Zhenguan Xiaoxian Wang Li Shen Li Shimin

After Li Shen finished speaking, he quietly waited for his father's attitude.

Li Shimin looked grimly and fell into deep thought.

Guo Xiaoke was a founding hero. Li Shimin had always been very tolerant of founding heroes. As long as they did not make too big mistakes, he would choose to forgive them.

For example, Guo Xiaoke was extravagant by nature. He had servants, concubines, and all kinds of toys. The utensils he used and the bed curtains he lived in were all made of gold and silver.

How could he have such financial resources with his salary?

But Li Shimin knew this and turned a blind eye to it without paying any attention to him.

So Li Shen didn't know how his father would deal with this matter. If it were according to military regulations, Guo Xiaoke would not be much better off even if he didn't die.

It took a while for Li Shimin to come back to his senses. He first looked at Li Chengqian and asked:

"Gao Ming, what do you think about this?"

There was a hint of testing in his tone.

During this time, Li Chengqian was also in deep thought. Guo Xiaoke was the Duke of Yangdi, the Supreme Pillar of the State, and the Protector General of Anxi Protectorate.

Guo Xiaoke may not be as famous as those officials in the court, but he must not be underestimated.

Many people do not understand the meaning of Shangzhuguo.

Officials in the Tang Dynasty were divided into official positions, ranks, honorary positions, and titles, and one person could hold several of these positions at the same time.

Guo Xiaoke happened to hold three positions at the same time: official position, honorary position, and title.

The so-called official is an official with power and position. The Grand Protector is a high-ranking official with high power and influence.

Honorary officials refer to officials who have made contributions to the Tang Dynasty. There are twelve levels of honorary officials in the Tang Dynasty. Guo Xiaoke is the highest-ranking Shangzhuguo, an official of the second rank.

As for the title, there is no need to mention it, he is the Duke of Yangdi County, an orthodox aristocrat.

Such people must be dealt with with extreme caution, especially since these nobles have made outstanding contributions to the Tang Dynasty.

In the Battle of Hulao Pass, Li Shimin defeated Dou Jiande thanks to the advice and strategy provided by Guo Xiaoke.

"Your Majesty, the Duke of Yangdi was too ambitious this time and nearly caused the Western Expedition to fail. However, considering his great contributions, I think a light punishment and a heavy warning will suffice."

Li Chengqian made a suggestion. This was also a lenient punishment for the nobles, giving them a chance.

Hou Junji also violated military regulations at that time, but was finally given a lighter sentence and dismissed from office.

"Your Majesty, I think that although the Duke of Yangdi nearly lost the capital of Kucha this time, he didn't cause too much damage. A warning is enough."

At this moment, Li Zhi suddenly stood up and bowed to plead for Guo Xiaoke.

"Oh? You think he shouldn't be punished?" Li Shimin was a little surprised.

At this time, basically no one would speak, but unexpectedly, Li Zhi actually pleaded for Guo Xiaoke.

Li Zhi nodded and replied:

"Yes, Father, Guo Xiaoke is a meritorious man. He fought bravely for the Tang Dynasty and accompanied you on your campaigns.

This time we fell into the enemy's trap and became careless. This is also related to the powerful combat capability of our Tang Dynasty.

I thought that if I didn't let Aye go and issued an imperial decree to reprimand him, Guo Xiaoke would be grateful to Aye."

"Father, I think what Zhinu said makes sense. After all, Guo Xiaoke is a meritorious official. If he is dismissed and stripped of his title, it may discourage other meritorious officials.

They would think that Aye was going to take action against them, the heroes.

If this happens, the court may be unstable.

As my elder brother said, a small punishment is a big warning. Why not issue an imperial decree to reprimand him? This will also show my kindness to my meritorious officials."

As soon as Li Zhi finished speaking, Li Tai beside him stood up and echoed him.

This surprised Li Shimin a little. He glanced at Li Tai and Li Zhi, but couldn't see any clues from their faces.

What the two said actually made some sense. Although the nobles did not form cliques for personal gain, they did form an invisible interest group.

They were all meritorious servicemen. When Dang Renhong was dealt with, some people disagreed. Only Wei Zheng and others wanted to kill him.

But Wei Zheng and others were not in the same team as them. They surrendered later. Wei Zheng was once Li Jiancheng's subordinate.

So since different parties have different interests, it is natural that there will be conflicts of interest, and it is normal to support the killing.

This time, Guo Xiaoke’s incident was neither big nor small. The key point was that it did not cause any bad consequences.

If it's a minor punishment or a stern warning, it's fine. After all, Guo Xiaoke is the Grand Protector of Anxi Protectorate, and he knows more about the things there than others.

"Tenth Brother, what do you think?" Li Shimin thought for a while and looked at Li Shen who was rubbing his butt.

"Me?" Li Shen looked up in surprise. People usually didn't ask him about government affairs.

"Yes, how do you think we should deal with Guo Xiaoke?" Li Shimin asked.

"This is a political matter, and I'm not aware of it. However, according to military regulations, Guo Xiaoke has committed a serious offense this time and should be executed!"

Li Shen gave a third answer, which was different from those given by Li Shimin and Li Zhi.

Li Shen wanted to kill Guo Xiaoke.

The purpose of saving Guo Xiaoke was to stabilize the military morale. We could not let a great general and deputy general manager be killed by the Western Turks.

This not only disrupted the morale of the army, but also boosted the morale of the Western Turks.

Guo Xiaoke was killed because he made a big mistake. Underestimating the enemy on the battlefield is a taboo. He almost lost the capital of Kucha and cut off the retreat of the Western Expedition Army.

"Haha, why did you want to kill Guo Xiaoke? Gao Ming just said that Guo Xiaoke is a meritorious person and cannot be killed casually.

Zhinu also said that Guo Xiaoke was a meritorious official and a duke, but you wanted to kill him even though he deserved a small punishment and a big warning. What's your reason?"

When Li Shimin heard Li Shen's third suggestion, he laughed instead.

Li Shen adjusted his sitting position and then said:

"Father, I don't care if I'm a duke or a meritorious official. I'm the commander-in-chief of the Kunqiu Road Army.

Guo Xiaoke underestimated the enemy on the battlefield and almost caused a massacre. He deserves death.

If the rare earth army succeeds, my 100,000-strong army will be attacked from both sides and be caught in a dilemma.

Even if we have a strong army, we will suffer heavy losses."

Li Shen showed his impartial side and did not care about Guo Xiaoke's merits and title at all.

"But after all, no big mistake was made, and the Western Turks still failed, right?" Li Zhi frowned and retorted.

"That's because I went there, dealt a thundering blow to the Western Turks, and took back the capital." Li Shen retorted.

"You took it back? Just with your 3,000 guards? The Western Turks must have at least tens of thousands of troops. Even though your guards are well-equipped, they can't attack the city on horseback, right?

Are you trying to deceive Aye?"

Li Zhi questioned with disdain. In his opinion, Li Shen's guard battalion was indeed strong, but no matter how strong it was, there was a limit.

You can handle 5,000 men, 8,000 men, and can you handle a city guarded by tens of thousands of men? You can't attack a city on horseback.

"Hmph." Li Shen snorted and looked at Li Zhi with contempt:

"Ninth brother, you have never been to the battlefield. I don't blame you for not knowing some things, but please don't tell anyone, or you will bring shame to my royal family."

"You..." Li Zhi was immediately furious when he heard this. Li Shen actually looked down on him.