Li Jilong's chatterbox seemed to have opened up in this relaxed conversation. Seeing Emperor Liu's lively conversation, he also took the initiative to speak: "Nowadays, the entire Northern Xinjiang border army and garrison are focusing on suppressing internal security. Therefore, The monitoring of the Yinshan Eyeliner tribe and the Mobei Khitan's defense have also weakened.
For now, there is nothing going on in the middle of the desert and in the northern part of the desert, and the Khitan dare not rush southward to find peace for a while. However, the land is not peaceful now, and it is unknown when it will be stable.
Once the northern rebels move south and invade the border, it will definitely pose a serious threat to the northern border of the Han Dynasty. Especially given the current situation in northern border, once the internal and external collusion responds, it is likely to lead to a disaster..."
After hearing what he said, Emperor Liu frowned slightly and looked at Li Jilong sideways: "I seem to have heard similar words before. Some officials in the court wrote this to warn me.
On the surface, they hope that the imperial court will be wary of those leaders and chiefs who have been deprived of tribal power and property, so as to prevent them from colluding with Mobei, betraying the imperial court, and destroying the stability of northern Xinjiang due to grudges and complaints.
But in fact, they were still hesitant or even opposed to the imperial court's policy of reducing barbarians. In their view, maintaining the past status quo, Northern Xinjiang has been stable for more than ten years, it is prosperous, and those tribes also respect and submit.
If the imperial court implements this policy, it will destroy the stability of northern Xinjiang, cause dissatisfaction, and stimulate conflicts, which is a way to cause chaos. Do you also mean this? "
Emperor Liu said these words in a friendly manner, but his tone gave people an obvious sense of strangeness. After hearing this, Li Jilong shook his head decisively and simply, saying: "In my opinion, if the northern captives go south, if Those leaders and chiefs still control the clan's military and property, so if they collude with the Mobei Khitan and rebel against the imperial court, wouldn't the damage they cause to northern Xinjiang and the imperial court be even more serious?"
"Haha..." After hearing what Li Jilong said, Emperor Liu's expression did not change, but it gave the two sons-in-law in front of him a sense of relaxation: "Your consideration is correct and very insightful!"
Li Jilong lowered his head slightly, seeming a little embarrassed. Although he couldn't admit it, he was indeed catering to Emperor Liu to a large extent.
"As you said, the defense in northern Xinjiang is currently facing certain troubles. Now that it has been raised, do you have any thoughts on how to solve it?" Emperor Liu continued to ask.
Without thinking, Li Jilong cupped his hands and said, "I have two strategies!"
Greeting Emperor Liu's slightly expectant gaze, Li Jilong said: "The best strategy is to take the initiative and send troops northward to advance into Mobei. Instead of waiting for the barbarians to go south one day, why not bring the war to Mobei and completely defeat the Mobei Khitan? Then the threats to Monan, Shanyang and the entire northern territory will be completely eliminated!"
Emperor Liu drank a small drink and couldn't help but choked after hearing this plan. He looked at Li Jilong who looked serious and said, "Don't you know the strategic national policy of the Han Dynasty in recent years? Expedition to the Khitan in the north and deep into Mobei. To put it lightly, Do you know how much it will cost the court if the trip really takes place? Putting aside my attitude, if I report it to the court, the ministers in the political affairs hall will not agree!"
"Not to mention other people, Liu Yang is also supervising the country's governance. Ask him if he agrees with this proposal?"
Seeing Emperor Liu looking at him, Liu Yang remained calm and thought for a while before replying calmly: "Tyranny also proposed strategies based on what dad asked. He is the general who leads the army. From a military point of view, this is indeed a way to take the initiative." , Ways to eliminate the Northern Troubles!”
Liu Yang's words left a circle and explained to Li Jilong, but his attitude was obviously not approved. At least for now, he would not approve of using troops against Mobei.
In the Northeast region, the matter has not yet been settled, so how can there be another war in Mobei? For a long time to come, the Han Dynasty will still focus on internal governance to achieve peace, stabilize its rule, and naturalize the barbarians. The ultimate goal of the policy is also For this reason, even if some seemingly unnecessary hidden dangers and troubles are caused in the process.
Of course Li Jilong was a smart man, and he heard what Liu Yang was saying, but he said calmly: "I naturally have some understanding of the court's politics, but I don't think that using force to avoid war does not mean that you are afraid of war. Being timid does not mean that the court has to tie its own hands. Otherwise, why would the court send a large number of troops out of Huanglong Mansion and go deep into the mountains and forests of Northeast China this year?
Furthermore, even if we attack Mobei from the north, it may not require the strength of the whole country. With the current strength of the Khitan, it is not enough for the court to attack with all its strength. It just changes the cost from guarding the border to attacking. The specific method of attack can also be flexible and effective. Law......"
