"According to records from the Han Dynasty, there were thirty-six countries in the Western Regions with thirty to forty thousand households.
In my opinion, the city-states in the Western Regions were conquered and killed every day and had always been scattered. In the Han Dynasty, the number of thirty-six states was auspicious and beneficial to the west. The nationalities were also summarized, but it was impossible to count them.
By the Sui Dynasty, there were more than a hundred city-states in the Western Regions, all of which belonged to the Turks. It is impossible to list them all. Only Loulan in the Han Dynasty was renamed Shanshan, and Qiemo County, Xiaowan, Jingjue and other small states at this time.
It no longer exists.
The Western Region, which was called the Western Region in the Han Dynasty, has moved hundreds of miles to the west as of today. If someone invades, they can attack it if they leave the Qiuci Kingdom and head east into the territory of the Tang Dynasty.
A few years ago, the Western Turks chased the remnants of the Shekui Khan as far as Dunhuang County. They quickly withdrew their troops and had already entered the territory of the Tang Dynasty and did not dare to invade without permission.
If you dare to come again now, we will start a war, and we must punish you quickly to clear the boundaries."
Naturally, these words did not come from Zhang Liang's mouth, nor did they come from Li Po. It was difficult for him to ask this guy to talk about ancient times. It was only Sun Fujia, who was knowledgeable and knowledgeable, who briefly said it.
In the past, when Yan Shigu was around, this must have been the job of the casual knights. However, at this time, the emperor was not very satisfied with the several casual knights who were always accompanying him, so Sun Fuga took care of the daily inquiries.
Zhang Liang came from a humble background, but now he has read a lot of books. He prefers to be arty in daily life, and he admires knowledgeable people. At this time, he immediately touched his palm and said: "Doctor Sun has learned a lot and has a strong memory. He can know the affairs of the world without leaving home. It is worthy of him."
He is the top talent."
Sun Fujia was a little embarrassed, and he handed over his hand in thanks, but he said in his heart, it would be okay if the emperor praised him, but you, Lao Zhang, can forget it.
Li Po smiled and said: "Let's stop here today. There are more and more people coming from the Western Turks. You should ask people to pay more attention. It is best to send some people to investigate and see what the situation is like in the Western Turks now.
I heard that back then, King Xiumituo of Shanshan sent a message to Fu Jian, offering to be a guide to lead the Qin army to attack the Western Regions. Han Ba, the last lord of Shanshan, offered his country to the Northern Wei Dynasty.
I don’t believe that we are going to unify today. There are no people in the Western Region who want to be strong and surrender, so we can always find some people to lead the way, right?”
Zhang Liang had already expected it. After hearing this, he immediately said: "Does your Majesty intend to enter the Western Regions?"
Li Po felt his tooth hurt when he heard this. This guy was talking more and more politely now. Hearing this, he wanted to go up and give him a few kicks.
It’s just that this guy is no longer the minions in the palace, he is a serious minister of the Ministry of War, and he needs to save some face. “The Western Region has always been regarded as a sacred land by the Turks. This is because the grasslands are barren and the products are sparse, so business must be established.
Make up for it.
It was for this reason that we opened border markets with the Tang Dynasty, and the same was true for conquering the Western Regions and governing them.
In fact, to put it simply, life on the grasslands is difficult, and the Turkic nobles love to enjoy themselves, so they try their best to snatch it away. No matter what, the south is not very afraid of them, but those small countries in the Western Region are fat.
It always makes the grassland tribes salivate."
Zhang Liang and Sun Fujia both smiled, and the emperor began to speak plainly, which meant that he was in a good mood. If the emperor was happy, they would naturally have less to worry about.
Zhang Liang began to flatter him, "Your Majesty is wise. After listening to His Majesty's words, I felt enlightened. Since it is fat meat, why don't I, the Tang Dynasty, take a bite?"
Li Po laughed and said, "The Western Region is now a forbidden area for the Western Turks. The Commander-in-Chief Yehu Khan is very respectful to me, and I cannot go back on my word.
It's just some preparations that need to be made ahead. Chuluo Khan and Shekui Khan both worshiped eastward. What happened in the end? You also said that Tong Yehu seems to be very wise. The wiser the person, the greater his ambition. , So, I want you to send someone to spy on some information and make plans in advance.
Just because there is nothing going on today does not mean that tomorrow will be safe, but remember not to show off, and find some people who are close to the Tang Dynasty. You may not be able to be of great use soon."
He gave a clear explanation that was rare here, mainly because he wanted Zhang Liang to know the importance of this matter and not to let it go wrong.
Zhang Liang promised again and again that this matter was actually easy to handle. The Western Turks who fled were all in the Tang Dynasty, and there were people like Qibi Heli, so it didn't take much effort.
He just guessed that the Tang Dynasty's war in the east was basically over, and the emperor was about to turn his attention to the west.
After Zhang Liang left, Li Po immediately ordered people to summon Pei Shiqing, the Minister of Civil Affairs, and others to meet him. This was a small court meeting that had been scheduled long ago.
It's the end of the year, and all provinces and ministries have to make summaries and make plans for next year, so Umrah meetings are held one after another.
It was delayed for some time because Feng Deyi died of illness, and there was a slight disturbance in the court, but it soon got back on track.
As the emperor, Li Po felt a little sad, so he went out of the palace to visit He Chou.
He Chou's health was getting worse day by day, and he was becoming more confused. However, he still remembered his writings and asked the emperor face to face how he was implementing them.
