After the grand banquet, the leaders of each tribe went back, leaving behind one son. King Helt was even more disadvantaged, as he had only three sons, one of whom was an illegitimate son who had fallen in love with someone else. All of them were found out by Li Xiang.
The meaning is very clear. If you say you are loyal to the Tang Dynasty, then you must have a hostage.
In this day and age, words are not enough. If you don't even want your son's life, there are some things that cannot be said. After experiencing the rebellion in the Western Regions, Li Xiang also knew that these people had many sons, so if one or two died, it didn't matter to them.
So Li Xiang decided to do something ruthless. The education here is not very good, and it is definitely not possible to cultivate children into talents. So just send all the children to Chang'an City. Anyway, Chang'an City has now established an International Academy, the purpose of which is to train children for these powerful people outside, to train their next generation, and to help our Tang Dynasty continue to guard the border.
After hearing the news, King Helt also wanted to keep one or two, and said that the adult children could help him manage the surroundings and do many things. However, Li Xiang directly refused. The adult children had to be sent over. If these people had the ability, they could be arranged to other places, but if it came to your territory, that was really not possible.
Why was Li Xiang unwilling to establish a puppet regime? It was because puppet regimes were too troublesome. Take King Helt, for example. All sorts of things were almost making his CPU burn out. So, unless it was absolutely necessary, it would be better for the Tang army to take over the various places directly. At least there would be less trouble.
But the current situation does not allow this. This place is too far away from Samar Khan. If we were in Samar Khan, many problems could be solved, but they cannot be solved here. We have to let them think about it carefully. As for what the final consequences will be, this is also what these people think.
Under the current circumstances, some people may not be willing. Of course, our Tang Dynasty court is also very free. If you don't want to, you can take your children back, but you can't take back the rights in your hands. Either hand over the rights honestly, or teach your children honestly, and send your new children to Chang'an under the supervision of the Tang Dynasty court.
Li Xiang knew this was a bit inhumane, but then again, in today's world, if we don't have a complete way to control the territory we've conquered with our lives, then who will own it? They might obey my orders today, but tomorrow they might rebel. Can the Tang Dynasty ever be stable again?
So, in desperation, King Helt could only say goodbye to his three sons and two grandsons. One of the princesses was to marry in the capital, which was something he had no say in. As for who she would marry in the capital, that was Li Shimin's business. Maybe when he came back next time, Li Xiang would have to pay his respects to the princess. If Li Shimin liked her, or if she married one of his uncles, then there would be no way around it.
The last time Li Chengqian sent a letter home, he said that things were very busy in Chang'an City. Li Shimin had several children, and his princes and grandchildren were also busy, so the number of the Li royal family was also increasing. If there was a princess from outside who wanted to marry a foreign princess, the Tang court would definitely have no problem with it.
Now, for the Tang Dynasty court, it is impossible to take the princess away for marriage, because Li Xiang has already clearly opposed it, and the next generation of heirs of the Tang Dynasty are opposed to it. If you put this matter out in the open again, what exactly do you mean?
What's more, they still remember what Li Xiang said at the beginning. Only when men are incapable do we need women to help us stabilize the world. Are all of us men incapable? Whether in modern society or Tang Dynasty society, no man would admit that he is incapable.
Even if these people think that a woman is more effective than thousands of troops, they must never say this out loud. If you say this out loud, even if the emperor allows you to continue to stay in this position, the spit of the people will suffocate you to death, including your children. If you go out on the street, I guess no one will associate with you.
Li Xiang was very satisfied with this. He used the pressure of public opinion to let everyone in the court understand that they should not drag our sisters out for marriage. This was a cowardly act. If they did so, the peace gained would not be stable and would instead encourage the enemy's mentality. If one woman is not enough, they will send two, and if two women are not enough, they will send three. Then, can our Tang Dynasty still be called the Great Tang Dynasty?
King Helt stood in the sunset, watching the cavalry in the distance slowly disappear from his sight. He didn't know whether the step he took was correct. It turned out that although he could not become a king, at least the whole family could live together.
Suddenly, the guy clenched his fists. He believed that what he was doing was right. What was the point of being together every day? If he didn't have power, he would be nothing more than a wealthy man. If he was targeted, even a city lord wouldn't be enough to bankrupt him. By then, not only would his children not be able to live together in peace and contentment, but his survival would be a problem.
Given his special status, he must have power in his hands. If he has no power and no military force, he will not be able to protect such a huge family business. After the fall of the Ali Dynasty, his father ran away with a lot of things. Now after surrendering to the Tang Dynasty, he only handed over half of the things. The Tang court did not want the rest, and also asked him to help guard it.
Of course, it wasn't that Li Xiang and his generals' kindness had been discovered. Building a nation still required money, whether it was training an army or cultivating officials. Could it just fall from the sky? If it didn't, then you had to invest real money. The Tang Dynasty never did business at a loss, especially after the Gaochang incident. The puppet states wouldn't invest in them; they had to pay for everything themselves...
