Chapter 4816: Lack of Capacity
Chapter 4816: Lack of Capacity
Li Chengqian was the most typical crown prince who was "raised by the women in the deep palace". He studied under the guidance of a group of great Confucian scholars since childhood, but compared with the philosophy of governing the country, he learned more about how to be "gentle and elegant", how to "remain calm in the face of adversity" and how to be a "gentleman". This led to a lack of strong self-confidence and strong temper in his character development.
Even in his rage at this moment, he still maintained his "gentlemanly demeanor" and expressed his dissatisfaction in tactful words. Even if he drove Fang Jun away, he would drive away others as well to leave Fang Jun enough face.
But after everyone had left the imperial study, Li Chengqian stood up, kicked the coffee table to the ground, turned around and left.
A group of eunuchs and palace maids knelt on the ground, trembling and trembling, fearing that they would be implicated.
Li Chengqian returned to the bedroom in anger. The Queen and Princess Changle, who came to chat with him, stood up to greet him. Seeing that he was still angry and looked unhappy, they were a little puzzled.
The Queen personally poured tea for Li Chengqian and placed it in front of him. Princess Changle, who was sitting next to him, asked curiously, "Who is your Majesty angry with?"
Li Chengqian snorted, drank a sip of tea to relieve his dry mouth, and then said unhappily: "Isn't it your good husband who is shameful to be seen? This fellow has become more and more arrogant and domineering. He has no idea of the difference between the monarch and his subjects, and the difference between the superior and the inferior. He didn't give me any face in public. It's simply unreasonable! It's just that I have a good temper and can't bear to blame him because of our past friendship. If my father was still alive, he would have pushed him to the door of Taiji Hall and beaten him half to death!"
Princess Changle's face turned red with embarrassment. She glanced at her brother, pursed her lips and said nothing.
But he couldn't help but complain in his heart: If the emperor were still alive, Erlang wouldn't dare to glare at him...
Seeing Princess Changle embarrassed, the Queen tried to comfort her husband: "Your Majesty and Duke Yue have known each other for many years. They share similar interests and a deep friendship. How could you not know his temper? Don't take it personally if he makes mistakes occasionally. After all, among all the civil and military officials in the court, there are actually not many who wholeheartedly support Your Majesty."
Li Chengqian admitted that what the Queen said made sense, but for some reason he felt uncomfortable whenever the Queen spoke for Fang Jun.
"Why, just because you are loyal to me, you can disregard the etiquette between the monarch and his subjects and deliberately refute my imperial edict in public?"
Princess Changle asked curiously, "Erlang...how did the Duke of Yue make His Majesty angry?"
Li Chengqian snorted, and then recounted how he had appointed Zhang Liang and how Fang Jun had refuted him in public. He naturally avoided mentioning his real intention in appointing Zhang Liang, and simply said that Zhang Liang was a meritorious official in the Zhenguan period, and now he was being humiliated and miserable in the Right Jinwu Guard by Fang Jun. As the emperor, he couldn't bear to see this, so he transferred him out of the Right Jinwu Guard. However, he had nowhere else to place him for the time being, so he decided to send him overseas...
However, Princess Changle was not the kind of "straw princess" who only knew how to wear fine clothes and eat delicious food and enjoy luxurious pleasures. After all, she was qualified to help Emperor Taizong deal with memorials, and it was no exaggeration to praise her as a "talented woman". Therefore, she immediately understood the real reason for the conflict between Your Majesty and Fang Jun.
He said with a little dissatisfaction: "How can your Majesty be like this? When Duke Yue reorganized the navy, the court did not care. He did not ask the court for a penny, but he built such an invincible navy that roamed the oceans, and then guarded the sea borders and protected the waterways, which made the maritime trade flourish and brought endless wealth to the empire, not to mention the gold, silver and copper mines plundered all over the world and transported back to fill your majesty's treasury. If this merit was given to someone else, it would not be too much to make him a prince, right? But he didn't want anything, he only wanted to expand the empire and support your majesty. In the end, he aroused your suspicion. You placed an enemy like Zhang Liang in his heart. Aren't you afraid that the meritorious officials will be disappointed?"
She had never cared about these things before. Now she was completely focused on her child, determined to train her son to be an outstanding man like his father. She simply disdained the power struggles in the court.
But now she felt that His Majesty was suspicious of Fang Jun, which made her very dissatisfied. How narrow-minded and dirty-minded must one be to be suspicious of even a minister like Fang Jun?
After saying this, without caring about Li Chengqian's gloomy face, he stood up, bowed, said goodbye to the queen, then turned around and left quickly.
After sending Princess Changle out, the Queen came back and made another cup of tea for Li Chengqian. She knelt beside the tea table, glanced at Li Chengqian's face, and seemed to want to say something but stopped herself.
She had advised His Majesty several times but only made him angry, so this time she decided not to get involved.
However, she didn't know that anything related to Fang Jun would make Li Chengqian extremely sensitive. Seeing that she was hesitant to speak, he asked, "It's ok for this girl to be so tactful, but you also think that I did something wrong?"
