After the court was dispersed the next day, Li Yuan and his son and several prime ministers went to the imperial study room to discuss matters. Li Yuan glanced at the people in the hall like an eagle and falcon, and said slowly: "Fang Xuanling's mission to the Tang Dynasty this time was Yang Tong who wanted to spend a year on the quit to exchange our five counties of Xiangyang, Fangling, Chongling, Jingling and Yiling. Tell me your own opinions."

Everyone frowned and said nothing.

The emperor had already spread the news to everyone's homes last night, so that they could prepare in advance for discussion today.

"Xiao Xiang, can we propose a plan ourselves?" Dou Gui looked at Xiao Yu.

Xiao Yu bowed and replied, "Fang Xuanling said that he could represent the Emperor of Sui with all his power, and the implication was that we could propose different plans."

With Xiao Yu's words, Dou Gui immediately said: "Master, since Fang Xuanling has made such a statement, we don't have to consider using the five counties to exchange for a year's truce. We can exchange money, grain and other places for exchange, and then talk to him."

Liu Wenjing next to him shook her head: "Dou Xiang, I think there is a problem here!"

"Please make clear what Liu Xiang said."

Seeing everyone looking at him, Liu Wenjing said calmly: "First of all, we are not satisfied with each other's items; secondly, if we replace them with the remote Luchuan, Jianwei, Yuezhi, Jingke, and Qian'an, they will definitely not agree. Fang Xuanling is not a fool."

"Liu Xiang believes that the other party really wants to exchange the five counties for a year's truce? The two sides are now in a state of hostility. If Yang Tong wants these five counties, he can just send troops to fight directly. Is it necessary to talk to us?" Dou Gui asked.

Liu Wenjing put forward his own opinion: "I think it is actually Li Mi who Yang Tong wants to fight, not my Tang Dynasty."

Liu Wenjing's proposal caused an uproar.

"How can I tell? What's the reason?" Li Yuan was excited. He wanted to hear these good news now.

"There are five reasons!" Liu Wenjing stood up and said one by one what she thought last night: "First of all, although the Sui army was in Xiyang and Nanyang, there were no warships or merchant ships. Without these ships, no matter how many troops they had, they would not be able to pass the Han River."

"Secondly, Xiangyang City is high and deep, easy to defend but difficult to attack, so they took advantage of the situation of our Tang Dynasty and proposed the conditions of using five counties to exchange for a year's truce. Once we hand over the five counties including Xiangyang and retreat into Bashu, they only need to station a small group of troops in Yiling to block our army in Bashu, and then they can use absolute force to deal with Li Mi, Lin Shihong and others."

"Third, compared with our Tang Dynasty, the territory of Li Mi and Sui Dynasty was intertwined, especially the Henan County where Luoyang was located was only one Xingyang separated from Liang County. If a partial army of Li Mi attacked, it could push the war to the Hulao Pass, causing turmoil in the Sui Emperor's capital; at the same time, Li Mi's army could also go up from the coast of Donghai County and attack Qingzhou, which had empty population and empty troops. Qingzhou is the place where the longest chaos is today. Many anti-kings were born here, and more than ten people have passed.

During the war in 2008, there were countless fierce bandits and bandits. The brutal suppression and massacre of the Sui Dynasty's armed forces made these people uneasy day and night. Li Mi, who started his business in Wagang, was very famous in this area. If he tied it together, he would be a strong army, causing the land of Qingzhou to be turbulent again. Whether for the safety of the imperial capital or to cut off Li Mi's connection with these people, Yang Tong would attack Li Mi to the south of the Huai River, so that Luoyang, Qingzhou and other places could not be poisoned by the war again."

"Fourth, if Du Fuwei fails in Liyang, Li Mi's army will occupy the Jianghuai land, and become a horn with the Chongling of our Tang Dynasty, splitting the land of Jingzhou south of the Han River into one. As far as I know, Yang Tong unscrupulously defeated the local tyrants and gentry in the Jingzhou land and divided the land equally. Although these people were killed a group and fled to the territory of the Tang Dynasty and Lin Shihong, their influence in Jingzhou will be difficult to eliminate in the short term. If they enter the country again, the land of Jingzhou will surely fly in war, which is also something that Yang Tong does not allow."

