LFHYB -Chapter 199 The Two Brothers’ Battle of Wits

The more Li Shimin thought about it, the more something felt wrong.

He went straight to Li Xuanba, grabbed his sleeve, and refused to let him dodge the issue, forcing him to confess.

Li Xuanba was speechless.

Of course Second Brother couldn’t find any evidence. Li Jiancheng’s collusion with the Turks and the nobles, and the smuggling of Turkic cavalry into the city, had already ended before Second Brother returned to Chang’an.

After the Turkic soldiers entered the city and hid themselves, Li Jiancheng’s group only needed to maintain minimal contact and wait for a chance to go all out.

When Second Brother entered the palace, he wouldn’t bring many guards. No matter how many soldiers were in the city, as long as there was an ambush inside the palace, success was highly likely.

As for the Turks’ movements—if one didn’t know that Li Jiancheng had allied with them, then Eastern Turkic forces already had grudges against Second Brother. If he was about to become emperor, of course they would take the chance to stir up trouble on the border and put pressure on him.

Sending troops to guard against the Turks would instead fall right into Li Jiancheng’s scheme of luring the tiger away from the mountain.

All Li Xuanba had done was help conceal the excessive grain consumption used to support the Turkic troops. He hadn’t done anything else.

And yet Second Brother could still sense that I was plotting something just by intuition?!
Who exactly is the real “spoiler” here?!

With dead-fish eyes, Li Xuanba said, “What am I supposed to confess? Sister-in-law and Zhuniang haven’t even returned yet. You, Fifth Brother, and I are together every day. Whatever I do, don’t you see it at a glance?”

Li Shimin firmly believed in his intuition. “I really haven’t seen anything. No evidence at all. But there’s definitely a problem!”

Li Xuanba asked curiously, “Second Brother, where does this ‘definitely a problem’ come from? Don’t tell me it’s some ‘sudden chill down your spine’ kind of thing.”

Li Shimin thought for a moment. “The atmosphere in the palace feels different. Don’t underestimate my experience in leading troops. When soldiers’ morale is off, I can tell at a glance.”

Li Xuanba: “…” He really had overlooked that.

Li Shimin continued, “Besides, I’m about to ascend the throne, yet Guanyinbi and my sisters-in-law are all finding excuses not to come back. That’s too strange. I suspect you said something to them and told them to avoid danger.”

Li Xuanba: “…” He’d guessed right.

Li Shimin crossed his arms. “Actually, even if you don’t say it, I can guess what you’re planning. There’s only one thing you’d hide from me. But A-Xuan, killing one’s father is wrong. No matter how badly he treated us, we can only support him properly. At worst, give him the most remote palace to vent his anger. Don’t act recklessly.”

Li Xuanba: “…”

So killing Li Jiancheng wouldn’t need to be hidden from you?

Helplessly, Li Xuanba said, “Actually, Father is a bit biased and has thoughts of competing with you for the throne, but he hasn’t done anything yet. We snuffed it out early. We’re not at the stage of father and son killing each other. Are you imagining me as that bad?”

A smug smile appeared on Li Shimin’s lips. “So that means you’re planning to deal with Li Jiancheng.”

Li Xuanba: “…I’ve always wanted to deal with Li Jiancheng, but not now. Your coronation is what matters most. I admit it—I wrote to Third Sister and asked her to take Sister-in-law and Zhuniang along to contact the Western Regions and guard against the Eastern and Western Turks. That was my idea. I was just worried they’d act desperately before you ascended. Once you’re emperor, everything will be settled, and I’ll be at ease. I’ve always been cautious—you know that.”

Li Shimin said, “A-Xuan, what did you call it yourself? Paranoia, right? Fine. Now that I know what you’re thinking, we’ll each rely on our own abilities. I won’t stop what you want to do. You’ll keep handling the capital’s defense. But don’t think I’ll do nothing either. I want to see whether someone really will act like a cornered dog. I just hope Li Jiancheng doesn’t force me to kill him.”

