My father, Li Shimin, requests Your Majesty to become the Retired Emperor.

Li Chengqian rested his chin on his hand, thinking to himself that the women in the harem had a great influence on the deposition and establishment of the crown prince.

Li Chengan fell into deep thought once again.

He wondered if he would end up like Yang Yong, crippled.

Having gone through so much, he felt a sense of crisis.

At that moment, two gentle arms embraced him from behind.

Immediately afterwards, a soft, warm body pressed against his back, its fragrance filling the air.

Then, two warm lips kissed his neck and breathed into his ear.

Li Chengan thought it was Su Wan who had come, but then he felt there was something slightly off.

Because Su Wan is usually quite reserved and shy, she wouldn't be so enthusiastic and outgoing.

Li Chenggan turned his head and saw that the person standing in front of him was not Su Wan, but Fuyu Fengmei.

Li Chengan was also surprised. He took two steps back and asked, "Princess, when did you arrive in Chang'an? You didn't even tell me beforehand so I could have come to pick you up."

Fu Yu Fengmei let out a silvery laugh: "I came to give you a surprise, isn't that nice?"

"How did you get here? Did you come alone?"

"Yes."

"What brings you to Chang'an?"

Firstly, I missed you and wanted to come see you;

Secondly, there's something I'd like to ask for your help with.

Li Chengan felt a little uncomfortable after hearing this.

Seeing Buyeo Pungmi again reminded Li Chenggan of his trip to Wa and Baekje.

Because Empress Zhangsun was seriously ill and only Sun Simiao could cure her, Li Chenggan had no choice but to go to Peach Blossom Island to look for Sun Simiao, but he could not find him.

Li Chengan and Su Wan discovered the knives used by the Japanese on the island, only to find out that Sun Simiao had been captured by the Japanese.

Li Chengan and Su Wan then arrived in the Wa (Japanese) Kingdom.

When Li Chengan arrived there, he faced a near-death experience.

Li Chengan was drugged and imprisoned, where he happened to meet Prince Fengzhang.

Li Chenggan and Fuyu Fengzhang got along very well and soon became good friends.

Later, Prince Pongjang asked Yi Seung-gan to deliver a letter to his father, King Buyeo Ui-ja, in Baekje, asking him to find a way to rescue him.

Unexpectedly, Li Chenggan also faced numerous dangers upon arriving in Baekje, where he encountered Yeon Gaesomun of Goryeo.

That guy was incredibly arrogant and conspired with Buyeo Ryong to burn him alive.

Fortunately, Buyeo Pungmi came to deliver a letter to him.

Thinking back on that incident, Li Chengan felt a lingering fear.

Looking at Fuyu Fengmei, Li Chenggan noticed that the girl had grown into a graceful and beautiful young woman with a shapely figure.

With fair skin, eyes like autumn waves, and lips like cherries, she is truly a rare beauty.

Li Chengqian asked with a smile, "What favor do you want me to do for you?"

"Your Highness, I've come to you to ask you to find a way to save my brother, Buyeo Pung-jang," Buyeo Pung-mi said, her expression turning worried.

Li Chengan was taken aback: "What? Prince Fengzhang hasn't been released yet?"

"No, my father wrote a letter to the King of Wa, asking him to release my brother."

However, the King of Wa said that it has been confirmed that my father once sent Mi Zhi to lead an army to attack them.

King Shuming was furious about this.

He sent an envoy to my father and said that Baekje must surrender to the Wa (Japanese) Kingdom within a month, or else he would kill my brother!

"Your Highness, my brother's life is in danger. How can I not be worried?" Fu Yu Feng Mei cried as she said this.

Upon hearing this, Li Chengan felt that the matter was quite troublesome.

He felt from the beginning that Buyeo Ui-ja shouldn't have done that.

Don't you know that your own son is a hostage in the Japanese kingdom?

You still send troops to attack them?

So, aren't you trying to use someone else to do your dirty work, hoping that King Shuming will kill Prince Fengzhang?

Buyeo Long and Yeon Gaesomun colluded to attack Silla.

Silla was a vassal state of the Tang Dynasty, and it was extremely loyal to the Tang Dynasty, paying tribute every year without fail.

Therefore, Li Chenggan knew that his father was quite satisfied with Silla's performance and wanted to set an example.

That is, regardless of other countries, if they can be as loyal to the Tang Dynasty as Silla, then the Tang Dynasty must ensure their safety.

Any country that dares to invade Silla is tantamount to invading the Tang Dynasty.

However, Goguryeo and Baekje were secretly colluding to attack Silla, which the Tang Dynasty could not tolerate.

"Your Highness, it seems my elder brother, Fuyu Fengzhang, is about to be killed by the Japanese."

What can we do?

Fu Yu Fengmei started crying as she said this.

Li Chenggan could tell that the siblings, Fuyu Fengzhang and Fuyu Fengmei, had a very good relationship.

