Li Shimin, one emperor through the ages

Chapter 66 Rescue Silla (1)
18
"There is no youth in the New Year, and I was surprised to see grass buds in early February. Baixue thought spring was too late, so she wore a garden tree as flying flowers." Li Shimin got up from the banquet, pushed the curtain out, and walked along a road on both sides of Xuefei to the third place. A small building next to the Qing Palace.This building is called Lingyan Pavilion, and it was built three years ago.There is nothing else in the small building, but a row of portraits of 24 heroes who followed Li Shimin and his father and son of the Tang family to conquer the world, painted by Yan Liben, a famous painter at that time.

Since the establishment of the dynasty, Li Shimin has worked hard and finally built a prosperous dynasty.In Li Shimin's view, the arrival of the prosperous age is not due to his own merits, but "for more than ten years, Sky's strategy has been exhausted, the minions have exhausted their strength, and they have worked together to achieve this." Li Shimin He himself said, "A man who is a king drives talents and treats scholars with sincerity." On the issue of employing people, Li Shimin thinks that he has indeed done a good job.In order to commend the heroes, Li Shimin ordered Yan Liben to draw the "24 Heroes" and put it in Lingyan Pavilion.

The middle of the pavilion is divided into three layers: the innermost layer depicts the ministers of high meritorious ministers; the middle layer depicts ministers of meritorious princes; the outermost layer depicts other meritorious officials.The 24 heroes are: Fang Xuanling, Du Ruhui, Changsun Wuji, Wei Zheng, Yuchi Jingde, Li Xiaogong, Gao Shilian, Li Jing, Xiao Yu, Duan Zhixuan, Liu Hongji, Qu Tutong, Yin Kaishan, Chai Shao, and Changsun Shunde , Zhang Liang, Hou Junji, Zhang Gongjin, Cheng Zhijie, Yu Shinan, Liu Zhenghui, Tang Jian, Li Ji and Qin Shubao.The portraits of the heroes all stand facing north to show the courtesy of the ministers.In today's prosperous age, Li Shimin misses the past, thinks back to the years of fighting with gold and iron horses and swallowing mountains and rivers, his heart is full of passion, and he can't help coming to Lingyan Pavilion alone.

I remember that two years ago, in the court, Li Shimin pointed out the strengths and weaknesses of some ministers, saying: "Changsun Wuji is good at avoiding suspicion, responds quickly to things, and makes decisions, which is better than the ancients; but the commander-in-chief is not his director. Du Ruhui is smart and knowledgeable, Wang Zuozhi is talented, and no one can manage the world..." Li Shimin looked at the vivid portraits, thinking about their past, he felt a lot of pride, but also a lot of regret.Time is merciless, and some of them left him early.Li Shimin was recalling the past, full of emotion, Cen Wen came to report:

"The Silla Kingdom has come to call on the Tang Dynasty to send troops to rescue."

Silla was the Three Kingdoms of the ancient Korean nation. It arose in the lower reaches of the Han River in the southwestern part of the Korean Peninsula at the end of the first century AD, and its capital was established on the south bank of the Han River.After Silla unified the Gaya tribe of the Bianhan people, it completely occupied the Nakdong River basin, and then occupied the upper and lower reaches of the Han River (near present-day Seoul).Silla became a powerful country in the southwestern part of the Korean peninsula, and it was in constant conflict with another more powerful country on the Korean peninsula, Goguryeo, the kingdom established by the ancient peoples of Northeast China.In order to compete with Goguryeo, Silla formed an alliance with Baekje, another country on the Korean peninsula, and took advantage of the momentum to go northward along the east coast, extending its power to the current Liwon area of ​​South Hamgyong Province.The other two countries on the Korean peninsula, Goguryeo and Baekje, naturally cannot sit back and watch Silla become stronger and join forces to attack Silla.Silla was in a critical situation and sent envoys to Daejo to ask for help.Li Shimin listened to the news of Silla's request for help, pondered for a while, and said to Cen Wenwen:
"Let Fang Xuanling, Changsun Wuji, and Li Ji go to the Hall of Liangyi to meet me."

