Look at the looks in Cheng Yaojin and Qin Qiong's eyes. "Have you had too much to drink, kid? We just finished fighting Tuyuhun. Although we signed a peace agreement, we still have hatred between us. Go to the grasslands and see the looks in those people's eyes. They want to eat us alive. You've occupied 400 miles of their land, and you still want to maintain good relations with them? There's no such thing as that, right?"
"Generals, please don't be confused. I just want to tell you one thing: is it better for us to have Tuyuhun as our neighbor, or is it better for us to have the Tubo Kingdom as our neighbor?"
After Li Xiang said this, the two generals understood that it was no secret that the Tubo Kingdom had the ambition to rule the Central Plains. Moreover, the strength of this empire was relatively strong, at least much stronger than Tuyuhun. However, if compared with the Tang Dynasty, it was somewhat inferior.
But people of that era did not know that in their eyes, the strength of Tubo was similar to that of the Tang Dynasty. However, Li Xiang knew that the gap in national strength between the two countries was too great. Just look at the land between the two countries. One lives in the rich Central Plains, and the other lives on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Whether it is population or grain output, there is a huge gap between the two countries.
If the Tang Dynasty had the choice, Tuyuhun was very weak and could be destroyed at any time, but at the same time, Tubo and the Tang Dynasty could be separated, just like the current situation, which should be the most satisfactory for everyone, but Tubo and Tuyuhun probably don't think so.
"If we had known this situation would happen, we shouldn't have weakened Tuyuhun so badly."
Changsun Wuji sighed. During his time in the southwest, he had sent a large number of spies to Tuyuhun. Now Tuyuhun was filled with an atmosphere of failure, and there was hostility between the tribes. After all, the north had lost a large amount of grassland and could only squeeze into the central and southern regions. This was an irreconcilable contradiction for Tuyuhun.
Originally there were only two tribes on this grassland, but now there are five tribes. Moreover, according to their Khan, the five tribes have to divide the grassland equally, which no one is willing to do.
"You all know the general situation. I called you here for this reason. If Lu Dongzan proposes marriage, how should we respond?"
When Li Shimin said this, Li Xiang knew that Li Shimin's heart had softened. That day in the court, Li Shimin had already announced to all his subjects that the Tang Dynasty would never again accept marriage alliances. If the Tubo people were to become less concerned, then where would the emperor's dignity be? Where would the Tang Dynasty's dignity be?
Changsun Wuji didn't say anything, he was also watching everyone's reactions.
For a politician, it is not difficult to overturn his original words in a different way, but Li Xiang would never allow such a thing to happen. He must plant the idea of no marriage in everyone's mind.
"We can't have a marriage alliance, especially under the current circumstances. If we break the rules of the Tang Dynasty, then the rules will be empty words, and the people will no longer believe in the majesty of the court."
Li Xiang saw that no one expressed their opinion on this issue, even Cheng Yaojin did not dare to say a word. After all, this concerned the relationship between the two countries. Li Xiang immediately stood up. Just like the last time in the court, he had to firmly oppose it. Everyone present would weigh the pros and cons. If this iron rule was broken, the impact on the entire Chinese nation would be too profound.
Everyone still remembers Li Xiang's attitude last time, but now something like this has happened. Tubo has already deployed 150,000 troops on the border. If we don't agree on a marriage, how will we respond? This isn't a small country like Tuyuhun.
"Your Highness, have you ever thought about this? What if we refuse and the Tubo Kingdom resorts to war? Although there is Tuyuhun in the middle, Tuyuhun's strength is extremely weak. If the Tubo Kingdom's 150,000 troops attack Tuyuhun, Tuyuhun will be completely conquered by the Tubo Kingdom in at most half a year. By then, the southwest of our country..."
Changsun Wuji didn't finish his words, but everyone knew what would happen in the southwest. Once Tubo conquered Tuyuhun, according to their aggressive thinking, it would be difficult for the border of our Tang Dynasty to be peaceful.
The most important thing is that if they are defeated, they can retreat to the plateau, and we may fail if we catch up with them. We won a war with great effort, but in the end the results were not great, and we only lost some soldiers. This is not worth it for the Tang Dynasty.
"The soldiers of the Tang Dynasty are brave and skilled in battle. They are never afraid of any challenge, and the Tubo Kingdom is no exception. Even if the Tubo Kingdom wanted to destroy Tuyuhun, it would take half a year. Moreover, the Prime Minister is still in our country, and his journey back will take another half a year. This gives us a year to train the army, to train an army that can fight on the plateau."
Everyone knows that Li Xiang is a decisive and swift person, but no one expected that he is already making such preparations, preparing to fight against Tubo.
Seeing that everyone was a little confused, Li Xiang immediately began to explain that among the Tuyuhun lands we occupied, there was a piece on the plateau. We could send our troops there to let them adapt to the conditions on the plateau first. The soldiers who were not adaptable would be withdrawn, and those who were adaptable could continue to stay there. After a year, our country would be able to put together an army capable of fighting on the plateau. If we defeated the Tubo army by then, we could follow their retreat route. Once we entered the heartland of Tubo, this major concern would be solved.
"How can Your Highness guarantee that trained soldiers are capable of fighting on the plateau?"
General Qin Qiong said with some disbelief. After all, when we were fighting with Tubo before, hundreds of our soldiers entered the plateau, but these hundreds of soldiers almost lost their combat effectiveness in an instant. According to them, Tubo is a place protected by gods. Once we enter their territory, we can only be slaughtered. Of those hundreds of soldiers, less than one-tenth came back alive.
In the 21st century, everyone understands why this is the case. The air is thin after entering the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, and people living on the plains cannot do anything there. However, in this era, technology is not so advanced, and the belief in ghosts and gods is prevalent. Whether it is generals or soldiers in the army, they all agree that Tubo is a place protected by gods.
"It's very simple. Just ask some people who have been there and you'll know. It might take two or three days to get used to it, but you'll definitely be able to adapt in ten..."