Chastity Layman

The atmosphere in the hall was heavy.

The appearance of Taibai, then the death of seven elders in one day, and then the rebellion of the fifth prince, King Li You of Qi, the combination of all kinds of things was indeed enough to make the emperor feel sad.

No wonder Luoyang City is about to implement emergency martial law.

"May I ask if the death of the elders is related to the rebellion of the King of Qi? Did the King of Qi send people to make trouble?" Qin Lang asked.

This question did not startle all the ministers in the palace, and some people had already thought about it just now.

The emperor had already sent an imperial doctor to the homes of several ministers who had died of illness.

Changsun Wuji also suggested that the emperor immediately martial law the entire city, and mobilize the forbidden army to strengthen the protection of important places in Luoyang, and at the same time send troops to protect the palaces of the court ministers.

"No connection has been found for the time being."

After a detailed inspection, it can be determined that they did die of disease, not poisoning or assassination. But now people are panicking, I am afraid that outsiders will not believe this result.

There are even some rumors in the market that these people were bestowed to death by the emperor. As for why this is so, there are various reasons that are far-fetched.

Under the incident of Taibairi, everything seemed mysterious.

Qin Lang looked at the prince.

Crown Prince Chengqian sat below the emperor with a blank expression on his face.

Brother Li You's rebellion may not be a bad thing for Cheng Qian, after all, Li Shimin is not dead yet, at this time the prince dares to rebel, what is it?

If Li Shimin died and the prince conspired against him, it might be very troublesome. Now, it's just to save him trouble in the future.

Jump out one by one and destroy one, and there will be one less threat in the future.

Cheng Qian is probably still laughing in his heart.

"Last year's Eastern Expedition, I transferred Zhang Shigui from Qianzhong, and there was no general to supervise and guard him, which made that rebellious son even more lawless, so that he committed such a heinous crime."

The emperor became more and more angry and dictated his will.

"Abolish Li You as a commoner, and abolish his mother Yin as a commoner!"

"I once warned this rebellious son not to get close to villains. He has always been surly and lacks virtue. He was bewitched by flattery words and eventually brought disaster. This is his own destruction."

"But I am deeply saddened, it is really stupid. Now I have become a person like a scorpion, forgetting loyalty and filial piety, disturbing the middle of Guizhou, and dying. I can't protect the country and screen the imperial court, but destroy the rock-like blood relationship. The heavens and the earth will not allow him to abandon his father and brother to betray the monarch and be enraged by both humans and gods. He will be a traitor in life and a rebellious ghost in death!"

"He used to be my son, but today he is an enemy of the country. Wei Wenzhen is a loyal hero. Although he died, it does not prevent him from accomplishing righteousness. But I am ashamed of the emperor, and I am ashamed of the empress. What else can I say?"

Li Shimin couldn't help crying while talking.

"A posthumous gift to Wei Wenzhen, Marquis of Beihai, for his eldest son to inherit..."

For Li You, Li Shimin was really disappointed.

"Qin Lang, you were going to go south from Beijing today, so you will go on my behalf!"

The emperor ordered Qin Lang to be the general manager of rebellion and counter-rebellion, and summoned seven Taoists in central Guizhou, Guangxi, Annan, Yunnan, Jiannan, Shannan, and Hunan to listen to Qin Lang's temperance and dispatch to counter-rebellion.

He also appointed Liu Dewei, Minister of the Ministry of Punishment, who was already on the way, to take the post of governor of Dongning Prefecture, and appointed Zhang Shigui as Qin Lang's deputy general to enlist.

There is no Zhang Shigui as the main general. The reason is that Zhang Shigui was the governor of Dongning and was responsible for supervising and teaching Li You. Now that Li You rebelled, Zhang Shigui is also responsible. Letting him join the army is to give him a redemption. Chance.

Qin Lang was not willing to take on this job.

But Li Shimin did not allow him to refuse.

"The imperial court is going east and west to fight on two fronts. There can be no chaos in Guizhou. The rebellion must be put down quickly. You capture that rebel back to Luoyang, and you must severely deter those barbarian chieftains in central Guizhou who are about to move. For those who follow the rebellion, Kill a few severely."

The more the emperor said, the more angry he became, "If that rebellious son dares to stand up and resist, I promise you to kill first and then play."

"If anyone captures and kills this rebellious son, I will grant him the title of duke of the county, and reward him with a thousand taels of gold! Those who cooperate will also be rewarded!"

The emperor was really angry when he even said such words as sacking and killing.

It is said that tiger poison does not eat children, but the emperor does not want to save Li You.

Prince Chengqian, who had been expressionless all the time, finally lost his composure after hearing these words.

"Father, the fifth brother only made a mistake for a while. I also ask my father to order the officers and soldiers not to harm the life of the fifth brother. He must be brought back to Luoyang intact and taught to make him repent!"

Li Shimin gritted his teeth, "Is that called making a mistake for a while? That rebellious son almost claimed to be the emperor. Where did he put you, father and brother, and the court of the country?"

