First Minister of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 540 Li Wei, worship general

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Li Shimin set an example and took the initiative to abolish the private treasury in order to save money, which made those who secretly care about the official position and food city feel a bit of a dilemma.

If you raise objections and express dissatisfaction at this time, isn't that a little too much? After all, even the emperor has already reached this point. As a courtier, it would be a bit too ignorant for you to care about personal gains and losses.

But Gao Chong saw Li Shentong's gloomy face from afar, and he knew that Li Shimin had overestimated some people's consciousness after all.

Sure enough, when all the ministers were toasting and pushing glasses to change glasses, Li Shentong snorted coldly, raised the wine glass and drank it down, and threw the wine glass on the ground in disregard of etiquette.

"Your Majesty, I have something to say." Li Shentong didn't get up, but stared at Fang Xuanling and others in the front row and said, that's where the prime minister is.

Li Shimin's face darkened, he slowly put down the wine glass, and said lightly: "But this wine is not as good as uncle's wish?"

Li Shentong has always been arrogant and complacent, and when he heard the words, he straightened his neck and said in a deep voice: "It's not the wine, the minister is only dissatisfied with the reward."

"Brother, you're drunk," Li Shenfu, the king of Xiangyi County, changed his face drastically, and hurriedly got up to pick up the wine glass on the ground, and stepped forward to comfort him.

Li Shentong and Li Shenfu are biological brothers. The two brothers lost their father when they were young. Li Shentong is a few years older and is quite responsible. He upholds the principle that the elder brother is like a father. The younger brother was brought up. Li Shenfu treated his elder brother with great respect when he became an adult. , deeply praised by the people of the time.

Li Shenfu has a honest and honest personality, and the evaluation of him in history is "less than majestic". The two brothers have completely different personalities. The elder brother is proud and complacent, and never looks at people directly, while the younger brother is humble and cautious, and treats others kindly.

When Li Yuan raised his troops, Li Shentong fled to Hu County to raise troops to respond, but Li Shenfu was lost in Chang'an. The former Sui Minister of Criminal Justice Wei Xuan who stayed in Chang'an arrested him and put him in prison. He tortured him severely. Li Shenfu almost died in prison.

After the founding of the Tang Dynasty, Li Shenfu was deeply trusted by Li Yuan, and he was named the king of Xiangyi County, and successively served as the governor of Bingzhou, the minister of Taifu, and the governor of Yangzhou.

During his stay in Yangzhou, Li Shenfu was lenient to others and took in refugees in person, which was highly praised by the people. It can be said that Li Shenfu was also one of the virtuous kings of the clan, but Li Shenfu's military achievements were not as prominent as Li Xiaogong and others.

Seeing his elder brother getting angry in public and embarrassing the emperor on such an occasion, Li Shenfu was very panicked, but Li Shentong waved his sleeves vigorously, broke away from Li Shenfu's persuasion, and walked straight into the hall.

"Your Majesty needs to know that in the former Sui Dynasty there was no way, the Supreme Emperor raised troops in Jinyang, and the officials risked their lives in Huxian County to respond. They first initiated volunteer soldiers in Guanzhong and welcomed the volunteers to enter the pass. Later, they were trusted by the Supreme Emperor and took command several times. Great work.

As for Fang Du and his like, they are just swindlers, they only write at their desks in their tents, they have never fought in the army, so why are they ranked first in meritorious service?Why is it above me? "

Li Shenfu was horrified when he heard the words, and hurriedly bowed: "Your Majesty, my brother was drunk and slipped his words. I hope Your Majesty will forgive you."

"Uncle Wang of Xiangyi, please get up." Li Shimin looked at Li Shenfu, and said with a gentle face: "Uncle, don't worry, I will deal with it fairly."

After hearing this, Li Shenfu thanked Li Shentong and stood up, looking at Li Shentong anxiously.

Li Shentong's face turned red and his chest heaved, showing his anger, but he was not afraid, he was Li Shimin's cousin, and Li Shimin didn't dare to do anything to him because of his seniority.

