Traveling through Du He, Li Chengqian's rebellion begins

Du He knew what Li Chengqian's eyes meant, which was to let him be the bad guy.

"Li Chengqian, this jerk, is pushing me into the fire again."

Du He muttered a few words in his heart, then after calming down, he stood up and spoke.

"Your Majesty, when the army goes to the Western Regions and the Indian countries, logistics supply is the most troublesome thing."

"The more states we conquer, the greater the logistical pressure on the Tang Dynasty. In the end, it may even bring the Tang Dynasty down!"

"Besides that, the Tang Dynasty has been at war for many years, and the soldiers have been away from their wives and children for a long time. Where will the new population of our Tang Dynasty come from?"

The soldiers are always fighting outside, what about the wives and concubines at home?

Let the neighbor Wang favor you?

And who will cultivate the fields at home?

Without oxen to work the crops and strong men at home, many things cannot be done.

Moreover, the Western Regions are located in a remote area, and a round trip would take at least several months. Even if the soldiers of the Tang Dynasty had bodies of steel, they would not be able to withstand it.

Du He's words immediately attracted the attention of Li Shimin and a group of ministers.

Li Shimin frowned and waved his hand, saying, "Du He, what do you think we should do to quickly and smoothly expand the Western Territory?"

He knew in his heart that what Cheng Qian and Du He said were just prelude.

Du He clasped his fists and said, "Your Majesty, I think that in order to reduce our logistical pressure and prevent these states from making a comeback in the future, the only way to solve the problem once and for all is to not take prisoners."

"Of course, young women can be kept. They must be allowed to reproduce."

Pause for a moment.

Du He continued, "Without the burden of prisoners, our army does not need to be divided, and we can march straight in and crush the western countries."

"As long as we can mobilize 50 troops for this battle, we can conquer all the Western Regions and Indian countries within three years!"

Sure enough!

Li Shimin knew their style of doing things when he saw the eye contact between Cheng Qian and Du He, as well as their styles in Goguryeo and Baekje.

However, Li Shimin did not speak, but looked at the ministers.

"What do you think?"

Faced with Li Shimin's question, Li Jing, who had taught Du He military tactics for several months, lowered his head with an evasive look.

This bastard Du He is still as vicious as before.

He now vaguely regretted that he should not have taught Du He the strange book of military strategy at that time!

Hou Junji and Cheng Yaojin both curled their lips and didn't say much.

If you order a massacre in a city, your reputation will definitely be ruined.

Wouldn’t it be a curse in the history books in the future?

Zhang Sun Wuji said in a deep voice: "Your Majesty, Minister Du's intention is to massacre the city. I think this is against the will of heaven!"

"When two countries are at war, the people are innocent. How can you kill them?"

"Once this matter is recorded by the historians, how will future generations evaluate Your Majesty?"

After hearing what Changsun Wuji said, Li Shimin's face became solemn.

In addition to civil and military achievements, a good reputation is very important for a king, as it affects his status in the hearts of future generations.

Li Ji also said: "I also think that Minister Du's suggestion is not quite appropriate."

"The more prisoners you kill, the more likely you are to be punished by God!"

When he led his army to attack Goguryeo, he followed the orders of the crown prince and took no prisoners except young women in any city they captured.

After returning to Chang'an, he had nightmares for a long time, dreaming that those wronged ghosts were looking for him to take his life.

Li Shimin frowned and said, "Fu Ji and Li Ji are right. Massacre in a city is not the right way!"

I go!

You are all going to grab other people's territory, and you are still talking about the right way here?

You bunch of hypocrites should go to the main hall of Huichang Temple and sit on the seat of the Buddha statue.

Du He cursed in his heart, then shrugged and said.

"Since we should show compassion to the people of other races, why do we still need to attack their land?"

"Wouldn't it be good to let them live in peace and contentment in their own land and lead a happy life?"

Forehead...

Li Shimin, Zhangsun Wuji and Li Ji paused.

They didn't expect Du He to say that. The three of them opened their mouths but in the end, nothing came out.

Li Chengqian looked at Du He with admiration, and he called her beautiful in his heart.

"You are worthy of being my first aide!"

"Du He's ability to swear at others is really getting higher and higher now."

Li Chengqian praised Du He in his heart so much that even the corners of his mouth couldn't help but rise slightly.

Just when the atmosphere became awkward, Fang Xuanling stood up and spoke at the right time.

"I think what Du He said makes some sense. If we want to expand our territory, we will inevitably have to use some extreme measures."

"But the massacre of the city is still a bit cruel. It would be better if the means were gentler."

Although Fang Xuanling's words sounded nice, he actually did not come up with a good solution.

However, his words also eased the atmosphere in the hall a lot.

Li Shimin said in a deep voice: "Xuanling, do you have any ideas?"

Fang Xuanling shook his head slightly and said, "Your Majesty, I have not yet thought of a suitable solution."

"If we follow Changsun Zuo Pushe's battle plan, the people of our Tang Dynasty will have to endure more than ten or twenty years of continuous fighting, which may wear them down."

"Although Du Shangshu's plan goes against the will of heaven, it can achieve our strategic goals in a short period of time!"

It is not difficult to hear from his words that he prefers the method proposed by Du He.

Fang Xuanling pointed at Li Jing and said, "I, Lord Li Wei, and many other ministers in the court are already old, and we don't know how many years we have left to live."

"If the battle lasts too long and some of us die in the middle of it, it will have a huge impact on the war situation!"

He is 68 years old this year and has suffered from various illnesses, both major and minor.

He himself doesn't know how long he can live.

Li Jing nodded in agreement. He stroked his beard and nodded, "Yes, we are all old. Even if we can live a little longer, we don't have the energy to care about the war."

The words of the two important civil and military officials struck Li Shimin's heart.

His health was not good and time was very tight.

Li Shimin looked at Du He with burning eyes, and asked solemnly: "Du He, tell me your specific plan!"

Everyone turned their eyes to Du He.

Du He nodded and said, "Your Majesty, if you want to solve this problem once and for all, leaving no prisoners is the most basic prerequisite."

"Besides that, I think this war should be carried out in two stages."

Two steps?

Have you come up with a specific battle plan so quickly?

Everyone looked at each other and their faces suddenly became serious.

Du He said loudly: "The first stage is to drive out the wolves and swallow the tigers."

"Recruit troops from Tibet, Tuyuhun and Nepal and attack more than 70 countries in India."

"Conscript soldiers from the Eastern Turks, Gaochang, and Xueyantuo, and have them attack the Western Turks, Yanqi, and Qiuci."

"The Tang Dynasty has recruited 20 troops to attack the desert countries of Kapisa, Chijian, Samajian, Huluo, Vah and Vanaya!"

There was a pause of more than ten breaths.

Du He continued, "The second stage is to clean up the mess."

"When the battle between Tibet and the Eastern Turks is almost over, the Tang Dynasty will send out another 20 troops to take over the territories of the Eastern Turks, Tibet, India, and Western Turks!"