Tang Dynasty Palace.
Not long after, Li Zhi received a letter.
【levy】
When Li Zhi saw this word, not to mention how kind he was, he immediately sent a general and led tens of thousands of troops to the Western Region to recapture the three states first.
It didn't take long for the two armies to fight. Tubo did not have a khan to lead the army, so the generals under him began to organize the battle.
But for some reason, the Tang army seemed to know where Tibet would ambush, and they all avoided advancing.
This resulted in the entire Tibetan army that invaded the Western Region being forced back in about a month.
Not long after, Tubo once again established a new Khan and led a massively recruited army of 230,000 people to the northern regions of the Tang Dynasty, hoping to put pressure on the Tang Dynasty and withdraw its troops from the Western Regions.
But unexpectedly, there was also an ambush and obstruction by the Tang Dynasty's 150,000 troops on the way. Thousands of them were even more skilled in martial arts, but they were killed within 20 days.
The new Khan failed in his expedition and died in the war.
The war lasted for nearly four months.
At this point, the Tubo army completely retreated to its own territory. After more than ten days, Tubo newly appointed Zanshu as Khan, and he personally led dozens of generals to declare vassal status to the Tang Dynasty!
He also claimed that as long as his praise lasts for one day, Tubo will never be an enemy of the Tang Dynasty, and Tubo will be like the Western Regions, opening channels for Tang merchants to coexist.
This battle was the most brutal for Tubo in the past years, and this battle also allowed them to fully understand the gap in strength between them.
Whether it was weapons or the number of elite soldiers, Datang had long been left behind.
When they were improving, Datang was improving faster!
This was Datang when he was recuperating.
If they were at their peak, wouldn't they suffer more casualties?
After hearing the good news, Li Zhi felt that his headache was much better. That night, he invited many beauties from the Western Regions to sing and dance, and held a banquet for the generals and others.
Of course, he also went to Yuan Tiangang's residence in person, but unfortunately, Li Yunxiao was not there.
There was only one Xiaolou boss he had met who was responsible for cleaning the courtyard, and there was no one else.
The big banquet was festive, and Li Zhi gave various rewards to the generals.
But he was both happy and sad. Li Zhi drank a few more drinks because he was happy at the banquet. When he stood up and wanted to speak, he suddenly felt his feet staggering and almost fell down.
Wu Meiniang had quick eyes and quick hands, and an internal force directly held him back.
"Do you have a headache again?"
Li Zhi rubbed his eyebrows and said with a slight smile: "I'm fine, I must have drank too much."
At this moment, Di Renjie suddenly stood up.
"Your Majesty, I have something to report."
After hearing Di Renjie's words, many people were stunned. They even put the raised wine glass to their lips but forgot to drink.
This is a celebration, not a court meeting. When will you not be able to report it?
Li Zhi looked at Di Renjie for a long time before he said, "Let's talk about it in court the next day. Now it's the banquet..."
"This matter concerns our country, the Tang Dynasty. I am a humble minister and cannot be delayed!"
Di Renjie's words were sonorous and powerful, which made everyone frown.
Since Di Renjie settled in Chang'an, he has cracked many cases and is considered a genius. Li Zhi and Wu Meiniang also appreciate this.
But even so, we can't force His Majesty like this. Does he think he is Li Yunxiao?
Li Zhi put down his wine glass and said calmly: "Okay, what does Di Aiqing want to say?"
Di Renjie took out a directory from his arms and handed it over.
Li Zhi opened it and checked.
[Su Dingfang, Qibi Heli, Liu Renyuan, Xue Rengui...]
The names of more than 300 generals were written down by Di Renjie. Li Zhi felt dizzy and looked up at Di Renjie with a confused look on his face, wondering what he meant.
Li Zhi asked: "What are they?"
Di Renjie replied: "Military discipline is corrupted!"
"More than three hundred generals, all of whom have broken military discipline!?"
"good!"
As soon as this was said, everyone laughed.
The Tang Dynasty was prosperous, so how could military discipline be corrupted?
Li Zhi also smiled and said: "Then tell me how their military discipline is corrupted."
Di Renjie glanced at Li Zhi and said with some confusion: "Do you really want Wei Chen to say it here?"
Li Zhi was stunned: "You dare to perform here, is there anything else you dare not say?"
"Okay! If that's the case, then Wei Chen will be bold!"
"Since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, most of the rewards have been for high-ranking officials to reward land, but now there is almost no land used for rewards."
"Therefore, states and counties in various places began to withhold money. Any reward granted by the imperial court after the war had to be verified by local officials. Therefore, many people took the opportunity to try their best to deny it and refuse to grant land."
