Seeing Han Yan smiling and proudly looking at Sima Qian in front of him, Liang Xiao felt even more worthless. Han Yan had no contribution, just because she had fun with the emperor, she could use a golden marble to hit birds. Although Sima Qian read thousands of books and traveled thousands of miles, and was full of knowledge, he could not give out fifty gold to redeem himself, and could only endure the great humiliation.

What kind of world is this?

Liang Xiao didn't like Han Yan. Since he refused Han Yan's request for bribes, he had no hope of getting along with Han Yan. At this moment, he said lightly: "You are right, know what you know, but don't know what you don't know, why do you have to do what you do?"

Han Yan was pushed by Liang Xiao, and his originally enthusiastic smile was a little reluctant. He reached out and put his hand on Liang Xiao's shoulder and said intimately: "Emperor Liang, it's not like that. The emperor asked for advice, it would be better to think twice. If you say it wrong, wouldn't it be a big deal?"

Liang Xiao brushed Han Yan's hand quietly, as if he was brushing away a wisp of dust. "It's up to me to say it or not, and whether it's up to Your Majesty. In order to satisfy Your Majesty, he deliberately flattered and agreed to it, which would make things happen."

Han Yan was favored by the emperor, and everyone in the palace knew that there were only a few people who dared to confront him in person. Today, Liang Xiao repeatedly refuted him, and he could no longer keep a smile. He stared at Liang Xiao, looked at him deeply, and nodded without a smile. "The Liang Duwei has the style of an ancient straight man, and he is truly a minister of the bones."

Liang Xiao also looked at Han Yan with a sarcastic smile. "It's just that you can do something and do not do anything. You can't be a stern minister. People must have their own attitude and cannot follow others' favors. Han Wangsun, do you think this is the case?"

Han Yan tilted his mouth and did not answer. Footsteps sounded outside the door. The emperor walked in quickly accompanied by Mei Gao and others. Liang Xiao stepped forward to see the greeting. The emperor nodded and glanced at the already spread out "Mountain and Sea Map".

"Liang Xiao, is the Nanshan you mentioned the Kunlun Mountain on this "Mountain and Sea Map"?"

Liang Xiao shook his head. "I don't know. When I was in the Western Regions, I only heard that the mountain in the Western Regions was called the Nanshan Mountain. In fact, after thinking about it carefully, it was not the exact name. I am afraid it means the mountain in the south. The name of Kunlun. I have never heard of it. I did not understand why I dare not make arbitrarily."

The emperor pondered for a moment. "However, this mountain produces jade and rivers flow out, which is consistent with the records of Kunlun Mountain in "Mountain and Sea Map". Can't it be confirmed?"

"Your Majesty, there are more than one or two mountains in the world that produce jade? As far as I know, there are not only one mountain that produces beautiful jade in the Western Regions. As for river water flowing out, there are countless. The water flows to the lower places. In any high mountain, there are river water flowing out. I am afraid it is not enough to make a judgment."

"You have been to the Western Regions in person, but you can't make a conclusion yet?"

Liang Xiao walked to the entrance of the pavilion and pointed to Tianlu Pavilion on the east side. "I dared to ask Your Majesty to estimate how many steps there are to Tianlu Pavilion from here."

The emperor looked at Liang Xiao hesitantly and looked at him for a moment. "It's about three or four hundred steps."

"Please choose a certain number, no more than ten steps up or down."

The emperor was a little embarrassed and thought for a long time. "Four hundred steps?"

Liang Xiao turned around and said to Sima Tan: "Taishi Ling, these two pavilions must contain pictures of Weiyang Palace. How dare you ask Taishi Ling to check it out and see how many steps apart the Shiqu Xiang Pavilion is?"

Sima Tan asked the emperor for instructions and turned around to investigate. After a while, he walked back with a volume of Jian Ce. "Your Majesty, you should be three hundred and seventy-one steps and two feet and three inches."

