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

Chapter 823: Jie Li's Test (Part )
"Goguryeo is not defensive in the northeast direction of our Turkic people."

Li Yan smiled slightly: "They won't think that we will target him. If we attack from here, we will be unstoppable. In addition, although the war during the reign of Emperor Yang of Sui was not won, the damage to Goguryeo was also fatal."

"Years of fighting have already exhausted us, and we have not recovered yet."

"I can guarantee that Goguryeo is now unprecedentedly weak. Once our army arrives, it will be destroyed in a snap."

As soon as Li Yan finished speaking, he was quickly recognized by many tribal leaders, and even Jie Li looked approving.

Although he wanted to give his son a chance to stand out and make merit, he also didn't want to bring a powerful enemy to the situation that had just been stabilized. He was originally hesitant when choosing the target of attack to be the Ashina Yun tribe or the Biheli tribe.

The Goguryeo proposed by Li Yan was very much in line with Jie Li's intention.

Goguryeo’s territory was not large and its strength was not strong, but its reputation was very loud. After all, it was the one that brought down the Sui Empire.

Jie Li was quite disdainful of this, thinking that the huge Sui Dynasty had lost its life in a battle against a tiny country. If he were to fight, he would only need 200,000 cavalrymen and could wipe out the three small countries in less than three months.

Although the land of the Three Kingdoms of Korea was small, it had a strong population and wealth. For the grassland, this place was like a smaller version of the Tang Dynasty. They were all agricultural peoples. Sometimes when the Turks lacked food and clothing and needed to survive the winter, they would send people to beg for money.

Jie Li was still very confident about conquering this place.

The most important thing is that he can use this war of annihilation to train his son. As long as Shi Luodie grows up, he will never think of passing the throne to someone else.

Seeing that everyone's opinions were unanimous, Jie Li's blood boiled, and the heroic spirit of a hegemon who dominated the world filled his chest again. He glanced around and immediately made the decision: "Okay, since that's the case, it's decided. All departments go back and prepare, and dispatch elite soldiers and generals."

"When winter comes and the Liao River freezes over, we will mobilize our entire army to attack Goguryeo. If everything goes well, we will also take down Silla and Baekje."

"Yes, Khan!"

The tribal leaders in the tent stood up and responded one after another, and then everyone began to discuss the number of troops to be sent and the tasks to be assigned.

What was different from the last time they attacked the Tang Dynasty was that this time no one retreated. Everyone was eager to fight, vying to be at the front, fighting for the cities in northern Goguryeo and dividing them up.

Everyone thought that Goguryeo was a soft persimmon, unable to fight a war and would have no resistance.

As soon as the army arrives, they will surely surrender. Whoever gets there first can seize more treasures and capture more women.

Li Yan was very generous about this. What he wanted was the territory after the war. He was not interested in anything in the area, whether it was people or things. However, these Turks were not interested in the city or territory at all.

The nomadic people are powerful and the grasslands are vast, so they don’t value land at all.

Their logic was that as long as there were grasslands, they could feed countless war horses and cattle and sheep, and they would have countless people and warriors. As long as they had people and horses, and picked up swords and guns, there would be countless cities in the Central Plains that could be used at any time.

They didn't know how to farm, so when they broke into a city, they would just steal its wealth and abduct its people, and then leave the city to the people from the Central Plains.

In the eyes of the Turks, the people of the Central Plains are like grass, which needs to be raised for a period of time after being cut.

Wait until it grows out before cutting it. If you dig out the roots, you won’t be able to cut it later.

This idea cannot be said to be wrong. On the contrary, it is very reasonable and practical. Even Li Yan, who actually lived on the grassland for a period of time, cannot refute it.

When it came to the most important issue of who would be the commander-in-chief, there was some awkwardness in the tent. Just now, Jie Li wanted Li Yan to take the lead, but now he was not going to fight Ashina Yun and Biheli, but the weak Goguryeo, so Shi Luodie popped up again.

Originally, Jie Li was the most suitable person to be the Great Khan, but his prestige in the Turkic Khanate was already high enough, and now it was time to train the next generation, so Jie Li stated from the beginning that he would not take charge.

Li Yan immediately stepped forward and said, "Khan, I recommend the crown prince Shi Luodie as the commander-in-chief to lead the army to the south. I am willing to be his deputy and assist the crown prince in achieving this unprecedented feat."

Shi Luodie didn't expect that Li Yan was still the same as before, not obsessed with power at all. He clearly wanted to give himself a chance to push him to the position of Khan. He shook Li Yan's hand with gratitude and said, "You Xian Wang, I am indeed my good brother, Shi Luodie."

"I, Shi Luodie, swear here that I will share wealth and honor with the Right Wise King, and share life and death with him throughout my life."

Li Yan also expressed his position in front of many tribal leaders: "Don't worry, my lord. I am a minister of the Khan and also a minister of the prince. I will definitely be grateful for the Khan's kindness and assist the Ashina family with loyalty and unswerving determination."

Jie Li was very pleased: "Hahaha, the left and right wise kings are united, why should we worry about not winning this battle and our Turkic people not prospering?"

