Da Tang: Father, can I resign?

Chapter 317 Historical Lessons from the Future

Oh, your Majesty's little brother in Jiaozhou is not obedient... Fang Xuanling and Zhangsun Wuji cast their eyes over at the same time.

"Is there something on my face?" Li Ming's tone was not very friendly.

The two old foxes lowered their heads at the same time and pretended to handle government affairs.

But both of their ears stood up.

"..." Li Ming ignored the pair of gossiping old men and stared fiercely at the inappropriate messenger.

"What do you mean Jiaozhou has changed? Isn't Jiaozhou the territory of the Tang Kingdom across the way? Why do you say that it is as if that place is under my jurisdiction?"

I was just bragging about Jiaozhou and my men, and you come to ruin my show. I don’t care about my face... Li Ming’s eyes were burning, hoping that the soldier would be smarter.

"This...that..." The messenger was being stared at by the most powerful person in the world (no one else), and felt that he was under pressure that he shouldn't have to endure at this level, so he began to stammer.

Just then, another person broke in at an inopportune time.

It’s Chang Sun Yan.

The young man was as unreserved as ever. He pushed open the door with a bang, waved a letter in his hand, and began to shout at the top of his voice:

"Brother Ming! It's bad! The natives of Jiaozhou are going back on their word!
"They are raising the price and demanding that we increase our aid, otherwise they will break the alliance with Ming!"

He explained the matter clearly in just one sentence, and the voice was so loud that Lao Fang and Chang Sun could not pretend not to hear it, as their shoulders were trembling slightly.

The unfortunate messenger immediately added:
"Your Majesty, this is the situation."

"..." Li Ming's mouth twitched and he pointed his finger towards the door.

"Get out of here, old man."

"Yes... yes!" The messenger rushed out of the study in a hurry as if he had been pardoned.

Chang Sunyan closed the door tightly and muttered indignantly:

"What did that guy do? How could he just barge into Mingge's study?"

Li Ming's finger had no direction and continued to point outside the door:

"You get out of here too."

"Ah? Me?" Chang Sunyan blinked his big innocent eyes and glanced at his grandfather secretly.

Changsun Wuji stood still as a mountain, concentrating on studying the dictionary on the table.

"It's you. I have something to discuss with your grandfather. Please step aside for a moment." Li Ming repeated expressionlessly.

"Oh..." Chang Sun Yan was very hurt. He put the letter in his hand on the table and walked away feeling aggrieved.

"Wait." Li Ming stopped him.

Chang Sunyan just walked to the door and turned back excitedly:

"Brother Ming, you do have something to discuss with me, right?"

"Remember to close the door when you leave." Li Ming just picked up the teacup indifferently.

"Hmph!" Chang Sun Yan pouted angrily, turned around and left, slamming the door.

Kukuku...Fang Xuanling and Changsun Wuji's shoulders began to shake wildly.

They are all professionally trained and will not laugh easily unless they can't help it.

His Majesty Li Ming was not very satisfied with these two old men who were not very serious. He asked with a stern face:

"The country is in trouble, but the two prime ministers seem very happy?"

"Ahem, what's so difficult about the Ming Dynasty?" Fang Xuanling coughed dryly, trying to maintain his expressionless face:
"Your Majesty, are you colluding with the natives of Jiaozhou just to attract the attention of the Tang army and provide cover for Li Weigong's troops?

"Now your goal has been achieved. The Tang army has completely retreated, and our army has also successfully retreated to the rear and is safe.

"Your Majesty is wise and powerful, and everything is going according to your plan. It is a blessing for the country and the people of the world that the Ming Dynasty has such a wise ruler.

"We were moved to tears and therefore lost our composure. I hope Your Majesty will show mercy."

As he spoke, he straightened his clothes and bowed solemnly to Li Ming.

Intellectuals are intellectuals after all. They say nice things, but they just sound uncomfortable.

