My life is like walking on thin ice

Chapter 22 Han retainers? Legalist?
On the imperial couch, Emperor Qi rubbed the bottom of his lips with his fingertips, and in his mind was a rough map of the territory of the Han Dynasty.

The basic layout of the Han family: Guanzhong, and the outer part of the Guan, which was almost completely occupied by the princes and vassals, were bounded by Xiaoguan in the north, Hangu Pass in the east, and Wuguan in the south.

To the north of Xiaoguan is the northern part of Guan where Longyou, Beidi, Shang and Dai counties are located;

To the east of Hangu Pass is the Guandong where the kings of Liang, Wu, Chu, Yan, Dai, Zhao, as well as the Huainan and Qi dynasties were located.

South of Wuguan is Guannan, which includes Hanzhong, Shu, and Changsha.

At this moment, Emperor Qi was rehearsing the scene that Shen Tujia had mentioned in his mind.

"When Liu Bi starts an uprising, Wu Chu will definitely join forces..."

"Go north to gather the entire system, and then move west to coerce the Huainan system;"

"If this is the case, except for Yan, Dai, Zhao, and Liang, the border states in Guandong will have completely rebelled..."

·
"If Liu Bi contacts the Huns, the northern three kingdoms of Yan, Dai, and Zhao will be restrained by the Huns even if they are not in chaos;"

"If the Huns are determined and willing to spend money, they will most likely put pressure directly on Xiaoguan from the north and Longyou direction."

"And if Mitsukoshi's troops and horses can cross the Changsha Kingdom, they can march from the south to Wuguan."

"In this way, Xiaoguan, Wuguan, and Hangu are all facing enemies. Guanzhong is surrounded by enemies on three sides, and the Han family is troubled internally and externally."

"The ancestral temple and the country are suddenly misty..."

Every time he thought about it, Emperor Qi's face would darken;
In the end, half of the "Han Territory Map" in his mind was dyed black, which represented the traitors, and Emperor Qi's face was as gloomy as water...

"I and Chao Neishi have also considered the possible consequences of the "Cutting the Feasibility Policy" before."

"It's just that in Chao Neishi's opinion, the final situation will not be so corrupt."

"Now, the Prime Minister has put forward completely opposite opinions."

"I, I don't know how to make a decision..."

Seeing that Emperor Qi finally said these words, Shen Tujia felt relieved and even let out a long breath.

He moved his body a little and felt that the soreness in his knees and back was relieved. He smiled and shook his head and said, "Chao Cuo, I don't dare."

"——Chao Cuo did not dare to describe the worst situation to His Majesty."

"Because just as His Majesty said: If Wu and Chu join forces and both the Qi and Huainan clans rebel, plus the Xiongnu in the north and the Mitsukoshi in the south, your majesty's first reaction must be, 'If this is the case, then the vassal can be reduced.' …”

·
"In order to prevent His Majesty from retreating, Chao Cuo could only tell His Majesty without any intention: It won't be like this~ It won't be this serious~"

"But His Majesty has just said: As the emperor, what you have to consider is not whether someone wants to rebel or dares to rebel, but only whether the person has the power to cause chaos."

"——There is also a saying in the art of war: Before calculating victory, calculate defeat first."

"If you don't prepare for the worst, and the situation really turns ugly, Your Majesty, what will you do?"

After saying that, Shen Tujia shook his head and smiled again, and then let out a sigh with a hint of regret.

Taking advantage of this gap, Emperor Qi also couldn't help but change his attitude towards Shentujia, and motioned to the palace servants beside him to give Shentujia a seat.

Then Shen Tujia stood up tremblingly, walked to the side of the palace with the help of the palace servants, sat down on the left side of Liu Rong, and let out another long sigh.

"When Taizu was Emperor Gao, although I was just an unknown pawn, I still had a share in the establishment of the Han Dynasty."

