Chapter 921 Luo Su arranges Gaochang Kingdom!
From a military perspective, there are three suitable people in the current Tang Dynasty.
Li Xiaogong, Li Jing, and Li Ji.
But the military can never exist independently from politics.
Li Xiaogong was the Grand Protector of Anxi, who knew the situation in Gaochang Kingdom best and had prestige among the countries in the Western Regions. However, none of the ministers in the court mentioned this candidate, after all, it was too sensitive.
There is no need to mention Li Jing. Since his debut, he has never been defeated and has won every battle. He also makes light work of heavy battles. Now some people have compared him with Han Xin. There is no way Li Shimin would let him go to war again.
Li Shimin was very hesitant about using Li Ji. Li Ji was naturally not as good as Li Jing, but he was a steady person. Even if he could not win a big victory, he would never suffer a big defeat.
The biggest fear of the military system is the annihilation of the entire army. Once the entire army is destroyed, it will not only be a military failure, but will also bring about a series of economic and political chain reactions.
But Li Ji was the only relatively young commander of a large army corps, and he wanted to leave the position to Li Chengqian, so he did not want Li Ji to make any more great contributions, for fear that Li Chengqian would not be able to show him favor in the future.
So all three were eliminated at the same time.
Li Shimin was deep in thought on the throne, and the ministers below were also thinking.
Luo Xuanling thought for a moment and then said loudly: "Your Majesty.
The Gaochang Kingdom had no strong cities, no majestic mountains and rivers, no united people, no brave generals or outstanding monarchs.
He dared to challenge the Tang Dynasty, relying only on the fact that the distance between us and the Tang Dynasty was 7,000 miles, including 2,000 miles of desert Gobi. He believed that the Tang Dynasty would not attack him.
I believe that as long as we select a general who is good at commanding troops and marching, we can defeat Gaochang."
There is one major difference between the distances covered in ancient times and those covered today. That is, when ancient people traveled, they did not have as many tunnels through the mountains as we do today, so the distances they generally had to walk were much longer.
The straight-line distance between Gaochang and Chang'an is about 5,000 miles, but to actually walk there, it would take no less than 7,000 miles. If one wanted to lead a large army from Chang'an, even if it was a fast march, it would take more than three months. If it was a normal march, it would take about five months.
Luo Xuanling's words were typical of looking down on Gaochang Kingdom. He believed that Gaochang Kingdom was different from the Dong Turks and Western Yan Kingdom, and was not worth mentioning at all. It did not need a commander of Li Jing's level. With so many famous generals in the Tang Dynasty, any one of them would be enough to suppress Gaochang.
Li Shimin thought about it and realized that it was true. What did Gaochang Kingdom rely on?
Apart from being far away, there was no other support. Thinking of this, Li Shimin hesitated for a moment, then smiled and said, "Qingyu, you are right. Then you will be the general manager of the Gaochang Road."
Luo Xuanling was shocked at first, as he had never expected that Li Shimin would let him lead the troops. Then he became excited and immediately stood up and said solemnly, "I will obey your orders and will definitely attack and destroy Gaochang and report to Your Majesty."
Some of the ministers in the palace did not expect that the commander-in-chief of Gaochang Road would be confirmed so quickly, and that he was the Duke of Yong.
Since the Zhenguan Dynasty, Duke Yong had never been to a war, but now he is appointed as the commander-in-chief of the army.
Your Majesty really values Duke Yong.
Especially after Prince Zhou passed away, His Majesty seemed to have transferred his preference for Prince Zhou to his son and younger brother.
Just like the Changsun family who were continuously promoted after Empress Wende's death.
"The imperial edict ordered the General of the Left Thousand Oxen Guard and Duke of Yong, Xuan Ling, to be the general commander of the Gaochang Road, commanding the general commanders of the five routes, and dispatching 20,000 infantry and cavalry. Qibi Heli and Ashina She'er were both appointed as general commanders of the march, and the Qibi and Turkic troops were dispatched to accompany them."
…
After the court session, Li Shimin did not return to the harem, but went directly to Lingtian Pavilion. He now felt more and more that the imperial teacher had some very important plans.
"Has the emperor decided to attack Gaochang?"
"That's right. Gaochang challenged the majesty of the Tang Dynasty and must be punished."
Luo Su asked with a smile: "After conquering Gaochang, what will the emperor do with the old Gaochang area?"
Luo Su didn't think Gaochang could withstand the attack from the Tang Dynasty. The Tang Dynasty might not be invincible.
But the Tang Dynasty had a profound foundation, and the battlefields were all abroad, which would not disrupt domestic production. It would not be a problem if it lost a few times, and the Tang Dynasty could defeat the opponent with just one victory.
As long as the winning rate is not zero, it has no great reference value to the Tang Dynasty.
A great power naturally has the composure of a great power.
