In the Royal Palace of Chang 'an, the court meeting lasted for a very long time because Li Jing released a piece of important news.
"My dear minister, do you mean to launch a surprise attack on the Eastern Turks this winter?”
Li Er looked at Li Jing in shock. Not only was he shocked, but the expressions of all the officials changed.
"The Great Tang has been plagued by snow and locust plagues for years and is already overwhelmed. If we send troops now, won't it increase the burden on the people?”
"That's right. Now that the Great Tang is recuperating and lacking in food, how can we send troops?”
"Duke Wei has gone crazy from wanting to make a contribution. He actually came up with such a plan?”
Many civil officials angrily berated Li Jing for his crazy idea.
Since ancient times, civil and military officials looked down on each other, and the officials in the court had their own camps.
Li Jing had always been a maverick and did not ally with the officials.
It was precisely because of this that it was very difficult for him to gain support for his crazy idea of sending troops to the Eastern Turks.
"Your Majesty, I have great confidence in this surprise attack. The successive years of snow have caused the Eastern Turks to be overwhelmed and their cattle and sheep to die!”
Li Jing gritted his teeth and shouted,"
"Not only that, the snow disaster and plague are rampant, and the Eastern Turks are bound to fall apart. The Jie Li Khagan has long since lost its power!”
"Hehe, that sounds good. Duke Wei, how did you know all this?”
Xiao Yu of the Imperial Censorate stood up and pointed at Li Jing angrily.
"Nonsense is the crime of deceiving the emperor!”
This man had an extraordinary background, and he was the younger brother of Empress Xiao. Now that Empress Xiao was living in the Eastern Turks, he naturally didn't approve of sending troops.
What if they started fighting?
Whether the Great Tang won or lost, it would affect Empress Xiao. This was the reason why he did not recommend sending troops!
"This old man has been guarding the northern border for a long time. There are spies who have come to report.”
Li Jing said loudly and looked at Li Er."
"Your Majesty, if you don't believe me, you can send Youzhou's soldiers to the northern border to investigate.”
In the court, it was impossible for Li Jing to use Li Yu's methods, and it was also impossible to convince others.
However, as the general of the northern border, his words were convincing enough.
"Oh?"
Li Er couldn't help but be stunned. His eyes revealed a look of surprise as he said,
"Secretary Fang, I order you to immediately send a letter to Youzhou to investigate whether the Turks have fallen into chaos!”
"Yes!"
Fang Xuanling respectfully agreed. Xiao Yu's expression changed drastically. He looked at Li Er and said anxiously,
"Your Majesty, you can't do this. The Great Tang has been plagued by disasters and is short of food.!”
"Right, this matter is indeed inappropriate. Even if the Eastern Turks are in civil strife, the Great Tang hasn't had an easy time in recent years.”
"Once the expedition fails, the Turks will return and drain the Great Tang of its strength. What can we do to stop them?”
Many officials agreed. Li Jing stepped forward again and said,
"Your Majesty, there's no need for an army to go out on this trip.”
"This lowly subject only needs to lead five thousand cavalry to take down the Eastern Turks!”
" What?!"
Everyone was shocked again. Even Li Er was shocked.
Five thousand cavalrymen?
Take down the Eastern Turks!
What an arrogant tone!
Even if you, Li Jing, have a strong pen, you can't treat the Eastern Turks like chickens!
The Eastern Turks had an army of two hundred thousand!!!
"As long as there is internal strife in the Eastern Turks, this lowly subject only needs to sow discord and have a high chance of taking down Jie Li?”
Li Jing said word by word,"
"Five thousand soldiers, regardless of success or failure, will not be able to move the bones of the Great Tang. I hope Your Majesty will allow it!”
"Nonsense!"
Li Er suddenly spoke and looked at Li Jing angrily.
"My beloved minister is a brave general of the Great Tang, my arm. How can you say that it is difficult to move my muscles and bones? How can I take the risk!"
"This…"
Li Jing was stunned. He thought for a moment and cupped his hands and bowed.
"This humble subject pleads for Your Majesty's permission! Once this opportunity was lost, the Eastern Turks would once again become a disaster for the Great Tang!”
As soon as he finished speaking, all the officials fell silent. They were surprised by Li Jing's boldness, but they also admired his courage!
Five thousand soldiers were fighting with their lives on the line!
But Li Jing was right about one thing. If the Eastern Turks really did recover, it would be a disaster for the Great Tang!
"Your Majesty, I have something to say."
At this moment, Zhangsun Wuji stood up. Li Er said,"
"Speak!"
"The non-humankind hasn't paid tribute to the warhorses in recent years. The horses in the Tang army can't bear the burden anymore, and we're short of resources.”
Zhangsun Wuji said slowly,"
"If we want to send out cavalry to attack, I'm afraid we'll need to transport horses from various camps. This is also a problem…"
Even Li Jing was stunned when he heard this.
An expedition was not as easy as one might imagine. For a 5,000-strong cavalry expedition, each of them had to prepare at least three sets of horses!
Otherwise, the horses would have died of exhaustion before they could even last the Eastern Turks.
In short, this expedition required at least 20,000 horses, and they had to be in excellent condition!
This was no small problem for the Great Tang.
"Yes, even if you can hold on, the horse has to hold on too!”
Xiao Yu instantly looked at Li Jing excitedly. The latter was speechless and did not know how to answer. Li Er sighed and said,
"Let's put this matter aside for the time being. We'll talk about it when the news from the northern border comes.”
……
Lantian Military Camp.
"Yu brat, you mean you can forge equipment for these horses? Protect its hooves?"
"That's right."
Li Yu nodded solemnly. Looking at the bald hooves of the soldiers 'horses, he could not help but shake his head and say,"
"Just like how people need shoes, horses also need shoes. Otherwise, if the hooves are worn out, they will need to change horses frequently.”
"Furthermore, it's very difficult to chase after the enemy, and it's easy for the enemy to escape!”
Horseshoes had not been made in this day and age, and this was a big problem for horses!
"Hiss…that's right. Every time, it's because those foreign races run too fast and we can't catch up.”
The soldiers spoke up one after another. They were angry when they mentioned this.
If the horses of the Great Tang were a bit more courageous, the Outsiders would have been beaten to a pulp long ago.
"Putting shoes on the horse…"
Su Dingfang's eyes lit up as he looked at Li Yu and asked excitedly,"
"Yu boy, can you make this thing?”
"Yes!"
Li Yu nodded solemnly. He looked at the generals and said,"
"If the horses aren't afraid of the steep mountains and pursue the non-humankind, can you capture all the non-humankind?”
"Of course! To be able to beat a Turk dog into a pulp and cry for his parents!”
Zhao Hu shouted from the side. Su Dingfang looked at Li Yu with bright eyes and laughed,
"Duke Wei has sent us a treasure. Blacksmith, quickly go and find Blacksmith!!!”
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。