My father, Li Shimin, requests Your Majesty to become the Retired Emperor.

Chapter 63 Songtsen Gampo presents a knife, Li Shimin is furious

night.

The main hall was brightly lit.

Songtsen Gampo convened a meeting of several ministers.

Songtsen Gampo lamented, "My father went out hunting, but unexpectedly encountered assassins and was killed."

An investigation revealed that the murderer was Prince Supi.

That night, I ordered Grand Minister Shangnang to lead five hundred armored soldiers to capture him. Unexpectedly, Prince Supi and King Tianzhu of Tuyuhun colluded with each other and killed three or four hundred of our soldiers.

This is an irreconcilable feud, and I, the King, will avenge this humiliation!

Just when I was at my wit's end, I remembered that the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty was on a diplomatic mission here. So I went to visit him and asked for his help.

The Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty readily agreed to my request.

They didn't use a single soldier of ours; just those few of them went to Tibet and, unexpectedly, actually captured Prince Supi and brought him back, avenging my father's death.

Now, they want me to sign a non-aggression pact. What do you say, will you sign it or not?

Grand Chancellor Shang Nang said, "Your Majesty, you are a man of your word. You once told the Crown Prince of Tang that you would go through fire and water to avenge him. Now that he has captured the real culprit, let alone signing any equal agreement, we can't refuse to send troops to help Tang."

Songtsen Gampo's uncle, Lunko, said: "Great Minister Shangnang, I disagree with your point of view."

The "righteousness" you mentioned is a "minor righteousness." We cannot impose our personal feelings on national interests.

Back then, during the Chu-Han Contention, Liu Bang and Xiang Yu vied for control of the empire.

Xiang Yu was stationed at Hongmen with 400,000 troops, while Liu Bang was stationed at Ba Shang with 100,000 troops.

Xiang Yu planned to launch an attack on Liu Bang the next day.

That night, to repay Zhang Liang for saving his life years ago, Xiang Bo went to Liu Bang's camp and told Zhang Liang about the incident.

This is called being muddleheaded, this is called "petty righteousness." In Xiang Bo's mind, there was no concept of national interest at all, which ultimately caused Xiang Yu to miss an opportunity to defeat Liu Bang by military means.

Later, at the Feast at Hongmen, Xiang Zhuang performed a sword dance with the intention of targeting Liu Bang, but Xiang Bo protected Liu Bang, and in the end, Liu Bang failed to succeed.

Does this mean that Xiang Bo bears no responsibility for Xiang Yu's eventual suicide at the Wujiang River?

Therefore, we should not emulate Xiang Bo.

"The Tang Dynasty loves peace and is powerful. The Heavenly Khan is magnanimous and sees no difference between barbarians and people from the Central Plains. What's wrong with us signing a peace agreement?"

"You're wrong. Have you ever heard of the Alliance of the Wei River?"

The Tang Dynasty and the Eastern Turks also signed a peace agreement, but what happened later?

Just last year, the Tang Dynasty, using any pretext, stirred up a conflict and wiped out the Eastern Turkic Khaganate.

Grand Minister Shangnang shook his head and said, "Khan Jieli has repeatedly violated the borders of the Tang Dynasty. The Heavenly Khan could no longer tolerate it, so he sent troops to attack them."

Lun Ke'er sneered: "Those are all one-sided accounts from the Tang people. I heard that one of Jieli Khan's subordinates was going to rebel, and Jieli Khan naturally had to quell the rebellion. But Li Shimin led his troops to fight Jieli Khan. Tell me, what does it have to do with your Li Tang dynasty if it's someone else's internal affair?"

This is what they call "wanting to find fault, one can always find a pretext."

Princess Chizun said, "The most common tactic used by the people of the Central Plains is to establish peace through marriage. They establish peace through marriage when they are weak, and when they become strong, they find a reason to attack them."

During the Han Dynasty, this was the case. Wang Zhaojun married Huhanye Chanyu of the Xiongnu, and later, the Xiongnu were destroyed.

During the Sui Dynasty, the court married Princess Yicheng to Qimin Khan of the Eastern Turks, and the Tang Dynasty also made peace with Tuyuhun through marriage. However, whenever they married their princess to a country, they would destroy that country.

Therefore, I oppose signing this agreement with Li Tang.

Princess Chizun reached out and tore up the agreement.

In fact, Princess Bhrikuti did this because she had another thought in mind. She was worried that after Songtsen Gampo went to Chang'an, the Tang Dynasty would give him a princess, and if that happened, her position would be in jeopardy.

