Chapter 53 Tian Khan

Han Dynasty, during the Yuan Dynasty.

Liu Heng stared at his prince without blinking: "The seventh emperor is your son, my grandson..."

Liu Qi, who was being stared at by him, did not think there was anything wrong, because he was also completely occupied by the news. All the thoughts about Emperor Taizong of Tang and his glorious achievements were thrown aside.

"I don't know which girl could give birth to such an heir..." Liu Heng murmured. At this moment, he urgently hoped that Tianmu could tell him the name and where the mother of this good grandson lived, so that he could choose one for the prince and let them get married and have children as soon as possible.

[The title of Heavenly Khan was not entirely the result of praising Li Shimin. As the emperor of the Tang Dynasty, Li Shimin did treat the people of all ethnic groups who surrendered to the Tang Dynasty quite equally.

The various ethnic minorities truly respected Li Shimin as the Heavenly Khan and were willing to fight bloody battles for him, becoming an important part of the Tang Dynasty.

During the Tang Dynasty's foreign wars, foreign generals, such as Ashina She'er and Qibi Heli during the Zhenguan period, Gao Xianzhi and Geshu Han during the Kaiyuan period... were loyal to the Tang Dynasty and made great contributions; and the foreign soldiers who fought alongside the Tang army fought equally bravely, not only attacking foreign countries, but also assisting the court in stabilizing its rule.

When Li Shimin passed away, Ashina She'er and Qibi Heli asked Emperor Gaozong to bury him alive with him, but they gave up after being stopped. Finally, after their death, they were buried with him in Zhaoling Mausoleum.

Han Dynasty, the fourth year of Yuanshou.

Huo Qubing agreed with Li Shimin's bold decision to employ foreign generals: "In fact, many foreign generals can be employed without worry. They are capable and loyal." For example, when he attacked the Huns several times, there were actually quite a few Huns in his team.

Liu Che nodded. He naturally understood what Huo Qubing said. "As long as those people are willing to sincerely serve the Han Dynasty, I can naturally give them a place to stay. If they have made contributions, it is not impossible to reward them."

Song Dynasty, the first year of Kaibao.

Zhao Kuangyin remained silent. His Song Dynasty did not dare to employ foreigners as freely as Emperor Taizong of Tang did, even if they were truly loyal.

It's not that he didn't yearn for the harmony between the emperor and his subjects (especially foreign subjects) like Emperor Taizong of Tang, nor was he envious of those foreign people with outstanding abilities, but after the bloody storm in the late Tang Dynasty, and the fact that the Song Dynasty at that time had not successfully unified the country, he was not so confident.

Zhao Guangmei sighed: "Throughout the Tang Dynasty, there were 85 foreign military governors and 23 secretaries." This scale was really huge and bold. Not only were the top civil and military officials like this, but also the middle and lower-level officials. Especially in the late Tang Dynasty, the proportion of foreign soldiers in the army increased rapidly.

[The expedition to Goguryeo was actually just an inevitable result, but Li Shimin's personal participation made the expedition even more special.

Although Emperor Yang of Sui abused the people's power, his understanding of Goguryeo was indeed correct.

During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, Goguryeo had been jumping back and forth, hoping to maintain the division of the Central Plains by supporting various forces and maintain its dominance over Liaodong and the Korean Peninsula.

"Some in the south are in cahoots with Liu, and some in the north are in cahoots with Rouran. They work together to plot against the king."

When the Sui Dynasty was established and the national strength continued to grow, Goguryeo stopped communicating with the Sui Dynasty and turned to the Southern Chen Dynasty to pay tribute and contact the Turks in the north.

Putting aside Goguryeo's own ambitions and plans, just looking at Goguryeo's geographical location, it was destined to be controlled by the Central Plains dynasty, otherwise it would give a key to other countries that might be eyeing the Central Plains.

For example, during the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty, an ambitious person made an attempt. And this attempt would appear again and again hundreds of years later.

Tang Dynasty, Zhenguan period.

Li Shimin looked at his ministers with sharp eyes and said, I said we should attack Goguryeo. You see, this is correct!

Facing Li Shimin's gaze, Wei Zheng said, "Your Majesty, we need to take a long-term view before conquering Goguryeo. We must not waste our manpower and money..."

"I know. I just want to move the time forward a little and not wait until 19 years to send troops." Li Shimin sighed.

Nineteen years later, I know my body well. I have always had the risk of stroke. Although I haven't had it in recent years, the battles in recent years have still taken their toll on my body. And now, in the nineteenth year, is my body okay?
Besides, the records only go up to the twenty-second year, which means I am probably only twenty-second or twenty-third.

"Moreover," he ignored those eyes that clearly disapproved of his personal expedition, and continued to state his reasons, "Tianmu also said that the geographical location of Goguryeo itself is very critical... It is right next to the plains. How can I give such a place to others?"

