The film and television world begins with the battle for the throne in Kowloon

Chapter 1095: Planning for the West (Part )

After Li Yan's introduction, Li Ke discovered that the Tang Dynasty only occupied a part of the lower right corner of the entire map. Although he already had an idea in his mind, he was still deeply shocked when the map that included the universe appeared before him.

Is this the world?

In the eyes of the world, the prosperous Tang Dynasty, whose territory far exceeded that of the Qin and Han dynasties, actually only occupied the land of Yu. This was after the Tang Dynasty had more than doubled in size and had the vassal states in the Western Regions. If it was the former Central Plains, it would be even smaller.

The Tang Dynasty is to the world what Jiangnan is to the Tang Dynasty. The world is so big, and my vision is still too narrow.

Unlike Cen Wenben who only cared about the East, Li Ke's attention fell directly on the East and the West, which he had never touched before.

There were dozens or even hundreds of countries, large and small, including the Western Turkic, Byzantine, Indian, and Caliphate Empires in Central Asia, the Frankish Kingdom, Charlemagne, the Kingdom of Granada, the Kingdom of Kievan Rus in the West, and many more, densely distributed around the Caspian Sea, the Black Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea.

A magnificent picture of a chaotic war among multiple ethnic groups appeared in Li Ke's mind as Li Yan described it.

"Third brother, as a pioneer who is familiar with the West, I can give you three suggestions. Please consider them carefully."

Li Yan pointed to the west of the Pamir Mountains and said, "There are three countries in Central Asia. The three relatively powerful countries, Western Turkic, Byzantine and Tianzhu, occupy the middle territory from north to south, completely dividing the West and the East into two worlds."

"Among them, the central region used to be the Persian Empire, and Byzantium was a local Persian power that rose and replaced it. In the area bordering India, there are still some remnants of the Persian Empire struggling to restore their country."

"This place is intricate and chaotic, which is suitable for survival."

"You can take 10,000 fully armed cavalrymen and join Persia. With their help, we can fight against Byzantium together."

"The advantage is that if we fail, we are close to the Tang Dynasty and can escape back to it and have a chance to catch our breath."

"Of course, the disadvantages are also obvious. The environment here is harsh, the land is barren, and the indigenous forces are intertwined. Even if you gain a foothold here, it will be difficult to survive. It is also easy to draw the attention of foreign races back to the Tang Dynasty, causing the Tang Dynasty to fall into a quagmire."

Li Ke nodded silently, and agreed with this. After understanding the environment in Central Asia, Li Ke felt that this place was no different from the Hexi area. It was possible to survive temporarily, but it was impossible to establish a long-term and stable regime in such an environment.

Moreover, if I divert the blame to others, I might become a sinner of the nation.

Seeing that Li Ke was not very interested in this strategy, Li Yan smiled slightly and continued, "The second one is to go north, out of Suiye, over the Kyrgyz Mountains, and enter the territory between the Eastern and Western Turks. This is the northern part of the Byzantine Empire."

"The situation at the intersection of the three kingdoms is also chaotic, which is suitable for the survival of chaotic armies."

"But third brother, I want to remind you that the Tang Dynasty's focus is on the Central Plains, and it is simply unable to send a large group of troops to the West. That's why my father divided the Western Regions. The Tang Dynasty's attitude towards the countries in the Western Regions is mainly to appease and get along with them in a friendly manner."

Li Yan said with a serious expression: "No matter which path you choose, from the moment you step out of the Tang Dynasty, you are no longer a prince of the Tang Dynasty. Your army can only appear in the outside world in the form of rebels."

"Otherwise, the Tang Dynasty will be held responsible for your presence and will also have to bear the accountability and pressure from several major neighboring countries in Central Asia. You must understand this."

Li Ke's heart trembled, and he said solemnly: "Don't worry, my emperor, I will not bring disaster to the Tang Dynasty."

"Well, brother believes in you."

Li Yan smiled calmly. He certainly would not place his hopes on Li Ke. He drove him out of the Tang Dynasty, and he hated himself in his heart. However, Li Ke had his own pride. He hated himself, but his love for the Tang Empire and his loyalty to the nation were unquestionable.

What's more, the Tang Dynasty had no reach over the Western Regions, but the Turkic cavalry could arrive there at any time.

In recent years, due to the strength of the Eastern Turks, in order to avoid their edge, the Western Turks and Byzantium have been shrinking westward. If Li Ke really dares to join forces with foreign enemies to invade, he can be destroyed in minutes by mobilizing his own army.

"The Yinan tribe that fled from the Helan Mountains to the Western Regions lived here. This man has a ruthless heart. Over the years, he has been accumulating strength, waiting for changes in the Turkic and Tang dynasties. He would then lead his troops back to the East and replace the Right Wise King."

"If you lead your troops here, Yi Nan will know your identity and situation, and will definitely get closer to you, or even form an alliance. One is plotting against the Tang Dynasty, and the other is plotting against the grassland. Yi Nan will be your natural ally."