Finally, after discussion, Shi Luodie dispatched 80,000 troops of his own army as the absolute main force, Jie Li and Li Yan each sent out 20,000 troops, and the other ten tribes each sent out 8,000 troops, making a total of 200,000 troops to attack Zuo Xian King Shi Zhi.

Under the command of Shi Luodie, they launched an invasion to the south. After the war, the land and cities were given to Li Yan, and the rest of the population and wealth were divided among other tribes.

Shiluodi can gain military merit of destroying a country and the prestige needed to inherit the Khan's throne. Jie Li can also take this opportunity to expand the influence of the Turks. Li Yan gets the "chicken beak" he has longed for, and the tribes get women and wealth.

Everyone gets what they need and everyone is happy.

After everyone had left, Jie Li kept Li Yan alone and prepared a large and sumptuous banquet to entertain Li Yan.

There were only Jie Li and Li Yan in the tent; even the guards and servants were driven out.

Jie Li was in a very good mood today. He was a little excited and raised his glass frequently. Before long, a large jar of wine was empty and both of them were a little tipsy.

Jie Li put down his wine glass and began to talk to Li Yan about his youth. He then talked about how he worked hard and ruled his ministers after inheriting his brother's throne. Finally, he talked about the ninth year of Wude, when he led 300,000 cavalrymen to fight outside the capital of the Tang Dynasty.

Jie Li's eyes sparkled with an incomparable brilliance, and he said excitedly: "Li Yan, you were still young at that time, and you didn't know how majestic this Khan was back then, with 300,000 cavalrymen deployed on the grassland, boundless."

"It covers the sky and the earth, and the current is cut off by a single whip."

"I will never forget that overwhelming momentum. With a wave of his hand, cities were shattered one after another, and countless enemies were wiped out."

"Outside the city of Chang'an, this Khan and Li Shimin asked, who is the master of this vast land?"

Having said that, the expression on Jie Li's face slowly stiffened, and was filled with immense regret and remorse.

He gnashed his teeth, his eyes emitting a chilling hatred: "If it weren't for those bastards like Tuli and Biheli, I would have conquered Chang'an, destroyed Li Shimin, and annexed the entire Tang Dynasty. How could I have suffered the subsequent defeat at Dingxiang?"

"And that bastard Yi Nan played a trick on me. He was in the Han camp but his heart was with Cao, and attacked me from behind at the critical moment. There was also Asinasimuo who exaggerated his words, and Tuli who watched him die without helping. It was them who destroyed the Great Turkic Khanate left by my father and brother."

"It's all their fault, they all deserve to die"

"One day, after I unify the grasslands, I will definitely capture all these villains and cut them into pieces, grind their bones and scatter their ashes, to relieve my hatred."

Li Yan felt a little uncomfortable listening to Jie Li's complaints. At the same time, he felt that Jie Li was really drunk. He actually said in front of him, a Han Chinese, that he wanted to destroy the Tang Dynasty. He didn't know what Jie Li had touched.

In the previous five years, Jie Li would whip these people from time to time to vent his anger.

This is also human nature. If an ordinary person encountered something like Jie Li, he would have collapsed long ago.

At this age, after suffering such a devastating defeat that almost destroyed the country, not everyone can make a comeback. Although he had his own help, Li Yan really admired Jie Li, an old horse who was ready to encourage himself, for his ambition and domineering spirit to regroup.

Li Yan didn't take Jie Li's resentment and nagging too seriously, but said some comforting words as usual.

Suddenly, the drunk Jie Li grabbed Li Yan's arm, his expression became extremely serious and earnest: "Li Yan, I want to pass the position of Khan to you."

"You are the Right Wise King, with outstanding military exploits and a great reputation, admired by all the tribes on the grassland. Only you can lead the Turkic Khanate to conquer those tribes that have abandoned their ancestors, reunify the grasslands, and carry forward the Khanate?"

Li Yan's heart skipped a beat. Damn, I just relaxed for a moment and now I feel like Jie Li is drunk.

Reality slapped me hard in the face. It was not Jie Li who was drunk, but I myself who was drunk.
Faced with Jie Li's temptation, Li Yan's heart trembled and he became alert instantly.

In the field of power, temptation and test are eternal topics. Those in higher positions use them frequently, and those below them have to face them often.

This kind of temptation is often the most dangerous. Once you make a mistake, you may be doomed.

Of course, this kind of test also contains huge opportunities. The superiors will not test you for nothing. Generally, they will make judgments before major decisions. If you pass it successfully, there will be great surprises waiting for you later.

In this regard, Li Yan has been through many battles and has almost never made a mistake.

"Khan, you are drunk"

Li Yan said calmly, "You forgot that the Crown Prince Shi Luodie is both intelligent and brave, and has both literary and military skills. He is a rare talent, and the future Great Khan of our Turkic people. Everyone on the grassland knows this. And I am from the Central Plains, how can I be the Khan of the grassland?"

After finishing speaking, Li Yan looked at the cup note in Jie Li's hand somewhat awkwardly, wondering if Jie Li would smash the cup as a signal if he said something wrong.

Then countless ferocious-looking swordsmen rushed in from outside the big tent and chopped him into pulp.
(End of this chapter)