hsntnovel Chapter 2815 Li Shimin's Entrustment of His Son
Chapter 2815 Li Shimin's Entrustment of His Son
"Your Majesty, in truth, Prince Ji only desires wealth and honor. This old servant believes that if Prince Jin refrains from provoking Prince Ji in the future..."
His Highness Prince Ji may not take action against Prince Jin.
No matter what, they were brothers, and His Highness Prince Ji didn't want to bear the stigma of killing his brother.
Moreover, His Highness the Crown Prince is present. Prince Ji has been intelligent since childhood and knows what he should and shouldn't do.
If he were to kill the Prince of Jin, he would fear that the Crown Prince would be wary of him.
So Your Majesty is probably overthinking it.
Wang De understood that what Li Shimin said might come true, but as a servant, she still had to share the burden for her lord at this time.
All he could do was try to stop His Majesty from thinking too much and from feeling so melancholy.
"Wang De, regardless of what might happen in the future, if I die first, remember to keep an eye on them for me."
If that day ever comes, tell the Tenth Prince to spare Zhi Nu's life; this is my dying wish.
Even if... even if he is unwilling to let Zhinu go, I must make him, for my sake, only kill Zhinu and spare the others.
He said, "I don't want those shares of mine anymore; I'll use them as money to buy my life."
Li Shimin's face showed a look of vicissitude. At this moment, he truly resembled a father, a father who was about to pass away.
He was worried that Li Shen would eliminate all of Li Zhi's family members.
"Your Majesty..." Wang De suddenly felt as if His Majesty was entrusting his son to someone else. Could this be some kind of omen?
"It's alright, I'm fine. I just suddenly felt a bit sentimental."
Li Shimin composed himself, having spent several years trying to resolve the feud between the two men, but all his efforts had failed.
He was just speaking from the heart.
"Your Majesty, should we let Physician Sun take a look?" Wang De asked with some concern.
Li Shimin waved his hand:
"No need, I'm fine. Don't investigate this matter either; I trust the Tenth Prince will handle it himself. Given his cunning nature..."
I'm sure he'll guess who it is; we'll see how he retaliates.
"Yes. Then this old servant will withdraw the men." Wang De bowed and accepted the order.
"What's the Crown Prince's reaction?" Li Shimin asked as he sat back down.
"Your Majesty, the Crown Prince has not reacted at all. He continues to attend court and conduct business as usual, as if he knows nothing about it."
Wang De bowed slightly as he poured tea for Li Shimin, answering the question.
Li Shimin nodded, picked up the teacup, and gently blew on it.
"Hmm, not bad. You're calm and composed in the face of adversity, showing improvement."
After speaking, he took a sip of tea. If it were in the past, Li Chengqian would have come over long ago under the guise of reporting to try and get information out of him.
If they went any further, Li Chengqian would have made an even bigger scene.
But now Li Shimin was very satisfied. This was how an emperor should act, making others feel that everything was under his control and that no one knew what he was thinking.
Even if Li Chengqian had been more ruthless and killed a few ministers, Li Shimin would have felt it was justified.
What kind of emperor is he if he doesn't kill people?
"Has the Prince Ji's residence made any moves?" Li Shimin asked again.
"Hehe, Your Majesty, it seems that Prince Ji was frightened this time." Wang De chuckled slightly when Li Shen was mentioned.
"Oh? What do you mean?" Li Shimin put down his teacup, intrigued.
"Your Majesty, this is today's newspaper. You will understand once you take a look." With that, Wang De handed the newspaper on the tea table to Li Shimin.
Li Shimin had initially thought it was just an ordinary newspaper, but he was surprised to find something interesting inside, so he quickly opened it.
The front page headlines were no longer about the imperial court; instead, they featured a huge headline: "The Crown Prince Performs Another Benevolent Act, a Blessing for the People."
Then, below the title, a line of smaller text appeared: This is our Crown Prince, a prince who is devoted to the people and loves them like his own children.
"Interesting." Li Shimin remarked involuntarily after reading the title, and continued reading the content.
The passage begins by recounting how much His Highness the Crown Prince has done for the people during his regency, including projects such as water conservancy, river dredging, bridge and road construction, and tax reductions.
There are also initiatives to establish colleges so that more people can study, to emphasize agriculture, and to ensure that people have enough to eat and wear.
Finally, it was said that the Crown Prince, out of compassion for the suffering of the people, personally donated three years' worth of food to all the charitable institutions and almshouses in the land, providing a safe haven for the destitute elderly and orphans.
The entire text is written in a grand and magnificent style, praising Li Chengqian to the point that he is almost a great emperor of all time, saying that he surpasses Qin Shi Huang and Emperor Wu of Han, and basically writing down everything that can be praised.
Li Shimin was initially engrossed in reading, but as he continued, his expression turned sour, and his hands began to tremble.
This rebellious son, you want to show that no one cares about your determination, but you can't just praise one person and put down another.
The crown prince hasn't even ascended the throne yet, you don't need to fawn over him like this. Anyone who didn't know better would think the crown prince is already the emperor.
Looking at the report, Li Shimin felt a little jealous, as it seemed that the crown prince's achievements were greater than his own.
The key point is that many of the decisions were made by him and were considered his achievements, but Li Shen also attributed them to Li Chengqian, since they all happened during Li Chengqian's regency.
For example, the pacification of the Western Regions.
"That bastard, what kind of crap is he writing? He's getting more and more unscrupulous these days."
To try and distance himself from the situation, he's spouting nonsense. If those in the know heard this, wouldn't he become a laughingstock?
Li Shimin threw the newspaper on the table and began to sulk alone.
"Hehe, Your Majesty, please calm down. Isn't Prince Ji's move just a temporary measure?" Wang De comforted him with a smile.
"Hmph, do you really think he doesn't know? This is one of his old tricks, called diverting attention."
Li Shimin snorted, a hint of jealousy in his voice.
Even if Li Shen is a diversionary tactic, it shouldn't be exaggerated like this. The key question is why he's not being written about.
“Your Majesty, Prince Ji also wants the Crown Prince to know that this matter has nothing to do with him.”
Wang De explained.
"Does he even need to say that? Does Gao Ming not know that this matter has nothing to do with him? If so, what kind of crown prince is he?"
This newspaper really needs to be properly regulated, otherwise who knows how it will write about me one day.
"By imperial decree, Prince Ji, Li Shen, has shown no respect for his elders and is hereby punished with three years' imprisonment." Li Shimin issued the decree without hesitation.
"Fine your salary again? Your Majesty, you just fined us three years' salary a couple of days ago. Why don't we wait a little longer?"
Even Wang De couldn't stand it anymore when he heard that Li Shen's salary would be penalized again.
Why is it that Prince Ji's salary is being levied so easily, as if it were a joke?
"Hmm... it's a bit inappropriate. It shouldn't be too frequent, otherwise this rebellious son will get used to it and won't feel any heartache anymore."
He's still recovering and can't be disciplined, otherwise the fourth son's weight loss efforts would probably be delayed.
Li Shimin also felt that sending a message every two days was a bit excessive. After saying that, he stroked his beard and began to think about how to make Li Shen uncomfortable.
"Your Majesty, why not let Prince Ji off this time? After all, there was a reason for it, and it wouldn't be good to make things too far-fetched."
Wang De seized the opportunity to offer his advice.