"The fifth point and the most important point; Li Mi's army was cut into two halves by the Huai River. Du Fuwei of Huainan was like a sharp blade, and he could attack Li Mi's capital Jiangdu at any time. With a little action, Jiangdu would be in chaos. The existence of Du's army made Li Mi unable to sleep or eat. In addition, Li Mi was defeated by Yang Tong and Du Fuwei last year, and the elite troops lost tens of thousands of people, which made him not many troops support Xu Shiji and Wang Bodang in Huainbei; and Xu and Wang generals each defended one side. To a certain extent, they were alone soldiers fighting alone. Yang Tong only needed to defeat these two generals, and Huainbei was at your fingertips."

"Based on the above five points, Weichen believes that Yang Tong will fight Li Mi first. As for Fang Xuanling's five counties to change the quit for a year, it is actually a blackmail." After Liu Wenjing said that, he bowed to Li Yuan.

Liu Wenjing analyzed it thoroughly. Everyone finally understood Yang Tong's sinister intentions. He was nothing more than intimidating the Tang Dynasty with his powerful troops, and then gaining the five counties of Jingxiang out of thin air through negotiation, so that the Tang army was isolated in Bashu.

Li Yuan sneered with a sneering smile: "He wants my Jingxiang, unless he defeats my army, he will just dream in the daytime!"

"Is Yang Tong's saying that the expansion of the army of 500,000 is to pretend to be a pretentious?" Seeing Liu Wenjing making a big splash, Pei Ji said very unhappy: "With the million-dollar army of the Sui Dynasty, it is possible to start wars from all sides, Liu Xiang..."

"Yang Tong has indeed expanded his army!" Before Pei Ji finished speaking, Liu Wenjing interrupted him, "Yang Tong's main battle troops were all the elite cavalry outside the territory, and the troops were quite single. They did not fight against the plains, but Jiangnan was covered with water nets, and the elite cavalry did not play much. If hundreds of thousands of elite cavalry went south, it would probably be the same as Li Mi's intention. By the same token, the cavalry was not very useful in Bashu, where mountains and rivers were everywhere. According to information, the expanded army was all infantry and naval, which shows that Yang Tong also realized this problem. This also shows that although the Sui army had a million troops, half of the troops that could be invested in the southern battlefield were already a lot."

Pei Ji retorted without showing any weakness: "Infantry becomes cavalry hard, cavalry becomes infantry easy. Although the entire Sui army was a cavalry, they never ignored infantry training. The battle between King Jin and Yang Shan in Changyuan was enough to prove that after the Sui army was dismounted, the combat power of the Sui army was not worse than that of cavalry warfare. The battle that took place at Zhuyang Pass also fully demonstrated the Sui army's infantry and offensive capabilities. In addition, there is another very important point. Liu Xiangguo forced the Sui army to give way in the form of a dam, but Yang Tong also threatened us in the same way. Now, a large embankment is built on the east and west sides of Hanchuan. If the dam is broken, the Qinghua County will become a country; the Han River embankment will be destroyed, and the Xicheng County will be destroyed. If the dam breaks the dam at the same time, the downstream cities and camps will be destroyed in the flood, the Sui army can take a boat and a bamboo raft to enter the heart of our Tang Dynasty."

Liu Wen remained silent.

Pei Ji, who was not unreasonable and had to fight for a long time, knew that the other party was talking about an unavoidable fact, but he didn't speak out to refute anything.

"Liu Prime Minister, if the dike breaks, do you still insist on the Sui army will not attack my Tang Dynasty?" Pei Ji said proudly when he saw that Liu Wenjing was speechless.

Although Pei Ji made sense, the villain's successful appearance made everyone frown.