It's just the way Li Shimin looked over that made Li Shentong's heart skip a beat.

Li Shimin was expressionless, and smiled slowly: "It seems that uncle is deeply wronged."

Li Shentong just snorted coldly, showing his arrogance.

The rest of the ministers just watched silently, this is a matter for the imperial family, foreign ministers have no right to comment, and Fang and Du did not change their faces, they just listened quietly.

In fact, another reason why Li Shentong is so arrogant is that he has a good personal relationship with Li Shimin. Li Shimin was often close to Li Shentong when he was young.

When Li Shimin was the King of Qin, he often stayed overnight at the Huai'an Palace. When he went out for battle, he often entrusted Li Shentong with matters related to the Qin Palace. Therefore, Li Shentong believed that this nephew would not do anything to him. After all, he was just expressing his dissatisfaction. .

"Uncle, calm down first, let me tell you what to say," Li Shimin said skillfully, after all, to give the uncle some dignity.

It's not that Li Shentong didn't know what to do, he returned to his seat angrily, and poured his wine glass heavily. Seeing this, Li Shentong hurriedly refilled his brother's wine, Li Shentong gulped it down and stared at Li Shimin.

Seeing this, Gao Chong exclaimed domineering in his heart. This Huai'an county king is worthy of being a hero. When he was young, Li Shentong valued money and righteousness in Guanzhong.

"At the end of the previous Sui Dynasty, when the flag of righteousness was first raised, although my uncle raised the first volunteer soldiers in Huxian County, it was because he tried to get out of trouble, right?" Li Shimin looked at Li Shentong and said with a faint smile.

Li Shentong was stunned, took a deep breath and did not refute.

Li Shimin's words almost directly overturned his greatest achievement, but it was irrefutable.

Back then when Li Yuan raised troops in Jinyang, the news spread, Wei Xuan, the former minister of punishment of the Sui Dynasty, immediately arrested members of the Li clan. There was no notification in time, so that Li Shenfu was imprisoned, which made the good-looking Li Shentong blush.

I only heard Li Shimin continue to say: "As for the conquest of the east and the west...

When Dou Jiande separated Shandong, his uncle took command of the conquest. What was the result?The whole army was wiped out, and Aunt An was captured together;
Liu Heitai started to smoke and dust again, and his uncle fought in Raoyang, what was the result?look away;

Xu Yuanlang made Huaisi a disaster, and his uncle joined forces with British Duke Li Shiji and Guan Guogong Ren Gui to attack, so what happened?Return in vain.

Xuanling and the others are strategizing and in charge of military affairs. Their meritorious service is obvious to all. They have made great contributions to the society, and they are rewarded for their merits. Why can't they rank above their uncles?

Uncle, you are the royal family, I am naturally close, of course I will not be stingy with awarding rewards, it is just a state official position, and it must not be favoritism, let alone hurt the hearts of heroes. I hope my uncle understands my painstaking efforts."

All the ministers bowed their heads and remained silent when they heard the words, the atmosphere was very dignified.

Li Shentong's breathing became heavier and his face turned red. He really wanted to refute, but he couldn't find a reason. Everything Li Shimin said was true and nothing false, which made him really depressed.

Li Shentong always claimed to be a national hero, but Li Shimin stripped his resume one by one, and found out that he really didn't seem to have any outstanding achievements.

Huxian raised troops?That's because he had to protect himself to avoid the arrest of the Sui army.

Three times led the army to conquer, once the whole army was wiped out, once defeated and fled, and once returned without success...

This made Li Shentong's face burn with pain. He felt that the officials were looking at him with mocking eyes. Li Shentong, who was proud and arrogant, suddenly got up and left the table.

"Brother..." Li Shenfu panicked, and hurriedly bowed: "Brother did not intend to offend, Your Majesty forgives the sin."

"It doesn't matter," Li Shimin said with a smile, "Uncle Wang of Huai'an is drunk, uncle can take care of himself."

"Thank you, Your Majesty", after thanking Li Shenfu, he chased after Li Shentong.

