"I think Lord Zhao is a little unhappy."
Cheng Chuliang said this only after Lord Zhao left. Although Lord Zhao worked with them, any discerning person could see that Lord Zhao was working for the benefit of the entire Tang Dynasty, while they were working for the benefit of their own small group. Li Xiang also kept saying that he was working for the benefit of the entire Tang Dynasty, but when it came to the critical moment, we were still ourselves.
"It's normal for Lord Zhao to have different ideas from us. The things we do involve many different areas. Because we control these areas, we can handle things on our own and don't need to report to the court. But according to Lord Zhao's ideas, all our actions must be reported to the court."
Li Xiang pointed out what Lord Zhao was thinking in one sentence. In fact, Li Xiang was also thinking about letting Lord Zhao return to the capital, but there must be a talent from the court here. After thinking about it, Li Xiang decided to let Lord Zhao stay. If Lord Zhao was allowed to go back, he would often bring back another Lord Ma or Lord Wu, and those people would most likely disagree with Li Xiang, and all kinds of trouble would happen.
"These people in the imperial court have always been like this. They still want to restore the former glory of the civil service group. Naturally, they look down on people like us. They even think we are brainless. If we hadn't been winning outside, who knows what they would say about us. They always think that the pen is more powerful than the sword in our hands."
Yuchi Baolin also comes from a family of military generals. Although his father no longer leads troops, he used to get along with these civil officials and there were always various conflicts between them. Now that he can leave the capital, Yuchi Baolin feels that the air is fresh. When he doesn't have to face these people, he is more energetic in doing anything.
Li Xiang did not continue to say that most of Li Xiang's team were military generals, but Li Xiang understood one thing: when he came to power in the future, he would have to weaken the power of military generals and elevate the status of civil officials in the court.
Although Li Xiang hated this, he had to admit that educated people were indeed much better at governing a country than these generals. Everyone should have their own strengths, and military generals should be on the battlefield.
"Alright, alright, no more unnecessary words. We were just laughing at the joke, thinking that the internal friction within the Western Turks was extremely beneficial to us. Have we forgotten about this now? If internal friction occurs within us, it will probably be their problem. The issue I just mentioned is settled. Don't transfer too many soldiers to each other. Each place will first withdraw 1,500 soldiers, and the rest will come slowly."
Everyone understood why Li Xiang did this. Some generals in various places had power, but the number of troops mobilized could not exceed 1,500. If the number exceeded 1,500, a memorial had to be submitted to the Ministry of War, which would give the court an opportunity to intervene.
Although Li Xiang has not made his subordinates' business impenetrable, there are already signs of this. Li Shimin has tried several times, but ultimately failed to get through, so he did not continue to attack on this matter. After all, what Li Xiang did was not too excessive.
Although Li Xiang won the battle, Li Shimin was the one who made the greatest contribution. History books would certainly praise Li Shimin's contribution the most. Even if Li Xiang led troops to fight outside, he could not take away this credit.
"We can just take care of this matter. It's almost time now. Your Highness should pack up and return to the capital. The time in Nanzhao Kingdom is almost up."
Cheng Chuliang's face naturally turned unhappy when he heard Yuchi Baolin's words. Although it was a small matter for a man to have three wives and four concubines, Li Xiang was his brother-in-law after all. How could Cheng Chuliang tolerate the sudden marriage of a princess from the Nanzhao Kingdom? However, since this matter was national policy, he had no way to object. Moreover, after marrying the princess of the Nanzhao Kingdom, Li Xiang's influence would continue to rise, so Cheng Chuliang had no reason to stop it.
What's more, this matter was decided by Li Shimin and Li Chengqian, especially since Li Chengqian spent a lot of effort to decide it. If Li Xiang just refused, it would probably not work.
Seeing Cheng Chuliang walk out without saying a word, Yuchi Baolin realized that he had said the wrong thing, but he still felt that Cheng Chuliang was a little narrow-minded. You already have three concubines, plus your own wife. Li Xiang is far inferior to you.
"I'll leave the frontline affairs to you. If you're undecided about anything else, go to the royal city of Gaochang and find Xiao Shougui. I'll tell him when I return."
When Li Xiang finished saying this, Yuchi Baolin couldn't believe it. It would be reasonable to hand over the matter here to him or Cheng Chuliang, but why should it be handed over to Xiao Shougui?
"Your Highness, that person is from the Lanling Xiao family..."
Yuchi Baolin felt the need to remind him: wasn't Li Xiang trying to kick the aristocratic families out of the court? If Xiao Shougui were to rise to power, it would mean the Lanling Xiao family would have a new leader. Li Shimin had finally kicked Xiao Yu out, so was Li Xiang going to give Xiao Shougui a chance?
"Didn't I say this before? No matter who they are, as long as they can be used by me, by the entire Tang Dynasty, and by its people, then we can use them. Xiao Shougui's brain is unmatched by ordinary people. You all are talented generals or commanders, but when it comes to matters between the people or between the two countries, people like Lord Zhao and Xiao Shougui are the best at it."
Li Xiang's words made Yuchi Baolin a little dissatisfied, but after thinking about it carefully, what Li Xiang said was true. If they were really asked to interfere in the affairs between the two countries, they would not be able to do a good job. But if they were to lead the troops to fight the enemy, he would be the most suitable person.
Making the best use of talents is what Li Xiang pursues. No matter which camp you are from, as long as you can bring us benefits and as long as the territory of the Tang Dynasty can continue to expand, then you should be in a suitable position. Is this also one of the reasons why Li Xiang's small group can develop so quickly?