This Goguryeo already had considerable strength in the Sui Dynasty, and it also joined forces with Turks and other forces, seriously threatening the safety of the Central Plains.Because of this, Emperor Yangdi sent troops to conquer three times.However, this stupid Emperor Yangdi ended in failure every time.Li Shimin watched Cen Wenwen leave, walked out of Lingyan Pavilion, and walked along the way to Liangyi Hall, thinking.After the fall of the Sui Dynasty, although Goguryeo appeared to be a vassal of the Tang Dynasty, it still occupied the old place of the Yan Kingdom in the east of Liaodong, and joined forces with various ethnic groups in the frontier to fight against the Tang Dynasty. Now it wants to destroy Silla. How can I allow you to wanton? In vain!Thinking of this, Li Shimin's eyes gleamed, he shook his head vigorously, and walked into Liangyi Hall.

Fang Xuanling, Changsun Wuji, Li Ji, and Cen Wenwen were already waiting for His Highness. After seeing Li Shimin, they stood quietly at His Highness. Li Shimin walked up to the hall, sat upright, and asked:
"My dear friends, please express your own opinions, and tell me how I should treat Silla's request for help?"

"The current Silla is in imminent danger. If my Tang Dynasty sits idly by, Silla will perish." Changsun Wuji said: "If Goguryeo destroys Silla, its strength will definitely become stronger, and it will be my Tang Dynasty. The scourge of the Northeast. Therefore, Silla must save it."

Li Shimin nodded, and turned his gaze to Fang Xuanling.

"I have the same opinion as Situ." Fang Xuanling said: "My Tang Dynasty must not sit back and watch Goguryeo destroy Silla. However, to achieve this goal, perhaps without war, you can send envoys to Goguryeo, Chen said. It is not too late to send troops if he is obsessed with his obsession."

Li Shimin didn't nod this time, but turned to Li Ji and Cen Wenwen.

"I believe that Goguryeo has always been ambitious and aimed to unify the Northeast. If the envoys say it, it may not be of much use. It is better to send troops immediately to break the siege of Silla." Li Ji said.

"I think that my Tang Dynasty, the mighty sky, the envoys can go to Goguryeo to destroy the heart of Silla; if they are obsessed with obsession, they will first be polite and then soldiers, and they will be the king's division. The morale will be stronger, and they will retreat to Goguryeo in one fell swoop." Cen Wenwen Say.

After listening to the opinions of the four, Li Shimin closed his eyes and meditated: "Rites first, then soldiers, the teacher of the king, there is some truth in this statement."He raised his head, looked at the four ministers, and said slowly:
"Cen Wenwen, send envoys to Goguryeo as soon as possible to express my heart: I will never allow them to invade Silla. If you don't retreat immediately, the king of the Tang Dynasty will leave, and it will be too late to regret it."

"Obey!" Cen Wenwen ordered to withdraw.

18
In Liancheng Pond, the water is as clear as a mirror, and the goldfish in the water, dragging their gorgeous long tails, stand motionless in the bitter cold water. The wonderful concubine Xu Hui, mixed with Li Shimin, stands under the willow branches whose leaves have all fallen.Both seemed to be looking at the gorgeous fish, but both were thinking of different things.

"It seems that this battle must be fought, and I must go in person." Li Shimin thought of all the past in Goguryeo, compared his heart to his heart, and said to himself: The king of Goguryeo could not have stopped fighting because of the threat of the Tang Dynasty. Silla's attack, those who claim the title of king, will not cry without seeing the coffin. Why is this?Li Shimin muttered to himself softly, the concubine Xu Hui seemed to hear it, and looked at the emperor blankly.

"You, leave me alone, I have to think about it, think about it." Li Shimin waved his hand at her and said, falling into the deep thought just now.According to the ancient interpretation, the emperor is the top and the emperor is the bottom. The emperor originally means heaven and earth.However, Qin Shihuang claimed to be the emperor because he respected the heaven and the earth alone.From then on, he modified the original meaning of the emperor, and changed the meaning of the emperor of heaven and earth into the emperor of the ruler of heaven and earth.Qin Shihuang's greedy heart can be seen from this.Thinking of this, Li Shimin smiled in relief.Who is the emperor who is not as greedy as the heavens!In addition to the country, the supreme power, and beauties... Thinking of this, Li Shimin wanted to raise his head, wanting to see the virtuous concubine Xu Hui.But at this moment, he saw a slender figure in the water, with a fair face and a pair of psychedelic eyes like stars.

