This palace now replaces the Zichen Hall of the Daming Palace in Chang'an, and is where Li Hong summoned his close ministers.
After Li Yan settled the minor commotion at the Yushitai in front of Douzhiyuan, he summarized the information obtained by the inner guards and immediately submitted a memorial to explain the situation.
Li Hong looked at it carefully and felt a little angry, but not that angry.
He would find it hard to accept this kind of thing happening to any noble noble family, but when it happened to the Wu family, he was not surprised at all.
At least compared to attacking the wife in the palace, this kind of behavior of defrauding foreign captives of money, then being held hostage by the other party, and stealing the fish charm of the noble prince to escape, seems to be easier to accept?
What a shame!
Li Hong's chest rose and fell violently, and he said coldly: "Yuanfang, what crime can be charged in this case?"
Li Yan said: "It's all up to your Majesty to decide. If you take it too seriously, it would be collaborating with the enemy and treason. Even the Wu family will be involved."
Li Hong was very satisfied and wanted to take the opportunity to kill this group of relatives.
But thinking of Empress Wu's previous hints, she actually hoped that she would do this, and suddenly felt that the previous strategy was right. Keeping them could really check and balance the Empress Dowager.
After weighing it, he decided to first find out how bad the impact of this incident was: "Can the Brenzan Blade of the Nagar family escape back to Tubo? Will it leak information about the Tang Dynasty?"
Li Yan thought to himself that the man who was once his lucky star would not be happy dancing in the Tang Dynasty, but he wanted to die with Wu Shizi. He answered truthfully: "Brenzan's sword was already being watched by internal guards, although he risked his life this time.
The dangerous escape is indeed unexpected, but I have sent manpower to hunt him down, and I will rush there as soon as I have any clues."
"As for leaking information about the Tang Dynasty, Your Majesty doesn't have to worry about that. If this person really knows the information from the top, he won't take risks by using the children of the Wu family!"
Li Hong was immediately convinced and nodded: "That's true. If you know more about it, you won't be deceived by the Wu family."
Li Yan added: "However, during the pursuit, Wu Youning's safety cannot be guaranteed..."
"Let him die!"
Li Hong almost blurted out these four words, but in the end he was more tactful: "If Wu Youning encounters misfortune, the funeral should be more elegant."
Li Yan sincerely hoped that people would not get into trouble in advance, otherwise the attribute points might fly away by 0.5.
Of course, he would not harm the overall situation because of this. If Wu Shizi could kill him with his own hands, he would kill him. If he could not kill him, he would never intentionally leave him alive.
Just when this accident happened, Li Hong said again: "I have met Sun Boruben of Tubo. How sure are you that she intends to revive the country?"
Li Yandao: "The domestic situation in Tubo is currently uncertain, and I cannot assess it for the time being. However, Tuyuhun's restoration has set a good example. Sun Boru originally requested this, which is great news for us, the Tang Dynasty."
Li Hong nodded: "Yes, since she has this idea, she is estranged from Tubo. Sun Boru's homeland is too important to Tubo. If it is separated, how much can Tubo do?"
Having said that, he felt a little regretful: "It's just that there are all Qiang tribes there, and there is a cold miasma. We, the Tang Dynasty people, couldn't adapt to it in the past, and it was even harder to rule."
Li Yan said: "Your Majesty is truly a wise Lord for considering it like this!"
Li Hong waved his hands and smiled and said: "Yuanfang doesn't need to compliment me. In the past, Taizong ordered Li Gong to destroy Tuyuhun, but he was worried about various things and did not directly establish prefectures and counties in Tuyuhun like Sui Yang did in the previous dynasty. Tuyuhun could not rule directly, let alone Tubo?"
Regarding Tuyuhun, there is Yang Guang’s experience, and regarding Tubo, there is the tragic experience of Li Zhi.
