Seeing that Changsheng had realized his mistake, Zhang Shan did not continue to embarrass him, "What are your plans in the future?"
Before Changsheng could speak, Zhang Mo answered first, "Brother, it's almost late, let's talk after dinner, okay?"
"No hurry." Zhang Shan waved his hand.
Changsheng sorted out his thoughts and said, "Since the emperor has appointed me as Minister of War, he naturally wants me to succeed my eldest brother in suppressing the rebellion. Over the years, my eldest brother has conquered here and there and has repeatedly made extraordinary achievements. In the battle of Luoyang, eldest brother and all the others Fellow Taoists joined forces to turn the tide, and everyone knows the price they paid. Everyone in our Taoist sect is worthy of the Tang Dynasty and the common people of Li. My eldest brother is not a man of the world..."
Before Changsheng could finish speaking, Zhang Shan waved his hand and interrupted him, "Don't worry about me. Even if I don't trust you anymore, it's time to leave. Also, please don't open your mouth, everyone in the Taoist sect, shut up, everyone in the Taoist sect, In the battle at Gupo Mountain in Lingnan, you wiped out all the wealth of Shaolin Temple, so don’t forget to give them an explanation."
"Hmm," Changsheng nodded and said again, "Right now, the Ni family has raised a batch of grain and grass from the Western Regions. Although it is not a lot, it is not too little. It is enough to solve the urgent needs of the Tang Dynasty. We don't have to worry about military supplies and disaster relief in the short term. ”
"You are oversimplifying things," Zhang Shan waved his hand and said, "Jiangnan has always been the main source of rice grain for the imperial court. This year, Jiangnan has been severely affected by disasters. Not only can it not fill the national treasury, but disaster relief is also needed. It is summer now and will last until the autumn of next year. Only then can the famine in the Tang Dynasty be alleviated. Have you ever calculated how much rice is needed in this year? Even if there is always food and grass coming from the Western Regions, there will still be too many monks and too little rice to make ends meet. It won’t be long before you are faced with a dilemma between disaster relief and military supplies. The dilemma.”
"Yes." Changsheng nodded.
Zhang Mo said, "Brother, he just came back from the Western Regions. If you ask him what his future plans are now, he won't have time to think about it and look forward..."
Zhang Shan glanced at Zhang Mo, "Don't always protect him. As the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, how can you not have complete plans and careful arrangements?"
"Brother, I am not ready to come over and replace you immediately," Changsheng shook his head and said, "Although Datou and the others have obtained the spiritual talisman, our spiritual energy cultivation is low. Once in front of the leading formation, we are not allowed to move around at will. Before that, I planned to take them out for a tour. I had previously obtained a strange book from the East China Sea, which recorded the treasures and rare spiritual objects from all over the world. If I can find some, I can also improve my cultivation and become powerful. strength."
"Well, this can be done, as long as you sharpen the knife and chop wood," Zhang Shan nodded and said, "But let me remind you, the treasures of heaven and earth are the same as gold and silver. The more you have, the greater the backlash. You should be careful about your choices when you go out this time, and don't be greedy for more, kill indiscriminately, or take anything wantonly."
"Yes, brother, I remember." Changsheng nodded.
"Brother, let's eat first." Zhang Mo stood up from his seat.
Zhang Shan nodded in agreement, stood up from his seat, and said to the generals who stood up to leave, "You will have to work hard for a few more days. When he is ready and comes to take over the commander's seal, you will be able to shed your armor and be relieved."
Seeing the confusion on Chang Sheng's face, Zhang Shan spoke up and said, "Most of them are members of the Taoist sect and have no interest in officialdom. It's better to resign with me and retire unscathed. What's more, they are all my people and you can't get used to it." .”
Hearing Zhang Shan's words, all the generals were happy to see him again, and Chang Sheng did not say anything to stop him. As Zhang Shan said, these generals are all Zhang Shan's people, and everyone has their own employment habits. Zhang Shan can treat these people. If you can act like an arm and a finger, these people may not be able to cooperate with you tacitly after you take over.
After all the generals resigned from the school, the three of them also left the hall and went to a side hall to eat. As members of the Taoist sect, Zhang Shan's brother and sister's diet has always been very light. Although the Shangqing sect does not prohibit meat and fish, the meals are still mostly vegetarian, with vegetables. Four things, a basin of clear soup and a bowl of corn.
There were no servants in the military camp, so Zhang Mo personally served Zhang Shan and Changsheng with rice and soup. Zhang Shan took the rice bowl handed by Zhang Mo and said casually, "Don't worry, there won't be any spies from the imperial court among these people. I was the one before." They have been kept with me on purpose for so long, and if we send them away on purpose as we speak, I am afraid it will chill their hearts."
"Brother is still thoughtful." Changsheng nodded.
Zhang Shan added, "It is said that people are humble when they leave their hometown. It is very difficult for the Ni family to live in the Western Regions. We must send people to protect their safety to prevent those feudal towns with ulterior motives from sending people to assassinate them. You must not take this matter lightly. You must know The Ni family is now the main source of food and grass for the Tang Dynasty. Killing their father and daughter is equivalent to draining the bottom of the cauldron and will destroy your foundation."
Chang Sheng nodded hurriedly when he heard this.
"Also," Zhang Shan said again, "What is the name of that girl from the Ni family? Sanyi, right? According to the rules, as a concubine, you should come to visit the main wife, but now that the war is in chaos, these red tapes can be dispensed with, and you can Don’t take her back to Middle-earth, you can come and go freely anyway, so just run in both directions.”
