Traveling through the Gaowu Tang Dynasty, Li Kuan and Li Shimin became the second sons of the Prince

His Majesty Li II obviously knew what was hidden behind Empress Taimu's seemingly affectionate behavior.

Therefore, the complex emotions that filled his heart at this moment were probably so complex that even he himself could not explain them.

Fortunately, Fang Xuanling was also a smart man. Seeing that Emperor Li II remained silent, he also chose to remain quiet.

Until His Majesty Li II took the initiative to speak: "Xuanling, at this moment, there are only you and me in this imperial study. I would like to ask you to tell me, have I really done something wrong? If I really did something wrong, then where did I go wrong?"

“Your Majesty, I wonder if you still remember that His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu came to you and asked to make him a king.” Fang Xuanling saw that His Majesty Li Er was still struggling with the right and wrong of the matter, so he decided to solve all the problems at once: “It was also from that time that I saw that His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu was different from other princes - His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu looked at everyone with no fear, including you.

And this was all because Empress Taimu had always favored him.

But Your Majesty, don't you realize that the character of His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu was formed by this - as long as His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu wants something, he will take the initiative to fight for it, whether it is the title of king... or the position of crown prince, in the eyes of His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu, these are things that he can ask for if he wants them, at least that's how he sees it.

But until now, His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu has never shown any interest in the position of Crown Prince, and he has not even tried to please you for it.

So, Your Majesty, if you think that His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu will take the initiative to rebel in the future, then the only possibility is that the father-son relationship between you and His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu is too weak. But, is this His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu's fault?"

"..."

Fang Xuanling's words were very insightful and heart-wrenching.

His Majesty Li II had nothing to say about this.

"Your Majesty, why don't you say anything?" Fang Xuanling didn't indulge His Majesty this time: "If I said something wrong, Your Majesty can point it out. I will definitely change if I can, and I will admit my guilt if I can't. Anyway, I don't want Your Majesty to be unhappy."

"Fang Xuanling!" Upon hearing this, His Majesty Li II flew into a rage again: "Am I really that incompetent?! Even you want to stand up for that brat?!"

"Your Majesty, you know this." Fang Xuanling said with a straight face, "When His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu returned to Chang'an last time, because of the prince's broken leg, I united almost all the ministers in the court to try to stop His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu from coveting the position of the prince - but you also saw the result.

In some matters, even though I have no relationship with His Royal Highness the King of Chu, I will still feel guilty for making a mistake.

But your majesty... you and His Royal Highness the King of Chu are father and son, but you have made a few mistakes, and do you feel guilty? Although I dare not say it clearly, I can barely see it. "

"..." Fang Xuanling's words were like pearls of wisdom and sharp as knives. Although His Majesty Li II was able to resist, a certain emotion in his heart finally erupted: "You don't understand... I was just forced to do so - just like when I sent the child to Longyou, it was all due to the situation..."

"Your Majesty, the Book of Jin says: 'To correct the details is to correct the root.' If you want to make the details of things perfect, you must first correct the root: you sent His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu back to Longyou in the hope of gaining the support of Empress Taimu, and in the end, everything went as you wished. (Note 1)

But after you benefited from this, you turned around and thought that His Royal Highness the King of Chu had become a hidden danger. Then I would like to ask: Is this all His Royal Highness the King of Chu's fault? Did he want to be away from his parents since he was born?

Or is it all Queen Taimu's fault?

His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu grew up under her careful care.

I even heard that His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu once fell seriously ill when he was young and almost died.

Your Majesty, please think about it carefully. When Empress Taimu was dying, could she be at ease with the grandson whom she had raised with great difficulty?

It is impossible for her to leave His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu helpless and helpless just to reassure you. His future fate will be decided by you.

Your Majesty, have you ever thought about this? In fact, Empress Taimu knows in her heart that you do not have deep feelings for His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu, and I may even say something disrespectful, but even in the eyes of the Empress, His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu cannot have a higher status than His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. Do you think this is fair to His Royal Highness the Prince of Chu? ! "

At this time, Fang Xuanling was not a retainer of the Dou family, but was better than a retainer of the Dou family.

"Why?" After a long silence, His Majesty Li II suddenly asked, "Why did you say such things to me for that boy?"

"Your Majesty," Fang Xuanling bowed slightly to His Majesty Li Er, and then said, "The sage once said: A scholar must be broad-minded and resolute. I have said before that some things are more important than my own reputation. Compared with the country and people of the Tang Dynasty, everything I have seems insignificant!"

Fang Xuanling's powerful words really made Emperor Li II feel a little ashamed.

So he had to fall into silence again.

But as time passed, Fang Xuanling's back remained as straight as before.

His Majesty Li II knew that he was at a disadvantage in this argument. So he suddenly said, "Xiangzhou, Yangzhou, Lantian County, Gaochang, Qiongzhou, five fiefs, I will give them to him, what do you think, Xuanling?"

"Your Majesty is wise." Fang Xuanling laughed when he heard this: "In fact, I have been wanting to say this for a long time - you said that after the Prince of Chu went to Qiongzhou, in two years, His Majesty had a child - would Your Majesty be willing to let your grandson live in a desolate place like Qiongzhou since he was a child?"

"..." His Majesty Li II understood and realized that he should give him more: "What you said makes sense, then... I will give him Quanzhou again!"

"Your Majesty, is it necessary for Duke Tang to go out of the border again?" After seeing that His Majesty Li II made such a major concession, Fang Xuanling naturally knew that the other party had given up his original idea, but to be on the safe side, he still needed to get a formal statement.

"With that bastard in charge, I naturally don't need to send anyone to supervise the negotiations with the foreign races." His Majesty Li II said, turning around and starting to walk towards his desk: "Xuanling, what happened today must not be mentioned to anyone."

"I understand." Fang Xuanling was willing to speak up for His Royal Highness the King of Chu, naturally not for any reward. In his opinion, as long as His Majesty was willing to make concessions, the situation would not gradually get out of control, and the Tang Dynasty would still be able to enjoy peace and prosperity, and this was actually the best reward.