Li Shimin laughed loudly: "That's right. You encountered difficulties and obstacles today. How can I, the elder brother, turn a blind eye?"
After a few simple greetings, he added: "This place is dangerous and it is not advisable to stay for a long time. Since a gap has been opened, we will go together!"
Li Qiao responded neatly: "Okay!"
Li Shimin pointed to Shunzhou City and asked: "How will this place be resettled in the future?"
Li Qiao took out a letter from his arms and said with a smile: "It has been prepared for a long time."
Then he stretched out his hand and said, "Please lend me my brother's bow and arrows!"
Li Shimin took it and gave it to him.
But he saw Li Qiao tie the letter to the arrow, draw the bow and shoot it straight at the flagpole at the top of the city. Then he looked relaxed, returned the bow and arrow, clamped it in the horse's belly, and said loudly: " Let’s go!”
For him, things here are over.
The rebels encountered a surprise attack at night, and their general died in battle. They were leaderless for a while and the situation was chaotic. At this time, the Crown Prince of Wei led his army. The rebels felt that the enemy troops were coming to help in large numbers, and they were even more panicked. They scrambled for their lives and trampled on each other, so many people died.
Li Tianrong led his army to come, and faced such a vulnerable enemy. Naturally, there was no reason to retreat. He assigned his generals to take advantage of the victory to pursue them, and he followed the movements and traces of the battlefield all the way to Shunzhou East. Door.
The largest number of rebel corpses were left here. It can be seen that this is where the soldiers came to help and break through the siege. However, they arrived too late, but there were only horse hooves on the ground and scattered serious injuries. The rebels fell to the ground and groaned, but the rest were all gone. No trace.
At this moment, I heard someone shouting from the top of the city: "Is the person coming from the Prince of Wei's army?"
Li Tianrong was slightly startled when he heard it, but without hesitation, he responded: "That's right."
There was a burst of cheers at the top of the city. After taking a closer look at their armor and military flags, they were completely different from those of the rebels. After confirming that they were correct, the city gate was finally opened.
"The prince is here, and the hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians in Shunzhou City will be saved!"
"I've long heard that Prince Wei's son has a kind heart, and today I saw that he truly deserves his reputation——"
As soon as Li Tianrong entered the city, he bent down.
There is no way, anyone who has so many high hats slapped on his head will not be able to straighten up again.
The tall hats were still being placed on his head one by one. Li Tianrong greeted politely while opening the letter Li Qiao left for him.
A very short letter with very direct wording.
"I am about to leave, but I am unable to continue to defend Shunzhou. I am also worried that the rebels will move to anger the soldiers and civilians in the city and slaughter the city. I heard that the king of Wei is extremely magnanimous and merciful. The prince of Wei is a rare virtuous man at that time. He loves the people like a son, so he obeys Shunzhou. The state trusts..."
"You and I both serve this dynasty. Although we have no close friendship, we still sympathize with each other. We help the country and save the country. How hard is it? Today, I entrust the people of Shunzhou to the hands of the prince. I hope that the prince will not let me down. !”
Li Tianrong: "..."
Li Tianrong: "????"
Li Tianrong: (￣～￣;)
Ah this...
I have a dirty word, I don’t know whether to say it or not!
It was fine when you came, you can't go back!
Walk?
The rebels were only dispersed, not completely defeated. Li Qiao was gone, and so was he. What if the rebels really vented their anger on the soldiers and civilians in Shunzhou City?
Isn’t the blame entirely placed on him?
Furthermore, even if public opinion and reputation were not taken into account, Li Tianrong could not do anything to save him.
But if you don’t leave...
He had a headache—this was a mess!
Li Qiao has been fighting the rebels here for so long, and Shunzhou City is in a state of disgrace. If he continues to use this as a base to fight against the rebels, he must consider the logistics of food and fodder - and this is only at the military level. The difficulty!
From a political point of view, Shunzhou was too close to the seat of the imperial court.
His stationing here is equivalent to picking up a leather shoe outside King Wei's operating power. Although the quality of the shoe is very good, it is far away from King Wei's sphere of influence!
As the saying goes, the fragrance is far away and the smell is close. In the past, it was just as far away from the court. Now the distance is getting closer, which means that it is easy for both parties to have friction, and even think about it in the dark. After Shunzhou, which was beaten into rotten cotton, has been recuperated, what will happen if the court takes it back again?
Isn’t it a useless effort!
But……
Looking at the faces in the city filled with requests and the eyes full of hope, Li Tianrong really couldn't say no.
The staff looked at him with some embarrassment and said in a low voice: "Your Majesty, mercy is not in charge of the army..."
Li Tianrong sighed secretly, with a very calm expression on his face: "Send the order for the army to enter the city and garrison it!"
…
Wu Erlang and Wu Cuicui were waiting for the news. Both brothers and sisters were restless.
An hour passed like this, but I heard the soldiers staying here outside moving around frequently.
The brother and sister looked at each other with a little uneasiness on their faces. Wu Erlang went out to ask, but heard the other party say: "Chang Shi made an appointment with us before leaving. We will leave east to meet up in an hour..."
Wu Erlang grabbed his sleeve and asked: "What about General Li Qiao?"
The soldier said: "This long history has never been mentioned."
When Wu Cuicui heard this movement in the military tent, she couldn't sit still. Wu Erlang could see her thoughts at a glance and said with a straight face: "You wait here and don't walk around randomly. I will go with them." Find out what’s going on!”
Wu Cuicui knew that going with them would only slow down her journey, so she was anxious and nodded in agreement.
