The night gradually deepened, and the rare fog in the desert slowly surged under Jiaohe City, rising higher and higher, and soon formed a white sea of fog, which obscured the original bright moonlight in the sky, and the humidity in the air was so large that it could condense water, and even the oil lamp that was not bright was even more dim under the invasion of the fog. Standing silently at the city saucer, looking at the endless sea of fog under the city, a trace of tiredness passed over his face.

Tired, Li Zhen is really tired, this tiredness is not only physical tired, but also psychological fatigue - after the war, Anxi was already entangled in all things, and there were a lot of trivial matters, although Li Zhen had already let his subordinates busy, but many decision-making things still had to be taken care of by Li Zhen himself, whether it was the reorganization of the army, the planning and arrangement of related training, or the setting of states and counties, and even the consideration of financial resources, as well as the sustainable development of the entire Anxi, Li Zhen had to make overall arrangements, This is not a question of the ability of the people under his command to believe in their talents, but Li Zhen is very clear about the root causes of some long-standing and difficult problems in Xinjiang in later generations, and knows that if those problems such as ethnic problems and economic models cannot be solved in the grass-roots places, once they are delayed, they will become long-standing problems that will be left behind for eternity, and all this is the reason why Li Zhen has to act cautiously.

According to the history known by Li Zhen, the Western Regions has been a chaotic place since ancient times, except for the Tang Dynasty when it briefly unified the entire Western Regions, the Western Regions have always been in war and turmoil, and the Western Regions have never been truly calm in the successive dynasties of later generations, even in the Qing Dynasty, which has the most complete feudal system, and the root cause is actually that the Tang Dynasty failed to strangle various potential contradictions in the cradle when it unified the Western Regions - the Western Regions is a multi-ethnic and multi-cultural system, and there are many contradictions between various ethnic groups, and they are conquered by force alone. Therefore, Li Zhen does not intend to take the original road of the Tang Dynasty that emphasizes force and despises government affairs, and intends to solve the problem from the root - cultural integration, specifically it is to use Han culture to integrate the various ethnic groups in the Western Regions, the state and county planning is the table, and the promotion of Han culture is the inside, and the printing technology in his hands is used to promote Han culture on a large scale, and the state and county schools are established, and then the smooth implementation of this plan is ensured by strong force. In this way, we strive to integrate all the ethnic groups in the Western Regions into the Han culture.

There is no doubt that this kind of national integration is a huge system project, the time required is not a year, two years, but twenty, thirty years, or even a hundred years, if it can be successful, then the future Tang Dynasty central power will be free from the difficulties of border troubles, even if there is a small riot, there will never be a scene of continuous beacons in later generations, of course, the vision is beautiful, but the reality is cruel, the problems in front of Li Zhen are piled up, and the most fatal problem is one word in the final analysis - money!

That's right, Li Zhen is rich, as the richest man in the Tang Dynasty, Li Zhen herself is not short of money, but the problem is that Li Zhen's personal financial resources alone want to achieve such a big project as national integration, but it is also not enough, not to mention that Li Zhen cannot put all his money into this bottomless pit, even if Li Zhen is willing, it will not be possible, without him, the pen of the imperial history is like a knife, and a big hat that buys the hearts of the people is enough for Li Zhen to be busy, not to mention that Li Zhen is still facing the pressure of Wu and Wei at this time, just to maintain the "rising sun" Then a big gold-swallowing household will have to cost Li Zhen nearly half of his annual income, how can he still have enough strength to support the big project of the integration of the entire nation, at most he can only provide some start-up funds and even relief from time to time, and any more will be beyond Li Zhen's ability to bear.

In order to put the entire huge system project on the right track, the only way to establish a hematopoietic mechanism from the inside, Li Zhen knew this, Li Zhen brought a large number of craftsmen and technicians from the mainland, just to prepare for the construction of various workshops, but that is just a drop in the bucket, can only be regarded as providing some start-up capital for the entire plan, and the entry is far from enough to support the operation of the entire strategic plan - the land of the Western Regions as a necessary place on the Silk Road, tariff revenue is indeed considerable, but after deducting various government affairs, Not to mention that Li Zhen clearly knows that the Maritime Silk Road will soon rise, and at that time, the Land Silk Road will inevitably fall into a sharp decline.

