The Human Emperor

Side Story Chapter 31: The First Prince’s Resolve!

Bang!

The news shook the court.

This sudden development had all of the officials smelling something unusual.

The Tang Emperor had reigned for twenty-some years and had been deeply in love with the Empress Consort. The Empress Consort had given birth to Li Xuantu, which was why he had been so favored. Several years later, the Empress Consort died, and the Tang Emperor gave Li Xuantu many advantages out of his lingering affection, his treatment even surpassing that of the Tang Emperor at some moments. Not long afterward, the Emperor decreed that Li Xuantu would reside in the Eastern Palace and be made Crown Prince.

And Li Xuantu’s excellent performance over the years had left the Tang Emperor extremely satisfied.

Thus, no matter how much the Tang Emperor favored Virtuous Empress Dou, he would consider the First Prince’s status and rarely grant the Third Prince things beyond his station.

Favor in the harem and the court was certain to instigate a struggle between the Princes.

The Tang Emperor naturally understood, but today…

The right to participate in court debates!

It was a simple order, but everyone understood the weight of these words.

No matter how revered the status of a Prince was, he was ultimately still a Prince. Unless the Emperor granted them the authority, they would never hold any real power.

And once the Tang Emperor gave them the permission to participate in court debates, they would possess unusual power.

Since the Emperor had been enthroned, only two people out of the numerous Princes and Princesses had been granted permission to participate in court debates. One was Crown Prince Li Xuantu; the other, Second Prince Li Chengyi.

And now, there was Third Prince Li Taiyi.

For a moment, a strange mood swept through the Imperial Court.

……

Time slowly passed, and though he had faced the objections of some of the officials, Li Taiyi still chose to seize this opportunity.

Unlike before, Li Taiyi had many strategists under his command: Wang Jiuling, Wang Haibin, Zhang Shougui, Abusi, Zhangchou Jianqiong…

All of these people strategized and planned for Li Taiyi.

And due to his excellent performance in the court in affairs like managing floods and constructing roads, Li Taiyi continued to rise in reputation. With this increase in prestige, more and more officials and generals were joining him, and the balance of power in the court was quietly beginning to shift.

“Your Highness, the Third Prince’s reputation is growing by the day, and more and more officials of the court are beginning to lean toward him. Even the people are beginning to favor him. It won’t be good if this continues!”

“That’s right, Your Highness! Your Highness was long ago made Crown Prince, so His Majesty has always avoided threatening your status. But now that the Third Prince has attained fame and reputation, the Tang Emperor has clearly changed his attitude for the Third Prince, even granting him the right to attend court. Besides that… there are now numerous voices in court calling for the Emperor to change the Crown Prince!”

“That’s right! I’ve even heard that the heavens have shifted and that the Third Prince will inherit the throne in the future. The astrologers are all saying it!”

In the Eastern Palace, Li Xuantu had gathered his numerous advisors, and all of them had grave expressions, apparently rather concerned by the recent developments in court.

But in the main seat, First Prince Li Xuantu said nothing. With a dark expression, he took a celadon tea cup and sipped his tea.

In this dim lighting, it was impossible to read his face.

A goateed elder suddenly spoke. “Your Highness, a man with small tolerance cannot be a gentleman, and without ruthlessness, one cannot become a great man. This subordinate knows that Your Highness is magnanimous and still clings to brotherly love, and we are honored to serve you because of it. But the fight for the throne has always been cruel. While Your Highness is benevolent, the Third Prince might not be righteous.”

He appeared to have some prestige amongst the advisors. All the other advisors nodded, clearly sharing the same view as the elder.

Li Xuantu put down his cup and slowly said to the goateed elder, “Elder Xu, this prince understands your meaning, but these are all speculations. There is no proof that Third Brother is that violet star.”

His brow was creased, indicating that he clearly had his suspicions. He was just unwilling to admit it.

“Your Highness, the Third Prince’s faction gets stronger and stronger. We must take this seriously!” Elder Xu advised.

“This old man knows that Your Highness finds it difficult to believe, but when painting a tiger, it is easy to draw the hide, but not the bones, and when knowing a person, it is easy to know the face, but not the heart. Before his ascendancy, did the Third Prince not assault women, murder people in broad daylight, and other such unspeakable acts?”

Elder Xu was an official who had served the First Prince’s mother, and he had watched the First Prince grow up, so he had a special affection for him. Moreover, before the Empress Consort passed away, she had ordered him to assist the First Prince. Elder Xu naturally did not want the First Prince’s efforts to come to naught.

Li Xuantu became pensive at Elder Xu’s words. He once more thought back to Li Chengyi’s words.

‘Third Brother’s personality has undergone a massive change. If Imperial Brother looks down on him as before… your brother worries that Imperial Brother will take a tumble. Do not blame your brother for not warning you… You must understand that there are many cases of playing the pig to eat the tiger.’

