More than two years have passed since then. In the past two years, while others have aged much, Hao Xiuyang actually looks younger. His face is rosy, and his long beard is neatly groomed. It is completely different from the image of the sloppy Taoist he used to be.
"No gift."
Li Xia almost wanted to ask Hao Xiuyang if he knew any Taoist methods for nourishing yin and replenishing yang, but when he thought of the old Taoist priest's dejected appearance when he first met him, he realized that it was not the Taoist methods that made him glow, but his royal power and wealth.
.
Generally speaking, Li Xia and Kublai Khan are the same people in terms of religion.
Kublai Khan believed in everything, but in fact he believed in nothing; Li Xia believes in nothing now, but for the sake of territory, he can believe in everything.
And these, Hao Xiuyang also understood, for example, why did Kublai Khan gradually lean towards Buddhism? Because of the benefits, because the benefits that the Quanzhen Religion could bring were not as good as those of the Tibetan lamas.
Then, as long as he integrates Buddhism and convinces Tubo, what Kublai Khan can give to Pasipa, Li Xia can also give him, and even more.
Maintaining the territory for Li Xia is the best way to keep the sect stable for a long time.
Hao Xiuyang's ambitions are obvious.
Li Xia also knew and was willing to realize his ambition, so he handed over an edict and said: "The title is given to you, the authentic Xuanmen auxiliary Mingde Zhenren, go and sigh."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Hao Xiuyang didn't understand what "sighing" meant, so he held the edict in his hands with a calm expression.
"I have lived up to your majesty's great trust, and the Tubo party has achieved great success."
"Really? Let the old Taoist sit down and talk. Please ask the Taoist to go to Tubo to convince the lama. I don't think this will happen."
"Your Majesty is laughing." Hao Xiuyang said in a serious tone: "Sakya Pandita and Kuo Duan formed an alliance in Liangzhou. Is it because Kuo Duan is proficient in Buddhism? A poor Taoist has few talents and little knowledge, but at least he understands Buddhism better than Kuo Duan."
"Don't pretend to be sophisticated in front of me."
Li Xia raised his hand and pointed a finger to pierce Hao Xiuyang's sanctimony.
Hao Xiuyang smiled, showing a proud expression.
"The old Taoist is telling the truth. Looking back at the Quanzhen Sect's defeat to those bald donkeys at the Buddhist and Taoist Debate Conference, it really lost the face of the Taoist sect in the world."
"Oh? The old Taoist said that he has gained a lot because he won the debate on Buddhism?"
"No." Hao Xiuyang said boldly, "The old Taoist won't win in debate, but he can conquer Tubo with his national strength."
"Let's get down to business."
"Yes, Tubo has collapsed and weakened since the end of the Tang Dynasty, forming various tribes. The largest force among them is the Kun family."
"The Kun family?"
"The Kun family can be traced back to King Trisong Detsen of Tibet." Hao Xiuyang knew Li Xia well and said, "Your Majesty may not know Trisong Detsen, but he must know Songtsen Gampo?"
"Um."
"Songtsan Gampo was the 33rd Tibetan Dharma King, and Trisong Detsen was the 37th. Both kings were respected by the Tibetan people as one of the 'Three Great Dharma Kings of Tubo', and they respected Buddhism very much...
"
Li Xia listened for a while and finally understood that the Kun family practiced the integration of politics and religion. It was the master of the temple, the head of the family, and the master of the sect. It was passed down from generation to generation and was the largest force in Tubo.
"The Kun family lived in Sakya and founded the Sakya Monastery. The current head of the clan is Phagpa. He initiated Kublai Khan and is still in Kaiping. I will talk about this person later. I went to Sakya here and saw what I saw.
It’s his younger brother Chanadoji…”
Hao Xiuyang talked for more than an hour, and at the end he said: "As long as Chana Dorje agrees, Tubo will be under the rule of the Tang Dynasty."
