First Minister of the Tang Dynasty

...

The grain and grass were robbed and the grain routes were cut off. While Ishnavarman sent a large number of troops to track down and clear the grain routes, he also sent people to plunder grain and grass in the hometown of Funan Kingdom.

This move further aroused the hatred of Funan people, and small-scale resistance continued throughout Funan.

The team sent to investigate also suffered heavy losses, and there was still very little information found. They were just unidentified men in black with no clear background.

In the Zhenla military camp, in the king's tent.

Ishnavarman's face was ashen, and the civil and military officials accompanying the army in the tent remained silent.

With a bang, Ishnavarman slapped his palm on the desk, with blazing fire in his eyes, "Tomorrow, I will personally go to Linyi!"

"Your Majesty, you can't," the old minister Ronnie hurriedly tried to dissuade him, "Your Majesty, are you going to blame Lin Yi?"

Ishnavarman's eyes widened, "The man in black must be someone from Linyi who is causing trouble behind his back."

Ronnie shook his head and sighed after hearing this, "Your Majesty, please calm down. The grain road is close to Linyi. There is a problem with the grain road. The real culprit may indeed be from Linyi. But if you think about it carefully, your Majesty, Fan Fanzhi is ill in bed and will not die soon. Tou'an, how dare he respect the king?"

Hearing this, Ishnavarman couldn't help but feel stunned.

Ishnavarman knew Fan Fanzhi's character very well. Considering the current situation, he would never dare to be disrespectful to Chenla. What's more, Fan Fanzhi is old and frail now. It is said that he has not left the palace to manage politics for several months. , from this point of analysis, Lin Yiguo should not send troops.

Seeing the hesitation on Ishnavarman's face, a dark and stout general next to him was a little anxious. He snorted coldly and said, "Your Majesty, there is more than one Fan Fanzhi who has the final say in Linyi. I heard that he has already All state affairs have been handed over to his son, and it is impossible for him to send troops, but that does not mean that it is impossible for his son."

"That's right, I heard that Prince Fan Touli of Linyi is not a good person."

After hearing this, the veteran Roni couldn't help but glare at each other angrily, "If you accuse a friend or neighbor based on just a guess, isn't this just making an enemy out of nothing?"

"Your Majesty, Funan is about to be destroyed now. It is not appropriate to cause trouble again."

"What do you mean by trouble?" The dark and sturdy general sneered, "It's just a Linyi country with only a few thousand soldiers. That's not a big deal. Your Majesty, if you're not weak, just send out troops to destroy this troublesome Linyi and unify the east. That's a big deal." Then you will be the greatest Varman of Chenla."

Hearing this, Ishnavarman's brows moved.

Ronnie was very anxious when he saw this, "No, Lin Yi is the land of the Central Plains Dynasty in the north and has always been close to the Central Plains. If we send troops to Lin Yi, it is very likely to arouse the anger of the Tang Dynasty."

Everyone started to argue with each other, which was because they had different stances.

As military generals, Funan was about to be destroyed and there would be no more battles. How could they endure it?

During the war, warriors like them are the most eager. Not only can they rob property, but they can also perform meritorious deeds. War is an opportunity for warriors.

As a veteran of three dynasties, Luo Ni was old enough to seek the country, and everything was from the perspective of the Zhenla Kingdom.

In his opinion, we should proceed steadily, annexing Funan Kingdom first, then diligently manage government affairs, carry out post-war appeasement, and completely integrate Funan's hometown into the national territory. This is the most urgent and important thing.

Instead of aiming high and attacking the friendly neighbor Linyi, especially since Linyi had always been close to the Tang Dynasty, a single mistake might cause dissatisfaction with the Tang Dynasty.

This closeness does not refer to the close relationship between Lin Yiguo and Tang State, but the close origin.

Lin Yi also plundered the border areas of Jiaozhou from time to time and was not friendly to the Tang state.

It’s just that Ronnie once studied in Lingnan and was very clear about the posture of the Central Plains dynasty.

Linyi State invaded the Tang Dynasty, which was their own business. After all, Linyi State was Xianglin County in the Han Dynasty. In the eyes of the Central Plains Dynasty, Linyi State was just a rebellious county, but in the end it still belonged to the jurisdiction of the Central Plains Dynasty.

If Zhenla sent troops to Linyi and occupied Linyi, it would offend the Central Plains Dynasty's rebellion.

In short, Lin Yi was more like a disobedient child to the Central Plains Dynasty. The Central Plains Dynasty could legitimately send troops to Lin Yi, but other countries could not.

In a word, Linyi is originally a county of our Central Plains Dynasty, what does it have to do with your Zhenla?
If Zhenla sent troops to Linyi, Luo Ni, who was familiar with the character of the Han people, dared to conclude that the Tang Dynasty would not sit idly by.

While everyone was arguing, Ishnavarman slammed the desk again.

"I have made my own decision, please step back." Ishavarman waved his hand tiredly.

A group of warriors resigned unwillingly, but Ronnie hesitated to speak.

Ishnavarman did not even raise his head and said in a deep voice: "Step back, I am not confused yet."

