Chaos of the Three Kingdoms Summons

Chapter 2804 Tianchen Tongjian, not a single word changed.

In the thirty-first year of the Tianchen era, the Crown Prince had been ruling in place for six years.

For six years, the Great Jin Dynasty has remained peaceful and prosperous.

The 90-year-old emperor no longer has the energy to continue ruling the country and is now essentially in a semi-retired state.

Although the Crown Prince is nominally the Crown Prince, he is actually the Executive Vice Emperor. From the moment he ascended to the position of Crown Prince, the power of the court has been gradually transferred to him.

In the early years, he was willing to interfere, but in the last two years, as the Crown Prince has become more and more adept at handling things, he no longer wants to interfere at all.

At his age, even if he wanted to manage things, he wouldn't have the energy. Now, if those memorials were placed in front of him, he would instinctively doze off; where would he find the energy to hold onto power?

Time and death are fair to everyone. Ultimately, everyone has to accept growing old!
In the suburbs of Luoyang, Li Xiang built a house where he spent his days fishing and walking his birds with Cheng Yaojin.

In the twenty-seventh year of the Tianchen reign, Li Xiang summoned historians to revise the historical records. In later generations, another great work by Emperor Taizu, the "Tianchen Tongjian," was also put on the agenda.

At the same time, this historical book was later regarded as one of the "Two Histories" alongside Sima Qian's Records of the Grand Historian from the Western Han Dynasty, and was referred to by later generations as the Former Records of the Grand Historian and the Later Records of the Grand Historian.

The Records of the Grand Historian is the crown jewel of pre-historical histories, while the Comprehensive Mirror for Aid in Government is the pinnacle of post-historical histories. One pioneered the biographical style of historical writing, and the other created a monumental work that connects the past and present.

Today marks the first draft of the "Tianchen Tongjian" being completed.

Therefore, Zhuge Guang, the Grand Secretary who was in charge of compiling history, came specifically to have the emperor review it.

Zhuge Guang was the son of Zhuge Liang and the younger brother of Zhuge Zhan. Compared to Zhuge Zhan, who held a high-ranking position in one of the Six Ministries, Zhuge Guang was not enthusiastic about power struggles and officialdom, but rather more interested in academic research.

Therefore, the emperor summoned him to lead a group of historians and Confucian scholars to oversee the compilation of history.

After all, he's practically family; Li Xiang even held him when he was born.

With such a large stack of first drafts, Li Xiang was too lazy to read them word by word right now, so he simply asked Zhuge Guang to pick a few important paragraphs to read to him.

He will review it carefully when he has free time.

When Li Xiang heard the article mention that he "had a peculiar ailment since childhood, and would take the women of the enemy as concubines in every battle," the corner of his mouth twitched slightly.

Instead of being angry, he smiled slightly and muttered, "In war, everything belongs to me if I win. Is this trivial matter even worth writing about? Tch..."

Li Xiang waved his hand, indicating that he would skip it.

He never shied away from this hobby in his life; if the historian wanted to write, he would.

Back then, almost everyone in the world knew about his hobby, but did he ever try to hide it?
When he read about the three-year plague, Zhuge Guang hesitated slightly, carefully observing the emperor's face.

Li Xiang's relaxed expression stiffened slightly, and a deep pain flashed in his eyes.

While Jia Xu was looking for a scapegoat, wasn't Li Bi also willingly taking the blame?
When he discussed this matter with Meng Tian and Wei Qing, he was already prepared to sacrifice his life to put an end to the matter and appease public anger should the matter be exposed.

However, he underestimated Wei Qing and Meng Tian's firm opposition to this matter. In order to stop him, the two directly informed the central court and asked the court to stop him.

As a result, many officials in the imperial court knew about these things!
When he does it in secret, how can he hide it?
Even if this matter was originally done in private, and even if it was a sudden plague that had nothing to do with him, at that critical juncture, it could only have been done by him.

