Chapter 297 Seeking Benefits for the Family

It is an indisputable fact that the Arab world has a superior geographical location.

There have been more than 500 large-scale wars in the Middle East throughout the ages, and it is difficult to say what was right and wrong.

But historians have all noticed that it was this ancient battlefield in the Middle East that determined the rise and fall of so many countries.

In addition, the Middle East is located on a strategic route of the Silk Road, making it a piece of fat meat in the eyes of all forces.

In history, the Arabs were stuck in this position, acting as middlemen, and made an unknown amount of money.

This is no longer just a normal middleman's behavior of making a profit from the price difference. We must take strong measures!

After obtaining permission from the court, Li Shiji rested in Youzhou for ten days.

It’s not that Li Shiji is lazy and doesn’t want to move, but because the triangular...prisoner trade is in full swing in Youzhou now, and he always has to be here to support it.

Whether there are any villains causing trouble is secondary. The most important thing is to ensure the safety of the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty.

After all, there are not only troops from various grassland tribes in Youzhou City now, but also 110,000 prisoners of war.

Li Xiang had prepared sufficient money. In fact, the money was just transferred from one hand to the other. After getting the money, the leaders of these tribes quickly spent it in Youzhou.

Wuqing is now developing at an extremely rapid pace. When businessmen learned that Youzhou was attracting investment, they immediately flocked to it.

The cake of Dengzhou has been almost divided up. If latecomers want to gain a foothold in Dengzhou, they will probably have to pay a considerable price.

But Wuqing is different. Today, Wuqing is a desolate land, waiting to be developed.

What can be done with one string of money in Wuqing may cost seven, eight or even ten strings of money in Dengzhou.

In such a contrast, why not try your luck in Wuqing?

What's more, Youzhou now has corresponding support policies. Only a fool would give up such a potential stock and not invest in it, and go to Dengzhou to compete with others for it.

The two war criminals, Bazhuo and Ashina Helu, have been transferred to Chang'an to be tried by the Tang Dynasty.

Li Shimin's letter pointed out that Ashina Helu, in particular, was an ambitious man who was disloyal to the Tang Dynasty and played a double-dealing role, and must be dealt with severely to serve as a warning to others.

Of course Li Xiang would not object. Besides, he was not the one who captured Ashina Helu, and he was not the supreme leader of the Tang Dynasty. How Ashina Helu was dealt with had nothing to do with him.

After all the captives were handed over and sent to various places, Li Shiji also led 30,000 Tang troops and various ethnic groups on the grassland to the Andong Protectorate to prepare to support Su Dingfang and Liu Rengui.

This was also what Li Shimin meant. Now that they had sufficient soldiers and armor, complete logistics, and high morale, they should work together with the Andong Protectorate to eradicate the scabies of Silla.

Now that Japanese pirates are rampant, Silla is suffering. The Japanese pirates do not know whether the villages are under the control of Silla rebels or the Silla royal family. As long as they enter the villages and towns, they will immediately start burning, killing and looting.

Kim Bitam and Kim Yu-shin did not take it seriously. After all, they were both noble aristocrats of true bone and would not sympathize with those commoners of lowly bone origin.

In their view, being able to make the friendly forces coming to Japan to provide assistance happy is better than anything else.

I have to say that this is an inherited skill. After all, the US military stationed in South Korea is Southief's biological father.

At the end of September, Li Shiji's 30,000 Tang troops, together with 50,000 vassal troops, arrived in Pyongyang.

Along with him came Li Xiang's personal letter.

There was not much content in the letter, the general meaning was just expressing concern for the health of Su Dingfang and Liu Rengui.

The two of them were naturally moved to tears, after all, this was also the personal concern of His Highness.

At the same time, Li Shiji also conveyed a message from Li Xiang, which roughly meant that they should take advantage of the situation and, after quelling the civil strife in Silla, bring the Silla royal family, the ministers loyal to the Silla royal family and their families to Chang'an.

"Don't worry, Lord Ying, Silla is already in ruins now," Su Dingfang did not have any objections: "After we defeat the Silla rebels, we can talk to the King of Silla about this matter."

"Your Highness means that we should discuss it with the King of Silla now." Li Shiji looked at Su Dingfang meaningfully and said.

Hearing this, Su Dingfang thought about it and suddenly realized.

"That's true. If it weren't for the Duke of England's reminder, I would have almost missed your highness's important event!"

That evening, a banquet was held in the Andong Protectorate, and Silla Queen Kim Seung-man was invited to join the banquet.