Li Shimin raised his head, looked past Xu Hui, and stared obsessively at that fair face.

At this time, Li Shimin was nearing the end of his life, accompanied by the wonderful and virtuous concubine Xu Hui every day, and had little interest in other beauties, especially in Xu Hui's face, this was the first time he saw another woman woman.Although Xu Hui is still a young girl and has been with Li Shimin for several years, she is already very sensitive to the relationship between men and women. Seeing Li Shimin's gaze like this, she can't help but be shocked.Turning his head and following Li Shimin's gaze, he saw a slender woman.

From the eyes of the virtuous concubine Xu Hui, this woman seems too ordinary, but Li Shimin intended it, and Xu Hui knew that she should satisfy him, so she said to Li Shimin:

"The concubine is going to call her over?"

"Oh, yes, you go."

Xu Hui floated away lightly, quickly took the woman with her, and floated back lightly again.Xu Hui brought her to the emperor's side, got up and was about to leave, Li Shimin stopped her with gestures, and then asked the woman very gently:
"Who is the little girl? Why have I never seen you?"

"The civilian girl's surname is Wu. She is the daughter of the late Minister of the Majesty Samurai Wok. She is 13 years old this year." The daughter of the Samurai Wok has a sharp mouth and a sweet voice like a lark. Li Shimin was even more happy when he heard this, staring at her star-like eyes and said. : "Come to the palace, I will give you a talent."

The Wu family has several girlfriends in the palace, and they have some understanding of the affairs in the palace, and they know that Cairen is the fifth rank among the palace officials, and can serve the emperor.At this time, although he was still young, he was quite ambitious, after hearing this, he knelt down on the ground and thanked the emperor for his kindness.The attendant took away the newly-appointed martial artist, and Xu Hui took her emperor back.

"You must think she is not very beautiful." Li Shimin said softly, "But I really like her eyes."

After hearing this, Concubine Xu didn't say a word, but just smiled slightly.Li Shimin could see that Concubine Xu was laughing that he didn't choose a better one, so he was speechless, but he was thinking about those beautiful eyes like stars.That night, Li Shimin hugged the talent bestowed during the day early - Wu Shi, who just turned 13 years old.Her eyes are indeed very beautiful, and she is also very smart, and at a young age, she can bend her heart to accept things that she has never experienced.When Li Shimin hugged her, he looked into her eyes and said, "You are so charming, I will give you a name called 'Mei', and you will be called Wu Mei from now on."

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Wu Mei replied in a very gentle and sweet way, and those eyes were even more fascinating.

However, when Li Shimin moved further, he immediately felt a little disappointed.Wu Mei's body is too thin, her breasts are just tightly closed flower buds, and her fat-free skin has no elasticity at all.In short, not a bit feminine.Li Shimin reluctantly went to the rain and got off her thin body, feeling very boring and even a little regretful.Although this was not the first time for him, he was still very unhappy, as if the little girl had lied to him.He didn't want her to be next to her anymore, and lay on the side far away, really wanted to change another one, his eyes moved, and he finally held back, not for this Wu Mei, but for himself, although he is not yet the one who knows his fate In the past year, the two women will never be together again overnight.Li Shimin finally fell into a deep sleep, and woke up just after dawn. Looking at the little girl beside him who had been turned into a woman by him, he felt that she was really not beautiful. "People, sometimes they can be blind." He said to himself, walked out of the dormitory and came to the study.

The Four Treasures of the Study were well placed on the desk, and on the rice paper, there were some not-so-good characters for "Ge", which he wrote a few days ago.Li Shimin picked up the pen and wrote the word "Ge" again. Seeing that he was still dissatisfied, he shook his head and shouted: "Come on, go, Doctor Yu."

Yu Shinan is the seventh grandson of Wang Xizhi and a disciple of Zen Master Zhiyong, a calligrapher of the Sui Dynasty.Li Shimin's calligraphy is also quite profound, especially in recent years, with less bows and arrows, horse riding, and hunting, calligraphy has become a great pleasure. Whenever he has experience and loves to communicate with others, Yu Chang keeps Yu Shinan by his side and often talks with him Calligraphy experience.

