Tian Zaibiao snorted angrily and said: "Although Guan Ling is brave, he is not my opponent. I have absolute confidence that I can defeat him. Xu Ning's death was entirely because he overestimated his own capabilities and came to take the credit!"
When Li Shiji heard that Tian Zaibiao actually belittled his clan brother who died in the battle, he couldn't help but became furious and said: "Tian Zaibiao, don't forget, I am the commander here. Do I have to get your approval before I give orders?"
Tian Zaibiao sneered disdainfully: "I, Mr. Tian, don't have a general like you who is greedy for life and afraid of death. The reason why I am willing to follow you is because of the order of His Highness the County Prince."
"you..."
After hearing this, Li Shiji reached out and pressed the hilt of the sword hanging at his waist, the expression on his face changed again and again. After a long time, he took a deep breath and said slowly: "The current situation in the Tang Dynasty is as dangerous as a goose egg. I don't have the time to argue with you. If you are dissatisfied with me, you can return to Chang'an alone. If you still If you remember Prince Zhao’s order before he died in battle, then follow this general to set off to capture Nanzheng.”
"snort!"
Tian Zaibiao said no more, shook his cloak angrily, and walked down the city wall with his back on his back. Li Shiji behind him looked at his back coldly, the murderous intent in his eyes becoming more intense.
. . . . . . . . . .
An hour later, Li Shiji took five thousand elite troops who were put on Sui army armor and marched northward in formation. After another half an hour, generals Huang Junhan and Tian Zaibiao left the pass and headed north with a large amount of baggage and two to three thousand Sui army prisoners of war. So far, there was no more Tang army in Jianmen Pass.
Abandoning Jianmen Pass was also a helpless move by Li Shiji. Although Jianmen Pass was a natural hazard, Li Shiji now had less than 20,000 troops, while Yue Fei and Li Jing of Bashu had more than 200,000 troops. Hanchuan County in the north It was also captured by the Sui army, with enemies on both sides. How long could his lone army hold out even if it had natural dangers in hand?
The only solution now is to devise a plan to recapture Hanchuan, and attack with Li Longji's troops to destroy the Sui Army's Longzhi Division, and regain contact with Guanzhong. But the Sui army's Longzhi Division that captured Hanchuan also had 20,000 to 30,000 men. If he wanted to annihilate this army as quickly as possible, even with Li Longji's full cooperation, Li Shiji would never need less than 10,000 troops.
And if only a few thousand troops were left at Jianmen Pass, it would undoubtedly be an appetizer for Li Jing and Yue Fei's army, which numbered more than 200,000. They would be completely wiped out by the Sui army in less than a day. In this case, why bother sacrificing these soldiers and simply abandon Jianmen Pass, maybe it can also confuse the Sui army.
After three days and two nights of rapid march, Li Shiji led his army and finally arrived at the gate of Nanzheng City.
As Li Longji and Li Xiuning led a large-scale attack on Hanchuan, Long Zhi and Li Mi had already led the main army to the north to fight. There were now less than 3,000 defenders in Nanzheng City. Li Shiji easily deceived the city gates and captured the city. city.
The defeated soldiers fled northward in a hurry to Longzhi's barracks and reported the fall of Nanzheng to General Longzhi, Military Advisor Li Mi, and Deputy General Sheng Yan.
"Damn it, this thief Li Shiji is really vicious!" After the burly Long Zhi heard that Nan Zheng was breached by Li Shiji, he couldn't help but punch the handsome case in front of him.
Lieutenant General Sheng Yanshi also looked worried: "With the loss of Nanzheng, our army's retreat has been cut off. Li Shiji's next step must be to lead his army and Li Longji to attack front and back. Now the situation is a bit bad!"
Long Zhi turned his head to Li Mi and asked in a deep voice: "Military advisor, what do you think should be done?"
Long Zhi had been partnering with Li Mi for a long time, and he admired Li Mi's strategy so much that when he was at a loss, he would immediately ask Li Mi for advice.
Li Mi frowned and stared at the map in front of him for a long time. He slowly said: "Facing the current situation, I have three strategies available, but each strategy has its own risks."
Long Zhi nodded and said: "The military advisor will tell you all the three strategies first, and I will make a decision after discussing them together."
"The first strategy is to quickly fight back to Nanzheng before Li Longji on the opposite side learns the news about Li Shiji. Li Jingyue Fei of Bashu has an army of 200,000 in his hands. As long as we capture Nanzheng quickly, the Tang army will be defeated! "
Long Zhi immediately shook his head and said: "Nanzheng City has high walls and thick walls. Li Shiji must have tens of thousands of soldiers and horses. It is impossible for us to recapture Nanzheng from him with just our few soldiers and horses, and it is very likely that Li Shiji and Li Shiji will take back Nanzheng." Li Longji attacked from both sides and the entire army was wiped out!"
Li Mi nodded slowly and said: "So this strategy is my last strategy, and it is also the one with the highest risk. And my middle strategy is to immediately withdraw the troops along the Han River and return to Xicheng. In this way, our army will be bathed in blood." The results of the fighting will be lost, but in this way we can preserve the main force of our army, and this strategy is my middle strategy."
Master Sheng Yan frowned and said in a deep voice: "Li Shiji's moral character is lacking, but I have to admit that this man is well versed in the art of war. I'm worried that he will probably send troops to set up an ambush on our way back to the West City."
Li Bi said calmly: "I have also considered this. However, Li Shiji's troops do not have many troops and they have to defend Nanzheng City. Therefore, the troops that can be allocated are limited and it is impossible to intercept all our troops."
Long Zhi frowned slightly. He understood the meaning of Li Bi's words, which was to ask the strong men to cut off their wrists and sacrifice some soldiers and horses to cover the retreat of the main army.
After pondering for a long time, Long Zhi shook his head and categorically rejected: "At present, all our armies in the Sui Dynasty are reporting frequent successes and gaining a lot. If our army is defeated back to the West City with such a loss, what status will we have in the court in the future? What's more, most of the brothers here have been fighting with me, Long Zhi, for several years. I can't sacrifice them to cover Long Zhi's retreat! Military advisor, what's your best plan?"
Li Mi looked at Long Zhi in front of him, a trace of determination flashed in his eyes, and he stretched out his finger to draw a line on the map: "My best option is to risk death and survive, and launch a surprise attack on Chang'an!"
"Surprise attack on Chang'an?" Masters Long Zhi and Sheng Yan both took a breath of air and looked at Li Bi in front of them in shock.
Li Mi nodded solemnly: "Now that all the puppet Tang troops are fighting outside, the capital Chang'an is empty. This is our only chance to turn defeat into victory."
"good!"
Master Sheng Yan lowered his head and thought for a moment, and then spoke out to support Li Bi: "Now Li Shiji and Li Longji have set their sights on Hanchuan County and Xicheng County. If we go in the opposite direction, we may gain unexpected gains." !”
After listening to the words of the two deputies, Long Zhi weighed the pros and cons in his heart and finally filed the case.
Said: "Okay, I, Long Zhi, will take a gamble this time!"
