Pacification

Upon hearing Li Shimin's words, Li Longji and the other two were stunned.

It was one thing to have the Great Ancestor here.

But now the First Emperor of Qin, Ying Zheng, as well?

Wasn't this all a bit too absurd?

Yet, upon reflection, the three of them had just been carried through the air all the way here.

Lingwu was at least two thousand li from Suiyang, and they had arrived in only a moment.

Other than the ancestors truly manifesting, they could think of no other explanation.

"This gentleman here is the Founding Ancestor of the Great Ming dynasty in later ages, the Hongwu Emperor, Zhu Yuanzhang," Li Shimin introduced again.

Later ages?

Great Ming dynasty?

Founding Ancestor?

At these words, Li Longji was first taken aback, then said with disbelief, "The Great Tang... fell?"

"It fell," Li Shimin sighed. "There has never been an eternal dynasty in this world."

Then he introduced Qin Ning. "This gentleman is an immortal from later ages. It is he who brought us all here."

An immortal?

Could immortals truly exist in this world?

"Li Longji, do you know your crimes?" Li Shimin suddenly changed the subject.

With a thud, Li Longji, terrified, fell to his knees. "Great... Great Ancestor, I... er, no, your descendant... your descendant does not know..."

"You don't know?" Li Shimin sneered. "Wallowing in debauchery, neglecting state affairs, elevating sycophants, and driving away loyal ministers. Tell me, what did you do in your later years?"

"In your later years, you secluded yourself deep in the palace, doted on Yang Guifei, long ignored court affairs, caused the court to decay, dismissed the virtuous chancellor Zhang Jiuling, long trusted the honey-tongued but sword-hearted Li Linfu and the talentless relative Yang Guozhong, let politics become corrupt, and lost control of the border generals."

"And now you tell me you don't know?"

"The An-Shi Rebellion was entirely your doing!"

"Do you know how many of my Tang subjects this rebellion left homeless?"

"Do you know it was because of the An-Shi Rebellion that the Great Tang never recovered and fell from its peak?"

The more Li Shimin spoke, the angrier he grew, and he slapped Li Heng across the face.

"Great Ancestor... why hit me?" Li Heng was bewildered.

"Your father's old bones—if I hit him, would he not die? You, as his son, will bear it for him."

At this, Li Heng felt so wronged he began to weep. He thought, Why the hell should I bear this?

He was a victim himself.

Otherwise, why would he have been forced to force his father to abdicate in Lingwu?

"Your matter, I will deal with later," Li Shimin snorted coldly, then turned his gaze to An Qingxu.

Feeling that look upon him, An Qingxu was drenched in a cold sweat.

"To slaughter your father and seize the throne, you traitorous scoundrel—"

"Ahem, Old Li, don't curse yourself," said Zhu Yuanzhang from the side.

"How am I cursing myself?"

"Did you not also slay your brother and force your father?"

"Nonsense. An Qingxu killed his father to seize the throne. I killed my brother... bah! No! My elder brother died of acute iron poisoning!"

"Fine, fine! Acute iron poisoning!"

Zhu Yuanzhang continued, "If you ask me, An Qingxu deserves to die. After capturing the two capitals, he did no small amount of harm to the common people. In the historical records, he is regarded as the epitome of a traitorous minister. No need to interrogate him further."

"Reasonable," Li Shimin nodded. "Someone. Take him away. Bao Pi Xuan Cao."

"Great Ancestor, what is... Bao Pi Xuan Cao?" asked Zhang Xun, bewildered.

"I'll do it," said Lan Yu, stepping forward before Li Shimin could answer, and dragged An Qingxu out.

"Sir, how should we handle Li Longji?" Li Shimin looked to Qin Ning, seeking his opinion.

"In his later years, he was muddled, leading to the An-Shi Rebellion and causing the people to suffer. In my view, simply killing him would be too merciful," Ying Zheng spoke up.

"Bao Pi Xuan Cao it is, then," said Zhu Yuanzhang.

Though Li Longji did not know what Bao Pi Xuan Cao was, he could tell it was a cruel punishment. Trembling all over, he cried out, "Great Ancestor, First Emperor, Hongwu Emperor, spare me!"

"You decide. Don't ask me—I'm just here to watch the show," Qin Ning shrugged.

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin fell silent for a moment, then said, "To kill him outright would indeed be too merciful."

"After I quell this An-Shi Rebellion, I will erect a Stele Mound in the capital. This will be your task—inscribe upon it the names of every soldier and civilian who died in this rebellion. Then you will be punished to guard that mound for life, never to step foot beyond it. Let you, a thousand-year 'half-emperor,' tend to a tomb. Do you object?"

"No... I do not!" Li Longji dared not complain at all.

Compared to suffering Bao Pi Xuan Cao, this outcome was already the very best he could hope for.

...

Several days later, under Li Shimin's personal command, the rebellion finally came to an end.

After instructing Li Heng at length, the group did not linger. With a grand wave of his hand, Qin Ning brought everyone away and returned to the modern era.

In the villa, Qin Ning, Li Lizhi, and the others cooked personally and prepared a lavish feast. After they had eaten their fill, they took the children, like Sizi and Xiong Ying, out to play.

Meanwhile, Qin Ning continued drinking and chatting with Li Shimin and Zhu Yuanzhang.

Qin Shi Huang said, "Sir, shouldn't we next visit the era after my Great Qin?"

"Brother Zheng, your Great Qin only lasted two generations—well, three if you count Ziying. What's the rush?" said Zhu Yuanzhang and Li Shimin together.

"You two are standing there without a care. You've visited the Great Tang and the Great Ming so many times. What's wrong with coming once to my Great Qin?"

"And it's only two generations; we can settle it in no time. Wouldn't that save more trouble?"