Jeune Premier ministre, un ermite

Chapitre 102

"So what? If you don't submit, your parents will surely suffer because of you. Your father... is my subject... I can't guarantee what misfortune his traitorous son will bring him."

I never imagined he would become so shameless. Does a position truly change a person, making them so despicable as to resort to any means necessary?

After calming her anger slightly, she slowly said, "This matter is of great importance, and I need to consider it. Give me some time to think about it." She gently straightened her clothes. "I will go back and think it over, and then I will give you an answer."

"Want to come back? It's not like you can just come back whenever you want. Think about it? Think about it here!" Once he leaves, is there any chance he'll ever come back?

"What is there for the king to fear? My parents are in your hands, so what are you afraid of?"

“It’s not that I’m afraid of anything, it’s just that you are my prisoner, how can you just leave?” Li Tianqi raised his eyebrows, his authority immediately apparent.

"Brother Li, do you really not want me to leave?" Wei Zijun pressed his body against him.

Li Tianqi stiffened again. He knew she was up to something, but he was powerless to push away the soft body pressing against him. "Are you trying to pull the same trick as last time? Do you think I'll fall for it?"

Wei Zijun looked up and met Li Tianqi's face, a smile playing on her lips. "How could I play the same trick twice? How could Brother Li fall for the same trick again?" Her breath, as sweet as orchids, brushed against his cheek, and her slender fingers held his hand, gently stroking it.

A jolt of electricity coursed through his body, and Li Tianqi was slightly out of breath. "Let's see what other tricks you can pull."

"What trick?" Wei Zijun chuckled, her fingers tracing his wrist. "Naturally, I won't try to take your pulse like last time." With that, she pressed down hard on his wrist, seizing Li Tianqi's pulse.

Li Tianqi was immediately filled with bitterness and anger. How could he have fallen for his trick again? How could he be so stupid as to repeat the same mistake?

With a smirk, she gently pressed his pressure points, placed him on the couch, patted his face lightly, and said fiercely, "Be a good boy or I'll strip you naked."

Li Tianqi was so angry he laughed. He really was vindictive.

"Remember, don't you dare frame my father. If you dare do anything to harm my family, I guarantee I'll go to your Daxing Palace and kill your wife, children, and elderly relatives." She knew that even without threatening him, he wouldn't do anything to her father. After all, her father was his subject, and utterly loyal. Therefore, she was at ease leaving her father here for the time being.

“If you leave, I can’t guarantee what will happen. Maybe I’ll strip your father naked and hang him outside,” Li Tianqi sneered.

"Why don't you try?" Wei Zijun pinched Li Tianqi's face hard. "Tsk tsk, this face feels nice. If you dare, I'll cripple your martial arts and sell you to a brothel. Let all the patrons who flock here see what's the difference between an emperor and an ordinary male entertainer."

After saying that, she patted his face again, turned around, and walked out.

Li Tianqi was so angry he almost fainted, but even so, he still called out behind her, "Medicine, medicine, take the medicine and let's go."

Wei Zijun ignored him and walked away.

When they returned to the Western Turkic camp, it started raining again. The rain poured down relentlessly, and both armies temporarily ceased hostilities in the downpour.

Meanwhile, in the main tent of the Dayu army, a man was pacing back and forth in a fit of rage.

“Wei Shulan—” Li Tianqi pointed to his bruised face, “Look at your good son, what a mess he’s made!”

Wei Shulan stood there, feeling guilty, and kept sighing, wondering how she had caused him trouble again.

"Wei Shulan! Can't you keep him here?" Li Tianqi continued pacing back and forth.

"Your Majesty, I am incompetent." Wei Shulan felt increasingly guilty.

Why is this precious daughter always causing him trouble? She not only acupunctured him, but she also had to pinch his face until it turned blue! She's so unruly.

Heavy rain poured down relentlessly, a torrential downpour accompanied by thunder and hailstones the size of eggs. The ground was flooded, flowers and grass were crushed, and crops were destroyed. This hailstorm blanketed the entire Western Turkic Khaganate, utterly destroying the crops on the land.

The tents of the Western Turkic army camp were almost completely soaked by the rain. Perhaps it was the snow disaster last year that increased the humidity in the air. The Western Turkic region, which has always been arid and dry, not only experienced river flooding but also a major flood.

During the summer, the amount of snow melting from Jinshan, Nanshan, and Baishan increases significantly. Combined with torrential rains in the mountains, hundreds of trickling streams converge into raging torrents that rush down the mountain valleys.

Large numbers of livestock and felt tents were swept away, and the felt tents of the Yuezhi, Khotan, and other nomadic peoples in Tulunqi were all submerged by the flood. Large numbers of refugees flocked to Sanmi Mountain, where the Western Turkic royal court was located.

