Li Yuan didn't seem to care about the actions of the Turks on the border.
But Li Shiming, Li Jiancheng, and the other officials were all worried, because the Great Tang could only muster fifty thousand soldiers.
This was even counting some of the remaining soldiers.
The Nether World of the Great Tang was vast, but it was precisely because of this that the Great Tang's forces were far from enough. It seemed prosperous, but it was only barely holding on.
Of course, this was also the reason why the Great Tang was lacking in strength. If the Great Tang was given another two or three years, all of this would be nothing.
Li Jiancheng and Li Shimin stood outside the hall, waiting patiently.
As for why Li Yuan had called them over.
They had never considered this point. They only knew to follow Li Yuan's orders.
Li Shiming wanted to say something, but he raised his head slightly and immediately stood up straight. Li Jiancheng also stood up straight and walked forward.
The two of them cupped their hands in unison and said,"Your son greets father."
Li Yuan raised his hand and said,""There's no need to be so polite. There's no big deal in asking you to come over today.”
"Jiancheng will be leaving for the border soon, Shimin you should be careful in the palace.”
"The weather is good today. Just in time to follow zhen to see the sufferings of the people. Lin Cheng has already prepared plain clothes for you.”
Li Shiming and Li Jiancheng were both delighted. Then, they said,"Your son understands."
As the two of them spoke, they walked to the side. Lin Cheng brought them to change their clothes.
No one in the Imperial Palace knew that Li Yuan had left the Imperial Palace with Li Shimin and Li Jiancheng. This trip was recorded in the history books of later generations.
He was called the godson of the great ancestor!
It was passed down through the generations.
After the carriage left the palace, it did not stop. In the end, it reached the wilderness. The Golden Guards were also dressed in plain clothes, with Li Yuan at the center.
Within a radius of ten miles, they would be in control of anything that happened.
Li Shi Min looked out the window and asked curiously,""Father, we're already dozens of miles out of Chang 'an.”
"I wonder where Imperial Father's destination is.”
After Li Shimin finished speaking, Li Jiancheng looked at Li Yuan curiously.
Li Yuan placed his hands on his knees. The carriage craftsmanship of the Imperial Palace was already the pinnacle of the Great Tang, but the craftsman's horizons were still limited.
He also didn't understand the principle of shock absorption.
Although Li Yuan had instructed the craftsman to use the spring to reduce the vibration, the craftsman was only experimenting. He did not dare to place the test product on Li Yuan's carriage.
After all, in their opinion, safety was far better than comfort.
Therefore, the bumpy ride of the carriage made Li Yuan miss the train and plane in his later life. Hearing Li Shimin's words, he raised his eyes slightly and said,""It's just a village up ahead."
"Zhen only wanted to bring you to see the people.”
Li Shimin and Li Jiancheng looked at each other, not understanding what Li Yuan meant.
However, he still tactfully shut his mouth.
They could tell that Li Yuan didn't want to talk.
As time passed, minutes and seconds passed.
The carriage slowly came to a stop and Guan Yu's voice rang out,""Master, we're here, but we have to walk the way ahead. What do you think?”
Li Yuan moved slightly.
Li Shi Min immediately reached out and pulled open the curtain. Li Yuan also walked out and said,"Let's go. This carriage is not comfortable to sit in. It's too slow.”
Li Jiancheng looked at Li Shiming's flattery.
He felt that he was still a little slow.
Li Yuan brought the two of them out of the car.
Li Shiming and Li Jiancheng looked at the muddy road ahead and frowned slightly. They were not people who had never suffered before.
He had seen all kinds of things during the years of war.
However, after the Tang Empire was established, they had enjoyed a lot. Their understanding of the Tang people came from the people of Chang 'an and the reports of some local officials.
Now, they were only dozens of miles away from Chang 'an.
The commoners actually lived in such a place.
They really did not expect this.
Li Yuan walked forward as if he hadn't noticed their change.
Li Shiming and Li Jiancheng quickly caught up. At this time, they finally understood why Li Yuan had prepared clothes for them. They were like night clothes, tight and not loose.
It didn't look like a robe.
Otherwise, walking in such a place, his robe would definitely be covered in mud.
Li Yuan walked forward slowly but steadily.
Li Shimin and Li Jiancheng had always wanted to help Li Yuan, but they had suffered a lot. Finally, they arrived at the village entrance. A few old people sat there and basked in the sun.
"Father, look at how well these people are living." Li Shimin said.”
"There's no need to do hard work. After eating, just sit here. Isn't it the same as what the ancient books say?”
"This flourishing age is all thanks to you, Imperial Father.”
Li Jiancheng quickly chimed in." Father, if these old people were in the previous dynasty, how could they have such an easy life?”
"Without war, the people can become rich.”
Li Yuan listened to their conversation without any expression on his face.
Then, he looked straight at the old men.
Li Shimin and Li Jiancheng also sensed that something was wrong.
They were not fools.
Just now, they had assumed that these old people had a sense of security. However, they had been standing here for a long time and did not feel the liveliness of Chang 'an.
These old men sat there without saying a word.
It was as if he had fallen asleep.
Li Yuan walked over, followed by Li Shimin and Li Jiancheng. Li Yuan looked behind him and saw Guan Yu taking off the bag from his back.
Li Yuan was also sitting on a stool that Li Jiancheng brought over from the side. He said,"Elders, I came from afar with my two sons. We want to go to Chang 'an to do business.”
"Do you know how far it is from here to Chang 'an?”
Li Shimin and Li Jiancheng were stunned.
