Tang Dynasty, my wife Wu Zetian

Chapter 487 Dismembering India
At dawn, at the second quarter of the fifth watch, the first drumbeat of the morning rang out from the city tower of Chengtian Gate, the main gate of Taiji.

As the sound of the drum spread throughout the city, the drum towers on more than a dozen main streets in Chang'an would follow suit, the sound spreading like waves.

More than a hundred temples in the city also ring their morning bells.

The stirring drumbeats and the deep tolling of bells intertwined, awakening the entire city of Chang'an from the darkness, as it greeted the rising sun bursting forth from the eastern horizon.

After the morning drum has sounded three hundred times, the gatekeepers stationed at the main gates of Chang'an will open the gates in the east, west, and south directions.

Long queues had already formed outside the city gates, especially outside the west gate, where several foreign delegations had arrived in Chang'an.

It was now December, and the number of foreign delegations gathered in Chang'an was the highest in any dynasty.

More than 130 countries sent envoys to Chang'an, half of which came from countries west of the Abbasid Caliphate.

These include the Byzantine Empire, the Khazars, the Goths, the Franks, the Slavic tribal confederation, the British Isles, the Avar Khanate, the Berber tribes, the Maculia, the Semitic Empire, the Lombardy Empire, the Benevento Empire, and so on.

Many envoys from various countries were visiting Chang'an for the first time and never imagined that such a prosperous city existed in the world.

The various countries in the Western Regions all believed in religion, and they all suspected that Chang'an was a holy land, the paradise mentioned in the sacred scriptures.

Such a wonderful place is located in the East of the world. It's just a pity that the Tang Dynasty was too powerful, otherwise it could have taken it over by claiming that it was recorded in the sacred texts.

Many foreign envoys were illiterate and uncivilized. Seeing the Tang people's friendliness, they assumed they were weak and resorted to illegal acts.

Initially, the Imperial Guard and Yongzhou Prefecture managed the foreign envoys according to the laws of the Tang Dynasty, but they were unable to control them at all.

In particular, their entourage and servants acted without any restraint, defecating and urinating in the streets, which greatly angered the people of Chang'an.

Some women in Chang'an were even harassed by these foreigners when they went out, who tried to remove their veils.

Although the Chang'an soldiers beat these people up badly, they were still unable to vent their anger and went to Yongzhou Prefecture to protest.

Changsun Quan was also somewhat helpless. He had been managing these foreigners according to the strictest standards of the Tang Dynasty law without showing any favoritism, but he found that he simply couldn't control them.

These people were detained for a few days, but after their release, they continued to cause trouble, which made them deeply hated by the people of Chang'an.

Changsun Quan had no choice but to seek advice from Changsun Wuji, who laughed and said, "That's easy, just kill a few."

Changsun Quan frowned and said, "But according to the laws of the Tang Dynasty, it is not enough to sentence them to death. Are we going to break the law?"

The Yonghui Commentary on the Laws clearly states: "Foreigners of the same kind who commit crimes against each other shall be punished according to their own customs; those of different kinds who commit crimes against each other shall be punished according to the Tang Laws."

Changsun Quan has already taken the strongest measures, handling the matter according to the laws of the Tang Dynasty, whether between countries of the same or different.

Changsun Wuji slowly said, "Fourth Brother, do you know why the laws of different dynasties are different?"

Changsun Quan shook his head.

Changsun Wuji said, "Because different dynasties have different customs, each dynasty will formulate laws that are most in line with the circumstances at that time in order to keep the country stable."

“We are of the same ethnic group, yet we have to formulate different laws at different times. Just think about it, can the laws of our Great Tang Dynasty be applied to these barbarian tribes beyond our borders?”

"Of course not."

Changsun Wuji said, "That's right. The laws of the Tang Dynasty exist for the Tang Dynasty. There's no need to use the standards of the Tang laws to deal with barbarians outside the Tang Dynasty."

"Then what standard should we use to deal with them?"

Changsun Wuji said calmly, "There is only one standard: make them abide by the rules on my Great Tang territory. As long as this is met, His Majesty will not blame you no matter how you deal with them!"

After obtaining the scriptures, Changsun Quan ordered the execution of all foreign envoys and their entourage who had committed serious crimes in the West Market the very next day.

If an envoy commits a crime, the entire envoy shall be punished with twenty strokes of the cane as a form of punishment.

The envoys from various countries were furious, and some protested to the officials of the Court of State Ceremonial. Eventually, the matter reached the ears of the emperor.

According to Li Ji, after hearing about this, the sage only said "good" and then said nothing more.

Changsun Quan was then relieved and no longer held back in dealing with the foreign envoys.

