Don't be a prince

Li Jing slid the bamboo pole on the battle map again and again, Li Chengqian looked at it intently, and found that except for the Chinese army, all the armies had to go around a long way to complete an encirclement with the Chinese army.

"Murong Fuyun is very accurate about our national strength. Unlike the time in the East Turks, the supplies here in Tuyuhun are a burden for the Central Plains. The time to deal with Tuyuhun must not exceed one year, otherwise all previous efforts will be wasted. The old man is sure. , now Murong Fuyun, who is faintly confronting us, already has two points of retreat. For him, as long as he fights and retreats, and preserves the strength of the ethnic group, we can always drag down our Datang. The reason why the old man wants to fight with him Playing this kind of big-eyed and small-eyed game is to let the other army complete the encirclement and win a bite..."

Li Jing made a movement of interlacing his hands and fingers: "Swallow him in one bite!"

After looking at the battle map, Li Chengqian found that Li Jing's idea was very feasible.The first is Gaochang's army. They don't have to go far to get around the rear of Tuyuhun by surprise.As for Li Daliang from Shanzhou, Li Daozong from Gansongling and others, it was miserable. They had to go around a long way to get to the rear of Tuyuhun's army.

Leaving aside the detour, for them, this route is a long way and then hastened the march, because they want to complete the transfer of their troops before they are exposed, and they need to race against Tuyuhun's scouting horses.

After estimating the marching time and the consumption rate of supplies, Li Chengqian had no choice but to bow to Li Jing. Li Jing was the only one who could formulate such a strategy.This is not certainty, but a bet on probability. If it is a normal bet, it is not a big deal, but it is no longer justifiable to dare to gamble in the battle between the two armies.

There are countless wars in history, and the reason why some battle examples have been passed down through the ages is because the probability is low and it seems to be favored by heaven.Just imagine, if Sima Yi was not deceived when Zhuge Liang laid out the empty city plan, but instead led the army to drive straight in, what would be the consequence?Then in this world there will be no good stories about empty city plans, but there will be rumors about a silly B who opened the city gate and played the piano at the top of the city after the enemy army came.

"Don't look at me like that. I won't gamble with my family's life. The reason why I do this is because I can make progress while maintaining a good enough record. Even if our intentions are discovered, it's just from The encirclement has become a multifaceted pursuit."

The opening was crisp, Li Chengqian didn't know what to say when Li Jing spoke like this.The admiration that had arisen towards the God of War disappeared without a trace.I feel sorry for your life as an old man, and I thought it was a desperate attempt to make a conservative arrangement!

"I thought you were trying to make a desperate attempt."

"Oh, how is it possible? If you want to be a good courtier, you must first learn the way of self-protection. To be honest, it is human nature to contribute eight parts and two parts to self-protection. There are many people who are wholeheartedly loyal, but if one suddenly appears, I'm afraid you I don’t trust you completely either.”

Li Chengqian nodded. That's true. No one would offer loyalty without a reason. Even he, until now, has not fully trusted the Alliance of the Lowly.A loyal guy on the surface may not be safe. For example, Hou Junji, before the Xuanwu Gate, he can be said to be a vicious dog under the emperor's hands. Whoever bites whoever is bitten, he fought bloody on the front line on the day of the incident, but in the end, Isn't this guy a rebel?

Thinking of Hou Junji, Li Chengqian immediately remembered Li Jing's evaluation of Hou Junji, so he asked Li Jing with a smile: "Mr. Wei, I just remember that your evaluation of Hou Junji will be reversed in the future. Why did you make such a judgment?"

Seeing Li Chengqian's smiling face, Li Jing couldn't help but shiver.Before he knew it, he actually forgot that the person next to him was the crown prince. How could it be so casual to talk about matters related to another prince?

"It was just a casual remark at the time, so don't care about it, Your Highness."

After finishing speaking, Li Jing went back to the office and pretended to start handling official business.

Now that I am in Liangzhou, I can rest for a while. When the war officially begins, the army will not return to Liangzhou unless it is a victory.This has always been the rule of mobilizing troops abroad.