Du Ruhui and the others sighed and had to accept the emperor's idea. After all, now that they had a closer look, that place was indeed very important. However, they would definitely dissuade the emperor from the idea of ​​leading the army in person!

Ming Dynasty, Hongwu Years.

"During the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty?" Zhu Yuanzhang frowned. How could this be related to the Ming Dynasty? Would there be an ambitious person who tried to invade the Ming Dynasty from Goryeo? According to the current geographical location, it was indeed Goryeo?

"How did Wanli become the emperor? Did our Ming Dynasty decline? Otherwise, how could a few dogs want to be king and dominate the world!" Zhu Yuanzhang vented his anger on Wanli. It must be that he did not do a good job, otherwise no one would dare to have such an idea and make an attempt!
Zhu Biao comforted him: "Dad, the word Tianmu used was 'try'. I think that ambitious man did not succeed, and my Ming Dynasty still managed to defend Goryeo." If he had succeeded, the word he used probably wouldn't have been 'try'.

Zhu Yuanzhang temporarily let Wanli go, and began to think about where the daring person came from: "The one who wants to invade Ming from Goryeo should not be those people in Mongolia, nor the people in the Central Plains." There is no need for these two parties to go through Goryeo. The only thing left is...

Zhu Yuanzhang shifted his gaze to the island east of Korea: "Japan!" He showed a ferocious smile, and one glance at it made people feel cold, "This Japan is really a small country. It even wants to get involved in China." Although there are many places and countries in the world as seen from the sky, Japan is the closest to the Ming Dynasty after all.

[The light of the emperor of Chang'an enveloped all places from Chang'an, just like the words on the stone tablet of Kaiyuan Gate in the northwest of Chang'an City: The road to the west is nine thousand nine hundred miles.

Starting from here and heading west for 9,900 miles, all of it is the land of the Tang Dynasty. The people of the Tang Dynasty can walk here with confidence.

The glory of the Tang Dynasty continued, but Li Shimin's reign stopped in the 23rd year of Zhenguan.

On May 26, the 23rd year of Zhenguan, Li Shimin was critically ill and died in Hanfeng Hall of Cuiwei Palace on Mount Zhongnan.

Tang Dynasty, Zhenguan period.

"Second brother!" Empress Changsun tightly grasped Li Shimin's arm, tears welling up in her eyes, her voice trembling. Twenty-three years, Li Shimin was only fifty years old at that time! Moreover, he was critically ill, which meant that the second brother died of illness. "From today on, second brother, you must start to take care of your health!" Forget about the 19-year imperial expedition.

Li Chengqian, Li Lizhi and Li Tai also burst into tears. Even though twenty-three years were still a long way off, how could they accept that Ye Ye, who was like a god, was leaving them like this?
Every important official present had red eyes and tears flowing.

Li Shimin, who was always the first to cry, was very calm at this moment. He first comforted Empress Zhangsun, then his children, and then his ministers: "In the 23rd year of Zhenguan, looking at the sky, my ideals have all been realized, and I have no regrets. You should be happy for me!"

After persuading her, he spoke softly to Empress Changsun: "I think Guanyin should be able to live longer than me. After I am gone, please do not harm your body. I hope you can live a long and healthy life..."

【Li Shimin was only in his 50s, and he died so early because of health problems. This was related to three aspects.

On the one hand, there were the various hidden dangers brought about by his wars in his early years.

Although Li Shimin did not suffer any serious injuries during the campaign, the high intensity of physical exertion during the battle, coupled with irregular diets, working day and night, and the long duration of the campaign, actually created a lot of hidden dangers;

On the other hand, there is the issue of hereditary diseases in the Li family. The Li family is likely to have inherited "wind disease". Li Shimin fell ill after personally conquering Goguryeo, and the subsequent Emperor Gaozong of Tang also had a record of illness. Emperor Gaozu of Tang also suffered from this disease in his later years.

This disease brings great pain. Headache, dizziness, convulsions, cramps, and limb tremors are just common manifestations of the disease. In severe cases, problems such as hemiplegia may even occur.

The last point is that during the Zhenguan period, Li Shimin suffered many psychological blows, which contributed to his physical decline.

Tang Dynasty, Wude period.

"Wind disease?" Li Yuan sat up straight. After all, this was closely related to his life. He also suffered from the same problem in his later years. "Headache, dizziness, convulsions, cramps, tremors in limbs..." With every sentence Li Yuan read, his voice trembled a little. At the end, he could not even continue.

There was no other reason. These symptoms looked terrible enough. Li Yuan couldn't imagine how he would be able to endure it.

Unlike Li Yuan, Li Shimin was more concerned about the third point: "Psychological shock?" What kind of shock was it? Li Shimin had a bad feeling.

[In the ninth year of Zhenguan, Emperor Retired Emperor Li Yuan died of illness.

In the tenth year of Zhenguan, Empress Changsun became seriously ill and died in Lizheng Hall at the age of thirty-six.

