Prince of Tang Dynasty

Chapter 293 Li Ji's Doubt

For literati, getting a good article or a good poem will make them feel very happy, and for military generals, if they get a good art of war, their joy and excitement are no less than those of literati. It can even be said to be more than that.

Because for generals, the art of war is the capital for them to settle down!

The first sentence of the opening chapter of "The Art of War" explains the relationship between war and the state.

"Soldiers, the major affairs of the country, the place of death and life, the way of survival, must be investigated."

This sentence means that the military is a major event of a country, because it determines the life and death of a country, so it cannot be ignored.

The ultimate goal of a strong military is actually to win battles, because only by winning battles can one defend one's home and country and deter surrounding countries that are ready to move.

But to win a battle, bravery alone is not enough, it also requires considerable wisdom and strategy, and these cannot be understood overnight, so the art of war has become a necessary thing.

To put it bluntly, the art of war is the "four books and five classics" of generals. Only by learning the art of war can generals understand their own things and lead soldiers to victory in the war.

Of course, this does not mean that generals who have read military books must be powerful, but one thing is certain, that is, under the same conditions, generals who are familiar with the art of war have a greater chance of winning!
Both Li Ji and Cheng Yaojin were generals who fought with Li Shimin very early on, so they naturally knew the importance of the art of war. Now they heard Li Shimin say that this book "Li Zi's Art of War" can be compared with "Sun Tzu's Art of War". Naturally, people did not dare to be negligent, and immediately looked at it.

The "Plum Art of War" written by Gao Ming is actually a copy of "36 Strategies", so there are not many words, only less than [-] words, but Li Ji and Cheng Yaojin read it for nearly half an hour. And from the beginning to the end, he didn't say a word, and looked engrossed.

Seeing the seriousness of the two, Li Shimin smiled slightly, and then began to deal with government affairs on his own.

After about another stick of incense, Li Ji raised his head, closed his eyes and let out a long breath.

"Huh... six different battlefield forms, 36 unused strategies, really unexpected, even if I meet him on the battlefield, I'm afraid the outcome will be unpredictable, this person who wrote "Li Zi's Art of War" is really a genius ah!"

Hearing Li Ji's exclamation, Li Shimin smiled slightly, and then turned his head to look at Cheng Yaojin.

"Ah Chou, what do you say?"

"This is..."

Hearing Li Shimin's question, Cheng Yaojin smacked his lips and nodded seriously.

"Unless my soldiers and horses are two... no, three times that of the opponent, then he probably has nothing to do with me. Of course, I can't do anything with him either."

Li Shimin: "..."

Li Ji: "..."

Seeing that the two looked at him in a wrong way, Cheng Yaojin scratched the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Since even Maogong can't do anything, what else can I, old Cheng, do? Can you beat him, Your Majesty?"

Seeing that Cheng Yaojin even resorted to aggressive tactics, Li Shimin immediately burst out laughing.

"Hahahaha, you don't need to provoke me, ugly, you should first talk about how this art of war is?"

"it is good!"

As soon as Li Shimin finished speaking, Cheng Yaojin gave a thumbs up.

"This art of war is so good, it can be said that it opened Lao Cheng's eyes. If I hadn't read this book of war, I would not have known that there are such insidious and cunning people in the world. Seeing it, Lao Cheng broke out in cold sweat."

After hearing Cheng Yaojin's words, Li Ji also nodded.

""Sun Tzu's Art of War" says: Soldiers are deceitful. This "Plum Art of War" simply uses this deceit to the extreme. It is really admirable. The title of this book is "Plum Art of War". handwriting?"

In Li Ji's opinion, if a book on the art of war like "Li Zi's Art of War" existed long ago, it must be as famous as "Sun Tzu's Art of War". Just been written!
And after contacting the name "Li Zi's Art of War" and the handwriting in the book, Li Ji immediately guessed that the book should be written by Li Shimin.

Hearing Li Ji's words, Li Shimin laughed immediately.

"Haha, why does Maogong think that this book was written by me?"

"that is because……"

Li Ji originally planned to flatter Li Shimin when he continued to explain, but before he could speak, Cheng Yaojin burst out laughing.

"Hahahaha, it's impossible. Your Majesty always likes to go straight in battle. The most common method is to attack the city and pull out the stronghold, step by step, so this book of war must not be written by His Majesty. Let me take it out and take a closer look. Maybe I can guess it." Who the hell is this plum!"

As he said that, Cheng Yaojin snatched the book of war from Li Ji's hand, and put it directly into his arms.

Seeing this scene, Li Shimin and Li Jing immediately showed helplessness.

"This guy is as shameless as ever!"

They all saw that Cheng Yaojin had taken a fancy to this book of war, so he made an excuse and wanted to take it away.

Thinking of this, Li Shimin immediately laughed.

"Ah Chou, since I can take out this military book, I will naturally know who wrote it, and you don't need to go back and check it carefully. You return the military book to me, and I will tell you who wrote this book. Who and how?"

