Chapter 927 Artifact: Crown of Thorns
Ashina Sain, Khan of Western Turkic Khanate.
Kneeling in the rain to beg the high priest.
He then bowed his head and kissed the lotus throne to accept the crown, completely accepting that the temple had the power to depose the throne of Western Turkic Khanate and that the throne of Western Turkic Khanate needed to be conferred by the temple.
No one knows whether this political promise will be fulfilled in the future, but at least it is true now.
The countries in the Western Regions looked at them with awe!
The Anxi Protectorate looked at him with a frown!
When Li Xiaogong learned about this, he was struck by lightning and said in shock: "The throne of the Western Turkic Khan was conferred by the emperor. What is the purpose of High Priest Xuanzang doing this now?"
What else can be done?
Luo Xuanyun was silent for a moment and then said, "Report it to the court and see what the court thinks."
What else could he be thinking? Based on Li Xiaogong's understanding of the emperor, he must have been angry about this matter, but he would put it off until later.
…
"Master, what the High Priest Xuanzang did..."
Li Shimin's face did not show any sign of anger, just some emotion.
Luo Xuanzang is quite peculiar. Since he came into the world, he has never been a minister of the Tang Dynasty. At first, he was a minister of Zhao Wang Dou Jiande. After Dou Jiande failed, he went directly to the Western Regions and has now become the spiritual leader of the Western Regions.
Luo Su did not take this matter seriously. "It has been like this since ancient times. When children have achieved success, how can they still obey their family? The emperor should abandon naive ideas and look at what will happen in the future with a more realistic perspective."
He was not only talking about Luo Xuanzang, but also about Li Ke, the Prince of Yan who had now been enfeoffed. He should not imagine that the Prince of Yan's lineage would always obey Chang'an.
"The Western Regions are too far away, Liaodong is too close."
Li Shimin received the signal from Luo Su and said these eight words after a long time. Luo Su smiled slightly. He knew that this meant Li Shimin temporarily recognized the situation in the Western Regions.
After all, even Liangzhou, the westernmost part of the Central Plains, is 6,000 miles away from Shenlin City, while Liaodong is only one step away from the Central Plains, across the Liaoxi Corridor, and to attack PR, one only needs to cross the Bohai Sea.
The threat posed by Liaodong to the Central Plains is much greater than that posed by the Western Regions.
Choose the lesser of two evils.
Li Shimin decisively decided to conquer Liaodong and pacify the Western Regions.
Luo Su sipped his tea leisurely, "It seems that the emperor has made up his mind to tackle the tough problem of Liaodong."
Li Shimin sighed and said, "When Qingyang was still here, I knew that Liaodong was not easy to deal with. In recent years, I have sent people to draw geomancy maps of the territory. The more I look at them, the more confused I feel. It is true that the mountains are difficult to conquer, and those mountain cities are also difficult to deal with.
Liaodong City, Anshi City, and Qizi City, these three cities, two are the top of the mountain cities, and one is the capital of Liaodong Kingdom, which is hidden deep in the hinterland and is not easy to conquer.
I am not afraid of field battles, but I am not sure about sieges. Liaodong is located in the northeast, and the weather freezes early. If we fail to capture it after winter, I am worried that something might go wrong. "
Luo Su smiled softly upon hearing this and said, "Your Majesty, as you said just now, with the strength of the Tang Dynasty, Liaodong can only rely on the solid mountain city for defense. If we attack the city, the outcome is uncertain. Liaodong and Anshi are both strong cities. Your Majesty can conquer Liaodong, but if you want to win in one fell swoop, my suggestion is to pay attention to the navy!
From now on, the Tang Dynasty will train a huge navy, not only to transport soldiers, but also to transport food and fodder.
Look at the geomancy map of Liaodong State. If you, the emperor, can break through Liaodong City and Anshi City from the front, then the road to its sub-city will naturally be smooth. You only need to lay siege and attack the city step by step, and you will be able to win and destroy Liaodong State.
Afterwards, all the mountain cities in Liaodong, such as Anshi City and Liaodong City, will be demolished, so that Liaodong will be difficult to secede.
If you are blocked from the front, someone will surely suggest bypassing these two strong cities and taking the sub-city directly. Will you agree?"
Li Shimin shook his head and said, "There are no generals capable of fighting in the country now. I must lead the expedition to Liaodong myself. I am the emperor now, and my first priority is to maintain stability. Naturally, I cannot take risks like this.
