"quiet!"
"quiet!"
"No noise or making noise in the palace!"
The eunuchs on duty and the ministers used up the boss's strength, and finally the courtiers managed to regain their composure.
But Jingjing is quiet, those firm eyes, and the expression that looks at death as if it is home, seem to say -
Your Majesty, if you dare to be the marshal of the waterway, we will kill you on the golden steps to show you!
Everyone, stop playing!
"snort!"
At this moment, Li Shimin also looked like he was breaking a jar and said coldly,
"I have made up my mind! Don't object any more!"
"In this battle, I must work hard to defeat Goguryeo within three months to enhance the prestige of the Tang Dynasty!"
"Fang Xuanling, please draft an imperial edict quickly!"
After giving the order, the officials cried and cried again.
Fang Xuanling looked solemn, shook his head and said:
"Your Majesty, this is too risky and I cannot accept the order!"
"Your Majesty, please think twice!"
After saying that, he knelt down and fell in front of Li Shimin.
"Your Majesty, think twice!"
All the officials knelt down, and even the generals knelt down to beg!
Among them, the one with the most intense emotions was none other than the fierce general Wei Chigong!
"Your Majesty, you are no longer the King of Qin. You are the Lord of the Ninth Five Years. You must not be as unscrupulous as you were back then!"
"It's enough to talk about land battles, but we have no experience in water battles or cross-sea battles! Just crossing the sea is extremely dangerous. Your Majesty must not act on impulse!"
Yuchi Gong was once Li Shimin's personal general, so he naturally knew how powerful Li Shimin was in martial arts and how coquettish his moves were.
but……
That's all in the past!
The last time we charged into battle was twenty years ago!
Right now, no matter his status or physical strength, he can no longer support Li Shimin to do such a difficult thing!
All the ministers knelt down and begged the emperor to think again.
There were only two people standing, one was Xu Fenglei, and the other was Changsun Wuji, who had just been instigated by Xu Fenglei in the morning.
"Ah!"
Li Shimin said angrily,
"Fang Xuanling, do you think that without you drafting the imperial edict, my will cannot be carried out?"
"joke!"
"I have the final say in this court and this country, not you!"
"I said that I want to conquer in person, and I mean I want to conquer in person. No one can stop me! Even if Wei Zheng crawls out of the grave, he can't stop me!"
"If you don't write it, then I will write it myself and grant myself the Tiger Talisman!"
These words made all the officials feel numb!
Some veterans of the Sui Dynasty were even dumbfounded - this scene seemed familiar!
How come His Majesty, the wise and mighty Emperor today, looks like Yang Guang? Could it be that Goguryeo really had some magical power that could drive the emperor crazy and obsessed?
That's outrageous...
"Your Majesty, you must not do it, you must not do it!"
Fang Xuanling's eyes were a little moist, and her face turned red with excitement.
He never expected that the emperor would be so tough today, as tough as a coward!
It is true that if the emperor is really determined to conquer personally, no one can stop him. As a minister, he has no power to stop it. He can only remonstrate, and at most it will be a death remonstrance!
He had no choice but to turn his gaze to Xu Fenglei and Changsun Wuji, and said eagerly:
"Jin Gong, Zhao Gong, you guys should say something!"
"Are we just going to watch His Majesty take risks and watch the country fall into danger?"
Right now, these two people have not expressed their opinions.
And these two happened to be the people with the most say in the court, especially Xu Fenglei. At this juncture, only he could change His Majesty's mind!
Changsun Wuji looked stern, raised his hands and said:
"Your Majesty, all my ministers agree to the conquest of Goguryeo."
"But it is definitely not possible for you to take command as the water marshal! The Tang navy has just completed its training. To put it harshly, it is just an immature seedling! It is not yet known how powerful it will be!"
"Besides, the sea is unpredictable. There are countless records of various shipwrecks throughout the ages. You have to know that just going to sea is very dangerous, let alone fighting across the sea!"
"Taking a step back, even if these can be overcome, when we arrive in Pyongyang, we only have 30,000 troops but we have to face the base camp of Goguryeo. There are countless soldiers and guards there. Once we are trapped in a tight siege, we will be in ruins." There’s no way to escape!”
"It is certainly a good thing that the raid is successful, but if it does not go well, His Majesty's safety will be worrying!"
Xiaozhi's words were moved by emotion and reason, and Li Shimin narrowed his eyes.
"Yes, yes, Mr. Zhao is right!"
All the ministers agreed.
"I don't care so much!"