Their own wealth is insufficient, tariffs are not reliable, if you want to establish a complete hematopoietic mechanism for Anxi, you must think of another way - yes, most of the places in the Western Regions are deserts and grasslands, but in fact, the Western Regions do not lack sources of wealth - the Western Regions are extremely rich in various mineral deposits, not to mention the oil that cannot be used at this time, that is, iron, coal, gold, jade and other minerals are countless, the famous Hetian jade, Altai Mountain placer gold, etc. have been mined as early as the pre-Qin period, these are cornucopias, but limited to the current mining conditions, In fact, it is not much; Horses, cattle and sheep and other abundant goods in the Western Regions are also a very considerable income if they are trafficked to the mainland, but the problem is that the traffic in the current era is really bad, a thousand domestic animals from the Western Regions, after being transported to the mainland, can survive half of it is a good result, and then deduct the various expenses on the road, although the price difference between the two places is ten times, but the actual income is really not much, of course, if the north of the Tianshan Mountains and the land of Mongolia are also controlled by Li Zhen, then the situation is different, Horses don't have to take the difficult road of the Western Regions, from Hebei Road, not to mention the short distance, the traffic conditions are much better, but the problem is that the north of the mountain is in the hands of the Western Turks today, and the entire Mongolian steppe is the world of Xue Yantuo, which is not something that Li Zhen can grasp at the moment, and it is obvious that the trade of horses, cattle and sheep cannot be counted on in a short time.

The mineral deposits can't play a role for a while, and the most productive horses, cattle and sheep in the Western Regions can't be on the table because of the limited territory they occupy, which is really a headache for Li Zhen, but it's not difficult for Li Zhen, after all, the experience in the previous life was not in vain, after some thought, Li Zhen paid attention to the land - cotton!

The land of the Western Regions has a lot of sand and little soil, and the yield of grain crops is very low, although there are also grains such as wheat and rice, but its output is simply not enough to cope with the rations, fortunately, most of the ethnic groups in the Western Regions take beef and mutton as the staple food, but there is no shortage of food, it is obvious, if the land of the Western Regions is engaged in reclamation and planting grain, it can only be half the effort, and the gains outweigh the losses, but the land of the Western Regions is the most suitable place for planting cotton in the entire Tang Dynasty, with sufficient sunshine, scarce precipitation, dry air, large temperature difference between day and night and artificial irrigation with snow water, This provides good conditions for the growth of cotton that other cotton areas do not have, coupled with the dry climate, the cotton area of the Western Regions has never had red bollworm damage and rarely occurs rotten bolls, which reduces the labor and cost of preventing and controlling pests and diseases, and reduces the cost of production. In fact, the cotton in the interior was introduced from the Western Regions in the Han Dynasty, and there were a large number of cotton planting experts in the Western Regions, but because of the frequent wars and the fact that cotton cloth was not as rich and luxurious as silk, it was not much valued by the authorities of all ethnic groups in the Western Regions.

These days, in order to promote cotton planting, Li Zhen is so busy that he is dizzy, and he is issuing a decree and making overall planning for the entire Anxi, and he has to take the time to meet with cotton experts and textile experts, so as to show the determination and attention of the Anxi metropolitan protectorate to the cotton planting In desperation, Li Zhen had no choice but to deign to run to the city gate tower to take refuge when it was dark.

Although the affairs of Anxi are complicated, Li Zhen is not too worried, after all, the current situation in the Western Regions is in the hands of Li Zhen, people are here, but they are not afraid of any big mess, just put in some effort, work hard, sooner or later can see results, there is only one thing that makes Li Zhen feel tricky, that is, the chaos in Beijing - Li Zhen is not worried that he will not be able to pass the impeachment case, but he is very worried that the eldest grandson family and one of the kings of Wu and Wei have joined hands, once this is the case, Li Zhen has done a good job in the Western Regions, I'm afraid that it will be difficult to resist the criticism that swells up in the court from time to time, the so-called three people become tigers, once Li Shimin hears too many rumors that are unfavorable to Li Zhen, the consequences are only unimaginable, therefore, Li Zhen has to make dangerous moves, throwing out the old nine Li Zhi to be the target of the second king - the book Ling Xiao Yu's previous book is Li Zhen's multi-party plan.

