Chapter 129: Conferred the title of Marquis, Ambassador of the Hexi and Longyou Campaign
"Is there such a thing?"

Li Xuan frowned.

He was just about to do horse business with the Kuts to expand the pastoral administration.

Hexi did such a thing, isn't this going against him?

This will definitely have an impact on his acquisition of fine horses from the Western Regions!

Although the Kuts are profit-driven, they are very united, and some good or bad news will spread quickly among them.

Moreover, the Hexi Corridor is the only way for merchants from the Western Regions.

It seems that the news has not yet spread widely, otherwise Liu Xi would not have been able to obtain so many promises from the Kurds.

But he is too far away to control Hexi!
"Well! Tell me the information about the Hexi tyrant, and I'll write a letter to the Hexi Interview and Disposal Commissioner, hoping that he can handle this matter. Otherwise, I'll file an impeachment petition!"

Li Xuan thought about it and felt that this matter had a huge impact and must be resolved.

Even if the tyrant was not punished, he would just return the horses to their owners.

Since he was also the Herdsman of Longyou, he had to shoulder the task of supervising and strengthening the herdsmen.

Not just now, but also in the future.

Ma's administration is an important part of state governance. Even if he holds power, he needs to develop it vigorously. Now is the time to lay a solid foundation.

"Also, tell those Hu people who lost their horses to come to Huangshui City to find me and tell them that I will take care of it for them."

Li Xuan gave another instruction.

"As ordered!"

Zhang Wenyan accepted the order.

After everything was arranged, Li Xuan led the cavalry of the Lintao Army, along with the captured horses, weapons, armor and other trophies, and left Anxiang County in the early hours of the morning after the heavy snow had cleared.

Those injured soldiers will temporarily recuperate in Anxiang City and report back to the army after their injuries are healed.

Li Xuan left a military doctor to look after him.

Otherwise, the cold weather will inevitably aggravate the injury.

……

Changan.

"Qi Lang is so relieved!"

After receiving Li Xuan's battle report, Li Longji smiled happily.

Since he ascended the throne, he had fought against Tubo many times, but this was the first time he had achieved such a great military achievement.

Moreover, this "Congratulatory Letter on the Defeat of Tubo at the Li River" was very much to his liking.

After receiving the congratulatory message, Li Longji immediately summoned the right prime minister Li Linfu and the left prime minister Wei Jian to the Qinzhengwu building to discuss matters.

"Please take a look at this congratulatory letter!"

Li Longji placed the congratulatory letter on the table. Li Linfu and Wei Jian stood up and spread it out to look at it together.

When Li Linfu saw the words "Congratulations on the Defeat of Tubo at the Li River", he knew that Li Xuan had made another contribution.

Looking at the beginning again, it is full of words of praise for the saint, as if this victory was entirely due to the saint's wisdom.

No wonder the saint is so happy.

Li Linfu thought he had done enough to please the saint, but compared with Li Xuan, it seemed that he was still a little short.

In his heart, he felt that Li Xuan was a serious threat. He was not afraid of capable and upright ministers, but he was afraid of people like Li Xuan who were flexible and adaptable.

He is already like this before he even reaches adulthood. Wouldn't he be even more experienced if he were a few years older?

Next, Li Linfu was even more shocked when he saw Li Xuan’s military achievements.

Since Li Longji ascended the throne, although he defeated Tubo many times, he had never killed or captured more than 60,000 Tubo people.

If the battle plan drafted by Li Xuan was true, then Li Longji would definitely rely on him more.

It is even more difficult to deal with Li Xuan under the current situation!

When he thought of this, Li Linfu felt extremely aggrieved. As the chief prime minister, he had the upper hand over everyone, but when it came to Li Xuan, he made repeated mistakes.

Now Li Xuan has grown stronger, with Yang Yuhuan and Gao Lishi among him. It is very difficult to point fingers at people and frame them, and if things go wrong it may even disgust the Saint.