Songtsen Gampo was taken aback: "What are you doing?"

"I think Lun Ke'er is right. We must not fall for Li Tang's trick. If we sign this agreement, Li Tang will definitely use force against Tuyuhun. At that time, Li Tang will definitely ask us to send troops to help them attack Tuyuhun. After they have dealt with Tuyuhun, they will come to deal with our Tubo."

Therefore, not only should the agreement not be signed, but Li Chengqian and his men should also be arrested. If the Tang dynasty dares to use force against us, we will take him hostage.

"Nonsense! If we were to do that, wouldn't that put me in an unjust position?"

"They just helped me avenge my father, how can I do such an unjust thing?" Songtsen Gampo was furious.

"Your Majesty, Lun Ke'er has already made it very clear that what you are doing is 'petty justice,' and you cannot use 'petty justice' to harm the interests of the state."

"What you are saying is all the opinion of fools. All those who oppose the people of the Central Plains will ultimately suffer the same fate: the destruction of their country."

Therefore, we must be on good terms with the Tang Dynasty; otherwise, our ultimate fate will be the same as that of the Xiongnu and the Eastern Turks.

Ultimately, Songtsen Gampo refused to arrest Li Chengqian and others, and the meeting ended inconclusively.

Su Gui reported the information she had gathered to Li Chengqian and suggested, "They might attack us; we should retreat immediately."

Li Chengqian shook his head: "We are here on a diplomatic mission. I don't expect Songtsen Gampo to be different from Fuyun Khan of Tuyuhun. He certainly won't harm us."

We don't need to run away.

Su Wan smiled and said, "See? I told you so, right? That Princess Chizun isn't a good person, is she?"

If I'm not mistaken, she lacked self-confidence and was afraid of losing Songtsen Gampo, which is why she resorted to this desperate measure.

I understand women's hearts best.

"The Tuyuhun are stubborn and unyielding; it's impossible to expect them to change their attitude. However, the Dangxiang have now surrendered to us. As long as Tibet remains neutral, our objective will be achieved."

"Your Highness is right."

As Li Chengqian had expected, Songtsen Gampo still treated them with great courtesy. However, no agreement was signed. Songtsen Gampo assured Li Chengqian that he would never collude with Tuyuhun, nor would he invade the borders of the Tang Dynasty.

Li Chengqian held Songtsen Gampo's hand and said, "Don't worry, when I return, I will definitely report to my father that as long as you do not invade the borders of the Tang Dynasty first, the Tang Dynasty will always protect and support you."

Songtsen Gampo repeatedly expressed his gratitude, saying, "After I quell the internal strife, I will definitely go to Chang'an to pay homage to the Heavenly Khan!"

"I welcome you anytime."

Several days later, Li Chengqian and Su Wan and their entourage set off to return to Chang'an. Songtsen Gampo gifted each of them a fine horse for their journey.

Furthermore, he presented Li Chengqian with a Tibetan steed that could travel a thousand li in a day and eight hundred li at night. Because the horse had a patch of white hair the size of a palm on its forehead, with a small tuft of red hair in the middle of the white hair, it was called "A Lamp for a Thousand Li". It could travel a thousand li in a day and eight hundred li at night, and was no less than the Ferghana horse.

In addition, Songtsen Gampo gifted Li Chengqian and his entourage many vegetables and fruits, as well as buckwheat and pea seeds, to take back to Chang'an.

Songtsen Gampo took a ring-pommel sword from his waist and gave it to Li Chengqian: "This sword has always been with me. It is a precious sword. I give it to you as a memento."

"Thank you!" Li Chengqian drew the knife, which gleamed and exuded a chilling aura.

He knew that the ring-pommel sword was once the most popular weapon among the Xiongnu people, and it was extremely lethal. However, this sword had been improved.

Songtsen Gampo then took out another box and said to Li Chengqian, "Our Tibetan iron smelting technology is quite good. Inside is a guide to iron smelting technology, as well as raw materials for iron powder. After you take it back, you can adjust it according to this formula and process it to make ring-pommel swords and other weapons. I believe they will be even sharper."

Li Chengqian was overjoyed, as this reminded him of the time when Zhang Qian was sent on a mission to the Western Regions and arrived at the Yuezhi, the Yuezhi king gave Zhang Qian the method for making a precious sword.

Later, Emperor Wu of Han modified the weapons.

This is one of the reasons why the Han army was able to defeat the Xiongnu.

How could Li Chengqian not be happy to have obtained advanced iron smelting technology?

