The film and television world begins with the battle for the throne in Kowloon

Chapter 817 Fang Xuanling's Speculation
In the eyes of outsiders, the current Tang Dynasty is definitely unprecedentedly powerful, with a vast territory and tributes from all nations. Even Li Yuan, the retired emperor who was driven into the harem by Li Shimin himself to reproduce offspring, recognized Li Shimin's achievements from the bottom of his heart before his death.

People all over the world praised him and placed Li Shimin on the altar.

But Li Shimin now does not have any of the domineering aura of the Heavenly Khan that he had in the court.

“It’s really tasteless.”

"No, chicken ribs are still somewhat flavorful, but these two major governorates are not even as good as chicken ribs."

"The area is too far away for us to reach. If Yi Nan or Bi Heli rebel, we will have no way to stop them. We can only send troops to suppress the rebellion later."

Li Shimin said worriedly: "The Yi people are growing stronger in the Western Regions, and the Northeast has also produced figures like the Right Wise King. The Bibi tribe is caught between the two. I think that sooner or later they will either become corrupt or be swallowed up by these two tribes. Now it seems that only the Tuli tribe in the south of the desert can be relied on."

"Your Majesty, don't worry. This is mainly because we have made great moves both inside and outside the Tang Dynasty in recent years, expanding territory, reforming bad policies, and have achieved remarkable results. It's just that we were too hasty and rushed, so more problems have accumulated," Fang Xuanling comforted.

Li Shimin looked at Fang Xuanling, whose hair was gray, face was full of wrinkles, and body was bent by heavy state affairs. His face was filled with obvious regret, and he said apologetically: "Xuanling, you advised me at that time that after the war, there was a lot of work to be done. Let me stabilize for a few years before starting internal reforms."

"But I was blinded by the successive victories and became greedy for more. I was unwilling to use the feudal system offered by the crown prince easily, and even hoped that it would not work."

"Use the power of the great victory to suppress the backlash of the aristocratic families, implement the policy of equalizing the land tax, returning the fire consumption to the public, and integrating official and official taxes to solve the contradiction between people and land in the country."

"This is what caused the noble families to resent the court, so much so that they withdrew the troops that were supposed to suppress the grasslands back to the country to stabilize the situation. This is why they lost control over Yi Nan and Bi Heli, allowing them to take advantage of the situation and become more powerful."

Fang Xuanling saw that Li Shimin blamed himself, although he had also resented Li Shimin in his heart for not listening to advice, being greedy for merit and acting recklessly, and acting on his own.

But now that Li Shimin already knows it, I shouldn't be too demanding.

For a country as big as this, nothing can be done in a hurry, because if you rush, things will change!"

He nodded slightly, then changed the subject and took the responsibility on himself: "However, this is not the emperor's fault. There are so many ways to get so many benefits in the strategies for governing the country left by the prince."

"If you really let go, it will be hard to let go."

"After Tuli died of illness three years ago, the emperor, fortunately, overruled all opposition and set a precedent for women not to serve as officials. He appointed Tuli's only daughter, Ashina Yun, as the Grand Commander of the Southern Desert Commandery and inherited Tuli's title of Prince of Beiping."

"Besides, she also gave birth to the emperor's eldest grandson. She is now one with our Tang Dynasty."

"With the support of our Tang Dynasty, the tutors that the Crown Prince brought to Ashina Yun have now grown up and are leading troops in the Tuli tribe."

"The oldest generals, such as Liu Renyuan, Sun Renshi and Gao Kan, have already reached the position of captain of ten thousand men, which is equivalent to the position of a third-rank general in the Sixteen Guards."

"Half of the tribe's military power is in the hands of our Tang soldiers."

At this point, Fang Xuanling's eyes were filled with an unstoppable excitement and excitement: "After these years of recruiting tribesmen and multiplying, the Tuli tribe has grown to more than 200,000 people, with more than 80,000 combat-ready soldiers."

"Many officers and soldiers of the Tuli tribe are civilian generals selected from the military examinations sent by the Tang Dynasty. It can be said that the Tuli tribe is now completely under the control of the Tang Dynasty. The entire southern desert is actually under the jurisdiction of the Tang Dynasty and has become an inseparable part of the Tang Dynasty."

"With the Tuli tribe guarding the south of the desert, the Tang Dynasty will have an extra layer of protection."

"There is no need to worry that the Jieli tribe will move south. Even if the Yi Nan wants to attack the Tang Dynasty, if he does not start from the Western Regions, he cannot avoid the Tuli tribe."

Instead of being happy, Li Shimin looked sad, with endless sorrow in his eyes. He felt as if he had been hit hard. He sat weakly in the chair, looking at the last letter that Li Yan had left for Cheng Yaojin on the imperial desk.

His expression was sad and his eyes were blank.
It seems to be even more painful and sad than when Emperor Retired Emperor Li Yuan passed away in the middle of the year.

As soon as Fang Xuanling finished speaking, he realized that he had said something wrong.

During these five years, everyone in the Tang court knew that there was a taboo topic in the Taiji Palace, which was Crown Prince Li Chengqian.

Since the Battle of Dingxiang, the prince who was held hostage by Xueyantuo disappeared in the vast grassland, and no one saw him alive or dead.

After the war, in order to clear himself of any connection with the matter, Yi Nan brought all the guards and servants who had been responsible for protecting Li Yan, and even the singing girls, to Chang'an and handed them over to Li Shimin's men for trial in order to prove his innocence.

