Chapter 274 Dong Xie
The Duke of Weiguo was very dissatisfied after reading the papers. In his opinion, there were already enough brave cavalry generals in the court, but not many commanders who could truly lead a large army.

At present, apart from him and the King of Qin, there is only the Duke of Yingguo left. As for Su Dingfang, whom he promoted from the army, he still needs to be tempered.

Li Xiaogong, Li Mi, Du Fuwei and others can indeed command troops, but they can only fight against those of equal strength. It can only be said that they have the talent of generals, but they do not have the ability to turn decay into magic and win every battle or attack.

Li Mi was now very clear about Li Jing's abilities, so he advised: "Those who are good at archery and horsemanship and are also proficient in military tactics are mostly from Guanlong or Daibei. It is difficult for ordinary people to have such people in their families.

But there are many heroes among the common people. Some of them are born to fight and have military strategies in their hearts. If you want to get a rough gem, you can report to His Majesty and add sand table simulation or ask for strategy before the battle. "

Meanwhile, the competition of long-distance horse riding and archery was still going on outside. To some extent, the martial arts examination also depended on one's family background. To become an outstanding horse rider, archery and horse fighting, one needed a good horse, which was not something that ordinary people could have.

Li Jing was quite disappointed, and so was Li Shimin. Those who dared to take part in the martial arts examination had generally good qualities, but as for the kind of brave and powerful generals he expected, there was not a single one.

Not to mention Qin Shubao, Zhang Huli, Yuchi Jingde, Shan Xiongxin, and Xue Rengao, there are no second-rate people like Du Fuwei, Xue Ju, Xue Wanche, Luo Yi, Cheng Zhijie, and Kan Leng.

Poor Li Mi, he had to coax this one and that one before he managed to conduct the military examination smoothly without any mistakes.

After receiving the report, the emperor thought that he had made the right decision by showing mercy to Li Mi's men several times.

It is not easy to find such a steward who is both civil and military and can also regulate internal relations among officials.

Recently, there have been floods in the south and an earthquake in Hebei. The court has been busy with disaster relief. Fortunately, the harvests in the past few years were good, so it can still provide relief to the victims.

However, if there is any natural disaster before the grain harvest this year, it will be a real headache. Li Jiancheng finally understood why sacrifices were always necessary. It really depends on God's will.

Under the auspices of the Imperial Astronomical Observatory and the Ministry of Rites, the emperor went out of the city to offer sacrifices to heaven and earth, praying for peace and prosperity for the country and the end of disasters.

The monks and Taoists in Luoyang also worked very hard to relieve the worries of His Majesty. After several years of strict control, the number of temples and Taoist temples in the world decreased sharply, tens of thousands of monks and Taoists were forced to return to secular life, and many fields were confiscated by the court, and local soldiers were ordered to cultivate the land.

"I intend to reduce the number of soldiers and horses in the country, and let some of them return to their hometowns to farm and pass on their family traditions."

The Minister of War, Fang Xuanling, stepped out and said, "Your Majesty, the court reduced the number of troops by more than 100,000 in the first year of Taiping. Now Liaodong is still using troops, and the Turks are suffering from a snowstorm and may invade the south at any time. It may not be appropriate to reduce the number of troops further."

Li Jiancheng sat high up, his arms casually resting on the armrests, as if he was not sitting on the throne of the supreme ruler of the world: "Efficient troops and simple government are the key to peace. The war in Liaodong will soon be over, and I will not reduce the troops guarding the northern border against the Turks.

Since the turbulent times, the population has dropped sharply, there are fewer people cultivating the land, and the grain production is insufficient. Until now, several large warehouses have almost no grain left. I am very worried. "

Wang Long, the Shangshu You Pushe, stepped out and said, "Your Majesty, I think it is possible to relocate people from Liaodong to settle in the Central Plains."

Upon hearing this, Wang Gui, the Minister of Civil Affairs, immediately seconded the proposal: "I second the proposal. Silla and Baekje have a large population. If we can move hundreds of thousands of households to the Central Plains..."

