Chapter 103: Strategy towards Tubo
"When we eat, please ask County Magistrate Zheng to bring Nan Ba ​​with him."

Li Xuan said to Zheng Yan.

He expressed his liking for Nan Jiyun and sat at the same table with him, regardless of Nan Jiyun's humble status.

"Yes!"

How could Zheng Yan dare to refuse the words of Li Xuan, such a ruthless man?

Besides, although Nan Jiyun was brave and strong, in Zheng Yan's eyes, he was just a county soldier who helped him maintain the streets in the city and intimidate the scoundrels.

As the county magistrate, Zheng Yan could only use Nan Jiyun in this way.

Nan Jiyun was flattered, even the county magistrate had never sat at the same table with him. After only a few words with Li Xuan, he invited him to eat.

At night, Chenliu Ling prepared rich wine and food for Li Xuan and his party.

Li Xuan's personal guards sat on the side, accompanied by the county lieutenant.

Li Xuan sat close to Zheng Yan, and next to Zheng Yan was Nan Jiyun, who was wearing casual clothes.

This dignified uniform was obviously prepared by Zheng Yan for Nan Jiyun.

After some toasts, Li Xuan asked Zheng Yan about the historical background and situation of Chenliu according to etiquette.

Zheng Yan took the initiative to mention that everyone in the Chenliu clan encouraged themselves and did not dare to break the law.

After all, it is close to the Eastern Capital.

Li Xuan believed it. He couldn't possibly care about such a thing.

There was a reason why Wu Lingguang's pirate case implicated the powerful. Li Xuan was about to return to the court, and Sun Liu's death completely ignited Li Xuan's anger.

Originally, the powerful man would not have died, but the officials of the two counties died instead.

The powerful dig their own graves!

Li Xuan also asked Zheng Yan whether there were any great poets or talented people passing through Chenliu.

Zheng Yan said that there were talented poets in Chenliu, but no great poets of Li Bai's level.

He stated that he was from the Zheng family of Xingyang and had always respected talented scholars.

Through understanding, Li Xuan found out that Wannianling Zheng Yan was Zheng Yan's cousin, and they exchanged greetings again.

"Nanba, you are a brave man. You should spread your wings like an eagle and soar over the frontier grasslands. Why do you want to waste your time in this small county?"

After exchanging polite words with Zheng Yan, Li Xuan raised a glass of wine and said to Nan Jiyun.

"I am already over 30, have a wife and children, and it is too late to make the same aspirations as when I was young."

Nan Jiyun felt that he had missed the golden age for military service, and he had a wife and children in his hometown, so he hoped to make a name for himself in the local area.

"Not too late, not too late. Xue Rengui joined the army when he was thirty, and he also accomplished something."

Li Xuan laughed and shook his head. There are many other examples of late bloomers. But the one Li Xuan cited was Xue Rengui, who grew up in poverty like Nan Jiyun.

Although Xue Rengui was born into a noble family, the noble family was just a concept of a surname, and there were too many people from poor families. More children of noble families were buried in the long river of history because they were nameless.

In addition, Li Xuan remembered that Geshu Han was good at gambling, visiting prostitutes, and fighting when he was young.

After he turned 40, he was humiliated by the governor of Chang'an and joined the army out of anger. He gained his position on the battlefield by virtue of his bravery and fearlessness.

"Nanba, you are honored! General Li wants to recruit you as a subordinate. I will help take care of your family!"

Zheng Yan understood what Li Xuan meant. Seeing that Nan Jiyun was still hesitating, he spoke to him and told him not to worry about his family.

Nan Jiyun is his subordinate, so of course he hopes that Nan Jiyun can succeed.

This way he can also keep in touch with Li Xuan.

After slaughtering the powerful, Li Xuan was criticized as a "cruel official", but Zheng Yan knew that Li Xuan still had unlimited potential.

His status as a member of the royal family, coupled with the political prestige left by his father and his own great military achievements.

One day, you will have the opportunity to become a prime minister.

Besides, Li Xuan is young and might be able to accomplish great things again.