Li Hong learned the lessons from these two men and had a clear understanding: "With the military power of the Tang Dynasty, it is not difficult to defeat the Tubo army, but it is very difficult to destroy the Tubo army. If we want to rule the people of that plateau, we must not
If we don’t face the situation like Tuyuhun’s repeated restoration of the country…”
Li Yan knew very well that just as he was able to make Li Zhi happy with the Zanpu Bell, he also had to give hope to Li Hong: "Your Majesty, don't be too high-minded. If you can restore the country of Subi, and then divide it from the east and west, you can hope to destroy Tubo. When the time comes, you will
The Qiang people were brought under the rule of Jisi Prefecture, and the plateau became the territory of our Tang Dynasty."
In fact, the rule of many Jifu prefectures was only nominally under the Tang Dynasty, and the officials were all natives of foreign races. Taxes and taxes could not be raised, so they only looked good on the territorial map. However, this false name was also a deterrent, and sometimes it could actually turn into a threat.
substantial benefits.
What's more, there is no emperor who doesn't want the territory under his command to grow bigger and bigger. Li Hong perked up after hearing this and nodded repeatedly: "Okay! Okay!"
Since he was deliberately taking advantage of his illness to kill him, it was even more necessary for the former God of War to recover quickly. Li Hong smiled and said: "Yuanfang, General Xue has just entered the palace, you might as well invite him to explain the situation in Tubo.
?”
Li Yan raised his brows when he heard this, and was a little excited: "That's so good. General Xue's name is very popular in my ears. I have always been very sorry that I could not see him. Today, I finally get what I want."
He came in a later era, and famous generals in the early Tang Dynasty such as Li Jing, Li Ji, Cheng Yaojin, Qin Shubao and others had all died of illness. The most famous one in this era was Xue Rengui, so naturally he wanted to see it with his own eyes.
"Pass on Xue Rengui and Xue Chuyu to enter the palace!"
The chamberlain went out to convey the message, and soon there was the sound of footsteps, and the Xue family and his son came to see him.
Xue Chuyu was not yet twenty, so he was naturally full of energy. At this time, he was following behind his father.
As a sixty-one-year-old veteran, Xue Rengui has many white hairs and deep wrinkles, showing his age.
Li Yan sighed a little. The defeat of Dafeichuan was a huge setback for the war god who had been victorious in the first half of his life. He could not explain the altitude sickness, and even attributed the failure to the astrology, "This year is Kangwu, and the army marches against the new year.
That's why Deng Ai died in Shu, and that's why I was defeated."
As you get older, the decline of Qi and blood is inevitable. If you suffer such a huge blow again, even if Xue Rengui still maintains the habit of practicing martial arts and does not relax, his condition is not as good as before, and the power of the Three Arrows Dingtian Mountain will never be gone.
Returned.
However, after being demoted to a commoner for five years and being summoned by a saint again, Xue Rengui could not hide his excitement. After the prostrations, an old voice rang out: "I pay homage to your majesty, long live my emperor!"
Li Hong stood up from the dragon chair, walked down the steps, and personally helped the veteran minister up: "General Xue, without courtesy, please sit down!"
Xue Rengui hurriedly said: "Thank you, Your Majesty!"
The palace maid held two blankets and laid them out. Xue and his son knelt down and sat down. Li Hongze, who returned to sit on the dragon chair, said: "Does General Xue know about the cold miasma in the highlands?"
Xue Rengui said sincerely: "Thank you very much, Your Majesty, for clearing up my doubts and resolving my knot. I hope that I can lead the troops and compete with the Tibetan thieves again, so as to avenge the previous humiliation!"
Li Hong smiled and said: "Old General, you are quick to speak. I invite you to come out, and that is exactly what I mean!"
Xue Rengui thanked you for the third time: "Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Li Hongdao: "Yuanfang, please tell General Xue the current situation in Tubo. I want to hear the opinion of the old general."
Li Yan nodded and briefly explained the situation in Tibet that he learned about through Sun Boruben and the Brenzan blade escape incident that had just occurred.
Xue Chuyu had been busy rehabilitating his father during this period. Only then did he learn that Brenzan had actually escaped, and had also kidnapped Wu's son and snatched Duke Zhou's fish charm. He couldn't help but look surprised.
Xue Rengui listened calmly from beginning to end, and suddenly asked: "After the internal guards are reestablished, will there be any suppression of the spies in Tubo?"
