"It seems you have really worked hard." Li Shimin praised.
Chen Jingke said modestly: "Actually, I just wrote a framework and was worried about how to write this genealogy. I met a great talent in Hongwen Hall and with his help I completed the work."
Li Shimin asked: "That's Lu, right? Tell me about this person. Is he really as talented as you praise him?"
Chen Jingke affirmed: "You are more talented than I said, but I was afraid that if you praised me too much, some people wouldn't believe you, so I just kept it to myself."
"As for his specific abilities, I can only say that he is the only person I have ever met who can be called an all-rounder."
Li Shimin couldn't help but be moved and said: "All-round talent? Don't try to lie to me."
Chen Jingke said: "You will know if it is true or false after you personally inspect it."
Li Shimin silently remembered the name in his heart and said: "We will talk about this later. Let's talk about Chinese civilization first. You wrote it well."
Chen Jingke said happily: "Thank you for the compliment, Your Majesty. Your words make it all worth it no matter how hard or tired I am."
Li Shimin knew clearly that he was flattering, but he still felt very flattered. He said: "Last time you said you would choose a place as a pilot. After thinking about it, I thought it was unnecessary."
Chen Jingke suddenly became anxious and wanted to argue.
Li Shimin stretched out his hand to stop him and continued: "Since we are going to do an experiment, we should choose a larger place so that we can be convincing."
"Don't you Taoists want to go to the south to preach? You just happened to do this together."
"Ah?" Chen Jingke was stunned and couldn't believe his ears: "You mean to conduct experiments in the entire Lingnan and Nanzhong?"
Li Shimin was very satisfied with his reaction and said, "Why, you don't dare anymore?"
Chen Jingke immediately replied: "Dare, why don't you dare."
Then he said with a bitter face: "But such a big thing is difficult to accomplish with Taoism alone. Besides, shouldn't it be led by the imperial court?"
Li Shimin said: "The imperial court's goals are too big. If the imperial court takes the lead, the barbarians will feel threatened and resist the promotion of Chinese civilization."
"Propagate it through folklore, and those barbarians who admire the strength of the Central Plains are willing to accept it. It will slowly penetrate in this way, and it is safest for the court to wait until a certain foundation is established before taking action."
"Your Majesty is wise." Chen Jingke understood the reason after just a moment's thought.
In the eyes of the foreigners, the Tang Dynasty was like a tiger showing its teeth and claws. This tiger suddenly said that you are a part of me and it is time to come back.
What would you think?
You will definitely think that the tiger is planning to attack you, so you should quickly find a way to resist.
But if you promote it privately, you won’t have this problem.
The Han people have risen again and become the object of admiration for all barbarians. Everything about the Han family is the object of their envy. Having a Han name is the glory of the smoke from the ancestral graves.
Now a voice suddenly appears, saying that everyone, like the Han people, are descendants of the Chinese people of Yan and Huang. Regardless of whether it is true or false, some people will take it as true.
Even if you know it is nonsense, you will acquiesce that it is true out of interests.
After all, if this comes true, they can claim to be descendants of the Chinese people, the descendants of the Yan and Huang Dynasties. Who would dare to ridicule them again?
In fact, Chen Jingke still didn't fully understand Li Shimin's thoughts. The fear of arousing the rebellious psychology of the barbarians was only one aspect, and the other aspect was that he didn't want to take such a big risk.
This kind of thing has never happened before and there is no precedent. What if it fails? The credibility of the court cannot withstand the test.
Propagate it among the people first. If the barbarians can accept it, the imperial court will take over. If the barbarians cannot accept it, there will be no loss to the imperial court.
This is the safest way.
But in any case, it was an unexpected surprise for Chen Jingke that Li Shimin agreed to promote the concept of Chinese civilization in the south.
This pilot project is dozens or hundreds of times larger than the previous county, which is enough trouble.
But it was a wild land after all. Considering the difficulties, he still tried hard and said:
"What you said makes sense, but you also know the situation in Lingnan and Nanzhong. The imperial court must provide us with the necessary help."
Li Shimin said: "I will order the yamen and Zhechong Mansion in the south to provide convenience for you."
Chen Jingke shook his head and said, "Not enough."
Li Shimin said: "Then what help do you want?"
Chen Jingke solemnly said: "People, we need manpower. The south is a vast country with a sparse population and harsh environment. Preaching there requires a large number of manpower, and we even have to be prepared to kill a large number of people."
"Due to the restrictions of the imperial court, the number of Taoist priests in each Taoist temple is insufficient, and not many can be sent to the south. No one is willing to send their precious disciples to die in the southern barbarian land."
"I need part of the ultimatum as a bargaining chip to negotiate with various factions to get them to support this action."
Li Shimin showed a thoughtful expression, and after a while he said: "One hundred people."
Chen Jingke was overjoyed and said quickly: "At least a thousand people are needed. The south is vast and sparsely populated. If there are not enough people, even a splash will not be stirred up."
Li Shimin frowned slightly and said: "Three hundred."
Chen Jingke complained bitterly: "Seven hundred, we can't afford any less. We are also serving the imperial court."
Li Shimin said: "Five hundred, no more."