The rules belong to the rules, and no matter how the rules are, they can't save Sun Simiao's face.With just one order from Sun Simiao, Xue Yuanshan requisitioned more than [-] households at the gate of Liangzhou City at his own expense.The original adobe house was knocked down and opened up, and it only took three days to transform it into a new wounded barracks.

With the achievements of the Eastern Turkic period, no one underestimates the wounded barracks. This is the place where the wounded soldiers survive on the battlefield.Therefore, as long as it is needed by the wounded barracks, there will be a lot of volunteer workers. As long as they are soldiers, no one will slack off in the face of orders from the wounded barracks.

The couriers who delivered the letters still kept coming and going in ninety-nine cold days. Now that there is no telephone, the coordination of multiple fronts is based on the desperate running of countless frostbitten couriers.

After the armies of all parties were finally coordinated, Li Jing officially moved out of Liangzhou City, led the army to detour between Liangzhou and Ganzhou, and then formally advanced into the territory of Tuyuhun.

In ancient wars, scouts were needed to obtain information, but Datang didn't need too many scouts to work hard this time. A high-rising hot air balloon with passengers with good eyes is enough to find out the enemy's situation.

Li Chengqian did not participate in the real-life experiment of the hot air balloon, because it was taken over by the emperor.Although it was said later that the eldest Sun Huan of the Changsun family and Fang Jiao of the Fang family successfully flew into the sky, no one knew what happened before that.It is estimated that even if there are victims, they will not be known.

As for the telescope, Yan Liben and Li Tai are still working on it. Although the things they have created can see things in the distance, they are blurry and can't be used at all.

"Murong Fuyun has nothing to worry about. According to the news from the Dafeichuan garrison, it seems that Tubo has also made some moves this time. Could it be that Tubo wants to have a hand in the matter of Tuyuhun?"

Li Jing's handsome case is full of letters from all parties. It is not ordinary difficult to form a holographic battlefield with the help of these letters, so even if Li Chengqian is watching from the sidelines, he usually won't say much.

But since Li Jingchao asked this question himself, Li Chengqian could only answer: "It is estimated that Tubo has ideas. It was not only Tuyuhun who was rejected, but also Tubo. Tang is bordering, but for both of us, there is enough buffer in the middle, which is the best situation. Presumably Tubo will not like bordering on Datang in many ways."

Li Jing nodded happily and said: "You are very accurate in what you said. It seems that Tubo really intends to help Tuyuhun, but I don't know if they will choose to help directly. Tubo has the protection of Qi epidemic, and we have never been able to attack them. If They helped Tuyuhun, we want to teach them a lesson, the difficulty is not ordinary."

Plague?It's altitude sickness!

For ordinary soldiers, altitude sickness is indeed difficult, but considering the lung capacity of those animals, even if there is altitude sickness, it is estimated that it will not be too serious.

Looking at Qin Qiong on the side, Li Chengqian opened his mouth, and finally said: "About this point, maybe we don't have to worry about it. If the army can't go up, the personal rate can still go up. It's just how 2000 people can fight against the Tubo reinforcements. Big question."

Hearing what Li Chengqian said, Qin Qiong said without hesitation: "Since that's the case, the old man took his own lead and moved to Dafeichuan, and went to the plateau to persecute the Tubo people. Neither we nor the Tubo people have any plans to go to war in a short time .Even if we have 1000 people on the plateau, if we can face them without changing face, they will not dare to make any changes!"

Well, I knew it would be bad to say that.

Li Chengqian hurriedly said: "Mr. Yi, your body can't stand the bitter cold and qi epidemic on the plateau. You should stay behind in the Chinese army and lead the team up alone. I heard that Jade Dragon Snow Mountain is the fiefdom of Ludongzan. Datang has learned a lot, and actually implemented a system similar to the land equalization system in Tubo, if I can meet him, maybe we can sit and drink tea together."

Tubo became a feudal system, which Li Chengqian liked to hear. The feudal system was inherited by the Tang Dynasty for an unknown number of years, but for the tribal system of Tubo, this was a big change. In Dongzan's hands, nothing happened, but in the future, it might not happen.