After a joint trial by the Jinyiwei and the Baiqisi, it was found that Li Yan was indeed very free during the few months he lived in the Xueyantuo tribe, without any constraints or restrictions, and he did get lost later in the pursuit of Jie Li.

The Hundred Cavalry Division even used various punishments and separated them for individual interrogation. Those who were not properly protected just said they were lost, and no one deliberately harmed them.

At least, Li Shimin had no choice.
In the past five years, Yi Nan, Bi Heli, Datang, Tuli, and Anashiyun have all sent countless people to plow the battlefield countless times, but there is no trace of the prince. In fact, everyone knows that in these five years, Li Yan can walk from Hengling to Datang.

Since he hasn't appeared yet, he must have died in the chaos of war.

The desert is vast and it is a battlefield where hundreds of thousands of people are fighting. If one person dies, it would be like looking for a needle in a haystack. No matter how many people are sent out, it will be useless.

Fang Xuanling sighed slightly when he saw this, and finally said: "Your Majesty, so many years have passed, you should not take it to heart. The Tang Dynasty is thriving and the national strength is growing stronger. You should still look forward to the future."

"If His Royal Highness is still alive, he wouldn't want you to be so sad. If you hurt yourself, His Royal Highness will have to worry about you."

Li Shimin seemed to have a breath of air in his chest, and after a long time he slowly let it out, muttering: "My prince has the appearance of a dragon and phoenix at a young age, and is gifted by nature. He is also courageous and knowledgeable. You have also seen the internal reforms he planned for me and the feudal system of unifying the Western Regions."

"If nothing happens to the crown prince, the throne will be passed on to him in the future, which will be enough to lay a lasting foundation for our Tang Dynasty."

"What a pity! God is jealous of talented people!"

"Whether it's Li Ke or Li Tai, their talents are far inferior to the crown prince's. It can even be said that they are not on the same level."

Li Shimin had seen Li Yan's extraordinary talent and great strategy with his own eyes, and then looked at Li Ke's bravery and determination, as well as Li Tai's erudition. It was like having tasted all the delicacies from land and sea, and then looking at beggar's chicken, he could no longer dislike it.

Leaning on the dragon throne, Li Shimin looked up at the dome of the hall with nine dragons carved on it, as if he was looking through the roof at the vast sky.

His face was filled with memories and worries. Slowly, he became full of sadness, and he covered his chest with his hands in pain, revealing deep regret.

Li Shimin gnashed his teeth and said, "I really regret it. Why did I send the prince to the grassland? If it was in Chang'an, these things would never have happened."

Fang Xuanling's old eyes showed a worried look: "Your Majesty, are you okay? If you feel uncomfortable in your chest, I will call the imperial physician right away."

Li Shimin waved his hand and remained silent.

After a long time, he opened his tightly closed eyes: "It doesn't matter to me, I know what you want to say."

"Now that the crown prince is gone, the Tang Dynasty cannot be without a crown prince. In the past two years, both Li Ke and Li Tai have been jumping around a lot."

"But at a time like this, what can I do?"

"When the Crown Prince was sent as an envoy to the Turks, I promised in public that if anything happened to the Crown Prince, the legitimate son born to the Crown Princess would be made the Crown Prince. But Li Xiang is only four years old this year. If I really make him the Crown Prince, I will put him in danger."

"The other princes and court officials will not let him go."

"If we don't make him the emperor, how can Hou Junji, Zhang Sun Wuji and other old officials of the Eastern Palace just give up?"

"Changsun Wuji is still okay, he is a civil official, but Hou Junji is in charge of half of the imperial guards, with military power in his hands. He can't bear to see his daughter helpless and his grandson being squeezed out, not to mention that Haitang has been a widow for so many years, I can't bear it!"

Fang Xuanling was also very troubled by this situation. He did not have much opinion on who the emperor should appoint. Although his youngest son could get along with the King of Wei, that was only a fallback for the Fang family and could not influence Fang Xuanling's opinion.

As the Zuo Pushe of the Tang Dynasty and the de facto prime minister, Fang Xuanling did not want to establish a child who was too young.

It was hard for such a newly born Tang Dynasty not to cause unrest.

"Your Majesty, the country relies on its eldest son. I believe that Jun Ji can understand the overall situation and understand the emperor's difficulties!"

Li Shimin rubbed his temples and said with a headache: "Hou Junji is still secondary. He is a military man. Without the advice of the assistant, he can't affect the overall situation. If it doesn't work, I can transfer him to the border to command troops and take charge of the local area."

"But what about Ashina Yun of the Tuli tribe and the tutors in the Eastern Palace?"

"They have very little contact with the court. Ashina Yun's Grand Commandery has a high degree of freedom over military power, financial power, and personnel. The court cannot control them at all. Those tutors who came from the Eastern Palace now command a large army and are deeply trusted and valued by Ashina Yun."

"A group with the East Palace as its core has long been formed"

"If another prince is appointed as the crown prince, the connection between the court and the Tuli tribe will be severed, and those tutors will also lose their foothold in the Tuli tribe. Ashina Yun's son is also of the Chengqian bloodline, and he is also the eldest son. How can he be willing to be marginalized?"

"She can accept Cheng Qian and Hai Tang's son inheriting the throne, so that Ashina Yun's son and the future emperor of the Tang Dynasty are still brothers, but can she accept Cheng Qian's brothers, the King of Shu and the King of Wei, inheriting the throne?"

(End of this chapter)