"——I am not saying this to show off my military exploits or show off my status as the founding father of the country;

But I want to show your majesty that this Han family was cut out with the help of the old ministers and even with the help of Emperor Gao, the Han family. "

"The veteran's love for the Han family is always deeper than that of Chao Cuo, and his regard for the ancestral temple and the country is always stronger than that of Chao Cuo?"·
"Chao Cuo is indeed a man of true talent and learning. In terms of knowledge alone, he can be called a national scholar."

"But I will also never forget that Chao Cuo, who was just a civil servant, spent nine months learning elegant language..."

"Almost as soon as Chao Cuo learned it, Fu Sheng in Jinan presented "Shang Shu". Looking at the entire court and inside, Chao Cuo was the only one who could understand the Zhou Yayu spoken by Fu Sheng;
Therefore, the late emperor had no choice but to send Chao Cuo to receive the award, and when he returned, he was appointed as a doctor of "Shangshu". "

"——Obviously he is from the Legalist family, but he is so unscrupulous and does not hesitate to use Confucianism to decorate his legal bones, so that he can enter the palace of the Crown Prince and come to His Majesty's side."

"Your Majesty, what do you think Chao Cuo values?"

"Han family?"

"Or Your Majesty?"

Hearing Shen Tujia's words, Emperor Qi's face moved slightly, but he still said cryptically: "Chao Cuo, the internal historian, was once my disciple..."

Even Liu Rong felt a little funny after hearing what Emperor Qi said, let alone Shen Tujia, the only remaining founding father and an old prime minister who had experienced six dynasties.

He just smiled and shook his head rather self-deprecatingly.

After a while, Shen Tujia took another deep breath and changed the topic without any warning.

"Since the fall of Qin and the rise of Han, the disciples and grandsons of Shen Buhai and Shang Yang have all been accused of aiding the oppression of Zhou and the remnants of Qin."

"Since the founding of the Han Dynasty by Emperor Taizu Gao, Chao Cuo was the first important Legalist official to enter the court and occupy a high position."

"Whether Chao Cuo is willing or not, at present, Legalist scholars all over the world regard Chao Cuo as the hope for the revival of Legalism."

"In the eyes of the veteran, Chao Cuo is not so much a Han retainer as Chao Cuo is a Legalist."

"——Chao Cuo is using my Han family's ancestral temple and land as a bet to gain a bright future for Legalism."

"If things are done, Legalism can be revived from now on. Chao Cuo can become another 'sage' of Legalism after Shen Buhai and Shang Yang;"

"If it fails, it will only be the death of Chao Cuo. The Legalists can still replace Zhang Cuo and Li Cuo, find a new way in front of the new king Liu Bi, and try to revive..."

At the end of the sentence, the smile on Shen Tujia's face was replaced by a sigh of relief.

"Your Majesty..."

"Chao Cuo, first of all, is a scholar of the Legalist family, secondly, a minister of my Han family, and finally, he is Your Majesty's teacher..."

"What Chao Cuo values ​​​​is, first of all, the important task of reviving Legalism, secondly, the ancestral temple and the country of our Han family, and finally, His Majesty's kindness in knowing and meeting him..."

·
"The Qin Dynasty fell and the Han Dynasty prospered. The Legalists abandoned the Ying family and favored the Liu family;"

"If Liu Bi succeeds now, the Han family will not even overthrow him, but will just change the Liu clan and sit on the royal couch that His Majesty is sitting on right now."

"The Legalists took advantage of a mere Chao Cuo to seek the prosperity of the school just to risk Chao Cuo's death and the Legalists going dormant again."

"But Your Majesty, the Han family is risking the subversion of the country and the discoloration of the country..."

By this time, Emperor Qi had completely fallen silent. Apparently, he was deeply touched by Shen Tujia's words and fell into a period of selfless contemplation.

At the side of the palace, Shen Tujia finally stood up and bowed tremblingly to the emperor.

"My lord, I can support your majesty in implementing the policy of reducing vassals."

"But I hope that your majesty can prepare for the worst before implementing the policy of reducing vassalage."

"Based on the worst-case scenario, and trying to make sufficient preparations to deal with it, we can ensure that His Majesty and the old ministers will not face Emperor Taizong Xiaowen with shame in the future..."

(End of this chapter)