Chapter 377 The restless Tubo
"Your Majesty! We just received a report from the border that Tubo's Prime Minister Lu Dongzan led a large army to invade Tuyuhun." In the morning court, Li Ke stepped out of the line and reported to Li Chengqian.
"Why did Tubo send troops to Tuyuhun for no reason? Haven't they always been at peace?" Li Chengqian asked.
He asked knowingly. Tubo had long had ambitions to expand, but it just hadn't found the right opportunity.
Not long ago, Tubo Zamp sent someone to Chang'an to propose to Li Chengqian, hoping that the Tang Dynasty could marry the princess to Tubo again.
Who knew that Li Chengqian refused! In this way, Tubo had an excuse to send troops to attack.
Tubo first pretended to ask Tuyuhun to make way for the Tubo army to march, and they would go to Chang'an to give an explanation to the emperor of the Tang Dynasty.
Why didn't they marry the princess to their Zamp? This was humiliating their Zamp, which was equivalent to humiliating Tubo, so the Tang Dynasty had to give Tubo an explanation.
As a vassal state of the Tang Dynasty, Tuyuhun naturally could not make way for Tubo, so it rejected Tubo's request.
As a result, Tubo had another excuse to attack Tuyuhun. Tuyuhun humiliated Tubo and must compensate the Tubo army for its mental damage and other expenses.
Therefore, Tubo sent troops to capture Tuyuhun, which was between Tubo and the Tang Dynasty, to facilitate future dealings with the Tang Dynasty.
Xi Junmai, the governor of Lingzhou in the Tang Dynasty, immediately ordered troops to help Tuyuhun on the pretext of protecting the branch of the Tang Dynasty Bank in Tuyuhun.
"This happened because your majesty refused the proposal of the Tibetan Zamp, and the Tibetans felt humiliated, so they sent troops to ask the Tang Dynasty for justice, but Tuyuhun happened to block the Tibetan army, which led to the fight between Tuyuhun and Tuyuhun." Lu Chengqing, the Minister of Revenue, said.
Lu Chengqing and many officials believed that the reason for this was that the court rejected the proposal of the Tibetan Zamp.
The war could have been avoided by marriage, but the emperor himself refused, which led to the conflict that should not have happened.
The court had to use troops against Goguryeo and Baekje, which consumed a large amount of money and food every day. If it had to fight against Tubo, it would have to spend a lot more.
The court also had to deal with natural disasters and various rebellions, which were all considerable expenses. The court collected limited taxes every year, and even if it had mountains of gold and silver, it couldn't withstand such a torment.
As the Minister of Revenue, Lu Chengqing managed all the money and food of the court. Seeing a large amount of money and food flowing out of his hands every day, he felt a little sad and worried that it would continue like this.
The Tang Dynasty's treasury, which was not rich to begin with, would be exhausted sooner or later!
"Do you agree with what Minister Lu said?" Li Chengqian asked.
"What Minister Lu said is true, and I second it!" Minister of War Ren Yaxiang stood up and said.
"I second your opinion!" Eighty percent of the officials in the court agreed with Lu Chengqing's statement.
"In this case, how do you think this matter should be resolved? How can Tubo and Tuyuhun avoid fighting each other?" Li Chengqian said.
"I think we should immediately send an envoy to appease Tubo and promise to marry our Tang princess to the Tibetan Zanpu, so as to calm down this dispute." Lu Chengqing, the Minister of Revenue, said.
"Do you think so too?" Li Chengqian asked.
"Yes!" All those who supported Lu Chengqing nodded in agreement. They agreed with Lu Chengqing's approach very much. This would indeed avoid conflicts between the two sides.
"Your Majesty, please issue an edict immediately to recall Lingzhou Governor Xi Junmai. He privately sent troops in the name of protecting the Tang Bank, which will only deepen the conflict between the two sides." Ren Yaxiang, the Minister of War, said.
"You all think that what Lu Chengqing said is correct, but I have the exact opposite opinion. You really think that Tubo will withdraw its troops after getting my Tang princess."
"No, they won't. Tubo has long had the intention to expand outward. Tuyuhun, Bai Qiang and others have long been Tubo's prey. It is only a matter of time before they take action."
"Without Tuyuhun, my Tang will have to face the threat of Tubo directly. Tuyuhun has coveted my Tang's rich land for a long time. Once Tuyuhun is lost, my Tang's northwestern border will never be at peace."
"Tubo's wolfish ambitions have long been obvious, but you have always turned a blind eye and only wanted to compromise." Li Chengqian angrily rebuked the civil and military officials.
Everyone bowed their heads and
kept silent when they heard this. They knew that Tubo was ambitious, but since it had not yet threatened the Tang Dynasty, they naturally did not want to create another enemy. They would live a stable life as long as they could. If it really came to that, it would not be too late to fight again. The Tang Dynasty had many talents, so there was no need to worry about not being able to defeat Tubo.
"I don't think there is anything wrong with what Xi Junmai did. He was able to save the face of our Tang Dynasty. If he can't even protect a vassal state, who will dare to sincerely submit to our Tang Dynasty in the future?"
"I want to let the people of the world see that anyone who is hostile to our Tang Dynasty will be destroyed by the Tang Dynasty's iron cavalry."
"Anyone who submits to our Tang Dynasty will be protected by our Tang Dynasty and will never be allowed to be bullied by anyone. Wherever the sun and the moon shine, wherever the rivers flow, they are all our Tang territory." Li Chengqian said.
"But, Your Majesty! Tubo is definitely not something that can be eliminated overnight. It will take a lot of manpower and material resources. I am worried that if this continues, our Tang Dynasty will not be able to support this battle." Minister of Revenue Lu Chengqing said.
Li Chengqian did not intend to rely entirely on the national treasury for exports. He could cultivate local farmland to be self-sufficient, and he could also fight to support the enemy.
Seizing the enemy's supplies to feed his own army is an effective way to strengthen himself and weaken the enemy. With the increase of
one and the decrease of the other, the enemy will surely perish. "This is the latest report sent by Hei Chi Changzhi, the ambassador of the Heyuan Army." Li Chengqian said, holding a memorial from Hei Chi Changzhi in his hand.
"Heyuan is located at a strategic point. Hei Chi Changzhi has set up more than 70 beacon towers and garrisons here, and reclaimed more than 5,000 mu of land for military cultivation, which can harvest more than 5 million shi of grain every year."
"With this batch of grain, the Heyuan army can attack or defend, and no longer have to worry about giving up the battle because of a food shortage."
"Isn't Lu Qing worried that the grain in the treasury is not enough to support the army's long-term wars? Let them follow Hei Chi Changzhi's example, reclaim land for military cultivation, and be self-sufficient." Li Chengqian said.
"Your Majesty! This is absolutely not allowed!" Minister of War Ren Yaxiang hurriedly stepped out.
"Why not? This way, we can be self-sufficient and don't have to worry about the treasury's deficit. Isn't it the best of both worlds?" Li Chengqian said.
"Your Majesty! Since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, we have implemented the Fubing system and the equal-field system, which can effectively prevent generals from amassing troops and becoming self-reliant."
"However, if Your Majesty allows local troops to open up farmland on their own, they will have food, and the army will no longer need support from the national treasury. The soldiers will be supported by their generals, and they will no longer recognize the court. They will only recognize the generals who support them. In this way, the generals fighting outside will have the possibility to command their own troops."
"Your Majesty, please think twice! Such a precedent must not be set! Otherwise, there will be endless troubles! Your Majesty!" said Ren Yaxiang, the Minister of War.