However, he did not speak.
Li Yuan's words seemed to have awakened one of them. Guan Yu then handed over a few pieces of jerky and said,"This is a gift from my master.”
"I want to ask you guys something."
The moment the jerky was taken out.
The unique aroma of mutton wafted out.
The few old men instantly opened their eyes and held the jerky tightly in their hands as if they were holding a treasure. They greedily sniffed it, but they did not bite it.
Finally, one of them looked at Li Yuan and said," Are you going to Chang 'an?"
"We're all merchants. We want to do some business, so we've been on the road for a long time." Li Yuan nodded.”
The old man looked at the meat in his hand, then looked at Li Yuan and said,"We don't know how far Chang 'an is. We've never been there.”
The others also shook their heads and said,"I don't know."
"I haven't been there."
"Isn't that kid from Old Cui's family literate? Does he know?"
"Why don't I take you to ask?"
Li Yuan nodded and asked Guan Yu to bring him a piece of jerky."That's troublesome."
The old man took the jerky and smiled.""No trouble, no trouble. With these two pieces of jerky, I can also let that little brat of mine nourish his body.”
"Little brat?" Li Yuan looked at him and said. Looking at your age, is he your grandson?"
The old man's tanned face had a rare redness and embarrassment. He said,"No…not grandson, son.”
Li Yuan didn't say anything else.
Li Shimin and Li Jiancheng were stunned.
They looked at the man in front of them. He was at least sixty or seventy years old. In the Great Tang, such a person was considered to be very old and should have many children and grandchildren.
Why was his son still a little cub? That meant that the oldest was only eight or ten years old.
"Old man, is this your only child?" Li Shimin asked.”
The old man paused for a moment, then his shoulders shook. He squeezed out a smile from his wrinkled face and said,"No, I have three sons.”
"But they all went out to fight. Now that the war is over, no one has returned.”
"There's still a small one. No one has come to recruit soldiers for many years.”
Hearing this, Li Shi Min's face turned ugly.
He and Li Jiancheng looked at each other but didn't say anything.
Soon, they arrived at Old Cui's house.
There was a couplet on the door frame. It looked like a scholar. The old man shouted at the door,"Cui child, you're out. There are people in the village.”
"I want to ask you something."
After the old man shouted, there was a response from the room.
Then, a person wearing a rough hand-sewn Confucian robe walked out. He looked at Li Yuan, Li Shimin, and Li Jiancheng, cupped his hands, and said,"Cui Yuan greets the three of you."
Li Yuan also cupped his hands.
Seeing that the three of them were chatting, the old man turned around and walked out.
Cui Yuan led Li Yuan and the others into the courtyard. The courtyard was not big, but it was very clean. As soon as they sat down, Cui Yuan said straightforwardly,""Where are you from, sir?"
" Yangzhou," Li Yuan said with a smile." I brought my two sons from Yangzhou to Chang 'an. However, I met some bad guys on the way and got lost."”
"I was passing by your village and wanted to come in and ask for some water. Then, I'll ask how far it is from here to Chang 'an Fortress.”
Cui Yuan listened to Li Yuan's explanation and didn't suspect anything.
This was because his experience was really limited.
Cui Yuan looked at Li Yuan's clothes and then at his own. He unconsciously felt a little embarrassed and inferior, but he still said truthfully,"To be honest, I've never been to Chang 'an Fortress.”
"I heard from my father that Chang 'an Fortress is not far from us. Whether it was a hundred miles or two hundred miles, they would reach it after crossing the mountain.”
"I plan to go out and take a look.”
Cui Yuan finished speaking.
Li Yuan seemed to have expected this.
Li Shimin and Li Jiancheng couldn't remain calm.
They had come all the way from Chang 'an by carriage. Although the road was a little bumpy, most of them were on official roads. Only the last few miles were small roads.
However, the total distance was not far.
However, the people living in the villages near Chang 'an City did not know that Chang' an City was right in front of them?
They then looked at Cui Yuan. Li Jiancheng said,""Langjun Cui, I also want to ask you something.”
"I saw some old men sitting there, but they didn't speak.”
Cui Yuan blinked and said,""Because of hunger. There is not much food in the village. In recent years, it has been a year of disaster. The villagers are so hungry that they have eaten all the food.”
"They've been better these two years, but they don't eat much. They used to lie at home.”
"But they fell sick and many people died. Later, a wandering doctor came and said that it would be better to sunbathe, so he sunbathed at the village entrance.”
"When it's time to go home, they don't talk because after they talk, they get hungry.”
Li Shi Min looked around the village and saw the dense forest. He said,"Logically speaking, there are no hunters in the village.”
"Or set some traps?"
Cui Yuan listened to Li Shiming's words and shook his head helplessly,"He did, but he met Big Cat and died. His son was also dragged into the army.”
"The villagers won't know either."
"I heard that it's chaotic outside. You guys have to be careful. If you see Zhuang Li, you have to pull him into the army or dig a river.”
" Alas, you should be careful when you go to Chang 'an. Don't get caught. And..."
It seemed like Cui Yuan hadn't been talked to for a long time.
Or rather…
He was the only scholar in the village. He didn't have anything in common with the elders in the village, so he just said all the words he knew in his stomach as a life motto.
And in the end.
He seemed to have exhausted all his courage.
He revealed what he thought was his biggest secret.
That was, he knew the Emperor's surname, Yang!
This book is provided by FunNovel Novel Book | Fan Fiction Novel [Beautiful Free Novel Book]