Chapter 7: Planning Before Action (2)

  "Seventh brother, what brings you to your elder brother's place so early in the morning instead of staying home and studying?"

  The Zhou Wang Fu and the Lu Wang Fu are actually not far apart, only a street away. However, the two brothers rarely visit each other, mostly during holidays when Li Xian, as the younger brother, would pay his respects to his elder brother at the Zhou Wang Fu. As for Li Xian, he never goes to the Lu Wang Fu. Today, coincidentally, it's a holiday, and Li Xian had planned to invite some young talents to gather at his own mansion, but unexpectedly, as soon as the gate opened, Li Xian arrived. Li Xian couldn't help but feel annoyed, and without waiting for Li Xian to come forward and pay his respects, he spoke out in a bad temper, asking:

  "This guy is so rude! Li Xian was about to go up and greet him with a smile, but unexpectedly he was scolded by Li Xian in such a manner. Although he knew that Li Xian had always been like this, he still felt unhappy in his heart. However, Li Xian came today with ulterior motives and didn't plan to bother with these trivial matters. He smiled and went forward, bowing his head and hands: "Sixth brother's teachings are correct, younger brother has come hastily, please don't blame sixth brother."

  "Well, since you're here, let's just talk inside."

  In the past, whenever Li Xian had a disagreement with Li Xuan, Li Xuan would always retort, and after a few rounds of debate, it would always end with Li Xuan bursting into tears. But today, not only did Li Xuan not argue back, but he was also extremely polite, which made Li Xian feel somewhat surprised and suspicious. He gave Li Xuan a sideways glance, but didn't hastily issue an order to expel him. Instead, he hesitated for a moment, waved his hand slightly, took a small step back, and casually gestured for Li Xuan to enter.

  "Sixth Brother, you first."

  Li Xian didn't bother to take Li Xian's casual attitude to heart, smiled and nodded, stepped up onto the steps in front of the Wang Fu gate, walked alongside Li Xian, and entered the mansion together. They proceeded silently through the second door hall, took their seats as host and guest, and a group of servants hastily presented them with freshly brewed fragrant tea and various small dishes.

  "Seventh brother, what is it that you've come for this time? Please just say it straight out, I'm really not in the mood for beating around the bush."

  Although Li Xian was slightly surprised by Li Xian's unusual behavior today, his disdain for Li Xian in his heart did not change much. After the servants who were serving tea and water retreated, he didn't ask Li Xian to drink tea first, but instead looked at Li Xian with a sideways glance and directly asked about his intentions.

  "Sixth brother asked well, younger brother just heard that sixth brother will be appointed to Qi state after the beginning of spring, fearing that when the time comes, it will be in a hurry, and there is no time to send him off, so he came ahead of time to have a conversation with his older brother." Li Xian was prepared for this and wouldn't be swayed by Li Xuan's impatience and rudeness. He spoke with a hint of reluctance:

  "Hmm!"

  As soon as Li Xian mentioned the matter of going to the fief, Li Xian was somewhat angry and did not speak in harmony. He let out a cold hum, staring at Li Xian with fiery eyes, his face changing for a long time, but he never spoke a word. It's not hard to blame Li Xian for getting angry. Although the princes going to their fiefs is an established system of the Tang Dynasty, it's not actually that simple. If you're a son born out of wedlock, generally speaking, you have to go to your fief. Once you're enfeoffed as a king, you get a fief to live in. However, for sons born within wedlock, it's not that strict. From the time of Emperor Gaozu onwards, Li Shimin himself didn't go to his fief when he was a prince. Emperor Gaozong of Tang also didn't go to his fief when he was the King of Jin. His elder brother, Prince of Wei, Li Tai, only went to his fief after failing in his bid for the throne. In this dynasty, sons born out of wedlock like Li Xiao (son of Palace Woman Zheng), Li Shangjin (son of Palace Woman Yang), and Li Su'e (son of Consort Xie) were all sent to their fiefs before they turned ten years old. As for Li Xian and other sons born within wedlock, although they had all been enfeoffed as kings, none of them had gone to their fiefs. They only held the title of Grand Military Governor in absentia. Calculating it this way, Li Xian's going to his fief this time is quite eye-catching.

  According to the Tang system, when a prince is appointed as a vassal king, he is granted the title of Governor of a Superior Prefecture, governing one prefecture and overseeing 30,000 households. For those who have no ambition for high positions, this might be considered a comfortable arrangement. However, for those with grand ambitions, being appointed as a vassal king is equivalent to being exiled. Take Li Xian's appointment as the Governor of Qi Prefecture, for example. Although the prefecture is a superior one and not far from the capital, it is still distant from the political center. Once appointed as a vassal king, one is not allowed to participate in court politics according to regulations. This is a fatal blow to Li Xian, who has been competing with Crown Prince Li Hong for power. Although the imperial edict appointing him as a vassal king has not yet been issued, Li Xian had already learned of the news and knew that it was Empress Wu's doing, making it almost impossible to change. In recent days, Li Xian has been furious about this matter. Now, with Li Xian tearing open old wounds in front of him, his anger can be imagined.

  "Has Seventh Brother come to humiliate his elder brother?"

  The young masters of the Tian family were all precocious, and Li Xian was one of the most outstanding among them. Although he was infuriated by Li Xian's words and saw stars in his eyes, Li Xian did not erupt into a furious outburst. Instead, after remaining silent for a long time, he slowly let out a breath, his face darkening as he asked in a cold voice.

  "Sixth brother misunderstood, I wouldn't dare do such a thing. I came here with just a few words, perhaps to help you out a bit."

