Taking advantage of the executioner still being some distance away, Liu Wenjing said urgently: “Your Highness, you have no way back. No matter how dangerous and difficult the path ahead may be, you must continue walking it, you must!”

The blade rose and fell. Liu Wenjing, who had just been advising Li Shimin, instantly became a corpse. Warm blood trickled from his neck, staining the platform red.

On this day, Li Shimin stood before the execution platform for a long time. Even after Liu Wenjing’s wife and children had collected his body, he remained standing there, motionless.

All along, in Li Shimin’s heart, Li Yuan had been kind, gentle, and affectionate. Even after the incident with Yunyi, he still felt that Li Yuan was merely temporarily blinded by elder brother and Yin Shi and others, and that the blinding fog would be blown away later.

Only now did he realize how naive his thinking had been. After Li Yuan sat on that supreme position in the center of Taiji Hall, there was more than just a father-son relationship between them – there was also a relationship called “sovereign and minister.” Father-sovereign, father-sovereign – this meant sovereign-minister first, father-son second. But he had been so foolish that he only realized this now.

Today, Li Yuan could kill Liu Wenjing without batting an eye. In the future, he could probably kill himself just as easily. Such a father-son relationship… was truly tragic.

Liu Wenjing’s last words before death kept echoing in his ears. If before today he had not made up his mind about competing for military achievements and returning to court, then now his resolve was firm as rock, immovable.

For himself, for Yunyi, and for those who had rendered meritorious service to Great Tang – they should not be treated thus.

In the seventh month of the fourth year of Wude, Li Jing returned defeated from his campaign in Shanxi. Failure after failure made Li Yuan’s head ache terribly. If the crisis in Shanxi was not resolved soon, the national prestige built with such difficulty over these two years would be swept away, and Chang’an would also be exposed to danger.

But Li Yuanji had been defeated, Peiji had been defeated, and now even Li Jing had been defeated. Who else could lead troops into battle and guarantee victory?

Li Jiancheng? Though he was his most valued son, militarily he was still lacking. As for Liu Wenjing, he had already become a dead man.

Could it be… he really had to use Li Shimin again?

He had clearly decided to shelve Li Shimin forever, yet how long had it been before he had to eat his words? How could he bring himself to do it? But aside from Li Shimin, no one else could be competent for this battle. It was truly vexing.

When Wan Shi brought in sour plum soup, Li Yuan still had not decided. His brows were tightly furrowed. She ladled a bowl of sour plum soup and placed it beside Li Yuan, saying softly: “Your Majesty, drink some sour plum soup to cool off.”

Li Yuan had no mood to eat anything now. He said impatiently: “I have no appetite. Just leave it there.”

Wan Shi placed it aside as instructed, then tentatively said: “Is Your Majesty troubled by the Shanxi matter?”

“Shanxi!” Li Yuan gritted his teeth as he spat out these two words, saying hatefully: “I never imagined this Liu Wuzhou would be so difficult to deal with. The three waves of troops I sent were all beaten to pieces by him. Truly detestable!”

“Your Majesty must take care of your health.” Saying this, Wan Shi continued: “Though this subject is but a woman, I know that Taiyuan is a place of utmost importance to our Great Tang. It absolutely cannot fall into Liu Wuzhou’s hands. It must be retaken!”

“Retaken?” Li Yuan said irritably: “Easier said than done. Now even Li Jing has been defeated. I truly don’t know who else I can send into battle.”

Wan Shi’s beautiful eyes turned as she said softly: “Your Majesty has forgotten Prince Qin. He is brave and skilled in battle, and experienced. If he leads the expedition, he can certainly retake Shanxi.”

Li Yuan looked at Wan Shi without saying a word. She touched her cheek and said: “Why does Your Majesty look at me like this? Is there dirt on my face?”

Under her puzzled gaze, Li Yuan said slowly: “Xiuzhen, have you come to act as a lobbyist for Shimin?”

“Lobbyist?” Wan Shi widened her almond eyes in surprise. “This subject only feels that looking throughout the court, from every perspective, Prince Qin is the most suitable candidate. That’s why I made this suggestion, thinking we could quickly retake Shanxi to resolve our Great Tang’s crisis and let Your Majesty rest easy. I never thought Your Majesty would think I came for this purpose. It’s really…” She showed a hurt expression and shook her head. “Never mind, I won’t say anything more. I take my leave!”

“Xiuzhen!” Li Yuan grabbed Wan Shi as she was about to leave, saying with a trace of guilt: “I was just asking casually. Where are your thoughts going?”

Wan Shi said petulantly: “Whether it’s that I’m overthinking or that Your Majesty doesn’t trust me, Your Majesty knows best in your heart.”

Li Yuan also felt his earlier words had been excessive. He patted her hand and said: “Alright, alright, let’s say I spoke wrongly. Is that acceptable?”

Wan Shi understood the principle of knowing when to stop. She turned back to stand beside Li Yuan. After a moment of silence, Li Yuan said: “Do you truly believe this matter requires none other than Shimin?”

Wan Shi deliberately said: “This subject dare not say, lest Your Majesty again think I’m Prince Qin’s lobbyist.”

Li Yuan smiled wryly and took her hand. “You do hold grudges. I guarantee you I won’t think that way again. You may speak boldly.”

Wan Shi nodded slightly. “This subject dare not say it must be Prince Qin, but he is indeed the most suitable candidate. Your Majesty must be clear about this in your heart as well.”

Having his thoughts exposed, Li Yuan sighed. “Now Shanxi has almost completely fallen, and we’ve suffered repeated defeats. Morale has been severely damaged. We desperately need a victory to restore national prestige and lift military spirits. Shimin… is indeed the most suitable, but it was I who relieved him of his duties initially, and now to… wouldn’t it be somewhat improper?”

Wan Shi thought for a while, then said: “Your Majesty initially relieved Prince Qin of his duties because he did what he shouldn’t have. Using him today is because Great Tang needs him. This subject doesn’t see anything improper about it.”

“But I…” Li Yuan said only two words before stopping, but it was enough for Wan Shi, who had followed him for over twenty years, to understand his meaning. Her beautiful eyes turned. “If Your Majesty doesn’t want to directly order Prince Qin to lead the expedition, this subject has a method.”

Her words made Li Yuan’s eyes brighten. He immediately said: “What method? Speak quickly!”

Wan Shi whispered in Li Yuan’s ear, then said: “This way, we can avoid embarrassment and also test whether Prince Qin harbors resentment toward Your Majesty. Two birds with one stone.”

Li Yuan had the same thought. He nodded. “Good, let’s do it your way. I hope Shimin won’t disappoint me.” As he spoke, he said to Gaoyang who stood aside with hands down: “Immediately summon Tang Jian to see me.”

When stepping out of Ganlu Hall, Wan Shi stood under the hot and bright early autumn sun, secretly breathing a sigh of relief. It was finally accomplished. She hadn’t wasted all this planning. She had done her best. What came next was up to Li Shimin himself.