Faced with the increasingly fierce battle for the storage position between the two sons, Li Yuan was very entangled in his heart. Judging from his attitude of wanting to establish Li Shimin several times, but not giving up, Li Yuan is really difficult to choose. He didn't want to kill each other, but just took great pains to maintain the interests and balance of the two parties. But he never dreamed that this brotherly feud, which had disturbed him for so many years and had kept him awake at night, would come to an abrupt end in the bloodiest way of the morning.

In the ninth year of Wude, on the fourth day of June in 626 AD, outside the Xuanwu Gate, Li Shimin killed the crown prince Li Jiancheng and the king of Qi Li Yuanji, and forced Li Yuan to the palace. This long-planned conspiracy to kill his brother and force his father finally ended with Li Shimin's complete victory.

Three days later, Li Yuan issued an edict appointing Li Shimin as the crown prince. On August 8, Li Yuan passed on the throne to Li Shimin. On the 9th, Li Shimin ascended the throne with the year name Zhenguan. The prosperous generation of the Tang Dynasty slowly kicked off in a bloody case that went against human morality.

In this palace gate bloody case, why did Li Jiancheng, who had the advantage, lose to Li Shimin and end up in a different place?

It all started with a night feast.

One night in the summer of Chang'an City, the crown prince Jiancheng suddenly summoned Li Shimin to the East Palace, and the two brothers drank and reminisced. Although Li Shimin has already decided to take the heir, there is no reason to refuse the prince's warm invitation. What Li Shimin didn't expect was that this was a Hongmen banquet. Li Jiancheng poisoned the wine he drank, Li Shimin was suddenly poisoned and began to vomit blood, and his uncle Li Shentong hurriedly helped him back to the Qin Palace.

Hearing that Li Shimin vomited blood, Li Yuan also rushed to the Qin Palace, saw Li Shimin's condition, and blamed Li Jiancheng and said: "Your brother can't drink, you still let him drink so much, don't drink it again in the future!" He turned around and said to Li Shimin distressedly: "The big plan to kill the Sui Dynasty was formulated by you, and most of the world was pacified by you." Let you be the prince, but you won't. Your brother Jiancheng is old and has been the prince for a long time, and I can't bear to take him. I see that you brothers are already incompatible, otherwise, you should go to the Daxingtai of Shaanxi East Road! To live in Luoyang, the east of Shaanxi is assigned to you. ”

Li Yuan really couldn't balance the struggle for the rights of his two sons, and he couldn't bear to kill each other, so he wanted to divide the empire into two and let the two of them take half of each other. It's a dangerous idea.

Li Shimin cried and excused himself on the grounds that he was too far away from his father. Li Yuan sighed and said: "Luoyang Chang'an is not far away, I want to miss you, I can go to see you at any time." You don't need to be sad! ”

If this battle for the storage position can really be as Li Yuan thought at this time, Li Shimin can still accept it. With his ability and strength, after a hundred years of Li Yuan, it is completely easy to clean up Li Jiancheng, and the entire empire can be merged into one at that time.

It is likely that Li Shimin had anticipated this result early and began to secretly manage the land of Luoyang, and had already sent Wen Daya to guard Luoyang in advance, and sent Zhang Liang, the general of the Qin Mansion, to take more than 1,000 people to secretly make friends with Shandong heroes. And the prevarication at this time is just a bitter ploy staged by Li Shimin.

It's just Li Shimin's thoughts, Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji also expected that they had a deep understanding of Li Shimin's terrifying combat effectiveness, and realized that if Li Shimin was allowed to go to Luoyang, it would be a tiger returning to the mountains and forests, and the dragon roared into the abyss, but they were afraid that there would be no chance to kill him.

Li Yuanji said to Li Jiancheng: "If he is allowed to go to Luoyang, we will not be able to deal with him if he wants soldiers and money." In Chang'an, he is weak alone, and it will be easy to deal with him. ”

So the two brothers found several people and secretly said to Li Yuan: "As soon as your second son heard that he was going to Luoyang, his subordinates were all happy to have snot bubbles, and depending on the situation, he will not come back!" When Li Yuan heard this, he changed his mind again. Li Yuanji also suggested that Li Yuan kill Li Shimin several times, but Li Yuan refused on the grounds that Li Shimin had made great contributions.

Li Yuan's swaying mentality actually fueled Li Shimin's determination to usurp power. If Li Yuan firmly supported Li Jiancheng from the beginning, and let Li Shimin die and want to be the prince, or if Li Yuan simply abolished the prince and replaced Li Shimin, Li Shimin would not have embarked on the road of violently seizing power. Li Yuan's approach was a taboo for Lichu, he not only let Li Shimin see hope, but also strangled him several times, which finally made Li Shimin lose patience.

In order to deal with Li Shimin, the crown prince Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji, the king of Qi, not only slandered Li Shimin from Li Yuan, but also expanded the scope to Li Shimin's ministers, framing the lieutenants Chi Jingde and Cheng Zhijie of the Qin Palace. Li Jiancheng sent gold silk to Wei Chi Jingde to lure him to serve the crown prince. Wei Chi Jingde was very dignified, and replied to Li Jiancheng and said, "I am just an ordinary ordinary person, it was the King of Qin who made me reborn, and I am the person of the King of Qin." You don't have much credit for the prince, you don't have any merit, I can't ask for things. ”

Wei Chi Jingde told Li Shimin about this, but Li Shimin said, "You will accept what you give you, just so that you can know that their conspiracy is for my use." Li Shimin wants Yu Chi Jingde to stage Infernal Affairs, but Wei Chi Jingde belongs to the kind of person who is jealous and hateful, and it will definitely not work to let him be a double agent.

Li Shimin has many capable subordinates, and it is definitely not only Wei Chi Jingde who has been seduced. So was anyone instructed by Li Shimin to break into Li Jiancheng's interior and become a double agent? There is really such a person, this person is called Chang He. There is no mention of this man in the vast works of historians in China. But he did appear in a very critical position at a very critical time and assisted Li Shimin to complete the Xuanwumen Change.

Li Jiancheng saw that Wei Chi Jingde refused to oppose Li Shimin, so he framed him at Li Yuan to rebel, Li Yuan wanted to kill him, and Li Shimin was saved by Li Shimin. In order to cut off Li Shimin's wings, Li Jiancheng framed Li Yuan and transferred Li Shimin's advisers Fang Xuanling, Du Ruhui and general Cheng Zhijie out of the Qin Palace. When Cheng Zhijie left, he said to Li Shimin: "King, you are about to become the commander of the light pole, can you still save your life?" ”。

At this time, only the eldest grandson Wuji, Gao Shilian, Hou Junji and Wei Chi Jingde were left by Li Shimin's side, and these people kept persuading Li Shimin day and night, asking him to quickly kill Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji and seize the lead.

Li Shimin was still hesitant, and found Li Shiyun and Li Jing again, these two people were very principled and didn't want to get involved in their brothers' affairs. One of the most important purposes of Li Shimin's discussion with the two was actually to probe the tone of the two and see if they would be inclined to the prince's party. These two people have a clear position, and no one will help, and Li Shimin will be more confident in dealing with Li Jiancheng.