The emperor frowned. He already understood what Liang Xiao meant. The distance of four hundred steps was nearly thirty steps, and the Western Regions were tens of thousands of miles. It was only estimated that the difference was more than a thousand miles. It was really unreliable to rely on this "Mountain and Sea Map" to determine whether the Nanshan Mountain was Kunlun Mountain. Even if Liang Xiao had been to the Western Regions personally, he might only be a reference and was not accurate enough.

The emperor was very disappointed and unhappy. Liang Xiao waited for a moment and said again: "If Your Majesty really wants to find out whether this mountain is Kunlun Mountain, I have a way."

The emperor's eyes lit up. "You said."

"This "Mountain and Sea Map" says that Kunlun Mountains not only produce beautiful jade, but also the source of the river. In this case, why don't Your Majesty send some courageous scholars to follow the map to verify the place, and record the mountains, rivers, customs, and customs along the way. Compared with the two, the authenticity is determined. Just like when Mei Gao went to the Huns, he used his own eyes to describe the terrain of the Huns, he saw it with his own eyes, and his own hands, and the left and right text, which was clear at a glance. Isn't it more practical than talking in the hollow in the pavilion?"

The emperor nodded slightly. He turned his gaze to Mei Gao. He sent so many people to the Huns, and Mei Gao was the one who satisfies him the most. He not only brought back the real information of the Huns, but also drew a lot of maps. With the map, he had an intuitive impression of the situation of the Huns and corrected many specious conclusions.

When Mei Gao saw it, he immediately stepped forward to salute. "Your Majesty, what Liang Xiao said, I think it is very insightful. I am willing to go west, be your Majesty's eyes and patrol the mountains and rivers in the world."

The emperor thought for a moment and nodded.

Although he did not get a satisfactory answer, the emperor was still very satisfied with Liang Xiao's realistic attitude. He turned around and left the pavilion and signaled Liang Xiao to go with him. The king and his minister walked slowly along the long road.

"Liang Xiao, what suggestions do you have for marriage? Should you accept marriage or refuse marriage?"

Liang Xiao chuckled: "Your Majesty, this is not a problem at all."

The emperor turned his head, glanced at Liang Xiao, and smiled. "Okay, I'll change my question, how can I conquer the Huns?"

Liang Xiao asked back: "What price is Your Majesty willing to pay?"

The emperor raised his eyebrows slightly, revealing some doubts.

"Your Majesty, the Huns are powerful enemies. If you want to conquer the Huns, it may not be a one-day achievement. If you do not have a complete plan and make full preparations, you may not be able to achieve complete success. If the Huns are not destroyed and the people's livelihood is in trouble, you may inevitably be ridiculed of destroying Qin."

The emperor glanced at Liang Xiao again and suddenly burst into laughter. "I thought you would be strong in fighting, but I didn't expect you to be like those..., looking forward and backward, timid, not like a young man at all, but a little angry."

Liang Xiao smiled bitterly and said, "Your Majesty, I have no choice but to fight with the Huns twice. Although I won a small victory, the loss was not small. I rushed to Hexi and ran to death by nearly 5,000 war horses. Even with the price of horses in Dayuan, I lost more than 2,000 gold. With the rewards of arrows, armor, and mercenaries, I paid at least 20,000 gold for this battle. If it were not for the support of merchants, I would use war to support the war and rob the Huns of the Huns, I..."

The emperor forced himself to laugh and interrupted Liang Xiao. "Are you here to collect debts today?"

Liang Xiao smacked his lips. "Your Majesty has wronged me. Isn't this an example? Of course, I do owe a lot of debts now. If Your Majesty doesn't give me some rewards, I have to go to a small business."

The emperor glared at Liang Xiao with contempt and curled his lips. "I have seen so many ministers, and it is the first one who cried like you and collected debts. If this is spread, people will say that the court is poor and merciless."

