Du Qi said, "Retired Emperor, this subject has thought it through. Now, this subject is mainly in business, hoping to make a career out of it. Transferring the money of my own people is not a skill. But if I can earn the money of the western countries, that is a skill. "
Li Yuan smiled, but shook his head again.
He thought that Du Qi was willful.
But Li Yuan did not speak again.
Li Shimin still said again, "Erlang, I will ask you again, have you really thought it through?"
Du Qi said, "Your Majesty, this subject has thought it through."
Li Shimin nodded. He believed that Du Qi was not a casual person. Moreover, looking at Du Qi's appearance, it did seem that he had a plan long ago. It was not an idea that he had just put forward at this moment.
Li Shimin calculated in his heart.
Appointing Du Qi as the county magistrate of Jiuquan county, this was a bit too degrading.
In any case, Du Qi was a second-rank noble, and also a second-rank official. Of course, the rank of nobility and official was still somewhat different from official rank, and there was no connection between the two.
A moment later, Li Shimin had already made a decision in his heart. He opened his mouth and said, "Du Qi, listen to my order!"
Li Shimin said in a deep voice, "You have made meritorious contributions in the war to destroy the Tujue. I hereby confer you the title of Ping Xi Wang, a first-rank Prince."
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Du Qi immediately responded.
Ping Xi Wang, this was the first Prince with a different surname in the Tang dynasty.
It should be known that there was Li Da 'en before, whose original name was Hu Da' en, who was given the national surname, so he became Li Da 'en, a Prince. But in fact, after Li Shimin ascended the throne, this year when Du Qi and Li Jing were fighting outside, the imperial court had already sorted out the titles, and all the titles were re-established, generally downgraded.
So much so that after the downgrading of the titles, there was no Prince in the entire imperial court, not to mention the former Princes with different surnames, all of them were downgraded, either to Duke or County Prince.
There was no Prince of the opposite sex.
And even if there was a Prince, now it was not a fief, but a number of fiefs. Such an arrangement was equivalent to giving a lot of money.
Du Qi was different.
Du Qi became the first one, especially Du Qi's Ping Xi Wang, which was not bestowed according to the feudal land, was extremely rare.
"Erlang," Li Shimin said, "Do you know why Zhen bestowed you the title of Ping Xi Wang?"
Du Qi said, "I do not know. Please enlighten me, Your Majesty."
Li Shimin sternly said, "You want to go to the Western Regions to do business, this is a good thing. However, when it came to business, the scope was ultimately too small. We hope that your goal will be even greater. "
"Since you want to open up the trade route and imitate Wei Qing and Huo Qubing, We will fulfill your wish and bestow upon you the title of Pacifying West King. Furthermore, I will give you another promise. As long as you can take down the area west of Longyou Road, outside of Longyou Road's Sand Island, I will bestow it to you as your vassal state. You will have full authority to rule it. "
The current Tang dynasty's territory did not expand beyond Guazhou and Sand Island, only to Sand Island. Even so, in reality, the Imperial Court's control over Longyou Road was close to non-existent.
The Imperial Court was also lacking in power.
Especially today's bestowal of nobility, there was a change, and they did not have the authority to govern. Du Qi was different. Giving Du Qi the authority to govern was equivalent to letting Du Qi go to the Western Regions. Whatever he could take down would be his vassal state.
Du Qi raised his eyebrows in surprise.
What he wanted was to go to the Western Regions and establish his own power.
From there, he could control his own destiny.
He did not expect Li Shimin to directly give him such a condition. Not only did he bestow upon Du Qi the title of Ping Xi Wang, but he also gave Du Qi the authority to govern. This way, everything was different.
Looking at Du Qi's stunned look, Li Shimin smiled and said, "Erlang, I won't give you the official position of Jiuquan county magistrate, but I will give you this position. What do you think?"
Du Qi cupped his fists and said, "Your Majesty, I have nothing to repay your kindness. I can only pledge my life to serve Your Majesty."
Li Shimin said, "Although Suzhou, Guazhou, Sand Island, and other places are nominally under the Tang dynasty, they have their own power. In fact, they have their own forces. "
"Since you are going to the Western Regions, in addition to giving you the authority mentioned above, I will also give you a task. Your task is to go to Suzhou, sweep the local forces, and completely bring Suzhou, Sand Island, and Guazhou into the Tang dynasty's control. "
"At that time, the Tang dynasty will send troops to station there."
Li Shimin said, "Are you sure?"
Du Qi said seriously, "Your Majesty, even if I have to die a thousand times, I will complete this task."
"Good!"
A smile appeared on Li Shimin's face.
For Li Shimin, he was now busy with the domestic situation. In Li Shimin's eyes, there were still Tuyuhun, Goguryeo, and even Tubo. They all needed to be suppressed.
He had no time to care about the Western Regions.
Therefore, it was a good arrangement for Du Qi to go.
It was a casual move.
Li Shimin changed the topic and said, "Okay, Du Qi's arrangement is like this. Then, in this battle, the greatest contribution would be Li Jing. Li Jing's contribution in this battle is obvious to all. I will appoint Li Jing as the Right Servant of Minister Li Jing, confer him the title of Dai Guo Gong, Zuo Guanglu Daifu, and five hundred households to participate in state affairs. "
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Hearing this, Li Jing hurriedly came out to thank him.
The Right Servant of Minister Li Jing was equivalent to Li Jing becoming the Chancellor's assistant. Of course, the actual government orders were handled by Du Ruhui, Fang Xuanling, and the others, but Li Jing was honored.
Especially Dai Guo Gong, which was the same rank as a Commandery Prince. As for Zuo Guanglu Daifu, he was a civil official.
A series of rewards were given out.
It was not too much to say that Li Jing was a top official.
Li Jing was really calm and did not have anything to be proud of. Moreover, Li Jing was a person who knew when to advance and when to retreat. He was a Confucian general, and even if he could be said to be a scholar, he also had the characteristics of a martial artist. As such, it was easy for problems to arise with this identity.
Merit shocked the Lord, and this was the theory.
Civil officials had high merit points, but it did not have much effect as they did not have influence in the military.
Generals had high merit points, but it was different.
As such, Li Jing was really careful in his heart. He told himself to keep a low profile and not be impatient.
Li Shimin waved his hands, and Li Jing sat down.
Li Shimin said, "As for the rewards for the rest, we will arrange it based on merit."
As the general manager of the army, Li Jing said, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your kindness."
Li Shimin said, "Okay, back to the main topic. Tonight is a celebration. Anyways, drink to your heart's content. Come, come, let's not go home until we are drunk. "
With Li Shimin speaking, everyone started to drink and celebrate.
All of them talked about interesting things.
All of them were extremely happy.
Du Qi's words became an interlude. In fact, the reason was very simple. Du Qi's suggestion was accepted by Li Shimin, so there was nothing to say.
The group drank and chatted from day to evening, and stopped after dark.
Only then did they leave.
However, when Du Qi left, a palace servant came to Du Qi's side and said, "Ping Xi Wang, the Retired Emperor invites you."
"I know!"
Du Qi nodded.
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