Chapter 314 No suspense
Twenty days later.

The Chishi tribe sent a message saying that the Moushi tribe had secretly taken in Abusi.

According to the results of their previous discussion, Li Heng immediately sent troops north, stationed them in Qinghe, and demanded that Mo Assassin hand over Abusi.

The leader of the Moshi tribe was unwilling to hand over Abusi and his followers, so he took them back to Yinshan.

Li Heng summoned the leaders of the Chishi tribe and the Tashili tribe and gave them two choices.

First, they would march together against the Moushi tribe, divide the original territory of the Moushi tribe into three parts with the Chishi tribe and the Tashili tribe, and be willing to coordinate with the Huihe to make them abide by the previous boundaries.

Second, if the Chishi and Tashili tribes were unwilling, he would not care how the Huihe fought.

There were already conflicts among the three Qarluk tribes, and when Li Heng said this, the Chishi tribe and the Tashili tribe immediately agreed.

Therefore, Li Heng asked Wang Zhongsi to lead the Hexi troops to join forces with the Chishi and Tashili tribes to attack Yinshan, while he himself came forward to negotiate with the Uighurs again.

The Uighurs originally wanted to take this opportunity to join forces with Li Heng to defeat the Qerluks, but Li Heng insisted on the original division, and they had no choice but to agree.

In less than a month, Wang Zhongsi, together with the Chishi and Tashili tribes, defeated the Moushi tribe and captured the leader of the Moushi tribe and Abusi alive.

When the Tang army returned, Li Heng wanted Wang Zhongsi to personally escort Abusi and the assassination leader back to Chang'an to report the victory, but Wang Zhongsi was unwilling. Li Heng did not force him and asked Wang Zhongsi's deputy general, Zhang Guangsheng's father-in-law Guo Yingyi, to escort them.

After this battle was won without any suspense, Li Heng returned to Liangzhou again. It was already the end of spring in 750.

Li Ying sat in the yard, leaning back in a chair, deep in thought.

Yang Yuhuan walked over to Li Heng and sat down. She felt his pulse and said, "My dear, you are in good health. Why are you so unhappy?"

"Is there?" Li Ying asked.

Yang Yuhuan said, "Aqisi has told me that this time when capturing Abusi, my husband was not very interested from beginning to end. He seemed to be just...going through the motions."

Li Heng smiled and said, "Whether it's to capture Abusi or fight against the Qarluk, it's enough to have Wang Zhongsi or Feng Changqing lead the troops. I went with them just because I was afraid that these two would show off their talents and cause conflicts."

Yang Yuhuan asked doubtfully, "Since it's not difficult, you should be happy."

Li Heng said: "In fact, I wanted to swallow up all three Karluk tribes at the beginning."

Yang Yuhuan asked: "Then why did you give up?"

Li Heng said: "If we swallow the Karluks, there will be less buffer between the Western Regions and the Uighurs, and the Uighurs will have fewer enemies."

Yang Yuhuan said: "But the Tang Dynasty occupied the land of Karluk, and it also strengthened its strength."

"Not necessarily." Li Heng shook his head. "The location of Karluk is not suitable for business. With the current road conditions, transportation and supply are difficult. It will take at least ten years to make this land useful to the Tang Dynasty. This is only one reason. Secondly, there are many small countries in the Western Regions. If I do too much, it will arouse the vigilance of other small countries."

Yang Yuhuan nodded, thought for a moment, and said, "But if the Tang wants to expand northward, it will have to swallow up the Karluks sooner or later."

Li Heng said: "This is a question of marginal benefits. The more territory a country occupies, the stronger it will be. The key lies in whether it has strong control over the occupied land. If it cannot form strong control, and needs to send materials and manpower from the Central Plains to maintain it, it will only cause the controlled area to collapse. In the current situation, the benefits of cooperation are greater than those of rule."

Yang Yuhuan understood what Li Hengxin meant in the Central Plains, but she did not point it out. She just asked curiously: "What is marginal benefit?"

"Uh..." Li Heng was stunned for a moment, glanced up and down at Yang Yuhuan, and said with a smile: "Just like you, if you gain one point, you are considered fat, and if you lose one point, you are considered thin. It's almost the same." Yang Yuhuan smiled and said: "I am also sometimes fat and sometimes thin. Isn't the marginal effect always changing?"

"It is always changing." Li Heng nodded. "The degree of development is different, and the scope of control is also different. This is for a country. For you, no matter how you are, this is the best way to be."

Yang Yuhuan couldn't help but chuckled and said, "It turns out that I wanted to comfort my husband, but I didn't expect that he would say I was happy instead."

"I'm happy if you're happy." Li Heng smiled back and asked, "Do you have something to tell me?"

Yang Yuhuan nodded and said, "I want to tell my husband, but I'm afraid that he will be even more unhappy."

Li Ying said, "I am no longer unhappy. Please speak."

Yang Yuhuan pondered for a while and said, "After Yang Zhao returned to Jiannan, he wanted to take my sister to Chang'an to make friends with the rich and powerful."

"Yang Yuyao?" Li Ying asked.

"Yes." Yang Yuhuan affirmed.

Li Ying asked, "Did your sister go with him?"

"No." Yang Yuhuan shook her head. "My sister's husband died young, and she has a pair of children. She has a more cheerful personality and a more... cheerful lifestyle. I have asked my uncle to give her some advice."

Li Heng asked, "Are you worried about her, or are you worried that she will know something about us and harm us?"

"Both." Yang Yuhuan made a comparison, "but I am more worried about her. My parents died young, and although I was raised by my uncle, I grew up with my elder sister. My elder sister is my closest relative."

"Do you want to bring her to your side and keep an eye on her?" Li Ying asked.

"I have this idea. Before, we were in Anxi Beiting, a desert Gobi, and the journey was long, so it was not convenient for her to stay with me. Now we are in the rich Liangzhou, which is closer, and we can keep her by my side. If she can stay with me, Your Highness, not to mention Yang Zhao, even if the Saint wants to poach her, he will have to think twice." Yang Yuhuan did not hide anything, "It's just that I am worried that her lifestyle... will make my husband uncomfortable."

"As long as she doesn't do anything harmful or evil, I don't care." Li Heng pinched Yang Yuhuan's face, "If you ask her, she can come."

"Thank you, my lord." Yang Yuhuan smiled happily and said, "Also, Yang Zhao is no longer called Yang Zhao. He is now called Yang Guozhong. He stayed in Jiannan for a month, and then the sage called him back to Chang'an to take over most of Wang Yu's previous duties."

Li Ying said, "Let him be."

"Yes." Yang Yuhuan took out a document from her bosom and presented it to Li Heng, saying, "This is a document sent by General Zhang Guangsheng. I shouldn't have handed it over on your behalf, but General Zhang was afraid of disturbing Your Highness..."

"It's okay." Li Heng interrupted Yang Yuhuan, took the document, opened it and took a look.

The document detailed the process of An Lushan's expedition against the Xi and Khitan. An Lushan led the Hedong Army to defeat the Xi and Khitan, captured the Xi King Li Riyue, and sent the captured brave and strong people to Yunnan.

Yang Yuhuan took a look and said, "This An Lushan is quite capable."

Li Heng was not very concerned about An Lushan's military achievements. What he cared more about was that An Lushan led the soldiers from Hedong.

An Lushan had always wanted to manage Hedong, but Hedong controlled Taiyuan, which was the birthplace of the Tang Dynasty. Li Longji was still wary of An Lushan and did not give the entire power of Hedong to An Lushan. Therefore, An Lushan wanted to gradually consolidate the power of Hedong by using foreign military operations.

(End of this chapter)