When Li Shimin received the victory report, not even a flicker of joy crossed his face. Based on the reports from Li Ji, Wang Xuance, and the others, he had already confirmed that this son had intended to raise an army in rebellion. Beyond his fury, Li Shimin felt deep humiliation. He had governed diligently and energetically, creating the magnificent Zhenguan Golden Age — a glorious Great Tang — and this son had slapped him squarely in the face.

However, over the question of how to deal with Li You, the court was in sharp dispute. Fang Xuanling and others believed he could be reduced to commoner status and exiled to Lingnan. Chang Sun Wuji’s faction demanded severe punishment.

Fang Xuanling memorialized: “Your Majesty, Prince Qi is Your Majesty’s own flesh and blood. Though he has persisted in evil without repentance, there is still the bond of father and son. That Prince Qi’s death would not be worth grieving over is certain — yet if Your Majesty executes Li You, We fear it may damage your reputation.”

Chang Sun Wuji countered: “The father speaks of the bond between father and son — but did the son? Treason is among the ten grave offenses that cannot be pardoned. Li You is a prince of the realm; not loyal, not filial, not benevolent, not righteous. If he is not severely punished, where does that leave the court’s laws and the great moral order between sovereign and subject? Does it tell the world that as long as a person is the Emperor’s own son, rebellion can go unpunished?”

Fang Xuanling was about to speak again when Li Shimin raised his hand sadly to stop him and shuffled slowly out of the Sweet Dew Hall. That retreating figure was aged and careworn — at only forty-three years old, he looked as if he might be half a century.

Li Shimin left the Sweet Dew Hall and came to the Imperial Household Office. Prince Qi Li You was imprisoned there.

Li Shimin entered the palace chamber; the Imperial Household Supervisor attended as he took his seat, then had Li You brought up to kneel at his feet.

Li Shimin looked at this son of his with a measured gaze. “Why did you rebel?”

Li You hung his head dejectedly. “Being your imperial son is too exhausting.”

“Too exhausting?” Li Shimin flew into a rage, kicked Li You over, and bellowed, “From the carnage and mountains of corpses at the end of the Sui, We fought our way through to win the Great Tang dynasty for you — making you a son of the imperial house and granting you a prefecture of your own. To be Our son — and you find it exhausting? Why do you not simply go be a pig or a dog!”

Li You’s face was bleeding, yet he smiled. “Father Emperor, you are supremely brilliant, of divine martial bearing — this son naturally holds the greatest admiration for you. Yet why must you demand that each of your sons become exactly like you? Be close to Confucian scholars, be vast in learning, be humble and eager to learn, be ready to accept remonstrance. From childhood you sent over ten tutors to instruct me, wanting to mold me into someone like my eldest brother and fourth brother — but I simply refused to become like them!”

“And what is wrong with becoming like them?” Li Shimin fumed with heaving breath.

“What is right with becoming like them?” Li You curled his lip. “When all is said and done, the way my eldest brother and fourth brother conduct themselves is all put on for your benefit. When eldest brother was thirteen, he could supposedly write governance strategies — what nonsense; it was all a group of officials writing to please you. And fourth brother? He supposedly began personally compiling the Kuodi Zhi atlas at eighteen — rubbish, it was nothing but a team of scholars assembling drafts for him. Why? Because you like it! You hope your sons are all moral paragons. But I simply do not want to be that way. I just enjoy riding and hunting, gambling with a crowd, drinking wine and chatting with friends.”

“That is because you have abandoned yourself to degradation!” Li Shimin raged.

“That is because they have ambition!” Li You said without mercy. “Father Emperor, they want to win your favor and sit on the imperial throne. This son does not. I only wish to live my life in freedom and ease. I do not want to wear any mask — none of these moral writings, these reputations for benevolent kingship. This son has no use for any of it!”

Li Shimin was infuriated beyond measure. “How did We produce a son like you?”

Li You rolled his eyes. “What sort of son did you intend to produce? One like eldest brother and fourth brother? Forget it, Father Emperor — you are performing, they are performing, everyone is performing; I just do not want to perform.”

“How are We performing?” Li Shimin demanded.

Li You smiled and said, “Father Emperor, the reason you are so eager to mold your sons into moral paragons is precisely because your own morality is compromised, is it not? The Xuanwu Gate incident — you killed Great Uncle and Fourth Uncle, forced Grandfather to abdicate, and had those ten cousins of mine slain down to the last. With these crimes attached to you, who would still believe in your performance of the benevolent and enlightened sovereign?”

“How dare you!” Li Shimin was on the verge of madness with rage, rushed forward, and beat and kicked Li You until Li You lay on the ground covered in blood.

Li You went on laughing. “Father Emperor, this is how things are. Your virtue has a flaw, and so you strive to mold us into moral paragons. This son finds it pointless, has no wish to perform, and wants to do whatever he pleases. Now it is done — the days of living extravagantly are gone forever, and Prince Qi is no more. You might as well reduce me to a commoner. This son will live out a free and easy life among the people.”