Xiao Yu himself is not an official of Li Zhen's family, and even has no intersection with Li Zhen, on weekdays, he met and said hello when he was in the court, even if he had little contact during the New Year's holidays, but most of the important Qing guests in Xiao Yu's mansion had been bought by "Rising Sun", in order to use Xiao Yu's soft ears and unobstructed mouth at a critical time to say that Li Zhen himself was not good to come forward to say things and things, for this reason, "Rising Sun" has invested a lot of money, but as for whether he can really say Xiao Yu's words and deeds, Li Zhen is not completely sure in his heart, now the time of the court has passed three days, but he has not yet received Nalong's flying pigeon transmission, Li Zhen's annoyance can be imagined - in this era of no telephone, no wireless telegraphy, flying pigeon communication is already the fastest means of message transmission, but due to the long journey and the carrying capacity of the flying pigeon itself and the confidentiality factor, the information that can be provided is not only limited but also lagging, this kind of remote control of the Beijing division of the rapidly changing battle of the court, its difficulty can be imagined, If it weren't for Na Long himself being a wise man in the world, he could grasp the difference between the important and the important, Li Zhen would not dare to act like this, you must know that once such a major event reveals even a small flaw, the price will be the end of losing all the games, it is really not Li Zhen can afford it, even if Li Zhen has enough confidence in Na Long's ability, but he still can't help but worry, staying up late today to review the documents, although it is because of the many official duties, but more because Li Zhen is restless, he can't sleep peacefully, he is waiting, waiting for the latest news from the Jingshi, But now it is the second half of the night, but before the arrival of the flying pigeon, Rao is Li Zhen is calm, and can not help but be a little impetuous, although people stand quietly in the city, but looking at the east of the eyes but the head of the uneasy light.

The desert sky always brightens early, just after the end of the hour, the city first a rooster sounded, and then the chickens sang, a golden-red light emerged from the distant horizon, brighter and brighter, like a sharp sword cut through the white fog on the desert, where it passed, the fog dispersed, and in an instant it had swept out a clear, and then, the red and tender smiling face of the rising sun poked out of the horizon, the dazzling golden light completely dispelled the remaining fog, the night passed, and the light returned to the earth again, A new day begins!

It's been four days, it's been four days, alas, I don't know what the situation in Beijing is now? Li Zhen looked at the rising sun, shook his head with a wry smile, lifted his legs that were a little numb from standing for a long time, slowly turned around, and walked towards the city gate tower with a solemn face, his heart was full of helpless anxiety and uneasiness, but at this moment, a faint pigeon whistle came in the sky, Li Zhen Huoran stood on his feet, turned his head suddenly, and immediately found that four carrier pigeons in the sky in the distance were flying towards Jiaohe City. Li Zhen woke up like a dream, and he didn't care about explaining to the staff and clerks who accompanied him in the city gate tower, strode down the city, flew on his horse, and rushed all the way to the direction of the capital protection mansion in the middle of the city, Yan 18 and other guards didn't understand what happened, seeing Li Zhen in such a hurry, he was panicked for a while, and they jumped off the city, jumped on horseback, and galloped wildly, the rapid sound of horses' hooves resounded in the silent Jiaohe City, and God knows how many people's dreams were shattered because of this.

In the study room of the Duhu Mansion, Mo Li, who looked tired, was sitting at the desk and was busy, suddenly heard a rush of footsteps, and hurriedly raised his head, and saw Li Zhen's impatient figure, immediately laughed, and did not say much greetings, reached out and picked up the four small copper pipes on the table that had not yet been opened, and went forward, while handing the small copper pipes to Li Zhen, he said in a slightly complaining tone: "Your Highness has not slept all night, things are always unfinished, but why rush for a while, if you are not careful when you are young, In the future, if you fall into the root of the disease, you will regret it. ”

Oh, how can this old Mo be like this, mother-in-law and mother-in-law. Li Zhen was anxious to read the content of the letter, and didn't care much about Mo Li's complaints, smiled, and didn't have an interface, took the four small copper pipes, untied all the hidden buckles on the copper pipes, and quickly browsed the letterhead, and immediately found that the things said in the four copper pipes were actually the same, and he understood that this was just a backup left by Na Long who was worried about the accident of the carrier pigeon, and he didn't think much about it, and handed over three of them to Mo Li, but he took a closer look at one of the ones in his hand from beginning to end.