Seeing that Li Chengqian was going to lead the troops to the plateau in person, Qin Qiong became impatient: "Your Highness, you can only stay in the Chinese army, and you can't go anywhere. It's better for the old minister to go. The old minister has no lung disease, and he is not afraid of Qi disease. Besides, the old minister is not afraid of it." Fighting in person is completely fine."

Knocking on the table, Li Jing's voice rang out: "Both of you should stay here, no one can go, the general you lead personally has also been instructed by the old man, with him here, nothing will happen, let him Lead the team. When they push back the Tubo army, when will we be able to officially fight here!"

The chief executive spoke, and Li Chengqian and Qin Qiong had no choice but to take orders.Regardless of the fact that one of them is the founder of the country and the other is the prince, but in the army, at least in terms of military strategy, they must listen to Li Jing's arrangements.

Knowing that he had obtained the qualification to lead the army to fight, Changtian Monkey was so excited that he was about to cry.At the beginning, he was just a small mansion soldier. He never thought that he could become a general, and he never thought that one day he would be able to realize his dream and lead the army to fight in person.

Seeing the trembling monkey, Li Jing and Qin Qiong both laughed. They were so excited before, but now that they think about it, they don't know when it happened.

But Li Chengqian kicked Tianhou without hesitation: "What are you thinking? You are asked to confront Tubo, not to fight. The emperor ordered you to take it with you. As long as you contact the Tubo army, find someone If the place is released, they will not dare to go one step further. But just in case, don't be too honest, if Tubo really pounces on you with fear, you will run as fast as I want!"

Chapter 318 The Condor Archer

Datang now has to concentrate on dealing with Tuyuhun, and has no extra energy to deal with the Tubo people.However, it is estimated that the Tubo people will not be idle and free to touch Datang's bad luck, but they just don't want to get too close to their evil neighbors.

Changing Tianhou received the warrant from Li Jing, and began to transfer to Dafeichuan with his own lead.

As soon as he led the front foot away, Li Jian broke into the handsome tent with his back foot.

"Your Highness, why did the leader leave His Highness? They left, who will be responsible for His Highness's safety?"

Breaking into the tent of the Chinese army is a serious crime of beheading. If someone else comes here, I am afraid that he will have been chopped into meat by this time.

But since it was Li Jian, Li Jing had no choice but to pretend not to see it.As long as it doesn't involve military strategy, he doesn't dare to offend Li Jian. After all, he is the emperor's personal eunuch.

After taking a sip of tea, Li Chengqian lazily said: "The pro-leader is a lonely pro-army, so you don't need to talk about how you command. It is already a capital offense for you to break into the big tent without a warrant, and the chief executive is kind-hearted and doesn't care about it, so don't go down!" "

Glancing at Li Jing who looked like a clay bodhisattva, Li Jian had no choice but to bow his hands in apology, then turned and left.

"Professionals are not flowers in a greenhouse. The more brutal the war, the more they can hone them. Duke Yi, what do you think?"

Qin Qiong laughed and said: "Using cruel warfare to temper oneself is inferior. In fact, after so many years, the old man thinks that the command of the commander is one thing, and the combat power of the soldiers is another. Back then, the tiger During the Prison War, only 15 troops were used to defend Dou Jiande's 500 troops, but what happened? These 500 troops played the most important role in the battle. The number of troops really determines Combat strength, but sometimes, the personal quality of the soldiers, or the fighting spirit, also plays a very important role. So, the old man has always felt that blindly practicing brutally is absolutely not enough, and one must cultivate the momentum to win the battle. Only with such momentum can Datang's army be invincible!"

After listening to Qin Qiong's speech similar to "Bright Sword", Li Chengqian opened his mouth and couldn't help but stick out his thumb.Even Li Jing on one side cupped his hands and said, "Duke Yi has a great opinion, and this old man also feels the same way! How about after this battle is over, this statement will be compiled into a book, and this old man feels as good as his grandson's words!"

Li Chengqian also said with a smile: "When Yi Guogong organizes the book, you might as well send it to the book printing shop of the college. If you sell it, you will take out more than [-]% of the profit as your embellishment fee!"

This kind of article is different from the art of war, and even if it is published on a large scale, it will not have much impact.