Over there, Li Shimin and Li Qiao walked quickly for a long time. After getting out of danger, they finally slowed down and allowed the soldiers to repair themselves temporarily.
He was also waiting for the group of people who had stayed elsewhere to catch up and join him.
Li Shimin said seriously: "Now that things have come to a point, it's time for my sworn brother to make a decision. Should you go with me or return to the west? No matter how you decide, I have no objection."
Li Qiao smiled and said: "I have considered this issue before my brother went to Shunzhou."
After saying this, he reined in the reins, turned the horse's head, turned to the soldiers who had been following him for a long time, and recounted everything the emperor had told him before he left.
The crowd was excited.
In contrast, Li Qiao looked calm: "What happened today is that the emperor has failed Li Qiao, not Li Qiao. At this point, the kindness of the emperor and his ministers has been cut off, and Li Qiao will no longer be a minister of this dynasty!"
He looked around and raised his voice: "I have fought side by side with you for many days. I treat you like brothers and sisters. Today I will take off my general title and follow my brother eastward, but I don't want to implicate your future." . If you don’t intend to go together, you can leave on your own and forget about the friendship between us!"
All the soldiers were silent for a few moments, and then they all said in unison: "General, you regard me as your heart, and I am willing to die for you!"
Li Qiao said: "I am no longer your general..."
But Li Shimin smiled and said: "Hey, when you come to my place, you still want to be a general. Do you want me to set up another official position just for you?"
After hearing this, Li Qiao couldn't help laughing.
Wu Erlang and a group of Li Shimin's subordinates came on horseback. After hearing a few tail words in their ears, they already felt something bad. They approached the horse and greeted Li Shimin politely, then looked at Li Qiao: "Sister-in-law, can you do it?" Want to talk to me somewhere else?"
Li Qiao said: "I have nothing to say to my brother."
Wu Erlang then said: "I know that my sister-in-law is not a creature of the pond. It is a good thing to leave the court and find another place. Cuicui is in Pingcheng at this time. Let her leave with you..."
Li Qiao didn't answer but asked: "Where are the three thousand cavalry I left behind?"
Wu Erlang was speechless. After a moment, he finally spoke with shame and told him about the incident that happened with the capital that day.
After Li Qiao was silent for a few moments, he finally nodded slightly: "I see."
Wu Erlang said cautiously: "Cui Cui..."
Li Qiao saw his timidity and uneasiness, and took the initiative to say: "I don't hate her. It's a blessing for Li Shu to be able to keep the officials and people of the capital safe."
Wu Erlang looked relaxed.
Unexpectedly, I heard Li Qiao say: "But it can only stop here."
He said: "The union between me and her was based on what we both wanted. The Wu family owed me nothing, and I didn't owe the Wu family anything. Mrs. Wu taught me a lot and was my good teacher. What happened today , the grievances and grievances have been offset, and they have nothing to do with each other since then, so it can be considered that I have repaid Madam Wu's kindness."
Wu Erlang felt as if he had been struck by lightning, his face as white as paper.
Li Qiao took out the dagger, cut off the knot on the saber, and handed it back to Wu Erlang: "This was given to me by Wu before leaving. Take it back and give it back to her."
"She is not the wife I need, and I am probably not a good match for her. From now on, the marriage between a man and a woman will have nothing to do with each other. I hope she... can find a true lover."
Chapter 136
Regarding his marriage, Li Qiao had already thought about it carefully a few days ago when the reinforcements had not arrived.
The combination between him and Wu Cuicui was an expedient solution tacitly agreed upon by both parties.
The Wu family took a fancy to his future, and urgently needed one of their own to take charge of Yu Yin in the army, and he...
At that time, I'm afraid he didn't have the right to speak out against it.
It can only be said to be an exchange of interests.
However, Li Qiao did not deny that the Wu family, especially Mrs. Wu, did help him a lot.
He stepped on the shoulders of the Wu family and almost reached the sky in one step. He saw scenery that he could not see before. Under the guidance of Mrs. Wu, he also tried to set his sights on another world. His own cognition He's hard work and the Wu family's promotion and support jointly shaped Li Qiao today.
However, that’s about it.
Li Qiao once envied the friendship between his brother and the Xiao family's wife. When the two of them got along, there was no need to say anything, just a glance, and it was easy for them to get along, not to mention the Xiao family's wife's courage. His talent and vision are rare in this world.
And Wu Cuicui...
If she had been born in a time of peace, she would probably have had a smooth life, but she was born in this time of war and chaos. With her temperament, she was destined to encounter many twists and turns.
He knew that she was working hard and wanted to do things well, but he also knew that her qualifications were too poor and her progress was too slow for her to catch up.
If we continue to force it, I'm afraid it won't be a good thing for both parties.
It's better to just break it off.
Li Qiao neatly ended the marriage and at the same time returned the Luozi that Wu Cuicui had given him before leaving to Wu Erlang's hands as a response.
After Wu Erlang heard this, he stayed on the spot. After he came to his senses, he was filled with horror and said repeatedly: "Sister-in-law, please slow down and listen to me, Cuicui..."
Li Qiao raised his hand to stop what he said next: "Mr. Wu, there is no need to say more, I have made up my mind!"
He said: "In the past, whether it was a gift from the Wu family or a gift from the emperor, it was all in the capital, and there was always ten thousand gold. I won't take any of it, I will leave it all to the Wu family. After all, we are just a husband and wife. Still. With those three thousand cavalry..."
