The Leisurely Life of the Prince of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 514 Awakening of Insects
Compared with the previous way of fighting, more generals and officials are sent out now, but fewer soldiers. Guanzhong does not feel the pressure of recruiting soldiers. This pressure is shared by people from the Western Regions and Tubo.

The emperor was in Guanzhong and had no idea of ​​the situation in the Western Regions. Liang Jianfang and Li Fengjie were outside in charge of the army in the Western Regions, and Liu Rengui and Cui Xuanwei were in charge of the governance of the Western Regions.

The number of troops is not important, as long as the generals leading the troops are all brave soldiers.

The terrain and climate of the Pamir Mountains were not necessarily favorable to the Tang army. Therefore, from the beginning, Ying Gong did not plan to recruit soldiers on a large scale in Guanzhong, and ruled out large-scale, large-scale marching methods. Instead, he let the generals lead a team of several hundred or nearly a thousand people to attack with their own troops.

There may be dozens of small military groups in the Pamirs, which are small in scale and will be like needles piercing the heart of the Pamirs.

Watching the children struggling to pull the longbow in the sun, Duke Ying said, "Your Majesty should come to Mount Li more often."

Mount Li is indeed a very good place. For example, you can be neighbors with an emperor who will be remembered forever.

Originally, they were all emperors of Guanzhong, and generally speaking, they have always been neighbors.

Li Chengqian asked, "How is the court doing these days?"

Li Ji said: "Xu Jingzong called Chu Suiliang a bitch, and Chu Suiliang called Xu Jingzong an old dog. Sigh..."

After the late spring cold, after arranging the matters of the grand court meeting, there was actually nothing else to do. For the emperor, he would have a lot of free time until the excavation of Kunming Lake showed results.

Besides, it would take about a month for the edict from the day of the grand court meeting to be delivered to the Western Regions. That was to say, before that, for the next month, the emperor could stay in the Lishan Palace and not return to Chang'an City.

Li Chengqian said: "I have always felt that they will tire themselves out sooner or later if they keep fighting."

Ying Gong said: "Ma Zhou and Yu Zhining will not get involved."

When his father returned, Li Chengqian left the space to his father and Duke Ying, and went to teach the children how to draw the bow.

The weather has been warming up for more than ten days, and even the mountain breeze brings a little warmth.

The trees all sprouted new buds. Half a month later, in March of the eleventh year of the Qianqing reign, the Lishan Palace was finally cleaned up, and even the water in the Huaqing Pool became clearer.

Li Chengqian saw magpies flying into the forests of Mount Li, which meant that warm spring had arrived.

The Rain Water solar term had just passed, and the next step was to wait for the arrival of Jingzhe. Li Chengqian sat outside the Huaqing Palace, watching his daughter Que'er pouring fish fry into the Huaqing Pond. She smiled and said, "When the fish grow up, father will be able to come to Mount Li to fish."

Li Chengqian said: "I prefer to sit outside and fish. Who would go into the mountains to fish?"

Little Que'er raised his head and thought for a moment before saying, "Father, what you care about is not fishing on the mountain, but fishing in the pond. After all, the Huaqing Pond is only this small, and the fish will always bite the hook. For Father, this is actually less interesting, isn't it?"

"Well, you're partly right."

She hesitated and asked, "What other types of fish are there?"

Li Chengqian shook his head and said, "Also, if you sit by the river in each county, you can see all kinds of people, but in the Lishan Palace, you can only see the scenery."

Little Magpie stepped forward and took his father's hand, saying, "That's because father likes to see the world."

Li Chengqian said: "I am already in the human world."

Xiaofu came over and said, "Your Majesty, it's time to eat."

Li Chengqian then stood up and took the children to eat.

Xiaofu prepared today's meals using local ingredients, so the dishes on the table seemed a bit plain.

Nowadays, Xiaofu is in charge of arranging the meals for the whole family. Xiaofu is the only one who knows what His Majesty likes to eat, what he cannot eat, and whether he likes to eat light or heavy food at different times of the year.

The time in Mount Li was very leisurely, so leisurely that the children developed the habit of going to bed late. Because the emperor began his vacation, the children's studies also temporarily stopped.

Your Majesty's children are very special. Occasionally, they speak a language that others cannot understand. That language is very nice to hear, with each word clearly pronounced and sonorous and powerful, as if this kind of language should exist in the world.

The Emperor and the Empress Dowager have returned to the village in Longshouyuan. Your Majesty will stay in Mount Li to rest for the rest of the time.

In his spare time, after Wan'er took care of the child and put him to sleep, Li Chengqian was able to personally inquire about state affairs. Looking at the memorial in his hand, he said, "Ning'er, do you have any more writing materials?"

These days, the children used up a lot of ink practicing calligraphy. Ning'er tied up her long hair and picked up an inkstone from the table. After some selection, she finally found one that could be used.

