Wu Huaiyu got up early to go to court. It was cold and snowing heavily.
Fortunately, Chang'an's Sixth Street main road now has a sand embankment built in the middle. This is part of Yongzhou's work-for-relief program, which hired victims of the Guandong disaster in Beijing to dig sand from the Chan River and transport it back to Chang'an to pave the Sixth Street.
Although funds are limited and the entire main street cannot be paved, paving a one-foot-and-a-half sand embankment on the wide street greatly facilitates travel.
Even when it is raining, snowing, and muddy, there is no need to have a headache. This is especially a benefit for court officials who have to get up early and go to court in the dark. Otherwise, even if they go to court in a carriage, they may sometimes encounter
The wheels got stuck in mud and puddles.
Qin Qiong insisted on going to court on horseback. This was his pride as the founding general of the country. He felt that it would be embarrassing and unworthy of a military man if the dignified Minister of War rode a carriage to go to court like Li Gang, Pei Juqiu and those old civil servants in their seventies and eighties.
Wu Huaiyu, who lives in the same house, went to the morning court with Qin Qiong today, so naturally he had no choice but to ride with him.
"This sand embankment is very well built. It cost a lot of money, right?"
It was very cold, and the breath turned into frost, but this coldness was nothing to Qin Qiong. During the war years, the conditions on the battlefield were much worse than this. He climbed on the ice, slept in the snow, and slept in the open air. He had never experienced any hardships, no matter the cold winter or the scorching heat.
, in order to seize the opportunity to fight, sometimes they would not disarm for seven or eight days and fight thousands of miles.
Now it's just a matter of getting up early to go to court. It's much better to have a wall in Chang'an City to block the wind, and besides, I have a mink fur cloak on me.
"Actually, this sand embankment didn't cost much. Under normal circumstances, this Sixth Street sand embankment would have cost a lot of money. But now it's a work-for-relief program. The victims only need to have two meals to eat and some food and firewood."
How can you ask for too much?"
Work-for-relief, on the one hand, does provide relief to the people, but on the other hand, it does use the victims as cheap or even free labor.
Sand from the Chan River is free of charge, and the victims actually don't need any labor at all. The cost of digging, transporting, and laying the sand is kept to a minimum.
But the victims had no complaints, and were very grateful that the imperial court and Yongzhou could give them a job at this time, allowing them to have two meals a day, and even be able to bring some food back to their families in the temporary camp after a busy day.
Unless they are really old, young, sick or weak, older or younger people, regardless of gender, can go to the construction site and do what they can. Even if the work points are low and they earn less food, these two meals will still satisfy them.
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In the dim dawn, Chang'an City looked like a giant beast.
On the street, court officials rode in cars and horses, and their entourage held torches to escort them, and they continued to gather towards the East Palace.
The construction of Da'an Palace has just begun, and it will be at least this time next year before the Emperor can move in. The Emperor still lives in the East Palace.
The court officials still had to go to the East Palace to attend court every day.
"This year's severe drought in Guandong has affected more than a dozen states, hey." Qin Qiong sighed. Fortunately, in the first half of this year, the imperial court completed the recruitment and elimination of the two forces, Liang Shidu and Yuan Junzhang, who were the last to be separated.
Moreover, basically the imperial court did not engage in much war and did not consume too much money and food. This also allowed the imperial court to have more reserves for disaster relief in autumn and winter.
If there were continuous wars like last year and the year before that, and if there was another disaster like this, the imperial court would not have any spare money to provide relief, and I am afraid that countless people would sell their sons, daughters, wives, and land.
"If it hadn't been for the severe drought in Guandong, the imperial court would have started to discuss sending troops to the Turks, and it would be a shame to snow the Wei Bridge." Qin Qiong never forgot about sending troops to the Turks to kill Jieli Khan.
When he first heard that the emperor had decided to form an alliance with the Turkic Weiqiao, Qin Qiong, who was in good health, was so angry that he vomited blood, and then went to Bailuyuan to recuperate for a year.
In this comeback, Qin Qiong's biggest goal is to complete his revenge against the Turks as soon as possible.
