"Report——, Liaodong Metropolitan Protector Yang Xingtai, Yinshan Governor Xue Wei, and Hebei Province Marching Director Chai Jingbin are asking for an audience."
Hearing that the military general was waiting outside to see him, Xiahou Ninghan exchanged glances with Master Hui Dian and said softly: "Your Highness has military affairs to deal with, so Ninghan and Master took their leave first."
Li Bing quickly waved his hand and said: "It doesn't matter. Master Huidian and the sect master are not outsiders. You can stay and listen together so that you can give me some advice."
While they were talking, three generals from the Shengtang military entered the room and saluted the prince at the same time.
The Liaodong Protectorate, together with the Zhenjiang Protectorate and the Lingnan Protectorate, were collectively known as the Three Protectorates of the Holy Tang Dynasty. They were mainly responsible for guarding the northern border of the dynasty and fighting against the various ethnic tribes that suppressed the grasslands. Their scale is not as large as the original Zhenjiang Protectorate. Their main force is only over 50,000 troops, but they are all cavalry. They have been competing with the Hu tribe for a long time, and their combat power is strong.
The Yinshan Governor's Mansion has fewer troops in comparison, but they are similar to the Liaodong Governor's Mansion. They are also to prevent the grassland peoples in the north from causing rebellion, so they have very rich combat experience.
Compared with the two of them, the soldiers from Hebei Province seemed a bit ordinary. The advantage of the government soldiers lies in their large numbers, and they are also the core force of the Prince's Corps, so they are highly valued by Li Bing.
After the three generals finished their salutes, the leader of the Liaodong Governor Yang Xingtai said: "Your Highness, today I and three other people have requested an audience. They are here to report to Your Highness the various situations of the army's preparations for war, and to ask for instructions on the next step. "
Li Bing nodded slightly and responded solemnly: "Generals, thank you for your hard work. If there is any new progress, please tell me."
Yang Xingtai obeyed the order and introduced to Li Bing various matters regarding the gathering, placement and training of the army, while Xue Wei occasionally added a few words.
Chai Jingbin, the military commander of Hebei Province, served as the host. The content of the report mainly focused on the preparation of military supplies, grain, grass and weapons, and everything was detailed one by one.
Li Bing listened very carefully and asked questions from time to time. He paid close attention to the tiny details in the reports of the three people and checked them repeatedly.
After more than an hour, Yang Xingtai and the others finally finished speaking. Li Bing thought for a while and finally asked: "What suggestions do you have for the next action?"
Yang Xingtai responded loudly: "Your Highness, I have discussed it with Governor Xue and General Chai before. I believe that our army has a strong military front and high morale. The whole army should take advantage of this favorable situation to send troops to Xiangzhou first to seize the south bank of the river. Several strategic strongholds serve as springboards to advance into the hinterland of the Central Plains. After that, we will divide our troops into two groups and deploy defenses along the lines of Guanzhou, Xingyang, Chenliu and Bianzhou. If we advance, we can approach Hulao Pass, and if we retreat, we can guard the Central Plains. The main grain-producing area can also cut off the retreat route of the traitor Xie Guang and prevent him from escaping back to the Yanzhou base camp when he sees that the situation is not good."
Xue Wei continued: "On the other hand, go south along the Tongji Canal to attack the rebel king Li Kuang who is entrenched in Huaiyang. According to reports from spies, the number of rebels gathered by Li Kuang is close to 100,000, and they should be dealt with as soon as possible. .After we have completely quelled the Huaiyang rebels, we will be able to open the road to the south of the Yangtze River, so that our army can get material support from the rich areas and become stronger. At that time, we will return to the west and eliminate Xie Guanghe in one fell swoop. His Black Armor Army!"
Li Bing thought carefully and asked: "If the Huaiyang Emperor does not intend to confront us head-on, but chooses to lead his troops to Jiangnan, then should we pursue him?"
Yang Xingtai replied: "I have also considered the situation mentioned by Your Highness. If Li Kuang avoids my attack, directly abandons his home base, retreats to the southeast, and then takes over the capitals of Jiangnan, then we can only continue to pursue. So as not to give it a chance to become bigger.”