Li You violated Li Shimin's bottom line.

As the emperor, Li Shimin is one of the few emperors who treat heroes well. As long as you don’t rebel, even if you make a big mistake, you can usually be forgiven. At most, you will be demoted, but you will usually be restored, and at worst you can save your life. Yes, at most it's just losing an official position.

But if you rebel, no matter if you are a brother or an old buddy, Li Shimin will never forgive you. This red line cannot be crossed.

Li Yuan and other princes in the imperial family rebelled and rebelled, and Li Shimin was the killer.

Now that Li You dared to openly rebel, and he was not discovered during the stage of conspiracy, but had already raised the flag and raised troops. Under such circumstances, Li Shimin must not tolerate it.

"Father, my son is willing to go to the middle of Guizhou in person, bring the fifth brother back, and make him repent in front of the father!"

"Presumptuous!" Li Shimin angrily patted the case, "How can this be a trifle?"

The more the prince begged for mercy, the more determined Li Shimin was to kill Li Youzhi.

Qin Lang watched coldly, he suspected that Chengqian was deliberately provoking Li Shimin, with the purpose of killing Lao Wu with a knife. After all, Lao Wu's rebellion was not only against his father, but also against him, the crown prince.

If this kind of person is not killed, it will definitely be a disaster if he keeps it in the future. How good it is to kill him by father's hand.

Over there, Changsun Wuji waited for the emperor to calm down a little, and immediately made a statement, pointing out that Li You, a commoner, rebelled because he was too young to leave the town and fief the land. Therefore, he believes that the princes who have been enshrined in Yongzhen for the rest of their lives are still too young, and it is more likely to lead to lack of teaching and make mistakes.

Then he said that the power of the clan and vassal kings was too great to be restrained, and they should learn lessons and be more restrained.

For example, there are too many guards of the vassal king. Now the prince is the vassal, and the family mansion, tent house and Dianjun mansion add up to 3,000 people. This army is commanded by the vassal king, which is indeed too many.

In addition, the Prince Zhenfan also intervenes in various aspects such as administration, justice, money and grain, and has too much power...

"Your Majesty conferred the feudal clan, originally for the imperial court of the feudal clan, but now the prince has only been enshrined as the feudal clan for a few years, and there has already been such a rebellion. There are still some deficiencies in the system, which should be repaired immediately."

Ma Zhou, the servant, also expressed his support, thinking that the secular feudal system has many shortcomings, among which too many soldiers in the hands of the secular clans is a big problem.

Three thousand people are too many.

"I request the sage to decree to reduce the guards of all feudal vassals. The clan princes are limited to three hundred, the county kings are limited to two hundred, and the heir kings are limited to one hundred..."

That night, the important ministers discussed in Shangyang Palace all night.

Qin Lang was young, but he was in good spirits, and there were tea and snacks. The night was not so difficult. Although the meeting only lasted in the first half of the night, the rest of the discussions were all about repairing the feudal system, and Qin Lang never participated.

It was the tea party in the middle of the night, and some ministers who were not in good spirits just lay down on the desk and took a nap, but the emperor did not let the ministers leave the palace. Qin Lang guessed that seven important ministers and elders died suddenly today. Although the inspection was not to poison and assassinate them, but now that the situation outside is unknown, the emperor simply kept the ministers in the palace, which can be regarded as a means of protection.

Although in the latter part of the discussion, Ma Zhou simply put forward the proposal of the system of cessation of the world, thinking that the effect of the system of cessation of the world is not good, it is not as good as the system of cessation of the world, and it is still only necessary to grant food to the clan and meritorious officials.

Moreover, Ma Zhou also thought that the system of honoring officers and conferring land in Liaodong was unnecessary.

The proposal was also supported by several ministers.

Qin Lang also did not participate.

Although he knew in his heart that compared with the real seal city, the world-feudal system is not only the superficial tax revenue, but only the tax revenue, which is actually not small. There are only 600 households for the seal, only 300 households for the princess, and more than 1,000 households for the ministers at most.

The feudal system has been implemented for more than ten years, and among the many feudal ministers, Qin Lang is naturally the one who has developed the best fiefdom. His Wu'an Mansion now has five prefectures and fifteen counties, with a prosperous business and a population of nearly one million. Not to mention that the Wu'an Governor's Mansion has a large amount of land, one-third of the annual land tax income is quite generous, and Wu'an's business is prosperous, and Taiping Port is a world-renowned large commercial port. The business tax Qin Lang also wants Take a third of it.

Although Wu'an Mansion is just a special case, and the rest of the world's fiefs are not so exaggerated, but after all, it has only been ten years since now, and it will be slowly operated in the future. Can there be thousands of households?

This means that everyone's economic benefits alone are equivalent to upgrading to ten thousand households.

What's more, in addition to economic and tax benefits, having a real land, there are also various hidden privileges and benefits, just like Qin Lang's management of Wu'an, not only tax collection, but also many benefits in various aspects.

