At the end of the Sui Dynasty, there was chaos. The warlords split up and the vassals fought for hegemony, causing the land of the Nine Prefectures to be in turmoil.
The Turks entrenched in the steppe and the Tibetans residing on the plateau, these foreign races were all rubbing their fists and glaring at the Han, ready to tear off a piece of meat from the land of the Han.
Youzhou was an important border of the Great Tang. Once they lost, the Turkic cavalry would be able to march in and wreak havoc in the Central Plains, the consequences unimaginable.
Before Li Yuan ascended the throne, he had sent Li Jiancheng and Li Shimin to Youzhou many times to guard against the Turks.
But he had never gained the upper hand in his several clashes with the Turks.
Now that the Great Tang Empire had just been established, everything was going to be ruined and the people were dying. They needed to rest and recuperate.
After three years, he would be able to regain his glory and not fear the Outsiders.
If Li Changqing was stationed in Youzhou, the border would be safe and the Great Tang would have precious time to recuperate.
"Rumble!"
Suddenly, the ground shook violently, and rolling thunder seemed to explode in his ears.
Immediately after, everyone heard earth-shattering roars and shouts coming from outside the Black Tortoise Gate.
When everyone's expression changed drastically, a series of heavy and impassioned war drums sounded.
"Dong! Thump! Dong!"
Outside the city gate, war drums were beating and horses were galloping.
Under Li Jing's command, the elites of the White Robe Army attacked the Imperial City!
The Black Tortoise Gate guards, the Southern Yamen Army and the Northern Yamen Imperial Army, were all transferred away by Li Jiancheng, leaving only the Crown Prince's personal guard, Lin Bing.
Now, only half of the 2,000 Changlin soldiers had been killed by Li Changqing. They were all scared out of their wits and leaned against the city wall in fear.
The unguarded Black Tortoise Gate was quickly breached by the white-robed army.
The moment the city gate fell, three mighty generals rushed in.
One of the fierce generals with a face as black as charcoal took the lead and shouted,"Yuchi Jingde is here, Crown Prince, please don't hurt my master!”
Beside Li Yuan, City Lord Li Daozong was so frightened by the scene that his face turned pale. He stood in front of Li Yuan and shouted,"Protector beast!"
Rows of Imperial Army soldiers immediately raised their swords and spears to protect Li Yuan.
The Imperial City had been breached, and a group of fiendish soldiers had charged into the Black Tortoise Gate. Li Yuan did not seem to be afraid at all.
After attacking Black Tortoise Gate, Yuchi Gong, Cheng Yaojin, Qin Qiong, and the others saw the tragic and bloody scene inside, and their hearts tightened. When he saw Li Changqing standing upright in his blood-stained white robe, he immediately heaved a sigh of relief.
"General!" Cheng Yaojin asked loudly. Are you alright?"
Li Changqing looked at the white-robed soldiers who had already occupied the Imperial City and his old subordinates who were willing to die to save him. He was very touched, but his face still revealed a dignified expression. He shouted,
"Attacking the Imperial City and disturbing the Saint Emperor, why aren't you all retreating quickly?”
Yuchi Gong and the other two were startled. Only then did they see Li Yuan, who was wearing a dragon robe not far away.
They immediately understood that Li Changqing had survived the ambush. They dismounted and saluted Li Yuan.
Li Yuan was expressionless." Without my permission, you led your troops into the city, attacked the Xuanwu Gate, and occupied the Imperial City. Are you trying to rebel?!"”
Yuchi Gong and the other two lowered their heads, their voices neither servile nor overbearing,""I don't dare!"
"Father!" Li Changqing took a step forward and bowed."Jing De and the others must have known that I was ambushed by the deposed Crown Prince, so they rashly brought troops to rescue me. Please, Imperial Father, on account of their eagerness to save their savior, let them off!”
Li Xiu Ning, who was beside Li Yuan, also quickly stood up and said,"Father, the White Robe Army was founded by my sixth brother and daughter. Jing De, Zhi Jie, and Shu Bao are old generals of the Heavenly Policy Manor. They are loyal to the Great Tang and have no intention of rebellion!”
"Hahahaha!"
Suddenly, Li Yuan burst into laughter. Everyone thought that this was a sign of his anger, and their expressions turned solemn.
