Datang: What's wrong with my fief being a billion points larger?

Chapter 214: The Ambitious Tubo and the Lingering Li Er

Li Yuanji looked at Songtsen Gampo. This time he was really shocked by his words and his heart was moved.

Li Yuanji did not speak at the first time. He was thinking carefully in his mind. He always felt that there was something wrong with this matter. Now that Nangri Songtsen was in power, relying on this man's prestige, even if there were people in Tubo who had ulterior motives, they would not dare to show up.

What kind of person was Nangri Songtsen? He was a leader of a small tribe, but he became the one who unified the plateau. He was the one who created the word "Zamp". In the past, it was only used to refer to the leader. It was this person who made everyone respect and call him Zamp.

He made great efforts to improve Tubo's animal husbandry and agriculture, and obtained salt from Hulacuo Lake. From then on, they had salt. They also obtained certain advanced culture and manual techniques from the Central Plains. He successively destroyed many tribes, including Subi. With such a person still around, would other tribes dare to rebel?
Li Yuanji was aware of the civil strife in Tubo. The reforms of Nangri Songtsen did touch upon the interests of the old nobles, but the new nobles following him were equally powerful. The civil strife in Tubo broke out only after the death of Nangri Songtsen. How could it be possible that he was still alive?

This is what Li Yuanji couldn't understand. The current internal situation in Tubo required him to send troops to help, but Songtsen Gampo required him to send troops and was willing to stay as a hostage. There must be a problem in between. Songtsen Gampo did not tell the truth, or what he said was incomplete.

Li Yuanji looked towards Songtsen Gampo with amusement in his eyes.

"Songtsen Gampo, yes, he has such intelligence at this age, he really should not be underestimated.

As far as I know, Nangri Songtsen's prestige in Tubo is extremely high. He has conquered many tribes one after another. Even in the Subi Kingdom, your father took advantage of its internal strife to conquer it. His prestige is unmatched. There were only some people causing trouble below, but Nangri Songtsen was able to pacify it.

Now you want me to send troops, and even stay here as a hostage for me. As the only remaining descendant of Nangri Songtsen, Songtsen Gampo, if you don't explain clearly, when I send troops, it won't be to help you, Tubo."

Li Yuanji came back to his senses and was thankful that he had thought too much. If he had not kept his composure and directly agreed to send troops, although he would not suffer any losses, he would be inexplicably used as a gun, which would make him very unhappy.

Fortunately, the person who came was Songtsen Gampo. If the person who came was an unknown person, he felt that the probability of him being caught would increase. The reason why he was so cautious was because Li Yuanji knew that Songtsen Gampo was not an ordinary person.

Songtsen Gampo obviously had no idea what Li Yuanji was thinking, and he was very shocked at the moment. It could be said that once Songtsen Gampo left Tubo, except for Li Yuanji, no one in the world would think of what kind of person Songtsen Gampo was.

If Songtsen Gampo faced Li Shimin, at this age, Li Shimin would definitely be hit. What is the difference between Songtsen Gampo now and an unknown person? That is, Li Yuanji knew Songtsen Gampo's achievements.

Songtsen Gampo was a little confused at the moment. He had made sufficient preparations beforehand for this trip and investigated the situation in Lingnan very carefully. Combined with the inquiries of the caravan he sent, Songtsen Gampo was full of confidence that he could succeed.

Look at Funan, Tang Ming, Pyu, and even Gundam. Now he has presented such an opportunity to Li Yuanji, but Li Yuanji held back. Songtsen Gampo really did not expect it.

This was the third time he was shocked. The first time was when he just entered Lingnan. Everything about Lingnan impacted his mind. He kept thinking, how great it would be if Tubo could be like Lingnan one day.

At the same time, he was extremely curious about everything here, whether it was culture or various craft techniques, Songtsen Gampo wanted them all, but at the same time he could only hide it in his heart.

The second shock was how much Li Yuanji valued him, which was beyond Songtsen Gampo's expectations. He really didn't expect that Li Yuanji would pay so much attention to him, a little prince of a remote country who was not even twelve years old, and had no prejudice at all against him because of his age and remote origin.

He was ready to stay and familiarize himself with the advanced culture here, learn about various craft techniques, and then bring them back to Tubo, but he didn't expect that Li Yuanji was holding back. He clearly saw Li Yuanji's heartbeat just now.

