The film and television world begins with the battle for the throne in Kowloon

Chapter 556: The Rebellion of the Yan and Liao Armies

Fang Xuanling frowned and said, "During this period of time, Luo Yi rebelled and I have learned about the senior generals in the Yan and Liao armies in detail. Yang Ji was born as a local soldier in Jingzhou. In the third year of Wude, he married the daughter of a veteran general in the Jingzhou army and then rose step by step in the Jingzhou army."

"In the fifth year of Wude, Luo Yi was transferred to be the governor of Jingzhou. Yang Ji joined him without hesitation and became the deputy general of the Jingzhou Army within a few years. Some time ago, Luo Yi rebelled. In the general's tent, in front of Luo Yi, Yang Ji killed Zhao Cihao and was later appointed as the deputy general of the Yan-Liao Army by Luo Yi."

"During his time in Jingzhou Army, Yang Ji was not particularly outstanding. Whether in terms of literary or military strategy, he had no outstanding achievements. The Ministry of Personnel also regarded Yang Ji as a mediocre general, and his performance was mediocre."

At this point, Fang Xuanling was somewhat amazed and said, "Perhaps because he was not good at fighting, Yang Ji put all his energy and thoughts into scheming for personal gain. He was very good at dealing with people, and he was good at making friends with everyone. He had a very harmonious relationship with his colleagues and was devoted to currying favor with his superiors. I didn't expect that at this time, he would actually have the heart to serve the court. It's incredible, isn't it?"

"Is Xuanling's words biased?"

Li Shiming's face was filled with obvious and irrepressible joy: "When you are in the officialdom, there are bound to be things you have to deal with. There are few officials who are not good at building relationships. Yang Ji was born in a humble family. If he doesn't work hard to get promoted, how can he get along with his colleagues and superiors!"

"As the saying goes, strong winds reveal strong grass, and turbulent times reveal loyal people."

"As long as you are not confused about the major issues, I can tolerate your personal details. As for the killing of Zhao Cihao, Yang Ji has explained it very clearly in the letter. At that time, Luo Yi's swordsmen were hiding outside the tent. As a subordinate, what could Yang Ji do?"

"Under Luo Yi's coercion, if he didn't kill Zhao Cihao, Luo Yi would kill him as well. And Luo Yi asked Yang Ji to kill Zhao Cihao, obviously in order to cut off Yang Ji's escape route and force Yang Ji to follow him in the rebellion. This in turn proved that Yang Ji was unwilling to rebel against the court."

Zhang Sun Wuji also said: "Yes, when the Jie Li army was approaching and Chang'an City was surrounded by enemies and in a precarious situation, Yang Ji was able to understand the greater good, restore order, and be loyal to the emperor. This has already proved that his loyalty is reliable."

"Your Majesty is right. As long as a minister can distinguish right from wrong in times of national crisis and remain loyal to the emperor, the court, and the people of the world, then even if he has some flaws and sins, they can be forgiven."

"The Emperor even forgave Wei Zheng, who persuaded Prince Yin to kill the Emperor, and Feng Li, who fought to the death with us at Xuanwu Gate. Why should we turn away Yang Ji, who was coerced by Luo Yi to fight against the court? General Yang endured humiliation and bore heavy burdens in exchange for confessing everything to the Emperor today. We cannot hurt a heart that has the heart to serve the country!"

Fang Xuanling also nodded slightly after listening to this. Yes, even if he was an opportunistic villain, he was able to stand up and support the emperor at this time, which was worthy of praise. Now the court’s military strength was weak, and it was urgent to strengthen its strength to deal with the invasion of the Turks.

Du Ruhui coughed twice and said tremblingly: "If Yang Ji can kill Luo Yi and stabilize the Yan Liao army, then we can not only withdraw Cheng Zhijie's army that is clamped near the Yan Liao army. Moreover, more optimistically, Yang Ji will lead 80,000 Yan Liao troops to station on the west side of the northern bank of the Wei River. In this battle, the emperor will have a 70% chance of winning, and old Jie Li will definitely lose."

