Cui family.
Cui Yunzhu is already the temporary head of the Cui family in the capital, but today he was standing obediently by the side. Including his injured cousin Cui Yuncheng, they were all guests at the moment. Sitting in the middle was a forty-year-old old man, Cui Shiju, one of the four elders of the Cui family. Because he was the third oldest, the servants called him Master Cui San.
"Is the information reliable?"
Mr. Cui San just arrived today, and as soon as he arrived, there was a big bombshell, that is, His Royal Highness the Emperor's eldest grandson was assassinated outside the city. Although he was only hit by an arrow, it was definitely not a trivial matter.
Even though Li Chengqian was deposed, Li Xiang was still the eldest grandson of the emperor of the Tang Empire, and his assassination was no small matter.
What's more, Li Xiang is now highly valued by Li Shimin. In addition to being the deputy seal of the Liaodong Division of the Ministry of War, he is also the deputy commander of the newly established Imperial City Division. He is not only the number one among the grandsons of the Tang Dynasty emperor, but has also surpassed Li Tai's glory.
"It's reliable. People from the East Palace are already investigating the murderer."
Cui Yunzhu answered honestly that as the magistrate of Chang'an County, it was no problem for him to collect such information. Moreover, as the richest family in the world, their Cui family had its own intelligence system.
"Please don't let the fire burn us. Have you ever asked the people below if they really have nothing to do with us?"
Mr. Cui Sanye said nervously that because things in the capital were out of control, the Qinghe Cui family sent him here to handle all the affairs of the Cui family in the capital. At this moment, Cui Yunzhu was just an office clerk.
"Don't worry, Third Master, this matter has nothing to do with us."
Cui Yunzhu said affirmatively that all the people of the Cui family had been assembled. They did want to cause trouble for Li Xiang, but before they could take action, Li Xiang had already encountered trouble. He was happy for a while at that time. This kid usually makes enemies everywhere. Even without us, his life would be extremely difficult.
"Take my invitation and send someone to the East Palace to invite His Highness to come over for a chat."
After Master Cui San said this, the two brothers Cui Yunzhu were shocked. When Master Cui San just came, the two brothers speculated for a while, thinking that Master Cui San was here to make the decision for them, at least to suppress Li Xiang. What did it mean to let Li Xiang come to their house for a talk?
"Third Master, this guy has ruined a lot of our good things. The liquor business hasn't had any income for a month. What's the point of talking to him?"
Cui Yunzhu was excluded as an heir when he was young, and there was a reason for that. Looking at this guy's anxious look, Master Cui San shook his head speechlessly.
"Times have changed. When the Tang Dynasty was first established, the court relied on us for many things, so we could go too far and even put Your Majesty above us. But now that the Tang Dynasty has achieved superficial peace and prosperity, if we were to cause trouble, the chances of success would be slim, so we must also change our strategy."
Mr. Cui Sanye said helplessly that to put it nicely, it was necessary to change the strategy, but to put it bluntly, it was necessary to surrender slowly.
For these aristocratic families, they do not want the society to develop peacefully, because such development is not conducive to their growth of strength. Only when the society is in turmoil and those in power need to rely on them, then their position will become higher and higher. They have been aiming at this over the years and have created all kinds of bloody storms in the Tang Dynasty. However, Li Shimin was strong enough to dismantle all their plans, and the Tang Dynasty began to slowly get better.
"So we just put up with them?"
Cui Yunzhu said somewhat reluctantly that in the confrontation with Li Xiang, one of their brothers was injured and the other was humiliated. If they just endured it, the people of the world would laugh at their Cui family.
"Didn't you see what happened at the entrance to the Ministry of War? If you were to resort to force, how much better would your men be than Hou Junji's?"
Mr. Cui Sanye said sternly that the family sent him here because they saw Li Xiang's armed forces. If they were to fight head-on, they might not be able to gain the upper hand. If Li Xiang bites them, they will inevitably lose a piece of meat.
"Then what does it mean that the Third Master invited him here?"
Cui Yunzhu was so anxious that he wanted to scream, but Cui Yuncheng just gave his cousin a look and he kept silent. Although Cui Yuncheng was injured, he was able to remain rational at the critical moment.
"Since we can't fight him, we have to become his friend. For my Cui family, we always have a plan for dealing with any situation."
Mr. Cui Sanye's words revealed a lot of helplessness. In the past, if anyone disobeyed them, the Cui family would directly kill him, but now they can only adjust their plan.
"We support his ascension to the throne?"
Cui Yuncheng said with some disbelief. Although he had only met Li Xiang once, he knew that this man was no small figure. Once he ascended the throne, he might be more difficult to deal with than Li Shimin, and then their aristocratic families would have no room to survive.
"That depends on his attitude. If it can protect our interests, then we can support him. But if he implements the same policy as the current emperor, then we will have to take risks again."
After Mr. Cui Sanye finished speaking, Cui Yuncheng understood what was going on. Mr. Cui Sanye came to the capital this time, ostensibly to deal with this endgame, but in fact he wanted to test Li Xiang and see what Li Xiang really meant.
When I faced Li Chengqian back then...
Cui Yuncheng felt a chill all over his body.
He didn't know what happened back then, but Li Chengqian didn't show any favor to the Five Surnames and Seven Families, which was also known to the entire court. Could it be his leg?
"You two have lived in the family for so long that you always think that no one can go against our wishes. Sometimes you should also look at the outside world. The Changsun family can cooperate with him, and so can we. No one will not be tempted by the Cui family's political resources. Once he joins our team, he will have no say in the matter."
Mr. Cui Sanye said confidently that although they did not have much power in the upper echelons of the imperial court, the power they possessed in the vast prefectures and counties was extremely astonishing, and all of it was on the cutting edge.
Thinking of the huge power of the Cui family, Cui Yunzhu smiled again, but Cui Yuncheng frowned. Are you really sure he will get on the boat?
Or perhaps they're already a large ship, so why would they want to come onto yours? Besides, the channel is so narrow, and if your ship blocks their way, they might even try to sink it. Besides Li Yuan and Li Jiancheng, no one else in the Tang Dynasty's Li family is willing to cooperate with them...