I am Li Shen and Li Shimin, the free kings of the Tang Dynasty

Why was Li Shen surprised by the Western Turks? Because the Western Turks were very strong.

Li Shen has learned a lot of things, and history books are also his favorite books.

There are also local customs and history.

Western Turks and Eastern Turks were formerly called the Turkic Khaganate, which was a very powerful country.

It once joined forces with Persia to destroy the White Huns, and then joined forces with Byzantium to attack Persia.

Their territory is much larger than that of the Tang Dynasty.

But unfortunately, it eventually split into Eastern Turkestan and Western Turkestan.

The Eastern Turks were destroyed by the Tang Dynasty, and the Tiele tribes also surrendered.

Now only the Western Turks are left blocking the Tang Dynasty's only route to the Western Regions.

"Although the Western Turks are allies with them, why would they do something that has no benefit at all?"

Li Shen was a little confused.

"Your Majesty, not only the Western Turks, but also the Sogdians, Tocharians, Kucha, Yanqi, Yiwulu, the Nine Zhaowu Clans, and Khotan have all sent soldiers, totaling more than 50,000 people.

The route they took was the one that led them into Tibet from Khotan.”

After hearing Xue Rengui mention so many countries whose names he had never heard of, Li Shen counted on his fingers.

"Fuck, the Eight-Nation Alliance?"

"The Eight-Nation Alliance? No, Your Highness, we haven't finished the interrogation yet. I'm afraid there are more than eight countries, although they are all small countries, many of them are not as big as ours.

But they were indeed all overly dependent on the Western Turks.

There are more than twenty small countries that are dependent on Western Turks, so I estimate that there will be more after the investigation."

Xue Rengui looked serious.

"Do these people really think that the Tang Dynasty is easy to bully? If we were not far away, we would have destroyed them long ago.

I heard that the Arabs are expanding rapidly. Do the Western Turks think that the Arabs are stronger than the Tang Dynasty?

So you want to expand to our side?

They look down on the Tang Dynasty so much, we must teach them a lesson."

Li Shen seemed very indignant.

Li Shen learned about the current situation in Asia through the caravans in the Western Regions. The Western Turks joined forces with Byzantium to attack the Sassanid Empire.

But the Western Turks ran away, and the Byzantine Empire and the Sassanid Empire were both defeated.

At this time, the Arab Empire rose and began to attack the Sassanid Empire. It was estimated that it would take no more than a few years to destroy the Sassanid Empire.

The Arab Empire was very aggressive, and the small countries close to the Western Turks were very afraid and flocked to the Western Turks.

What Li Shen didn't expect was that the Western Turks would actually join forces with Tubo to attack the Tang Dynasty. The Western Turks were really a troublemaker.

“Your Majesty, the imperial court had already been planning to attack Qiuci and Yanqi.

It is estimated that we will be able to send troops next year.

These small countries were treacherous and initially attached themselves to the Turks, but later when the Tang Dynasty grew stronger, they returned to the Tang Dynasty.

A few years ago, they rebelled again and became dependent on the Western Turks.

Because they are on the only way to the Western Regions, they have been constantly harassing and even plundering our Tang Dynasty's merchant caravans over the years.

So your majesty is furious and is ready to teach them a lesson, and it is very likely that they will destroy Qiuci and Yanqi. "

Xue Rengui told Li Shen the news he knew. He knew that Li Shen was not concerned about the affairs of the court.

Sometimes the Chief Secretary Wang Xuance would tell him what happened in the court, but he would just treat it as a story.

Sure enough, when Li Shen heard about the attack on Qiuci, he immediately showed a surprised expression.

"There is such a thing? Why didn't I know about it?" Li Shen looked around at the people in the room and asked.

"That's because Your Highness is usually very busy with affairs, so it's not surprising that Your Highness doesn't know about such an insignificant matter."

Shi Tou defended Li Shen with a smile.

"Is that so?" Li Shen looked at Xue Rengui.

The Grand Marshal of the Ji Wang Mansion looked conflicted when asked this by Li Shen.

Finally, he reluctantly pretended to be sincere and said:

"That's right, the prince is very busy and has a lot of things to do every day.

I don’t know if this kind of… small things are common.”

After saying this, Xue Rengui felt relieved. It turned out that lying was such a rare thing.

"Haha, don't say that. Although I am indeed very busy on weekdays, since this is a matter of the court,

Even though I am a prince, I have to know something about this. This is worthy of my status as a prince."

Li Shen smiled happily.

"Your Majesty, if there is nothing else, I will take my leave. I still have to personally judge the soldiers and generals in the Western Regions."

Xue Rengui really couldn't stay there any longer. If he stayed any longer, he might become a person like Wang Hongfu.

"Well, go ahead." Li Shen waved his hand.

After Xue Rengui left, Li Shen stood up.

"I got up early this morning and didn't sleep well. Please serve me and take a rest for a while."

~~~~~~~~~

After Changsun Wuji came back from Li Shimin, he drank tea in his own courtyard and thought about what happened today.

As one of the eighteen think tanks in Li Shimin's Qin Palace, Changsun Wuji could see many things.

It's just that he likes to hide it and not talk about it.

For example, he noticed that the streets of Yaoyi had been cleaned, and even the roadside shops were spotless.

The livestock trading area in the Tubo Trade Market does not have any smell at all. This must have been because the livestock had been washed many times beforehand and then smoked with spices.

These things show that Prince Ji is a superficial person and likes to show off in front of Li Shimin.

"Your Highness, Duke Zhao, His Royal Highness the King of Wei is here to visit." The servant came in to report.

"King Wei? Go and greet him." After saying that, Changsun Wuji stood up and was about to walk out.

"Hahahaha, uncle, what are you doing? We are all family, there is no need to be so polite."

Li Tai's voice was getting closer and closer from far away.

"Your Highness, I am here to pay my respects to His Majesty the King of Wei." Changsun Wuji stepped forward and saluted.

"Hey? Didn't I just say that? We are all family, why should uncle be so reserved? There are no outsiders here."

Li Tai stretched out his hand to support Changsun Wuji's arm and said something with some anger.

"Your Highness, Prince of Wei, etiquette cannot be abolished. You are a prince, and I am a subject. This is how it should be."

Changsun Wuji said seriously.

"Uncle, you are being estranged from me. It was not like this before. Just call me Qingque.

It sounds intimate to call it that, we are actually family.”

Li Tai said gently.

Changsun Wuji thought about it and nodded.

"Qingque, come and sit down. I have just made some tea." He let Li Tai sit down, poured a cup of tea himself and continued:

"Qingque, I wonder if you have something to do with me?"

Li Tai took a sip of tea.

"Oh, it was my mother who asked me to bring some cakes to my uncle. She was afraid that my uncle would be hungry at night, so she asked the imperial chef to make some snacks.

I happened to be visiting my mother, so she asked me to bring it over.”

After saying that, Li Tai waved his hand behind him.

Several eunuchs and maids came over with food boxes and placed them on the table, then left.

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your concern." Changsun Wuji stood up and bowed.

“Uncle, you’re welcome.

By the way, uncle, what do you think about the private currency of the Jiwang Mansion's bank today? "

(Looking forward to my rebirth.

I want to go out for a walk.

Will spending money make me happier? I will change my car tomorrow.