Qin Qiong was surprised and said: "It should be the old man who gave the book printing house money, but why did the book printing house give the old man money instead? Your Highness, don't think that the old minister is clean. In fact, hehe, the Qin family also has a lot of property."

Li Chengqian shook his head: "It is the book printing house that gives you money. If not, how can everyone hide their books when they write books? It is said that scholars are ashamed to talk about money, but without money, only those who really Books are written by those who are passionate about them. Of course...”

Li Chengqian hadn't finished speaking when a loud shout came from outside the tent: "Report to the chief! There is a Gaochang battle report, please check it."

"Send it in!"

After the messenger who delivered the letter entered the big tent, he dared not go any further. Li Jing's family would go up to receive the letter and confirm that the wax was intact.After the seal was correct and there was no abnormality, it was transferred to Li Jing's desk.

After opening the battle report for a few glances, Li Jing frowned.

"But what happened to Western Turks?"

Seeing Li Jing's unkind expression, Qin Qiongsi realized after thinking about it that only the Western Turks participated in the war to make Li Jing look like this.Gaochang is also very close to the Western Turks, and it is very likely that it is the news of the Western Turks.

Li Chengqian also looked at Li Jing worriedly. Although in history, the Western Turks did not do anything restless when they attacked Tuyuhun in the Tang Dynasty, but historically, the Turks did not marry a princess to the prince!

Under Qin Qiong and Li Chengqian's anxious gaze, Li Jing shook his head and opened his mouth, but didn't know what to say, so he could only hand the battle report to Qin Qiong.

After reading it once, Qin Qiong's expression was also wonderful.This made Li Chengqian even more curious. When the battle report finally arrived in his hands, he immediately started to check it.

After reading the battle report, Li Chengqian didn't know what to say.

Gaochang is different from other fronts. They just need to wait for work and wait for the order of the Chinese army to go directly into Tuyuhun territory.

But even under such circumstances, they still had trouble.

The cause of the incident was the treasures left by the Gaochang royal family. Unlike King Solomon’s glass, the Gaochang royal family hid all good things, whether it was real gold or silver, and jade was all in baskets.Gaochang was stuck in business before and didn't know how much wealth he had accumulated. Even if the monarch of a small country let go of the fierce creation, how much can he spend?So the treasure is extremely rich.It is no exaggeration to say that even Li Shimin is jealous of the money.

It stands to reason that the officials of Honglu Temple who found the treasure according to Qu Zhisheng's guidance should be escorted back to Chang'an by the officials of Honglu Temple. Except for a little hard-earned money for Honglu Temple and a dividend for the East Palace Palace, all of them will be filled. treasury.

But it is such a normal process, but someone has a thought.Undoubtedly, only Hou Junji dared to think about this property.He asked the officials of Honglu Temple to hand over these treasures to him for safekeeping, and personally escort them back to Chang'an after the war. The officials of Honglu Temple believed that although Hou Junji was left behind in Gaochang, he did not take over the treasures. Treasure qualifications.

The two parties could not settle down, and the result was that the officials of Honglu Temple were beaten up by Hou Junji and almost died.Army Sima learned of this incident, but he didn't know how to deal with it, so he could only report this incident to Li Jing.In theory, the title of chief executive is a military and political one, and he can make decisions here if he is qualified.Although it would not be possible to directly cut off the head of another prince, it is still feasible to deprive the head of the road and find someone to replace him temporarily.

Of course, the premise is that the manager of the other road does not object.

Qin Qiong sighed with emotion and said: "This guy Lu Guogong really dares to do anything! Beating court officials, especially in wartime, this alone is enough for him to drink a pot. Especially that old man Tang Jian You bastard, you have a bad stomach, and you are very protective of your shortcomings, he will suffer after returning to Chang'an."

Li Jing rubbed his temples, not knowing what to do.It is good that the chief executive can abolish the general manager, but this is only a kind of authority, and the authority is stipulated in this way, but whether it can be used or not depends on the situation.Just like Xuanwu gate guard and other official positions, not one or two are awarded. This is an official position bestowed by the emperor as a gesture of honor and favor, but only one actually holds the position.If the remaining guards of the Xuanwu Gate dare to intervene in the city defense of the Xuanwu Gate, they will be punished with death.