She ground the ink and placed the inkstone in front of His Majesty's desk, saying, "Many items are still in Chang'an, so I don't have that many inkstones with me."

Seeing that she was about to prepare, Li Chengqian held her hand and said, "Don't worry, we will be back in two days."

Ning'er nodded and helped His Majesty organize the papers.

Su Wan said, "I feel like I can't remember good things lately, and I just remembered that I still have a lot of books that I haven't put away."

She came back to her senses and said, "Go and see if it's going to rain."

A few drops of rain fell, and it was already raining outside the Huaqing Palace. In fact, the Queen didn't need to give any instructions, as the palace maids had already collected the homework of the princes.

Li Chengqian took the bowl of porridge from Xiaofu and asked, "Is there celery in this porridge?"

Xiaofu said, "Princess Dongyang said that it would be good for Your Majesty to eat some celery. It would be hard to find such fresh celery after this season."

"Well, it tastes pretty good."

Xiaofu squinted his eyes and smiled happily.

Ning'er looked at this girl and felt that she had been serving His Majesty for so many years and she had always been very stupid. In fact, she could have asked for a status.

Ning'er often talked to Xiaofu about this in private, but this girl has always been silly, but she is also very content.

Until that night, under the arrangement of the Queen, Aunt Fu in the palace became Concubine Fu.

The next day, Xiaofu, who was supposed to cook at this time on weekdays, did not appear by the stove. Instead, he walked beside the queen in luxurious clothes, walking with Concubine Ning.

Compared with Empress Su, who came from a prominent family, and Concubine Ning, who was talented and knowledgeable, Xiaofu's brilliance was much dimmer, but she had always been in charge of the emperor's diet, and no one would replace her in the future.

In the third month of Guanzhong, during the Waking of Insects, the emperor left Mount Li and returned to the palace.

After the emperor returned to the palace, he summoned Yu Zhining and Xu Jingzong.

In the new palace, Li Chengqian said, "This is a letter from Murong Shun to me."

Xu Jingzong took the letter handed over by Eunuch Yang with both hands, flipped through the contents and said, "Your Majesty, Murong Shun is indeed a man of means." This time, Murong Shun's letter said that he had prepared 50,000 troops for the Tang Dynasty to welcome the Arabs. If the troops of the Anxi Protectorate were added, there should be 110,000 troops.

Yu Zhining stood aside in silence.

Li Chengqian stood up and took two steps, looking at the dark clouds outside the hall with his hands in his pockets. The thunderstorm during the Waking of Insects season seemed to be coming, and the dark clouds today were very heavy.

Just as I was thinking about it, I suddenly saw a flash of lightning in the distant sky, followed by a rumbling thunder.

After the wind started blowing, another half a minute passed before the thunderstorm outside stopped.

Just after March, the warm air in the south impatiently moved northward and hit Guanzhong. I heard that there has been heavy fog in the mornings north and south of the Qinling Mountains these days.

It was at this time that the northwest cold air that originally covered Guanzhong had not yet been completely consumed, and the collision between the two sides turned into a thunderstorm.

Lightning flashed before my eyes again, and the thunder seemed to tear the sky apart.

Li Chengqian walked back into the hall and said, "Can we verify Murong Shun's story? As long as the merchants of the Tang Dynasty are bold enough, they can also buy a small country?"

This is indeed a very bold idea, but the only person in the world who can do such a thing is Murong Shun, and the means by which Murong Shun obtained the small country of Bolor were not very upright.

Yu Zhining said: "Your Majesty, there are only a few businessmen in this world who can be like him."

Li Chengqian nodded and said, "When I was still in the Eastern Palace, I tried to approach merchants several times but was stopped. Now that I think about it, I am glad that you all advised me."

Yu Zhining bowed and said, "I don't deserve it."

Now, Yu Zhining spoke with a hoarse voice that only an old man could have. Li Chengqian sat back down and said, "I don't need the merchants of the Tang Dynasty to buy one or two small countries for the Tang Dynasty like Murong Shun did. It's not good for the court to get too close to the merchants. Do you have such concerns?"

Xu Jingzong said: "Your Majesty, the fact that Jingzhao Prefecture is too close to merchants has already been criticized by the court."

Li Chengqian let out a long sigh, holding the edge of the tea bowl on the table with one hand, and said, "If the army is outside, the Tang merchants can go out, let the countries sign a contract with the Ministry of Rites and let the merchants go, can they bring a lot of wealth and goods..."

The army cleared the way, officials led the way, and the merchants "grabbed money" as described by Your Majesty.

His Majesty is definitely not a gentleman, so the court officials today are not gentlemen either. The entire court, both civil and military officials, are like jackals. When it comes to managing the court, they wish to eat up all the value of people, leaving nothing but bones.