Wei Jian was also shocked by Li Xuan's military achievements. This seventh son of the Li family was too powerful.

He usually thought Li Xuan was harmless, but on the battlefield he was like a king reborn.

Wei Jian believed that although he, Li Shizhi and Li Xuan no longer met publicly, they were still in the same faction.

As long as Li Xuan could help him deal with Li Linfu, he would not care about the saint's reward to Li Xuan.

Recently, after being silent for a long time, Li Linfu finally showed his fangs. He ordered Lu Xuan to impeach the deputy envoy of water and land transportation for abusing his power for personal gain, and ordered Ji Wen to try the case.

Within a few days the evidence was conclusive.

The deputy envoy of water and land transportation was recommended by Wei Jian, which made Wei Jian, who had just been appointed as prime minister, very embarrassed.

He followed Huangfu Weiming's advice and kicked Ji Wen out of the Ministry of Justice. Unexpectedly, Li Linfu re-employed Ji Wen.

Although this incident did not have much impact on him, it made Wei Jian feel the pressure from Li Linfu.

He always felt that Li Linfu would take action again.

"Congratulations, Saint. You are a man of great literary and military powers, and you have coordinated thousands of miles, so you have achieved this great victory. The battle of Li River will surely make Tubo afraid. This battle will also affect the countries in the Western Regions, causing them to send envoys to congratulate us."

After reading the congratulatory letter, Li Linfu's expression changed quickly, and he smiled and bowed to Li Longji.

"Congratulations, Saint. You have a keen eye for talent and boldly appointed Li Qilang as your commander. This kind of courage is beyond the reach of the ministers!"

Wei Jian was not willing to be outdone, so he also bowed to Li Longji.

"The small country of Tubo has been stealing the knowledge of the Tang Dynasty and trying to compete with it. Today's battle has made us feel proud. The two prime ministers, what is the next strategy?"

Li Longji nodded. Li Xuan's ability to accomplish such a great victory made him firmly believe that Li Xuan could recapture Jiuqu and include Qinghai in the territory of the Tang Dynasty.

"Although General Li is young, he is cautious in his actions. I believe that General Li has made plans. Now the court needs to replenish the troops and horses for the Longyou Army and reward them with expenses so that General Li can have enough troops and generals when he finds an opportunity to fight."

Wei Jian couldn't judge, so he didn't say anything.

"Your Majesty, I think we should urge General Li to make Shibao City our next strategic location. Only by occupying Shibao City can the Tang Dynasty move freely."

Li Linfu was different. In the past two years, Li Longji had been mentioning Shibao City to him. He thought that Li Longji most wanted to capture Shibao City.

Saying this is to please Li Longji.

He also contributed a lot to the victory.

If Li Xuan fails to capture this fortified city, his reputation will be damaged, causing the sage to question Li Xuan.

"Right Prime Minister, the Prime Minister not only handles government affairs, but also needs to participate in military affairs. You should read more about the Art of War! Shibao City is a mountain city, how can it be so easy to attack?"

When Li Longji heard Li Linfu's words, he was hit hard.

He was first indoctrinated by Li Xuan with the idea that "Shibao City is useless", and then heard the words of attacking Shibao City, he naturally felt that Li Linfu lacked military ability.

Compared with Shibao City, Li Xuan preferred Jiuqu and Qinghai as strategic goals.

"Saint, calm down. I know I was wrong. My strategy is not even eleven times better than yours. I will definitely study Sun Wu carefully."

Li Linfu bowed to Li Longji with great fear and trepidation.

He couldn't understand why the saint suddenly reprimanded him for it when he clearly cared about Stone Castle before.

However, Li Linfu was a smart man. While apologizing, he boasted that his strategy was only 10% inferior to Li Longji's, which made Li Longji stop blaming Li Linfu.

If he had not had in-depth communication with Li Xuan, he would also ask General Bian to capture Shibao City as soon as possible.

Wei Jian tried hard not to laugh. It was the first time since he became prime minister that he saw Li Linfu suffer a setback, and he felt very happy.

