Chapter 249: Posthumous title: Emperor Wen, temple name: Emperor Taizong
In the cold winter, the branches in front of and behind the houses are covered with crystal clear icicles, like slender silver needles hanging upside down, sparkling brightly in the winter sun.

Inside the house, it was warm as spring, in stark contrast to the severe cold outside. Waves of clear and pleasant reading sounds came from the room, like the sound of nature, adding a bit of vitality and energy to this cold winter day.

Suddenly, there was a slight “tsk” sound, and the door that was originally closed was slowly pushed open, and a cold air mixed with snowflakes suddenly rushed into the room.

As the door opened, large flakes of snow fluttered in, instantly forming a thin white velvet carpet on the ground.

Li Chengqian was wearing a thick black cloak and stepped into the house cautiously.

After entering the lecture hall, the students who were originally concentrating on reciting poems stopped talking at the same time, turned around, and looked at the door with curious eyes, wanting to see who arrived so late.

At this time, Yan Lide, who was concentrating on tinkering with the wooden implements in his hands, heard the noise. Without even raising his head, he shouted in a serious and majestic voice, “Stand behind!”

However, before he finished speaking, he seemed to sense that the atmosphere was a little unusual, so he subconsciously raised his head.

When he saw clearly that the person coming was Li Chengqian, he was immediately shocked. He hurriedly dropped the things in his hands, stood up and was about to kneel down to pay homage.

“Master Yan, there is no need to do this. It is my fault. I shouldn’t be so rash as to interrupt your lecture.”

Seeing this, Li Chengqian hurriedly walked forward, stretched out his hands to support Yan Lide, with a gentle and humble smile on his face.

“I wonder if there is anything that happened to your Highness?”

Yan Lide asked, then glanced down.

Wow!
At this moment, all the students suddenly stood up and bowed to Yan Lide.

“Sir, I’m leaving now.”

These twenty-odd students are all extremely intelligent and rare geniuses. They have been carefully selected to become Yan Lide’s closed students.

How could I not see that Yan Lide had something important to discuss?

We can also guess Li Chengqian’s general identity.

Here, there is only one person who can make Yan Lide so respectful.

“Master Yan, I came here to teach you. How can I teach you if you ask all the students to leave?”

Li Chengqian smiled warmly.

While we are here, we should at least spread some advanced knowledge.

“I see!”

Yan Lide widened his eyes and waved his hand quickly, asking the students to return to their seats.

“Your Highness, please!”

Soon, the classroom was silent.

Yan Lide also stepped back, took his seat, and was willing to be a student, leaving the podium to Li Chengqian.

“Hello everyone, I am now your husband. If there is anything you don’t understand or if you have any questions, please feel free to ask. Don’t feel any burden.”

Li Chengqian stood on the podium and spoke slowly, making it seem like nothing he was doing.

When facing tens of thousands of troops, he could remain calm, and when he went on stage to give lectures, he would just sprinkle some water.

“You may not have heard of the subject I teach. What I teach is called physics.”

“What is physics?”

A student immediately asked a question.

“The word physics comes from the Book of Changes, which means the principles of nature. We study physics to study the principles of nature, which is also the principles of the world we live in.”

Li Chengqian replied with a smile, appearing amiable and friendly, and immediately brought himself closer to the students.

However, what Li Chengqian said was too profound.

Not to mention these students, even Yan Lide frowned, feeling that Li Chengqian was just talking nonsense.

“Then what is the principle of nature?”

Another student asked a question. They are extremely smart, but the scope of their knowledge is too wide, which is their blind spot.

Even among the hundreds of schools of thought, I have never heard of such a statement in physics.

“Why do pears stay on the ground when they fall? That’s the way nature works.”

Li Chengqian summarized it briefly.

All the students widened their eyes. When the pear fell, it should have fallen to the ground.

Is not it?
The more you talk, the more confused people become.

If Li Chengqian was not the crown prince, he would have been regarded as a fool and kicked out if he had said such things.

Only Yan Lide seemed to understand something, but he couldn’t figure it out no matter how hard he racked his brains.

Why did the pear fall to the ground?

“Because there is an invisible force affecting it, and it is this force that makes water always flow to the lower place.”

Seeing that everyone was confused, Li Chengqian started to guide them again.

“We all know that water flows to the lowest place and pears always fall to the ground. We think this is natural. So this principle is the law of nature.”

“Physics is all-encompassing. It can be said that the entire foundation of our lives is inseparable from physics.”

Physics is infinitely close to what Yan Lide is researching.

Li Chengqian chose to explain it in his class.

“Your Highness, if that’s the case, then the study of physics is very useful.”

