The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 924 Epilogue
Prince Liu Xuan has just turned fifteen this year. For the past fifteen years, he has grown up in Tianxin City and has never left the capital.

Liu Xuan's understanding of this world is not entirely accurate.

Emperor Liu Ye insisted that reading books written in one's own country was not beneficial to one's mind and body, and would only make people more ignorant.

Therefore, his contact with the outside world, apart from his father and several imperial tutors, was through reading Pravda and other newspapers and magazines, all of which were special editions.

Liu Ye often admonished his prince:

"With the decline of imperial power, the only way to carry out reforms now is to rely on the parliament and external regional military governors. The autocratic rule of the Taizu era is getting further and further away from reality."

The emperor added, "You are neither Li Shimin nor Zhu Youjian. You cannot do what the founding emperors could do, nor can you do what the last emperors of a dynasty could do. The position of ruler is of paramount importance. Although imperial power is no longer in effect, we cannot allow ourselves to be exploited by ambitious individuals..."

Liu Ye is very talkative and can go on and on.

Liu Xuan grew increasingly impatient, because his father's nagging was the most direct manifestation of the decline of imperial power.

One hundred years ago, Zhu Youjian was beheaded by Emperor Taizu Liu Zhaosun. The Great Qi Dynasty began from there.

As for Li Shimin, the Tang emperor who launched the Xuanwu Gate Incident, he should not be seen as a role model for Liu Xuan.

~~~~~~
Like all teenagers his age, Liu Xuan was full of fantasies about the future during his childhood. He liked to read "The World a Hundred Years Later" (a magazine published in the central region), and bizarre ideas would often pop into his mind, such as when the Great Qi would land on the moon, colonize space, whether the ideal world of Great Harmony existed, and whether mankind could achieve immortality.

After the age of twelve, as a prince of the empire and the most beloved son of Emperor Liu Ye, Liu Xuan began to pay attention to the development of the empire.

The empire is declining, its former glory has vanished, the economy is in ruins, and unemployment is soaring.

However, the real disaster was yet to come.

The elite class is filled with unease.

The number of emigrants from the empire to Europe was rising every year, and the manor houses and villas around London were filled with people from the State of Qi with yellow skin and black hair.

Luxury shops in Europe are packed with people from Qi, who spend money like water, to the point that ordinary citizens believe Qi is the richest country in the world.

However, the other side of the empire was extreme poverty and desolation.

More than a third of the empire's food supply relied on European exports. Most of its minerals had to be imported from Australia and North America, and as for airships and the core technology of the telegraph machine, almost all of them were "borrowed" from British technology patents.

Fortunately, the honeymoon period with the British is not over yet, and as for the future, no one knows when the next round of sanctions from Europeans will arrive.

If fertilizers and seeds are no longer available, will this land suffer a repeat of the great famine of sixty years ago...?
The elite class is filled with anxiety about the future of the empire because they have already seen it.

However, most people were oblivious to this, and the future of the empire was not a concern for them; as long as the empire won, that was all that mattered.

Fortunately, the empire is either winning or on its way to winning.

The people believed the narratives in the newspapers, claiming that Qi was the greatest state, with an empire that had a history spanning eight thousand years without interruption. Meanwhile, the vast majority of Europeans lived in abject misery.

For a period of time, Pravda ran a front-page column for several consecutive days, comparing the diets of people from Qi (a state in ancient China) and the French.

When the image of a farmer's stew from Tieling, Liaodong, and French cuisine appeared simultaneously in the Pravda newspaper, even the most politically indifferent readers would draw the following conclusion:
Europeans generally suffer from hunger, struggling to even achieve basic sustenance, and the general population lives in dire straits.

And we, the people of Daqi, are the happiest people in the world.

Even as a ghost, I'll still be romantic.

They call this comparison "account reconciliation".

Regarding current foreign trade, Pravda believes that it is now the British who are begging them, not the other way around.

This fervent atmosphere permeated the lower classes, and almost everyone was affected by the emotions.

Liu Xuan was also once influenced by such sentiments, during his innocent years before he turned ten. The prince believed that his Great Qi was invincible. He even suggested to his father on several occasions that they send troops to Australia through Parliament to acquire the mineral resources needed by the empire.

Although Liu Xuan was quite absurd at that time, under the earnest teachings of the imperial tutor, he finally saw the true nature of the empire.

This is a hybrid of internal brutality and external weakness. All its policies are given idealized names.

Liu Xuan also began to feel uneasy.

In a state of anxiety and trepidation, the prince celebrated his 15th birthday in September 1725.

On this day (September 11, 1725), the prince's residence was bustling with activity, as most of the officials residing in the capital came to congratulate the future ruler of the empire.

Although this rule was merely ceremonial, meaning the Great Qi emperor held no real power, maintaining good relations with the future emperor was still somewhat beneficial to his career, which was undoubtedly a farsighted move.

Throughout the day, Liu Xuan strictly followed the etiquette expected of a prince to receive these officials. As dusk approached, the guests gradually departed. Once the prince had caught his breath, he remembered that his mentor had not yet arrived, so he inquired about it with his steward, Old Zheng.

"Butler Zheng, has Master Qian arrived today?"

I didn't see it.