"There's no need to mention Fan Xing's proposal."

"Fan Xing?"

Changsun Wuji was stunned and asked in surprise: "What messed up suggestions did Fan Xing come up with again?"

Fan Xing was Changsun Wuji's man and had not participated in the meeting just now, so Fang Xuanling asked with concern. Fang Xuanling then told him about Fan Xing's strategy of emptying the treasury to repel the enemy.

Zhang Sun Wuji immediately scolded: "How can Fan Xing, as a minister, propose such a shameless and servile strategy to the emperor? He really can't change his bad habits."

"never mind."

Li Shimin waved his hand generously: "Fan Xing is desperate and is trying all kinds of methods. Now that Yang Ji has joined us, we have more room to maneuver. Fan Xing's proposal will be abandoned. Let's discuss how to successfully defeat the Yan Liao army."

"Even if we exclude the young and strong men he recruited, the former Jingzhou Army also had 50,000 skilled warriors, including 20,000 cavalrymen. They were near the capital and used to guard Chang'an. I didn't expect that Luo Yi's betrayal would turn them into a serious threat."

"Not only can they not help, but they also tie down Cheng Zhijie's tens of thousands of troops. If we can successfully take over these 50,000 strong troops this time, we won't have to worry about Jie Li's army's southward raid!"

Fang Xuanling suggested: "To ensure that everything goes well, the emperor can send an envoy to Anding City. It would be best if he could meet with Yang Ji in person to discuss how to get rid of Luo Yi and stabilize the Yan Liao army."

Li Shimin thought for a moment, turned his head and looked at Zhangsun Wuji, took two steps forward, held his hand, and said with emotion: "Wuji, at this critical moment, Xuanling cannot leave, Ruhui is not in good health, Yuchi, Zhijie and Junji have to lead the troops, and they can't handle such delicate matters. I can only trouble you to make this trip."

"Your Majesty, don't say that."

Zhang Sun Wuji was also deeply moved: "I am willing to die if I can do my part to save the Tang Dynasty. Besides, I am just a messenger. Your Majesty, rest assured that I will persuade Yang Ji to get rid of Luo Yi and take down the Yan Liao army."

"Yes." Li Shimin patted Changsun Wuji's hand comfortingly: "I will give you a secret order later and pass it to Yang Ji, asking him to wait for an opportunity to get rid of Luo Yi and stabilize the Yan and Liao armies. Afterwards, I will confer him the title of Duke of Yan and the commander of the Yan and Liao armies."

"Your Majesty, rest assured. If things go smoothly, I will pass on the imperial decree. If there is a fraud, I will destroy the imperial decree and say that I was entrusted by the Empress to go and see the Prince of Zhongshan. As long as there is no evidence, even if Luo Yi is bold, I don't think he would dare to do anything to an old man like me."

When Li Chengqian was mentioned, Li Shimin's mood became a little heavy. Finally, he warned: "However, you only need to go to Anding City, and don't go to the military camp. Yang Ji wants to kill Luo Yi, and there will definitely be a bloody storm. If Yang Ji fails, the consequences will be disastrous. I can't live without you!"

"Don't worry, Your Majesty. I know what to do." Changsun Wuji nodded solemnly.

Then Li Shimin handed a handwritten imperial edict to Changsun Wuji, who hurried away with the edict.

Fang Xuanling reminded: "Your Majesty, I would like to remind you that Cheng Zhijie's 30,000 troops near the Yan Liao army should be on high alert and be ready to respond at any time."

"Yes, Not Bad!"

Li Shimin nodded solemnly: "If something unexpected happens to Yang Ji, Zhijie must immediately march to the Yan Liao army camp to deter the enemy and control the situation. But he cannot alert Luo Yi in advance, which would cause trouble for Yang Ji."

