Tibet

Cui Yuan was a member of Yang Guozhong, and Li Linfu knew it very well. Yang Guozhong recommended him as the Minister of Zhongshu in order to grab his Zhongshu seal. Any order issued must have the double seal of Zhongshu's disciples to be effective. In Chen Xilie's hands, Zhongshu's seal is in his own hand. Although he will basically approve the seal, Yang Zhongguo is still uneasy and must hold Zhongshu's seal in his hand.

Li Linfu smiled and said: "Cui Yuan's qualifications are a little bit junior. If Your Majesty thinks he is suitable, I have no objection!"

Li Longji was silent for a moment and said: "Then let Yang Guozhong serve as the minister of Zhongshu. Aiqing is old and will be appointed as Shangshu's right servant. The order of Zhongshu is temporarily vacant. How about that?"

This was actually Concubine Yang's suggestion. She had never been involved in politics. This was the first time she had made suggestions on court personnel, but she took a stand on Li Linfu's arrangement. Li Longji thought she was considering Prince Ning's promotion, so he agreed. Her advice.

Li Linfu was excited. This was the ladder the emperor gave him to go downstairs. It is difficult to move up in officialdom, but once you reach the top, it is even harder to go down. This is the principle of climbing high and falling heavy.

Li Linfu quickly stood up and saluted, "Old minister, I thank your majesty for your arrangement and am willing to obey!"

Li Longji smiled and changed the topic: "I would like to hear Aiqing's advice regarding the battle between the Tang Army and Dashi over the river."

Li Linfu had been the prime minister for nearly twenty years, and he really understood the thoughts of the emperor Li Longji.

Li Longji was very happy with his achievements and was keen on opening up territories. He lost Suiye in the seventh year of Kaiyuan, which has always been a shame in his heart. Later, he launched a war to take Suiye back. How could he follow Yang Guozhong's advice and abandon the west of Congling.

Li Linfu then slowly said: "Yang Xiangguo looks at the problem from the perspective of the Ministry of Revenue. He is in charge of the Ministry of Revenue. It is understandable that he is worried about finances, but to maintain the dignity of the Tang Dynasty, the battle of Dashi must be viewed from a higher perspective. treat.

If we abandon the west of Congling, what impact will it have on the gentry and people of the world, on the officers and soldiers of all armies, and what impact will it have on the confidence and dignity of the entire Tang Dynasty?

On the contrary, if the Tang army in Anxi defeated Dashi and maintained the respect of the Tang Dynasty, they could shout like Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, 'Anyone who offends the Tang Dynasty will be punished no matter how far away! ’ It will definitely have a huge impact on people all over the world, and it can unite people’s hearts and make them more aware of His Majesty and the imperial court. "

Speaking of this, Li Linfu lowered his voice and said: "Your Majesty, foreign wars can effectively divert the attention of the world and ease the various dissatisfaction and contradictions of the lower-class scholars and common people against the imperial court."

Li Longji nodded repeatedly. Jiang was still very smart. He actually thought of using foreign war to divert various internal conflicts in the Tang Dynasty. How clever!

Li Longji pondered for a moment and said: "But I am a little worried. Will the Anxi army be slightly less powerful when facing the hundreds of thousands of food troops?"

Li Linfu smiled and said: "Your Majesty, Wei Chen received a letter from his grandson Li Ye. In his letter home, he mentioned a plan for war against Dashi. Wei Chen thinks it makes sense."

"What plan?"

"He mentioned that it would be best to let the Beiting Army join the battle together. The Beiting Army goes out through the Yili River Valley, which is Suiye, which is not far away."

"wonderful!"

Li Longji clapped his hands and praised: "What a brilliant plan. With the Beiting Army participating in the battle, I feel more at ease. Lingsun is not only excellent in martial arts, but also has a brilliant strategic vision. He is really a pearl of the Tang Dynasty royal family!"

Li Longji suddenly thought of something. He took out the report submitted by Li Ye and read it hastily. He asked strangely: "Why is such a good plan not mentioned in the report?"

Li Linfu smiled bitterly and said: "He is now the Broken Leaf Soldier and Horse Envoy and Gao Xianzhi's subordinate. Gao Xianzhi may not be happy if this plan is proposed!"

Li Longji laughed loudly, "That little guy is very thoughtful! He actually knows how not to contradict his boss head-on, but then fights in a roundabout way. Very good, very smart. Li Xiangguo, you have someone to succeed you!"

"I also hope that he will fight in the storm and become the pillar of the Tang Dynasty royal family as soon as possible!"

Li Longji nodded, "The Prime Minister is right. There are too many disciples of the royal family of the Tang Dynasty and too few who have made contributions to the country. When the battle against Dashi is over, I will let him take charge of it alone."

In the afternoon of the same day, Li Longji summoned Gao Xianzhi and formally approved the Anxi Jiedu Prefecture's proposal for the Battle of Dashi. Li Longji also promised that as long as Gao Xianzhi could lead his army to defeat the main force of the Dashi Army and thwart the eastward expansion of the Dashi, he would consider it Make him the Duke of the country.