Songtsen Gampo felt his scalp tingling at this moment. Under Li Yuanji's gaze, he seemed extremely anxious and finally sighed in his heart.

“The King of Qi is so wise that I am convinced. I really did not expect that the King of Qi would attach so much importance to a child like me who is less than twelve years old, and that he knows so much about Tubo.

May I ask the King of Qi, why does he think so highly of me?"

This confused Songtsen Gampo very much. He really didn't understand. He was just a child, a young boy. What right did Li Yuanji have to do this?

Li Yuanji smiled for a moment, then his face turned serious.

"Songtsen Gampo, you haven't answered my question yet, but you dare to question me. Although you helped me in the past, to be honest, I really don't like you. You are so bold, do you think I dare not kill you?"

Songtsen Gampo was not at all panicked when he heard this.

"If the King of Qi wants to kill me, no matter what I say, I will not be able to escape this disaster. Even if the King of Qi wants to destroy my Tubo, my Tubo will not be able to resist if the King of Qi sends out all his troops. I am aware of this."

Li Yuanji burst out laughing after hearing this. He suddenly felt that Songtsen Gampo was very interesting. The way he let him do whatever he wanted, Li Yuanji also discovered that Songtsen Gampo was different.

"You want to know, right? I can tell you that your mother's name is Sataugemu, but since you can be honored as Songtsen Gampo by the Tibetan officials at such a young age, you must not be a mediocre person.

I think I have some understanding of Tubo. I heard that you are generous, have extraordinary martial arts, and are proficient in crafts and calendar calculation. I was surprised after hearing this. Even in the Tang Dynasty, such talents are already good, but I didn't expect such a person to appear in Tubo.

Although I value you, that's all. Do you know why?"

Li Yuanji looked at Songtsen Gampo and continued speaking without waiting for his response.

"It's because I am much stronger than Tubo. I have the ability to destroy Tubo at any time. It just depends on my mood and whether I want to. I am more interested in you. Do you understand?"

Songtsen Gampo didn't know whether to laugh or cry when he heard this. He should be proud of Li Yuanji's praise and attention, but he couldn't feel happy. What surprised Songtsen Gampo was that Li Yuanji knew a lot about Tubo. He even suspected that Li Yuanji had his people inside Tubo. Otherwise, how could Li Yuanji know so much about him when the news about him hadn't spread inside Tubo?

As for what Li Yuanji said at the end, Songtsen Gampo had no temper at all, he was just helpless, the difference in strength was too great, that's it, just relying on the strength shown by Li Yuanji, destroying the current Tubo would be a piece of cake.

The only difficulty was probably the plateau area where they were located. Most people could not adapt to it for a while and might even suffer from shock symptoms. But in Songtsen Gampo's view, this difficulty was only a temporary one for Li Yuanji.

Songtsen Gampo adjusted his mood and said respectfully: "King Qi's praise is unworthy. What King Qi said is true. If King Qi can destroy my Tubo, it is indeed simple. However, my Tubo has many brave men. Even if King Qi can destroy my Tubo, I am afraid it will give the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty a chance.

The foreign ministers represent Tubo and have no intention of becoming enemies with the King of Qi. They are even willing to become a vassal state of the King of Qi. The 100,000 brave Tubo soldiers are willing to stand with the King of Qi. "

Li Yuanji understood what Songtsen Gampo said. He was telling him that Tubo had 100,000 brave soldiers. If he had any ideas about Tubo and Tubo rebelled, it would not be easy for him to conquer it. It might even give Li Shimin a chance.

Li Yuanji had to say that although Songtsen Gampo seemed to be surrendering, he was actually speaking to him indirectly. As for things like vassalage and common advancement and retreat, these must be conditional. In Li Yuanji's view, this condition was that he would send troops to help Tubo.

Li Yuanji sneered: "I asked you questions, but you still evaded them. You even dared to threaten me. You can try to see if I have the ability to destroy your Tubo first.

I'll give you one more chance. If you still can't seize it, I think your old Tibetan nobles and Prince Subi are very suitable to be my allies."

Songtsen Gampo was shocked and said nothing more.

“Report to the King of Qi, the foreign ministers came to ask for help because of the Tang Dynasty. Yang Tong is on good terms with the Tang Dynasty. Last time, our Tubo supported the King of Qi to respond to the imperial edict and return to Chang’an, which made the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty extremely angry. The Emperor of the Tang Dynasty traded tens of thousands of sets of military equipment with Yang Tong after doing business with him.

