Prince of Shu's Palace
The day set by Li Xiang was approaching. They had agreed to go to Nanzhao in a month, but now they might not be able to go. The envoys of the other two chieftains came down from the mountain. They had expressed their agreement to surrender to the Tang Dynasty. Of course, it was not because of Li Xiang's protagonist temperament, but the situation on the mountain had changed. The two chieftains were not fools. They continued to resist by relying on their troops, and the result was not much better than that of the Longchuan chieftain.
"This is truly a cause for celebration. I have already written a memorial for Your Highness the Crown Prince to review. If there is nothing wrong, it will be sent immediately to Chang'an City to report the victory. We unexpectedly solved a problem that has troubled the Central Plains Dynasty for many years. This will be well recorded in the history books. I am also benefiting from Your Highness's help."
Among all the people, Xiao Yu can be said to be the happiest. This guy is also a scholar, and what he cares most about is his reputation. Now that he can deal with these chieftains, it can indeed be remembered in a big way. Of course, whether this is good or bad depends on the future performance of these chieftains. If they rebel immediately after submitting for a few years, then your merits may be reduced to zero, or even your faults will be investigated.
But in Xiao Yu's heart, this result was simply impossible to achieve. In the past, when the Central Plains dynasties tried to surrender these chieftains, they left them too much autonomy in order to show the tolerance of the Central Plains dynasties. However, it also left various hidden dangers, and rebellion by the chieftains became commonplace.
The situation is different now. Our army has spread across all the mountain strongholds, and according to Li Xiang’s subsequent plan, all the chieftains must move their families to Chengdu City. This is equivalent to holding their lifeline, and the army in the mountains will be reorganized, and the chieftains will not be allowed to directly control the army.
This has only happened in the last five years. After this five-year transition period, government offices at all levels will be set up in the mountains, and officials will be in charge of them. As for these chieftains, they and their families will completely fade out of this area. If they can obey the control of the court, they will be given some opportunities. But if they are a little troublesome, such as Chieftain Adu who has ulterior motives, they will be directly banished to the cold palace.
"I trust your literary talent, but isn't it a little premature to issue such a memorial now? If we govern this area well, then this memorial will be fine. However, if there is any deviation, the censors in Chang'an will be very tough on us."
Li Xiang frowned and said that he did not think much of merit. What he cared about most was the actual power in his hands. But Xiao Yu was different. Li Xiang was very generous in making merits, while Xiao Yu had been in the capital all the time and had no merits to show off. Now that he finally had one, how could he not hurry up and report it to Chang'an City?
"Your Highness is right. I was indeed a little too happy. However, we must inform Chang'an City of this matter. Otherwise, the blame will fall on us. Old Xu, please go back and revise it carefully."
Xiao Yu blushed a little. The memorial did indeed go a bit over the top. While it didn't claim their contributions were immortal, there was a hint of meaning in the words. This was one of the reasons Li Xiang was nitpicking. Others could say this, but if we were to say it ourselves, wouldn't it seem like we were just trying to sell our own melons? We'd be ridiculed back in Chang'an. Moreover, in Li Xiang's eyes, such an achievement was nothing more than a minor one. How could it be greater than expanding territory? This was Tang territory itself.
"Your Highness, the two envoys have arrived outside the city..."
Zhang Jiuli came in calmly from outside. This guy can now breathe a sigh of relief. The situation on the mountain has basically stabilized. Mainly because after negotiating with these two envoys, our army can enter the territories of the other two chieftains. Then the overall situation on the mountain has been settled. According to the previous promise of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, a family member can be sent back from the border. This can be regarded as a preliminary victory for himself.
"You know best how and what to discuss. Let Qian Ping accompany you. Qian Ping will represent me. I won't meet with these people. If I meet with them, those two chieftains might think they are powerful, but in fact they are no more than one of our local officials."
When the real victory came, everyone was in a state of ecstasy, and only Li Xiang was able to calm down. Don't think that accepting Shanshang is a good thing. You must know that life on Shanshang is very difficult. If you really accept Shanshang, you will have to spend a lot of money to support Shanshang. By then, you don't know whether the Ministry of Revenue is willing to do so.
"Please rest assured, Your Highness. I will go there immediately."
In Zhang Jiuli's mind, this matter does not require Li Xiang to personally step in. Both Longchuan Tusi and Adu Tusi are much stronger than these two Tusi. Those two Tusi can handle it themselves. Could there be any problems with the two at the end?
What's more, the current situation is different from before. In the past, we did not have much military strength in the mountains and could only rely on the second young master and Tusi Adu. But after a series of operations, we have nearly 10,000 people in the mountains. The combat effectiveness of these 10,000 people is no joke. If you two Tusi dare to make trouble, we can defeat you at any time.
Originally, I was not familiar with the terrain of the mountain and didn't know much about the situation there, so you guys could occupy the mountain and make the most of the geographical advantage. But now our army has also learned about the mountain, and the people of Tusi Adu can also help us. Your so-called natural barrier has lost its effect.
So in this situation, as long as these two chieftains have a sound mind, they will definitely not do anything excessive at this time. They sent envoys just because they wanted to live a better life in the future. Zhang Jiuli can be said to be the most suitable person for this kind of bargaining. He can deal with the two big chieftains, and it is also enough for you two small chieftains.
If you want to live a happy life, you have to let your subordinates work hard. This is Li Xiang’s philosophy.