Changsheng took the job in his hand and nodded again. Nowadays, it is normal for men to have three wives and four concubines. This is the case for Lao Tianshi and Zhang Shan. Therefore, neither Zhang Shan nor Zhang Mo has any grudges because the imperial court granted marriage to Ni Chenyi. , only Changsheng felt a little awkward, feeling that something was wrong.
Chang Sheng originally wanted to say that he and Ni Chenyi had done nothing, but he swallowed his words again. Since Zhang Mo didn't mind, it seemed like he was superfluous to say this.
In the eyes of others, Changsheng is a thousand-year-old prince who has achieved success at a young age and is both civil and military. However, in Zhang Shan's eyes, he is still a child. "There were so many people just now that I can't go into details. Just wait and see. It won't take long for you to know." Because we have huge differences with the emperor about how to distribute food and grass, the emperor will be extremely dissatisfied with you even if he doesn't fall out with you."
"It's not that serious, right?" Changsheng said.
"As for," Zhang Shan said, "Since the Huangchao Rebellion, farming in various places has been abandoned, and the court cannot make ends meet. Many people starve to death every year. The number of people registered in the Ministry of Household Affairs is currently around 70 million. According to my estimate, this year's At least 20 million people will starve to death in a major famine. The grain and grass you raise from the Western Regions are simply not enough. If you follow your idea, you will definitely ensure the necessary supplies for disaster relief and strive to reduce the number of people who starve to death. However, the emperor’s idea is definitely not like this. He would put the cost of the imperial court and the need for hundreds of thousands of soldiers to counter the rebellion before disaster relief."
"If the people starve to death, what use is the court?" Changsheng frowned.
"You are still young and do not understand the emperor's thoughts," Zhang Shan said casually. "As an emperor, you will always put the country and the country above the people. The people are like ants in their eyes. They can be reborn after death. The people registered in the Qin Dynasty Forty million, after the Chu-Han war for hegemony and years of wars, by the beginning of the Han Dynasty there were only 16 million left, less than half of the Qin Dynasty. By the end of the Han Dynasty, the registered population of the imperial court was about 60 million, and later by Wang Mang and Liu During the war, more than half of the people were lost again. The population reached 60 million again during the Sui Dynasty. As a result, during the war at the end of the Sui Dynasty, more than 60% of the people died of starvation and war. In the early Tang Dynasty, the registered population was only 25 million..."
Zhang Shan was talking while eating, while Changsheng was holding the rice bowl and listening attentively. Seeing that Changsheng kept moving his chopsticks, Zhang Mo interrupted Zhang Shan's speech, and Changsheng was able to pick up vegetables and eat.
After Chang Sheng finished eating and rinsed his mouth with tea, Zhang Shan spoke again, "I have long seen that you have always wanted to create a good story with the current emperor as a wise king and a wise minister, but there are some things that cannot be decided by you or him. , when he chooses to sacrifice the people to preserve the country, will you still listen to his words? When you put the Li family in danger to save the people, will he still trust you and value you? Have you ever thought about this? ?”
"Brother, what do you mean?" Changsheng asked.
"What I mean is that you should try your best in everything. Don't demand perfect results, let alone try to go against the will and turn things around. When necessary, you should get out as soon as possible." Zhang Shan paused here and continued, "I won't hide the truth from you. As far as I know, the Immortal Palace has appeared many times before. Every time the spiritual talisman appeared in the world, it was accompanied by the change of dynasties. Without exception, what you and I are doing now is probably going against heaven. "
Seeing that Chang Sheng was worried and depressed, Zhang Mo felt distressed, "Brother, please don't pour cold water on him. Everything is subject to change, and the final result may not be what you said."
"You are really not afraid of being a widow." Zhang Shan raised his eyebrows and looked at Zhang Mo.
Zhang Mo stared back and Zhang Shan tilted his head helplessly.
"I remember your elder brother's teachings." Changsheng nodded and said.
Zhang Shan drank tea from the cup, then put down the cup and said, "By the way, there is one more thing you should pay more attention to."
"What?" Changsheng asked.
Zhang Shan said, "As you can see in the Immortal Palace, there are many differences among the gods. In the future, you must be careful about anything involving the heaven and the underworld. Don't cause trouble, intensify conflicts, or even trigger a melee in the three realms."
"Brother, why do you always make alarmist remarks and disturb his mind?" Zhang Mo was dissatisfied.
"I'm just a friendly reminder to take precautions," Zhang Shan said. "What's more, similar things happened five hundred years ago. We can learn from the past and provide guidance for future events. Once a melee in the three realms is triggered, even if he has a golden talisman, he will not be able to deal with it."
"Okay, stop talking. He finally came here. You either reprimanded or threatened him. He is a prince in the court and has a higher official position than you." Zhang Mo was unhappy. She was more than 20 years younger than Zhang Shan. Although he looked dignified in front of outsiders, he looked completely different in front of Zhang Shan.
"He is the prince and a member of the Shangqing sect. As a heavenly master of our sect, I can't even say a few words to him? Really, girls are outgoing." Seeing that Zhang Mo wanted to get angry, Zhang Shan hurriedly changed the subject and waved his hand to chase him away. , "No more talking, he seems to have never been to Luoyang before. Please take him out for a walk."
Hearing Zhang Shan's words, Zhang Mo simply cleared away the dishes on the table and left with Chang Sheng.
Arriving at the door, Changsheng turned around and said, "Brother, there are some trivial official matters over there in Chang'an. If you have nothing else to do, I will go back directly."
"Okay, as long as she is willing, I have no objection..."