Looking at the large number of refugees, Wei Zijun sighed to the heavens, "Is Heaven really going to destroy me?"

He stood for a long time at the tent entrance, gazing at the cascading rain from the sky, his clothes soaked through, yet he remained oblivious. Sorrow and anxiety permeated his being. Last year, the nation's meager grain reserves had been entirely used for disaster relief, and after this catastrophe, how many more would begin to covet the territory of the Western Turks?

Her slender figure, like a delicate orchid in the wind and rain, appeared so fragile that a gust of wind could blow her away.

In June, the wind and rain rage, turning the streets into a sea of clouds, and soaking the mountains with mist. A vast and desolate landscape, filled with the ravages of war and human affairs, as rain beats down on old flowers, bidding farewell to new branches.

The torrential rain had been falling intermittently for over twenty days, and finally the sun began to shine.

After this natural disaster, the Western Turkic Khaganate's power declined sharply.

Because the construction of canals and dams had consumed most of the national treasury's silver, little remained. Empress Wei Zijun had no choice but to use almost all the remaining funds to send envoys to Kashmir, Persia, and the Eastern Turkic Khaganate to purchase food and other disaster relief supplies. However, the news brought back by the envoys devastated her: none of the surrounding countries were willing to sell any relief supplies.

Wei Zijun sighed, thinking that they probably wanted to watch her decline so they could all get a share of the spoils. Remembering how these countries had fawned over the Western Turks when they were powerful, she sighed again, "This world is truly cruel."

With large numbers of livestock, including cattle and sheep, washed away, the Western Turkic herders had no choice but to slaughter their best breeding horses to feed themselves.

Seeing those fine horses being slaughtered, Wei Zijun felt a pang of pain in her heart. She desperately tried to think of any way to alleviate the current situation.

Just then, Li Tianqi sent a letter, saying that he was prepared to send one million dan of grain for disaster relief, but on the condition that she return to Dayu and submit to him.

Wei Zijun gave a mocking smile. Could this be considered taking advantage of someone's misfortune?

As the saying goes, good fortune never comes in pairs, but misfortunes never come singly. After learning of the natural disaster in the Western Turkic Khaganate, the Tibetans finally prepared to raise an army, just as Wei Zijun had feared.

For several days, she pondered deeply. Should she withdraw the royal army to resist the Tibetans? She had a chance of winning by strategy, but the army would consume a lot of food, and the opposing army would also consume a lot of food, while the refugees whose homes had been destroyed were starving.

Even if she defeats Tibet, in this year of disaster, with no harvest, a sharp decrease in livestock, and an empty treasury, how will she ensure that her people have enough to eat?

Warfare is about spending money. Once she's exhausted the national treasury, what will she have left to govern the country?

War would block the Silk Road, and the only way for the Western Turks to accumulate wealth would be lost.

Seriously, I'm so confused.

Mounting Tesalu, he galloped all the way to the felt tents sheltering the refugees. Large numbers of refugees were queuing for rations, but when they spotted the figure of unparalleled elegance on horseback, they swarmed towards him, prostrating themselves on the still-dampened ground, gazing up at their god-like ruler, shouting, "Long live the Khan! Long live the Khan!"

An old herdsman in front said emotionally, "Khan—our god, it is you who protect us from being bullied. Only you can ensure that we have food to eat even in years of disaster. The Western Turkic herdsmen will always love and respect you."

Suddenly, a wave of sadness washed over her. These were her people, her subjects. She had only done so little for them, yet they were overjoyed with contentment. Watching this scene, besides being moved, she felt a deep sense of guilt. She hadn't done enough; she hadn't given them a better life.

These are her people. No matter how much humiliation they suffer, she will protect them.

In that instant, she seemed to understand what she had to do.

A ruler of a nation? A king? A khan? The struggle for these powers and titles is nothing more than self-interest. What do the common people care about who becomes emperor? Which country they submit to? They are content as long as they live in peace and have enough to eat and wear. Does she really intend to watch her people suffer just to satisfy her own stubbornness and unwillingness to admit defeat? Are there clearly better ways to benefit the people, and why not use them?

War is for protecting one's people, not for displaying strength. Didn't she desire for her people to live in peace and prosperity? Regardless of who rules the country, the people are content as long as they are at peace. If losing face could bring prosperity to the Western Turks, how could she not endure more?

She is willing to sacrifice even more for her people.

In her heart, her people are above all else.

An idea instantly formed in his mind, and he turned his horse around, galloping towards the military camp.

Note: ①Tulunqi. Present-day Tarim Basin, Xinjiang.

