A thousand-year-old family begins with one fighting against ten thousand.

"Whether it was the Sui Dynasty or the Tang Dynasty, they were both legitimate dynasties of China, the crown jewels of the Chinese civilization, with impeccable roots and red lineage."

"Now that China is at peace and the world is united, the people live in peace and prosperity, and the golden age of China is just around the corner."

"Are you going to defy the world, as a vassal state, to rebel and invade the Central Plains?"

Li Shimin, relying on the fact that his Tang Dynasty was the legitimate successor of Chinese civilization, always reprimanded Xia Ping in a superior manner.

Xia Ping laughed heartily, "Decades ago, my Great Xia was already established as an empire, inheriting the ancestral temples of the Chinese nation, standing on equal footing with the Great Sui Dynasty, and receiving tribute from all nations. How can this be considered rebellion?"

"The rightful ruler of China shall be the one with the ability."

"The Tang Dynasty destroyed the Sui Dynasty and inherited its empire. From the Sui Dynasty's perspective, the Tang Dynasty was the one that rebelled!"

"Our Great Xia, invited by the Sui Dynasty's royal family, has come to aid the Sui in the name of a brotherly nation. Our brotherly affection is evident in every word, something a traitor like you could never comprehend."

Li Shimin's expression remained unchanged, but he was secretly shocked.

Who was invited by the Sui Dynasty royal family?

Li Shimin's pupils contracted as he suddenly thought of someone: Yang Zhengdao, the grandson of Yang Guang who had just been born.

According to the information he gathered, Yang Zhengdao disappeared during the chaos of the Jiangdu Rebellion. There must have been a loyal and brave person in the Sui Dynasty who rescued him.

Did he later defect to Daxia?

If it really is Yang Zhengdao, then it is absolutely the worst news for him.

Because Yang Zhengdao was the grandson of Yang Guang, he had a strong sense of righteousness.

If the Great Xia obtains this great cause, it will not be a good thing for the Great Tang.

However, judging from Xia Ping's attitude, Li Shimin realized that Xia Ping's attitude towards attacking Shenzhou was not resolute.

Li Shimin's guess was correct; Yang Zhengdao was indeed in Xia Ping's hands, and Xia Ping's attitude toward attacking Shenzhou was indeed not resolute.

Based on the performance of the Liangzhou people, Xia Ping felt that Yang Zhengdao was not very useful.

Even with Yang Zhengdao in hand, the people of Liangzhou still spared no effort to stop him.

Therefore, Xia Ping felt that the people of the Central Plains were very clear about the distinction between the inside and outside of the Central Plains, and were extremely concerned about it, even to the point that it was unacceptable to have a member of the Sui Dynasty royal family leading the way.

Therefore, although Yang Zhengdao was useful and could reduce some resistance, his usefulness was not great.

In reality, it was because Xia Ping was not familiar with the customs of various places in China. Liangzhou was a border region in the past, and its people were fierce and were regarded as barbarians hundreds of years ago. Therefore, he took these customs very seriously.

If it were in the inland states, Yang Zhengdao could play a significant role. With Yang Zhengdao as a shield, although he might not be able to fool the powerful clans, he could definitely fool the ordinary people in the Central Plains, greatly reducing their resistance to the Xia Dynasty.

However, this did not affect Xia Ping's ability to use Yang Zhengdao to suppress Li Shimin.

"False King, I must tell you that the Sui Dynasty has been destroyed. The current Divine Empire is the Tang Dynasty, and the people of the world have recognized this. The Sui Dynasty is a thing of the past."

"Your Great Xia is merely using this as a pretext to invade the Central Plains; you have treacherous ambitions!"

"The Divine Empire has a history spanning thousands of years; how could any other country possibly covet it? You are disregarding the millennia-old heritage of the Divine Empire."

"How many heroes and outstanding figures have emerged in the Central Plains over the past thousand years? Even the founding monarch of your Great Xia was just one figure who emerged from the country established by a hero and outstanding figure in the Central Plains."

"The strength of the Central Plains is beyond your imagination!"

