Back to the prosperous Tang Dynasty to be the emperor

Chapter 503

"It's a long story to say about this matter. Well, sir, I have seen the sea chart shown by Gu. You should know that the world is not limited to China. In today's world, there are countless countries, big and small. Of course, my Tang Dynasty is The most powerful country in the world, dominating the land in the east, is not free from the sense of danger, it seems that this great food country is naturally barbaric, and it is also a flourishing empire, with a tendency to attack and plunder, so it has no choice but to guard against it."

Li Xian didn't have too many reservations about Zhang Jianzhi's subordinates, so he casually stated his attitude towards the Great Food Kingdom. Although his words were plain, his hostility towards the Great Food Kingdom was clearly revealed.

"Your Highness, someone thinks that although the Great Food Kingdom is strong, it is thousands of miles away from my Great Tang, and there are countless small countries in between, so it shouldn't have anything to do with my Great Tang?"

Zhang Jianzhi is a person who accepts death, and it doesn't make it easier just because he is facing Li Xian. In his opinion, the Great Food Kingdom should not be a threat to the Tang Dynasty at all, and he will not be overwhelmed by Li Xian. Relieved by his explanation, he frowned slightly, and then asked further.

"Sir, what you said is very true. However, this is just an appearance. In terms of the country's religious beliefs, the Great Food Kingdom will spread to our Great Tang territory sooner or later. When that happens, it will be too late to take precautions. Gu would rather solve it as soon as possible."

Li Xian has survived three generations, and he is very clear about the original direction of history. He has never had a good impression of the warlike and cruel Dashi Kingdom, and he is not very interested in the teachings he believes in. Although he will not attack the Dashi Kingdom immediately, he can It is reasonable to do the basic preparation work but still have to do it first.

"religion?"

Zhang Jianzhi is a student of Confucianism, and he has always had an antipathy attitude towards religion, but he just takes care of himself, and will never be overbearing to the point of interfering with other people's beliefs. Hearing Li Xian's words, he seems to be quite afraid of the religion of the Great Food Kingdom , Suspicion immediately arose.

"That's right, the people in this country believe in the religion of Islam. They believe in Allah as the only true God, and they worship it with extreme devotion to the point of fanaticism. It is strictly forbidden to spread other religions in the country. Once discovered, they will be sentenced to death. If it is only practicing such teachings within the territory of the country, then it is no problem with other people. The problem is that there are countless fanatics in this country, and they often say that they want to spread the glory of their true God all over the world. For this reason, they have repeatedly mobilized troops Conquests, wherever they pass, anyone who does not believe in its teachings will be killed, the old and the young will not be left. The massacre of the city is not uncommon. It is really a catastrophe for the common people. In addition, there are two other reasons that are also the root of the solitary desire."

After pondering for a while, Li Xian decided to explain his understanding of the Dashi Kingdom's religion in detail, but when he talked about the other two reasons, he suddenly felt that something had been said, so he stopped there Shut up.

"Two reasons? A certain one doesn't know, please elaborate on one or two, Your Highness."

Zhang Jianzhi only believed in heaven and earth, not in ghosts and gods, and he didn't have a deep understanding of the disaster of religion. Because of this, he was not interested in the first reason Li Xian put forward, and he didn't want to ask the truth, but what? Seeing that Li Xian didn't give the other two reasons, but he didn't intend to let it go, he asked suspiciously.

"Well, let's put it this way, there is an isthmus on the sea chart you saw, if you dig a canal, you can connect the Red Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, and cargo ships can go straight to Europe, and the benefits you get are even more beneficial than the deal with the big food country. , these main points should be in the hands of my Tang Dynasty, this is one of them. Furthermore, although the Dashi Kingdom is located in a desert and the land is barren, it is rich in fire oil. This thing is not only needed for military industry, It will also be the foundation of civilian use in the future, and I can't miss it alone."

After Li Xian frowned and thought about it, although he still hesitated, in the end, he still decided not to hide it from Zhang Jianzhi, so he also revealed the other two reasons.

"Fire oil? Your Highness, please forgive Zhang's blunt words. I also produce this thing in Hexi and the Western Regions. Although it is flammable, it smells bad. Even nomads don't bother to use it. How can it be of great use? "

Li Xian's army had already popularized kerosene bombs. Although Zhang Jianzhi didn't care about military affairs, he had seen such things. He was no stranger to kerosene, but he didn't think it could be of much use. Hearing Li Xian speak so mysteriously, the doubts in his heart not only didn't diminish, but intensified a bit, so he frowned and continued to ask the bottom line.

"Sir, do you still remember the machine that Gu asked Mr. to see a few days ago?"

The previous words had leaked some secrets, so Li Xian had to try to justify himself, so he raised his brows and asked a question instead of answering.

"Your Highness, are you talking about the steam engine? Although there are some tricks in that thing, is there anything to do with kerosene?"

A few days ago, Zhang Jianzhi did go with Li Xian to the research institute to observe the prototype of the steam engine that had just been successfully tested, but that thing is still just a crude embryo, not to mention the noise, and the volume itself is too bulky. The power is not very high, and Li Xian did not make any special explanation at that time, Zhang Jianzhi only knew a little about the function of the steam engine, and did not know its epoch-making significance. It's really a bit confusing to use the steam engine to talk about things.