"It seems that you still can't sit still and want to make contributions!" After listening to Li Jilong's words, Emperor Liu was not annoyed, but said with a smile.
It was revealed directly that Emperor Liu did not express his position, but not expressing his position is the clearest statement.
"Tell me about your next move!" Emperor Liu signaled.
In this regard, Li Jilong's answer was even simpler and more direct: "Nothing else, just send more garrison soldiers to strengthen the strength of the northern frontier defense force!"
Listening to his words, Emperor Liu's brows jumped up and down, as if there was an indescribable emotion rippling in his heart. After pouring a glass of wine for Li Jilong, Emperor Liu said: "Tyranny, do you know how many garrison troops there are in the imperial court today, starting from Fengzhou in the west, reaching Yinshan in the north, and reaching Yanshan in the east?"
Li Jilong was stunned for a moment and said: "I don't know the specific number, but it is probably between seventy and eighty thousand!"
"Almost!" Emperor Liu nodded and continued to ask: "Then do you know how many garrison troops there are in the entire north? How many garrison troops are there in the entire north and south of the Han Dynasty?"
"Nearly four hundred thousand!" Emperor Liu said directly without waiting for an answer, and continued to ask in a somewhat oppressive tone: "Do you know how much the imperial court spends each year to support so many border troops?"
At this time, Li Jilong naturally realized what Emperor Liu meant, but he still had to answer his father-in-law's question, and he shook his head in embarrassment: "I don't know!"
"I don't know either!" Emperor Liu followed up and said forcefully: "But I know that it changes every year and increases every year. Every year, the people in charge of the money bag of the Financial Secretary complain to the court and to me. Call it difficult!"
"Under such circumstances, I have suppressed the proposal to reduce the border troops. You rashly proposed to increase the garrison without waiting for feedback. I can tell you directly that the ministers of the DPRK and China, especially the ministers of the Financial Secretary, They can jump!"
In fact, Emperor Liu is now paying more and more attention to the issue of military expenditures for border defense. If it were before, he might have felt that he was a civil servant in the court who wanted to suppress military generals, military strength, and nobles by reducing armaments.
However, Emperor Liu always attached great importance to the military and the army. How could he tolerate the interference of civil servants in the court? However, after so many years, the screams of the Financial Secretary became louder and louder, which finally aroused Emperor Liu's mind. After a detailed understanding, he had to admit that on the issue of border defense, a lot of money was wasted. Not cheap indeed.
Not to mention the huge number of garrison soldiers, in order to provide support, the annual military supplies such as wages, clothing, shoes and socks, grain, ordnance, livestock, plus the transportation losses, are an extremely huge expenditure.
Emperor Liu also treated the army very favorably, especially the frontier soldiers who endured the most hardships and faced the most difficult environment. At least in terms of treatment, there was absolutely no shortage.
This is just the border army. For national defense construction and border security, no matter how high the cost, the court has always gritted its teeth and persisted. However, with the passage of time, even Emperor Liu gradually felt the pressure coming from all sides, as if he had seen the day coming when the imperial court could not support such a huge defense system and could not withstand such a huge defense system. Significant financial pressure, that means collapse...
In fact, Emperor Liu had already considered making adjustments. He had previously asked the Political Affairs Hall, the Privy Council, and the Financial Secretary to jointly discuss the matter, but the discussion failed to produce a result.
It is not easy to make rectifications, but it is really easy to cause problems if you act rashly. The Finance Secretary's proposals, either to reduce troops or reduce benefits, were directly rejected by Emperor Liu, which was a recipe for disaster.
Therefore, when he heard Li Jilong's proposal to continue to increase the garrison strength in northern Xinjiang, it hit Emperor Liu's nerves and pointed to his recent worries, so his reaction was inevitably a little bigger.
On the other hand, this consideration is not only due to the financial burden. There is also a question: if the border army is too large, will it lead to a situation of being heavy on the outside and weak on the inside, with strong branches and weak trunks?
This should be strictly prohibited and strictly vigilant!
Even though Emperor Liu has been constantly emphasizing the supremacy of imperial power, promoting centralization of power, and ensuring control over the army, as time goes by and the situation develops and changes, a worrying situation will inevitably form. After all, it’s a lesson learned from the past.
However, in order to maintain such a vast territory of the Han Dynasty, to maintain the rule of the imperial court, and to ensure the security of the country, it was necessary to deploy troops and strengthen defense. Such difficulties were inevitable for the Han Empire.
As a military general and a member of the frontier army, Li Jilong naturally would not think so much and could not understand the court's pain. But Liu Yang knew it very well, so when he saw his doubts, he simply explained the dispute between the DPRK and China regarding the border defense.
As a result, Li Jilong suddenly realized that his suggestions were in contradiction with the imperial court...
