tiance Admiral in October of the fourth year of Wude. Two years of management is not enough to compete with Li Jiancheng's power.

As far as the prime ministers of the court are concerned, Pei Ji and Pei Ju supported Li Jiancheng with open fire sticks; Wu Zetian's father, the warrior Xun, was Li Yuan's diehard loyalist, but he also favored Li Jiancheng.

Feng Deyi is on two boats, but from his opposition to Li Yuan's establishment of Li Shimin as the prince several times, it can be seen that he is biased towards Li Jiancheng.

Xiao Yu and Chen Shuda were honest and upright people who dared to fight the emperor for the sake of legal principles and morality.It's hard to say whether they support Li Jiancheng, who has an orthodox name, or Li Shimin, who has made great achievements but is only the second son.

What's more, Li Jiancheng has also made great contributions, and he has no fault in handling state affairs.

Although Chen Shuda said good things for Li Shimin in history, he believed that he had made great contributions to the world, and he should not be punished and deposed because of rumors.

But Yue Shan felt that he was right about the matter and not about the person. He said these words just to defend Li Shimin from a moral point of view, so he couldn't think that he would stand on Li Shimin's side because of this.

Among the several prime ministers, only one was really on Li Shimin's side, Yuwen Shiji.This power balance is very different.

Not to mention that Li Yuan is actually partial to Li Jiancheng. Although he has said several times that he wants to make Li Shimin the crown prince, it is just talking.In addition, Li Jiancheng has opened up the relationship with the harem, and the pillow wind blows every day.

A lie told ten thousand times becomes the truth. Li Yuan didn't believe the harem's slander against Li Shimin at first, but he couldn't help not believing it as time went on.

It can be said that under such circumstances, Li Shimin's desire to win the crown prince through peaceful competition is tantamount to a dream.His only chance is to rebel.

Moreover, during the rebellion, the priority of killing Li Jiancheng was even higher than capturing Li Yuan.

why?
If Li Yuan is controlled and Li Jiancheng runs away, the result must be that Li Jiancheng mobilizes the Gyeonggi Imperial Army to besiege Li Shimin.

Don't say anything like coercing the emperor to make the princes, Li Jiancheng is not stupid, and he will definitely not be obedient at that time.

And Li Jiancheng has been operating in Chang'an City for several years, and his people are everywhere, even if there is no imperial edict, he can command the forbidden army.What's more, not only the emperor can mobilize the forbidden army, the prime minister also has this right in an emergency.

With Pei Ji and Pei Ju around, he can easily mobilize the Imperial Army.

It can be said that as long as Li Jiancheng is allowed to run away in this rebellion, what awaits Li Shimin is still death.

On the other hand, what if Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji were killed but Li Yuan ran away?
Will Li Yuan kill Li Shimin?Won't.

He has already lost his two sons, so he won't be killing Li Shimin, and it is more likely that he will be imprisoned.

As long as he does not die, Li Shimin has a chance to make a comeback.

why?
Because Li Yuan has no heirs.

Although he has many sons, except for the three brothers Li Jiancheng, Li Shimin, and Li Yuanji, the other children are either incompetent or just babies in their infancy.

Li Yuan is already 57 to [-] years old, how many years can he live?Can he wait until those young sons grow up?
At that time, for the sake of the whole country and the whole family, he can only use Li Shimin again.

Therefore, the most critical part of this rebellion is to kill Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji, and then control Li Yuan.This is why Yue Shan asked Yu Chigong to kill Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji.

Li Shimin had too little power to use in this mutiny, only eight hundred guards and Jing Junhong's two thousand guards.Therefore, they only have one chance, and they must hit one hit, otherwise they will only be greeted with death.

I don't know what's going on there. If everything goes well, Li Jiancheng should have entered the Xuanwu Gate by this time, right?
Yue Shan sighed in his heart, and looked up at the direction of Daxing Palace.