As he spoke, he drew a circle on the map with a pen and included Tubo in the territory.
For a king, this scene is truly heart-warming.
"What about the conditions?"
"Has Your Majesty read the "Sakya Pandita's Letter to the Tibetan People"?"
Li Xia nodded and asked, "Is it that simple?"
"As long as your majesty respects the beliefs of the Tibetan people, is willing to promote Buddhism, prepare for the construction of temples, and allow them to be held in official positions by local people after they submit, the rewards for Tubo will be no less than those given by the Yuan court."
Li Xia suddenly narrowed his eyes and asked, "Is the old Taoist priest helping Tubo Buddhism and persuading me to promote Buddhism?"
Hao Xiuyang smiled mysteriously, stroked his beard and said, "Does Your Majesty know what the Quanzhen Sect is arguing about when they argue with these monks?"
"I don't know."
"The Sutra of Transformation of Hu by Laozi states that Laozi entered the womb of Princess Suddhodana Jingmiao by riding the sun essence in Tianzhu. After his birth, he named himself Sakyamuni and founded Buddhism. Sakyamuni is just an incarnation of Laozi."
Li Xia was not interested in this and just listened.
Hao Xiuyang asked again: "Your Majesty, does your Majesty know who else besides Taoism preached this statement at the beginning?"
Li Xia glanced at Hao Xiuyang lightly.
The old Taoist priest was frightened, and he did not dare to make any pretense anymore, so he continued speaking honestly.
"Basiba debated with the Quanzhen Religion, and what they debated was Laozi's Transformation of Hu Jing. In the end, Pasiba won the debate against the Quanzhen Religion. Fortunately, it was the time when Meng Ge was attacking Shu. After that, His Majesty swept Hanzhong and Guanzhong
, Longxi, cutting off the communication between Tubo and Mongolia. The land of Sakya has not yet obtained the results of the great debate. The old Taoist can take the opportunity to return the results to those before the debate, so-called... return to nature."
"What a return to nature."
"I dare to ask Your Majesty to give you Tibetan tea, porcelain, silk, and a large number of Buddhist scriptures." Hao Xiuyang straightened his clothes, clasped his fists and crossed the tiger's mouth, bowed his head, and said: "I will definitely recover Tubo for Your Majesty."
"I agree to all the conditions. As for the reward, I will let the Ministry of Household Affairs draw up a charter and discuss it later."
Hao Xiuyang couldn't help but think to himself, there was a rumor in Chang'an City that the Minister of the Ministry of Finance was going to be replaced, so he shouldn't delay this important event.
Gently stroking it with his fingers, he was actually a little worried. If Basiba returned to Tubo, all his previous efforts would be wasted.
After meeting several close ministers in Ziwu Town that day, Li Xia breathed a sigh of relief.
Although he calculated that Kublai Khan did not have time to mobilize the main force to attack, he was still worried when he was in the Song Dynasty. Now he can be sure that Kublai Khan will completely eliminate the impact of the struggle for the throne and withdraw his hands from the Western Regions.
quick.
Then, this year’s tone of internal cultivation and external struggle can probably be determined.
In terms of internal repair, in addition to building high walls and hoarding grain, the official system should also be determined at the beginning of the emperor's reign for efficient governance. When the population base is insufficient, governance efficiency is another way to catch up with national power.
.
In terms of foreign aggression, after years of endless battles, it is necessary to rest for a year or two. If we can imitate the Liangzhou Alliance and conquer Tibet, it will naturally be extremely beneficial to the situation, but I am afraid it will not be that easy.
After Ali met Dong Wenbing in The Hague, he ordered his troops and horses to return to Haibao Prefecture the next day.
But when he arrived in Xifu Zhengzhou, he sent a confidant to give detailed instructions.
"Send this letter to Kaiping."
