Chang 'an City, Zhangsun Family.
During this period of time, Zhangsun Wuji rarely went out. He even had less time to attend court. The reason was simple. His eldest son, Zhangsun Chong, was sent to the West Region as a hostage. This made Zhangsun Wuji depressed.
Zhangsun Wuji knew that he would definitely bring Zhangsun Chong back in the future. He couldn't let Zhangsun Chong stay in the West Region forever. However, when he thought of the conflict between him and Du Qi and how Du Qi might mistreat Zhangsun Chong, Zhangsun Wuji couldn't calm down.
Zhangsun Wuji had more than one son. However, among all his sons, Zhangsun Chong was the most similar to Zhangsun Wuji. Zhangsun Wuji thought that Zhangsun Chong's temperament was quite good. He was cunning and smart. He was his best son.
That was why Zhangsun Wuji was so upset.
Knock! Knock!
Knocking sounds came from outside the study.
Zhangsun Wuji wasn't in a good mood. He said, "If there's nothing, don't disturb me. I won't be handling government affairs during this period of time. "
The butler stood at the door and said, "Old Master, there's a letter from the First Young Master from the West Region."
Zhangsun Wuji quickly said, "Bring it in."
The butler pushed the door open and entered. He placed the letter on Zhangsun Wuji's table.
Zhangsun Wuji opened the letter. When he saw the dark purple blood letter, he raised his eyebrows and his heart sank. Then, Zhangsun Wuji quickly continued reading. After he finished reading the letter, Zhangsun Wuji immediately set fire to the letter and burned it.
His expression was cold and solemn.
His eyes were filled with anger.
Because this blood letter was written by Zhangsun Chong himself. When he thought of how his son was so young but wrote a blood letter to ask him for help, Zhangsun Wuji's heart ached.
The content of the letter was very simple. It asked Zhangsun Wuji to persuade Li Shimin to arrange for Du Ruhui to go to the West Region.
Zhangsun Wuji was very conflicted.
It was Zhangsun Wuji who suggested to deal with Du Qi. However, now he wanted to help Du Qi and even facilitate Du Ruhui to go to the West Region. This matter was equivalent to slapping his own face.
Zhangsun Wuji fell silent.
He remained silent.
After being silent for a long time, Zhangsun Wuji suddenly smiled sadly and muttered, "Du Qi, oh Du Qi, you are really amazing. You may have won this time, but I don't believe you can win for the rest of your life. There's still a long way to go. Let's wait and see. "
Zhangsun Wuji had already made his decision. Zhangsun Wuji calmed his heart down and continued reading. However, he didn't wait for long before he heard the housekeeper of the residence enter and report, "Old Master, someone from the palace has come and invites you to make a trip to the palace."
"Got it!"
Zhangsun Wuji stood up and acknowledged.
This was to be expected.
Since Du Qi had arranged for Zhangsun Chong to write a blood letter, he had asked Zhangsun Wuji to cooperate. In that case, Du Qi definitely had other arrangements. Now, it was certain that Du Qi's people had already submitted a letter of credence to have Li Shimin arrange for Du Ruhui to go to the Western Regions.
Zhangsun Wuji changed into a new set of robes and left the Zhangsun Family for the palace. When Zhangsun Wuji arrived at the main hall, Fang Xuanling and Wei Zheng had already arrived.
The three of them sat down. Li Shimin sat in the main hall with a cold and solemn expression. He looked at the three of them and directly took out a letter of credence from the table, saying, "Come, take a look."
Zhangsun Wuji was the first to take a look.
The contents of the letter were actually similar to the contents of Zhangsun Chong's letter. This letter involved Du Ruhui and Zhangsun Chong. The Tang dynasty arranged for Du Ruhui to go to the Western Regions to take up a post. The imperial court could let Du Ruhui take up the position of Anxi Protectorate Army's Jiedushi or monitor the Western Regions to give Li Shimin a way out. Correspondingly, Du Qi would release Zhangsun Chong.
After Zhangsun Wuji finished reading, he passed it to Fang Xuanling and Wei Zheng.
After the three of them finished reading, Li Shimin said, "Tell me, how should we deal with this matter?"
After all, Zhangsun Chong was his nephew. However, this involved Du Ruhui, who was Li Shimin's trusted aide. If they arranged for Du Ruhui's family to go to the Western Regions and let Du Ruhui take up a post there, although Li Shimin would have a way out, it was clear that he was giving up on Du Ruhui and letting Du Ruhui and his family exchange for Zhangsun Chong.
Zhangsun Wuji thought about it and said, "Your majesty, logically speaking, since it involves my son, it's not convenient for me to make any suggestions. However, I have no selfish motives, so I'm just saying my thoughts. "
Li Shimin said, "Just say it."
