Chapter 262 Li Zhi’s tacit cooperation

“I hope Your Majesty can be magnanimous and forgive the mistake that Lord Situ made this time!”

In the court, more than half of the courtiers came out, stood in a row, and shouted in unison.

They were obviously well prepared and, relying on their large numbers, tried to make Emperor Li Zhi change his mind.

After all, the law does not punish the majority, and with so many people pleading for mercy, even the emperor would have to consider it carefully.

To take a serious look at this behavior, it is tantamount to forcing the emperor in the manner of literati.

These ministers made their positions clear. If Li Zhi insisted on punishing Chu Suiliang, the consequences would be disastrous.

There may not necessarily be bloody conflicts or other bloody incidents, but as long as these aristocratic families unite and declare a strike, the operation of the entire country will come to a standstill or even paralyzed.

Because of this, when faced with such forces, the emperor, as the superior, often cannot rely solely on force to solve the problem.

Li Zhi remained silent. His face was stern and his eyes were cold. He just stared quietly at the ministers in front of him.

For a moment, the court was silent, and the noisy discussions disappeared without a trace in an instant.

The deathly silent atmosphere caused many ministers, who were originally active in thinking, to begin to realize that something was wrong.

At this moment, Xu Jingzong spoke again:
“Your Majesty, I would like to impeach Wei Ting, Cui Yi, Wang Renyou, Xiao Yu, Pei Min, Yang Hongli and others for forming a clique for personal gain, attempting to control the government, and wantonly trampling on human lives. Their crimes are beyond the reach of justice and are heinous!”

After saying this, he clasped his hands respectfully, stood straight, and waited for Li Zhi’s response.

“Xu Jingzong, you are such a bold lunatic! How dare you speak nonsense and make up stories here!”

Cui Yi’s hair stood on end with rage, his eyes wide open, and he shouted at Xu Jingzong harshly.

His angry eyes were like two bolts of lightning, instantly breaking the solemn atmosphere in the court.

At the same time, Cui Yi’s eyes quietly swept towards Li Zhi who was sitting on the dragon throne, and he couldn’t help but sneer in his heart.

Cui Yi naturally knew everything that was happening before his eyes.

Li Zhi’s instructions and manipulation were certainly indispensable behind this.

He is still too young, and his strength and experience are far from enough to support his ambitions.

Li Zhi wanted to swallow up all the aristocratic families in the capital in one breath. His greed was so great that even Cui Yi felt inferior to him.

People are not enough to swallow elephants.

The list covers almost all the famous five surnames and seven famous families.

Even when Li Shimin was alive, facing so many aristocratic families with deep roots, he would probably have thought twice and not dared to act rashly.

But now, this new emperor, who has just ascended the throne and whose regime is not yet completely stable, has the courage and confidence to attempt to achieve such a shocking act.

Li Zhi, who had been silent all this time, finally spoke slowly:
“Minister Cui, considering the position you hold, speaking disrespectfully to Xu Pushe is a serious crime of insubordination.”

Although Li Zhi’s voice was not loud, the majesty contained in it was unquestionable.

Obviously, he had decided not to endure it any longer, but to face Cui Yi’s provocation head-on and attack him directly.

Facing Li Zhi’s accusation, Cui Yi showed no fear. Instead, he raised his head sharply and looked directly into Li Zhi’s eyes without flinching.

“So, Your Majesty is really going to listen to Xu Jingzong’s words and convict us of riots?”

Cui Yi’s tone was extremely tough, and he had no intention of giving in. In his opinion, even if they completely broke off relations with Li Zhi today, the aristocratic families would never succumb to the pressure of imperial power.

After all, how could the Li Tang dynasty be established and consolidated without the secret help of these aristocratic families?
“Xu Jingzong, you are accusing the noble family of a crime. Do you have solid evidence? If you can’t produce evidence, you will be held responsible for false accusation!”

Li Zhi asked with a dignified look, but in fact he already knew in his heart that this play was just directed and acted by himself.

And all of this was carefully planned and directed by Li Zhi behind the scenes from beginning to end.

Xu Jingzong held his head high and replied loudly without any fear: “Of course I have it!”

As he finished speaking, heavy footsteps were heard outside the hall, followed by several strong soldiers carrying several huge boxes slowly walking into the hall.

The boxes looked heavy, as if they were filled with important things.