"Your Majesty, I don't mean that." Liang Xiao cried out. "Please be sure of your kindness. Please make sure that you have settled your majesty. Your Majesty will know that everything you say is true. Your Majesty, listen to me..."

Liang Xiao turned his fingers and told the emperor about the expenses. From the beginning of his decision to go west, he was borrowing debts, first Guo Yu, then Nie Yi, and then Huangfu Qi. He borrowed a lot of money from these Han merchants. If he hadn't won consecutive battles and paid back some with spoils, he would have gone bankrupt long ago. Despite this, he still owed them a lot of money and needed to ensure the smooth flow of Hexi business roads to compensate.

Although the emperor felt that the scene was too funny, he still listened patiently. He didn't know if he didn't listen, and was startled. After calculating the calculation, he realized how much money it would cost to fight. Even the savings of the Han Dynasty for sixty or seventy years would probably not be able to support several wars.

The biggest problem is the war horses. Liang Xiao’s ability to achieve such a great record in the Western Regions is all due to the sufficient resources of war horses in the Western Regions. He can raid at a cost, making the Huns exhausted. However, the Han Dynasty did not have so many horses. Taking Liang Xiao’s battle in Hexi as an example, one person consumed an average of four war horses, and the total number of war horses raised by the priest Yuan of the six counties was only 300,000, and he could only provide 60,000 or 70,000 cavalry, which was not enough to achieve the goal of conquering the Huns.

The emperor stopped laughing, and was in a extreme depression, even a little depressed.

He understood the principle of spending money when fighting, but before Liang Xiao settled the account for him, he did not have a definite concept. He felt that the accumulation of the Han Dynasty in sixty or seventy years should be handled. After Liang Xiao finished the calculation of the account, he realized that he was too optimistic. If he was a little negligent, the savings of the Han Dynasty in sixty or seventy years might be squandered. At that time, I don’t know how many people would compare him with Qin Shihuang, and there might be a disaster for the country to be destroyed.

The ancients said that "even if the country is big, it will perish if it is wary." It is not unreasonable that Qin Yinjiu is not far from his destruction, so he dare not take such a big risk.

"So, we can't go to war with the Huns for the time being, we can only marry each other?"

To the emperor's surprise, Liang Xiao shook his head again. "Your Majesty, if you cannot conquer the Huns quickly, it does not mean that you have to marry, at least you don't need to marry as you did before."

The emperor raised his eyebrows again, and sparks rekindled in his dim eyes. "Tell me, look."

"Your Majesty, the reason why my great Han Dynasty cannot go out of the barriers is that it is difficult to transport food and fodder and consumes a lot; the other is that there is insufficient war horses. If you can run to Henan, Hexi to raise horses, move people to the border, and fight in a place, there is no need to transfer thousands of miles. In this way, I will get the horse and the Huns lose horses and land, and they will lose each other. Even if they cannot severely damage the Huns, they can prepare for a full-scale counterattack. Why should we endure humiliation and marriage?"

"You mean... take Henan and Hexi first?"

"Yes." Liang Xiao nodded and said, "Compared with the Central Plains, Hexi and Henan are all barren lands. For the Huns, Hexi and Henan are the foundation. The Huns come and go like the wind, which is difficult to capture, and we can't stand it. But if they attack them, they must be rescued, can he still leave without fighting?"

The emperor slowly clenched his fists and laughed silently. "That's right, just like fighting, pinch his eggs and see if he still runs away."

Liang Xiao's face suddenly turned dark. The dignified emperor, so rude? This kind of thing should be said by me.

The emperor was still immersed in his joy, not paying attention to his swearing and his image collapsed. He pondered for a long time and made a decision.

"Liang Xiao, the court meeting will be held in two days. You will come to attend."

Liang Xiao looked at the emperor in embarrassment and said in a vain: "Your Majesty, I am humble from a humble background and have just returned from the Western Regions. I am neglecting etiquette. If I am rude in the court and driven out by the censor, wouldn't it be embarrassing?"-
Chapter completed!