Li Chengan was most afraid of women crying in front of him.

Buyeo Pungmi took the handkerchief and wiped away her tears: "Your Highness, please find a way to save my brother."

Li Chenggan, with his hands behind his back, paced back and forth in the hall, slowly saying, "Princess, the problem ultimately lies with your father. He shouldn't have sent Mi Zhi to lead the army to launch a surprise attack on the Japanese."

There's a saying: "If you don't want others to know, don't do it in the first place." Mi Zhi thought this matter was handled very meticulously, but in fact, the intelligence work of the Japanese was also very outstanding.

That Inugami Odenkuchi was a general of the Wa (Japanese) Kingdom with extensive combat experience.

That's not easy to deal with either.

Furthermore, Buyeo Long should not have colluded with Yeon Gaesomun of Goguryeo.

Yeon Gaesomun was extremely arrogant.

Didn't he say that?

Back then, Emperor Yang of Sui led an army of one million to attack Goguryeo, but they were all defeated.

Therefore, they didn't even take the Tang Dynasty seriously.

Yeon Gaesomun was a warmonger who thrived on chaos and enjoyed instigating war.

He's using you to attack Silla.

After listening, Fuyu Fengmei nodded.

She completely agreed with Li Chengqian's view.

She also knew that Goguryeo was using them.

"I have already tried to persuade my father about this matter, but he will not listen."

My father believes that Goguryeo is our friendly neighbor, and we must unite with Goguryeo in order to survive and develop.

Conversely, without the powerful support of Goguryeo, they would be isolated and vulnerable to attacks from Silla and Wa (Japan).

Li Chenggan and Fuyu Fengzhang had talked together.

He knew that Buyeo Fengzhang was a very insightful person and that Buyeo Fengzhang was also very loyal to the Tang Dynasty.

If Prince Pungjang were to become the crown prince of Baekje and then the king of Baekje,

Therefore, the relationship between Baekje and Tang Dynasty will definitely be greatly improved. The problem is that Buyeo Pungjang is currently imprisoned, and it will not be easy to get him out of prison.

Li Chenggan said to Fuyu Fengmei, "Don't be anxious, let me think this over carefully."

Zichen Palace.

Li Shimin sat at his desk reviewing memorials, while Wei Zheng stood by with his hands at his sides.

Li Shimin put down the memorial in his hand, looked up at him, and asked, "My dear minister, I have a question I would like to ask you."

Wei Zheng bowed and asked, "Your Majesty, is there a problem?"

"Tell me, why did Emperor Yang of Sui lead a million-strong army to attack Goguryeo and fail three times in a row?"

Wei Zheng was also taken aback when Li Shimin asked him this question.

Because he knew that Li Shimin had always harbored resentment towards Goguryeo and was eager to try his luck.

It must be admitted that Li Shimin's speed in conquering the world was the fastest in history. The only one who could rival him was Liu Bang, the founder of the Han Dynasty.

Liu Bang destroyed the Qin Dynasty in three years and the Chu Dynasty in four years. He transformed from a lowly village head into the founding emperor of the Han Dynasty, which is quite remarkable.

Li Shimin went to war at the age of 18 and pacified the country in six years, establishing the Tang Dynasty. It was unprecedented for someone to be able to seize the country in such a short period of time.

Therefore, Li Shimin was very confident in leading troops into battle.

Wei Zheng stroked his beard and said, "Objectively speaking, Emperor Yang of Sui was an emperor who was skilled in both literature and military affairs."

Historically, emperors with martial prowess often lacked literary talent, while emperors with literary talent often lacked martial prowess. For example, Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang, was initially a rogue and scoundrel who disliked reading, frequently resorted to insults, and was extremely vulgar.

Therefore, Sima Qian severely criticized Emperor Gaozu of Han in the Records of the Grand Historian.

For example, Emperor Chen Shubao of the Southern Chen Dynasty was an excellent poet and writer; his poem "Yushu Hou Ting Hua" made him famous throughout the land.

However, he was not good at governing the country or leading the army.

When the Sui army marched south, he had no choice but to surrender.

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin nodded: "My dear minister, you are right. From this point of view, Emperor Yang of Sui does indeed have some commendable qualities."

He was handsome and dignified, and I also greatly admired his poetry; the grand and majestic imagery he created was something that ordinary poets could not achieve.

In particular, his masterpiece, "Drinking Water at the Great Wall Cave," uses the form of a four-character poem to depict a scene of frontier warfare, with a magnificent and imposing style.

Wei Zheng shook his head and continued, "However, Emperor Yang of Sui also had many problems of his own."

Emperor Wen of Sui, as the founding emperor of the Sui Dynasty, was most notable for his financial management skills, a trait that few emperors in history could match.

Since he established the Sui Dynasty, he has worked diligently to govern, vigorously develop production, and save on expenses.

The Sui Dynasty's treasury gradually became full, and grain was piled up outside the granaries.

