Chapter 504 Flowers on the Road

The planning of Chang'an in Tang Dynasty was square, with three gates on each side for entry and exit.

But if you ask the people of Tang Dynasty "What is the main gate of Chang'an?"

The answer you get in the end is often the same: "Mingde Gate".

There are three gates in the south of Chang'an City: Anhua, Mingde and Qixia, and Mingde Gate is in the middle.

There are five doorways in Mingde Gate, which was called the Five Gates of the Son of Heaven at that time, and also known as the National Gate.

After Mingde Gate is the north-south Zhuque Street. Because it is located on the central axis of Chang'an, and is more than 5,000 steps long from north to south and more than 100 steps wide from east to west, it is also known as the Heavenly Street.

Along this street to the north end is the Zhuque Gate of the Imperial City, and continue north through the Imperial City to the Chengtian Gate of the Palace City.

Enter Chengtian Gate to the north, pass through the Jiade and Taiji gates, and you can go directly to Taiji Hall to pay homage to the common ruler of China, the emperor of the Tang Dynasty, and the Khan of the Thousand States and Hundreds of Countries.

For the foreign envoys who came here to pay homage, it would be an honor to complete this journey and meet the Heavenly Khan when they return home.

For the triumphant soldiers, they can boast of their merits in Tianjie, present the captives at Zhuque Gate, and then the commander-in-chief will enter the Taiji Hall to show his merits, which can also be called heroic.

Therefore, when the triumphant soldiers who were temporarily stationed at the West Gate heard the imperial edict that they should go half a circle around Chang'an and enter the city at the South Gate, they not only had no complaints, but stretched their necks and became more and more impatient.

"Xue Bo, last year we won a great victory and captured Jie Li, why didn't your majesty issue this order?"

Pei Xingjian was a little curious. After dismounting and bowing to listen to the angel's oral order, he asked curiously.

The only person in the army who could be called Xue Bo by Pei Xingjian, which was no different from Master, was Li Jing.

In Liangzhou, he trained his army and horses, negotiated with the natives, bribed them, or gathered intelligence, and then marched non-stop to Qinghai for a decisive battle. Finally, he captured the bandit leader and returned non-stop.

Li Jing, who was already 61 years old and had a white beard, still had a bright look in his eyes, but he could no longer hide the tiredness in his eyes.

He got on his horse again under the care of Pei Xingjian, and shook his head when he heard his disciple ask him:

"Your Majesty has always been vigorous and resolute in his actions. The whole country praised his victory in Dingxiang before, but Your Majesty called it revenge."

"The revenge is urgent."

Then Li Jing took a breath, turned his head and told his adjutant to pass on the order, and the triumphant army changed its route to Mingde Gate in the south.

Listening to the cheers of his soldiers, a fleeting smile appeared on Li Jing's face.

Seeing Pei Xingjian also got on the blue pony that he had found for him, he pulled the reins to get the horse moving and continued:

"Now, destroying Tuyuhun is a great achievement for the country, so we must naturally go to Tianjie and present the captives at Zhuque Gate."

"To strengthen the power of our Tang!"

Li Jing emphasized the word power very much, and then the old general looked at Pei Xingjian - the childishness on his face could not be concealed after half a year of wind and frost in Liangzhou.

After all, this boy was only thirteen years old, and he envied this age, so he casually said something meaningful:

"After entering Chang'an, you must remember not to be unrestrained and restrain yourself. There will be many things like showing off your singing skills today."

Pei Xingjian nodded in confusion. It was difficult for him to charge in the battle to destroy Tuyuhun, but whether it was the formulation of strategies, the care of the wounded soldiers, or the capture of prisoners after the victory, Li Jing and others did not avoid him.

These experiences gradually made Pei Xingjian lose the glitz he had when he was praised as a "child prodigy" in Hongwenguan, and he began to show a calmness that was inconsistent with his childish face.