At this point, Li Yan said with regret: "It's a pity that this place is close to the north, with mountains and deserts everywhere. It is a nomadic area with basically no cities or fixed territories. In addition, there are various forces mixed together. It is easy to survive here, but it is difficult to grow and develop."

"What is the last way?" Li Ke was not very satisfied with this place either.

Li Yan's eyes suddenly emitted a dazzling light that made people unable to look directly at him. His emotions also became high. He drew a straight line from the north to the westernmost Europe. He stretched out his five fingers, clapped them fiercely, and said excitedly. "When I traveled to the west, I made a plan. If the Central Plains could not survive, I would take an elite force and go west along the northern part of Central Asia, straight into the core hinterland of the west."

"This is Europe, with many small countries and many ethnic groups. There is no strong and unified force. It is similar to the Warring States Period in our Central Plains. There are frequent wars between small countries, and various forces form alliances and attack each other endlessly."

"Moreover, the land here is fertile, the four seasons are distinct, the climate is suitable, the mountains and forests are dense, the water and grass are lush, and all kinds of wild animals are extremely prosperous, comparable to the Jiangnan area of ​​my Tang Dynasty."

Li Yan's excitement obviously made Li Ke feel how much he valued this place. He had long wanted to take over this place and build a kingdom of his own.

Li Ke looked at the vast continent. The lower right corner was Jiangnan in the east, and the upper left corner was Shengdi in the west. The Creator was truly amazing, placing the two best places in two places facing each other.

Li Ke looked at the land with sparkling eyes: "How far is this place from the Tang Dynasty?"

"It's 16,000 miles away from Chang'an and 10,000 miles away from Suiye City!"

'hiss'

Li Ke took a deep breath. The route was thousands of miles away, and there were thousands of mountains and rivers and countless forces in between. It would probably take three to five years to go back and forth, not to mention fighting and occupying that place without logistics.

"Third brother, if you value this place, I will support you."

Li Yan thought for a while and said, "There are many forces here, and the situation is chaotic. It is precisely because of the good environment that so many countries and forces have gathered here. Although their territories are small, their power is not weak. Each one is comparable to the three major empires in Central Asia, otherwise they would not be concentrated here and rolled up inward."

Li Ke also nodded and said, "Your Highness understands. It's just like in ancient times, when the world was in chaos, whoever controlled the Central Plains would control the world. There would be countless forces concentrated between the two rivers. Each force would be stronger than the forces in the vast lands around it."

"In the end, the forces in the Central Plains will win, because valuable resources such as population, land, and cities are all concentrated here."

"Well, Third Brother, you have 10,000 cavalrymen. You can seize a piece of territory, establish a foothold first, and then expand slowly."

Li Yan said with emotion: "If you can take down all of this in your lifetime, then your achievements will be greater than those of the Qin Emperor and Han Emperor. Your name will be comparable to the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, and will be remembered in the hearts of the descendants of Yan and Huang."

Li Ke just smiled and said nothing.

But he was full of pride. In his eyes, Li Chengqian was just a boastful person who was neither good at literature nor martial arts, and had never even been on the battlefield. He had been in the West for sixteen years and had not achieved any results.

If he had these sixteen years, it would be enough to unify the West and accomplish an unprecedented feat. At the very least, he could establish his own territory and become the king. In Li Chengqian's eyes, this was a feat that might not be accomplished in a lifetime.

It only takes 10 to 20 years, or even less, to accomplish it.

Thinking that he had established a prosperous dynasty comparable to the Tang Dynasty in the far west, Li Ke was filled with infinite expectations.

Suddenly, seeing the indigenous forces in Central Asia constantly consuming resources in their fight for some barren and wild lands, I felt a little disdainful.

Li Ke said with a firm face: "After what you said, I have some understanding of the West. I am willing to adopt your third strategy. Either don't do it, or take the best place. Anyway, it's a battlefield. Instead of attacking the center first and then the west, it's better to attack Huanglong directly."

"Well, Third Brother is indeed ambitious and full of ambition."

Li Yan patted Li Ke's shoulder eagerly: "In fact, my elder brother thinks so too. To be honest, if you don't want to go west, I also plan to let Li Jue lead the troops west when the time is right. No matter what, we must take this place."

"It would be better if my third brother goes. With his talent, he might be able to conquer Europe in just eight or ten years. By then, my third brother will go east and the Tang will go west. Then our two families will swallow up the world and we will be one family from now on."

"Wherever the sun and moon shine, wherever there are mountains and rivers, they are all our territory. Isn't that wonderful?"

Li Ke noticed that his brother had always used the term "descendants of Yan and Huang" instead of the term "Tang Dynasty". This showed that Li Chengqian really had no intention of expanding the Tang Dynasty any further.

Thinking about the current territory and the control of the court, Li Ke believed the other party's words. Li Chengqian really wanted him to take over those places, become emperor and establish a country, and seek more space for the future of the nation.

Since ancient times, emperors would rather kill ministers they could not control than let them go to expand the territories, so as not to add unpredictable variables to the future of the empire. From this point of view, this elder brother's mind and tolerance are even better than his own.

(End of this chapter)