After returning to Chang'an, he planned to suggest to his father that they adopt this advanced iron smelting technology and equip each soldier with a ring-pommel sword. He would also improve the crossbows himself, and then the fighting power of the entire Tang army would be completely different from what it used to be.

On the way back to Chang'an, Su Wan smiled and said to Li Chengqian, "Although we encountered many risks on this mission, we have successfully persuaded the Dangxiang to surrender and dismantled the alliance between Tuyuhun and the Dangxiang. This is a great achievement, and I bet your father will reward you handsomely."

Li Chengqian gave a wry smile: "I don't want any reward. I just want the Tang Dynasty to prosper and become stronger, and for the people to be wealthy."

Changan.

Zichen Palace.

Li Shimin held a memorial in his hand and was carefully reading it, his expression gradually becoming solemn.

Wei Zheng stood by, unaware of what had happened.

"Take a look," Li Shimin said, handing the memorial to Wei Zheng.

When Wei Zheng opened it, he found that it was a memorial sent by Jing Yao on behalf of Li Tai.

The gist of the above is that after Li Tai persuaded the Dangxiang to surrender, he received an agreement from Li Chengqian. The agreement stated that Tuyuhun also intended to surrender to the Tang Dynasty. So Li Tai personally led 2,500 cavalry to persuade Tuyuhun to surrender. However, unexpectedly, the agreement turned out to be fake. Tuyuhun had no intention of surrendering to the Tang Dynasty at all. On the contrary, Tianzhu King led 10,000 cavalry to surround them.

Now, they are surrounded, with no food or supplies inside and no reinforcements outside. The situation is extremely critical. I beg Father Emperor to send troops to their aid immediately. If they arrive too late, father and son will never see each other again.

Li Shimin paced back and forth in the hall, hands behind his back, saying anxiously, "Isn't Chengqian just being ridiculous? How can you joke about something like this?"

Wei Zheng was also anxious when he saw this.

"Your Majesty, I believe that the Crown Prince cannot be entirely blamed for this."

What do you mean by that?

"Your Majesty, please consider this: First of all, let's not discuss whether that agreement is true or false. If the King of Yue wants to persuade Tuyuhun to surrender, he must be wary of others. How can he easily fall into their ambush?"

Therefore, the King of Yue, as the leader, bears the primary responsibility;

Secondly, since the Tang Dynasty has already submitted to us, they should be responsible for the safety of the King of Yue.

So, what was Tuoba Chici doing?

Therefore, in my humble opinion, both the King of Yue and Tuoba Chici bear responsibility for this matter.

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin felt that Wei Zheng's words made some sense.

"That Khan Fuyun is truly hateful. Does he really think I wouldn't dare to lay a hand on him?"

"Your Majesty, you may not know this, but within the Tuyuhun, there are two factions:"

One faction was the pro-war faction led by King Tianzhu;

One faction, led by Murong Shun, was the pro-peace faction; they were at loggerheads.

"King of the Heavenly Pillars?"

"Yeah, that old bastard is a real piece of work."

It was he who stirred up trouble in front of Fuyun Khan that led to the Tuyuhun army invading our border.

Ultimately, he's the culprit.

Just then, Li Chengqian walked in from outside the palace gate, knelt down, and said, "Father Emperor."

When Li Shimin saw it was him, he was furious and didn't even let him get up: "You finally know to come back! Look what you've done!"

When Li Chengqian heard his father's tone was off, he thought to himself, "Oh no, I don't know what I did to upset my father again."

Li Shimin asked Wei Zheng to hand him the memorial.

After reading it, Li Chengqian broke out in a sweat. He thought to himself that this was all Su Wan's scheme, and he never expected it to cause such a big mess.

Li Tai, that kid, really fell for their trick.

"So, how do you suggest we resolve this?" Li Shimin asked.

Li Chengqian said, "I do bear responsibility for this matter."

"This isn't a question of responsibility. Tai'er and 2,500 Tang soldiers are trapped in the enemy lines. Are we just going to stand by and watch them lose their lives?"

Your son suggests:

On one hand, he ordered Tuoba Chici to send troops to provide relief;

On one hand, we can send Hou Junji to lead troops on an expedition, attacking from two directions.

Li Shimin nodded.

"Because Tuoba Chici and Fuyun Khan are father-in-law and son-in-law, he may have some reservations."

"So, what's your solution to this problem?"

"Send someone to supervise."

"Who do you think should be sent?"

"Your subject believes that since Du Zhenglun has returned, we can let him go."

In addition, there is one more person who can come along.

