Traveling through Du He, Li Chengqian's rebellion begins

There was a pause.

Li Shimin said softly, "Du He, find a time to go see Master Xuanzang and tell him that I hope he can return to secular life and serve as an official to assist in the administration."

"With the assistance of Master Xuanzang, the army's expansion into the Western Regions will surely be even faster!"

Well...

Du He's expression was slightly stunned.

Asking him to persuade a monk who is obsessed with Buddhism to return to secular life and participate in a bloody massacre?

Is this request a bit excessive?

If Li Shimin forced Master Xuanzang to return to secular life, would his Buddhist heart collapse once his hands were stained with the blood of the people of the Western Regions and India?

stunned for a moment.

Du He bowed and said, "I obey your command."

Regardless of whether Master Xuanzang agrees or not, just go and ask him first, and consider it as completing the task assigned by Li Shimin.

Li Shimin waved his hand towards the eunuchs and said, "All of you please leave. I need to speak to Du He alone."

The eunuchs and historians saluted together.

"promise."

When Du He saw that Li Shimin didn't even leave a historian behind, he was filled with doubts.

"What big thing is Li Shimin going to talk about this time?"

Ever since Li Shimin fell ill, he has liked to chat with himself. This is really strange.

After everyone else had left, Li Shimin spoke slowly.

"Du He, I have compiled the poems we wrote at Cuiwei Palace last year into a collection of poems."

"I have hand-copied two copies. I keep one and give the other to you."

"This collection of poems was created by the two of us. Come here and leave your name."

Is this just a small matter?

He thought Li Shimin wanted to talk about retirement, so he had already thought of some words in his mind.

Du He hurried over, signed his name on both books, and took one of the books in his hand.

This book is not only written by Li Shimin, but also has Li Shimin's signature and seal on it, and its collection value is very high.

The two chatted about poetry for a while.

Li Shimin said solemnly, "Du He, the imperial court has already conquered the three kingdoms of Liaodong. Sooner or later, the Eastern Turks, Western Turks, Xueyantuo, and Mohe will also be conquered."

"How do you think we should govern such a vast territory?"

How to govern the newly conquered territory?

With the governance examples of Goguryeo, Baekje and Silla, Li Shimin should not ask this question again.

Since Li Shimin brought it up again, he must have other ideas in his mind.

Think for a moment.

Du He asked tentatively, "Your Majesty, do you plan to divide the kingdoms?"

"Ah."

Li Shimin nodded.

He pointed at Du He and sighed, "Du He, I never thought that the person who understands my heart the most is someone like you who is almost a generation younger than me!"

"And you're the only one who dares to say it!"

In the past two days, he had discussed this issue with both Changsun Wuji and Fang Xuanling, but their answers did not satisfy him.

Li Shimin knew that the two of them had guessed his thoughts, but neither of them dared to say it out loud.

When he was the King of Qin, all the ministers under his command could confide in him.

But after he became emperor, these ministers began to keep their mouths shut.

There is no one I can confide in anymore!

Li Shimin continued, "Du He, I intend to give the territories close to the Tang Dynasty to members of the imperial family, and the remote Western Regions and India to ministers."

"What do you think of this approach?"

Another big pie...

According to Li Shimin's idea, the territory currently conquered by the Tang Dynasty would only be granted to members of the royal family.

As for the Western Regions and India that were subsequently developed, they would be considered for enfeoffment to ministers who had made contributions.

There was silence for more than ten breaths.

Du He bowed to Li Shimin and said, "Your Majesty, regarding such an important matter, I suggest you discuss it with His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

Now Li Shimin has promised to divide the territories among the princes and ministers. But after two or three years when Li Chengqian ascends the throne, he will not want to divide the territories among them, which will cause big trouble.

Not to mention the civil and military ministers, even the royal family members would rebel against Li Chengqian.

Li Shimin nodded thoughtfully.

After a long time.

He frowned and said, "Du He, I'm tired. You should go back first."

Du He saw that Li Shimin looked tired, so he bowed in response.

"I will take my leave first."

After leaving Ganlu Palace, Du He returned to the Ministry of War and stayed there for a few hours.

In the afternoon, Du He rushed to the East Palace and told Li Chengqian about the enfeoffment of the vassal states.

"what!"

"The Emperor wants to divide the kingdoms into vassal states now!"

Li Chengqian reacted so violently that his voice almost broke.

If my father gave the order before he abdicated, what would he do after he ascended the throne?

How should he reward the meritorious officials under his command?

Isn't the emperor setting a trap for him?

Du He smiled and said, "Your Highness, His Majesty only has this idea. It will probably take three or four years for His Majesty to actually issue an order to implement it."

"Besides, the four kingdoms of Eastern Turkic, Western Turkic, Xueyantuo, and Mohe have not yet been conquered, and it will take even longer as for the Western Regions and the Indian kingdoms."

Enfeoffment is a major matter and cannot be decided in a short time.

"That's good!"

Li Chengqian's expression relaxed a lot.

There was a pause.

Li Chengqian said seriously, "Du He, if the feudal states are not finally divided, I will also allocate you a piece of territory in the Central Plains."

"By then, you will be the only king of a different surname in the Tang Dynasty!"

If Li Chengqian had said this to him in the 17th year of Zhenguan, Du He would definitely think that Li Chengqian was just exaggerating.

But times are different now, and what Li Chengqian said might actually come true.

Du He smiled and bowed, "Thank you, Your Highness."

The two chatted for a while.

Du He said to Li Chengqian, "Your Highness, please ask Qin Huaidao to lead the way. I want to meet those Taoist priests."

"There are no urgent matters for me to deal with at the Ministry of War right now, so I can assign them to develop gunpowder."

The Vice Minister of the Ministry of War can handle most of the Ministry of War’s affairs.

Only when major events such as the redeployment of government troops, the promotion and transfer of officers and soldiers, or major defeats of the army did he, the Minister of War, need to take action.

Li Chengqian nodded and said, "Du He, just go and tell Qin Huaidao directly."

"If I need to allocate funds or purchase materials, please draw up a list for me and I will ask the Prince's Household Manager to work with you to complete it."

The Prince's Household Manager was equivalent to Li Chengqian's chief steward, responsible for all matters big and small such as food, salary distribution and warehousing for everyone in the Eastern Palace.

"it is good."

Du He nodded, then said goodbye and left.

...

More than half an hour later.

Led by Qin Huaidao, Du He came to Qinglongfang in Wannian County.

In front of a spacious house.

Du He looked at the imperial guards guarding the area and nodded slightly.

It seems that Li Chengqian attaches great importance to gunpowder, and he even sent so many guards to guard it.

The guards guarding the gate were from the East Palace. When they saw Du He coming here in person, they all shouted with serious expressions.

"Meet the Duke of Korea!"

Du He waved at them.

Qin Huaidao bowed and said, "Duke Hanguo, all the Taoists recruited by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince are inside. I will return to the East Palace to report first."

"Thank you for leading the way, Huaidao."

"Korean public opinion is important."

After Qin Huaidao finished speaking, he returned to the East Palace with a group of guards.

Du He stood at the door for a moment, then walked directly into the gate with a group of servants.

When Du Wu opened a room for alchemy, a loud noise suddenly came from inside.

"Oh!"

Before everyone could react, a copper lid with a chipped corner flew to Du He's feet and smashed into pieces.