Chapter 13: The Spark of Rule of Law, Deconstructing Imperial Power, Guiding Overseas

Outside the Sky Screen.

The Ministry of Works of the Great Tang.

Dozens of craftsmen and officials who had not slept all night were hunched over blueprints, deducing the internal structure of the oxygen generator. This book is first published on Zhaoshu Shenqi, read novels every day, ttk. tw is super convenient, providing you with an error-free chapter and non-disordered chapter reading experience.

Hearing the shop clerk's offhand complaint, a Moist School Grand Master with white beard and hair suddenly straightened his back, and the charcoal pencil in his hand fell to the ground.

"Electric meter... power consumption... electricity bill..."

"They mentioned electricity!"

The old craftsman's voice was shrill, filled with the madness of discovering the truth of heaven and earth, "So it was not wind, not water or fire."

"Those lights, that air conditioning, all driven by electricity!"

The officials around him drew in a sharp breath.

The Minister of Works felt his scalp go numb, "The power of thunder from the Nine Heavens... people of later generations actually managed to capture that thunder which splits mountains and rocks, lock it inside walls, and use it to generate light and cool things?"

Taming lightning.

This concept was still too far beyond the imagination of ancient craftsmen.

Their understanding of modern technology leaped directly from mechanical arts borrowing the power of water and fire to the divine realm of controlling the primordial energy of heaven and earth.

Walking out of the convenience store.

The stifling night wind surrounded them again.

Lin Xuan put down the plastic bag and tore open the wrapper of the ice cream.

The rich milky scent mixed with the cool air and spread out.

He handed the milk ice cream covered in frost to the little girl.

"Eat it, it's very sweet."

Xiao Sizi took the stick with both hands and eagerly took a small bite.

Enjoying the taste of the ice melting in her mouth.

Holding the ice cream, she walked obediently beside Lin Xuan.

"Lin Xuan."

"Speak."

Lin Xuan slowed his pace to match hers.

"That red and green changing Glazed Ware lamp you just mentioned, you said it was rules."

"People follow the rules, and the iron beasts stop."

The little girl frowned, her small face showing a seriousness beyond her years, "I have one thing I do not understand."

"What thing?"

"My eldest brother and fourth brother."

"Since childhood they have studied the sages' books and deeply understand the Rites of Zhou."

"Are the rites and laws not the strictest rules?"

"My fourth brother once caught summer insects for me, and my eldest brother often carried me to Taiyechi to watch the koi."

"They treat me very well in daily life, so why must they fight until their heads are broken and bleeding?"

Unknowingly, they had walked back to the residential compound.

Lin Xuan pressed the password on the unit door.

The two walked into the first-floor elevator lobby.

"Because the rules of your Great Tang cannot control the temptation on the dragon throne."

"The sages' books make people understand manners; that is moral constraint."

"But morality in the face of absolute power is a piece of waste paper that can be pierced with a single poke."

"Modern society runs smoothly because of the spirit of the rule of law."

"The core of the rule of law is that rules stand above all people, and it leaves a way out for everyone."

"Everyone competes within the framework of rules, relying on their brains and their strength."

"The winners eat meat, and the losers do not starve to death."

The little girl seemed to understand and not understand: "In the struggle for the throne, is there no way out?"

"You know history; tell me, how many deposed crown princes have had a good end?" Lin Xuan countered.

The little girl was speechless.

The elevator stopped steadily, and the two walked out of the cabin.

Lin Xuan pressed his thumb on the fingerprint lock and pushed the door open to enter the house.

"There is only one throne. All the wealth, military power, and power of life and death in the world are tied to that one chair."

"Those who lose lose their heads and implicate their wives, children, and elders."

Lin Xuan changed into slippers, walked to the water dispenser to get water, "With nowhere to retreat, they can only fight desperately."

"This is called a zero-sum game. You die, I live; the winner takes all."

"In the final analysis, your Li family blocked all the paths for all the princes right here in Chang'an."

The little girl followed in, holding the ice cream stick with both hands, standing by the coffee table.

"As a prince, one is noble from birth."

"Besides the position of crown prince, what other path is there?" she countered.

Lin Xuan smiled.