"Let me ask you, the soldiers fought bloody battles despite hardships and dangers, and the credit they earned with so much hard work was denied by the local states and counties in just a few words. They couldn't get any benefits at all, and they were still covered in pain."
"The destruction of Goryeo Belle has already led to a decline in the treatment of a large number of soldiers. At that time, delaying was a helpless method, but it is different now. Now that we have the ability to reward, we are still treated as at the beginning of the war!"
"If this continues, who will dare to go to the battlefield? How can an army organized in this way be brave enough to kill the enemy?"
Li Zhi listened for a long time and said with some confusion: "What do you say have to do with these generals?"
Di Renjie smiled: "Of course it does matter, because Wei Chen hasn't finished speaking yet."
"Since there are no practical benefits to being awarded an official title, the benefits of joining the army are no longer the same, and running away is punishable by beheading, what should the soldiers do?"
After hearing this, many people have already reacted.
Di Renjie said word for word: "If the country doesn't give benefits, then they will fight for the benefits themselves, and that means burning, killing, and looting!"
"We, the soldiers of the Tang Dynasty, are like bandits and robbers, and the people recorded in this list all choose to turn a blind eye! Conceal and refuse to report!"
"Their actions have seriously damaged the reputation of our Tang Dynasty! They are even deceiving the emperor!"
"Your Majesty, do you know why Tubo is still obsessed with losing to the Tang Dynasty one after another? Why are the countries around him leaning towards them?"
"Why?"
"It's because of military discipline!"
"My soldiers of the Tang Dynasty looted wantonly. From time to time, some people secretly asked for bribes from the chiefs of various ministries. This was discovered by Wei Chen after several years of investigation. I don't know how many people are doing this in the dark."
"If this continues, even if the Tang Dynasty is invincible, its reputation will make us ashamed! No one will be willing to join the army in the future!"
"I have to say something unpleasant to you. With such military discipline, if our Imperial Masters of the Tang Dynasty hadn't been involved in this battle, we, the Tang Dynasty, would have been defeated in this battle!!"
The more Li Zhi listened, the wider his eyes opened. He looked at the roster in his palm with a look of astonishment on his face.
Having won many battles over the years, he thought that his army was invincible and there would be no corruption of military discipline.
It turns out that under all these beautiful bodies, there is an illusion that can be broken at a glance.
Various imperial crises had begun, but he was not aware of them at all. Looking back, he realized that he, the Tang soldiers, had already looked like this.
Li Zhi suddenly had the illusion that Di Renjie was a bit like Wei Zheng who followed his father, and dared to point out his mistakes in this place.
Li Zhi stood up slowly.
"From what you see, how should I deal with it?"
Di Renjie said slowly: "No matter whether the military system is conservative or the military discipline is corrupt, it cannot be solved in a short time. As long as your Majesty can improve the rewards and severely punish those corrupt officials, the situation will definitely improve."
Li Zhi took a deep breath, looked at the roster in his hand, and sneered after a while.
"The generals turn a blind eye and the soldiers have no reward for their merits. This is my fault. It is my fault and it is my fault! As a result, tens of thousands of our soldiers in the Tang Dynasty were treated unfairly."
"Di Aiqing, this method is feasible. I will listen to your suggestions. However, I have allowed you to live in Chang'an for a long time and have made many contributions without giving you any rewards. I apologize to you."
"Di Renjie, can you accept my apology?"
Di Renjie lowered his head: "My lord, accept it!"
Di Renjie's natural behavior caused an uproar in the whole audience.
A censor stood up at this time and expressed dissatisfaction with this.
"Your Majesty, you are the emperor. Although Di Renjie has meritorious service, he has been disrespectful and should be punished!"
Di Renjie said solemnly: "Your Majesty said when he asked me to stay in Chang'an, false courtesy is not as good as the truth."
"And ask the minister to handle the matter in accordance with the truth and not to protect anyone."
"Now that your Majesty knows what the problem is, your Majesty's apology is genuine. If the humble minister refuses to accept it with false courtesy, it is tantamount to not giving your Majesty the opportunity to correct his mistake."
"If your Majesty can treat the matter raised by the humble minister like this today, he will definitely be able to take the world's major events seriously!"
"Your Majesty's sincere apology is deeply touching. If a humble minister handles the matter with courtesy, who will he be bullying? This is bullying God!"
After Di Renjie's words, the entire banquet was completely silent.
Li Yifu looked at Di Renjie with admiration on his face. He was even better at talking than him!
Or... why don't we just let him be the prime minister?