Li Ming suspected that the old man with facial paralysis was playing tricks on him, but he had no evidence.

"Why is your majesty so worried?" Chang Sun Wuji added fuel to the fire:
"You don't really think that the natives of Jiaozhou can cause substantial trouble to the Tang Dynasty, do you? No way, no way?"

He made his cards clear: the two of them were playing tricks on His Majesty Li Ming.

Not only did we save the army, but we could also smear Emperor Li Ming at the same time, which was double the happiness.

Li Ming didn't say much, just looked at the two old bitches quietly.

The corners of Fang Xuanling and Changsun Wuji's mouths slowly curved down, and a bad premonition arose in their hearts.

"Your Majesty...you will not..."

"Do you really want to use the Jiaozhou Barbarian Chieftain to make a fuss?"

Both of them had hoarse voices.

Li Ming nodded affirmatively:
"That's right. Jiaozhou is actually very useful. It is the key point to disrupt and contain the opposing Tang Dynasty."

"But what can be used in that place?" Fang Xuanling couldn't help but retort.

"There are no lands, not even many people, nothing but forests and miasma."

He just didn't understand why Emperor Li Ming was not interested in the Central Plains and Lianghuai, which had been prosperous places since ancient times, but was always fond of these remote places.

This is true in the northeast and also in Jiaozhou in the south.

If we say that during the interglacial period in the early Tang Dynasty, the Northeast was still warm and pleasant, and agricultural production civilization could develop.

Fang Xuanling really couldn't figure out what Jiaozhou could do.

Just think about it, if even the Northeast was warm enough to grow rice, how hot could Jiaozhou, located in present-day Guangxi and northern Vietnam, be?

it goes without saying.

Forget about the “economic center moving to the south”. That damn place may not be suitable for human survival.

"Geography. The value of that place lies in its geography."

Li Ming said seriously.

“Although Jiaozhou does not produce much, it can harass Lingnan, forcing the Tang Dynasty to mobilize the garrison forces in the Huguang region.

"The journey was long and the weather was hot, so the difficulty of the march was self-evident.

"This can greatly deplete the opponent's national strength and is the only way for our country to defeat the enemy."

This reasoning made sense, forcing Changsun Wuji and Fang Xuanling to seriously consider its feasibility.

Although the south of Nanling Mountains is a bad land, it has its value.

If the Tang Dynasty wanted to suppress the rebellion and eliminate the bandits, it would have to fight a bad battle in a bad place with bad people, and the cost would be huge.

If the Tang Dynasty turns a blind eye, the barbarians will find ten thousand ways to take advantage of the situation.

What about resisting donations and taxes, assassinating the governor, robbing the people, and establishing himself as king...

From the Han Dynasty to the present day, the natives of that area have never been at peace, and the Central Plains' control over the area has never been stable.

"Since Li Zhi became regent, the vast southern regions have been dissatisfied with the Chang'an court, pretending to obey government orders but secretly disobeying them. This is especially true in Jiaozhou.

"If we use Jiaozhou as a trigger, it might create a chain reaction and provoke civil unrest throughout the southern part of the Tang Dynasty."

Li Ming stopped laughing and spoke very seriously.

As the northern neighbor of the Central Plains, it was so logical to make friends with distant countries and attack nearby ones, and to win over Vietnam to fight against the Central Plains dynasty. It was as natural as drinking water.

This will also be recorded in future modern history textbooks, don’t you think, Soviet Big Brother?
"Your Majesty, what you said makes sense, but..." Changsun Wuji reminded:

"The problem is not whether we want to win over the natives of Jiaozhou, but whether the natives are willing to accept our winning over."

According to Chang Sunyan's news, the natives demanded that the Ming Dynasty provide sufficient aid, otherwise they would refuse to go to war with the Tang Dynasty. The question is, how much is "enough"?
"What the uncle said makes sense." Fang Xuanling echoed:
"Is it because the natives are greedy and are asking for exorbitant prices, or do they simply not want to go to war with the Tang Dynasty? We must first clarify this question.