Li Yandao: "Tubo originally had secret guards, but because it was a country with a backward system, it could not afford a specialized espionage organization. Now it has been taken over by Zanpu and recruited as the West City Guards, and its espionage capabilities have been greatly reduced. This is also
This is the reason why Tuyuhun was able to successfully recover."
Xue Rengui asked again: "Is there any involvement of Tibetan spies in Brenzan's escape this time?"
Li Yan said: "Based on the current situation analysis, it should be Brenzan's impromptu move."
Xue Rengui said: "So, if Brunzanren successfully escapes back to Tubo, his understanding of the Tang Dynasty will become a valuable source of information for the Tubo monarchs and ministers?"
Li Yan had actually considered this, nodded slightly and said: "Not bad!"
Xue Rengui looked at Li Hong: "Your Majesty, in my opinion, it would be a good thing if Brenzan can really escape back to Tubo!"
Li Hong frowned slightly: "I don't quite understand what the old general means..."
Xue Rengui said: "With preparations for Leng Mi, if there is another head-on confrontation like Dafeichuan, I am absolutely sure to win. However, Tubo Qinling is a man who knows how to fight. If we blindly shrink our defense, our Tang army will be defeated."
If we go deep into the country and the food supply lines are insufficient, we will inevitably be in danger of defeat. If we want to destroy them in battle, Tubo needs to take the initiative to send troops!"
Li Hongqi asked: "If the Brunzan Blade returns to Tubo, will it make Tubo take the initiative to send troops?"
Xue Rengui stroked his beard and smiled and said: "This man is Qin Ling's biological brother. His status is different from that of ordinary generals. If he escapes back to Tubo, the Gar family will definitely be happy."
"If there are still internal guards to guide us on the way, it will appear that Guanzhong is exhausted, Longyou is in turmoil, and Tuyuhun's restoration of the country is in name only, and Tubo will inevitably feel contempt."
"The veteran knows the Qiang tribe well. Whenever they have difficult-to-resolve differences, going out to plunder is the best choice. Once the Tubo thinks that the Tang Dynasty is empty and there is an opportunity to take advantage of it, it will be a strategy to lure the snake out of its hole.
"
"If we can defeat the Tibetan army in one battle, destroy its elite, and defeat its bravery, then Su Bi can recover and the overall situation can be settled!"
Listening to Xue Rengui's tactics of luring the enemy, Li Hong looked thoughtful, and Li Yan admired him in his heart.
He had thought about this method, but was not prepared to use it.
It's not that this method is not feasible, but that he plans to start with tea, which will further aggravate the class divisions in Tubo. Brenzan's escape was an accident, not in the original plan, and it is not worth the distraction and trouble.
In comparison, it had been five years since Xue Rengui was demoted to a commoner. Even if he could get some information from his son Xue Chuyu, it was really commendable that he could extract important information and make a feasible plan in such a short period of time.
The chance of victory is higher than in the temple, and the decisive victory is thousands of miles away. Xue Rengui's reputation as the God of War is definitely not gained by simply rushing on the battlefield. This man is also a man of both civil and military skills. After destroying Goryeo, he also served as the protector of Andong and stayed in Pyongyang.
During this period, he supported the orphans and the elderly, promoted talents, and made the Goryeo survivors "pleased to admire him".
Li Hong had a calm temperament. Although he was a little moved, he did not make a rash decision: "I understand what Old General Xue said. I will recruit Pei Shangshu, General An and other generals to come and learn from everyone's strengths before making a decision."
Xue Rengui was not surprised but delighted: "Your Majesty is wise!"
However, he was mature and prudent, so he said it in advance: "This is the humble opinion of an old minister. The battle situation is ever-changing. Perhaps when we are talking now, the Tibetan thief has been captured by the internal guards, or even died in danger on the way. There is no need to mention all that.
And the Wu family is also an unexpected variable, which is difficult to deal with. I don’t know where the Queen Mother is..."
Li Hong's brows moved and the corners of his mouth raised slightly: "I have to be reminded by the old general, but I forgot. It's time to report this matter to the Queen Mother!"