Somewhere in Fuso.
Yasukawa Fukuda was riding on a short mule horse.
This guy is also considered a prominent figure in Fuso, but unfortunately the war horses raised in Fuso are not tall and mighty, so everyone, including him, the commander, can only ride such a horse.
Previously, several envoys to the Tang Dynasty brought back some tall and mighty horses from the Tang Dynasty, but unfortunately they encountered a typhoon on the way back, and the horses sank to the bottom of the sea along with them.
I don't know what's going on. If a few people come back alone, then the journey may not be smooth, but at least there won't be too much trouble. But if they carry some Tang Dynasty horses or other things, then there must be something wrong with the ship.
At that time, many high-ranking officials in Fuso were superstitious. They said that it was the gods who were protecting the Tang Dynasty. No matter what the situation was, they mainly wanted to bring back things from the Tang Dynasty. So the gods would never allow this ship to reach Fuso. So since then, it is not surprising that all the things brought on the returning ships were basically what Fuso had.
The rest of the information about the Tang Dynasty depends entirely on the descriptions of those people. Some people's descriptions are quite standard and without exaggeration, but some people dare to say anything just to let others know that they work harder in the Tang Dynasty than other envoys.
Fukuda Yasukawa is the patriarch of the Fukuda family of this generation. In the past, he did not have any extra thoughts, but this time the Tang Dynasty army captured the capital, which made him and other people from big families have some different ideas. They did not think about defeating the Tang Dynasty army, they only thought about being able to divide and rule with the Tang Dynasty army.
According to their plan, they should first concentrate their superior forces and then let the Tang Dynasty see their strength. Only in this way can the Tang Dynasty temporarily suspend its attack. At that time, they can start negotiations with the Tang Dynasty. They will not care about the areas ruled by the emperor, nor will they care about the areas currently occupied by the Tang Dynasty.
These places can no longer be saved, and they also know their own strength. If they want to save these places, then a war is inevitable. But the problem is that their own people know their own situation. If they engage in war, then there will be no other result except death.
So they wanted to bluff and put on a show in front of the Tang Dynasty, letting the Tang Dynasty see that the major Fuso families were very united, and then surrender under such military power and give them a high degree of autonomy.
As for the agreement signed by the Emperor before, it can be carried out within the area ruled by the Emperor, including the Tang army's capture of Fukuoka and Nagasaki. There is no problem with this, and they will not interfere too much. However, this agreement cannot involve their territory. They can give a part of the tribute to the Tang Dynasty every year, but the amount must be determined by them and cannot be carried out according to the agreement.
Fukuda Yasukawa is the head of their family, and this matter was also organized by him. Although doing so will be regarded as a thorn in the side by the Tang Dynasty, he may be eliminated at any time.
But then again, if the organization was successful, he might become another national leader of Fuso. The emperor's current status has plummeted. Unless the emperor can defeat the Tang army, no one will listen to him, including those who were most loyal to the royal family.
"Fukuda-kun, we're about to arrive in the capital, but the people from the Okawagen family haven't arrived yet. Have they violated our agreement?"
The person who was speaking was Ito Taro, the patriarch of a large family in Fuso, whose power was second only to Fukuda Yasukawa. Although the two had their own evil intentions, their interests on this matter were surprisingly consistent.
It was Taro Ito who brought up this matter. If they did not join forces, then 80% of their wealth would have to be given to the Tang Dynasty every year, and they would become weaker and weaker in the future. Now, while they can still gather these soldiers, they must do something serious to let the Tang Dynasty know that these people are not to be manipulated at will.
"That guy has always been short-sighted. If I'm not mistaken, he should be prepared to sit on the mountain and watch the fight between the tigers, and will not come out until there is a result. If there is no result, he will keep walking on the road until we and the Tang Dynasty decide the outcome."
Yasukawa Fukuda thought of that wretched guy. Everyone in Okawa Yuan's family was like this. He really didn't know how they accumulated the current effusion. Everyone was most disgusted with this kind of fence-sitter, so no matter who won in the end, the ending of the fence-sitter would not be too good. You thought you could take advantage of both sides, but in fact you offended both sides.
"Mr. Fukuda is right. This guy has always done things this way. But without his 8,000 troops, we won't be able to gather 70,000 men."
Ito Taro said with some concern that this time it was because the three of them united with more than a dozen small princes that they were able to gather 70,000 people. Even so, more than 20,000 of them were just to make up the numbers. Looking at the way they walked, it was clear that there was no military formation at all.
Of course, the other armies of Fuso were not in good shape either. Half of Fuso's elite troops were in the hands of the emperor, and the remaining half were in the hands of the major families. However, Fuso itself was not very large, so the total number of troops in the country was only tens of thousands of people. Part of them were annihilated by Li Xiang and his men, and later part of them were incorporated by Li Xiang and his men. Therefore, they could only ask ordinary people to make up the number, otherwise the 70,000 people would not be enough.
The common people of Fusang were living with no food to eat, but suddenly someone was able to provide them with three meals a day. All they had to do was let them wear leather armor from the army and then take a walk around the capital, and they would have enough food for half a month.
Many people couldn't even afford to eat, so they hadn't heard of any changes in the capital. And being able to join the large group for a stroll around the capital—wasn't that a great opportunity? As for the potential dangers, these people didn't have much to worry about. If they couldn't even afford to eat, why would they even consider that? If they didn't come, they might freeze to death on a cold night.
"Let's spread out our ranks a little more loosely, and then we'll capture some civilians after we get to the capital."
Fukuda Yasukawa took a look at the troops behind him, and they indeed seemed loose and disorganized. If they gathered a new group of people from around the capital, they would probably have an army of 70,000.
