The Eastern Expedition army passed through Xin'an and Shengchi from the "Beijiao Road", and then the Zuowu Guards suddenly broke away from the army, accelerated their speed to occupy Hangu Pass, and went straight to Tongguan... When the Tongguan guard sent people to rush to deliver the news to Chang'an, Guan Long's senior officials were extremely shocked.
For a long time, Li Ji led hundreds of thousands of troops outside and allowed Chang'an to turn into a mess, but he never showed his attitude. He slowly returned from Liaodong, as if he was "watching the fire from the other side".
However, the hundreds of thousands of troops capable of affecting the power structure of the empire are like a sharp sword hanging above their heads, making it difficult for the East Palace and Guanlong to sleep and eat at all times. Both sides wanted to win Li Ji into their own camp and thereby establish victory in one fell swoop, but they were also worried that Li Ji would suddenly join the other side's camp...
Now, it was finally time for Li Jitu to meet him.
The general guarding Tongguan asked if Zuowu guards came to the city, should they fight or retreat?
The opinions of Yu Wenshiji, Linghu Defen and others were that Cheng Yaojin should not be stopped, otherwise it would easily lead to Li Ji's misunderstanding. Perhaps Li Ji was also swaying about the decision at this time, and any small thing might prompt him to make a decision. Make a judgment that is not conducive to Guan Long.
Furthermore, even if the Tongguan garrison is brave enough to defeat the three armies, and even if the Tongguan moat is impregnable, there are only a few thousand soldiers and horses in total. If they can stop Cheng Yaojin's Zuowuwei, how can they stop Li Ji's hundreds of thousands of troops?
The result is that the city gate will fall. It is better to simply abandon the gate and retreat, handing over the Tongguan Fortress to show Guan Long's sincerity.
Changsun Wuji thought it was inappropriate.
In any case, Li Ji has not been able to reveal his position until now. Rather than letting him enter Tongguan without knowing his position, it is better to take this opportunity to meet with him and find out his wishes. If you really side with the East Palace, you can mobilize the army to defend Tongguan to block it, and then quickly reach a peace negotiation with the East Palace. Even if you transfer more benefits, you must end this "military remonstrance" before Li Ji enters Tongguan.
After all, once Li Ji stands on the side of the East Palace, Guan Long has no chance of winning. He must prepare for the aftermath of the defeat in advance, otherwise the entire army may be destroyed and the whole clan will be defeated...
However, just after the order was sent out, Tongguan guard Xue Hu Wu Ren actually came back in person.
The fall of Tongguan...
…
Yanshoufang.
Changsun Wuji looked gloomy, stared at Xue Hu Wu Ren with his eyes, and said slowly: "As a guard general of Tongguan, you are responsible for guarding. Now you have ignored the order and fled without fighting, causing the fall of Tongguan Suoyue and Guanlong Shu." One hundred thousand troops are at stake, and the success or failure of military remonstrance hangs by a thread. Do you know what the crime should be?"
Although there was no thunderous anger, this extremely gloomy attitude made Xue Hu and Wu Ren even more frightened, and cold sweat broke out.
He quickly knelt down on one knee and argued: "Gonggong Zhao, it is not that the general is afraid of death and war, but it is because Cheng Yaojin suddenly came to the city with his troops, but he has not received orders from you, Duke Zhao. The general really does not know whether to fight or retreat. If we fight, if the British Duke is angered and the plan of Zhao Guogong goes wrong, how can I bear the responsibility? In desperation, I can only retreat temporarily and hand over Tongguan to Lu Guogong. If I do it, I will really make a mistake. I sincerely request you to lead an army to Tongguan and recapture Tongguan. Even if you are shattered into pieces, you must make up for this big mistake!"
He said this, but he was really not angry in his heart.
If I retreat without a fight now, you say I'm wrong; but if I fight to the death to defend the gate, is it possible that I must be right? At least I'm back in full force now, but once I start fighting, I'll probably make a big mistake and lose my life...
Changsun Wuji's face was gloomy, showing no signs of joy or anger.
For a long time, he did not hold Xue Hu and Wu Ren accountable, but asked lightly: "When Cheng Yaojin captured Tongguan, did he seal the pass and strictly prohibit entry and exit?"
Xue Hu and Wu Ren felt relieved and said hurriedly: "After Lu Guogong took over the defense, he did not block the passage. The troops outside the pass were able to enter the city smoothly, a step slower than the general, and they would arrive around Chang'an later. However, Lu Guogong issued an order , it is strictly forbidden for anyone to wait to leave the customs.”
Changsun Wuji frowned: "Are you allowed in but not allowed out?"
Xue Hu Wu Ren said: "That's exactly it."
