However, after arriving at the city, Emperor An Li Xuan was also very confused. He walked really easily and did not encounter any reinforcements going to Hezhou for reinforcements, which made his plan to encircle the point for reinforcements failed.
This was a bit incomprehensible to him. Although the prince of a country was not as good as the emperor, he was not so low-status that he didn't even have anyone to save him. And weren't these people afraid of being held accountable by the emperor later?
After all, according to Zhu Yiwei's information, the prince Li Hao is still very valued by Cui Ming.
It wasn't until he saw Zhu Yiwei's information about the matter that he understood the truth.
It turned out that after Li Hao received the news of the Anguo army's attack, he sent a message to the officials of Xu, Li, and Pingping prefectures in the north, strictly ordering them to fortify their walls and clear the country, and wait for reinforcements.
If there is speculation, not only will there be no merit, but they will be punished.
After reading the information and handing it to his officials, Emperor An Li Xuan couldn't help but said: "I didn't expect that this guy grew up in the palace, but he is still a little brave. Cui Ming gave birth to a good son, but I didn't know that he was brave enough to persist." how long.
I ordered the soldiers to prepare ladders. At dawn tomorrow, we will begin to attack the city with all our strength. I have to let the prince of Su Kingdom experience the cruelty of the battlefield. "
So on the second day, Anjun carried the ladder and began to attack the city without any greeting.
Li Hao was a little puzzled at first. Even if you don't persuade the two armies to surrender, you still have to say a few words about the situation.
After all, there are still more than 4,000 soldiers and horses in Hezhou City, which cannot be defeated in one attack, and the rescue army from Su Kingdom has not yet disappeared, so there is no need to save this time.
Furthermore, it takes time to build siege equipment. Who is looking down on just relying on such a simple ladder that anyone can carry?
It wasn't until I went up to the city wall to take a look that I probably understood the tactics of Emperor An and Li Xuan. I felt that I had never been on a battlefield. When I saw such a bloody and tragic scene for the first time, I would definitely be scared and want to take the lead.
It's a pity that Emperor An Li Xuan didn't expect that Li Hao's previous experiences were much more exciting than this.
Sure enough, the siege ended at noon, and the only person who came to the city in the afternoon was a single-handed man.
After arriving at the city, the man shouted loudly: "I have Zhang Yuan, a member of the Rites Department of the State of An, who, by order of our Majesty, has a few words to say to the crown prince of your country, and I would like to ask him to come forward to see you."
Li Hao had been waiting for this man for a long time, and when he appeared on the top of the city, he said, "I am alone here. I wonder what Emperor An wants to tell you."
Zhang Yuan looked up and saw a young man in silver armor looking at him majestically.
He immediately replied: "Your Majesty ordered your officials to send word that if Your Highness is willing to sacrifice the city and surrender, you will not be harmed in the slightest. He has also retained a portion of the prince's supplies. Only when your ransom arrives, will He be allowed to leave and continue to enjoy that time." Prosperity and wealth.
There are only a few thousand soldiers and horses in Hezhou City now. How can they be compared with my army of 100,000? It will only take time to destroy the city.
After all, swords and guns have no eyesight, and no one can guarantee the safety of His Highness when the city is breached. Please think twice about the importance of this. "
Li Hao laughed loudly when he heard this, making Zhang Yuan laugh until his heart went crazy, and then said: "It has been sixty years since the founding of our country in Dasu. How could the prince surrender without fighting? I am alone, and my Dasu soldiers are here. How can I be safe here?" The state city must be impregnable.
Instead of trying to persuade me here, you might as well go back and try to persuade Emperor An, and take it back now when you see the situation is good, so as not to return in great defeat and waste your lives. "
After finishing speaking, without waiting for him to speak, he directly asked someone to bring a bow and shot his hat off from a distance of fifty feet.
Zhang Yuan was so frightened that he didn't even bother to pick up his hat, so he turned around and ran back to the Anjun camp in embarrassment.
At the same time, this move also inspired the defenders at the top of the city. Upon seeing this, Chen Xi immediately shouted: "Your Highness is mighty, Dashu is victorious."
The garrison at the top of the city echoed in unison, and the sound was so loud that it reached An Jun.
Emperor An was also watching in front of the battle with his soldiers, and his admiration for Li Hao became even greater in his heart. Especially when he thought of his two unsatisfactory sons, the contrast was even stronger.
The more I thought about it, the more annoyed I became, so after seeing Zhang Yuan,
The fire finally found an outlet.
Immediately he ordered: "Zhang Yuan's disobedience in front of the formation has reduced our majesty in Da'an. I will suppress him and fight another thirty army battles to restore the prestige of the army."
