After a while, the envoys from the two countries still hadn't arrived.
Li Chengqian came.
Several people in the post room saluted, "His Royal Highness."
Li Chengqian said quickly: "You two uncles don't need to be polite. I'm just here to listen and learn."
Li Xiaogong is very satisfied with the current crown prince. His Royal Highness is studious and open-minded. He is simply a role model for the young people of the Tang Dynasty.
After scanning the room, his last gaze fell on Zhang Yang, and then he sat aside minding his own business.
Li Xiaogong subconsciously looked at Zhang Yang, fearing that he would speak again.
The envoys from the two countries arrived with some ink stains, and Li Xiaogong looked at Zhang Yang again.
Zhang Yang put his hands in his sleeves and whispered: "Is there anything wrong with Prince Hejian?"
If I don't just look at you a few times, this kid won't be happy anymore.
I feel a little unhappy for no reason. Why does this kid look so familiar to me? I just can't remember where I've seen him before.
Li Xiaogong frowned and said, "What do you do for a living on weekdays?"
"I can barely make ends meet by doing some small business."
Li Xiaogong asked doubtfully: "Small business?"
"Yes, the market is not very good these days."
"Young people should study more." Li Xiaogong straightened his posture and said.
Li Chengqian smiled calmly.
Because Tuyuhun and the Tibetan envoys will have their first meeting today, which will last from the end of last year to the beginning of this year.
Li Shimin ignored the envoys of the two countries for more than two months. This was the first meeting between the court and the envoys of the two countries.
The post house was surrounded by officers and soldiers, and the outsiders who were still drinking in the post house were also invited out.
Only the Japanese monk clung to a pillar.
"If the poor monk doesn't come out, they will beat him to death!"
Several officers and soldiers grabbed the Japanese monk's legs and pulled hard.
The Japanese monk had tears and runny nose, but he still hugged the pillar tightly, crying and howling, "If the poor monk doesn't go out, they are all outside."
Someone couldn't help but hit the Japanese monk on the back of the head with a stick, causing him to faint on the spot.
The inn was finally quiet.
Yuchi Gong and the prince of Hejian County, one civil and one military, are the leaders of this conversation, representing the current court.
The two of them were sitting at a table, with Li Chengqian and Zhang Yang standing behind.
On the other two sides are the positions of the Tuyuhun envoys and the Tubo envoys.
Li Xiaogong was sitting cross-legged. The envoys from both sides kept showing up and were a little impatient, so they kept changing their sitting positions.
There was a sound of footsteps, and a guard came to the door and said: "Prince Hejian County, General Yuchi, they have arrived."
Li Xiaogong nodded and said, "Please come in."
There was another sound of footsteps.
Two middle-aged men walked into the post house room, their clothes were weird.
The one wearing Tubo costumes is Lu Dongzan, and the other one is the Tuyuhun envoy.
Zhang Yang looked at them carefully and thought that these two people were too unhygienic. Their hair was all tangled. It had been a long time since they had washed their hair.
The cuffs of the clothes were also blackened.
Lu Dongzan said in the Central Plains dialect: "Foreign minister Lu Dongzan has met the king of Hejian County and General Yuchi."
This Chinese dialect is pretty good.
Zhang Yang was secretly surprised.
Tuyuhun's envoy introduced himself: "The foreign minister is Tuyuhun's envoy Adalan."
Li Xiaogong nodded and motioned for them to sit down.
There were several officers and soldiers standing outside the room, protecting the safety here.
The envoys from both sides sat down.
Lu Dongzan spoke first, "I heard that Prince Hejian has only been appointed as the Minister of Rites not long ago. He must be very busy these days."
Li Xiaogong was stunned for a moment, and then said: "Last year, everyone in the court was busy with the affairs of the court meeting, and everyone in the court couldn't get away from it. I hope you won't be offended by my neglect these days."
Lu Dongzan took out a package of things and opened the cloth. Inside was some dried stuff, which looked a bit like herbal medicine if you looked closely.
He introduced: "This is a kind of medicinal material from Tubo. Eating it can smooth the Qi and activate blood circulation. After hearing about General Qin Qiong's illness, someone brought it to us. This medicinal material may be useful. This is also our Zanpu's wish. "
Zhang Yang took a look at the medicinal materials and thought to himself, isn't this saffron? This Ludongzan is quite good at things. It seems that he has done a lot of homework before and he also speaks Guanzhong dialect quite well.
The Tuyuhun envoy Adalan smiled disdainfully and said in poor Guanzhong dialect: "Maybe it was poisoned."
As soon as these words came out, Lu Dongzan's face turned cold, "Our great Zanpu is very sincere, and he is definitely not as repetitive as you Tuyuhun people."
There was a strong smell of gunpowder on both sides.
Yuchi Gong smoothed things over and said, "Two envoys, please be patient."
"I'm sorry." Lu Dongzan apologized and saluted.
The incompatibility between the two envoys was very interesting, allowing them to be so hostile. He said to himself that Li Shimin's arrangements were well done. This was full of hatred. Zhang Yang smiled with satisfaction.