"Uh……"

Hearing Li Shimin's words, Cheng Yaojin's face froze immediately, but he laughed again in an instant.

"Your Majesty, the old minister still likes to guess by himself. In view of the fact that the old minister has made great contributions to the Tang Dynasty, you should not tell the old minister."

"..."

This shameless person even took the credit for it!
Seeing that Cheng Yaojin had given up his old face and gave up, Li Shimin had no choice but shook his head helplessly.

"Then it's up to you!"

Having said that, Li Shimin handed Li Ji another book from the desk.

"Mao Gong, I transcribed that book just now, and this is the original, you can copy a copy later, and return this book to me later!"

"Yes!"

As soon as Li Shimin said that this "Li Zi's Art of War" was the original, Li Jing immediately took it with both hands excitedly, and then opened the pages like a pilgrimage.

Gao Ming's "Plum Art of War" was copied by Su Wan'er, and Su Wan'er's handwriting is beautiful, Li Ji immediately saw that it was a woman's handwriting, so his eyes widened in surprise.

"This handwriting... Could it be that Li Zi's Art of War was written by a woman? Could it be Princess Pingyang?"

Having said that, Li Ji frowned again.

"No, although Princess Pingyang is both wise and brave, she can't write such a book of war. Then who wrote this book of war?"

Seeing Li Ji thinking hard, Li Shimin smiled and shook his head again.

"Mao Gong, there are so many people surnamed Li in the world, how do you know that this book must be written by my lineage?"

"Because it's written in the book!"

Hearing Li Ji's answer, Li Shimin was stunned.

"where?"

Seeing Li Shimin's expression, a flash of understanding flashed across Li Ji's face, and he immediately bowed to Li Shimin.

"Your Majesty, please forgive my offence!"

Hearing Li Ji's sudden apology to himself, Li Shimin was stunned for a moment, but he reacted quickly.

"Mao Gong... were you deceiving me just now?"

"My minister offended!"

Seeing Li Ji saluting to him again, Li Shimin couldn't help but cry.

"Mao Gong, Mao Gong, I have been following your way for a long time, well, since you have already guessed it, I will not hide it from you, the person who wrote this book of war is suddenly from my Li family! "

"Really?"

Although Li Ji guessed something, when Li Shimin really admitted it, he couldn't help being a little surprised.

However, after thinking about it, he still couldn't think of anyone other than Li Shimin who could write such a book of war, so he immediately bowed to Li Shimin again.

"Your Majesty, please forgive me for being ignorant. Dare to ask who wrote this "Li Zi's Art of War"?"

But before Li Shimin could speak, Cheng Yaojin, who was standing beside him, laughed again.

"Hahahaha, Mao Gong, you are really smart and confused for a while. In the royal family, apart from His Majesty, only His Majesty the Crown Prince commanded the soldiers and horses. According to my old way, this book was not written by Your Majesty. It was written by His Royal Highness, there is absolutely no second possibility!"

"This……"

In Li Ji's view, although Cheng Yaojin's statement was somewhat arbitrary, it did have some truth, and Li Ji also felt that Cheng Yaojin could not see clearly.

"Could it really be written by His Royal Highness?"

With this doubt, Li Ji looked up at Li Shimin again, hoping that Li Shimin could give him an accurate answer.

Li Shimin didn't go back to Li Ji directly, but looked at Cheng Yaojin with interest.

"A Chou, are you so optimistic about the prince? You know, he has never even been to a battlefield!"

Hearing Li Shimin's words, Cheng Yaojin laughed again.

"Hahahaha, it's not that my old Cheng is optimistic about His Royal Highness, but His Royal Highness is admirable. Besides, what's the point of going to the battlefield? Didn't Silla send envoys to ask for help not long ago? Taking advantage of this opportunity, how about Let the prince..."

"Zhijie, shut up!"

Before Cheng Yaojin could finish speaking, Li Ji interrupted him with a wave of his hand, and bowed to Li Shimin.

"Your Majesty, His Royal Highness is a man of gold, and you must not take risks on the battlefield. If there is a mistake, the consequences will be disastrous. If you know your heart and speak out, I hope your Majesty will not blame him."

Having said that, he turned his head and glared at Cheng Yaojin again.

"Zhijie, hurry up and admit your mistake like His Majesty!"

Hearing Li Ji's words, Cheng Yaojin also realized that he was being abrupt, so he immediately cupped his fists at Li Shimin.

"Your Majesty, it was my old Cheng who didn't think carefully just now, I hope Your Majesty will not take it to heart!"

After finishing speaking, he also bowed to Li Shimin and saluted.

Seeing the pose of the two of them, Li Shimin immediately smiled and shook his head.

"Mao Gong, Ah Chou, you don't have to be like this. What you said is correct. Of course I won't blame you for it. As for the matter of Silla, I plan to wait until Gao Ming comes over."

Having said that, Li Shimin gave instructions to Liu Bing at the door.

"Liu Bing, go and call the prince over for me."

"Yes!"

(End of this chapter)