Do you know: I am the crown prince

Chapter 412 True and False Jade Seal
When the Qiang invaded, Tubo could only deploy troops for defense and had no intention of fighting back.

Just when the Qiang tribe was about to break into the city after several days of attack, they were attacked again that night.

The Qiang had been attacking the city for several days in a row and their men and horses were exhausted. In addition, the Tubo had suffered heavy losses and looked like they were about to be unable to resist, so they were completely unprepared.

The one who led the troops to surrender was Gu Tingye. The withdrawal was a pretext he discussed with Tubo to lure the Qiang people into the trap.

Gu Tingye only brought two thousand soldiers and horses, hiding during the day and moving at night, which was how he was able to avoid detection by the Qiang tribe.

When the Qiang camp was in chaos, the defenders in the city rushed out and defeated the Qiang people, forcing them to flee.

If it weren't for the darkness and the fact that the Qiang people were not aware of anything unusual, they wouldn't have stockpiled too many troops. Otherwise, the Qiang people would have been severely damaged and completely destroyed.

In fact, this was also Gu Tingye’s plan. He wanted to hurt the Qiang people so that they would ask for reinforcements.

However, the Qiang people could not be completely wiped out, otherwise the Zuosilo tribe would have no reason to send troops into Hehuang.

After defeating the Qiang tribe, Gu Tingye left with his troops.

This time Tubo did not try to keep them. After all, the Qiang people were no longer a concern at this time and they were confident that they could deal with it.

…………

"Your Majesty, the commander of Yindu requests to see you!" Sanshui reported.

"Pass it quickly!" Zhao Xing said excitedly when he heard it.

A few days ago, Yin Hanzhang sent back a message saying that he had found the treasures of the Southern Tang Dynasty, among which there was indeed a seal. As to whether it was a jade seal, he didn't know.

Yin Hanzhang handed the treasures to his men to be taken back to Bian Jing, while he himself took the jade seal and Zuo Qi back to Beijing first.

Zhao Xing did not tell anyone about this news and kept waiting for Yin Hanzhang to return.

"Yes!" Sanshui responded and walked out.

Zhao Xing sent all the palace maids and eunuchs out of the palace.

Soon, Yin Hanzhang and Zuo Qi walked in.

"I pay my respects to Your Majesty!"

From the moment Yin Hanzhang entered the hall, Zhao Xu's eyes were on the wooden box in his hand.

"Quick, show it to me." Zhao Xing said.

Yin Hanzhang hurriedly presented the wooden box. Zhao Xing opened it and saw a black seal with five dragons meticulously carved with their heads and tails intersecting. There was also a yellow piece in one corner.

Zhao Xing thought of an anecdote, which said that when Wang Mang usurped the Han Dynasty, the jade seal was thrown to the ground by the queen mother in anger, and a corner was broken. Wang Mang ordered the craftsmen to repair it with gold.

From this point of view, there is a high possibility that this jade seal is authentic.

However, it is said that the imperial seal was carved from the Heshi Bi. Zhao Xing did not know what kind of jade the Heshi Bi was, but there were records in the literature that it was white.

In this case, the jade seal was most likely fake, so Zhao Xing felt a little disappointed.

It is said that when truth becomes false, falsehood becomes true.

However, for the Song Dynasty today, the imperial seal has more symbolic significance than practical significance.

The Liao Kingdom once announced that they had obtained the imperial seal. If Zhao Xing took the fake one and publicized it as the real one, it would backfire.

Zhao Xing took a deep breath, picked up the jade seal, turned it over, and saw eight insect-and-bird seal characters engraved on the bottom: "Received the Mandate from Heaven, May You Live Long and Prosperous."

On the shoulder of the jade seal, there is a line of small characters engraved in Li script: "The Great Wei received the imperial seal from the Han Dynasty."

According to legend, after Cao Pi forced Emperor Xian of Han to abdicate, he ordered people to engrave "The Great Wei Seal Passed Down from the Han Dynasty" on the jade seal to prove that he did not usurp the throne of Han.

