Chapter 644
afternoon.
Li Shimin was awakened by the sound of rapid footsteps.
"His Majesty."
Fang Xuanling stepped into the upper study room, bowed her hands and said,
"Li Jing's army is returning very quickly and will probably be able to return to Chang'an in the future."
"The commander of the army has submitted a detailed battle report, please see it."
Li Shimin rubbed his sleepy eyes.
This nap was quite peaceful, so he was in a good mood. He picked up the battle report and started reading it with his face raised.
Then, his face began to darken.
"When did Li Jing's military discipline become so disordered?"
He couldn't help scolding,
"Burning, killing, looting, and stealing the spoils of war."
"Is this what our Tang Army soldiers did?!"
Fang Xuanling's mouth twitched slightly.
"Your Majesty, please calm down. When leading troops, most battles are like this, especially when fighting outside. The soldiers are depressed, so after the victory, they must release the pressure."
He advised,
"As a general, sometimes you have to do something as a last resort. Everything is for the sake of military morale and morale."
Wow!
Li Shimin threw the battle report to the ground!
"Bullshit morale, what kind of morale do we need after the war is over? It's nothing more than coveting the spoils of war and pocketing public funds!"
He said displeasedly,
"This is connivance!"
"When I led the troops to fight, there was never such a bad atmosphere!"
"Don't talk about it from afar, let's just say that when Xu Fenglei fought, he defeated such a large Turk. Did he keep a penny of it for himself?"
"These are all role models! Why don't you learn from them?!"
Fang Xuanling: "..."
Now, he didn't know how to excuse Li Jing.
However, when the emperor led the troops to fight, he probably forgot about the boxes of gold transported to his Tiance Mansion.
That is, Xu Fenglei is indeed a perfect role model.
After being silent for a while, Li Shimin picked up the battle report from the ground again.
The reason why this battle report is so real is because the Wuli Sima he set up played a role. It was equivalent to his eyes in the army, monitoring everything.
Crash, crash.
After flipping through the battle report, which was not too thin, Li Shimin's expression softened.
"Fortunately, it's not too much."
He said softly,
"That's it, that's all."
"There are not many military generals with clean hands and feet."
Eventually, the anger subsided.
When the time comes, it will be enough to find an opportunity to give Li Jing a beating.
"Your Majesty, the army has triumphed. Do you want to arrange a welcome ceremony?"
Fang Xuanling saw that the emperor's shrine had relaxed, so she asked,
"Are you...going to go?"
Li Shimin glanced at him.
"Why, when did the achievement of destroying a small Tuyuhun become worthy of me personally greeting him?"
He joked,
"Did Li Jing destroy not Tuyuhun but the Western Turks?"
"The head in his hand is not Murong Fuyun's, but Tong Yehu's? If it belongs to Tong Yehu Khan, then I can go and greet him."
When Fang Xuanling heard this, he could only laugh twice.
Your Majesty sometimes gets angry, which is quite powerful.
"The prince is very idle recently. He is studying Buddhism and Taoism there every day. Tell him to go! Go and greet him, and then work with the army! He will be a little more masculine with the spirit of military service!"
Li Shimin waved his hand and ordered,
"After the labor force is over, I will hold a court meeting again to discuss merits and reward them."
"According to the order."
Fang Xuanling nodded and asked the prince to greet him, which was indeed appropriate.
"Your Majesty, I heard that Hou Junji was bound here. He said that if he did not die on the battlefield, he would return to the prison."
He looked at Li Shimin's face and said,
"Look, he..."
Li Shimin raised his eyebrows.
"He has gone too far. Do you want me to bear the reputation of being unsympathetic and unjust, and ignoring rewards and punishments?"
Li Er snorted coldly,
"Regarding merits or demerits, there will naturally be some discussion in the court."
"Tell him to be normal and don't do anything unusual or shock people!"
Fang Xuanling nodded slightly.
He suddenly felt that His Majesty's attitude toward Hou Junji had changed, but in what direction it was developing, he couldn't tell clearly.
"Your Majesty, there is one more thing. King Qu Wentai of Gaochang refused to come to Chang'an to apologize because of his illness."
Fang Xuanling said again,
"Not only that, he went even further, blocking Yanqi's trade route, and then set up roadblocks on the Silk Road, collecting taxes from both ends, and making huge profits!"
"Both Tang merchants and Hu merchants complained endlessly, but they had to pay such expensive money to buy the road."
