In the Zichen Hall, Li Zhi's sudden question made Li Xuan a little confused, and the shock on his face was clearly visible.
Li Xuan held up his hands with some hesitation and said: "Your Majesty, Queen of Heaven, this matter has always been discussed between the Central Committee and the six ministries. How come it is my turn to comment!"
Li Zhi frowned slightly and looked sideways at Empress Wu. Empress Wu immediately asked: "Then you and the Left Prime Minister never discussed this matter when we were on the plateau?"
"Never." Li Xuan said with a wry smile on his face and shook his head: "I always thought that this was a matter decided by Your Majesty, the Queen of Heaven and the ministers in the court, so I never thought about it deeply."
Seeing Li Xuan's appearance, Li Zhi finally nodded, but then asked: "Okay, think about it now, I need to know what you really think."
"Here!" Li Xuan immediately handed over his hand, and then said thoughtfully: "In the land of Qugou, there are only 30,000 people and more than 6,000 households. There are not enough in the lower states and more than enough in the upper counties. Therefore, establishing a county is the first thing. After that, , is to establish a state, but the lower state has more than 20,000 households, which is obviously insufficient, so we need to look at the surrounding counties."
Li Zhi nodded lightly. Li Xuan said this, indicating that the idea is still clear, but it depends on how clear it is.
After carefully sorting out his thoughts, Li Xuan continued: "Kuozhou and Shanzhou are close to each other, so if we do not establish a state, we should consider incorporating them into the two states.
Once entering the state, state governance, county governance, and taxation all need to be considered, as well as the transportation of grain and grass, and the responsibilities of Tubo's war and defense.
Therefore, I consider that Kuozhou and Shanzhou are not willing to be included in Qugou New City, so whether to establish a new state or not, we still need to see Xinghai. "
"Hiss!" When Li Xuan said this, even he couldn't help but take a breath of cold air.
In Xinghai, the Qingdong Protectorate of Tubo was sitting. On the left flank of Qinling, an army of 30,000 troops was located. There were dangers from mountains, rivers and the Yellow River.
In the previous war, Lun Qinling retreated to Dafeichuan, but the southern army still connected with Xinghai.
Even with the Turkic cavalry in the north and the Black Tooth Changzhi in the east, they still could not capture it.
Nowadays, if a state is established, Xinghai, which is heavily stocked with troops, must be considered.
"If we capture Xinghai, we will establish a new state. If we cannot capture Xinghai, we will establish a county." Li Zhi nodded in agreement and said, "This is indeed the way it should be."
Empress Wu also nodded and said: "The counties in Qinghai and Hubei will be included in Shanzhou and Qugou New City. If Xinghai cannot be captured, they will be transferred to Kuozhou and governed by Kuozhou."
It can be seen that Li Zhi, Empress Wu, and the ministers in the court did not reach an agreement on this matter.
Li Xuan breathed a sigh of relief, then raised her hands and said, "Your Majesty, Queen of Heaven, in addition, we also need to consider the matter of Tuyuhun."
Whether it is Qugou New City or Xinghai, it has always been the hometown of Tuyuhun.
Now that Murong has retaken Fuqi City, the founding of the country is back on the agenda.
Once Tuyuhun returned to the country, it would be natural to ask for the old land back, and it would be difficult for the Tang Dynasty to refuse it openly.
However, neither Li Xuan nor Empress Wu had any intention of returning Qugou to Murong.
Even their intention to cut off Tuyuhun was very clear, but how to persuade Tuyuhun to accept it in name became a problem.
No one would accept that a place that originally belonged to them would be torn apart by others, and then gradually eaten away and annexed.
If one fails, the entire country will be cannibalized and destroyed.
Once this happens, it is almost a certainty that Datang and Tuyuhun will fall out.
Li Zhi frowned slightly, then looked at Li Xuan and asked, "What do you think about this matter?"
Li Xuan couldn't help but take a breath. It could be seen that Li Zhi had already made up his mind about this matter and was ready to fall out with Tuyuhun.
Especially after Li Xuan moved 30,000 people and 6,000 elites from Fuqi City, Tuyuhun was now a burden to the Tang Dynasty.
