Tang Dynasty, my wife Wu Zetian

Chapter 284 The Smartest Hu People

After a war in Yingzhou, the situation in Liaodong changed dramatically.

Immediately after the Tang Dynasty defeated the Khitan, the Eastern Turks and Shiwei simultaneously sent troops to invade the Khitan territory.

The two major tribes, under the banner of righteousness, denounced the Khitan for rebelling against the Tang Dynasty and were therefore ordered to attack.

After the Khitan was defeated in a battle, they were immediately caught in a situation where they were attacked from all sides.

Liu Rengui secretly sent people into Khitan to persuade them to surrender and divide them, which led to a split within Khitan.

Some Khitans wanted to kill Daha Abgu, use his head to atone for their sins and preserve their own tribe, and started a civil war with another part of people who supported Abgu.

Gao Kan and Liu Renyuan divided their troops into two groups.

Liu Renyuan led the northern army from Yanjin into Khitan and entered the Khorchin grassland along the Xilamulun River.

Gao Kan led the southern army northward from Baiyuan Mountain and directly attacked the Khitan royal court north of Chishan.

Add to that the Eastern Turks and Shiwei in the north, and the Mohe in the east, and it can be said that there are enemies on all sides.

Even the Xi people in the west switched sides.

The Xi people were originally very disunited internally, and it was several Xi tribes in the east that were persuaded by the Khitan to rebel against the Tang Dynasty.

The King of Xi was decisive. He led other tribes to wipe out the tribes that rebelled against the Tang Dynasty, captured several leading chiefs, and sent them and their families, wives and children to Yingzhou.

Liu Rengui ordered the King of Xi to lead his troops to attack the Khitan from the west.

A single move affected the entire body. The originally peaceful Liaodong region suddenly fell into chaos. The Khitan became the target of public criticism. With internal and external troubles, the flames of war spread to every part of the Khitan land.

What the Tang Dynasty wanted was to punish the Khitan as a warning to others.

However, for other Hu tribes, the Khitan had become a piece of fat meat, and they all wanted to take a bite and rob the Khitan's cattle, sheep and people.

Under such circumstances, the surrender faction finally gained the upper hand within the Khitan.

They killed the chieftains of the rebellious Tang faction led by Yaonian Tu, captured Daha Kuge and his relatives alive, and went to Yingzhou in person to apologize.

They accused Yaoniantu of assassinating Li Kuge, which led to the Khitan rebelling against the Tang Dynasty and requesting to return to the Tang Dynasty.

Liu Rengui did not give a reply, but only ordered the Eastern Turks, Shiwei and other tribes to withdraw their troops to restore the situation to calm.

Immediately, he sent people to send Daha Abgu and the surrendered Khitan chiefs to Chang'an and hand them over to the emperor for disposal.

After Li Zhi received the news, he immediately convened an emergency court meeting in Liangyi Hall to discuss post-war arrangements for the Khitan.

The opinions of the ministers were similar to those on how to deal with Tubo, and they all advocated the re-establishment of the Military Governor's Office and prefectures and counties.

After listening to it, Li Zhi did not express his opinion. He just asked the ministers to think about it carefully for a few more days. If they had any better ideas, they could directly submit them.

After Li Yifu returned to Ganlu Hall, he immediately sent for Zhang Jianzhi and asked him, "Jianzhi, Your Majesty convened an emergency court meeting but did not make a decision. Why is that?"

Zhang Jianzhi pondered for a moment and said slowly, "Lord Li, don't you think His Majesty's attitude towards the Khitans is a bit strange?"

Li Yifu said thoughtfully: "You mean..."

Zhang Jianzhi interjected, "Your Majesty was very serious during the court meeting just now, and he carefully asked for the opinions of every minister. When we discussed the post-war policy for the Huihe people, Your Majesty did not attach such importance to it."

Li Yifu stroked his beard and said, "Well, it's a bit strange indeed. Why is Your Majesty so concerned about a mere Khitan?"

Zhang Jianzhi said in a deep voice, "I have a feeling that the way Your Majesty intends to deal with the Khitan will be completely different from before."

Li Yifu frowned and asked, "Do you have any basis for this?"

Zhang Jianzhi said, "Your Majesty began to reform the control policy very early on, obviously recognizing its flaws. The recent rebellions of the Uighurs and Khitans against the Tang prove that the flaws do exist."

Li Yifu's heart trembled. He said, "Jianzhi, are you saying that His Majesty wants to use this Khitan incident to implement the policy of control again?"

Zhang Jianzhi hesitated for a moment and said, "That was my initial guess, but if Your Majesty truly wanted to continue with the reforms, you should have just brought it up at the court meeting."

Li Yifu followed his line of thought and said, "Since Your Majesty didn't mention it, there is only one possibility."

After the two looked at each other, their expressions were very heavy.

Since the emperor did not mention it, it means that he thought that what he was going to mention would be opposed by many ministers.

In today's court, the emperor's authority has already reached its peak. Under such circumstances, only matters that are so big that they affect the foundation of the country will be opposed by the ministers.

Apart from the two of them, other ministers were also guessing what the emperor was thinking.

After leaving the government office that evening, Changsun Quan sat in his study, thinking about the Khitan affairs.

He had served as a county lieutenant in Cangzhou, Hebei for several years and was very concerned about Hebei. The Khitan's post-war disposal policy would definitely affect the people's livelihood in Hebei.