"Is that what you mean, General?"

Nan Jiyun told Li Xuan quite frankly that he was not a scholar and always spoke frankly.

"When I enter the frontier again, I will make sure you become my general!"

Li Xuan did not beat around the bush and made a promise to Nan Jiyun.

If he became a deputy governor, he could promote generals without the approval of the Ministry of War.

"Nan Jiyun thanks the general. Even if I lose my life on the battlefield in the future, I will repay the general's kindness in my grave."

Nan Jiyun stood up from his seat and bowed solemnly to Li Xuan.

Li Xuan treated him with such courtesy, personally invited him, and made a promise as a yamen general. This was a great favor.

This made Nan Jiyun, who had been mediocre for half his life, feel like dying for his friend Li Xuan.

At this moment, Nan Jiyun seemed to have returned to his twenties, the passionate time of a young man, exuding high morale.

"Does Nan Ba ​​have any relatives in Chenliu?" Li Xuan helped Nan Jiyun up and asked.

"I have taken my wife and one son and one daughter to Chenliu City." Nan Jiyun replied to Li Xuan.

"That's easy to arrange! We'll set off tomorrow. I'll leave some money for you, Nanba, to take care of your wife and children."

Li Xuan said to Nan Jiyun: "After you have accomplished something, you can bring them to Chang'an."

Nan Jiyun had little wealth, and wanted to provide for his wife and children, so he had no choice but to accept Li Xuan's financial support. He would return the money when he received his salary.

The banquet was perfect and everyone enjoyed themselves.

Nan Jiyun returned home with the twenty strings of cash donated by Li Xuan.

Her wife is a reasonable person and supports Nan Jiyun in his career.

After a night of tenderness, Nan Jiyun carried her luggage and found Li Xuan.

Li Xuan gave three horses to Nan Jiyun from his personal guards, and with the farewell of the Chenliu magistrate, they headed towards Luoyang.

Passing through Luoyang, Li Xuan specially bought several rare varieties of peonies from the flower market. They were said to be yellow peonies and red-purple peonies. He wanted to take them back to Li Yuying.

After leaving Luoyang, we traveled non-stop and returned to Chang'an City on the afternoon of April 27th.

Zuo Xiangfu.

"Qi Lang suddenly came back, and I was both surprised and happy."

Li Shizhi received a letter from Li Xuan not long ago.

When Li Xuan submitted a letter to the court on the results of the Wu Lingguang pirate case, the ministers were discussing the matter.

"The Qianniu Guards have already set out, escorting pirate captives, the families of powerful people, and a lot of money and silk. It will take several months to reach Chang'an. I don't want to waste this time, and I want to tell the saint what happened as soon as possible, otherwise I will be used by someone with ulterior motives."

After Li Xuan returned to the front hall, he explained to Li Shizhi.

"Qi Lang is very thoughtful. I will immediately arrange a seat for him to attend the court."

Li Shizhi ordered his assistants.

When attending court, the supervisor of ceremonies needs to know the number of people attending court in advance and make a series of ceremonial preparations.

"Father, what do the officials in Chang'an think of me now?"

Li Xuan wanted to know this.

"Alas! Before Qilang pacified the pirates, the civil and military officials and scholars praised him highly. The officials thought that you could become a prime minister and clear the world; the scholars thought that you could become a world-renowned scholar and lead the world. Now there are fewer people who hold this view. If Qilang had eliminated the pirates, he could have handled the Wu Lingguang pirate case in a more subtle way, which would have made his reputation even better."

Li Shizhi felt it was a pity.

He didn't expect Li Xuan to be so cruel, beheading hundreds of people at the same time.

This situation will only occur when a large-scale prison is established.

Needless to say, the big families outside Chang'an are now boycotting Li Xuan.

"Did my father think I was a perfect person before?"

Li Xuan did not feel any regret, but instead asked Li Shizhi with a smile.

In the minds of scholars, even the powerful deserved to die. But Li Xuan implicated all the powerful people in the two counties and killed hundreds of people at once, which was too much like the act of a cruel official.