Moreover, the Tang Dynasty under Li Shimin had a terrifyingly high winning rate. For example, in the case of Gaochang Kingdom, Li Shimin did not take action immediately, but decided to send troops only after exhausting all political means.
In the process of using political means again and again, Gaochang Kingdom had already been in a politically isolated position, just like when the Tang Dynasty conquered the Winter Turks, it did not rush into it like Emperor Yang of Sui did, but spent three years planning.
First, he divided the Turks internally, then he gradually contacted the traditional allies and subjects of the Winter Turks, such as the Xueyantuo and Tiele, to isolate the Winter Turks. Finally, he waited for a natural disaster with heavy snow to destroy the Winter Turks in one fell swoop.
After arriving at Lingtian Pavilion, Li Shimin was more casual. He sat down and poured himself tea. He half-lying down said, "After destroying Gaochang, we will set up Yizhou there and directly bring it under the jurisdiction of the court. Then we will move the Anxi Protectorate to Gaochang City to deter the Western Regions."
Luo Su could not deny Li Shimin's arrangement, but said calmly: "It seems that your Majesty has made preparations for a full-scale war in the Western Regions."
Li Shimin frowned slightly when he heard this.
Luo Su had told him long ago that the Western Regions had the style of the Zhou Dynasty, and that destroying Gaochang and eliminating Gaochang as a country were two different things.
During the Spring and Autumn Period of the Zhou Dynasty, it was common for countries to be destroyed and then restored again.
It was normal for the Tang Dynasty to destroy Gaochang Kingdom and kill the Gaochang King who rebelled against the Tang Dynasty. However, if Gaochang Kingdom disappeared completely and became a prefecture or county of the Tang Dynasty, it would greatly shock the countries in the Western Regions.
You must know that when Zhao Yingluo established the Zhao Dynasty in the Western Regions and became the King of Kings and Emperor, the Western Regions were still full of princely countries. Why did the Western Regions call the supreme monarch the King of Kings? Because in the understanding of the people of the Western Regions, the supreme monarch is the king of kings of all countries.
Tian Khan, the King of Kings Li Shimin, is the king of the kings of the Western Regions, but now he wants to depose a throne just for this reason.
The corresponding move is to depose all the nobles in the kingdom, which would be a challenge to the political rules of the entire Western Region.
If a throne can be deposed by one person, then wouldn't their thrones be in jeopardy at any time?
Luo Su sat opposite Li Shimin, "According to my understanding of the Western Regions, the Tang Dynasty needs to win three to five wars against the anti-Tang alliance before it can completely trample the entire Western Regions under its feet.
It's not easy, especially now that Xuanzang has become the high priest of the Suwang Temple and has used Xuanmen to bring together the various chaotic factions. Once the Western Regions are united, it will be difficult to fight."
Li Shimin guessed that this might cause resistance, but what Luo Su said still surprised him. At present, the Central Plains did not know enough about the Western Regions. Li Shimin was fine because he had a large number of foreign scholars in his Hongwenguan, and his understanding of the Western Regions was not small, but would it really be that serious?
"Master, isn't High Priest Xuanzang a direct descendant of the Luo family? Master, can you please write a letter to High Priest Xuanzang to help the Tang Dynasty? I will definitely reward you handsomely.
Moreover, the Suwang Temple reveres the Suwang. I have received the Suwang Revelation, just like the Son of God. Am I not one of the Temple's own?"
Luo Su laughed dumbly and said: "Your Majesty, the two points you said are correct. I can indeed write a letter to make Xuanzang stand on our side. Your identity as the Su Wang Tiankai is indeed a powerful tool for traveling in the Western Regions.
But man is not only mind, he also has body, and his consciousness is subject to matter.
What’s the point of Xuanzang standing on our side?
When he became the high priest, the rulers of the Western Regions contributed a lot to him. If the rulers of the Western Regions wanted to rebel against the Tang Dynasty, he would have no choice but to follow suit. It was not something he could decide alone.
After all, that temple belongs to the people of the Western Regions, not the Central Plains.
Your Majesty, you are the Su Wang Revelator, but those people in the Western Regions will not bow down to you just because of this. Maybe there are true believers among them, but the temple has been rooted in the Western Regions for hundreds of years and naturally has its own set of things. It will be useless even if Winter City goes there.
The reason why Xuanzang could become the high priest was not only because he was a descendant of the Su King with holy marks, but also because his theory was more complete, which allowed the temple to integrate other sects and have more power, so a large number of priests in the temple turned to him.
Do you think there is faith? Of course there is.
But it is too difficult to make them change sides just by relying on their faith. Moreover, if the Western Regions are really full of fanatics, then you, the Emperor of Heaven, will not be able to sit still. "
The most crazy fanatics in the Western Regions were all shouting that they wanted to charge into the Central Plains, purge heretics, and seize Chang'an and Luoyang.
