Datang: Just been appointed as the crown prince, the counterattack system is here

Chapter 79 He is the hero of our Tang Dynasty! [Please subscribe]

"Your Majesty! That Zhao Deyan has sent me gifts again. It seems that when you told him to go back and reflect on his mistakes, he seems to have overreacted!"

Fang Xuanling walked into the Liangyi Hall with a smile, and raised his hand to signal the palace servants to deliver all the gifts sent by Zhao Deyan to Li Shimin.

Li Shimin didn't even glance at the gifts. He said calmly, "He didn't just send you gifts. Pei Ji also sent quite a few gifts!"

"That's Pei Sikong."

"He's not like you. He's probably about to give up."

"hehe!"

Fang Xuanling smiled noncommittally and said, "Although Zhao Deyan is incompetent and likes to scheme for personal gain, his ability to flatter is still quite admirable!"

"What is there to admire? I hate this kind of treacherous minister the most!"

Li Shimin said this with disdain, then changed the subject, "News has come from the Eastern Turks. They have indeed suffered from snowstorms for several months. I have already ordered people to prepare to attack the Eastern Turks. What are your opinions on this?"

Fang Xuanling thought for a moment and said, "To be honest, this opportunity is definitely a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, but as Dai Zhou said, this matter must be brought to the court for discussion!"

"There are only a few people who can speak at court. So, I will call Zhangsun Wuji, Du Ruhui, Pei Ji, Wei Zheng and the others over to hear what they have to say first!"

Li Shimin waved his hand and quickly ordered someone to go and notify Wei Zheng and others.

About half an hour later, more than a dozen important officials of the court gathered in the Liangyi Hall.

Li Shimin glanced at them and said directly without further ado, "I have received news that the Eastern Turks are suffering from a snowstorm rarely seen in a century. They are at the end of their rope and are completely exposed to the signs of national destruction. Therefore, I intend to send troops to the Eastern Turks to avenge the humiliation of the Weishui River. What do you think?"

Wow!
The ministers were in an uproar.

You know, once the war machine starts, it can never be stopped.

Although the Eastern Turks were indeed extremely weak at this time, they had not yet reached the point where they were on the verge of national demise as Li Shimin said.

Therefore, no one is sure whether the war can be ended in a short period of time.

Even though Zhangsun Wuji knew what Li Shimin was thinking, he had to stand up and say, "Your Majesty, if we send troops to attack the Eastern Turks when they are suffering from a snowstorm, we will be betraying the alliance we just made with them. This matter needs to be carefully considered!"

Hearing this, Li Shimin frowned, but ignored Zhangsun Wuji. He looked at Xiao Yu and asked, "What do you think, Zuo Pushe?"

"This"

Xiao Yu hesitated for a moment, then glanced around at the ministers and said, "Your Majesty, I believe the Eastern Turks have always been untrustworthy. They previously signed an alliance with us, but then rashly launched an attack on the Wei River and forced us to sign another treaty. Why should we keep our promises to such untrustworthy barbarians? We must not miss this opportunity!"

"Ok!"

Li Shimin nodded with satisfaction and looked at the other ministers.

The ministers just looked at each other, but no one stood up to speak.

Although Li Shimin had been eager to try it in his heart, he was unable to take action because only Xiao Yu supported him.

But then Changsun Wuji said solemnly, "The barbarians don't keep their promises, and neither do we. So what's the difference between us and the barbarians? Since the barbarians haven't invaded the borders of the Tang Dynasty, the Tang Dynasty cannot go to war with them!"

"Wuji!"

Li Shimin's face darkened and he was about to stop Changsun Wuji.

However, Changsun Wuji ignored Li Shimin's shout and continued:
"I don't agree with sending troops to Eastern Turkestan for three reasons: first, it violates the alliance, second, it wastes manpower and money, and third, it's not the right way for a king to fight!"

"you!"

Li Shimin was so angry that he pointed at Changsun Wuji and was about to lose his temper.

Wei Zheng, who had been silent the entire time, suddenly spoke up, "I fully agree with the three reasons raised by the Right Servant. Our Great Tang has just experienced turmoil, and the people have finally stabilized. Our national strength has yet to recover. If we send troops to the Eastern Turks at this time, it will be a waste of manpower and money!"

"What's more, Your Majesty governs the world for the sake of the great prosperity of the Li Tang Dynasty. If you seek temporary pleasure and ignore the people, you are not a wise ruler!"

As soon as these words came out, all the ministers looked at each other and echoed in unison: "We will reconsider this!"

"This"

Li Shimin widened his eyes, as if he had not expected that this matter would be opposed by so many people.

However, if you think about it carefully, what both Changsun Wuji and Wei Zheng said makes a lot of sense.

What he should pursue most at the moment is not the glorious military exploits that would terrify the four barbarians, but the cultural governance of Emperor Wen of Han.

It is no better to seek momentary pleasure than to seek pleasure for a lifetime!
After thinking for a while, Li Shimin chose to give up the easy military achievement of conquering the Eastern Turks for the sake of domestic peace and the early realization of his ideal of a prosperous and peaceful era.

After all, what he lacks the least now is martial arts.

What he lacks most now is civil governance, so naturally he will not follow the path of warmongering like Emperor Wu of Han for the sake of military achievements.

Soon, the most important and shortest court meeting of the Zhenguan period ended.

