"Moreover, Mobei and Liaodong are far away from the Central Plains, so it is difficult to transport the food and grass needed by the army."
"Nowadays, the canals are blocked and the grain roads are blocked. It may be difficult to support the food storage in the north alone."
Li Er said angrily: "What do you mean by this? Do you want me to leave the rebels alone?"
Yan Shigu bowed and said: "Your Majesty, the bitter cold places such as Liaodong and Mobei cannot be cultivated, and the barbarians are difficult to educate. Directly ruling these places will only increase the cost and will not benefit our Tang Dynasty.
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"It is better to withdraw the local garrison and implement a policy of restraint. This can not only control these wild places, but also save a lot of people and material resources. Why not?"
"Yes, Your Majesty, there is no need to use weapons rashly for some alien lands."
"Your Majesty, what Yan Jian ordered made sense."
Yan Shigu's words attracted the approval of a large number of civil servants.
The generals immediately got angry: "Old man Yan, you fart, the soldiers worked hard to defeat the territory, and they lost it with just one sentence!"
"Old man Yan, you have read all the books in your stomach, and you actually said such stupid things."
Yan Shigu didn't even bother to talk to a group of generals, so he cupped his hands and said:
"Your Majesty, our Tang Dynasty has conquered east and west in recent years. Although we have achieved many victories, we have spent countless people and material resources."
"We in the Tang Dynasty have been fighting for many years, and our people are exhausted and our troops are exhausted. It is difficult for us to engage in large-scale wars."
"Moreover, even if the country is large and prone to war, it will surely perish! Your Majesty, please think twice!"
Li Er was very angry: "What's the strategy to restrain the bandits?"
"Thank you, Yan Zhen, for figuring it out. The grasslands and deserts in the north are actually comparable to those in the south of Shanxi and Lingnan."
“The grassland nomads have always been powerful enemies of the Central Plains regime.”
"The last time the Turkic troops came to the Wei River, it was not a few years ago, so why don't you forget about it?"
"If we leave it alone, within ten years, the cavalry in the northern grasslands will surely pass through the barrier!"
Wen Yanbo stepped forward and said: "Your Majesty has a long-term vision, and I admire you!"
"But what the ministers just said is also true. It is indeed difficult for us in the Tang Dynasty to use weapons at this time."
"The grain reserves in the northern states and counties are indeed difficult to support the army to go to Mobei and Liaodong."
Yuchi Gong finally got the opportunity to lead his army on an expedition. Seeing that he was about to be defeated by a group of civil servants, he couldn't help but become furious.
"Our Tang Dynasty now has high-yield grain and efficient agricultural tools. The grain output has been several times that of before. Isn't it possible that we can't even supply military rations for tens of thousands of troops?"
Yu Shining, the guest of the prince, smiled and said: "General Yuchi, if the grain production had not increased significantly, how could you have supported our Tang Dynasty cavalry from crossing the grasslands and deserts in a few years?"
"It's true that there is a lot of food, but the consumption is also high. General Yuchi, think about the terrible consumption of Datang's garrison in the north every year."
Cen Wenwen, the minister of the Ministry of Personnel, also said: "In fact, we still have a lot of food surplus in the Tang Dynasty every year. However, this time there are too many rebel tribes in the north, and the canals are blocked, and the food roads are blocked. In addition, it is difficult to produce food during the busy spring plowing season."
Using swords and soldiers is why we are in such a predicament."
"If we wait until the autumn grain harvest and the grain roads are clear, nothing will actually be a problem."
Yuchi Gong glared at him: "You are talking nonsense. If you can wait, you are talking nonsense."
At this time, Qin Qiong stepped forward and said: "Your Majesty, although there are many documents asking for help from the troops stationed in various places, our Tang Dynasty has strong soldiers and horses, and the troops stationed in various places can still hold on for a while."
"Furthermore, the combat capabilities of the various ethnic groups in the northern grasslands are far inferior to before. It does not require the deployment of too many troops. Only a small number of elite troops can be combined with the garrison to counter the rebellion."
The generals nodded. Now the strength of the various tribes on the grassland can no longer be compared with that in the early years of Zhenguan.
There is no need to use hundreds of thousands or more than 200,000 troops at every turn like before.
"Your Majesty, I don't need an army of 50,000. I only need 30,000 elite troops. I am sure that I can conquer the Mobei grassland."
Zhang Gongjin also snorted coldly: "Your Majesty, Khitan, Shiwei, Mohe and Hu, I can defeat them with twenty thousand horses."
Li Er said coldly at this time: "Can it be that our great Tang Dynasty cannot even supply food and grass for an army of 50,000 people?"
Wen Yanbo cupped his hands and said: "Although the journey is long, the food and fodder for the fifty thousand army is still more than enough. However, this will deplete the food reserves in the northern part of the Tang Dynasty."
"If something goes wrong again in the future, the consequences will be unpredictable!"
Li Erdao: "In that case, Yuchi Gong, you are the commander-in-chief of the march in Mobei and will lead an army of 30,000 people. Zhang Gongjin is the commander-in-chief of the march in Liaodong and will lead an army of 20,000 people. We will set out immediately to put down the rebellion as soon as possible."
Yuchi Gong and Zhang Gongjin received the military order and went down to prepare.
Li Er then said to the ministers in the court: "If the canal is blocked and the grain channel is blocked, the Water Supervisor will find a way to solve it as soon as possible."
"And I have already made an agreement with the Lord Protector to requisition his twenty eight-thousand-stone sea-going ships and transport food to the north by sea!"
"There is a lot of surplus grain in the south of the Yangtze River. Twenty sea ships transport more than 100,000 shi of grain at a time. The empty granaries in various places in the north can be replenished quickly."
After the dynasty dispersed, Li Er and the ministers left the hall with their own thoughts.
Yan Shigu and a group of other great scholars were filled with resentment: "You don't use the saint's good advice for governing the country. You spend all your time indulging in strange techniques and resorting to military warfare. You asked for it this time. My old ministers have advised you."
Xiao Yu and others were secretly proud: "I knew you would commandeer Su Chen's ships sooner or later. This time, destroy all of Su Chen's ships at once. What else can you do?"
Li Er even sneered: "You all want to plot against me, but I want to see what you are capable of!"
When news of the rebellion of the various ethnic groups in the north and the response in the court reached Guanzhou, Su Chen was on his way to Yanzhou.
"Guo GuoGong, there is no order from the imperial court. We can directly lead the troops to Yanzhou. Is this really okay?"
Su Chen glared at Chang He: "If General Chang is afraid, you can go back by yourself. I can just lead the troops alone!"
Chang He's face turned bitter: If I go back, will your Majesty have to chop me down?
But leading troops into other prefectures and counties without military orders is said to be chasing bandits.
But if the royal censors of the imperial court find out about this, they will dare to accuse you of any crime, even if you intend to rebel!
"Duke Protector, after all, Yanzhou is not your jurisdiction. It would be better to inform the governor of Yanzhou."
Su Chen looked at Chang He like a fool: "These bandits always rob grain trucks and run to Yanzhou. I have issued several official documents asking the Yanzhou governor for help. Has he paid any attention to you?"
"And you said that these bandits don't look like bandits at all, but like private soldiers secretly raised by aristocratic families."
"I suspect that he was raised by the governor of Yanzhou!"
Chang He was stunned: "No way! He is also the governor of a state, and the governor of Yanzhou only took office last year, and he is not a local from his hometown."
Su Chen chuckled: "Anyway, we have something to do with him!"
"By the way, have you found out accurately?"
"If we come here and don't find these bandits at all, we will really have a hard time this time!!"