Chen Jingke's brows were filled with joy, fearing that he would regret it and said quickly: "Okay, just five hundred. You have nothing to say. Eunuch Ren, you have to testify for me."
Ren Feng wanted to laugh but didn't dare, so he could only lower his head and pretend not to hear anything.
Li Shimin glared at him fiercely and said: "As a saint of the Tang Dynasty, how could I be as dishonest as you are?"
"Hehe." Chen Jingke said with a naive smile: "That's right, you are so eloquent and true to your words, how can I dare to compare with you."
In fact, he does it on purpose. Sometimes he makes harmless little jokes, which can actually bring the distance between them closer.
Just now he insisted on looking for a book to read, and now he was bargaining with Li Shimin because of this consideration.
Now it looks like the effect is very good.
Li Shimin pretended to be angry at first, then returned to normal and said: "I remember you said last time that the army has different education methods, why are there no relevant books?"
"Uh... you are really planning to implement this method in the army." Chen Jingke was a little surprised. This is not a trivial matter. It might lead to chaos in the country.
Li Shimin said calmly: "If you don't give it a try, how will you know if your method is feasible? If you miss a good method, wouldn't it be a regret in life?"
Chen Jingke couldn't help but be impressed by his courage and said: "Your Majesty is wise."
Li Shimin said: "Don't be too happy. The soldiers of the Tang Dynasty are all from good families. Your method will hardly be effective against them in a short period of time. I don't trust you to experiment with the elites of the Tang Dynasty."
"Previously, I selected more than a hundred young men who were brave and good at shooting from Yuan Cong's imperial army and officials, and formed a bodyguard named Baiqisi. You can use them for experiments."
Chen Jingke was stunned for a moment, then said in disbelief: "You said you wanted me to do this?"
Li Shimin said: "You came up with the method. No one understands this except you, so I won't leave it to you. I will write you a handwriting later, and Baiqi Si will listen to your instructions."
Baiqisi belongs to the personal guard sequence, and can be mobilized at will without going through the Ministry of War and the Twelve Guards. Li Shimin can order them at will.
Chen Jingke said movedly: "Thank you for your trust, Your Majesty."
Li Shimin said: "Teaching Bai Qisi well to me will be more useful than saying thank you."
Chen Jingke said: "Well, I will not let your Majesty down."
After that, Chen Jingke learned about the composition of Baiqisi, and he was shocked by the results. At the same time, he also knew why Li Shimin asked him to train this unit.
As Li Shimin said, the members of this army came from the Yuan Cong Forbidden Army and the official households and Fankou. This is where the problem lies.
The Imperial Guards of Yuan Cong were the first Jinyang soldiers to follow Li Yuan in raising troops. As the strength of the Tang Dynasty gradually increased, there was no one who could take the lead in the Jinyang military system.
The absence of leading people means that no one can fight for the interests of their group, and then they are disbanded.
About 30,000 people were unwilling to leave, saying that they did not want high-ranking officials and generous salaries, as long as they were given a mouthful of food, and their descendants would all serve the emperor.
Li Yuan was deeply moved and allowed them to stay. He also bought land for them near Chang'an and granted them permission to inherit the land after their father died.
Therefore, the Yuancong Forbidden Army is also called the Father and Son Army, and it is the most special group in the Tang army.
In order to show his respect for them, Li Yuan also gave them the important task of guarding Xuanwu Gate.
Xuanwumen is a very special name for the Tang Dynasty, and everyone must have guessed the result.
When Li Shimin launched the Xuanwumen Incident, the two leaders of the Yuancong Forbidden Army surrendered on the spot, and later died in battle while resisting the Changlin Army.
It was precisely because of their obstruction that Changlin's army failed to capture Xuanwu Gate, which bought Li Shimin precious time.
When Li Shimin launched the Xuanwu Gate Incident, he actually did not notify the Yuan Cong Forbidden Army. Why did they take the initiative to surrender?
It's all about identity.
The status of the Yuancong Forbidden Army is very special and they receive preferential treatment, but they are discriminated against by other troops because of this, especially the generals with outstanding military achievements who look down upon them.
In order to win over the meritorious deeds, one can imagine Li Jiancheng's attitude towards Yuan Cong's Imperial Army.
In contrast, Li Shimin was completely different. He treated the Yuan Cong Imperial Army well, but at least he didn't discriminate against them.
People are afraid of comparison. Once the attitudes of the two princes are compared, Yuancong Forbidden Army will know who to support.
Li Shimin did not treat Yuan Cong's imperial army badly. After ascending to the throne, he selected many outstanding children and took them with him as personal guards.
You can imagine how arrogant and indulgent these children whose fathers have made great achievements in serving the dragon are.
Let’s talk about another part of Baiqisi’s military source, the official household fankou.
The so-called official household means that the criminal and his family members are not allowed to serve in the government and are included in special household registrations, which are called official households. "Tang Lu Shuyi·Mingli·Guanhu Buqu": "The official household is under the jurisdiction of Si Nong, and the state and county have no
Touki."
Fanhu is an official slave or maidservant who has been pardoned once.
To put it bluntly, they are criminals, selected from low-class families.
Li Shimin put a group of arrogant Yuan Cong forbidden army children together with a group of brave young men selected from humble backgrounds, I have to say.