After the court meeting ended, some ministers left immediately, while some stayed, including Pei Ji.

"Your Majesty, I have something to report to you, but I'm not sure if I should say it or not."

Pei Ji said to Li Shimin cautiously.

Li Shimin glanced at him with amusement and said, "Pei Sikong, you are considered a veteran official who has served three dynasties. Why do you speak so timidly, like a junior official who has just entered the officialdom?"

"This"

Upon hearing this, Pei Ji's old face turned red with embarrassment.

In fact, he didn't want to be ridiculed by Emperor Li II like this, mainly because his biggest backer, Li Yuan, was no longer in Chang'an.

Li Shimin also wanted to dismiss these old ministers of Wude, so he had to be careful and cautious.

But Li Shimin said calmly: "If you have anything to say, just say it!"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Pei Ji responded respectfully, then tentatively asked, "Your Majesty, do you still remember Zhao Deyan?"

"Hmm?" Li Shimin frowned, then asked calmly, "Do you want to plead for him?"

"No, no, no, I just want to inform Your Majesty that Zhao Deyan has been in frequent contact with ministers recently. I'm afraid he wants to return to the officialdom."

"Among them, as far as I know, there is not only Fang Xuanling, but also Xiao Yu, Wei Ting and others."

"What about you? Didn't Zhao Deyan contact you?"

"This"

Pei Ji hesitated for a moment, then nodded and admitted, "Yes!"

"Then what do you think, how should I deal with this matter?" Li Shimin said calmly.

Pei Ji thought for a moment and said, "Zhao Deyan's previous mistake was mainly due to his presumption against the emperor's will and his unauthorized arrest of Prince Xi and Prince Hailing's followers, which nearly ruined the court's important affairs."

"but."

He then changed the subject and continued, "In his heart, he is still loyal to Your Majesty. Otherwise, he wouldn't be running around trying to continue serving Your Majesty."

"Ah!"

Li Shimin snorted and couldn't help but ask, "According to what you said, I should reinstate him?"

"There's no need to reinstate him. His abilities are definitely not enough for a high-ranking position, but he's more than qualified to be a minor official."

"absurd!"

Li Shimin waved his sleeves and shouted, then said with a stern face: "An official of our Tang Dynasty, even if it is just a minor official, must never be appointed by someone who is good at scheming!"

"Ah? This"

When Pei Ji heard this, he was stunned on the spot.

He didn't expect that Li Shimin wouldn't even give him this little face.

You are the Sikong, but you can't even be the boss of a minor official?

At the same time, in the inn where Li Chengqian and his friends were.

Zhao Deyan walked into the inn with high spirits and stopped Du Caigan and others who were about to capture Ma Zhou.

Originally he should have stayed in Chang'an and waited for news from Pei Ji, but unfortunately, he had spent all his family fortune on gifts and had no money even to find a better inn to stay in Chang'an.

So, he could only return to the inn where he stayed before going to Chang'an.

And this inn happened to be the inn where Li Chengqian and his friends arrived.

But Zhao Deyan asked solemnly, "Who are you? How dare you rob people with a knife in broad daylight?"

"Humph!"

Du Caigan snorted coldly and said, "I advise you to mind your own business, otherwise, I will arrest you as well!"

"Be bold!"

Before Zhao Deyan was dismissed from office by Li Shimin, he was at least a provincial governor. He had never seen such an arrogant "gangster" before, and he immediately shouted loudly.

"Do you know how far this place is from Chang'an? Are you not afraid of the emperor's power by committing crimes under his feet? I advise you to surrender, otherwise..."

"Zhao Deyan!"

Before Zhao Deyan could finish his words, Li Yuan's voice suddenly came over: "How dare you call yourself this official? Who gave you the courage?"

"what?"

Zhao Deyan didn't expect to be exposed in public, so he hurriedly looked in the direction of the voice.

It would have been fine if I hadn't seen it, but when I did, I was so scared that my soul almost flew away.

"The Emperor Emeritus"

"What!?"

Everyone was shocked when they heard Zhao Deyan's name.

Even Ma Zhou, who was about to resist just now, was frightened so much that his face turned pale and he was stunned.

He never imagined that he would meet the retired emperor Li Yuan here, nor did he ever think that one day he would confront Li Yuan in person and confront him for bullying others.

However, when Li Yuan saw everyone's reactions, he remained calm.

He then said calmly, "Zhao Deyan, I want to ask you, when did Erlang reinstate you?"

"This"

Zhao Deyan was already frightened and at a loss as to what to do, so he didn't dare to answer Li Yuan's questions.

When he lived in this inn, he pretended to be a court official and received many preferential treatments, but he did not think there was anything wrong with it, because he knew that when he went to Chang'an, even if he picked up a minor official, he could make a deal out of it.

However, he never expected to meet Li Yuan here.

"Since Erlang didn't reinstate you, what crime should you be charged with for impersonating an imperial official?"

"Your Majesty, please listen to my explanation. I just wanted to save someone, so I had no choice."

"Oh! I remember now!"

Just as Zhao Deyan was trying to argue, Li Chengqian suddenly slapped his forehead and said, "Zhao Deyan! Hero of the Tang Dynasty!"

"???"

Li Yuan looked at Li Chengqian with a question mark on his face.

Are you sure this guy is a hero of the Tang Dynasty?!
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(End of this chapter)