"I have observed that business in the Western Regions has become more and more popular all of a sudden, and many incoming goods have mentioned prices. Hu merchants obviously want to spread the money lost in Gaochang to the Tang people and let the buyers pay for it!"
Li Shimin's expression suddenly turned ugly.
"I just killed Murong Fuyun, and now another Qu Wentai appears."
He sneered,
"Do the kings of these small countries really have no idea? Do they really want to taste the military strength of the Tang Dynasty?"
"This Qu Wentai is simply worse than Murong Fuyun!"
Murong Fuyun just harassed the border.
This Qu Wentai is good, it directly blocks the Silk Road, which is blocking the neck of Datang's foreign trade!
If you are really a green forest hero, it would be fine if I were an ordinary citizen.
But you are a country as big as sesame seeds and mung beans, how dare you go against me, the Tang Dynasty?
"Your Majesty, Gaochang State is where the throat lies."
Fang Xuanling said in a deep voice,
“The Silk Road is extremely important to us!”
"It is not only a matter of trade, but also related to the exchange between the Tang Dynasty and the Western Regions."
"That piece of land, I think, is more valuable than Tuyuhun, and it should be firmly in our own hands!"
Li Shimin couldn't help but be a little stunned when he heard this.
"Um?"
He was surprised and said,
"Xuanling, what do you mean... support me in sending troops?"
He hadn't even said that he wanted to fight, but Fang Xuanling took the initiative.
"yes."
Fang Xuanling said seriously,
"If Qu Wentai cooperated, he would have given up. But if he dares to despise the Tang Dynasty so much, then we must send troops to destroy him! He will hold the throat in his own hands!"
"I originally felt that there was nothing to fight in Tuyuhun. I just thought that the place was of little value and I would have to worry about governing it if the country was destroyed."
"And this Gaochang country is very valuable! Even if everything is fine, we should seize its land and make it our own! Only then will we feel at ease!"
Li Shimin: "..."
This Fang Xuanling is so cool!
Are there such civil servants?
After all, he is a founding hero, so extraordinary!
"What about Wei Zheng and the others?"
Li Shimin said cautiously.
"I will persuade you!"
Fang Xuanling is confident.
"It starts with emotion and moves with reason. With Wei Xuancheng's astuteness, he naturally knows the pros and cons!"
"Besides, the Tang Dynasty is now rich and has enough money to fight wars. There is no need to worry at all!"
When Li Shimin heard this, he couldn't help laughing!
"Okay, okay, okay, okay..."
"Xuanling, you are really my good prime minister! As soon as I had an idea here, you thought about it all!"
"Okay! I'll leave this matter to you! Datang has money now, and has the confidence to send troops!"
"..."
…
Two days later.
On the outskirts of Chang'an, there was the sound of horse hooves.
"It's been a long time since I've been back to Chang'an! The feeling of coming back this time is different from any time before!"
"Master, when we return in triumph, will your Majesty come back to greet us?"
"Master..."
Xue Rengui kept chattering.
I used to think that he was quite honest and didn't talk much. Now that I'm familiar with him, he is simply a talkative person!
Later generations will call this stuffy.
However, Li Jing was in a good mood and replied with a smile:
"Of course it's different. This time he returns in triumph and is admired by everyone! Who doesn't like the feeling of being revered and worshiped by countless people?"
"However, you kid, please don't get carried away. Don't be so immersed in this feeling that you can't extricate yourself. The only one who can truly enjoy all of this is the emperor, not even the prince."
Xue Rengui nodded in understanding.
"As for you saying that His Majesty will welcome you? Then you are totally overthinking it."
Li Jingdao,
"We seem to have won the battle, but in fact the scale is not big. At best, the record is just a little better."
"In addition, we have to be picked on by the commander-in-chief of the army. They don't know how many bad things His Majesty has said about us behind our backs."
"So, don't have too many fantasies. If you can drink wine at the celebration banquet, it's considered good."
He is also an old man, with a stable mentality, and is unfazed by favors and humiliations.
"All right."
Xue Rengui was slightly disappointed and said,
"I thought I could be welcomed by His Majesty. That would be so honorable."
"Master, when my eldest brother defeated the Turks, did Your Majesty welcome him?"
When Li Jing heard this, he showed a hint of reminiscence.
"That's natural. Destroying the Turks and capturing the Khan alive were simply unparalleled feats at that time!"
He sighed,
"You don't know how grand the scene was when the army arrived in Chang'an!"
"Countless people gathered around to watch, and the emperor personally welcomed him and even built a monument for the grand master!"
"I'm not afraid of your jokes. At that time, I thought, if I could switch places with your elder brother, I would die right away!"