"There is no rush. The goal set by the saint at the beginning was to send troops to Mobei in as little as two or three years, or as late as three to five years, to destroy Jieli and the Eastern Turks in one fell swoop. It has only been more than a year now. We
We still have at least a year and a half to prepare.”
Huaiyu is not in a hurry. He can't eat hot tofu in a hurry. The current situation is still very good for Datang.
Not only was the internal stability stable, the Liang division was defeated, Yuan Junzhang was recruited, and Shuofang and Datong were recovered, but the generals such as Cheng Yaojin also quickly suppressed the rebellion of the barbarians in Bashu and other interior areas.
The external environment was also good. Due to a heavy snowstorm among the Turks, Jieli and Tuli, Yu Sheshe, their uncle and nephew were at odds with each other, and conflicts continued. With the support of the Tang Dynasty, Xue Yantuo Yinan also moved east to Mobei, and
They raised the banner of the Xueyantuo Khanate, launched the slogan of establishing the Tiele people's own khanate, and even shouted that Mobei belongs to the Tiele people, not the Turks.
The famous Turkic king who wanted to drive the Turks out of Mobei and wanted to set up a settlement in Mobei and set them up to guard Mobei had been fighting with the Tiele people for a year. There were countless small and large battles. The more they fought, the more panicked they became. The Tiele people fought more and more fiercely.
Confidence explodes.
To be honest, in this case, Datang can maximize its benefits by sitting on the mountain and watching the tigers fight, resting and recuperating in peace.
What's the rush at this time?
It was still early when we arrived in front of the palace gate.
The guard at the palace gate welcomed the two people into the private room to rest. There was not only a stove with a charcoal basin, but also a fire bed of the same style as the Wu family. There was even a flue in the wall. The whole room was very warm.
It's very warm as soon as you enter. You can even take off your coat without feeling cold. You can sit down and drink a cup of hot tea, eat some breakfast, and even interact with colleagues about your work.
Of course, those who can enter the waiting room are high-ranking officials, and those who do not have a third-grade official position are not qualified.
The prime ministers not only have special meeting halls and lounges, but also their own rest rooms.
Wu Huaiyu was not the prime minister, but the emperor specially arranged a rest room for him to enjoy the treatment of the prime minister.
Du Ruhui greeted him cordially and even took the initiative to pour him tea. This time Du Jingai caused too much trouble. Although Du Ruhui said that "justice will destroy relatives" (public revenge for private revenge), he took the opportunity to kill Du Yan, the sick eldest son, which was considered revenge for Du's death back then.
The revenge of drowning his brother.
But after all, Du Jing'ai is a member of the Du family. Others don't care about the infighting among your uncles, nephews and brothers. You can't write two characters "Du" in one sentence. It's not like you are in the fifth server.
Wu Huaiyu did not investigate further. Although this was also the emperor's intention, Du Ruhui still accepted Wu Huaiyu's favor.
"I heard that junior brother is going to be a groom again today, congratulations."
Youwei General Hou Junji, Duke of Lu State, walked in. This guy also had a special decree from the emperor to enjoy a prime minister's lounge in the waiting room. As Youwei General Hou Junji, his main responsibility now is
Responsible for the palace guard.
When he came in, he smiled carelessly at Wu Huaiyu.
Just as he finished speaking, Li Jing, the Minister of Punishment, Yongkang County Duke, came in. He took off his coat and glanced at Hou Junji, "Yi Guogong is your senior brother, not your junior brother. There is a first-come-first-served approach to everything, so you must respect your teacher."
road."
Hou Junji was ordered to learn the art of war from Li Jing, but the two kept arguing. Anyway, they were uncomfortable in various ways, and they got into trouble every time they studied. Hou Junji didn't want to learn it several times, and Li Jing had to teach him.
But the emperor insisted that Hou Junji learn the art of war from Li Jing, and it was impossible not to learn it.
Hou Junji had been studying this for almost a year, but he complained to the emperor that Li Jing had not taught him anything real at all.
Now the two of them are a general on the right guard, and a minister on the Ministry of Justice and the prince on the left guard. They are officials in the same palace, but they don't look like masters and disciples at all.
Huaiyu took Li Jing's coat and hung it up, and poured Li Jing a cup of hot tea.
