The best idlers of the Tang Dynasty

When Du Rui heard the words, he knew that Taizong, like other ancients, believed that the sky was round and the earth was round, that the Great Tang was located in the center of the world, and that the territory occupied by the Great Tang was the vast majority of the world.

Du Rui thought for a while and said, "Your Majesty, do you still remember what I said when I met you for the first time?"

Taizong was taken aback for a moment, but he didn't understand Du Rui's meaning. After he understood, he said, "But it's a matter of saying that this world is a sphere?!"

Du Rui nodded and said, "Exactly! The Holy One finds it strange!?"

Taizong heard the words and said: "It's really unimaginable. How can this world be a round ball?"

Du Rui said: "There will naturally be a conclusion on this matter in the future, I have nothing to say, please write and write!"

Taizong didn't know what Du Rui was going to do, so he nodded and turned his body sideways, and let the book case out. Du Rui was not polite, stepped forward, picked up a pen, and on a piece of paper, he wrote the map of the Tang Dynasty's Jiangshan Huanyu It was drawn. Du Rui had drawn it in the study before, so he was no stranger to it. It was just that after he finished drawing the map of the universe in the Tang Dynasty, Du Rui continued to draw and drew some of the surrounding areas. Xue Yantuo , Gaochang, Xiao Bolu, Tocharo, and Tiele, until Shendu, Dashi, and even Eastern and Western Europe, and Africa were drawn, and finally ink was drawn on the map of places that should have been Australia and America.

The more Taizong watched, the more frightened he became. If it was the Western Regions, he could still know something, but he had never heard of it farther away. Looking at Du Rui, he became more and more frightened. Yes, there are still those who are born to know!

But seeing Du Rui's picture, the Tang Dynasty only occupies a corner, and he couldn't help but wonder: "Could it be that my country only has this corner!"

Du Rui replied: "That's true! Those ministers only care about preaching to the Holy One that the whole world is the king's land, but who knows, my Tang Dynasty only occupies this corner of the world. land, the rest does not belong to the Holy Majesty, nor does it belong to the Tang Dynasty!"

When he drew this simple world map just now, he was already very kind. In order not to shock Taizong too much, he deliberately drew the territory of the Tang Dynasty at the very center, watching Taizong pondering for a while.

Du Rui knew what Taizong was thinking, so he said: "I met a big food businessman last year. He has traveled all over the world. Here~~~~~"

Du Rui pointed to the part of Europe and said: "He called this place Europa. At present, there is a powerful Eastern Roman Empire here. Although the land and territory are not comparable to my Tang Dynasty, they are still far behind. And further west, There are also many small countries here, but they are insignificant. Although our Great Tang is powerful, it is not invincible in the world. Whether it is Dashi or this Eastern Rome, it can be called my Great Tang's opponent."

Taizong was surprised and said: "I know what you said about Dashi, but this Eastern Rome may not have been fabricated by that Dashi merchant, so what evidence does it have?"

Du Rui replied: "In fact, this Rome has existed for thousands of years, but it was Western Rome at that time. As early as the Jianzhao period of Emperor Han Yuan, Emperor Han sent 4 troops to fight against Zhizhi Shanyu, the Northern Huns who were enemies with Han. Western Expedition. When the army arrived at Zhizhi City, they discovered that there was a strange army among the troops of Zhizhi Shanyu. It was not until the end of the battle that the soldiers of the Han Dynasty knew that these soldiers came from a distant and strange country. At that time Perhaps after a great war, these Roman soldiers fled to the Western Regions for some reason. At that time, there were small countries like Kangju and Da Yuezhi scattered in the Western Regions. Therefore, the Roman soldiers who were good at fighting used mercenary The identity was accepted by these small countries. Later, these Roman soldiers were involved in the war between the Han Dynasty and the Huns by accident. According to historical records, when the Han army surrounded Zhizhi City, they found these strange soldiers in the opposing army. Soldiers. Zhizhi City is not only guarded by "a heavy wooden city outside the earth city", but also has "more than a hundred infantrymen sandwiching fish scale formations". It is impossible for the Huns, who are nomads, to master these tactics. It is even more surprising The most striking thing is that when fighting, these soldiers hold huge shields that are one person high. They form a square formation, wrap the team airtight with shields, and then shout slogans and walk forward with uniform steps. When the enemy is far away When they first approached, they threw out the spears in their hands, and when they got closer, they drew out short knives for hand-to-hand combat. However, due to the difference in strength, this peculiar tactic did not change the outcome of the battle. Because the heavy cavalry of the Han Dynasty was very fast , Surrounded the phalanx of Roman soldiers in an instant, and then attacked from all sides, easily breaking through the phalanx of Roman soldiers. In the end, the army of the Han Dynasty broke through Zhizhi City in one fell swoop. And there were only more than 100 Roman soldiers left He became a prisoner of the Han army. Later, the Han army brought these Roman soldiers back to the Central Plains. In order to accommodate these special prisoners, Emperor Han Yuan issued an edict to establish Liqian County in the Hexi area. According to the "Book of the Later Han": "Han Liqian County was first established, and the name of the country was taken as a county. From then on, these Romans lived and multiplied here. Until Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty issued an edict to merge Liqian County into Fanhe County, there is no record."

