The possibility of being rejected for marriage again had been expected for a long time. Zhisai Rudun was not too disappointed. He just followed the general meaning of Fang Yiai's words and wrote a letter about the rejection of the marriage and had it sent back.
Tubo, of course, did not forget to write that the Tang king had accepted the compensation gift.
However, next time, Fang Yiai would either supervise the repairs of her own house, or pull Princess Gaoyang out of the palace to see if there was anything she wanted to change in the house being repaired.
Otherwise, Fang Yiai would take Jinqi and Jinlin with her to go shopping with Princess Gaoyang, or chat with the prince, or else she would start preparing for her wedding in a few months.
From beginning to end, the issue of the release of prisoners was never mentioned!
"If it hadn't been for the Battle of Songzhou, where the Tubo army was half-crushed, and if our army was stationed and training near Qinghai, I'm afraid Supi and Qiang would have become Tubo territory now!" General Li Chengqian
He threw the information inside to Fang Yiai and said with worry in his eyes.
Fang Yiai carefully read the news in the wire report, and took a long breath, "Su Pi's horses and salt are necessary for Tubo to expand its army and train the tiger and wolf divisions again. The Qiang sheep are to the west, and the Tibetan army is
The food country is close, which will facilitate the business between Tubo and the big food country, and can ensure the economic prosperity and development of Tubo. For Tubo, it is an important place that must be captured!"
"Had it not been for the tight national treasury and considering the consumption of military expenditures in the northwest, my father would not have agreed to station troops in Qinghai. If my father had not agreed to station troops in Qinghai early, the land of Subi would have fallen into Tubo territory," Li Chengqian said.
.
"So, Tubo has to be on guard." Fang Yiai said.
"My father has left the Tubo matter to you. Are you really going to let go of the Tibetan prisoners who were asked by Tubo to quarry in the Western Mountains?" Li Chengqian asked.
"That depends on whether Tubo can afford the starting price," Fang Yiai said.
"Hasn't the compensation gift from Tubo been collected into the national treasury?" Li Chengqian asked with some confusion.
"The so-called compensation gift is that Tubo realized that it was wrong to offend the Tang Dynasty, and used it to compensate our court for the losses in the Songzhou Battle. It is not equivalent to the ransom of the captives. These are completely different things." Fang Yiai shook his head and said.
"In the past, the practice was that the compensation package also included the ransom of the captives?" Li Chengqian said.
"Five thousand gold is not even enough to pay the pensions to the soldiers who died and were injured in the Songzhou battle, let alone the hundreds of hectares of farmland they destroyed outside Songzhou City, the people of the Tang Dynasty who suffered from the Tubo invasion, and Songzhou.
Zhoucheng's defenses have been damaged," Fang Yiai said.
"Is it possible that I have to include the ransom of the captives? Even if we are doing business, we can't lose money, right? What's more, for such a long time, the food and clothing of the Tibetan prisoners did not consume money? It can't be done
Let us feed him for nothing, and then send him away with a smile like an uncle, let him go back to Tubo to recuperate, and then take a knife to kill him again and hurt the people of the Tang Dynasty, right?"
"It should be noted that for these brave Tibetan soldiers, the experience of being prisoners was an indelible shame for them! The shame will arouse endless courage in the heart." Fang Yiai said, "So,
No matter whether they work hard or take care of themselves like uncles, they will not remember the kindness of the Tang Dynasty, so why should we let go of the labor that costs nothing? Are we taking advantage of the Tubo people in vain? "
"We are a country of etiquette." Li Chengqian said with a smile without any sincerity.
"The sage said, 'Repay kindness with kindness, repay grievance with kindness'. I am just following the sage's teachings accurately. This is the meaning of a country of etiquette." Fang Yiai said with a smile, "Otherwise, people will treat our nest
After serving it, is it possible that you still tell others that 'a gentleman talks but never moves'?"
"Yes, I was too kind to those prisoners in the past, but it harmed many people of the Tang Dynasty." Li Chengqian said with emotion on his face, "Although this problem has been recognized for a long time, it is just some stubbornness in the court.
The well-behaved ministers, for the sake of the face of the Celestial Empire and to show their so-called benevolence, often treat prisoners of war better than the brave men of the Tang Dynasty, which in vain enriches the enemies of the Tang Dynasty. So when you rush the Tibetan prisoners to quarry in the Western Mountains
, Gu Ke really broke into a cold sweat for you."
"It's good to gain face, but if you give up face for the sake of face, wouldn't it be worth the loss?" Fang Yiai said, "It has been more than 20 years since the founding of the Tang Dynasty from the first year of Wude to now, and I was encouraged to do it earlier.
To protect face, the Turks, Tuyuhun, and Tibet are all coming to invade! I wonder why His Highness has not thought about it?"
"Because the Tang Dynasty is a country of good reputation and etiquette." Li Chengqian sighed and said.
"Yes, I have been crowned as a country of etiquette, and the court is full of people who want to save face. Even if the Zhou Dynasty countries offended the Tang Dynasty, they led their troops to fight against the autumn wind at our border, and they robbed them.