"The unicorn's hoof is like the young master, alas, unicorn! The scholars at that time all used the young master in the Book of Songs to describe Qilang. He is both civil and military, with unparalleled strategies, and as a father, I can't see any shortcomings in him." Li Shizhi said.

"That being said. But with the sage in power, how can anyone be perfect? ​​People in Chang'an privately discuss Li Linfu's manipulation of power. Doesn't the sage know anything about it? But the sage still values ​​Li Linfu. I have touched the interests of the powerful and some of the nobles. From now on, I can only rely on the sage. My loyalty will be more visible to the sage. This is a way to protect myself."

Although Li Xuan needed reputation, he needed Li Longji to trust him more.

Moreover, Li Xuan felt that such a reputation could be restored.

Scholars who can agree with Li Xuan's approach can be regarded as like-minded people.

"Qi Lang has a point. But I hope Qi Lang can write a few poems to introduce the beautiful scenery of Jiangnan, just like your "Spring in Jiangnan". Let people think that you are not going there to be an interviewer, but to have fun in Jiangnan."

Li Xuan's vision is always unique. It seems that he always believes that the trust of the saint is more important than the power in his hands.

Li Shizhi wanted to ask the sage what to do if the crown prince succeeds to the throne since he is already in his sixties?
After thinking about it, I still didn’t say it out loud!

"I will!"

After the incident was over, Li Xuan asked Li Shizhi again: "I learned in Linhai that a powerful person wrote a memorial to slander and impeach me, and bribed Li Linfu with a large sum of money, hoping that Li Linfu would say a few good words for me."

"The old thief Li Linfu knows how to judge the situation. Some time ago, he took out gold and presented the memorial from the powerful to the emperor. The emperor tore up the memorial without even reading it." Li Shizhi replied to Li Xuan.

This shows that Li Linfu had already guessed Li Longji's thoughts, so he stopped interfering.

This also made it impossible for Li Xuan to bully Li Linfu again.

"Not long ago, Huangfu Weiming, eager for military success, led his army to attack Shibao City. Because he was eager for quick success, he ignored the arrival of the Tibetan reinforcements, which resulted in 10,000 casualties in the Longyou Army. Even Chu Yu, the deputy envoy of the Longyou Jiedushi, died in the battle under Shibao City. The saint was furious! He also told me privately that if Qilang was here, there would not be such a defeat!"

Li Shizhi informed Li Xuan of this important event.

Huangfu Weiming defeated Tubo in the first year of Tianbao. He not only killed Langzhidu, the son of Tubo Zamp, but also captured more than 5,000 Tubo soldiers.

Last year, Huangfu Weiming traveled thousands of miles and unexpectedly captured Hongji City, the frontier position of Tubo.

The continuous rewards blinded Huangfu Weiming's eyes, and he began to target Shibao City, the most important stronghold on the border between Tang and Tu.

Shibao City is located backed by Huashi Mountain in the east and faces Yaoshui River in the west. The cliff in front is steep, and the mountains on both sides are winding and varied, like an eagle spreading its wings, which is daunting.

It was like a nail, stuck in front of the border of the Tang Dynasty.

As a result, when the Tang army fought against Tubo, they often bypassed the important passage under Shibao City.

To its northwest is Qinghai Lake, and to its southwest is the Yellow River's nine bends, which almost blocked the expansion of the Tang Dynasty.

Even if Huangfu Weiming captured Hongji City in Jiuqu, he could not hold it for long because of the Shibao City stationed there.

Huangfu Weiming also saw the favor Li Xuan had received after his achievements, so he prepared to strive for this unprecedented achievement.

However, he was too eager for quick success, and the Tibetan great minister Mangbuzhi traveled day and night, which led to him being attacked from all sides.

Not only did they suffer heavy losses, but they even had to abandon the previously occupied Hongji City.

"What is the relationship between Huangfu Weiming and his father?"

Li Xuan asked Li Shizhi solemnly.

"Huangfu Weiming is a frontier commander with a large army. His father is a member of the royal family and the prime minister. It would be taboo for the saints to be friendly with him. However, Huangfu Weiming has always been friendly with Minister Wei."