The same is true for the chief executive. In theory, he can do this, but only in theory.As the emperor's confidant, Hou Junji was not able to participate in the Gaochang war because of the conflict at the gate of the East Palace, but when he sent troops to Tuyuhun, he was still appointed as the general manager, which shows his position in the emperor's mind.

To deal with such a person...

Putting down his hands, Li Jing looked at Li Chengqian, and said with a smile: "Your Highness, this matter is enough to cause trouble in the court, take a look...."

Li Chengqian stood up, patted his head, and suddenly realized: "Duke Wei, Duke Yi, Gu unexpectedly forgot to send a letter to his father, queen, and queen to say hello. It's really unfilial. I'm going to write a letter now, and I'll take my leave first!"

After finishing speaking, he slipped away without hesitation.

It's only a fool who gets involved in this matter. The prince is indeed a prince, but the prince does not have much power in the court. Even if he participates in politics, he is only as a staff member, handling some business-related memorials, and analyzing them for the emperor.Besides, there was the attack on the East Palace before, even if he stood on the side of reason and upheld justice this time, he would be suspected of giving Hou Junji little shoes.

Although I really want to do this, I still have to hold back when it's time to hold back.If you don't steal fishy, ​​there will be no fishy smell at the corners of your mouth.

Seeing the prince making excuses to escape, Li Jing couldn't laugh or cry.

Qin Qiong smiled and said, "What else do you want him to do? He, the crown prince, just came to visit the battlefield and didn't want to cause trouble. No matter what, if he decides to dispose of Hou Junji here, he will leave a bad impression on us generals. According to me Look, it's better for you to leave this matter to the emperor to decide, and give Hou Junji'an a punishment for committing crimes and meritorious deeds, which will be good for everyone."

Li Jing nodded. The Sima of the Gaochang Army handed over this matter to him, and this should be the verdict he wanted.In any case, it is not something that any local official can handle when the matter has risen to the level of a state official or a general manager.

Taking out a pen and paper, Li Jing directly wrote the result of the handling: the officials of Honghe Temple and the left-behind Gaochang each performed their own duties, with a clear distinction between them, so that Hou Junji would commit crimes and make meritorious deeds, and not take away the post of chief executive. How to deal with it is up to the emperor.

After writing the disposition, Li Jing added his seal to the back of the letter from Army Sima, saving the time of copying, and ordered the messenger to send the document to Chang'an.

It was Li Jing's limit to make such a disposition.Discord between generals is a big taboo. It is impossible for him to violate the interests of the military as a whole, and deal with the general manager in front of the battle. Doing so will only make civil servants laugh.

After moving out of Liangzhou City, Li Jing's plan to increase the stove could no longer be continued.The army's food and grass are limited. Although Xiazhou has sent coal from thousands of miles away, under Li Jing's military order, only the soldiers in the wounded barracks are eligible to enjoy the coal, and the entire army can only enjoy it when the war officially begins. treatment.

The number of stoves decreased, and Tuyuhun immediately realized that the Liangzhou reserve army was just a bluff. In order to prevent the conspiracy of increasing troops and reducing stoves, he sent a large number of scouts and a small group of rangers to spy on the truth.

In the cold winter border, as long as you appear outside the tent, you will be quickly frozen to the bone by the air-conditioning.Although Gaochang's cotton has been planted in Shandong, the annual output is still not enough to assemble the entire army. Besides, there has been a national debt incident, and today's court has become a coop of iron cocks. The Ministry of War will not take the initiative to save things. Apply for funds with the Ministry of Accounts.

Since ancient times, the soldiers of the Qin Dynasty have endured hard battles, and not many soldiers complained about the unfairness of their fate. They couldn't bear the cold wind and would rather run to warm their bodies than make trouble.

Walking in the camp, Li Chengqian felt bitter in his heart.This is inhumane, the soldiers are not treated well enough, and in his view, this is the dereliction of duty of the national marriage.

Fortunately, Li Dahai was reliable, and a large amount of dried vegetables were sent by the transport team.Similar to the grassland, there is no shortage of cattle and sheep here at the Longyou Pass, and vegetables are the most scarce in winter.