Jin Chunqiu was currently supervising the war at the front line, so he did not participate in the banquet. Only some civil officials were present to serve the emperor.

"This is the Duke of Yingzhou of our dynasty and the commander-in-chief of the Youzhou Road Army." Su Dingfang introduced him to Jin Shengman.

After hearing that the person in front of him was Li Shiji, Jin Shengman was in awe.

"The Duke of England is so famous that I have heard of him. Seeing him today is enough to comfort me for the rest of my life."

"I am ashamed to be praised by Your Majesty." Li Shiji bowed and said modestly.

After all, the King of Silla was also a foreign king officially enthroned by the Tang Dynasty, so Li Shiji naturally had to call himself a foreign official.

Jin Shengman was very interested in the Tang army's victory in every battle. During the banquet, he asked Li Shiji about his battle stories from time to time.

Li Shiji was not secretive and told Jin Shengman many of the good things about the battles he had fought over the years.

He felt a little guilty, after all... he was somewhat misleading.

When the banquet was in full swing, Li Shiji suddenly said, "Your Majesty, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has an unwelcome request."

"Please speak, Duke of England." Jin Shengman said with a smile.

"Your Highness's intention is to invite the king and his ministers to Chang'an to live permanently after the Tang Dynasty helps Silla suppress the rebellion." Li Shiji stroked his beard and said, "When Your Highness was in Youzhou, he heard that Silla was being tormented by the Japanese pirates and was in dire straits. Your Highness is kind-hearted and cannot bear to see the people of Silla living in poverty, so he came up with this idea."

Hearing what Li Shiji said, Jin Shengman was obviously stunned.

She really didn't expect that Li Xiang would have such an idea.

Li Shiji's voice was not loud, but it was loud enough for people around him to hear clearly.

The Silla officials sitting around the King of Silla were all shocked after hearing what Lee Se-gil said.

No, what's going on?

Why are you suddenly talking about the post-war period and asking us to move to Chang'an?
Liu Rengui had just returned from outside and had not had time to communicate with Su Dingfang and Li Shiji. He was also stunned when he heard this. He had known that Li Xiang had this intention, but he did not expect that Li Shiji would play a straight ball at the banquet.

"This..." Jin Shengman looked at Li Shiji with a complicated expression, and opened his mouth, not knowing how to answer.

Instead, Jin Nanchu behind her suddenly asked, "According to Duke Ying, His Royal Highness wants us to live in Chang'an?"

"That's right." Li Shiji stroked his beard and said, "Your Highness thinks that it is not easy for you to leave your homeland, so I ask the saint to find a benefit for you, the ministers of Silla."

“Really?” asked everyone in Silla.

"How could I deceive you?" Li Shiji stroked his beard and said, "The saint will reward you with mansions that match your official ranks in Chang'an City. Your Highness has also secured another benefit for you, which is to convert your family's land and properties into larger mansions based on your original mansions."

Listen, listen, it’s a pity that old man Li Shiji didn’t go to the future to promote products.

Does this sound familiar to you? I've brought down the price for my family's benefit. All I need is...

That’s the routine.

But you know what, although this routine may be a bit weird in later generations, it is really useful in this era.

When the ministers of Silla learned that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty loved them as much as his own family, they all shed tears.

"Your Majesty's kindness... I really can't repay you enough!"

This was beyond Li Shiji's expectations, and he had no idea what to do.

What's going on? Shouldn't you be strongly against this?
As if seeing Li Shiji's doubts, Jin Nanchu said with tears of gratitude: "Now that Silla has been ravaged by war, our homes have been burned to ashes. Even if we suppress the rebellion and drive out the Japanese pirates, it will not be easy to rebuild. I never expected that Your Highness would be so kind and generous. How can we repay you for your kindness?"

"Your Highness will be very happy that you think this way." Su Dingfang looked at Jin Nanchu with a smile.

Jin Shengman looked at the ministers who were filled with gratitude and sighed softly.

"Your Majesty seems worried?" Liu Rengui asked.

Jin Shengman shook his head and said with a smile: "I was just wondering, how will His Highness compensate me?"

"Your Majesty, you'd better rest assured about this." Su Dingfang said with a smile: "Your Highness was known as Chang'an's timely rain in the past, and he will definitely not treat Your Majesty unfairly."

"In that case, I feel relieved." Jin Shengman swept his eyes over the ministers, with a hint of sadness in his expression.

Li Shiji and others understood her reaction.

