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

Chapter 451

"I cannot do that," Li Chenggan immediately refused.

"Why?" asked the eldest brother of the Yamashiro clan.

"I have said before that I will not interfere in the internal affairs of other countries."

This is an internal matter for you.

Fu Yu Fengmei, who was listening nearby, disagreed: "Your Highness, I think it's worth considering. King Shuming appears righteous on the surface, but in reality, he is not like that."

It's hard to say exactly what agreements they reached with Goguryeo, Baekje, and Yeonqi.

In short, it was detrimental to the Tang Dynasty.

If, as King Yamashiro Ōe said, he were to be installed as king, then the east would be at peace.

Although both Buyeo Ryong and Buyeo Pungjang are my elder brothers.

but,

I think Fuyu Fengzhang is more suitable to be the crown prince. He has deep feelings for the Tang Dynasty and is loyal to it.

That way, the eastern border of the Tang Dynasty will be secure. Isn't that right?

Li Chenggan lowered his head and remained silent.

however,

at this time,

Footsteps sounded outside the door again, followed by a knocking sound.

Li Chenggan frowned, wondering what was going on. Could it be that Soga no Ru had returned?

Li Chengan said to his elder brother Wang, "You still have to suffer a bit."

"clear!"

Brother Yamabe went back into the backyard and crawled into the wine basket he had just been looking at.

Li Chenggan opened the door.

Standing in front of the door was none other than Soga no Emishi.

Li Chengan looked behind him but saw no one else.

Soga no Emishi bowed and said, "Your Highness, I am passing through this place and am feeling a bit thirsty. May I ask for a cup of tea?"

Li Chengan quickly replied, "Of course, please come in."

Soga no Emishi brushed the snow off his clothes and stepped through the door: "Oh, the Baekje princess is here too."

Fuyu Fengmei blushed: "Yes, General, I couldn't sleep at night either, so I came here to play for a while."

Li Chenggan and Soga no Ezo took their seats as host and guest, respectively.

Fu Yu Fengmei poured a bowl of green tea for each of them.

Soga no Emishi picked up the teacup, took a small sip, and then put the teacup down.

"Your Highness, I've come here for two reasons. Firstly, I'd like to ask for a cup of tea, and secondly, I have two other things I'd like to discuss with you."

Li Chengan had long guessed that his visit was not just for tea.

Li Chengan smiled slightly: "Speak your mind."

"First of all, I thank you for your help with the Little Chili incident."

Inugami Oden was stripped of his official position, and he stopped bothering Chili. Chili returned to my side.

"Without your help, Chili Pepper might already be married to him."

Li Chengan waved his hand: "That was just a small favor, no need to thank me."

"I just didn't expect you to be so young, yet your son is already so grown up."

Soga no Emiichi laughed and said, "Yes, I'm not young anymore."

Another matter is that my unfilial son, Soga no Iruka, just arrived here, disturbing Your Highness. I am truly sorry.

Upon hearing this, Li Chengan knew there was something more to his words: "It's nothing, it's just routine business."

"Then, I'd like to ask Your Highness, is King Yamashiro Ōe here with you?"

"This—," Li Chenggan paused, thinking that if he admitted this, wouldn't it be inconsistent? "General Soga, are you joking? Your son has already searched the place, and there is no King Yamashiro here."

Soga no Emishi nodded: "Your Highness, please don't misunderstand."

Our intention is to ensure His Highness's safety.

A few days ago,

King Yamabe pushed our king off the second floor of Princess Tanigami's residence and framed you for it, claiming to the outside world that it was you who did it.

This shows that

This person harbors ill intentions towards Your Highness.

"Your Highness has helped me, so I must ensure Your Highness's safety, mustn't I?"

Li Chenggan listened as he did so

My mind was racing.

He discovered that he had gained a new understanding of Soga no Ezo.

before,

He felt that Soga no Ezo was a weak and incompetent person who couldn't even protect his own woman, Chili.

In fact, that's not the case.

He learned from King Yamashiro that King Shuming was able to ascend the throne smoothly because Soga no Emishi was secretly supporting him.

This shows that

Soga no Emishi held a very important position in Wa (Japan), comparable even to Huo Guang in his time.

Huo Guang was a powerful minister of the Han Dynasty.

He once deposed Emperor Liu He.

but,

Liu He was truly wicked.

It is said that

During his reign as emperor, he made thousands of mistakes in a single month, and no one knows how he managed to do it.

The Soga no Emishi before them possessed immense energy and formidable strength.

They even dared to defy Empress Suiko's will and establish another king.

"General, before King Shuming ascended the throne, who was more qualified to succeed him, him or King Shanbei?"

"Well, at the time, Empress Suiko did indeed intend for Prince Yamashiro Ōe to be her successor to the throne."

"Oh, I heard it was you who supported Prince Tamura to become king, is that true?"

"Yes." Soga no Emishi did not hide anything and admitted it frankly.

Why did you do that?

"This is a long story. It is said that when Dong Zhuo saw Emperor Shao of Han, Liu Bian, he felt that he did not look like an emperor."

