Chapter 120       Prepare for war!

"Your Majesty is wise and powerful, and is unparalleled in the world. In this battle, the Tang Dynasty will undoubtedly win!"

"I am congratulating Your Majesty in advance, and wiped out all Turkic tribes in one fell swoop, making them a great military achievement and will go down in history!"

...

The emperor made the decision, and the civil and military ministers naturally agreed with each other, and they also sang praises them well, and at the same time they were very impressed.

Who do you admire?

First, I admire this Emperor of Tang Dynasty. He played the trick of trying to get and playing with civil and military officials in his palms. He was really cunning!

Second, I admire the two prime ministers, who did not interfere with fake news and guessed the emperor's thoughts all at once. It's amazing!

At the same time, some people are puzzled that the right prime minister Li Linfu has always been cunning and is more skillful than a monkey. It is not surprising that he can guess the emperor's mind, but the left prime minister Li Shizhi has a rough personality, so why did he guess it this time?

Could it be that the left prime minister is wise and foolish, and has been hiding it deeply before?

The civil and military officials did not know the answer, but Li Linfu knew it very well, because before entering the palace to discuss matters, he received a secret report from the "borer".

Just last night, Li Shizhi summoned a group of confidants to drink in his prime minister's mansion, and discussed the Turks' upcoming invasion, as well as the war and peace... Most participants believed that according to the recent news in the palace, the emperor was preparing for peace talks, and it was best for everyone to agree to peace talks at the court meeting as the emperor's wishes.

Li Zhao was also present at the time, and he opposed the public opinion. He believed that the emperor was preparing to negotiate peace and that it was true that he was preparing to fight the Turks. He also listed a series of reasons, which everyone was impressed.

There are still ten chances of winning, which were listed by Li Zhao. Li Shizhi is just a parrot.

'This kid is so smart, both civil and military, and his eyes are even more accurate, as if he can predict the future. If he wins over, he will definitely become his right-hand man... It's a pity that the emperor took the lead. No matter how great his ability is, he can't take anyone from the emperor, right?"

Thinking of this, Li Linfu looked at the northwest corner of the hall, where there was a young man with red lips and white teeth, with extraordinary heroism, Li Zhao.

Since becoming the Chengfenglang, whether it is a court meeting, discussion or traveling, the emperor has to bring Li Zhao with him, and often discuss some military and national affairs with him. The meaning of cultivation is obvious!

It can be imagined that in a few years, another Prime Minister Li will appear in the court of the Tang Dynasty!

Let’s talk less about the gossip, so let’s continue talking about the war with the Turks!

The battle of the country is not trivial. It is not just that you can defeat the enemy by making up your mind and shouting a few passionate slogans.

To win this battle, you must carefully plan and consider various factors. One of the most important ones is: work together and unite!

Is the Tang Dynasty united?

Sorry, not united at all!

Let’s not talk about anything else, let’s talk about the court. The left and right parties are intrigue and messy. How can we resist foreign enemies in this state?

"The right prime minister and the left prime minister are now in a great enemy. For the sake of the country and the country, I hope the two of them will work together to help me defeat the powerful enemy!" Li Longji looked at Li Linfu and Li Shizhi, and his tone was a little cold, even with a hint of murderous aura!

I am not unaware of the fact that the two parties are fighting each other, but I have not intervened. The reason is very simple: the more the ministers fight, the more stable the position of the emperor will be. This is a truth that has not changed forever!

Therefore, I never interfere with the struggle between ministers, but instead enjoy sitting on a high place to watch the fun. As long as this kind of struggle does not threaten his imperial power and does not exceed his control.

But now it is different. Faced with the powerful enemy of the Turks, the Tang Empire must unite and work together to win!

At this time, no matter who ignores the overall situation and continues to fight in the nest, he can only draw out the Emperor's Sword and start a murderous act!

"Don't worry, Your Majesty, I will lead all civil and military officials to unite with sincerity and to fight against foreign humiliation, and to repay Your Majesty's mighty kindness!"

Li Linfu and Li Shizhi were both smart people, so they naturally understood what the emperor meant. They quickly patted their chests and promised that the left and right prime ministers would never fight again and would unite with each other and resist foreign enemies.

For this reason, the two of them held hands and said many words of sincere cooperation in front of the civil and military officials... It would be as mediocre as mediocre as mediocre!

Of course, no matter how you say it, both of them knew in their hearts that the party struggle would never end, but was just temporarily suppressed.

Sooner or later, both sides will have to fight to the death!

...

The internal conflicts were temporarily suppressed, and the next step was to deal with foreign enemies. After Li Longji thought about it carefully, he issued three imperial edicts in succession.

The first decree: order officials from Jiangnan Road, Huainan Road and Jiangnan West Road to raise four million dans of grain within two months.

Someone must have asked, the Guanzhong Plain has been a fertile land of thousands of miles since ancient times, and has been an important grain-producing area. Why did not raise military rations in the Guanzhong area, but instead transport grain from the south from thousands of miles away?

There is no way, Guanzhong is a big granary, but it also has two major flaws:

First, the area of ​​the Guanzhong Plain is too narrow, and it is blocked by the Qinling Mountains and Weibei Mountains, so there is basically no room for expansion.

Second, the Zhou, Qin, Han, etc., Sui, Tang, and more than a dozen dynasties successively established their capitals in Guanzhong. After thousands of years of uncontrolled reclamation, the Guanzhong area suffered serious soil erosion, the quality of arable land continued to decline, and the grain output became worse every year.

