The speaker was Ran Zuyong, one of the Three Thoughts and Five Dogs, now an assistant minister of the Ministry of Justice. Tubo's marriage alliance would inevitably lead to internal strife among the Great Zhou's factions, but the uproar it caused was beyond everyone's expectations.
Wei Yuanzhong glanced at Ran Zuyong and said, "Am I wrong? Ever since Princess Wencheng made peace with Tubo, although the two countries have not had thirty years of peace, there has been no war for twenty-two years. "
Ran Zuyong looked up to the sky and laughed, saying coldly, "What Prime Minister Wei said is true, but did you think that twenty-two years of peace came because of a woman?"
Ran Zuyong flicked his sleeve and faced the officials, saying with fervor and assurance, "Songzan Gampo had more than one concubine, he also married the princess of Xiangxiong, and his sister married the king of Xiangxiong. What was the result? In the eighteenth year of Zhenguan, Songzan Gampo destroyed Xiangxiong and killed the king! "
Wei Yuanzhong said, "So what? He did not invade the Tang dynasty! "
Ran Zuyong said, "Wrong! He only did not directly invade the Tang dynasty, not that he did not invade the Tang dynasty! "
Wei Yuanzhong frowned, saying, "What does Minister Ran mean?"
Ran Zuyong rolled his eyes and said with a cold smile, "Prime Minister Wei, do you dare to tell the world that invading the Tang dynasty's vassal states is not an invasion of the Tang dynasty?"
Wei Yuanzhong suddenly remembered something and his voice became stifled.
Ran Zuyong said, "After the marriage alliance, Songzan Gampo did not fight with the Tang dynasty because Hou Junji happened to destroy Gaochang at this time. The Tang dynasty set up the Anxi Protectorate at Jiaohe and set up their army in coordination with Tuyuhun. Would Tubo dare to start a war with the Tang dynasty? But what did Songzan Gampo do in these twenty-two years?
He suppressed rebellions, formulated laws, rewarded meritorious officials, created a written language, through marriage, he obtained a large number of craftsmen and agricultural books from our Central Earth, reformed the political and military system, and conquered the eastern Kang and An regions. It was during this period that the more than twenty vassal states of the Tang dynasty in the Kang and An regions were swallowed up by the Tubo.
Tubo has been working hard for more than twenty years. As soon as the internal affairs are stable and the national strength is strong, they sent troops to destroy the last barrier between our Tang dynasty and Tubo, Tuyuhun. Tuyuhun is also a vassal state of our Tang dynasty! Seven years later, the Tubo Empire invaded eighteen prefectures of the Western Regions, attacked Kucha City, defeated Xue Rengui, and invaded Jiannan. Another six years later, they raided the five prefectures of Chi, Kuo, He, Fang, and Dii.
The following year, the Tufan invaded our Fuzhou's Linhe Town and captured the town's General Du Xiaosheng. In the ninth month of the same year, they defeated Li Jingxuan's 180,000 strong army and captured the Minister of Works' Left Guard Great General Liu Shenli … With all these kinds of things, how could there be peace? To seek peace from the Princess and the Tufan is no different from asking for fish from a tree, it is pure wishful thinking! "
Song Jing reported, "Your Majesty, the two states are related by marriage. If the daughter of a big country is married off to her father's country and the son-in-law is married off to her son's country, there is no need to doubt this principle. If the two states are related by marriage, at the very least, it will protect the people and not harm the harmony between the two states. At the very least, it will avoid war and not harm the foundation of the country. Using one woman to defeat a thousand soldiers, why not? If not for this marriage, the Tang and Tubo might not have had twenty-two years of peace. "
Zhou Yi reported, "Although our heavenly empire intends to win over people with virtue, the barbarians have the ambition of wolves. Without a strong military force to rely on, it is difficult for us to seek peace. If not for the marriage, the Tubo might not have dared to fight. If the Tubo dared to fight, based on their situation at that time, they would have suffered great losses and the twenty or so western vassal states of the Central Plains would not have been swallowed by them one by one, resulting in the Tubo's vast territory today! "
The two sides argued, each quoting from the classics, refuting each other, not giving an inch. The magnificent hall suddenly became a place for both sides to show off their tongues. More and more people joined the fray, but no one could convince the other side. Seeing that it was noon, Wu Zetian was tired from sitting in the court for a long time. Impatiently, she ordered, "This matter will be discussed later, court dismissed!"
