Wentang

Chapter 812 Untitled
Big ship coming to Beijing?

Su Linkai said: "Such a big ship shouldn't be able to go to the capital, right?"

Liu Renyuan said: "The rivers of the Yellow River and the Weishui River can be used to get off this boat, but whether it can enter Beijing depends on the will of the sage."

Su Lin said: "The first official ironclad battleship, the imperial court should have something to say."

Shi Fang said: "I also think that the imperial court will make some moves. It is better for the governor to hurry up and train to get ready."

Liu Renyuan nodded and said: "Xie Shiyuan is reminding me that I have dispatched a battalion of elites from the entire army to drive this ship and form combat power as quickly as possible."

After another hour, all the preparations were done, and the big ship lifted anchor and slowly left the port.

Because the person who sailed the boat had no experience, the speed of the boat was relatively slow this time, and it was over when he ran from the shipyard to the camp of the Beiyang Fleet and docked at the pier.

As for sailing with full sail and full speed, these bigwigs will not do it until they get off the ship.

In order to prevent the emperor from summoning them to Beijing, and their ship-handling skills are not up to standard and they cannot make the trip, these crew members will not even think about getting off the ship for a while.

In fact, what they thought was not wrong. The first official ironclad battleship entered service, and the emperor Li Shimin had to inspect it himself no matter what.

He couldn't go to the beach, so he had to sail the boat to Chang'an.

After half a month of service on the ironclad ship, the imperial court's decree was delivered, and the ship sailed to Chang'an.And especially emphasized, don't worry, you can walk slowly on the road.

Everyone understands the purpose, to show off force.

First, it can reassure the hearts of the people, and second, it can deter some people with ulterior motives.

……

Let's go back to Chang'an.

After the Western Expedition Conference, the imperial court officially accepted the credentials of the Sasanian Dynasty, and the two countries established a master-slave relationship since then.The Tang Dynasty was the sovereign state, and the Sasanian Dynasty was the subject state.

Then he announced that he would send troops to protect the vassal state, that is, he decided to go west.

As soon as the news came out, the people of the Tang Dynasty didn't know how they would react, and the small countries in the West went crazy with joy.

The Arab Empire is prospering day by day, and the Sasanian Dynasty, the former overlord, has no power to fight back.

The Arabs who believe in the Green religion are extremely harsh on heretics, and it can be said that they have zero tolerance.Either convert or die, even if you convert, you have to pay heavy taxes.

In this case, Datang, which was more inclusive, became the target of these countries' surrender.

After all, Datang only collects taxes symbolically, and the only condition is to send out part of the retinue and provide part of the military rations during the war.This condition is not worth mentioning compared to the Arab Empire.

What's more, if you surrender to the Tang Dynasty, you can make more money through trade. These small countries can make a lot of money by relying on the Silk Road.

It's just that Datang had to deal with internal conflicts and manage the Western Regions before, and didn't want to waste resources in the farther west for the time being.

The footsteps stopped in the Ningyuan area, and a conservative policy was adopted for the more western regions. They can do business but do not accept their surrender.

Now that the Tang Dynasty has finally accepted the submission of the Sasanian Dynasty, does that mean that they can also submit?

As a result, the envoys from Tochara, Kangju, Sogdia and other countries also handed in their credentials.

Indeed, as they thought, this time the imperial court accepted their credentials and accepted their surrender.

Now that there are so many vassal states, there must be institutions to manage them.

Therefore, the Zhenxi Protectorate was established, and the scope of its rule was tentatively set to the vast area west of the Anxi Protectorate, including Zhaowu Jiuxing, Tocharian, Persia and even the Arab Empire.

The first governor of Zhenxi Protectorate was Li Daozong, King of Jiangxia.

At the same time, the Persian Protectorate was established, and the Sasanian King was the protector; the Tocharian Protectorate was established, and the Tocharian King was the Tocharian Protector... These Protectorate were all under the jurisdiction of the Zhenxi Protectorate.

The establishment of Zhenxi Protectorate officially announced that Datang began to intervene in Western disputes.

……

Not all countries want to see this happen, such as the Arab Empire.

They did not send envoys in Datang, but they still sent several caravans.One is to do business, the other is to know everything about Datang, and the third is to promptly inquire about Datang's military movements in the West.

They naturally knew about Datang's series of actions, and they were so anxious.

Abdul Reyiti is an imam and the leader of the Arab spies in the Tang Dynasty. After hearing about this incident, he immediately sent everyone out to inquire about the news.

