Traveling through Du He, Li Chengqian's rebellion begins

How wealthy is the Tang Dynasty now?

The treasuries of Chang'an and Luoyang were already filled with gold, silver and other valuables.

After some discussion, Li Shimin and Li Chengqian also planned to build two national treasuries in Hongzhou, Yangzhou, and use the money to build the Jiangnan and Lingnan regions.

Especially in Lingnan, which had not been developed much, Li Shimin had wanted to dig through the Dayuling Ancient Road in his early years.

But there are not enough people to do the labor!

Thinking of the Lingnan territory which had not been developed thoroughly enough, Li Shimin sat up straighter and said to Du He with a smile.

"Du He, what you just said about building an official road reminded me!"

"Qianzhou on the Jiangnan Road and Shaozhou on the Lingnan Road are separated by mountains. I intend to send people to dig through the Dayuling Ancient Road!"

"By then, the many prefectures and counties of Lingnan Road will be able to merge with Jiangnan Road!"

Lingnan Road has a very good climate, and its unique geographical location makes it suitable for the development of fisheries, fruits and vegetables, and planting industries.

If Lingnan Road could be developed, the Tang Dynasty would have another prosperous place.

Develop Lingnan?

Lingnan at that time was still relatively poor and backward, and was the first choice for exile, but Lingnan in later generations was extraordinary.

Moreover, the Qin general Tu Sui led 50 soldiers and civilians to Lingnan. After so many years of recuperation, the population there is not a small number.

If you want to get rich, you must first build roads. Building official roads that connect in all directions will also facilitate the communication and development of the various states and counties in the Tang Dynasty.

Li Shimin's decision was really brilliant!

Du He bowed and replied, "Your Majesty, in addition to the hundreds of thousands of men from the Western Turks, the Shiwei also have a hundred thousand strong men. We can use them to carve the Dayuling Ancient Road!"

When he led his army to destroy the Xi, Khitan and Xun tribes, he used the method of persuading the Shiwei to surrender.

Now, among the herdsmen on the grassland, except for a small number of people who are grazing for the Tang Dynasty, most of the strong men are doing labor service.

There was a pause.

Du He then suggested: "Your Majesty, when I led the army to attack the Western Turks, Tubo sent 10 troops to support the Western Turks."

"Although the Tibetans eventually withdrew their troops, they made such a decision and must be feeling guilty now."

"If there are still not enough men to build the road, I suggest sending people to Tubo to request 10 strong men from Central India to build the official road."

In this technologically backward era, building roads is a very difficult task.

Three or five people die of exhaustion every day, that's normal

"Not bad!"

Li Shimin excitedly slammed the armrest of the table, his eyes shining.

"Du He, your suggestion is very good!"

Now there is only one country left around the Tang Dynasty, Tubo. In addition, Tubo was in the wrong first. When the Tang Dynasty asked them for prisoners, they would certainly not dare to refuse.

Previously, due to lack of manpower, no labor was conscripted from the Tang Dynasty to carve the ancient road.

Now there are hundreds of thousands of aliens dispatched, so there is no shortage of manpower.

The two chatted for another half a quarter of an hour before ending the topic of road construction, but Li Shimin's face was full of excitement.

Chatting with Du He was still fruitful. This brat was full of bad ideas!

Fang Xuanling, Ma Zhou, Li Ji and others would not make such suggestions to him.

Let’s finish talking about business.

Du He said at the right moment: "Your Majesty, I heard that the maidservant of Princess Gaoyang's mansion was imprisoned by you for some reason."

"I believe that maids cannot influence their masters' opinions, and they are caught in the middle and are in a dilemma."

There was a pause.

Du He saw that there was no anger on Li Shimin's face, so he continued in a low voice.

"The current national policy of the Tang Dynasty is to encourage childbirth. I implore Your Majesty to pardon the maids in Princess Gaoyang's mansion, allowing them to marry and have children, thus contributing to the increase in the population of the Tang Dynasty."

"I hope Your Majesty will show mercy."

