Tang Dynasty: Father, if you don't rebel, I will!

"Ha ha ha ha......"

"Xuanzhen, Xuanzhen, look how eager your little grandson is to earn military merit."

Li Yuan laughed heartily.

Pei Ji, standing to the side, wore a wry smile and glared at this junior from his brother's lineage with annoyance.

"Let you lead troops? You have no respect for your elders! Do you know how many people are waiting for the commander-in-chief's next order? Don't you know how many memorials the Duke of England has sent requesting executions?!"

"Why aren't you getting down here right now?!"

Although Pei Sixue didn't have high hopes, he couldn't help but feel disappointed and dejected at this moment.

Li Yuan waved his hand: "Alright, alright, don't react so strongly. What's wrong with young people wanting to make achievements? Do you want all the descendants of the Pei family of Hedong to be like those old-fashioned and corrupt scoundrels?"

He looked at the young man in front of him.

"It's unlikely that I'll let you lead troops into battle. After all, the military has strict rules. Right now, I have dozens of generals who have volunteered to fight against Sassanid Persia. That old bastard Quttutong is even more daring than you."

"Five thousand men dared to attack Sassanid Persia."

At this point, Li Yuan couldn't help but laugh and shake his head repeatedly.

Although he hadn't experienced as many real battles as his second son, Li Shimin, he understood the principle that pride comes before a fall.

However, this is precisely where the helplessness lies.

The soldiers of the Tang Dynasty were all too elite!

With no worries about the future, full pay, land allocated to their families, and children still able to attend school, their daily routine consisted of nothing more than diligently practicing their combat skills and keeping a watchful eye on their own general.

This forced even the generals commanding troops to come to him every few days...

"Hey... Xuanzhen, do you really think we should fight the Sassanid Persians? If we do, who will govern them?"

Li Yuan sighed with worry.

Now, Gaochang Kingdom has become Xizhou Prefecture of the Tang Dynasty. Although 80% of the officials in Yanqi, Kucha and other Western Regions countries are still locals, they have been taken over by Li Jing, the Duke of Ying.

The once invincible Western Turks have become a desolate, uninhabited place.

Ashina Quli led the Left Wing through various detours and evasions, successfully submitting to the Tang Dynasty and becoming Turkic people of the Tang Dynasty's Zhenbei Road. They lived a prosperous life, and even the old people did not say anything about missing home or wanting to return.

As for Ashina Dili, the Khan of the Four-Yehu...

“Tsk…” Pei Ji frowned.

In his hand, he was holding a letter from Ashina Dili.

This wasn't the first letter this guy had written to the Tang Dynasty. After being repeatedly humiliated by the Tang, he finally started to get his head working again.

Now I know how to talk to this behemoth that is the Tang Dynasty.

Now he has led the remaining remnants of his army, along with a large amount of looted supplies and gold and silver.

They headed further west.

“Your Majesty, we really don’t have any extra manpower right now. We’ve left the Western Turkic lands there unattended…” Pei Ji said with a bitter expression.

Heaven have mercy, considering that Pei Ji also comes from the Pei clan of Hedong.

Even with their extensive knowledge and exceptional understanding, they could never have imagined that the Tang Dynasty would encounter such an embarrassing predicament: powerful expansion but powerless governance.

"If Your Majesty intends to take action against the Sassanid Persia, my advice is to win hearts and minds and plunder wealth, but not to seize territory and disperse troops."

Hear the words.

Xiao Yu, who was standing to the side, nodded repeatedly.

"The Duke of Wei is right. The Sassanid Persians are already at their last gasp. They dare to ignore our warnings to the Great Tang. It's just that they haven't been beaten by us yet... Give them a good beating, and they'll naturally behave themselves."

Xiao Yu chuckled as he stroked his beard.

"News came from Taiyuan Prefecture that the Tibetan and other highland forces have been subdued by His Highness the Crown Prince. Songtsen Gampo has now become a hunting dog of our Great Tang."

"There's also Silla, which is under the control of Prince Liang, and Japan, which is controlled by Prince Han. We must use these two forces to gradually gain benefits and buy time for our Great Tang to digest the profits. This is the most important thing."

He pondered for a moment, then suddenly spoke softly to Li Yuan beside him.

"General, this old minister thinks that we should leave the Sassanid Persians alive for the time being, teach them a lesson, let them know the power of our Great Tang, and make them agree to submit to our Great Tang and pay tribute."

"And our Great Tang will provide them with some military equipment trade... that way, His Highness the Crown Prince will be under less pressure, won't he?"

Upon hearing this, Li Yuan nodded repeatedly.

"Hahaha! Absolutely! In that case... give the order to beat the drums and gather the generals!"

As the resounding drumbeats of the rallying ceremony echoed throughout Xizhou County, a series of messenger horses galloped towards the generals' residences within the city.

After a while.

The former palace of the Gaochang King is now the main hall of Li Yuan's temporary palace.

A large group of Tang Dynasty generals gathered there.

Leaving aside the two imperial relatives and generals, Li Daozong and Li Xiaogong, Duan Zhixuan, Qu Tutong, and others had just arrived.

They immediately began to anxiously inquire whether the army was preparing to march on Sassanid Persia.

They had heard about Li Yuan sending envoys to Sassanid Persia a while ago.

Now, Li Jing, the Duke of Ying, needs to be stationed in the Western Regions.

The retired emperor cannot leave Xizhou County.

That Sassanid Persian campaign would be a military achievement worthy of being recorded in history and remembered for its annihilation of a nation!

"Your Majesty! This humble general requests to fight!" Qu Tutong shouted.

