I, the prince, only want to be deposed.

Chapter 482 The storm is coming

What shocked Sang Hongyang even more was that the Western Regions seemed to have now formed the rudiments of a trade system and supply system.

Not only did he see a large number of iron smelting plants and weapons factories supervised by the Han people in Qiuci, he even saw a counting organization similar to the Great Agricultural Order. The relevant data of many Western Region countries that joined the "Western Alliance" were gathered at the Western Region headquarters, and there were already a group of people who were proficient in abacus and were calculating and counting...

There is also a source of manpower.

Now the Western Alliance is no longer so dependent on the Han army for manpower.

Although many small countries in the Western Regions have small populations, if you send 500 and I send 1,000, we can easily gather together to form an army of tens of thousands of people.

If emergency corvée labor is mobilized, the number could even be multiplied several times.

However, the command of this coalition force was still in the hands of the Han Dynasty, the only permanent member of the Western Alliance, or it could be said that it was in the hands of Liu Ju.

what is this?
A country within a country?
Sang Hongyang didn't dare to think about what Liu Ju was planning to do.
In the past, several envoys who traveled between Chang'an and the Western Regions did not report this situation to Liu Che after returning. Sang Hongyang suspected that they chose to turn a blind eye because they had taken Liu Ju's "local specialties of the Western Regions" and therefore felt guilty about taking advantage of the situation.

Or maybe they don't know what this means at all. After all, some things can only be seen clearly if you stand high enough...

Sang Hongyang now felt that he just needed to give Liu Ju some more time.

I am afraid that the current emperor has completely lost anything that can restrain Liu Ju.

Food? Finance? Weapons? Manpower? Horses?

It won't take long for Liu Ju to become self-sufficient in these things through the "Western Alliance". Even if the Western Regions countries have their own ideas, no one dares to challenge Liu Ju within the big framework of the "Western Alliance".

What's more, there is a big man behind Liu Ju, a big man who completely drove the Huns out of the northern desert. With such a tragic precedent, who would dare to be the first to take action?

Even Sang Hongyang felt that if Liu Ju continued to stay in the Western Regions.

In the future, it will probably not be a question of whether the current emperor can still control Liu Ju, but whether Liu Ju wants to control the current emperor.

Although the Han Dynasty holds a mountain of overseas silver.

But if one wants to spend this mountain of silver and turn it into real benefits, then one cannot do without this trade route in the Western Regions.

This trade route was controlled by "Western Alliance", that is, Liu Ju.

By then, if Liu Che and his son Liu Ju are in harmony, this trade route will belong to the Han Dynasty, and naturally all the benefits will also belong to the Han Dynasty. However, if there is a problem in the relationship between the father and son, then the "Western Alliance" will become a behemoth that will cause even more headaches for the Han Dynasty than the previous Huns.

After all, the Huns had only had indirect control before.

These dozens of Western Regions countries east of the Pamir Mountains have always been independent of each other. To put it bluntly, they are a group of loose sand. It would be easy for the Han Dynasty to defeat them one by one. The same is true for the Xiongnu.

However, the "Western Alliance" created by Liu Ju bound all the Western Regions countries together to form a huge alliance.

This huge alliance was enough to cause headaches for the Han Dynasty and the previous Huns, and they had to make some compromises on many things.

This has already been reflected in the Shule Kingdom, one of the first member states of Western Alliance.

The Wusun Kingdom was the largest and most populous country in the Western Regions east of the Pamir Mountains, with a population of hundreds of thousands. However, when facing the Huns, its city was conquered in just three days. It is no exaggeration to say that it had almost no ability to fight back.

In sharp contrast to this is naturally the State of Shule.

The population of Shule State was less than 10,000, and it only had one royal city. However, with the joint defense of the "Western Alliance" coalition forces, the Han army only sent out 1,000 soldiers and horses and successfully resisted the Huns, making them dare not invade even a single step. Instead, they went to plunder the Shache State, which had not joined the "Western Alliance".

Is there anything more convincing than this fact?
Sang Hongyang could even foresee that after this incident, "Western Alliance" would surely usher in a trend of even faster growth, and perhaps in a very short period of time, all the Western Region countries east of the Pamir Mountains would be able to join "Western Alliance".

The only thing to be thankful for now is.

When Liu Ju did these things, he always did so in the name of the Han Dynasty and as a prince of the Han Dynasty.

The first condition for these Western Regions countries to join the "Western Alliance" is to submit to the Han Dynasty and recognize the fact that the Han Dynasty is the only permanent member of the "Western Alliance".