“You wish to live out a free and easy life?” Li Shimin’s smile turned cold and savage.

Li You sighed contentedly. “Indeed! A pity I never learned how to earn money growing up. I suppose I’ll sell off some belongings — perhaps that will be enough to eat and drink without worry.”

Li Shimin’s rage turned to laughter — wild, hysterical laughter as he walked toward the hall’s entrance. “We actually produced a buffoon! Come, someone draft the edict! Execute Li You — and demote his mother Consort Yin to the rank of Lady-in-Waiting!”

Li You was stunned, then let out a wail and crawled over. “Father Emperor, you are going to kill me? I am your son!”

“You were once my son — you are now a criminal of the state!” Li Shimin said coldly.

“But you cannot kill me even so! This is father and son killing each other!” Li You cried.

Li Shimin did not look back and walked out of the Imperial Household Office.

Li You was in despair, and called out in bitter laughter, “Father Emperor! You opened the first precedent of brothers killing brothers in Great Tang — and I open the first precedent of father and son killing each other. Is Our Great Tang imperial family to commit every last sin in the world?”

Li Shimin’s footsteps paused for a moment — and in the end, he did not look back, and walked away.

Wang Xuance and Du Xingmin lay hidden in a private residence in Tongshan Ward, watching a dark alley across the way.

“He is coming!” Du Xingmin said quietly. Wang Xuance gave a signal, and the Bureau of Investigation agents behind them scattered in different directions.

Du Xingmin was Qizhou’s Military Registrar. After the arrest of Li You, he had earned Wang Xuance’s admiration — Wang Xuance judged him to be a man of audacious boldness who shared his temperament — and so had him reassigned to the Bureau of Investigation’s network as his own deputy. Learning that the shadow of the Crown Prince lay behind Li You’s rebellion, yet having no evidence, and not daring to tell Li Shimin, he had dispatched a large number of agents to track down Gegan Chengji’s whereabouts.

This Gegan Chengji was a key figure in the Crown Prince’s faction, specially engaged in handling the Crown Prince’s secretive affairs. The previous year’s assassination attempt on Yu Zhining had been carried out by him personally. Wang Xuance had assumed he had long since fled — never imagining he was still doing work for the Crown Prince.

The small door across the alley belonged to a clandestine woman of ill repute. The large brothels of Chang’an were mostly concentrated in the Pingkang Quarter, but Gegan Chengji did not dare show his face openly, and so sought out this kind of disreputable house in the poverty-stricken residential area in southern Chang’an. Wang Xuance’s Bureau of Investigation agents were distributed throughout Chang’an, and after shadowing him for over a month, they had finally cornered him here.

At that moment the side door opened and a man wearing a Central Asian conical fur cap walked out, a blade at his waist. This type of cap had a pointed top and a brim below, with fold-up ear flaps that neatly concealed the wearer’s face.

“Is it him?” Wang Xuance asked the agent who had been tailing him.

The agent nodded confirmation. “That is him!”

“Seize him!” At Wang Xuance’s command, the Bureau of Investigation agents leaped down from the high walls on all sides, bearing down on Gegan Chengji.

Gegan Chengji knew it was bad, drew his long blade, and fought the agents. Wang Xuance had witnessed this man’s martial skill with his own eyes and knew it was exceptional — only the halberd fighter, with a long halberd in hand, had managed to defeat him thoroughly. And so those assembled this time were all experts: four or five of them circled Gegan Chengji in rotating attack, the ringing clash of blades thick as popping beans.

Gegan Chengji could not hold them off, and was hit repeatedly. He urgently swept his blade to knock two of them aside and made a break for it. He had barely ducked into the alley when a rope net suddenly dropped from above. Four Bureau of Investigation agents, each gripping one corner of the net, leaped down from the walls and brought it down over his head. Gegan Chengji roared with fury, but the more he struggled the tighter it drew — he was trussed up like a bundled dumpling.

Wang Xuance let out a sigh of relief, and he and Du Xingmin jumped down from the wall to pull back the conical cap — it was indeed Gegan Chengji. Wang Xuance smiled slightly. “Take him away!”

Seeing Wang Xuance, Gegan Chengji’s face went immediately ashen. He said not a word. The Bureau of Investigation agents hoisted him up, ran out of the alley, shoved him into a carriage waiting outside, and drove off at speed. The entire arrest was lightning-fast; by the time it was over — less time than it takes to burn half a stick of incense — the alley had already returned to its normal state.

This man was too sensitive — Wang Xuance dared not bring him back to the office, but found a secret compound in the south of the city and had him locked up there for interrogation.

“Brother Gegan, you and I were both stationed at the Crown Prince’s guard command — we are colleagues of a kind,” Wang Xuance sighed. “You know the methods of my Bureau of Investigation. I have no wish to use them on you — would it not be better if we simply spoke plainly?”

Gegan Chengji was silent for a long while. “Senior Aide Wang, do you know that if I open my mouth, what a great wave it will set off in the court?”

Wang Xuance nodded. “Of course.”