Gao Xianzhi was so excited that he burst into tears of gratitude, and repeatedly stated that he would live up to the holy will and win the Battle of Hezhong.

Li Longji also proposed that Beitinghan's navy also participate in this battle and accept Gao Xianzhi's unified command.

Although Gao Xianzhi was very reluctant to share this opportunity with the Beiting Army, since the emperor had already proposed it, he did not dare to object and had to reluctantly agree.

At dusk, Gao Xianzhi came to the Prime Minister's Mansion again and paid homage to Li Linfu.

It was after Li Linfu's strong recommendation that Gao Xianzhi replaced Fumeng Lingcha and became the governor of Anxi. In a sense, he was Li Linfu's man.

Gao Xianzhi came to Chang'an this time, ostensibly to win the support of the imperial court and fight for food in Hezhong, but in fact he came for his official career after his term expires next year.

The Anxi Jiedushi Prefecture was a third-class Jiedufu among the major Jiedushifus in the Tang Dynasty. It could only be tied with Beiting and Lingnan. It was not as good as the second-class Jiedushifu such as Jiannan, Hedong, and Hexi, let alone Compared with first-class Jiedu mansions such as Longyou, Shuofang and Fanyang.

Gao Xianzhi hopes that in his next term of office, he can be transferred to a second-class Jiedushifu, such as serving as the Hexi Jiedushi. Now Ge Shuhan is also serving as the Hexi Jiedushi. Isn't that his opportunity?

Gao Xianzhi had visited Li Linfu a few days ago and gave him a counter check of 30,000 taels of silver, but he did not mention it. He will return to Anxi tomorrow, so he must put forward his ideas to Li Linfu tonight.

In the distinguished guest hall, Li Linfu listened to Gao Xianzhi's request with squinted eyes, nodded and said: "I understand your thoughts, and your conditions are actually enough, but I don't hide it either. I keep an eye on the person who is in the position of Hexi Jiedushi. There are many, including Guanlong nobles like Dugu Lie and Yuan Yuan, as well as royals like Li Yu and Li Xian, not to mention other qualified generals. It is not an ordinary difficulty to achieve your goal!"

Gao Xianzhi said cautiously: "How much more money does Xiangguo think we need to prepare?"

Seeing that Gao Xianzhi still didn't understand what he meant, Li Linfu felt a little unhappy, so he shook his head and said, "It's not about money. Many times, this is an exchange of interests."

"In accordance with the request of the Prime Minister, I have appointed Li Ye, my grandson, as the Broken Leaf Soldier and Horse Envoy!"

Li Linfu snorted dissatisfiedly, "Do you think I want the Broken Leaf Soldier Horse Envoy?"

Gao Xianzhi suddenly realized that it turned out that Li Xiangguo didn't like the Broken Leaf Soldiers and Horses at all. He quickly said: "Although your qualifications are slightly lower, as long as your military merit is sufficient, there is no problem, but it is his age."

Li Linfu said coldly: "The emperor praised him as Huo Qubing of the Tang Dynasty, and also praised him as the pearl of the Tang royal family. Do you think the emperor said it casually? Do you understand what the emperor is implying? Huo Qubing became the captain of the Yao School at the age of eighteen. , he was appointed as a hussar general at the age of twenty and commanded two battles in Hexi. When did the Tang royal family consider his age when he was promoted? Did the emperor consider his age when he conferred the title of county duke? "

"Ah! I have forgotten that your grandson is a member of the royal family. I wonder if the prime minister wants him to take any position?"

Li Linfu took a sip of tea and said calmly: "Li Ye served as the Secretary of the Anxi Protectorate before joining the army. He was actually a civilian official. Do you understand?"

"I understand my humble position, please make it clear to the Prime Minister!"

Li Linfu said slowly: "After this battle with Dashi is over, Datang's actual control range will extend to the river. At that time, I will propose to the emperor to establish the Hezhong Economic and Strategy Office to replace the current Suiye Army Town. The Jinglue Mansion is affiliated to the Anxi Protectorate."

"Does the Prime Minister hope to recommend Li Ye as the military envoy in Hezhong?"

Li Linfu shook his head and said, "The Hezhong Economic and Strategic Envoy will recommend that Ning Wangyao be the leader. You recommend him to serve as deputy envoy and concurrently as the director of the Economic and Strategic Administration."

"I understand the humble position, and I will definitely do it!"

Li Linfu stood up to see him off, and said to Gao Xianzhi sincerely: "Don't worry about the Beiting Army participating in the war. For you, victory is the most important. The emperor has promised you the title of Duke, and I will try my best to arrange for you to serve as the Hexi Festival Du Shi, the premise of all this is victory, everything else is empty!"

"The support of the Prime Minister, the humble position will be engraved in my heart!"

After leaving the Prime Minister's Mansion, Gao Xianzhi felt a cold sweat break out on his back. He really sighed in his heart. It turned out that Li Linfu asked him to arrange for his grandson to serve as the Broken Leaf Soldier and Horse Envoy in order to prepare for the position of the Hezhong Economic and Strategic Mansion. What does it mean to be foresighted? I learned a lesson today.