After listening to Du Rui's explanation, Emperor Taizong sighed for Du Rui's profound knowledge, and at the same time began to have some thoughts about that distant Rome, saying: "As you say, my Tang Dynasty is far from being able to be called Across the universe!"

Du Rui nodded and said: "At least for now, it's far from being done! That's why I advocate that the Holy One should pursue hegemony, forge ahead, and eliminate these powerful enemies one by one!"

Taizong thought for a moment and said: "However, these countries you mentioned are far away from the Tang Dynasty. It would take a year and a half to reach them by riding a fast horse. In ancient times, there was a strategy of attacking from far away. The gains outweigh the losses!"

"No!" Du Rui retorted, "It doesn't work now, so it won't work in the future. In ancient times, there were horse-drawn carriages. How could the Holy Majesty know that there would be nothing far superior to horse-drawn carriages in the future? By that time, if our dynasty's national power declines, how can it be?" Isn’t it man’s knife and axe, and I’m fish and meat? Instead of leaving hidden dangers for future generations, it’s better to get rid of them all today.”

Hearing the words, Emperor Taizong became more proud and said: "It should be so. There has been no eternal and prosperous empire since ancient times, but if this world is all my Chinese people, after a hundred years, my descendants will be unfilial, even if they lose the country and society, they will all be destroyed." It is better to be in the hands of one's own family than to be reduced to a foreign species."

Hearing the words, Du Rui couldn't help admiring Taizong's heart. Compared with Taizong, the old hag who shouted "Ning with Youbang, not with domestic slaves" in the future is really far behind.

After Taizong laughed, he pointed to the place that Du Rui had smeared, and said, "What is it here? Why did you smear it all over!"

Du Ruidao: "I once read an ancient book, which recorded the story of Sun Wu during the Wei and Jin Dynasties. The ancient book said that Sun Wu once sent people across a long distance, passing through Yizhou, and then passing Nanyang, sailing south. I have seen a large island, covered with leaves, and the customs are very barbaric, but the road is rich in minerals, and the land is rich, and the area is far larger than that of the south of the Yangtze River. From here, go east , and found a more vast land, which is several times larger than my Tang Dynasty, and it is also a land without an owner! The minister thought, if that day, our dynasty's shipping technology is developed, we can Send someone to search for it, maybe there will be a lot of gains!"

The Tang Dynasty was not closed to the outside world like the Ming and Qing Dynasties, but the technology was underdeveloped, and overseas trade was very small. At most, it reached Samhan, Japan, and some places in South Asia.As for the story of the Eastern Wu period that Du Rui said, of course it is fictional, he can't just say that I know it, believe it or not!

Taizong was even more moved when he heard the words, and said: "You mean that there is no land there!"

Du Rui couldn't speak too clearly, so he could only vaguely say: "It's recorded like this in the book, but I can't remember which book it is. I only remember the general route, but it's just random. Since then, the art of shipbuilding and the method of shipping have lagged behind a lot, and now it is not easy to get there!"

Taizong heard the words, nodded, and said: "It is also the same reason. After you go back, think about it again. There are so many skilled craftsmen in my Tang Dynasty. I can always build large ships suitable for oceangoing, but I can't find those large ships. Island, if we can open up a few shipping routes, we can also increase some trade and make the people rich!"

Du Rui was also deeply moved by Taizong's ambition, and said: "Since the Holy Majesty has this ambition, I am willing to do my best."

Taizong smiled and said: "You boy, now you have finally said these words. I originally wanted to grant you an official position, but I heard from Ankang that you seem to be writing a book, aren't you!?"

Without waiting for Du Rui's answer, he said, "I won't ask any more questions. When you finish writing it, show it to me! Now that you are still young, I am annoyed at letting you enter the court rashly and being criticized by those people." , it is harmful to you, and you can write it at home these years! When you become an adult, you can write that book if you want, and then it will be time for you to work hard for the country!"

When Du Rui heard the words, he prostrated himself and said: "The Holy Majesty has treated you so kindly, I am very grateful, and I will obey the order!"

Taizong nodded and said: "There is one more thing, I want you to give me that idea, if there is the incident of Weiqiao back then, and today's barbarian marriage invitation, what should I do!?"

Du Rui said without thinking: "Your Majesty, set an example!"

"How to lead by example!?"

"No marriage, no compensation, no land, no tribute, the emperor guards the gate, and the king dies!"

When Du Rui said these 22 words, even Taizong heard the words with a solemn expression on his face. He got up and saluted Du Rui regardless of his body.

"In today's world, Du Chengming is the only one with integrity!"

Du Rui was even more terrified when he heard the words, and hurriedly bowed and fell to the ground: "The Holy Majesty has wrongly praised you, and I am terrified!"