After pondering for a moment, Changsun Wuji reprimanded: "As a guard general, you should stick to the pass and not retreat even if you are broken into pieces before your superiors give a clear order to retreat! But now we are employing people, so I will bypass you. This time, from now on, I will do my best and make meritorious deeds. If I violate military law again, I will be convicted of both crimes and punished, and I will never give him a lenient sentence!"
Xue Hu and Wu Ren were sweating profusely: "The general will finally be convicted!"
"Okay, step back for now."
"Here!"
…
When Xue Hu and Wu Ren retreated, Changsun Wuji looked at Yu Wenshiji, Linghu Defen, Dugu Lan and others who were silent, and asked, "Li Jizhi's style... what do you think?"
There was silence in the hall.
Although they all understood that Li Ji's position would eventually be revealed, and that this day was imminent, the Eastern Expedition army suddenly accelerated after passing Luoyang. Cheng Yaojin led the Zuowu Guards to attack Hangu and Tongguan successively, and the troops were approaching. Guanzhong still caught people a little off guard, and it was really difficult to guess Li Ji's intentions.
Naturally, it is impossible to give an accurate response.
After a long while, Yu Wenshi said slowly: "The hundreds of thousands of Eastern Expedition troops entering Guanzhong are unstoppable. No matter what the British people's position is in their hearts, we should take the initiative to fight for it instead of sitting here and waiting. After all, things have not yet happened. Who can be sure what it will be like before it happens?”
Everyone nodded in unison.
Not to mention that Li Ji has not revealed his position yet, even if he stands on the side of the East Palace, it does not mean that he cannot fight for it at all.
There is hope for many things if you work hard. Nothing in this world is destined...
Changsun Wuji also recognized this sentence, his eyes swept over everyone's faces one by one, and finally returned to Yu Wenshi and his face, and said slowly: "In this case, I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you personally, brother. Take a trip and try your best to persuade the British public."
The reason why Guan Long is getting further and further away from the center of power is not just because the younger members of the clan are not living up to expectations and have no successors? Even the heads of various families who were once prominent in the past have gradually faded away from the center of power, either due to old age or lack of focus on everything.
Only Yuwenshijia has outstanding ability and eloquence, and is deeply loved by both the government and the public, and is quite popular. The most important thing is that Yu Wenshiji has always paid attention to the future of Guanlong, knowing that only by uniting the various Guanlong families can they have a broader future. Once they fall apart, they are destined to sink into the sand in history and be covered up by the sand. .
If it were anyone else, he would even worry about whether he would take the opportunity to defect to Li Ji and completely entrust the Guanlong Alliance...
Yuwen Shiji also knew that the current situation was critical. Once Li Ji surrendered to the East Palace, Guan Long would face a disaster. And if he could really convince Li Ji, then the peace talks would become a foregone conclusion, whether he or the entire Yuwen clan Everyone will gain great benefits.
In both public and private matters, we must do our part.
Then he nodded and said: "Don't worry, auxiliary machine. I will go there personally later and try to persuade Li Ji with emotion and reason."
Changsun Wuji solemnly said: "Then I'll bother you, my dear friend."
He even regretted that if he had not sent his eldest son Anye to Luoyang to persuade Li Ji out of selfish motives, but had asked Yu Wenshiji to go, he might have already impressed Li Ji and won him over to Guan Long's side. After all, regardless of identity, status, ability, and connections, Yuwen Shiji is definitely not comparable to Changsun Anye.
It's just that he wants to hold the whole Guanlong firmly in his hands, and he doesn't want to see Yuwenshi who advocates peace talks and make great achievements.
But now, we have to rely on Yuwenshi and...
He became more and more angry, and his hatred towards Fang Jun naturally increased.
Although there were too many variables in this "military admonishment", it was completely different from his original plan. It could even be said that it was restricted in every aspect and had very bad luck. But as the saying goes, everything in this world never goes smoothly. There are always going to be various changes in such a big plan.
But the biggest variable was Fang Jun. No one expected that this guy would defeat the Dashi army that invaded the Western Regions so quickly, and lead his troops to rescue thousands of miles so resolutely, returning to Guanzhong at lightning speed, stabilizing the crumbling East Palace in one fell swoop. , reversing its inevitable defeat.
This young man who was unlearned, reckless and stupid grew up at an astonishing rate. Not only did he become a leader among the younger generation through repeated meritorious service, but he also grew into a bright and fluttering flag in the military, becoming a new generation of "military god"!
In comparison, Guan Long's children were lackluster, especially his own sons, who fell at his hands directly or indirectly. Every time he thought about it, Changsun Wuji was filled with hatred and gnashed his teeth.