Riding on the colt, he gently squeezed the horse's belly to let the colt run faster to catch up with Li Xuebao, but Pei Xingjian also felt emotional.

I still remember that the emperor was captured at Shuntian Gate last year. At that time, the whole Chang'an was ecstatic, and the princes and sons of the Hongwenguan basically scattered with their parents to watch the captives.

Pei Xingjian himself was afraid of being crowded on Tianjie Street and getting into an accident, but he was reluctant to spend money to go to the restaurant to enjoy the view, so he finally spent a difficult day practicing calligraphy alone in Hongwenguan.

That day he made up his mind to move the world with his literary reputation!

As for why he didn't take credit on horseback... I can only say that the fate of his father and brother made him feel sympathetic.

But he didn't expect that it was time and fate. In just one year, he, Pei Shouyue, became the one being watched!

The time spent immersed in such happy thoughts seemed to pass particularly quickly. Before he could savor the remaining thoughts for the fifth time, a sound like a tsunami suddenly broke out in his ears.

It was the cheers of men, women, old and young, all of whom started to cheer. The voices were mixed but the joy was overwhelming.

Looking around, all faces were celebrating, and every glance was like looking up.

Some scholars acted like crazy scholars, using wine as ink to beat cups and sing, leading the crowd with heroic spirit.

Some girls showed their spring feelings, with beautiful eyes and clever gazes, and the orioles and swallows sang in harmony.

Horses trampled on flowers to make a brocade road, and soldiers hung sachets to leave fragrance.

Pei Xingjian suddenly understood what Li Xuebao had said just now, but——

The crazy upward corners of his mouth made Pei Xingjian throw away everything he could and what he remembered.

The crazy scholar sang and praised his merits!

The girl was in love for his pleasure!

He couldn't help but want to reach out and embrace the honor and glory at this moment and be completely intoxicated.

But soon, this group of triumphant athletes sang the "Pozhen Music" that they had sung more than once on the road.

"According to the law, I resigned from the head of state and went to fight against the traitors."

"Sing Pozhen Music together and enjoy the peace."

The long song chorus of three thousand people exploded in Pei Xingjian's ears, making him sober suddenly. He turned his head and met Li Xuebao's eyes that were like an ancient well.

It was hard to say anything in such a magnificent chorus. Pei Xingjian only saw the general nod to him, and then he also sang along with the song.

Pei Xingjian felt a little ashamed, but was soon replaced by a new ambition:

One day, he would be like Xue Bo, and the cheers that would truly resound through the sky in Chang'an would all be for him alone!

Humming the music of breaking the formation, Pei Xingjian, who had completely sobered up, even had the time to turn his head and look at the captives escorted by more than 3,000 people in the formation.

The Tuyuhun bandit chief Khan and his relatives, the heads of various tribes and their children, the witches who were in charge of the sacrifices and divination in the Zahu tribe, and some numb-faced and ragged slaves - these craftsmen were the most important assets of those Zahu leaders.

The people of Chang'an disdain to humiliate the enemy. After all, unlike the Dongtujue who had been to the Weishui River, most of them even have a problem with how to correctly pronounce the three words "Tuyuhun".

Therefore, the Tuyuhun nobles at this moment also behaved differently. Some of them were trembling like sieves, some looked around curiously, and some laughed foolishly.

Pei Xingjian was a little worried.

It is said that Fuyun Khan fled very fast, and Xue Rengui was a little lacking in riding skills and was forced to fire cannons to stop him.

Unexpectedly, the cannons, which had always been inaccurate, hit the target with a fluke, and smashed Fuyun's guards into powder, and frightened Fuyun's mount into convulsions.

Fuyun, the chieftain of the bandits, was frightened and fell off his horse, becoming stupid and foolish like an idiot.

How could he dance for His Majesty in this state?

In theory, Xue Rengui's merit in capturing Fuyun would be second best if he returned triumphantly to offer captives.