It can be said that the promotion of He's Gongwu book has been closely linked to the construction of the academy, and it has become a required course for academy students.
In fact, the plan is still for the long term. It does not expect that some great craftsmen like He Chou and Yu Wenkai will emerge, but it will definitely broaden the horizons of scholars who have read too many Four Books and Five Classics.
Don't just focus on the words of the saints. All roads lead to Chang'an. The Tang Dynasty in Li Po's imagination should be a prosperous dynasty that was open and tolerant and flourished in all industries. It must not turn into a Confucian paradise in his own hands.
Therefore, in addition to promoting industrial skills, we will also convene some famous doctors to Chang'an next year for exchanges.
Recently, Li Po heard that Sun Simiao had traveled to Hunan Province, and he was planning to go deep into Lingnan. He had no plans to come to Chang'an next year to attend the grand meeting. He was really a real-life travel companion.
Of course, what concerned Li Po the most was that Sun Simiao was compiling the famous Qian Jin Fang, China's first medical encyclopedia. Li Po still knew about this title, but he didn't know when it would be completed.
When the work is completed, there will undoubtedly be another masterpiece of the Tang Dynasty.
Li Po was not in a hurry. It was said that the thief lived a long time, so he probably wouldn't be able to survive him, so he didn't worry that he would give up halfway.
And now that the Tang Dynasty is in its prime, as long as he pays attention to some things, it will definitely cause repercussions, it just depends on the size.
For example, now at Sinong Temple and Taichang Temple, the craftsmen and supervisors are collecting various crafts and plan to compile a masterpiece based on He's crafts.
When Old Man He heard about this, he was very angry. This was obviously an attempt to break up with the He's work he had written, and it was a group fight.
So when Li Po came to the door, he sued Dou Shilun, Yuwen Rutong, Dou Dan and others. The old man finally concluded that he was not the son of a man.
Nagging also mentioned that if the world had not been in crisis, he would have helped Li Po do a lot of miscellaneous things, and he would have been much more thorough when compiling He's artifacts. In that case, there would be no room for these bastards to manipulate. ?
Li Po listened happily, regardless of how out of line the old man's words were. He just said, "Don't worry, these people are your disciples and disciples, and they have achieved success by standing on your shoulders."
superior.
Without He's artifacts in front of them, how could they have imagined this? One day I will ask them to come to you to become your disciples, and when they get angry, use a stick to beat them. Don't be sulky at yourself, lest your anger breaks your body. Isn't that not beautiful?"
Li Po picked up his ability to coax people again, which made Old He happy. He also wanted to have a few drinks with the emperor and listen to the good words he had not heard for a long time.
But Li Po wanted to go to his mother-in-law's house to eat chicken, so he declined. He also warned He Chou not to drink alcohol on weekdays. He said that Feng Lun died of a sudden illness because of his frequent drinking, which frightened the old man.
He Chou was quite unconvinced and said, "How can that fellow Feng Lun compare with me? How old is he? I am already over eighty, so let him wait for me below."
After coming out of He Mansion, Li Po was not in a hurry to go to his mother-in-law's house, but instead went to Mrs. Cheng Guo's Mansion.
After Feng Deyi's death, he has been in a bad mood. He Chou is very old and doesn't seem to have a few days left to live. Chen Xiaoyi who lives far away in Jinyang is also older, Pei Ju in Luoyang is older, and
Qu Tutong, the governor of Daizhou, Li Gang, the minister of the Ministry of Rites, and Pei Shiqing, the minister of the Ministry of Personnel.
These people are all the people he cares about. They are all different and have their own origins, but they can all be said to be the reason for the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty, and they are the most precious legacy of the former Sui Dynasty.
Not having one would be quite heartbreaking.
If possible, he really wanted these people to record their knowledge, experience, and valuable experiences for future generations to ponder. It would be very exciting.
It's a pity that these people don't have the energy anymore, and people in the world don't have the habit of writing memoirs. It's really a pity.
Mrs. Cheng Guo's house is still so quiet, it's a good place to calm down.
Of course, if there was no hostess here, there would certainly not be such an attraction that could attract the attention of a founding king again and again.
When Mrs. Xiao saw Li Po, she saw that he was in a bad mood, so she cooked the squid with her own hands and served it in front of the table. She did not ask why the emperor was troubled and worried, and only chatted with Li Po in a low voice about the daily routine of the family.
By the way, I also mentioned that the Ministry of Industry sent people over this year to transform the long-abandoned West Garden in the mansion into a Jiangnan garden. The materials used are said to be leftovers from the construction of the palace, and the craftsmen were just recruited from the south.
Some people came.
The employment is very novel, they are all short Japanese people, they work very hard, but they are ugly, in the words of the servants in the mansion, they look like ghosts. They look like they are not good people, and I can't blame His Majesty for sending troops to destroy his country.
Li Po couldn't help but laugh when he saw the heir of the Xiao family talking nonsense and looking a little embarrassed.
"Fuso Savage, Madam must have seen him before, right?"
Mrs. Xiao nodded, she never wanted to mention the past affairs, but Li Po was not someone else, so she could talk about it.
"Yes, people from the Japanese country came to court several times. One of them was Gao Xiangxuanli. He was a Miao descendant of the Han Dynasty. His Han name was Gao Xuanli. He was quite knowledgeable.
I can’t remember the last time I came to Chang’an. I just remember that this person never went back and died in Chang’an. Someone in the court asked him to build a monument for him.”