In the southeastern sea, on an island, no one would have thought that such a barren land could have more than 20,000 troops stationed, and they were all elite divisions. Many small countries in Southeast Asia would not be able to gather so many troops with the combined efforts of the whole country. A well-trained army.
Moreover, the supplies and food carried by these armies are absolutely astronomical!
"Your Majesty, General Wu and the others are coming back soon!"
In the early morning, the red sun rises over the sea, with thousands of rays of light. The rising sun sprays colors and melts gold for thousands of miles. Above the ocean, a long snake flew straight into the eyes. Golden snow waves more than two feet high suddenly rolled up on the island's rocky shore. A soldier hurried towards the entrance of the cave on the island and whispered the report.
"Hmm~! I'll go take a look now~!"
Li Xiaogong responded lightly, and after a short while, he saw him walking out in a hurry, followed by envoys from various countries.
Several people came to the coast, stood on the boulder and climbed up to look out. They saw a fleet of ships appearing on the sea level, slowly sailing towards this side. When the distance got closer, they could still see a large sign on the canvas. The word "Tang" obviously refers to friendly forces.
"Li Xiao, how is Meng Youliang's injury~? What did the military doctor say~?"
Seeing that the fleet had not yet docked, Li Xiaogong asked the guards beside him.
The guard's name was Li Xiao, who was Li Xiaogong's deputy captain of the personal guard, second only to Wu Di. When he heard Li Xiaogong's question, he quickly replied:
"Back to the general, Meng Youliang has more than a dozen large and small knife wounds on his body. Fortunately, none of the injuries are serious. However, he lost too much blood last night and is still in a coma. The military doctor said that his body has a strong recovery ability. As long as he recovers for a few days, he will be fine. It’s okay~!”
Yes, there were military doctors in the Tang Dynasty, not only military doctors, but also a relatively complete military medical system.
In the Tang Dynasty, the vast territory and long border defense lines were able to be consolidated. An important factor was that the imperial army was built into a powerful Tang Empire army. The strength of the military is naturally inseparable from logistics and medical care.
At this time, there will usually be a special "sick child inspection officer" in the army, who will inspect the sick and wounded and their diet and daily life every day in order to arrange medical treatment and evacuation. If new patients or soldiers in critical condition are found, they must be reported The general manager ordered the doctor to patrol the camp and provide appropriate treatment.
"Yeah! That's good~! Let the military doctor use good medicinal materials to nurse Meng Youliang back to health as soon as possible!"
Li Xiaogong thought for a while and then ordered.
He was going back to Chang'an soon, and he didn't want Meng Youliang to still look sickly by then, as that would make him feel that he owed Li Zexuan a favor.
"Yes~! General~!"
Li Xiao responded with cupped fists.
While the two were talking, the fleet was getting closer and closer. The bearded man next to him sighed: "This compass and navigation chart are simply magical tools for ocean navigation! If I were not very familiar with this sea area, I would not be able to sail at night." If you go out, you may not be able to find him again~!"
For some unknown reason, the bearded guest did not leave last night. Instead, he stayed with Li Xiaogong's army. Since ancient times, officials and thieves have always been at odds. I never expected that the regular army of the imperial court would one day live together with a group of pirates. Son, the picture is really weird.
Li Xiaogong said with a smile: "Zhong Jian, why not cooperate with the imperial court? Not only will there be a compass and a chart, but the imperial court's latest big ship can also be handed over to you~! I estimate that the emperor will send several groups of fleets to sea this year! And there is Li Zexuan. Now, I believe that Datang’s fleet will definitely not just wander around the South China Sea, there will be unlimited possibilities in the future~!"
The bearded man's personal strength was definitely one of the best among the generals of the Tang Dynasty. When it came to talents, Li Xiaogong had always been eclectic. He had previously protected and recommended to Li Er many Sui generals or Wagang generals who had surrendered to the Tang Dynasty, so most of the courtiers were convinced by him. This was one of the reasons why Li Xiaogong's reputation in the court was so high.
Moreover, Li Xiaogong had a good grasp of people's hearts. Apparently, he saw that the blood of the beards was full of adventure factors, so he did not promise them high-ranking officials or endless wealth, but a broader ocean. To tempt the bearded man into accepting the olive branch he offered.
"Well……"
The bearded guest's eyes lit up as expected. He thought for a long time and finally shook his head and said, "Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty, but I am used to being carefree and can't stand those rules or the control of others, so..."
"Haha~! Zhongjian, don't jump to conclusions yet. Your Majesty is a sage and will definitely give you the greatest freedom. The sage always has the greatest tolerance for talents. Don't you see that Wei Xuancheng often speaks out and gives advice? Are you going to let His Majesty run away~?"
Before the bearded guest could finish speaking, Li Xiaogong quickly waved his hand and continued to confuse him.
The bearded guest fell into deep thought and remained speechless.
At this moment, the fleet at sea had also approached. Wu Di took the boat ashore and walked straight towards Li Xiaogong.
"Your Majesty, I am incompetent. I searched the nearby waters all night and still found no trace of that group of pirates. Please punish me, Your Majesty~!"
Li Xiaogong looked at Wu Di who looked tired, waved his hand and said: "I don't blame you~! It's inconvenient to find people at night, and the interval is too long, so it makes sense that they can't be found! Now take them back to the ship to rest. ~!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for showing mercy~!"
Wu Di thanked him quickly and left slowly. More than 400 of them had not slept all night last night, and it was indeed time to rest now.
"Your Excellency, would you like me to send a message to our king to help you hunt down these nasty pirates~?"
After Wu Di left, the envoy from the Zhenla Kingdom next to Li Xiaogong murmured.
After listening to the translation, Li Xiaogong was about to refuse, but envoys from other countries rushed to shout:
"Funan Kingdom is willing to help Tang State destroy pirates~!"
"Piao Guo is also willing to help Tang Guo~!"
"Dandan Kingdom is also willing~!"
"The Lion Kingdom is also willing~!"
……………
Seeing the incomprehensible excitement of this group of people, Li Xiaogong knew what they wanted to express even if he didn't listen to others interpreting for him. He said loudly: "Thank you for your kindness, but Datang's affairs will be resolved by Datang itself. Just wait for the news~!"
After understanding what Li Xiaogong meant, the envoys became quiet one after another. Li Xiaogong shouted in a deep voice: "Li Xiao!"
"The general will be here~!"
"Immediately order the fleet to anchor and set sail. The destination is Japan~!"
Li Xiao was immediately dumbfounded. He didn't expect Li Xiaogong to be so bold. Although the general was not subject to foreign military orders, the current Japanese country was a vassal state of the Tang Dynasty! How can one use one's own army to attack a vassal country? If word of this spreads, wouldn't the other vassal countries of the Tang Dynasty be in chaos~?
………………
