Li Hong sent Zhou Juan back to the onion noodle restaurant, and when he returned to the East Palace, it was already Shen Shi. As soon as he walked into the East Palace with Yanzhuang and Chen Gong, he saw Wei Zhiqiang hurried forward and said in a crying voice, "Your Highness, you are here. The Empress is going to summon you. Eunuch Zhang has been waiting for you in Chongwen Hall for two hours."

Li Hong knew that Empress Wu summoned him for the sake of the breakdown of negotiations with Tubo ambassador An Lai in Xuanzheng Hall, so he said to Wei Zhiqiang lightly, "Go tell Zhang Ying that Gu will change his clothes now, and then go to Daming Palace with him immediately."

"No!" Wei Zhiqiang took the order and trotted away.

Li Hong said to Yan Zhuang as he walked, "Go and notify Liu Yizhi, Zhang Jianzhi and Li Jiao, and ask them to wait for the orphan in the study. If the orphan comes back, he has something to discuss with them."

Yan Zhuang took the order and left strode.

Li Hong went to Cheng'en Palace to take a bath and change his clothes, and then came to Chongjiao Palace and went to Daming Palace with Zhang Ying.

In the Zichen Hall, seven prime ministers except the Queen of Martial Arts were there, but everyone looked relaxed and the atmosphere was very harmonious when talking about official duties. When everyone saw Prince Li Hong, they hurriedly stood up and bowed to him and said, "See Your Highness!"

Li Hong was a little surprised and puzzled when the prime ministers treated him so politely. Just as he was confused, Empress Wu had already spoken, "Crown Prince, your performance is very good today, and the Queen Mother is very satisfied. Come and sit here. Let's discuss the specific details of An Lai's request."

"Don't be too polite for you!" Li Hong said to the prime ministers, and said to Empress Wu, "Son-in-law, what does Empress Mother mean?"

"Come here to sit next to my mother's side, and let Le Yanwei tell you!" Empress Wu smiled rarely and said to Li Hong.

Li Hong received the order and walked to the couch beside Empress Wu. Le Yanwei said, "Your Highness, in the afternoon, An Lai wrote a letter again, saying that Tubo was willing to give up the three requirements in the letter of the country, but he asked the Tang Dynasty to agree to release Sang Ying and give them 100,000 ounces of money to facilitate his return to the country to report his life."

Le Yanwei also looked excited when he said this, because the Tubo delegation came to an end and there were no major twists and turns, which means that his position was saved.

Except for Li Ji, the other six prime ministers were all very happy, because everyone knew that Tubo's compromise was related to the prince's tough attitude in Xuanzheng Hall today. The prince's deaf statement extinguished Tubo's wolf ambitions, which was more effective than the 100,000 soldiers. On the contrary, with Li Hong's strong counterattack, Li Ji threatened An Lai in Xuanzheng Hall and fell into a inferior position, becoming a stepping stone to support Li Hong's eminent arrogance.

"At this time, An Lai dares to ask for things from the Tang Dynasty? He dares to let Sang Ying leave the Tang Dynasty alive?" Li Hong frowned.

When Wu Empress and the Prime Minister heard Li Hong's words, they were completely shocked. They felt that Li Hong was already against the will of heaven to talk about the negotiations to this extent, but they didn't expect that Li Hong never thought of letting Sang Ying and An Lai go. What rhythm is this? What is this mentality? Do you really have to recruit millions of soldiers and fight with Tubo and want to destroy this country? The Tang Dynasty and Tubo are not afraid of fighting with Tubo, but destroying Tubo has little practical significance for the Tang Dynasty. The plateau where Tubo is located is not suitable for the development of the Tang Dynasty, and the heavy price the Tang Dynasty paid for this cannot be restored for decades!

Le Yanwei was a little anxious. Since Tubo had compromised, he could not just suppress it again, otherwise he might have really turned against it. He hurriedly asked, "Your Highness, what do you mean?"

"The materials he wants can be doubled, and we can give him 200,000 ounces of supplies. As for Sang Ying, it cannot be released. It is natural to kill people and pay for their lives, no matter whether he is the deputy envoy of Tubo or the prince of the Tang Dynasty." Li Hong said with a tough attitude.