“Ha — I had forgotten, with your audacious boldness, this turbulence might just be your opportunity to advance,” Gegan Chengji said with a bitter smile. “If you want me to confess, there is one condition.”

“Name it,” Wang Xuance said.

“Before the Emperor — count it as my coming forward voluntarily to report,” Gegan Chengji said. “That way I may yet escape with my life. Otherwise I will certainly die — so why would I hand this enormous merit to you?”

“Agreed.” Wang Xuance nodded immediately. Seeing that Gegan Chengji seemed somewhat unconvinced, he immediately explained, “You need not doubt it. This is merit, but it is also a quagmire. This merit is too great, and the risk too great — I cannot swallow it alone, nor do I dare swallow it.”

Gegan Chengji smiled wryly. “You are not wrong — and I am seeking survival within death, going all-in. Very well — you ask, I will speak.”

“Who ordered you to go to Qizhou and incite Li You to rebel?” Wang Xuance asked.

“The Crown Prince,” Gegan Chengji said. “The incitement of Li You had been going on for over a year, and all the back-and-forth travel was handled by me.”

Wang Xuance had a secretary record the dialogue between the two of them, then asked, “Why did the Crown Prince wish to incite Li You to rebel?”

A mocking expression crossed Gegan Chengji’s face. “Because the Crown Prince himself intends to rebel!”

The moment those words fell, Wang Xuance gave a jolt. Though he had been mentally prepared, he was still struck dumb. The secretary beside him making the record also turned pale as a sheet, the hand holding the brush trembling. Fortunately there was no one else in the room — if there had been, the moment that remark spread, it would be a boundless hurricane overturning the entire Great Tang court.

“Beginning from the fifteenth year of the Zhenguan reign, the Crown Prince began preparing for a coup — yet His Majesty is brilliant and formidable, and to emulate His Majesty and stage a Xuanwu Gate-style mutiny would be extremely difficult,” Gegan Chengji said. “So the strategist Wei Lingfu devised a plan, instigating Prince Qi Li You to rebel. When that happened, the court would inevitably concentrate all its attention on Qizhou. Moreover, when the Emperor dispatched a great army to suppress the rebellion, he would necessarily deploy the generals and garrison troops from Chang’an — and once the military positions in Chang’an fell vacant, the Crown Prince would use his own people to fill them, quietly seizing control of the imperial city. Unfortunately, Prince Qi Li You was hopeless — like mud that cannot be plastered against a wall. We had originally calculated that he could hold out for three months, yet before the suppression forces even reached Qizhou, he had been captured on his own.”

Wang Xuance’s throat was dry. He struggled to control his body’s trembling. “And what of the Crown Prince’s plan now?”

Gegan Chengji said, “After Li You was captured, the Crown Prince ordered all connections to Qizhou severed, and he is watching developments quietly.”

“Who are the key figures in the Crown Prince’s faction?” Wang Xuance asked.

“At the core are Prince Han Li Yuanchang, Son-in-Law Commandant Du He, Minister of Personnel Hou Junjie, and Left Military Guard Lieutenant Commander Li Anyuan,” Gegan Chengji said.

Wang Xuance’s mind buzzed with the shock. He had originally thought the Crown Prince was relying solely on the forces of the Crown Prince Guard Command — he had never imagined that so many high court officials were involved. Du He was the son of the late great minister Du Ruhui; Prince Han Li Yuanchang was Li Shimin’s half-brother — those two were one thing. But Hou Junjie was a celebrated court general, whose battlefield record was second only to Li Jing and Li Ji; and Li Anyuan was even more critical — he held command over the palace guards. It could be said that the conditions for the Crown Prince to launch a coup were now fully in place.

“How do they plan to launch the coup?” Wang Xuance asked.

Gegan Chengji said, “According to the prior plan: first, the Crown Prince would feign the sudden onset of a serious illness. The Emperor would certainly come to the Eastern Palace to visit. Prince Han and Du He, being imperial relatives, would be in attendance at the bedside — and in the Crown Prince’s bedchamber, they would suddenly take control of the Emperor. Either kill him or render him unconscious. Then the Crown Prince and Prince Han would pretend the Emperor had been stabbed by an assassin sent by Li You and needed to be brought into the palace for treatment — thereby tricking the palace city gates open. They would then use Li Anyuan’s forces to seize control of the palace city. Afterward, a forged imperial edict would be used to have Hou Junjie mobilize the South Bureau’s Sixteen Guards to control Chang’an. The great matter would be settled.”

Wang Xuance was drenched in sweat as he listened. The Crown Prince’s coup plan was interlocking at every step, with capable people executing each link — if caught off guard, it truly had a real chance of succeeding. Moreover, throughout the Tang dynasty, the Crown Prince held military authority: the Crown Prince commanded ten guard commands of the Eastern Palace, with thirty Fubing garrison units under him, holding a troop strength of approximately thirty thousand. Among these, the Left and Right Gate Guard Commands and the Left and Right Inner Guard Commands were the Crown Prince’s own personal troops, numbering three thousand men, all stationed within the imperial city. In theory, for staging a coup, these forces were absolutely sufficient — all the more so with Li Anyuan as an internal collaborator and Hou Junjie as outside support.