"Imam, the news is true. Datang has accepted the surrender of the nine surnames of Persians, Turks, and Zhaowu, and established the Zhenxi Protectorate." Abu Laiti hurried back to his residence to report.

Abdul Reyiti asked: "Will the Tang Dynasty send troops?"

Abu Laiti said with difficulty: "Yes, it is said that they have already made a plan to send troops."

Abdul Reyiti's heart sank completely, and he asked, "Can you find out the specific plan for dispatching troops?"

Abu Laiti shook his head and said, "No, it is very difficult for us to get in touch with the high-level officials of Datang. It would be great if Aziz Caliph was here. It is said that he knew Yueshan, Duke Xia of Datang."

Abdul Reyiti said: "You think the problem is too simple. I have inquired about this matter. Aziz Khalifa and Yue Shan just made a deal and there is no friendship."

"Besides, it doesn't matter if there is friendship. Yue Shan is one of the most important ministers of the Tang Dynasty, and he will not easily leak information to the outside world."

Ah Bulai said: "Oh, I knew this day was inevitable, but I didn't expect it to come so soon."

"It's useless to say these things, first pass the news back to the country and let them prepare."

"Yes."

"Continue to inquire about the news, find out who is the general and the number of troops sent."

"Yes."

After he retreated, a person walked in through a hidden door.

"imam."

Abdul Reyiti's expression became serious: "How is Batuli's intelligence investigation going?"

Batu said forcefully: "I disappoint you. There are no clues to the gunpowder and glass production workshops. The mint workshop was found, but the security is so tight that we lost more than [-] dead soldiers and were unable to break in."

Abdul Reyiti said: "Didn't I ask you to bribe the Tang people who work in the workshop?"

Batu Li lowered his head: "I tried it, and the news I got is that the mint workshop uses a unique coin minting machine, and further information cannot be obtained."

Abdul Reyiti said: "Wouldn't it be okay to ask them to draw the appearance of the machine?"

Batu insisted: "The machine is wrapped in a thick iron shell, and they can't see the internal situation."

"Who built the machine can I find out?"

"They said it was made by Xia Guogong Yueshan."

"It's him again, how can there be such a monster in the world."

Ba Tuli said viciously: "Do you want us..."

Abdul Reyiti said: "I have thought about this plan too, but it won't work."

"He seldom goes anywhere other than Weishui Academy, the imperial palace, and his own home. When he travels occasionally, he will bring at least ten fully armed elite soldiers to protect him. There is no chance to catch him."

"Even if he is caught, there is no time to ask for information, and there is no way to send the information out after asking."

"It will also completely anger the Tang court and kill all the big cannibals in the territory of the Tang Dynasty, and even make both sides immortal. The Tang Dynasty is too powerful, we can't let this happen."

Batuli said discouragedly: "Then what shall we do next?"

Abdul Reyiti said: "Help Abu Laiti to inquire about Datang's western expedition plan, who is the general in charge of the army, and how many people are there. The more detailed the better."

"Yes."

Yue Shan didn't know that someone was trying to trick him, but even if he knew, it didn't matter.Li Shimin's monitoring of Chang'an is all-round, so don't try to hide any changes from him.

Besides, the entire Tang Dynasty was banned from soldiers, and non-court personnel carrying knives longer than one foot required the court's permission and registration.

Armor, knives and guns, bows and crossbows are even more contraband, and possession without corresponding procedures is a crime.

He is always accompanied by ten fully armed guards, and he is not afraid of other people's tricks.

What's more, the opponent is still an Arab. They think they are doing it secretly, but they don't know that their every move is under the surveillance of Datang.

Over the years, there have been countless people who want to steal the methods of making glass, perfume, gunpowder and other items, and the court has built several false locations for fishing.

Some of the fish were killed, and some of them just watched and did not move.

The actions of the Arabs did not hide the truth from the court. Their appearance was so obvious that it was easy to find out who they had been in contact with.

Part of the information they knew was betrayed to them by real people who could not withstand the temptation, and part of it was deliberately leaked to them to confuse the public.

The reason why they didn't move them was that it wasn't necessary.

These people were just inquiring in private and didn't do anything radical, so what if someone else came up with a more secretive way to get rid of them?
It's a good thing they didn't attack Yue Shan, otherwise the end would be miserable.

……

The plan for the Western Expedition has been announced, and the work of dispatching troops and generals has also started one after another.

The first thing to do was not to form the Western Expeditionary Army, but to adjust the personnel appointments of the Anxi Protectorate.

Liu Rengui was transferred to be the Chief Protector of the Anxi Protectorate Mansion, and the top eight generals in the military served as the Chief Protector. Everyone knew his intention to cooperate with the Western Expeditionary Army.