Seeing how fierce the Tang people were, the foreign envoys became fearful and strictly disciplined their entourage, and finally no one dared to break the law in Chang'an anymore.

This farce also created a strange national hierarchy of contempt within the Court of State Ceremonial.

For example, the southern countries such as the Six Zhao, Java, and Zhenla were always looked down upon by the Western Regions and Liaodong countries, who considered them to be uncivilized and barbarians.

Now, the kingdoms of Liuzhao, Java, and others have discovered that there are many countries even more barbaric than themselves, and they secretly despise them, thinking that they are the real barbarians.

They were called Western Barbarians.

Among the countries that sent envoys to the Tang Dynasty this time, there was one special country: India.

The chosen envoy was none other than the Governor-General of India, King Sindh!

The Indians initially sent reinforcements to help the Arabs fight against the Tang army.

As a result, the Arabs were defeated and sent someone to reprimand King Sindh, blaming his Indian soldiers for being too incompetent and dragging down the Arab army.

King Sindh had originally planned to send another 100,000 troops to aid the Arabs, but seeing their attitude, he was furious and decided not to send any more reinforcements.

King Sindh was a bully who preyed on the weak and feared the strong. After being humiliated by the Arabs, he was furious and decided to take his anger out on the Tibetans.

The main force of the Tibetan army originally numbered only about 30,000, of which 20,000 were wiped out by the Arabs, leaving only about 10,000. They were easy targets.

King Sinde personally led 100,000 Indian soldiers to attack Tibet, but was utterly defeated by 10,000 Tibetan soldiers led by Sireng.

King Sindh fled back to India in a panic, feeling frustrated. Just then, news came from Tokharistan that the Arabs had been defeated by the Tang army again, losing 100,000 troops!
Seeing that the situation was not favorable, King Sinde led his army and killed all one thousand Arab soldiers stationed in India, and then declared that he would submit to the Tang Dynasty.

He himself led a group of envoys, traveling day and night to enter the Kunlun-Tibet region, where he found Wang Xuance and expressed his willingness to submit to the Tang Dynasty.

Wang Xuance was overjoyed and led him back to Chang'an. They finally arrived in Chang'an in December, accompanied by Qinling.

King Sinde was enraged by his defeat by 10,000 Tibetans and kept mocking Qinling along the way.

Qinling ignored him, but every time he looked at him, a murderous glint flashed in his eyes.

Upon arriving in Chang'an, King Xinde saw that so many envoys from various countries had come to Chang'an, and many of them were even kings in person. He knew that he had made the right choice by playing the fence this time, and he was quite pleased with himself.

He was eloquent and adept at boasting. Under his lavish praise, envoys from various countries believed that India was a great power and respected him greatly.

Meanwhile, after returning to Chang'an, Wang Xuance first went home to visit his family and then took a bath before entering the palace to meet the emperor. On his way to Chengtian Gate, he happened to meet Zhang Jianzhi, who also wanted to meet the emperor, and the two then traveled together.

After being informed outside Chengtian Gate, the two went together to Ganlu Hall. After waiting in a side hall for a short while, the emperor sent someone to summon them.

Upon arriving at the main hall, Li Zhi put down his imperial brush, looked up at the two men, and asked, "What brings you two ministers to the palace to see me?"

Wang Xuance gestured for Zhang Jianzhi to speak first.

Zhang Jianzhi did not refuse, stepped forward, cupped his hands and said: "Your Majesty, this morning, a Byzantine envoy came to me and proposed that the countries could form an alliance. I think this is a matter of great importance, so I have come to report to Your Majesty."

"An alliance?" Li Zhi's eyes flashed.

Zhang Jianzhi said, "Yes, the Byzantine envoy meant that the number of countries gathered in Chang'an this time is unprecedented. We can form an alliance of countries, with our Great Tang as the leader, and then select several deputy leaders to decide on disputes between countries. In this way, we can eliminate many wars!"

Li Zhi was stunned. Wasn't this the United Nations?

How could the Byzantines have such insight?

Upon further reflection, he realized that the Byzantines did not truly want to form a United Nations, but rather to exclude the Arabs and form an anti-Arab alliance, with the Tang Dynasty as its leader.

Seeing the Tang army defeat the Abbasid Caliphate, they wanted to use the Tang Dynasty's power to completely eliminate the Abbasids so they could sleep soundly.

Emperor Gaozong (Li Zhi) sent troops to deal with the Abbasid Caliphate for two reasons: first, to ensure that the Abbasids would not dare to look eastward; and second, to extend the influence of the Tang Dynasty to the Middle East and promote commercial development.

The position of leader of the alliance is nothing more than being pushed out and used as a tool; Li Zhi will not let them have their way.

Furthermore, while the Arabs are aggressive, the scoundrels to the west aren't much better, and they'll only become more vicious once they become powerful.

