Chapter 29: Sooner or Later, a Duke

Zhang Shigui caught sight of Li Shimin from afar and immediately pulled on his reins, slowing his pace.

Observing his anxious expression, Li Shimin instinctively glanced at Wen He, his eyes filled with confusion. Wen He shook his head in surprise.

"I don't recall any other major events. According to history, once you received the edict naming you Crown Prince, you were supposed to take control of the Eastern Palace and neutralize Xue Wanche, Xie Shufang, and Wei Zheng. Although there were some twists and turns, it didn't affect the overall situation."

Historical records from later generations regarding the aftermath of the Xuanwu Gate Incident were sparse. They generally stated that Li Shimin successfully ascended to the position of Crown Prince, and two months later, Li Yuan abdicated to become the Retired Emperor. There was very little documentation on how Li Shimin stabilized the imperial court during the interim.

Li Shimin nodded upon hearing this. By now, Zhang Shigui had reached them.

"Reporting to Your Highness, the Eastern Palace guards and Xue Wanche's faction outside Xuanwu Gate have all been captured. However, my scouts report that Wei Zheng and Xie Shufang are leading troops toward the Prince of Qin’s mansion. The Duke of Yi has already set out personally upon hearing the news."

Li Shimin was taken aback. He had not expected Xie Shufang and Wei Zheng to be so desperate as to fight to the death. He had made every preparation, believing that as long as Qin Qiong captured Xue Wanche, the Eastern Palace guards would collapse. He had underestimated Wei Zheng's resolve.

"That Wei Zheng... no wonder you kicked over his tombstone after he died," Wen He remarked, equally surprised by this shift. In history, it was Xue Wanche who besieged the Prince of Qin’s mansion, only to be forced to flee Chang'an when Cheng Zhijie arrived with reinforcements. Now that Li Shimin had laid a trap to capture Xue Wanche in advance, Xie Shufang had emerged instead.

"I remember in the original history, Xie Shufang was supposed to lead troops to Xuanwu Gate. Could it be that he felt desperate after Xue Wanche was captured?"

As Wen He was analyzing this, he failed to notice the bewildered expression on Zhang Shigui's face. *What is this young man talking about? What 'original history'? And isn't Wei Zheng still alive?*

"Ahem!" Li Shimin nudged Wen He, signaling that there was an outsider present and he should stop spouting nonsense.

Wen He finally realized Zhang Shigui was there and gave a dry laugh. "Oh, Duke of Guo, I suffer from hysteria; please ignore my babbling."

"???" Zhang Shigui was even more confused, pointing at himself as if asking if Wen He was speaking to him.

Wen He blinked, puzzled. *Did I get the title wrong? I remember Zhang Shigui being the Duke of Guo, though he was later named the Duke of Xun.*

"It’s the County Duke of Xinye!" Li Shimin snapped, tapping Wen He on the head, though he had no heart to dwell on such trifles now.

The Prince of Qin’s mansion would be fine with Qin Qiong leading the reinforcements back; there was no need to worry. If it had been Xue Wanche leading the troops, he would have returned himself, but mere men like Xie Shufang and Wei Zheng could not take the mansion even if Qin Qiong did not return.

"A County Duke is fine, he’ll be a Duke of the State sooner or later anyway," Wen He muttered, rubbing his head with indignation. It was just a minor error in timing.

"In that case, this old man shall thank the young master for his auspicious words." Zhang Shigui felt immensely pleased. Who wouldn't want to be a Duke of the State? He did not know, however, that in the original history, he would have to wait another seven years for that honor.

"Let's go." Li Shimin did not wish to discuss titles further. While Zhang Shigui was one of the heroes of the day, in his assessment, it was not yet time to grant him a dukedom. Zhang Shigui nodded and followed him toward Xuanwu Gate.

...

Meanwhile, at Xuanwu Gate, Chang He was helping an injured Jing Junhong to a resting area. A military physician hurried over and peeled back the armor on his chest, revealing a hideous, inch-long wound that was still bleeding.

Not long ago, Xue Wanche had sensed something amiss and attempted to reach the Crown Prince, Li Jiancheng, but was blocked by Chang He and his men. Realizing the situation had turned against him, Xue Wanche looked up to see someone standing on the city wall holding two severed heads. He stared closely and was horrified to see they were the heads of Li Yuanji and Li Jiancheng.

A voice from the wall bellowed, "Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji have rebelled and have been executed. However, His Majesty is merciful; if you surrender, you shall be spared."

At the same time, thousands of troops closed in from all sides. Jing Junhong, Liu Shili, and Chang He charged out from the gate. Xue Wanche cursed and lunged at Jing Junhong with his blade. After a few exchanges, Jing Junhong made a careless move and took a slash to the chest. Fortunately, he dodged in time, and only his armor was sliced; had he been a moment slower, his head would have been the one falling.

As Jing Junhong retreated, Xue Wanche pursued, only to be intercepted by the arrival of Qin Qiong and Xue Wanjun. Already at a disadvantage, Xue Wanche lost all hope. He sought to die for Li Jiancheng but was dismounted and captured alive by Qin Qiong.

He was now being urged to surrender by his brother, Xue Wanjun. Li Shimin had sent Xue Wanjun specifically to persuade him.

"How is he so severely wounded?" Li Shimin, having arrived at Xuanwu Gate, frowned at the sight, though he breathed a silent sigh of relief in his heart. *Jing Junhong is alive!*

Watching the pale-faced Jing Junhong, Wen He felt a sense of vertigo. His arrival had accelerated the events at Xuanwu Gate, yet everything seemed to have played out exactly as it had in history—he felt as though he had changed nothing. But Jing Junhong was alive. This meant he had truly altered history.

If so, could he change even more? Could he prevent the Great Tang from falling into civil war? Could he prevent the chaos of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms that mirrored the turbulence of the Wei, Jin, and Northern and Southern Dynasties?

"I am incompetent, failing to defeat Xue Wanche. I beg Your Highness's forgiveness." Jing Junhong tried to stand to plead his case, but Chang He quickly helped him up. Li Shimin hurriedly dismounted and pressed him down.

"General, why say such things? Xue Wanche is in the prime of his youth. Had you been a few years younger, he would have been no match for you." Xue Wanche was barely twenty, while Jing Junhong was already past the age of knowing one's destiny—they could not be compared. The fact that a man of his age could still mount a horse and kill enemies was already extraordinary.

Jing Junhong felt ashamed. Li Shimin comforted him and instructed the physician to take the best possible care of him. Afterward, he took Wen He and walked toward the place where Xue Wanche was being held.

On the way, having found a pretext to send Zhang Shigui away, Li Shimin stopped and asked, "Tell me about Xue Wanche." He seemed hesitant.

Wen He understood his concern; he worried that Xue Wanche might turn traitor again. It seemed that Wen He's previous mention of Li Yi’s rebellion had made Li Shimin wary of the officials left behind by Li Jiancheng.

Wen He actually admired Xue Wanche. "He is a man of honor who knows when to bend and when to stand tall. It is only a pity his mind is too simple. In the end, he didn't die on the battlefield, but was implicated by Fang Yi'ai and met his end on the executioner's block."