After the eunuch left, Li Shimin asked people to clean up the book case, leaving only a piece of paper on which he wrote "Jin" on the half of the word "Jian".After Yu Shinan came, after the ceremony of the emperor and ministers, Li Shimin pointed to the word "Jin" on the case and said:
"Sir, please fill in the 'ge' on the right." After Yu Shinan finished writing, Li Shimin looked at it and ordered Cen to write it.Cen Wenwen looked at the word "jian" carefully, and said: "Looking at the word'jian' written by Your Majesty today, the 'ge' on the right side seems to have a sense of magic and is very realistic."

Li Shimin listened, looked at Yu Shinan, and said with admiration: "Mr.'s magical pen is even called a master of calligraphy today. I will ask for more advice from now on."

After hearing this, Cen Wenwen knew that "Ge" was written by Yu Shinan, so he knelt down to plead guilty.

"What's wrong with Shang Shu? It's because of his sharp eyesight. From now on, I will have one more person to talk about calligraphy." Li Shimin was talking, when Li Ji came in and reported:
"Gai Suwen, the powerful minister of Goguryeo, was arrogant. He rejected the advice of my envoy from the Tang Dynasty and insisted on destroying Silla."

Li Shimin listened, thought for a while, and decreed: "Order Changsun Wuji, Fang Xuanling, etc., to hurry to Liangyi Hall and decide on the rescue of Silla!"

18
After Li Ji and Cen Wenwen left, Li Shimin asked someone to call the new prince Li Zhi, and they came to Liangyi Hall together.Changsun Wuji, Fang Xuanling and others were already waiting as usual.After Li Shimin brought the crown prince in, he went straight to the point and said:

"Now that the four directions are stable, there are frequent wars in the Northeast. Silla is a vassal state of the Great Dynasty, and there is a disaster of destroying the country. Goguryeo refused to listen to the advice of the envoys of the Tang Dynasty and insisted on destroying Silla. I still have some strength. , Zhu Aiqing still has energy, so I will go with you to solve this problem."

Everyone was shocked when they heard this, raised their heads, and looked at Li Shimin. "Could it be that His Majesty wants to conscript himself?" Changsun Wuji asked.

Li Shimin nodded with a smile, and asked Changsun Wuji: "Have you ever remembered my 'Ying Yinma'?"

"Steam bones drink from Changjing, rushing to sprinkle the tassels; fine lines spray together, chaotic hooves linger. The water shines on the side of the saddle, and the shadow of the horse slips across; turning like a Tianchi, the Tengbo dragon grows." Changsun Wu Avoid chanting casually.Li Shimin fought all his life and loved horses very much. On the way to Chang'an, he wrote this song "Ode to Drinking Horses" in front of Changsun Wuji.Unexpectedly, after so many years, Changsun Wuji could remember it so clearly. Li Shimin couldn't help nodding when he heard this, and said happily:
"It's really hard for you to remember so clearly. However, I always feel that my body is getting worse every year, and the days of galloping on the battlefield may not be many. Therefore, I must go this time."

"Li Shimin is not yet at the age of knowing his fate, he is in the prime of his youth..."

"Aiqing, don't say that you are in the prime of your youth." Li Shimin interrupted Fang Xuanling and said, "Aiqing, do you remember the hunting in Luoyang in the winter month of the 11th year of Zhenguan?"

"It's vivid in my memory." Fang Xuanling said: "I went hunting in Luoyang Maolin that day, and I happened to follow His Majesty. As soon as I entered the Maolin, I found wild boars on the ground. Your Majesty personally arranged, divided the troops, and encircled the herd of wild boars. It's like commanding a war. After closing the siege, the wild boars just broke through to His Majesty's side. Your Majesty took one arrow at a time, and the four wild boars were quickly killed. At this time, a male wild boar sprang out from nowhere, fiercely and swiftly. He rushed to His Majesty's stirrup. Tang Jian, Minister of the Ministry of War, saw him and rushed over to help him. Before he arrived, His Majesty raised the knife and cut the wild boar in half. Tang Jian was stunned. Your Majesty But he laughed and said, "Shangshu of the Ministry of War, do you know how to kill the enemy?" Tang Jian said, "Your Majesty ruled the world with martial arts, and there is no need to show off your prestige with a wild beast." After hearing this, His Majesty said to Tang Jian: You are right. Let's stop hunting."

"Okay, thank you for being able to remember so clearly." Li Shimin said as he fell into deep thought, as if he had returned to the scene of slashing a wild boar in two. "At that time, I can be said to be in the prime of youth!" Li Shimin said with emotion.

