The next day, Tai Chi Palace and Ganlu Hall.

Li Shimin was sitting upright before the table on the hall, and while His Highness, the Minister of Revenue Tang Jian, the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue Li Wei, and the Minister of the Taifu Xiao Qin were waiting for His Highness.

The Ministry of Revenue is in charge of the taxes of the country and the imperial court branch; the Sinong Temple is in charge of warehouses and warehouses in various places, and the grain and grass treasury; while the Taifu Temple is in charge of the left-leaving state treasury and the emperor's inner palace. These three people appeared in the palace at the same time, so naturally the Tang Dynasty was not rich enough, and Li Shimin was in a tight position.

"Xiao Qin, you are Taifuqing, who is in charge of the Tang Dynasty's treasury. Why is my Tang Dynasty's treasury so exhausted that I can't even allocate a mere million stone of food and grass?" Li Ke held the report from Tang Jian, Li Wei and Xiao Qin in his hand, and asked Xiao Qin dissatisfiedly.

One million stones of food and grass were exactly the loss required by a 100,000 army in March. Since Li Shimin wanted to allocate so much food and grass, he naturally wanted to go north to pacify Xueyantuo.

This time, Xue Yantuo made a great attempt to provoke the troops and besieged Dingxiang City. Li Shimin originally wanted to take this opportunity to go north and eliminate the problem in one fell swoop. However, when Li Shimin summoned the three major officials who were in charge of the Tang Dynasty's money bags and read the report they handed over, he realized that the Tang Dynasty's treasury was already in short supply, and at most could only piece together 400,000 stones of food and grass, which was still far from the one million stones he wanted, and was less than half.

Xue Yantuo was dominant in the northern part of the desert, and the nine Tielite tribes were even more powerful and powerful. They were definitely not a small country. The Tang Dynasty went north on its expedition. If he left the 100,000 army, even if he took charge personally, he would not be sure to win.

A hundred thousand army headed north and consumed 1 million stones of food and grass in March. This was still the case when the Northern Expedition was successful. The Tang army could solve Xue Yantuo before winter. Once the Tang army failed to destroy Xue Yantuo within three months, it dragged the Northern Expedition into winter, and to the spring of the next year, the loss of food and grass would need to be at least twice, and it would take three million stones.

Li Shimin was born in the army and knew better than anyone else that a hundred thousand troops, people ate horses and chewed, and the loss of cattle and horses that transported food and grass back and forth were not enough. One million stones were not enough, but he could only barely deal with the land. But if it was only 400,000 stones, it would be a drop in the bucket.

Before the three armies moved, food and grass were the first to go. Li Shimin wanted to fight north, but he couldn't get through the grain and grass alone, so Li Shimin was naturally dissatisfied.

When Taifu Qing Xiao Qin heard this, he hurriedly stepped forward and replied, "Report to Your Majesty, my Tang Dynasty has been fighting for years, and the food and grass are consumed very much every year. At the beginning of spring this year, another 300,000 stones were transferred in the war in the northwest. The national treasury has only one million stones left. We can't emptiate the national treasury in order to pacify Xue Yantuo."

The treasury of the Tang Dynasty was not just for war. In addition to supplying border states every year, the imperial palace consumed food for hundreds of officials, and natural disaster relief, and all needed to allocate grain from the treasury. In order to prevent it, Xiao Qin, the Taifu Qing, would never allow Li Shimin to empty the treasury for the Northern Expedition.

What Xiao Qin said was naturally clear about Li Shimin. Li Shimin knew the slightest and seriousness, and would not risk the slightest rebellion of the world and ignore the people in order to fight Xue Yantuo.

Li Shimin waved his hand, Xiao Qin retreated aside, and Li Shimin turned to the Yuanjin Li Wei and asked, "What about Li Qing, Chang'an, Luoyang, and warehouses in various places? Can we still transfer surplus grain?"

Li Wei, the Minister of the People's Republic of China, replied: "Last year, the granaries in Luoyang and Huainan were all released nearby to provide disaster relief, and the surplus grain in the warehouse was not very abundant."