Yan Li felt as if he had grasped that trace of connection, but it also seemed to slip away from his fingertips.

“Very big. Ink arts are also included in physics. Your so-called pinhole imaging secrets and strength are just the tip of the iceberg in physics.”

“Even the guns and cannons you forged are also a bit of academic research in physics. If you can study them thoroughly, you can go to the sky and into the earth without any problem.”

Li Chengqian’s words were very convincing and there was no exaggeration at all.

“what!”

Yan Lide was shocked. He didn’t hear clearly what was meant by “up to the sky and into the earth”, but he was shocked by the word “guns and cannons”.

“If I learn physics well, can I really fly into the sky and into the ground? Wouldn’t that be a magical skill?”

Many students have infinite aspirations.

To a certain extent, it is not clear whether to say they are imaginative or ignorant.

“Yes, if you study hard, you will be able to achieve success within ten years.”

Li Chengqian said with certainty that he had a lot of basic knowledge and theories of physics in his mind, and anything he created could promote the progress of the times.

“Please teach us, sir!”

Several seniors bowed and asked.

“Everyone, please sit down. Let’s talk about the principle of the steam engine first. This involves energy.”

Li Chengqian said slowly that he was going to use the same old trick again and throw the manufacturing problem to his ancestors who were good at creativity.

The steam engine was a crucial product that promoted the revolution of the times, and to a large extent, it far exceeded the impact of gunpowder.

No matter what, Li Chengqian had to try to see if he could use the skills of his predecessors and his own theories to create a steam engine.

In this way, in order to facilitate academic research, Li Chengqian lived in the Hundred Schools Academy.

Gradually, more and more students came to attend the class, not only students of appropriate age, but also many skilled craftsmen from the Ministry of Industry, who wanted to work together to solve this difficult historical problem.

Batches of steam engines were also produced in the workshops of the Ministry of Industry.

Li Chengqian only knew the principle of the steam engine, but he had never seen its appearance.

But with the experiments with batches of steam engines, the style was approaching the correct model.

Winter is cold, but everyone is busy with their own things.

Compared to Li Chengqian’s busy day and night.

Li Zhi, who was far away in Chang’an, could only say that he could not sleep at night during this period.

In just over a month, he had obviously lost a lot of weight and looked listless.

The burden of the entire Tang Dynasty fell on his shoulders, making it difficult for him to adapt all of a sudden.

“Your Highness, the Tubo envoy has arrived. Would you like to summon him?” Gao Shilian walked up to Li Zhi in the Liangyi Hall and said.

“Tibetan envoys? What are they here for?”

A hint of anger appeared on Li Zhi’s face, and then he waved his hand.

“not see!”

Now, he is dealing with Li Shimin’s funeral and has no time to care about anything else.

There are so many things to do after the death of an emperor. The burial alone would take several months.

Moreover, Li Zhi still needed to prepare for his ascension to the throne and had no time to meet any envoys.

“and many more!”

Changsun Wuji waved his hand, signaling the eunuch not to pass on the message for the time being.

“Your Highness, the Tubo envoys are coming here at this time. I’m afraid they have bad intentions.”

The incident happened several months ago. If there were Tibetan spies in Chang’an City, then everything would make sense.

“What bad intentions could there be? If a barren land has second thoughts, we can destroy it with an army.”

Cui Yi said coldly that at this time, Tubo was just an ant in front of the Tang Dynasty.

You can crush him however you want.

After all, in everyone’s mind, how many people can there be on the plateau?

“It’s a vassal state, let the Ministry of Rites handle the matter. Now that His Majesty has passed away, ministers, what posthumous title do you think should be given?”

Li Zhi looked around at his ministers. After the king’s death, posthumous honoring is an indispensable step.

As for Li Shimin, who had made great achievements in both military and civil administration, we must be even more cautious.

Moreover, when it comes to the posthumous title of a king, you can’t just give him whatever title you want.

It is to be measured based on his achievements during his lifetime, and the posthumous title is the most direct way to reflect his life achievements.

The one who controls the heaven and earth is called Wen, and the one who is powerful, wise and virtuous is called Wu.

The one who spreads righteousness and acts with strength is called Jing, and the one who conquers distant lands is called Huan.

When the wisdom and goodness are heard, it is called “promulgation”; when the principles and rules are established and disciplines are governed, it is called “completion”.

Being gentle and kind to people is called benevolence, and illuminating all directions is called brightness.

……

Among all the posthumous titles, the title of Wenwu is the highest.

Generally, only emperors who have made great achievements will be given this honorific title.

In comparison, the title of Emperor Wen seems to have a higher status.

This is also why Li Shimin was more obsessed with Emperor Wen’s posthumous title.