However, Li Yuan did not get angry. Instead, he looked at Li Changqing with admiration and said,""Ever since you led the army, Changqing, you have lived and died with the soldiers. In every battle, you have taken the lead and killed the enemy.
You treat your soldiers like brothers, and they are willing to die for you. How dare they attack the Imperial City and risk their lives to save you?
How could I blame such loyal and righteous soldiers who dared to die to save their lives?”
At this moment, Li Yuan was very envious of Li Changqing.
Ever since Jin Yang's uprising, he had been surrounded by interest groups, scheming and scheming against each other.
He had never experienced Li Changqing and his soldiers 'pure brotherhood.
With a wave of his dragon robe, Li Yuan turned around and walked towards Taiji Palace. At the same time, he said,"
"Give the order to arrest the Left and Right General of the South Ya Army and the Commander of the North Ya Army. Remove them from their posts and investigate the imperial prison strictly! The White Robe Army Dragon Cavalry Guards were temporarily stationed in the Imperial City, protecting the safety of the Imperial City.”
The Dragon Cavalry was the elite cavalry of the White Robe Army. It was made up of 5000 people, and all of them were brave and good at fighting. They were a true army of tigers and wolves.
The South Ya Guards and North Ya Guards who were originally guarding the Imperial City were actually transferred away by the deposed Crown Prince, Li Jiancheng.
If he didn't investigate thoroughly, Li Yuan would be terrified even if he lived in the palace.
The white-robed army had attacked the Imperial City to rescue Li Changqing. He would not feel threatened, but would admire Li Changqing's leadership even more.
He knew that Li Changqing had no intention of rebelling.
However, the guards of the Southern Ya Army and the Imperial Army of the Northern Ya Army were supposed to only listen to his orders. In the end, they were mobilized by Li Jiancheng, which made him shudder.
Li Yuan's two orders shocked Li Daozong and he quickly said,""Your Majesty! How could the safety of the Imperial City be entrusted to the Dragon Cavalry Guards?”
Li Daozong was Li Yuan's nephew and had a good relationship with Li Shimin.
Now that Li Jiancheng had been deposed, it was almost certain that Li Shimin would be the next Crown Prince.
If the Dragon Cavalry Guards were to be stationed in the Imperial City, neither he nor Li Shi Min would want that.
Unexpectedly, just as he finished speaking, Li Yuan flew into a rage."How can you doubt my words!”
Li Daozong was terrified and quickly lowered his head." I dare not!”
Li Yuan flicked his sleeves and snorted coldly."Jiancheng and Shimin are my most outstanding sons. However, what they were thinking about was the throne!
Only Changqing, this adopted son, had his heart set on the country, the world, and the people. Half of the Great Tang was conquered by him.
If he had the intention to rebel, who could stop the 80,000 white robed soldiers outside the Xuanwu Gate?”
……
Outside the Imperial City, Li Shi Min ordered the Black Armored Army to retreat.
"Sixth brother is so brave. Even 2,000 Changlin soldiers couldn't keep him alive! Li Jing and the others were loyal and brave to protect their master. They actually dared to risk the death penalty to attack the Imperial City! The auxiliary army was now filled with white-robed soldiers. We missed the perfect opportunity to force the abdication. What a pity!”
Zhangsun Wuji stroked his long beard and said indifferently,"Don't be angry, Qin King. On the contrary, we should be applauding.”
"What do you mean by auxiliary?" Li Shimin asked with a frown.”
"Li Jiancheng has been deposed, and the position of Crown Prince is vacant. Now, no one is qualified to compete with you for the throne.
Compared to killing the Crown Prince and forcing the Emperor to abdicate, this method was gentler and would not be criticized by the world in the future.
After all, no matter how much the Heavenly Strategy General was favored by the Emperor, the Li Tang Empire would eventually be passed on to his descendants. Congratulations, Qin Wang. After today, you no longer have any worries.”
Hearing Zhangsun Wuji's analysis, Li Shiming suddenly understood, and the haze in his eyes gradually dissipated.
"King Qi is dead, and the Crown Prince has been deposed. Father must be heartbroken at this moment." Assistant Minister, follow me into the palace and comfort Imperial Father.”
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