Li Shimin was rocking in the carriage as he traveled back to the palace. The curtains were closed, making the entire carriage dark and gloomy.
Li Shimin was now thinking about the delicious food he had just had, and then the small wine he drank, as if he was becoming more and more greedy.
Suddenly, Li Shimin, who had his eyes closed, suddenly opened them and said in a deep voice,
"Ben, check the owner of that restaurant today. I have already left, but I still can't forget that food. I'm worried there's a trick!"
The coachman sitting outside didn't directly answer, but instead pushed the curtains into the carriage, approached Li Shimin and whispered,
"Your Majesty, the little owner of the restaurant is someone I know. He is also a son of the old Qin king's house. In fact, the house was actually given to you by Your Majesty!"
Hearing that it was a son from the old Qin king's house, Li Shimin's brows unconsciously relaxed. With a smile, he asked,
"Who is this young man? He is good enough to be the imperial cook in the palace!"
Li Shimin was so confident. The old Qin king's house was once built by him into a strong fortress, and the character who was given a house by him must be a meritorious person, and would never harm him.
Ben, the coachman, was also a man who had been with Li Shimin for many years, and was also outside the palace, so he relaxed a little more privately.
"Your Majesty, do you remember Zhang who drove your carriage? He is the one who secretly gave you wine and was finally beaten by the Emperor Taishang with a broken leg!"
Li Shimin suddenly realized and remembered that Ben was not yet by his side when Zhang was his coachman.
At that time he was still young, even though he was the king of Qin and had many fierce generals under his command, who had conquered the vast land of the Tang dynasty, but in the eyes of Li Yuan, he was still a child and had strict demands on him.
And the two brother Li Jiancheng and Li yuanji have already given him a lot obstacles , which made him often frustrated.
Zhang was usually in the role of bodyguard and drove the car in his spare time, so he was naturally one of the rare people who knew Li Shimin well. He saw that he was frustrated, so he secretly took a few bottles of strong liquor and brought a few dishes over.
But I never thought that Li Yuan didn't know how to do it, and was in the mood to come to the palace of the King of Qin. He just happened to catch up with this.
The fire at the city gate brought disaster to the fish in the pond. Li Shimin at that time did not dare to fight with Li Yuan, and watched as Old Zhang was beaten and broke a leg and thrown out of the palace.
He also remembered now that it was probably his instructions to let someone secretly send Zhang deed of house and some money over, and even dared not to visit, in case he angered Li Yuan.
I never thought that after a few years, he had become the emperor sitting in the bright hall, but the former meritorious minister and the son of an old friend had fallen into the busy position between the kitchen and the kitchen, which also made him somewhat ashamed.
Li Shimin asked himself that he never owed the meritorious minister, but when he thought of Zhang, who drove the car in the past, he was the one who accompanied him from his childhood and later went to battle, wearing a strong and sharp guard to protect him completely, and privately took care of his life in every detail.
Not to mention he was still punished for him, but he gave some money and then turned a blind eye, this thought made him feel ashamed and he quickly asked about the recent situation of Zhang.
Ben was also sighing and answered with a sigh,
"Zhang was driven out of the house, so he went back home to recuperate. Later, we a few old brothers secretly went to visit a few times and wanted to help, but we never thought that all of them were rejected by Zhang!"
"You gave Zhang that house, but he never lived in it. Last year, both Zhang's couple were seriously ill. His son spent all his assets to treat his parents, but the old house was still not saved even after being sold. Finally, they moved to this house."
"It is estimated that they were impoverished and desperate for livelihood. Zhang's son opened a small restaurant, which was a source of income. He couldn't starve to death."
Ben finished talking and remained silent, but Li Shimin did not speak for a long time.
He finally remembered Zhang, who had followed him as an old bodyguard since the uprising in Taiyuan. He was usually humorous and daring in battle.
Back then, he also wanted to give Zhang an official appointment and a noble title, but Zhang refused with the reason that he was not a literary person and could not be a military person. In the end, he was just a bodyguard.
As he thought, more and more memories came flooding back.
No wonder he felt familiar when he saw a character on the wall of the shop before. That was what he wrote as a junior officer when he was still immature and wrote with a weak pen. His name was written as Li Er.(Er, is the pronounce in Chinese two ,because Li shimin is the second child.)
He remembered that he used to write in the study room with great ease, and wrote the words "Zhang is powerful" on the wall. He promised to give it to Zhang in the future and promised that high officials and rich rewards would be indispensable. Now Li Shimin wished he could dig a hole and crawl in.
However, the emperor is the emperor, Li Shimin did make a mistake, but he felt that it was not right when he turned his head. This was not just his own fault.
Zhang was earlier than those like Fang Xuanling, Du Ruhui, Cheng Yaojin, and Niu Jinda who are now on the throne, and later he was also associated with these high officials and generals.
Didn't these people think of helping each other? Zhang and these people were good brothers who fought for the throne together, didn't they see people differently when they became rich?
As soon as Li Shimin's question was raised, Ben replied with a bitter smile,
"Your Majesty, you don't know that Zhang is a man with a good face. He has a limp and thinks he can't work for you. He wouldn't be happy to cling to those successful people."
"I know, General Guang and Mr. Fang, General Cheng, etc., were blocked by Zhang many times at the door, and he refused to accept gifts. Even when he was seriously ill, he refused to take our money and wealth, let alone those great people."
"In addition, in recent years, the wind has been tight, and those great people do not want to let Zhang, a ordinary person, get involved in trouble, so they completely broke off the connection on the surface, but still greeted each other privately."
"Otherwise, do you think Zhang Nuo, that young man from the Zhang family, how did he keep that house in Kaihua Fang when he was not yet grown up? Although the house is not big, it is next to Zhuque Avenue and the price is not cheap."
Li Shimin closed his eyes again, and although there was not much expression on his face, Ben, who was familiar with Li Shimin, knew that the saint was unhappy.
After a long while, Li Shimin asked leisurely,
"I remember holding that little guy when he was born. I even treated old Zhang to a drink and told him that in the future, that little guy could call my wife Guan Yin's sister-in-law and the name was even given by me."
"Zhang Nuo, a promise of gold! My promise of gold, it seems old Zhang will never see it, it's all my fault.
Ben didn't dare to speak now, just stood quietly on one side, even though the carriage was still shaking, his body never wavered.
Soon, the carriage was about to arrive at the imperial palace's side door, Yanxi Gate, and Li Shimin spoke just as they were about to enter the palace.
"You go and say hello privately later, don't let people disturb Zhang Nuo's business, otherwise, I will make him face a dilemma of life and death!"
After saying this, without waiting for Ben's response, Li Shimin straightened up and got off the horse-drawn carriage. At this time, there was no guilt on his face, only a solemn expression remained.