Gao Chong gasped in admiration in his heart, Li Shimin is really ruthless, is this the heart of an emperor?Facing the uncle who was close in the past, he was merciless in uncovering the scars.

Li Shentong had completely ended his official career. This was not because Li Shimin held grudges, but after all this trouble, the arrogant Li Shentong had no face to stay in court anymore.

This is also Li Shimin's means of building up his prestige. Although he is a bit cruel to Li Shentong, it can effectively deter some people who are interested in him. Is this even true in the face of an uncle who is close to him?Do you think you can compare to King Huai'an?

Sure enough, the banquet that followed was extremely harmonious and enjoyable, and no one expressed any objection.

There was only one Li Shentong, who was hit hard, and after returning to the mansion, he stayed behind closed doors. From then on, the founding county king completely retired, only addicted to wine and sex. After giving birth to eleven sons, he died in Zhenguan four years Sadly, he died of illness at the age of 54.

Among his eleven sons, only the eldest son, Li Daoyan, Duke of Jiaodong County, and the eighth son, Li Xiaoyi, Duke of Liang County, achieved the greatest achievements.

Li Daoyan guarded Minzhou and fought back Tuyuhun's invasion many times. Li Xiaoyi was also good at military affairs.

Li Shentong's departure did not occupy too much attention of the crowd. After all, the matter had nothing to do with himself. Even Li Xiaogong and other royal family members did not come forward to intercede for Li Shentong.

Most of the people present were smart people. Many people had vaguely guessed that what Li Shimin did tonight was actually trying to scare the chickens and monkeys.

When the night was getting dark, Li Shimin's face turned red, he got up and hiccupped and said, "Can you have fun tonight?"

All the ministers actively agreed, only to hear Li Shimin continue to say: "Is there anyone who disagrees?"

All the ministers looked at each other and shouted in unison: "Your Majesty is wise."

Li Shimin grinned, "Since that's the case, I will explain the words in advance. After tonight, if I hear private discussions, I will never forgive you lightly."

Everyone promised again.

"After tonight, may our monarch and ministers work together to prosper the Tang Dynasty together," Li Shimin raised his arms high.

Gao Chong had no choice but to follow the ministers again.

Li Shimin was very satisfied when he saw this, "The four ministers, the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Officials, and the left and right Wuwei and You Wuhou stayed behind. Let the rest go."

When all the ministers heard the words and resigned, Gao Chong thought about it, so he stayed where he was.

"Let's go", after the ministers left, Li Shimin's face returned to normal, without any drunkenness, "go to the side hall to drink some green tea".

Li Shimin got up first, and said as he walked: "Youzhi made this clear tea that really won my heart, especially after drinking, drinking a cup makes me feel comfortable."

Cheng Zhijie walked with his hands behind his back, but curled his lips when he heard the words, and said disapprovingly: "There is no ginger and garlic, no taste."

Seeing this, Gao Chong laughed and scolded: "This kind of elegant tea, it's really a waste for you to taste it."

Everyone laughed when they heard it.

Cheng Zhijie stared and said: "You are a warrior, what do you want to be so elegant?"

"Yizhen's words are wrong. Youzhi is a famous scholar in the government and the public." Fang Xuanling said with a smile: "The many poems have attracted the praise of scholars."

Everyone came to the side hall talking and laughing, Li Shimin looked back, he paused, laughed and said: "I forgot one person, Ananda, call Hou Junji here."

Hou Junji probably hadn't gone far, when the servants served tea, Hou Junji came to the side hall, he paid homage to the Great General of the Right Guard, but just now Li Shimin didn't know whether it was intentional or not, so he left him behind.

After seeing each other and taking their seats, Li Shimin looked solemn and said, "Ananda, read it."

Zhang Anan, who was standing behind Li Shimin, took out the military newspaper from his pocket, bowed his head and read it, the content was not much, only a few words, but everyone's faces were heavy when they heard the words.

Here comes the Turks.