"What is Cuilan thinking about so preoccupied, I haven't noticed it after coming here for so long." At this moment, Changsun Wugou's voice suddenly sounded beside her.

Yue Shan looked up, and found that the eldest grandson Wugou was sitting opposite him drinking tea, so he said with a smile: "Shouldn't elder sister go and watch the servants? Why do you have time to come here to drink tea?"

"Heh... you little fairy put the tea set in the center of the palace, do I need to worry?" Changsun Wugou said with a smile:

"However, your method is indeed very good, and the hearts of the people in the palace have settled down in just a short while. As expected of a little fairy, there are many ways."

"I only have these little cleverness. Don't look at me being so calm, to be honest, I'm also very nervous." Yue Shan shook his head and said.

Changsun Wugou took a look at Yiyun, then turned his head and said seriously: "Can you tell me what you saw?"

"I saw the King come back victorious." Yue Shan said as a matter of course.

Unexpectedly, Changsun Wugou was not only not happy when he heard this, but became more cautious: "You said that there are three thousand futures in one thought, so you have never refused to say anything dead. Now that you are so sure that you will succeed, there must be something wrong. Could it be this time? Is the chance of success so small?"

The second half of the sentence is more like a soliloquy.

Yue Shan looked at her in surprise, what kind of IQ is this, so you can see the loopholes.Sure enough, you can't tell too many lies, otherwise you have to cover up with more lies.

But fortunately, he has a remedy for this loophole. He smiled mysteriously and said: "The future is indeed unpredictable, but there is always a way to find the most real line."

"I found that I didn't appear in all the failed pictures, and now that I appear here, there is only one future."

Changsun Wugou's eyes lit up, and he said, "Is this still possible? That's really great. Cuilan is indeed my lucky star."

Yue Shan smiled wryly and said, "My sister, shouldn't you ask why should I be worried if this is the case?"

"Ah?" Changsun Wugou blinked, and said doubtfully, "Yes, why is Cuilan still worried?"

Yue Shan could tell from this action that she had completely relaxed.This woman can be said to be good, she really puts all her heart and soul into Li Shimin.

"What I'm worried about is whether we can live to see the king return in victory." Yue Shan sighed.

Changsun Wugou's face changed slightly, but when he was about to speak, he heard someone beside him say: "Since this is the case, why does Viscount Yue think of a way to let us survive this calamity."

who?Yue Shan was amazed that he dared to eavesdrop on their conversation so boldly.Turning around, she saw a graceful and luxurious beauty, with a five or six-year-old young lady beside her.

These two people he knew but were not familiar with. They were Concubine Yang and Li Ke.

How did they get here?Yue Shan thought in his heart.

The eldest grandson Wugou's face was slightly gloomy, but he immediately changed into a patterned smile and said: "So it's my sister, how did you come here when you were not staying in your yard when the army was in chaos?"

"I was flustered staying in the backyard. I heard that my sister and Viscount Yue were drinking tea here, so I couldn't help coming over to bother me. I hope my sister will forgive me." Concubine Yang seemed to have no idea that she was not welcome, and said in a gentle tone.

"So that's how it is. We're just chatting and it's not a nuisance. You seem lively when you come. Sit down." Changsun Wugou said.

"Thank you, sister." Concubine Yang respectfully bowed before she walked to the side and sat down.

Only then did Yue Shan get up to greet her, Concubine Yang was so polite, she almost paid him back a big gift.When everyone sat down again, Concubine Yang said apologetically and curiously:

"I accidentally overheard the conversation between my sister and Viscount Yue just now, and I have a question in my heart. Since you have such a godly means, why can't you help the palace escape this disaster?"

Yue Shan pondered for a while, he really didn't want to continue to make up nonsense, so he simply said: "It's not because I don't want to, but because manpower is sometimes poor."

Unexpectedly, Concubine Yang showed a thoughtful expression, and said solemnly: "So that's the case, I understand, Viscount Xie Yue pointed out."