“When making a strategy, avoid wishful thinking.”

As the teacher of His Majesty Li Ming, he still spoke in the tone of a teacher.

As long as this pair of Crouching Dragon and Phoenix don't act too shamelessly, they can be very reliable when they really get down to work.

Li Ming smacked his lips:

"What you two dear ministers said makes sense. I am just trying to please others."

Seeing that the master was willing to accept the advice, the old man drank his tea leisurely, and the eldest grandson slowly stroked his chin and said in unison:

"Ruzi can be taught."

"Well, my father-in-law and uncle taught me that when fighting a national war, you can only rely on your strength to accumulate heads, and you must not take shortcuts or use crooked means." Li Ming said humbly.

The two prime ministers nodded, but somehow felt that there was something wrong with what they said.

"So, I will let Li Jing prepare and gather the main forces in Qizhou to have a fair fight with Li Shimin and the Tang army in the Central Plains!"

Li Ming slammed the table exaggeratedly:
"At the same time, I will conduct a unified registration of all males of marriageable age in the country. After the autumn harvest, I will mobilize the whole country to fight a hearty war with the Tang Dynasty to annihilate the country!
"If we face Li Shimin head-on, either the Ming Dynasty will die or the Tang Dynasty will perish!"

Hiss... Fang Xuanling took a deep breath and looked at the map hanging on the wall:
"Your Majesty, should we... study the situation in Jiaozhou?"

"Yes, yes." Changsun Wuji immediately agreed:

"Now that we have established a line of communication with the natives of Jiaozhou, we cannot give up easily."

What Li Ming said might be a bit exaggerated, but it is unlikely that Li Ming said it was exaggerated.

Because the opponent in this war is not Li Chengqian or Li Shiji, but Li Shimin!

He is the General Tian Ce who is invincible!
The Central Plains Campaign that had just ended made the two old friends relive the terror of their old boss.

In terms of combat, His Majesty Li Shimin is not inferior to the God of War Li Jing, and in terms of grasping and planning the general strategic direction, he is far superior to Li Jing.

He was a true all-rounder who was as talented in both civil and military affairs as Li Ming in governing the country and as good as Li Jing in military affairs. He was simply a combination of the two top figures of the Ming Dynasty.

If he didn't resort to any tricks, he would have had a head-on battle with a man who might be the most powerful ruler in the feudal period.

They felt that they might really have to resort to the Qin Dynasty's perverted mobilization system.

Otherwise, it would not be disrespect to Li Shimin, but disrespect to one's own life.

However, the cost of a nationwide mobilization is simply too high.

At the very least, the economy will collapse, and at worst, the troops will mutiny.

More than a thousand years later, at the end of the 19th century, human social organization had just reached the threshold of full mobilization.

But for the feudal society in the seventh century AD, this kind of self-destructive performance art was either too backward (Qin Dynasty) or too advanced.

"If we can kill someone with a borrowed knife and achieve twice the result with half the effort, why should we waste the lives of the men of the Ming Dynasty in vain..." Fang Xuanling tried to make amends for himself.

"I second the motion." Changsun Wuji echoed.

Li Ming smiled with a look of success:

"I hope you two can understand my good intentions."

It seems that although the two old foxes did not say it explicitly, they were indeed frightened and traumatized by Li Shimin's wave of outrageous actions.

Since we are not sure about fighting Li Shimin to the death on the battlefield, we might as well have some fun together trying some tricks.

Li Ming cleaned up the northern border of the Ming Dynasty, but there was plenty of room for him to take control of the southern border of the Tang Dynasty.

"Chang Sun Yan left a letter, which was written by the chief of the natives of Jiaozhou." Li Ming picked up the letter left by Chang Sun Yan before he left from the table.

"Let's see what they think and whether they can cooperate with us."