As expected, upon hearing the news of Li Shimin's ascension to the throne, Jieli Khan recruited more than [-] troops from the Mobei tribes, gathered in Dingxiang City, watched the pass, and was about to send troops south.

"Everyone, I adopted You's strategy before, taking the empty space to replace the north, and gathering troops in the pass. Now, except for Hedong, the rest of the troops have arrived in Gyeonggi. How to deal with it, come up with your charter."

All the people present here are Humerus' confidantes, and Li Shimin didn't put on airs. He took the tea from the waiter and lay down on the couch, looking at everyone in a comfortable posture.

Gao Junya, as the prime minister, took the lead in speaking.

"Your Majesty, we have already prepared for the Turks' invasion of the South, so there is no need to be anxious. Since the troops have gathered in the capital, it is enough to select the leading generals now.

As for war and peace, it depends on the situation, but I believe that the priority is to fight, and you must not show your cowardice to thieves."

Hearing Gao Junya's words, everyone nodded in agreement. As the prime minister, what he expressed was to set the tone, and it was also what everyone thought in their hearts.

"What Gao Xianggong said is very true, you must not show your cowardice, otherwise the aggressive old thief will only become more rampant." Li Shimin nodded in agreement.

Then he sat up straight and said with firm eyes: "If he wants to fight, then he will fight, and we will fight with him to whatever extent he wants to fight.

We don’t make a decision on how long the fight will last, and leave it to Jieli to make the decision, and they can fight as long as they want until they completely win.”

Gao Chong took the lead in clapping and applauding. Gao Junya and the others were taken aback, glanced at Gao Chong, and clapped together.

"Your Majesty is right," Gao Chong clenched his fists tightly, "If he Jieli insists on attacking the city, then we will fight to destroy the pass and leave him behind."

Li Shimin's face froze when he heard the words, he looked at Gao Chong helplessly, then shook his head and sighed: "It hurts both sides, so what's the use of it?"

"Then it depends on Xieli," Gao Chong said in a deep voice.

Li Shimin nodded heavily, motioned for Zhang Ananda to open and close the map, and after a moment of silence, he said directly: "Xuan Ling wrote it."

Everyone sat down and listened in a hurry, Zhang Anan quickly spread out the imperial decree, and Fang Xuanling dipped his pen in ink.

"General Wei Chigong, Marquis of Youwu, paid homage to the marching officer of Jingzhou Road, led the soldiers of Liangzhou, Yangzhou and other Hanzhong prefectures, and stationed troops in Zheqian City, Jingzhou;

Hou Junji, General of the Right Guard, paid homage to the head of the Binzhou Road Marching Army, led Qinzhou, Yuanzhou and other Longyou Prefecture soldiers, and stationed troops in Changwu City, Binzhou;

Qin Qiong, the general of Zuo Wuwei, paid homage to the general manager of the Tongzhou Road, led the troops from Jiangzhou, Cizhou and other Hedong Prefectures, and stationed troops in Heyang City, Tongzhou
General Cheng Zhijie of Youwuwei paid homage to the chief of the Qizhou Road Marching Army, led the soldiers of Shangzhou, Jinzhou and other Shannan Prefectures, and stationed troops in Qiyang City, Qizhou.

The rest of the ministers will follow me to sit in Chang'an, and if the Jieli army enters the capital, they will immediately encircle them."

The four of them agreed loudly when they heard the words.

Yu Chigong, Hou Junji, Cheng Zhijie, and Qin Qiong, these four are all capable generals, with these four commanding the soldiers of the Quartet, there should be no worries.

And Li Shimin's arrangement is quite targeted.

For example, Binzhou, where Hou Junji was stationed, has many rugged plateaus and complex terrain, which is good for Tibetan soldiers, and Hou Junji is from Sanshui, Binzhou, and is familiar with the terrain.

There is also Qin Qiong, stationed in Tongzhou, commanding Jiangzhou and other Hedong troops. Most of the troops in Hedong are under Luo Shixin's Jiangzhou Governor's Mansion, and Luo Shixin treats Qin Qiong like a father and brother, and is extremely respectful.

(End of this chapter)