“However, since Li You was eliminated too quickly,” Gegan Chengji added, “it is no longer possible to use Li You as cover. There may be some adjustments in the middle.”

“Is there a specific date?” Wang Xuance asked.

“It could be launched at any time,” Gegan Chengji thought for a moment, and then his face suddenly changed. “Terrible! I was supposed to meet Wei Lingfu at the first quarter of the Hour of the Sheep today to receive a mission! This man is highly skilled in scheming — when he sees I have not shown up, he will likely grow suspicious!”

Wang Xuance immediately demanded, “What time is it now?”

“First quarter of the Hour of the Monkey,” the secretary answered.

“Terrible!” Wang Xuance was alarmed. He snapped angrily, “Why did you not say so sooner?”

“You seized me and my head is still spinning. Who would have thought to bring this up?” Gegan Chengji also felt wronged.

Wang Xuance’s heart was in turmoil. He grabbed the completed testimony, had Gegan Chengji press his handprint on it, told people to keep a close watch on him, and rushed outside at speed, taking Du Xingmin and the Bureau of Investigation agents toward the imperial city.

By the time he reached Vermilion Bird Avenue, the sustained sound of the evening drum could already be heard in the distance. Chang’an enforced a curfew: at sunset, the Gate Officer began striking the first round of drums at the Chengtiannon Gate, the palace hall doors closing; when the second round of drumming stopped, the palace city doors closed; when the third round stopped, the imperial city gates and the outer city, ward, and market gates all closed. Three hundred beats of the morning drum, eight hundred of the evening drum.

Once the evening drum had sounded, all the main streets of the city became devoid of human figures, and the Golden Guard and the Military Patrol began their rounds: anyone found on the streets in violation of the night curfew was arrested and lashed twenty times on the spot. The idea of using street drums as the signal had actually been Ma Zhou’s suggestion — the court had originally sent people along the streets shouting announcements, but Ma Zhou felt this method was inadequate and memorialized to Li Shimin to have drums placed along the streets. When the time came, drums would be beaten from the palace city to the imperial city to the outer city, along the avenues leading to all twelve city gates — extremely convenient.

Wang Xuance led his mounted party in a gallop down the avenue while the booming drums were already beginning to beat. He was consumed with urgency — he needed to get the news of the Crown Prince’s rebellion to the Emperor, and if he could not enter the palace city, that would be disastrous. By the third quarter of the Hour of the Monkey, the imperial city gates closed, and he barely made it inside before they did — but the palace city gates had already shut.

Du Xingmin suggested waiting until the following day to report to the Emperor, but Wang Xuance did not dare delay. The Emperor resided in the palace city, and the Crown Prince’s Eastern Palace was on the eastern side of the palace city, separated only by a wall, with the Tongxun Gate between them allowing passage in and out. If the Crown Prince launched a coup that very night, those on the outside would have no way of knowing at all.

But now the gates were shut, and without the Emperor’s order, no one was permitted to open them. Wang Xuance brought his party to the exterior Secretariat office; the imperial draftsmen who were not required to work the night shift mostly resided there in the evenings. Just as Wang Xuance entered, he happened to see Ma Zhou walking out.

Wang Xuance hurriedly asked, “Draftsman Ma, I have an urgent matter and must request an audience with His Majesty — can you think of any way to convey this?”

“The palace city is shut — no one can do anything!” Ma Zhou said.

“Does the Secretariat not pass memorials through a hanging basket at night?” Wang Xuance said. “I can write a memorial and have you send it in.”

“That is possible, but His Majesty is not presently in the palace,” Ma Zhou said.

“Oh? Where has His Majesty gone?” Wang Xuance asked.

“When I was finishing my shift, someone from the Eastern Palace came saying that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince had suddenly fallen gravely ill — His Majesty was anxious and has gone to visit,” Ma Zhou said.

Wang Xuance was momentarily struck dumb.

Li Shimin had received the news of the Crown Prince’s grave illness with no suspicion whatsoever. Over the years the Crown Prince’s health had indeed been poor, with repeated illnesses, and combined with the strain of competing with Prince Wei Li Tai, the psychological pressure was immense — falling suddenly ill was well within the realm of possibility. After last year’s assassination attempt on Yu Zhining, when Li Shimin had punished the Crown Prince, he had also reflected on the matter himself and realized that he had indeed been too exacting in his demands on the Crown Prince, and that his own excessive favoritism of Prince Wei Li Tai would naturally place the Crown Prince under enormous pressure. As Wei Zheng had said: “Even in an ordinary household, when parents favor a younger child, it will make the elder child feel jealous — how much more so in an imperial family?”

Li Shimin still felt a deep affection for Crown Prince Chengqian — after all, this was his first child with Empress Zhangsun. Empress Zhangsun was already dead, and Li Shimin, driven by feeling alone for his deceased wife, had made up his mind to protect Chengqian well. The moment he heard Chengqian was gravely ill, he immediately ordered the imperial procession to set out for the Eastern Palace.

