socalfunplaces Page 224
Page 224
Li Chengru had also served as a Grand Commander, which is why he dared to fight Fan Xian for the city gate when he returned to the capital last year.
"Anyone found guilty of treason will be executed on the spot!"
Upon hearing Li Chengru's words, Xin Qiwu's tone immediately changed.
"Your Highness, I hereby accuse Guo Zheng, the Minister of Rites, of treason and plotting rebellion, a crime deserving of death!"
Xin Qiwu's expression was extremely exaggerated, and he spoke these words with great pain and righteous indignation!
"The welcoming ceremony for Your Highness today was all arranged by Guo Zheng. He is the Minister, and we dare not shirk our responsibilities when he makes arrangements!"
Guo Zheng was the Minister of Rites who liked to paint portraits of himself while working.
He was also a distant relative of Guo Youzhi and a corrupt official who caused Fan Wujiu to fail the imperial examination.
Upon hearing Xin Qiwu's words, Guo Zheng immediately cried out his innocence, "Your Highness, this matter was decided by Xin Qiwu on his own initiative!"
"This humble official is well-versed in etiquette and regulations; how could I possibly transgress them intentionally!"
Guo Zheng would steal glances at the Crown Prince every now and then, but the Crown Prince would just swallow hard and not dare to say a word.
After all, he had been slapped in the face by Li Chang'an in court, and if he spoke recklessly again, he might lose face.
As soon as Guo Zheng finished speaking, Xin Qiwu gritted his teeth and decided to go all out.
He pulled out several receipts from his pocket. "Your Highness, the arrangements for banners, palace lanterns, and music all require the official seal of the Minister of Works for final approval!"
“Welcoming His Highness back to the capital is the most important matter for the Ministry of Rites this year, and I have handled this matter with great care.”
Xin Qiwu was clearly prepared, drawing on the precedent of Gong Dian's execution.
Whether you know it or not, the Minister's seal has already been affixed, so there's no point in denying it.
If the Crown Prince wanted to frame Li Chang'an, it would only take a word, but the officials in charge were quite cunning.
Wang Qinian handed the receipts to Li Chang'an, who only glanced at them briefly.
"Guo Zheng, the Minister of Rites, has arbitrarily applied imperial etiquette and regulations, which is tantamount to treason and rebellion. He shall be executed on the spot!"
Wang Qinian has recently become addicted to being an executioner, and at this moment he sneered and drew his knife.
At this moment, the eldest prince hurriedly advised, "Uncle Qin, Guo Zheng is a second-rank official. Let's imprison him and request an imperial decree before executing him!"
Li Chang'an remained expressionless. "Second rank? That's exactly what I'll do!"
As Guo Zheng saw Wang Qinian getting closer, he panicked. "Your Highness! Your Highness!"
"Say something!"
"You arranged all of this!"
Li Chang'an clicked his tongue and sighed, "You shameless corrupt officials are all trying to sow discord between us, uncle and nephew."
"Everyone in the world knows that Chengqian and I are a loving uncle and a filial nephew."
"First, Qin Yi attempted to assassinate me, claiming it was at the behest of the Crown Prince."
"Now Guo Zheng has overstepped his bounds and plotted rebellion, and is even trying to implicate the Crown Prince. He is truly lawless! Execute him!"
Guo Zheng's legs went weak, and he urinated all over the ground. Then, with a scream, he was beheaded by Wang Qinian.
The head of a high-ranking official of the second rank rolled down before everyone's eyes, and the kneeling ministers dared not utter a sound.
If Li Chang'an wanted to avoid trouble, he needed to make an example of someone to warn others, letting those who wanted to curry favor with the Crown Prince and disgust him see what would happen to them first.
Killing Guo Zheng now will ensure that ordinary officials in the capital will not dare to provoke Li Chang'an.
Li Chang'an walked to Li Chengqian's side and said, "Chengqian, Xin Qiwu is your subordinate. I'll give you face and you can deal with him yourself."
The crown prince raised his head, revealing a smile that was more like a grimace.
"Thank you..."
Before he could finish speaking, Li Chang'an interrupted him, "Your venereal disease is all better now, huh? You've been quite energetic lately!"
The crown prince tensed up instantly, but Li Chang'an didn't continue the topic.
"Enjoy yourself while you can, you won't be the crown prince for much longer."
Then, Li Chang'an said to Ye Wan and Uesugi Tiger, "You two go and set up camp near the Dragon Guard Manor. You are not allowed to enter the capital without orders."
The two men accepted the order and left. Li Chang'an then led the Shadow Guards and the prison cart through the kneeling crowd.
