The immortal of the Tang Dynasty, but the game starts at Xuanwu Gate?

"That certainly sounds true," Li Shimin said, stroking his chin thoughtfully. "But how exactly do we assimilate them?"

"Xuanling's words are not without reason. The Khitan are currently just the Khitan. Even if they are to be assimilated, it will not be possible in just a few years. It may take several generations."

"Time is not the issue," Chen Huai'an said patiently. "The issue is whether this is feasible, whether it can succeed, and whether it's worth doing."

"Personally, I believe that whether it is the Khitan or other tribes or small countries that will submit in the future, what we need to do is assimilate them."

"Tell me in detail." Li Shimin took this very seriously and became earnest.

Chen Huai'an glanced at the thoughtful expressions of the ministers around him, cleared his throat, and asked a question: "First of all, we need to understand one thing: the Khitans submitted to our Great Tang Dynasty because they could no longer endure the oppression of the Turks, right?"

"Yes," Wei Zheng replied. "At that time, internal strife was brewing within the Turkic Khaganate, and the conflict with the Xueyantuo was becoming increasingly fierce. This led Jieli to increase taxes and conscript people. The Khitan could not bear the oppression and thus submitted to our Great Tang."

"Alright," Chen Huai'an continued, "Since the Khitans voluntarily submitted to our Great Tang, doesn't that mean they have relatively little animosity towards our Central Plains region?"

After some thought, everyone agreed.

Conquering by force and forcibly incorporating are two completely different concepts from voluntary submission; the latter naturally causes far less resistance.

"Now that we know all this, I have one more question for everyone," Chen Huai'an said, looking around. "What is the culture of the Khitan tribe like?"

Wei Zheng's heart skipped a beat, and Li Shimin's expression also changed.

A flicker of excitement crossed Changsun Wuji's eyes. He might understand why Chen Huai'an didn't pay attention to the Turks or Liang Shidu, but instead valued the Khitan so much and even proposed to assimilate them.

"The culture of the Khitan was quite low. They were just a tribe based on an eight-tribe alliance. The chieftain was hereditary from the Dahe clan. They could not form a state and had no religious beliefs."

"They don't even have their own writing system; they use carved wooden signs instead."

Chen Huai'an asked with a smile, "Then what does our Great Tang Dynasty have that the Khitan need?"

"Too many!" Du Ruhui blurted out. "The Khitans are nomadic tribes who mainly rely on herding cattle and sheep for a living. Only a very small portion of their territory is suitable for cultivation."

"They not only need our protection and help in fighting against the East Turks, but they also need our food, ironware, silk, and tea."

"In fact, their rule needs our help to be established."

"That's right." Chen Huai'an clapped his hands. "All of the above conditions mean that the Khitan can be completely assimilated by us."

Why?

"Because they have no written language, while we do; they have no religious beliefs, while we do; they lack all the necessities for survival, while we do."

"Their order needs our help to be established."

"When one day, the so-called Khitan tribes will use our Tang Dynasty script, recite our Tang Dynasty poems, drink our Tang Dynasty tea, wear our Tang Dynasty clothes, use our Tang Dynasty surnames, and abide by our Tang Dynasty rules."

Does the Khitan still exist?

"..."

The hall fell silent for a moment as everyone pondered the question raised by Chen Huai'an.

When the Khitans are completely integrated into the Tang Dynasty and their lifestyle becomes the same as theirs, will the Khitans still exist?

The answer is uncertain.

It may exist, or it may not.

However, even if they existed, they would certainly have been the Khitan people of the Tang Dynasty.

They were people of the Tang Dynasty first and foremost.

"Everyone," Chen Huai'an said with a faint smile, "there are precedents for this kind of success, aren't there?"

"Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Wei Dynasty reformed the Xianbei people, and although there were setbacks, the final result was a success."

"The Northern Zhou, Sui, and even our Tang Dynasty were all the result of the Sinicization of the Xianbei people. Everyone agrees on that, right?"

No one spoke, and Wei Zheng glanced slightly upwards.

Do they dare say no?

Li Shimin himself was of mixed Chinese and Xianbei descent.

Li Yuan was a true Han Chinese, whose ancestors were from the Longxi Li clan, a powerful family in the Central Plains for generations. Li Shimin's mother, Empress Dou, and his grandmother, Lady Dugu, both had obvious Xianbei ancestry.

Therefore, Li Shimin himself had Xianbei blood.

Such examples were not uncommon in the Tang Dynasty.

Therefore, there is nothing wrong with what Chen Huai'an said.

Li Shimin's lips twitched slightly. He could tell that Chen Huai'an was saying that on purpose, but he didn't say anything.

Because this is the most convincing way to persuade everyone.

"Alright." Li Shimin felt uncomfortable being glanced at every now and then, so he glared at Chen Huai'an. "Now that we've discussed the results and the successful examples, tell me your method."

Chen Huai'an chuckled for a moment, then immediately became serious.

The Tang Dynasty was a rather special dynasty; the golden age of all nations paying tribute to it was no joke.

But its rise was due to the tribute from all nations, and its fall was also due to the tribute from all nations.

After some states submitted to him, Li Shimin managed these tribes and states using a system of tributary prefectures and protectorates.

The term "羁縻府州" (ji mi fu zhou) refers to a system of military and political control, with "羁" (ji) meaning control through military and political pressure and "縻" (mi) meaning appeasement through economic and material benefits.

The specific approach was to allow the tribes to remain in their original locations, with larger tribes establishing governor-general offices and smaller ones establishing prefectures. The leaders would serve as governors-general or prefects, with the positions being hereditary but requiring imperial appointment.

They practiced internal autonomy, preserved their original tribal organizations and customs, and their tribute and household registration were mostly not recorded by the Ministry of Revenue.

In addition, titles such as Khan were abolished. For example, after the destruction of the Eastern Turks, the title of Khan was no longer conferred, but instead replaced by Governor-General, thus incorporating the title into the Tang Dynasty's official system.

The Protectorate General was the upper-level supervisory authority over the prefectures and counties under its jurisdiction.

For example, in the fourteenth year of the Zhenguan era, after the destruction of Gaochang, the Anxi Protectorate was established in Jiaohe City, and troops were left to garrison it.

This approach seems like a good idea, but in reality, it carries huge hidden dangers.

Under the current military system, soldiers are dispersed among the prefectures, while generals are under the jurisdiction of the court. When going on a campaign, a general commander is temporarily appointed, and military power is returned after the war.

However, as the Tang Dynasty's territory expanded, it became increasingly difficult to manage, requiring more and more protectorates, and border wars increased.

That's when the problems started to appear.

The current military commanders were unable to react in time, so long-term border defense commanders began to emerge.

Gradually, it evolved into the military governor who held military power.

At first, things were fine; the military governors only took charge of military affairs. Later, they gradually took charge of land reclamation, finance, and civil administration, and even served as inspectors, thus concentrating military, political, and financial power in one person, which eventually led to the An Lushan Rebellion.

Today's proposal may seem simple, but it is actually of great importance.

I remember reading history books before, and it said that in the later stages of the Tang Dynasty, many people of other ethnicities considered themselves to be Tang people and were proud to be Tang people.

The Tang Dynasty actually did a good job in assimilation, but Chen Huai'an believed it was not enough.

Far from enough.

So he wanted to make a change.

"..."