Volume Two, Chapter Ninety-One: Alliance

The air after the rain was fresh and moist, and the ground remained damp even after more than ten days. The air was filled with the faint scent of grass. Apart from the memory of that natural disaster, summer was still intoxicating. In the clear blue sky, a few carrier pigeons flew in, fluttering their wings, and flew into the camp of the Dayu army.

A gentle breeze, carrying a hint of doubt, lifted the curtain of the main tent in the Dayu army camp. Through the lifted curtain, a handsome face could be glimpsed, his gentle smile revealing unparalleled elegance, like a moon shimmering in the water.

"First, retain the name of my Western Turkic Khaganate. Although I have submitted to you, our relationship can only be maintained through an alliance. Without this, nothing else matters." Wei Zijun smiled elegantly, but her tone was cold and unquestionable.

Standing at a corner of the desk beside him was a handsome man of refined elegance, dressed in a white robe embroidered with gold dragons, the sash loosely fastened. He held a folding fan, a slight smile playing on his lips. In the light, his dark eyes seemed to ripple with shimmering light, and the gentleness in his expression was like a flower about to bloom in spring, subtle yet alluring. A gentle breeze stirred the hem of his robe, and a scent mingled with the fragrance of grass filled the tent.

“Yes, no problem. But the Western Turks cannot have another Khan. You will still be the Khan of the Western Turks, and the Western Turks will still be under your jurisdiction.” Li Tianqi gently shook his folding fan and quietly looked at her.

Wei Zijun glanced at him and said coldly, "Secondly, since we are allies, whenever the Western Turks encounter war, Dayu must send troops to assist them."

"Of course, that's natural." The curve of his lips resembled the sunlight streaming into the tent, warm yet not glaring.

“For example, this time, you must immediately send troops to stop the Tibetan invasion.” Wei Zijun raised an eyebrow and looked at him.

Li Tianqi chuckled. Before the terms were even settled, the demands were already being made. "Alright, tomorrow I will dispatch 200,000 troops from this area to Khotan to stop the Tibetan invasion."

“There is no need for that. It will take at least ten days to get to Khotan from here. As far as I know, your country has 200,000 troops stationed at the border between Jiannan Road and Tibet. You can send the troops stationed here directly into Tibet from Yuesong County to attack Lhasa City. The Tibetan army that invades our country will definitely turn back halfway.”

"What a brilliant strategy of 'besieging Wei to rescue Zhao'!" Li Tianqi couldn't help but praise.

“This is a strategy, so that your country can both expand its territory and relieve my siege.” Wei Zijun lowered her eyes, her slender fingers tracing the pages of the book on the table.

"Good strategy. Anything else?" Li Tianqi continued to ask, hoping she wouldn't make any more demands.

“Third, I only kneel to Heaven and Earth and to my parents.” Wei Zijun raised an eyebrow at him.

Li Tianqi stared at her intently for a long time before saying, "Fine! You don't need to kneel before me." He was still the same stubborn man, unwilling to submit.

"Fourth. Our Turkic people will not pay tribute for five years." Seeing Li Tianqi's pale face, he continued, "The Turkic people have suffered from natural disasters and their national strength has weakened. They need to recuperate and rebuild."

Li Tianqi gritted his teeth and said, "Fine!"

"Fifth." Upon hearing this, Li Tianqi's face began to twitch. Wei Zijun continued without any pity, "Introduce the culture of Dayu, silkworm breeding techniques, and the technology of planting various crops to the Western Turks."

"That's a good thing." Li Tianqi relaxed his overly tense facial muscles.

"Sixth." Wei Zijun raised an eyebrow and glanced at him, still far from enough. "If the Western Turks suffer another natural disaster, Dayu must provide free aid. Ensure that the people of the Western Turks have enough to eat and wear."

Li Tian's lips twitched a few times, then he suddenly burst into laughter. Who, after all, was submitting? She was clearly a thieving bandit.

"In the end, the hundreds of thousands of troops still belong to me." Wei Zijun slowly stood up.

Li Tianqi's face contorted for a moment. After a long pause...

"Okay! I'll agree to everything you ask, but... after all these conditions you've set, it's my turn now."

Wei Zijun pouted, "I've already made such a big concession, what other conditions do you have?"

"First, come back to Dayu with me immediately." Li Tianqi fanned himself vigorously.

Wei Zijun looked up and said, "No, I need to go back to the Khan's court to consult the ministers."

Li Tianqi frowned. Why didn't he agree to the first condition?

"Second, accept my conferment of titles."

Wei Zijun looked down at the books on the table and remained silent.

"Third, to enter the court and participate in government affairs."

Wei Zijun looked up and said, "I will not attend court."

"Why don't you consider participating in politics?"

"In short, I will not go to court."