"This humble general has prepared nine strategies for conquering the country! If Your Majesty allows this humble general to lead the troops, this humble general guarantees that we will definitely be able to capture the Sassanid Persian capital before the end of the year!"

Everyone was shocked. Duan Zhixuan was surprised to see that Qu Tutong, that old scoundrel, had actually gotten there first.

Immediately step forward and volunteer for battle.

"Your Majesty, I have eighteen strategies! The Sassanid Persian Empire is a small country; I only need to lead ten thousand troops to annihilate it!"

"This humble general has thirty-six strategies!"

"Your Majesty, no one understands how to destroy the Sassanid Persians better than this humble general. I can come up with at least nine hundred methods to deal with them! Nine hundred!"

Everyone looked at Li Daozong, who had now stepped forward to compete with them for military merit.

They were all glaring angrily.

Qu Tutong's beard and hair trembled: "Prince of Jiangxia, why are you competing with us for these merits? You only have one daughter, and she is now engaged to His Highness the Crown Prince. She will soon become the future imperial concubine of our Great Tang. Is it worth it for you to compete with us for these military merits?"

Duan Zhixuan also looked indignant.

What Prince of Jiangxia, what imperial relative?

With the army far away, everyone is striving for military merit!

"That's right! Nine hundred methods! Tell me, if you have the guts to name nine hundred, even if you can only name ninety, I, the general, will bow deeply to you from now on! This is deceiving the emperor!"

"That's right! Your Majesty, the Prince of Jiangxia is clearly acting like a rogue!"

"Your Majesty, please let this humble general go. I am already sixty-seven years old, and I don't have many more days left to fight for my Great Tang Dynasty... Waaah!"

Before Li Yuan could even speak, the generals present were already arguing heatedly, their faces flushed.

Some people try to show their loyalty by reducing the budget.

Some people use their seniority to inflate their value.

Some people try to build relationships and cultivate feelings...

Looking at these guys, each one a master of acting, Li Yuan only felt a headache coming on.

He slammed his hand on the table, loudly interrupting the chaotic argument.

"If this battle does not result in the destruction of the nation, then there is no merit in destroying the nation!"

Instantly, the hall fell silent.

A pair of puzzled eyes looked at the retired emperor. Li Yuan gave Pei Ji a look, signaling the latter to explain.

Pei Ji stepped forward and recounted the whole story.

"So, all of you generals should understand, right? The commander knows you are all capable of fighting, but... right now we don't have enough manpower to govern the area."

"Therefore, we must fight the Sassanid Persians, but we can only inflict pain, not destroy them. We are prepared to incorporate them into the ranks of our Great Tang's vassal states, making them tributary states and a barrier for our Great Tang in the Western Regions."

Li Yuan gave a cold snort, clearly annoyed.

"Understood? Now, who is willing to lead the army into battle?"

Li Daozong stepped forward first: "Your Majesty, this humble general is willing to go. I guarantee that the Sassanid Persian ruler will understand the might of our Great Tang army..."

however.

The words have not yet fallen.

The old voice of Qu Tutong suddenly rang out from behind.

"Your Majesty, let this humble general go. I guarantee that not only will they become your subjects and pay tribute, but I will also send their beautiful princess to our Great Tang... Your Majesty, I suppose His Highness the Crown Prince has never seen a Sassanid Persian princess before?"

"I've heard that the princess is quite famous in the Western Regions; her skin is said to be as white as snow..."

Upon hearing this, Prince Li Daozong of Jiangxia's expression changed, while Li Yuan, who hadn't thought much about it before, couldn't help but rub his chin.

"Hiss... Now that you mention it, I've been away on campaign for so long and haven't prepared any decent gifts for Chengqian yet. The gold and silver jewelry I sent before, that child must be tired of seeing it by now..."

He looked at Qu Tutong, the oldest of the generals present, with a hint of suspicion.

"Duke Jiang, are you sure that Sassanid Persian princess is exceptionally beautiful? My beloved grandson Chengqian is surrounded by beauties."

Qu Tutong nodded hurriedly, as if pounding garlic.

His face was full of excitement and flattery.

"Your Majesty, don't you know my character? I never lie, especially not to Your Majesty?"

"I've been inquiring about this matter for quite some time now; many foreign merchants know about it..."

Hear the words.

Li Yuan's eyes immediately lit up.

He laughed loudly and slammed his hand on the table.

"Very well! In that case, let Duke Jiang lead the troops into battle! The cotton in Xizhou County has already been harvested and will soon be sent to Taiyuan Prefecture. I also plan to go back and visit Chengqian and the others at the end of the year."

"Lord Jiang, do you understand what I mean?"

Qu Tutong was overjoyed and immediately accepted the order.

"I swear on my life! I guarantee that Your Majesty will bring that Sassanid Persian princess back before you depart for the capital!"

"Achoo~"

A sudden sneeze startled Princess Li Lizhi, who was engrossed in reading a medical book.

When he turned around, he saw that it was his own elder brother, the Crown Prince, rubbing his nose.

Her face, which was about to get angry, was instantly filled with worry again.

"Brother, have you caught a cold? Quickly, sit down and let your sister take a look..."

Li Chengqian chuckled softly as he watched his sister pull him down to sit without a word and begin skillfully taking his pulse.

"Alright, I know my own body best. What kind of cold could possibly harm your royal brother like me..."

As he spoke, his gaze seemed to be searching for something.

Chang Le looked puzzled.

"What is it that you are looking for, my royal brother?"

"Where's Gao Yang? She's not here with you?"

"Ah? Gao Yang? She boarded the Zhenguan carriage early this morning and went to Chang'an, saying she was going to find Fourth Brother... Didn't she tell you, Your Majesty?"