Just as he was lost in thought, there was a "creak" and Princess Xincheng pushed the door open and came in, followed by a maid holding a pot of wine and two silver wine glasses in her hands.

"Princess, what are you doing?"

Changsun Quan watched as Princess Xincheng placed the wine and glasses on the table and brought a chair, as if wanting to sit across from him and drink. Princess Xincheng waved the maid away, smiled at him, and said, "Drink, please!" Then she turned and left.

Changsun Quan was very surprised. He didn't know who Princess Xincheng was referring to when she said "you"?
He chased to the door, but found that Princess Xincheng had already walked away along the corridor. After a while, he heard footsteps and a servant led an old man towards him.

Changsun Quan walked over quickly and asked in surprise, "Brother, why are you here?" The person who came was Changsun Wuji.

Changsun Wuji smiled and said, "Come over and talk to you, and then I'll take you somewhere."

Changsun Quan finally understood why his wife brought him the wine.

He invited Changsun Wuji into the study and poured him a glass of wine.

Changsun Wuji put it to his nose and smelled it for a while, then sighed, "This is Qingxu wine. The late emperor and I both like to drink this wine. Silang is thoughtful." He put it to his lips and tasted it slowly.

Changsun Quan couldn't help but secretly praise his wife for being attentive, as she even knew Changsun Wuji's preferences.

He didn't like drinking fruit wine, so he didn't pour himself any. He asked, "Brother, what do you want to talk to me about?"

Changsun Wuji said slowly, "Your Majesty convened an emergency court meeting today to discuss Khitan affairs. You should have gone as well, right?"

Changsun Quan asked curiously, "I did go there. Is Big Brother also paying attention to this matter?"

Changsun Wuji said, "Chang'an City is currently in turmoil and is not peaceful. Even if I wanted to concentrate on writing, others wouldn't allow it. I have no choice but to plan ahead so I don't end up in a passive position in the future."

Chang Sunquan's heart sank. "What do you mean by undercurrent?"

Changsun Wuji said, "Right now, the undercurrent is still underwater, and I can't see it clearly. I'll tell you later."

He looked more serious and said, "Silang, originally I shouldn't have interfered with your career, but now your status is different. You are responsible for the prosperity and decline of your clan. I have no choice but to help you plan a few things."

Changsun Quan looked at his expression and roughly understood what he meant.

Changsun Wuji discovered some secret and knew that there was about to be a big storm in Chang'an City.

Chang Sunquan's foundation in the court at this time was too shallow to protect his family, so he wanted to help Chang Sunquan and get him promoted as soon as possible.

"Brother, you don't need to say more. I know my responsibilities. If you have any plans, just tell me."

Changsun Wuji stood up suddenly and said, "Then I will take you to a place and meet someone."

A carriage quickly drove out of the princess's mansion, out of the gate, and headed south along the main street of Chang'an City.

Chang Sunquan saw that the carriage was heading south. He knew that no one lived in the south of the city, so he asked curiously, "Brother, who are you taking me to see?"

Changsun Wuji said: "Lu Dongzan."

Chang Sunquan was surprised and asked, "Why are you taking me to see him?"

Changsun Wuji said slowly, "The news about Liu Rengui just arrived yesterday, and His Majesty convened a court meeting today to discuss the Khitan issue. What does this mean?"

"Your Majesty attaches great importance to Khitan!"

Zhang Sun Wuji nodded and said, "That's true. However, considering the size of the Khitan, let alone the Tibetans and the Turks, they are even far inferior to the Uighurs. Why does Your Majesty attach so much importance to them?"

After leaving the court, Changsun Quan kept thinking about this matter. Although he had some guesses in his mind, when he thought about the emperor's expression when he attended the court, he felt that they were not accurate.

He shook his head and said, "I can't think of it."

Changsun Wuji said sternly, "Perhaps no one can guess what Your Majesty is truly thinking, but there is no need to guess. We just need to know a little bit."

"what?"

Zhang Sun Wuji said: "Your Majesty attaches great importance to the Khitan, and also attaches great importance to the post-war policy in the Khitan region."

Chang Sunquan sat up straighter and nodded, "Not bad."

Zhang Sun Wuji said slowly, "Your Majesty is concerned because he is worried that if post-war policies are not properly formulated, the Khitan will rebel again in the future."

Changsun Quan continued to nod.

Chang Sun Wuji smiled and said, "This is why we went to find Lu Dongzan. The Tibetans annexed so many tribes, yet they were able to govern well. This is all thanks to Lu Dongzan. Let's go and ask him for advice."

Changsun Quanxuan frowned and said, "Brother, the situation in Tubo is different from ours. There are so many capable people in Chang'an, why bother asking a Hu person for advice?"

Zhang Sun Wuji glanced at him and said, "Don't underestimate the Hu people. Take Lu Dongzan for example. His strategy is no worse than mine. The reason he lost to us is simply because Tubo is not as powerful as the Tang Dynasty."

Changsun Quan wanted to say something but stopped himself.

Changsun Wuji raised his hand and continued, "There's no need for us to argue. Once you meet Lu Dongzan, you'll know what he's capable of."

Chang Sunquan thought for a moment and said, "Brother, let's not talk about this person's abilities for now. He hasn't joined us yet. Is he willing to offer us advice?"

Changsun Wuji smiled and said, "If we ask him to help deal with Tubo, he will definitely not agree. However, if we ask him about how to deal with Khitan, he will definitely not refuse."

Seeing that he had made up his mind, Changsun Quan said nothing more.

(End of this chapter)