At this time, Lou Shide walked steadily to the front of the hall, bowed, and said in a loud voice like a bell:
“Your Majesty, all the evidence of the crimes committed by the noble family is here. It contains not only the actual evidence of their annexation of a large amount of land, but also the bloody crimes of their followers who wantonly slaughtered innocent people, and even the ironclad evidence of their shameless acts of forcing decent women to become prostitutes.”

When the many ministers present saw Lou Shide actually walking directly into the hall wearing a sharp sword, they were so frightened that their faces turned pale and they dared not say a word. They instantly became silent.

Everyone knew that the new emperor was probably serious this time.

A new official starts with three things.

This is to establish authority.

The sunlight and shadows outside the hall flickered and intertwined, forming a picture of changing light and dark.

In this light and shadow, a group of soldiers dressed in black armor quickly walked towards the Taiji Hall.

“Do you have anything else to say?”

Li Zhi asked loudly with a gloomy face. The strong murderous intent emanating from his body spread around like a tide, making people shudder.

Facing Li Zhi’s questioning, Cui Yi raised the corners of his mouth slightly, revealing a disdainful sneer: “If you want to accuse someone, you can always find a pretext! Since Your Majesty is determined to convict us, then we can only accept the crime obediently.”

Things got bigger.

They all wanted to see how Li Zhi dealt with the aftermath.

Or maybe he felt that the current Tang Dynasty was not strong enough, so he added fuel to the fire.

Gao Shilian walked out of the crowd tremblingly. He hunched over and said seriously:

“Your Majesty, please do not trust the slander of those treacherous villains and misjudge those of us who have made great contributions to the court.”

Li Zhi was unmoved by Gao Shilian’s plea.

“Duke, please stop talking! The evidence is irrefutable and will not tolerate any doubt or rebuttal!”

“No, Your Majesty, you don’t know yet. Your actions have already shaken the foundation of the empire. Your Majesty, please punish Xu Jingzong, this treacherous villain, as soon as possible to set things right.”

Gao Shilian became even more anxious. He couldn’t bear to see Li Zhi make a big mistake and ruin the Tang Dynasty.

The children of aristocratic families hold real power in all states and provinces across the country. In addition, there are many children of aristocratic families, and without their support, it is really impossible to sit firmly on the throne.

“Think twice, Your Majesty!”

Seeing that Li Zhi had no reaction to his advice and remained calm and indifferent, Gao Shilian pretended to kneel down to show his earnest attitude and the importance of the matter.

However, before he could actually kneel down, he heard Li Zhi’s loud order: “Lou Shide, listen to my order. I order you to lead your troops immediately and kill everyone on this list, whether they are the people themselves or their families! Search and confiscate their homes door by door. If anyone dares to resist, kill them without mercy!”

This order was like a thunderclap exploding in the court.

All the ministers present were stunned, and for a moment no one dared to respond.

Hearing this, Cui Yi could no longer suppress his anger and fear. He suddenly stood up and pointed at Li Zhi and shouted, “Li Zhi, you dare to do this!”

None of them could have imagined that this young emperor, who seemed weak and incompetent on weekdays, could actually issue such a cruel and decisive order today.

Li Zhi was young and ignorant, but it was these ministers and their families who suffered the consequences.

“You ignorant boy, do you know what serious consequences your actions will lead to?” “How dare you do this, bastard!”

“You bastard, only a fool can issue such a foolish and unreasonable order!”

As Cui Yi’s roar sounded, the court immediately exploded. Many ministers accused Li Zhi and all kinds of abuses were heard.

Even a drop of saliva could drown Li Zhi.

“How dare you insult His Majesty? What crime should you be punished for?”

Lou Shide shouted loudly.

Faced with the raging anger and wanton insults from his ministers, Li Zhi remained unmoved. He just looked coldly at the group of ministers in front of him who were in chaos.

At this time, Lou Shide stepped forward and blocked the imperial steps. He swung the sword in his hand, and with a flash of cold light, he forced back the ministers who were approaching Li Zhi.

At the same time, a burst of shouting and killing was heard outside the hall. It turned out that the Black Armor Army, who had been waiting outside, heard the sound and moved, pouring into the hall like a tide.

In the blink of an eye, most of the ministers who were speaking wildly were captured. The entire court was immediately plunged into chaos and panic.

“You are so young, you may not know the power of our major clans.”

Cui Yi, who was pressed to the ground, raised his head with difficulty, looked at Li Zhi and said warningly.

