"It's said there's a caravan." Ma Shixiang seemed a little unconfident about what he said. The truth is, he didn't believe what he said.

"Even Jin Chanyu will not blatantly attack our Tang princess, so it must be a horse gang, but everyone knows what the face looks like under the mask." Ning Que continued. "But the question is, if the caravan is really Zen Yu's people, then why are the barbarians so bold in defending? They didn't seem afraid to be wiped out by the Tang Dynasty, which sounds very unreasonable.

The Tang Dynasty was founded on the basis of military strength. The culture here is simple and aggressive, and it is known as the most powerful country in the world. However, even with such strength, if you want to destroy the barbarian golden tribe on the grassland, you will still use up half of your strength.

It doesn't sound reasonable to get involved in such turmoil just to save a married princess. However, in fact, such a thing happened many times in the history of the Tang Dynasty.

One of the most famous examples occurred in the later years of Taizu, the founder of the Tang Dynasty.

At that time, a tribe slaughtered a village located along the Poplar Road. One hundred and forty inhabitants of there were all killed without mercy. The emperor sent a messenger to ask what had happened, however, one of his ears was cut off and he was expelled by Chen Yu. Taizu was very angry and immediately decided to invade the steppe, leading an army of 80,000 cavalry. After hearing the news, the tribe fled to the northern wilderness in the face of heavy snowstorms, while the Tang clan kept chasing after them until a few months later, the tribe was finally slaughtered.

Fought for several months, destroyed all the enemies ... The Tang Dynasty won the money at a terrible price.

To ensure that there were enough supplies to deal with this exhausting war, the imperial court sent millions of peasants to the battlefield and collected all the livestock. The fields around Minshan were idle, taxes in the south quadrupled, and officials had no free time to take care of these things. The whole country is on the verge of turmoil and even collapse.

The most outstanding qualities of the Tang dynasty were observed in such a perilous period, and in the years that followed, when assessing the matter.

When the empire marched into the wilderness, the rebels in the south did not attack the army. Instead, they returned to the base and seemed to be on the side of the Empire. Perhaps not every rebel did it for the sake of so-called national justice. Some of them may also want to use this opportunity to win the fight, but they have to face the reality that the poor peasants who support them, as well as the chiefs and soldiers in the troops, strongly oppose them doing so.

Taizu did not gain a high historical status because of this battle, even within the empire. Neither in history books, nor in the stories of storytellers, you do not see or hear praise for him, but totalitarianism and harshness.

However, even the most pedantic scholars, professors who don't care about sovereignty, or farmers and businessmen who hate taxes so much, may criticize Taejo for a variety of reasons, but none of them deny the need for war.

From the very beginning of the founding of the People's Republic of China, all the people of the Tang Dynasty have always firmly believed in a simple principle: I will not invade anyone, and no one can invade me. Even if I invade you, you will not allow me to invade again!

An eye for an eye.

That's the baseline we've established.

That's why Don is getting stronger and stronger.

That is why the Don is recognized as the most powerful country in the world.

The Tang Empire was considered the most powerful country in the world for a simple but powerful reason.

Ning Que was not an indigenous person of the Tang Dynasty. He didn't have the courage to fight to the death on the battlefield, nor did he have the humor to set fire to his house for fun. Even if he is given another twenty years to live in Wei City, he will not live a dramatic life, rising from a beggar to a general.

However, he had been in the army long enough that he understood the strengths and weaknesses of the Tang Dynasty during this period. As soon as he spotted the arrow holes in the princess's carriage, he deduced some disturbing questions - if the successor Zen Yu had the audacity to assassinate the Tang princess in defiance of the law, he would either be insane or have received some promise from some truly powerful man in the imperial court, and he would not face retaliation.

"Princess Li Yu has entered Tang Wei City, but she still hasn't told anyone who she is. Why? Probably, she doesn't trust anyone, or she wants to confide in His Majesty. However, she never trusted anyone in the court, not including you, soldiers like us, or the entire court.

"Because she knew that the steppe barbarians had to get some kind of permission from someone in Chang'an to assassinate her. Moreover, there are less than four people who can trust Chan Yu and give such permission to barbarians, and she doesn't want to mess with them.

"For this kind of war between the imperial courts, even you, a general, have to stay away, let alone an ordinary person like me......" Ning Que crushed the wet dirt with his heel and whispered. There must have been a lot of trouble on the journey, and even if I took out three or five enemies, I still couldn't change the situation.