He believed that he had always loved Changle, and he looked at this younger sister differently among all the sisters. Compared with the simple doting he showed to Jinyang, his attitude was more of recognition and conviction. As a result, this girl found a man and devoted her whole heart and soul to him, and now she is dissatisfied with everything about him as her brother.
Very annoyed.
The queen's eyes lit up and she thought, you asked me this on your own initiative, you're not going to get angry, are you?
"Your Majesty, it is understandable that you maintain your dignity, but as Changle said just now, Duke Yue is different from others after all. My wife and I, and even our children, have been deeply indebted to him. If it weren't for Duke Yue's unremitting support over the years, I dare not imagine what would happen to our family now..."
Li Chengqian remained silent.
Considering the kindness Fang Jun showed to their family, it is not an exaggeration to say that he “reborn” them. He has never denied this. However, accepting favors and repaying them cannot be mixed with state affairs, and Fang Jun cannot be left unrestrained or allowed to do whatever he wants.
What's more, the anger between him and Fang Jun was actually a bit of acting, and as a result, everyone around him came to blame him...
This made Li Chengqian very depressed. Am I a villain? !
Seeing that Li Chengqian was silent, the Queen thought that he had heard her, and continued, "Duke Yue is a man of great courage and bravery. Under his command, the navy is invincible, and the entire East and South Seas are invincible. Over the years, I don't know how much land he has acquired and how many mines he has opened. All along, everything has been done properly without any problems. Now that Your Majesty has suddenly appointed Zhang Liang as the Governor-General of Luzon, what will Duke Yue think? What will those arrogant and brave soldiers of the navy think? More importantly, what will those foreign natives who originally crawled at the feet of the Tang Navy think?"
Li Chengqian was suddenly startled. He thought he had thought everything through, but now after the Queen's reminder, he realized that he still had some omissions.
The reason why the navy was so powerful in the southeast oceans was not only because of its strong combat capability, but also because of the support from the central government of the imperial court for Fang Jun and the navy. As long as the decision was made by Fang Jun and the navy, the imperial court never refuted it.
This creates a powerful pressure from the navy, because the navy alone is invincible, and with the support of the central government, who would dare to have the slightest thought of resistance?
However, once the central government's support for the navy weakens or even becomes wary of it, then the foreign nations, indigenous peoples, and even the southeastern gentry and caravans formed by local clans that are currently subject to the threat of the navy... may not be as obedient as before.
If things go wrong, the two Southeast Oceans will no longer have the absolute domination they once had...
No wonder Fang Jun was so angry today. There was certainly an element of acting in it, but there was also a lot of anger mixed in.
The good situation that others had worked so hard to build up was in danger of collapse due to my unintentional interference...
However, he definitely cannot admit his mistakes. The emperor is the ruler of the world and the supreme ruler. If he admits his mistakes, it will only damage his dignity and the loss will outweigh the gain.
Li Chengqian was very stubborn: "I am the Son of Heaven, the supreme ruler, my words are the law, and my ministers should be cautious in private when giving me advice. How can you disregard my majesty in front of everyone? To put it nicely, it is to speak frankly, to put it bluntly, it is to seek fame and sell your integrity. Everyone wants to learn from Wei Zheng, is it because everyone thinks that I am not as broad-minded as Emperor Taizong?"
The queen shut up tactfully, but she couldn't help curling her lips. She complained in her heart: With your narrow-minded mind, you even believe the rumors in the market, and you dare to compare yourself to Emperor Taizong?
It's just that the couple had been in a cold war for several days and had only recently eased up, so she kept her words to herself to avoid angering Li Chengqian again.
……
"Oh, isn't this His Excellency the Governor? I am very polite. Although Luzon is a barbarian land, it has abundant rainfall and a warm climate, and has great prospects for development. Under your rule, it will surely prosper and become strong. By then, you will be the first governor of the Tang Dynasty! Congratulations."
As soon as he walked out of the palace, he saw Liu Li and Zhang Liang waiting together to enter the palace for an audience. Fang Jun stood in front of them with a smile and started to mock them.
Zhang Liang was very embarrassed, feeling ashamed and angry, but he did not dare to offend Fang Jun: "Duke Yue, you are joking. It's just that your Majesty thinks that I am not talented enough and have limited ability, but I have made contributions to the country, so I am going to live in the barbarian land. I don't dare to claim prosperity or strong troops!"
Fang Er is really venomous when he speaks. Are words like "prosperous" and "strong and powerful" good words for a vassal leading troops outside?
Do you think His Majesty is not suspicious enough and that you are too long to live?
However, Luzon is isolated overseas and the island is full of indigenous people. It needs the navy's full support in all aspects, so even if Fang Jun kicks him at this moment, he has to endure it. In addition, he has been humiliated by Fang Jun again and again, and he has already established awe of Fang Jun in his heart, so no matter how embarrassing it is, he will never dare to turn against him.
Liu Li on the side couldn't stand it anymore. He was angry at Fang Jun's domineering behavior, which made a duke shrink back, and he also couldn't stand Zhang Liang's spineless appearance. After all, you are a duke and a meritorious official of the Zhenguan period. No matter how powerful and arrogant Fang Jun is, can he strip you of your title or dare to kill you?
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