After all, the ancestral foundation laid for so many years was handed over to others in one day. The ministers even aspired to become officials of the Tang Dynasty, which somewhat hurt her self-esteem.

If you put yourself in their shoes, probably no one would be willing to accept this.

Jin Shengman also thought of the same thing that the ministers were thinking. After all, who doesn't want to be a citizen of the Tang Dynasty these days?

As a Silla citizen, one had to face threats from the sea, and even food, clothing and other necessities became a problem.

If they were citizens of the Tang Dynasty, they would have had everything provided for them, eat delicacies from land and sea, and wear silk and satin. Now His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has promised to compensate them, allocating residences according to their official positions, and even compensating the area of ​​the residences according to their land holdings. In the city of Chang'an, every inch of land is worth countless money!
You know, I have always been a member of the Tang Dynasty. I have fought alongside the Tang Dynasty in the past and now. Now that I have decided to join the Tang Dynasty, I think I will have many wonderful chemical reactions with the Tang Dynasty...

Seeing that Jin Shengman was unhappy, Li Shiji and Su Dingfang looked at each other and did not try to provoke her.

However, what the three of them didn't expect was that after Jin Shengman returned to the bedroom, he jumped a little with excitement.

"Great! We're going to Chang'an!"

The female official who followed her asked in confusion: "Your Majesty, since you are so happy about going to Chang'an, why were you so unhappy at the banquet just now?"

What she didn't expect was that Jin Shengman smiled mysteriously and said to the female official: "If I am so happy at the banquet, how will the officials view me? Am I the kind of person who betrays my ancestors?"

The female official was obviously convinced by Jin Shengman. She nodded hesitantly, agreeing with the king's foresight.

"Ah..." Jin Shengman sat down on the bed and leaned back, his face full of longing: "I'm going to Chang'an, I'm going to Chang'an..."

Seeing her queen like this, the female official had a complicated expression.

Just now she was thinking about how to comfort the king when she came back, but she never expected that she was actually pretending just now?

OK, you did a great job!

"This King of Silla is quite a wonderful person."

In the side room of the Andong Protectorate, Li Shiji looked at the review report in his hand and said with a smile.

"Who said it wasn't?" Su Dingfang also said with a smile: "Just now I really thought that the King of Silla was unhappy because he abandoned his ancestors' foundation and went to Chang'an. I never thought that she was just playing a trick on us."

"That's good. From the King of Silla to the ministers of Silla, no one objects to going to Chang'an." Liu Rengui rubbed his temples and said to the two of them, "This way, we will have less trouble. But Jin Chunqiu may not give in."

"Jin Chunqiu is very loyal to the King of Silla." Su Dingfang said after a pause, "If the King of Silla and all the ministers agree to go to Chang'an, he may not object. Even if he objects, it may not have any effect."

"I didn't expect that the Silla people would be so eager to go to Chang'an." Li Shiji said to them with emotion, "I thought they would have some patriotism, but I never expected it would be like this."

Unexpectedly, when they heard Li Shiji's words, Su Dingfang and Liu Rengui burst into laughter.

"What are you laughing at? Was what I said wrong?" Li Shiji asked in confusion.

"The Duke of Ying probably doesn't know how much the barbarians long for Chang'an." Su Dingfang wiped his face with the towel that Li Xiangxin had someone bring over, and said to Li Shiji, "Let's not talk about the distant past. Take the Prince of Huaihua for example. He really dreams of living in Chang'an instead of eating dust and herding cattle and sheep in that miserable place of Dingxiang."

"What's more, His Highness has given such generous compensation." Liu Rengui also sighed: "In order to conquer Silla without bloodshed, His Highness really invested a lot of money and was willing to use such good conditions to compensate the Silla people."

"Before I came here, I was also confused." Li Shiji sighed, "Your Highness's meaning is very simple. Any problem that can be solved with money is not a problem. This is not a request for peace, but an annexation of land. It is not shameful, but extremely glorious - it is much better than starting a war and sacrificing Tang soldiers."

"Your Highness is benevolent." Li Xiang's two direct descendants immediately followed Li Shiji's words and went up to praise him.

Li Shiji looked at the two of them but didn't object.

After all, this statement... is rough but true.

If someone attacked him at his doorstep but he chose not to fight back and instead spent money to seek peace, Li Shiji would definitely not agree.

But now we are giving people two choices right at their doorstep, and it doesn’t feel bad.

(After a day of tinkering, the CPU finally works after frequency reduction. I am a dog if I use AMD again!!!
Why is my graphics card usage very high, but the video memory usage is very low...)
(End of this chapter)