First Minister of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 601: Turkic Rebellion Rise
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Outside Shicheng, there is the Tang Army camp.

Gao Chong finally saw this chieftain from the mountains. He looked very majestic with his curly beard and his eyes were bright. Tan Dian, who was nearly seventy years old, was still in high spirits.

"I have heard about Gao Jinglue's name for a long time, but when I saw him today, he was indeed a handsome man among men."Tan Dian laughed loudly, and the laughter echoed in the tent. Tan Dian bowed and said: "I, Tan Dian, pay my respects to Gao Jinglue."

Gao Chong nodded unconsciously in his heart. He might have won over all the people in Dongxi, but he followed his lead and even fought against Feng An. It was really not easy to talk about the palace.

"Tan Chief, that's polite." Gao Chong nodded and said with a smile: "Tan Chief has been a powerful figure in Lingnan for decades. I have heard about it in the Central Plains." Then he motioned for Tan Dian to take a seat.

After everyone sat down, Tan Dian presented a memorial written by Gao Chong, "I had some misunderstandings with Governor Feng of Gaozhou earlier. Fortunately, the manager came to resolve it, otherwise the misunderstanding would have been serious."

As he spoke, he looked back at Feng Xuan, who was bowing his head and saying nothing, "Feng Er, do you think so?"

Feng Xuan raised his head and grinned, "That's right, it's better to resolve enemies than to end them. That's very good, very good."

On the other side, Vice General Feng's eyes were wide open, as if he wanted to spit out fire. He stared at Tan Dian, but Tan Dian turned a blind eye and pretended not to see him.

Tan Dian, who has become a mature man, now knows very well that getting the approval of the general is the most important thing. As for Vice General Feng's provocative and fierce eyes, Tan Dian is not surprised. After all, he is from the older generation. If he is talking to the younger ones, If one generation quarrels with another, wouldn't it mean that one is degrading one's status?

Only Tan Fan looked at Vice General Feng with hatred that could not be concealed, but both sides were restraining it.

Gao Chong reached out to take the memorial and said with emotion: "It's very good to live in harmony", and then handed the memorial to Xue Rengui behind him, "Seal it properly and send it to the capital as soon as possible."

Xue Rengui bowed in response.

Tandian felt relieved when he saw this, and continued to smile and said: "The conditions outside the city are simple. I would like to ask the envoy to appreciate it and go to Shicheng to rest for a while."

Gao Chong just nodded lightly, not showing much enthusiasm.

The Tang army officially entered Shicheng, which also showed that Luozhou truly belonged to the Tang Dynasty. Previously, it was only in name. If there was accountability, Feng Ang would undoubtedly bear the brunt. As the governor of Gaozhou, Luozhou under his jurisdiction had long been occupied by sleazeballs from the mountains, and the imperial decrees could not be allowed. Order, if you take it seriously, this is a serious crime of beheading.

After formally regaining Luozhou and recruiting the Queen, Gao Chong only rested for one day in Shicheng before returning to Gaozhou.

In Gaozhou, after a night of secret talk with Feng Ang, Gao Chong set off again to take up his post in Guangzhou.

No one knows what Gao and Feng were talking about that night. From then on, the people of Lingnan gradually learned that they had an envoy in Lingnan who was based in Guangzhou and governed the eight prefectures in Lingnan. No, now there is a governor of Longzhou. Behind the palace, it should be the government of the nine palaces.

At the same time, there are also undercurrents surging in the northern land.

When Lu Kuan, the eunuch of the palace, went through many ups and downs, he finally arrived in Fengzhou.

Fengzhou, the former Wuyuan County of the Sui Dynasty, is now called Fengzhou, but in fact, the actual controller of this vast area in the north of the Great Wall is the Turk, who is now Jieli Khan.

However, after the founding of the Tang Dynasty, counties were abolished and prefectures were established, and the world was renamed. For example, Shuofang County, which was occupied by Liang Shidu, was renamed Xiazhou by the imperial court. It did not agree with the name of Shuofang County and believed that Liang Shi were "stealing possessions."

Now Jieli Khan's tent is located in the north of Jiuyuan County, the seat of Wuyuan County, at the foot of Yinshan Mountain, overlooking the southern country, and has a great momentum over the Central Plains.

When Lu Kuan arrived at Yinshan, by coincidence, there was a civil war in the Turks.

Xue Yantuo's leader Yishui Yinan, who was also the Zhenzhu Khan canonized by the Tang Dynasty, officially launched an army to resist the Turks.

In recent years, Jieli Khan has become older, his administration has become more violent, and he imposes excessive taxes and levies. Many tribes under the jurisdiction of the Turkic Khanate have already complained, but they are restrained by the power of the Turkic military and do not dare to resist.

Now Zhenzhu Khan is like a spark, quickly starting a prairie fire. Seeing Zhenzhu Khan taking the lead in raising troops, other tribes such as Uihe and Bayegu responded one after another. For a time, Zhenzhu Khan became very powerful in Mobei.