As a result, Xue Rengui said righteously that the Qinghai area still needed to be thoroughly swept, and the envoys sent by Tubo to inquire about the situation also needed someone to talk in detail, so Pei Xingjian was thrown out to return with Li Jing.

Therefore, Pei Xingjian was a little nervous at this time.

The ten-mile Tianjie, which was full of flowers, was soon finished, and the majestic Suzaku Gate was already in sight.

The imperial guards had also lined up on the wide straight street, completely clearing a large open space in front of the Suzaku City Gate Tower.

Looking up at the Suzaku Gate from Pei Xingjian's height, he could only see the emperor's canopy and the various costumes that could be barely distinguished. The two figures in the front were particularly conspicuous, one in red and yellow and the other in bright yellow, most likely the emperor and his highness.

So Pei Xingjian suddenly became nervous.

Under the guidance of the imperial guards, Pei Xingjian carefully dismounted, and then followed Li Jing step by step for fear of making mistakes.

Although he had never seen the surrender of prisoners at Shuntian Gate before, Pei Xingjian was familiar with history books and was quite clear about it.

First, Li Jing stepped forward to formally report the victory. The speech was quite lengthy, but there were still attendants who would recite it in a serious manner, both for the emperor and for the world.

In a sense, this report of victory was also a summary of the battle. The names of Su Dingfang and Xue Rengui appeared in it, and Pei Xingjian also heard his own name. Although his contribution was not great, it was fortunate that he was truly named in front of the emperor, which also made him a little excited.

Not surprisingly, the effects of gunpowder and other things were all mentioned in passing, but fortunately, the people of Chang'an could not hear the difference.

Li Shimin, who was on the tower of the Suzaku City Gate, was slightly surprised when the report of victory was completed:

"Fu Yun has become a fool?"

But there is no problem. It is better to say that the stupid Fu Yun is still a major benefit to the Tang Dynasty's control of Qinghai. The only regret is that he can't sing and dance to accompany Jie Li.

This self-talk lasted only a moment. After the ceremonial officer announced the next stage, the captives were escorted to the front.

Li Shimin had seen many Hu people, some arrogant and some barbaric, but without exception, the Hu people who were surrendered under the imperial city would become obedient and good at singing and dancing, without exception.

There was no kneeling ceremony in the court, except for slaves.

These masters who had controlled Qinghai for more than two hundred years, today bowed their heads and knelt there like the most docile lambs, allowing the winner to take whatever he wanted from them.

At this moment, the people who were solemn and silent because of the ceremony seemed to be unable to bear it. At first, there were only sporadic shouts, but soon it turned into a tsunami of cheers facing the Suzaku Gate:

"Long live!"

In this uneven cheer, Li Shimin closed his eyes quite comfortably, and then he clearly heard the noise in this cheer.

Frowning, Li Shimin quickly found the source of the noise.

The protagonist in the center of the captive offering is the former Busabo Khan of Qinghai, the ruler of Tuyuhun, Murong Fuyun.

He was kneeling there with his hands up, imitating the people outside and shouting "Long live" in the not-so-standard Guanzhong elegant language, with a very cheerful smile on his face.

Li Shimin suddenly felt that it was not bad for this Fuyun Khan to be stupid, and it was... quite fun.

Offer captives, declare the guilt, and decide whether to stay or go.

The main general went to the temple to report, and the Khan offered captives to the Taimiao again. At this point, the battle against Tuyuhun was officially over.

Before it got dark, the palace eunuchs had already emptied the courtyard next to Jie Li.

Jie Li, with a pale face, lay on the wall and watched the eunuchs hastily clean the courtyard. Soon, a fat man with a particularly obvious fishy smell was stuffed in, accompanied by several servants dressed in mixed Hu costumes.

Although he was trapped in the palace, Jie Li still knew the news of the Tang Dynasty's war against Tuyuhun.

Could this be the Khan of Tuyuhun?

He knew that Tuyuhun would never be able to stop the Tang army, but in his imagination, Tuyuhun was connected to the Western Regions in the north and there were malaria in the land, so if they couldn't win, they would just flee north. How come they were defeated faster than him now?

