Hearing Li Xiang's words, Cheng Luan couldn't stop crying. In front of outsiders, she was the hostess of General Tiance's Mansion, and she couldn't let others see that she was weak.
But what she couldn't stand the most was Li Xiang's soft words. Once she was pulled into Li Xiang's arms, she would be a weak little girl. After all, she was not even twenty years old.
"It's mainly because of the changing seasons, so I haven't eaten much. I'll be fine after a while. Your Highness has so many national affairs to attend to, so there's no need for me to worry about them. I heard this time it's because of something happening in the Western Regions?"
When talking about this matter, Cheng Luan felt a little relieved. His two brothers were in charge of the Western Regions. No matter how big the event was this time, it would increase the weight of his mother's family.
The brothers of the Changsun family are also very successful in the south, which is also a concern for Cheng Luan.
I originally thought that only my brother from my mother's side could lead troops to fight, but now it seems that I was really hasty. The brothers of the Changsun family are also good at fighting. Although Changsun Wuji is a civil servant, in the early years of the founding of the Tang Dynasty, the children of powerful people basically all practiced martial arts, and the brothers of the Changsun family were no exception.
When Changsun Ze was making trouble all over the capital, naturally no one took this kid seriously. However, after being trained by Li Xiang, he became a general in the army, and he did a good job. Whether it was Nanzhao or Pyu, he had contributions to show for himself.
This was equivalent to cutting off Cheng Luan's retreat. He originally thought that the army was his rear base, but after the Changsun brothers rose in the army, Cheng Luan's pressure became even greater.
"A powerful enemy has appeared in the west, so I must go there myself this time. However, your brother responded promptly, so I don't need to rush off. I have to wait and see what happens next."
Li Xiang deliberately acted very sad in front of his wife, in order to make these people feel more distressed. He also wanted to prevent himself from causing troubles in the harem. There was nothing he could do about it. In the past, Li Xiang never brought these troubles home, and hoped that these women could live happily. Now it seems that this is far from the case.
It was also the first time that Cheng Luan saw Li Xiang with a frown on his face, and he felt a little uneasy inside. After all, the conflict during this period was not only caused by Changsun Pingting, but Cheng Luan himself also added fuel to the fire. Seeing Li Xiang so sad, Cheng Luan came out of Li Xiang's arms and pulled Li Xiang into his arms.
"Your Highness, you must have been exhausted from the journey. It's best not to dwell on these things and go to bed early."
After Cheng Luan finished speaking, he immediately asked his men to prepare bath water. Li Xiang had indeed worked hard on the journey, and then he met the emperor and the prince in the palace. He was indeed very tired now.
Normally, a short separation is better than a new marriage, so there should be some activities in the evening, but Li Xiang was too tired. He slept in Cheng Luan's arms all night and woke up when the rooster crowed the next day.
After getting up and having breakfast, Li Xiang found that the women in the house had started to prepare the scenery.
Some people were flying kites in their yards, or playing the guzheng, and some were even raising small animals. These people had only one purpose, which was to make Li Xiang curious and then go to their yards.
Li Xiang didn't know what to say about these people's thoughts. He could only watch.
However, everyone discovered one thing, that is, although Li Xiang was at home, his heart should still be on the battlefield. After all, Li Xiang would go to the front every day and specifically inquire about the situation in the Western Regions. So even if Li Xiang stayed at home, what he cared most about was what was happening on the front battlefield.
This is no wonder. The Arab Empire was powerful, and the Tang army actually failed in that historical war. Although the Arab Empire won a tragic victory, they still achieved their strategic goals, so it was normal for Li Xiang to be on high alert.
"Double the amount of artillery training."
There were already several artillery positions around Chang'an City, and they were training all the time. However, after the emergence of this enemy, Li Xiang felt that training should be increased, and he gave the Imperial Household Department a task to design some more flexible artillery carts.
Niu Jinda and Su Dingfang looked at each other and realized that our artillery is already powerful enough. If we double it, the budget will also increase accordingly. Of course, since they have followed Li Xiang for a long time, they are enemies that even Li Xiang is very afraid of, so it is definitely not a joke.
"I will arrange it immediately."
Niu Jinda was in charge of this matter, so he didn't waste any time and immediately coordinated with various departments. However, there were more and more wastelands around Chang'an City, so the training camp might have to be moved to other places. More and more people came to Chang'an these days, and many of the surrounding wastelands had been mined.
"How is the production of military horses in various places this year?"
In today's era, war horses are still the most important means of transportation, especially in battles in the Western Regions. If there are not enough war horses, no matter how ambitious you are, you will eventually have to pause and wait for the appearance of war horses.
"The northern grasslands are relatively prosperous and can contribute tens of thousands of war horses. Tuyuhun has adopted the large-scale breeding policy you proposed, so their production is the highest and they can provide 18,000 war horses this year."
Su Dingfang now looks like a civil servant. What he hated most on the battlefield before was all kinds of data, but now it is no longer possible. When Li Xiang is not in the capital, he has to support Niu Jinda.
"Apart from what must be distributed to each unit, prepare the rest. If we fight in the west, all these war horses will be shipped west. We will also need to collect horses from those areas of Goguryeo that are not good at raising horses."
Li Xiang adopts a sustainable development strategy, so only a portion of the war horses will be drawn every year to ensure that there is no shortage of stallions in various places.
If compulsory collection measures were taken, tens of thousands of war horses would be available in an instant, but if that were the case, it would cause indelible damage to various places, which is definitely not what Li Xiang wants.
After finishing some official business at the General's Mansion, Li Xiang had no intention of going back, so he took Su Dingfang to his own restaurant to drink and enjoy the city life in Chang'an.
