"Songtsen Gampo's people should be unwinnable, but are the others also unwinnable? They used to be the same as you, and they all held power. If we give them a chance, can they stand on our side?"
Li Xiang's words stunned Chief Maiqi. Why hadn't he thought of this before? If Li Xiang were to follow his lead, these people could be won over. After all, their ancestors had all enjoyed powerful chieftains. Now that they were reduced to mere servants, they probably felt uncomfortable.
But suddenly, Tusi Maiqi became alert again. If the whole Tubo turned into a situation of chieftains fighting each other, just like two hundred years ago, then the current situation on the Tubo Wall might no longer exist. Once the Tang Dynasty sent troops to attack, would the fragmented Tubo still be able to organize a coalition?
"Don't overthink it, Your Excellency. I just want Lu Dongzan to step down. As long as he is no longer in that position and becomes a commoner, or is killed by your Zamp, then I will not care about the rest of the matter."
Li Xiang may have sensed the other party's suspicion, so he said these words immediately, trying to turn the whole thing into a personal grudge.
Chief Maiqi was not stupid either. He felt that what Li Xiang said was only part of the reason. Deep down, he must have wanted Tubo to continue to decline. However, now the interests of the two were the same. Whether Tubo would decline or not did not have much to do with Chief Maiqi. The most important thing was to keep the current power. While keeping power, he could also strike Lu Dongzan. This was the common interest of the two.
"I'll send someone to contact those people, which might have some effect, but I think we should get more people involved. Currently, there are only five chieftains, which may not be enough."
Chief Maiqi's mind was also very clear. He had already planned in his mind what to do first and what to do later. With Li Xiang's support, he became more confident. Originally, there were many frictions with the neighbors around him, but now, as long as he gave the other party some benefits, the frictions between the two sides could be eliminated, and everyone could jointly defend their rights. Of course, this part of the benefits had to be given to Li Xiang, and he could also get a part of it.
"This is natural. I wonder if His Excellency the Chieftain has any plans?"
Li Xiang did not have too many plans for these things on the plateau. He only needed to find the strongest person and then support the strongest. As for the specific steps, Li Xiang thought it was inconvenient for him to participate. First, it would easily arouse the other party's suspicion. Second, he was not familiar with the situation here. If he gave random commands, it might make the whole thing more complicated.
"In addition to our five chieftains, the Laxueba and Ronggong chieftains will also join us. Both of them can mobilize 3,000 troops. If we can mobilize them, our army will even reach 30,000. Then, after we disintegrate the miscellaneous troops surrounding the Holy City, we can gain the upper hand in terms of military strength."
Chief Maiqi came to a piece of cloth. This was the map left by their ancestors. The directions on it were all over the place, with only a general direction, but it was enough to see their location clearly.
"Since the chieftain has already made the plan, I won't say much. I wish him immediate success."
Li Xiang raised his wine glass, and the next few small matters would be discussed by his subordinates, such as how much support should be provided or what kind of things should be purchased. There was no need for the two of them to discuss these matters. Seeing that Li Xiang agreed to the plan, Chief Maiqi also raised his wine glass and wanted to drink with Li Xiang until they were drunk.
When the wine entered his mouth, Li Xiang realized that it was the natural wine of the Tang Dynasty. He did not expect that this thing, which was extremely scarce in Chang'an City, had several jars here at Chief Maiqi's place. No matter where they were, people living at the top of the pyramid could enjoy everything.
"Is this the Great Tang Brew?"
Li Xiang brought up the topic here.
"Since you can drink it, it means you must have been drinking it often in Chang'an. These few pounds of it were not easy for me to get. I spent a lot of effort to get them. If it weren't for a distinguished guest, I would never give it to you. On our plateau, each pound costs as much as three hundred coins."
When talking about this wine, Chief Maiqi felt extremely distressed, but after he drank this wine, he could not drink any other wine at all. Even if it was relatively expensive, he would ask someone to go to Chang'an City to buy it. Anyway, his treasury was full of money, so he could still afford it at this price.
"Is this kind of wine also popular with other chieftains on the plateau?"
Li Xiang is now like a market research specialist.
"Your nobles in Chang'an like this, and so do our nobles on the plateau. But after such a long journey, the price is too high. Just like the salt just now, it's more expensive than gold."
Maiqi Tusi smacked his lips. This tasted truly delicious. Why couldn't such delicious wine be brewed on the plateau? If it could be brewed, no matter what the ingredients, he would have his men collect them.
"Then I'll add to that. From now on, I can send someone to deliver ten kilograms to you every month, and the same goes for other chieftains."
After hearing what Li Xiang said, Chief Maiqi became even happier. Ten kilograms of wine was worth three thousand strings of cash. If he kept half for himself and sold the rest, he could earn a lot of money. War was a long-term matter. Although he was not short of money now, who knew what the situation would be like in the future?
Of course, we have to be more stingy with the other chieftains too. Why should they be treated the same as me and only receive eight kilograms a month? But we can deduct two kilograms from each of the five chieftains, which means ten kilograms of wine.
Chieftain Maiqi has already thought about the post-war situation. In his opinion, with the support of the Tang Dynasty, they should be able to fight Songtsen Gampo to the death. It is hard to predict who will win or lose in the end, but Chieftain Maiqi will definitely grow up. It doesn't matter if he cannot become the king of the plateau, but he must become the overlord of the plateau and prevent other chieftains from invading him.
This is exactly the effect Li Xiang wants. We should keep giving him benefits so that he will become addicted to it. When he wants to get out, he will feel sorry for those things and will eventually follow us wholeheartedly. For these items every month, he will fight the central government to the end.
