Chapter 510 Friction between the Tang Dynasty and the Arabs

"Li Ke, what's the matter that has you rushing to see me today? You are already an old man, but you are still so unstable!" Li Chengqian smiled at the panicked Li Ke in front of him.

They are all old, and in this era, they are all considered old people, but at this moment, Li Ke has no trace of his former maturity and composure. Instead, Li Ke is as impetuous as a young man in his early twenties.

"I have urgent military affairs to report to Your Majesty." Li Ke saluted with his arms crossed.

"Military affairs? Isn't this the business of the Ministry of War? When do you, the Zuo Pushe, need to worry about it? You are stealing the rice bowl of the Ministry of War by doing this. How can the people in the Ministry of War survive?" Li Chengqian joked.

"This is a serious matter, so I have to come here in person." Li Ke said.

Seeing that Li Ke's expression did not seem to be fake, Li Chengqian could not help but frown.

"Tell me, what kind of urgent military affairs is it that requires you, an old man, to come and tell me." Li Chengqian said.

"I just received a report from the Anxi Protectorate that the Arabs have completely conquered the entire Khorasan region that originally belonged to the Persian Empire, and crossed the Wuhu River to invade Anguo, which is under the jurisdiction of the Anxi Protectorate of the Tang Dynasty."

"Anguo is one of the important towns on the Silk Road, and it has played an important role as a bridge in the trade and cultural exchanges between the Tang Dynasty and the West."

"The loss of Anguo means that the trade between the Tang Dynasty and the West may be interrupted. At the same time, the Arabs are likely to compete with the Tang Dynasty for control of the entire Western Regions." Li Ke said.

It's not just about the control of the entire Western Region. Given the nature of the Arabs, if the Tang Dynasty turns a blind eye to this incident, the Arabs will most likely take the opportunity to attack the Central Plains from the Silk Road.

Li Ke has seen this very clearly, but he didn't say it clearly. He believes that Li Chengqian can understand what he means.

"When did this happen?" Li Chengqian said after thinking for a while.

"The Anxi Protectorate sent an urgent message to Chang'an in 800 miles, and it took six days to deliver the news. It was discovered that Anguo was destroyed by the Arabs ten days ago."

"When the guards of the Anxi Protectorate were patrolling the area, they found a seriously injured Anguo man. He came to ask for help."

"When the Anxi Protectorate sent people there, Anguo had already been occupied by the Arabs. The Anxi Protectorate did not fight with the Arabs and withdrew."

"The Anxi Protectorate sent people to report the matter in 800 miles to see what the court's attitude was on the matter." Li Ke said.

Li Chengqian knew long ago that once Persia fell into the hands of the Arabs, a clash between the Tang Dynasty and the Arabs would be inevitable.

It was only a matter of time before the Tang Dynasty and the Arabs went to war. How could anyone sleep beside the bed? The Arabs, a ferocious beast, sleeping beside the Tang Dynasty was a huge threat.

However, now was not the time to fight head-on with the Arabs. The Tang Dynasty had not made sufficient preparations.

First, the journey was long and the army had to pass through the desert. Food and grass had always been the lifeblood of the army.

Second, the army was on a long expedition, and it was very likely that there would be a lot of backup and supplies. The reason why Gao Xianzhi failed in the battle with the Arabs was that,

in addition to the betrayal of the barbarian tribes, the lack of backup was the biggest shortcoming. If there had been backup, Gao Xianzhi would not have failed in the Battle of Talas.

If we confront the Arabs head-on now, both sides will suffer losses, which is not worth the loss for the Tang Dynasty.

"What do you think about this matter? Fight or not?" Li Chengqian asked. This is related to the interests of the Tang Dynasty in the Western Regions.

"If it were me, I would not swallow my anger if I was bullied at my doorstep. I would definitely fight them."

"Anyway, Anguo is also under the jurisdiction of the Anxi Protectorate of the Tang Dynasty. It is the territory of our Tang Dynasty. Now it has been occupied by others. We must take it back." Li Ke said.

This is related to the dignity of a dynasty. If we do not say anything when our territory is occupied by others, how can we make the entire Western Region obey the Tang Dynasty in the future?

This will have a huge impact on the influence of the Tang Dynasty on the Western Regions and will reduce the influence of the Tang Dynasty on the Western Regions.

There are still some tribes in the Western Regions that do not accept the control of the Tang Dynasty. If we do not say anything about the Anguo incident, these tribes that do not accept the control of the Tang Dynasty will jump out and cause trouble.

It will even affect those tribes that are wavering. In this way, the entire Western Regions may fall into chaos again.

"You are right, I think so too, but now the natural disaster has occurred again in the Tang Dynasty, and the Tang Dynasty has just recovered some of its vitality. Now it is confronted with the Arabs head-on. I am worried that it will be disadvantageous to the Tang Dynasty."

"The most important thing is that the expedition to the Western Regions is a long journey, and it is easy to have a lot of logistical supplies. I am worried that such a long-distance expedition will drag down the entire dynasty." Li Chengqian said.

"Royal brother! I think we can use courtesy first and then force!" Li Ke said.

"Courtesy first, then force?" Li Chengqian's eyes lit up after hearing this, and he said, "Tell me what you think, how to use courtesy first and then force?"

"My Tang Dynasty can send envoys to negotiate with the Arabs, asking them to hand over Anguo and withdraw from Anguo's territory, and return Anguo to the Tang Dynasty. The Tang Dynasty and the Arabs can have trade exchanges." Li Ke said.

This is what he meant by courtesy. After all, the Tang Dynasty is a country of courtesy. If it can solve the problem in this way, there is naturally no need to use force.

"Let's talk about the problem of force." Li Chengqian said. He didn't think that if he did this, the Arabs would buy your account. The Arabs are now inflated.

"If the Arabs do not agree, then we can only send troops to take Anguo back. Now the Arabs have just occupied the Khorasan region of Persia and have not yet established their foothold. They certainly dare not confront the Tang Dynasty." "

As long as the Tang Dynasty makes an offensive gesture, the Arabs will definitely agree to the Tang Dynasty's request. By then, the Western Regions will still be under the control of the Tang Dynasty." Li Ke said.

What a pity! Li Ke's idea is likely to fail. It is true that the Arabs have occupied the Khorasan region for a short time and have not established their foothold.

But the Arabs are not the Tang Dynasty. They don't know the Tang Dynasty's tricks. Expansion is their primary goal, and shrinking their territory is the problem they value.

In the final analysis, the simplest and most brutal method must be used to resolve the Anguo incident.

"If we have done this and the Arabs remain unmoved, how will you deal with it?" Li Chengqian asked.

"Then we will fight the Arabs. The food and supplies can be transported to the Anxi Protectorate and the four towns of Anxi through the Heyuan Army's jurisdiction. At the same time, we will order 50,000 Heyuan troops to support the Anxi Protectorate and let the Anxi Protectorate make all preparations and be ready for battle at any time." Li Ke said.

Since it is inevitable, let's fight the Arabs.

"You are right! Let's discuss what to do." Li Chengqian said.

Li Chengqian and Li Ke discussed it and finally decided to send envoys to the Arabs for negotiation, hoping to regain control of Anguo through negotiation.

At the same time, the Tang Dynasty entered a state of war in the Western Regions, ready to use force against the Arabs at any time if the negotiations failed, to regain control of Anguo and warn the Arabs not to act recklessly.