I inherited my grandfather's Tang Dynasty assets.

Chapter 54 Li Chengqian Seeks Guidance from Chen Yue

"What you say is absolutely right, sir. Chengqian acted impulsively. Rest assured, sir, I will investigate this matter thoroughly before you return."

"Well, before that, don't act rashly even if you find out anything. There's another thing: the Crown Prince's token you gave me is useful, but it's still a bit troublesome to contact you."

Li Chengqian quickly said.

"What you say is true, sir. What do you think should be done?"

Chen Yue was waiting for these words.

"Here's what we'll do. Next time you come over, send someone with exceptional martial arts skills to my side. This person must be someone no one else knows. If I need anything in the future, have him come to you."

Besides that, I don't have any silver or valuables from your Tang Dynasty. Please give him some to carry with him so I can use them.

"Yes, Chengqian will certainly comply!"

Li Chengqian and Du He exchanged a glance, both seeing the surprise in each other's eyes. The Shennong Envoy had actually taken the initiative to ask them to send someone to his side.

This means their relationship has taken another step forward. As for money, it's insignificant. Many people want to give money to Shennong's envoy, but they don't have the opportunity.

"Sir, Chengqian has two important matters to discuss with you and hopes you can lend a hand."

After Chen Yue finished speaking, Li Chengqian took the opportunity to bring up the troubles he was currently facing. The Crown Prince's think tank had been discussing it for a long time, but had not yet reached a concrete conclusion.

Having finally been summoned by the Shennong Envoy, Li Chengqian had been hesitant about whether to bring it up, but now that their relationship was closer, he mustered the courage to ask.

Tell me about it.

Chen Yue poured himself a glass of wine and drank it, becoming somewhat interested as well.

"Sir, do you know the collection of Marquis Hou Junji, the Duke of Chen?"

"I've heard of him. He was a key figure in the Xuanwu Gate Incident, one of your father's confidants. At the beginning of this year, he was ordered to wipe out Gaochang, but due to some mishandling of certain matters, he was impeached by the censor and imprisoned in August. He was just released not long ago. What, he's contacting you?"

Chen Yue's heart stirred.

Hou Junji in history was a major participant and supporter of Li Chengqian's rebellion, and his end was also very tragic. I saw his son at Shuiyue Pavilion the night before last.

Judging from the timeline, he is currently at his most depressed, and it is probably around this time that he came into contact with Li Chengqian.

Li Chengqian nodded slowly with a serious expression.

"To be honest, sir, Hou Junji was released from prison half a month ago. He and Li Anyan are old friends. After Hou Junji was released, the two drank together, and he revealed that he wanted to pledge allegiance to the Crown Prince."

Chengqian hesitated, after all, his father disliked him quite a bit.

"Li An'yan? Is he the Left Guard Commander, who commands a portion of the Northern Imperial Guards and is responsible for the palace's security?"

Upon hearing this name, Chen Yue's heart skipped a beat; he had seen this person mentioned in the information he had researched.

He was also Li Chengqian's absolute confidant. He was originally Li Jiancheng's man, but after the Xuanwu Gate Incident, he was incorporated into Li Shimin's army. However, Li Shimin always had some suspicions about him, so he was not given important responsibilities.

According to the Old Book of Tang, it was under his constant persuasion that Hou Junji decided to join Li Chengqian in a rebellion.

"It is indeed this person. Do you know him, sir?"

Li Chengqian scratched his head, feeling somewhat confused. This Shennong envoy in front of him was too strange.

He could easily figure out some people and things, but he couldn't figure out the whereabouts of Du Niang and had to ask me for help.

"It must be that you want to do me a favor."

Li Chengqian quickly filled in the blanks in his mind.

Chen Yue closed his eyes to gather his thoughts. Li Chengqian and Du He remained silent, not daring to disturb him. After a short while, Chen Yue slowly opened his eyes.

"Hou Junji's military talent is beyond doubt. To sum him up in eight words, 'His talent surpasses his virtue, and his virtue does not match his position.'"

The Xuanwu Gate Incident was a pivotal event in which he led his troops to control Emperor Gaozu, thus securing power for your father. He also conquered the powerful Western Region kingdom of Gaochang, established the Anxi Protectorate, and opened up the Silk Road, achieving lasting merit. He studied under Li Jing and participated in the campaign to defeat the Tuyuhun, deeply inheriting Li Jing's military strategies.

However, his flaws are also obvious: he is arrogant and greedy, otherwise he wouldn't have made such a big mistake when conquering Gaochang. He is also quite short-sighted in politics. If the Crown Prince wants to use him, he needs to be careful with his approach.

Li Chengqian was listening intently. Chen Yue's analysis of Hou Junji was incredibly profound, which he greatly admired.

He stood up and personally poured Chen Yue a glass of wine, presenting it with both hands.

"Please explain in more detail, sir."

"This person can be used, but not given important responsibilities, unless he can correct these shortcomings. First and foremost, he needs to completely change your father's impression of him."

Before Li Chengqian could say anything, Chen Yue waved his hand.

"This matter is not urgent. I will tell you when I come next time. For now, you can have some simple contact with him and tell me about your second matter."

Before coming here, Chen Yue only checked some historical materials, but none of them contained information on whether Li Chengqian should accept Hou Junji's surrender after he reformed, or how to use these materials.

Therefore, Chen Yue wouldn't speak carelessly. He would wait until he got back and made thorough preparations before telling him next time.

Li Chengqian kept these things in mind and then raised the second question that was troubling him.

"It happened just the day before yesterday. Songtsen Gampo of Tibet once again asked our Great Tang for a marriage alliance. My father has already agreed and found a woman from the clan to bestow upon her the title of Princess Wencheng. I suppose you should know about this, sir."

"Um."

Before the appearance of Shennong, this was a hot topic of discussion throughout the country. Moreover, Princess Wencheng's journey to Tibet was mentioned in middle school history textbooks, so how could Chen Yue not know about it?

"The Emperor asked me the other day what kind of dowry I should prepare to demonstrate the power of our Great Tang Dynasty. I know that this is the Emperor testing me. Please help me, sir."

Princess Wencheng's journey to Tibet was a very significant political event for the Tang Dynasty, closely related to the future of both countries.

As a superior nation, the dowry of a princess entering Tibet was of paramount importance to the Tang Dynasty and was also what the Tibetans valued most. Since this matter was decided, Li Shimin had discussed it with his ministers many times.

There hasn't been a final result yet.

Chen Yue narrowed his eyes.

"Your Highness, if I'm not mistaken, it was your father who sent you to inquire, right? After all, since Tibet is seeking a marriage alliance, they should have already specified the type of dowry."

Chen Yue wasn't stupid. Li Shimin's sudden question to Li Chengqian was simply a way of passing the question on to him through Li Chengqian.

He suddenly remembered that when he was researching before coming here, he had seen a history blogger who had done an in-depth analysis of this event.

The other party once said that the biggest problem with Princess Wencheng's dowry when she went to Tibet was the "hundreds of craftsmen and a huge amount of books". Even the core technologies of the Tang Dynasty, such as metallurgy and weapon manufacturing, were transferred there, which indirectly enhanced the military strength of Tibet and laid a huge hidden danger for later conflicts.

Others, including representatives of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism, went to Tibet to spread their teachings, which was a classic case of setting a trap for themselves.