Liu Xie, however, answered fluently and calmly, behaving like a ruler of a nation.

Therefore,

Dong Zhuo deposed Emperor Shao of Han, Liu Bian, and installed Liu Xie as emperor.

In my opinion, King Yamabe and Emperor Shao of Han, Liu Bian, bear some resemblance; neither looks like a ruler.

Our Wa (Japanese) nation has finally achieved what it is today after many years of development.

If we were to hand over the Wa kingdom to him, it would likely be doomed. Out of a sense of public duty, I switched my support to Prince Tamura.

Fu Yu Fengmei put her hands in her sleeves and said, "What you said seems to make some sense, but don't forget the consequences of what you're doing."

Firstly, it violated the wishes of Empress Suiko;

Secondly, do you know what became of Dong Zhuo?

"This—." Soga no Emishi's expression changed slightly.

Because he also knew that Dong Zhuo was eventually killed by his adopted son, Lü Bu.

"When Dong Zhuo wanted to do this, Cao Cao advised him against it, saying, 'The matter of deposing and installing emperors is the most ominous thing for the world.'"

Although Liu Bian and Liu Xie were brothers and both descendants of the Liu family, that still wouldn't work.

Because Liu Bian was the successor designated by Emperor Ling of Han.

Wouldn't Dong Zhuo's actions have violated Emperor Ling's will?

Soga no Emishi sighed: "I'm just a member of the Soga family, and some things aren't up to me to decide alone."

"From the perspective of protecting the interests of our Soga family, I have to do this."

Upon hearing this, Li Chengan thought to himself that Soga no Emishi had been quite frank.

This involves the interests of the Soga family.

There are no permanent friends or permanent enemies, only permanent interests.

It's possible that King Yamashiro had his own confidants. If King Yamashiro became king, he would naturally promote his own confidants, and the Soga clan's status in the Japanese kingdom would be damaged.

Soga no Emishi and King Suiko had a closer relationship, so he couldn't care less about the will of Emperor Suiko.

Li Chengan nodded slightly: "Alright, I understand your difficulties."

I have no intention of interfering in the internal affairs of the Japanese.

What I care about is that whether it is King Shuming or King Yamabe who becomes the king of Wa, they must get along well with our Great Tang.

Don't cause me any trouble.

"Please rest assured, Your Highness, I will do my best to persuade King Shuming to maintain friendly relations with the Tang Dynasty, and to persuade him not to form an alliance with Goguryeo, Yanqi, and Baekje."

"King Shuming wanted to purchase 100,000 jars of wine from Yanqi, sell hundreds of warships to Goguryeo, and launch a fishing project in conjunction with Baekje. You dissuaded him from all of these. You did a great job."

I express my gratitude.

"Your Highness, you are too kind. On one hand, I am considering the interests of the Tang Dynasty."

On the other hand, the focus is more on our Wa (Japanese) country.

Who doesn't know that wine is highly profitable?

One hundred thousand jars is worth millions of taels of silver. Why should we give that money to Yanqi?

It's hard to make money these days!

King Shuming had only recently ascended the throne, and in order to demonstrate his power to the outside world,

Therefore, they intentionally want to do some unrealistic things.

To be honest, our national treasury is not very full right now.

Even King Shuming could not compare to Emperor Yang of Sui.

Emperor Yang of Sui inherited a vast and beautiful land.

They have a very large fortune.

Emperor Wen of Sui left him a great deal of wealth, so as long as he didn't cause any trouble, nothing would happen to him.

King Shuming and Emperor Yang of Sui were somewhat similar, both being ambitious and fond of showing off.

Our Wa (Japanese) Kingdom is different from your Great Tang Dynasty. Your Great Tang Dynasty truly possessed strength.

However, they never flaunt it.

The Eastern Turks were so powerful, but the Tang Dynasty only took a year to eliminate them.

What about the Eastern Turks?

in those days,

The Eastern Turkic Khaganate possessed a million archers, vast territory, abundant resources, and a well-trained army. They once besieged Emperor Yang of Sui at Yanmen Pass, preventing his escape.

It was your father and Yun Dingxing who led troops to rescue you.

The Tanguts and Tuyuhun were also very powerful.

Especially the Tuyuhun,

then,

After being defeated by the armies of Yuwen Shu and Yang Xiong, Fuyun Khan fled to the Dangxiang.

The area originally occupied by the Tuyuhun was divided into four prefectures by the Sui Dynasty.

but,

Fuyun Khan was no pushover either.

Although he suffered a defeat, he did not give up and was always thinking about making a comeback!

Later, he finally found an opportunity and indeed returned to rebuild Tuyuhun.

This shows that Fuyun Khan was also a very remarkable person.

I heard that

You led your Tang army and had afternoon tea with Murong Shun, and then you subdued him.

After he returned, he persuaded his father to surrender to the Tang Dynasty.

This might be what military strategy refers to as "winning hearts and minds is the best strategy, while attacking cities is the second best."

