In the end, Li Er couldn't come up with any clever ideas, so he sighed deeply and dismissed a group of ministers.
But I knew in my heart that what Du Ruhui said was right, and the top priority now was to attack the pirates' arrogance first.
Although it is impossible to annihilate them, it is still necessary to dispatch the imperial warships to protect the people.
These pirates emerged in endlessly. As long as there were maritime merchants, there would be pirates. As long as the Romans were willing to spend money to send weapons and property, pirates would definitely exist.
The key is that pirates are very troublesome on the vast sea.
In the past, the sources of weapons and food for pirates could be guessed and calculated. Therefore, the imperial army of the Tang Dynasty only needed to destroy the supply locations of these pirates. Naturally, these pirates were unable to take care of themselves every minute.
but now.
The Romans funded these pirates with weapons, so these pirates only needed to be supplied with water and food. In this way.
It is not easy to capture the "shore bases" of these pirates, that is, various dens. The pirates who have no shortage of weapons and only need to replenish food and water can make their home everywhere!
As for the source of these weapons, it is conceivable that the Romans probably colluded with some maritime merchants and smuggled them from the sea to these guys!
But it is not easy to check. The scale of maritime trade in Datang is getting bigger and bigger, and it is difficult to check all the ships within the country, let alone every ship on the sea!
Who knows which merchant ship transported military supplies to the pirates? This is something no one can tell.
Li Er understood more and more that what Du Ming said was right.
It's not what Du said directly, but the meaning hidden in those words.
The top priority right now is to combat the arrogance of the pirates and protect the people along the coast. As for the issue of eradicating the pirates this time,
Then you really need to be patient and think of a solution slowly!
This way.
In the dead of night, Li Er couldn't help but think of that name again.
Li Sheng!
After thinking about it, I feel like only this kid might be able to figure it out.
However, although Li Er had made up his mind to take action against Li Sheng, after thinking about it, he felt that it might not be useful.
Because now it’s not that we understand the situation but can’t handle it, but that we don’t even have a direction or idea to solve the problem.
The strategy that old guy Du Ruhui talks about is not so much a solution.
No, realistically speaking, this is completely a coping plan.
It's like playing a game where your opponent keeps using their skills to consume you from afar, but you can't touch the opponent, so you turn to looking for something to restore blood to resist the consumption, but...
If you keep it for a long time, you will lose it!
How rich is Li Er's experience in military combat? Although he has never played games, he also knows that after being consumed for a long time, he will be suddenly disabled, and then a wave of sudden death will occur when a group starts!
Specifically, the Romans had been using pirates to consume the Tang Dynasty and undermine the Tang Dynasty's maritime trade and colonization strategy. Although the Tang Dynasty could rely on the reputation of the Forbidden Army to regain its influence for a while, what would happen over time?
When the time comes, the Romans will figure out the deployment of the Imperial Guards of the Tang Dynasty, and seize the gap period to give you the whole big one - such as directly attacking the Port Saint Virgin City!
The losses were extremely huge if they were plundered and set on fire!
Just calculating the actual economic losses is huge. And if the political impact is also included, the consequences will be even worse, because no matter how strong the Tang Dynasty Forbidden Army is, a place with a lot of wealth such as Saint Maiden Port can be destroyed.
A man breaks through and turns into a sea of fire. Where is the face of the Imperial Army?
What is the deterrent power of the Imperial Guard?
Justice in the world is always attached to justice, and justice is attached to laws, and laws are attached to an army with an aura of invincibility. The aura of the Forbidden Army has since been lost, and the change in people's hearts in the Tang Dynasty is no longer a simple resistance to overseas trade.
That is to say.
If you really think about this matter carefully, not only will you lose it if you defend it for a long time? This is simply giving away money in disguise.
Li Er was naturally very worried!
Therefore, not only did the emperor issue an imperial edict to Li Sheng, but he also ordered him to come up with a solution within a time limit.
Now as time goes by, Li Er's attitude towards Li Sheng has become more casual, and he truly uses Li Sheng as a minister.
At the same time, he also ordered Changsun Wuji, Du Ruhui, Duan Lun, and other high-level affairs officials to start preparing for military struggles, sending hidden money openly and waiting for danger.
Although Li Er did agree to Du Ruhui's suggestion, he first focused on preserving his current strength and keeping his treasury fully filled as much as possible.
No matter what the correct answer is in the end, it is definitely right to keep spare money in your hands. Otherwise, wouldn’t it be embarrassing if you don’t have the money to do it when you figure out a way? So you still have to cherish your feathers. The truth is this
reason.
But this is the truth, Li Er is not a soft persimmon.
Although we also know that these pirates are not the root of the problem, the key is the Romans, and the Tang Dynasty actually does not have the ability to destroy Rome with one blow, but.
Li Er still didn't want to let it go. He had to gather a wave of troops and beat up these pirates!
In fact, this proposal still seems a bit impulsive. According to Du Ruhui's previous thinking, it is definitely the most cost-effective way to not go to war and maintain patrol alert - as far as the current route of "minimizing the harm caused by the Romans' plan" is concerned.
in this way.
However, Du Ruhui also agreed with the emperor's idea of doing whatever he said. This was not because Li Er was the emperor and his ministers could only do whatever he said, or because Du Ruhui was easier to talk to.
In fact, Du Ruhui was certainly not easy to talk to, he just wasn't as direct and rigid as Wei Zheng's style.
The reason why I agree with Li Er's idea is actually because fighting according to Li Er's idea can actually have a corresponding effect.
After all, the Tang Dynasty is not very good at dealing with these pirates. After all, they have the backing of the Romans.
This situation is truly unprecedented.
Returning to the Lai Kingdom Palace, Du Ruhui was also full of confusion and pressure.
According to the past situation, it is useless for the enemy to engage in such cunning tactics because there is no clear supply route - at least the supply strategy of the army or offensive is often ineffective.
Without enough food and material support, who can organize a military force of sufficient strength?
No one can do it! Not even God.
Not even Li Er can do it!
There is no real horse in the world that can run without eating grass.
But the current situation is very strange. In fact, it is impossible for the Romans to fund pirates to have any effect.
After all, you are thousands of miles away—no, thousands of miles away, literally thousands of miles away!
How expensive it would be to support a group of pirates from such a long distance!