"If this is the case, then the distance between our two armies will inevitably be widened," Li Bing frowned and said thoughtfully: "Would this make it easier for Xie Guang to take advantage of the spread of our two armies?" Take the initiative?"
Chai Jingbin nodded and said: "Your Highness is wise. There is indeed this risk in the strategy of dividing the troops into two groups. Our army started from Hebei, all the way to the southwest, all the way to the southeast, gradually advancing and gradually moving away. If the two armies are not far apart, we can They are competing against each other; but if one of them goes all the way to the south of the Yangtze River, then the troops remaining in the Central Plains will have to face the main force of the Xuanjia Army alone."
Yang Xingtai cupped his hands and said loudly: "Your Highness, I have the confidence to lead the Liaodong soldiers to block Xie Guangdong's advance! Until Governor Xue destroys King Huaiyang and returns to the Central Plains to join us!"
Li Bingxian nodded with satisfaction, then turned to ask Shen Lie: "What is the relationship between the Turks and Xie Guang now?"
Shen Lie replied: "According to reliable information, the relationship between Tujue and Xie Guang has gradually changed from the original state of false love and superficial harmony to a situation where they can break up at any time. If Lao Jianhua hadn't been desperately mediating in the middle, I'm afraid He Lianxiong is already on his way to Luoyi."
"Are the Turks waiting for something?" Li Bing suddenly asked curiously.
"Probably they are waiting for two things," Shen Lie nodded slightly: "One is to wait for the battle in the Imperial Capital to be completely over, and the other is to wait for Xie Guang to surrender completely. If the Turkic army recovers from the battlefield in the Imperial Capital, and Xie Guang still hasn't agreed If you become their puppet, then the first person the Turks will use to attack you must be the Xuanjia Army occupying Luoyi."
Li Bing couldn't help but ask: "Then do you think Xie Guang will obey?"
Shen Lie frowned: "I feel that this is difficult to say. Xie Guang only has himself in his heart, and has no country, morality, honor or disgrace to speak of. As long as there is still the slightest chance, he will never be willing to succumb to the Turks He is inferior to others. However, when the situation develops to the point where it is unsustainable, he will not hesitate to betray his country for glory."
"So, what we have to face next is probably not just Xie Guang's rebels." Li Bing turned to look at Yang Xingtai: "If Xie Guang feels desperate and really worships the Turks as his new master , are you sure you can stop the enemy from advancing eastward before Xue Wei rushes back?"
Yang Xingtai was slightly stunned. After hesitating for a moment, he shook his head.
Chai Jingbin, the marching commander of Hebei Province, asked curiously: "Your Highness, you mean that we should not divide our troops?"
Li Bing stood up and walked to the wooden frame, pointing to the map hanging on it: "We still need to divide the troops. However, the focus of offense and defense needs to be changed. Your plan is to defend from the west and advance from the south, but what I want is to It is to defend from the south and advance westward. Specifically, it means to temporarily let go of Huaiyang King Li Kuang, or force him to the south of the Yangtze River, or launch a defense in the direction of Huaiyang, with only a small number of troops to deal with it. The main force of our entire army will be deployed Come to the west and prepare for a strategic decisive battle with Xie Guang and even the Turks!"
After hearing this, all the generals couldn't help but look at each other, and some didn't know what to say. Shen Lie coughed softly twice and said: "Your Highness Ming Jian. The generals advocate attacking the rebel king Li Kuang first. In fact, there is another consideration, that is, he has royal blood."
Of course Li Bing understood the meaning of his words and couldn't help but laugh. He turned to Xiahou Ninghan and Hui Dian and asked, "Do you understand what Shen Changshi said?"