Li Jing's attitude towards Huaiyu, his apprentice, immediately changed. He smiled very lovingly, unlike the cold face he had shown towards Hou Junji just now.
"Are you going to pick up the Qiu family girl today?"
"Well, I'll pick you up at dusk. In the evening, I'll prepare a few tables of fine wine to entertain some close relatives and friends. Then I'll send a carriage to Pingkangfang to pick up the teacher and his wife."
"We can just come over by ourselves when the time comes." Li Jing said with a smile, "I will call your senior brother Su then."
Among Li Jing's students, in addition to his own nephew, there were three students who formally became disciples, Su Lie, Su Dingfang, Wu Er, Wu Huaiyu, and Hou Junji, who didn't know how to shoot.
Wu Huaiyu pretended to be his second senior brother.
But Hou Junji always called him Junior Brother Wu Huaiyu. Normally Wu Huaiyu didn't care, but today he called him that in front of Li Jing. As a result, Li Jing refused to give face to this rebellious disciple.
In front of the prime ministers Fang Xuanling, Du Ruhui, Wen Yanbo, Wei Zheng, Wang Gui, Qin Qiongji, he directly scolded him. This made Hou Junji turn purple and wanted to refute, but after all, he was a teacher in name only. Li Jing could teach him a lesson in front of the prime ministers.
, but he couldn't openly contradict the teacher, so he had to hold it in.
But it was really uncomfortable to hold it in, so he turned away with a dark face and went out. He would rather blow the cold wind outside than stay under the same roof with Li Jing and suffer the anger.
Wei Zheng saw this and felt that Li Jing was obviously favoring one over the other, which was a bit unfair. Wei Zheng was one of the rare prime ministers who admired Hou Junji. He felt that although Hou Junji had a low position before, he was now a general and in charge of the guards.
Even as a close minister of the emperor, he could still be open-minded and studious, which is rare.
"Prime Minister Wei is coming over in the evening, so I won't come to pick him up." Huaiyu said with a smile.
"It's right next door. There's no need to pick him up. I'll come over by myself then." In the past, the two of them were half enemies, but now they are married, close neighbors and in-laws, and they are also ministers in the same palace. Wei Zheng's attitude towards Wu Huaiyu has changed drastically now.
, I no longer have all the displeasure I had in the past when I saw Wu Huaiyu, a minister who was lucky enough to be admitted.
Wu Huaiyu did not invite the four prime ministers Fang Xuanling, Du Ruhui, Wang Gui and Wen Yanbo. They were not relatives. Although they were ministers in the same palace, as prime ministers, their status was relatively sensitive, so Wu Huaiyu had to be careful.
Otherwise, it would be bad to be labeled as a crony.
When the time comes, enter the palace and make an early morning appearance.
After the court meeting, the emperor still held a court meeting, involving the prime minister and some ministers.
Wu Huaiyu is basically the same as the prime minister now. He has to participate in every court meeting. After all, he holds several important positions.
Today we will discuss matters in Chongxian Hall.
"The Western Turkic leader Yehu Khan sent Zhenzhu Tong Qijin as an envoy to present treasures, jade, and famous horses to the Tang Dynasty to propose marriage to me."
At the beginning of the court meeting, the emperor first mentioned the marriage proposal from the Western Turks.
Nowadays, not only the Tongyehu Khan of the Western Turks, but also the Yinan Khan of Xue Yantuo, and even the Fuyun Khan of Tuyuhun have come to Chang'an to propose marriage. They have once again sent envoys to Chang'an to propose marriage.
All the barbarians wanted the Princess of Tang Dynasty.
A few years ago, Tong Yehu sent an envoy to propose marriage to the Tang Dynasty. At that time, Emperor Li Yuan followed the advice of Pei Ju, an expert in the Western Regions, to make friends far away and attack close by, and sent his nephew Li Daoli, King of Gaoping, to the Western Turks to express his consent to the marriage.
However, the Eastern Turks obstructed the process and did not allow the Western Turks to marry the Tang Dynasty.
In the last year of Zhenguan, after Li Shimin ascended the throne, Tong Yehu also sent an envoy to Chang'an, presenting ten thousand nails and five thousand horses to the Tang Dynasty, asking to welcome the princess back.
