I am Li Shen and Li Shimin, the free kings of the Tang Dynasty

Which father doesn't hope his son will become a dragon among men? The answer is emperors.

The emperor did not want his sons to all become dragons (achieve great success), otherwise it would be easy for a great drama of fratricide to occur.

History serves as a mirror, and this has been true of every dynasty. Looking at the entire historical record, it is estimated that less than 30% of crown princes successfully inherited the throne.

Court intrigues and the struggle for the throne permeated the entirety of history.

Anyone with a bit of ability has to shout, "Are kings and nobles born with a special destiny?"

However, not everyone wants to be emperor; to be honest, Li Shen didn't.

Perhaps his ideals are even grander, transcending the three realms and the five elements, free from constraints, and enjoying endless wealth and glory.

Isn't this much better than being in that cage in the palace?

The emperor in the palace was like a monkey in a zoo. Although he didn't have to perform, he still had to work hard and perform his duties diligently.

Year after year, day after day, without end, life is neither fulfilling nor exciting.

Li Shen didn't want that kind of life; what he wanted was a trip he could take on a whim.

But today, his emperor father was praising him so much that Li Shen was a little scared, worried that his father might have other ideas.

He peeked at Li Chengqian several times and only felt somewhat relieved after seeing that Li Chengqian was listening with a smile and that his expression did not change.

He was genuinely worried that Li Chengqian would become jealous.

"Brother, Father has had too much to drink. Why don't we end the banquet early and let him go back to the palace to rest?"

Watching Li Shen continue to recount his glorious history to the ministers, Li Shen whispered to Li Chengqian beside him.

"Hehe, it's alright. Father is rarely so happy, so let him be happy for a while longer. There are still things to take care of later."

Li Chengqian chuckled twice.

"Is there anything else?" Li Shen was taken aback. What important matter could there be at this point?

"You'll find out soon enough. Come on, let's drink." Li Chengqian didn't say anything, but instead picked up his wine glass and drank with Li Shen.

Helpless, Li Shen could only drink and watch the performance in the distance.

At the banquet, gongs, drums, sheng, xiao, and guzheng played in unison, geishas danced gracefully, performing the Rainbow Feather Dance and the Whirlwind Dance, while dancers sang Tang poems.

There are also various performances such as acrobatics, illusions, balancing bowls, and tightrope walking.

Normally, Li Shen would really enjoy watching, but now that his father was bragging about him, he felt extremely embarrassed and could only pretend not to see it.

However, the program soon changed, and the emperor and his ministers enjoyed themselves together. The emperor would set a topic for a poem, and the ministers would respond with their own poems. The best works would be recorded by the court officials, and there would be rewards for them.

The group was having a great time, and even Li Chengqian and Li Tai joined in.

Some ministers even went down to dance and had a great time.

Li Shen stood there silently watching. To be honest, Li Shen really couldn't handle these things that scholars did.

When it comes to refined literature, it has to be these court officials; those so-called literary giants who can only compose poetry in brothels are completely incomparable to them.

What are the Six Arts of a Gentleman? These people are really good at it.

The foreign envoys also joined in, offering dances to the Heavenly Khan of the Tang Dynasty.

Li Shen watched with great excitement. This was the true Celestial Empire, the place where all nations paid tribute. Especially the envoys from small countries like Japan and Silla, who acted like clowns, made Li Shen even more delighted.

"Brother, is that the envoy from Japan?"

While eating, Li Shen looked at a short, fat man in the room and asked a question.

Li Chengqian glanced at it and nodded:

"Yes, they are Japanese envoys to Tang China who just arrived this year. I think their name is something like Sakawa, but I can't quite remember."

Furthermore, they also presented two princesses as gifts.

"Princess? They dare to call themselves princesses? I heard from my men that their leader even dares to call himself the Emperor. They are incredibly audacious."

They completely disregard my Great Tang Dynasty!

Upon hearing that the princess was being presented as tribute, Li Shen couldn't help but scoff. How dare a place at the level of a prefecture or county call itself the Emperor? Who gave it the audacity?

"The Emperor? I've never heard of that. They say he's their king." Li Chengqian was unaware of this and was somewhat surprised.

Although Japan did not submit its credentials, its posture was no different from that of a vassal state.

All the rulers of the vassal states of the Tang Dynasty could only be called kings, such as King Baozang, King Baekje, and King Silla.

There wasn't a single one who dared to call themselves emperor, otherwise they would have been wiped out long ago.

"Didn't Father tell you? I already reported this to Father a long time ago. It seems that it was Emperor Kōtoku, and another one called 'Light.'"

From the intelligence I've gathered, this young man is quite intelligent and is vigorously promoting the systems of our Great Tang Dynasty.

The system was basically the same from local institutions to court officials. Li Shen knew that Li Shimin had not told Li Chengqian about this, so he gave Li Chengqian a brief explanation.

Li Chengqian's eyes lit up after hearing this:

"He wants to consolidate power in the royal family?"

"Not bad." Li Shen nodded. As expected of the Crown Prince, Li Chengqian understood the other party's intentions after only hearing a few words from him.

"I have read some documents about Japan, which say that they have a system of powerful clans, numerous nobles, and a weakened monarchy."

Localities acted autonomously and did not obey the imperial court's orders.

This appears to be an attempt to centralize power in the royal family and unify the entire country of Japan.

Li Chengqian's analysis was very logical and reasonable. Such things have happened before in history.

“Brother is right, I also think that’s what it means. However, the news from over there is that nobles in various places are very dissatisfied with this.”

They are just like the local lords of yesteryear, having enjoyed wealth and power for so long, how could they possibly willingly hand over their power?

It seems their court will have to resort to force to resolve this matter.

Li Shen nodded in agreement. These were all analyses from Di Renjie's letter; Li Shen was merely borrowing them.

"Hehe, if that's the case, Japan will probably fall into endless war, with feudal lords vying for supremacy and annexing each other. It probably won't stop for several hundred years."

Li Chengqian chuckled.

Li Shen shook his head:

"Brother, you're wrong."

"Oh? Then please enlighten me, tenth brother, where did I go wrong?"

Li Chengqian was somewhat surprised to hear this.

Li Shen calmly took a sip of wine before speaking:

"Brother, you are talking about our history. The wars of the Great Zhou lasted for more than 500 years. The feudal lords in various places annexed each other, and the wars were constant. This period can be called the Warring States period."

But brother, don't forget that when King Wu attacked King Zhou, there were supposedly eight hundred vassal states. Even if there were fewer later, there must have been at least several hundred, right?

Historical records indicate that there were more than 170 large and small vassal states at that time, which is why the war lasted for 500 years.

Japan is just a tiny country, smaller than even one of our larger prefectures or counties, and its population is pitifully small.

According to my intelligence, those so-called nobles and gentry control areas ranging from a county to a smaller imperial estate with fewer people.

Having over a thousand guards already constitutes a considerable armed force.

"Given this situation, do you think the Japanese court would need hundreds of years to unify? I estimate it could be done in just a few years, with only tens of thousands of troops."

(I read some documents about the Asuka period in Japan, and what they said was almost exactly the same as mine. There was no denigration whatsoever.)