Nowadays, it is difficult to feed the locals in the Guanzhong area, let alone provide hundreds of thousands of troops in the northwest.

Fortunately, since the Southern and Northern Dynasties, the Jiangnan region has been developed greatly, with dense water networks and convenient irrigation. Agricultural production is a thousand miles a day, and it is no problem to raise millions of loads of grain.

The second decree: After the spring plowing is over next year, 1.5 million strong civilians will be recruited from all provinces, prefectures and counties to transport food, grass and supplies to the Northwest army!

From Jiangnan to the northwest, the journey is thousands of miles long. If it is transported on land, the consumption along the way is enough to make a country bankrupt.

Fortunately, there is the Grand Canal, which can transport grain and water from Jiangnan to Luoyang City, then transport it from Guangtong Channel to Chang'an City, and finally transport it by land to the northwest front line, which will result in much smaller losses.

Speaking of this, I have to thank Emperor Yang of Sui!

At the cost of national destiny, this tyrant forced a Grand Canal, which allowed the rich materials in the south to be continuously transported to the north, ensuring the normal operation of the state machinery. It can be said that it is a blessing in the present and a great success!

The third decree: to be appointed Wang Zhongsi as the General of the Cavalry, to control the governor of the four towns of Shuofang, Hexi, Hedong and Longyou, to take charge of Huang Yue and Bai Ya, to have the power of life and death, and to be responsible for commanding the war against the Turks!

Wang Zhongsi, whose original name is Wang Xun, was the chief general of Zhongyong, and he used a Liuhe sword, which was 12 feet long and weighed 54 kilograms. He carried it on his horse and danced like flying. He was famous in Longyou for his bravery and good at fighting.

In the second year of Kaiyuan, the Tubo people invaded Longyou area. Wang Haibin led his troops to fight, and won consecutive victories and won a lot. He did not expect other generals to be jealous and would wait and see and not support him.

Wang Haibin was unable to get support and was surrounded by a huge siege. He fought to the death with only a few people and eventually died heroically.

Afterwards, Li Longji cherished Wang Haibin and posthumously awarded him the "General Zuo Jinwu". He also brought his nine-year-old son Wang Xun into the palace to raise him. He practiced literature and martial arts with the princes, and personally gave him the name: Zhongsi!

When Wang Zhongsi grew up, he was both civil and military, and was extremely brave. Later, he joined the army and made many military achievements on the northwest battlefield. In the 25th year of Kaiyuan, he was promoted to the governor of Shuofang, who was responsible for preventing the Turks.

Wang Zhongsi worked in the northwest for many years, was very familiar with the local customs and culture, and was well aware of the weaknesses and reality of the Turkic tribes. It was perfect for him to be responsible for commanding this war.

The decision was made, and Li Longji couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Seeing that it was almost noon, he planned to hold a banquet in Xingqing Palace to reward the civil and military officials and take the opportunity to inspire people's morale!

Just as Na Zhi was about to issue an order, a young eunuch bowed and ran in, holding a memorial in his hand... Gao Lishi took it and saw it, and his face changed drastically.

"Lis, what happened?"

"Report to Your Majesty, the Tubo envoy, Sangzabu, has arrived in Chang'an City and submitted a letter to ask for your Majesty to meet you!"

"Hmph, the Tubo envoys will not come early or late. But this critical moment is coming. I am afraid that it is fake to meet me. I will take the opportunity to spy on the truth and take advantage of the situation. It is true to take advantage of the situation and fish in troubled waters!"

Li Longji was very depressed, and he felt like he was resisting a wolf at the front door and entering a tiger at the back door.

The Turks and Tubo were powerful beings with hundreds of thousands of soldiers, one located in the northwest and the other located in the southwest, which happened to form a force of attack on the Tang Empire from north to south. The focus of the three parties was the Hetao region and the Hexi Corridor. There were many battles, and countless casualties were killed and injured.

From a strategic perspective, the Tang Dynasty was naturally struggling to fight against two, but was attacked from both sides.

Fortunately, Li Zhao offered three poisons... No, it was three clever tricks that bound the hands and feet of the Tubo people. Only then did the Tang Dynasty gather heavy troops on the front line of Shuofang and Hexi to have a battle of the country with the Turks!

As long as the Turks were defeated and the problem in the northwest was solved, the Tang Dynasty could concentrate its efforts and then solve the problem in the southwest.

Unexpectedly, at the critical moment of dispatching troops, the Tubo envoy arrived. What does this mean?

This shows that the Tubo people do not want to stay out of trouble, but instead take advantage of the war between the Tang Dynasty and the Turks, and get some benefits. What will they want?

Marriage?

Cut the land?

Or gold, silver and wealth?

If the Tubo lion spoke loudly, would he give it or not... Li Longji frowned.

On the other side, the left prime minister Li Shizhi took two steps forward: "Report to Your Majesty, the Tubo envoys are afraid that the visitor is not good. Your Majesty can postpone the interview time on the grounds that the state is busy, and at the same time, send someone to meet the Tubo envoys privately. How about they touch their reality?"

"No need, I am the emperor of the Tang Dynasty. If I avoid it, wouldn't it be a joke... Is the imperial edict: Tomorrow morning, a banquet will be held in Xingqing Hall, and I will summon Tubo envoys!"

"Abide by the order!"
Chapter completed!