Not only her, the eldest grandson Wugou also seemed to have gained something, and nodded in sympathy.

Only the question marks on Yue Shan's face, I don't even know what I'm talking about, what do you understand?Can you tell me about it.

Because there were more people, the eldest grandson Wugou lost interest in talking, Yue Shan didn't know what to say because he was not familiar with him, the atmosphere suddenly became awkward.Concubine Yang, in particular, felt a little lost due to the difference between left and right.

Seeing her embarrassed look, Yue Shan softened his heart.Especially thinking of her life and the tragic end of her two children.

So he had nothing to say and said, "This is the Changsha County King, right? He's really handsome and well-behaved."

This is not a deliberate exaggeration, but this child is really handsome, with red lips, white teeth and a white face, he will definitely be a handsome man in the future.And she has been obediently standing beside her mother, without saying a word or crying tired, very sensible.

His well-behaved is different from Li Chengqian, Li Chengqian is stable, he is really quiet.

"Yes, Ke'er is here to meet Viscount Yue. He is your father's right-hand man, you must respect him." Concubine Yang said hastily.

"Li Ke has met Viscount Yue." Little Li Ke walked up to Yue Shan with steady steps and made a decent salute with his hands crossed.

However, the bright eyes quietly looked at the guy in front of him who was not much older than himself. He couldn't figure out how he became his father's right-hand man at such a young age.
"Hehe... I dare not accept this gift from the king of the county." Although Yue Shan said so, he sat on the chair and accepted the gift calmly.

"Yue Zijue is a child of a fairy, I wonder if I can do a fortune-telling for Ke'er." Concubine Yang asked nervously.

Yue Shan remained silent, the change of Xuanwu Gate had been moved forward by two years, the changes in the future would definitely be bigger, and the advantage of his familiarity with history would be getting smaller and smaller.If he pretends to be a ghost again, it will easily lead to accidents. He has already planned to wash his hands and quit.

But looking at the gentle Concubine Yang in front of him, looking at the well-behaved Li Ke, and thinking about their future, he couldn't bear it.

Concubine Yang is not specifically recorded in the history books, but only appeared a few times in other people's biographies.But every time he appears, he has a positive image and there is no bad word. The same is true for Li Ke. His records in history books are also full of praise.

The most important thing is that neither of them participated in the battle for the heir apparent.

Some novelists in later generations described Li Ke as ambitious and Yang Concubine as sinister and cunning, but that was only for the sake of novels and could not be taken as real.

In real history, the evaluation of this pair of mother and son is expected to be high.The Song Dynasty had a very pertinent comment on the two of them:
If Wu Wang Kezhi was at that time, his mother would not have heard of Qi Ji's love, and he would not have heard of Ke's plan to seize the heir apparent from the outside.

What does this sentence mean? That is to say: When Wu Wang Li Ke was alive, he never heard of his mother doing anything illegal and disciplined by relying on his identity, and he never heard of Li Ke participating in the seizure of heirs like Wei Wang Li Tai .

It's just a pity that Li Ke, who had never fought all his life, was finally killed by the worried eldest grandson Wuji.No way, who made him so good.

Yue Shan felt very sorry for him when he was studying history, now that he has this opportunity, why not give him a better ending?
After thinking for a while, he said: "If today's changes come to fruition, it will be good news for everyone in Prince Qin's mansion, but for you mother and son...not necessarily."

Concubine Yang's complexion changed again, but it was more doubtful.Why is the success of the mutiny good news for others, but bad news for her and Li Ke?Changsun Wugou also looked at Yue Shan with puzzled eyes, waiting for his answer.

"People can't help themselves in the rivers and lakes, sometimes it's wrong to be too good." Yue Shan reached out and touched Li Ke's head and sighed.

This hint is obvious enough for smart people, at least Changsun Wugou understands it, and Concubine Yang understands it too.

Concubine Yang showed a far-fetched smile and said: "Viscount Yue was joking, Ke'er is not as smart as you said. My mother has been worrying that he is too stupid, what will he do when he grows up."

