Early Tang Dynasty: forge ahead

Chapter 454 Hegemony
Wang Fangyi himself agreed to be transferred to the Western Regions, which made the operation much simpler.

But it's just a transfer order...

In addition to Wang Fangyi, the second person Chen Qingsi thought of was Lou Shide. Lou Shide was transferred to the Western Regions. Pei Xingjian, Wang Fangyi, and Lou Shide, and later Tang Xiujing or Li Jinxing would be transferred to the Western Regions. The four towns of Anxi, all the generals of the four towns were famous generals, so let's see who dares to act rashly.

However, Lou Shide's transfer was much more troublesome than Wang Fangyi's.

Wang Fangyi was originally a general in the army, and transferring him to the Western Regions was just a matter of procedure.

Lou Shide was different. He was a top scholar and had always been doing administrative work.

Historically, he was recruiting warriors in Henan and Hebei for the imperial court's decisive battle with Tubo.

Although Lou Shide was a civil official, in such an environment, he went to apply for the job wearing a red headband.

Li Zhi was very excited and appointed him as a doctor of the imperial court and allowed him to go with the army.

The general who led the troops this time was Li Jingxuan, who was only good at talking about military strategy on paper. The result can be imagined. His parents, who were beaten by Lun Qinling, were nowhere to be found.

If Heichi Changzhi had not risked his life to attack the Tubo military camp at night, Li Jingxuan and his 100,000-strong army might have been wiped out.

Lou Shide also stood up at this time, gathered the fleeing soldiers, boosted morale, and stabilized the army's mind. He then went on a diplomatic mission to Tubo, met with Zanpo at Chiling, and persuaded the Tubo army to retreat.

Because of this incident, Lou Shide was able to gain a foothold in the military, and later was able to take charge of Heyuan and win eight battles in a row, thus reaching the peak of his life, guarding the border and serving as prime minister for a full thirty years.

In terms of ability, Lou Shide is beyond doubt. But he is not the type of person with extraordinary talent. He is a heavy rock, inconspicuous at first glance. Only when he is used, his importance will be reflected.

Lou Shide is now just a local county lieutenant. There is no reason to transfer him to the Western Regions.

In the officialdom, except for the emperor, everyone must act according to logic and rules. Promoting people without basis will do harm even if they are really capable and talented.

The most direct example is Xue Rengui.

Needless to say, Xue Rengui's abilities made him one of the most outstanding generals of this era.

Due to the threat from Tubo, Li Zhi transferred him from the Andong Army to the Western Army. As a result, the discord between the general and the commander led to the defeat at Dayechuan, in which the army suffered heavy losses and was almost wiped out.

Forcibly transferring a county lieutenant to the Western Regions is not necessarily a good thing.

After much deliberation, Chen Qingsi decided to transfer him to the capital first, and then transfer him from the capital to the Western Regions.

Pei Xingjian is in the Western Regions now, so there is no time to rush...

Taiji Palace, court meeting.

Li Zhi sat high up, listening to the reports from the officials below.

Suddenly he frowned, leaned his body slightly, and quietly rubbed his right thigh on the table, his shoulders shaking up and down slightly, his brows slightly frowned.

That action seemed a little strange to Chen Qingsi...

Generally speaking, this is what happens when you fight with the fifth girl under the table.

Of course, Chen Qingsi would not think that Li Zhi would do such dirty things in front of so many people in this temple.

Most likely it's rheumatism coming back again.

Fengbi is the rheumatism of later generations. Once it occurs, it is painful and itchy and extremely unbearable.

"Alas, he suffered from many disasters and illnesses, but he was one of the longest-reigning emperors of the Li Tang Dynasty, for more than 30 years. Isn't that infuriating?"

Chen Qingsi murmured in his heart that Li Zhi didn't even know that he was so long-lived and had already started arranging his funeral to avoid a sudden death.

Just as he was daydreaming, a man stood up.

"Your Majesty, the dragon's health is the most important. I request that the Daming Palace be rebuilt to avoid dampness and cold."

The person who spoke was Wei Siqian, a doctor in the Ministry of Works.

Almost everyone knew that Li Zhi had rheumatism.

Li Zhi made such an indecent move in the court, it must be a relapse of rheumatism.

When Chang'an was first planned, Master Yuwen Kai lacked experience and was only concerned with the grand plan, but ignored many details.

In order to correspond to the geography and astronomy, the Taiji Palace, the imperial palace symbolizing the North Star, was arranged in the central position of the north of Chang'an City. However, the overly idealistic design ignored the defects of the terrain. The Taiji Palace was located in the lowest depression in Chang'an City, which resulted in damp and hot summers and autumns, and too cold winters.

For someone like Li Zhi who suffered from rheumatism, it was a huge torture.

This can be seen from the planning of Luoyang. Yuwen Kai has learned enough experience. The overall planning and structural layout of Luoyang are indeed better than Chang'an.

