Li Shimin looked at Zhangsun Wuji and said, "Assistant General, why do you think Du Qi arranged for Ma Zhou to come?"
Zhangsun Wuji said, "Your Majesty, Du Qi must have asked Ma Zhou to extort and blackmail. In this battle, we lost Duan Zhixuan, Li Jing, and tens of thousands of soldiers became captives. With Du Qi's characteristic of skinning, he has the upper hand. It's impossible for him not to do so. Therefore, this time, Ma Zhou is very likely to come up with harsh terms. "
Li Shimin said, "How do you think I should deal with it?"
Zhangsun Wuji frowned.
His heart was filled with worry.
The reason was simple. When Li Shimin declared war with Du Qi for the first time, Zhangsun Wuji was the one who went to apologize. When Li Shimin declared war with Du Qi for the second time, it was Zhangsun Wuji who went to Niulan Mountain personally and apologized to Du Qi in front of the whole army. Now, Zhangsun Wuji was worried that Du Qi would give such conditions again. So, he was very worried.
Zhangsun Wuji gritted his teeth and said, "Your Majesty, why don't we shed all pretense of cordiality with Du Qi? After all, we've already shed all pretense of cordiality with Du Qi. Let's not care about anything else and just take down Ma Zhou. Let's see how Du Qi will deal with it. "
Li Shimin raised his eyebrows.
He was a little surprised.
Because Zhangsun Wuji's suggestion was really unexpected. It was to take down Ma Zhou directly.
This method was ruthless.
Zhangsun Wuji looked at Li Shimin and seemed to have sensed what Li Shimin was thinking. He said, "Your Majesty, it's because now, there's no possibility for us to coexist peacefully with Du Qi's Xia Xia. Du Qi is very murderous and wants to expand his territory. The Tang dynasty is beside him. Du Qi can't possibly not covet it. "
"Now, there's no possibility of reconciliation. Therefore, the next step was naturally to use violent methods. Previously, I suggested that we go to war regardless of the bottom line and even assassinate Xia Xia's officials. "
"Perhaps it has already played a big role."
"On the contrary, it's difficult for us to talk about rules with Mr. Xia's people. Just like now, we are in a predicament. Your Majesty, the most important thing now is to survive. "
Zhangsun Wuji said, "What else is there to talk about?"
Li Shimin frowned.
Take down Ma Zhou?
Even if Li Shimin wanted to vent his anger, he could punish Ma Zhou. However, directly taking down Ma Zhou was somewhat inappropriate.
Li Shimin was still hesitant.
Zhangsun Wuji continued, "Moreover, Ma Zhou is Du Qi's confidant. If we take down Ma Zhou, we can threaten Du Qi and force him to hand over his new weapon. With this new weapon, we can develop and manufacture it ourselves. At that time, we won't have to fear Mr. Xia. In the end, why is it disadvantageous for us to fight against Mr. Xia? It's not that our soldiers aren't strong enough, it's not that our soldiers aren't strong enough, it's that our soldiers' weapons aren't good enough. It's because the Tang Dynasty doesn't have Mr. Xia's weapons. Once we have this weapon, it will be easy for us to win the war with the Xia Kingdom. "
Li Shimin was moved.
Using Ma Zhou to exchange for weapons was a good suggestion.
Li Shimin thought and suddenly said, "Auxiliary machine, there's another problem! Our people are also in Du Qi's hands. Even Li Jing is in Du Qi's hands. It's not possible to use Ma Zhou to threaten Du Qi. "
Zhangsun Wuji said in a low voice, "At this point, we can only ignore Duke Wei and the rest of the soldiers. After all, even if Du Qi uses Duke Wei and the soldiers to threaten us, we can't care about them. As long as we're determined, it'll be easy. Your Majesty, once we fight against Du Qi, you don't have to do anything. I'll do it. This way, it'll be easy. I already have a grudge against Du Qi, so I'm not afraid of being criticized. So, if I threaten Du Qi, it'll be effective. "
Li Shimin said, "Auxiliary machine, what you said makes sense."
At this moment, Li Shimin was moved.
Everything was for the sake of the Tang Dynasty.
For the sake of Great Tang's prosperity, their only chance was to take down Ma Zhou, who had delivered himself to their doorstep.
A smile appeared on Zhangsun Wuji's face as he continued, "Your Majesty, war is cruel and unscrupulous. As long as we can win against Mr. Xia, it doesn't matter what methods we use, because the world only cares about the final result. On the other hand, once Your Majesty and Mr. Xia are defeated, the world won't care about how much Your Majesty has sacrificed. They will only say that Your Majesty has lost and won't consider anything else. "
Li Shimin nodded and said, "Auxiliary machine, we'll do as you say."
The two talked. After a while, Ma Zhou entered the tent. After Ma Zhou stood still, he said seriously, "Envoy Ma Zhou of Mr. Xia greets His Majesty the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty."
Li Shimin nodded and said, "Ma Zhou, why did Du Qi ask you to come?"
Ma Zhou said solemnly, "Emperor Tang sent troops to attack Mr. Xia and started a war. Now, His Majesty Xia is furious and wants to attack the Tang Dynasty. However, since Mr. Xia and the Tang Dynasty have the same origin, His Majesty gave Emperor Tang a chance. "
Li Shimin narrowed his eyes and said, "What chance?"