But Jieli once again threatened not to get married, otherwise he would rob the bride and even send troops to attack Tong Yehu.
Although Tong Yehu was very conceited and had strong troops and horses, the Western Turks were not as powerful as the Eastern Turks, so they had no choice but to give up again.
"Your Majesty, Tong Yehu sent envoys several times to ask for marriage, but every time he was blocked by Jieli, but to no avail. Why did Tongyehu bring up the old matter again this time? Could it be that they are no longer afraid of Jieli Khan?" Zeng
Prime Minister Wen Yanbo, who had been a prisoner of Jieli, asked.
Today, Prince Shao Zhan Shi Pei Ju, an expert on Western Region affairs who was specially invited, responded, "Your Majesty, after the Western Turks became powerful, Tong Yehu was very arrogant, domineering, bullying the people, and aroused the resentment of his tribe. Ge Luo of the Western Regions
Most of the Lu tribe have rebelled against him, and this year the Yinan of Tiele Xueyantuo led 70,000 troops to the desert north of the Eastern Turks, requesting me from the Tang Dynasty to be canonized as Khan and establish the Xueyantuo Khanate."
Pei Ju is eighty years old, but since the Sui Dynasty, he has been the minister who is most familiar with the Western Regions and the best at diplomacy.
At this time, the real reason why Tong Yehu came to ask for marriage was revealed. Tong Yehu had already had some people in the Western Turks rebel against their relatives, such as Ge Luolu's rebellion and Xue Yantuo's eastward flight.
The rest, such as Chuyue, Chumi and other small tribes, are not even convinced by him now.
Tong Yehu's uncle, the son of Datou Khan, the young Khan of the Western Turks, Mohedu, has openly called on the left wing of the Western Turks, that is, the five Dulu tribes, to fight against Tong Yehu's tyranny.
.
Now that Tong Yehu was so sweaty, he could only give orders to move the crossbows on the right compartment, and he lost five of them.
The Western Turks fell into turmoil again. At this time, Tong Yehu could not care about Jieli Khan's threats. In order to gain the support of the Tang Dynasty and win the internal struggle, he sent an envoy to propose marriage, and
This time Tong Yehu took the initiative to make a proposal that could make Datang's heart flutter.
As long as the Tang Dynasty can send the princess to the Western Regions, General Tong Yehu will no longer remain neutral, but will lead the troops of the Western Turks to conquer Jieli for His Majesty the Tang Dynasty.
Although Shekui Khan, Tongyehu's older brother, was an enemy of the Eastern Turks when he was in power, he did not interfere in the conflict between the Tang Dynasty and the Eastern Turks. After his death, his brother Tongyehu succeeded to the throne.
Busy establishing his authority in the Western Regions,
Joining Tiele in the north, rejecting Persia in the west, and connecting Jibin in the south, he dominates the Western Region.
He moved the Khan's court to the Kingdom of Shi, and even made all the kings of the Western Regions surrender to him and accept the title of Jielifa awarded by him. He also sent Turkic nobles to various countries to guard Tutun, station troops to supervise, and collect taxes.
Although he proposed marriage to the Tang Dynasty several times, after the Eastern Turks threatened not to allow it, he gave up and did not want to start a full-scale war with the Eastern Turks.
In the past few years, the war between the Tang Dynasty and the Eastern Turks became more and more fierce, and Tong Yehu never took any action.
Although the Tang Dynasty has been in contact with the Western Turks over the years, the Western Turks have also been paying tribute and becoming vassals.
But the Tang Dynasty planned to unite with the Western Turks to attack the Eastern Turks, but the Western Turks always made thunder but no rain. Li Yuan and Li Shimin and his son had already seen through Tong Yehu.
Fortunately, the Western Turks at least maintained their friendship with the Tang Dynasty and did not let the Tang Dynasty fight on two fronts.
"What's Pei Qing's suggestion?" Li Shimin asked Pei Ju.
"You can agree to Tong Yehu Khan's marriage proposal, but the premise is that they have to send 10,000 horses to Liangzhou as a gift. In addition, they have to personally send envoys to Chang'an to welcome the princess, and they have to send troops to the Dunhuang border to meet the guards.