But how to fall out with Tuyuhun and when to fall out with Tyuhun requires careful consideration.
Li Xuan held up his hands and said seriously: "My expedition to the west has consumed a lot of national power. Only the Chaka Salt Land in the northwest can be replenished. Therefore, no one can take away the Chaka Salt Land. Chaka is like this, and the rear This is especially true for Qugou New City, so I once suggested that the left prime minister should set up checkpoints on the main road in the mountainous area northwest of Chaka..."
They set up checkpoints and built fortresses on the main transportation road from Chaka to Fuqi City. No matter what their intentions, the Murong family resolutely fought back.
"I have read your memorial, so it should be the same." Empress Wu nodded directly, and then said: "But what if Murong sends a letter to pray, not for the present, but for the future?"
"Don't ask for the present, but ask for the future?" Li Xuan couldn't help but be stunned. This meant that the Tuyuhun people had temporarily given up their demands for Chaka and Qugou New City. They wanted to wait until the future, when the Tang Dynasty came from After withdrawing troops from the plateau, they sought to recover the two places.
A blue-covered memorial was already in Empress Wu's hand. She looked at Li Xuan calmly. What she just said had become reality.
Murong Zhizhen had written a letter temporarily giving up his demands for Chaka and Qugou New City, but Li Xuan knew that this was just a stopgap measure.
Li Xuan's expression became solemn, and he raised his hands and said: "Your Majesty, Queen of Heaven, I have had contact with the governor of Anle Prefecture and the general of the town army. His attitude in Fuqi City was completely opposite to that of Chang'an. Anle Prefecture The governor's palace is very deep, and it is difficult for me to see anything, but the general of the army is eager to restore Tuyuhun to the country tomorrow, and then drive the Tubo out of the Qingnan Basin, and we, the Tang Dynasty, will also withdraw from the plateau at the same time."
Murong Zhong was extremely ambitious, even more ambitious than Murong Nuo Hebo.
With such a person around, it was almost impossible for Tuyuhun to settle down.
"How to solve it?" Li Zhi leaned forward slightly, and the strong pressure was transmitted to Li Xuan.
Li Zhi's attitude was obvious. Since Datang's army had reached the plateau, there was absolutely no reason to retreat.
Although the Qinghai Plateau is threatened by plateau miasma, the transportation of grain and grass is much more convenient than in the Western Regions, grasslands, and the East Island.
If a place like this cannot be taken down, then he, the Great Sage Emperor, should stop calling him.
Li Xuan cupped his hands and said thoughtfully: "Even our government has no excuse to stop Tuyuhun's restoration, so its restoration is inevitable."
Li Zhi couldn't help but frown after hearing this, but he wanted to refute, but he couldn't say anything to refute.
Because the Tang Dynasty's conquests against Tubo on both sides were done under the banner of restoring Tuyuhun's country.
If they do not allow Tuyuhun to restore his kingdom, then both Tubo and other countries in the Western Regions will think that the Tang Dynasty has broken its promise.
The Tang Dynasty experienced this kind of thing once, which eventually led to the death of the famous general Guo Xiaoke. Now no one will let the past happen again.
After recovering his thoughts, Li Zhi immediately waved his hand and said, "You continue."
"There are big and small countries. The big ones are empires and kingdoms, and the small ones are feudal states and states. Tuyuhun can restore the kingdom, but it can only be a feudal state or a state, and it can no longer be a kingdom." Li Xuan said, Directly downgrade Tuyuhun.
When Tuyuhun ruled the Qinghai Plateau earlier, it was the Tuyuhun Kingdom. Later, Tuyuhun was divided into two parts, East and West Tuyuhun, and then the country was destroyed.
Now that Tuyuhun has regained his kingdom, Murong will naturally return to be the king of Qinghai. However, the Tang Dynasty wants to directly cede the Qingdong area to its own hands. Tuyuhun is not allowed to have any objections or dissatisfaction.
"The Analects of Confucius" "An Jianfang is sixty or seventy, just like fifty or sixty. It is not a country."
A state refers to a small fiefdom with a radius of sixty, seventy or fifty or sixty miles.
In the Western Zhou Dynasty's enfeoffment system, the king enfeoffed the land under his rule to princes with the same or different surnames. The enfeoffed land was called "feng", and later also called "state".