Recalling the past, the eventful years.
Infinite emotion.
Even now when I think about it, I still feel excited!
"What an honor..."
Xue Rengui clicked his tongue and said,
"My eldest brother rarely tells me these things. He only tells me to study martial arts and military art so that I can serve the country in the future."
He knows that his eldest brother is very powerful and awesome.
But I didn't expect him to be so powerful and awesome!
Thinking that such a legendary figure was his eldest brother, Xue Rengui, who was still white, puffed up his chest unconsciously.
"That's natural. Your eldest brother is different from any other minister."
Li Jing nodded and said,
"He is a true master. Many celebrities claim that they are indifferent to fame and fortune, but when it comes to Vanity Fair, how many of them can stay away from it?"
"I'm afraid they've all sunk! Such bullshit indifference to fame and fortune!"
"I only believe your eldest brother when he says that he is indifferent to fame and wealth, because he really said he left behind his high-ranking official and generous salary without saying a word."
"Who can match this level?"
As he talked, he admired Xu Fenglei more and more.
Unconsciously, I almost regard Xu Fenglei as my idol! Can……
I am several rounds older than him!
Xue Rengui listened carefully and subconsciously glanced at Hou Junji in the team behind him.
A few days ago, he had tied himself up. It was only after the palace ordered him to untie himself and get back on the horse.
But even so, he still walked slowly at the back of the team, extremely low-key - logically speaking, with his achievements, he could be at the front of the team, or even go hand in hand with Li Jing.
"Look at him less."
Li Jing looked forward and said calmly,
"He'll notice."
Xue Rengui was startled and quickly turned his gaze away, scanning the team before turning his head.
It looks more natural this way...
"In the court, your eldest brother can be said to be the master of all things, and there is nothing he can't do, except for this nail."
Li Jing said softly,
"Hou Junji is a man of high moral character."
"Don't provoke him, let alone think foolishly of helping your brother bring him down, otherwise he will only seize the opportunity to bite you back."
"It's just your bowl of water, it's still shallow."
Xue Rengui scratched his head.
He thought to himself, could Master have some understanding of him?
How could I shake out everything I was thinking?
"I understand, Master."
Listening to others' advice, having enough to eat, and being obedient are one of Xue Rengui's greatest strengths, so he immediately gave up those messy thoughts.
"Boost!"
"We have to get to the city gate before the end of the day. Even if there is no His Majesty to greet us, there will always be important people to greet us. We cannot be negligent!"
"drive!"
Li Jing raised his riding whip.
The team began to pick up speed.
At the back of the team, Hou Junji walked deliberately slowly, his sinister eyes scanning Li Jing and Xue Rengui's bodies, and the corners of his mouth raised slightly.
…
Chang'an City, under the city tower.
Li Chengqian was dressed in a light yellow royal robe, standing upright, looking at the mighty and triumphant army.
Boom!
Boom!
"It's His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!"
"Quick, quick, dismount and walk!"
Li Jing's sharp eyes saw the face of the man standing under the city gate. He quickly got off his horse and stepped forward quickly.
"Your Majesty Li Jing, see His Highness the Crown Prince!"
With a pop, he knelt down on one knee.
Xue Rengui and countless generals and soldiers behind him all knelt down in front of Li Chengqian.
"General Li, thank you for your hard work. Get up."
Li Chengqian had a gentle temperament and said with a smile,
"I am here to congratulate General Li on his triumphant return!"
"The great victory in the Tuyuhun battle has given me the prestige of the Tang Dynasty! My father is very pleased!"
"He was going to come in person, but due to delays in state affairs, he couldn't spare the time to come, so he had to do it for him."
"General Li, you are neglecting me."
As he said that, he actually raised his hand towards Li Jingyi.
As a prince, he didn't have any air of unruliness in him, nor did he put on airs and look down at the soldiers.
This feeling of being respected by the prince is very comfortable for the soldiers.
"His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is serious."
"The generals and others are already flattered to be greeted by His Highness the Crown Prince! How is this a sign of neglect? It's clear that he is extremely kind to us and other generals!"
Li Jing stood up and said quickly,
"On behalf of all the officers and soldiers, I would like to thank the Prince's Palace for descending the steps to greet us!"
Li Chengqian smiled and cast his gaze on Xue Rengui.
"Brother Xue, long time no see."
Swish, swish, in an instant, countless eyes fell on Xue Rengui.
He could actually make His Highness the Crown Prince call him Big Brother?
Xue Rengui touched his nose.