By this point the evening drum had already begun to sound, but under imperial command, the Xuanwu Gate was thrown open again at once, and Li Shimin set out with his attendants, heading east to the Northern Gate of the Eastern Palace — the Yuande Gate. The palace officials of the Eastern Palace all came to the gate to welcome the imperial procession. Prince Han Li Yuanchang and Son-in-Law Du He were also among the welcoming party.

Li Yuanchang was the seventh in birth order. Li Shimin said, “Why has Seventh Younger Brother not returned to his residence tonight?”

Li Yuanchang, suppressing his extreme anxiety, replied with a smile, “Imperial Older Brother, this evening I was originally playing a game of chess with the Crown Prince — but the Crown Prince suddenly fell ill and the Eastern Palace was thrown into disarray, so I stayed behind to watch over him.”

“Seventh Brother is so thoughtful!” Li Shimin said with feeling, patting Li Yuanchang’s hand. “How is the Crown Prince now?”

“Still unconscious,” Li Yuanchang said with a darkened expression. “The imperial physicians are treating him.”

Li Shimin was anxious and hurrying, and was ushered by the crowd toward the Crown Prince’s sleeping quarters — the Changsheng Hall.

The Changsheng Hall was utterly still. Li Shimin found it somewhat strange, and Li Yuanchang quickly explained, “For fear of disturbing the Crown Prince, this younger brother had all unrelated persons sent away.”

Li Shimin had just reached the hall entrance when suddenly, from the direction of the imperial city to the south, the shouting of countless people reached his ears — there seemed to be cavalry charges and the clanging of armor as well. Li Shimin was a seasoned veteran of many battles, acutely sensitive to such sounds. This was unmistakably the sound of a great army on the move! He was greatly alarmed. “What is that sound?”

At that very instant, an Eastern Palace official came running over, his face drained of color. “Disaster! Wang Xuance has incited the Crown Prince Guard Commands to rebel — he is attacking the palace right now!”

Both Li Shimin and Li Yuanchang were stunned at the same time. Li Shimin was astonished because Wang Xuance would rebel — why? Li Yuanchang was astonished because he had not yet sent his signal — how had the Crown Prince Guard Commands gone out? And furthermore… what did Wang Xuance have to do with any of this?

The Guard Commanders of the Left and Right Inner Guard Commands had this same question.

Wang Xuance knew the Emperor had entered the Eastern Palace and immediately judged that the Crown Prince’s coup tonight was imminent — the Emperor’s life might be in danger at any moment. He immediately told Ma Zhou the full situation, and Ma Zhou was likewise struck dumb with shock. His first instinct was to go to the South Bureau’s Sixteen Guards for reinforcements — and Wang Xuance asked him, “Can you actually mobilize the Sixteen Guards?”

“I’ll just say the Crown Prince is going to rebel!” Ma Zhou said.

“And the proof?” Wang Xuance asked. “Without the Emperor’s and the Department of State Affairs’ mobilization orders, would the Sixteen Guards dare act on your word alone?”

“Then… then I’ll go and have the gates opened,” Ma Zhou said.

“Great! If you can get the guards at the Chengtiannon Gate to open up, you will be the first great meritorious hero!” Wang Xuance said.

Ma Zhou thought it over and immediately drooped in despair — getting the palace to open its gates required procedures even more complex than mobilizing the Sixteen Guards. “Then what do you say we do?”

Wang Xuance gritted his teeth. “Make the Crown Prince strike early!”

He immediately took Ma Zhou and the Bureau of Investigation agents galloping toward the Crown Prince Left and Right Inner Guard Commands. The Crown Prince Left and Right Inner Guard Commands were situated at the northeastern corner of the imperial city, facing the Eastern Palace’s southern gate directly. Wang Xuance galloped at breakneck speed and thundered into the Right Inner Guard Command’s office. The Right Inner Guard Command was ablaze with lamps at that hour. The Guard Commander, Vice Commander, Senior Aide, and subordinate personal guards and other officers were waiting in anxiety. Everyone sat in silence in the office — three thousand troops had bows drawn and blades bared, waiting intently for the signal from the Eastern Palace, poised on a hair-trigger.

Just then, Wang Xuance came riding in at a furious gallop and roared, “The situation has changed — the Crown Prince orders an immediate attack on the Chengtiannon Gate!”

Everyone was startled, and the Guard Commander looked at Wang Xuance in bewilderment. “Senior Aide Wang? Has your Right Guard Command joined in as well?”

“The Right Guard Command has not joined — but Wang here has always been a private partisan of the Crown Prince!”

Wang Xuance wheeled his horse to leave. The Guard Commander rushed out. “Senior Aide Wang, what exactly has happened?”

“The plan has changed — the Crown Prince cannot send the signal. Attack the Chengtiannon Gate immediately!” Wang Xuance wheeled his horse. “Get out right away! I’ll go inform the others!”

