In Chang'an City, Emperor Li Er held a grand celebration banquet for Li Jing and others who returned.
Although both sides suffered losses, at least the strategic goal was achieved and the prince was rescued. If it hadn't been for the heavy losses caused by the last sneak attack, this time could be described as a great victory.
Speaking of which, old Li Jing was also unlucky. This was the second time his boat capsized in the gutter. The last time Xiao Rui went deep into the grassland, Old Li Jing easily captured Dingxiang City, captured the Turkic prince, surrounded Wei and rescued Zhao, and forced Jieli to return for reinforcements.
Jieli besieged Dingxiang for many days to no avail. Xiao Rui escaped safely back to Chang'an City. Seeing that Jieli had lost his wife and lost his troops, he reversed the situation and actually left a secret passage in Dingxiang and killed him with his dead men. The inside should be coordinated with the outside, and the success of seizing the city and killing the general was missed. Old Li Jing's face was very ugly.
This time again, outside Dingxiang City, old Li Jing used his troops like a god, killing countless Turkic soldiers and horses. He was handed away with the credit just as he saw it, but he was attacked by Jieli at night, causing both sides to lose. The great military achievements were lost again. .
Fortunately, both times were not considered defeats, and the emperor still gave him enough face. The first strategic purpose is to protect Youzhou and rescue Xiao Rui. The strategic purpose this time is to rescue the prince. The goals were achieved both times. As for capturing Jieli and destroying the Turks, that was not the strategic purpose of our sending troops, it was just a slogan.
Although he was promoted to Duke Wei and received countless flowers and applause, old Li Jing still felt aggrieved. If there are no accidents, this will be the last battle of his life. I am getting old. I am almost sixty and can no longer lead the army. After this battle, I am ready to retire and stay at home writing books. It is a pity that I have not received full credit! Only regrets.
No one mentioned the champion Hou Xiaorui during the whole process, as if everyone had a tacit understanding. The generals in the army did not want to get involved in the emperor's family affairs, and the emperor had not yet figured out how to deal with this troublesome son-in-law. As for civil servants? Xiao Rui did not withdraw, but borrowed Liang's troops, horses, and food, which was not a taboo.
What about Su Lie's 10,000 cavalry? Sorry, I was sent to protect you Xiao Rui. Is it not too much to ask the Xiao Family Chamber of Commerce to provide food and grass? Since people spend their own money to provide food and grass and do not spend money from the court, what does it have to do with us?
No one wants to touch the emperor's brow for a mere 10,000 soldiers and horses. Everyone knows that the emperor loves this son-in-law. It is nothing to send a mere 10,000 soldiers and horses to protect the champion prince of the Tang Dynasty.
But who could have known that the emperor was both angry and in love with this son-in-law. He loved him because he was talented and could take on big responsibilities, but he was angry because he was never obedient and always got into trouble. He was too busy wiping his ass.
The next day, old Li Jing and Wei Zheng went to the palace to plead guilty.
"Your Majesty, the old minister is guilty. Your Majesty, please remove the minister's title of Duke of Wei. The defeated army will suffer the shame."
Emperor Li Er said impatiently: "Pharmacist, I have already said it in public. Saving the prince in this battle is a full achievement, let alone the rest. Do you want me to go back on my word?"
Old Li Jing's beard trembled slightly and he saluted quickly: "I don't dare. But Your Majesty, I secretly sent 10,000 cavalry to Xiao Rui as a guard. This matter is unacceptable. As an army general, rewards and punishments should be clearly defined. Without the king's order, I can mobilize troops privately. Please punish me, Your Majesty."
Li Er muttered: "It's not your fault. Xiao Rui, a bastard, caused trouble for us, and he asked us to wipe his ass. Hum, I will take care of him when he comes back. As for your deployment of troops, you are determined The general manager of Xiangdao Marching Army has the power to mobilize troops according to their needs, so there is nothing wrong with that."
"But His Majesty had already ordered the withdrawal of the troops at that time. It is better to ask Your Majesty to punish him, otherwise I will feel uneasy."
Li Er nodded: "Okay, if you insist on doing this, then you will be fined for one year and you can think about your mistakes behind closed doors."