The letter is not long, and the letter written in secret language is only a few more than 20 lines, but the content is not small, and the conclusion of the court discussion is basically the dynamics of the eldest grandson Wuji that Li Zhen is most concerned about, and it also explains the key point of the next action, although it is limited to space, and does not completely explain the entire court discussion, but Li Zhen can perceive the danger from Nalong's letter, and is very satisfied with the current result.

"Mr. Mo, Mr. Na has done a good job in Beijing, hehe, this result is in line with the needs of this king now." Li Zhen didn't care about the 300 households that were sealed because of the punishment - Li Zhen had been sealed many times, and the cumulative number of sealed households was as many as 3,300, which was already the most among all the princes, and there were 300 more households than Li Tai, the king of Wei, but Li Zhen had never been to Yongye Tian, nor had he gone to rectify those shade households, in addition to not wanting to engage in those things that were thrown in the field because he was not short of money in his hands, the main thing was that Li Zhen's power was already very large, and then so many shaded households came out. It is very easy to incur the impeachment of the imperial history, and it is easy to attract the suspicion of his own old man, he does not expect to rely on the shadow household to collect money, therefore, whether there is a real seal or not is actually the same for Li Zhen, as for Anxi's promotion to the metropolitan protectorate, on the surface it seems to be just a false name, neither increasing Li Zhen's territory, nor giving more funds and other benefits, but for Li Zhen's next state and county integration, it has great benefits, at least in the arrangement of officials can be a lot more convenient, after all, there is a name of the governor, It is also justified in doing things, not young and old.

"I'm afraid it's not that simple." Regarding Li Zhen's optimism, Mo Li, who also read the letter, had a different opinion, shook his head solemnly and said: "Although the prince is not a tiger, but the eldest grandson Situ is an old wolf, His Royal Highness let the prince and the eldest grandson Situ join forces, and in a short period of time, it may be able to buy some time for His Royal Highness to develop Anxi, but once the prince is full-fledged, it will be difficult to squeeze him out of the palace, and this must be guarded again." ”

Li Zhen has thought about what Mo Li said, the reason why he would do this risky move before was because of Li Zhen's own considerations, but such considerations are really not enough for outsiders, even the closest strategists can't say, yes, seeing that Mo Li was worried, Li Zhen didn't say much, just laughed and said: "Mr. Mo is too worried, the ninth is in his early years, it is the third and fourth who should be in a hurry, this king can just sit and watch the play in Anxi, hehe, there must be a good show in the Beijing Division, and the head of the old nine may not be so good." ”

Mo Li glanced at Li Zhen with deep meaning, and also laughed and said: "Maybe there are people in the Beijing who are more anxious than His Highness, it depends on how they act in this scene, but His Highness must not be careless, if there is a flaw, so that His Majesty can see the beginning and the end, it must not be a joke." ”

"Hmm." Li Zhen understood the fatality of this matter, nodded, and said in a deep voice: "Okay, send a letter to Mr. Na, let him clean up the beginning and tail, and erase what should be erased, heh, Mr. Mo wants to come and stay awake all night, so let's go and rest earlier, there are still many things to do during the day, and this king is a little sleepy." Li Zhen stayed up for a few nights, and finally waited for a not too bad ending, she was in a good mood, waved her hand at Mo Li with a smile, and planned to go back to the room to take a nap, but she never thought that before Li Zhen walked to the door of the study, a "earth-shattering" cry in the backyard sounded, and Li Zhen was immediately fixed at the door of the study.

Dizzy, this stinky boy woke up, damn it, he didn't sleep! Li Zhen listened to the loud cry, her face showed a hint of embarrassment, and the strange appearance immediately made Mo Li laugh, and Li Zhen shook her head and smiled bitterly......

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