He mocked Li Linfu for pretending to know. He also thought he was wise and didn't know.

"Qi Lang has made such a great contribution. I will formally appoint him as the governor and send someone to grant him the imperial seal. Will the officials have any objections?"

Li Longji said to the two prime ministers.

"The saint is wise, this is the way it should be!"

Wei Jian answered without thinking.

"The saint is wise, General Li deserves this achievement!"

Even though Li Linfu felt uncomfortable, he had to agree.

"Tomorrow morning, let the Right Prime Minister propose it!"

Li Longji asked Li Linfu to take the lead in making a presentation at the morning court tomorrow.

"According to the order!"

What else could Li Linfu say? He could only follow Li Longji's wishes.

"In this battle, although Qilang defeated the enemy with a small force and achieved a great victory with minimal losses, I feel that the troops in Longyou are somewhat insufficient. I can only bring 7,000 cavalry to Anxiang County to cooperate with Pingyi Shouzhuo, Momen Army, and Zhenxi Army. Finally, the troops from Hexi will be needed to support Hehuang. Tubo can mobilize 400,000 to 500,000 troops with all its strength. I believe in Qilang's bravery, but I don't want to lose a loyal minister like Qilang..."

Li Longji suddenly said these words again.

Li Linfu's heart skipped a beat. He didn't think this was to increase the number of troops in Longyou. Rather, it was to Hexi!
The sage wanted Li Xuan to concurrently serve as the governor of Hexi, commanding 75,000 troops in Hexi to cooperate with Longyou in a major battle against Tubo.

It's worth it!

If a young man who has not even reached adulthood controls an army of 150,000 and can really defeat Tubo and make it unable to recover, won't he be able to become a prime minister?

"Your Majesty, I think General Fumeng just killed Mohedagan in battle and wiped out the remnants of the Turks. Now there is no vacant position for the Minister of War. If we rashly transfer him away, it will not only disappoint General Fumeng, but also make other border commanders uneasy."

Li Linfu persuaded him with this reason.

"General Fumeng is a famous general who has made great contributions in the Western Regions. However, since General Fumeng left the Western Regions, there have been no more military achievements from the Western Regions. How long will Xiaoboluo rely on Tubo to be arrogant? If there is no more achievement this year, I will transfer General Fumeng to the Western Regions as the governor of the four towns of Anxi and confer him the title of deputy governor of Anxi Protectorate."

Li Longji felt that what Li Linfu said made sense, but he did not give up.

Li Linfu's expression changed slightly. It was already the end of the year.

Does the saint intend to let Li Xuan concurrently serve as the governor of Hexi next year?

Thinking of his previous mistake, Li Linfu dared not persuade him any further and could only say against his conscience: "The saint's decision will not be wrong."

"I agree with the sage's strategy. Xiaoboluo is the western gateway of the Tang Dynasty. Now the Tibetan countries are wavering because Xiaoboluo has surrendered to Tubo. As long as Xiaoboluo is taken down, the pace of Tubo's expansion will be curbed, and the countries in the Western Regions will not dare to defy the Tang Dynasty again. We must arrange a general who can take it down. General Li has more important things to do. General Fumeng is the right person!"

Wei Jian has recently studied the Western Regions and knows the importance of Xiaobolü to the Tang Dynasty.

"Just wait a few more months!"

Li Longji found Wei Jian's words very pleasing to the ear.

After thinking it over carefully, he decided to postpone the matter and let Li Xuan serve as the governor of Hexi concurrently.

After Li Linfu and Wei Jian left, Li Longji instructed the eunuch Lin Zhaoyin to take the bear paws from the black bear that An Lushan had just presented, cook them, and send them to the Prince's Grand Tutor's Mansion.

Li Longji always regretted that Li Shizhi was dismissed from his post.

But Li Shizhi was indeed in a trance. Even his nephew, Prince Ruyang, said when he came to visit him that Li Shizhi often made typos in his writings and no longer had the spirit of his past.

