Chapter 4811 Seeking Luzon
Why does any country continue to expand outwards, occupy land, and plunder people as long as it has the ability? The reason is not as simple as success. The most fundamental reason is that land and population mean food and taxes. Whether they are used to provide the king with pleasure or to develop people's livelihood, this is the main purpose of war.
Losing food and taxes from the Western Regions means that the central government loses control of the Western Regions. How is this different from a "state within a state"?
Relaxing the population migration policy and allowing people to go to the Western Regions on their own will lead to an explosive increase in the population of the Western Regions. The vast land and abundant population are not controlled by the central government... Is it still the territory of the Tang Dynasty?
It’s scary to think about.
Fang Jun spread his hands and said: "Since the Central Committee does not agree, then quickly prepare the food and supplies needed by the Anxi Army. If those arrogant generals are allowed to endure hunger while defending the country and guarding the border, they will dare to run away even if they have no choice but to do so. Chang'an comes to Zhongshu to cause trouble for you."
Liu Ji tried his best to dissuade him: "The key to the reforms promoted by you, Duke of Yue, has always been the separation of military and political affairs. The money and food supplies for the garrison are directly provided by the central government rather than distributed by the local government. I have always agreed with this, thus preventing the military from There is a hidden danger of the army occupying one side without being controlled by the central government, but why should we set this precedent in the Western Region? Given the geographical environment of the Western Region, if the Anxi Army gathers troops to establish its own imperial court, it will be almost impossible, and the cost of conquest will be too high."
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"The strategic position of the Western Region is different. It is the most important strategic buffer in the western border of the Tang Dynasty. Because it is too far away from Chang'an, the jurisdiction of the imperial court is somewhat beyond its reach. It requires a certain degree of autonomy. Otherwise, if you ask the central government for everything, you will rely heavily on the central government. , which will make it lose its initiative and make it too passive strategically.”
For Fang Jun, there is no need to reason, because facts have long proved that the tighter the imperial center grasps and controls the Western Regions, the faster the Western Regions will fall.
When military pay still needs to be transported thousands of miles from Chang'an to the Western Regions and distributed to the soldiers, how can we expect the Anxi Army to make a quick and effective mobile response under extreme conditions?
For the Tang Dynasty, the Anxi Army was different from those Jiedushi. Even if the entire Western Region was separated from the rule of the Tang Dynasty, as long as it did not fall into the hands of the Turks and Tubos, it could always exert the greatest strategic value of the Western Region - as the Tang Dynasty The strategic buffer zone of the Western Frontier.
Forget about the Silk Road, with the opening of sea trade now, the wealth flowing into Datang from the sea every year is more than ten times that of the Silk Road. The once prosperous Silk Road only has strategic value, and its economic value is not worth mentioning.
In this case, the central government's control over the Western Region should be released. Facts have proved that there is nothing wrong with one country, two systems...
Liu Tie tugged at his beard, frowned, and after pondering for a long time, he sighed: "This is a big matter, and you and I cannot be experts in it. We should ask His Majesty to discuss it in the political hall later, and listen to the opinions of all parties before making a choice."
This is where Fang Jun looked down on Liu Ji. He had some abilities and decent ethics, but when it came to his courage in serving his affairs, he could not be compared with prime ministers such as Fang, Du, and Gao. He always adopted a soft and gentle approach. Cen Wenwen's strategy is also far better than his.
The prime minister of the empire needs to make decisions on many matters related to the development of the empire and the national economy and people's livelihood, but he is always indecisive, cherishing his feathers and unwilling to take responsibility. How can that be done?
Fang Jun yawned: "It's just what I want from the book. I'm not in a hurry."
Liu Ji had a grimace on his face. He originally wanted to kidnap Fang Jun for the Anxi Army's supply of food and supplies. This would not only alleviate the current serious food consumption situation, but also reduce the strength of Fang Jun's men and undermine Fang Jun's prestige. It could be said to kill two birds with one stone.
However, in the first round, Fang Jun came up with a move that knocked him out of the water. Instead, he was pushed against the wall and unable to get off...
If we do not reduce the number of Anxi Army troops, the huge consumption will make the center overwhelmed and miserable; if we reduce the number of Anxi Army troops, we will have to withstand the anger and criticism of the Anxi Army, Han Haijun, Liaodong Army, and even the Navy; allow the Anxi Army Settling fields in the Western Regions and providing food and military pay on their own Problems and recruiting people from the Central Plains can easily breed a huge military group that is self-sufficient and outside the control of the central government. If the Anxi Army is not allowed to do that, it must ensure that its food, supplies, heavy military pay and equipment are supplied in time and in full, and the central government is stretched for this... Things are back to square one.
He asked Fang Jun a difficult problem, but Fang Jun threw a bigger problem in front of him.
……
After Fang Jun left, Liu Ji sat alone in the check-in room with a sad face, thinking hard about how to solve the problem. He didn't even know when the time for the check-in was coming, but the clerk had the courage to come in to remind him. Then he suddenly realized that it was getting late and vomited out. I left the check-in room in one breath, took the car back to the house, had a simple dinner, and then ran to the study with worries and locked myself in. My family was not allowed to disturb...
There was a knock on the door.
Liu Ji was awakened from his deep thoughts and shouted: "Didn't you tell me not to bother me?"
The voice of the eldest son Liu Hongye sounded outside the door: "Father, it is Duke Yun who is visiting. He said he has something to discuss with father."