It can only be said that this timing was too clever. After hearing that Xue Yantuo had rebelled, Jieli Khan was still in the mood to meet Lu Kuan, threw him aside, and started to suppress the rebellion.

Under the Yin Mountain, in the golden tent.

Jieli Khan, who was over sixty years old and had white hair and beard, was lying on a soft couch made of tiger skin. His eyes opened and closed, looking very menacing.

"Yi Nan, if I hadn't taken him in, he would have died a long time ago." Jieli Khan said in a low voice, "Now that I have eaten meat for a few days, I have forgotten how hungry I was and started to bite my master."

"Khan, I heard that people from the Tang Dynasty were looking for Yi Nan years ago." Ashina Simo frowned, "I suspect that the people from the Tang Dynasty must be causing trouble."

"Yes, if there was no support from the Tang people, how could that Yi Nan thief have the guts to disrespect the Khan?" Ashina Sheer also yelled angrily: "Khan, you must send troops to twist the heads of the Yi Nan thief. Come down, I want to make a wine vessel."

Jieli Khan glanced at him and snorted coldly, "If you have the ability, you should take revenge yourself."

Ashina Sheer lowered his head in shame upon hearing this, he was too young after all.

Ashina Sheer, who was born in the fourth year of Renshou in the former Sui Dynasty, is only 23 years old now, which is very young, but he is already the Tuoshe of the Turkic Khanate. Tuoshe means the leader, which is equivalent to the prince of the Central Plains Dynasty. One place.

Because Ashinasheer has a noble status, he is the second son of Chuluo Khan and the direct nephew of Jieli Khan.

There is a saying that although Jieli Khan was violent, he still put great emphasis on his relatives. Not only did he ennoble the eldest brother Shibi Khan's son Ashina Shibobi as Tuli Khan, he also ennobled his second brother Chuluo Khan. His son Ashina Sheer was the leader.

Ashina She'er was granted the title of Tushe, and set up a tent in Mobei to command the tribes of Tiele. After Xue Yantuo defected from the Western Turks to the East Turks, Jieli Khan placed Xue Yantuo in Mobei and became affiliated with the Ashina Society. Under your command.

There is also Jieli Khan's consideration in this. In recent years, the nephew of Tuli Khan has become more and more disobedient. The Khitan and other tribes in the east have become more and more unruly under the protection of Tuli Khan, not to mention Tuli Khan. Khan was still flirting with Tang Dynasty, and Jieli Khan had long disliked Tuli Khan. The Xue Yantuo tribe was so powerful that Jieli could no longer hand it over to Tuli Khan.

Ashina Sheer was always loyal and known for his wisdom and bravery, so Jieli Khan handed over Xue Yantuo to Ashina Sheer.

It has to be said that Ashina Sheer can be regarded as an outlier among the Turkic royal family. Among the Turkic royal family, whether it is the deceased Shibi Khan, the current Jieli Khan, or the younger Turli Khan, one of them counts. It means not treating those who belong to the tribe as human beings, asking for it at will, and squandering it.

In their eyes, only the Turks themselves were direct descendants, and those from the Tiele tribes were all slaves attached to the Turks.

But Ashina Sheer was different. He commanded Tiele, Tongluo and other tribes and never collected taxes from them. Some people advised him to collect taxes for his own enjoyment. He said: "My tribe is rich and can support me. As long as they If I am equally wealthy, then I will be satisfied." From then on, all the tribes were very convinced of Ashina Sheer.

The land of Mobei is not only in charge of Ashina Sheer, but there is another person, and that is the younger brother of Tuli Khan, Ashina Yugushe, who is Ashina Sheer's hall. Brother, they are both Tuoshi and jointly in charge of Mobei.

Zhenzhu Khan knew that Ashina Sheer was very popular, but Ashina Yugushe was different. Like his brother Tuli Khan, he was also extravagant and lustful, and he did not regard the tribes who had surrendered as human beings.Zhenzhu Khan directly raised his troops to attack Ashina Yugushe. The unexpected attack made Yugushe run away in panic. Ashinasheer was shocked to hear the news and hurriedly sent troops to rescue his cousin Yugushe, and then also Defeated by Zhenzhu Khan, he had to flee to the Golden Tent for help.

After reprimanding Ashina Sheer, Jieli Khan's mood became worse and worse. He deeply hated this betrayal, but now he was also slightly dissatisfied with the Turkic royal family. This kind of thing must not be discussed with these people in front of them.

Jieli Khan thought for a while, then drove Ashina Simo and others out, calling in a deep voice: "Call sir."

After saying that, Jieli Khan paused and said, "Forget it, I'll go by myself." Then Jieli Khan got up and walked out of the tent and walked towards an independent large tent in the back.

This large tent is adjacent to the Khan's Golden Tent. It has high terrain and a large area, which shows the status of its owner. However, in fact, the person living inside is not a Turkic royal family, or even a Turk at all, but a Han.

Arriving at the entrance of the big tent, the guard was busy saluting.

"What are you doing these days, sir?" Jieli Khan asked with his hands behind his hands.

"Read a book," the guard said concisely.

"Reading?" Jieli Khan was a little surprised, "Never paid a bill?"

