Chen Jingke said doubtfully: "Didn't you say you would go again at the end of this year?"
At the end of the year, Yuchi Xunyu happened to be seventeen years old. In ancient times, it was customary to use false years as eighteen years old.
Although there is no such thing as the age of eighteen at this time, children are generally allowed to join the army only when they are seventeen or eighteen.
It is indeed a bit early for him to join the army now, and it is inconsistent with the original plan.
Yuchi Xunyu lowered his voice and said: "This matter is still confidential... Well, your Majesty is planning to send troops to attack Gaochang Kingdom after the year."
"Gaochang?" Chen Jingke couldn't help but raise his voice a bit, and said, "You said that His Majesty will attack Gaochang after the New Year?"
Yuchi Xunyu said: "Yes, the generals for the expedition have been selected. Lu Guogong (Hou Junji) is the commander-in-chief, Yong'an County Duke (Xue Wanjun) is the deputy commander-in-chief, and General Qibi Heli and dozens of other generals...
"
Chen Jingke didn't care who went to attack Gaochang. He was surprised that in the twelfth year of Zhenguan, the Tang Dynasty decided to send troops? More than a year earlier than in the previous life.
His little butterfly wings have an increasing impact on the world.
It is not difficult to guess the reason why Li Shimin attacked Gaochang more than a year in advance. The emergence of glass caused the court to cut off a wave of rich people's leeks.
There was never a shortage of food in the Tang Dynasty, but most of it was hidden in the warehouses of the powerful and powerful, and the court could only watch and have no choice.
The emergence of glass is equivalent to opening a crack in the warehouses of the powerful, and a small amount of it will be enough to meet the needs of the army.
What's more, there is also the granary of Indochina that is about to be discovered, so it is normal for Li Shimin to attack Gaochang in advance.
It's just a pity that Qu Wentai will probably enjoy less blessings than in history for more than a year.
But he deserves it. Although Gaochang is located in the Western Region, it is a standard Han country, and its citizens are all Han people who migrated from the Central Plains in the past few hundred years.
As a Han country, the Tang Dynasty treated him quite favorably, but in the end, he colluded with the Western Turks to destroy whoever he did not destroy.
Oh, by the way, this guy seems to be Xuanzang's sworn brother. I wonder how Tang Monk would feel after hearing about this when he came back from Buddhist scriptures.
Gao Changman only had a population of about 50,000, so he was no match for the Tang Dynasty. As long as the general was not a fool, he could win.
It can be said that this is a must-win battle. Even if Yuchi Xunyu only follows for a few turns, he will come back with a glorious resume. It would be even better if he can kill a few enemies.
With this achievement, his future path will be much easier. Even if he does not make any achievements in the rest of his life, he can successfully inherit the family title with this resume.
It can be said that Yuchi Gong chose a very good time, which shows that this rough-looking boss knows everything in his heart.
Both Cheng Huailiang and Qin Huaidao were very envious of this.
One of them is the second son in the family, and they have to make way for their elder brother, so they can only waste time in the capital.
The other took a back seat due to his father's poor health and had to stay in Beijing just in case.
Then, after weighing the situation, he went to the East Palace to become a guard, which meant that all the chips were placed on the prince. Before Li Chengqian ascended the throne, he had little chance to lead troops to fight.
If Li Chengqian successfully ascends to the throne, he will be the confidant in the hearts of his old friends and can take off directly.
Fortunately for Chen Jingke, the Tang Dynasty was the last Central Plains dynasty to implement the military merit system, and war was the best opportunity to get ahead.
Therefore, he had no objection to Yuchi Xunyu accompanying his army to conquer Gaochang.
After carefully recalling the records about this battle in the history books of his previous life, he said: "Who is Shibo going to let you go with?"
Yuchi Xunyu said: "Follow Lu Guogong. He and Aweng are both from Qiandi. Many things are more convenient under his command."
Chen Jingke shook his head and said: "I don't recommend you to follow him, let alone Duke Yong'an. If you can, it's best to follow General Qibi."
"Why?" Not only Yuchi Xunyu, Cheng Huailiang and Qin Huaidao were also curious.
Things haven't happened yet, so Chen Jingke can't directly say what these two people did. He can only say: "These two people are not good people."
