Success or Failure as the Measure of a Hero

"Old Zhu, why do you always send Lan Yu to do this sort of thing?"

Qin Shi Huang couldn't help but ask. "I remember back in your Ming Dynasty, when you ordered Cao Jixiang and Wang Zhen to be punished with 'baopi xuancao' (a flaying punishment), you also made Lan Yu carry it out."

"I just think he's suited for it. What's wrong with that?" Zhu Yuanzhang replied.

Qin Shi Huang said, "Not saying it's wrong, just that it feels a bit strange."

Qin Ning laughed. "Brother Zheng, you might not know this, but in the original history, Lan Yu was also ordered by Old Zhu to be given the 'baopi xuancao' punishment."

Hearing this, Qin Shi Huang looked stunned. "Old Zhu, I remember Lan Yu was your fierce general, and the only one in the Great Ming to earn the honor of 'Fenglang Juxu' (a ceremonial rite of supreme military achievement). And you actually had him flayed?"

"That was in the original history. I'm not going to do that now."

"It's not just Lan Yu. Most of the founding heroes of the Ming Dynasty didn't die well. Old Zhu basically killed them all, mainly to clear the way for the Jianwen Emperor," Qin Ning said.

"Truly ruthless."

Not just Qin Shi Huang, but all the ministers present couldn't help but shiver.

The founding heroes were almost all killed?

This Emperor Taizu of Ming was indeed such a ruthless man?

Thinking this, they all felt fortunate to have been born in the Great Tang, not in so-called Ming.

"Mr. Qin, Brother Zheng, how did you get onto discussing Ming history?"

Li Shimin was a bit speechless. Without further comment, he turned his gaze to Yang Guozhong. "Guards, take him away too, and hand him over to General Lan Yu just now, for the 'baopi xuancao' punishment."

"Yes!"

The guards acknowledged, ignoring Yang Guozhong's struggles, and dragged him out of the hall.

"And you two..."

Li Shimin's gaze shifted to Li Longji and Yang Yuhuan.

Just one look terrified them into trembling on the spot.

They didn't know what 'baopi xuancao' was, but it sounded far from pleasant—likely some kind of horrible torture!

"Li Longji was still a half-emperor of considerable achievement; perhaps we can spare his life," Qin Ning said.

Li Shimin nodded, his eyes still sweeping over Li Longji and Yang Yuhuan. He recalled how Zhu Yuanzhang had punished Zhu Qizhen when they visited a later era of the Ming Dynasty together.

After a moment, he said, "Set aside a large area outside the city, build a memorial garden, and bury all the soldiers who died in the An Lushan Rebellion. From now on, you two will live in that garden for the rest of your lives. Every day, you will chant scriptures and pray, never to step a single step outside."

One minister frowned and ventured, "But Great Ancestor, if the Emperor goes to the garden, what about the throne..."

Li Shimin nodded at this and then looked at Qin Ning.

Qin Ning knew what he was about to ask and said with a smile, "In the original history, after An Lushan's army conquered Chang'an, Emperor Xuanzong fled west to Shu. The Mawei Post mutiny occurred, and Crown Prince Li Heng ascended the throne as Emperor Suzong of Tang. He was a ruler of mixed merits and faults who saved the dynasty in a time of chaos. After taking power, he stabilized the military and trusted generals like Guo Ziyi, eventually recapturing Chang'an and Luoyang. But later, to prevent military commanders from rebelling, he let eunuchs like Li Fuguo and Yu Chao'en manage the army, which led to eunuch domination. He also listened to the slanders of his empress, ordering the death of his own son, Prince Jianning, and became suspicious of his meritorious ministers, causing great internal instability. Overall, while Emperor Suzong of Tang left behind the problem of eunuch interference, he genuinely preserved the foundations of the Great Tang and laid the groundwork for its later revival. He saved the Tang in its crisis but didn't cure its ills. In history, he can still be considered a meritorious ruler."

After hearing Qin Ning's words, Li Shimin nodded. "So Li Heng seems acceptable. Later, we will have him make improvements to avoid some of the original history's mistakes."

"I remember Li Heng's reign lasted only seven years?" Zhu Yuanzhang suddenly interjected.

Qin Ning nodded. "Yes."

"After Li Heng came Li Yu, posthumously named Emperor Daizong of Tang. The eight-year An Lushan Rebellion ended under his rule, stabilizing the Tang and preventing the empire from splitting apart."

...

That night, Qin Ning and his group stayed directly in the imperial palace.

Li Shimin had to leave behind some necessary instructions before departing, and he ordered people to bring sweet potatoes, potatoes, and other high-yield crop seeds, as well as blueprints for firearms and other items.

By noon the next day, outside Chang'an's city wall, Li Jinglong had returned with the 100,000-strong Shenji Battalion.

On the city gate tower, Li Shimin had the army demonstrate firearms, cannons, and other weapons, to remind the ministers that the development of gunpowder weapons must never stop.

Seeing the elite soldiers and the power of their equipment, the ministers were thrilled, their faces flushed with excitement.

After the demonstration, Li Shimin and the others came down to the city gate.

The newly ascended Emperor Suzong of Tang, Li Heng, accompanied by his ministers, saw them off.

"Remember the advice I left for you."

Li Shimin patted Li Heng on the shoulder, then without hesitation looked at Qin Ning. "Mr. Qin, let's go. Time for the Battle of Xiangji Temple."

Qin Ning nodded without a word. With a single wave of his hand, he made Li Shimin and the others, along with the 100,000 troops, vanish on the spot.

...

Tang Suzong's second year of the Zhide era.

Xiangji Temple.

Guo Ziyi's 150,000-strong army clashed with the "rebel forces" led by An Shouzhong and Li Guiren.

Both sides shouted at each other, calling the other rebels.

From Guo Ziyi's perspective, they were acting on the emperor's orders to suppress An Lushan's rebellion. They were the loyal imperial army, while the other side were traitors and troublemakers.

But on the other side, these soldiers were elite border troops. When they rose up, they openly claimed to "cleanse the court of villains," saying treacherous ministers were corrupting the court and they were acting on imperial will to punish the wicked. Thus, they saw themselves as loyal, and the Tang army blocking them as the true rebels.

Both sides were Tang border troops—identical in equipment, training, and even tactics.

Many officers and soldiers had once been comrades, but now they fought for different masters, each convinced they were loyal to the Great Tang, while the other had betrayed it.

History is written by victors.

In feudal civil wars, there was never a middle ground. The winning side would define the other as rebels, while the losers were forever branded.

In true history, Guo Ziyi's Tang army won and reclaimed Chang'an, so history labeled the other side as "the An Lushan rebels."

But in reality, both sides had been loyal to the Tang.

This battle raged from morning to sunset. In just four hours, over 130,000 men were killed, setting the highest record of battlefield deaths in the age of cold weapons.

No clever stratagems, no tales of the weak overcoming the strong—just pure, head-on confrontation.

That day, there was no rest, no pause, only endless slaughter.

Corpses littered the fields, and the river ran entirely red with blood.