Liu Wenjing, the Minister of the Left, countered: "There are still many Han people in Goguryeo, so they can be relocated on a large scale. But the people of Silla and Baekje can only be relocated over many years. If hundreds of thousands of people are relocated rashly and the resettlement is not done well, it will be a disaster."

"Minister Fang, does the Ministry of War think it's still possible to lay off some soldiers now?"

Fang Xuanling stepped out and said, "Your Majesty, I have not yet discussed this matter with the Ministry of War."

The emperor nodded and said, "Then let's get together after the court is dismissed and discuss this."

"promise."

An official from the Honglu Temple stepped out and said, "Your Majesty, the chieftain of Dongxie, Xie Yuanshen, and the chieftain of Nanxie, Xie Qiang, have come to pay homage to Your Majesty in person." Li Jiancheng had lived in the north for a long time since he was a child, and he had never heard of Dongxie and Nanxie.

The official of the Honglu Temple immediately said, "The Dongxie and Nanxie are branches of the Nanman, distributed in western Guizhou. They have no written language, carve wood to make agreements, live in nests, carry swords and knives, wear bear-skin crowns, and cover themselves with skins of wild animals. They beat bronze drums at banquets."

"Why are they here?"

Zhang Liang, the Minister of the Ministry of Rites, stepped out and said, "It seems that we have come here because of natural disasters and foreign enemies, and we have heard of your majesty's power and the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty, so we have come to ask for submission and to borrow food."

The emperor summoned the two leaders to the palace. The leader of Dongxie was an old man, and the leader of Nanxie was a strong man. Both of them were wearing Central Plains clothes, but leather bone pendants could be seen on their necks and wrists.

They didn't speak much Mandarin, but they were obviously shocked by the majestic imperial palace. They glanced at the emperor with awe in their eyes, and then knelt down and saluted with great piety according to the instructions of the officials of the Honglu Temple yesterday.

They also brought more than a hundred tiger and bear skins as gifts to the emperor.

Seeing that they were honest and loyal, the emperor asked about the size of their territory and then issued an edict: "Since this is the case, it should be approved. The land of Dongxie is Yingzhou, and the land of Nanxie is Zhuangzhou. The leaders of the two tribes are appointed as prefects, and they are under the jurisdiction of the governor of Qianzhou and obey the orders of the court.

After they kowtowed to express their gratitude, the emperor looked at the officials of the Ministry of Civil Affairs and asked, "As for food, could the Qianzhou granary transfer some for relief?"

The assistant minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs stepped out and said: "There are still more than 50,000 dan of grain in the granary of Qianzhou."

The emperor nodded and ordered Qianzhou to arrange relief. If it was not enough, he would transfer grain from other places.

It's not that he values ​​Dong Xie and Nan Xie too much, but the court still lacks influence over the area. Most of the officials that can be controlled and appointed are in the north of Wujiang River, and most of the states south of Wujiang River are vassal states, and some of the more remote ones are not even considered vassal states.

The two leaders were naturally grateful again. They also knew very well that the little they brought was not enough to exchange for so much food.

They are truly great and wealthy gods. No wonder they can live in such a palace of gods. They should have come earlier!

After the court was dismissed, the emperor was just about to have dinner when the Imperial Censor Wen Yanbo and the Supreme Court Minister Dai Zhou asked to see him.

One of these two men was from the Wen family of Taiyuan, and the other was from a humble family, but both were talented and were Li Jiancheng's candidates for prime minister.

"Xuan."

After a while, the two entered the palace and saluted the emperor: "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you. May the Emperor be well and safe."

"Without courtesy, I will give you a seat."

Tables, chairs and benches became popular very quickly, while few people used heavy and difficult-to-move couches.

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

The emperor was still as approachable as he was in the past, especially when facing his confidants. He smiled and said to them: "My two beloved ministers have come here right after the court session. I believe you must be hungry. It's a good opportunity for you to have dinner with me."

...............

(End of this chapter)