Although Li Shizhi was sometimes careless in character, he could still handle such matters.

"Wei Jian's sister is the Crown Princess, and he is a relative by marriage. If he doesn't control his relationship with Huangfu Weiming, Wei Jian will be defeated sooner or later, and his father will be implicated."

Li Xuan said in a deep voice.

In history, these two were playing together during the Lantern Festival at night, and Li Linfu found an opportunity to kill them.

Huangfu Weiming once slandered Wang Zhongsi, causing Wang Zhongsi to be demoted and waste several years.

Fortunately, the then Hexi Jiedushi Du Xiwang valued Wang Zhongsi and summoned him to Hexi, giving Wang Zhongsi a stage to perform.

Although Wang Zhongsi was appointed as a military governor in his thirties, he would have become a general earlier if it weren't for Huangfu Weiming's false accusation.

Li Xuan was also the one who fought with Wang Zhongsi to destroy the Turks, and he regarded Wang Zhongsi as his mentor.

The complicated relationship makes Li Xuan very conflicted.

"I'll remind Wei Jian!"

Li Shizhi nodded solemnly and asked Li Xuan: "Qilang, do you want to serve as the deputy envoy of Longyou Jiedushi and become the reserve commander?"

"Longyou is the forefront of the battle against Tubo, and it is easiest to make meritorious contributions. I will recommend myself to the saint."

Li Xuan had exactly this intention.

He is young and needs to accumulate more military merits and work hard to become a military governor.

Li Xuan chatted with Li Shizhi about things in Jiangnan and then returned to his room.

After the morning court tomorrow, Li Xuan will ask to see Li Longji, and he needs to think about how to talk to him. He must make Li Longji change his opinion of Shibao City.

Don't let him attack Shibao City as soon as he arrives in Longyou.

……

The next day, Xingqing Palace.

After all officials paid their respects, the court meeting officially began.

"Your Majesty, the case of Wu Lingguang's pirates has come to an end. The tyrants were rampant, and they also controlled the county soldiers and rebelled. Those who were implicated were all executed. The other prisoners and a lot of gold, silver, jewelry, money, and silk are still on the way back to Chang'an. I came back early to report to Your Majesty. This is the amount of dirty things found in Wu Lingguang's old nest and the homes of the tyrants. Please take a look, Your Majesty..."

At the beginning of the court meeting, Li Xuan was the first to step out with a book in his hand.

"Thank you for your hard work."

Li Longji already knew the reason why Li Xuan returned early. He thought that Li Xuan had done a great job in Linhai and Yuyao counties.

Li Xuan took on everything, and the powerful people hated Li Xuan.

Therefore, Li Longji did not plan to promote Li Xuan at this time, and he would also dismiss Li Xuan from his position as the Jiangnan East Road Investigator and Disposal Envoy, so as not to provoke the powerful and wealthy families in the world.

Gao Lishi presented the booklet to Li Longji.

When Li Longji was reading the booklet, the ministers looked at Li Xuan with different expressions.

A trip to the south of the Yangtze River made the ministers look at Li Xuan with new eyes.

They were curious why Li Shizhi did not stop Li Xuan and allowed him to do whatever he wanted?

Only Li Linfu understood that Li Xuan was more trusted by the saint because of this.

The time it takes to reach the third rank will not be too slow.

However, Li Linfu hoped that Li Xuan would become a general, so that he would have another chance to deal with the father and son.

"In Linhai County and Yuyao County, there are only 130,000 good families in total. In addition to the good farmland, the tyrants were able to plunder so much wealth. Will the tyrants in other places be like this too?"

Li Longji was shocked when he saw the amount of gold, silver, treasures, silk and money presented by Li Xuan.

He felt that Li Xuan was right to kill him.

Even if these treasures and money were kept in the national treasury, they would be enough for him to squander for a while.

Li Longji even had the idea of ​​taking advantage of the powerful if he was short of money in the future.