"Perhaps Master Qian is busy with official business, let's not close the door yet."

Liu Xuan comforted himself by saying that the Master Qian he mentioned was none other than the Imperial Tutor, Qian Daxin.

Master Qian is in a precarious situation lately.

Since the agreement was reached with the British, the warmongers in the country had a brief respite, and the voices against Britain rose again, becoming the new trend. Throughout Tianxin City, many people slandered and attacked Master Qian, and all sorts of rumors spread like wildfire, claiming that Master Qian advocated "complete Europeanization" and learning from Europe in all aspects, which was undoubtedly an act of treason that "abandoned the country and its people."

It's said that Qian Daxin, while studying in London, accepted 5,000 pounds and five stunningly beautiful women, but after returning to Daqi, his heart remained abroad. Upon returning, he advocated for a complete alignment with Britain…
There are countless rumors like these.

Liu Xuan, of course, did not believe that his mentor would do such a beastly thing.

The renowned historian and scholar Qian Daxin was his mentor. Twenty years ago, Master Qian studied in London and was well-versed in the British system. After returning to China, he advocated strengthening the constitutional monarchy, limiting imperial power, learning from Britain, and introducing foreign investment. He was a staunch Westernization advocate among the imperial cultural elite.

Accusing someone of various crimes and then launching a concentrated attack to refute them, destroying the opponent from the perspective of their private morality, was a tactic that Qi officials were most adept at and had never failed to use.

Now they are using the same tricks against Liu Xuan's mentor, making this master the focus of attention, which Liu Xuan cannot tolerate.

Upon hearing that Qian Daxin was heading to the prince's residence, Liu Xuan came out to greet him. Before the two could exchange more than a few pleasantries, Qian Daxin lowered his voice and said:
“My child (Liu Xuan’s nickname), I am about to travel east, and I have come here today to say goodbye.”

Liu Xuan asked in surprise, "Heading east? Is Master Qian leaving the capital?"

Qian Daxin nodded silently.

"Was it the Emperor who ordered you to leave, or the Council?"

Qian Daxin shook his head: "No, it's not that. I wanted to leave on my own."

"Is there really no place for Master Qian in such a vast country as Qi?"

Qian Daxin looked gently at his disciple, as if comforting Liu Xuandao:
"As long as the Great Qi and Britain continue to make peace, the road ahead is destined to be bumpy."

Liu Xuan, disregarding his master's detailed analysis, blurted out, "How can we save the Great Qi?"

Qian Daxin did not answer the prince's question directly, but turned to face the endless stream of people at the prince's residence.

"Whether it is reform or regression depends entirely on the people's hearts, and the people's hearts are very difficult to change. Those in high positions, no matter what their original intentions are, will eventually turn everything into harming, weakening, and fooling the people."

Liu Xuan said dismissively, "Master, didn't you say before that justice resides in the hearts of the people? As long as everyone works for me and I work for everyone, and upholds justice, the world will not be in chaos."

Qian Daxin seemed to have heard a very funny joke, but he held back his laughter and said after a while:

"Unfortunately, things don't always go as planned, and justice isn't something everyone possesses. Rather than relying on morality, it's better to use the law to restrain people's hearts. But the law, as it turns out, is very difficult to truly implement on this land. This is a swamp, and everything will sink into it, including hope... Your Highness, do you understand what I mean?"

"I know."

Liu Xuan's eyes were slightly red.

"Master Qian, when will you be back?"

Master Qian did not speak.

Liu Xuan knew that once Master Qian left, he would probably never return.

Even if he returned, he would most likely be regarded as a traitor who had taken Old George's pounds and beaten to death in the street by the fanatical crowd.

To put it nicely, it was a trip to the Ezo Kingdom for academic exchange; in reality, it was exiling Master Qian to a barren land, leaving this stubborn person to fend for himself in a foreign country.

It should be noted that at this time, the people of Ezo were hostile towards the Great Qi. Although Master Qian was not a proponent of war, the Ezo people would not treat a criminal from an enemy country kindly because of this.

Liu Xuan couldn't help but ask:
"Master Qian, which comes first: law-abiding individuals, or the environment that fosters law-abiding behavior?"

There is no solution to this problem. Master Qian paused for a moment before speaking:

"I believe that the land came first, and then people came."

Master Qian meant that only by taking unprecedentedly ruthless measures could this land be revitalized.

~~~~~~~~~
The prince secretly resolved that he needed to take more radical measures to protect the empire.

For example, was the empire too urbanized?

For example, we need a completely new and simple civilization, rather than simply completing urbanization.

For example, could foreign trade be temporarily suspended?

Liu Xuan made up his mind.

If I come to power in the future, I will definitely destroy Tianxin City completely and let the people return to the countryside.

This is the prince's wish, and this ideal may become a reality someday in the future; who knows?

He faces obstacles and difficulties in doing anything he wants.

To truly realize his ideal of reducing urban density, he knew he had to regain power.

In other words, the goal is to make imperial power great again.

Recently, the newspapers in Tianxin City have stopped reporting negative news about Britain, and reports like those about homeless people freezing and starving to death on the streets of London have disappeared.

George V, the successor to George the Elder, deeply resented the ominous bird in the east and lodged a strong protest with the Great Qi.

The Kingdom of Britain declared that if any further slanderous or defamatory remarks were made against the Kingdom of Britain within the Kingdom of Qi, even if they were merely official statements, Britain would make Qi pay a heavy price.