BSI Chapter 14 Li Chengqian: Qingque, let me tell you two stories!
Chapter 14 Li Chengqian: Qingque, let me tell you two stories!
Li Tai's heart trembled. He had planned to explain to Qin Yong after returning home to prevent him from letting something slip, but now it seemed that his mother was not giving him that chance at all.
"Qin Yong is in the Literature Museum," Li Tai said.
Empress Zhangsun whispered a few words in Li Shimin's ear.
Li Shimin nodded: "Someone come here!"
At this moment, a guard entered from outside, bowed, and said, "Your Majesty, please give your orders!"
"Go to the Literature Museum immediately and call over a man named Qin Yong."
"promise!"
The guard agreed and turned to leave.
Li Tai's heart began to pound with anxiety, and sweat began to bead on his forehead.
It would have been better if Li Shimin hadn't mentioned the wind disease. But when Li Tai brought it up, Li Shimin felt a headache coming on, and it was getting worse.
The Li family has this family history of the disease.
Li Shimin sat in a chair, supporting himself with his left elbow, his hand resting on his forehead.
Li Tai stood by with his hands at his sides.
Li Tai also had a headache, which might be partly due to his rheumatism flaring up.
On the other hand, he was so shocked and anxious that his face turned pale.
It was February, and the weather was still very cold. However, Li Tai's palms were sweaty. He touched his chest and found that his inner shirt was soaked.
Although it was only less than half an hour, Li Tai felt as if half a year had passed.
Finally, Qin Yong arrived.
Qin Yong looked up and saw the Emperor and Empress. Turning his head, he saw the Prince of Yue standing beside him. Startled, he immediately knelt on the ground and kowtowed, saying, "This humble servant kowtows to the Emperor and Empress!"
Empress Zhangsun's face was ashen, and her sharp eyes scrutinized Qin Yong from head to toe: "You are Qin Yong?"
"That's right."
"I ask you, did you go to the East Palace with the King of Yue to set up the grape trellis during the day today?"
"Yes."
"So, what have you done? Tell the truth. If there is even a single lie, once I have verified it, I will exterminate your entire family." Empress Zhangsun said this with a stern face and cold eyes.
"I wouldn't dare."
"Then why don't you hurry up and tell me?"
"promise!"
Qin Yong turned his head to look at the King of Yue.
Empress Zhangsun said, "Why are you looking at him? If you have something to say, just say it directly. There's no need to beat around the bush."
"Yes!" Qin Yong paused, "It's just that the King of Yue caught a cold and had a terrible headache. Fortunately, I know a little about medicine and can cure his illness."
The King of Yue was worried that if he fell ill after going to the Eastern Palace, it would be troublesome.
He then took the little man with him and helped them build the grape trellis.
As evening approached, I left the Eastern Palace with the King of Yue.
"That's all?"
Yes, that's all.
"Think again, is there anything else you haven't explained?"
At this moment, Li Tai's heart was in his throat.
He thought to himself, if Qin Yong is a coward and reveals all his secrets, then what good will he do?
His eyes were fixed on Qin Yong.
Qin Yong naturally understood that if he revealed the fact that he had buried the wooden figurine in the East Palace toilet, not only would he not survive, but his entire family would also perish.
Thinking of this, he steeled himself and gritted his teeth, saying, "Your Majesty, I have not done anything else."
If you don't believe me, you can send someone to investigate.
Empress Zhangsun saw that he spoke with great certainty and that she could not produce any strong evidence at this time, so she did not say anything more.
Hearing this, Li Tai finally felt relieved.
Li Shimin asked, "What medicines do you use to treat your wind-related illness?"
"Your Majesty, I used some common medicines, such as angelica, schizonepeta, cinnamon twig, and mint."
To everyone's surprise, Li Shimin replied, "Nonsense! I have tried all these medicines before, and none of them worked. How could they possibly cure my wind-related illness?"
"Your Majesty, everything I have said is the truth. How could I dare to deceive you?"
"In that case, my head is now throbbing slightly."
If you can cure my illness, I will believe what you say, not only releasing you without charge but also rewarding you handsomely.
If you cannot cure him, I will punish you for deceiving the emperor.
Qin Yong kowtowed repeatedly, saying, "This humble servant will do his utmost to cure Your Majesty's illness."