He also asked Li Shizhi to drink less and take more supplements, but Li Shizhi never got better.

The next day, the most important thing at the morning court was the reward for Li Xuan and the soldiers of the Longyou Army.

Li Xuan was officially appointed as the governor of Longyou and concurrently the governor of Helong. He was granted the title of Shang Hujun and promoted to the title of Marquis of Qingshui County. Other official posts, miscellaneous officials and envoys remained unchanged.

The Helong Suppressing Envoy, as the name suggests, was the ambassador of Hexi and Longyou, and the target of their attack was obviously Tubo.

In the past, there were punitive ensigns, such as the Hexi punitive ensign, but that was only a punitive expedition against one army.

Li Xuan was the governor of Longyou, but he was also in charge of the campaign against Helong.

The ministers could all see the intention of letting Li Xuan concurrently serve as the governor of Hexi.

The title of Shang Hujun is the tenth of the twelve ranks of military merit, second only to Zhuguo and Shang Zhuguo. It is a third-rank honorary title.

The title of Marquis of Qingshui County was the sixth level of nobility, with a fief of 1,000 households, three levels higher than Li Xuan's previous title.

Of course, the fief was not a real seal.

Fortunately, Li Longji was rational, otherwise, for such a great contribution, Li Xuan would at least be granted the title of county lord.

But in general, Li Xuan achieved the true meaning of "being ennobled", and this was not because of the influence of his ancestors, but because of his own efforts.

Li Xuan was also rewarded with 200 gold coins, 10 gold wares, 100 silver wares, 100 lacquer wares, and 3,000 pieces of silk. Considering Li Xuan's youth and vigor, Li Longji also rewarded him with 10 beauties from the Jiaofang.

He also gave the army 100,000 strings of cash and 50,000 pieces of silk.

These military rewards were paid from the national treasury and delivered to Longyou by ambassadors.

The princes and dignitaries in Chang'an were shocked when they learned what happened in the court.

Although Li Shizhi was dismissed from his post as prime minister, the family did not lose its glory. Li Xuan was made a marquis at the age of seventeen and was rising with unstoppable momentum.

Countless princes and nobles vied to visit Li Shizhi, but Li Shizhi kept his door half closed.

Ministers with real power and generals of the imperial guards who were in charge of the military all refused to see him. He only socialized and entertained with officials without any duties.

……

Right Prime Minister's Mansion.

"Every time I see this ungrateful bastard Wei Jian, I get angry. I lost my composure because of him. I must find a way to get rid of him."

Li Linfu thought about it in Yuetang, but the method he thought of was not enough to overthrow Wei Jian, so he called his confidant Ji Wen to ask for his advice.

"We should start with Wei Jian's identity as a maternal relative."

Ji Wen thought about it and said to Li Linfu.

"I have thought about this, but I have never been able to catch him."

Li Linfu shook his head slightly. Wei Jian was very cautious. Now that even the prince was missing, it was difficult for him to find any evidence against him.

"If Li Xuan meets with Wei Jian privately after returning to the capital, you should report to the emperor and accuse Wei Jian of colluding with the border generals and plotting to depose the emperor." Ji Wen said to Li Linfu, "This is a taboo for the emperor. Even the most trusted people cannot escape this suspicion."

Ji Wen was also a capable man. He saw through Li Longji's weak spot by seeing that Li Longji killed three sons in one day.

"You don't know Li Xuan. He is cunning and cannot be compared to Li Shizhi and Wei Jian. Even if Wei Jian wants to meet Li Xuan, he will probably refuse."

Li Linfu shook his head again. From Li Shizhi's actions during this period, we can see the caution of his family.

Ji Wen's plan seemed to kill two birds with one stone, but Li Linfu felt it was impossible to achieve.

"Then I have no other solution. But I suggest that you be patient. Everyone has flaws. Li Xuan will, Wei Jian will too. Any disturbance in Chang'an can be used as a weapon to kill people."