"It was because of the pirate Wu Lingguang that the two counties were given rise to the termites. The local clans as a whole still have rules, otherwise there would not be the prosperity we have today."

When the sage asked a question and no one responded, Li Linfu, as the chief prime minister, had to step forward and take the question.

"What does General Zuo Qianniuwei think?" Li Longji looked at Li Xuan and asked.

"What the Right Prime Minister said is very true. I traveled from Chang'an to Luoyang, then to Chuzhou, and all the way south of the Yangtze River. I saw the beautiful mountains and rivers, the endless traffic of carriages and horses, the houses and villages facing each other, and the mulberry and hemp covering the fields. I believe that there are more prominent families in places that abide by the law."

Li Xuan naturally wouldn't say anything to spoil the fun at this time.

Even if you don't agree with what Li Linfu said.

Since ancient times, prosperous times have been the prosperous times of the gentry, and peasants could only have enough food to eat, nothing more.

Those who make it big are only a minority. It takes three generations of a good peasant family to raise a true scholar. It takes several more generations for a scholar to become a scholar.

But the grandeur of the Kaiyuan Era cannot be denied.

Because history is a horizontal comparison, not a vertical comparison.

The common people in later generations did not pursue food and clothing, but even if they went back to their hometown to farm, they could still have meat to eat every now and then. They pursued higher and better material and spiritual pursuits. That is why they yearned for the "golden age of ancient times".

"Governing the country depends on officials. Don't learn from officials like Gao Wei and Huang Wangheng. Prime ministers and envoys should do their best when inspecting prefectures and counties to prevent the emergence of people like Wu Lingguang!"

Li Longji was very satisfied with Li Xuan's words.

"I will obey your orders!"

All the ministers said in unison.

Immediately afterwards, Li Longji began to purge the officials who had served as the governor of Mingzhou and Taizhou in recent years.

Once Gao Wei is escorted to Chang'an, they will be executed together.

This is no longer as simple as corruption, but a destabilization of the country's foundation, which is tantamount to rebellion.

Both local officials and powerful people in the world were restrained because of Wu Lingguang's piracy case.

Because of the case of the Ministry of Personnel, the envoys to various provinces and the censors dared not neglect their duties again.

In addition, Li Shizhi made great efforts to rectify the administration of officials and intensified the assessment of officials, so that in the early years of Tianbao, there was a hint of a restoration of the atmosphere at the beginning of Kaiyuan.

The only difference is that Li Longji himself was no longer frugal. He gave out rewards frequently and lived extravagantly.

The king is extravagant and his ministers are extravagant; the superior is arrogant and the subordinates are greedy.

This is the case of the superiors liking something, and the subordinates will like it even more. As long as Li Longji does not change, this trend will only be short-lived.

After the court meeting, Li Longji indeed summoned Li Xuan to the Qinzheng Building.

"Qilang, do you still want to go back to Shuofang? I'm afraid you won't be able to use your skills there!"

As soon as he saw Li Xuan, Li Longji asked straight to the point.

"I want to continue to serve the country and expand the territory for the saint. I have always felt that Tubo is a major threat to the Tang Dynasty. Please transfer me to the Tang-Tu border!"

How could Li Xuan not understand Li Longji's meaning?

Li Longji also didn't want him to return to Shuofang.

"Alas! Some time ago, Huangfu Weiming failed in his attack on Shibao City. If it weren't for that bastard Gai Jiayun's neglect of duty and his lack of consideration for defense, Shibao City would not have been lost. Back then, Prince Xin'an seized it with a brilliant plan, allowing the Tang Dynasty to expand its territory by a thousand miles to the Chiling area. Now Shibao City is right on the border of our Tang Dynasty. Every time I think of this, it feels like a thorn in my throat!"

Li Longji slapped the jade table and said, "Looking at that posture, it seems like he wants to dig out Gai Jiayun and whip his corpse."

The three sides of the Stone Castle are steep cliffs and cannot be climbed. There is only one path leading up to it. This is a situation where one man can block the pass and ten thousand men cannot break through.

As long as Tubo stores enough water and food in the stone fortress and prepares logs and rolling stones, it will be as impregnable as a rock.