After finishing Zhang Yuan's defeat, Emperor An continued: "The whole army has set out to make siege equipment. I will conquer Hezhou City within half a month. I will capture this kid alive by then. I will show him how to show off his strength." What will be the result?"
The accompanying generals also echoed in unison. At this time, they really did not pay attention to Hezhou City, which had few troops.
Of course, Li Hao didn't know about the situation on Emperor An's side, nor was he interested, because Li Hao was on the top of the city, using the momentum just now to deliver a pre-war speech.
"My fellow soldiers, the two countries of Ansu have been at war for decades, and I think you know their cruelty better than I do.
Behind you are your wives, children, and brothers and sisters. Are you willing to let them fall into the hands of the Anguo people and endure bullying and humiliation? "
The soldiers guarding the city shouted in unison: "I don't want to, I don't want to."
"Okay, this is your answer that I have been waiting for. The blood in my Dasu man's heart will never be extinguished.
I promise here today that from today on, I will personally defend the city on the city wall. The Anguo army will not retreat. I will not go down the city wall for a day. I will accompany the soldiers to fight to the end. "
"I am willing to die for Your Highness, I am willing to die for the Great Su, I will be victorious, victorious..."
After boosting his morale, Li Hao immediately asked people to move all the official duties he needed to handle up to the tower, and he would work here from now on.
Wang Kun had different opinions on this. He felt that it was too risky for Li Hao to do this. After all, he had no eyesight.
Of course, he did not speak in front of the city guards. Instead, he waited until he entered the city tower and then turned away everyone and said: "It's too dangerous on the city wall. Even if An Jun can't attack, if he is shot by a stray arrow, What to do.
Anyway, to boost military morale, I'd better stay on the city wall while you sit in the government office. "
Li Hao didn't say anything after hearing this. He silently walked to a weapons rack and pulled out a sword from it.
Immediately, he poured his inner strength and gently waved towards the ground. A cold light flashed, and a sword energy sank into the ground, and a bottomless sword mark appeared visible to the naked eye.
This scene made Wang Kun dumbfounded. He really didn't expect that his nephew could have such good kung fu.
Li Hao put down his sword and said, "Don't worry, uncle, my martial arts are enough to protect myself, and my armor is made of fine steel, with soft gold wire armor inside, which ordinary arrows cannot penetrate, so there is no need to worry about safety.
Furthermore, I am the prince and the heirloom. As long as I stay at the top of the city and let the soldiers see me, even if I don't say anything, it will be much easier than you. So don't argue with me about this matter.
And you also have your own things to take care of. The Wang family is a big family in Hezhou, so you have to contact other big families and ask them to assemble their private soldiers of domestic slaves.
You can't fight without a reserve team. Let them go to the city head alternately to get a feel for it. They can also be regarded as helpers when defending the city, and they can also give the soldiers time to rest.
In addition, you have to organize the people to help carry supplies and treat the wounded. No one else can do this except you. "
After all, Wang Kun couldn't persuade Li Hao, so he could only tell Li Hao to be careful.
It will take some time for the An army to prepare the siege equipment, so the city of Hezhou is peaceful for the time being.
However, Sudu, which is thousands of miles away from Hezhou, is extremely lively at this time.
The briefing on the front line had been sent back to Sudu through flying pigeons two days ago, but there were no details in it, only about Zheng Zhuo's defeat and the advance of the An army.
Cui Ming was extremely angry at Zheng Zhuo's behavior, but even if he wanted to deal with him, he would have to wait until the battle was over.
Based on the current situation, Cui Ming immediately arranged remedial measures and ordered Zhang Yun to immediately organize the Forbidden Army, prepare ordnance and rush to the front line for support as soon as possible.
But when the detailed battle report arrived, Cui Ming realized how serious the current problem was, especially the fact that Li Hao was besieged in Hezhou.
Cui Ming immediately asked Zhang Yun for his opinion at the court meeting.
Zhang Yun replied: "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's decision is extremely correct. The An army has a large number of cavalry without any defensive camps.
At that time, if the state governments sent troops to rescue, they would only be defeated by the An army one by one. By then, the An army would be able to easily occupy all the prefectures and counties in the North.
I think Emperor An had the same idea, so he ignored it at first and went straight to Hezhou City.
But in this way, His Highness the Crown Prince's situation becomes dangerous. His Highness must persist in Hezhou until the imperial reinforcements arrive. Although Hezhou has no shortage of food and grass, there are not many soldiers and horses after all. "
Cui Ming understood this and immediately asked Zhang Yun: "How long will it take for the imperial army to leave, and when will they arrive at Hezhou City."