The opening words were almost there. Li Xiaogong didn't like the literati style very much, "Let's be honest, what do you two countries want us to do in the Tang Dynasty?"
Lu Dongzan said quickly: "We, Zanpu, hope to work together with the Tang Dynasty to eliminate Tuyuhun, and are willing to share Tuyuhun's territory equally with the Tang Dynasty."
"Snapped!"
The Tuyuhun envoy jumped up and said, "You have all seen that Tubo wants to destroy us Tuyuhun! Please go to the country to make the decision for us."
This Lu Dongzan didn't even act, and directly said in front of the Tuyuhun envoy that he wanted to destroy them. This is too disrespectful.
Even if your Tubo Zanpu Songtsen Gampo is young and vigorous, he is still too arrogant.
Lu Dongzan was unmoved by the words of Tuyuhun's envoy Adalan. He said: "The people of the Central Plains have a saying that the weak eat the strong! Even if you, Tuyuhun, are destroyed, you are useless!"
This Lu Dongzan can also quote scriptures. It seems that he has read a lot of books from the Central Plains. It is not easy for this person to sit in the position of the Prime Minister of Tubo. A person with brute force is not to be feared, but a person with wisdom and strength is something to be guarded against. of.
Compared to Tuyuhun's envoys, Zhang Yang felt that Tibet was a greater threat.
Li Xiaogong looked solemn.
Tubo has already offered benefits. As long as the Tang Dynasty and Tubo destroy Tuyuhun together, they can share the territory equally with Tubo.
"So what does the Tuyuhun envoy want us to do in the Tang Dynasty?" Li Chengqian, who was sitting in the back, was quiet for a long time, and now he finally spoke.
The Tuyuhun envoy bowed and saluted and said: "I hope that the Tang Dynasty can help Tuyuhun to stop the Tubo people. We Tuyuhun are willing to make an alliance with the Tang Dynasty. We will worship the Tang Dynasty as our supreme country from generation to generation, and we will never offend again."
After all, the envoys from both sides hoped that Datang would send troops.
Li Xiaogong thought about it and said, "Actually, it's not impossible to send troops..."
As soon as he finished speaking, Li Xiaogong was roughly pushed, and he looked back at Zhang Yang displeased.
Zhang Yang still stood motionless like a statue.
Li Xiaogong turned around and continued: "The matter of sending troops..."
Before he finished speaking, he was pushed again.
Li Xiaogong glared at Zhang Yang again this time with anger in his eyes.
Turning around again, he opened his mouth but didn't speak but was pushed again.
Li Xiaogong couldn't bear it anymore, and shouted with big eyes: "Why did you push me so many times?"
Zhang Yang looked around and said, "Is there such a thing?"
"Is it possible that I got into trouble?!" Li Xiaogong said loudly.
"Maybe." Zhang Yang sighed with emotion.
Now is the time for negotiation. Regardless, Li Xiaogong took a deep breath, sat down again and continued: "If we send troops..."
"Cough cough cough..."
There was a violent coughing sound behind him, and Li Xiaogong's expression froze on his face. He looked back at Zhang Yang mechanically, and even made a clicking sound of the joints in his neck rubbing together.
Zhang Yang cleared his throat again, "Prince Hejian, have you forgotten something?"
Li Xiaogong blinked, "What did I forget?"
"Have you forgotten what your Majesty told you before?"
Li Xiaogong scratched his head. Did your Majesty tell you before he came?
After thinking about it several times, I confirmed that His Majesty did not say anything.
Yes, there was no explanation at all.
This guy looked so serious, I almost believed him!
Li Chengqian said: "Why don't you tell me, Sir, what did the Prince of Hejian County forget?"
"Finally I found a chance to talk, I'm so suffocated." Zhang Yang loosened his collar and said.
It's Li Xiaogong's turn to be confused. If you want to speak, just say it, why don't you push me!
Where did your Majesty find this treasure?
It's so annoying. This officer really doesn't want to do it anymore. Li Xiaogong waved his sleeves and sat down again.
Zhang Yang looked at the Tibetan envoys and the Tuyuhun envoys and whispered: "May I ask the two envoys, do you both hope that the Tang Dynasty will send troops to help you?"
Lu Dongzan looked at the Tuyuhun envoy Adalan.
Adalan nodded vigorously, as if pounding garlic.
Looking at Zhang Yang again, Lu Dongzan did not deny it.
"Two noble envoys, if you have any words to ask, how many troops and horses will be needed if we send out troops?"
Adalan was the first to speak: "The more, the better!"
Lu Dongzan also said: "It all depends on the superior country's decision."
"I'm done." Zhang Yang retreated behind Li Xiaogong again.
He looked at Zhang Yang impatiently and thought that this guy was going to say something with just these two sentences.
Li Xiaogong cleared his throat and sat up straight again, "Um... let's send troops from the Tang Dynasty..."
"..."
Li Xiaogong was pushed again, and the atmosphere in the room was quiet for a long time...