Li Shimin asked: "Did you release so much food last year?"

Li Wei replied: "Last year, not only was the disaster relief food released, but also the food that was growing in spring, which was very expensive."

Li Shimin asked vigilantly: "There are old rules in every year. The warehouses and officials used each place, and half of the military grain used. When the floods in Lianghuai River are still in the warehouse, can it be helped? "

The law of the Tang Dynasty's grain storage has its own rules. The disaster relief grain is for official use, and can be adjusted at most half. Last year, the grain transferred in the granary of Lianghuai was probably all official grain. However, according to Li Wei's tone, it seemed that even the military grain that specializes in the military supplies had been recruited. Li Shimin's first reaction was that someone took advantage of the flood and misappropriated the grain in the warehouse.

Li Wei heard this and explained: "Last year, the Huai River broke the dam, and the waterlogged in Huainan was very heavy. The people had no land to cultivate and no grain to eat. After all the official grain was recruited, they were still insufficient. They had to temporarily transfer the military grain from Shanyangcang for emergency response. This year, the harvest in Huainan will be replenished after the autumn."

When Li Shimin heard this, he slapped the table and asked, "Who has given you the power to recruit soldiers and food!"

The military and food are related to local military equipment and have a great relationship. If the local governor submits a memorial, it is not allowed to move without permission from the military and household departments. Although Huainan is an inland state and has few war disasters, the rules are rules. How can they be chaotic? Li Shimin was naturally angry when he heard this news.

When Li Wei saw Li Shimin suddenly became angry, he was shocked all over and replied: "Sinong Temple only has the right to manage grain in warehouses, but does not have the right to recruit grain. Last year, the recruitment of soldiers and grain in Shanyang Cang was a note issued by the King of Chu himself. After approval by the Shangshu Provincial Department of House and the Ministry of War, the Ministry of War and Households, the grain released was only known by the Minister of State. The Minister of State should have reported to Your Majesty."

Tang Jian, the Minister of Revenue, stepped forward and responded: "Li Sinong's words are extremely true, and I can prove it."

After hearing the words of Li Wei and Tang Jian, Li Shimin remembered that this happened last year. At that time, Huainan was flooded, and Li Ke submitted a memorial to request the grain of Shanyang Cang Cang. At that time, Li Shimin felt sorry for his beloved son, fearing that Li Ke would shorten food and grass in Huainan, and was frustrated, so he immediately approved the note. If it weren't for Li Wei's reminder, he would have forgotten it.

Li Wei is a foreign minister. If it is because of his unfavorable supervision, it is naturally Li Wei's fault. But if it involves his beloved son Li Ke, then Li Shimin's attitude will immediately change.

Li Shimin said: "Last year, Huainan was flooded and the King of Chu transferred food to save the people of Huainan to death. It was understandable, but he made contributions but no mistakes. Moreover, Yangzhou has been peaceful for a long time, so it would be fine to recruit troops and food for emergency treatment."

Tang Jian, who was standing beside him, also said with the flow: "Your Majesty, Huainan is rich, it is the southeastern granary of our Tang Dynasty. Last year, Huainan was flooded, and the government warehouses in various places were not enough to make ends meet. This year is still early, and the grain harvested in autumn has not been put into storage. It is really not advisable to use a rash weapon. I hope Your Majesty will temporarily stop the anger of thunder and wait for the autumn grains in various places to return to the warehouses and make another decision when the amount of use is abundant."

Li Shimin joined the army as a young man and was born in the army. Although he was warlike, he was definitely not a militant man. He could still listen to the words of his ministers, not to mention that the situation is like this, and he has no choice.

Li Shimin said: "Before the troops and horses move, food and grass will go first. I am also a person who knows the soldiers. If my Tang Dynasty is not full, how can I go north to fight thousands of miles? Although Xue Yantuo is arrogant, he can only order the border troops to attack and retreat. As for the large-scale northwards, it is impossible to destroy Xue Yantuo. It is a pity that I missed such a good opportunity this time."

