In addition to the fine steel sword, there is also the famous Tang sword among the remaining weapons. This Tang sword is a general term for the Tang Dynasty knives, including four categories: yi sword, horizontal sword, mo sword, and barrier sword. Among them, yi sword is an etiquette sword, while the remaining three are military supplies, all of which are equipped with the army.

Li Yan asked the craftsmen to forge mainly horizontal swords and barrier swords. These two kinds of knives are long and short, and are used to equip infantry. The hilt of the Modao is short and the blade is long, which is more than twice as long as the horizontal sword. It is mainly used to attack cavalry. Shu is surrounded by mountains, and the barbarians in the south have basically no cavalry, so Li Yan has only allowed to produce a small number of Modao for the time being.

In addition to the knives, Ouyang Wang asked the craftsmen to bring two more armors. Both armors were made according to the drawings given by Li Yan, and they used European full-body armor. Li Yan searched through the information and found that in terms of armor, the full-body helmets in the Central and European periods were still highly protective, but this kind of armor was very heavy. So Li Yan decided to use aluminum alloy to make full-body armor. The reserves of aluminum are higher than iron. There are several aluminum ores in Yizhou. Although pure aluminum has low hardness, Lu alloy mixed with other metal elements is not low in hardness, and it is not even a stainless steel.

The two armors Ouyang Wang brought were made of steel and the other was made of pure aluminum. Li Yan took the armor made of steel and tried it. It was indeed too heavy. There was no need to fight when he was bent on his body with dozens of kilograms of weight. The pure aluminum was light, but the fine steel sword was broken with one horizontal chop.

Li Yan asked Ouyang Wang to create these two armors just to make him familiar with the production of full-body armor. The production of aluminum alloy also requires various rare metals. Li Yan is preparing to go back and buy a batch of these metals to be used in Taoyuan for the production of aluminum alloy armor. It is obviously unrealistic to find mineral deposits now, and there are not many rare metals used in aluminum alloys.

Very satisfied with the blacksmiths' work efficiency, Li Yan decided to go back and purchase the pulleys, bowstrings and rare metals they need now.

Leaving the blacksmith shop, Li Yan went to the village again. At this time, Du Pingzhi was experimenting with the imitation of the steam engine, Tong Yu was experimenting with the cannons, while Guo Xianyuan was studying the several guns that Li Yan had brought. Everything was in progress, and Li Yan was relieved.

In the evening, Li Yan returned to the modern villa and ordered the materials he needed, and also bought a batch of small carts and human-powered three-wheelers. What the Tang Dynasty lacked was manpower, which can save a lot of manpower.

At the same time, Li Shimin's southern tour team returned to Chang'an, and the conversation between Li Shimin and Li Yan in Yizhou was spread among the officials in Chang'an City through the mouths of those who were interested, and the government and the people were criticized for a while.

After a few days of rest, Li Shimin came to the court on that day. When he walked into the Taiji Hall, he felt the solemnity in the court that was different from the past. As soon as he sat down, Wei Zheng went out and asked: "Your Majesty, I heard that Your Majesty wants to grant His Highness the King of Shu as the Grand Governor of Yizhou and command the military and political affairs of the ten prefectures in Shu, which is like a vassal king. I don't know if this is the case."

Li Shimin originally planned to discuss this matter this morning, so he said, "That's right, this is exactly what I mean. The court is about to discuss this matter with all your dear friends this morning."

"I didn't expect this to happen!"

"This Grand Governor has always been a remote leader."

"Is this the vassal king?"

“…”

Li Shimin admitted the matter personally, and the ministers immediately whispered and whispered. Li Shimin had already prepared for the reactions of the ministers. He had made up his mind. Whether they agreed or disagreed, Li Yan had sealed the matter.

Wei Zheng continued: "Did Your Majesty forget the rebellion of the Seven Kings of the Western Han Dynasty and the Eight Kings of the Western Jin Dynasty?"

"Of course I haven't forgotten it, but I am not Emperor Jing of Han, nor the Tang Dynasty was the foolish Western Jin Dynasty. Moreover, I appointed the Sixth Prince as the Grand Governor of Yizhou for the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty. Yizhou is a narrow place. Except for Yizhou, the other states are not as good as one Yizhou. What's there to worry about? Moreover, Li Yan took the initiative to contribute his skills, which was a great achievement and deserved!" Li Shimin said calmly.

As soon as Li Shimin finished speaking, another minister came out, but it was Lu Jin. He said: "The Sixth Prince's meritorious ministers admired the merits of him, and it was not a bad idea to divide the land of ten states. However, the emperor should let the Sixth Prince report all the skills he obtained in the future to the court and the people to share. There are many skilled craftsmen in Chang'an, so they will definitely be able to carry forward these skills."

"A righteous word!"

"You should hand over the skills."

“…”

After Lu Jin finished speaking, a voice of echoes immediately sounded. These were officials from prominent families. They were not worried about whether Li Yan was the King of Shu or how many prefectures and counties were commanded. For them, Shu was just a useless rib. What they really care about was what Li Yan was in his hands.

Li Shimin glanced at the courtier who agreed and said, "Then I want to ask, what if the Sixth Prince is unwilling to offer these skills? After all, Luo Anguo has only done business with the Sixth Prince. Only he himself knows how many skills he has mastered. Perhaps the records here are just a drop in the bucket, so I handed over all ten states to him. He will definitely do his best to his fiefdoms and will not hide his own personalities." Li Shimin took out the booklet presented by Li Yan and shook it in his hand, which immediately attracted many greedy eyes.