"So, if I join them, there will be one more corpse on the mountain; If I don't, there will be one more honest soldier in Wei City.

"General, please treat me like the exhaust of nature, and don't count on me."

Ma Shixiang looked at the seemingly humble young man and said, "If you want me to withdraw the order, you should call yourself a fart."

Ning Que replied with a smile. "I'm going to be a student at the academy, and of course, it's better to speak elegantly."

Ma Shixiang did not continue to tease young people. He frowned, then explained to him. "I recommend you to be the princess's guide, in fact, it has something to do with the academy. You've gotten enough military acts and passed your first exam. I also asked my boss to write you a letter of recommendation, which was confirmed by the military department. But, do you really think that's enough to get you into the academy?

"You've been in the Weicheng Frontier Fortress all these years, and I'm sure you've heard some legends about the Academy, but you still don't know anything about that place."

The general is very dignified and serious. "In our opinion, the Academy is the most sacred and inviolable place. Confirmation from the Ministry of Military Affairs only means that you can take the entrance exam for the academy. However, you must collect stamps from at least three departments to join the Academy.

"It is unlikely that the department will take seriously the advice written by a junior general like ours. Even confirmation from the Ministry of Military Affairs is not enough. They can easily postpone your taking the test for a few years. "Over the past few years, your situation has become common. With the exception of those admitted by the Academy's teachers, any student recommended by the Imperial Department would have to buy into the Academy, which would drain all of their family's resources.

"I know you've saved some money here, but do you really think you can satisfy these guys for just a few hundred silver?"

Ning Que scratched his head and sighed. "Nobody told me."

"I don't have to tell you, because there's a way."

Ma Shixiang looked at him and said sonorously: "If you can contribute to this trip and impress the princess, even if she can only remember your name, or she can ask a certain housekeeper in Chang'an to intercede for you, no one will dare to blackmail you in the future."

"This means that I have to gamble with my life to qualify for the college entrance exam. It doesn't seem fair. Ning Que said.

Ma Shixiang glared at him fiercely and said, "I don't know what to do!" Many people are willing to betray their mother, or kill their father, just to get into the academy, and yet, you quit because of a little risk?

After a while, the general calmed down, and he said: "According to my analysis, the princess also knows that she cannot hide her tracks. So, if you can figure out who she is, everyone in Wei City can. Why didn't her enemies find her? Since she insisted on continuing the trip, there must be some reinforcements not far away. Your mission is to guide her through the mountains and help her get in touch with those reinforcements as quickly as possible. How can you call it gambling?

Ning Que lowered his head, trying to figure out the pros and cons of doing so.

Ma Shixiang looked at him, thinking about his strange temper that annoyed most people. He knew that if there was no interest, it would be difficult to convince Ning Que. He sighed and whispered. "An old man is going with the princess, and the princess's name is Lu. Moreover, it is said that he practiced in the southern school of Haotian Taoism.

Hearing this, Ning Que suddenly raised his head, and his eyes lit up.

Ma Shixiang said: "You came here when you were a child, played with the people in the city, and charmed them with your sweet mouth and your abilities. You'll always be the most popular kid in town, even with the soldiers coming and going, or the owner of that meatloaf shop that changed twice.

He touched Ning Que's head, as if he was a spoiled boy, and said, "The former general gave you a military identity before he died. You saved us when we went to the steppe to kill the caravan, and we were almost killed by the barbarians that fall. Thanks to you, we came back alive. Everyone here has decided to reward you, and if you want, we have raised money that will allow you to spend the night with the most popular in the capital.

The gray-haired general changed the subject and said, "However, no one thought that you would want to learn magic. It's a shame that we can't find a teacher to help you, we just have you read the article about the response to the Tao over and over again.

"Now is your chance."

Ma Shixiang suddenly became serious. "Academy, and the old man named Lu, you must catch the two of them."

Ning Que was silent for a long time, and then sighed. "I just don't want to get out of here."

The moonlight outside the window was very soft and peaceful. Ma Shixiang looked at the young man and said, "Weicheng is still too small, you should go to the capital Chang'an to see the real world." There may be some monsters, however, none of them should scare you away.

"At least, on the outside, there won't be just one response about the Tao."