Emperor Yang of Sui had a winning hand, but he played it terribly.

Firstly, he persecuted loyal officials. The reason he was able to become crown prince and later inherit the throne was due to the strong support of ministers such as Zhang Heng, Yang Su, and the Yang Yue brothers.

However, unexpectedly, shortly after ascending the throne, he killed Zhang Heng and forced Yang Su to commit suicide under various pretexts.

He also executed Gao Jiong, He Ruobi, Yuwen Bi, and other important court officials on trumped-up charges of slandering the court.

Isn't he destroying his own Great Wall by doing this?

Secondly, Emperor Yang of Sui was ambitious, extravagant, and loved to travel.

Shortly after he ascended the throne, he began to construct the Great Wall, imperial roads, Luoyang, Xianren Palace, Jiangdu Palace, and excavate the Grand Canal, which cost a huge amount of money and employed millions of laborers.

At its peak, the Sui Dynasty had a population of about 900 million, and countless people were killed by Emperor Yang of Sui.

How can this continue, where he doesn't care about the people and treats human life like dirt?

In addition, his numerous tours emptied the national treasury;

Thirdly, Emperor Yang of Sui believed he had a talent for military affairs.

In fact, his military command ability was truly lacking.

He often boasted about his conquest of the Southern Chen dynasty in front of his civil and military officials.

Actually, the pacification of the Southern Chen dynasty had little to do with him; that was Gao Jiong's achievement.

At the time, he was only 20 years old and was only the nominal commander-in-chief. In reality, Gao Jiong, He Ruobi, Han Qinhu and others helped him conquer the Southern Chen dynasty.

He saw that Zhang Lihua, the concubine of Emperor Chen Houzhu, was beautiful, and wanted to take her for himself.

Gao Jiong executed Zhang Lihua under the pretext that she was a femme fatale, which may have caused a conflict between Emperor Yang of Sui and Gao Jiong.

He led a million-strong army to conquer Goguryeo, confident that he was certain of victory. He divided his forces into 24 routes, with the army stretching for hundreds of miles. The battle lines were too long, which greatly weakened the fighting capacity.

He assigned a pacification official to each army, specifically responsible for persuading Goguryeo troops to surrender. If any Goguryeo general wanted to surrender, war was not allowed.

The pacification commissioner was directly responsible to the emperor.

In some respects, the power of the pacification commissioner was greater than that of the general.

When Sui Dynasty generals encountered Goguryeo's army, they had to request permission before engaging in battle.

Such back-and-forth travel wastes time and often leads to missed opportunities.

Furthermore, once a Goguryeo general surrendered, fighting was prohibited. This meant that Goguryeo's army, whenever it realized it couldn't defeat the Sui army, would immediately surrender.

Even the generals of the Sui Dynasty didn't dare to do anything to them.

Then, after they weathered the crisis, they started to rebel again.

The repeated setbacks left the Sui army's generals extremely frustrated.

Fourth, Emperor Yang of Sui made poor personnel choices; for example, he employed the veteran general Yuwen Shu.

Yuwen Shu is too old; all he knows is how to amass wealth and acquire land.

His tactics are outdated; how could he possibly fight a war?

Yuwen Shu alone helped him lose three to four hundred thousand troops;

Fifth, when Emperor Yang of Sui went on his expeditions, he brought along monks, singers, concubines, and envoys from other countries.

Throughout history, has anyone ever fought a war like him?

He wasn't fighting a war; he was sightseeing and trying to show off to the envoys from various countries.

He treats war like a game; how can he possibly win a war like that?

Sixth, the Sui Dynasty under Emperor Yang was internally unstable.

Yang Xuangan harbored resentment because his father, Yang Su, was forced to death by Emperor Yang of Sui, and he was always looking for an opportunity to rebel.

However, Emperor Yang of Sui was unaware of this, or rather, did not pay enough attention to it.

Yang Xuangan was no ordinary person; he was a representative figure of the Guanlong Group, unlike ordinary mountain bandits, and possessed considerable strength.

He recruited many noble sons to join him in rebellion;

The Wagang Army, having gathered in the mountains and forests, had gradually gained considerable influence.

Emperor Yang of Sui did not take it seriously, believing that they were just petty thieves and could not be harmed.

As it turned out, Emperor Yang of Sui was wrong. The Wagang Army was a fatal blow to the Sui Dynasty, shaking the very foundation of the country.

Seventh, the national treasury is empty and financial resources are insufficient. Just think about how much food, supplies, and personnel are needed to support a million-strong army.

The once-abundant national treasury was squandered by Emperor Yang of Sui, ultimately leading to many Sui soldiers going hungry. How could an army fight without food?

Eighth, the Sui Dynasty's navy wasn't very strong either. The Goguryeo navy was powerful; they frequently trained their forces on the Yalu River. Their navy was equipped with large warships, each armed with cannons, making them extremely powerful in attack and combat.