Li Chengqian of the Tang Dynasty: Please say long live His Majesty

Chapter 11 Cheng Qian, Father is clearing obstacles for your future
In the Liangyi Hall, Li Chengqian, who had taken off his python robe, looked much more relaxed.

The black tight-fitting inner robe made Li Chengqian look a little thin, but what made Li Shimin more concerned was a black rattan half-body armor that extended from Li Chengqian's waist, tightly fitting his legs, and even completely covering his feet.

"This is a leg armor made in imitation of the shin guard of Ming Guang Armor. Because it is made of rattan, the soles of the feet are also wrapped. Finally, it is hooked at the waist and supported by the right leg. When you move, you can see nothing unusual." Li Chengqian was very calm. He was almost certain that the drawings had already been in the hands of the emperor when the craftsmen were making it.

There are many things that Li Tai outside the palace knows nothing about, but the emperor inside the palace knows everything.

In fact, the emperor was not only on guard against Li Chengqian, but also against Li Tai.

Li Shimin sat on the imperial couch, looking at the rattan half-body armor worn by Li Chengqian, nodded and said, "This does have a bit of the flavor of the Liu Song Northern Palace heavy infantry."

Li Chengqian bowed slightly. In fact, in this era, the armor worn by soldiers are all separate.

Helmet, breastplate, skirt armor, greaves.

What Li Chengqian did was to connect the skirt armor and shin armor together, and even connected the toenails together.

From a distance, it looks quite unique.

Li Shimin came back to his senses, looked at Li Chengqian and asked, "How do you feel?"

"The vine wood is very light and doesn't require much effort. Furthermore, my left leg is straight at the knee and cannot bend. When I walk, I rely entirely on my right leg to move forward, while my left leg only serves as a temporary support. I walk slowly and there's nothing unusual."

Li Chengqian saw that Li Shimin didn't seem to be listening, and knew that his mind was elsewhere, so he said directly: "On the battlefield, in some special mountain and jungle terrain, it is indeed easier to be lighter and wear cloth armor to prevent mosquito bites and scratches from stones on the ground, but it is easy to catch fire."

"If the rattan armor isn't oiled, it won't catch fire so easily." Li Shimin finally came to his senses, looked at Li Chengqian, and said, "It's really difficult for you."

With this kind of half-body armor, since the left leg cannot be fully extended, one can only use the right leg and waist to move forward, which is not easy and very strenuous.

Li Chengqian bowed and said, "If it weren't for the Tibetan envoy coming today, I wouldn't have done this. The Tibetans are very ambitious. If they noticed that my injuries were serious, they would probably become even more ambitious. That's why I resorted to this desperate measure."

Li Shimin's face darkened slightly.

Others may not be able to see the evil ambitions of the Tibetans, but he can.

Songtsen Gampo’s method of proposing marriage was always to invite the other party politely first. If the other party refused, he would send troops to attack. If he could not defeat the other party, he would pretend to be pitiful.

This kind of person seems to be able to bend and stretch, but in fact he has great ambitions...

After a brief pause, the emperor said, "Cheng Qian, Lu Dongzan just said that Songzan is only 23 years old, so it is impossible for him to be childless in the future."

Marriage alliances not only involve marrying off daughters, but also offspring.

If Tubo had an heir with the blood of the Tang Dynasty, then it would not use war as the main means of action.

Li Chengqian bowed his head slightly and whispered, "Father, if the power disparity between Tubo and the Tang Dynasty were great, then having an heir would be a way for the two families to communicate. Or perhaps the Tubo people were not so ambitious and truly wanted to coexist harmoniously with the Tang Dynasty, then they would naturally have an heir. But the power disparity between the Tang Dynasty and Tubo is not that great, and Tubo is very ambitious..."

After a brief pause, Li Chengqian said solemnly, "Father, from ancient times to the present, there have been countless methods used in the imperial harem to prevent women from conceiving. I believe that there are no shortage of these methods in the Tubo royal palace."

Li Shimin's face completely sank.

Others may not know these things, but doesn't he?
His father was the Empress Dowager, and had given birth to many children, but there was one person who he could never conceive.

This person is Concubine Zhang.

Concubine Yin De also had a son, Li Yuanheng, but Concubine Zhang never had any children.

Whether there was something fishy going on here, only Li Shimin, who was most offended by Concubine Zhang, knew it best. If the Tang Dynasty was in such a state, how could Tubo possibly be any better?

If the Tibetans deliberately prevented the Tang princess from conceiving a child, then the Tang Dynasty would probably suffer a huge loss from this arranged marriage.

Li Chengqian lowered his head slightly, and in fact it was indeed the case.

When Princess Wencheng married into Tubo, the Tang Dynasty gave her an unknown amount of dowry.

It almost raised the cultural level of the entire Tubo to a higher level in a very short period of time.

If the Tibetans did not want the Tang princess to get pregnant, then there would be no need for the Tang to send so many betrothal gifts.

Finally, the emperor looked up and said softly, "Cheng Qian, do you know that Qingque is compiling the Comprehensive Geography?"

"Ah!" Li Chengqian looked up in surprise. Why were they talking about "Guo Di Zhi"?

Li Shimin stood up from the imperial couch and strode towards the curtain on the left.

Li Chengqian hurried to catch up. This time, his pace was much faster, but the limp between his steps became more and more obvious.

……

The yellow silk cloth was lifted up, revealing a huge map of the Tang Dynasty's territory behind it.

The thin bamboo stick in Li Shimin's hand fell on the Tubo in the west.

"Tuoba, Tuyuhun," Li Shimin said, his finger moving from west to north. "Huihe, Tiele, Turkic, Khitan, Mohe, and even Goryeo, Baekje, and Silla."

Li Chengqian showed an expression of disbelief on his face.

"Guo Di Zhi", "Guo Di Zhi", is this what it is about?

"The Tang Dynasty is unified and internally stable. What I am worried about is not internal but external. Tubo is indeed a threat, but in the short term, it is difficult for it to pose a threat to the Tang Dynasty. So for now, the real threat to the Tang Dynasty comes from the three countries on the eastern island." Li Shimin hit Goryeo hard.

Li Chengqian's expression became serious.

Li Shimin turned slightly to look at Li Chengqian and said, "Although you are good at civil affairs, your martial arts skills are too poor. If your father were to hand the world over to you, what would you do if Goguryeo, Tubo, and Western Turkic all rebelled at the same time? You would be helpless. Therefore, your father must eliminate all threats for you in advance."

"Yes!" Li Chengqian bowed with an expression of emotion, but his eyes were indifferent while he lowered his head.

"If we want to attack Goryeo, we must be familiar with the terrain." Li Shimin sighed and said, "That's why my father asked Qingque to compile the 'Comprehensive Geography'. Now it seems that we can also include Tubo."

"Yes!" Li Chengqian bowed seriously.

"Chengqian." Li Shimin turned around, looked at Li Chengqian, and said, "Do you know the Kaogongji?"

"The Book of Zhou: Kaogongji records the manufacturing techniques and inspection methods for vehicles, palaces, weapons, and instruments for rituals and music. Bows, arrows, swords, chariots, and boats are all included in it." Li Chengqian raised his head and looked at Li Shimin.

"Times have changed." The emperor looked at Li Chengqian seriously and said, "Qingque is compiling the Comprehensive Geography. Now that your health has improved, you should start compiling the Records of the Craftsmen, for both Goryeo and the Tang Dynasty."

"Your son obeys your command." Li Chengqian couldn't help but bow "excitedly".

Li Shimin smiled with satisfaction.

(End of this chapter)