Chang'an is the burial place of Su Wang's human body, and Luoyang is the place where Su Wang returned to heaven.
Li Shimin shook his head helplessly and said, "In fact, I don't think it's appropriate to set up prefectures and counties. The Western Regions are a bit too far away.
It is seven thousand miles from Chang'an to Yizhou, nine thousand nine hundred miles to the Western Turkic royal court, ten thousand miles to Shenlin City, and according to Qingyang, the distance to the more distant Zhaowu countries is twelve thousand miles.
How could Chang'an possibly rule? There was still an enemy on the plateau. Once Tubo came down from the plateau and attacked the Hexi Corridor, it would directly cut off the road between the Central Plains and the Western Regions.
If there are more rebellions in the Western Regions, it will be a difficult situation for both sides."
Li Shimin was always very clear-headed. Sometimes he was even unwilling to accept countries that voluntarily surrendered, because he believed that "if you accept surrender, you are a subject. If a vassal state is attacked, the Tang Dynasty will have to send troops. I will not do something that only gains face but loses the substance."
Li Shimin really didn't care about those false reputations, he only cared about practical benefits. This is why the Tang Dynasty can prosper now. If it were Emperor Yang of Sui, he would have launched wars on all sides to conquer Liaodong, the Western Regions, and the plateau.
Luo Su smiled when he heard this, "But the Western Region is indeed the most critical place in the future. Hasn't the emperor always wanted to know what my grand blueprint is?
In fact, it is related to the Western Regions.
The reason why I didn't tell you is because you can't accept it. In one or two years, I estimate that the time will come. At that time, you may still find it difficult to accept it, but I believe you will eventually accept my idea. "
Luo Su's guessing made Li Shimin feel uncomfortable, but he couldn't force Luo Su.
He could only sigh and say, "Then according to the Imperial Master's opinion, after destroying Gaochang, we still need to select a new royal family from Gaochang and let them re-establish their country?"
Li Shimin absolutely could not let the Tang Dynasty be trapped in a lonely battle in the Western Regions, because there was another powerful state in the Northeast, namely Liaodong State. That was the real enemy of the Tang Dynasty, not the distant Western Regions.
Luo Su immediately shook his head and said, "Wouldn't it be a waste of fighting?
Although we cannot make the entire Western Regions disgusted with the Tang Dynasty and then oppose it, there is no problem in dismembering Gaochang Kingdom.
First, choose a suitable person who is close to the Tang Dynasty to be the King of Gaochang. I remember that there is a Gaochang royal family in Chang'an."
Li Shimin nodded. Chang'an basically had royal families from various countries. They were considered hostages, but they were treated very well. These people would be pawns for the Tang Dynasty to interfere in the internal affairs of various countries in the future, just like now.
Luo Su said: "Since there is such a royal family, the key to supporting him as the King of Gaochang is to select about 1,500 to 3,000 people to garrison in the capital of Gaochang, and Gaochang will provide food and grass.
At the same time, the Tang Dynasty had to sign a contract with Gaochang, which prohibited Gaochang from having its own army, and the king's safety would be protected by soldiers stationed by the Tang Dynasty on a rotating basis.
Then, a set of official positions were set up in the Gaochang Kingdom to specifically connect with the Anxi Protectorate.
There was only one purpose, which was to undermine the Gaochang King, and then to assimilate through marriage. For example, if the Gaochang King had any daughters, they could be made Princess Gaochang. You, the emperor, could pick one of your sons or younger brothers, or some other prince of the Li clan to marry the Princess Gaochang and become the king's husband.
There had been female emperors in the Western Regions, and people were not opposed to having a female monarch. After several such incidents, while Gaochang Kingdom was still preserved, it was possible to completely change it from the inside out.
If after this blood exchange, Gaochang Kingdom is still hostile to the Tang Dynasty, then you should prepare to send Tang soldiers to massacre the entire Gaochang Kingdom. "
Li Shimin's eyes lit up when he heard what Luo Su said, and he couldn't help but clapped his hands and sighed, "The Imperial Master is indeed the most virtuous minister of the three generations. There is really nothing in this world that can stump the Imperial Master.
Just do as the Imperial Master says.
Moreover, if I do this, perhaps High Priest Xuanzang will also give me some help, right?"
Luo Su smiled slightly and said, "Of course, no one in this world can be purely upright. Xuanzang will always be influenced by his family."
The two smiled at each other and made arrangements for Gaochang Kingdom!
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In the turbulent 16th and 17th centuries, world history saw the collapse of the old empire and the reconstruction of the new empire. Along with the fission came the great development of religion. The center of the Eurasian continent was where countless religions intersected. Each religion was madly scrambling to stake out territory, and then perfecting its own organizational capabilities and arming the minds of its believers, eventually converging into one. ——A Global History
(End of this chapter)
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