The three of them quickly read through the letter, and the gist of the content of the letter was: His Majesty Li Shimin is too terrible, and we Southern Barbarians cannot defeat him unless the Ming Dynasty pays more money.

"They are so well-informed that they already know that His Majesty the Emperor is leading his troops south?" Upon reading this, Changsun Wuji was surprised.

"I'm afraid it's just the opposite. They have just learned that the emperor has regained military power." Fang Xuanling explained.

"My father's intimidation is so great. As long as he is here, the barbarians have no courage to rebel..." Li Shimin murmured.

Seeing Xiao Li's serious expression, Chang Sun Wuji couldn't help but remind him:

"Does Your Majesty really want to fulfill the wishes of the Jiaozhou natives and increase their aid?

"I'm afraid this is inappropriate."

He stroked his chin and advised:
“Those natives are nominally under the jurisdiction of Lingnan Province, but in reality they are barbarians, ignorant of etiquette and laws, and lack integrity.

“If they still take our money and don’t do the work, and go back on their word again, how should we respond?
"To give money to the barbarians is like giving land to Qin, or putting out a fire with firewood. Your Majesty, please think twice."

Li Ming nodded slightly:

"Well... Uncle is right."

Changsun Wuji's worries were very realistic. What if the natives of Jiaozhou committed telecommunications fraud against them?
They are like a bottomless pit, constantly asking for help, but when they are really asked to work and fight the Tang Dynasty, they make all kinds of excuses.

The barbarians in the south are just uneducated, but they are not stupid. They are not unfamiliar with this kind of online fraud routine.

When this situation really happens, how should the Ming Dynasty respond?

Fang Xuanling stroked his goat beard and said:
“We lack the means to counter the natives of Jiaozhou, allowing them to break the agreement with impunity.

"We, the Ming Dynasty, should show our strength to those barbarians, using both kindness and severity, instead of just giving them concessions."

At this point, Fang Xuanling's eyes flashed with a fierce light. He put his five fingers together and used his hand as a knife, and gestured downwards.

"We should kill the treacherous native chieftain and support an obedient puppet to let them know how powerful the Ming Dynasty is."

"Yes, yes." Changsun Wuji echoed.

It sounds like a good idea to teach the Jiaozhou people a lesson.

If Li Ming had not learned a little about modern history, he would have known that the northern superpower he was cosplaying was involved in the Afghan battlefield for exactly the same reasons, which eventually led to the disintegration of the country.

"No! What the hell! What if it arouses the hostility of the Jiaozhou natives?" Li Ming firmly objected:

“We colluded with Jiaozhou in order to contain the power of the Tang Dynasty.

"As a result, we ourselves were trapped in the Jiaozhou battlefield, and our own forces were involved. Isn't this putting the cart before the horse?"

This is indeed true.

If the natives in the south were really so easy to be subverted and controlled, the Tang Dynasty would have taken actual control of Jiaozhou and turned it into an ordinary prefecture or county long ago.

Why did she continue to restrain him, giving Li Ming an opportunity to take advantage of her? Because restraint was too beautiful?
"Neither this nor that will work. It seems that I should call Wei Daijia to prepare for the registration of male offspring of marriageable age."

Fang Xuanling took a sip of tea.

"Prime Minister Fang, are you joking or serious?" Changsun Wuji asked with a frown.

Fang Xuanling asked in return:

"Then what good ideas does the uncle have that can defeat His Majesty the Emperor on the front battlefield?"

"Uh, well..." Changsun Wuji's voice trailed off.

Li Ming did not get involved in the argument between the two people and kept staring at the map on the wall.

The geomancy map is very large, covering the entire "world" in the eyes of the Chinese people.

That is, the entire East Asian region controlled and influenced by the Chinese civilization, extending to the Heishui River in the north, Wa Kingdom in the east, Dayuan in the west, and Jiaozhou in the south.

Jiaozhou is equivalent to the northern region of Vietnam today.

Northern Vietnam...

"What is the south of Jiaozhou?"

(End of this chapter)