"This..." Zhang Liang glanced at Li Tai, Li Tai nodded to him, and Zhang Liang said: "Your Majesty can send the imperial envoy to Yizhou, and then let the Princess of Shu return to Chang'an as a qualifier. At that time, as long as Yizhou has new skills, the King of Shu will hand over it. At that time, he dare not refuse to obey."

"Bastard!" Li Ke was furious when he heard this: "Zhang Liang, what do you mean? Take the Princess of Shu as the charity? I am Li Yan's brother, why don't you take me as the charity?"

Then Li Yan went out to look down on the ministers and said, "Father, this world is the Li family. In his early years, the father abolished the feudal system and did not divide the princes. It was originally for the sake of stability and avoiding chaos among the princes. It was not wrong. Now, in order to enrich the country and strengthen the people, it was not wrong to enthrone Shu to Li Yan, not for personal gain, but for public purposes. The sons agreed with the father's decision!"

Zhang Liang said just now, not only Li Ke was angry, but Cui Shao was also angry. He said: "Your Majesty, the Sixth Prince was demoted to Yizhou for the unjust injustice. This has just made some achievements in Yizhou, and some people with ulterior motives cannot see that the Sixth Prince made contributions. They are determined to seize the skills in the hands of the Sixth Prince, but for their own selfishness. As the Third Prince said, Your Majesty is for the public, but some are for the selfishness. Please give Your Majesty a clear guide!"

Li Shimin nodded in admiration. He did not tell all the truth to the ministers just now. He was to make Shu rich under the rule of Li Yan, and to leave a bloodline in Yizhou to guard against these aristocratic families. If one day they had a different intention to be unfavorable to the Li family royal family, they should also consider Li Yan in Yizhou.

"Shizhong Cui's words are wrong. Doctor Zhang's plan is a bit inappropriate, but these skills are not as well known to everyone in Li Yan. This will benefit the Tang Dynasty, right?" Fang Xuanling said slowly.

"The Master Fangge has not yet understood what Your Majesty meant. The sixth prince has the final say in the hands of the sixth prince. Can the sixth prince hand over by sending the imperial envoy? Besides, letting the Princess Shu go to Chang'an as a charity, this is tantamount to the great humiliation for the sixth prince. He may not only not hand over the skills he is in hand, but also hates the court. It will be hard to say what happens at that time." The person who spoke was Cen Wenben.

"I also think that Doctor Zhang's words are inappropriate. Isn't this a shame for the Sixth Prince to be so arrogant and ridiculed by the people of the world? But I still dare not agree with Your Majesty's breaking the feudal system." Wei Zheng listened to the debates between several parties, refuted Zhang Liang's words and poured cold water on Li Shimin.

Li Shimin has been observing the expressions of the ministers. After Zhang Liang said the words, many officials from the aristocratic families showed praise and agreed with Zhang Liang's statement. Li Shimin naturally understood what they were all fighting, and he suddenly felt chills in his heart. Today they could treat Li Yan like this, and another day they might be able to treat other princes like this, and even treat him like this, which made him more determined.

Everyone was arguing with each other. At this time, Changsun Wuji stepped out and said, "Your Majesty, I have a way to achieve the best of both worlds."

"Let me tell me!" Li Shimin was happy and thought to himself that Changsun Wuji was the one who was most desirable to him.

Changsun Wuji pondered for a while and said, "The ministers are worried that the sixth prince will become princes, but don't forget that the fiefs of princes in the Western Han Dynasty could be hereditary, and they could mint money privately on the fiefs, collect taxes at will, and are not managed by the court, and they are like a country."

After a pause, he said: "For the ten prefectures in Shu, I think that one of them is not hereditary. After Li Yan died, Li Yan returned to the court. Second, the tax system in Shu remained unchanged, and the tax paid was still paid to the court according to the old system. Third, you should not cast money privately. Fourth, you should let Li Yan bear the responsibility of guarding the border. As long as you do these four points, I believe that the ministers will not have any objections." Changsun Wuji knew that Li Shimin had made up his mind, and it would be useless for others to persuade him. After all, Li Shimin was the emperor, and he could listen or not. The reason why he said this was because he thought about it. The prohibition of coining and taxation was to control Li Yan's money, while guarding the border controlled Li Yan's army on Shu. Once Li Yan died in battle, Shu would return to the court.

As soon as Changsun Wuji said the words, the ministers were talking again. Many people secretly said that Changsun Wuji was still very serious. Shu was neighboring Tubo in the west. This was a superpower that coexisted with the Tang Dynasty. Even Li Shimin was also deliberately afraid. Now that he threw this burden on Li Yan, the Guanlong Group would have less trouble and would not have to go to the battlefield to fight desperately.

"This..." Li Shimin hesitated, "I can agree to all the first three things, but it would be too embarrassing to let Li Yan take on the responsibility of guarding the border."

Changsun Wuji said: "If you don't do this, you won't convince all the ministers. Please think twice."

"Please think twice, otherwise I would rather die than obey!" Lu Jin took the lead and knelt down. Soon Li Chengqian, Li Tai and others all knelt down, only Li Ke and Cui Shao's people were still standing.

Cheng Yaojin, Lu Shang, and Xiao Yu were in a dilemma, and neither side wanted to offend him. Finally, he said: "I'm going to discuss it!"

Li Shimin looked at the minister who knelt all over the ground, laughed furiously, and said, "Okay, I promise you these four conditions, but guarding the border is the responsibility of the vassal king. From today on, Shu will be renamed Chengdu Prefecture and will be renamed the King of Chengdu. The fiefs of Yi, Mian, Mao, Jia, Song, Ya, Sui, Zi, Qiong, and the ten prefectures."
Chapter completed!