Sixty li, there and back, took only half a day. Chonglou brought the men from the Imperial Guard and brought the person back.
This man wore a red official robe, with cloud geese embroidered on the breastplate. He was Li Zizhen's father, Li Xiangwang, a prefect of Fujian with a rank of Fourth Grade.
Li Xiangwang’s hands were tied behind his back by the Imperial Guard scouts. Upon entering the main hall and seeing the pathetic state of his son, he instantly became furious.
Where is the Emperor? Where is the Emperor!
You arrested this official without cause, and you even ruined my son to this state. What exactly do you want!
I want to see the Emperor. I want to ask what I did wrong to be treated so harshly!
*Slap!*
Li Shimin struck the gavel and stared at Li Xiangwang, saying, "You are the prefect of Fujian, the father of this scoundrel?"
Li Xiangwang did not see Zhu Youjian’s figure in the hall. Seeing someone else sitting in the main seat questioning him, he retorted,
"I am indeed Li Xiangwang, the prefect of Fujian. Who are you! And what right do you have to sit there!"
Song Yingxing saw this and laughed loudly, "Hahahaha, you blind fool! The one before you is the Emperor!"
But Li Xiangwang was not impressed at all. He had been to the Forbidden City and seen Zhu Youjian’s appearance with his own eyes.
"How dare you! The current Emperor is still alive. When was a new Emperor enthroned?"
Song Yingxing was stunned.
Looking at Li Shimin and then carefully considering Li Xiangwang's words, wasn’t the person on the throne Emperor Chongzhen?
"When did I ever say I was the current Emperor?"
"I come from the Great Tang, for Song Yingxing~"
"Your son committed a crime, so naturally, you are also arrested!"
For some reason, when Fang Er heard this, a lyric suddenly appeared in his mind.
"I come from the prairie, warming your heart~ My unchanging affection, the sky-blue love~~"
"Damn it, this is too evocative!"
"As expected of a master of poetry. Even a casual remark is so rhyming."
But Song Yingxing was even more bewildered upon hearing this. Did his previous guess turn out to be wrong?
This person wasn't Emperor Chongzhen engaging in role-play on a whim?
"Heh! Heh heh~ wΑp.kanshu伍.net"
Li Xiangwang sneered several times after hearing Li Shimin's words.
"This kind of nonsense can't even fool a three-year-old child."
"If you are the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty, then can I say I am Li Yuan?"
Fang Er could only feel a flock of crows cawing overhead upon hearing this. How much did this guy want to court death!
*Bang!*
Li Tai, who was beside him, exploded upon hearing this and punched Li Xiangwang in the face.
"Damn it, how dare you joke about the former Emperor! Watch me beat you to death!"
"Fourth brother, wait! My elder brother will join you!"
Li Ke also joined in, and the two brothers grabbed Li Xiangwang and beat him soundly.
In the hall, Song Yingxing and Mao Moyu watched them, completely bewildered. What was going on?
Seeing their confusion, Fang Er walked over to Song Yingxing and explained.
"Mr. Song, whether you believe it or not, we truly come from a thousand years ago, from the Tang Dynasty, and we came specifically to find you!"
Song Yingxing pointed at himself in disbelief, "To find me? To find me for what?"
"To find you for great deeds! The Ming Dynasty doesn't recognize talent and has buried you here. Therefore, please accompany us to the Great Tang for a visit."
"How can you make me believe you are from the Tang Dynasty?"
"That's easy. As long as you come with us, you will naturally be able to see the prosperous era of the Tang Dynasty!"
"You can traverse a thousand years of time?"
"Of course, otherwise, we wouldn't have come from the Tang Dynasty to the Ming Dynasty! Also, the border troubles in Liaodong have already been resolved by us. We have also met with Emperor Chongzhen, and this Imperial Guard Qianhu was sent by him to serve us."
After a series of conversations, Song Yingxing fell into deep thought.
As a person proficient in astronomy, geography, physics, agriculture, and other fields, it would be a lie to say he wasn't interested in time travel.
Therefore, he was already tempted.
"Alright then, after I finish judging this case, I don't mind taking a trip with you!"
Fang Er chuckled and said, "You don't need to worry about judging the case. This prefect, being so foolish as to mock the former Emperor, we can just watch from the sidelines!"
"By the way, let me reintroduce them. The one sitting above is Emperor Taizong, whose reign was Zhenguan. The two who are fighting are Prince Wei, Li Tai, and Prince Shu, Li Ke!"
Song Yingxing's eyes widened. If the identities of these people were true, then he had gained immense prestige!
To be personally sought out from the Tang Dynasty by three generations of Taizong!
This was even more sincere than Liu Bei's "three visits to the thatched cottage"!
Fang Er pulled Song Yingxing to the side to watch the fun, and Mao Moyu also made his decision.
He didn't believe even one bit that this person claimed to be Emperor Taizong of Tang.
But regardless of their identity, the fact that they could order an Imperial Guard Qianhu around like a servant meant they were definitely powerful figures he couldn't afford to offend.
Therefore, it was best to stand obediently on the side.
The Li brothers fought for nearly ten minutes before stopping. When they stepped aside, the prefect of Fujian, Li Xiangwang, had already become a pig's head.
Li Shimin stared at him coldly and asked, "Whether you believe my identity or not, I want to ask you, as a prefect of a region and a Fourth Grade official of the court, is this how you educate your son?"
"Half a month ago, a woman was murdered outside the city!"
"Your son has repeatedly claimed that he was the one who killed that woman, and with extreme cruelty!"
"What do you have to say about this?"
After speaking, he fiercely slapped the gavel, *bang!*
"Speak!"
Li Xiangwang trembled and almost wet himself. He stared blankly at his son, wishing he could just drown him with his own urine.
Looking at his official robe, he gritted his teeth and said to Li Shimin,
"This, this matter has nothing to do with this subordinate. You can deal with this unfilial son as you please!"
*Slap!*
Li Shimin struck the gavel again. The feeling was superb.
"If I were to deal with him as I pleased, would I have needed to have you brought back?"
"Guards!"
"Your humble servant is here!"
Chonglou stepped forward and responded with cupped hands.
"Strip him of his official robe, and hand both father and son over to the Imperial Guard, to be sent to the one who picks oil. Let him see what kind of officials he has chosen!"
"If this Great Ming continues to be ruined by him, it will eventually fall apart!"
"Tell him, if he doesn't want to sit on the Emperor's throne, it's not a trouble for me to replace him!"
"Your humble servant obeys the order!"
Chonglou waved his hand, and thousands of soldiers stepped forward, escorting Li Xiangwang and his son out of the hall.
Song Yingxing, Mao Moyu, and the eight women including Liu Rushi were all shocked by Li Shimin's words just now.
"Replacing the Emperor is not a trouble?"
"This is too awesome!"
Moreover, Emperor Chongzhen, Zhu Youjian, was called "the one who picks oil" in this person's mouth. It was simply outrageous!