If its sub-city cannot be captured in a short time, and Liaodong City or Anshi City sends troops to cut off the food supply, the consequences will be disastrous. This is how the 300,000-strong army of the Sui Dynasty was wiped out.
Therefore, I will only fight a decisive battle with the Liaodong Kingdom in Liaodong and Anshi City."
Luo Su agreed with Li Shimin's idea, and then he pointed to Bohai and said: "If the Tang Dynasty can use the navy to open a route here, use a large number of ships to transport Qizhou's grain and grass to the other side, it will be able to deliver food to the Tang army besieging the city.
How could Liaodong City and Anshi City be cut off from food supplies?"
Li Shimin stood up suddenly. People of this era did not pay much attention to the navy, especially the navy that could go to sea. Most of them could just sail in the Yangtze River.
At this moment, after hearing what Luo Su said, he realized this was a good idea to transport grain by sea. Luo Su narrowed his eyes slightly and said, "It is said that the monarch of Fusang is named the Emperor. What a joke."
Li Shimin heard the murderous intent and squinted his eyes and said, "Yes, the title of King of Fuso is enough. The emperor is really overstepping his authority. When the weather gets cold, let him die.
Imperial Master, we still need to discuss the navy. When Emperor Wen of Sui sent the navy to attack Liaodong, they encountered a storm and 300,000 soldiers died at sea. If the Tang Dynasty suffered this blow, it would be bad. "
Luo Su said calmly: "Your Majesty, don't worry. You can look for shipbuilding methods in those aristocratic families in the south of the Yangtze River. There are many skilled craftsmen there. As for the storm, when we conquer Liaodong, the Tang army ships will be calm. After all, King Su favors the Tang Dynasty and will certainly help the emperor."
Li Shimin seemed to be thinking about something, and then he cupped his hands and said, "Then I am relieved. I will do this important task now."
After Li Shimin left, Luo Su smiled and said, "Xuanzang is great. He has done a great job."
[Your family member Luo Xuanzang created great achievements in the Western Regions. Your reputation is so sacred that secular kings bow down before your divine power. His influence is not only on Western Turkestan, but also on the entire Western Regions and Central Asia.
You have obtained the Xuan-level item, the Crown of Thorns. 】
[Xuanjie·Crown of Thorns: A sacred object of the temple. Anyone who wears this crown will naturally gain the favor of some of the subjects of the Western Regions who believe in Su Wang. Please note that this crown is a subtle influence type, not a mind control type.
Note: When the high priest of the temple wears this crown, the effect will be doubled. Under normal circumstances, the subjects who believe in the Su King will not actively harm the high priest. 】
The Luo family has not obtained a new artifact for a long time. What Luo Xuanzang did this time is enough to be recorded in the history books. It will be written in great detail in the history books, and the significance of it will be explained. This is why the system was shocked.
This artifact has two main functions. First, it is an artifact that can be used on anyone.
This artifact can help the king chosen by the temple to more easily gain the hearts of the people in the Western Regions.
Although this is not a magical mind controller, as long as there is a certain innate goodwill, which is natural trust, coupled with a relatively tolerant policy, it becomes much easier to win people's hearts.
Throughout history, anyone who has achieved great things has this natural charm.
Now this magic weapon is equivalent to having the capital to work hard, making things like relying on luck like looks become attainable.
Then, if the Luo family can continue to control the position of high priest, they can simply walk sideways in the Western Regions, which will naturally have a certain deterrent effect.
The most important thing is that this artifact is one of the very few with a passive effect, and you don’t need to spend extra luck points to unleash the power of the artifact.
[Your family has obtained 5000 luck points, and the current luck points are 1638833. ]
"But the reputation of the Western Regions has not increased significantly. This is a bit strange. Could it be that Xuanzang does not have enough characteristics of the Luo family?"
Luo Su was thinking about this matter. The prestige of the Western Region was at the level of "the pillar of the country". Luo Su had always been planning to make the reputation of the Western Region reach the level of "terrifying all the peoples".
But this time Luo Xuanzang has done such a great thing, but he has not been promoted. It can only be said that the Luo family, as a family, is not famous enough to be unique in the Western Regions.
That is, in the temple, Luo Xuanzang's personal reputation far overshadowed that of the Luo family. Almost everyone believed that Luo Xuanzang came from him personally, not from his family.
This situation needs to be changed. Raising the prestige of each plate to the point where it can overwhelm the rest of the country is another thing Luo Su needs to do.
He already has a plan for Zhongyuan, and the world dominated by women is part of this plan.
