Chapter 70

As the night deepened, in the Shōwa Palace, Li Yuan lay on his bed, too afraid to close his eyes. He feared that if he closed them, he would never wake up. Although he had already identified the cause of his illness, it was too late. The imperial physicians all shook their heads in silence or spoke incoherently. Li Yuan had already beheaded two of them, and the rest were like frightened cicadas, not daring to make a sound, even breathing slowly and quietly, for fear of being heard and beheaded by Li Yuan.

Despite lying on his sickbed, the memorials that needed to be handled still had to be processed. Although Li Yuan was not a sage emperor, he was certainly not incompetent. He had entrusted some affairs to Li Jiancheng, which also served to pacify the restless heart of his eldest son. He was waiting, waiting for his most outstanding son to return to Chang'an. At that time, the final confrontation would come, and perhaps his life could be saved, as Li Yuan knew that Li Shimin had Sun Simiao's token, the greatest physician of the time, who might have a way to save his life.

A eunuch was reading the memorials to him, and Li Yuan could only listen and make decisions. His limbs seemed to be unresponsive, and he had not held court for nearly ten days. The ministers in the court were probably already in a state of panic! In the afternoon, he received a report that his second son, Shimin, had arrived outside Chang'an. The time was right, and perhaps he should have listened to the ministers' advice to make him the crown prince!

"Your Majesty, Prince of Qin requests an audience!" Just as Li Yuan was thinking about these matters, a man in black robes brought Li Shimin to the Shōwa Palace.

"Admit him!" Li Yuan said just one word.

"Your humble son greets Your Majesty!" Li Shimin entered, knelt on one knee, and paid his respects to Li Yuan.

"Rise!" Li Yuan said weakly.

"Your Majesty, how is your health? What did the imperial physicians say?" Li Shimin first inquired about Li Yuan's health.

"Ha ha... Those two traitors actually put copper filings in the water I drank. How could I have raised such heartless and ungrateful sons! Cough, cough..." Li Yuan was very agitated and coughed.

"Your Majesty, what exactly happened? What copper filings?" Li Shimin had a general idea but did not dare to guess recklessly. If it was as he thought, it was quite terrifying.

"Those two traitors, they tried to kill their father! Cough, cough..." Li Yuan was out of breath, and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.

"Then, what should your humble son do?" Li Shimin did not dare to act on his own, for fear that if it did not meet Li Yuan's wishes, it would turn into a disaster.

"I still control the Sixteen Guards and the secret guards! I will give you their command. You must kill those two traitors for me!" A eunuch wiped the blood from Li Yuan's mouth, and Li Yuan said with heavy breaths.

"Your humble son understands. Your humble son does not need the Sixteen Guards; just the secret guards' assistance will suffice!" Li Shimin thought quickly and made a decision.

"How do you plan to do it?" Li Yuan asked.

"Your humble son decides to wait for half a month, until they think they have everything under control, and then take action. During this time, your humble son will seek out Daoist Sun Simiao to treat Your Majesty. Moreover, Your Majesty can pretend to order the Sixteen Guards to serve those two, to let them be arrogant for a while, and also to see if anyone in the Sixteen Guards has truly defected!" Li Shimin decided to use the two princes to test the Sixteen Guards, as no one could be sure of their loyalty. If someone betrayed him, it would complicate matters when Li Shimin took over.

"Since I have given you the authority, just do it. Your talent is the most outstanding among the three of you. If even you fail, then it is the will of heaven!" Li Yuan, having made his decision, did not say more.

"Your humble son obeys the imperial command!" Li Shimin replied respectfully.

"Alright, you may leave! I will instruct Dark One, the leader of the secret guards, to take direct orders from you. You can have him kill those two traitors. The reason I do not do it myself is that my health is unlikely to improve, and you were not in Chang'an at the time. If those two were to die, Chang'an would surely fall into chaos. The aristocratic families are still eyeing the throne and have not given up their ambitions to seize power." When Li Yuan first learned of the two princes' actions, he wanted to have them secretly killed, but thinking of the Five Surnames and Seven Clans, the thousand-year-old families, he suppressed his urge to kill.

"Your humble son understands!" Li Shimin agreed. He would not directly assassinate the two, as it did not fit his character. He wanted to bring them to Li Yuan and expose their crimes, so he could rightfully take the throne without the stigma of fratricide and usurpation. However, he thought well, but things often did not go as planned.

"You may withdraw!" Li Yuan was very tired and let Li Shimin leave, then closed his eyes to rest. With Li Shimin's return, Li Yuan's worries were somewhat alleviated.

Li Shimin left the palace with the man in black robes and returned to his camp. The journey took more than two hours, and it was now close to the hour of the Pig. It was time to rest. Dismissing his generals, Li Shimin lay on a low bed, thinking about what to do next.

In the Eastern Palace, Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji were also discussing. Although they did not know that Li Shimin had already met Li Yuan, they had already learned of his return to Chang'an and were now discussing their strategy.

