C48

Within the imperial city of Chang An, Li Kui furiously smashed a bag he was holding onto the chest of the crown prince. A bloody head rolled out of the bag and upon closer inspection, it was the head of the House of the Marquis of Chen. Above the face of the head, Hou Junchen's eyes were wide open, his long beard in disarray, as if he had died with grievance. He must have been hacked to death while he was killing his enemy. Although everyone present was young and old, they all recognized this marshal Hou Junchen. When they saw the head of the marshal, they all cried out in alarm. Emperor Taizong's side was still alright as they had already known about this matter. Although Li Chengqian and his subordinates knew that before Hou Jun had defeated Chang An, they had never thought that Emperor Taizong would actually behead him without even thinking of his old friendship!

Li Chenggang stared at the head on the ground and cried out loud. He then went forward to pick up the head and cried out loud, his voice was shrill and loud, causing everyone to be moved for a moment.

Compared to before, Li Chengqian looked like a completely different person. He had returned to his usual self and was crying while holding the head of Hou Junchen without caring about the situation. His colorful clothes were quickly stained with blood and tears. Hou Junzhi was Li Chengzhi's father-in-law, and the reason why he raised his troops and rebelled was mostly because of this person. Otherwise, how could the usually weak and cowardly Li Chenggang gather the three armies and attempt to rebel?! And now, the person who cared the most about him had died just like that. Not even a complete corpse was left. How could he not feel cold and resentful?!

When Emperor Taizong saw him in this state, his heart was filled with pity. Unknowingly, bits and pieces of the Assembly of Marquis appeared before his eyes: He thought of the scene when the Assembly of Marquis dutifully pledged allegiance to him, and how he personally killed the eighteen Yan Yunji riders; he thought of the scene when the Assembly of Marquis was wounded by his sword under Luoyang City; he thought of the moment when he was determined to give birth to his eldest grandson despite his own safety; and he thought of how, a few hours ago, the Third Prince of Hou was beheaded by the Third Prince. The pain in Emperor Taizong's heart was no less than Li Chengqian's. As he watched one by one the founding fathers of the empire left for their own places, what he valued the most were these ministers who were like his brothers. Counting the number of people, there were only two out of the twenty-four people who were now Hou Junzhu and Fang Xueyi. Now there was one more to be lost, how could he not feel heartache!

After becoming an emperor, he would have no friends … Pity that his sons were still fighting like treasures! The Hall of Justice was silent for a moment, leaving only the mournful wail of the crown prince Li Chengqian.

After a long while, Li Chengqian gradually stopped crying and sat up from the ground. He didn't wipe away the dust on his body as he placed Hou Junchen's head down respectfully in front of the table. Then, he smoothed out his sleeves and knocked his head three times respectfully. He raised his eyes to look at Emperor Taizong, but with a thought, he once again looked at Third Prince Li Qie. His gaze was fierce and bloodshot, and a wave of anger surged out to stab at Li Qie!

Although the Crown Prince was a coward, he was not a fool. His father-in-law, Hou Junzhu, had been a military horse his entire life. Naturally, those who had the ability to behead him with a single slash were no ordinary people. At first, when he looked at Emperor Taizong, he was thinking of the hands of Emperor Taizong's subordinates, but what he saw was only an old man whose face was deathly pale with grief. Moreover, he believed even more that if it was his father, he would definitely not do this.

In that case, only one person could do it! Li Chengqian's eyes, filled with hot tears and anger, were fixed on Li Kui as he trembled in fear. He was thinking about how he could take revenge! With his martial arts skills, he naturally couldn't compare to his third brother, Li Qu, but he couldn't come up with a plan. Who knew if he could live past today?

When the guards outside the Hall of Management heard this loud roar, they thought that something had happened and hurriedly rushed into the hall. However, they were stopped at the door by their own generals. As for the people in the Hall of Governance, they were either mocking him, indifferent or sad as they looked at the crown prince in front of them. Li Chengqian!

Emperor Taizong silently stood in the hall. As he watched his son crazily shouting and shouting, his heart was filled with a sense of desolation. He unconsciously thought of his eldest grandson who had passed away a long time ago. Fifth Mother, if only you were still by my side … Not good! If you were by my side and saw your son like this, wouldn't you be similarly sad? Happiness can be shared, pain or a person to bear the burden...

As he thought of this, he felt an additional force in his body, supporting his originally exhausted body. Immediately after, resolution appeared on his originally sorrowful face, and his murky eyes lit up.

"Li Chengqian!"

A loud shout echoed throughout the Hall of Management. Everyone was slightly taken aback, but they all turned to look at Emperor Taizong, their expressions gloomy and silent.

"In the Jade Temple, I don't know why you turned against me, but now I know, I know!" Emperor Taizong's voice was loud and sonorous, his righteousness exuded from his entire body. In front of everyone was the lofty king, a legend that everyone looked up to!

"That day, I called in troops to return to the imperial court and passed by a pine tree. Do you know what I have seen? I see a nest of sparrows in the tree, a group of sparrows next to the big sparrow, but in order to build the nest, the big sparrow did not overpower the little sparrow, but the little sparrow insisted on doing it. "From then on, I understood why you want to rebel against me!"

The Hall of Knowledge was silent, with only Emperor Taizong speaking.

"Father is not old yet, so I shall be the first one to succeed! Although my body is getting worse and worse, I still hold the military power firmly in my own hands. The Crown Prince is already a young man. Even though you tried very hard, you still couldn't get my approval. If it was me, I would also be extremely vexed. I've had dozens of sons, but I'm not familiar with many of them. I'm too busy, and I'm not a good father. "I always thought that giving you all a peaceful environment is the greatest love I can give you all. However, now I understand, why it is a happy thing for my descendants to walk around the knee …"

As Emperor Taizong finished speaking, he continued to choke back his words, and a sorrowful expression appeared on his face once more. The gaze he used to look at his son contained boundless benevolence and an imperceptible tinge of regret.

"Perhaps you did something in your prime, or perhaps you truly hated me as a father, or perhaps …" Emperor Taizong paused here, his brows slightly creased. He honestly said, "Or perhaps, you just want me, your father, to pay attention to you and approve of you, even if my eyes stay on you for a little longer!"

"No!" "Ahhh!" Li Chengqian shouted loudly, his delicate face and facial features contorted as two streams of tears fell from his eyes. Don't say anymore, it's my wishful thinking, everything about you is good! You are the emperor, so whatever you do is right. Why should you care about my small betrayal? "

Just as he finished speaking, Li Chengqian took out a dagger from his chest and stabbed himself in the chest, causing blood to spurt out.

Emperor Taizong was momentarily stunned still on the spot. He saw Li Chengqian's eyes, which were almost completely red, and deep hatred within his eyes! Deep...

(Writing this chapter, I'm depressed, thinking of my father …)