Qin Lang didn't need to open his mouth to stop the feudal system, but the heroes of the clan who had already been feuded would not agree. On the other hand, the implementation of the secular feudal system for more than ten years has indeed played a great role in promoting the development of the Tang Dynasty's frontiers and deterring the barbarians.

Li You's rebellion is just an isolated case. It can be discussed to reduce the number of guards in the hands of the feudal vassals, but it is impossible to suspend the ban.

As for the honored officials, feudal lords and land grants that Liaodong is going to promote, the emperor just started, where will he stop.

However, Qin Lang also understands that since so many people are now proposing to suspend the feudal system, it means that there are actually many people who oppose this matter, whether it is out of envy or jealousy, or because they feel that it is not beneficial to the country in the long run Anyway, in short, there may be more disputes about this matter in the future.

Just like Qin Lang's Wu'an Mansion fiefdom, although he has already handed over military power, administration, and judiciary, he does not command the army and ignore the people, and only collects some taxes. Start to enjoy a steady stream of bonus returns, but this return is indeed too generous.

With a population of over one million, Qin Lang shared the enjoyment with his five sons. Would the court feel sorry for it?

Li Shimin is a wise master, and he can clearly understand that Wu'an was a barren land in the past. It was Qin Lang who opened up this land with his own hands. It was Qin Lang who took out a lot of real money to drive the development, and the industry and commerce in Wu'an prospered.

But soon took over the hundreds of miles of land in Wu'an, and added countless household registrations and taxes.

Li Shimin made a lot of money, but will his descendants remember this in the future?

Will they remember that Qin Lang started everything in Wu'an from scratch? They will only see that Wu'an Mansion has so many people, so many taxes, and such a vast expanse. The Qin family enjoys one-third of the taxes and occupies those profitable industries. They will be jealous and jealous.

Sooner or later, someone will want to divide and rob with a knife. This is almost a historical necessity.

Just like when Liu Bang divided up the imperial clan when the Western Han Dynasty was founded, wasn’t the emperor of the Liu family also dissatisfied with these princes of the Liu family all day long?

Qin Lang even felt that maybe after Li Shimin died, after Chengqian ascended the throne, it might not be ten years before he would attack the feudal system.

Not to mention completely stopping it, but based on his understanding of Chengqian's current temperament, he will definitely do it, maybe piecemeal and slowly chipping, maybe it is a quick attack, but he will definitely do it.

Chengqian is talented, but he is conceited in his bones. In fact, he is very similar to Yang Guang.

After suffering a lot from recklessness in the past few years, he has now learned to bear the sting, but when he becomes the emperor, will he continue to sting?

The long night finally ushered in the dawn.

After being bored in the hall all night, when he opened the door, the morning breeze blew in. Qin Lang felt so relieved, he couldn't help standing in front of the hall and stretching.

Xu Jingzong followed with a smile, "Wei Gong is worthy of being the God of War. He is so energetic after staying up all night. My upper and lower eyelids have been fighting in the middle of the night."

"I think the Grand Maester is in good spirits."

"Your Majesty has someone prepare snacks, let's go together." Xu Jingzong said with a smile.

Old Xu is also a real person, and now he has successfully become a scholar of the Imperial Academy and became an inner minister, but in front of Qin Lang, his attitude is very low, even now that Qin Lang has resigned from the position of minister and is about to return to the fiefdom 'Recuperate', but Old Xu's family is still polite.

Even at the end of yesterday's discussion, Lao Xu specifically suggested to the emperor that Qin Lang should be given the post of Governor of Zhennan.

Qin Lang repeatedly declined, but Lao Xu also thought that even if he was a remote leader, he should be added. The reason was that even if Qin Lang was recuperating in the fief, he was still a minister of the pillar of the country. Guangnan was far away from the capital. Guangnan doesn't need to bother him if there is nothing to do, but if there is something urgent, Qin Lang can also deal with it immediately.

Although this reason was far-fetched, the emperor still agreed. The emperor said that after Qin Lang put down Li You's rebellion in central Guizhou and returned to the fiefdom, he would take the title of Governor of Zhennan, and Chang Shi would handle the usual affairs on his behalf. If there is something to do, please ask Qin Lang to preside over it. This is something to prevent recurrence in central Guizhou.

Generally speaking, the current imperial court does not easily grant the post of governor to ministers. The emperor takes the post of governor from a distance with the prince or younger brother, but it is not complete. For example, Changsun Wuji has also been the governor of Yangzhou in recent years. Qin Lang had previously served as the governor of Guangzhou, the governor of Zhennan and the governor of Jiannan.

Old Xu thought he was giving Qin Lang a favor, Qin Lang felt that there was more trouble, but facing Lao Xu who wanted to take credit, he just smiled, and then asked Shang Ma Zhou to chat and walk to have breakfast.

During breakfast, everyone couldn't help but talk about the sudden death of Wei Zheng, Chai Shao and others. Qin Lang could only tell himself that it was just a coincidence.