After Luo Xuanxing defeated Xueyantuo, he had already reached the level of a wise man in the state and county, which meant that he had a certain reputation on the grassland.
The Western Region is more critical.
…
God comes to the city.
Ashina Sen could naturally get a lot of help by praying to the temple. In the era of division in the Western Regions, the influence of the temple had always been extremely great. There were many people who were devout believers in King Su, who held high positions and possessed great influence.
These people will affect the bias between the Western Turks and the Tang Dynasty. At least it will be impossible for the Tang Dynasty to enter the Western Regions in a short period of time. Most of the Western Regions countries will resist the entry of the Tang Dynasty and attribute the affairs of the Western Turks to the internal affairs of the Western Regions.
This gave Ashina Sen an opportunity to grow and develop, and to completely reunite the newly unified Western Turkic Khanate.
But for Luo Xuanzang.
What he held in his hands was not a scripture, but a letter, which was sent to him by Luo Su.
The buildings in the temple are tall. After many renovations, they are no longer wooden structures, but stone structures. Now important buildings in the Central Plains are also gradually being replaced by stone structures.
This type of building is not prone to water leakage and is therefore popular.
At this moment, candles were lit in the hall, flickering.
Luo Xuanzang's face was full of joy. Luo Su first praised his behavior in the letter, and then said: "In the future, the Tang Dynasty will definitely have a fight with the Western Regions. It is very likely that the Western Regions will not be a match. You must think of a way out when the time comes.
I suggest you think about the person who will take the blame in the future. You are the only one from the Luo family in the temple now, and you are a little too alone and weak.
Although the temple mainly passes on knowledge, I think it also has some flavor of bloodline inheritance. I have already sent a message to Axing to let some tribesmen go to the Western Regions.
You have re-established a branch of the Luo family in the Western Regions. I have already opened the Su Wang's blessing for you. Your branch will be illuminated by the Holy Mark. If you have never had a wife, after choosing an heir, you must write back to me and I will bestow the Holy Mark again.
Besides, I already know what you are going to do.
It is difficult to control the princes of the Western Regions just by relying on prestige and faith. I have re-engraved the Temple Army. You can use the military flag to re-establish the Temple Army in the Western Regions.
I will give you access to the family's assets. You have brought a lot of assets to the family, and the family's assets have gradually increased over the years, enough to support you in rebuilding the temple army.
And I remember there are eight seats in the temple, among which are the commander of the temple army and the temple guards, through which you can control some power.
Although the three thousand temple troops are not enough to influence the dispute between the Tang Empire and the Western Regions, there is no problem in allowing the temple to maintain deterrence among the countries in the Western Regions.
But you have to do it within your means. It is not that easy to maintain three thousand temple troops.
Xuanzang, you have brought infinite glory to the family, and the Suwang will be with you."
As the high priest of the temple, Luo Su is the only one in the world who can bless him in the name of King Su.
What Luo Su gave to Luo Xuanzang this time was really too valuable. The reappearance of the Temple Army would be a great enhancement for Luo Xuanzang.
He has been able to get to this point with his personal abilities. If he had an army like the Temple Army, it would be unimaginable.
He is really going to become the uncrowned king of the Western Regions!
————
The relationship between the Western Regions temples and their rulers was complicated and had gone through a long period of repeated entanglements. For a long time, the temples were just ordinary religious places and had no strong influence on politics.
But the situation changed after the "Day of Luo's Fall" when Zhao Yingluo, the famous female emperor of the Zhao State in the Western Regions, relied on the religious reputation of her husband, the high priest of the temple, Luo Jialan, to make the Western Regions surrender and become the queen of kings.
In that era, the King of Kings and the high priest of the temple bestowed crowns on each other, and the high priest and the emperor supported each other to maintain their respective outstanding positions in the secular and spiritual worlds.
But after the collapse of Zhao, this situation changed. The temple had in fact become a political force, and the temple nobles were no different from the kingdom nobles, competing with each other for power in the Western Regions.
When the Western Regions were divided, the temples usually had the upper hand and were able to avoid being manipulated by the kingdoms. When the Western Regions were unified, the royal power had an absolute upper hand and could even influence the positions of the eight seats inside the temple.
This situation did not change until the 47th generation of the temple's high priest Luo Xuanzang, when the temple extended its most important tentacle to the kingship, which was to clearly place the kingship under the temple. This was something that no high priest had ever done before. - "History of Temples in the Western Regions of the Xia Dynasty"
(End of this chapter)
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