Peninsula: I'm being supported by a top idol.

Cui Shi'an adjusted the microphone, watching the number of viewers in the live stream gradually increase, especially the one who was firmly at the top of the list, [Lord Wengzhu], and cleared his throat.

"Good afternoon, everyone. Today we won't be discussing antiques or arguing with people, but rather talking about a piece of history—the cause of the Tang-Luo War."

He got straight to the point, displaying the key time period "670-676" on the screen.

"Many people, including some history books, like to simply attribute this war to Silla's 'betrayal,' but history is never a black-and-white fairy tale. Today, we try to examine it as a strategic puzzle."

Phase One: The Honeymoon Period

"First, we need to go back to twenty years before the war, when the situation on the peninsula was an alliance between Goguryeo and Baekje against Silla in the south."

"Silla was squeezed to the point of being unable to breathe, and Geumseong was in dire need of help several times. Therefore, King Muyeol of Silla, Kim Chunchu, made a decisive choice: to completely side with the Tang Dynasty."

"This was a very shrewd strategy. The Tang Dynasty's goal at the time was to eliminate Goguryeo, its greatest threat."

"Thus, the Tang-Silla alliance was formed: the Tang Dynasty provided the main force, while Silla provided a detachment and logistics and intelligence."

"In 660, the allied forces of the two countries first destroyed Baekje; in 668, they destroyed Goguryeo. By then, the forces on the peninsula that could rival Silla had been wiped out."

"It can be said that without the Tang Dynasty, there would have been no unified Silla. Do you all agree?"

[A user named "Did Oppa take off his mask today?" tipped 5,000 won and commented: Oppa is always right!]

Choi Si-an perked up when he saw the donation: "Oh my god, thank you 'Did Oppa take off his mask today?' for the 5000 won donation, thank you~"

Liu Zhimin, who was dozing off, suddenly woke up and opened her eyes to find that her position as the top fan had been taken away. She shoved her hand away.

[User "Princess" donated 10,000 Korean won and left a message: Keep going! Don't stop!]

Oh my god... why is she giving a tip?

Cui Shi'an was utterly baffled by her thoughts, but a slight smile played on his lips:

"Phase Two: Cracks"

"The problem lies in how the spoils are distributed after the war." He then changed the subject:

"The Tang Dynasty's thinking was very clear: what I wanted was stability and submission, so it established the Andong Protectorate in Pyongyang, the Ungjin Protectorate in the core of the former Baekje territory, and five other protectorates, forming a system of governance."

"Note that most of the officials in these governorates were originally Baekje nobles and generals who had surrendered."

The comments below started scrolling:

Aren't these people traitors to the Tang Dynasty?

"Stop using all this 'this kind of rapist' and 'that kind of rapist' stuff, okay?" Cui Shi'an rolled his eyes in disdain.

"The Tang Dynasty's strategy itself was not wrong, but for Silla, it meant one thing: the land I fought and sacrificed to conquer was not only not completely swallowed up, but I also had an emperor emeritus above me."

"Especially the former territory of Baekje, which borders Silla, held an important strategic position and was relatively rich in resources. Silla's ambitions began to take root here."

"So, things progressed to the third stage: the outbreak of conflict."

"Silla was very clever; it didn't dare to directly challenge the Tang Dynasty, so it adopted a hybrid strategy."

"First, they secretly supported proxies. They found and supported Anseong, a member of the Goguryeo royal family, and helped him establish the 'Goguryeo Restoration Regime' to cause trouble for the Tang Dynasty's Andong Protectorate and to tie down the main force of the Tang army."

"Secondly, they incited local rebellion. The Baekje people under the jurisdiction of the Ungjin Governor's Office were already dissatisfied, and Silla fanned the flames and provided support behind the scenes, leading to continuous rebellions in the Baekje region."

"The third, and crucial, step is direct military probing."

Cui Shi'an slowed down his speech and emphasized:

According to the "Samguk Sagi" and the "Old Book of Tang", in 671 AD, Kim Yu-sin led his army across the Geum River and captured Sabi Castle – which was the original seat of the Ungjin Governor's Office!

"This battle was of extraordinary significance. It was no longer a matter of underhanded tactics, but an open attack on the Tang Dynasty's direct administrative institutions on the peninsula! This was like a signal, announcing Silla's strategic intention: I want to replace the Tang Dynasty and become the sole master of this land."

Was it successful?

It definitely succeeded! It's recorded in history!

[Haha, even the streamer can't make amends for Tang Guo now?]

Ignoring the sarcastic comments in the chat, Cui Shi'an slowly concluded:

"Therefore, the fundamental reason for the outbreak of the Tang-Silla War was the irreconcilable contradiction between the Tang Dynasty's policy of 'tributary rule' and Silla's strategic ambition to 'unify the peninsula'."

Choi Si-an looked at the camera, as if he were seeing a specific person through the screen.

"It is not a simple betrayal, but the inevitable result of an emerging regional power attempting to challenge the established order and seize regional dominance after using the power of the suzerain state to clear obstacles. In this grand historical game, personal emotions, the fate of generals and princesses..."

"Perhaps, they are just a few insignificant pawns swept along by the tide of the times."

Cui Shi'an ended the live stream with a fatalistic whisper, his gaze unconsciously drifting to the special ID on the screen, hoping to see some reaction.

However, the account of "[Princess]" remained quietly at the top of the list, without any activity.

Rewind to just over ten minutes earlier, and the scene inside the van was quite different.

"...In conclusion, the strategic importance of Sibi City dictates that it will inevitably be the focus of contention between the two sides..."

When Cui Shi'an's deep voice flowed from the Bluetooth headset, talking about the "complex military and political structure of the Governor's Office," it was more effective than the most effective lullaby for Liu Zhimin.

Her head bobbed up and down like a chick pecking at rice, her long eyelashes opening and closing slowly.

Then, the hand holding the phone gradually loosened, and the phone silently slid down onto the soft blanket covering her legs.

Finally, she tilted her head to the side and leaned completely against the comfortable car window.

Fell asleep.

A faint, satisfied smile even graced the corners of her lips as she indulged in a beautiful dream completely unrelated to the classroom or history.

On the screen, Cui Shi'an's live broadcast continued, as he analyzed the details of the Tang-Luo War with great academic enthusiasm.

And these sounds, at this moment, have all transformed into the perfect background white noise for her peaceful sleep.

It wasn't until the live stream ended and the screen went dark for a long time, and a slight bump in the van, that she groggily woke up.

She subconsciously smacked her lips, and her first reaction was to reach for her phone on her lap and turn on the screen.

"Oh? It's over?"

She rubbed her sleepy eyes, staring at the dark live stream interface and the philosophical closing remarks in replay, a look of confusion and guilt flashing across her face.

She quickly opened her private chat window with Cui Shi'an and sent a voice message without thinking, her voice still soft and nasal, as if she had just woken up:

"Oh... I think I just... accidentally fell asleep... What chess pieces are you talking about? Who's whose chess piece?"

After sending the message, she looked at the voice message and belatedly realized that she might have revealed something...

—Thanks to reader Daojing Kun for the generous donation—

—Wait for my ten-chapter update when it's released—