"It's good to have someone to restrain you. If you go to a place like the Western Regions where the sky is high and the emperor is far away, I'm afraid you might do something outrageous."
Yuchi Xunyu said in confusion: "Don't hide things from your brothers. If you have anything to say, just say it directly. What extraordinary things can they do?"
Chen Jingke considered it carefully and said: "Although Gaochang is small, it is still a country with a population of more than 50,000 people. It is also a place that the Central Plains and the Western Regions must pass through, and it is very wealthy."
"Besides, there are beauties from the Western Regions. The style of women there is very different from that of the Tang Dynasty... Wealth and color can confuse people's hearts."
Qin Huaidao interjected: "It's impossible. The Duke of Lu is a high-ranking official and the Minister of the Ministry of War. How could he make such a mistake?"
Cheng Huailiang also nodded in agreement.
Chen Jingke sighed: "I know you don't believe it. Let me tell you some past events about Duke Lu and Duke Yong'an."
"Last year, His Majesty made the decision to let Duke Lu learn the art of war from Duke Wei. Duke Wei taught him 70% of what he learned, leaving 30% of the basic knowledge that he didn't teach."
"For this reason, Duke Lu held a grudge and went to his majesty to accuse Duke Wei of treason. Fortunately, your majesty was wise and did not take it seriously, otherwise things would have been troublesome."
The three of them looked at each other and couldn't believe their ears.
Li Jing's status in the Tang Dynasty was very high, but he was embarrassed because of his high talent. He did not participate in the Xuanwu Gate Incident, and he was never a confidant of the emperor. The higher his achievements, the more dangerous he was.
Therefore, after leading the army to defeat Tuyuhun in the ninth year of Zhenguan, he resigned and stayed at home, for fear that the emperor would be jealous and kill his whole family.
When Hou Junji accused him of treason at this time, he really wanted to kill him, and even his entire family.
That is to say, Li Shimin has a clearer mind and is more particular about what he does. He doesn't want to do things that are like a rabbit or a dog. Otherwise, he could take this opportunity to kill Li Jing.
Forefoot had just learned the art of war from someone, but because he didn't want to teach him the basics, he held a grudge and wanted to kill someone.
The key point is that he and Li Jing are not related, so why should they teach him the bottom-of-the-box stuff? Being able to teach him the Seven Basics is already a huge kindness.
Not only is he ungrateful, but he also accuses people of being rebellious. This is no longer a corruption of character, it is simply rotten to the core.
Qin Huaidao said doubtfully: "Why have I never heard of this?"
Chen Jingke said: "Very few people know about this matter. Do you think those few insiders will spread the word?"
Even so, it was still difficult for the three of them to completely believe this.
Cheng Huailiang simply changed the subject and said: "Where is Yong'an County Duke? What has he done?"
Chen Jingke said: "In the eighth year of Zhenguan, the Duke of Wei led his army to conquer Tuyuhun, and Duke Yong'an and General Qibi both went with the army."
"After the war, the statistics of military achievements showed that Duke Yong'an's contribution was still lower than that of General Qibi. He was so ashamed that he even slandered General Qibi in person and wanted to take his contribution as his own."
"His Majesty wanted to severely punish Duke Yong'an when he found out, but it was General Qibi who was magnanimous and took the initiative to intercede for him to expose the matter."
"There are many people who know about this matter. Just go back and ask the adults and you will know."
All three of them nodded and said they would ask their elders at home when they got back.
It's not that they don't believe Chen Jingke, it's because the people involved in these two incidents are so powerful that they have to be cautious.
Chen Jingke also knew their concerns and did not ask them to believe it now. Instead, he continued:
"These two people have major flaws in their character. Once they succeed, they will inevitably lose their minds. Therefore, we must try our best to distance ourselves from them."
"On the contrary, it is General Qibi Heli. Although he is from Tiele, he is loyal and generous and has won His Majesty's trust."
"And he is very familiar with the environment of the Western Region, so he will definitely play an important role in this battle. There will be no shortage of credit for following him, and there is no need to worry about those miscellaneous things."
Although he didn't completely believe what he said, Yuchi Xunyu still said gratefully: "He is indeed my brother. Okay, I will tell my father-in-law your suggestion later."
－－－－－－Digression－－－－－
Thanks to book friend 20190629164343054 and editor Hao 9527 for the reward