AWB Chapter 260 The court discusses war!
Chapter 260 The court discusses war!
As the autumn harvest approached, Emperor Xia ordered his inner guards to secretly investigate the situation in various parts of the country and concluded that this year's tax revenue... would probably be more than three times that of previous years.
For a moment, Emperor Xia had an idea!
After Gu Jingzhi submitted the memorial about taking action against the outside world, he sent a secret letter to Li Sheng at the border. When Emperor Xia learned that the Great Xia cavalry equipped with the three treasures of horseback riding were no longer inferior to the enemy's elite cavalry in all tactics, he could no longer contain himself.
Firstly, if he could subdue the foreign race, it would be like adding another important chapter in the history books for him, an emperor who was already in his twilight years.
Secondly, by opening up trade with other ethnic groups and solving the problem of ethnic minorities in the northwest, Daxia can then concentrate on dealing with the situation in the north.
Now the war between Beili and Liyue has reached a stalemate.
Without Wu Tianyao, Beili was both happy and worried.
The good news was that without the traitor Wu Tianyao, they had finally stabilized the border defense line in the northeast of Beili. Although they were fighting fiercely on the northeast front of Beili, Nangong Shouyi was a famous general after all, and he was fighting on home soil. Overall, he had more wins than losses when fighting against Wu Tianyao.
For a whole year, Li Yue was still stuck outside the Beili defense line, and the army was no longer as vigorous as it was at the beginning.
This is good news for Beili.
However, they were not completely unaware of Daxia's actions. Daxia was a new dynasty and its military strength was at its peak. It had just trained a new cavalry of 80,000 people.
For Beili... this made them unable to sleep or eat.
Since signing the alliance with Daxia, they have almost put all their energy and national strength into the battlefield in the northeast for the past year. If Daxia does not keep its promise now, they will be in danger!
Although Daxia has always been a relatively honest country, no one dares to gamble at this time.
However, their current worries were in vain!
The Daxia court was indeed discussing the issue of sending troops, but the quarrel was not about whether to send troops or not.
When Emperor Xia proposed to use military force against foreign countries, except for a few old scholars, the entire court of Great Xia was surprisingly united.
However, there was a dispute over where to send the troops.
Look, there’s trouble again!
Wei Xuan stood in the middle of the hall, speaking passionately, "Your Majesty, Beili has always been our Central Plains enemy. Their war in the northeast is now at a stalemate, and our Great Xia cavalry is well-trained. If we lead our troops north now, even if we can't break through their Yunjin Line, we will surely be able to reclaim our Central Plains territory! By then, our northern defenses will be flawless. I beg Your Majesty to order an attack on Beili!"
For three consecutive days, Wei Xuan, an old man who always convinced people with reason, somehow completely disregarded propriety, righteousness, integrity and shame, and even thought of overturning the alliance and sending troops to Beili.
You know, it was his good student who facilitated the alliance with Beili!
Is this still Wei Xuan, so treacherous?
I oppose the enemy's opinion. This is a common practice in political struggles. No matter where we send our troops, as long as Daxia does not suffer any losses, it's fine.
So...
Song Pu stood up and scolded, "Beili has only been in alliance with Daxia for a year, and they paid the price of six prefectures for this. Lord Wei is so treacherous. If war really breaks out, how will the other nations view Daxia?"
"As the Supreme Court, if you are so disloyal, how can those small nations that have submitted to Great Xia... rest in peace?"
"Wei Xuan's disregard for propriety and reputation will inevitably plunge Daxia into the quagmire of betrayal. As the Minister of Rites, he disregards propriety and law. I believe that Wei Xuan is no longer suitable for such an important position. Your Majesty, please issue an order to strip him of his position and reprimand him..."
Okay...
Song Pu probably still remembered that Tang Qian was dismissed because of a few words, so he would get rid of Wei Xuan as soon as he found the opportunity.
Who would have thought that Wei Xuan was not afraid at all, and said firmly: "When Great Xia sent troops, it was also to reclaim our homeland. Who says that taking back our own things is disregarding trust, loyalty, and law? Great Xia is only taking back our own things, not invading another country. This is a legitimate right!"
"..."
Song Pu felt helpless.
During the court battles these days, no matter what he said, Wei Xuan always used this sentence to make his point.
Wei Xuan has always attached great importance to etiquette and laws, and would never do such a treacherous thing, so... could this be what Emperor Xia meant?
To be honest, if it were before, he would agree to attack Beili. After all, even if the army was finally blocked outside Yunjin Pass, they could still take back the territories of the four prefectures.
Not to mention how many children of aristocratic families can be accommodated there, just the fact that it is close to Beili's homeland gives the aristocratic families a lot of benefits to pursue.
But it won’t work this time!
First of all, the national strength of Beili is far from comparable to that of foreign races. As long as they defeat the foreign races and open up border trade, they can expand their business to the Western Regions and introduce more new things from the Western Regions.
You know, the things from the Western Regions are what the powerful and wealthy people in the Central Plains like. They may even have a chance to extend their hands to Ningzhou!
Before, Ningzhou was in decline, and they looked down on it, but now Ningzhou is prosperous! They also control foreign trade routes, and smuggling has been basically eliminated. If Ningzhou can gain a certain degree of influence, then...
However, recovering our homeland is a righteous cause, and it will never work if we keep citing etiquette and laws.
He thought for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, recovering our homeland is a righteous cause, and I shouldn't object. However, our Great Xia cavalry is barely trained, and if we were to face the Beili cavalry, we would inevitably suffer a loss!"
"After all, they have been fighting Li Yue for years. Although the loss of national strength is huge, their fighting power is extraordinary!"
"I think it would be better to transfer the northern cavalry to the northwest to fight. Firstly, we can conquer the major tribes of the foreign races. Secondly, it can also be used as a training exercise. If our army is well trained, we will have a better chance of winning the battle against Beili in the future!"
"Furthermore, after conquering the foreign tribes, our dynasty will not only be able to realize the grand scene of countless nations coming to pay tribute to our country, but by opening up trade, we can also import foreign cattle, sheep, war horses, and the like. This is a strategy to strengthen the country and enrich the people. I believe that it is more appropriate to deploy troops to the northwest!"
"Besides, the two northern countries have been at war for so long that their national strength has been greatly depleted. It would be better to let them stalemate for a while longer. Next year, my army will recover our northern homeland without losing so many soldiers! Your Majesty, I beg for your approval!"
This is what I said...
It's not that I don't care about justice, but as the prime minister of the court, I have to consider the country, right?
As soon as these words were spoken, the aristocratic party behind Song Pu stood up one after another, and the voices of seconding the motion filled the entire hall. Even on Wei Xuan's side, many officials showed expressions of deep thought!
Wei Xuan noticed this scene, and a strange smile flashed in his eyes, but his face was serious and he said: "Your Majesty, solving the problem in the north is the top priority now!"
"If the four northern states were to be annexed by Great Xia, our defenses would no longer be compromised, and the imperial court wouldn't have to spend more money and food maintaining troops at the border. This would be a long-term solution!"
"..."
Emperor Xia watched the two sides arguing endlessly, but his heart remained as calm as an old dog. After a while, he coughed twice and said, "My lords..."