Therefore, the attention of the Tang Dynasty's central government was drawn to the Yan Liao army, and it closely followed the development of the situation. The success or failure of Yang Ji's seizure of power in the Yan Liao army was related to the Tang Dynasty's response to the war against the Turks, whether it would resist stubbornly or empty the treasury and kneel down to seek peace.

As a result, the court suddenly became quiet. After that, Feng Deyi asked several times about countermeasures against Jie Li. Li Shimin also convened several central meetings, but they were all noisy and no definite answer was given.

As for Fan Xing's suggestion to empty the treasury, several key officials in the court were also ambiguous, neither accepting nor rejecting it, but just saying that they needed to discuss it, which made Feng Deyi confused. Seeing that the battle on the north bank of Weishui was going on every day, the court could not come up with a real countermeasure.

Feng Deyi discovered that Changsun Wuji had not attended court for several days, and finally could not bear it any longer and went to the Prince of Changsha's Mansion.

It is not known what he talked about with Li Ke. After Feng Deyi left, Li Ke hurriedly summoned his confidant Cheng Huailiang to meet him. Cheng Huailiang entered Li Ke's house and had a secret conversation for a stick of incense. Then he hurried back home and went to visit his father Cheng Yaojin who was leading troops in Jingzhou the next day.

At this time, in the forage warehouse of the Yan Liao army camp, Li Yan's food had obviously improved since Yang Ji made his attitude clear. Every time, Wen Jun, wearing a soldier's uniform, went to the small kitchen behind Yang Ji's tent and personally prepared food for Li Yan and brought it to him.

There were three meals a day, each with meat and wine. After dinner, Li Yan would sit with Xiao Wenjun and talk to him. When he was tired, he would lie on the haystack to sleep. Xiao Wenjun would massage his shoulders, legs, and ears, etc. The days were so leisurely and comfortable that Li Yan didn't want to go out of the warehouse.

On this day, Li Yan had just finished his breakfast served by Xiao Wenjun. He was walking slowly to digest the food and thinking about what to do.

Suddenly, fierce shouts and screams were heard from the military camp in the distance. The noise and bustle lasted for a long time.

Yang Ji, wearing armor, holding a sword dripping with blood, with a murderous look on his face, came to the warehouse covered in blood, scaring the two little men in the warehouse.

After sending Wenjun away, Yang Ji opened the prison door, stepped forward and knelt on one knee: "My Lord, Yang Ji has just been ordered to kill the traitor Luo Yi in the commander's tent, and I have come to ask the prince to take charge of the situation."

Li Yan was half lying on the haystack, squinting his eyes, crossing his legs, and looking at Yang Ji who was kneeling in front of him without raising his eyelids.

At this time, Yang Ji was wearing the Ming Guang armor commonly worn by generals of the Tang Dynasty. Wearing this kind of armor made him look a bit like a rugby player in later generations. It obviously enlarged the size of the human body, and when he squatted or kneeled there, he looked like a small mountain, appearing extremely powerful.

This was the first time Li Yan saw Yang Ji dressed like this. He was wearing a shiny helmet with a ridge in the middle and protruding horns in front of his forehead.

There are neck guard and ear guards under the helmet, and the outer edges of the left and right ear guards are rolled up.

The body armor also has a neck guard. The front part of the body armor is divided into two large, nearly oval-shaped plates on the left and right. Each plate has a small round armor plate in the center, and the back is a whole large plate.

The breastplate and back armor are connected by buckles on both shoulders. The armor belt is tied vertically from the neck to the chest, then divided to the left and right to the back, and then tied to the abdomen. There is a knee-length skirt on each side under the belt. The shoulder capes have two layers, the upper layer is shaped like a tiger head, and the lower layer of green capes with scarlet edges can be seen from the tiger head.

At this time, Yang Ji's armor was covered with bright dark red color, and his face was splattered with a lot of blood. In his right hand, he was leaning on an unsheathed Tang sword. The blade was long and sharp, and blood was slowly flowing down the blade. Yang Ji was panting, and he looked extremely agitated.

(End of this chapter)