"Yes, at that time, His Majesty not only made great contributions..."

"Okay, the hero doesn't mention the bravery of the past." Li Shimin interrupted Fang Xuanling again, and said, "I don't need to persuade you to conquer Goguryeo personally. This time, I will definitely ride the Tengbo dragon horse and personally conquer Goguryeo! What other problems might there be, Zhu Aiqing will tell you.”

"Your Majesty will be in command and go on a personal expedition. He will definitely win the battle, defeat Goguryeo's army, and break the siege of Silla." Li Ji said without hesitation, "I'm just a little worried. Your Majesty will lead the army to the northeast. Will Xue Yantuo in the north take advantage of the situation and go south to disturb the situation?" I hang on my side."

This Xue Yantuo is an ancient nation in northern China, a khanate merged by the Xue tribe and the Yantuo tribe.Among the tribes of Tiele, the most powerful, the customs are similar to the Turks, and its leader is Yi Nan, who once assisted the Tang army in destroying the Eastern Turks.After the demise of the Eastern Turks, Yinan officially established the Xueyantuo Khanate. Its jurisdiction extends from Shiwei in the east to Jinshan in the west, sandy moraine in the south, and the vast sea in the north. Surrendered, supported 20 troops, and became the most powerful khanate in the north.In November of the 15th year of Zhenguan, Yinan once took advantage of Li Shimin's closure of Mount Tai to the east, crossed the desert and went south to attack the Turks.As a result, the Tang army was defeated, more than 3000 people were beheaded, and more than 5 people were captured. Yinan escaped and fled.Several years have passed since this incident, and Xue Yantuo has grown stronger and stronger, too often waiting for an opportunity to invade south? .

After listening to Li Ji's words, Li Shimin showed his ministers to ask for opinions. Changsun Wuji first expressed his opinion and said:
"The minister also has this concern."

"The barbarians were ambitious to pacify the northern tribes. It is very possible to invade the south while our army is attacking Goguryeo." Fang Xuanling said.

"The minister and the prime minister have the same opinion." Cen Wenwen agreed.

Li Shimin looked at his four ministers again and again, and suddenly laughed, and said in a loud voice: "This time, I really have a different view from Zhu Aiqing. Come on! Send a message to Xue Yantuo: I want to personally conquer Goguryeo, Chang'an City is no longer guarded by heavy soldiers, if you have the courage, you can just lead your troops to come!"

Li Shimin looked at his minister and asked: "In this way, wouldn't Xue Yantuo dare to take advantage of the situation? No, not even if I lend him a hundred guts! Okay, Let’s not talk about Xue Yantuo anymore. I will order Changsun Wuji and Fang Xuanling to assist Prince Zuo to preside over the government, and Li Ji and Cen Wenwen will follow me to go to Goguryeo in three days!”

18
The bitter cold wind howled around the Shangshu Province on the east side of the Taiji Hall all night, but Li Ji didn't notice it at all. Being alone in the empty Shangshu room, he didn't feel the chill at all.The emperor wants to personally conquer Goguryeo. He is the commander-in-chief of the army, and he will set off in three days. There are many things, and he has to arrange and plan.After everything has a specific idea, the sky is already bright.

Li Ji left the desk and walked out of the Shang's study. When the cold wind hit his face, he shivered and felt soft and tired all over his body.Hurrying home, when he opened the door and entered the main room, Li Ji thought of his sick sister.His mother died early, and his elder sister took him up since he was a child, so he has a lot of affection for his elder sister.He waved his arms vigorously, trying to shake off the fatigue around him a few times.Li Ji came to his sister's bedroom with light steps. The elder sister was already awake, leaning against the head of the bed and looking out the window. She was very happy to see her younger brother coming in. Just as she was about to open her mouth, her younger brother asked first:

"Did sister ever eat breakfast?" As soon as this habitual question was uttered, Li Ji felt the hunger in his stomach.

"I'm not hungry." said the elder sister, looking at the younger brother with a smile.

"It's time to eat." Li Ji said, "Brother, go and cook some porridge for you."

"No, there are so many servants now, just let them go. My younger brother has already become a high-ranking official like a prime minister. Why do you have to go in person if you work hard all day?"

(End of this chapter)