Tibet

It was late at night. Li Dai was already asleep due to the fatigue of the journey, but Pei Sanniang couldn't sleep. She was worried about her son's safety and missed him. When she heard that her son was serving as the Broken Leaf Army Envoy, she was even more heartbroken. What was she doing? When can I see my son again?

She turned her head and saw that her husband was sleeping soundly and snoring slightly. She felt bitter in her heart and kicked her husband awake.

Li Dai fell into a drowsy sleep and muttered: "Madam, I'm too sleepy, let's talk about it tomorrow night!"

"What are you thinking about? I'm worried about my son. I plan to go to Suiye in two days!"

Li Dai was startled, his sleepiness disappeared, and he quickly advised: "Zui Ye is thousands of miles away, and a war may break out. If you go, it will definitely hinder Ye'er and prevent him from going all out! "

Knowing his wife Mo Ruofu, Li Dai knew that if he firmly opposed his wife's breaking of leaves, it would probably be counterproductive. She might leave without saying goodbye tomorrow morning. So to put it another way, if you go, your son will be hindered and his career will be affected.

Sure enough, when Pei Sanniang heard that it would be a drag on her son, she hesitated again. The more she thought about it, the sadder she became. She couldn't help but choke up, "He was only fourteen years old when our mother and son separated. Now he is sixteen years old. Do we have to wait until he gets married?" I can't see him until I'm in my twenties? Ye'er may not even recognize me."

Li Dai quickly held his wife in his arms and comforted him in a low voice: "I won't wait until I'm in my twenties, one or two years at most! My father said that Ye'er will come back to pay homage to the emperor, and he will probably return to Beijing next year." trip."

"He has returned to Beijing and we are not in the capital. What should we do?"

"I will ask my father for more information. When Ye'er comes back, we will also take a leave and come back."

Pei Sanniang felt a little more comfortable, "Husband, aren't you trying to coax me?"

Li Dai patted her shoulder, "I promise, in the worst case, we'll have to work harder on the road."

"All right!"

Pei Sanniang had hope in her heart, and the depression in her chest felt much better. She lay down again and said to her husband, "Husband, please rest! You have to prepare for your work report tomorrow, and I'm worried that Yang Guozhong will make things difficult for you."

"No, Wei Xiangguo is in charge now. I am reporting my duties to him. Why I chose this time to come back is to avoid Yang Guozhong."

"Then I'll be relieved. By the way, don't you want that?"

Li Dai was shocked, "Which one?"

"That's it!" Pei Sanniang kicked her husband.

"oh--"

The couple chatted for a while, and then fell asleep.

Early the next morning, Li Linfu was summoned and hurried to the imperial study. He bowed and said: "I see you, Your Majesty!"

Li Longji smiled slightly and said: "Li Xiangguo doesn't need to be polite, please sit down!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Li Linfu sat down aside, and within a moment, the other four prime ministers arrived one after another.

Li Longji nodded and slowly said to everyone: "I have been thinking about the Western Regions these days. Gao Xianzhi cannot stay in the capital for a long time, so I call all the prime ministers to make a decision today. How should we deal with the eastward expansion of food? "

Li Longji glanced at Yang Guozhong and said, "Yang Xiangguo, you speak first!"

Although Yang Guozhong is uneducated and has no skills, he also has his own staff who will give him suggestions. Now he is somewhat capable in expressing his opinions.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, I am mainly considering the issue of financial support. We maintain such a far-flung sphere of influence and spend millions of dollars every year. We also have to go to war with Dashi. The expenditure on war is a bottomless pit. Your Majesty, is this necessary? The attitude of Wei Chen is to abandon the west of Congling and concentrate financial, material and military resources to defend Tibet in the four towns of Anxi!"

What Yang Guozhong said actually makes sense. When the imperial court is in financial difficulty, it should shrink appropriately. Most officials in the imperial court think the same as him, and they must concentrate their military and financial resources to deal with Tibet, which is a serious enemy of theirs. But does the majority represent the truth?

not necessarily!

Everything has advantages and disadvantages, it all depends on the perspective from which the proposer analyzes it, or which side his own interests favor. If Yang Guozhong really considered the finances of Datang, he would not have launched two Nanzhao wars.