"Do you think, with the second son back, we should start the action immediately?" Li Yuanji thought they should immediately surround the Qin王府 and put Li Shimin in a difficult position, then lead the army to force the palace, and even use Li Shimin's 3,000 Black Armored soldiers to lead the charge.

"Let's wait a bit. You know we haven't fully controlled the Sixteen Guards. We only have the command of six, and the majority are still under the control of the Emperor, plus the 3,000 Black Armored soldiers of the second son. Our chances of victory are slim," Li Jiancheng said hesitantly, frowning.

"If we capture Lady Changsun and those little brats, will the second son dare to move?" Li Yuanji countered.

"A great man does not get bogged down by small matters. What husband cannot find a wife? If you were in his position, would you give up the supreme throne for a few women and children?" Li Jiancheng glared at Li Yuanji.

"Once on the throne, what kind of women can't you have? You can have as many children as you want. I'm not that foolish!" Li Yuanji grinned, his large teeth showing, and his face lecherous.

"If you can give up, can the second son? His resolve is much stronger than yours!" Li Jiancheng, thinking he understood Li Shimin well, said. He had already changed from his dragon-embroidered robe to the twelve-chapter imperial robe, which only the emperor could wear. This indicated many things, and if the censors found out, they would likely impeach him and demand that Li Yuan strip him of his crown prince status. So he only wore it in private, and this time he wore it to show his stance to Li Yuanji.

"This won't work, that won't work. What do you suggest we do?" Li Yuanji said impatiently.

"We should send more gifts to win over the remaining Sixteen Guards. Then all the troops in Chang'an will be under our control, and the second son's 3,000 Black Armored soldiers won't be able to cause much trouble!" Li Jiancheng thought for a moment and said.

"The remaining ones are all stubborn old men, impervious to persuasion. I think it's better not to waste our efforts!" Li Yuanji was clear-sighted.

"Is that so? Look, this is the map of the Sixteen Guards' garrisons. These are the ones we control, and these are the others. Look at where we control and where the others are stationed. Which is more important?" Li Jiancheng pointed to a simple map on the table, showing Li Yuanji the garrisons of the Sixteen Guards around Chang'an.

"The ones we control are all at the corners of the city walls or in remote areas. The garrisons that control the city gates are not under our control!" Li Yuanji saw the problem after a few glances.

"Exactly! So, how will the Sixteen Guards we control enter the city? No matter which way they go, they will be intercepted and surrounded. They won't be able to form a united force, and the six units of the crown prince, which number less than a thousand, can't match the second son's 3,000 Black Armored soldiers!" Li Jiancheng stroked his goatee, somewhat worried.

"Alright, let's do it your way!" Li Yuanji had no other choice. He still had not given up: "Then let's capture the Qin王府 first, at least that much we can do!"

"That's fine. We'll see if our righteous second son, the Prince of Qin, will abandon his beloved wives and children!" Li Jiancheng nodded in agreement: "I will have General Xue Wanche surround the Qin王府 and see if the second son will yield!"

"Alright, I'll wait to see the second son's pain and suffering!" Li Yuanji's eyes gleamed with excitement, his large ears flapping, like a rutting boar.

Li Shimin did not know that his family was in danger. He was currently preparing to take Sun Simiao's silver needles and go to the Qin Mountains to find this divine physician.

As the night was at its darkest, near dawn, in the Shōwa Palace, Li Yuan lay on his sickbed: "What do you think the second son will do?" Li Yuan seemed to be talking to someone.

"The Prince of Qin will likely capture those two alive and bring them to Your Majesty to await Your Majesty's judgment!" A hoarse, low voice came from the dark corner, belonging to Dark One, who had returned after taking Li Shimin back.

"The second son is still thinking about his reputation and is not ruthless enough! It seems we need to activate the deepest pawn. When the time comes, the second son will go mad. I didn't expect it to be him! Dark One, go and deliver my command to Number Seven. When the second son and those two traitors are in battle, he must kill them outright! I don't want to see those two again!" Li Yuan took a deep breath and said.

"Understood!" A black shadow flashed and disappeared into the night.

At the Qin王府 camp, a man stood at the gate, listening to the distant, mournful cries of the night owls, knowing that what was to come could not be avoided. Because of his sense of duty and as a soldier, obedience was his duty, a principle not unique to modern times but also emphasized in ancient times.

At dawn, a dozen riders galloped out of the camp, heading for the Qin Mountains. They were to find Sun Simiao and bring the divine physician back to treat Li Yuan, carrying Li Shimin's orders.

In the shadows, a figure in armor watched the riders depart, sighed deeply: "When the ruler commands, the subject must obey. Prince of Qin, I can only apologize. I will atone with my life, but this time... it cannot be helped."

The figure disappeared, heading towards another military tent, where only the core commanders of the Heavenly Strategy Office could stay.

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