After resting for two days, the ministers of the two countries began to visit each other in the camp and discuss business matters, which also meant that the alliance had entered its main topic.
At this time, the kings of the two countries were at leisure.
The ministers discussed various matters, and Li Po and Ashina Yang Huan no longer needed to personally preside over it. They only needed to listen to the progress of the discussions every night.
Five or six days passed in a flash, and various issues progressed very quickly. Everyone found a tacit understanding. The Turks were eager to reach an alliance, and the Tang people would not deliberately hold them back.
The Turks are about to launch their western expedition this autumn, and there is not much time left. Autumn in Yunzhong Grassland comes much earlier than in Chang'an.
Autumn is earlier in Mobei, and late autumn and early winter are the best times for grassland people to use their troops.
Li Po and his subordinates all estimated that if the Turks raised their troops in July, they would be able to reach the foothills of the Tianshan Mountains in August, and then they could unite with the Tiele tribes there to launch an attack on the Western Turks.
Moreover, not all Tiele tribes wanted to submit to the Turkic royal court, so the first relatively fierce battle probably took place along the foothills of the Tianshan Mountains.
So under Li Po's instruction, the Tang Dynasty put forward the conditions for people to join the Turks in the Western Expedition. The Turks' understanding was somewhat wrong, and some quarrels arose.
Of course, Li Po did not want to send troops to participate in the Turks' Western Expedition in this way. He just wanted people to record what the Turks saw and heard on the way to the west.
It was almost equivalent to the later military observers who made a certain degree of assessment of the actual combat effectiveness of the Turks. In addition, they also inspected the tribal situation near the Tianshan Mountains.
Some smarter Turkic nobles felt insulted and strongly opposed it, but most people had an indifferent attitude. They felt that if there were not many Tang people accompanying them, it would not have an impact on the war.
In the end, Yehu Khan Ashina Eqin gave the final word. He bluntly promised that if the Tang people were willing to follow the Turks in their western expedition, the visitors could follow him and guaranteed that they could come back alive.
This is also just a small episode. Tang officials are constantly fighting for the interests of the Tang Dynasty. The Turks are not easy to talk to, but as long as the conditions are not too excessive, they will eventually agree.
The temptation of the Western Regions was too great for them. In the face of the Western Expedition, almost everything that could not be discussed before could now be put on the table for negotiation, including the territorial disputes between the two countries.
On the seventh day of the alliance, the Tang Dynasty made a breakthrough. After fierce debate, the Turks finally gave up their control of the Northern Wuyuan area and promised to move all the tribes there northward next year, and at the same time transferred large areas of grassland to the north.
All were handed over to Datang.
This also means that the Tang Dynasty once again took possession of the later Jiangnan area without bloodshed, and the entire Henan area at the bend of the Yellow River was all classified as Tang territory.
At the same time, the Yulin Racecourse was also completed, and the Turks no longer insisted that the Tang Dynasty not rebuild the Yulin Racecourse.
For such a huge benefit, the price paid by the Tang Dynasty was also extremely considerable. In exchange, the Tang Dynasty promised to give the Turks a certain amount of armor and weapons as well as the food and grass needed to solve part of the Turks' western expedition.
To sum it up simply in one sentence, Datang bought the land in Beiwuyuan at a certain price.
There is no telling who will lose or gain from such a transaction. The Turks' war machine has already been activated. With the support of the Tang Dynasty, it will become very terrifying.
Agricultural peoples and nomadic peoples are naturally incompatible with each other, but the world is so wonderful. From another perspective, they are also naturally complementary.
Later, some people said that if the grassland people graze and the Central Plains people farm, the world will be peaceful. This is actually this ideal situation. If the grassland people go to hunt and kill, the Central Plains people will be responsible for the logistics and supply, then the world will be invincible.
It is a pity that that is an ideal state after all. The two nations have never reached such a tacit understanding. The Central Plains people will not give their knives to others for safekeeping, while the grassland people will only turn others into their slaves since they have grasped the sword and gun.
Now the Tang Dynasty and the Turks have reluctantly reached an agreement, but it is just a temporary deal. Who takes advantage of it depends on who can give full play to their advantages in the future, and there will be no fundamental changes from before.
The first cooperation between the two countries, which can also be said to be a transaction, was the annexation of the Western Region...
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What puzzled the Turks was that the Tang people were not very interested in the ownership of Yingzhou. During the evening discussion, the Turkic nobles easily found out the reason.
The Tang people had already conquered Goguryeo and there was no need to go to Liaodong from Yingzhou.
From a strategic point of view, this makes sense. From Hebei to Yuguan and out of Liaodong, this road was the boundary of Yingzhou in the former Sui Dynasty, and Liucheng was the seat of government.
The road is long and narrow and is easily attacked by Turks. Especially after leaving Yuguan, the Turkic Dongfang Khan's troops will immediately pose a direct threat to the flank and rear of the army leaving the pass.
At that time, the former Sui Dynasty set up more than a dozen military towns in Yingzhou to deal with attacks from Turks and Goguryeo.
Now that the Tang Dynasty occupies the entire Korean Peninsula, it is reasonable to no longer be so eager for land passages.
