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

Chapter 910 Empress
"Humph"

Li Yan ignored Cai Hou Junji's sophistry and continued, "As for the matter of appointing a crown prince, it is a big issue and it is not easy for father to make a decision. But before leaving Chang'an, I used my merits to exchange for the right of sister Ankang to choose her own husband."

"My father still went back on his word and brought Ankang's sister to marry, either to Yinan or to Youxian Wang. Did he forget the promise he made to me, or did he think that since he was dead, no one in the world would know about this agreement?"

This was related to his own system tasks. Among the original three tasks, one was to stop the Hu people from migrating south. However, because Jie Li had escaped, the Tang Dynasty did not take the opportunity to bring the entire grassland under its jurisdiction. If only the people in the south were relocated, the problem of the grassland would not be solved.

On the contrary, it would easily cause internal strife and give the grassland to Jie Li, so the Tang Dynasty gave up the migration to the south.

The system prompts that this task has been completed.

However, the seemingly simplest matter of Ankang's marriage had not received a response yet, which made Li Yan very angry.

It's just a small matter, but it has been delayed for so long. The longer the night, the more troubles there are. As time goes by, all kinds of variables will appear.

Li Yan was not in Chang'an, so the difficult tasks were completed early, while the easiest ones were out of reach.

Therefore, taking advantage of this incident, Li Yan planned to put some pressure on the team and use Hou Junji to give it a push so that it could be completed sooner.

On the other hand, Li Yan has been thinking about the army moving south, threatening the Tang Dynasty, and putting pressure on the emperor and his ministers in the Taiji Hall.

First, it was to dispel the laziness of the Tang emperor and his ministers, who had been immersed in the great situation of expanding territory and attracting all nations to pay tribute after the Battle of Dingxiang.

On the other hand, it also gave some external support to Li Shimin's new policy. In normal times, the contradictions between different classes were difficult to reconcile, but under the crisis of the army approaching and the national crisis, compromises were often made.

Moreover, the Tang Dynasty's policy of focusing on the interior while ignoring the exterior, emphasizing the grasslands while neglecting the Western Regions, did have flaws. Its greed for big things and perfection led to the people of the grasslands becoming disaffected, while the Western Regions were not fully incorporated into its rule, and the title of Heavenly Khan was only used in vain.

No territory was actually secured.
Li Yan's trip to the south this time was to sound the alarm for the Tang Dynasty. Not only did he want the Tang Dynasty to lose its grasslands, but he also wanted it to lose the Western Regions. He wanted Li Shimin to use all his energy on maintaining domestic stability, getting the internal affairs in order, and then think about expanding outward.

Eat one bite at a time and do things one step at a time.

The Tang Dynasty did not abandon the grasslands in the Western Regions and carried out internal reforms and external expansion at the same time. Carrying such a heavy burden, it would sooner or later be dragged down by its own greed.

It’s not a bad thing to do some work to reduce the burden, right?

There were also matters involving the feudal system, and the details were very complicated, and could not be explained to Hou Jun in a few words. Li Yan had to find several excuses to deal with Hou Junji.

Hou Junji was also speechless. His daughter Haitang once told him about this matter. Hou Junji was afraid that he would be involved in the royal affairs, so he asked Haitang to never mention it to anyone again, as if it had never happened and he himself had never known about it?

Now that the Crown Prince brought it up again, Hou Junji couldn't shamelessly say that he didn't know. In his heart, he also thought that what the Emperor did was not fair. It was no wonder that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was angry now. With all these things happening, he was also dissatisfied.

Seeing Hou Junji remained silent, Li Yan also sat down and sighed: "Don't worry, father-in-law, this trip south will be safe for the Tang Dynasty. I will never use the Turkic sword to swing at the people of my Tang Dynasty."

"I did this just to help the Tang Dynasty solve the last hidden danger on the grassland?"

Hou Junji thought for a moment, his eyes lit up, "Your Highness, are you talking about Yi Nan?"

"Not bad!"

Li Yan's face was heavy. "To tell you the truth, when I was sending troops to Mobei, Yi Nan was gathering his forces to march south. He mobilized 300,000 brave and skilled cavalrymen just to expand his territory. Wasn't he going to attack Bi Heli?"

"We will attack Hexi and cut off the passage from the Tang Dynasty to the Western Regions. Then we will bring the entire Longxi and Western Regions into the Xueyantuo's sphere of influence."

"According to my observation, the probability of him rebelling against the Tang Dynasty is higher, because if he attacks Hexi, the Hebiheli will not hold him back, and if he attacks Mobei, the Tang Dynasty will definitely send troops to attack his rear. I dare to conclude that the nearly 500,000 troops of Yi Nan are all prepared for the Tang Dynasty."

'hiss'

Hou Junji was suddenly startled and took a breath of cold air. He was also an expert on military affairs, so after Li Yan's reminder, he reacted and his expression kept changing.

It seems that Yi Nan really has ulterior motives. If His Royal Highness the Crown Prince had not taken the initiative, the situation would have been disastrous!

Li Yan reminded him solemnly, "The 300,000 soldiers Yi Nan brought back this time are all capable of fighting ten to one, like wolves and tigers, three times stronger than the bravest Turkic soldiers. It was because Yi Nan underestimated the enemy, and Gu She was impulsive and fell into my ambush."