“How could I not know how powerful your family is? You can even depose or enthrone the throne with a single word. With a single order from you, the world can be overturned.”

Li Zhi said slowly that he understood too well the harm caused by aristocratic families.

If the situation hadn’t changed, he wouldn’t know how long he would have to stay a loser.

“Since you know this, you should know how big an impact this move will have?”

Cui Yi’s heart was actually depressed at this moment, as he was afraid of dying in vain.

Li Zhi understood the power of the clans, so he would not act rashly and seek his own death.

“If it were in the past, I would not dare to do anything to you, but today is different.”

“It’s okay to tell you the truth. Li Chengqian’s troops have already reached the Yellow River. The Fanyang Lu family, Qinghe family, and Boling Cui family are all finished. Li Chengqian’s general Heichi Changzhi has also broken into Qizhou, and the Langya Wang family has also been trampled by the iron cavalry.”

Li Zhi stood up and spoke slowly.

The country’s territory was conquered, but it seemed as if it had nothing to do with him as the king.

“How is that possible? You must be lying to me. We haven’t received the news yet. How could you get it first?”

Cui Yi shook his head. It was hard to believe, and he was even more unwilling to believe it.

Qinghe and Boling are the Cui family’s base camps.

“I am not kidding. I have my own methods, which you cannot understand.”

Li Zhi didn’t want to explain too much.

“Even if that’s the case, so what? I know. It must be my Cui family that has surrendered to Crown Prince Li Chengqian, so you want to target us.”

As if he had figured something out, Cui Yi smiled bitterly.

Although he was a high-ranking official in Chang’an, he was still unable to influence the decisions of his clan in the face of the general trend.

“You’re thinking too much. Haven’t you heard about the policy of equalizing the land tax implemented by Li Chengqian in Baekje and Goguryeo?”

“The wealth accumulated by your clan over countless years has been divided equally.”

Li Zhi’s words made them all disbelieve.

Li Chengqian, his methods are much more ruthless than Li Zhi’s.

He can do anything to massacre a country.

“Even if that’s the case, so what? The descendants of our major clans are spread all over the country. How can they hurt our foundation if they conquer a few places? Your Majesty, are you underestimating us too much?”

Wei Ting said coldly at this time that the roots of his Wei family were not in the north and the south, but in Jingzhao.

“Yes, although Qinghe is the ancestral home of the Cui family, over the years, more than half of the clan members have been away. It is not as simple as you think.”

Cui Yi also continued to say that a cunning rabbit has three burrows, and their clan’s branches are spread all over the country.

As long as you raise your arms and call, people will respond in droves.

“Since the Han Dynasty, the rise of aristocratic families has lasted for nearly a thousand years. How could I take it lightly?”

“More than a month ago, I had already ordered Su Dingfang and Wang Fangyi to serve as the military commanders of Guannei Road and Hedong Road, commanding the military affairs of the two routes and leading the troops to defend Chang’an. Even if your clans and families want to start a rebellion, it is impossible for you to do anything to me in such a short time.”

“Moreover, your current enemy is not me, but the Crown Prince Li Chengqian who is trying to divide up the property and land equally.”

“I have never looked down on your clan, but your clan has not taken my Li royal family seriously.”

Li Zhi snorted.

“I understand now. All of this was done by your royal family!”

“So vicious!”

Cui Yi is not stupid. This is a joint attack against their clan from both inside and outside.

But these people who claim to be smart were fooled around.

“Take him away, follow the order, and investigate thoroughly!”

Li Zhi turned around and waved his sleeves violently.

“Your Majesty, please give our clan a chance to survive, considering our past contributions.”

Cui Yi lost his previous composure and began to kneel down on the ground.

The situation has already been determined, and even if they knew it, they would be powerless to change it.

As long as Li Zhi is willing to cut off Zhangsun Wuji’s food supply, how can he fight?

With one imperial decree, the clan was doomed.

All the food and grass in the country are concentrated in Chang’an and Luoyang.

The reason why Li Zhi only controlled Guannei Road and Hedong Road was because of their strategic locations.

“His Majesty…”

Until the voices begging for mercy disappeared, Li Zhi never uttered another word.

“Your Majesty, what should we do next?”

After a long time, Xu Jingzong finally asked.

They knew nothing about the royal family’s arrangements.

Fortunately, they are not from prominent families, otherwise, they would have been hard to escape this purge.

(End of this chapter)