Li Xuanba said, “I hope so too. But Second Brother, if Li Jiancheng really goes desperate, Fifth Brother and I can kill him. You can’t.”

Li Shimin sighed. “You’re afraid of what later generations will say about me? Let them talk. Do you think they can come to the Tang Dynasty and scold me in person? I don’t even care when Wei Xuancheng scolds me to my face.”

Li Xuanba teased, “You do care. You’ve cursed him plenty behind his back.”

Li Shimin laughed. “He scolds me to my face, I scold him behind his back. That’s fair.”

He reached out and rubbed his younger brother’s head, just like when they were children. “I’m the older brother. You’re the younger one. Remember that.”

Li Xuanba slapped his hand away as if brushing off something dirty. He’d already come of age—why was he still rubbing his head?!

Li Shimin laughed loudly, waved at him, and strode away.

Li Xuanba watched his second brother leave, then bent his fingers and tapped on the table.

“Whoever takes Li Jiancheng’s head—it’ll depend on ability. Tch. Second Brother’s overconfident persona is really annoying.”

“No evidence? Doesn’t matter. I’m super confident! My intuition must be right!”

Li Xuanba sighed, then laughed. “Still, I believe there will always be things Second Brother can’t anticipate. I’ll definitely give him a surprise.”

With Li Shimin’s tacit approval, Li Xuanba found it much more convenient to make preparations. He no longer needed to hide anything from him.

Li Shimin had already guessed that Li Jiancheng might make a move, and that Li Xuanba would take advantage of the moment to counterattack and kill him.

He had also guessed that Li Jiancheng might be borrowing the Turks’ strength. After all, only the Turks could field cavalry capable of matching his.

But Li Xuanba knew that Second Brother had certainly not guessed that many noble and aristocratic families in the capital had also gotten involved.

In fact, only a small number of aristocratic families in the capital had stayed completely out of it. Many had placed bets on both sides, letting one or two inconspicuous juniors from their clans secretly provide support to Li Jiancheng.

That support might only be a little grain or cloth—just enough to leave themselves a way out.

This kind of behavior was normal among noble families. Everyone had their own pursuits. If they didn’t stand with Li Shimin, he wouldn’t necessarily take it out on their entire clans.

In the original history, Xue Deyin had foolishly supported Wang Shichong, while Xue Shou and Xue Yuanjing were both Li Shimin’s trusted aides. When Li Shimin killed Xue Deyin, he did not become estranged from Xue Shou and Xue Yuanjing because of it.

Likewise, if Li Jiancheng’s affair were exposed, they should not, in principle, vent their anger on those who had supported him.

That was—provided Li Xuanba had not already gathered evidence and used it to fabricate “proof” that was nine parts true and one part false.

If things escalated from divided loyalties to colluding with the Turks to attack Chang’an, then unless these great clans bled heavily, exile would likely be unavoidable.

Flies don’t gather around flawless eggs. If a family were truly innocent, Li Xuanba wouldn’t do anything to them. But if those juniors had been sent by direct family orders—or even by the clan head himself—to help Li Jiancheng, then charging them with secretly colluding with the Turks would hardly be unjust.

The day of Li Shimin’s accession was drawing closer.

The court officials looked more and more relaxed, while the Li family’s father and sons grew more and more tense.

Li Shimin still went every day to pay respects to Li Yuan and his mother, occasionally exchanging hypocritical words of nonexistent brotherly affection with Li Jiancheng.

His schedule was airtight. Li Jiancheng seemed unable to seize any opportunity.

Until one day, Li Shimin was invited to go hunting—then suddenly summoned back to the palace by Li Yuan.

“A-Xuan is sick?” Li Shimin raised his eyebrows. “Fake. Let’s go back.”

Qin Qiong asked in confusion, “Since my lord knows it’s fake, why go back?”