Traditional Chinese medicine emphasizes observation, auscultation, inquiry, and palpation.
Qin Yong got up from the ground, came to Li Shimin's side, flipped his eyelids, looked at his tongue, and took his pulse.
Later, Qin Yong wrote a prescription.
Empress Zhangsun ordered someone to take the prescription to the pharmacy to get the medicine.
The medicine was brought back in no time.
She then instructed her maid to take it and boil it.
After the medicine was decocted, the maid brought it over.
Li Shimin took a look; the medicine was dark purple in color and had a strange smell.
"Will drinking this bitter water do me any good?"
Qin Yong prostrated himself on the ground and kowtowed again: "Your Majesty, please rest assured, as long as you take this medicine, you will definitely feel much better."
Li Shimin still had some doubts.
At this moment, Li Tai came over and said, "Father, let me try it for you first."
Li Shimin nodded slightly: "Tai'er is indeed filial."
A maid brought over a small bowl, poured a small portion of the medicine from the medicine bowl, and Li Tai picked it up and drank it down without hesitation.
It's quite amazing, but after a short while, Li Tai's headache disappeared, his complexion became rosy, his eyes shone, and he stopped sweating profusely.
Upon seeing this, Li Shimin found that the medicine was indeed effective, so he drank the rest of the medicine.
After a while, Li Shimin gradually felt that his headache was gone.
Their spirits also lifted.
It's a crime to disobey a master; Qin Yong is indeed quite capable.
Li Shimin smiled and said to Empress Zhangsun, "It seems Qin Yong is indeed a useful person."
Empress Zhangsun originally wanted to hand Qin Yong over to Dai Zhou, the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, for interrogation. However, at present, there is insufficient evidence, and no wrongdoing by Qin Yong has been found. It is difficult to convict him based on mere speculation and reasoning.
Moreover, Li Shimin had already said that if Qin Yong's medical skills were excellent, he would release him and reward him.
night.
The Eastern Palace.
The storm has finally passed, and everything has returned to normal.
Li Chengqian read through the mountain of memorials from morning till night.
He couldn't understand why there were so many things to do. Even if he didn't sleep and worked day and night, he still couldn't finish them all.
Being a crown prince and exhausting yourself to the point of exhaustion, tell me, what's the fun in being a crown prince?
There are still so many people vying to become the crown prince; I really don't know what they're thinking.
Li Chengqian sorted out his thoughts and reviewed everything that had happened since he transmigrated. He felt that with his current strength, he still had no chance of breaking the deadlock.
Although he was the crown prince, he felt very lonely and had almost no friends. Even his own brothers were trying to harm him. He didn't know who to trust. Fortunately, he had a strategy simulator to keep him company.
At this moment, another message popped up on the simulator screen: [Qingque has arrived at the door. Shall we see her or not?]
Ok?
Is Qingque here again?
This time, Li Chengqian was very surprised. He thought to himself, "This kid is really bold. He planted a wooden figure here and almost killed me. He still dares to come!"
He really doesn't take me seriously at all!
It seems that this blue sparrow is no ordinary creature.
Since you're here, let's meet.
Li Chengqian replied, "Yes!"
[Incorrect answer! Qingque harbors ill intentions; meeting him would be extremely risky. Would you like to change your answer?]
"No need to change it."
A moment later, Li Tai walked in from outside with a cheerful smile, carrying a large rice bucket in his right hand and a pot of Xinfeng wine in his left: "Brother, I see that you work very hard every day reviewing memorials, so I prepared some wine for you to have a couple of drinks."
Li Chengqian put down the memorial in his hand, looked him over carefully, and wondered what he was up to.
"Alright, I'm starving."
Li Tai took out all four dishes from the rice bucket and placed them on the coffee table; the dishes were still steaming hot.
The two brothers sat facing each other. Li Tai poured three cups of wine for Li Chengqian and also poured three cups for himself.
Li Tai raised his wine glass: "You've worked so hard for the country, it's been too much for you. I'll toast you three cups, bottoms up!"
When Li Tai said this, it was as if the incident with the wooden man had never happened at all, as if it had nothing to do with him.
"Okay, thank you!" Li Chengqian also drank all three cups of wine.