Ma Zhou said, "Emperor Tang will cede land and pay compensation, and at the same time, send the Princess to the Tang Dynasty. Then, His Majesty will not care about your mistake. Otherwise, His Majesty Xia will not let it go and will definitely kill his way into the Tang Dynasty to take revenge. "
Brush!
Li Shimin's complexion changed slightly.
Cede land and pay compensation!
Once Li Shimin really did this, then Li Shimin, as the Emperor, would be humiliated for the rest of his life. Such humiliation was even worse than the stain of him being promoted through a coup d 'état, and would be criticized even more.
Li Shimin slapped the table, his eyes as sharp as a knife, and said solemnly, "Du Qi is really going too far. Does he really think that I'm afraid of him if I withdraw my troops?"
Zhangsun Wuji echoed, "Du Qi is really self-righteous. Just for Mr. Xia, he wants the Tang Dynasty to cede land and pay compensation. He should take a look at himself in the mirror and see what kind of trash he is. "
Before Ma Zhou came to the diplomatic mission, he already knew that the mission would not go smoothly, and he would even be criticized.
When he heard Li Shimin's words, he was not surprised.
Ma Zhou said in a neither servile nor overbearing manner, "Whether Emperor Tang is afraid or not, Ma Zhou doesn't know. But Ma Zhou is very clear about one thing, that is, once the two armies really fight, Emperor Tang will definitely not have the slightest advantage. At that time, the Tang Dynasty will be in even more trouble. The originally stable Tang Dynasty will fall apart. Emperor Tang, although ceding land and paying compensation is a bit humiliating, it's better than the complete collapse of the Tang Dynasty. "
Li Shimin said, "Self-righteous. I'd like to see how Du Qi will make my Tang Dynasty fall apart. But the one who is in trouble right now is not me, but Du Qi. Du Qi has always been a people-oriented person. So this time, I'd like to see whether he is a people-oriented person. You took the initiative to walk into the net and fell into my hands. What will Du Qi do now? "
Ma Zhou's complexion changed slightly.
He immediately understood Li Shimin's intentions.
He wanted to detain him.
Ma Zhou knew that once Li Shimin made this decision, it was impossible to change his mind. At least, before Li Shimin hit a wall, it was impossible to change his mind. So Ma Zhou quickly adjusted his mentality. He chuckled and said, "I only hope that Emperor Tang will not regret his decision."
Li Shimin said, "I have never regretted it."
Ma Zhou said coldly, "Emperor Tang has always had no regrets. Then, does Emperor Tang regret letting Your Majesty go to the Western Regions?"
Li Shimin was suddenly speechless.
Letting Du Qi go to the Western Regions, and even letting Du Qi grow stronger, this was what he regretted the most. Every time he thought of the threat Du Qi posed to the Tang dynasty, Li Shimin was full of regret, thinking that he should not have let Du Qi go.
Ma Zhou continued, "Emperor Tang, how do you want to deal with me? You can arrange it as you wish."
When Li Shimin saw Ma Zhou in Chang 'an before, he admired Ma Zhou very much and thought that Ma Zhou was a talented person. Now that he saw Ma Zhou again, heard Ma Zhou's words, and saw Ma Zhou's calm posture, he still admired him in his heart.
Ma Zhou was talented.
Li Shimin said solemnly, "Ma Zhou, are you not afraid of death?"
Ma Zhou laughed heartily.
Li Shimin said, "Ma Zhou, why are you laughing?"
Ma Zhou said, "Emperor Tang's question just now is a bit low. The reason is very simple. If Emperor Tang kills me, it's nothing more than venting your anger. What's the use? The only use is to anger His Majesty and make His Majesty want to destroy the Tang dynasty. But if you keep me alive, you can bargain with His Majesty. However, this will be in vain. His Majesty will not be affected because of me. Emperor Li Sheng, what you are doing is a waste of effort. "
Li Shimin also chuckled and said, "Indeed, I am a bit stupid. Since you have seen through it, I will no longer say anything. Come, take Ma Zhou away and serve him well. "
The soldiers immediately entered and took Ma Zhou away.
Zhangsun Wuji said, "Your Majesty is wise!"
Li Shimin said, "This is a helpless move."
For Li Shimin, if it was not a desperate situation, he would never adopt this plan. Because according to this plan, it was equivalent to breaking the bottom line. One must know that the envoys were not killed when two armies fought. But now, he detained Ma Zhou and intended to use this opportunity to deal with Du Qi. It could be said that his method was despicable.
Zhangsun Wuji comforted, "Your Majesty, this is not a helpless move. It is to win. The confrontation on the battlefield is like this. Everyone uses their own means. As long as we can win, everything is worth it. "
Li Shimin nodded.
He was not a sentimental person. Since he had already made the arrangements, there was nothing to say.
Li Shimin said, "Fu Ji, immediately draft a letter and send it to Rouyuan County. Hand it to Du Qi and let him exchange it with the mysterious weapon in his hand."
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
Zhangsun Wuji agreed.
He immediately turned and left the main tent.
Li Shimin looked at Zhangsun Wuji's departing figure with a thoughtful expression. He did not know if his decision this time was right or wrong. Because he detained Ma Zhou this time, it caused the situation with Xia to change again.
That was a real contradiction.
It was a real confrontation.
This was a country war.
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