So the former leader of the Eastern Turkic tribe lay on the wall and cursed loudly in Turkic, and then changed to elegant language and asked:

"How did you lose?"

Then Jie Li saw that the fat man seemed to be frightened by him. When he turned to face him, he pulled out his index finger from his mouth, and then raised his arms and shouted:

"Long live!"

The two words in a clear and loud voice frightened Jie Li, and he immediately fell off the wall.

The Hu people on the opposite side seemed to think that this was very fun, so they just kept shouting over there.

Jie Li was lying on the ground and was too lazy to get up. He touched his stomach that had not been full for almost a year, and then listened to the words next door. For a moment, he couldn't help but feel a thousand worries and sadness in his heart.

After another great victory, Li Shimin seemed to be familiar with it.

Arrange the eunuchs to report the good news to the emperor, and let Empress Changsun go back to the harem to rest first-there was a victory banquet in the evening, which was also tiring.

The Circular Mound also needed to be sacrificed, so Li Shimin simply ordered the ritual officer to follow his order to perform the sacrifice first, and then make up for it next time.

Then he summoned Li Jing and Pei Xingjian to Ganlu Hall.

Sitting back in the familiar chair, Li Jing exhaled a long breath, and his face was obviously much more relaxed.

Seeing this, Li Shimin simply joked:

"If the pharmacist is too tired, just seal the talisman and make a military book."

Li Jing knew about the seal, so sealing the talisman should be analogous to sealing the military talisman and not sending troops again? This is impossible!

"Your Majesty, I just offered the captives and still wore armor and rode a horse, and wait for the evening banquet with a bucket of rice and ten pounds of meat!"

Li Shimin shook his head and laughed, and Pei Xingjian, who was as well-behaved as a quail, also relaxed a little.

Immediately, he asked what might be the most concerned question this year:

"How powerful are gunpowder weapons?"

"It is so sharp that no one in the world can match it!" Li Jing was quite serious. Without Li Shimin saying anything, he first looked at the map that always appeared in his dreams.

Now that he has a new weapon, using it to fight against the Hu people is like using the power of heaven to intimidate people. I am afraid that only the empire in the far west can test the limit of gunpowder.

If it were not for his age, Li Jing really wanted to lead the Tang Dynasty's combat-ready army to compete with the Arabs to see if their heavily armored square formations could withstand the firearms and cavalry?

However, when Li Jing saw the map, he immediately noticed the boundless ocean, and an idea came to his mind:

"Your Majesty, how about the Denglai Navy?"

Speaking of this, Li Shimin couldn't help but smile, and said:

"Liu Rengui and Li Shiqi each led a division, rampaging in Bohai, knocking on the gates of Baekje and Goguryeo, and declaring the sea to belong to them..."

As he spoke, Li Shimin couldn't hide his smile anymore, and paused before continuing:

"Baekje has surrendered and sent envoys to make peace, Goguryeo... Liu Rengui reported that he destroyed hundreds of fishing boats, which was not worth claiming."

Li Jing was silent, hesitated for a moment, and stood up and said:

"Your Majesty "The next step is to set up a naval division in Denglai, hoping to use it to settle the East China Sea."

"However, the South China Sea is also rich. If you want to manage it, you should set up a naval division in Zhuya. Your Majesty is afraid that there is a lack of generals to guard it."

"Now Xue Rengui and Su Dingfang have both become famous in the battle of Qinghai. There are countless brave and strong men under them."

"I would like to go to Denglai to learn from the naval division. When I have achieved something, I will help Tang to settle Zhuya and open up the South China Sea!"

Li Shimin was surprised, but considering the old general's age, he still wanted to refuse. But before he opened his mouth, Li Jing said:

"Although I am old, I have also been told by future generations that I still have 17 years of life left, which is enough."

Pei Xingjian looked left and right, his face full of confusion.