Dou Dexuan hesitated for a moment and said, "I'm afraid this will force An Lai to jump over the wall, right?"

"He dared not." Li Hong said confidently. Seeing that everyone was looking at him, he emphasized his tone again, "They dare not!"

In fact, since the negotiations began, Li Hong's attitude has been so tough. This is not because he blindly threatens Tubo with the power of the Tang Dynasty, but because he has his own basis.

This basis is Su Dingfang, a famous Tang general who guarded the northwest.

Su Dingfang, whose name was Lie, was Dingfang, and was from Wuyi, Jizhou. When he was fifteen years old, he followed his father to fight with his bravery and courageous spirit. He first ascended the battlefield, and the village relied on him to stabilize. At the end of the Sui Dynasty, he defected to Dou Jiande and Liu Heita's righteous army, and made many military achievements in troubled times. In the early years of Zhenguan, he returned to the Tang Dynasty and followed Li Jing to the north to attack the East Turks. In the night attack on Yinshan, he was the vanguard and took the lead in breaking the tent of Jie Li Khan.

In the second year of Xianqing, he was promoted to the position of the chief marching commander and began to stand alone. He was highly appreciated and trusted by Emperor Gaozong of Tang for his extraordinary military achievements and integrity. He repeatedly entrusted with important tasks. He conquered the Western Turks, pacified Paoling, Yibaji, and attacked Goguryeo. He destroyed the three kingdoms before and after Dingfang. He captured his lord alive. He expanded the territory of the Tang Dynasty westward to Central Asia and eastward to the Korean Peninsula, making extraordinary contributions to the Tang Empire. He successively moved to the General of Zuo Xiaowei and the General of Zuo Wuwei and was granted Duke Xing. In his later years, he was appointed as Ambassador Anji, who was fully responsible for the military defense of Tubo.

This is the information about Su Dingfang that Li Hong knew. Everyone in Zichen Hall knew this. However, Li Hong also had a piece of information that everyone in Zichen Hall was not clear about. It is from Tibetan historical materials that Su Dingfang and Tubo actually had two battles.

The first time was the Battle of Wuhai 659. It is recorded in the history of the Tang Dynasty, saying that Su Dingfang defeated Dayan by 1,000 for 80,000.

The second battle occurred in 667, so Empress Wu and the seven prime ministers did not know, but only Li Hong knew that this year, Lu Dongzan led 100,000 Tibetan troops to attack the Tang army and died in the army. Later, it was recorded that the Tang army entered Tibet, and the Tubo people hurriedly welcomed Jue Shijia to Shenbian Temple, hid in Nanjing Gate, sealed the gate with mud, and painted a statue of Manjushri to cover it. After that, the Tang army arrived and set fire to the Potala Palace. He failed to welcome Jue A Buddha statue, so he transported the unmoved Buddha statue to the half-distance.

The information of this war is not found in orthodox historical books, and whether Lu Dongzan really fought with Su Dingfang is indeed worth studying. However, no matter what, since 1966, Su Dingfang served as Ambassador Anji to guard against Tubo. If he had not fought with Lu Dongzan, who could have destroyed Lu Dongzan on the battlefield? Therefore, Li Hong believed in the historical records of this time. After defeating Lu Dongzan, Su Dingfang took the opportunity to go deep into Tubo, fought to the capital of Tubo, and set fire to the Potala Palace... As for the Tang Dynasty, which happened in Dafeichuan, the Battle of Bo ended with a crushing defeat in the Tang army, this does not mean that the combat effectiveness of the Tang army was not as good as that of the Tubo elite cavalry, but that the Tang army's command ability was not good.

Because Li Hong and Li Ji had a quarrel, he was eager to find a military general who could compete with Li Ji to support him. Then he thought of Su Dingfang. Li Ji had not yet destroyed Goryeo, and his military achievements were equal to Su Dingfang. His only advantage was that Li Tang founding heroes, and he chose the right direction for three consecutive teams. Therefore, Li Hong believed that as long as he supported Su Dingfang, with Su Dingfang's outstanding military achievements in the Tang army, he might not lose to Li Ji.

