My father, Li Shimin, requests Your Majesty to become the Retired Emperor.

Li Shimin seized Ashina Simo's military power and imprisoned Ashina Simo, Ashina Zhong, Ashina Misha, and others in the Dali Temple prison.

Li Shimin breathed a sigh of relief, because all along...

He had no good impression of the Turks.

That's why, last time, he issued an edict to expel the Turks from Chang'an.

Ashina She'er was also among those targeted for elimination that time.

Not long ago, Li Chengqian lifted the siege of Luoyang.

then,

Ashina Simo wanted to surrender to the Tang Dynasty, but his condition was that his army should not be reorganized and should be allowed to have independent unit designations.

Actually,

Li Shimin was also very unhappy about this matter.

From his perspective, he felt that Ashina Simo's surrender to the Tang Dynasty was insincere.

and,

Li Shimin planned to mobilize Ashina Simo's army.

Ashina Simo dared to defy the imperial decree.

This matter greatly angered Li Shimin.

Li Shimin thought to himself, "Back then, weren't Xue Rengao, Liu Wuzhou, Wang Shichong, and Dou Jiande all invincible heroes?"

Even if they want to surrender, I may not allow it.

In the end, what happened? Didn't I take care of them all?

In any case, Li Shimin was relieved of Ashina Simo's worries and felt much better.

He recounted the incident to Xu Hui.

After listening, Xu Hui praised, "Your Majesty, your courage is truly admirable!"

"You actually dared to go to Ashina Simo's camp alone! Didn't you think about what would happen if Ashina Simo wanted to capture you?"

Li Shimin laughed heartily: "Back then, I fought alone among the enemy forces more than once."

I was certain that Ashina Simo would not go to such lengths.

"Your Majesty is truly a visionary!"

Qin Qiong's imposing presence is as strong as ever!

Li Shimin nodded: "Yes, Qin Qiong is not only highly skilled in martial arts, but also very brave."

"Didn't I hear he was sick?"

"What's wrong with him? He just doesn't want to go to court, so he's saying that on purpose."

Furthermore, he possessed a rare and admirable spirit: he was loyal to the court and to the Emperor, and would never side with Li Chengqian. Li Shimin was very confident.

Upon hearing this,

Xu Hui's expression turned worried: "Your Majesty, on the surface, you have relieved Ashina Simo of his military power and also dispersed and weakened his army."

but,

There's a hidden concern here too.

"What hidden worries?"

"That is, the issue of integrity."

Back then, the Qin and Wei states were at war, with their armies facing each other.

The general in charge of Qin was Shang Yang, and the general in charge of Wei was Prince Ang.

When Shang Yang was young, he stayed in the State of Wei, and he had a very good personal relationship with Prince Ang.

So Shang Yang wrote a letter to Prince Ang, saying, "We are old friends, and I never expected to meet again on the battlefield today. I am heartbroken. How about this: you come to me, we can drink and make peace, form an alliance, and cease hostilities. Wouldn't that be better?"

Gongzi Ang was straightforward and didn't think too much about it.

After receiving Shang Yang's letter, he gladly came to visit.

However, unexpectedly, Shang Yang had ambushed armored soldiers during the banquet. The soldiers rushed out and captured Prince Ang.

Immediately afterwards, Shang Yang ordered a surprise attack on the Wei army.

Because the Wei army lost its commander, the Qin army suffered a major defeat.

The State of Wei had no choice but to cede territory and sue for peace.

However, this incident led to criticism of Shang Yang.

Shang Yang established trust by placing a wooden pole in the ground, demonstrating that he was a person who valued integrity highly.

However, his integrity only applies to those within his own organization; he can be utterly untrustworthy to outsiders without hesitation.

After Duke Xiao of Qin died, Ying Si succeeded him.

He ordered the pursuit and execution of Shang Yang.

However, prior to this, Shang Yang stipulated that no one could stay at an inn without a valid certificate.

Therefore, he couldn't stay at a hotel.

He wanted to defect to the State of Wei.

Because Shang Yang deceived Prince Ang, the State of Wei refused to accept him.

Ultimately, Shang Yang was captured, which is the famous story of being trapped by his own actions.

Therefore, I worry that Your Majesty's actions may damage your image in the eyes of the people.

Li Shimin listened but disagreed: "What you said are Confucian ideas, but I have a different view on them."