Zhangsun Wuji said, "Now that Du Qi is in the Western Regions, he has taken over Gumo, Shule, and other places, and destroyed the Western Turkic Yehu. It's impossible to stop Du Qi's development. Rather than continuing to maintain a stalemate with Du Qi, rather than making him depressed, why not let him go to the Western Regions? "
When Li Shimin heard this, he was slightly silent.
He did not say anything.
If he really let Du Ruhui go to the Western Regions, it would be equivalent to him admitting defeat and giving up on his confidants.
Wei Zheng originally did not agree with the battle with Du Qi. Now that Li Shimin asked, Wei Zheng immediately said, "Your majesty, the prosperity of the Tang dynasty is not because we left Du Ruhui behind to restrict Du Qi. The prosperity of my Great Tang depends on one's own virtue and strength. This is the foundation of my Great Tang.
After a pause, Wei Zheng said, "Especially since it's not good for Zhangsun Chong to stay in the Western Regions, it's better to exchange him back. Therefore, I agree with the arrangement of exchanging Du Ruhui for Zhangsun Chong. "
Li Shimin frowned.
Regardless of whether it was Zhangsun Wuji or Wei Zheng, both of them agreed. To Li Shimin, such an arrangement made Li Shimin somewhat unhappy. Li Shimin took a deep breath and suppressed his emotions. He looked at Fang Xuanling and asked, "Xuanling, what do you think about this matter?"
Fang Xuanling said seriously, "Your majesty, since Du Qi arranged for someone to submit the letter of credence, his determination to bring Du Ruhui's family to the Western Regions is extremely firm. Even if we refuse now, with Du Qi's means, he must have other arrangements. In this case, it's better to agree with the letter of credence submitted by Du Qi to avoid trouble. "
After a pause, Fang Xuanling said, "Your majesty should know the recent news from the Western Regions. Du Qi took Gumo, Shu-lik, and even destroyed the Turks. Du Qi crosses the Western Regions and is extremely powerful. Du Qi is so powerful and close to the border of the Tang dynasty. Once there is a conflict, it will be disadvantageous to us. Therefore, it's good that we can peacefully deal with Du Qi. "
Li Shimin's cheeks twitched.
From Zhangsun Wuji to Wei Zheng, and from Wei Zheng to Fang Xuanling, all of them persuaded him to agree without exception.
This made Li Shimin quite helpless.
Li Shimin took a deep breath and said, "You all know the disadvantages of keeping Du Ruhui, but have you ever thought about it? Once this arrangement is made, how will Du Ruhui look at me? It's like I've let him down. "
Zhangsun Wuji said solemnly, "Your majesty, there's no other way. In order to stabilize the territory of the Tang dynasty and make the Tang dynasty stable for a long time, there's no other way even if we let Du Ruhui down. "
"At the moment, this is the only choice."
"You know Du Qi's temperament. Once Du Qi has a goal, he will never let it go. Now that he has started to take Du Ruhui's family away, if this plan fails, Du Qi will definitely arrange other plans. "
Zhangsun Wuji continued, "The only thing we can do now is to let go and cut off our wrists."
Fang Xuanling comforted, "Your majesty, Du Ruhui and I have followed you for decades. To put it bluntly, it's because of Your Majesty that Du Ruhui and I, as well as the Tang dynasty's Fang Mou and Du Duan, were created."
"Whether it's me or Du Ruhui, we're all loyal to Your Majesty. I believe that no matter when, this will be the case and nothing will change. After thinking about it carefully, Du Ruhui staying in Chang 'an seems to be restraining Du Qi, but in fact, it will cause a gap between Du Qi and the Tang dynasty, and Du Qi may even be hostile to the Tang dynasty. "
"On the contrary, Du Ruhui staying by Du Qi's side seems like a tiger returning to the mountain, and there's no way to restrain Du Qi. But in fact, Du Ruhui's loyalty to Your Majesty is absolute. As long as Du Ruhui is in the Western Region, Du Qi is unlikely to take the initiative to start a conflict with the Tang dynasty. Because the Tang dynasty is Du Ruhui's root. This is my opinion. "
Fang Xuanling put forward his analysis again.
Li Shimin sighed when he heard this. Several of his confidants agreed. What else could Li Shimin say at this time? Li Shimin looked a little lonely and nodded, "I know what to do. You may leave. I'll see Keming at first sight."
"Yes!"
Zhangsun Wuji, Fang Xuanling, and Wei Zheng got up and left.
Li Shimin immediately arranged for someone to pass the decree. Du Ruhui received the decree and immediately rushed to the palace. During this period, Du Ruhui had not dealt with government affairs. Even if his resignation was not allowed, Du Ruhui did not do any work. Now that he was summoned by Li Shimin, Du Ruhui entered the hall and saluted, "Du Ruhui greets Your Majesty."
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