Li Shimin pointed to the six riders beside him, "I want to introduce you to my fierce general Qin Qiong. He can defeat dozens of armored soldiers by himself, and on the battlefield, he can slay generals and capture flags, invincible!"

"In the past, when warriors from a hundred nations competed, those who were inferior to him established great reputations and defeated your nation's contestants one by one."

"Even a fierce general like Qin Qiong wouldn't rank among the top five in the Tang Dynasty!"

"This man, Li Jing, commanded large armies in battle. He was always able to anticipate the enemy's moves, and his military tactics were divine. He was victorious in every battle, and never suffered a defeat in his hundreds of campaigns throughout his life!"

"His strategic prowess and military achievements surpassed even those of the ancient generals Han Xin, Bai Qi, Wei Qing, and Huo Qubing."

"This is Fang Xuanling. If you have read Chinese history books, you will understand how wise he was. You can refer to him as a combination of Zhang Liang and Xiao He, the three heroes of the early Han Dynasty."

"..."

Xia Ping listened attentively to Li Shimin's introduction, then clapped his hands with emotion, cooperating fully.

"Your Tang Dynasty has produced many talented people, but my Xia Dynasty is no less so."

Xia Ping also introduced the contributions of everyone around him, each of whom was a distinguished figure and a leader of their time.

"It is with their help that I was able to conquer the Western Regions, capture Liangzhou, and am about to seize Chang'an, one of the most important heartlands of Chinese civilization!"

The two sides continued their verbal sparring, neither able to convince the other. In the end, Xia Ping, being a military general, couldn't stand the endless chatter and killed the conversation.

"You say your people are so strong, and the Tang Dynasty is full of outstanding talents, so why were you defeated and driven all the way to Chang'an?"

"They only managed to get in while we weren't paying attention. If it weren't a sneak attack, how could you have driven us into Yumen Pass?"

"If you retreat quickly and hand over the Western Regions, I may acknowledge your status as a vassal state after I ascend the throne. Otherwise, once the Tang Dynasty issues an imperial edict, all nations under heaven will respond and jointly attack Xia. Can your Great Xia withstand that?"

Li Shimin also revealed his trump card: their Tang Dynasty held the position of the Divine Empire, which was their greatest advantage.

Being born into a good family or having a good birthplace are both advantages.

Now it was Xia Ping's turn to be wary; this was indeed the thing he feared most.

If the Tang Dynasty were to personally send troops in the name of the Divine Empire to call upon the world to jointly attack the Great Xia, the Great Xia might indeed become an enemy of the entire world.

The Great Xia Dynasty is now vast, which means it borders many countries. In addition, other countries can launch attacks along the coastline. The Great Xia Dynasty is fighting on multiple fronts, and even the strongest country cannot withstand it.

"Guards, please invite His Majesty up."

Xia Ping waved his hand, and a child wearing a yellow dragon robe emerged from his ranks.

Li Shimin's pupils contracted; this person must be Yang Zhengdao!

It's actually in the hands of the Great Xia!

This is absolutely terrible news!

"His Majesty."

Xia Ping led everyone in bowing to Yang Zhengdao with the courtesy due to a foreign official. "This is the man who usurped Your Majesty's Sui Dynasty throne. His name is Li Shimin, the crown prince who rebelled against the Tang Dynasty."

One of Yang Zhengdao's men gave him a look, and Yang Zhengdao said tremblingly, "Rise."

"The Tang Dynasty has usurped the throne, a crime that cannot be forgiven. The Xia and Sui Dynasties are brothers, brotherly nations, both part of the Chinese Empire, of the same blood and lineage. They should raise an army to avenge the Sui Dynasty and rebuild its ancestral temples. I am deeply grateful and wish to acknowledge the Xia Dynasty as my elder brother and the Sui Dynasty as my younger brother, and to maintain our friendship forever."

Yang Zhengdao trembled as he read aloud the words Xia Ping had given him, stumbling over them. Li Shimin's blood pressure soared upon hearing them.

Listen to what this is saying! The Great Xia and the Great Sui are brotherly nations, with the Great Xia being the elder brother and the Great Sui the younger brother.

This is utterly disgracing the Divine Empire!

If these words were to get out, the entire history of the Divine Empire would be utterly disgraced.