It's truly remarkable that you were able to subdue the Tuyuhun so easily.

Even if Guan Zhong and Yue Yi were resurrected from ancient times, they might not surpass this.

So, your Tang Dynasty truly possesses strength; you've simply concealed your power.

"You flatter me. The reason why Tuyuhun surrendered to our Great Tang Dynasty is not because I have any special abilities."

Rather, they realized that surrendering to the Tang Dynasty was their only way out.

"King Shuming is quite the opposite."

Didn't I just say that he's quite similar to Emperor Yang of Sui? Even though the national treasury didn't have much money, he flaunted it to show off how wealthy he was.

in fact,

The shipbuilding technology of the Tang Dynasty is better than ours, and its production speed is also faster.

In this situation, he would still try to sell a hundred warships to Goguryeo. If that were the case, our navy would be greatly weakened.

He also said he wanted to do some kind of joint fishing project with Baekje. What am I supposed to say?

I also know that that sea area does not belong to our Japanese nation at all.

initial,

Our Wa (Japanese) kingdom only has a few islands, a small area, and a small population.

Therefore,

I'm going to try and stop him from doing those absurd things.

Actually, it's also about protecting our Japanese nation.

After listening to Soga no Emishi's words, Li Chenggan was deeply moved, thinking to himself that he hadn't expected Soga no Emishi to be so thoughtful.

"General, it seems you are a person who considers the big picture and understands the bigger picture. I hope you will be true to your word and persuade King Shuming to live in harmony with our Great Tang."

"Please rest assured, Your Highness, I know exactly what our Wa nation is capable of."

To use an imperfect analogy, back then, the Han Dynasty was very powerful, but Zhao Tuo, the King of Nanyue, wanted to declare himself king.

Emperor Wen of Han wrote a letter and sent it to Lu Jia.

After hearing Lu Jia's explanation and reading the letter, Zhao Tuo quickly apologized.

It was then that Zhao Tuo realized how vast the Han Dynasty was and how insignificant the Nanyue Kingdom was.

And now, King Shuming and Zhao Tuo probably do bear some resemblance.

but,

That's understandable. He's still young, has only recently ascended the throne, and hasn't experienced many things yet, so he doesn't know fear.

Li Chenggan, with his hands tucked into his sleeves, paced back and forth in the hall: "My initial purpose in coming to the Wa (Japan) was to mediate the relations between you and Goguryeo, Baekje, and Silla."

I hope that all your nations can live in peace and avoid war.

As you said, the military strength of our Great Tang Dynasty is currently the strongest in its history.

Neither the Qin army nor the Han army could match the military strength of our Tang Dynasty.

but,

Our Great Tang Dynasty has never regarded war as the primary means of resolving problems.

We love peace and never bully any country.

Because once war breaks out, no one can guarantee what the final outcome will be, and it is difficult to predict who will win and who will lose.

For example,

Our war with Tuyuhun

If we're simply talking about fighting, we have the strength and confidence to defeat them.

However, after I arrived at the front lines, I did not launch an attack. Instead, I invited Murong Shun out for afternoon tea, appealing to his emotions and reasoning with him.

So,

The crown prince of Tuyuhun knew what he had to do.

Therefore, we never start a war lightly.

We believe that dialogue and negotiation are the preferred means, and war is the last resort.

Of course, we are not afraid of any country.

If anyone dares to invade our Great Tang Dynasty, or its vassal states, we will retaliate without hesitation or politeness.

Soga no Emishi broke out in a sweat after hearing Li Chengqian's words.

Because Li Chengan's words were neither humble nor arrogant, combining firmness and gentleness; he did not exaggerate, but spoke the truth.

In other words, if the Wa (Japanese) Kingdom were to truly break with the Tang Dynasty,

It is highly likely that Li Chengqian led the Tang army in battle against the Japanese army.

Although Li Chengqian was not very old,

However, he was very experienced and had a wealth of combat experience, and held a high position and reputation in the military.

In this respect, he is somewhat similar to Li Shimin.

then,

Li Shimin also enjoyed high prestige in the army and recruited a large number of talented individuals, including civil officials such as Fang Xuanling, Du Ruhui, Changsun Wuji, and Gao Shilian.

The military generals included Cheng Yaojin, Qin Qiong, Yuchi Gong, Hou Junji, Li Jing, and Li Ji.

It seems that

Li Chengqian inherited his father's strengths and carried them forward. It was truly a blessing for the Tang Dynasty to have such a crown prince.

now,

Soga no Emishi increasingly felt that King Shuming resembled Emperor Yang of Sui.

Isn't that exactly what Yang Guang was like?

They think they're so great, so arrogant, and the internal situation is already a complete mess that they haven't been able to resolve.

He also needed to lead troops to attack Goguryeo.

finally,

They didn't even conquer Goguryeo, but they wiped out their entire fortune.

Emperor Yang of Sui was also killed by his powerful minister Yuwen Huaji.

Li Chenggan and Soga no Ezo talked for a long time.