The emperor, Yu Zhining and Xu Jingzong were still discussing.

As Shangguan Yi was also invited into the hall, there were more voices in the new hall, and the sound of thunder and rain outside the hall became louder. The rain irrigated the earth and formed a mist on the ground.

Since arriving at the new palace early this morning, Yu Zhining couldn't remember how many bowls of tea he had drunk. He just felt tired listening to Xu Jingzong's story.

Xu Jingzong believed that the army was only capable of conquering and plundering when it was outside, and that the management mentioned by Your Majesty was unnecessary.

Shangguan Yi strongly opposed Xu Jingzong's view on this. He felt that not every war between the two countries was like the Eastern Expedition to Goguryeo, where the population was plundered. Sometimes one side surrendered in a war while the other entered the city.

Just as Liu Bang and Xiang Yu entered Xianyang separately, those were two different things and two different evaluations, which were very different from what later generations said.

If you rob, you will be criticized, but if you use a more just and legitimate way to obtain the wealth of the enemy country after it surrenders, you can avoid being blamed.

Yu Zhining said: "Minister Xu."

Xu Jingzong came back to his senses and said, "Speak."

Yu Zhining added: "Normally, Minister Xu is such a smart person, why can't he adapt himself now?"

Xu Jingzong hesitated and asked, "What does Minister Yu mean?"

"It is indeed not good for officials to lead merchants to make money and plunder outside, but in other words, merchants in the Tang Dynasty are also Tang people. As long as they are Tang people, they must be protected. Officials are protecting merchants in their trade, not leading them. As long as they understand the priorities, it will be fine. As for how to do it, I believe Minister Xu knows better than me."

Xu Jingzong's face did not turn red. Facing these words, he was confident and stood straight, saying: "Indeed, only this old man can handle this matter."

Li Chengqian smiled. Xu Jingzong was the best at this kind of thing.

Yu Zhining continued, "Well, do you have any objections to what happens next?"

"Your Majesty!" Xu Jingzong bowed again and said, "I will take care of this matter, but can you let Liu Rengui handle the many things that the merchants will do after they arrive in the Western Regions?"

Shangguan Yi said, "Your Majesty, the Anxi Grand Protectorate is almost ready, and the Ministry of Personnel originally planned to transfer Liu Rengui back in the next two years."

Xu Jingzong said: "Then let Liu Rengui lead the merchants to try it out for a year."

Yu Zhining asked, "Are there any candidates for merchants?"

Xu Jingzong said, "Yes! Ever since I was in charge of Jingzhao Prefecture, I have heard of a man who refused to become a disciple of Master Du He when he was in Chang'an. Later, he established a firm foothold in Guanzhong. Now his family business is in the Hexi Corridor and Xizhou. His name is Pei Mingli."

Shangguan Yi asked in return: "Is this person useful?"

"He is very useful. He is smart and loyal to the Tang Dynasty. In the past, there may have been temples in the Hexi Corridor that were generous and charitable, but Pei Mingli never did such a thing. He abided by his duties and only did business. He has three workshops and two warehouses in the Hexi Corridor. His assets should be worth 100,000 strings of cash."

Shangguan Yi said: "I have heard of this man in my early years. I tried to find you, Xu Jingzong, several times but to no avail."

Xu Jingzong nodded.

Shangguan Yi added: "I think he may not be able to come up with 100,000 strings of cash."

"That's right." Xu Jingzong added, "Counting his family business and workshop, it should be worth 100,000 strings of cash, Your Majesty! It doesn't matter how rich this merchant is. As long as he is loyal, obedient and has some skills, then as long as the court gives him a chance, he can do the rest himself."

Li Chengqian said: "This one is not enough. The battle of Congling is coming soon. I need more people."

The army would first go to fight, and then the officials would write a contract with the surrendering country. After that, the officials could protect the merchants, engage in trade, and plunder with legitimate reasons. The ultimate goal was to bring wealth to the Tang Dynasty.

This is another kind of wisdom. For example, if a merchant earns 100,000 yuan in the Western Regions, how can he bring the money here?

In other words, the flow began to be intercepted in the Western Regions, and when a transaction occurred, as long as it was brought into the territory of the Tang Dynasty, market taxes had to be paid.

Later, just as the thunderstorm outside stopped, the Minister of Civil Affairs Chu Suiliang was also summoned into the palace.

Now the noise in the hall became even louder, and Li Chengqian had no choice but to stand outside the hall to get some peace and quiet with Shangguan Yi and Yu Zhining.

Li Chengqian took the chair handed to him by Eunuch Yang and sat down. He looked at the still wet scenery after the rain and said with a smile, "I once heard Shangshu Yu say that it would be nice to write a collection of essays when you get old and end your life there."

(End of this chapter)