Xiao Shougui never interferes in some military affairs. He knows very well what his position is. He is just a spokesperson for His Royal Highness the Crown Prince here. However, he can only take care of some political matters. He cannot interfere in some military affairs. If you want to hold both military and political power, then you will be in danger.
When Xiao Shougui came, his grandfather told him a lot. It is one thing that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince values you, but you must also understand your own position. If you become arrogant, don't know how high your status is, and want to interfere in everything, then you will be close to death.
If it were in Chang'an City, no matter what wrongs Xiao Shougui had done, people would at least spare his life for the sake of his grandfather and his mother. But now he was in Gaochang, which nominally surrendered to the Tang Dynasty, but the actual security situation was not very good.
If someone pretended to be a bandit in the wilderness and killed Xiao Shougui directly, then no one could say anything and could only speed up the hunt for the murderer. Although his family was a prominent family, their influence did not reach the wilderness. When the time came, his grandfather would have to listen to whatever result others gave him.
The Cheng brothers were of course very happy about Li Xiang's transfer order. They came out this time with the intention of making achievements. If they were to continue returning to Chang'an City, then why did they come out?
Su Dingfang hasn't returned to Chang'an City for a long time, and he should go home to visit his family. He hasn't seen them for such a long time, and it would be a lie to say that he doesn't miss them.
After choosing an auspicious day, Li Xiang and Su Dingfang hurriedly set off. In addition to this batch of gold, silver and treasures, Su Dingfang also brought a thousand cavalrymen for protection. Even if they entered the territory of the Tang Dynasty, it would be very dangerous to carry so much money with them, so these thousand cavalrymen had to be brought along.
Li Shimin had already sent several imperial edicts, all urging Li Xiang to hurry to Chang'an City, but Li Xiang also had his own reasons. This time he had to bring so much money back directly, and he had to escort it personally. If anything went wrong in the middle, he was afraid he could not bear the responsibility.
Originally, Li Shimin was still a little angry, thinking that Li Xiang did not take his words seriously. I have already asked you to rush back to Chang'an City, but you actually said that there are still some things here that have not been dealt with. However, when he saw the four million strings of gold and silver treasures behind him, Li Shimin immediately shut his mouth.
Everyone knows that one should not hit the person who gives a gift. What's more, these gifts are worth one-eighth of the fiscal revenue. Li Shimin has long wanted to repair the Yellow River embankment, but it would cost nearly three million strings of cash, which is by no means a small amount of money. If the national treasury is asked to pay this money, then there may be holes in other places.
Since the end of the Sui Dynasty, the Yellow River has been causing trouble frequently. Due to lack of funds, the imperial court can only carry out repairs on some small scales, which cannot change the current situation at all. If the court wants to survive for several decades in peace, it must carry out a major overhaul of the entire river.
Everyone in the court knows this, especially some officials in the Ministry of Works, but the problem is that we don’t have that much money. Even if your plan is well written, there is no way to implement it in the end.
This time, there is finally a source of funds. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has promised that the money will be paid from this amount. If this money was brought back from the Western Regions by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince in the past, then this money could only be used for the military. But this time, it was clearly stated that it would be used specifically to repair the Yellow River embankment, which will also benefit the people.
In this case, it didn't matter if Li Xiang returned a few days late, as long as the money could be guaranteed safe. As for the Nanzhao Kingdom, although the deadline had been delayed, how could such a small country dare to go to heaven? All they needed to do was send one or two officials over to explain that something had happened in the Western Regions and that they were delaying the return.
Although some people in Nanzhao Kingdom were dissatisfied, they could only swallow their anger in the face of such a behemoth. Although they could dominate the southwest, the entire country had only tens of thousands of troops, which could not even catch up with the army of the Tang Dynasty, so they could only endure it.
"I think your heart is about to fly to Chang'an. You have been urging them to speed up all the way. Now they have reached the fastest speed. If you continue to speed up, these carriages will not be able to bear it."
Li Xiang was sitting in his carriage and had heard Su Dingfang running back and forth several times. This guy kept ordering his men to speed up. Li Xiang could already feel the bumps. If he continued to speed up, these wooden carriages might fall apart.
Hearing Li Xiang's words, Su Dingfang smiled embarrassedly. If he had not been arranged to go home, this guy would not be so anxious. He was already on the road and he didn't want to waste time on the road.
"Your Highness, I was reckless."
Counting the days, Su Dingfang has not returned to Chang'an City for nearly two years. It is very normal to have such thoughts. His wife was pregnant when he left the capital, and now the child is probably about to die.
"I understand your feelings, but this time we have a heavy responsibility, especially with so much valuables under escort. If anything goes wrong, we won't be able to explain it to the court. This money must be used specifically for repairing the Yellow River levee, which affects millions, even tens of millions, of people upstream and downstream."
If it were in the past, Li Xiang would definitely let this guy take his men back to Chang'an with a small group, but this mission was different. This time, they were carrying so much money, and Li Xiang had no experience in this area. If he were asked to escort them, he really wouldn't dare to do so.
"Please rest assured, Your Highness. I will make good arrangements."
Su Dingfang said this with some embarrassment. He was already a veteran in the military camp, and shouldn't have made such a mistake. But this time, he had a reason. He also wanted to return to Chang'an City to see his children sooner rather than later. It would be better to meet them in person than just communicate through letters...