"I haven't left the tent, I just read books every day," the guard continued to answer.

Jieli Khan nodded slowly when he heard this, then opened the curtain and walked in. He saw a middle-aged Han man in his forties, holding a book in his hand and reading attentively under the lamp.

Hearing the voice, the middle-aged Han man stood up and said, "Zhao Deyan pays homage to the Khan."

Jieli Khan actually waved his hand and smiled, "Sir, there is no need to be polite. I heard that you have been reading a book these days?"

Zhao Deyan nodded when he heard this and said bluntly: "Learning is like sailing against the current. If you don't advance, you will retreat. Don't dare to neglect one day."

After he finished speaking, his face darkened, and after he respectfully invited Jieli Khan to take his seat, he sighed: "If I hadn't planned something worse than others, King Xia wouldn't have...".

Jieli Khan laughed loudly when he heard this, "Those things have passed. Sir, there is no need to worry about it anymore. Now you have your own place in our Turkic Khanate."

Zhao Deyan just promised silently.

At that time, Zhao Deyan was just a minister of the Chinese Academy of Sciences under Dou Jiande, and his chief officer was Liu Bin, the minister of the Imperial Academy of Xia.

When Wang Shichong asked Dou Jiande for help, only Liu Bin and Zhao Deyan advocated rescue. They knew very well that the Tang Dynasty could not defeat them one by one. However, they never expected that Li Shimin would be so ferocious and capture two kings in one battle. Directly destroy the Xia Kingdom.

Jieli Khan picked up the book on the desk and looked at it, "The Analects of Confucius?"

Then he chuckled and said, "I heard that you have been reading this book since you were a child. Why do you still read it over and over again?"

"The words of the saint cannot be fully understood. Every time you reread it, you will have different insights," Zhao Deyan sighed sincerely.

"Okay, I won't listen to your nonsense." Jieli Khan showed his true nature and waved his hands impatiently and said, "I have two questions today. I wonder if you, sir, can answer them?"

When Zhao Deyan heard this, a glimmer of light flashed in his eyes, and he bowed and responded: "Khan, please tell me. I have little knowledge and cannot guarantee that my doubts will be resolved. I can only do my best."

Jieli Khan waved his hands and spat: "You literati are so irritable when you talk. If you have a way, there will be a way. If there is no other way, I will not kill you. There is no need to say it so accurately."

Zhao Deyan had no choice but to promise in a low voice.

"Xue Yantuo rebelled against me, did you know?" Jieli Khan's eyes burst out with terrifying murderous intent, "How dare that Yi Nan rebel against me?"

"Have heard a little bit."Zhao Deyi was as respectful as ever.

“Ben Khan has two questions now.

First, some of them said that this was a dispute caused by the Tang State. What do you think?

Second, how do you think Ben Khan should counter the rebellion? "

Jieli Khan leaned forward and looked at Zhao Deyan with eager eyes.

Zhao Deyi's face remained calm, his thoughts changed rapidly, and then he said: "The first question is that the Tang State must be involved in this. There is no doubt that only chaos on the grassland is in the interests of the Tang State, but."

"But what?" Jieli Khan's eyes narrowed.

"But Yi Nan is undoubtedly ambitious. Otherwise, no matter how the Tang State provokes him, he will not raise an army. Since he can defect from the west, he can defect to the Khan again. This is obvious."

Jieli Khan nodded unconsciously.

"The second question is that various tribes are now in rebellion and the situation is unstable. I would like to suggest that Khan try his best to preserve the effective strength of his troops in order to stabilize his position."Zhao Deyan looked up at Jie Li and said solemnly.

"Let's talk about it in detail." Jieli Khan was also interested. He used to think that the Han people had too many twists and turns, but now it seems that if it is beneficial to himself, these twists and turns are quite attractive.

"Don't use your own troops to quell the chaos," Zhao De said bluntly: "The elite troops of Khan's headquarters are very valuable and must not be wasted on internal strife. Only you, Khan, can hold the elite troops and horses of your headquarters. Those tribes with evil intentions will I don’t dare to move arbitrarily. If the Khan sends his troops to Mobei to put down the rebellion, if he is not careful, there will be chaos in Monan.”

Jieli Khan nodded solemnly, "What you said makes sense. Those thieves must have thought so for a long time."

Then Jieli Khan raised his head and looked at Zhao Deyan, "In Mr. Nayi's opinion, where should we use our troops to quell the rebellion?"

Zhao Deyan pointed to the east and grinned maliciously, "I have heard for a long time that the little Khan in the east who is familiar with Han classics is also very ambitious."

Jie Li's face darkened when he heard this, "Okay, I understand," then turned around and strode away.

In the tent behind him, the candlelight flickered. Zhao Deyan looked in the direction of the curtain, slowly raised the corners of his mouth, shrugged with a self-deprecating smile, and continued to pick up the "The Analects of Confucius", twisting his beard to read with a clear voice, and echoing in the room. In the big tent.

"The Master said: 'It would be worse for the Yi and Di to have their kings than for the Xia to perish...'".

(End of this chapter)