hsntnovel Chapter 2766 The Interests of Japan
Chapter 2766 The Interests of Japan
Li Shen found a long stick from somewhere, pointed it at the ground, and addressed the crowd.
The crowd gathered around the spot Li Shen pointed to for a closer look.
Indeed, Silla and Wa were very close, less than a foot apart on a map.
"Japan?" Among the people present, only Li Shimin and Li Chengqian knew about Li Shen's plans for Japan; the others were unaware that Li Shen intended to plot against Japan.
Therefore, people didn't understand why Li Shen had to explain in such detail and point out the distance.
"Your Highness Prince Ji, I have heard that Japan is short of resources, its people live in poverty, and they do not even have their own writing system, but use ours."
However, they use their own local language.
Why is King Ji so concerned about a barbarian tribe that can't even unify its writing system and language?
Changsun Wuji was the first to ask.
"Yes, Your Highness, I have heard that Your Highness has built a city in Japan that is almost the same size as Chang'an."
Does Your Highness really think that such a race can be profitable?
Gao Jifu then inquired, his tone laced with sarcasm.
They all know about Japan. The people there are dirt poor. During the Han Dynasty, Japan was called Wa (威奴国), while during the Tang Dynasty, it was called Wa (倭国).
King Ji actually spent a huge sum of money to build a large city in that godforsaken place, which seemed extremely wasteful to everyone.
Li Shimin and Li Chengqian exchanged a glance but did not say anything on Li Shen's behalf. This was Li Shen's own plan, and the court was merely the final reaper.
When it's time to send troops to garrison the area and officials to manage it, that's when it will be their turn.
Li Shen wasn't angry; instead, he smiled and said:
"Gentlemen, there's a saying: 'How can one allow others to sleep peacefully beside one's bed?' This Japan is so close to our Great Tang Dynasty; if the wind is favorable, it can reach Chang'an in half a month."
We certainly can't keep them around."
"Hahaha, Your Highness Prince Ji, do you mean that the Japanese dare to offend the might of our Great Tang Dynasty?"
They were just a tiny place; if they weren't far from the inland, they could have crumbled in an instant.
Is His Highness Prince Ji joking with us, or is he exaggerating or spreading alarmist rumors?
At this moment, Gao Jifu burst into laughter, and the others couldn't help but chuckle as well. What Prince Ji said was truly hilarious.
They actually said that Japan posed a threat to the Tang Dynasty. Now the Tang Dynasty is strong and well-equipped, and even the powerful Tiele in the north has been conquered.
The territory of Tibet was many times larger than that of Japan, but the Tang Dynasty was never afraid of it. What was Japan compared to that?
"Yes, Your Highness Prince Ji, it is not that I doubt you, but what can Japan use to contend with our Great Tang?"
I believe their strength is not necessarily comparable to that of Silla.
Ma Zhou shared this view. In their eyes, Japan was indeed weak and impoverished.
Li Shen smiled slightly:
"Hehe, you may not know this, but Silla sent a hostage to Japan last year, right?"
"This is impossible."
As soon as Li Shen finished speaking, someone immediately objected, saying that sending a hostage was tantamount to acknowledging a lord, and since Silla was already a vassal state of the Tang Dynasty, why would they send a hostage to Japan?
"Your Highness Prince Ji, please don't speak carelessly, as this could affect the diplomatic relations between our Great Tang and Silla."
Changsun Wuji said seriously.
"Gentlemen, I am not speaking nonsense. This is a message relayed back by my subordinate official who was sent to Japan."
It seems that Silla and Wa have reached some kind of agreement, but I do not know the specifics of the agreement.
But the fact that a hostage was sent is absolutely true.
Li Shen said loudly that he was revealing this to these people in advance, so that they wouldn't try to stop him from taking action against Japan.
The Tang Dynasty always sent out armies with benevolence and righteousness, so naturally they had to have a just cause for their campaigns.
"Hmph, Silla's actions are a complete humiliation of our Great Tang. Such double-dealing is unworthy of our Great Tang's assistance."
Ma Zhou was furious upon hearing this. Back then, Silla was on the verge of collapse when the Tang Dynasty sent troops to relieve them and defeat Goguryeo.
Now he's actually harboring other intentions.
"Yes, if we hadn't attacked Goguryeo back then, Silla would have been destroyed long ago. Silla's actions are ungrateful."
Yu Zhining was also furious.
The others shared the same hatred and cursed Silla for its disloyalty.
Only Li Shen watched all this, cursing inwardly, "What a shameless bunch! How much did the Tang Dynasty gain from that battle?"
The attack on Goguryeo was merely a pretext using Silla as an excuse. Even without Silla, his father had already made up his mind to attack Goguryeo long ago.
He wanted to prove that he was better than anyone else.
These old folks knew perfectly well what was going on, but they just felt that Silla owed them something, and they never mentioned the benefits they had received.
Seeing that the time was right, Li Shen spoke again:
"Please be patient, everyone. Please listen to what I have to say. In fact, Japan is indeed more powerful than Silla. Because of the scarcity of resources, the Japanese people eat raw seafood."
The people live in poverty, and Japan has suffered from disasters year after year. Do you think the people who survive in such a harsh environment can be good people?
In order to act voluntarily, they are vicious and inhumane, and cannibalism is normal for them.
In contrast, Silla was too weak and always yielded, which is why it was bullied by the Japanese.
Our Great Tang Dynasty is rich in resources. They will see our wealth and will surely come to plunder, but they certainly won't dare to launch a large-scale attack.
However, it is hard to guarantee that Japanese pirates will not become bandits, sailing over to plunder the coast of our Great Tang, burning, killing, and looting before fleeing by boat.
"You are all important officials of our Great Tang Dynasty. You should know to plan ahead and not allow them to kill our people."
After listening, everyone pondered the matter. What King Ji said was indeed reasonable. People who survive in harsh environments must have a strong will and be extremely brave.
Just like the Liao people in the mountains of Sichuan, some of them went down the mountain to submit to the imperial court, but the other half of them lived in seclusion in the mountains and would occasionally rebel.
Because of the terrain, the imperial court had no way to deal with them and could only adopt a policy of appeasement.
"Your Highness Prince Ji, after saying so much, do you intend to send troops to Japan?"
But now that Japan has submitted to our Great Tang, we can't just suddenly send troops. What would the other vassal states think?
Furthermore, we are unfamiliar with Japan, and rashly sending troops could result in the loss of soldiers.
After pondering for a moment, Changsun Wuji looked up and asked.
At this moment, he had no selfish motives and was only concerned with the matter at hand. They were unfamiliar with Japan and would likely suffer a defeat if they sent troops there.
After all, that wasn't land, where you could just retreat whenever you wanted; you also had to consider the issue of supplies.
"Yes, Your Highness, even though Japan is not far away, it is still at sea, so our food supply is a problem."
Furthermore, Japan has a population of one or two million, and it's uncertain how many troops they can muster. This old minister believes we should consider this carefully.
Ma Zhou tried to dissuade him.
(Kill him!)