Li Shimin said, gritting his teeth, and clenching his fists, and his words also showed a bit of reluctance and resentment.

At this moment, Xiao Qin, a Taifuqing who had been depressed for a long time, suddenly said, "Report to Your Majesty, I have some insignificance about Xue Yantuo, and I am willing to share your worries."

Li Shimin heard this and asked, "Oh? Xiao Qing has any suggestions, so why not say it."

Xiao Qin said: "Xue Yantuo invaded the south and surrounded Dingxiang City. What he was fighting for was nothing more than the new arrival of the Turks and the foothold was not stable, so Xue Yantuo was asked to gain the lead.

As the saying goes, if the name is not correct, the words are not smooth, and if the words are not smooth, the things will not be successful. It is inappropriate to enter Dingxiang City under the name of Prince Huaihua. It is not appropriate and does not seem to be valued by Your Majesty. Why not let Your Majesty rename Ashina Simmo Khan be reinstated in the south of the desert and be a minister of the Tang Dynasty. First, this move can be used to hit Xue Yantuo, so that he will be cautious in his future and dare not invade. Second, it can win the hearts of the Turkic tribe and strengthen the northern border."

Listening to Xiao Qin's words, Li Shimin's face slowly showed a little smile.

Xiao Qin's words were exactly the same as Li Shimin's heart. When Xue Yantuo's country was prospered, it was because of the Tang Dynasty's enthronement of Yi Nan Khan and secretly supported him. If Li Shimin followed the support of Xue Yantuo in the past, he would definitely shock the Xue Yantuo tribe, which was also called Yi Nan uneasy.

Li Shimin enthroned the Turks, thinking that if Xue Yantuo knew the truth, he would restrain himself and be cautious in his words and actions. Li Shimin would have tolerated them for several years. If they didn't know the truth, they would still be in a dilemma with the Turks, which gave Li Shimin the excuse of the Northern Expedition to destroy his country.

Li Shimin smiled and said, "Xiao Qing's words are very good, and I am deeply intimate. I just don't know if Xiao Qing is someone who went north to enthronement?"

The enthronement of Asunasmo as Khan and restoration of the Turkic country was not only for the purpose of being so simple, but more for the purpose of shocking Xue Yantuo. Therefore, the enthronement was not something that ordinary ministers could do.

Xiao Qin showed a thoughtful look on his face, and he pondered for a moment before saying, "The envoy must not be hasty. This person must not only be respectful in the court, but also be trusted by His Majesty, but also be famous in the northern part. He is quite famous in the Turkic and Xueyantuo tribes. He can suppress the Turkic and Xueyantuo tribes, and it is best to be a military minister. I count the upper and lower parts of the court, but I think that the person who is the pharmacist must be the pharmacist."

The pharmacist master mentioned by Xiao Qin is Li Jing. Li Jing is a god of military service and can be called prime minister with military merits. It can be seen that Li Jing is extremely valued by Li Shimin. In the fourth year of Zhenguan, Li Jing even took charge of the northern expedition, and the Turks in the Beiping region had a high prestige in the north. If Li Jing was appointed as an envoy, it would be impossible. However, after hearing Xiao Qin's words, Li Shimin rejected it.

Li Shimin said: "The pharmacist is indeed a suitable candidate, but the pharmacist is old and at the beginning of this year, he is even more suffering from foot disease and cannot do anything to walk. How can he go thousands of miles north to serve as an envoy?"

When Xiao Qin heard this, he nodded in embarrassment and replied: "What Your Majesty said is the same, but who else can have such a reputation except the pharmacist?"

Li Shimin thought about it, a smile slowly hung on the corner of his mouth, and said to Xiao Qin: "Xiao Qing thought well, but he forgot one person. There is a more suitable candidate in my heart than a pharmacist."

Xiao Qin asked in a curious tone, knowingly asked: "I am stupid, but I don't know who Your Majesty is talking about?"
Chapter completed!