Li Shimin was worried and snorted coldly,
"I firmly believe that the raid will be extremely smooth! The difficulties, obstacles and setbacks you mentioned will definitely not happen!"
"Destiny is in Tang Dynasty, destiny is in me!"
Ministers: "..."
You are a fool, you are a fool!
The one who can say these words is definitely a fool!
Has His Majesty been lowered? Or possessed by an evil spirit?
Even if you can say this kind of thing, you are even more arrogant than Yang Guang!
Just as the ministers were looking ugly, Xu Fenglei suddenly shouted:
"What destiny is in Tang Dynasty, destiny is in you!"
"There is never any destiny. Even if there is one, it must be for those who are humble, virtuous, and cautious!"
"Your Majesty is so arrogant and arrogant. Even if you have destiny, you have lost it!"
As soon as these words came out, there was silence in the palace.
A thought arose in the minds of the ministers——
As expected of a great master!
If you don't open your mouth, you'll get scolded right away!
Well done!
The emperor must be scolded to wake him up, otherwise he doesn’t know how much trouble there will be!
"Xu Fenglei, what do you mean!"
Li Shimin looked gloomy and ordered.
"It's nothing interesting. I just want His Majesty to wake up a little bit."
Xu Fenglei said neither humble nor arrogantly,
"We can understand that you want to go on an expedition. After all, you are the emperor who founded the country on horseback."
"but--"
"You can't joke with your life, Emperor, you have to put safety first!"
"Even if we really have to go out to take command, we have to choose the safest way! This way, everyone can feel at ease."
All the ministers nodded.
"What the Master said makes sense!"
"Yes, even if we really have to lead a war, we have to take the safest route. The waterway is too scary! I have never been on a boat in my life!"
"me too……"
Li Shimin's face was still gloomy.
"Then what should I do?"
He said in a deep voice,
"Anyway, I must take command this time and go on an expedition. No one can stop me!"
Xu Fenglei looked at Changsun Wuji, then at Fang Xuanling, and asked:
"What do you two think?"
Changsun Wuji understood the idea and said:
"It's all up to the Grand Master to decide. I support your idea, Grand Master."
When Fang Xuanling heard this, he responded:
"It all depends on the Grand Master's decision."
At the moment, the emperor doesn't listen to anyone, so only Xu Fenglei can talk to him.
"good."
Xu Fenglei withdrew his gaze, turned to Li Shimin, and said seriously,
"Since Your Majesty is determined to go on an expedition, we will definitely not allow you to take risks on the water route... Otherwise, how about you lead the land army and replace your ministers with leading the navy?"
"I know a bit about the ocean. It can be said that I created all the naval forces in the Tang Dynasty."
"I am willing to lead a navy of 30,000 men, cross the sea and take Pyongyang directly, and then successfully join forces with His Majesty's land army!"
"I wonder, Your Majesty, are you willing to agree?"
Fang Xuanling looked stern when he heard this, and was about to speak, but was stopped by Changsun Wuji.
Changsun Wuji shook his head and gave him a reassuring look.
Fang Xuanling: "..."
In the end, he didn't speak.
When all the ministers heard Xu Fenglei's remarks, they all remained silent and did not speak out against it.
It’s just...it feels like something is wrong...
"Land route? I have fought for so many years with the army. This time I just want to command the navy to have fun!"
Li Shimin frowned and said,
"Isn't this okay?"
Xu Fenglei shook his head.
"War is not for you to have fun. War is a very serious matter, and soldiers have to sacrifice their lives to fill it!"
He said seriously,
"If Your Majesty goes to war with such a mentality, it would be irresponsible and an ominous sign!"
Li Shimin fell into silence.
"There is only one chance. This is the greatest compromise I can give to Your Majesty!"
Xu Fenglei said loudly,
"If His Majesty still insists on having his own way, even if I can't stop it, I will definitely sit down and protest in this golden palace until Your Majesty changes his mind!"
The words were spoken with sonorous force.
Li Shimin couldn't help but raise the corners of his mouth slightly, but he was a professional actor after all, and he would never smile when he shouldn't.
However, this scene is really funny.
Xu Fenglei seemed to be arguing and standing on the same front as the ministers.
But in fact, the two of them are working together, just singing the double act here!
I have to say, this guy’s clever idea is really useful! Initially, everyone disagreed with his decision to lead the expedition in person, but as a result, he wanted to be the water marshal, and Xu Fenglei sang along with him...
No one seems to object to his personal conquest as a charioteer!