In the 17th year of Zhenguan, Crown Prince Li Chengqian rebelled and was demoted to a commoner and exiled to Qianzhou.

In this rebellion, King Li Tai of Wei was also involved and was demoted to Prince of Shunyang and settled in Junzhou.

In the seventeenth year of Zhenguan, Princess Changle Li Lizhi died of illness at the age of twenty-three.

In the eighteenth year of Zhenguan, Li Chengqian died in Qianzhou at the age of twenty-six.

Later, Princess Jinyang Li Mingda, who was raised by Li Shimin himself, died of illness at the age of twelve.

Tang Dynasty, the third year of Zhenguan.

Li Shimin, who had just been comforting Empress Changsun and hoping that she would not be too sad after his departure, was speechless for a moment.

Ye Ye passed away six years later... This is sad enough. Although there is the Xuanwu Gate between them, they still have a father-son relationship.

But compared with the series of events that followed, this incident was nothing.

Ten years later, Guanyinbi died of illness? She was only thirty-six years old?
And Gao Ming, why did he want to rebel, and why was Qingque involved...

Li Shimin looked dazed and confused, and for a moment he felt as if he was in the most sinister dream.

Not only did it feel like a nightmare mentally, but it felt like a nightmare physically as well.

Li Shimin was in a daze, and he couldn't catch his breath, which almost triggered his existing illness. His limbs lost strength for a moment. Fortunately, he was sitting and watching the miracle, and didn't stand up, so he didn't fall down or get into any dangerous situations.

Fortunately, Empress Changsun was sitting next to him and holding his arm. She sensed that Li Shimin had a problem the first time, and then supported him to help him breathe more easily.

Li Chengqian was no longer in the mood to think about whether he was plotting a rebellion or not, and hurriedly called the imperial physician to come forward. Long before he watched the sky curtain this time, an imperial physician was always on hand in the palace to prevent any unexpected events.

After checking the pulse, the imperial physician heaved a sigh of relief and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty is fine. It was just a moment of emotional excitement."

Li Shimin gradually recovered at this time. He waved his hand and asked the imperial physician to check the pulse of other people present.

After all, he had already seen that he was not the only one who was distressed by the major events that Tianmu revealed in one breath. Everyone present looked unhappy.

Especially Guanyinbi and Gao Ming and others.

After Li Shimin recovered, Empress Zhangsun and others breathed a sigh of relief and began to remember the important content of the miracle.

Died early? This is not good news. But for Empress Changsun, there are more important things than this.

On the one hand, if I died early, it would definitely be a big blow to my second brother. I think his physical decline later was also due to this sadness.
On the other hand, her children also died young - for a mother, this was the worst news. She began to doubt whether she had not taken good care of her children. Otherwise, why would this happen? Moreover, Gao Ming was plotting a rebellion... Gao Ming looked like a filial and intelligent child!

And if I leave early, then my brothers...

Empress Changsun's gaze moved between the children, Changsun Wuji and Gao Shilian.

Li Lizhi and Li Chengqian each held Li Shimin in one hand and Empress Changsun in the other.

After snuggling up to her mother and finding a sense of security, Li Lizhi could not help but cast a questioning look at Li Chengqian - although her early death was revealed by Tianmu, it was difficult for the young princess to have any deep understanding of it at this time. Instead, she was more concerned about Li Chengqian's future.

Is my brother out of his mind? He is actually plotting a rebellion?

Li Chengqian, who was being stared at by Li Lizhi, read these words from her eyes, but did not refute them, because he himself was also very surprised. How could he actually go and rebel? Was he really mentally ill?

How could I not know how good Yeye was to me? Yet I still did such a thing, breaking Yeye's heart and making all my efforts to cultivate Yeye go to waste. I also couldn't face my mother...

Even if we ignore the feelings between Ye Ye and myself, why do I think I can succeed in my rebellion?

Zhangsun Wuji and Gao Shilian, who were related to the emperor's family, were of course very sad. The empress was their sister/niece, and they had lived together for many years and had a deep relationship. How could they not be sad about her early death?
In addition, Changsun Wuji was saddened by more than just this incident. He also had to deal with the rebellion of Crown Prince Li Chengqian and the involvement of Prince of Wei Li Tai. Even if the Emperor's brother-in-law managed to save his life, he would never inherit the throne and would die young. The Prince of Wei, who was involved in the rebellion, was also far from the throne...

In this way, my sister only has one prince left, who is still in swaddling clothes. In this case, what will happen in the future?
Fang Xuanling, Du Ruhui and others keenly sensed the hidden murderous intent in these words.

——Let’s not talk about anything else. If the prince wanted to rebel, would he rush forward alone? Of course not. He must have ministers, even important officials, around him. In addition, there would be some small groups to fight for him.

Such small groups and ministers are not bragging, but they really can't think of any other candidates except the sons and nephews of the emperor's important ministers.

In addition to them, Li Shimin obviously also thought of this, so the tears that were already flowing became even more turbulent.

(End of this chapter)