Tang Dynasty, my wife Wu Zetian

Chapter 504 Requesting the Tang Dynasty to station troops?
After receiving Li Zhi's summons, Li Xian immediately went to Shanzhou and paid his respects to Li Zhi and Wu Meiniang at Ningshou Garden.

Li Zhi explained the case of Wei Shen to him in detail.

After hearing this, Li Xian was stunned for a long time, and stammered, "So, my brother and I were both wrong?"

Li Zhi said, "Xian'er, I entrusted you with the task of assisting your elder brother, but you were self-righteous. Not only did you lead Hong'er astray, but you also opposed Di Renjie's reinvestigation of the matter, almost causing a great mistake. Do you know your mistake?"

Li Xian was greatly dejected, lowered his head, and said, "Your son knows he was wrong."

Li Zhi said, “Among the officials in the court, there are countless people more intelligent than Xu Jingzong. The world is so vast, and there are countless hidden talents among the people. You should understand this after this incident.”

Li Xian was filled with shame, lowered his head, and said, "I will remember."

Wu Meiniang knew that he was impulsive and that although he sincerely admitted his mistake now, he might forget it in the future. So she reminded him, "Don't just remember it verbally. You have to remember this matter deeply in your heart!"

“Yes.” Li Xian’s heart skipped a beat.

Li Zhi said, "You should stay in the garden for now. Once Xue Rengui and the others arrive, you can return to the capital with me and your mother."

"Your son obeys the decree!"

Another half month passed, and Xue Rengui and Pei Xingjian led an army of 50,000 eastward and finally arrived at Shanzhou.

Emperor Gaozong (Li Zhi) and Empress Wu Zetian (Wu Meiniang) personally welcomed the returning army from the city wall.

The soldiers were overjoyed to see the emperor and empress personally welcoming them. They kowtowed outside the city walls to express their gratitude and shouted "Long live the emperor!"

Emperor Gaozong (Li Zhi) ordered wine to be bestowed upon Xue Rengui, Pei Xingjian, Wang Fangyi, Su Aoman, and others as a reward.

That night, Li Zhi summoned Xue Rengui and inquired about the situation in the Western Regions.

Xue Rengui replied, “Your Majesty, after the defeat of the Abbasid Caliphate, the surrounding countries began to stir again. The Abbasid Caliphate seized the opportunity and launched a swift and decisive attack. Within a month, it eliminated several countries that had led the rebellion and brought the situation under control. However, internal problems have arisen.”

"What's wrong with them internally?" Li Zhi asked.

Xue Rengui said, "A group of archbishops within the Abbasid Caliphate joined forces to attack Mu'awiyah, demanding that he relinquish the position of Caliph to Ali's second son, Hussein."

Pei Xingjian chose to launch a preemptive attack on the Abbasid Caliphate precisely to undermine Mu'awiyah's prestige while Mu'awiyah was still consolidating his power.

Now, the Tang Dynasty has not only defeated the Abbasid Caliphate, but also reclaimed most of the Tokharistan territory, and even India has once again submitted to the Tang Dynasty.

All of this happened after Mu'awiyah ascended to the throne. There must have been dissatisfaction within the Caliphate towards him, with questions raised about whether he was recognized by God.

It's only natural that someone would make trouble now.

Li Zhi smiled and said, "So, Pei Xingjian's plan was quite successful. Did Mu'awiya agree?"

Xue Rengui said, "He would naturally not agree, so the Abbasid Caliphate is once again showing signs of division, and it is probably not able to expand outwards for the time being."

Li Zhi nodded: "Very good. This long expedition has not been in vain. As long as the Abbasid Caliphate behaves itself, the Western Regions will be stable, which will also benefit our efforts to develop the trade routes in the Western Regions."

During his time in Shanzhou, Li Zhi also came into contact with some merchants who had returned from the Western Regions.

The Tang Dynasty gained fame in one battle, and its merchants naturally received respect in the Western Regions.

Originally, the Western Regions only purchased tea, porcelain and silk from the Tang Dynasty, but now even military-related items such as horses and Tang swords are very popular.

This is the advantage of having a strong military.

As long as a country is strong, others will subconsciously think that your military equipment is all good stuff.