It was a letter written in Uighur-Mongolian. When the confidant got an errand, he immediately turned north and headed straight for Kaiping. Following Ali Hague's instructions, the letter was directly delivered to the current Zhongshu Zuo Prime Minister Hudu Da'er.
Kududa'er was born into a Mongolian noble family, and his ability to worship the prime minister was not due to his talents or achievements.
It's just that Kublai Khan appointed officials very arbitrarily. For example, if he appointed Zhang Wenqian as prime minister, he could be sent to control floods, and if he appointed Shi Tianze as prime minister, he could be sent to fight wars. The Zhongshu Province often needed many prime ministers.
When Hudu Da'er saw the letter from Ali Hague, he was not very happy immediately.
"After losing the battle in Jiangling, do you still dare to write to me and expect me to intercede on his behalf?"
When he actually opened the letter and read it, Hudu Daer's anger was transferred away from Ali Hague, and he whispered to himself: "Dong Wenbing...these Han people have gone too far."
As Zhongshu Zuocheng, he certainly knew that the troops in Henan alone were not enough to attack Tongguan by splitting up troops to attack Jiangling.
But the attitude is another matter. The scene described in Ali's letter from The Hague of Dong Wenbing hiding in Luoyang, reciting poems and writing poems, really makes people feel deeply distrustful.
Without saying a word, Kududa'er immediately went to see Kublai Khan.
"Prime Minister Zuo is here."
"Bo Yan? It's you again?"
Suddenly Du Da'er arrived in front of the big tent and saw Boyan coming out of the tent, a little unhappy.
This Boyan was simply an envoy sent by Hulagu. He only arrived in Kaiping last year, and it had only been a few months, but he was immediately put into great use by the Great Khan.
The time the Great Khan spent discussing state affairs with Boyan was even longer than when he saw Hudu Da'er.
It was even heard that the Great Khan intended to make Boyan the prime minister.
Hudu Da'er thought this was too ridiculous.
He didn't have a good look on Boyan and said: "I want to see the Khan."
"What's wrong, Prime Minister Zuo?"
"I don't need to talk to you, an outsider."
Boyan smiled and then led Hudu Da'er into the tent.
In the big tent, Kublai Khan was talking to Yao Shu.
I don’t know if it was intentional, but when Yao Shu saw Kublai Khan, he came over and spoke in Chinese. His own interpreter stood beside Kublai Khan and translated in a low voice.
Boyan stood aside and occasionally added a few words, and Kublai Khan nodded repeatedly.
Only Kududaer, who did not understand Chinese and had no interpreter, could not understand what they were saying, so he had to stand aside with a look of displeasure on his face.
After waiting for a long time, he finally got the chance, handed over the letter in his hand, and said: "Great Khan, Dong Wenbing is afraid that Dong Wenbing has different intentions. How could the Great Khan hand over Henan to such a person?"
Unexpectedly, Kublai Khan did not even take the letter. He waved his hand and asked his attendant to hand the letter to Boyan.
"Bo Yan, tell me."
Boyan answered in Mongolian, but the words he used were different from other Mongolians.
Kududa'er has been speaking Mongolian all his life, but he has never been able to say such elegant words.
Just listen to Boyan say: "I think Dong Wenbing is really not suitable to be in charge of the military and civil affairs of Henan. Your Majesty, please choose another virtuous man."
Although Hudu Da'er hated Boyan, he still said: "Khan, I mean the same thing!"
Kublai Khan, who was sitting in the big tent, had a serious look on his face. He only thought for a moment and then made another decision.
"He was demoted to Hudu Da'er as Pingzhang political affairs officer, and promoted to Boyan as the Prime Minister of Zhongshu Zuo, and also the economic envoy of Henan."
Hearing only these first two sentences, Duda'er's mind suddenly buzzed and he was already stunned.
He didn't understand why he was demoted and made an outsider the prime minister despite the same suggestion.
Only at this moment did he feel that the rise and fall of official positions in the great Mongolian country was just a joke.