  Facing Li Xian's cold eyes, Li Xian shook his head slightly and slowly opened his mouth to explain, a young face full of solemnity.

  "Oh?" Li Xian, who was only two years older than Li Xian, had a reputation in the court and out of it that was many times higher than Li Xian's. Li Xian, known for his cleverness, naturally looked down on Li Xian's mediocrity and often scolded him for his incompetence. Now, suddenly hearing Li Xian say he could help himself, he was stunned, let out a light hum, and looked at Li Xian with a face full of astonishment, his eyes complex to the extreme, with surprise, doubt, and a few parts of incomprehension and shame. After hesitating for a long time, he finally squeezed out a word from between his teeth: "Speak!"

  Another one has risen with suspicion! As for Li Xian's suspicion, Li Xian had long expected it and didn't find it strange. After all, a mediocre person suddenly became eloquent, which would inevitably raise suspicions from others. Not to mention Li Xian, who was wise beyond his years, even the maidservants in Li Xian's quarters had already noticed that something was off about him.

  If possible, Li Xian would not have come to such a drastic change of heart, but under the pressure of circumstances, Li Xian had no choice but to change, even if he didn't want to. The reason was that if he couldn't cleverly use Li Xian's influence to stop Wu Zetian's tyranny, it would be his turn next - Li Xian remembered very clearly that on the ninth day of the first month of the second year of Dali, Wu Zetian forced Emperor Gaozong to issue an edict allowing her to participate in court affairs. The next day, at the first court meeting after the New Year, Wu Zetian, who had not yet finished her postpartum confinement, brought her family's prestige and power to the court, and together with Emperor Gaozong, was referred to as "Two Saints". From then on, all major and minor matters of state were gradually controlled by her. This experience in governance laid a solid foundation for her later usurpation of the throne. Therefore, if Li Xian did not want to continue the tragic fate that would befall him later, he had to make a strong counterattack in the matter of Wu Zetian's tyranny. Firstly, it was to disrupt Wu Zetian's overall plan, and secondly, it was also to find a point of support for Emperor Gaozong to counterattack. As for whether this could be achieved, the key lay with Li Xian, and this was the reason why Li Xian came to persuade Li Xian.

  It's better to speak naturally, but these words are confidential and can't be spoken openly in front of others. Li Xian glanced around and hinted for a moment, but unfortunately, Li Xian never reacted, making Li Xian feel suffocated. Helplessly, he smiled and interrupted: "Sixth brother, the people in your mansion are well-trained, tsk, tsk, each one is as fierce as a dragon or tiger, making me jealous. Alas, the fools in my mansion can't be taught no matter how hard I try, they're just a bunch of useless mud that can't be helped, shameful, shameful."

  "Huh? Haha, Seventh Brother is joking again. However, I quite like this joke. Alright, you all heard that, since King Zhou has given his approval, I won't be stingy. Go to the accounting room to collect your reward, 500 coins each, and take half a day off. Dismissed!" Li Xian was naturally clever, as soon as he heard Li Xian glance around and speak ambiguously, he immediately reacted and burst into loud laughter, applauding. Under the pretext of rewarding them, he dismissed all the servants waiting in the hall."

  At this time, the five hundred coins may not be comparable to the purchasing power at the beginning of the Tang Dynasty, but it is also a considerable amount. A group of servants may not have been able to save so much money after a year of hard work. Upon hearing such a generous reward, who wouldn't be extremely excited? One by one, they hastily thanked the two princes and rushed to the accounting room. The large hall suddenly became quiet, with only the two young masters sitting opposite each other.

  "Seventh brother, if you have anything to say, just speak freely. I'll listen." After the servants withdrew, Li Xian narrowed his eyes and sized up Li Xian for a moment before speaking in a calm tone to urge him on.

  "It's easy to say, Sixth Brother has read a lot of history books, and I have always admired him very much. But I don't know if Sixth Brother knows the story of Lü Zhi?" Li Xian smiled slightly and asked a question with a calm expression.

  "You..." Li Xian had been studying since childhood and was very familiar with historical books, how could he not know the history of Empress Lü's chaotic reign at the beginning of the Han dynasty? As soon as Li Xian mentioned this matter, his face suddenly turned ugly. He pointed at Li Xian, seemingly wanting to scold him, but the words reached his lips and were swallowed back down. He just glared at Li Xian with a black face, his anger about to erupt. After a long time, he gritted his teeth and said in a cold voice: "Seventh brother has a big nerve, daring to compare Empress Dowager with Empress Lü, aren't you afraid of being beheaded by your older brother? Hmm?"

  "Will Sixth Brother do it?" Facing Li Xian's dark face, Li Xian just shrugged his shoulders and asked back, not waiting for Li Xian to answer. He continued on his own, "Such a thing that harms others and oneself, even if I were foolish like Little Brother, would not stoop to doing it, let alone someone as wise as Sixth Brother."

  Li Xian's words made Li Xian silent again, but his face turned even uglier, changing from black to red and back again, with a sharp glint in his eyes. His worried expression was barely concealed - Li Xian had been favored by Emperor Gaozong since childhood for his intelligence, but he had never gained the favor of Empress Wu. In fact, there were rumors in the palace that Li Xian was actually the son of Empress Wu's sister, Lady Han, and when Li Xian was less than ten years old, he had even gone to confront Empress Wu about it, which made her deeply resentful of him. As a result, she often found fault with him over small things, and the relationship between mother and son was extremely distant. This time, Li Xian was about to be sent away to a remote region, and the person behind the scenes was none other than Empress Wu. With all these grievances in mind, Li Xian naturally had no good feelings towards his mother, but before he understood Li Xian's intentions, he did not want to reveal his attitude, so silence became his best choice...