Pushing him out to appease public and military anger became the only solution!
Thinking back on the events of that year, Li Xiang finally let out a slow sigh and said in a hoarse voice, "In this matter, Changyuan caused harm to millions of people for the sake of his family and dynasty. However, while everyone in the world may blame Changyuan, I alone feel ashamed towards him. So be it. In the end, all things in this world are recorded by history. Let's record the facts as they are."

Li Xiang didn't deceive himself about this back then, and he won't today either.

This matter cannot be resolved by deceiving oneself.

Even if he forbids the historians from recording it, wouldn't these guys just make a note of it in private?

And what about those civil and military officials? Who knows if some of them might secretly write something down and take it to their graves!
Rather than letting unofficial histories distort the truth and future generations criticize what they find in tombs, it's better to write it down clearly and explicitly.

Let future generations judge the affairs of this world.

Turning to the chapters recording the coup d'état by the deposed crown prince and its aftermath, Zhuge Guang read with even greater care, carefully choosing each word. Li Xiang listened quietly, his face expressionless, his cloudy eyes gazing at the pond outside the window, his fingers unconsciously tapping lightly on the armrest of the soft couch.

Li Xiang did not offer any comments until he finished reading this section; he simply turned the page in silence.

Some pain and helplessness are already etched into our bones, and need no further explanation.

Zhuge Guang secretly breathed a sigh of relief and continued reading.

However, when reading "In the spring of the eighth year of Tianchen, the Emperor, disguised as a commoner, visited Luonan and happened to meet a woman named Liu. She was captivated by her beauty and charm, and the Emperor took her into the palace. That night, he visited her, but the Emperor… uh…"

Zhuge Guang's voice suddenly faltered, and a fine layer of sweat instantly appeared on his forehead; he couldn't continue reading.

"What about Emperor Ran?"

Li Xiang lifted his eyelids, glanced at him, and spoke with a hint of lazy curiosity.

Zhuge Guang forced himself to read the second half of the sentence, almost like squeezing toothpaste.

"However...the Emperor may have overworked himself and injured his back, so he summoned the imperial physician to the palace at night to treat him...this matter...is widely rumored in the palace..."

After reading it aloud, Zhuge Guang immediately lowered his head, wishing he could bury his head in the manuscript.

The entire study was so quiet you could hear a pin drop, with only the occasional bird song coming from outside the window.

The laziness and casualness on Li Xiang's face vanished instantly. He slowly sat up straight, and his seemingly cloudy old eyes suddenly sharpened, a long-lost imperial aura silently spreading out.

He stared at Zhuge Guang, speaking slowly and deliberately, his voice low but carrying an undeniable weight.

"Junshi, what do you think of this passage? Does it need to be revised?"

Zhuge Guang felt his back was almost soaked with cold sweat, but he remembered the emperor's strict decree to ensure accurate records and the historian's responsibility. He gritted his teeth and raised his head.

Although his voice was still trembling slightly, his tone was unusually firm.

"Your Majesty! The duty of historians is to record the facts truthfully! Every word and phrase must be verifiable! I...I believe this matter should not be changed!"

"Shouldn't it be changed?" Li Xiang narrowed his eyes slightly, drawing out his words.

"Yes! Not a single word will be changed!"

Zhuge Guang went all out, stubbornly repeating, as if to say, "Even if you behead me right now, I'll still say that."

The study fell silent once again.

Just when Zhuge Guang thought he might have to go see his deceased father earlier than planned today, he suddenly heard a very faint laugh coming from the direction of the soft couch.

"You, Zhuge Junshi, are truly stubborn! In this respect, Kongming can't compare to you!"

Li Chao laughed a few times, then seemed to aggravate some old injury, and subconsciously rubbed his old lower back.

A mixture of embarrassment, amusement, and reminiscence crossed his face, which eventually turned into a long sigh, tinged with self-mockery.

"Alright, alright, I understand. Record the facts as they are, without changing a single word. Then, let's leave it unchanged!"

"Anyway, I've already lost all face, so one more won't make a difference..."

Forget it, forget it. Compared to this vast empire, these romantic escapades are nothing!

After laughing, he waved his hand, his tone returning to its previous languidness.

"Keep reading. If I do anything embarrassing again, let me know in advance so I can be prepared..."