Upon entering the capital city, Li Chang'an received a warm welcome.
Inside the convoy, the young emperor of Western Qin even lifted the curtain to look at the bustling crowd.
However, Ashina Shabi and Subida, the former overlords of the snowy land and grassland, are now surrounded by the rotten eggs and vegetable leaves of the people.
The people of Qing were overjoyed, and the streets were deserted as they celebrated this grand ceremony of presenting captives.
Over the years, the Qing Kingdom has held many captive presentation ceremonies, but none have been as spectacular as this one!
"In less than a year, His Highness the King of Qin has destroyed three states!"
"If the Great Qing Kingdom were to unify the world, only the Northern Qi and the Eastern Yi City would remain!"
"The Khan of the Snowy Lands, the Chanyu of the Steppes, this is the first time he has been captured!"
"His Highness the Prince of Qin is both a scholar and a warrior; he truly lives up to the expectations of the people!"
……
Upon reaching the palace gates, the veteran performing artist, Emperor Qing, greeted Li Chang'an with tears in his eyes.
They seemed completely unaware of what was happening outside the city, and everything they did was so genuine and heartfelt.
"Chang'an! You're finally back! I've missed you so much!"
"You conquered three kingdoms in one year, you are the greatest hero of Daqing!"
Such acting skills, so genuine, are something Li Chengqian could never learn in a lifetime.
"Your Majesty! Your humble brother has been thinking of you day and night, wishing he could sprout wings and fly back!"
Emperor Qing spent a long time expressing his admiration, praising Li Chang'an's contributions to the skies.
He had to boast that unifying the world was his goal and program, and his politically correct stance.
Finally, he turned to the Crown Prince, the commander of the Imperial Guards, and said, "Li Chengru!"
Ashina Shabi and Subida were executed by slow slicing to appease the countless people of the Central Plains who perished!
"The young emperor of Western Qin helped me achieve a great victory over Northern Qi, and was thus enfeoffed as the Marquis of Guiqing, receiving double the salary and residing permanently in the capital!"
The young emperor of Western Qin was overjoyed to receive the imperial decree and express his gratitude, becoming the biggest winner of the day.
What followed was a grand triumphant banquet, where Emperor Qing and Prince Qin acted like brothers.
The celebrations in Kyoto lasted for three whole days before gradually calming down.
Li Chang'an's prestige was at its zenith, and a large number of court officials came to befriend him, both openly and secretly.
However, Li Chang'an didn't have time to deal with them right now, leaving Wang Qinian and Xing Yusen to handle them.
However, there was one exception: Mei Zhili, the prefect of Kyoto.
"Your humble servant, Mei, pays respects to Your Highness, the Prince of Qin!"
Mei Zhili performed the grand salute with utmost respect, awaiting Li Chang'an's orders.
Li Chang'an, having been appointed Prefect of Kyoto, naturally wouldn't go to the Kyoto Prefecture to work.
However, the Kyoto Prefecture had to report on all matters, big and small, every day, which meant that Mei Zhili had suddenly gained another father.
Mei Zhili, who was bowing his head, suddenly heard a woman's voice, "You who are not mentally sound, get up."
Mei Zhili looked up and saw a woman with a graceful figure and a beautiful face sitting in Li Chang'an's arms.
Upon hearing this voice, Mei Zhili was instantly terrified and broke out in a cold sweat!
Two years ago, Fan Xian was falsely accused in the capital, and it was this woman who reminded him of the case, which allowed him to regain the emperor's favor.
Mei Zhili was drenched in sweat when he realized that he had already boarded the King of Qin's ship!
Li Chang'an said, "Lord Mei, please go back and keep a close watch on the capital prefecture for me. Make sure nothing goes wrong."
Mei Zhili kowtowed repeatedly, but he was only a third-rank official, and his head wasn't as hard as that of a second-rank minister.
After Mei Zhili left, Li Chang'an gently waved his right hand, and the door to the room closed by itself.
Then, he touched Jingni's blushing and beautiful cheeks and pointed to the table not far away.
"Little salamander, go lie down."
……
A few days later, Emperor Qing heard some news in his study.
The Empress beat a palace maid to death, and Emperor Qing specifically sought out Eunuch Hou to find out what had happened.
Eunuch Hou reported, "Your Majesty, that palace maid stole a piece of jade from the Empress."
Emperor Qing frowned and said, "How could someone be killed over a piece of jade?"
Eunuch Hou really did a thorough investigation. "Because the Empress has worn that jade pendant since she was a child, she especially likes it."
"Some of the palace maids and eunuchs in the harem are quite audacious; they even stole the things that the Empress liked the most."