"Hehe, it's all my fault that Gu didn't explain the matter clearly. Although the steam engine is cumbersome and difficult to use, with the improvement of various technical indicators, this thing should be widely promoted. Using it as a thrust, no matter the ship, Cars, or workshops can be used to great effect. It can save manpower and improve efficiency. It is an invention that has never been born in the world. As for kerosene, if it can be purified, it can be used as fuel for steam engines. Well, I am alone Let people start to prepare for the experiment. Once it succeeds, I, the Tang Dynasty, dare not say that I will be at the top of the world forever. Allowing the Great Food Kingdom to rise just like that, of course, this is something to be said for later, and now I am just playing a few idle games, and after the court is appeasement, it will not be too late to go slowly, then the Great Food Kingdom will come to envoy One of the lonely chess pieces, maybe it will be of great use in the future."

Li Xian slapped his head, and rounded up his words with a smile. It was coherent, and it really seemed like that. As for whether this is the case, it is a matter of opinion.

"Your Highness, it seems that the court has not been peaceful recently. Maybe there will be turbulence once the new year is over!"

Li Xian spoke very smoothly, but from Zhang Jianzhi's point of view, Li Xian was suspected of being a bit of a jerk, but since Li Xian hadn't forgotten the court's business, Zhang Jianzhi didn't say anything again. Getting entangled in such "minutiae" matters, once the topic changed, he had already talked about the serious matter.

"Well, Wu Chengsi's transfer to the Ministry of Justice's assistant is an obvious signal. It seems that the lonely queen mother has recharged her energy and stored up her energy. I am afraid that this spring will really make a big move."

When it comes to the situation in the court, Li Xian also has a headache for a while - for the past two years, the crown prince has been supervising the country, and under his control, he has placed a lot of confidantes in the court, such as Wang Jun, Xie Sheng, etc. The original officials of the East Palace were all high above the temple, the former served as the servant of the household department, and the latter was the servant of the official department. Not only that, Lin Qi was promoted to the high position of the minister of the Ministry of Rites, and led the chief examiner who will open the examination in the spring. This position shows the determination of the prince to take over the power of the court. Under such a situation, Empress Wu, who has licked her wounds, is naturally unwilling to sit by and watch the power fall by the side. Completely slid to Empress Wu's side. Under the joint efforts of the two, Wu Chengsi, Pei Shoude and others were extremely active in the court, and the relationship with the crown prince was quite tense. For a while, he favored the crown prince, and for a while he favored the empress Wu. The order was changed early and late, which made all the ministers and workers at the bottom a little at a loss. It will be a matter of time before it gets worse, and how to deal with it is really a headache for Li Xian.

"Zhang still said that, no matter Dongfang Sheng or Xifengqiang, just wait and see!"

Since receiving a secret report a few days ago, saying that Wu Chengsi was transferred to be the Minister of Criminal Affairs, Zhang Jianzhi has been thinking about the corresponding countermeasures, and he came to the conclusion that it is still possible to respond to all changes, but Li Xian has never made a move. Zhang Jianzhi didn't want to urge him to make a decision, so he seized the opportunity at this time to speak up again.

"Mr. Guzi knows the meaning of the master, but this turmoil may not be trivial. Hey, Gu Na's mother is not an idle person. If you don't make a move, you will be fine. If you make a move, it will be a ruthless move. After two years of dormancy, the savings accumulated The energy is not small, the prince is afraid this time there will be a catastrophe, if he falls down, Gu Ke will have to face the pressure from the queen mother directly, although Gu is not afraid, but it is also very annoying, now Hexi's big plan has just been launched, and Gushi can't give up halfway. In a word, the court is not ready for chaos, and it will take at least another three years to stabilize. How can there be peace!"

Regarding Zhang Jianzhi's idea of ​​seeking stability, Li Xian obviously has different opinions, because he knows too well what Empress Wu is like, and he doesn't believe that the prince can overcome the turmoil caused by Empress Wu alone, but Li Xian also wants to It's not good how to help the prince without any trace, if he catches fire and burns himself, it will be a lot of fun, and this is the root of Li Xian's annoyance.

"Your Highness, since stability is impossible, why not let it be completely messed up, the water is muddy, and the fish can hide. The prince has always been impatient, so he may not listen to His Highness's advice, and His Highness's whip is long, especially not as good as it is." At that time, if you force yourself to do it, you may inevitably hurt yourself, Your Highness must pay attention to this."

Zhang Jianzhi is really not optimistic about the prince's ability, and he doesn't want him to take over the power. After all, the more stable the prince's position, the more difficult it will be for Li Xian to rise to the position. It is obvious that he strives for the greatest benefit. In his opinion, being in the East Palace is to maximize the benefit.

"No matter how easy it is to think about it, it's meaningless to talk about it before the left and right mothers and queens have been recruited. Let's take a step and see."

There is no one in this world who understands Empress Wu's cruelty and viciousness better than Li Xian. Once he gains power, the consequences will be unbearable. From this point of view, Li Xian absolutely does not want to see Empress Wu gain power. As Zhang Jianzhi said, after all, he is far away in Hexi. Although he has the carrier pigeon to deliver the news, after all, there is a risk of lagging behind. It was a sullen decision that was not considered a decision, but the melancholy in his heart became more and more intense.

(End of this chapter)