Yuchi Gong stood outside the camp, looking back at the sun rising slowly from the top of Lishan Mountain. The haze in his heart was always shrouded, and it was not relieved by the cessation of continuous rain.
Although the secret letter from the Foundry Bureau proves that gunpowder workshops and gun workshops have still not been able to restore their peak output, but for the Sixteenth Guards in Guanzhong, which generally lacked ordnance after the Eastern Expedition, a little firearms and equipment can be directly determines the outcome of the war.
After all, the application of firearms in war has shown unparalleled power, making all soldiers at the moment change their minds and fear them like tigers...
If the delays are too long and the workshops of the Foundry Bureau gradually recover, the Sixth Army of the East Palace will be directly equipped with firearms. With a military commander like Li Jing, the combat power will be doubled. What else can I use to fight?
Yu Wenshi and others have been sneaking into Guanzhong to lobby for troops stationed in various places, but no accurate news has been received for a long time, which makes Yuchi Gong's arrival even more urgent...
Yuchi Baohuan walked quickly behind him. The mud on his body was dried by the wind and became as hard as armor. He came behind Yuchi Gong, cupped his fists and saluted: "Commander Qi, the mission is completed. The seeds have been secretly transported to Yushan for hiding, and everyone has handled them." He is a loyal family general and the news will not be leaked."
Yuchi Gong nodded, and then made a rare gesture of affectionate patting on the shoulder of his youngest son, and said in a deep voice: "Well done, if...I mean if, my father will not be able to escape this defeat, but after all, his achievements in previous years are still the same." Now, to protect the family, you divide the seeds between the two brothers. The brothers must love each other, and then stay away from the military and study behind closed doors. Educate your children to study hard and take the imperial examination to continue the inheritance. Share your responsibilities and enjoy wealth in peace. , If God takes care of it, and in a few generations there will be outstanding disciples to restore the lintel of the family, then my father will be able to rest in peace."
"ah?!"
Yuchi Baohuan was shocked and said hurriedly: "Why did father say this? Although the current situation is chaotic and indistinguishable, as long as we can break through the water defense line and reach Chang'an City, it will inevitably trigger a chain reaction. When the situation changes suddenly, it is still unclear who will win. !”
It was clear that everything was progressing smoothly according to the previously planned route. How come after a night's sleep, his father suddenly became dejected and had no confidence at all?
Yuchi Gong shook his head and didn't explain much.
Yesterday, Xue Wanche's Youwu Guards first arrived at the intersection of Weishui River and Ba River and were about to cross the river, and then suddenly retreated, openly disobeying Li Jing's military order. This scene looked like Xue Wanche had indeed defected to the King of Jin, but Yuchi Gong had a vague feeling in his heart. Worried because Xue Wanche did it too obviously.
It is true that Xue Wanche was reckless and stupid, but he was definitely not a fool. If he really surrendered to the King of Jin, he would either cross the river and show off behind Youhou Wei, or simply ask Tongguan for instructions and directly cross the Wei River to Chang'an City to cooperate with Youhou Wei. , in this way, the strategic purpose of "counterattacking Chang'an and triggering sudden changes" can be achieved in an instant.
Instead of showing everyone the position of obeying King Jin like this, but not doing anything practical...
If the King of Jin continues to trust Xue Wanche and uses him as a surprise soldier to rework Chang'an, it is very likely to lead to Xue Wanche's backlash.
But the urgent letter sent to Tongguan would take at least three days to return. During these three days, Yuchi Gong didn't know what he should do.
Do you want to dominate the water defense line?
Not to mention being able to break through this well-organized defense line, if someone deliberately opened a hole to let themselves in, and then surrounded them to catch turtles in the jar, they would be trapped in a siege of more than 100,000 troops, and their only way out would be defeat.
Are you staying here?
That is, if the battle situation is quietly lost, Chang'an will have more time to respond and the arrangements will be more rigorous.
You can't go back the way you came, right?
Yuchi Gong was in a dilemma, worried and intuitively felt that something was not good.
There are even the most serious consequences. It was Qiu Xinggong who persuaded Xue Wanche that he defected to the King of Jin. If Xue Wanche was a "fake surrender", then Qiu Xinggong who persuaded him was deceived by Xue Wanche or had something to do with Xue Wanche. Conspiracy and collusion?
If it is the latter, it means that Qiu Xinggong is also a "fake surrender" and obeys the imperial court's orders. The fall of Hangu Pass is inevitable.
And once Hangu Pass falls quickly, the navy and the combined forces of the Zheng family in Xingyang can reach Tongguan in an instant. How many days can the current ragtag group of people in Tongguan hold back?
Therefore, the situation seems to be great at the moment, and everything is going smoothly according to plan, but there are many crises, and there is always the possibility of overturning.
Unless another army can stand up to support the King of Jin and march into Chang'an at the critical moment, the battle will be lost.
Then again, King Jin, Xiao Yu, Yu Wenshi and those people are all old foxes and young foxes. Do they really have no concerns about Qiu Xinggong and even Xue Wanche's position and have unreserved trust in them?
This may not necessarily be the case.
But if there really is a backhand, what is the backhand?
…
Before dawn, Li Xiaogong got dressed and left his concubine's warm bed. He went to the martial arts field and practiced swords and guns for a while. After breaking out in a sweat, he took a shower, put on clean clothes and had breakfast. He sat in the study and was lost in thought. Worried.
He was silent for a long time as he looked at the Feibai book with the words "Zhikuang Zongshe" written on it that was given to him by Emperor Taizong hanging on the wall.
