"Liu Xi, the last general, pays homage to the prince! My commander is commanding operations at the front line of the navy. He is not in the camp and cannot come. Please forgive me, the prince."
Um? Liu Xi? Him again?
Li Daozong said with a worried look on his face: "Vice General Liu, your leader is so arrogant that I can't even invite him?"
Liu Xiwei asked: "Your Majesty, please calm down. It's not because the commander is trying to shirk the responsibility. It's because the war on the front line is so intense that we can't rest for a moment."
Li Daozong snorted coldly: "Huh, what kind of rebellion is happening in this Jingxiang land? Is it worth your time to attack? Not only is the entire Yangtze River blocked, but your Commander Xu can't rest for a moment?"
"I think back then, when I followed the army to march north to Jieli, there was a tense and fierce battle involving hundreds of thousands of people, and you were not as busy as you were in suppressing bandits."
Liu Xi broke into a cold sweat. He wiped away his sweat, and his mind was full of thoughts.
Should I tell him or not? Or is it just a pretense? After all, Li Daozong was just passing by, maybe he asked casually and just to show off?
Oops... Commander Xu, you have tricked me, Liu Xi. This prince's attitude is not obvious. It seems that there is no other reason. He just wants to show off. It's my fault that you didn't come to meet me in person. How about you send me to support him? I'm afraid it will be even harder for people to leave now.
After thinking about it, Liu Xi decided to avoid the important matter and talk about it. Li Daozong is usually in Chang'an, and this time he stayed in Lingnan for several months, so he definitely doesn't understand Jing Xiang's situation, "Oh, it's not a big deal. There is a group of rampant Dongting water bandits nearby. These people are the remnants of the former Sui Dynasty. They rely on their ability to use the water to gather in Dongting. They are large in number, but they are also very slippery."
"They loot on the river almost every year, and from time to time they dare to challenge the majesty of our Jingxiang navy. We don't want to go to war. After all, the Tang Dynasty is recovering its strength, and we will fight if we can."
"But they became more and more arrogant, so the leader of my family reported to the court that they were determined to suppress the bandits this time and eliminate this cancer in Dongting in one fell swoop."
Dongting water bandits?
Li Daozong frowned, wasn't that the group of people who sent us across the river last time? Although he is a Dongting water bandit, he is good friends with Changle. Moreover, I heard from Champion Hou that he intends to recruit this army to form the Tang Navy in the future.
Li Jingheng, who was standing next to him, stood up and said anxiously: "Aren't those Dongting water bandits..."
Um?
After reaching out to stop his son, Li Daozong scolded: "Although there is a reason for this, you blocked the river without permission and prohibited people from crossing the river. This is unacceptable and has seriously affected the people's livelihood. Unblock the river immediately."
this……
Liu Xiwei said, "My lord, I don't dare. The situation is serious and the war is going on. Everyone on the river must listen to Commander Xu. I will go back and ask for instructions."
Li Daozong said dissatisfied: "What? My king's orders don't work?"
Liu Xi bowed and saluted: "Your Majesty, please calm down. The war requires it. We have reported it to the court in advance..."
Li Daozong said sternly: "Are you using the imperial court to suppress me? Okay, I will write a letter immediately and ask Chang'an if this is the case. Can you block the river in violation of the imperial order by suppressing a bandit? This is simply ridiculous!"
Liu Xi was so frightened that he almost cried, "Your Majesty, please calm down. I will go back and ask for instructions from the commander."
After just two steps, he suddenly remembered his purpose and turned around quickly, "Your Majesty, please believe that no one under the leadership of my family dares to disrespect the Prince. Even if the war ahead is tight, I heard that As you pass by Jingxiang, my commander must withstand the pressure and send a fleet of the last general to escort you across the river..."
Li Daozong's face softened and he nodded, "I'm interested. Go back and ask Commander Xu, it's better to open the river as soon as possible. If it takes too long, the court will hold you accountable. I have good intentions."