Of course, the Tang swords and Xiliang horses of the Tang Dynasty were indeed of excellent quality.

With this trade route, the people of Anxi had several more ways to make a living, such as opening blacksmith shops or raising horses, which would surely promote the development of Anxi.

Xue Rengui suddenly said, "Your Majesty, when we returned, Sissis made a request to us."

Li Zhi asked, "Oh, what request?"

"He hoped that the Tang army could be stationed in Tokharistan for a long time, and he was willing to cede Ironstone Fortress and a piece of land in the surrounding area to the Tang Dynasty."

Li Zhi's heart stirred. This was equivalent to providing the Tang Dynasty with an overseas military base, and a permanent one at that.

Actually, upon closer reflection, it's not surprising.

Sissis essentially got the throne for free, so naturally he didn't care about issues like territorial integrity.

For him, the most important thing is to hold onto the throne, and the only people he can trust and rely on now are the Tang army.

However, in this day and age, without airplanes and trains, transportation capacity is extremely limited.

Tokharistan is too far from Chang'an; a round trip would take at least a year, and even from Suyab, it would take several months.

Overseas bases are good, as they can protect the interests of Tang Dynasty merchants, but the need for relocation is a major problem. Relocation every three years is definitely not feasible; it is estimated that relocation will be needed every ten years.

This was too cruel for ordinary soldiers, so it was definitely not feasible to send troops to garrison Chang'an; the only option was to select them from the Anxi army.

Upon careful consideration, the Zhaowu army should be the most suitable. They originally lived in the nine Zhaowu states near Tokharistan, so they could adapt to the environment and would not have too much homesickness.

"What are your and Pei Qing's opinions?" Li Zhi asked.

Xue Rengui said, "I have discussed this with Protector-General Pei and General Su, and we believe that we can send 10,000 Zhaowu soldiers to garrison Tieshi Fort. This will protect the Tang people outside the Great Wall and also protect the Eastern Tukharo Kingdom."

Li Zhi's heart skipped a beat, and he said, "Do you suspect that the Arabs will break the agreement and attack Eastern Tokharistan again?"

Xue Rengui said, "No, I believe that the Arabs have been severely weakened and will not provoke another war with us within ten years. After ten years, Sissis's throne should be secure, and it will not be easy for the Arabs to take over Eastern Tokharistan by force."

Li Zhi asked curiously, "Then why did you just say you wanted to protect the Eastern Turkic people?"

Xue Rengui said, "General Su once told us that there are two ways for the Arabs to invade other countries, and both I and Protector Xue think they make a lot of sense."

"Oh, what method?" "First, it relies on the Arab army. Second, it relies on the Abbasid Caliphate. General Su believes that the Arabs have been able to develop so rapidly precisely because of the Abbasid Caliphate."

Li Zhi nodded; he was well aware of the terrifying aspects of Islam.

Xue Rengui continued, "If we don't send troops to keep an eye on Tokharistan, the Abbasid Cult can launch a coup and overthrow Sisis as long as it infiltrates the upper echelons of Eastern Tokharistan. In that case, it wouldn't be considered a violation of the agreement."

Suoman had long resided in the Abbasid Caliphate, and his words were quite insightful.

Not to mention the high-ranking officials, even Sissis might have been a follower of the Abbasid Caliphate, just like the King of Kangju back then.

The Tang Dynasty had a thousand-year-old cultural heritage, which could resist the brainwashing of religion.

Although the Tang people were religious, they were very clear-headed and pragmatic, adhering to the principle of "if one prayer is effective, then worship another; if it's not, then worship someone else."

Some people even convert to several religions at once, which is all about casting a wide net to catch more fish.

The surrounding countries are different; faith is more important than life to them. Once someone adopts the Abbasid Caliphate, they immediately turn to the Abbasids.

Li Zhi suddenly asked, "What religion does Sissis believe in now?"

Xue Rengui said, "He is a follower of Zoroastrianism."

Li Zhi nodded. Zoroastrianism, also known as fire worship, is a religion that originated in Persia and has long been in conflict with Islam. The Tocharians were mostly followers of Zoroastrianism.

Therefore, as long as the Tang Dynasty can provide military support to Sissis, Eastern Tokharistan should not be so easily invaded by the Abbasid Cult.