When the stewards and children came to discuss matters, they were repelled by him and even threw a cup. Everyone in the mansion did not know why the prince was angry, and they were afraid to disturb him.
At Chen time, Li Xiaogong called people into the study to serve him and put on his court clothes. He went out and took a carriage to Taiji Palace to ask for an audience with the emperor.
In the study on the side of Wude Hall, Li Chengqian took time out from the busy work of dealing with official documents to meet him, took a sip of tea, and asked with a smile: "Originally, there were still some civil and military matters that had not been dealt with, and I planned to ask Uncle Wang to wait for a while, but the chamberlain said that Uncle Wang I have an urgent matter before you, but I don’t know what it is?”
Now that he had met with the emperor, it was clear that he had made a decision in his mind, so Li Xiaogong did not hesitate. He first looked at the left and right, and saw that only Wang Deshi, the chief chamberlain, was standing on one side, and said bluntly: "Your Majesty, beware of Chengfan."
Li Chengqian's hand holding the tea cup paused for a moment, and then he realized that "Chengfan" was Li Daozong's character...
He couldn't help but wonder: "The prince of Jiangxia County is loyal to the country. He is guarding the Xuanwu Gate in Suwei Palace. He is my heart and the pillar of the country. He has made great military achievements and is respected. I don't know what you mean by 'being on guard', Uncle Wang?"
Li Xiaogong and Li Daozong have always been the two swords that His Majesty Li Er relied on to control the clan. Especially in the years when Li Xiaogong "self-defeated" to protect himself, the latter became a veritable "big Zongzheng". His status and power are even greater than those of Han King Li Yuanjia.
Now Li Xiaogong, one of the "two treasured swords", came over and asked him to "beware" of the other sword...
What does it mean?
Li Xiaogong said in a deep voice: "Chengfan's recent state is extremely inappropriate. It is very different from the past. The ministers always feel that he is hiding his thoughts. The strategic position of Xuanwu Gate is too important. If Emperor Taizong hadn't contacted the Xuanwu Gate guard Chang He in advance to open it, How could the gate control lead to the subsequent great victory? There is no room for failure in the Xuanwu Gate."
Yu Wenkai built Daxing City on the eastern plateau of the former site of Chang'an City in the Han Dynasty. The terrain is high in the north and low in the south. The highest point is Longshouyuan, and the Xuanwu Gate was built on Longshouyuan, which is the entire Taiji Palace, Even the commanding heights of the entire Daxing City overlook the Taiji Palace. Once a mutiny is launched, the army can quickly launch a charge from high to low, taking advantage of the terrain to sweep the entire Taiji Palace and the entire Chang'an City. This shows the importance of the strategic position. It can be called the throat of Tai Chi Palace.
Without such favorable geographical conditions, His Majesty Li Er would not have been able to sweep through the Tai Chi Palace so quickly and imprison Emperor Gaozu to seize power...
A layer of white sweat appeared on Li Chengqian's back, and he was surprised and confused: "How can the king of Jiangxia County do this? Is it because there are rumors that the pheasant slave has in his hand the imperial edict from his father to pass the throne to him?"
Li Daozong has always been friendly with him or the prince. Every time the late emperor showed his desire to be an easy prince, he never agreed. During the Guanlong rebellion, he stood firmly on the side of the East Palace and worked with the Sixth Leader of the East Palace to support Zhengshuo and eliminate the rebellion. .
When he ascended the throne as emperor, Li Daozong also clearly supported him and was loyal to him. Otherwise, how would he dare to entrust the power of Xuanwu Sect to him?
Li Daozong was loyal to the late emperor and would never change his life and death. When he learned that the late emperor's edict on passing the throne was in the hands of Pheasant Nu, which represented the late emperor's last wish, he changed his tune and wanted to support the King of Jin in seizing the throne... This was the only reason Li Chengqian could think of.
Li Xiaogong said worriedly: "Wei Chen doesn't know! I just feel that something is not right with Chengfan's expression and mind. When I talked to him, he couldn't tell me the right words. Therefore, Wei Chen was very worried and felt that His Majesty should still know. No matter what the consequences are, No matter what you think, whether you will do something rebellious, Your Majesty always has to take precautions."
Silence fell in the study.
Li Chengqian was worried. If Li Daozong really secretly colluded with the pheasant slaves and suddenly raised troops to attack the palace at the critical moment, with Li Daozong's ability and the elites under his command, how could he still have any chance of survival?
But at this moment, Yuchi Gong led his army to the east of Bashui and was eyeing Chang'an. The garrison troops stationed in various places in Guanzhong had different ideas and it was difficult to distinguish between loyalty and annihilation. How could they dare to abandon the palace and leave the city?
Li Xiaogong had no choice. After all, this was just his guess based on Li Daozong's expression and behavior, and he couldn't make it accurately. He couldn't issue an imperial edict to deprive Li Daozong of his power to command the army, right?
After all, Li Daozong is one of the few powerful people in the clan, and his influence is no less than that of his uncle. Taking him into captivity will inevitably cause dissatisfaction and fear within the clan. By then, the pheasant slaves have not yet returned to Chang'an. , I am in chaos first. Under internal and external troubles, I am afraid that defeat is not far away...
He had no choice but to advise: "This is a big matter, and the ministers have no masters. It is better to convene the ministers to discuss and make more decisions."
Li Chengqian nodded quickly and asked Wang De to go out and send orders to several important ministers, asking them to come to Wude Hall to discuss matters.
…
