The ruler and his minister finally t face to face.
Li Shimin was extrely delighted, for this battle almost made him feel as if he were at the peak of his pri years.
Back then, he cooperated with Gu Quan in similar fashion.
The two didn’t know how many battles they had won in succession, until they finally laid the foundation for the Great Tang Empire we see today.
This battle felt very much like those days of old.
In the campaign headquarters.
Li Shimin did not imdiately award Gu Jing; clearly, he was waiting until after the great battle, but after inquiring about Gu Jing’s well-being, he asked Gu Jing to provide a detailed report of the journey.
——What the ministers were truly interested in was the detailed account of this journey.
Even now, despite Gu Jing’s young age, who could underestimate him?
He had obviously beco the leading figure of the next generation of the Gu Clan.
Li Shimin’s focus was on the insights from the mariti expedition.
This was the foresight of Li Shimin.
Even if Pyongyang has not been seized yet, so what?
His sights were already set on mariti navigation, planning for the future of the Great Tang.
"Your Majesty, this naval expedition was indeed challenging."
"Although we have gathered all the information from the Donglai Fishern, during our campaign, the turmoil was constant."
"And then there were the fierce winds at sea... although as long as the seasons are well controlled, near-shore navigation rarely encounters winds strong enough to overturn large ships."
"But it would still make the ship continually sway... causing dizziness and nausea..."
Gu Jing described the mariti journey in great detail, narrating everything based on his personal observations and experiences.
He too was keeping a keen eye on this matter.
Everyone listened attentively, with Li Shimin furrowing his brow.
This was just near-shore, and already the conditions were like this.
Long-distance voyages would naturally be fraught with even greater perils.
Evidently, to truly master the open seas, there was still a long way to go.
At least until the Gu Clan’s large ships were fully manufactured.
But for the Great Tang, this was sufficient; even if it was just near-shore navigation, this marked an unimaginable progress to the current world.
The sound of the ministers once again offering their congratulations arose, for they all understood the weight Li Shimin placed on this matter.
No one even cared to discuss the war.
What was there to discuss?
For the Tang Army now, capturing Pyongyang was as easy as retrieving sothing from a bag.
The Goguryeo army had been utterly terrorized, and all that remained was to see Li Shimin’s intentions.
That night.
Gu Jing was summoned again by Li Shimin.
He had anticipated this. Given his status in the Gu Clan, coupled with the rits established during this campaign, it was certain Li Shimin would wish to converse further with him.
"Greetings, Your Majesty."
As he entered the grand hall, Gu Jing bowed ticulously, performing his salute without a flaw.
"Co closer." Li Shimin motioned, his voice betraying no emotion. Once Gu Jing followed the instructions and stepped forward to stand, Li Shimin surprisingly picked up the oil lamp on the table and brought it close to Gu Jing’s face, gently swaying it. The flickering sepia light cast dancing shadows over the young minister’s features.
"As the lamp sways," Li Shimin’s voice dipped lower, with a complex scrutinizing tone, "it becos more alike."
Gu Jing’s eyes trembled slightly, he instinctively lowered his eyelids.
Under the wavering lamplight, Li Shimin’s expression grew more complex and difficult to decipher.
He quietly observed Gu Jing, seemingly trying to glimpse another person’s shadow through him.
After a brief mont, he gently set down the oil lamp, releasing a long sigh that diffused into the silence of the grand hall, "I too have grown old, sotis I can’t even recall the appearance of my old companions."
Saying this, he even chuckled, signaling Gu Jing to sit, then spoke again, "What are your thoughts on the matter of Liaodong?"
"Speak freely."
"This ti, it is not ruler and vassal, but uncle and nephew."
——A test!
Being skilled in warfare is naturally an ability, but the Great Tang cannot always be at war.
With the situation in Liaodong nearly resolved, it was evidently the best ti for a test.
A private test was also a precautionary asure.
Gu Jing was one of the talents that Li Shimin had privately reserved for the Great Tang, and couldn’t show any weaknesses before the ministers.
"Your Majesty."
Gu Jing clasped his hands, his expression solemn: "I believe, Goryeo—must not be exterminated."
"Now our Great Tang has conducted cultural teachings and brings peace to the populace in Hehuang and the Western Regions."
"Although Hehuang is gradually becoming pacified, the turmoil in the Western Regions is not resolved and cannot be settled in a day and night. At this mont, our national strength is truly difficult to divert again to Liaodong, to apply the strategy of cultural assimilation and long-term stability."
"Although Liaodong appears settled."
"If we were to eliminate Goryeo in one move, Baekje surely would lack the strength to oppose Silla. Should Silla beco hegemonic, then within a dozen years, Liaodong will surely fall under their unification."
"This is not beneficial to our Great Tang’s situation."
The land of Liaodong, compared to the Central Plains and Kyushu, is indeed barren and harsh.
The terrain of Liaodong compared to Kyushu is indeed far more infertile.
Though in modern tis, the entire region of the Three Eastern Provinces is referred to as Kyushu’s granary, even the islands have a fair number of places capable of agriculture.
But in the current era, it is what it is.
Liaodong’s climate is an unavoidable pain point.
The matter of cultural teachings is not rely about martial suppression; it also requires maintaining trade routes, including the migration of people and various other asures.
The Great Tang is indeed strong.
Far beyond the original history’s Zhenguan era of peace, still, it hasn’t escaped the limitations of an agrarian society.
This is entirely unavoidable.
Hearing these words, Li Shimin promptly nodded in satisfaction.
That Gu Jing could speak such things already indicated he possessed a certain grasp of the overall situation.
Li Shimin, upon hearing this, a spark glead in his eye, slight nodding, evidently extrely satisfied with Gu Jing’s thorough analysis.
"Even so," he slightly leaned forward, asking gravely, "in your opinion, how should it be dealt with?"
Gu Jing answered without hesitation, his voice clear and loud: "It should be deterred by establishing a threat and weakening its sinews and bones as the foremost strategy!"
"On the surface, maintain the triadic stance of the three kingdoms; secretly, it will incite mutual suspicion, deepening fractures daily."
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