But no one knew that Liu Ju was using the power of the Han Dynasty to achieve his own goals.

He still had the big man in his heart and had no thought of leaving him.

However, even if Liu Ju really wanted to establish himself as king, Sang Hongyang could understand it.

After all, for a deposed crown prince, Liu Ju’s situation was not actually good, and his future had become extremely uncertain.

However, becoming the king of the Western Regions is something he can now grasp.

Sang Hongyang was good at mental arithmetic and talking about benefits, so he could naturally tell which option would bring greater benefits and better cost-effectiveness...If he were Liu Ju, he would probably choose to establish himself as king, because this would ensure that he would protect his capital.

But this is true for the Han Dynasty and for Liu Che.

It is an unimaginable huge loss...

With such concerns, Sang Hongyang, who had been waiting in Qiuci for several days and had learned about the situation in the Western Regions in detail, finally met Liu Ju who had just returned from the Wusun Kingdom.

"Your Highness, His Majesty has asked me to tell you that he misses you, the Queen misses you, and your wife and young son miss you too."

Sang Hongyang did not read the imperial edict in accordance with etiquette like other envoys did. Instead, he used tender words that were more likely to touch Liu Ju's heart.

"His Majesty also said that you have worked hard and made great contributions this time, and it is time to return to the capital to rest. Don't exhaust yourself like General Wei and General Huo. Neither His Majesty nor the Han Dynasty can afford such a loss."

These were indeed Liu Che's original words. Sang Hongyang did not deceive Liu Ju. He was just more careful about the methods and approaches.

"Finally it's here..."

Liu Ju breathed a sigh of relief when he heard this.

He knew that this day would come, it was just a matter of sooner or later, so he was always waiting for the second shoe to drop.

In fact, if he had not been using every opportunity to delay, this day would have come as early as when he captured Gu Shi. It is indeed not easy to delay it until now.

After all, a man like Liu Che has a very keen political sense. It is easy to guess how difficult it is to delay time under him and create a situation similar to "the tail is too big to be cut off" or "having troops of his own".

Wei Qing's assist was also a key link.

Before his death, Wei Qing had realized that although Liu Ju was sincere in fulfilling his long-cherished wish, he was also taking advantage of his illness to temporarily deceive Liu Che, so that his plan could move forward one step further.

But it's only temporary.

As long as Liu Che calms down, he will soon realize that something is wrong. Although he may not give up the current good situation, he will immediately summon Liu Ju back to the capital to report and replace him with someone else.

"What did Your Highness say?" Sang Hongyang was a little confused.

"nothing."

Liu Ju shook his head and smiled.
"If Lord Sang Nong is not going to read out the imperial edict, please give it to me so I can personally check it."

"Of course, Your Highness."

Sang Hongyang hurriedly took out the imperial edict and handed it to Liu Ju.

Liu Ju was not polite either. He took the letter in his hand and quickly scanned it. There was indeed a statement in it where Liu Che admitted that he missed him.

However, the more Liu Che revealed his "true feelings", the more Liu Ju doubted Liu Che's intentions.

There may be true feelings, but it is hard to say whether there are political considerations involved. At least based on Liu Ju's understanding of Liu Che, he is not a person who likes to show his emotions.

Of course, it’s definitely not that there is no true emotion, but most of the time it is more inclined towards the political machine.

So even if I really missed him, I really didn't want him to stay in the Western Regions.

No matter what happens, Liu Ju will never go back. He just wants to take his destiny firmly into his own hands, instead of relying on Liu Che and living in fear.

At the same time, Liu Ju was also clear about it.

If he does not go back to report this time, Liu Che's concerns will reach a peak in an instant.

All the love between father and son, all the longing... most likely they would be forgotten by Liu Che, who would put pressure on him in every possible way, forcing him to bow his head and compromise. After returning to Chang'an, he would never have the chance to come out again, and might even face Liu Che's surveillance and house arrest.

Because neither he nor Liu Che could ignore the significance of this matter.

So, the storm is coming soon, enjoy the quiet time that is short now...

"Sang Nong Ling, I know what my father means."

After reading the imperial edict, Liu Ju smiled at Sang Hongyang again.
"I heard that you were here a few days ago. Have you taken a good look around here?"

"I have turned around. After turning around, I only have one feeling, that is, Your Highness is a rare and heroic ruler in a thousand years. In the future, Your Highness will succeed to the throne, which will definitely be a blessing for the Han Dynasty and the people."

