Datang: Rebirth of Li Chengqian, the beginning of the treason interrogation

Chapter 26: Do I want to lead the army in person and imitate Emperor Yang of Sui?
"Right Prime Minister, when will the army be able to march out?"

Li Shimin's tone became much gentler. He waved to everyone, indicating them to sit down, without the aura of a king.

"Supplies and men can be prepared in half a year, but by then it will be winter, and the army will have to wait until the beginning of spring next year to go on the expedition."

As Changsun Wuji was in charge of military affairs, he naturally had to have a clear understanding of military affairs, otherwise how could he sit in this position.

Li Shimin nodded. Military affairs could not be rushed. It took time to recruit soldiers and to mobilize food and grass. If the time for training new recruits was added, a year would not be enough time to prepare.

"I will lead the army in person this time and leave the crown prince as regent. What do you ministers think?" Li Shimin looked at several people, especially Zhangsun Wuji.

"Your Majesty, this is absolutely not possible." The counselor Chu Suiliang immediately objected.

The emperor is the foundation of the country. In addition, Li Shimin has been physically and mentally exhausted recently. If something bad happens to him, the whole country will surely be in turmoil, and the prosperous times will turn into chaos.

"Your Majesty, as the king, you should put state affairs first. Going to war is the job of military commanders. The situation of the army is ever-changing, and the shape of water is ever-changing. Your Majesty must not put yourself in danger."

Chu Suiliang had no choice but to push forward, because Wei Zheng died too quickly.

"Doctor Chu seems to have forgotten that I was born into a military family and have fought countless battles in my life. What can I do against a small country like Goguryeo?"

Li Shimin laughed and didn't take it seriously. The Tang Dynasty was now extremely powerful and had even destroyed the arrogant Eastern Turks. Naturally, Li Shimin would not take a small Goguryeo seriously.

"Your Majesty is so powerful. A small Goguryeo can be easily destroyed. Why use a butcher knife to kill a chicken? My Great Tang has many brave generals. We only need to send two or three generals and tens of thousands of soldiers to destroy it."

Chu Suiliang flattered him, but no matter what, he didn't want Li Shimin to lead the army in person as the risk was too great. It was not like there was no one else available, so he had to ask General Tiance to go in person.

"Doctor Zhu is absolutely right. I am willing to lead 50,000 elite troops and destroy their country." Li Ji volunteered. If Li Shimin led the army in person, he would be restricted.

Li Jing was able to destroy the Eastern Turks, so why couldn't Li Ji destroy Goguryeo?
"I have made up my mind! There is no need to say more." Li Shimin made a direct and arbitrary decision without giving others a chance to comment.

"His Majesty…"

Several people looked at each other, but not everyone had the courage like Wei Duidui. After all, what Li Shimin said made sense.

Can't I lead the army in person? Don't I have military talent?

"Your Majesty, do you want to emulate Emperor Yang of Sui?"

Just when everyone thought the matter was finally settled, Li Chengqian looked at Li Shimin and asked, his eyes clear and his mouth slightly open.

"There's that smell again!" Fang Xuanling murmured with his head down.

"What's that smell?" Changsun Wuji, who was closest to him, also asked with his head down.

"Didn't we all experience Wei Zheng's feeling a few days ago?" Fang Xuanling continued to whisper. Without anyone restraining the emperor, he became more and more unscrupulous, and no one could persuade him.

Li Shimin's expression became uncertain. After being confronted by Li Chengqian twice, he felt a bit like when he met Wei Zheng.

I am the emperor! Why should I be afraid?

"Prince, are you exaggerating? I am a wise and virtuous ruler. How can I be compared with Yang Guang, the tyrant who ruined the country? Is there anything about him that is worth learning from?"

Li Shimin said with a gloomy face and great displeasure.

"Your Majesty, you have experienced Emperor Yang Guang's conquest of Goguryeo. Don't you know that the Sui Dynasty was dragged down by Goguryeo? The Sui Dynasty that Emperor Yang Guang took over was also extremely powerful." Li Chengqian said again, making a veiled insinuation. Li Shimin's face suddenly became extremely ugly.

Yes, think of the Kaihuang era when Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty, Yang Jian, was in power. What a powerful and prosperous era it was! At that time, the Sui Dynasty was powerful and powerful, and all the surrounding ethnic groups came to submit to it. It can be said that all the barbarians were submissive.

However, even in such a prosperous era, mistakes occurred in the war against Goguryeo.

During the reign of Emperor Yang Guang of the Sui Dynasty, he was ambitious and launched three consecutive large-scale expeditions against Goguryeo, which led to the exhaustion of national financial resources and the people's livelihood was in dire straits, eventually triggering social unrest and peasant uprisings.

"Prince, what do you mean by that? Earlier in the court, you clearly advocated attacking Goguryeo."

Li Shimin asked Li Chengqian with a puzzled look. At this moment, he put away his contempt for Goguryeo.

Goguryeo was like a curse, causing the powerful Sui Dynasty to suffer repeated defeats. Later, Goguryeo even used the corpses of the Sui people to pile up the Jingguan.

You can say that the Sui Dynasty was in chaos, but you cannot say that it was weak.

"We must fight against Goguryeo, but Your Majesty cannot lead the army in person, otherwise it will cause unrest in the country." Li Chengqian also wanted to stop Li Shimin from leading the army in person.

After all, Li Shimin also had the same ambition and desire for glory as Emperor Yang of Sui, and wanted to leave a significant mark in his biography.

"We will discuss this matter later." However, Li Shimin did not give up and still wanted to show off his martial arts.

"Your Majesty, what the Crown Prince said is absolutely right. Your Majesty should stay in the capital and deter the villains."

"Yes, your majesty's civil and military achievements, why do you need to use a small Goguryeo to show off?"

Seeing that Li Shimin's attitude had relaxed, several ministers also took the opportunity to strike while the iron was hot and persuade him.

"I have already said that we will discuss this matter later. As for who will be the commander-in-chief, we will decide when we march."

Li Shimin was still a little stubborn, but in his peripheral vision, he saw Li Chengqian take a step forward, and his heart twitched again. This prince cursed his father even more harshly than Wei Zheng.

"That's all for today's military discussion." Li Shimin directly announced the end of the small meeting, not wanting to be criticized anymore.

"Wait, the prince will stay alone!" Li Shimin said again after seeing everyone bowing and stepping back.

……

"Fortunately, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince advised us, otherwise, given His Majesty's temper, he would definitely lead the army in person, and then we wouldn't be able to stop him!"

After walking out of the side hall, Li Ji sighed with a look of relief on his face, and his excitement could not be concealed in his words.

Li Jing had retired, so Li Ji was definitely the best choice for the commander-in-chief in the Goguryeo war. But if Li Shimin wanted to lead the army in person, then he would naturally not have the chance to destroy the country.

"Duke Ying, don't be too happy yet. He hasn't been completely persuaded yet. In my opinion, His Majesty is still very interested in attacking Goguryeo."

Fang Xuanling shook his head helplessly and said worriedly.

"Moreover, now that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is able to take charge of things on his own, we can let him govern the country. In this way, Your Majesty can go to war with complete peace of mind, and there will be no such thing as the capital being left without anyone in charge." Fang Xuanling continued to analyze.

"Having said that, war is unpredictable. We must advise Your Majesty and not put Your Majesty in danger." Li Ji frowned and said in a firm tone.

(End of this chapter)