,"
Li Shimin understood clearly that Tong Yehu in his heyday could not do these things before, but now Tong Yehu has too much time to take care of himself. Not only Ge Luolu, but also Xue Yantuo betrayed him, and even his uncle who commanded the five divisions in the East Chamber betrayed him.
How can we go to Dunhuang to meet the princess?
Even the gift of 10,000 horses was impossible for them to send to Liangzhou. If they really dared to send horses to Xiaping, the Eastern Turks would definitely intercept them halfway.
Just listen to what Tong Yehu said about sending 200,000 troops to attack the Eastern Turks for the Tang Dynasty. If he really had this ability, he would have wiped out Yi Nan, Mo Hedu and other rebellious officials and traitors.
If you don't directly reject Tong Yehu, you naturally don't want any changes in the current relationship between the Tang Dynasty and the Western Turks. It is better to maintain the status quo.
"Xue Yantuo's marriage proposal, the old minister thought that we could do it this way, and asked Xue Yantuo to prepare cattle and horses as gifts and send them to Lingzhou. After I, Tang Dynasty, receive the gifts, we will prepare for the marriage of the princess."
As for Qinghai Tuguhun Fuyun Khan who also wants to join in the fun, ignore him. He was beaten by the Tang Dynasty last year and asked for mercy and tribute. What qualifications do they have to dare to propose marriage to the Tang Dynasty and a princess?
"Your Majesty, I have objections." Wu Huaiyu listened for a long time and then took the initiative to express his opinion.
"I think Pei Gong's strategy is very clever, but Pingli only has 10,000 horses, which is too few. What if Yehu Khan and Xueyantuo Yinan Khan of the Western Turks really drive the horses to Liang
Prefecture or Lingzhou, what should we do then?
The minister suggested that more points should be made, just in case.
It is best to ask for 50,000 horses, 10,000 cattle and camels each, and 100,000 sheep. They must be asked to drive all of them alive to Lingzhou or Liangzhou, and they must be verified when the time comes.
Not a few, not even the sick, thin, old or young, we must have enough but still healthy and strong.”
It is not easy to complete this quantity. Even if Tong Yehu and Yi Nan are willing, they are afraid that they are unable to do so. Not only do they have to prepare so many livestock, they also have to send them to Liangzhou or Lingzhou alive and healthy, which is even harder.
Not only was the journey long, but the key point was that there was an Eastern Turk Jieli Khan between them and the Tang Dynasty. How could Jieli Khan allow them to marry the Tang Dynasty smoothly?
Now that we are married, don't we want to fuck him together?
When Jieli sent troops to intercept them, it would be difficult to send so many livestock into the Tang Dynasty, and there was a possibility that Jieli would rob them.
That would mean losing the princess and losing the army.
Of course, Datang's conditions are here to agree to your marriage proposal, but you have to show your strength and sincerity. If you can't do it, that's your business.
This way you don't have to reject them directly, and you don't have to actually make peace with them.
Anyway, Wu Huaiyu was firmly opposed to marrying the princess to the barbarians. If ten thousand horses were really sent to her, would she marry her then or not?
If you don't marry, you will break your promise.
When Pei Ju heard Wu Huaiyu's numbers, he couldn't help but shake his head. This was so insincere.
50,000 horses, 10,000 oxen, 10,000 camels each, and 100,000 sheep. Even if Jieli is asked to bring out so many animals now, he probably won't be able to come up with them in a while. He will have to ridicule the Turkic tribes and even the vassals.
The Qi, Shi, Wei and other ministries apportioned and collected taxes.
But if anyone wants you to marry the princess, I will give you a gift of cows and horses, and the tribes in the grassland will definitely fight.
Li Shimin stroked his beard.
"I, the princess of the Tang Dynasty, are naturally rich in gold. How can I be married with only five thousand horses? Yes, just follow Huaiyu's conditions and tell their envoys,"
"The envoy from Tuyuhun also told them the same conditions. If they can also bring 50,000 horses, 100,000 sheep, 10,000 oxen, and 10,000 camels each, and rush to Lanzhou, then I will also grant a marriage to a big man.
Princess Tang gave it to them."
In ancient times, two peaches killed three men.
Today there are sky-high betrothal gifts from the Tang Dynasty that are disrupting the prairie Rong Di Hulu!