What is more controversial is the appointment of Yuan Gai Suwen. Many people think that he should not be given the position of Governor of Gaochang.Even if you want to use him, you must first accumulate military exploits as a lieutenant general.

But this appointment has been discussed by the core class, and other people's doubts cannot affect the final result.

Yuan Gai Su Wen still became the governor of Gaochang.

Then it was the turn of the Western Expeditionary Army, and the appointment of the commander-in-chief has not been announced in order to keep it secret.

The [-] Western Expeditionary Army began to be formed, and they were all elites who had been active in the northern and western regions all year round. They were more suitable for the climate and soil and water of the Sasanian Dynasty than the soldiers in the south.

But careful people will find that most of the soldiers who were transferred had fought with Li Daozong.

The newly established Yamen Health Department is also busy, dispatching military doctors to train nursing staff, hoarding needed medicinal materials...

This is the first major task since the establishment of the Ministry of Health. We have mobilized from top to bottom to ensure the perfect completion of this work.

The Ministry of War also began to prepare military supplies for this expedition.

The navy can't stay out of the matter, and is preparing to deploy a navy to travel across the ocean to the Da Yueshi Protectorate by sea.

However, the Navy Yamen has its own plan, and the delivery of military supplies is second. The group is mainly to exercise the ability of ocean sailing and to establish supply points at the same time.

A series of orders were issued, and half of the Tang Dynasty was busy with this matter.

Besides, Yuan Gai Suwen was more surprised than anyone else about his appointment as Gaochang Governor.

But of course he would not miss such a good opportunity, even if he had a hundred thousand reasons in his mind, he took up this task on the spot.

After the court meeting, I went to meet Li Shimin alone, but it was the prince who met him.

Li Chengqian's attitude was very kind, expressing the great importance that the imperial court attached to him, and hoped that he could keep the door of the Western Regions well.

But this is obviously not the result Yuan Gai Suwen wanted, after leaving the palace, he chased him to Yueshan Mansion.

He was not surprised at all when he visited Yueshan, and he said bluntly: "Bian Guogong is looking for me for the matter of Gaochang Governor?"

Yuan Gai Su Wen said: "Grandmaster is wise, this is exactly why I came here."

Yue Shan said: "Tell me, you can ask me if you don't understand anything."

Yuan Gai Suwen asked, "I want to know why me?"

Yue Shan smiled and said: "Because you are talented, you have great talent, you have always behaved respectfully and never participated in political disputes, and some time ago you distanced yourself from those old Goguryeo dignitaries."

"Both the sage and the crown prince feel that it is a pity that such a great talent like you should be let go, so I will give you a chance."

Yuan Gai Su Wen bowed towards the palace, and said gratefully: "Thank you, Your Highness, Saint."

Then he bowed to Yue Shan and said, "Thank you Grandmaster for your care all the time, Su Wen never forgets."

Yue Shan accepted his gift graciously, and he really took care of Yuan Gai Suwen a lot these years.Even Li Shimin was willing to give him this opportunity this time because of Yue Shan's reasons.

Li Shimin is still very willing to believe in the person Yue Shan likes.

"Don't be too happy, this is also a test for you. If you handle things well, you will be on the verge of success. If you don't handle things well, just be a rich man for the rest of your life."

Yuan Gai Su Wen said solemnly: "Su Wen will not disappoint the saint's expectations."

Yue Shan said again: "You should know what your mission is, right?"

Yuan Gai Su Wen said: "Make sure the roads in the Western Regions are unblocked."

Yue Shan asked in surprise, "Why not help the Western Expeditionary Army?"

Yuan Gai Su Wen said: "The distance from Gaochang to Ningyuan is nearly [-] li, and the distance to Da Yue Clan's Protectorate is even further."

"Even if the Western Expeditionary Army accidentally sends troops from here, it will be too late. Only the Ningyuan area can really provide backup for the Western Expeditionary Army."

"What Gaochang Dufu should do is to ensure the smooth flow of roads to the Western Regions, and at the same time strengthen the control of the countries in the Western Regions, reduce the pressure on the Ningyuan area, so that they can spare more energy to assist the Western Expeditionary Army."

Yue Shan said appreciatively: "As expected, Yuan Gai Suwen has seen through the key points in such a short time."

"Your task is to keep watch over the countries in the Western Regions. If there is any change in any country, you can directly send troops to wipe it out. Do it with confidence and boldly, and don't worry about someone from the imperial court holding back."

(End of this chapter)