In fact, during the reign of Emperor Li Shimin, the problem of dampness and coldness in the Taiji Palace had already been discovered. Li Shimin searched the surrounding area and found that the location of Longshouyuan was very good.

So, Li Shimin immediately felt filial piety and thought that his father was old, so he wanted to build a palace for him to cool off in the summer heat. He named it Yong'an Palace, in the hope that the retired Emperor Li Yuan would live in peace and prosperity forever.

When it comes to having fun, Li Shimin is the best. He even built palaces in the name of his old father, showing the whole story of a loving father and a filial son.

Li Yuan did not wait for the opportunity to live in the new palace. He died of illness in Da'an Palace in the ninth year of Zhenguan, and the new palace was therefore renamed Daming Palace.

However, Li Shimin did not have the opportunity to move to the new palace. Various conquests of the Tang Dynasty delayed the construction of the new palace. He only laid the foundation and established the general framework.

Therefore, Wei Siqian’s expression at this time was “rebuilding the Daming Palace”.

For a moment, the hall was somewhat silent.

Chen Qingsi frowned slightly. Building a palace would cost a huge sum of money.

A lot of money has been wasted on Fengshan, and we will have to fight against Tubo and the Arabs in the future.

Tubo is still okay, at least it can transport supplies to Qinghai through Longyou and Lingzhou, and fight against the Arabs, which would be a big deal.

As the strongest country in the West, Daqin was the only other military power along with the Tang Dynasty at that time.

If we really have to fight, we will have to mobilize the whole country.

The Western Regions are thousands of miles away from the Central Plains. If we go to war with them, the logistical transportation will be astronomical.

Once this war begins, only God knows when it will end.

a year?
Two years?

It might even take three to five years.

A battle of that scale tests not only the strength of the soldiers on the front line, but also the economy of the entire country and its ability to withstand high pressure.

How did the Sui Dynasty fall?
He just couldn't stand Yang Guang's one big move after another and was directly crushed.

But if you really want to talk about it in detail, leaving aside Yang Guang's foolish self-assertion and self-righteous interference, was there anything wrong with conquering Goguryeo? Was there anything wrong with building the Grand Canal?

These were all strategically and politically correct moves, but they led the Sui Dynasty to its demise.

If the rear cannot hold on, even if the front line wins the battle, something bad may happen.

Chen Qingsi was thinking about how to ruin this matter. Wei Siqian's proposal seemed to be flattery, but it was indeed for the health of Emperor Li Zhi.

The situation in Taiji Palace and Li Zhi's many illnesses were common knowledge.

Wei Siqian's suggestion from this angle made Chen Qingsi at a loss for words for a moment.

As a person of later generations, he naturally hopes that through his own efforts, the light of China will shine everywhere, Chinese culture will become the mainstream of the world, and people all over the world will respect the emperor and use the emperor's calendar as the standard, rather than using Jehovah's birthday as the beginning of the Gregorian calendar.

As the Minister of War, Chen Qingsi has his own unique advantages. He tries his best to do everything well and arranges outstanding generals to deal with the war that is bound to happen in the future.

But preparing for war is not just his job, and the Tang Dynasty is certainly not his, Chen Qingsi’s, Tang Dynasty.

His efforts alone were far from enough. He worked hard, but the court built a palace for this reason today and a garden for that reason tomorrow.

What hope is there then?
Just as he was about to speak, he heard Li Zhi speaking from above.

"We will discuss this later!"

Chen Qingsi was a little stunned.

Li Zhi tapped his leg and said, "My illness cannot be cured by repairing the Daming Palace. After I ascended the throne, there have been many natural disasters, as well as foreign invasions and man-made disasters, and I have had little time to rest and recuperate. This is my fault. Now the four directions are stable, and all the courts have come to congratulate us. The world is peaceful. It is time to rest and recuperate, and to settle the people. You must not impose labor services on people and make the people suffer more."

Li Zhi's words were extremely beautiful, and coupled with his harmless appearance, the word "benevolence" was almost engraved on his face.

For a time, compliments were heard one after another, and many people even shed a few tears, praising Li Zhi as a sage king of all ages who loved his people like his own children.

Chen Qingsi didn't react for a moment.

In his impression, Li Zhi was not an emperor who loved the people. He had his own selfish interests and would never sacrifice himself for the people.

In his memory, the historical Daming Palace was successfully built by Li Zhi with the efforts of the entire country.

It is recorded in history that "craftsmen with strong skills were recruited, materials from Jing and Yang were collected, and tens of thousands of people wielded axes and saws, and they waded through gravel and climbed up Cuigui. They selected one trunk from a thousand trees, and measured the largest and strongest from the tallest ones." When the project was halfway built, they discovered that there was insufficient funds, so they specially reduced the salaries of Beijing officials for one year so that the Daming Palace could be completed.

The Tang Dynasty imperial family also moved from Taiji Palace to Daming Palace, marking the beginning of Daming Palace as the new political center of the Tang Empire...

