Li Shimin faked his death? Then I will be powerful enough to conquer the world!

The door slowly closed behind him, making a dull and long sound.

Li Shimin stood still, gazing leisurely at Li Chengqian, the man who carried countless of his hopes and was regarded by him as the most promising successor to the future of the Tang Dynasty.

At this moment, complex emotions surged in Li Shimin's eyes like a surging tide, including shock, confusion, and deep helplessness, so that he was speechless for a moment.

During Li Shimin's long political career, he met all kinds of people with ulterior motives.

If others hold high the banner of "The world belongs to the public, long live the people", he will definitely think that this is just a trick used by ambitious people. They use high-sounding slogans to consolidate their own rule and seek personal gain. It is just a means of rule in a new bottle but the essence remains the same.

However, when facing his own son Li Chengqian, Li Shimin fell into a long period of confusion.

Li Chengqian's unusual actions and advanced ideas in the past have always lingered in his mind like a fog, leaving him puzzled.

Until this moment, the "storm" raised by Li Chengqian finally blew away the fog, and Li Shimin suddenly realized.

Li Chengqian's thoughts and ideas far exceeded his imagination - Li Chengqian no longer wanted to dominate the Tang Dynasty as a traditional emperor, but wanted to subvert the feudal ruling order that had lasted for thousands of years and hand over the dominance of the Tang Dynasty to the people of the world.

In an instant, many things that had puzzled Li Shimin in the past found reasonable explanations at this moment.

Li Shimin felt mixed emotions. He realized that his son had indeed "rebelled", but the object of this "rebellion" was the feudal imperial ruling philosophy that he adhered to and the power structure for which he had fought all his life.

Thinking of this, Li Shimin felt powerless. He dragged his legs, which felt as heavy as lead, slowly walked to the chair and sat down heavily. He buried his hands deeply in his hair, lowered his head, and fell into silence for a long time. The only sound in the room was his heavy breathing.

Li Chengqian was filled with mixed emotions when he saw Li Shimin looking so lonely.

He understood Li Shimin's reaction. It was not because of Li Shimin's stubbornness and conservatism, but because of the limitations of the entire era.

In this era when the idea of ​​divine right of kings is deeply rooted in people's minds, his ideas are earth-shattering and a huge challenge to the traditional order.

Originally, Li Chengqian planned to adopt a step-by-step strategy, slowly guiding people to change their ideas over time and allowing the changes to take place quietly.

But what he saw and heard during this incognito visit made him feel the urgency of change.

The sufferings endured by the common people and the darkness in the officialdom reminded him that if he did not act decisively, the future of the Tang Dynasty would be in jeopardy.

Originally, he planned to wait a hundred years after Li Shimin's death before implementing this reform.

But things are unpredictable, and the development of the situation does not allow him to delay any longer.

If you hesitate any longer, the resistance to change will increase with every day of delay, and the hope of success will become increasingly slim.

Now is the best time to start change, and we must act decisively.

Many things are easy to say but difficult to put into practice.

But he was determined to take advantage of this moment to lay a solid foundation and determine a clear direction for the future development of the Tang Dynasty.

In this way, even if someone attempts to destroy the results of the reform in the future, they will have to act with caution because of the righteous cause of "the world belongs to the public."

He himself was also prepared to sacrifice everything for this great change, including his imperial power. What he wanted to "abolish" was the absolute authority of the emperor. This was undoubtedly a "revolution" against himself.

Silence, like a thick and oppressive curtain, shrouded the father and son, and time seemed to freeze at this moment.

After a long time, the first person to break the dead silence was Li Shimin.

His voice was slightly hoarse and full of vicissitudes of life. He said slowly: "Cheng Qian, Aye really lost his composure just now. Aye apologizes to you."

When Li Chengqian heard this, he felt a lump in his nose and his eyes instantly became moist.

Li Shimin has always been an image of a majestic emperor. Although he is kind and amiable to his family on weekdays, on matters of principle, especially when it comes to governing philosophy and power rule, he is an extremely tough and self-respecting person who rarely bows to others.

But at this moment, facing the limitations of the times and his misunderstanding of his son's ideas, under the bond of family affection, he was the first to put down his imperial airs and chose to submit.

"Cheng Qian, what do you want to do? Aye is old and can no longer control you."

