Chapter 53: We Humbly Welcome His Majesty, Emperor Taizong, as He Reveals His Divine Presence!

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Chapter 53: Welcome, Your Majesty Taizong, Manifesting in the Mortal World!

Throughout the entire reign of Wu Zhou, the Wu clan had grown accustomed to acting with impunity. Even now, after the restoration of the Tang, they had not restrained themselves. Since Li Xian had neither purged the Wu clan nor refrained from employing Wu Sansi, their arrogance had only grown more brazen.

There was, after all, a reason Wu Chonglie dared to act so recklessly.

“Besides, my grand-aunt was the founding sovereign of Wu Zhou. In relation to you, Taizong of the Li Tang, she is even a generation above you.” Wu Chonglie let out a sinister cackle. “Why, even Gaozu’s daughter, Princess Qianjin, recognized her as her mother…”

A vein bulged on Old Li’s fist.

Damn it! What kind of person does your Wu Meiniang think she is? She wants to rank herself a whole generation above me?

“Your false Zhou is already a thing of the past. Are you still dreaming of being an imperial clansman?” someone shouted.

“The descendants of the Wu clan still offer sacrifices to our ancestors according to imperial rites. How could we not be members of the imperial family?” Wu Chonglie replied with a cold laugh.

The three generations of the Li family exchanged glances, and in perfect unison, silently entered Li Xian’s name into their ledgers.

Good grandson—or son, or younger brother—don’t sleep too soundly tonight!

“Do you really think you can run roughshod over the Tang?” a man in the crowd demanded angrily.

“My grand-aunt was the Empress of Great Zhou. My father is Prince Liang, Wu Sansi. My elder brother is Wu Chongxun, the consort of Princess Anle. In this Tang, who would dare do anything to me?”

Wu Chonglie’s lecherous eyes roamed over the woman’s body as he bared his teeth in a grin. “I’m in a bad mood today. But if you obediently submit to me, I’ll overlook the offense committed by these lowly commoners just now. How about it?”

“If you insist on resisting to the bitter end, then…” A chill flashed through Wu Chonglie’s eyes. “So many people have gathered here before the mausoleum of our Tang’s Taizong Wen Emperor. Could that be an intention to rebel?”

At those words, Li Shimin’s fury burned even hotter.

He was determined to see just how audacious this man of the Wu clan truly was.

“Let them go. This has nothing to do with them!”

The woman gave a tragic smile. She was unwilling to implicate so many innocent people because of herself.

“I’ll submit to you, then…”

“Had you known this would happen, you should have thought better of it from the beginning.” Wu Chonglie smiled in satisfaction.

He was not particularly interested in a woman’s beauty. What he enjoyed more was watching women reveal their despair when forced to yield before his power.

Wei Liulang stepped forward and placed himself in front of the woman who was about to approach. “Girl, don’t be afraid. Even if it costs us our lives, we won’t let you step into the Wu clan’s pit of fire!”

“Exactly! We’re standing before the tomb of our Taizong Wen Emperor. How could we let a man named Wu bully you?”

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“The spirit of the Taizong Wen Emperor is watching us from the heavens! Don’t let the old Emperor be shamed!”

The crowd answered one after another. The blood of the men of Guanzhong had never run cold. Even when faced with Wu Chonglie, who could almost be called the greatest wastrel in all the Tang, they showed not the slightest trace of fear.

Li Shimin’s eyes reddened. After all these years, the common people still acknowledged and defended him as their Taizong Emperor. How could he not be moved?

“Wen Emperor? Ha… So what if it’s the Wen Emperor?” Wu Chonglie threw back his head and laughed as though he had heard the funniest joke in the world. “Today, right here before the Wen Emperor, I’ll slaughter you rebels. What of it?”

“Men!”

At his command, more than a dozen fully armed soldiers poured in from outside the tower.