The main reason for his opposition was that Gao Xianzhi was recommended by Li Linfu to be the governor of Anxi. This time Gao Xianzhi came to Chang'an and gave Yang Guozhong 20,000 taels of silver, but gave Li Linfu 30,000 taels of silver, which made Yang Guozhong extremely unhappy.

Next to him, Chen Xilie added: "Yang Xiangguo is right. Hezhong is thousands of miles away from Chang'an, but it is only a thousand miles away from Dashi. Dashi costs thousands of dollars, so we have to spend tens of thousands of dollars. The income and expenditure are not equal. Besides, Our primary enemy is Tibet, and we should indeed concentrate our manpower, material resources, and financial resources on guarding against Tibet, rather than setting up another powerful enemy."

"Chen Xiangguo is surprised by this statement!"

Wei Jiansu stood up and said: "We cannot give up our territory to others just because we are afraid of making strong enemies. If we have this idea, then Huihe, Geluolu, and Sijie will all become our strong enemies. We will Give in, give up Yinshan Mountain to Huihe, and give up Beiting to Ge Luolu, then there will be no strong enemies.

The river and broken leaves are the fruits of the Holy Sage's step-by-step expansion of territory. How can they be handed over to others out of fear? So what else does Anxi Army do? After wasting so much military expenditure, it would be better to disband and save more money. "

Yang Guozhong said angrily: "The west of Congling is not our vital interest, and it will have little impact if we lose it. But the Anxi Army wants to defend the four towns of Anxi, and preventing Tibet is their first priority!"

Wei Jiansu said calmly: "Yang Xiangguo is really wrong. Our vital interests are related to the west of Congling!"

Even the emperor Li Longji was a little interested and asked with a smile: "What did Wei Xiangguo say?"

Wei Jiansu bowed and said: "Your Majesty, what I am talking about is the benefits brought by the Silk Road. We ship a large amount of silk, porcelain and other goods to the West every year, but there are not many goods shipped from the West, only a small amount and carpets. , silverware, etc., which shows that we have made huge profits from the Silk Road trade. We do not produce much silver and gold ourselves, but where does so much silver and gold on the market come from? In fact, it is transported through the Silk Road. Come.

This Silk Road supported many people in the Tang Dynasty. With the prosperity of the East Market and the West Market, and the rising housing prices in Chang'an, we indirectly gained huge benefits. Why did we launch a war against the Turks and why did we destroy the Western Turks? Isn’t it because they blocked the Silk Road? That's why Wei Chen said that the west of Congling has huge vital interests for us, and His Majesty should have a deep understanding of it. "

What is a needle hidden in cotton? Wei Jiansu's words are a needle hidden in cotton, especially the last sentence, "Your Majesty should have a deep understanding." It seems that it is not directed at Yang Guozhong, but it is actually a needle hidden in cotton.

What does that mean? Wei Jiansu was hinting to Li Longji that Yang Guozhong was too young and did not know the hardships of the Tang Dynasty in opening up the Western Regions during the Kaiyuan period and the early Tianbao period. He did not understand anything.

Li Longji understood the implication of Wei Jiansu's words, nodded and said: "Let me think about it! Everyone, please go back first. By the way, Li Xiangguo stays."

Since this year, Li Linfu has adjusted his strategy. If he can't compete with Yang Guozhong, he will not compete with him. He implements the strategy of hiding one's strength and biding time. However, Wei Jiansu has become Yang Guozhong's opponent. This is also because the conflict between the prince and the Yang family has begun to rise.

Li Linfu's keeping a low profile made the emperor Li Longji value him instead. He needed Li Linfu's experience to calm down the situation and clean up the mess for Yang Guozhong. As long as Li Linfu did not fight with Yang Guozhong, he would transfer Yang Guozhong to the right prime minister, Li Linfu to the deputy prime minister, and the imperial concubine. Li Longji can accept the suggestion.

Only Li Longji and Li Linfu were left in the imperial study. Li Longji picked up a book and said, "Yang Xiangguo recommended Shi Cuiyuan, the governor of Yi, to be the minister of Zhongshu. Does Li Xiangguo think it is feasible?"