Thinking of Su Dingfang, Li Hong thought of Su Dingfang's battle when he was Ambassador Anji to prevent Tubo, and the information about the Second World War above was found, which gave him a reason for his tough attitude towards Tubo.

To put it bluntly, Li Hong was betting on Tubo this time because Su Dingfang was in the northwest and did not dare to send troops to the Tang Dynasty. Unexpectedly, he bet right.

"Why is the prince so sure?" Li Ji asked coldly.

This time he was a foil for Li Hong, which made him very angry. Now that Li Hong has achieved some results and is so arrogant, he wants to destroy Li Hong's arrogance.

"Mother, after Rong Erchen handled this matter well, I will tell you in detail. Do you think it's okay?" Li Hong ignored Li Ji and said to Empress Wu.

In fact, there is a reason why Li Hong hates Li Ji. Just as mentioned above, if Li Ji had not achieved brilliant military achievements in the war to destroy Goryeo in the Tang Dynasty, his military achievements might not have been greater than Su Dingfang. However, his official position was much greater by Su Dingfang, and his courtesy was much higher than Su Dingfang. The key reason was that he took three teams.

The first time, Li Shimin was in a coup in Xuanwu Gate. At that time, Li Ji was a student of Li Jing. Li Jing told Li Ji not to meddle in other people's business, but Li Ji did not listen. He not only agreed when Li Shimin came to him, but also acted as a lobbyist for Li Jing. This time, the persuasion was not successful, and Li Jing and Li Shimin's friendship was destined to be completely divided, and Li Ji was therefore valued by Li Shimin and was entrusted with important tasks. The second time he took the team was when Taizong Li Shimin's sons competed for the throne. He came forward to support Gaozong at the last moment, and was entrusted with the important tasks of the minister of the resignation. This time, the appointment of the resignation minister completely made Li Ji become a minister.

At the peak, because after Emperor Gaozong ascended the throne and became emperor, he had to promote him again and again in order to suppress Changsun Wuji's arrogance. However, Li Ji became a turtle with his head and did not give Gaozong too much support. However, from his perspective, he got what he deserved. The third time he took the team was when Emperor Gaozong and Empress Wuji dealt with Changsun Wuji. At this time, Li Ji was able to compete with Changsun Wuji in terms of official position and prestige. At that time, Emperor Gaozong and Empress Wuji, Changsun Wuji, Chu Suiliang and others argued about the establishment of Empress Wu as the queen. At this time, Li Ji stood up and stood firmly on the side of Empress Wu, and then he had the current power and glory-

Li Ji's three correct side-by-side actions have achieved his current power and reputation and courtesy that others cannot reach. His approach is wise to any minister, but from the perspective of Li Hong's superiors, what he dislikes the most is this kind of minister who takes advantage of the side-by-side and uses the side-by-side to fight for his own interests. On the contrary, pure soldiers like Li Jing, Su Dingfang, and Liu Rengui are more liked and more willing to make friends with them.

Li Ji commanded the Tang army to destroy Goryeo, which was not his own credit. Therefore, the Tang Dynasty fought against Goryeo, Silla and Baekje on the Northeast battlefield for several years, and during which Su Dingfang and Liu Rengui were the commanders, both of which achieved good results. Li Ji only served as the commander when the Tang Dynasty launched the last attack on Goryeo. Therefore, it is not an exaggeration to say that his military achievements were a bargain...

Because of this reason, Li Hong didn't like Li Ji very much. Besides, he knew that he could not satisfy Li Ji's interests. It was impossible for him to have any interaction with Li Ji, so he was so merciless to Li Ji.

Seeing that Li Hong had been ignored, Li Ji was so angry that he wanted to scold Li Hong. It was obvious that Li Hong was talking to Empress Wu, so he held back again.

Empress Wu hoped that Li Hong and Li Ji would not be able to deal with each other, so Li Ji would rely more on her, so she turned a blind eye to it, but said softly, "Since the prince has already had a good plan, I will continue to leave this matter to you!"

"My son accepts the order!" Li Hong said with a bow.

Then he saw that Empress Wu had no questions to ask himself, so he withdrew from the Zichen Palace. (To be continued)
Chapter completed!