The smile on Changsun Wugou's face remained the same, but there was a coldness in his eyes, he glared at Yue Shan and said, "Cuilan, what nonsense are you talking about, isn't it good to be excellent? Cheng Qian will inherit the great line in the future and needs talented brothers Assistant."

These words were very pertinent and pleasant to the ear, but a trace of panic flashed in Concubine Yang's eyes, and she held Li Ke's hand tightly with both hands.

Yue Shan sighed again, the eldest grandson Wugou's gentleness and virtuousness are reserved for his own people, when it comes to her husband and children, what she can do is better than Wu Zetian.

"I have a predestined relationship with this child, and I want to accept him as a disciple. I wonder if Concubine Yang is willing to part with her?"

"Ah?" Concubine Yang showed an expression of surprise, surprise, disbelief and... ecstasy.She couldn't think of why Yue Shan would suddenly make this request, even though she had 1 consents in her heart, she didn't dare to agree for a while when she was not sure about the situation.

Changsun Wugou got up suddenly, and when he was about to say something, he saw Yue Shan gave her a calm look.Out of trust in him, she slowly sat down again.

"Concubine Yang can think about it carefully. Although I don't have any great ability, I am confident that I can still teach the Prince of Changsha to give him a prosperous and peaceful life, and I can even make a big difference." Yue Shan said seriously.

"Viscount Xie Yue loves you very much, but the matter is so important that I can't make the decision. I have to ask the king before I can answer you." At this time, Concubine Yang also recovered from her shock and said.

"I understand. I said there is no rush, you have enough time to think about it." Yue Shan said.

Concubine Yang nodded and said: "I'm a little tired, so I won't bother my sister and Viscount Yue." After speaking, she got up and left.

The eldest grandson Wugou didn't keep her either, and let her go.

When she walked away, Changsun Wugou's face turned angry, and he said angrily, "Yue Cuilan, tell me what the hell you're doing?"

Yue Shan drank a cup of tea to moisturize his throat and said, "Sister, don't worry, do you still remember that I said that the world is so big that even if you ride the fastest horse, you can't run to the end in a year?"

"Of course I remember, but what does this have to do with you accepting him as a disciple." The eldest grandson Wugou was like an angry tigress.

"With such a large place, can Dalang rule it after he inherits the great treasure?" Yue Shan asked calmly.

"Huh?" Changsun Wugou, who was so tall, immediately realized: "You want him to..."

"Yes, since that's the case, why not distribute these lands to Chengqian's brothers? As long as they are willing to be vassals of Datang and recognize Datang as the sovereign state, then Chengqian will be the lord of the world and enjoy the luck of the world." Yue Shan Only then did he express his final plan.

The eldest grandson Wugou's face paled slightly, but he said worriedly: "But do they agree? How can you ensure that they won't fight?"

Yue Shan said: "That's why I accepted him as an apprentice, sister still can't trust me?"

The eldest grandson Wugou suddenly smiled, as if nothing happened just now, and said: "Nonsense, it's not that I can't trust you, it's that you can't trust my sister. Otherwise, why do you say that today's event is not a good thing for their mother and child? Can't you trust my sister?"

Yue Shan said seriously: "It's not that I can't trust my sister, but I can't trust the county magistrate of Shangdang."

The eldest grandson Wugou was silent, she was very aware of her brother's temperament, and knew that Yue Shan's concerns were right.If Li Ke is really as good as Yue Shan said, then Changsun Wuji will definitely get rid of him.

She glanced at Yue Shan and thought to herself, this young man's grasp of people's hearts is too thorough.

At the same time, what happened just now made her determined to promise Li Li to him.

As for the elder brother and grandson Wuji's proposal to get married, I can only say sorry.For the sake of her husband, Chengqian, and all her children, she had to tie Yue Shan to her chariot through marriage.

(End of this chapter)