"Long live the emperor..."
Amid the cheers of the crowd, Li Shimin attended an ordinary yet unusual morning court session.
Normally there would be two such meetings a month, but what was unusual was that during this morning court session, according to the information Li Shimin had obtained, the Cui family and other major families had already contacted each other and were going to teach Li Xiang a lesson during the morning court session, letting this guy know that the majesty of the Five Surnames and Seven Noble Families could not be violated.
After Li Shimin got the news, he was very protective of his son. He organized his men and asked them to say something good when the ministers of the Five Surnames and Seven Families stood up. Of course, the main battlefield was left to Li Xiang to see how Li Xiang would deal with it. You can't just cause trouble but not settle it.
"If you have a memorial, come and make a report. If you don't, leave the court."
Wang De still said these eight words according to the previous rules. After these eight words, the ministers had to start submitting memorials.
According to the plan that had been made long ago, Lord Ma should be the first to take the lead. As everyone expected, Lord Ma stepped out of the queue at this moment. The position of Minister of Rites was neither high nor low, and he had a certain status in the court, so letting Lord Ma take the lead would also reassure others.
When Lord Ma came out, Li Shimin also frowned. It was indeed the same as the information he had received. The Five Surnames and Seven Families were infiltrating the court more and more. They were originally only middle and lower-level officials, but now they have reached the Minister of Rites. If they are allowed to develop, I am afraid that the Prime Minister will also be theirs.
Several other officials were also ready, waiting for Lord Ma to take the lead. They went out and criticized Li Xiang one after another, and also told them about Zatlk and Hou Junji.
"Your Majesty, I heard yesterday that His Royal Highness, the Grand Prince, was very observant and had captured a Goguryeo spy in Changlefang. In addition to commending His Royal Highness, I believe that a special government office should be established to conduct a full-scale hunt for foreign spies in the city..."
At the beginning, no one thought there was anything wrong. After all, everyone's memorials were written differently. As long as Li Xiang was implicated, it should be normal. However, after these words were spoken, many people present changed their expressions. They were all ministers supported by the Five Surnames and Seven Families.
Then not only they felt puzzled, but even Li Shimin on the dragon throne wondered if he had not woken up yet?
What the hell is going on today? Why is the weasel here to pay New Year's greetings to the chicken? Li Xiang beat Cui Yuncheng so badly yesterday and even closed down the Fuyun Restaurant. This is tantamount to crushing the Cui family. This is the most powerful family in the world. If they don't fight back strongly, how can they survive in the Tang Dynasty?
But is this their counterattack? Where is this counterattack?
Lord Ma spoke for a long time, with no intention of punishing Li Xiang. He even wanted to strengthen Li Xiang's power by establishing a new office within the Ministry of War. This office would be used specifically to hunt down spies and would have special powers. If this office was established, Li Xiang would have military power in Chang'an City...
Regarding the struggle between Li Xiang and the Five Surnames and Seven Noble Clans, Li Tai and his brothers were all taking a wait-and-see attitude, and they had already agreed today to watch the joke in the court. But after hearing what Lord Ma said, the brothers looked at each other and became a little restless. If Li Xiang were to take control of the military power, then even if they became the crown prince, they would probably not be able to ascend to the throne. They all remembered the Xuanwu Gate Incident. Whoever took control of the military power would be the next emperor.
Cui Yunzhu then understood why Li Xiang was so confident. After Lord Ma finished speaking, he found that more than a dozen officials in the court were confused. These people didn't know what had happened, and the memorials that had been prepared long ago were also hidden. In this situation, if you stand up, you will become the first one to stand out.
"I also believe that a new government office should be established. In addition to the Goguryeo spies, there are also many Turkic spies. I receive intelligence about them almost every day, but I have other complicated matters on my hands, so I cannot devote my full attention to this matter. Your Majesty, please reconsider."
Just when everyone hadn't understood what was happening and was planning how to stop it, Changsun Wuji actually stood up with a clear stand.
The initial investment paid off...
Li Xiang had not expected that Changsun Wuji would stand up. This man was the most powerful official in the Tang Dynasty, and his actions in the court were the focus of everyone's attention. After Changsun Wuji finished saying this, even if others had objections, they had to think carefully in their hearts to see whether they should say it or whether they could still say it.
"Li Jing, what do you think?"
Li Jing usually does not express his opinions in the court. Even if there is something, he will communicate with the emperor in private. Now Li Shimin wants to hear his professional opinion because he knows Li Jing very well. He does not mix personal feelings in many things. Everything is for the Tang Empire. This is also one of the reasons why Li Shimin respects him.
"Chang'an City has indeed been a bit chaotic recently. It's okay to set up a new government office to rectify the situation, but there must be a framework for rectification. We can't just arrest people arbitrarily, which will easily cause panic among the people."
Li Jing's words were very proper. He did not blindly support Li Xiang just because he was his subordinate, but at the same time he also expressed his own thoughts.
"Fang Xuanling."
Li Shimin began to call out names one by one. Cui Yunzhu had already signaled to several people to stand up and oppose this proposal, but Li Shimin did not give them any chance.
"General Li is right. We should pay more attention to these spies recently. However, to prevent excessive concentration of power, several government offices should simultaneously contribute personnel and resources to jointly hunt down spies."
Chang'an City is an extremely sensitive area. If someone were to have military power, the Xuanwu Gate incident would likely happen again. Fang Xuanling was also on guard against this. Although he admired Li Xiang very much, he could never let Li Xiang hold the military power alone. Several government offices should check and balance each other, while at the same time being able to get this matter done. This should be the best choice.
"Your Majesty, I wish to gain some experience in this government office."
Li Tai finally found an opportunity to interrupt and immediately stood up. Is this kid trying to pick peaches? Li Xiang squinted his eyes and looked at his second uncle. I've been busy for a while, and you want to run away...