This... Old Li Jing thought it was too frivolous, but was interrupted by Li Er with a wave of his hand, "That's it. If nothing happens, you can leave."
Helpless, Li Jing could only bow and leave.
Li Er looked at Wei Zheng, "Xuancheng, are you here to plead guilty too?"
Wei Zheng shook his head and said: "No, I am here to participate in the performance of the champion Hou Xiaorui."
"Oh? That's strange. You protected your son-in-law on the battlefield, but why did you join him when you came back? Could it be that the father-in-law and son-in-law were at odds? Are you, Wei Xuancheng, angry because of shame?" Li Er joked.
Wei Zheng shook his head solemnly: "Your Majesty, please protect him because it is a private matter, and participating in his performance is a business matter. How dare I depose the official for personal reasons? Champion Hou Xiaorui disobeys the emperor's orders and insists on pestering Jie Li for his own selfish reasons. He is so arrogant. It must not be left unpunished.”
Li Er nodded: "Yes, this kid is too mischievous. I am also worried about how to deal with him? Should I deprive him of his title? But the title of Champion is hard-won, so take it away from him. I will think about it in the future. It will be difficult to pay him back.”
"How many troops does he and Xue Li have combined? Just want to capture Jie Li? That's ridiculous."
"If he is lucky enough to succeed, it will be fine. I have something to say. If he loses his troops and loses his food and fodder, and returns defeated, I will not be able to justify him not punishing him."
Wei Zheng retorted: "No, what I am participating in is not that he is coming back, but that he should be convicted and imprisoned now."
What? ? ? What's the point? Xuancheng, are you confused? Xiao Rui is fighting outside. You can't even catch him in person. What can we do?
Wei Zheng said in a deep voice: "My worries are exactly the opposite of His Majesty's. I am not worried about him coming back defeated, I am worried about him coming back victorious."
oh? What's the point? Li Er was puzzled.
But Wei Zheng couldn't explain it. Li Er smiled and said: "Xuancheng, there are no outsiders here. Xiao Rui is your son-in-law and mine. I believe him when he says you participated in the concert, but I don't believe him when he says you don't protect him."
Seeing Wei Zheng's dilemma, Li Er waved his hand and retreated.
Wei Zheng slowly expressed his worries: "Your Majesty, Xiao Rui has already made a lot of military achievements, and the greater his fame, the more arrogant he becomes. It is not a good thing if things go on like this in the long run. It is also a good thing to have a setback, so defeat is better. Your Majesty can do it logically Punish him and make him restrain himself."
Li Er nodded, "That makes sense. But this kid is a freak. Even though he is causing trouble everywhere, I often try my best to force him to move. Otherwise, I would rather stay in Xiaojiazhuang fishing all day." , I don’t want to come out to serve. I’m too lazy.”
Wei Zheng continued: "Your Majesty, if the army did not withdraw and Commander Li Jing defeated Dingxiang and captured Jieli, then everyone would be happy."
"But it's different now. There are only Xiao Rui and Xue Li, plus Su Lie, who is close to Xiao Rui. If he really captures Jie Li and destroys the Turks, he will have such a huge credit alone, and other generals will not share it. No matter how big the reward is, it will only do him harm and no good."
"When he presided over the Yushitai, he killed all the people, and he had already offended many civil servants. Now if he takes the military honors and offends many generals, then he will really be isolated by the court."
hiss……
Li Er couldn't help but take a breath of cold air. Yes, Xuan Cheng was right. In the past, when the civil and military officials in the court mentioned Xiao Rui, they would both scold and respect him. But if you offend him too hard and everyone hates you secretly, then nothing will happen to Xiao Rui in the future.
The two discussed for a while, and Li Er decided to issue an order. The champion Hou Xiaorui was arrogant and disobeyed the king's order, so he was ordered to be arrested and imprisoned immediately. The Ministry of Punishment investigated the case and convicted him.
As soon as the team sent out to arrest people left Chang'an City, Dingxiang reported victory and rushed into the city eight hundred miles away. I wonder if Li Er’s expression is wonderful?