“Alright, then send 10,000 Zhaowu soldiers to garrison in Tokharistan, but the Tokharistans will need to supply them with provisions.”

Xue Rengui said, "They are looking forward to our garrisoning here, and I expect they will agree to the matter of provisions."

Meanwhile, Wu Meiniang was also summoning Wu Minzhi to her room.

"Nephew greets Aunt." Wu Minzhi knelt on the ground and kowtowed.

Wu Meiniang stared at Wu Minzhi in astonishment and asked, "Minzhi, how did you become like this?"

At this moment, Wu Minzhi was extremely haggard, with sunken cheeks and dark skin, as if he had aged five years in an instant, no longer the handsome young man he once was.

Wu Minzhi said with a bitter face, "Aunt, Tokharistan is no place for humans to live. There are vast deserts along the way. I fell ill twice on the road and almost didn't make it back."

Wu Meiniang felt both sorry for him and amused. She rolled her eyes at him and said, "You're the one who insisted on going."

Wu Minzhi said with a bitter face, "I will not cause any more trouble in the future. I will stay in Chang'an and not go anywhere else."

Wu Minzhi also participated in the restoration of Tokharistan along with the inner guards.

Following Wang Jishan's orders, he accompanied and protected Sissis, Peroz, and others, which was actually a very easy job.

However, Wu Minzhi had been pampered since childhood. Although he had been to places like Goguryeo, Chang'an was a cold city, while Goguryeo was cold, but he could endure it.

Tokharistan was different; it was a high-altitude region with a hot climate. Wu Minzhi's small frame couldn't withstand it. He suffered from heatstroke and lack of oxygen along the way and couldn't adapt to the local environment at all.

He was practically carried into Ahuan City, and afterwards remained bedridden.

Pei Xingjian originally wanted to send someone to escort him back to Chang'an, but he was too ill and feared that he would die on the way and Empress Wu would hold him accountable, so he dared not make the decision on his own.

So, it wasn't until the army withdrew to Suyab that Wu Minzhi finally returned with the inner guards.

Fortunately, Wu Minzhi was lucky; not long after arriving in Suyab, his health miraculously recovered quickly.

However, after a serious illness, he became extremely weak, his spirit was worn away, and he no longer had the energy to travel around.

After hearing his story, Wu Meiniang smiled and said, "It's good that you survived. People won't learn to be content unless they've been through the gates of hell. This experience may not be a bad thing for you."

Wu Minzhi said dejectedly, "Yes."

Wu Meiniang pondered for a moment and asked, "You just said that you recovered when you were in Suyab?"

"Yes, Suyab is very similar to Chang'an. I felt a special sense of familiarity as soon as I saw it, as if I had come home. I recovered in just a few days."

Wu Zetian asked, "Have you been to the main street of Suyab and spoken with the people there?"

Wu Minzhi said, "Yes, there are many Tang people in Suyab, and they are all very simple and warm-hearted. My nephew has also met several young men from prominent families, and they are all very curious about Chang'an."

Wu Meiniang asked, "What do the people there think of Pei Xingjian?"

Wu Minzhi smiled and said, "Of course we respect him the most. The people of Suyab City respect Protector Pei very much, and believe that Suyab City is what it is today because of his arrival."

"And what about His Majesty?" Wu Meiniang asked, squinting her eyes.

Wu Minzhi was taken aback for a moment, then quickly replied, "All citizens of the Great Tang naturally revere His Majesty!"

Wu Meiniang stared at Wu Minzhi and said, "That's not what I'm asking. Don't play dumb."

Wu Minzhi was startled by her stern gaze. He immediately lowered his head, pondered for a moment, and whispered, "Aunt, are you worried that Protector Pei will rebel?"

Wu Meiniang stared at him indifferently, without saying a word.

Wu Minzhi dared not probe any further and hurriedly said, "The people of Suyab City all yearn for Chang'an, have great respect for His Majesty, and are filled with affection for you, Aunt!"

Wu Meiniang waved her hand and said, "Alright, you can go and rest now."

Wu Minzhi acknowledged and took his leave.

Wu Meiniang stood up, opened her arms, and said calmly, "Change your clothes."

Several palace servants immediately stepped forward to help her change her clothes.

(End of this chapter)