The Turkic people generally have good cognition, but having said that, they do not understand the wisdom of retreat in order to advance that the Central Plains people practice at the negotiation table.
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"It seems like you haven't gone hunting for a long time, right?"
On the grassland, Li Po and Ashina Yang Huan rode side by side.
The ministers were left to negotiate in the camp, but the two kings ran out to relax without any business.
After riding their horses at a gallop, bending their bows and setting arrows, and shooting for a few rounds, the two people gathered together again with restraint. They were both empty-handed, which was not embarrassing at all.
After hearing the other party's teasing, Li Po also sighed, "Auntie knows that there are countless things waiting for her all day long. How can I dare to go out of the city to play casually in Chang'an?
And once you rise, you will have to work hard and mobilize the people. Alas, you will not feel comfortable when you become the emperor."
Ashina Yang Huan looked at her sad-faced nephew and felt a little comfort in her heart. She felt more free. The Turkic Imperial Court did not have as many rules as the Chang'an Imperial Palace. Hunting was a common entertainment activity for the Khan.
The nobles also welcomed Khan to go hunting. Whenever Khan went out to have fun, they would eagerly accompany him, and almost no one would come to persuade him.
"It's naturally not easy to be a good emperor. At the time of Emperor Wen, there were two hunts in Spring and Autumn, and in between there were ceremonies to worship heaven and earth. After one year, Emperor Wen became very impatient and just wanted to stay in the palace and not go anywhere.
good."
Li Po turned his head and looked at her, thinking to himself, are you so persuasive?
"How old was Emperor Wen when he came to power? My nephew is not even forty this year. How can he be happy if he can't move around from time to time?"
Ashina Yang Huan waved his riding whip and said, "Don't imitate Yang Er. If you can't stand loneliness, what kind of emperor will you be?"
Li Po frowned at first, but now no one could talk to him in such a lecturing tone.
Instinctively, I was a little disgusted, but then I felt a little strange. After all, the other party was different from others. It seemed that it was appropriate to be taught a few words by her?
"You don't need to say this, aunt. Do you think those ministers want me to move around? If you take history as a guide, you can know the ups and downs. Yang Er is making such mysterious troubles. Who dares to let the emperor travel as he pleases?
In contrast, the Khan may be more relaxed, right? He can also join the army in the Western Expedition. If it were me, I would probably have someone remonstrating in front of me as soon as I reach Fufeng."
Ashina Yang Huan smiled on the horse and said, "Didn't you also advise me not to leave the royal court?"
Li Po shook his head and said: "That's different... My aunt has never led an army. Turks have always respected the strong. If you don't have courage, it's better to hide your clumsiness.
To win over Yi Nan and others, there is no need to go to Tianshan in person. As long as they never move, they will definitely turn to the royal court for support.
My aunt should know this truth... With Ashina Qiuluo as a person, how can he win the heartfelt support of the Tiele people?"
Li Po finally said something from his heart. He didn't want to see Ashina Yang Huan suffer a setback at the foot of Tianshan Mountain. The army was moving forward and was about to engage in battle. The murderous aura filled the sky. This was not something that a woman like Ashina Yang Huan could control.
A winning situation.
In his opinion, Ashina Yang Huan is good at internal affairs and has always relied on her skillful political skills to control the Turks. War is not her strong point.
Therefore, the more critical the situation is, the more efforts must be made at the political level, rather than neglecting strengths and weaknesses and putting oneself in danger.
Relatively speaking, the Tang Dynasty also needs a kinder neighbor now, and the Turkic Royal Court under the leadership of Ashina Yang Huan meets the expectations of the Tang Dynasty.
Ashina Yang Huan looked at the grassland without saying a word for a long time. In just a few words, her nephew understood clearly what she wanted to do and why.
In fact, she has been weighing the pros and cons. Since the beginning of the Western Expedition, she has made a lot of preparations, and forming an alliance with the Tang Dynasty is a key move.
As for whether she should follow the army to the west when they raised the army, she was still hesitating. Because of her hesitation, she had to listen to what others said, let alone what Li Po said.
When the two met before, Li Po showed his attitude that he didn't want her to leave the royal court lightly. Now he said it more clearly, but the most important thing was that she was worried about Ashina Qiuluo.
This man was the son of Ashina Dojishi, the son-in-law of Ashina Dobi, and the Western Khan of the Turks. He was a natural candidate to lead the Western Expedition. No one else could compete with him.
This person has been quite honest in these years. This may be because Shegui Khan's Eastern Expeditions have severely damaged the Western tribes, and also because the royal court has moved back to the foot of the Holy Mountain from Dali City.
But once he drove away the Tongyehu Khan and restored the full authority of the Western Khan...
This is the crux of the matter. The two young Turkic Khans were never subordinates of the Khans, but princes. Datou Khan, Ashina Duowen, and even Qimin Khan are all vivid examples.
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After pondering for a long time, Ashina Yang Huan said: "Then what do you think I should do? If I stay in the royal court all the time, I am afraid that there will be a tail that cannot be lost in the future..."