Thinking of this, Li Zhi asked, "Zhang Qing, what do you think of this matter?"

Zhang Jianzhi said, "I believe this matter has both advantages and disadvantages."

"Tell me."

Zhang Jianzhi said, "Serving as the leader of various alliances can enhance the prestige of the Tang Dynasty in the Western Regions and is conducive to the development of trade routes. This is beneficial."

"What are the drawbacks?"

Zhang Jianzhi said: "In the past, Emperor Shang of Sui, in order to show off his empty reputation, flaunted his wealth and wasted resources when all the countries came to pay tribute. This led the country to prioritize appearances over substance and ultimately to its demise."

"If our Great Tang becomes the leader of the alliance, the affairs of other countries will become the affairs of our Great Tang. If the Tang court only cares about foreign affairs, it will neglect the people's livelihood and the people's suffering, which will be of no benefit to the country and the people."

"I believe that clinging to empty fame and neglecting the fundamental interests of the country is the path to national ruin."

Li Zhi smiled and said, "According to your logic, the disadvantages outweigh the advantages, and it should not be adopted."

Zhang Jianzhi said, "That's right."

Wang Xuance was secretly alarmed when he heard Zhang Jianzhi's remarks. He wondered if his suggestion to the emperor to take India was somewhat motivated by a desire for empty fame.

Before he could think further, Li Zhi had already adopted Zhang Jianzhi's suggestion and asked him, "Minister Wang, what do you have to report?"

Wang Xuance composed himself, cupped his hands, and said, "Your Majesty, my return to the capital this time is for matters concerning India."

Li Zhi frowned and said, "Are you trying to persuade me to take India again?"

Wang Xuance hurriedly replied, "King Sinde of Tianzhu accompanied me back to the capital this time, and he expressed his willingness to offer Tianzhu to the Tang Dynasty!"

Li Zhi snorted and said, "He's turning to us because he sees the Abbasids are weak. What good is such a fence-sitter to me?"

Wang Xuance said, "If Your Majesty does not want the land of India, I have another plan that can benefit our Great Tang."

Li Zhi asked, "What strategy?"

Wang Xuance pondered and said, "Your Majesty can issue an edict to divide India into thirty-six kingdoms. We will not directly govern them, but let them govern themselves. We will only send a governor to lead troops to garrison them, and let them pay a certain amount of taxes, special products and local products to the Tang Dynasty every year."

Li Zhi's heart stirred; Wang Xuance wanted to dismember India and then colonize them.

However, being India, they seemed to have no burdens, and historically, this was the best way to govern them correctly.

"Your Majesty, if we divide India into thirty-six kingdoms, will the Indians agree?" Li Zhi asked.

Wang Xuance smiled and said, "Your Majesty, please rest assured. The Indians were originally a scattered alliance, but were forcibly brought together by the Arabs. Your Majesty's decree to separate them will only make them grateful for Your Majesty's kindness."

Li Zhi thought for a moment and said, "This matter can be handled. Go and draft a detailed memorial on its implementation, and submit it to me for my review another day."

"I accept the decree."

At this moment, after Wang Xuance finished speaking, Zhang Jianzhi submitted another memorial.

When Qinling wavered towards the Abbasid Caliphate, Emperor Gaozong (Li Zhi) promised him that as long as he resisted the Abbasids, he would be allowed to attack Indian territory.

Recently, India invaded but was repelled by Tibet. Qinling then requested permission from Emperor Gaozong (Li Zhi) to attack India.

Li Zhi thought for a moment and said, "You can tell him that India has already submitted. After I divide India into thirty-six states, I will carve out one state and incorporate it into Tibet. This will be my promise to him."

Zhang Jianzhi said, "Your Majesty, I believe that if Tibet is located next to our Great Tang, it will always covet our old territory. Why not relocate Tibet to another part of India?"

Li Zhi's heart stirred, and he asked, "In your opinion, where should it be classified?"

Zhang Jianzhi said, "We can carve out a fertile land south of India, twice the size of Tibet, and let the Tibetans migrate there."

After hearing this, Li Zhi couldn't help but be somewhat tempted.

The present-day Tubo Kingdom has a population of less than 100,000. After Qinling and others lead their people south, they will inevitably be assimilated into India.

In two or three generations at most, there will be no more Tibetans, only Indians, and these tens of thousands of people will be assimilated by the Indians.

This is equivalent to eliminating Tibet in another way.

Li Zhi then asked Wang Xuance for his opinion, and Wang Xuance bowed in agreement.

Li Zhi waved his hand and said, "If that's the case, then this matter will be handled by the two of you."

The two men received their orders and took their leave.

(End of this chapter)