Wang Xuance said nothing further, and immediately galloped toward the Right Gate Guard Command, charging into the office in a single burst. The soldiers on duty immediately surrounded him, and the Guard Commander also came rushing out. “Senior Aide Wang, what is the meaning of this?”

Wang Xuance bellowed, “The situation has changed — the Crown Prince orders an immediate attack on the Chengtiannon Gate!”

“What?” The Right Gate Guard Commander was immediately baffled. “What does that mean? Why would the Crown Prince order an attack on the Chengtiannon Gate?”

Wang Xuance felt a wave of relief — the Right Gate Guard Command had not joined the rebel faction. He said nothing more, wheeled his horse, and rode off at speed, leaving the Right Gate Guard Commander standing in the wind in bewildered confusion.

In this fashion he galloped on his horse, going through each of the Crown Prince’s ten Guard Commands one by one, and found that three of them had joined the Crown Prince’s rebel faction. These three, though they did not know precisely what had happened, all knew that the kind of treasonous business they were engaged in meant keeping their heads tucked into their waistbands at every moment — any unexpected turn was possible. Though the timing was half an hour earlier than the original plan, earlier was earlier — if rebellion was what they were doing, then they might as well do it!

The three Guard Commands immediately assembled their forces, and close to five thousand troops gathered at the Chengtiannon Gate — men shouting, horses crying, iron armor gleaming.

The Northern Palace guards defending the Chengtiannon Gate had no idea why the Crown Prince Guard Commands were acting so unhinged as to attack them, and immediately a Lieutenant Commander bellowed, “Are you going to rebel?”

The Guard Commander called back, “Prince Wei has staged a coup and stabbed His Majesty! By the Crown Prince’s command, we are deploying the Guard Commands into the palace to suppress the rebellion — quickly open the gates!”

That Lieutenant Commander was frightened out of his wits, but with the situation unclear, he dared not open the gates. He steeled himself. “Apologies, the situation is unclear. If there is a rebellion, we of the Northern Palace Six Armies will protect His Majesty.”

The Guard Commander was furious but dared not waste time. He ordered an assault on the gates. The Lieutenant Commander realized something enormous had happened. He could not figure out whether the Crown Prince or Prince Wei had rebelled, whether the Emperor was alive or dead — but his duty was clear. He ordered resistance. In an instant, battle cries rose from the walls and the ground alike, arrows piercing the air, blades and spears flashing.

The three Guard Commands had prepared long in advance, immediately setting up scaling ladders and sending men clambering up the walls, while those below pushed battering rams forward, bearing a rain of arrows toward the Chengtiannon Gate with a thunderous pounding. In an instant, flesh flew and bodies piled up, both the inner and outer imperial city thrown into total chaos. Both the side in rebellion and the side resisting were equally unclear on what was happening — but everyone knew one thing: Wang Xuance had incited the Guard Commands to rebel!

Eastern Palace — the Changsheng Hall.

Prince Han Li Yuanchang was the first to react, and roared, “Seize the Emperor!”

From the hidden positions inside and outside the Changsheng Hall, more than a thousand armored soldiers suddenly surged out, surrounding Li Shimin and his party. The hundred personal guards protecting Li Shimin were the elite of the elite. Li Shimin had selected riders of exceptional valor and courage from official household servants and foreign-registered youth, mounted them on horses with leopard-print saddles, dressed them in beast-patterned shirts, and formed them into a close-bodyguard cavalry unit of only one hundred men — and so they were called the Hundred Riders.

The valor of the Hundred Riders was unparalleled in the Great Tang military. Seeing the Emperor in danger, they immediately made the optimal response: dismounting in unison, they pushed their warhorses to the outer perimeter to form a barricade, shielding Li Shimin in layer upon layer. Only then did Li Shimin understand what was happening: the Crown Prince had rebelled!

His heart was in turmoil, but years of military life steadied him. He fixed his gaze on Li Yuanchang and said coldly, “Tell Chengqian to come out and see Us!”

At this point, Crown Prince Chengqian walked out from within the Changsheng Hall and stood at the steps of the entrance. Father and son gazed at each other across a field of overlapping armies.

“Chengqian,” — Li Shimin’s first feeling was not fury but sorrow — “are you too rebelling against Us?”

“Father Emperor, this son is unfilial,” Li Chengqian said.

“Why?” Li Shimin cried out in fury.

“Because this son is too exhausted,” Li Chengqian said sadly.

Li Shimin was taken aback. He suddenly remembered — only a month ago, he had put that very same question to Li You, and Li You had given that same answer.

Li Shimin could not help but feel lost. “Why would you be too exhausted?”