"Father!" Li Jiancheng stood up and bowed: "Liu Xiangguo analyzed everything and pointed out the advantages and disadvantages of the Sui, Tang and Wei everywhere. Judging from the current situation of the Sui Dynasty, it would probably not be an enemy of the Tang Dynasty before occupying Huaibei. Moreover, before the dam breaking, our Tang Dynasty was completely prepared to dig canals and irrigate farmlands in advance. If the Sui army really broke the dam, it could also play a flood diversion role, so that the defense facilities of Xicheng and Qinghua were not damaged by the flood. Our army could still use previous defensive means to resist the Sui army outside the national gate."

Li Shimin interjected: "The emperor's plan is necessary; but we must also recognize the strength of the Sui army. Yang Tong now has the strength of two-line combat. Xu Shiji and Wang Bodang are not strong enough to allow Yang Tong to attack the whole country. Yang Tong only needs to dispatch 200,000 troops to capture the seven counties in Huaibei. Even if he dispatched 500,000 troops, he still had 300,000 troops in his hand, and he could still attack Bashu from various places. So I think it is necessary to change our defense plan of tightening the outside and loosening the inside."

Li Shimin's words made everyone realize how full of loopholes their defenses were? They did not have a strong army to stay in the rear, but they talked about defending the enemy outside the country, which was really unconsidered.

"Sage, I fully agree with His Highness the King of Jin's plan!" Liu Wenjing also expressed his opinion: "The Sui Dynasty is too strong now, and our situation is very unfavorable. We must consider the issue of evacuation. If Fangling, Chongling, Jingling and Yiling are lost, Xiangyang will become an isolated city. We must establish a second defense after Xiangyang, otherwise when the war is unfavorable, we will not be able to retreat to Bashu, and there will be a danger of the destruction of the entire army."

Although Liu Wenjing's words were a bit hindsighted, his judgment that he could not withdraw to Bashu attracted Li Yuan's attention. Li Yuan pondered for a long time and said: "With Liu Xiang's intention, how should we set up a second defense?"

"Yiling, Badong!" Liu Wenjing pointed two places and said: "Especially Yiling, it is a key area connecting Bashu and Jingzhou. From ancient times to Ling, Yiling, Zigui, Fengjie, and Badong on the Three Gorges Road must have heavy troops to garrison, but we only have county troops with insufficient combat power in these places. If the Sui army takes advantage of the loopholes and sends troops from Nanjun to occupy Yiling, the consequences will be unimaginable."

Li Yuan was secretly surprised and nodded silently, "The King of Jin led the army and half of the recruits in your hands to Yiling to take charge, defending the Sui army, ensuring the smooth flow of Bashu and Jingxiang, and training the army to train our Tang Dynasty to train a strong and powerful army."

"Here!" Li Shimin was very excited. Since he was defeated by Zhuyang Pass, he had only 20,000 direct troops after the post-war distribution, and the number of new recruits was 100,000, including refugees, monks, and Taoists. With the order of his father, he could select 50,000 elite soldiers to station in Yiling, so that there would be a 70,000 army. The key is that the food from Bashu must be sent to Xiangyang through Yiling, so there would be no need to worry about the risk of food being cut off.

"Although Yang Tong would not attack the Tang Dynasty before occupying Huaibei, there is no way Yang Tong's strength. I don't know how long Xu Shiji and Wang Bodang can last. After occupying Huaibei, they may not be able to adjust the direction of the attack. Therefore, the time for preparation for us is very short, which is related to the life and death of our Tang Dynasty. You all must use this time to military and political affairs." Li Yuan ordered.

"Son of yourselves obey your order!"

"I obey the order!"

Everyone answered their orders.

At this time, Xiao Yu bowed and asked, "Master, what should Fang Xuanling do? Do we still need to talk to you?"