These are all recorded in historical books. It can be said that except for the color, the jade seal in front of us meets all the requirements.

But since the characteristics have been recorded in history, anyone who wants to imitate it will naturally add these.

Zhao Xing looked at Yin Hanzhang who was standing in the hall bowing and said, "My dear minister, you have worked hard. Go down and have a rest first. I will reward you later."

"Yes!" Yin Hanzhang replied. "You can go down too."

Zhao Xing looked at Zuo Qi and said, "Don't worry, I will never break my promise to you."

"Minister Yin, arrange a house for Zuo Qi in Bian Jing and release his brother and Ru Yu. Zuo Qi will first serve in the Imperial City Department."

"Yes!" Yin Hanzhang replied.

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Zuo Qi said excitedly.

"As long as you do your best to eliminate the wizard cult for me, it will be the best reward."

After Zhao Xing finished speaking, he sent the two away and asked Sanshui to call the ministers and the six ministers to come.

There are very few descriptions of the imperial seal in history. After all, this thing is a symbol of imperial power.

The fragmentary words recorded in the literature may not be true, and Zhao Xing did not give up just because the color was wrong.

After a while, Han Zhang and others who were summoned entered the hall.

"Your Majesty, we pay our respects to you!" everyone bowed.

"No gift!"

Zhao Xing waved his hand, recounted what had happened, and said, "I summoned you all here because I want you to see whether this jade seal is real or fake!"

Everyone was stunned when they heard Zhao Xing's story. The imperial seal had disappeared for many years and various legends were circulating among the people.

When seeing Zhao Xing holding up a black jade seal, Zeng Gongliang said: "Although the history books do not describe the color of the jade seal, I have read that the imperial seal was made of the Heshi Bi, and the Heshi Bi is white. Therefore, this jade seal can be judged to be fake based on its color!"

"Your Majesty, the Imperial Seal is ultimately a dead object. As long as Your Majesty governs the world with virtue, you will naturally be loved by the people. It doesn't matter whether you have the Imperial Seal or not."

Zeng Gongliang was worried that Zhao Xing would be interested in the imperial seal, so he spent a lot of money to find it.

This thing has not appeared in so many years, and looking for it will only be a waste of time and money.

"Privy Councilor Zeng is wrong!"

Han Zhang stepped out and said, "Your Majesty, the history books do not record the color of the imperial seal. It is only a rumor that the imperial seal was made of the Heshi Bi. But in my opinion, the imperial seal is definitely not made of the Heshi Bi!"

"Although the Heshi Bi is not small, it is not thick enough to be used to make a jade seal!"

Zhao Xing's eyes lit up when he heard this. Bi refers to a flat, round jade artifact with a hole in the middle, which is mostly used for sacrifice or decoration.

Therefore, the jade in the wall is not too thick and is not enough to make a jade seal.

"What you said is just speculation."

Zeng Gongliang shook his head and said, "Besides, the Imperial Seal has been missing for many years. As long as there is one thing that is inconsistent with the records in the ancient books, it doesn't really matter whether it is true or false."

Zhao Xing's expression darkened when he heard this. Zeng Gongliang was right.

The jade seal disappeared for too long, and there are very few records about it in the books, and there are gaps in the records.

Even if this jade seal is real, many people will think it is fake because it is different from the records in the book.

If the imperial seal wants to work, it must be proven to be authentic. Since it cannot be proven, it is meaningless even if we know it is authentic.

"Your Majesty, may I have a look at the imperial seal?" Han Zhang said.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Xing handed the jade seal to Sanshui.

Sanshui held the jade seal and handed it to Han Zhang. After examining it carefully, Han Zhang said, "Your Majesty, I think this jade seal is very likely to be genuine!"

"What is the basis for your statement, Sir?" Zhao Xing asked.

"The Qin State originated in Guanzhong, and this jade seal is made of Lantian jade, the best quality Lantian jade. It is so big and extremely rare! It is very likely that the First Emperor ordered people to make the jade seal using Lantian jade," said Han Zhang.

(End of this chapter)