This idea works!
"All right."
Li Shimin confronted Xu Fenglei in silence for a long time, and then he said with some dejection, as if he had defeated a rooster in a fight,
"It seems that I can only be the water marshal in my dreams."
"...Then you will take on this responsibility and attack Pyongyang! I will serve as the land marshal and attack its city."
"Ok, deal!"
Xu Fenglei bowed his head.
"Your Majesty, Holy Might!"
"If this can be done, it will be a blessing to the country, the country, and the people!"
As soon as he took the lead, Changsun Wuji immediately followed. Although the ministers were a little confused, seeing that Xu Fenglei and His Majesty had reached an agreement, they could not say anything more and could only agree one after another.
In any case, it can be considered a success to make His Majesty give up the risky move of crossing the sea to sneak attack... Everyone can only think this way to comfort themselves.
Only Fang Xuanling suddenly turned ugly, his expression changed several times, and finally he could only sigh.
He reacted now!
But...it's too late!
"Now that it's agreed, let's retreat!"
Li Shimin flicked his sleeves and said,
"Wei Zheng is gone, and you Xu Fenglei show up again. I really can't do anything I want!"
"snort!"
After that, he drifted away. From his tone, it seemed that he was still dissatisfied and was just forced to compromise.
"Your Majesty, what's going on? It wasn't like this before..."
"Well, your Majesty is old after all. Naturally, he cannot be as humbly accepting of advice as he used to be. It is normal to be a little more willful. In addition, with Duke Wei gone, there is no one in the court who can control him anymore... "
"Fortunately, Mr. Xu is still here, and His Majesty still listens to what he says..."
"yes……"
"..."
The ministers left Liangyi Hall in groups, talking casually.
Fang Xuanling stood at the door, specially waiting for Xu Fenglei and Changsun Wuji.
"Prime Minister, let's go! It's still early, why don't we go have a drink?"
Xu Fenglei greeted with a smile.
Fang Xuanling asked with a calm face:
"You two and His Majesty should be in the same group, right?"
Changsun Wuji was slightly stunned and did not answer.
Xu Fenglei suddenly slapped his head and said:
"Oops! I suddenly remembered that I have something urgent to deal with at home!"
"Let's go, let's go! I'm sorry for you two husbands, I'll treat you to a drink later!"
"Farewell, farewell!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he ran away. Before the two of them could react, he had already disappeared in a flash.
Fang Xuanling turned her attention to Changsun Wuji.
Xu Fenglei's place. He really didn't dare to question him, but Changsun Wuji was not afraid!
The two of them are colleagues, and in terms of rank, he is even more senior than Gao Changsun Wuji!
"My guess is correct, right? His Majesty's goal from the beginning was to conquer the country in person, not to be a water marshal!"
Fang Xuanling stared at Changsun Wuji and said solemnly,
"Marshal Waterway, you are just throwing out bait to make us bite the hook!"
"Yes and no?"
Changsun Wuji: "..."
Faced with Fang Xuanling's questioning, he couldn't speak even a single word and became mute.
Not speaking is actually acquiescence.
"What a nonsense! Even if it's just a land route, it's still very dangerous! There's no such thing as a dangerous war! How can you support His Majesty's move?"
Fang Xuanling said angrily,
"Leave aside the risks, what will happen to the court once His Majesty leaves?"
"Changsun Wuji, Changsun Wuji, you can't cater to His Majesty unconditionally! We have to consider the country and the country!"
These words were already a bit harsh, and he almost pointed at Changsun Wuji's nose and said that he had no bottom line in order to please the emperor!
However, at this moment, Changsun Wuji was unable to refute. Not only was he unable to refute, his face gradually began to turn red.
He admitted that... he was acting for personal gain and had forgotten the national interest.
In this embarrassing situation, a eunuch holding a whisk in his hand walked up quickly and said:
"Mr. Zhao, Gong Zhao!"
"Fortunately, you haven't gone far yet. His Majesty ordered you to come over. He is waiting for you in the study."
"Oh, okay, okay...I'll go right now, I'll go right now..."
"Prime Minister, we'll talk later. It's important that I go see His Majesty first..."
He breathed a sigh of relief, as if he had been pardoned. He hurriedly said hello to Fang Xuanling and followed the eunuch.
Fang Xuanling watched him leave in a hurry with a complicated expression. In the end, she could only sigh and turned away.
Now that the deal is done, what's the use of him besides complaining and cursing?
(End of chapter)