Then he stood up, stretched his waist tiredly, and ordered: "Pick out some of the best beads captured in the past few days, and quickly return them to the capital to present them to the princess."

The attendants on the left and right immediately agreed upon hearing this.

The princess is the queen of Ishnavarman, the daughter of King Fan Fanzhi of Linyi, also known as Princess Linyi.

When Ishavarman was still a prince of Chenla, the previous generation Chenlavarman, that is, Ishavarman’s father Mahaindravarman, formed an alliance with the Linyi Kingdom and asked Ishavarman to marry Princess Linyi. .

This was the wisdom of the King of Zhenla. He made friends from far away and attacked closely, formed an alliance with Linyi on the eastern coast, and gradually annexed the suzerain country of Funan, which had oppressed Zhenla for hundreds of years.

Ronnie felt relieved when he heard this, a smile appeared on his face, and he bowed deeply, "Your Majesty is wise."

Ronnie walked out of the big tent briskly, feeling full of emotion in his heart. He was so lucky. As a veteran of three dynasties, he assisted three generations of Ming lords. The Zhenla Kingdom had been dormant for hundreds of years. Now, one dynasty has risen and raised troops to annex Funan. It is precisely because of the successive generations of Ming lords. .

For example, Ishnavarman was fond of martial arts since childhood and had outstanding heroic appearance, but had a calm personality and was good at accepting advice. Compared with the Sunset Kingdom of Funan and the narrow and poor Linyi Kingdom, this was Chenla's greatest advantage.

After waiting for no one in the tent, Ishnavarman came to the screen with his hands behind his back, stared at the map above, his eyes were very deep, and gradually moved to the northeast.

"Linyi..." Ishnavarman murmured, and then looked at the huge blank space in the north. There was only one word on it: "Han".

For many years, this word has been weighing on the heads of the southwestern countries. Perhaps Ishnavarman did not understand Chinese characters, but he had known this word since he was a child. He had known since he was a child that there was a superpower on the north side of the mountain. According to the world.

The Linyi State was founded on the eastern coast for more than [-] years. As one of the three major countries in the southwest, I heard that the former Linyi State was just a county of the "Han" called Xiangjin County, and such a county is in There are hundreds or even thousands of "Han" people.

This made Ren He arouse a sense of resistance. Ishnavarman was brave and resourceful, but he was not reckless. Ronny once traveled to the north and heard that just the Lingnan land took several months to walk from west to east. , there are cities everywhere, almost every city has armored soldiers, and such a powerful Lingnan is actually the most barren and desolate place in the "Han".Thinking of this, Ishnavarman shook his head and sighed, and returned to his desk to continue writing and handling government affairs.

His ancestors had been dormant for hundreds of years, and finally they could annex Funan. What he wanted was a complete Funan, not a desolate and barren Funan full of smoke, so he very much agreed with Ronnie's idea of ​​annexing first and then governing.

At the same time, in the rain forest a hundred miles northeast of Zhenla's army, an elite division of several hundred people lurked.

Seeing that there was no movement from Zhenla's army, this mysterious elite division turned its head and headed east.

Linyi Kingdom has the vast sea to the east and Huanzhou under the jurisdiction of the Jiaozhou Governor's Mansion to the north.

During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, Huanzhou was named Dezhou. It was named after Xianhuan County where it was governed. It governed two counties: Xianhuan County and Anren County (today's Yijing Province, Vietnam).

In the third year of Daye of the former Sui Dynasty, the prefecture was abolished and a county was established, and it was renamed Rinan County, restoring its old name in the Han Dynasty.

In the fourth year of Wude, the entire territory of Lingnan was surrendered to the Tang Dynasty, counties were abolished and states were established, and the name was changed back to Dezhou.

In the fifth year of Wude, because there was already a Dezhou in the land of Qilu, it was renamed Nande.

After Li Shimin ascended the throne, he made sorting out the chaotic administrative divisions a top priority. He changed Nandezhou to Huanzhou according to its old name of Xianhuan County, and moved the administrative seat to Anren County on the coast.

However, although Huanzhou is affiliated to the Jiaozhou Governor's Office, it is too remote. It is only a nominal attachment to the Central Plains Dynasty and has no tax contribution at all. The imperial court did not even send a governor to the post. Even if it sent officials to the post, it was only Just a nominal governor.

Huanzhou and other places are still governed by local Liao people. This Liao people are different from those in Lingnan. Liao people in Lingnan states mostly communicate with Han people and even learn Chinese culture, so they are called familiar Liao people.

Liao people like Guangzhou's Wang family and Wang Chang who were familiar with Han classics had already been Hanized to a certain extent and were basically no different from Han people.

However, Huanzhou and other places are more remote than Lingnan, and there are few contacts with the local Liao people. In the eyes of the Lingnan Han people, they are no different from savages, so they call them Shengliao.

Previously, Huanzhou was located in Xianhuan County, but later it was moved to Anren County because the Liao leaders in Anren County were powerful.

The Shengliao leader of Anren County was named Huang Baokai, who looked very much like a Han Chinese, and this was indeed the case. Huang Baokai was originally a descendant of the local Han people and could speak Chinese.