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for reminding me." Liu Xi felt relieved, "By the way, I came here just to ask, does Your Majesty have any other instructions?"
Li Daozong shook his head and said, "No. What? What does Vice General Liu mean?"
"Oh, it's nothing. I was just thinking, Your Majesty, you were crossing the Yangtze River to return to Chang'an. Why did you suddenly stop here? You thought something happened here. If anything happens to Your Majesty, you must tell your generals to go to the ground in Jingxiang. It's okay if we run errands and stuff." Liu Xi was very good at talking, making insinuations and not asking directly.
Li Daozong is an old man, so how can he not understand what the other party means?
He calmly patted Liu Xi on the shoulder and said with a smile: "Vice General Liu is interested. When I marry my daughter to Lingnan, according to the rules, my daughter must return to the province in three days, but Lingnan is thousands of miles away from Chang'an, and inconvenient."
"So the return to the province has been postponed. I, the king, will take the first step, and my daughter and son-in-law will take care of some affairs and come later. It will be a formality to arrive in Chang'an one or two days later than us."
"I wanted to wait for them here, but I sent someone to ask. The river is blocked. No wonder I can't wait for them..."
ah?
I see!
Liu Xi was completely relieved. No wonder the King of Jiangxia, a passerby, was so concerned about blocking the Yangtze River. It turned out that he was blocking his daughter from returning home? Fortunately, fortunately, as long as it is not related to the Dongting water bandits.
"Hey! Isn't this a flood that has washed away the Dragon King Temple? A misunderstanding, a huge misunderstanding. No one thought that a temporary arrangement would actually miss the prince and the princess. The general's dereliction of duty, we Just send a boat across the river and we will definitely pick up the princess."
Li Daozong waved his hand and said, "It doesn't matter. You can delay your private affairs for a few days, but the people's affairs are official affairs and cannot be neglected. Lieutenant General Liu, go and ask Commander Xu for instructions. It would be best if you can open the river as soon as possible."
"As for the little girl and her husband, the road from Lingnan to this point is difficult, and they may not have reached the south bank yet, so don't worry, it will be fine if you wait a few days."
Liu Xi apologized profusely and offered to help no matter what. So he went back to the camp in person to ask for instructions. At the same time, he arranged for a team of people to cross the river and wait on the south bank to welcome Princess Jiangxia to cross the river.
After sending Liu Xi away, Li Daozong's face darkened.
Li Jingheng gathered around anxiously, "Father, there is something strange about this matter. The imperial court came to destroy the Dongting water bandits, but it also blocked the river for a month? There is no way there is no news about such a big thing. And about the Dongting water bandits, the Marquis It was said in Lingnan that they were willful heroes and not bad people. Why did the imperial court suddenly come to suppress the bandits? "
Li Daozong nodded: "How could I not know that there was something fishy? That's why I used a pretense to deal with him under the guise of your sister."
"Obviously they are afraid that our three thousand garrison will ruin their affairs, and Liu Xi is here to find out the truth. Since they are afraid that we will know, it means that what they do is not visible to the public. Haha, it is difficult to tell the truth from the truth about bandit suppression. But if the Jingxiang navy dares to cut off people's livelihood for a month, it is already a heinous crime."
"I swayed Liu Xi away. While they haven't become suspicious in the past few days, we have to find out what happened quickly. By the way, leave and send someone to contact the Marquis. The affairs in the Jingxiang area involve the Dongting water bandits. Then He is the subordinate appointed by the Marquis, so the Marquis must be interested."
…
Half a day later, a person came into Li Daozong's camp, and it was Li Junxian who was chasing after him after bypassing Jingxiang and crossing the river with difficulty. As soon as the two sides met, the truth was almost revealed. I'm afraid that Lord Marquis's prediction is correct, and the Jingxiang Navy is very likely to betray the enemy. It's a pity that we can't contact the court now. Otherwise, we will soon be able to verify whether it was the bandit suppression ordered by the court.
