Dark Sand: My Players Are All Actors

Upon hearing that phrase from Lord Qin, Li Hongyun felt as if a thunderclap had exploded in his mind!

Yes, am I Prince Qi, or am I Lord Qin?

He strained to recall the entire process of impersonating Prince Qi.

He had initially thought the Xuanwu Gate Incident was just a coincidence, an accident, with the real Prince Qi being just a step away from success.

Thus, Li Hongyun initially placed all his bets on his knowledge of history.

But at the Xuanwu Gate, he was still hung up and beaten by Lord Qin.

At that point, he began to realize that the success of the Xuanwu Gate Incident was not merely by chance—it was a representation of Lord Qin's powerful intelligence capabilities and the will of the people.

Therefore, Li Hongyun decided to start over and not just follow behind Lord Qin as a minor follower, but to try to establish his own power.

He quelled Xue Ju, obliterated Liu Wuzhou and Song Jingang, campaigned against Wang Shichong, and captured both kings in a single battle at the Hulaoguan Pass...

In order to establish a robust intelligence network and gain sufficient prestige, Li Hongyun replaced Lord Qin and fought the battles that Lord Qin was supposed to fight.

Finally, his achievements alarmed even Emperor Gaozu of Liang, who began to suspect him, and facing persecution from the emperor, he could no longer bear it and initiated the Xuanwu Gate Incident.

Although the historical paths that Li Hongyun, as Prince Qi, and Lord Qin took were entirely different, with vast differences in personality traits, tactical details, and more, upon closer inspection, one would find how strikingly similar they were!

Both swept through their rivals single-handedly, both had achievements that alarmed their sovereign, and both were forced into staging a coup.

It was only now that Li Hongyun finally understood a truth.

If you want to win over Lord Qin during the Xuanwu Gate Incident, you have to become Lord Qin!

Because Lord Qin was not just an individual, a name, nor just the victor of the Xuanwu Gate Incident.

...He was the choice of an era.

But if you choose to become Lord Qin, then you must inevitably make the same choices.

The Xuanwu Gate Incident involved killing his brothers and forcing his father?

Using the words of the common people at that time, "Lord Qin, you only lost a useless brother and scant father-son affection, but we gained the flourishing age of Zhenguan!"

For ancient emperors, the only criterion is whether he could lead the people to a better life.

If not, then killing his brothers and forcing his father would brand him a malevolent tyrant beyond redemption, but if so, then those acts are sacrifices necessary for ushering in a flourishing era.

Having experienced Lord Qin's life from start to finish, Li Hongyun roughly understood why such a seemingly perfect man was still vilified.

It was because he seemed too perfect, which always led people to try and tarnish his reputation.

If he really were a tyrant, then people would reverse this verdict and claim he didn't do too bad;

If he hadn't initiated the Xuanwu Gate Incident, then others would claim he was indecisive, weakly loyal without resolve, squandering an opportunity to lead the Liang Dynasty into a golden age, making him the eternal sinner.

When he attacked, people accused him of being recklessly militant, even though he mobilized tens of thousands of troops at most, and the people were eager to enlist;

When he defended, people labeled him as less skilled, timid, and afraid to face the enemy decisively;

If he was lenient with his ministers, he was seen as fearing to offend the noble families and lacking authority;

If he punished his ministers, he was called narrow-minded and intolerant of others.

In short, because his brilliance was so intense, there was always someone trying to prove he was flawed, to show how they differed from others.

But if one were to truly delve into the details, they'd find that no ancient emperor in his position could have done better.

No wonder his legacy could shine through the ages, with "Lord Qin's Battle Melody," even two hundred years later, when the Liang Dynasty was on its decline, still protecting his descendants and giving the Liang Dynasty one last moment of brilliance.

"All of this, it's all for the best,"

Li Hongyun looked at Lord Qin in front of him, realizing something: perhaps for Huaxia at that time, the emergence of Lord Qin was the greatest fortune.

Just like the emergence of Emperor Taizu of Sheng centuries later.

Unlike Emperor Taizu who arose from common folk, Lord Qin was a rich man's son.

Yet Lord Qin didn't look down on common people because of his wealth, like Emperor Gaozu of Liang, the Crown Prince, or Prince Qi. Instead, he empathized deeply with the hardship of the commoners.

He was extremely cautious, treading carefully, and left behind the saying, "Water can carry a boat; it can also overturn it."

And under his rule, the people experienced the best life possible in ancient society.

Wang Wenchuan once wrote in a poem, "Wish to be a frivolous lad of the Five Tombs, born during the Zhenguan and died during the Kaiyuan era. Spending life in cockfighting and hunting, oblivious to the world's safety or danger."

For a commoner at the grassroot level, to be born during the Zhenguan era and to die during the Kaiyuan period, in ancient society, this would be the most fortunate life imaginable.

Mist gradually filled Li Hongyun's vision.

He saw the last layer of dark energy being dispelled, the dazzling core finally revealed, emitting a fierce light!

And then, a series of system prompts appeared.

[Trial Illusion: Now, a universe at peace]

[Level Complete!]

[After this not-so-difficult trial, you should now be clearer on what a qualified emperor should do.]

[Emperor Taizong with eighteen campaigns unified the capitals with a white banner and a yellow ax.

Captured Shichong, executed Dou, cleared the four seas, achieved twenty-four meritorious deeds by twenty-four,

Ascended to the imperial throne at twenty-nine, brought peace at thirty-five.

Achievements were swiftly made, effectiveness lied in winning people's hearts.

Collected the remains of the fallen soldiers, distributed gold to redeem the starving who sold their children.]