The most romantic little emperor

Chapter 162 Listen to you 1 Xi Zhangsheng reads the year book

Qin Hao took out the special jade pendant given by Emperor Taizong from his arms and handed it to General Li Zhen.

When Li Zhen saw the jade pendant in his hand, tears began to flow again. His expression seemed to be filled with nostalgia as he remembered a meeting long ago.

Then he took out a similar jade pendant from his arms and around his neck, and put them together to form a complete dragon pattern.

After looking at it for a long time, he wiped his eyes, took a deep breath, looked at Qin Hao with burning eyes, and asked, "Did the emperor say anything when he gave you this jade pendant?"

Qin Hao nodded, imitating the emperor's voice, and said in a deep voice: "Go to General Li's mansion and find General Li Zhen. He will understand what I mean and will lend you a helping hand in your most critical moment."

"General Li, what is the origin of this jade pendant?"

Li Zhen nodded slightly and said slowly: "This jade pendant was once worn by Emperor Taizu. Before Emperor Taizu started the rebellion, I and I were sworn brothers. We have a very good relationship. It can be said that we are not blood brothers, but we are better than blood brothers."

"Later, your grandfather led an army to attack Liang in order to overthrow the tyranny of Daliang. I followed him in his battles and made great achievements. I helped him achieve his hegemony and establish the Great Xia Dynasty."

"After Emperor Taizu ascended the throne, he did not forget us, his former followers, and gave all the rewards we deserved. He even split this beloved jade pendant in two, with each of us holding half, and vowed to never forget each other as we shared wealth and glory."

"Logically, we should be content and enjoy endless wealth and glory, but some of our old brothers are giving up their good lives and insist on fighting for greater power and participating in the struggle for imperial power."

"So, some of them died, and some of them died of depression. Now there are only a few left alive."

Qin Hao sighed after hearing this and asked curiously, "General Li, what happened back then? Is my father's throne legitimate?"

Li Zhen looked at Qin Hao thoughtfully. He didn't expect Qin Hao to ask this question, but in order to satisfy his curiosity, he still told the truth.

"First of all, Emperor Taizong legitimately inherited the throne. Don't worry about that. Otherwise, if Emperor Taizu had said just one word, your father would not have been able to sit on the throne."

"Your Highness, let me ask you, is it better to appoint the eldest son to the throne, or the most capable one?"

Li Zhen raised this question that has troubled emperors of all dynasties as if to test Qin Hao.

Qin Hao answered without hesitation: "Whether to choose the eldest son or the most capable one to succeed the throne has always been a difficult decision for ancient emperors."

"However, in my opinion, we need to make a decision based on the specific circumstances. In different periods and backgrounds, people have different views on whether to appoint the eldest son or the most capable one as the heir."

"For example, in times of war, in order to safeguard the interests of the court and the stability of the country, whoever can keep the enemy out and whoever is virtuous will be chosen as the successor. After all, in times of life and death crisis, whoever can lead the country out of trouble will be the most suitable king."

"In a peaceful era, the country needs to recuperate and the people need to live and work in peace. When war is not so important, I tend to appoint my eldest son as the heir. This will reduce internal strife and benefit the long-term rule of the country."

"It's like marching to war and being surrounded by enemies. Whoever can lead the soldiers out of the siege will be promoted to the leader. In peacetime, when there is no crisis of war, seniority becomes particularly important."

"If we still want to appoint virtuous people at this time, although it may be beneficial for a while, it will be extremely detrimental to the long-term rule of a dynasty and may even accelerate the decline of the dynasty."

Qin Hao finished speaking in one breath, then picked up the tea on the table and drank it all.

Li Zhen was shocked after hearing this and looked at Qin Hao in disbelief. He did not expect Qin Hao to have such insightful views, nor did he expect that Qin Hao would not stand in his position and identity as the eldest son of the emperor and put personal interests above public interests, but would objectively analyze the pros and cons.

"Hahaha, well said!"

Li Zhen laughed loudly, clapped his hands and praised: "Your Highness, listening to your words is worth ten years of reading!"

Li Zhen asked again tentatively: "The northern border is unstable, does Your Highness have a good strategy to break it?"

Qin Hao frowned and said slowly: "To resist foreign aggression, we must first stabilize the internal situation! It is not appropriate to start a war at this time. Be patient and the situation will be peaceful. Be patient if you can."

Seeing that Qin Hao avoided the question, Li Zhen still did not give up and continued to ask: "If at this time, foreign races invaded the border of Daxia, occupied our cities, and killed our people, how do you think we should respond?"

“One word: beat them. Even if I mobilize the whole country, I will beat them into submission, scare them, and cripple them!”

Qin Hao stood up and said passionately: "The emperor guards the country's gates, and the king dies for the country."

"Whoever dares to challenge the majesty of our Great Xia will be punished no matter how far away he is."

Li Zhen heard the answer he wanted and clapped his hands in praise, "Your Highness, you are so courageous! I admire you very much."

Qin Hao waved his hand quickly and continued to ask: "General Li, you have asked me so many questions, but you still haven't told me what happened back then?"

"Actually, there is no secret that cannot be told."

Li Zhen was in a good mood and said calmly: "Over the years, I have let it go, but I just feel a little sad occasionally."

"Back then, when Emperor Taizu conquered Daliang, in addition to us old brothers, there were also several brothers and sons of Emperor Taizu. They also fought in the south and the north and made great military achievements."

"These royal relatives, princes and nobles are extremely powerful. When Emperor Taizu was in power, they did not dare to have any dissenting thoughts and were relatively content to keep to their duties."

"But at that time, Emperor Taizu had not made up his mind to appoint an heir. Now I understand his difficulties. It's not that he doesn't want to, nor that he doesn't dare, but it's not appropriate to appoint anyone as the crown prince."

"For the sake of Daxia's country and people, he kept delaying, which in turn gave each of his brothers and princes some hope."

"But everyone grows old one day, and the emperor is no exception. Before he died, he passed the throne to his eldest son, your father, the current Emperor Taizong."

"This is a heavy blow to these princes and other princes. They never thought that Emperor Taizu would pass the throne to your father who had no military achievements. Even I didn't understand it at the time. It was not until I heard what you said just now that I understood the deep meaning of Emperor Taizu."

Qin Hao nodded slightly and said nothing.