At the gate of the imperial city, Luo Zhang pondered in his heart when he heard the news everyone told him.
The expedition to Goguryeo was not that easy. Emperor Yang Guang of the Sui Dynasty failed in all three expeditions. In addition to the long journey and difficult roads, the climate was even worse than that of the Turks.
This is one of the reasons why Your Majesty destroyed the Turks first.
Another more important reason is that Goguryeo has cities along the road, which are completely different from the Turkic grassland battlefields.
A siege battle would result in heavy losses.
According to Luo Zhang's idea, it was actually very simple to capture Goguryeo. He simply asked the Royal Navy to transport a large number of troops, landed in Incheon, and attacked Pyongyang from behind.
Goguryeo's city defenses and obstacles along the way will be useless. They can easily capture the thieves and capture the king first!
However, thinking is one thing and doing it is another matter. Luo Zhang had already told His Majesty about this matter, but His Majesty rejected it. The reason was still because of interests.
If we really do what Luo Zhang said, then all the military exploits belong to the Royal Navy and have nothing to do with anyone else.
This is eating alone, how could those generals agree!
No matter how good the relationship between Luo Zhang and the veterans is, once their interests are touched, no matter how good the relationship is, it cannot be maintained, and it is normal for them to fall out.
As for the civil servants, they will also not agree. You Luo Zhang has done everything, so what are they doing? Just watching?
How to divide the interests of Goguryeo if you can't participate in it!
Therefore, neither civil officials nor military attachés would agree with Luo Zhang's approach, which is why His Majesty does not agree.
It is impossible for Your Majesty to make the entire court an enemy just because of Luo Zhang. Even if he is Your Majesty, you still have to compromise. This is politics!
After everyone chatted for a while, the imperial city gate opened from the inside, and the officials lined up and walked into the Tai Chi Hall. After respectfully welcoming His Majesty, the officials sat down one after another!
"If there is no problem, please leave the court!" Huang Eunuch shouted in a routine manner.
As soon as he finished speaking, the Minister of Hubu came out to start the memorial: "I have this memorial!"
Li Shimin raised his hand to let him continue.
The Minister of Household Affairs bowed and said: "Your Majesty, most of the grain and grass from all directions have been transported to Chang'an. In more than ten days, the grain and grass will be ready for the expedition to Goguryeo!"
"Yes, your movements are quite fast!" Li Shimin smiled and nodded.
"This is all thanks to the method given by Luo County Duke to make potato powder from potatoes. Not only can this product be used as a staple food, but it is also more convenient to transport. There is also a large stock. Together with grain and grass from various places, it is enough for the army." The Ministry of Household Affairs Shangshu glanced at Luo Zhang and said with a smile.
"Your Majesty, more than half of the soldiers collected in Guanzhong have been completed. There are currently 80,000 soldiers, plus Qianniu Guard, Zuowu Guard, Youwu Guard... a total of 250,000 troops. In the future, another 100,000 horses can be recruited as backup. , Recruitment will be completed in mid-June!" Li Ji, Minister of the Ministry of War, announced as he left for duty!
Luo Zhang glanced at Li Ji unexpectedly. He didn't mention this just now. This Li Ji was also cunning and cunning.
After hearing what Li Ji said, all the officials in the court started talking.
Obviously he was also surprised by Li Ji's quick action. After all, the losses in the Northern Expedition to the Turks were not small. In just a few months, Li Ji was able to recruit so many soldiers and horses. It was really impressive!
From beginning to end, Luo Zhang did not speak, but listened with two ears. After all, he was busy with a lot of things these days. He did not ask about the expedition to Goguryeo, and no one told him. It is better to say one thing less and to say more than one thing is wrong. It is better not to say anything at all.
However, this matter has long been concluded. The expedition to Goguryeo will be a matter of time, but the time is a little tight.
According to Luo Zhang's previous thoughts, the war would not be launched until the spring of next year. He did not expect that His Majesty would be so impatient and would go on an expedition so soon.
However, Luo Zhang thought about it and realized the reason.
The fleet of the Great Food Kingdom came to Datang. This really taught Li Shimin a lesson. There are many countries in the world that are more powerful than Datang. If internal and external troubles are not solved as soon as possible, when others come over, Datang will only be beaten. .
This is also the reason why Li Shimin asked Luo Zhang about the situation in Dashi Kingdom before.
It is obvious that His Majesty wants to resolve the foreign troubles as soon as possible and then eliminate the internal worries.
It is impossible to say that there is no ambition. As long as you are an emperor, you will have your own ambitions. Since you know what the world looks like, as an emperor, who doesn’t want to reach the horizon and incorporate more land into his territory? Li Shimin, as the emperor through the ages Emperor also has such ambitions.
When the morning court was over, Luo Zhang was about to leave but was stopped by Eunuch Huang and taken to the imperial study room.
Li Shimin had just finished changing into his casual clothes and was sitting on the Imperial Master's chair to rest. When he saw Luo Zhang arriving, he put down his tea cup and said, "I saw you in court this morning and didn't say a word. Do you have anything on your mind?"
Luo Zhang shook his head slightly and said: "I have no idea about the decision of the adults. With all the adults well prepared and well arranged, the conquest of Goguryeo is just around the corner!"
"Don't be careless with me. I don't know what kind of virtue you have? Tell me, what can you do to attack Goguryeo?" Li Shimin asked.
"Your Majesty, I have already told you about my idea, but it is not feasible, so there is nothing to say!" Luo Zhang said with a bitter smile.
"Don't think that I don't know that you have hidden the Goguryeo envoy Hu Luanyao at home. Now that Goguryeo is about to attack, it's time for her to contribute!" Li Shimin snorted.
Luo Zhang's face was a little dark. He didn't expect His Majesty to know this. Wouldn't His Majesty also know about the iron lump?
Are there any spies from His Majesty at home? Who could that be? Or did Gao Yang say what happened to Hu Luanyao?
For a while, Luo Zhang began to think wildly.
"I heard from Cheng Yaojin of Ferrosilicon Fortress that you are asking the master to build a weapon. Is it the one you told me about before?" Li Shimin changed the topic.
"Your Majesty, it is true that if this thing can be built, it will be of great use for the expedition to Goguryeo. Not only that, it will be even more useful for the Royal Navy!" Luo Zhang came back to his senses and said hurriedly.
"Is there really such a powerful weapon in the world? Can it open city gates and collapse city walls?" Li Shimin didn't believe it.
"Your Majesty, you have seen wooden lumps, what else can't you believe?" Luo Zhang asked.
Li Shimin laughed dumbly and said: "Yes, you can make a magical object like a wooden knot. It is not difficult to blast open the city gate! If this object is really made, this expedition to Goguryeo will be much easier. !”
"Is Your Majesty worried about the Dashi Kingdom?" Luo Zhang changed the subject.
"The world is so big, but my heart is so small!" Li Shimin sighed.