“It is exhausting to be your son, and exhausting to be Crown Prince,” Li Chengqian said. “As your son, in all my speech, my conduct, my eating, my sleeping, my reading, my participation in governance — everything must conform to the standards you have set. The slightest deviation, and seven or eight tutors will rebuke me sternly. If I so much as drop a single grain of rice while eating, the Eastern Palace Steward will berate me, saying I lack compassion for the people and am wasting the hard-won livelihood of ordinary folk. If I tire of reading and want a moment’s rest, a tutor will write out a remonstrance of seven or eight thousand characters, flaying me completely — and then you will lavish praise on their behavior. As for being your Crown Prince — it is even more exhausting, even harder. I am your Crown Prince! I am the future heir to your empire! Yet the favor you lavish on Fourth Brother has made every civil and military official, both inside and outside the palace, feel that I as Crown Prince am nothing but a joke! They all feel I am less favored than Fourth Brother, less talented, less admired by the people — and the rebukes of the tutors make everyone feel I am utterly worthless, seated on the Crown Prince’s throne simply because I am the eldest son. Father Emperor, all these years I have competed openly and in secret with Fourth Brother — not a single time have I won. I have grown ever more out of favor, and it seems I am about to be deposed. Father Emperor — everyone knows what becomes of a deposed Crown Prince, just as it was with deposed Crown Prince Yang Yong of the former Sui. Why should I not fight to the death?”

Li Shimin was overwhelmed with a grief he could barely contain. “We have never intended to depose you! You are Our first child. When your mother lay dying, she urged Us over and over to protect you well. How could We bear to depose you?”

Li Chengqian gave a wretched laugh. “Yet Father Emperor, everyone believes I am about to be deposed — and why is that? Is this not because your ministers are following your preferences and feelings? Is this not a consequence of your usual excessive favoritism toward Fourth Brother? When the hearts of the entire court have followed your preferences and shifted toward Fourth Brother, how is this Crown Prince to protect himself?”

Li Shimin felt as though he had been struck by a heavy blow, his face draining to white as paper.

“Crown Prince — we cannot allow any more delay!” Li Yuanchang called out. “Seize the Emperor — ten thousand households of reward!”

These armored soldiers were all Li Yuanchang and Du He’s private troops. At a single command they bore down with long spears from all sides. The Hundred Riders fought to the death in resistance. The two sides had barely collided before blood sprayed in all directions. The courtyard was narrow, with over a thousand people crammed inside, so packed as to be nearly impenetrable. In such conditions, all tactics were equally useless — both sides grappled almost body-to-body. With eyes nearly shut, thrusting a spear forward would impale someone; swinging a blade at random would hit someone. The Hundred Riders turned themselves into one enormous shield of human flesh, falling in layer upon layer — but still more of them held tight to Li Shimin and fought their way step by step toward the Yuande Gate. Fortunately the Yuande Gate was still in the Hundred Riders’ control at that point, and the two sides engaged in bloody combat in the narrow passage.

Meanwhile Li Chengqian and Li Shimin moved as if shadow-chasing-form through that dazzle of blades and light — one advancing, the other retreating, separated by a thousand and more people, the two of them watching each other fixedly, a vast desolation in both their hearts.

Prince Han Li Yuanchang, however, had none of the Crown Prince’s emotion. Seeing that Li Shimin remained uncaptured after all this time, his anxiety mounted unbearably. By now he was nearly unable to suppress the urge to curse aloud: why had the Crown Prince Guard Commands launched early? According to the original plan, once the Emperor entered the Changsheng Hall, he certainly would not have brought so many of the Hundred Riders with him, and the concealed troops inside the hall would have easily overpowered Li Shimin, killed him with a slash, and framed Prince Wei Li Tai — the great matter would have been settled! But at this critical juncture, the Guard Commands had launched their coup at the worst possible moment!

The person even more exasperated than Li Yuanchang was Li Anyuan.

As Left Military Guard Lieutenant Commander, Li Anyuan enjoyed Li Shimin’s deep trust and was responsible for palace security. The moment the battle erupted outside the Chengtiannon Gate, he assumed the Guard Commands had received the Crown Prince’s signal — which meant the Crown Prince had already captured the Emperor. Li Anyuan was extremely excited. He immediately led his personal troops to charge out to the palace guard encampment outside the Taihe Hall, shouting together, “Prince Wei has staged a coup and the Emperor is harmed — quickly follow the Crown Prince to put down the rebels!”

The entire Northern Palace guards woke up in alarm, everyone demanding to know what had happened. Li Anyuan had long since arranged for people to spread rumors — that Prince Wei had sent an assassin to kill the Emperor, that the Crown Prince was leading the Guard Commands to suppress the rebellion, and that everyone should follow General Li to control the palace city and guard against Prince Wei’s faction.

With no clear information, the Northern Palace guards swarmed like rudderless flies, and a fair number of them actually followed Li Anyuan in beginning to take control of the various gates. Li Anyuan was overjoyed. The most important of all the gates was the Xuanwu Gate, since it was the essential route through which the Crown Prince would enter the palace city. Li Anyuan immediately led the Northern Palace guards in an attempt to seize the Xuanwu Gate, engaging in fierce fighting with the Xuanwu Gate defenders.