In today's Tang Dynasty, although the royal family and princes have fiefs, they are just fiefs.
Tuyuhun was different. It was a kingdom before, but now it was restored. The country was weak and it was not suitable to be a kingdom. It was more suitable to be a state.
"A state, a city-state. Today's Tuyuhun only has Fuqi City. It is the most appropriate thing to become a state." After a slight pause, Li Xuan cupped his hands and said: "If he wants to become a kingdom, he can go west and capture Qing Dynasty." In the West Basin, it’s natural.”
The Tuyuhun kings were incompetent and could not govern the people in the country. They could only become a state. If they wanted to become a kingdom, they could only go west, but their ability was somewhat worrying.
After Li Xuan finished speaking, he bowed.
Li Zhi lowered his head and thought about it. Li Xuan's suggestion was good, but if he wanted the people of Tuguhun to accept it, he had to have a suitable person to declare the decree and go to Tuguhun to preach.
It would be best if the Tuyuhun people had to accept it without any dissatisfaction.
This person couldn't be Liu Rengui, couldn't be Li Xuan, it was best to be Li Xian, or Li Dan... However, a candidate suddenly emerged from the depths of Li Zhi's heart.
"The King of Nanchang has considered this matter carefully and put this war aside." Li Zhi said softly and directly changed the subject. Then, he said calmly: "Before, you said in the memorial that the Western Star fell, but the Taishi Bureau did not say anything What’s the explanation for discovery?”
The Fall of the Western Star refers to the death of Mangsong Mangzan, the leader of the Tubo Kingdom.
Such major events have always been supported by astrology, so after Li Xuan saw it, he immediately sent a message to Chang'an, but the Taishi Bureau did not notice anything wrong from the astrology.
Li Xuan was not at all surprised by this. He raised his hands and said, "Your Majesty, so there is still no news coming back from Luoche?"
Li Zhi nodded lightly, which was regarded as an answer to Li Xuan.
Slightly relieved, Li Xuan continued: "I just returned from Fuqi City that day, and reported to the left minister what happened in Fuqi City. When I came out of the camp, I saw the western star twinkling, crumbling, and even falling into the western sky. , but suddenly, another force suddenly appeared, stabilizing it in the mid-air, and then holding it back to the western sky. The minister was still in danger on the plateau, but he had not seen it. The Taishi Bureau was thousands of miles away. , not surprising.”
"The secret is not revealed." Li Zhi suddenly leaned back a little and revealed the secret in one sentence.
The secret word "Secret Not to Announce Mourning" needs to be concealed not only from people's lips but also from the mysteries of the celestial phenomena.
When the leader of a country dies, the celestial phenomena will have its own feedback. For a true expert, there is no way to hide it.
The crape myrtle wavers and the stars fall.
Once something happens to the Tang Dynasty, it will definitely be like this.
Therefore, there must be an expert in astrology who can forge and block the astrology in time.
Who would have thought that there are such masters in Tubo.
"Since Mangsong Mangzan is dead, Tubo will inevitably be in civil strife. I estimate that Lun Qinling has already received the news. Therefore, before he returns to Luochang, he will definitely take the initiative to seek war. The commander-in-chief has already made preparations, so just wait for Lun Qinling Qin Ling entered the cave." Li Xuan brought the topic to the frontline war.
Li Zhi shook his head slightly and said: "As for Qin Ling, he is cautious. Since the left prime minister has an ambush and there is not enough bait, it may be difficult to lead him into a trap."
Li Xuan was stunned for a moment, then nodded repeatedly. He had to admit that what Li Zhi said made sense.
"It is a good thing that the front line is calm. Now, let's talk about some logical matters." Empress Wu answered, looked at Li Xuan and said: "There will definitely be civil strife in Tubo, but how big will the civil strife be? Impact, where should we start? King Nanchang, it’s time to hand over the man in your hands."
"Here!" Li Xuan bowed deeply, then without any hesitation, took out a memorial from his arms and handed it forward.
His crisp movements made Empress Wu extremely surprised.
A relieved smile appeared on Li Zhi's face.
(End of chapter)