Li Yuan snorted coldly, "Xiao Xiang continued to negotiate with him. If he couldn't reach an agreement, he would just let him leave. Didn't he say that he could represent Yang Tong? Then I will use Luchuan, Jianwei, Yuezhi, and Qian'an to exchange for a year's quit. Let's see if he can represent Yang Tong."

Seeing everyone getting up and leaving, Li Yuan suddenly said, "Secretary Chen, please stay."

"Here!" Uncle Chen sat down.

When everyone left the imperial study room, Li Yuan opened the confidential box and handed the Dugu secret letter "Li Xiuning stolen" to Chen Shuda to watch.

Before ascending the throne, Li Yuan trusted the most was Pei Ji and Liu Wenjing, but now, Li Yuan has given this trust to Chen Shuda. It is mainly because Liu Wenjing and Pei Ji got too close to the prince and the King of Jin, which has caused Li Yuan to feel a little more taboo. Chen Shuda was smart and skillful. Although he was included in the prince's rank with Xiao Yu for the leadership of the southern gentry, he kept a certain distance from Li Jiancheng and gradually won Li Yuan's trust. Therefore, Chen Shuda and Prince Li Jiancheng gradually drifted away and became Li Yuan's confidant officials.

"Is this... is this true?" Chen Shuda quickly looked at the two letters placed on the top, and his face was pale. The previous letter Dugu Chi revealed the secret of the Daxing Palace's great change; the content of the latter letter Dugu Chi made 80% of the land and 50% of the money and grain to Yang Tong, as an internal commitment.

"It's Dugu's handwriting undoubtedly!"

"Sir, where did these letters come from?"

"It was Pingyang who stole it from Ziwei Palace and hid it in the gift, and let Fang Xuanling bring it to me. If it weren't for Pingyang, I wouldn't know where I was defeated."

Chen Shuda did not speak, but waited patiently for the emperor to express his opinion. Li Yuan stood in front of the window for a long time and suddenly asked: "In addition, the head of the Dugu Sect collectively visited Fang Xuanling yesterday. When these people left, they all smiled happily. I am afraid that some kind of agreement had been reached. Chen Xiang thought how should I deal with the Dugu Sect among the Guanlong nobles?"

Chen Shuda suddenly realized that Dugu's betrayal on the surface made the emperor angry, but he knew that the emperor had to deal with the Guanlong nobles because the Guanlong nobles occupied the land and population of Bashu, which not only seriously affected the court's tax revenue, but also caused a serious shortage of troops. This serious problem has reached the point where it cannot be solved. The emperor was worried that countless Guanlong nobles of the private army would launch a coup, and Dugu's willingness to be the promise of the Sui Dynasty to respond to the emperor's rebellion.

"Master, the situation in our Tang Dynasty is unstable, and the Guanlong nobles have become an urgent need." Chen Shuda looked at the emperor's face and said, "Everyone thinks that Yang Tong would not attack the Tang Dynasty before occupying Huaibei. This short period of time is just a good opportunity for the Emperor to eradicate internal worries. As long as the rotten meat is cut off, my Tang Dynasty can be devoted to the outside world. More importantly, it can use the money and food of the Dugu School to make up for the insufficient financial resources of the imperial court; use the Dugu School's land to reward meritorious soldiers, so as to gather the morale of the army and boost morale."

Li Yuan asked again: "Where should I start?"

"Sage, I remember that Yang Tong had a poem written like this: 'Whether you should pull the bow, use the strong, use the arrow as you should use the long. Shoot the man and shoot the horse first, and capture the thief first."

Although Chen Shuda spoke very implicitly, Li Yuan knew that what he meant was to start with the Dugu family. As long as the Dugu family was dealt with cleanly, the Guanlong family of other Dugu schools would fall into a situation where there was no leader, and it would be much easier to pack up.

A complicated expression appeared on Li Yuan's face, and after a long time, he said in a trembling voice: "I understand what to do!"

"If the emperor has nothing to do, I will sue my husband first!" Chen Shuda also understood what Li Yuan meant.

"good!"
Chapter completed!