“Your Majesty has expanded the territory abroad, and all dynasties have submitted to him. Internally, you have enforced the law, governed in a clear and fair manner, and the people live and work in peace and contentment. Your achievements are unparalleled, and you have the ability to rule the world. You deserve the title of Emperor Wen.”

Changsun Wuji was also the first to speak up.

Of course, now that Changsun Wuji is extremely powerful, no one dares to steal his limelight.

As the minister of state, the emperor’s uncle, and the person in charge of the Guanlong Group, with the addition of multiple identities, he is truly second to none.

“Your Majesty has made unparalleled achievements. He has brought order to a time of chaos and ushered in a time of prosperity. You have completed the work of several generations in your lifetime. This has never been done before in all previous dynasties.”

“The Qin dynasty lasted only a dozen years after six generations of effort and perished in the second. It took Emperor Wu of Han several generations to build a strong foundation and drive out the Xiongnu and expand the territory.”

“I also think that your majesty’s posthumous title should be written in Chinese.”

Zuo Pushe Xu Jingzong also spoke up. At this time, he had already leaned towards Zhangsun Wuji’s camp again.

Moreover, there is absolutely nothing wrong in praising the achievements of the late emperor.

“It should be so. Your Majesty’s achievements can emulate the predecessors and shine for future generations. The title of Wen is not an exaggeration.”

Fang Xuanling also agreed.

Li Shimin was not only an expert in martial arts, but also a great scholar.

He was one of the few emperors who were both capable of military and civil administration, and was posthumously named Emperor Wen, a title he well deserved.

“Please give me the posthumous title of Emperor Wen!”

All the ministers said in unison.

They were also proud that Li Shimin was able to give the posthumous title of Emperor Wen.

“Now that the posthumous title has been decided, is there any controversy over the temple name?”

Li Zhi asked again.

There is a difference between posthumous name and temple name.

The posthumous title is a title given to emperors or even ministers based on their deeds and achievements during their lifetime.

The temple name is unique to the emperor and is a title of honor given in the Taimiao.

“I think this should not be controversial. According to the previous practice of posthumously honoring people in the Imperial Ancestral Temple, the late emperor should have been given the temple name Taizong.”

After a while, seeing that no one spoke, Gao Shilian stood up and spoke.

However, Li Zhi and his ministers did not speak immediately about this, but fell into silent atmosphere.

This is a rather sensitive topic.

Although it is just a temple name, it determines too many events and the interests of many people involved.

Taizong, in general, is the temple name for the second-generation emperor in line to the throne, and only emperors who have made significant achievements are worthy of the temple name.

Otherwise, Qin II Hu Hai and Sui II Yang Guang would also get involved.

Of course Li Shimin was worthy of the temple name Taizong, and he was also a role model among them.

However, posthumous names and temple names are titles added to the emperor by the new emperor and his ministers after his death.

However, what Li Shimin did can be said to have exceeded what Emperor Taizong could have done.

Most of the land of the Tang Dynasty was conquered by Li Shimin, and the Xuanwu Gate Coup was also a way of treason to some extent. Li Shimin was not the heir apparent, but he obtained the throne by killing his brother and forcing his father to do so.

This is clear to many ministers.

This is no different from the behavior of Ming Chengzu Zhu Di.

It is not impossible to have the temple name of “ancestor”.

Compared with the temple name of Taizong, Zhangsun Wuji, Fang Xuanling and others would rather add the title of Emperor Chengzu of Tang to Li Shimin.

Zu is the temple name of the founder of a country. This is not to belittle Li Shimin, but to elevate him.

Similarly, it also elevated the status of these ministers.

They were not only loyal ministers, but also famous ministers of the founding of the country.

But if that were all, where would Gao Shilian, Xiao Yu and other old ministers stand?

The hall fell into silent silence, and everyone stared at each other.

“I think that since the Han Dynasty, the world has been governed by filial piety. Now that the world is obedient, we should add the word filial piety to the name of the late emperor to promote his virtue.”

At the end, Kong Yingda walked out slowly.

His words just happened to ease the tense atmosphere.

The word “filial piety” alone put an end to the idea of ​​Zhangsun Wuji and others to confer the title of ancestor on Li Shimin.

It was also to cover up Li Shimin’s scandal at Xuanwu Gate.

However, the word “filial piety” seems so ironic.

“The late emperor was a man of both civil and military talents, and was filial and virtuous, so he was given the posthumous title of the Great Saint of Civil and Military Affairs and the Great and Filial Emperor, and the temple name of the Emperor Taizong.”

Li Zhi spoke and established Li Shimin’s posthumous title and temple name.

(End of this chapter)