As if he had held his breath, he finally couldn't bear it anymore, his cheeks turned red and his blood pressure increased.
"Are you done yet?" Li Xiaogong was so angry that the three corpse gods jumped violently, as if smoke was rising from their heads.
"Prince Hejian, you seem to have forgotten again."
"I want to tear you apart now!"
"Tear it apart later."
"no!"
"You have something to say."
"have nothing to say!"
Li Chengqian also broke out in a cold sweat and said: "Why don't you listen to Master Deng, what did the Prince of Hejian County forget?"
Zhang Yang took another step forward and looked at Lu Dongzan, "The Prime Minister of Tubo just said that after capturing Tuyuhun, he was willing to share the territory equally with the Tang Dynasty, right?"
Lu Dongzan nodded.
After walking back and forth for a few steps, Zhang Yang said again: "How many troops does Tubo have?"
Lu Dongzan hesitated for a while, "Tibet now has one hundred thousand warriors."
"Um."
Nodding his head clearly, Zhang Yang looked at the King of Hejian County again, "I dare to ask the King of Hejian County. If Tubo gives 100,000 troops, how many more troops will Tang Dynasty send to capture Tuyuhun before the autumn harvest?"
After some calculation in his mind, Prince Hejian looked at Yuchi Gong.
Yuchi said in a respectful voice: "At least another hundred thousand."
"good."
Zhang Yang looked at Lu Dongzan again, "I think the Prime Minister of Tibet must have read a lot of books about our Central Plains."
Lu Dongzan smiled and said: "We Zanpu from Tubo have always admired the wisdom of the Central Plains."
Zhang Yang looked around and asked, "Is there any water?"
"ah?"
"thirsty."
The change of words caught everyone present off guard.
Li Chengqian shouted outside the room: "Bring water."
Zhang Yang added: "I only drink boiling water, that is, boiling water."
Li Chengqian said again: "Get the boiling water!"
After a while, the waiter from the post house came with a pot of boiling water.
Zhang Yang took a sip and then looked at Prince Hejian and Yuchi Gong, "Would you like some, too?"
Li Xiaogong turned his head disdainfully.
Zhang Yang continued: "What kind of books does the Prime Minister usually like to read? Is it the Military Book or the Analects of Confucius?"
As soon as he said this, Li Chengqian frowned and looked at Lu Dongzan, his eyes full of meaning.
Lu Dongzan smiled awkwardly, "He has a wide range of interests."
"That's great. I like dealing with cultural people like you."
"Really?" Lu Dongzan was a little surprised, but he felt more and more that something was wrong.
In the post house, the conversation here was very quiet, except for Li Xiaogong's few words when he was angry.
The conversation now is much calmer.
Zhang Yang continued: "Then you must also know that sending troops has costs. It requires a lot of money. Among them, soldiers, horses, weapons, food and grass, including army food and salary and soldiers' pensions, this is a big expense."
Lu Dongzan fell silent.
"I dare to ask Prince Hejian about how much money this will cost."
Ask me again... The anger from before has not gone away, and I still want to tear him apart, so I will bear it for now.
Prince Hejian waved his sleeves and said, "This is all a matter for the civil servants in the army."
"It seems that our military should also take up cultural courses."
Yu Chigong said: "Including the baggage, we need to prepare 600,000 silver coins for such a battle."
"Then including subsequent rewards, it will cost roughly one million guan." Zhang Yang took over and said.
These words made Yu Chigong almost spit out a mouthful of water on the spot. He said that six hundred thousand guan was already a dozen, which was too much. This kid said a million guan as soon as he opened his mouth. He really dared to say that.
"Although it costs a lot of money, after taking Tuyuhun, we can divide the treasure and the land." Lu Dongzan's tone was a little lower.
Zhang Yang continued: "Brother Xiang, let's call him this for now. First of all, whether there is treasure during the war, and whether the treasure can be obtained are two different things. Everything must be considered on the basis of victory, but there is another saying in the Central Plains. It is called victory or defeat, which is a common thing in military affairs. Have you heard of this saying?"
Lu Dongzan nodded.
"We don't consider the treasure you mentioned at the moment. Besides, you are begging us, Datang, to do things. Is it appropriate for us, Datang, to bear all the costs?"
Lu Dongzan was silent, still making calculations in his mind.
Zhang Yang continued to speak, "This is obviously inappropriate. Now we are on a foreign war. If Tubo does not give us the cost of sending troops, the soldiers of the Tang Dynasty will not work for you. Without this money, sending troops is not within the scope of our consideration." Inside."
Looking at the Tuyuhun envoy again, Zhang Yang said: "The Tuyuhun envoy said before that as long as the Tang Dynasty sends troops to help you, then you can surrender to the Tang Dynasty and never offend, right?"
The Tuyuhun messenger nodded, "Exactly."
Zhang Yang grinned, with a harmless smile that a sunny boy should have on his face, "Many times, agreements such as forming alliances are often used to break the contract. This kind of promise is unreliable for generations."
(End of chapter)