The clamor in the hall immediately died down. All the officials bowed to the Minister and respectfully sent Wu Zetian off.
Wu Zetian unhappily left the hall. The current palace guard, Ji Xu, accompanied her. Sitting on the carriage, Wu Zetian shook her head and sighed to Ji Xu, who was accompanying her. She said, "The court is full of officials, each with their own schemes, yet they are still dignified and full of righteousness. When will they be able to put aside their selfishness and wholeheartedly serve the country?"
Although Ji Xu had been demoted once, he still had a bold personality. Hearing Wu Zetian's lamentation, Ji Xu straightforwardly replied, "I think that the situation of the court today is really Your Majesty's fault."
"Oh?"
Wu Zetian waved her hand and stopped the carriage. She looked strangely at Ji Xu and asked, "What do you mean by this?"
Ji Xu bowed and said, "Your Majesty, if water and earth are mixed into a lump of mud, will the mud fight?"
Wu Zetian said, "The two have already merged into one, naturally there will be no fight."
Ji Xu said, "If the mud is divided into two, one half is sculpted into Buddha, the other is sculpted into Tianzun, will there be a fight between them?"
Wu Zetian said, "One Buddha, one Tianzun, each seeking incense, naturally there will be a fight."
Ji Xu said, "Exactly. If the royal family (Li family) and the relatives (Wu family) each abide by their duties, the world will be at peace. Now that the crown prince has been appointed and the relatives still call themselves kings, this is Your Majesty creating a situation where they will have to fight in the future. I fear that they will not be at peace. "
Wu Zetian was silent for a long time. She sighed and said, "I also know, but things have come to this, there is nothing I can do."
… …
The estates of the Prince of Xiang's five sons had not yet been completed, so the five princes were still living in their father's estate. Today was not the Grand Court Conference, so the Prince of Xiang and his three sons did not need to go to the palace to see the ruler. However, the news of the Tufan peace marriage still quickly spread through their channels to the Prince of Xiang's estate. Upon hearing the news, Li Dan immediately summoned his three sons.
Because the fourth and fifth were still young, they did not participate in the discussion. In truth, the third son, Li Longji, was also not very old, but he was mature and resourceful, even more so than his two older brothers. He had always been highly regarded by the Prince of Xiang and would often be summoned to discuss matters with him.
Li Dan explained the situation of the Tufan peace marriage, then said, "The crown prince has no daughter to marry. Once the peace marriage is completed, there is an eight or nine out of ten chance that it will fall on your sisters. What do you think of this matter?"
Li Chengqi frowned and said, "Father is correct. If the Tufan peace marriage is completed, the only suitable daughter of the royal family is my family. Tufan is a barbaric land, and the mountains are high and the road is long. If we go, we will be parting with our relatives forever. None of my sisters will be willing to go to the Tufan peace marriage. "
Li Chengqi loudly said, "That's right, Father, you can't agree to this matter. That boorish foreign king is the ruler of an uncivilized country. His whole body smells like sheep. It is said that he has never bathed in his entire life. Even if it was the daughter of an ordinary family in the Central Plains, who would be willing to marry him, let alone our family. "
Li Longji hesitated and said, "The king of the Tufan is the ruler of a country. He holds great power and can be considered a great man. But the customs of Tufan are very different from those of the Central Plains. Their temperament and character are also very different from those of the Central Plains. If my sisters are married, I am afraid it will be difficult for the husband and wife to live in harmony.
In the past, when Princess Wencheng was sixteen, she had to travel through mountains and rivers to marry in the distant Western Regions. But she and Songzan Gambo were husband and wife for ten years, and the time they spent together was no more than three years. For the next thirty years, she was even more lonely and destitute. How can you let my sisters suffer like this? Father, can't you find other members of the royal family to marry? "
Li Dan sighed and said, "There are a few members of the royal family. Their fathers and older brothers were executed for treason. Now, they are imprisoned as sinners. If they can marry far away and gain their freedom, they might be willing to do so. But the Tufan is harboring evil intentions at this time. The one they are plotting is definitely not a woman. If it were an ordinary member of the royal family, they would never agree. "
For a moment, the four of them were all silent. Li Dan was silent for a long time. He slowly looked at his three sons and gently stroked his beard. Suddenly, a smile appeared on his face. Li Longji saw the smile on his father's face and couldn't help but ask, "Father, why are you smiling? Do you have an idea?"