On the imperial platform.

Li Shimin narrowed his eyes and looked at Du He, and a smile gradually appeared on his face.

There was silence for more than ten breaths.

Li Shimin pointed at Du He and said with a smile, "Du He, I didn't expect you to plead for mercy for such a small matter. It's really beyond my imagination."

"Since you, the judicial inspector, have personally pleaded for mercy for those maids, I will pardon their guilt."

Before Du He pleaded for them, Ma Zhou, Cui Shenji, Sun Fujia and others had already pleaded for these maids.

However, in order to appease Fang Xuanling and Fang Yiai, he did not order their release.

Du He bowed again and said, "Your Majesty is wise!"

Li Shimin waved his hand and said, "Du He, I need to take medicine and acupuncture. You go back first."

Looking at Li Shimin's increasingly haggard face, Du He moved his mouth but in the end said nothing.

Now Li Shimin is excited about conquering new territories, and it would be inappropriate for him to persuade Li Shimin to step behind the scenes.

Besides, his face is not that big, and some things cannot be said all the time.

"Your Majesty, please take care of your health. I will take my leave now."

After Du He bowed, he strode out of Ganlu Palace.

...

Just when Du He returned to the Ministry of Revenue, Qin Huaidao, who had been waiting there in advance, bowed respectfully.

"Duke Hanguo, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince invites you to the East Palace."

Well...

Du He's expression paused slightly.

The connection between these two father and son is really seamless. He just finished chatting with Li Shimin, and then Li Chengqian came over.

Du He nodded: "Let's go."

On the way to the East Palace.

Qin Huaidao said enviously, "Duke Han, congratulations on your appointment as Governor of Yongzhou. General Su, General Xue, and General Xi have all been promoted to higher positions. I'm really jealous."

"Even Fang Yiai, the civil official, has now been promoted to General of the Right Guard."

"If I could become one of the generals of the Sixteen Guards, I would be satisfied in this life."

Hearing Qin Huaidao's envious tone, Du He smiled slightly.

This guy has never had the opportunity to go on an expedition since he took over as the leader of the Eastern Palace.

Now, seeing friends around him making achievements and receiving rewards one by one, especially those who are not as good as him but surpass him, it is normal to feel jealous.

Du He patted his shoulder and said, "What kind of general do you want to be? You must be a great general."

Qin Huaidao was stunned: "Ah!?"

What does Han Guogong mean by this?

How could he be promoted to general if he had no chance to make merit?

Du He smiled and said, "Protecting the Crown Prince is your greatest achievement. Don't worry, one of the titles of General of the Thousand Oxen Guards will definitely be yours."

what!

The left and right generals of the Thousand Oxen Guards!

Qin Huaidao said excitedly: "Thank you, Duke Hanguo, for your support!"

If there weren't so many people coming and going in front of the East Palace, he would have wanted to kowtow to Du He.

His maternal grandfather, Yuchi Gong, who was a high-ranking official, was re-employed by His Majesty during this period, but he did not gain any benefits for himself.

It was also thanks to this noble man Du He who supported me wholeheartedly.

Du He patted Qin Huaidao on the shoulder, then strode into the gate of the East Palace.

Mingde Hall.

When Du He walked in, he found that Li Chengqian was supporting his chin with a smile on his face from time to time.

Isn't this guy stupid?

Why are you laughing so foolishly?

Du He bowed and said, "Greetings to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

Hearing Du He's voice, Li Chengqian also came back to his senses.

He walked down from the imperial platform, his face filled with excitement as he said, "Du He, I never thought that my father would appoint you as the governor of Yongzhou and let you take charge of the military and political power of Yongzhou!"

"Now half of the Tang Dynasty's military power has fallen into my hands!"

The most important Yongzhou is under the control of Du He. With the assistance of a group of East Palace generals and spies, Du He will surely be able to firmly grasp the military power in his hands soon.

There was a pause.

Li Chengqian's face was full of ambition as he said, "Du He, I must ascend the throne before late autumn next year!"