"Who are you talking about?"

"We have already sent the Yakushi Eri and Yakushi Keiko, siblings from the Wa (Japanese) Kingdom, back to Chang'an. Father Emperor must already know about this, right?"

"Yes."

"Your subject suggests that we leave Yaoshi Huizi behind and send Yaoshi Huiri there instead, since they have a cooperative relationship before, and Yaoshi Huiri and Tuoba Chici have a good relationship."

That's how people are often; if one person trusts another, they'll listen to him no matter what. Back then, when Li Chengqian was surrounded by the Tangut army, it was Yaoshi Huiri who persuaded Tuoba Chici.

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin assumed that Yakushi Eri was a Japanese slave and hesitated, asking, "Does this mean that our Great Tang has no one left?"

Wei Zheng glanced at Li Chengqian, strode around, and shook his head: "Your Majesty, please do not have any prejudice against the Japanese. The Japanese are also human beings. Since he can represent the Japanese country to come to the Tang Dynasty as an envoy, it means that he is not an ordinary person."

Pharmacist Hui Ri has a lot of energy.

I heard that his relationship with Tuoba Chici is unusual, and that he carries a lot of weight when he speaks in front of Tuoba Chici.

If he can persuade Tuoba Chici to send troops, then our chances of victory will be much greater.

Li Shimin said angrily, "That Tuoba Chici is also hateful. I have already bestowed upon him the surname Li, what an honor! Yet he harbors disloyal intentions. I shall punish him."

"No, Your Majesty, you must not have such thoughts."

Back then, Liu Bang's strength was not very great. After Han Xin conquered the Qi region, he asked Liu Bang to appoint him as the acting King of Qi. Liu Bang thought to himself, "I am short of soldiers and generals and I am waiting for you to come to my rescue. I did not expect you to come and ask me to appoint you as a king."

Therefore, Liu Bang was very angry and was about to lash out in front of the Qi envoy.

Later, Chen Ping and Zhang Liang kicked him.

Liu Bang reacted quickly, changing his tune and saying, "A real man doesn't need to be a fake King of Qi; he should be a real King of Qi." So, Liu Bang appointed Han Xin as the real King of Qi.

The current situation is somewhat similar to that of the past.

"We're too far away to reach him; we can't afford to offend Tuoba Chici."

Li Shimin felt that Wei Zheng's words made sense.

Therefore, Li Shimin issued an edict ordering Du Zhenglun to go to the Dangxiang again, with Yaoshi Huiri accompanying him.

Du Zhenglun thought to himself that he was in trouble. He hadn't even had a chance to get intimate with Chunyan before he had to go on a mission again. If he had known this would happen, he would never have come back from Dangxiang.

Although the pharmacist Hui Ri was not very willing, his younger sister was in Li Shimin's hands, and for her safety, he had no choice but to make another trip.

At the same time, Li Shimin ordered Hou Junji and Li Daliang to lead 10,000 cavalry to provide immediate reinforcements.

Li Chengqian took out the ring-pommel sword for Li Shimin and Wei Zheng to see, and at the same time, he took out the box that Songtsen Gampo had given him.

Wei Zheng said, "The rapid rise of Tibet was not accidental; it was inevitable."

You see, their methods of producing and processing weapons are very unique, things we couldn't have imagined.

Li Shimin also believed that Tibet's iron smelting technology was very advanced: "Yes, every ethnic group has its own strengths."

"Wasn't it the same during the reign of Emperor Wu of Han? If Zhang Qian hadn't gone on a mission to the Western Regions and brought back the method of making weapons, could they have defeated the Xiongnu? It's hard to say."

Li Shimin's expression softened slightly, and he asked Li Chengqian to stand up.

Li Chengqian then handed the crossbow he designed to Li Shimin for inspection.

Li Shimin also found it very novel after reading it.

Li Chengqian explained to him in detail how to use the crossbow and said, "I used it many times during this mission. It is highly effective in actual combat and I even killed a Ganges shark."

"Really? You've grown quite capable, kid," Li Shimin praised. "Back when I was fighting on the battlefield, I used a two-meter-long bow. If we had this crossbow back then, we wouldn't have needed to carry such a heavy thing. The fighting power of our Tang army would have been greatly enhanced."

"I have examined it. Your crossbows are more advanced than those used by Li Ling's army at that time, and the arrowheads have greater penetrating power than the Qin army's three-edged arrowheads."

"Father is wise. I plan to modify the crossbows and then produce them using the most advanced iron smelting technology and weapon raw materials."