It was past noon, and the bloody Chang 'an City finally calmed down. The city gates were closed, and no one was allowed to enter or leave that day.
The corpses in the palace were cleaned up one after another, but there were still dark red blood stains on the ground.
Li Xuan got off his horse. His golden robe was dyed red with blood. He looked disheveled, but he was full of energy as he stepped into Taiji Palace.
This was the first time he had come to the heart of the Great Tang after transmigrating.
The walls were mottled and not as gorgeous as he had imagined. The front of the hall was already filled with people, and all the officials bowed with their hands down. The atmosphere was especially quiet.
Up the steps and in front of the hall, Li Xuan stood in front of the door and looked at the glistening dragon throne in the center of the hall. He smiled and sized up the Tang civil officials beside him. Most of them were scheming figures of the Guanlong family.
" Throughout the ages, countless heroes have led the way to pacify the world. Today, it has been less than ten years since the founding of the Great Tang, but it is still raining blood…"
Li Xuan enunciated each word as his sonorous and forceful words echoed in the court. With his hands behind his back, he didn't look at anyone as he gradually walked up to the dragon throne and sat down."In order to rebel against the former Sui Dynasty, father raised an army from Taiyuan and has been fighting all the way until now. May I ask all the ministers, since ancient times, has this land belonged to the royal family or to you? Or the people of the world?"
For a time, everyone in the court was tongue-tied.
"What is a monarch? What is a minister? What are the people?"
Li Xuan touched the sides of the dragon throne. It was golden and smooth, and there was an unfathomable smile on his face."The position of the Son of Heaven is a center of power that makes people cold-blooded to the bones. Do you all want to sit on it?”
Hearing this, everyone below the stage trembled in fear. They hurriedly shook their heads and replied one after another,"Your Highness, you can't joke about this!”
"Joking?"
Li Xuan deliberately smiled mysteriously." The Great Tang has just been settled. What you're thinking about isn't how to benefit the people of the world or develop the foundation of the Great Tang. Instead, you're thinking about how to let the prince you believe in ascend to the throne. Manipulating the imperial power, if not for this, how could the imperial family have today?”
"Your Majesty, this is His Highness the King of Qin…"
"King Qin? I'm sitting here, and you're talking about the King of Qin. The King of Qin is sitting here, and you're talking about the Crown Prince. Then let me ask you, what is the Son of Heaven? What is a prince?"
Just as someone below the stage spoke, he was interrupted by Li Xuan. He turned his head and sneered."What's wrong? He didn't say anything? Then I will tell you that the Son of Heaven is a tool for you to govern the country, and the Prince is a sharp weapon for the officials to fight for power! What is a fatuous and incompetent monarch? What is a wise monarch? This was nothing more than the result of a battle between two factions of officials. Do you have any objections?"
Li Xuan hated this group of civil officials and strategists the most. Since ancient times, the ones he hated weren't the emperor or the commoners, but these wolves in sheep's clothing.
"What is loyalty? What is adultery?"
Li Xuan's voice was like a loud bell that reverberated in everyone's hearts. He slowly stood up and stood with his hands behind his back."A great traitor is loyal, but he is cunning on the inside. Who among you doesn't feel the same way? Who wasn't? Hahahaha…"
This blatant interrogation made these old and cunning civil officials look as if they had been stripped naked, revealing their ugly looks.
The human heart.
This was the human heart!
What did he mean by 'for the people's lives'? What did he mean by working hard for the country? Which one of them wasn't a crafty sycophant who planned for himself!
"Where is Fang Xuanling?"
Suddenly, Li Xuan's tone changed as his eyes that were as cold as swords shot below the stage. Everyone immediately trembled as Fang Xuanling, who was standing at the front, walked out trembling. His lips twitched." Your Highness, the s-sinner Fang Xuanling pleads for punishment…"
"I, Du Ruhui, plead for punishment…"
" Criminal Cheng Yaojin…"
"Criminal Gao Shilian…"
"Sinful minister Qin Qiong…"
"Sinners…"
For a moment, many of the old ministers knelt down.
They were afraid. They were all old fellows who were familiar with history books. Who had ever seen such an emperor? The words just now were not what these old fellows could have imagined.
"Punishment?"
However, Li Xuan acted as if nothing had happened as he smiled indifferently.""Are you talking about the crime of the Black Tortoise Sect raising an army today? Or the crime of usurping the throne with the King of Qin? Or is it the crime of the king of Qi being killed? Or are you guilty of hiding your selfish motives?"
Sentences that were neither light nor heavy came out of Li Xuan's mouth. The old fellows were sweating profusely. They were ashamed as their heads pressed against the ground and their bodies trembled.
They were not afraid of death, but they were afraid of implicating their families.
"This Highness has read very little and does not have much knowledge.”
Li Xuan's words remained neutral. With a faint smile on his face, he leaned forward.""However, after King Qi's death, His Majesty is already seriously ill. If I turn a blind eye to this sin, I'm afraid I won't be able to be the Son of Heaven of the Great Tang in the future. Tell me, how should we deal with these two crimes?”
"This…"
The group of old fellows were speechless on the spot.
Let me convict myself? How could this be?
Time ticked by, and after a while, there was still no response.
Li Xuan casually flipped through the memorial on the dragon table and smiled mischievously.""What's wrong? Do you really want me to punish you for the crime of implicating your entire family?”
"Your Highness…"
In an instant, the group of old fellows who were scheming immediately trembled and quickly raised their heads."This…this minister is willing to pay with his own life. I only beg Your Highness to spare this minister's family. Our heads will be used to pay for His Highness King Qi's death…"
"Do you think you are worthy of standing side by side with King Qi?"
The smile on Li Xuan's face froze as his hand froze. He snorted coldly and said,""Aren't you all self-proclaimed capable ministers? " Today, I will give you all a chance. I'm afraid that the King of Qin has already escaped. From today onwards, I will give you all a month's time. If I don't see the head of the King of Qin within a month, I'll kill his entire family and exterminate his ten clans! Any objections?"
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