He pointed his finger toward the convenience store outside the window that was lit up twenty-four hours a day.

"For example, look at that shop."

The little girl nodded obediently.

"If the entire city of Chang'an, within a hundred li, had only this one shop selling food."

"If everyone were starving and desperate, would they kill and burn to seize ownership of this shop?"

The little girl followed the logic, nodding solemnly.

"But here, such convenience stores are on every street."

"There is a huge supermarket just two streets away."

"If this shop is full and we can't compete, I'll just open another one at the next intersection."

"Everyone has a place to make money and a meal to eat; why must we hang ourselves on a single tree?"

The little girl was stunned.

"This is called educational streaming, also known as making the cake bigger."

"The foundation of your Great Tang is so thick."

"People like Li Chengqian and Li Tai, if placed in an ordinary family, would absolutely be top-tier elites."

"Capable of governing the state in civil affairs and leading troops in military ones."

"Keeping them confined to their princely mansions and the Eastern Palace, scheming against each other, is a sheer waste of resources."

The little girl reacted instantly, recalling the giant World Map she had seen an hour ago.

"You mean... feudalizing overseas?"

The little girl gasped in shock.

"Yes." Lin Xuan snapped his fingers. "Earth is so vast; the Americas, Australia, vast tracts of fertile, ownerless land."

"Give them soldiers and horses, give them ships."

"Whoever wants to be Emperor, go out to sea and fight for it themselves."

The little girl frowned tightly, raising a doubt: "If they grow strong over there, amass troops and act independently, then turn their ships around to attack the Great Tang, what then?"

"You're overthinking it." Lin Xuan waved his hand. "An ocean spanning half the Earth."

"By the time they take root over there, build cities, and establish their own national interests, who in their right mind would cross the sea to attack Chang'an?"

"If they really attack, the Great Tang homeland is also developing; we would not fear them."

"Turning the blade of internal strife outward is the best way to deconstruct imperial power."

Great Tang, Taiji Palace.

"Convenience stores on every street..."

Li Shimin chewed on these words repeatedly.

The last trace of gloom and hesitation in his eyes was thoroughly swept away by this statement.

Previously, upon seeing the World Map, he had indeed harbored thoughts of outward expansion.

But enfeoffing feudal princes has always been a great taboo for dynasties.

The Rebellion of the Seven States in the Han Dynasty, the Rebellion of the Eight Princes in the Jin Dynasty; bloody lessons lay before his eyes.

But Lin Xuan's words pierced through the blind spot.

Not enfeoffed beside the bed.

But enfeoffed on a wild continent ten thousand eight thousand li away, across vast oceans!

There, they would not be feudal princes threatening the central authority.

They would be the vanguard of the Great Tang's territorial expansion, the sparks spreading Great Tang civilization.

They would be fighting against harsh nature and foreign tribes, having no time to look elsewhere.

"Someone come!"

"Prepare the carriage for Ganludian! Order the Qian Niu Guard to immediately escort Crown Prince Chengqian and Prince of Wei Tai to the hall; let no one obstruct them!"

The imperial guard general bowed and accepted the order, then ran quickly down the steps.

Zhangsun Wuji and Fang Xuanling exchanged a glance.

Both saw shock as wild as towering waves in each other's eyes.

They understood that the rules of imperial succession that had sustained the Great Tang for centuries were about to be shattered tonight.

Half an hour later.

Inside Ganludian, the lights were bright.

Li Chengqian and Li Tai were escorted by the imperial guards and shoved into the hall.

The two had been under house arrest in their princely mansions for several hours.

The Sky Screen descended, the Immortal pointed the way, revealing their future acts of rebellion.

In their hearts, the fatal calamity had arrived.

Li Chengqian's face was deathly pale, dragging his slightly lame right leg.

Li Tai's fat body trembled, sweat soaking through his brocade python robe.

Both simultaneously dropped to their knees.

"Your sons are guilty of death! We beg Father Emperor for mercy!"

Li Tai wept bitterly, his forehead knocking against the ground with a thud-thud sound.

Li Chengqian bit his lip, keeping his head bowed low, saying not a word.

Waiting for the executioner's blade hanging over their necks to fall.