After losing Shibao City, Tubo was able to move freely in the He and Long areas of the Tang Dynasty and even approached Lintao.

Therefore, around Shibao City, the Tang Dynasty successively improved the Anren Army, Suihe Shouzhuo, Heyuan Army, and Jishi Army in the middle and late Kaiyuan period.

If the Tang Dynasty could obtain Shibao City, it would be able to cut off Tubo's food supply route from Chiling into the Tang Dynasty, and it would be able to attack or defend as it pleased.

When Tubo lost Shibao City, it established Baigu, Hongji, Shudun, Wanxiu, Damomen and other cities in Jiuqu area.

These cities were captured by the Tang army, but they had to lose them because Shibao City was in the rear.

Moreover, the Tubo army was stationed in Qinghai Lake and Jiuqu area all year round.

It can be said that after the Heyuan Alliance, all the grievances and hatreds between the Tang Dynasty and Tubo started from Shibao City.

In the history books, there is the admirable Princess Wencheng's entry into Tibet. But the relationship is no longer what it used to be.

Even during the Kaiyuan period, when Princess Jincheng married Chidai Zhudan, the Tang Dynasty and Tubo were frequently at war.

Moreover, Tubo not only attacked the vassal states of the Tang Dynasty in the Western Regions, attempting to compete with the Tang Dynasty for hegemony in the Western Regions, but also continued to threaten the Jiannan area of ​​the Tang Dynasty.

Chidai Zhudan succeeded to the throne at a young age and became Zamp several years earlier than Li Longji became emperor.

Now Chidai Zhudan has outlasted the powerful ministers and has long been in power. He is also an ambitious person and has repeatedly insulted Li Longji in his letters.

Ever since the Tubo massacred the city of Dahua, Li Longji no longer believed in the relationship between uncle and nephew and wanted to establish absolute advantage in the war against Tubo.

Moreover, Chidai Zhudan's son had just been killed by the fierce Tang general Wang Nandi, and the two sides were irreconcilable.

The situation of trade at Chiling will never happen again.

"Your Majesty, during the Northern Qi Dynasty, Gao Huan led an army of 150,000 to attack Yubi City. In just 60 days, 70,000 soldiers died. Shibao City is a mountain city like Yubi, which is easy to defend but difficult to attack."

The lesson of Li Xuan persuading Li Longji is still fresh in people’s minds.

"What if there is no Shibao City? How can Qilang expand the territory for me?" Li Longji frowned.

He really wanted Li Xuan to lead his troops to attack Shibao City.

"As long as I take Qinghai (today's Qinghai Lake) and build a city on it, and then capture the Yellow River Jiuqu (the Yellow River corner in today's Guinan, Tongde, and Guiren), I will capture all the Tibetan cities on Jiuqu. Shibao City will be like an abandoned city. By then, I will guard the road down the mountain, and the Tibetan soldiers in Shibao City will surrender because they are out of food."

Li Xuan replied to Li Longji.

Historically, Li Longji ordered Wang Zhongsi to attack Shibao City, but Wang Zhongsi thought that if he captured Shibao City, at least tens of thousands of soldiers would die, and it was not worth it, so he disobeyed the order. Wang Zhongsi was almost executed for this.

Later, when Geshu Han captured Shibao City, tens of thousands of Tang soldiers died as Wang Zhongsi had predicted.

Of course, not all the Tang soldiers who died in the battle were killed in Shibao City. To attack Shibao City, it was necessary to eliminate other strongholds in Chiling and block the Tubo reinforcements.

Tubo will not give up Shibao City easily and will certainly come to its aid with all its strength.

Li Xuan doesn't like to fight such a stubborn war.

He mainly relies on fierce offense.

Since we are attacking, we should completely abandon defense and attack the Jiuqu area from Ningsai County.

"What Qilang said is the simplest method, but also the most difficult method. Because Qilang will face hundreds of thousands of Tibetan troops."

Li Longji said solemnly.