"If they gather 300,000 elite troops, plus the more than 100,000 troops in the Irtysh River Valley, these ragtag troops under my command will surely be defeated in a head-on battle, no matter how many they are in number." "Even so, I have used almost all my strength to defeat half of his legion."

"With such combat power, it can be said that if Xueyantuo invades the Tang Dynasty this time, their strength will not be weaker than that of Jie Li in the fourth year of Zhenguan?"

"The combat power of Yinan's Western Army makes me feel cold. I originally wanted to take this opportunity to attack the Irtysh River Valley and completely wipe out Yinan, eliminating this hidden danger for the Tang Dynasty."

"Unfortunately, this guy is too cunning. After Gu She's army was defeated, Yinan retreated southward and reached the northern foot of the Helan Mountains. You saw what the envoy said just now. Yinan saw that he couldn't defeat the Turks, so he wanted to join forces with us to attack the Tang Dynasty. He had a good plan."

Hou Junji suddenly realized something and said excitedly, "So that's why His Royal Highness the Crown Prince wanted to take advantage of the situation and lead the army south to deal with Yi Nan?"

"Yes, that's exactly what I mean!"

Li Yan smiled slightly: "In addition, this is also a reminder to the monarchs and ministers in Chang'an City that the grassland disaster must not be forgotten for a day, otherwise even if the internal reforms of the Tang Dynasty are good, it will be in vain!"

"In that case, I will go back and persuade Your Majesty to send troops from Lingzhou, and we will attack Xueyantuo together?" Hou Junji suggested.

"No need. I have enough troops. It is better to let the Hu people consume each other than to bleed my bloodline."

Seeing that Hou Junji wanted to refuse again, Li Yan said decisively: "Father-in-law, just listen to me. The imperial power has always been about balance. You know my true identity, but my father doesn't. They may still want to use Xueyantuo to check the Turks, so as to prevent the Turks from dominating the grassland."

"From the court's agreement that Yi Nan should retreat to the Helan Mountains, it can be seen that Father is more afraid of me than Yi Nan at this moment?"

Hou Junji was stunned for a moment, then nodded heavily, agreeing with Li Yan's judgment. Finally, he asked worriedly: "But Yi Nan should not be underestimated. He has an army of more than 300,000 under his command. I'm afraid he will not be easy to deal with."

"Don't worry, father-in-law?"

Li Yan waved his hand nonchalantly: "As long as you report the matter of the Yi Nan envoy to your father tonight, the Tang Dynasty will no longer protect Yi Nan, and this official will be trapped. In addition, our army of 800,000 is too many."

"If we fight another battle with the Yi Nan, the two tigers will fight, the bigger one will be injured and the smaller one will die. Then the Tang Dynasty will naturally be stable for a while, allowing my father to calmly deal with domestic affairs."

"However, before that, Datang still has to bear some pressure!"

Li Yan stood up and said in a commanding manner: "General Hou, go back and tell the emperor that our Turkic army of one million will surely gain nothing if it marches south. If the Tang wants to avoid this war, it must agree to our three conditions."

Under Hou Junji's puzzled eyes, Li Yan's face became serious: "First, the marriage is feasible, but it is not necessary for the princess. How about changing to a child from an ordinary family?"

"Well, Wu Yuanhua, the daughter of Yingguogong Wu Shigui, is both talented and beautiful, virtuous and kind. She can be married to the Turks to establish an alliance between the two countries."

Li Yan had this idea in mind when Hou Junji mentioned the marriage.

It is definitely not possible to marry a princess to a foreign country, as they are all his sisters, and the daughters of the royal family are also cousins. In that case, he can only look for one among the noble ladies of the aristocratic family.

The future empress was selected by Li Shimin at the end of the 11th year of Zhenguan and was included in the harem, and was directly named a talented person. It is still the middle of the year, and it should still be in preparation. It is the right time for me to intercept it!
The empress was born in Lizhou in the seventh year of Wude. She is exactly fifteen years old this year, tall and graceful, and waiting to be married.

Li Yan also wanted to see what kind of person she was, who could have charmed two wise emperors of the Tang Dynasty. Besides, there was only one empress who was so beautiful that she could surpass the rest of the world in thousands of years. How could he just ignore her after finally coming to the Tang Dynasty?

Who else but me can choose such a beautiful woman?

Thinking of this, Li Yan felt a surge of heat in his heart, but he pretended to be indifferent on the surface.

At this moment, Hou Junji not only did not think that the Crown Prince was lustful, but instead felt that the Crown Prince was only thinking about his daughter.

With the current strength and status of the Right Wise King, he could get anyone he wanted, including the prominent princes, dukes, generals, and noble ladies in the court, below the princess. However, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince chose the daughter of a fallen duke, who was also an upstart and was not welcomed by the nobles.

what is this?
Isn't this just considering his own daughter and not letting other women threaten the status of his daughter and grandson?
As for His Royal Highness marrying a few more women, the future emperor will have three palaces and six courtyards, and seventy-two concubines. If Haitang gets jealous, she will probably never be happy. As the future queen, she should consider the expansion of the royal family and the inheritance of the bloodline.

Doesn’t the current Empress Changsun often take concubines for the Emperor?
Hou Junji stood up and bowed to Li Yan: "On behalf of my daughter Haitang, I would like to thank Your Highness for your love and care!"

(End of this chapter)