The old monk Huidian shook his head blankly, while Xiahou Ninghan smiled and said: "The key to this is actually not difficult to understand. No matter how hard Xie Guang tries, he is just a traitor who deceives the emperor and commits crimes. His actions are known to the world. Disdainful. Except for the direct Xuan Jiajun, no one is really willing to support him and follow him. But in comparison, Huaiyang King Li Kuang is very different. He is the eldest son of the emperor, and he had previously forged imperial edicts to confuse the public. Said that he was appointed as the new crown prince. In this case, if we fight Xie Guang and Turks first, both sides will lose, then Li Kuang can sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight, and finally get a big advantage. After all, he is the only one currently Someone who can compete with His Royal Highness in terms of orthodox status."
Shen Lie nodded: "Miss Xiahou's analysis is correct. Because of this, we all agreed that we should attack King Huaiyang first and completely eliminate this guy who threatens His Highness's throne."
Li Bing smiled bitterly and said: "I understand your thoughts. But what I want is different from yours. Once the war in the imperial capital is over, regardless of whether Xie Guang surrenders or not, the Turks will march into the Central Plains. That means that more people in Shengtang will be killed and bullied by foreign races. On the other hand, no matter how fierce the Huaiyang Emperor brother is, and no matter how fierce the fight for the crown prince's position, it is only an internal matter of Shengtang. He You won’t be like the Turks who killed their own people. As the Crown Prince of the Holy Tang Dynasty, I should not put the fight for imperial power first and ignore the people!"
He paused and continued: "The purpose of dispatching elite troops to attack Hulao Pass and Dongdu is not only to eliminate Xie Guang's rebels, but also to resist the Turks' eastward advance. As long as I am alive, Ashina will never be allowed to support Just take one more step forward!"
Yang Xingtai and others did not expect that the prince would be so righteous and abandon his personal interests. They couldn't help but admire him in their hearts. At the same time, they hurriedly responded in unison: "I respectfully obey His Majesty's decree!"
Li Bing was very pleased to see that his idea was supported by the military generals, and then he discussed carefully with everyone about the deployment of troops and generals.
In the end, everyone unanimously decided that Chai Jingbin, the marching commander of Hebei Province, would lead 50,000 soldiers to advance south to contain the troops of Huaiyang King Li Kuang. Yang Xingtai and Xue Wei served as marshals on the left and right, commanding an army of 300,000, and marched westward, striving to completely defeat Xie Guang before the Turks left the border.
Li Bing personally led 50,000 troops and stayed in Zhending Mansion to provide support.
At the same time, Shen Lie sent a messenger to contact the Yizhou court and asked them to organize the recruitment of soldiers from various states south of the river, striving to gather in the Jingxiang area within three months, and be ready to go north to reinforce the Prince's Corps at any time.
Preliminary estimates indicate that the total size of the reinforcements gathered from all walks of life in the south can exceed at least 300,000, or even reach 500,000!
At that time, the military strength comparison between Shengtang and the Turks can basically maintain a balanced situation, and even have a slight upper hand. Even if Xie Guang suddenly falls to the Turks, there is no need to worry too much.
In other words, as long as Li Bing and the others can seize the eastern capital first, build a defense line from north to south with Luoyi as the center, and sustain it for more than three months, the entire war situation will develop in a direction that is beneficial to Shengtang.
The longer the time goes by, the more combat power the Shengtang Army mobilizes, and the greater the pressure the Turks face!
Yang Xingtai couldn't hide his excitement and said loudly: "Your Highness, our Holy Tang Kingdom is rich and powerful, has a large number of soldiers, and can gather millions of armors. There will be no problem! The Turkic ghosts dare to come and offend the power of Heaven. Sooner or later, they will regret their lives!"
Li Bing solemnly said: "Yang Daduhu is right. However, although we will have the advantage in terms of military strength, our combat power is not necessarily stronger than the Turks. I am afraid there will be many more steps to retake Tongguan and regain the imperial capital." It's an unclear and hard battle. If we want to completely repel the invading enemy, we must have another strategic layout."
Yang Xingtai was very curious and was about to ask "What other strategic plan is it?" when he suddenly heard the guard outside the door loudly announce: "Your Highness, the secret envoy of the imperial capital is escorting the treasure of the country and requesting an audience."