Li Shimin laughed. “Precisely because it’s fake, I must go back. Heh. I bet A-Xuan’s letter will arrive soon too.”

As he spoke, Li Zhiyun arrived with a message.

He shouted, “Second Brother! Third Brother is fine! Don’t be fooled!”

Li Shimin turned to Qin Qiong. “See? Here it is. Zhou Da.”

Zhou Da gave a bitter smile. “Present.”

As a household guard of the Duke of Tang’s residence, he had been one of Li Shimin’s earliest followers. But because of his limited abilities and lack of ambition, he had stayed in the Longyou base, assisting Li Zhiyun and Li Zhao. Now that he had returned, he was being dragged into fratricidal conflict among his young masters. It pained him deeply.

Li Shimin said, “Detain those who went hunting with me at the hunting grounds for now. You won’t return to the palace with me.”

Zhou Da hurriedly said, “No, Second Young Master, I—”

Li Shimin cut him off. “You’re a household general of my family. It’s inappropriate for you to intervene in this. Besides, I need a trusted aide to calm those detained nobles. Uncle Qin, take your weapons. Don’t hold back. Anyone you kill counts as my kill.”

Pei Xingyan, who had gone hunting with Li Shimin, let out a heavy sigh.

Li Shimin glanced at him. “You know something?”

Pei Xingyan replied, “Li San went around persuading everyone to keep it from you. My lord, you should know—there are things you shouldn’t do personally. Since Li San is willing to bear the infamy for you, you shouldn’t let his efforts go to waste.”

Li Shimin chuckled. “So that’s why you all hid it from me—joining forces to let A-Xuan take the blame, huh? Fair enough. If I don’t act, only A-Xuan acting is safest. If others act, the court might force them to accept punishment.”

“But,” he added softly, “I already promised Father.”

He raised his whip and pointed toward the capital.

“Li Jiancheng—I will kill him with my own hands.”

…

Li Xuanba frowned. “Xue Shaoxuan, what are you doing?!”

Xue Ju clasped his fists bitterly. “It’s my lord’s order. The strategist is not allowed to leave. Strategist, Third Young Master, Prince of Jin—please don’t make things difficult for me.”

Li Xuanba raised his brows. “Still playing double agent?”

Xue Ju hurriedly shook his head. “No, no, absolutely not! It’s just that when my lord went hunting, he ordered that if you left the palace while he was out, you wouldn’t be allowed to return until he did.”

Zong Luohao also smiled bitterly. “Third Young Master, my lord probably doesn’t know what you might do, so he simply blocked your door and made sure you couldn’t do anything. It’s a military order—we can’t disobey.”

He presented Li Shimin’s handwritten letter.

Li Xuanba opened it. On it was Li Shimin’s characteristic wild calligraphy, along with silly stick-figure doodles he had learned from Xuanba: “Wait for me to come back! I’m the big brother, you’re the little brother. Little brothers must listen to big brothers ✌️.”

Li Xuanba felt a sharp pain in his chest.

He sighed. “Good thing I anticipated this and prepared in advance.”

He took an imperial edict from his robe.

“By order of His Majesty. All officers and soldiers, receive the decree.”

Zong Luohao and Xue Ju: “???”

Li Xuanba smiled. “Right now, Second Brother is only the Crown Prince, not the emperor. On the surface, Father is still the reigning emperor, and his edicts override the Crown Prince’s orders. To avoid accidents, I already requested this decree.”

Then he took out another token.

“And the emergency summons for me to enter the palace.”

He lifted both items.

“Even if Second Brother were here, he couldn’t stop me. Father was willing to tear his face and issue this order—so he can only comply for now. All right. Receive the decree.”

Zong Luohu and Xue Ju exchanged helpless glances, then turned back to exchange the same look with the other soldiers blocking the gate, and finally, they reluctantly followed orders.

When the lord uses “invincible in battle” tactics, the strategist counters with “plans leaving no gap.”

You two are really too much!