As the Xuanwu Gate defenders were on the verge of giving way, Li Anyuan ordered someone to open the Xuanwu Gate to receive the Crown Prince. He rushed out of the Xuanwu Gate himself and looked in the direction of the Eastern Palace — and indeed saw a group of people rushing headlong toward the Xuanwu Gate. Li Anyuan was so excited his heart nearly leaped out of his chest. Who said the Crown Prince had a lame leg? Look how fast he was running!

But… no, something was not right — why were there people chasing and attacking from behind?

Li Anyuan was also confused. He immediately urged his men forward to intercept, calling out: “Quick, quick — His Majesty has passed away; receive the Crown Prince into the palace — this is the merit of escorting a new dynasty—”

Before the words had finished, he was immediately struck dumb — for the one running at the very front was none other than Emperor Li Shimin himself!

The Northern Palace soldiers who had been preparing to follow the Crown Prince in suppressing the rebellion were also astonished — the Emperor was perfectly fine! Everyone looked at Li Anyuan in bewilderment, and Li Shimin immediately understood. He said coldly, “Seize him!”

The Northern Palace guards didn’t hesitate. They cut down Li Anyuan’s resisting subordinates with their blades and seized Li Anyuan. At that moment, the Crown Prince and Li Yuanchang came pursuing with their forces. Li Shimin stopped fleeing. Under the escort of the Northern Palace guards, he ordered the seizure of the Crown Prince’s faction.

The Crown Prince’s faction now had only seven or eight hundred men left — no match at all for the Northern Palace guards. In less than the time to finish a cup of tea, they were slaughtered and scattered. Seeing the cause was lost, the Crown Prince gave a wretched laugh, raised a blade to slit his own throat — but Son-in-Law Commandant Du He wrapped his arms around him, snatched away the blade, and then held his hands behind his back and pushed him forward.

“Your Majesty!” Du He wept so hard his tears and snot flowed freely. “This official was coerced by them — I had no choice!”

Li Shimin looked at him with disgust. The Northern Palace guards bound the Crown Prince, Du He, Li Yuanchang, and the others hand and foot with rope.

At that moment, the battle for the Chengtiannon Gate was growing ever more savage. The three Guard Commands’ soldiers fought without fear of death, swarming like ants up the scaling ladders. Under the sustained heavy blows of the battering rams, the Chengtiannon Gate’s doors could no longer withstand it, and with a thunderous boom, they collapsed. Led by the three Guard Commanders, thousands of troops let out a war cry and stormed through the Chengtiannon Gate.

Wang Xuance and Ma Zhou watched from a distance, their faces pale as ashes.

“The Crown Prince… has succeeded in the end,” Ma Zhou said bitterly.

“One does what one can and leaves the rest to heaven!” Wang Xuance also smiled wryly. “I only hope Great Tang does not usher in an age of chaos.”

“Senior Aide Wang, what do you intend to do?” Ma Zhou asked. “I will be all right — at worst I can go home and be an ordinary citizen. But this time you have been thoroughly hated by the Crown Prince’s faction.”

“Me?” Wang Xuance smiled with effort. “I will run, of course. What else — wait here for the Crown Prince to chop off my head?”

“Run?” Ma Zhou did not think much of it. “All under heaven is the sovereign’s domain — where could you run to?”

“If worst comes to worst, I’ll run to India and go back to being a monk under my master!” Wang Xuance said through gritted teeth. He wheeled his horse. “Very well, Draftsman Ma — I will go ahead. Before Chang’an’s gates open, I need to find somewhere to hide. By daybreak, the Crown Prince’s faction will likely be searching the whole city.”

Wang Xuance was just spurring his horse to leave when, from inside the Chengtiannon Gate, sudden silence fell — as if tens of thousands of people had been grabbed by the throat all at once. The battlefield that had just been filled with the clamor of killing went needle-quiet in an instant. Wang Xuance turned his head back in surprise and saw that the rebel army that had already poured through the Chengtiannon Gate was slowly backing out again. He could not see their faces, but could see their bodies go rigid as they retreated step by step, until quickly they had withdrawn from the Chengtiannon Gate and moved back onto the plaza outside.

From within the Chengtiannon Gate, a lone figure slowly walked out. Wearing a black soft headcloth and a scarlet-yellow dragon robe, moving with composed, unhurried self-possession — it was Li Shimin!

“Long live the Emperor, long live the Emperor—” the guards on top of the Chengtiannon Gate erupted in ecstatic cheers.

And the rebel army outside the Chengtiannon Gate, one by one, had faces drained of color and bodies trembling. Though tens of thousands of troops surrounded them, though blades were in hand — gazing at this single unarmed figure before them, not one could summon the courage to resist.

Clang — no one knew whose weapon fell first. In an instant, thousands of rebel soldiers cast aside every weapon and knelt to the ground. The three Guard Commanders who had led the rebellion stood among the crowd like wooden figures, gazing as Li Shimin drew near, their bodies shaking like sieves. The three exchanged a glance, steeled themselves simultaneously, and drew their blades across their own throats at the same time. Their bodies fell among the crowd.

A rebellion — Li Shimin had not spoken a single word, and it was extinguished in an instant.