After Huang Baokai became the chief, he annexed the surrounding small tribes and took advantage of the proximity to the sea to collect ships to trade with Lingnan. In this way, he gradually became bigger and stronger, and gradually became the largest tribe in Huanzhou.

Now if we want to choose the governor of Huanzhou, Huang Baokai is undoubtedly the No. 1 choice.

Although the Zhenla Kingdom fought fiercely in the west, it did not affect the east. After all, Huanzhou nominally belonged to the Tang Dynasty and was under the jurisdiction of the Jiaozhou Governor's Office.

Therefore, although shipping was affected, there was a land route from the north of Huanzhou to Jiaozhou, and Huang Baokai's maritime trade business was not affected.

Even because of the impact on shipping, other maritime merchants were unable to go to sea and cut off their supply of goods. However, Huang Baokai deeply cultivated the land and still had a large supply of goods, which made it more popular and business became better and better.

The largest, tallest and most luxurious house in Anren County is the Huang family. Because this is the Huang family, it can also be regarded as the seat of the county government of Anren County and the seat of the state government of Huanzhou. All tribes in the county, large and small, obey the orders of the Huang family.

In the back house of the Huang family, Huang Baokai was lying on a soft couch, leisurely enjoying the singing and dancing in the hall, with beautiful maids waiting on the left and right, one holding wine and the other twisting dried fruits. He was really happy and unrestrained.

At this moment, there was a panic outside the door, and a middle-aged man rushed in. When he saw the dancer blocking the way, he immediately pushed and kicked her, "Get out of here, get out of here."

"Erlang, you're so presumptuous." Huang Baokai slowly opened his eyes and asked slowly: "Why did you come back so quickly? The goods have been handed over?"

"Brother, don't worry about the goods for now. Hurry up and welcome the noble man." That person was Huang Baolai, Huang Baokai's second brother.

Huang Baolai said with a panicked look: "Li Sima from Jiaozhou is also here."

Upon hearing this, Huang Baokai immediately sat up and said, "Li Sima is here too. Come on, welcome the noble man."

The two brothers went out in a hurry. On the way, Huang Baolai hurriedly said: "The noble man is not Li Sima. He is older than Li Sima at the beginning."

"What's the bigger story?" Huang Bao was surprised and had no time to ask. As soon as he arrived at the gate, he saw Li Sima standing respectfully in front of the horse. There was no one at once, except for a thin Han man wearing a brown robe beside him. , seems a bit inconspicuous.

Huang Baokai didn't dare to delay, and immediately stepped forward to greet him, "Huang Baokai has met Li Sima before, but he didn't know that Li Sima was coming. I apologize for missing the welcome."

He was able to get in touch with Li Shou, the governor of Jiaozhou. Thanks to this Sima Li Azhong, he also knew that Li Azhong was the governor's confidant.

"Hurry up and pay your respects to the noble man." Li Azhong nodded, then immediately took a step back, cupped his hands to the Han man in brown robe and said: "This is... this is the noble man from the north, you, you can just call me Zhang Langjun."

"I, Huang Baokai, have met Zhang Langjun." Huang Baokai did not dare to neglect and saluted hurriedly.

The man surnamed Zhang nodded, then cupped his hands to Li Azhong and said, "I am only an eighth-grade captain, and I am ordered to run errands. Li Sima does not need to be polite."

Li Azhong waved his hands hurriedly, "Don't dare, don't dare."

Huang Baokai looked confused. The eighth-grade captain, whose rank was not as good as that of Li Azhong, the Sima of Jiaozhou, why was Li Azhong so respectful and even awe-inspiring to him?

Li Azhong coughed and glared at Huang Baokai, "Why don't you quickly invite Zhang Langjun to come in and take a seat?"

Huang Baokai hurriedly agreed, "I'm a little excited when I see you for the first time. Please invite me quickly, please".

Then he bowed and stood behind Colonel Zhang and respectfully invited him. At the same time, he told Huang Baolai: "Erlang, go to the back and take a look. Prepare to take care of the noble man. You can handle it yourself. Be careful."

After everyone took their seats, Zhang Xiaowei said directly: "I was ordered by the Lingnan Economic Envoy to ask the head of the Huang family, are you interested in serving the Tang Dynasty?"

"Lingnan...Lingnan Economic Envoy?" Huang Baokai was completely stunned.

He is not one of those ignorant laymen in the mountains. Although he is also a layman, as a descendant of the Han people from Rinan County, he has had many interactions with the Han people in Lingnan. Especially since he is engaged in maritime trade, he has also heard that a heavenly man came from Lingnan. The most important figure is the Lingnan Economic Envoy, who is so powerful that he can be called the King of Lingnan.

Unexpectedly, the Lingnan Economic Envoy also knew about his role, and Huang Baokai was at a loss for a while.

"Huang Da, this is a great destiny," Li Azhong said from the side: "When the envoy inquired about the wealthy families in Huanzhou, my governor strongly recommended you."

"I am willing," Huang Baokai came back to his senses and said hurriedly: "I am originally a Han. My ancestors migrated from Jingchu, and the blood of the Han family is in my bones. If I am favored, Huang Baokai is willing to serve the imperial court. ".