"Nowadays, the world depends entirely on you."

Li Shimin sighed slightly and continued, his tone full of helplessness, "Aye knows in your heart that you have endured too much hardship along the way."

"Every time you made a decision, Aye had trouble understanding it at first and couldn't follow your train of thought."

"Can you open your heart to Aye and tell me what you really think deep down?"

"It will also give Aye some peace of mind. Even as Jingyou's father-in-law, please ask him how he should deal with himself in the future."

Li Chengqian listened to Li Shimin's words and fell into a brief contemplation.

After a moment, he slowly spoke with a firm tone: "Aye, you don't have to worry. Jingyou will still be the emperor in the future."

He paused slightly, "Moreover, he will be a happy emperor, no longer having to toil day and night and worry about the country like you and me."

Hearing this, Li Shimin slowly closed his eyes and shook his head gently, his face full of worry: "Cheng Qian, my father is not a fool, he understands everything."

"Are you planning to select talents from among the common people to govern the world, and let the Tang Dynasty royal family become a symbol of the Tang Dynasty and hand over all the power in their hands?"

"Do you want Jingyou to become a puppet emperor in name only, Chengqian? Don't forget, he is your own flesh and blood!"

Li Chengqian quickly waved his hands and explained anxiously, "Father, that's absolutely not the case. Jingyou is not a puppet emperor."

"The emperor will still be the emperor, but this status will be transformed into an honorary title. As for his daily food and drink expenses, there will naturally be someone responsible for arranging them properly. What's wrong with this arrangement?"

At least, this model has been successfully verified in certain periods of history and in certain countries, and it is not just a fantasy.

Li Shimin stared at Li Chengqian. "Chengqian, do you really think this arrangement is foolproof? Once power slips out of your control and passes into the hands of others, can you truly rest assured?"

"Even if you carefully select representatives from among the people and have them govern the country, decentralizing power, the end result will probably be essentially the same as it is now. The so-called kings, princes, generals, and ministers are nothing more than a new bottle."

"On the contrary, when one person's power gradually becomes centralized, even if you set strict rules in advance, they are very likely to violate them and trample on them at will."

Li Shimin frowned slightly, staring at Li Chengqian intently. "I bet you're planning to establish a series of detailed rules to constrain those in power, right?"

Li Chengqian nodded slightly, agreeing with his father's guess.

Li Shimin continued, "Now let me ask you, if you establish a law requiring a change of ruler every three years, and someone attempts to consolidate all power in one person and tamper with your rules, who will be able to check and balance him?"

"He could have relied on the power in his hands to stay in that position until the end of his life."

"Even handing over power to his descendants."

In this case, what is the difference between him and the emperor? Isn't he just an emperor with a different title? "

"Silly child, no matter how drastically you reform the way things are governed in this world, it will always be difficult to break out of the established framework."

“No matter how hard you try to achieve your goal, you’ll probably end up repeating the same mistakes and ending up back where you started.”

Li Shimin's voice was filled with helplessness. "Just because I changed my name, do you naively think that everything has changed?"

"Have you ever thought that all the emperors in history were stupid?"

"They are not unaware of the principle of checks and balances, and I am aware of its pros and cons. However, some attempts are doomed to be futile and meaningless."

"Rather than handing over this hard-earned empire to others, it would be better for me, the descendants of the Li Tang Dynasty, to enjoy prosperity and wealth for several generations in peace and security. When the country changes hands in the future, we can feel at ease."

Li Shimin said earnestly, "Think carefully, Cheng Qian. As long as you can give me a reason that convinces me, I will not care about you."

Having said this, Li Shimin paused.

Then he said.

"Cheng Qian, you still don't understand what the way of an emperor is. You're too impatient and don't even want to discuss it with me. Don't you trust me? Are you afraid that I'll oppose you? Are you afraid that I'll scold you?"

"Governing the world doesn't depend on systems or reforms, but on people!"

“Even though they were all emperors, some provided their people with ample food and clothing, while others left them starving and freezing.”

"What determines the lives of the people is never some bullshit system or some reform, but the person sitting at the top!"

"That person is good, and no matter what kind of structure it is, the people can live a good life."

"If that person is bad, no matter how good the system is, no matter how much it's hyped up, people's lives will still be difficult."

"Do you understand what I'm telling you?"