The kindness of the Tang Dynasty...it's hard to describe.
During the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the folk customs were not as strong as those of the Qin and Han Dynasties, and were even more powerful. It is difficult to compare them with the later Han Dynasty.
Because martial arts were the norm at this time, even scholars were armed with sharp knives. They were extremely aggressive and were never said to be incapable of starting a fight. Their attitude towards their neighbors was not considered friendly.
Not to mention the former Sui Dynasty, for example, in the current Tang Dynasty, the strategic focus has moved eastward, and its eyes are patrolling the sea, looking for valuable opponents, and preparing to usurp maritime benefits.
The tentacles in the south have extended to Jiaozhi and Linyi, and docks have been built there to prepare for the Tang fleet to sail across the sea.
Although Funan sent envoys to the dynasty and treated them with great courtesy, they could not gain the true friendship of the Tang Dynasty. The strategy of the Tang Dynasty had been roughly formed during the discussions between Li Po and the ministers, and in the future it would not grant independence to the small Southeast Asian countries.
Chance.
There can only be a springboard for Datang to spread its claws...
Even so, the Tang Dynasty did not forget the Western Regions, which had always been fragrant and could form a closed loop with the sea route. Otherwise, when he made an alliance with the Turkic Khan Ashina Yanghuan, Li Po would not have said that the countries in the Western Regions
He doesn't care, he just wants to take Tianzhu.
In Ashina Yang Huan's opinion, Li Po might believe in Buddhism, so he wanted to take monks from Tianzhu to Chang'an to teach the Dharma. But in fact, in Li Po's opinion, the South Asian subcontinent was just another springboard.
As for whether Datang's fleet will be able to reach such distant places in the future... Well, who hasn't dreamed about it yet?
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Therefore, with Li Po on the throne, Datang's aggressiveness will be more obvious. It can be said that it is like eating from the pot and looking at what is in the bowl, and the ambition can no longer be contained.
Such an ambitious empire, although it has only been in a state of weakness for a few days after the war, can still be called a foreigner in the name of mercy. Are you kidding me?
Of course, perhaps compared to the barbarism of Tubo, the Tang Dynasty can indeed be called benevolent.
Because in the eyes of the Tubo people, whether they were defeated and captured, or those who came to surrender on their own initiative, they would be regarded as slaves. It was indeed difficult for a newly emerging slave kingdom to talk about kindness and unkindness with the Tang Dynasty.
Nang Nie and others who came to Guzang City were completely in a situation where people were fighting for their own good. The only value was actually to allow the nobles of the Tang Dynasty to have a deeper understanding of Tubo.
This was the case for Fan Wenjin, the general manager of Liangzhou who had a strong thirst for knowledge. He personally received Nang Nie, which can be said to be quite polite. What he wanted from Nang Nie was the affairs of the Tubo Kingdom.
In the past few years, apart from governing Liangzhou, he also competed with Tibet.
During his years in Liangzhou, the new Tubo people who appeared in the highlands brought great trouble to Liangzhou. When the King of Liang was in power, the Tuyuhun tribe, which was driven down to the highlands by the Tibetans, repeatedly invaded Liangzhou.
Later, the Tubo people personally took action and invaded the counties in Liangzhou, and even once reached the gates of Guzang City.
Therefore, it is no wonder that Fan Wenjin is so concerned about Tubo. Almost all the news about Tubo in the past came from him.
Fortunately, the emperor was wiser and did not ignore it. Instead, he sent a large army to help. Otherwise, the disasters suffered in Liangzhou would not be much worse than during the Bai Yusuo Rebellion.
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"So are the ancestors of the Yalong tribe revered by the Tubo people? Can the Xiangxiong and Supi people also be convinced?"
In the back house of the Liangzhou Governor's Mansion, Fan Wenjin held a banquet to welcome the descendants and wash away the dust.
In fact, it was just him and Nang Nie, plus two Tyuhun translators.
Zhang Lun was not in the city at this time. Since the beginning of spring, Zhang Lun and his people left Guzang City to inspect various tribes in Hexi.
He first went to Zhangye to see the situation of the Western Turks' descendants. The Western Turks' descendants were now led by Ashina Tong'er and Quedu.
Ashena, who was far away in Chang'an, was having such a good time that he probably had forgotten about them.
The Turks settled in Zhangye, some grazing and some planting fields. They also responded to the call of the Tang Dynasty to eliminate banditry in the Hexi area.
Of course, they also have to work with the Tang army stationed here to guard the "Western Frontier" of the Tang Dynasty.
As the Tang Dynasty's strength has recovered in the past two years, it has been able to take care of Yumen City. Sun Shi'en, the guardian of Yumen City, Zhangye County Magistrate, has been stationed in Hexi for many years and is very familiar with the Hexi Corridor area.
The stragglers from the Tang Army and the Western Turks cleaned up the tribes in the Hexi Corridor, trying hard to bring the majesty of the Tang Dynasty to Dunhuang again.
Zhang Lun walked around here and gained a lot of knowledge. He was very satisfied with Sun Shien and other Zhangye officials.
The purpose of his visit to Zhangye was not only to inspect, but also to pass orders to Zhangye. It is estimated that in the next two years, a border market will be set up in Zhangye to do business with the Western Turks. He asked Zhangye to prepare for the arrival of the caravan.
Next, Zhang Lun led his troops non-stop to visit some tribal leaders in Liangzhou. These guys had always been the source of trouble in Liangzhou. It was impossible to eradicate them all. He could only use kindness and force to make them be more honest.
The final destination for Zhang Lun and his party was the bank of the West Sea, where Liangzhou Racecourse is located.
Since many soldiers and horses were taken away by Pang Yu, there are still more than 2,000 Tang army soldiers left here, as well as some Qiang herdsmen and Tyuhun people who raised horses for the Tang Dynasty.
When the racecourse was first built, it was not yet large-scale, and most of the horses herded were the Tang army's own war horses. It was still far from the day when the glory of Liangzhou Racecourse could be restored.
Fan Wenjin and Zhang Lun discussed that there should be three main sources of horse reinforcements at Liangzhou Racecourse.
One is the grassland horses in the north, and the other is the highland horses. Both of them are hard-working and prepare for the future march to the highlands. The war in the east cannot draw horses from Liangzhou Racecourse, but Daizhou Racecourse is there.
The most important thing is actually the horses from the Western Regions. Due to the war in the late Sui Dynasty, the Liangzhou Racecourse has been abandoned for a long time and has cut off contact with the Western Regions. There are fewer and fewer horses in the army that can charge into battle.
When Li Po first raised troops in Mayi, there were still some of them, but as the war progressed, the war horses that could put on heavy armor and charge into battle had disappeared among the various cavalry armies.
Everyone has replaced the grassland horses. In other words, the cavalry of the Tang Army is completely different from the cavalry of the Sui Dynasty. They have all become light cavalry, lacking explosive power and obviously lacking in deterrence.
After the Liangzhou Racecourse was rebuilt, an important task was to introduce war horses from the Western Regions, and then carry out breeding (harmonious) breeding to breed better war horses for the Tang Army's cavalry.
The arrival of the Western Turks has brought some hope to the Liangzhou Racecourse, because the war horses ridden by some of their generals are exceptionally tall and strong, and they are the breeds of horses from the Western Regions...