Zhang Yun also wanted to rush there as soon as possible, but the situation on the front line changed too quickly. The previous two groups had exhausted the soldiers, horses and supplies at their disposal.
Now if we want to send troops again, we must wait for a new batch of supplies to be prepared before we can set off, otherwise we will die if we do.
So he could only reply: "We are already making preparations, but it should take a month to get to Hezhou."
This time was already the best time expected by Zhang Yun, and because the battlefield was within the territory of Anguo, there were supply opportunities in the middle. He didn't even think much about the harassment he would encounter from a small group of Anguo troops, which would lead to a slow march.
When Cui Ming heard this time, he immediately asked: "Do you estimate that the prince can last a month in Hezhou?"
Zhang Yun suddenly fell into silence. It was obvious that he didn't think highly of this matter and could only keep silent.
Upon seeing this, Cui Ming looked at the other leading generals in the court, but when they faced Cui Ming's eyes, they also lowered their heads.
Cui Ming knew that it would be useless to embarrass them any more, so he could only sigh and said: "The supporting troops and horses must be accelerated. No matter what is needed, it will be processed urgently. Anyone who blocks it will be jailed and severely punished.
In addition, the Ministry of Rites immediately sent people to Chu State. I am willing to give them thirty thousand taels of gold to send troops to attack An State. "
When the arrangements were made and the courtiers were about to retreat, Cui Ming suddenly said: "General Wu Wei will stay here for a moment. I have something to say."
After everyone left, Cui Ming said to Gong Yegu: "As the crown prince, you cannot get into trouble easily. I intend to order you to go to the Northland first to command the troops and horses of the counties in the Northland to resist the An army.
Without swaying the war, if there is a chance, find a way to get the prince out of Hezhou, and I will ask the marquis to fully cooperate with you. "
Gong Yegu was the prince's Shaobao, and he belonged to the princely faction. Naturally, he did not want anything to happen to Li Hao.
If he only picked up one person to leave, Gong Yegu would still be somewhat confident with the support of the marquis.
He immediately replied: "I am willing to try my best."
Cui Ming said: "Okay, then I will be here, waiting for your good news."
The matters in the court were settled, but Cui Ming did not return to the harem because he didn't know how to face Wang Yi now.
After all, his eldest son died during the last war. He really couldn't imagine what Wang Yi would be like if Li Hao had an accident this time.
At this time, in the harem, Wang Yi was also anxious to know the latest news. Seeing that Cui Ming was still not coming, he had already sent several groups of people out.
When he didn't find anyone in Xingqing Palace, he went to Yinque Gate to wait for Cui Ming to go to court.
After Cui Ming learned the news, he also understood that there was no use hiding anymore, so he had no choice but to go to see Wang Yi.
As soon as they met, Wang Yi asked: "Your Majesty, is there any news about Hao'er? Is he safe now?"
Cui Ming replied: "Hao'er and your eldest brother are still in Hezhou, confronting the An army. I have ordered Gong Yegu to set off first to support Hao'er. Zhang Yun will also go with the forbidden army later. Don't worry too much. "
Wang Yi was shocked when he heard this: "Why are they still in Hezhou? Aren't they almost surrounded by the An army?"
Cui Ming could only forcefully explain: "That's because Hezhou's city defense is strong and there is sufficient food. Hao'er and the others are much safer there than meeting An's army in the wild.
Reinforcements will arrive soon to relieve Hao'er and the others. You have to trust your brother, he will definitely protect them.
Haoer's. "
At this stage, Wang Yi really doesn't trust anyone anymore. You must know that when Wang Kun came to persuade him, what he said was very different from what he said now.
He asked again: "Really, you didn't lie to me."
Cui Ming continued: "Of course, how could I lie to you."
Finally, Wang Yi was fooled and let her return to her bedroom.
After returning, Wang Yi came to the Buddha statue and began to pray for Li Hao and Wang Kun.
In her heart, she did not fully believe Cui Ming's words, and even if it was as he said, the danger would not be small.
There was another person in the palace who did the same thing as Wang Yi, but she didn't want Li Hao to live, but wanted Li Hao to die.
That was Concubine Zheng. Ever since she learned that her father was defeated, she knew that her favor had come to an end, and her son was afraid that there would be no chance of him taking another step forward.
But if Li Hao died in Hezhou at this time, her son would become the eldest son and most likely the future prince.
When the time comes, mother is more valuable than child, and even if she suffers a little at first, she will still have a more glorious road ahead.
There are many people in the court who hold the same idea. After all, Li Hao's team has basically been formed. If outsiders join, they will not be able to enjoy a high status, which is far less than the benefits of investing in others.