He had believed that his second brother was envious of his third brother and trying to frame him, but after all that had happened, Li Xuantu couldn’t help but believe it.

On the other end, Elder Xu looked at the pensive Li Xuantu with a hint of heartache in his eyes. But he seemed to make up his mind, gritting his teeth as he sternly said, “Your Highness, this old man knows that mentioning this will make Your Highness sad, but Your Highness must understand that the Third Prince has Virtuous Empress Dou to speak on his behalf. Meanwhile, Your Highness…”

Elder Xu deeply sighed and said no more. But everyone understood what he meant, and they all fell silent.

Virtuous Empress Dou had already spoken on the Third Prince’s behalf a few times, particularly when the Third Prince had caused so much trouble, assisting him in minimizing all of his mistakes. Now that the Third Prince had become a new man and was no longer the fool of yesteryear, both Virtuous Empress Dou and the Third Prince would be more favored by the Tang Emperor.

Even changing the Crown Prince was no longer an impossibility.

Li Xuantu, on the other hand, had already lost his mother, and there was no one who could assist him with speaking to the Emperor. He could only rely on himself and his own footsteps. It was easy to imagine how difficult this was.

It was precisely because of this and the talent Li Xuantu had displayed that all of them had gathered together to help him.

Looking at everyone’s worried expressions, the First Prince finally spoke. “This prince understands how to proceed. Gentlemen, there is no need to worry.”

He naturally understood what they were thinking, but the execution was difficult, and at times, overdoing it was just as bad as not doing it at all.

The advisors conferred a little more before breaking up.

The Eastern Palace was quiet, and no one was left besides Li Xuantu. He remained in the same posture, motionless in his seat with the celadon tea cup in his hand.

After some time, whoosh! A chilly autumn wind blew in, extinguishing the dim lanterns within the Eastern Palace.

Bang!

As darkness engulfed the Eastern Palace, the sound of shattering porcelain rang out.

In the thick darkness, the hand that had previously gripped the cup was now drenched in cold tea. A shard of porcelain had penetrated the skin on his finger, and drops of crimson blood trickled down his hand and onto the floor.

“Third Brother, you’ve forced my hand!”

Li Xuantu’s eyes became frighteningly sharp, and it seemed as if Li Taiyi was right in front of him.

……

Time flew by, and it was now late autumn. The winds grew colder, carrying a chill fragrance as they swept through the Imperial Palace, stirring up ginkgo leaves and carpeting the ground in gold.

It was said that Emperor Taizong had planted a ginkgo tree in the Guanyin Chan Temple in the Eastern Market, and since then, that temple had burned incense without end.

The Tang Emperor had admired Emperor Taizong since a child, so he had emulated the man and planted several ginkgo trees within the Imperial Palace. Although he had not had any particular achievements, the current Tang Emperor was the longest-reigning Emperor since Taizong.

The Tang Emperor believed that the ginkgo trees had granted him Emperor Taizong’s protection, so he had someone employed to look after the ginkgo trees, day after day, year after year. The ginkgo trees were healthy and sturdy.

As winter approached, the Imperial Palace’s ginkgo trees appeared to be adorned in golden armor, and whenever the wind swept past, it would carpet the ground in dazzling gold.

Even on an overcast night like this, the golden ginkgos still stood out.

Taptaptap!

Orderly footsteps rang out through the darkness of the Imperial Palace at set intervals.

The Imperial Army rigorously carried out its patrols and manned the guard posts in order to fend off assassins. Each squad intersected with the patrol route of another squad, in a layout so tight that not even a fly could get in.

Thwish!

There was an almost inaudible gust of wind as a dark silhouette descended to the ground right after an Imperial Army squad had passed.

The soldier at the end instinctively turned his head, but all he saw were a few golden ginkgo leaves stirring in the wind. He quickly turned his head back and followed his squad to the next sentry post.

Whoosh!

In a dark corner of the Imperial Palace, two bright eyes appeared. They watched that squad leave, and then, as another gust of wind stirred the ginkgo leaves, a dark figure silently melded with the darkness and disappeared.

The Imperial Palace had many experts. The patrol squads possessed considerable strength, and this wasn’t even considering those monstrous servitors waiting in the depths.

That this man could infiltrate the Imperial Palace without alarming anyone was proof of his extraordinary strength.

And when this dark silhouette appeared again, it was in front of a resplendent palace.

A bright fretwork lantern hung from each of the four corners, and in the darkness, the four raised eaves appeared like four swallows, each bearing a lantern.

In the moonlight, the palace which had appeared majestic in the day had a serene nobility to it.

This palace was Li Taiyi’s residence, Jade Dragon Palace.