Li Zhi in history never wronged himself, nor did he care about the people.

After responding instinctively, Chen Qingsi returned to the Ministry of War with a heart full of doubts, ready to handle official business.

Chen Qingsi hadn't even had time to sit down when he was summoned by Li Zhi.

"Don't treat workers as human beings!"

Chen Qingsi muttered softly, entered the palace from the imperial city, and arrived at Chengqian Hall where Li Zhi was.

Inside the main hall, there is still the emperor and empress Li Zhi and Empress Wu.

There were only a few thin layers of memorials in front of Li Zhi, but there was a thick stack in front of Empress Wu.

"I greet your majesty, Your Highness!"

Chen Qingsi bowed to Li Zhi and Empress Wu respectively.

Li Zhi asked Chen Qingsi to take a seat.

Empress Wu did not say anything, but just nodded slightly.

As soon as Chen Qingsi sat down, Li Zhi explained his purpose.

"There's news from the Western Regions!"

Chen Qingsi sat up straight and listened attentively.

Li Zhi said: "Sure enough, Tocharian and Persian did not listen to the advice and still insisted on their own way and chose to send troops to attack Samarkand..."

Chen Qingsi saw that Li Zhi's face was somewhat angry.

Although the imperial court did not actually control Tocharistan and Persia, which were located outside the Western Regions, they were nominally subject to the Tang Dynasty and under the control of the imperial court.

They ignored the imperial ban and launched a war on their own.

It brought shame to Li Zhi, the emperor of the Tang Dynasty.

Chen Qingsi asked: "Lost?"

He asked a question whose answer he already knew.
Although the White Caliphate was replaced by the Black Caliphate shortly after Muawiyah's death due to internal Shia sects, and the White Caliphate existed for less than a hundred years, there is no doubt that the real peak of the Caliphate was not during the four caliphs, nor was it the later Black Caliphate, but the White Caliphate under Muawiyah's rule.

As a great leader, if he was defeated by the helpless Persian and Tocharian coalition forces.

How could a military empire spanning Asia, Europe and Africa be created?
Li Zhi said with a hint of sarcasm on his face, "We lost miserably. Our coalition army of nearly 40,000 soldiers was chased and killed like animals by 20,000 Arabs. They chased us all the way from the city of Samarkand to the Wuhu River, the place we agreed on. Only then did they give up..."

When he said this, his tone was a little off, with a bit of solemnity and a bit of relief in it, he said: "My dear minister, your strategic vision is indeed sharp. If it weren't for your suggestion to promote the agreement and use the Wuhu River as the boundary, I'm afraid the other party would have taken advantage of it by now. Not to mention the little territory of Persia, even Tocharistan would be in danger of being destroyed."

"It really has come to that point where I can't just ignore it."

After all, Persia was not one of the countries in the Western Regions, so it was destroyed and not many people cared.

But Tocharian is different. As an old country in the Western Regions, it still has a certain prestige in the Western Regions.

If the imperial court sat idly by and watched Tokharistan being attacked, the prestige it had accumulated in the Western Regions over the years would suffer a blow.

How could the Shi, An and Kang countries surrounding Tocharistan dare to believe that the imperial court could protect them?
What will happen if we surrender to the Arab Empire at that time?

If the outer areas of the Western Regions are lost, what about the core areas of the Western Regions?
There is a bottom line between the two countries. If it is really touched, they cannot retreat even if it is not the right time to go to war. If they retreat, it will be over.

Chen Qingsi smiled and said, "After this battle, Tocharian and Persian should be obedient!"

It is impossible for Persia and the Caliphate to reconcile. Most of the lands now occupied by the Caliphate are Persian homeland.

Some of the people are Persians, and the Arabs will not stop until the Persian royal bloodline is eliminated.

Tocharian was defeated, suffered heavy losses, and also created hatred.

They were unable to resist the Arabs and could only get closer to the Tang Dynasty in order to protect themselves.

After all, the only reason they can survive now is thanks to the red lines drawn by the imperial court.

Li Zhi said: "I summoned you because of the letters of apology from the two of them. You deserve this fate."

He paused, his eyes burning, and said to Chen Qingsi word by word: "From this battle, we can see that the military of the Arab Empire is very strong, not inferior to ours. The decisive battle with them will determine who is the master of the world. I am not good at military affairs, but fortunately, God has treated me well, and I have you to help me. You and I, the king and the minister, will work together, just like my father and Li Weigong destroyed the Turks, and trample the Arab Empire under our feet!"

Chen Qingsi suddenly realized!
It turned out to be the case.

Li Zhi was not an emperor who loved his people and had many faults, but there was no doubt that he was a great ruler. Although he was not as good as his father, he was still ranked among the emperors of China...

He would not sacrifice himself for the sake of the people, but he would sacrifice himself for his own ambitions and the Li Tang dynasty.

(End of this chapter)