“This is Zhaoling, Wu Chonglie!” Jing Cheng, the son of Jing Hui, stepped out from the crowd and pointed angrily at Wu Chonglie. “You may bully the people, but you cannot deceive Heaven!”

“I’m deceiving Heaven today. What are you going to do about it?” Wu Chonglie replied arrogantly, then suddenly noticed that the man before him looked familiar.

“Well, what an unexpected prize!” Wu Chonglie clapped his hands. “Isn’t this Jing Cheng? His Majesty exiled your entire family to Qiongzhou, yet you dared return to the capital without permission? And you even dared come to Zhaoling?”

“That’s right. You must be seeking revenge because His Majesty demoted and exiled your father. So you gathered these people to destroy Zhaoling! Your crime is unforgivable!”

He tilted his head toward the armored soldiers.

“Listen carefully. Jing Cheng, son of Jing Hui, returned to the capital without permission and gathered a mob with the intention of destroying Zhaoling. By my order, slaughter these rioters on the spot!”

“Wu Chonglie! You’ve turned right into wrong and defied all reason. Aren’t you afraid Heaven will punish you?” Jing Cheng shouted in grief and fury.

“Even if the spirit of the Taizong Wen Emperor appeared, what could he do to me?” Wu Chonglie turned to the soldiers beside him and frowned. “What are you waiting for? Attack!”

Clearly, the unarmed people stood no chance against fully equipped soldiers.

Yet not one of them showed fear. A scholar in the crowd cried out, “Fight these wicked dogs of the Wu clan! Even if we die, we cannot let the Taizong Emperor be shamed!”

Wu Chonglie gave a cold laugh but said nothing.

Just as the soldiers began pressing forward, Li Shimin said in a low voice without turning his head, “Brother.”

Li Qing understood. He drew a treasured sword from the system and tossed it to Li Shimin.

Li Shimin caught the sword and gave Li Zhi and Li Xian a sidelong glance.

Li Zhi stood frozen in place, while Li Xian quickly followed.

Only after seeing Li Xian move did Li Zhi recover. He hurried after his father and son.

“Stop!”

A thunderous shout rang out. It seemed to reverberate through every mountain and valley around them.

Of course, Li Qing could not let Li Shimin charge into battle alone. Through the system, he had bestowed Old Li with a whole set of special abilities. The ability that made his voice echo across the mountains was merely one of them.

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Old Li had naturally noticed that something was amiss, but this was no time to dwell on it. There was still the overbearing scion of the Wu clan before him, waiting to be dealt with.

“Hey, who the hell’s come out to play the hero?”

Wu Chonglie raised a hand and halted the soldiers.

Old Li’s shout had made him instinctively uneasy. But when he saw that only two men had appeared, his courage returned.

So what if the voice was a little loud? They were only two people.

“Wu Chonglie, you’ve got some nerve!” Li Xian pointed at him and cursed furiously.

Wu Chonglie stared blankly for a moment, then laughed despite himself. “I’ve lived this long, and you’re the first person who’s dared speak to me like that.”

He found Li Xian familiar—extremely familiar—but could not remember where he had seen him before.

And that was understandable. Li Xian had been dead for nearly twenty years. Moreover, Wu Chonglie had been not yet twenty when Li Xian died. It was only natural that his memories of him were faint.

“Who are you, to dare speak to me like that?”

“Who am I?” Li Shimin advanced slowly, his imperial eyes filled with icy menace.

With every step he took, the clothes he wore began to shimmer from top to bottom. Wherever the radiance passed, they transformed into a golden dragon robe, identical to the likeness of the Taizong displayed high above.

“My surname is Li. My name is Shimin. I am the very man you call… the Taizong Wen Emperor!”

He did not raise his voice, yet his words rolled across the crowd like thunder.

By then, how could anyone fail to understand the identity of the man before them? Everyone fell prostrate on the ground and cried out from the depths of their hearts:

“Welcome, Your Majesty Taizong, manifesting in the mortal world!”

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There will be another chapter shortly. Please keep reading qwq

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