Ji Wen shook his head slightly. He thought that Li Linfu's status in Li Longji's heart had declined compared to two years ago. Now he should not take the initiative to look for opportunities, but wait for them.

"That's all!"

Li Linfu took a breath. He was indeed a little anxious over the past year, mainly because his status had been challenged again and again, which made him feel unhappy and he was always looking for an opportunity to take revenge.

"Ji Qi, I think Li Xuan wants to become the prime minister. What do you think?"

Li Linfu suddenly said that although Li Xuan was very young and looked like a general, everything he did proved that he wanted to interfere in the court. He always had a strong premonition.

"What you said is correct, sir. He is not only a general, but also a famous talent in Chang'an. If such a person has the potential to become a prime minister, the saint will most likely choose him."

Ji Wen agreed with Li Linfu's idea.

Among the prime ministers of the Kaiyuan period, there were two leaders in the literary world. The sage hoped that great talents would be appointed as prime ministers to dress up the prosperous times and whitewash the peace.

"Alas! I knew this, but I couldn't stop him from becoming stronger."

Li Linfu was dejected, and then said: "I had a dream a few days ago. A tall man with a white face and a long beard approached me and stuck to me. I couldn't push him away. I woke up in a cold sweat. Thinking carefully, this man looks too much like the Minister of Finance Pei Kuan. He has been trusted by the saint recently. I think he may become the prime minister and eventually replace me!"

"My husband, dreams cannot be taken seriously."

Ji Wen thought Li Linfu was suspicious.

"But I can never forget that scene. Pei Kuan had always been good friends with Li Shizhi, and now he is flirting with Wei Jian. It is said that he is eyeing the position of Minister of Personnel."

Li Linfu had already regarded Pei Kuan as an enemy in his heart, and the dream he had a few days ago made him list him as a mortal enemy.

"Pei Kuan is easy to deal with. But I still think we should wait for an opportunity instead of actively looking for one. I will investigate Pei Kuan carefully and will find his flaws as soon as possible."

Ji Wen assured Li Linfu.

After being kicked out of the Ministry of Justice by Wei Jian, Ji Wen knew that the only person he could rely on was Li Linfu. No matter what Li Linfu asked him to do, he would serve as a vanguard.

"Just do your best!"

After Li Linfu finished speaking, he asked Ji Wen to leave.

……

Huangshui City.

Not two days after Li Xuan led his army back to Huangshui City, an urgent imperial edict arrived.

In the imperial edict, Li Longji praised Li Xuan for his outstanding military achievements and informed him of his appointment and rewards in advance.

When the special envoy arrives, he will replace the fish token for Li Xuan and the rewards will also be delivered.

Becoming a Jiedushi was something Li Xuan expected.

Li Xuan was not too surprised by the promotion to the rank of Marquis or the title of Marquis. The main reason was that Li Xuan also held a concurrent post.

Originally, the post of the envoy to attack and defeat was considered a common post. However, the post of the envoy to attack and defeat the enemy in Helong made Li Xuan think twice.

He has no military power in Hexi, so how can he attack on behalf of Hexi?

But Li Longji definitely had an intention.

After thinking for a moment, Li Xuan realized that Li Longji might let him serve as the governor of Hexi concurrently.

Historically, more than a year later, Fu Menglingcha was transferred to the Western Regions for unknown reasons, and Huangfu Weiming was in charge of both Hexi and Longyou. Later, Wang Zhongsi and Geshu Han also served in these two towns at the same time.

In Li Longji's mind, only by joining forces in Hexi and Longyou could they compete with Tubo.

"If I can get more than 70,000 soldiers and horses from Hexi and the resources of the Hexi Corridor, I will be more careful when I attack Tubo."

Li Xuan murmured to himself, he was also looking forward to it.

Although Li Longji did not make a direct appointment this time, he felt that it was not far away, and perhaps it only took an opportunity.

(End of this chapter)