Sang Hongyang nodded slightly and responded sincerely,
"I have met the King of Qi, and have heard about the deeds of the King of Yan and the King of Guangling. A few days ago, I was fortunate enough to meet the young King of Changyi."

"Although I am not in a position to judge the royal family, how can I not have my own concerns in my heart?"

"Although the other princes are also smart and clever, none of them can be compared with Your Highness."

"In fact, His Majesty has a scale in his heart, and Your Highness should also have an idea in his mind. After all, although His Majesty deposed Your Highness from the position of Crown Prince due to the Jiang Chong incident, he soon entrusted Your Highness with an important task. No matter how you look at it, His Majesty still has high hopes for Your Highness. Your Highness has now made such unprecedented contributions, and I think he can be reinstated as Crown Prince soon after returning to Beijing."

"In addition, I also firmly believe that only a wise and heroic ruler like Your Highness is the best candidate to succeed the throne."

"Therefore, after returning to the capital this time, I will lead the officials of the Ministry of Agriculture to jointly submit a petition, citing the previous reforms of the salt and iron industry and the improvement of farmland, and the merits of Your Highness this time, and strongly advocate that Your Highness be reinstated as the Crown Prince."

"I think His Majesty, seeing that Your Highness has worked hard and made great contributions, will restore the throne as a matter of course. No one in the court dares to oppose it!"

"..."

After hearing these words, Liu Ju also had a deeper understanding of Sang Hongyang.

This guy has obviously seen some clues from the current situation in the Western Region. At the very least, he has many concerns in his heart, so he made such a statement.

He wanted to show Liu Ju his attitude in order to calm Liu Ju's heart and make him obey the call back to the capital.

This would prevent the situation from developing in the direction that he was most worried about and that would be most unfavorable to the Han Dynasty.

I just don't know if he ever thought about it. Whether Liu Ju could be restored to the throne was a decision only Liu Che could make, and no one else could interfere. Otherwise, it would also be a violation of Liu Che's taboo, and the final result would only be harming others and himself.

Of course, it is also possible that he has already thought about it.

After all, when Liu Che was still the crown prince, Sang Hongyang had already entered the palace to be Liu Che's companion. If we talk about his understanding of Liu Che, I am afraid that even Wei Zifu may not know him better than him.

If so, this was a delaying tactic he used to stabilize Liu Ju.

But no matter what he thought, it was not difficult to see that he was loyal to Liu Che and the Han Dynasty.

In Liu Ju's view, this is a virtue worthy of praise.

Therefore, even if Sang Hongyang was indeed using a delaying tactic against him, he would definitely not care about it. He just smiled calmly and said:

"Mr. Sang Nong, you are too kind. I am only being loyal to the emperor."

"Because of this, I may need to stay in the Western Region for a little longer..."

Seeing that Sang Hongyang was about to say something after hearing this, Liu Ju raised his hand to stop him and continued:
"Since you have seen the current situation, you should know that NATO is at a critical stage of expansion and the situation is very good."

"If this matter is accomplished, what kind of benefits will it bring to the Han Dynasty? With Sang Nong Ling's wisdom, there is no need for me to elaborate on this."

"So as the planner of 'NATO', I must do it myself to avoid handing it over to someone else and causing them to go awry. If anything goes wrong, it will ultimately harm the interests of the Han people."

"In addition, the Xiongnu who migrated westwards are still a potential threat."

"Sang Nong Ling should know that the Western Alliance exists to fight against the Xiongnu. Although I don't have the ability to exterminate all the Xiongnu, I must ensure that the Xiongnu cannot threaten the Western Alliance in a short period of time. Otherwise, the Western Alliance that has been established with great difficulty will immediately collapse."

"This matter will also take time, and judging from the current situation, there should be no one in the Han Dynasty who is more suitable than me and has the ability to properly handle these matters."

"Can you understand what I'm saying?"

"..."

Sang Hongyang could understand, but he didn't know if Liu Che could understand. For a moment, he didn't know how to answer, so he could only hesitate and say,
"If that's the case, Your Highness might as well entrust the short-term plan to someone else and return to the capital to reassure Your Majesty before taking charge... I think Han Zeng has some ability, and he shouldn't mess up Your Highness's plan in the short term."

Liu Ju then said:
"Some things are once in a lifetime, so I'm afraid we can't afford to delay them."

"How about Sang Nongling wait for me here for a while?"

"I heard that Sang Nong Ling has the ambition of Guan Zhong. I have prepared some local specialties from the Western Regions for you. You have come all the way here, so I can't let you go back empty-handed."

(End of this chapter)