"Brother, we are brothers. In this world, besides Father and Mother, you, me, and Weishan are the closest of brothers."
Li Chengqian thought to himself, "You say that, but what do you actually do?"
He couldn't very well expose the truth in front of Li Tai.
Li Chengqian put down his wine cup, nodded slightly, and said with great emotion, "You're right."
Here, I'll tell you a story about Emperor Ming of Han, Liu Zhuang, and his brother, Liu Cang.
After Liu Zhuang became emperor, he trusted Liu Cang very much and appointed him as General of the Cavalry, a position above the Three Dukes. Liu Cang also fully supported his brother. No matter what, as long as it was Liu Zhuang's decree, he would resolutely carry it out.
If he finds anything inappropriate or problematic in Liu Zhuang's words or actions, he will correct it promptly.
Liu Zhuang listened attentively and made corrections accordingly.
As a result, thanks to the brothers' close unity, the situation both inside and outside the court was excellent, and those treacherous and wicked men in the court, who had originally intended to stir up trouble, dared not act rashly.
Li Chengqian told this story to Li Tai in the hope that Li Tai could be as loyal to his elder brother as Liu Cang, and that the two brothers could live in harmony and mutual respect.
Upon hearing this, Li Tai became very excited: "Your Majesty, you are absolutely right! I must learn from Liu Cang."
Li Chengqian grasped Li Tai's hand: "If you can treat Liu Zhuang like Liu Cang did, your foolish brother will never treat you unfairly."
Li Tai thumped his chest loudly: "Please rest assured, Your Majesty, we will definitely get along well and become a model of friendly relations for future princes."
"You're truly my good brother."
Li Tai's eyes darted around. "I have a favor to ask, Your Majesty. I wonder if you would be willing to grant it?"
"What is it? Just tell me, as long as it's within my power, I'll definitely agree."
"Tonight, I intend to stay overnight at the Eastern Palace and share a bed with Your Majesty, to talk all night long. What do you think, Your Majesty?"
After hearing this, Li Chengqian wondered what the boy was up to. However, since he had already made the request, it wouldn't be good to refuse him outright.
On the other hand, it's just sleeping here, it's not a big deal.
Li Chengqian laughed and said, "That's great! Tonight, we brothers will sleep side by side and have a good chat."
Li Tai was very excited: "That's great, I will listen carefully to your teachings."
The two brothers toasted each other and drank until late at night.
After washing up, the two got into bed and each slept at one end of the bed.
Li Chengqian was too tired, and before long, he was snoring loudly and fell into a deep sleep.
Around four in the morning, Li Tai sat up, clutching his stomach, and asked, "Brother, my stomach hurts. Where's the toilet?"
Li Chengqian was still snoring and didn't hear a thing.
Li Tai called out to Li Chengqian three times in a row, but Li Chengqian still did not wake up.
Li Tai tiptoed off the bed and headed towards the toilet.
The toilet was brightly lit. Li Tai went inside and searched carefully, but he couldn't find the wooden figure.
He thought to himself, "This is really weird. Qin Yong told me very clearly that the wooden man was buried in the right corner of the toilet. How could it have disappeared?"
He searched for a long time, but ultimately failed to find the wooden man.
So he returned to the palace.
Li Chengqian was still sleeping very soundly.
Li Tai thought this was a good opportunity for him to make his move. If he killed Li Chengqian, he could say that he died of a sudden illness.
As the second son of the legitimate wife, and with Li Zhi being so young, the position of crown prince was undoubtedly his.
Thinking of this, Li Tai rolled up his trouser leg, revealing a dagger strapped to his right calf.
He reached out his right hand and pulled out the dagger. The blade was about seven inches long, extremely sharp, and gleamed with a cold light.
He swallowed hard and slowly made his way to the edge of the bed.
Just then, a guard on patrol outside shouted, "Beware of fire and theft! Watch out for fire!"
If Li Tai were the kind of sensible person who would stop after hearing the code, then nothing would have happened.
However, he was now so focused on killing Li Chengqian that he couldn't care less about anything else.
He reached the edge of the bed and saw Li Chengqian lying on his side with his back to him, completely unaware of anything.
Li Tai raised the dagger high in his hand and plunged it into Li Chengqian's head.
However, at this critical moment, someone threw a pebble through the window, which struck Li Tai's right wrist.