If we really occupy Qinghai and Jiuqu, it would be equivalent to opening the door to attacking Tubo, and Shibao City would become insignificant.

"I am expanding the territory for the saint, so why should I be afraid of these? Moreover, even if I take over Shibao City, I still have to enter Jiuqu and Qinghai."

In Li Xuan's view, it was better to have tens of thousands of soldiers follow him in the Jiuqu field battle than to die under the Shibao City.

"What a pity! When Princess Jincheng entered Tubo, Tubo bribed Shanzhou Governor Yang Ju and got Jiuqu for nothing."

When the Tang Dynasty ceded Jiuqu to Tubo, Li Longji had not yet ascended the throne and was still thinking about a coup to seize power.

By the time he ascended the throne and realized what was happening, the Tang Dynasty had already lost Jiuqu.

After 30 years of operation, Tubo established military farms and built cities in Jiuqu, which, like Qinghai, became a frontier supply base for the invasion of the Tang Dynasty.

"It will take me three years at most to complete the goal I have set."

Li Xuan assured Li Longji.

Such a grand strategy requires some preparation. First, we must annihilate the Tubo’s effective forces, and then advance into Jiuqu and Qinghai.

"I am looking forward to it! However, only the position of deputy governor of Longyou is given to Qilang now. If Qilang can gain more merits, I will promote Huangfu Weiming and make you a general."

Li Longji also made a promise to Li Xuan.

Although Huangfu Weiming was defeated, the vitality of the Longyou army was not damaged.

What's more, Huangfu Weiming had won consecutive battles before, and Li Longji would not dismiss Huangfu Weiming from his official position just because of his defeat in Shibao City.

"Thank you, Saint!"

Li Xuan bowed to Li Longji.

He longed to become a general as soon as possible so that he could show his talents.

"Is it possible to penetrate into Tibetan territory and capture the Tibetan king?"

Li Longji wanted to conquer Shu before he even conquered Long.

Chidai Zhudan served as the Tibetan king for forty years. His reign overlapped with that of Li Longji. The long-term friction and disrespect in letters made Li Longji hate Chidai Zhudan to the core.

"Your Majesty, the reason why Xue Rengui was defeated in Dafeichuan was not only because of the disparity in troop strength, the long journey, and the lack of food and grass, but the biggest problem was the cold miasma."

"Tuba was founded on the plateau, so it is full of cold miasma. They have lived there for generations and can ignore the cold miasma. But a large number of us Han people feel that the deeper we go into Tubo, the more we feel breathless and unable to fight. We can only occupy Qinghai and Jiuqu, train some soldiers who can adapt to the miasma, and then consider the next step."

Li Xuan did not say anything absolute and still had hope for Li Longji.

In the Tang Dynasty, altitude sickness was called cold miasma or miasma.
Li Xuan didn't want to explain to Li Longji what altitude sickness was specifically.

The two words "cold miasma" were enough to make Li Longji worried.

"Well, if we take over Jiuqu and Qinghai, Tubo will no longer be able to compete with the Tang Dynasty."

Li Longji sent envoys to some cities in Siam. It was indeed difficult for Han people to enter Tibet. Some envoys died of cold malaria.

"Qi Lang is still unmarried. If you choose a girl, I will personally arrange a marriage for you!"

After talking about the war, Li Longji showed concern for Li Xuan's life and joked, "He is a handsome and heroic young man with great talent. The number of men and women in Chang'an who admire Qi Lang must be as numerous as the fish in the river!"

"If the Xiongnu is not destroyed, how can I have a family? When Tubo surrenders to the Tang Dynasty and is unable to compete with the Tang Dynasty for the Western Regions, I will get married again."

Li Xuan said to Li Longji.

There were indeed many men and women who wanted to marry Li Xuan, but Li Xuan didn't know any of them, so she would not rush into marriage.

Li Xuan was not married in his previous life, so he thought that his future wife must be gentle and virtuous.

"Haha, Qilang is really my Huo Qubing!"

Li Longji laughed loudly and told Gao Lishi, "Go to Chenxiang Pavilion, Qilang will follow you."

(End of this chapter)