, after being caught, they just gave some cheap gifts and signed a letter of apology." Fang Yiai said.
"Moreover, the Tang Dynasty will take good care of their soldiers who were captured by the Tang Dynasty and keep them fat and strong. When they return, they can mount their horses and hold their swords to fight back to the Tang Dynasty." Fang Yiai said, "They
Our lords just lost some face and gave them worthless gifts, so that the Tang Dynasty, a land of etiquette, would forgive them for their crime of aggression."
"Not to mention that the prisoners were released free of charge, when the envoys who came to apologize left, they still brought back gold, silver, and even a large amount of food that were several times the amount of their gifts." Fang Yiai said, "It can be said that the invasion of China was
For Tang Yu and them, of course they can earn a lot if they win, but if they lose, they may earn even more! Although they lose a bit of face, they actually gain it!"
"And what about the Tang Dynasty? In addition to gaining the generosity of others' false flattery and the useless face of a country of etiquette, it can be said that the affordable face was completely lost!" Fang Yiai said.
"After a war, many hot-blooded men in the Tang Dynasty were so angry that they clearly took the lead, but in the end they only got a few nice words to save face, lost their reputation, and even chilled the hearts of tens of thousands of hot-blooded soldiers!" Fang Yi
Love said.
"You know, when the imperial court was offering generous rewards to the country, the pensions of the soldiers who were buried in the battlefield were not enough! Many soldiers shed blood on the battlefield, and after the war, they still shed tears in despair! Watching their wives, children and children suffer.
There are many soldiers who are hungry and humiliated!" Fang Yiai said with some excitement.
Li Chengqian listened to Fang Yiai's words silently without saying anything.
He has never been on the battlefield, but the bloody events of the Xuanwu Gate incident can also imagine the cruelty of war!
As a prince, he also knows the statistics of how many passionate men have sacrificed their lives for the country. In recent years, the national treasury has gradually become richer, and military pay and pensions can also be paid out in a timely manner.
But before the Battle of Songzhou and the post-war situation of the Tang Dynasty, he also knew through the think tanks of the East Palace such as those who were walking in the East Palace and the Taifu Shaoshi, that what Fang Yiai said was true!
"Don't worry, it won't happen again in the future where the soldiers bleed on the battlefield and shed tears after the war." Li Chengqian's voice was not loud, but his tone was very sure.
"emperor."
Outside Li Chengqian's study, Li Anyang heard the conversation between Fang Yiai and Li Chengqian, carefully peered at Li Shimin's face, and shouted softly.
"Let's go, tell them not to say that I have been here." Looking at Li Chengqian's study, Li Shimin ordered in a low voice, then turned around and left with his hands behind his back.
Li Shimin left the East Palace and walked silently to the water pavilion in the imperial garden. Looking at the sparkling water that was still cold, he opened his mouth and said, "The prince has never been on the battlefield, but I have been."
"I know very well that the soldiers shed blood on the battlefield and drank tears after the war." Li Shimin looked at the water, expressionless, and said as if recalling, "For the sake of face, I sacrificed my life and spared the Turks and Tuyuhun many times.
, but I never thought that the sufferings of the people at the border were all caused by my indulgence."
"Such a generous reward not only failed to make them remember the goodness of the Tang Dynasty, but it also made them all greedy and regarded the Tang Dynasty as edible fat." Li Shimin said, "Oh, in retrospect, it turns out that it was really
I was wrong."
Li Anyang stood quietly behind Li Shimin. He understood that Li Shimin just wanted to express his unhappiness and did not expect him to answer anything, and he did not know how to answer at all.
I have followed Li Shimin for so many years and watched him ascend to the throne from prince to high position. He gradually became a little overjoyed. Although he has been conscientious in state affairs, if it weren't for the empress, Wei Zheng, Fang Xuanling, Yu Shinan and other dynasties,
It is really difficult to say what the emperor will become and what the Tang Dynasty will be like with the advice of the ministers.
The Emperor himself knew what his faults were, but he thought they were minor faults and was unwilling to admit or correct them.
Just like the Tuyuhun incident earlier and the Tubo incident this time, if Fang Yiai hadn't been prepared early and woke up from time to time, I'm afraid that Tuyuhun's marriage proposal and this Tubo marriage proposal would have really happened to the emperor.
Agree and be accompanied by a generous dowry and reward!
It seems that Fang Yiai's sonorous and powerful words and His Highness the Crown Prince's silence in the Prince's study today really touched the Emperor deeply.
Fang Yiai and Li Chengqian sat in silence in the study for a long time, unaware that Li Shimin had been listening to their conversation outside the door.
"What are your plans regarding Tubo?" Li Chengqian asked again.
"It is estimated that it will only be these two days, and the Tibetan envoys will not be able to wait any longer. They will have to pay 10,000 gold to replace them." Fang Yiai said, "Since Abandoned Zong Nongzan generously offered 10,000 gold,
If you ask for five thousand gold to marry the Nibala princess, why should you give out ten thousand gold in exchange for nearly six thousand prisoners? Is this reasonable? It cannot be said that nearly six thousand warriors are no match for a ruler.