"Ouch!"
Li Tai was in unbearable pain and screamed, the dagger falling onto the bed.
This finally woke Li Chengqian up.
Li Chengqian sat up and rubbed his eyes: "Qingque, it's so late, why aren't you sleeping? What are you doing?"
"Brother, my stomach hurts, I need to get up and go to the toilet."
Clearly, Li Chengqian had already spotted the dagger on the bed: "What's going on here?"
Li Tai felt a surge of panic. He thought to himself, "Damn it, I'm so unlucky. Who was so wicked as to throw a pebble at me? Otherwise, I would have succeeded by now."
"Your Majesty... Your Majesty, it's like this. A few days ago, the Turks sent an envoy to give me this dagger, saying that it is a treasure with a sharp blade that can cut through iron like mud."
The younger brother thought to himself, "How can I keep such a good thing for myself?"
So tonight, I brought it here, intending to present it to my elder brother, the Emperor.
"Oh, is that so? Why didn't you mention it when you were drinking earlier, but only now?"
"Uh—," Li Tai's expression froze instantly, and he chuckled dryly twice, "I forgot about this while we were drinking. When I went to the toilet just now, I squatted down and this dagger was in my way, so I remembered it."
"I see."
Li Chengqian picked up the dagger, examined it in his hand, and indeed it was a sharp weapon.
He thought to himself, "You little rascal, Qingque, you've come up with another scheme when one fails, and each one is more vicious than the last. You're even trying to poison me yourself."
However, he then thought of his promise to his mother, which stated that he was allowed to be unrighteous, but not himself.
After examining it, Li Chengqian praised it repeatedly: "It is indeed a treasure. Since your intention is so sincere, then I will gladly accept it."
Li Tai then handed the scabbard of the dagger to Li Chengqian; the scabbard was also very exquisitely made.
Li Chengqian looked at Li Tai: "Are you still sleepy?"
"Not sleepy."
"If you're not sleepy, I'll tell you another story."
"Yes, brother, I'm all ears."
Li Chengqian cleared his throat: "At the end of the Shang Dynasty, King Zhou of Shang listened to Daji's slander and created the torture of branding, which was used to harm loyal officials. Loyal ministers like Bigan had their hearts and livers ripped out, and the people were filled with resentment. The feudal lords rose up in rebellion one after another."
Ji Chang, the Marquis of Xibo, had many sons, among whom Boyi Kao was the eldest son and Ji Fa was the second son. They were brothers from the same mother.
This is just like the relationship between me and you.
Bo Yikao and Ji Fa were not only brothers, but also friends.
They support and care for each other.
According to the court's system at the time, the Marquis of Xibo sent Ji Fa to Chaoge as a hostage. During the eight years that he was away from Xiqi, the candidate from Boyi was afraid that Xuelongju would not know the way, so he took Xuelongju to Chaoge many times to let it become familiar with the route.
Bo Yikao thought to himself that if Ji Fa were to escape Chaoge one day, he could return to Xiqi as long as he rode the Snow Dragon Steed.
Later, Ji Fa successfully escaped back to Xiqi.
Furthermore, the two brothers were extremely loyal and filial to their father, Ji Chang, the Marquis of Xibo. It was precisely because of their mutual support that the power of Xiqi grew stronger and stronger, eventually defeating King Zhou of Shang and establishing the Zhou Dynasty.
Li Chengqian told this story to Li Tai in the hope that Li Tai would realize his mistake, unite with him, and work together to assist their father, making the Tang Dynasty more prosperous and powerful.
After hearing this, Li Tai feigned being moved: "Bo Yikao is truly good to his brother."
Li Chengqian thought to himself that this man's understanding of the problem was always off track. He only saw how good Boyi Kao was to Ji Fa, but he didn't expect that Ji Fa was also very respectful to Boyi Kao.
Therefore, Li Chengqian corrected his view: "Brothers should care for each other and be respectful and loving towards one another!"
Li Tai nodded: "Your Majesty, what you said is excellent. The two stories you told me today have greatly inspired me. From now on, I will definitely learn from Ji Fa and Liu Cang, treat Your Majesty with respect, and wholeheartedly assist you."
"I hope you are true to your word. Rest assured, I will not treat you unfairly."