At the same time, we also sent General Niu Jinda to Yangtong. Niu Jinda led thousands of troops to help Yangtong train the army. At the same time, he kept in touch with our old tribes and Prince Subi. Although we don’t know the specific foreign ministers, Tubo is now at a critical moment of life and death.

I also ask the King of Qi to send troops to help our country, considering the friendship we had with you before!"

Songtsen Gampo paid great tribute to Li Yuanji. This was the most important reason why he came here. He originally wanted to send out 20,000 troops as a show, and thus exchange some of what they needed from Li Yuanji.

But neither Nangri Songtsen nor Songtsen Gampo, nor their ministers, expected that the sanctions from the Tang Dynasty would come so quickly. The Tang Dynasty did not send troops directly, but instead followed Li Yuanji's tactic of supporting other countries to fight against him, while also earning money from other countries. Songtsen Gampo cursed the Tang Dynasty for being shameless in his heart.

But Songtsen Gampo was helpless. The Tubo at that time was not qualified to fight against the Tang Dynasty. It was the kind that would be broken if it was touched. What could Songtsen Gampo do? He could only ask Li Yuanji for help.

Li Yuanji's first reaction after hearing this was: Li Er's ghost is still around!

If nothing else, once Yang Tong defeated Tubo and was geographically close to his Yunzhou, he would be a direct threat to his Yunzhou. At the same time, he could interfere in the affairs of Southeast Asia and indirectly have an influence on Tianzhu.

It is true that wherever he develops, there will be Li Er's figure. This is the case in Japan, where they want to interrupt his development to the east and north, and here they have already begun to restrict his development to the west.

In other words, the Tang Dynasty’s navy is not strong enough to restrict his development to the south, otherwise Li Er would have intervened.

Li Yuanji was very angry just thinking about it. In order to deal with his development, Li Er sent Niu Jinda over and sent thousands of troops to help. How afraid was he that Yang Tong could not defeat Tubo?
Then Li Yuanji thought about it again and became even more angry, because he suddenly realized that what Li Er did was exactly the same as what he did. It was completely copied from his big case!

Li Yuanji dared to guarantee that Niu Jinda and the thousands of Tang troops would not simply help Yang Tong. They would definitely want to control Yang Tong. After destroying Tubo, they would support Tang's own people to take power and then come to cause trouble for him.

Li Yuanji was so angry that his teeth were itching. He cursed Li Er in his heart for being shameless and learning his methods to deal with him. This was really unbearable for Li Yuanji. At least Li Er should change his method. Using his method to deal with him, how could that not be shameless?
"This Li Er is really smart and eager to learn. He has learned from me and is really good at it. I underestimated you!"

Li Yuanji complained in his heart, but now, no matter how he complained, the fact had already been established and could not be changed. He had to deal with Li Er's interference in the west.

Li Yuanji was also feeling relieved at this moment. Fortunately, he did not agree to Songtsen Gampo's direct dispatch of troops, otherwise he would have to take action personally. Li Er was supporting an agent, so what would it mean for him to take action personally?

He, Yang Tong, and Li Er fought back and forth, but in the end it was Tubo that benefited. At that time, all the benefits were obtained by Tubo.

Li Yuanji finally understood why Songtsen Gampo was so humble. It was because he wanted to lower his guard. Songtsen Gampo had a very bad conscience. He used this method to kill him directly, and Tubo reaped the benefits. His heart was extremely evil.

Then Li Yuanji thought of something, and his heart suddenly became extremely heavy. That is, Li Er and Yang Tong traded tens of thousands of sets of military equipment. Although this number is exaggerated, it is definitely not small. How much money and grain will Li Er earn?
Li Er is already short of money and food. How much will this deal give back to Li Er? Especially since Li Er has opened up his Ren and Du meridians, will he still look for other countries to sell arms and other trade?
After all, his trade is booming, and it is impossible for Li Er not to pay attention to it. With such huge profits, he doesn't believe that Li Er has no ideas.

Li Yuanji was really feeling heavy-hearted, but at the same time there was a bigger problem before him.

He sells arms to other countries because his smelting technology is better, so he can ignore it and fight back.

But what about Li Er?

If Li Er sells these weapons like this, what can he use to counter the countries he sold the weapons to?

(End of this chapter)