Liu Ji stood up and went to open the door. He said angrily to his son: "This guy looks smart, but in fact he is stupid. We can talk about anything openly during the day, so why do we have to visit and annoy others in the dead of night?" Criticism? That’s all, I’ll go see him.”
No matter how deep the prejudice against Zhang Liang is, he must meet him now that he has arrived at his house, but he doesn't know what the important purpose of this man's visit at night is.
The father and son arrived at the main hall one after the other. When they saw Zhang Liang, Zhang Liang quickly stood up, greeted each other and sat down respectively.
Liu Jie said: "I heard that Duke Yu has been unwell recently and cannot serve as the military guard of Youjinwu, so he is recuperating in the mansion. It seems that he has recovered?"
He naturally knew that Zhang Liang's so-called "physical discomfort" was an excuse. The fact was that the dignified minister of Zhenguan and General Youjin Wuwei was so distressed and disgraced by his subordinate Chang Shi that he had to hide at home to temporarily avoid the limelight. Plan countermeasures.
He also knew that even if he hid at home without showing his face, Fang Jun would still take him to Mingde Gate and stand there for a long time, giving him a good beating.
But he didn’t know what kind of countermeasures this planner had planned, and he actually planned it on himself...
Zhang Liang's face heated up, and he could hear the sarcasm in his words, and he said bravely: "I thought about it and found that although Fang Jun was not directly in charge of the left and right Jinwu Guards, he had already been infiltrated by him from top to bottom. It's easier to break through a crack in the most heavily defended place than to find another way to attack it unprepared."
Liu Jie was confused and didn't understand what he meant: "The Duke of Yu may as well speak frankly."
Zhang Liang was a little embarrassed, stroking his beard and said: "Now that I have lost all my prestige in the Youjinwu Guard, I can't give orders, and I am restricted by Wang Xuance and others, and I can't move forward. Instead of continuing to be entangled and wasting time, how can I take the initiative to withdraw and do something else?" Plot? ”
Only then did Liu Ji understand that this guy was cowarded and no longer wanted to take the post of General Youjin Wuwei that he had worked so hard to obtain in front of His Majesty...
"How to escape on your own initiative? How to make another plan? How to attack when someone is unprepared?"
"Although I am in name only in Youjinwu Guard and no one listens to orders, it is Fang Jun who is responsible for breaking the rules. Otherwise, if everyone regards an army as a taboo, wouldn't it be a chaos in the world? Why not take this opportunity to resign? If he wants to get an official position and go overseas, Fang Jun will definitely agree to it.”
"Sent overseas?"
Liu Jie looked confused: "You said that Fang Jun's management of Jinwu Guard is monolithic and does not allow others to interfere. I have reservations about this. It is not as bad as you said. But Fang Jun's control of the navy is truly The world is impermeable to wind and rain, and the sea is dominated by water masters, so how can you interfere?”
You can't play Fang Jun on land, but you still want to go to the sea where Fang Jun's home court is?
I'm afraid you don't know how to write the word "death"?
If in the Jinwu Guard, Fang Jun still has to worry about the influence and cannot break the rules, so he has room to strike, but when he goes to the sea, the sky will not respond and the earth will not work. Heavy rains, hurricanes, pirates... Fang Jun can do it Put you into a hundred positions, and you will die once in each position.
Zhang Liang said hurriedly: "Of course I am not serving in the Navy. I went to the Navy to hold any position? Su Dingfang, the Navy Commander, is only a third-grade officer at the same level as me... I mean Luzon! There are many islands in Luzon , fertile fields are vast, and they have been going south since the troubled times of the Three Kingdoms There are many Han people living there, and the Navy has leased several ports and large areas of land in Luzon. If we can hold Luzon in our hands, the benefits will not be too great! Besides, I heard that the Navy has dug several holes in Luzon. A gold mine..."
Liu Ji hurriedly knocked on the coffee table and reminded: "The Navy is the royal private army, so the gold mines dug in Luzon are His Majesty's money!"
The reason why His Majesty gave you the position of General Youjinwuwei is to balance Fang Jun's power in the defense of Chang'an. As a result, Fang Jun didn't even take action, so Wang Xuance took care of you, a coward. Still want to get involved in His Majesty's gold mine?
Your Majesty is now determined to create great achievements and prove to the world that he is qualified as an emperor and that Emperor Taizong was wrong to distrust him. All of these require a large amount of money to support his goals. You must see how your Majesty spends his whole day " "Okay, okay, okay, okay, okay" seems like a good old guy, but that's because no one has touched his bottom line.
Whoever dares to touch His Majesty's money, Your Majesty will dig up your ancestral grave!
Zhang Liang was startled: "Zhongshu Ling has misunderstood. How can we, who are loyal to the emperor and patriotic, covet your majesty's pocket? But I think so. Your majesty has such faith in Fang Jun because Fang Jun has always spared no effort to support your majesty." Your Majesty, but it cannot be denied that the navy is exploring gold, silver and copper mines all over the world, and after mining them, they charge it into His Majesty's money. After all, who wouldn't take a high look at a minister who can make money? "
"Huh?"
Liu Ji's heart moved: "What do you mean..."
Zhang Liang's eyes shone: "Governor of Luzon! As long as we seek this position, the gold mines, timber, and spices in the entire Luzon will fall into our control. When the time comes, we will transport them back to the Tang Dynasty and present them to His Majesty. Doesn't this mean that Fang Jun is not the only one who can do these things, we can do it too if we are given the opportunity!" (End of Chapter)