Li Dan shook his head and said, "It's not that I have an idea. It's just that I am deeply gratified to see you all like this."
Li Chengqi and his brothers looked at each other in astonishment. They didn't quite understand what Li Dan was saying.
Li Dan said, "When I came to discuss this matter with you three brothers, all of you were thinking about was whether you sisters would be happy or not. Not a single one of you thought about how marrying a sister would help our family. I am very happy that you brothers and sisters can love each other so deeply. "
Li Chengqi said, "Father, we brothers and sisters are related by blood. We should love each other."
Li Dan nodded deeply and said in a deep voice, "That's right. This is also what I am most proud of. You all must remember that no matter what happens, you must never forget about brotherly love. Power, status, riches, and future prospects should never be placed above familial love. "
This was a solemn warning from a father. The three brothers hurriedly stood up and solemnly acknowledged. Li Dan waved his hand and said, "Sit, sit down. We're father and son, so there's no need for so many rules."
Li Dan twirled his beard and thought for a moment. He then said, "I was thinking too much just now. Thinking too much ahead of time has made me indecisive. You three brothers' words have reminded me that my daughter has to be willing to marry herself and find an ideal husband for her. How can I ruin my daughter's life for the sake of profit? Our daughters can't be married off to Tufan. If we want to avoid this calamity, we have to get them married as soon as possible. "
Li Chengyi grinned and said, "Great! This way, I'll have quite a few brothers-in-law. I'll have company when I want to drink in the future. I'll go talk to the girls. "
Li Chengqi hurriedly pulled him back. "Wait, Erlang!"
Li Chengqi stopped Li Chengyi and turned to Li Dan. "Father, the imperial grandmother hasn't made up her mind yet. If you're in a hurry to find a son-in-law for your daughter, won't she blame you if she finds out?"
When Li Dan heard this, he frowned. Both he and Li Xian were cowardly. Although he was braver than Li Xian, he didn't have the courage to go against Wu Zetian. Moreover, he understood that unless his mother allowed it, even if he chose a son-in-law for his daughter, it wouldn't count.
Li Longji slowly said, "I don't think it'll be too difficult."
Li Dan's eyes brightened. "Sanlang has always been wise. What ideas do you have? Tell me quickly."
Li Longji smiled. "How could I have any ideas? It's just that I know that imperial grandmother has always listened to the Wu clan. The Wu clan will definitely oppose the marriage of our Li clan's daughter. Thus, although the court has yet to come to a decision, imperial grandmother has probably already made a decision.
Right now, imperial grandmother is only worried that the Tubo clan will use force to force the marriage after failing in their marriage proposal, causing chaos at the borders. Our capital has just been moved back to Chang 'an, and the border defense has yet to be consolidated. If war breaks out and we lose, I'm afraid we'll have to move the capital again. If that happens, we'll be the laughing stock of the world.
If father asks imperial grandmother for permission, there's an eighty to ninety percent chance that imperial grandmother will agree. What the Tubo clan needs is only dignity. If all the eligible women of our imperial clan already have husbands, can the Tubo force us to cancel the marriage? Now that the Tubo clan is not as strong as before, they won't be willing to go to war unless absolutely necessary.
If the Tubo clan is willing to marry, then they can choose a guilty imperial clan daughter to marry. If they don't want to marry, then it's because they don't have a suitable candidate. This matter must be approved by imperial grandmother. Only then can we ask imperial grandmother to issue an edict to have the Four Quarters Embassy prevent news of this from reaching the ears of the Tubo envoys. "
Li Chengqi and Li Chengyi nodded. Li Dan also nodded. "Sanlang's words are reasonable. I'll go to the palace now and ask mother for permission to pick a son-in-law for your sister."
Li Dan counted with her fingers and said, "Shouchang and Jing Shan are already 16 years old, while Huaiyang and Liang Guo are 15. These four daughters have to get married immediately. As for the other children, the oldest is only 12. I don't think the Tibetan King will marry them either. En! I'll go to the palace now! "
Yang Fan hurried back to Chang 'an with his entire family. He had originally believed that the moment he returned to Chang' an, he would hear that the Wu and Li clans were engaged in an endless war of words over the marriage. He had not expected that the most sensational news he had heard was that the Prince of Xiang, Li Dan, was scouring Chang 'an to find a son-in-law for his daughter …
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