This is not military expenses, it was purchased by Donggong, so when seeing the prince from a distance, the soldiers would smile and bow.Others will be suspected of doing this kind of thing, only the prince can do it unscrupulously.

In the center of the camp there was a place where a pile of wood was piled up to make a fire for warmth. Seeing the prince came, many soldiers hurriedly gave up the innermost position.

Squatting down by the fire, although there were people behind him, blocking the wind, Li Chengqian once again experienced what it means to "warm the chest when the fire burns, and the back feels cold when the wind blows".

All scouts warming up here are scouts, and only scouts are treated like this.

The hot air balloon had to be discarded after being used twice. The cold wind was too strong. Even with the tethering rope, the hot air balloon was still blown upside down. If it wasn't for the defective parachute that Li Tai had tinkered with, it would be of some use anyway , the life of the driver is in danger.

After abandoning the hot air balloon observation, the scouts were released again.The area between the two armies has never been peaceful. Either the scouts on this side died, or the scouts on the other side died.Scouts are the profession with the highest fatality rate during the army's garrison period, especially in the cold winter, even if they are not killed by enemy scouts, some will freeze to death outside.

After warming his frozen hands, Li Chengqian took the mat from Zhang Yun and sat on the ground, asking, "You guys just came down from the front line? Tell me, what's going on at Tuyuhun?"

When others asked, the scouts would only remain silent, but since it was the prince who asked the question, there was no problem.

An elderly soldier in his 40s walked up to Zhang Yun, opened his arms, and wanted to be checked, but Li Chengqian refused.If you can't let go of your guard in the base camp of the Tang army, then living is too tiring.

The old scout squatted in front of Li Chengqian, and said with a smile: "Your Highness, the villain has been a scout for many years, and his accumulated merits are almost the most in the entire army. A lot of scouts from Tuyuhun have been sent out these days, and we also clashed with them." What is puzzling is that they don't seem to want to spy on the situation of the army, but wander around in the field, and pile up hay in the open field to get a shelter from the wind, which makes people puzzled."

"Have you reported this to the chief executive?"

"No, those good places where the hay was piled up were captured by our people. Hehe, don't tell me, having hay to block the wind is more comfortable than hiding in a pit."

Seeing the proud look of the old scout, Li Chengqian felt dizzy for a while.This is the oldest scout in the entire army. Didn't you expect the enemy to set fire to this situation?If it were the Sky-Changing Monkey, he would definitely doubt this.On the battlefield, thinking about the enemy as killing relatives and enemies is the way of thinking of scouts.

Now it's winter, and the vegetation is dead and quiet. As long as a fire is set off, it will be strange if the camp is not burned.

Although the fire on the prairie did not have the power to destroy the world, but after the fire, the grass eaten by the horses and the fuel used by the people disappeared, which is a catastrophe.Tuyuhun wanted to complete his work in one battle, and setting fire was the best choice.Because after the fire, Datang had no choice but to withdraw its troops, otherwise tens of thousands of troops, including livestock, would not be able to survive this winter.

"Zhang Yun, Li Jian, call the guards, I have to go out of the camp to inspect."

Just as he was about to go back to the camp to change his armor, Li Jian blocked his way.

"Your Highness, you can go out of the camp, but you must get in a carriage, and you must ask Li Weigong to send [-] fine horses to escort you, otherwise the slaves will never agree!"

"Understood, you're the only one who has too much to do!"

Li Chengqian wanted to go out to inspect the camp. Li Jing originally opposed it, but after hearing about Huo Gong's worries, he immediately agreed.

Three thousand fine riders escorted the prince's carriage out of the camp.

As soon as he left the camp, Li Chengqian ordered [-] cavalry to expand their formation and patrol the grass in front of the camp like a carpet.

Just like what the old scout said, the Tuyuhun scouts didn't seem to be curious about the secrets of the army. It wasn't until they were halfway to the enemy camp that they vaguely found the remains of the field.There is no doubt that most of these bones belonged to the Tuyuhun people. Datang has the custom of burrowing into the ground for safety. Even if it is a scout who died in battle, his companions will do everything possible to bring his body back to the camp instead of exposing it to the wilderness and becoming a dead body. Food for wolves.