Da Tang: Father, can I resign?

Chapter 248 Sit-in War

"I'm the marching commander, what are you doing?!"

In the central military tent of the Tang Dynasty's 80,000 strong army, Li Shiji shouted vigilantly at the newcomers.

Opposite him, Hou Junji, Xue Wanche and Li Daozon, three members of a treacherous party, were slowly approaching him with unfriendly faces.

When they were only two steps away from Li Shiji, at a distance where they could pierce his heart with a leap with a sword, the three of them stopped in tacit understanding.

"Reporting to the Grand Steward, we have led the army back and found no trace of His Majesty."

Hou Junji bowed casually.

Li Shiji was obviously relieved, and his hand loosened the hilt of the sword, but his mind was not relaxed at all, and he said politely:
"Thank you for your hard work. I heard a rumor that His Majesty and his entourage might appear in Hebei. I wonder if it would be convenient for you to lead the troops to take a look?"

"It's inconvenient." Xue Wanche pushed him back bluntly.

Li Shiji was not annoyed by his nominal subordinate's insults, but asked in a friendly manner:

"why?"

"Didn't we just follow your lead and head west from the Hebei border to Xiazhou and Shengzhou? Now you want us to go back?"

Xue Wanche replied unhappily.

The large army will be left in Hebei and starve due to lack of food, right... Li Shiji's mouth twitched, but he still maintained a kind smile.

However, the suspected traitor Li Dao Zong could not stand Lao Xue's careless attitude, so he explained to the chief steward:
"Moreover, if we move towards Hebei, we will definitely pass through the range of the Ashina Simo Turks, and it is far away from the Xiazhou supply base. If we advance rashly, we will easily be cut off from supplies."

As for the Turks, you are indeed more qualified to speak... Li Shiji couldn't help but complain in his heart.

However, he did not reveal his secret thoughts at all, and said in a very negotiating manner:
"In that case, then let it be so."

You can do whatever you want. If you don’t want to go to Hebei, then don’t go. If you want to leave Your Majesty out in the wild in the middle of winter, then do so.

"Take orders."

Hou Junji didn't know what orders he had received, so he turned around and left with his two brothers, just as they had come talking to each other.

Looking at the handsome backs of the three brothers, Li Shiji's face immediately turned red.

But he didn't get angry in the end, he just sighed helplessly:
"Ugh……"

Recently, the internal atmosphere of the Northern Expedition Army has become increasingly weird.

This army assembled the elite of the entire Tang Dynasty. Originally, it was intended to replicate the glorious example of destroying the Eastern Turks twelve years ago and to give the Tiele people a thorough blow.

Unexpectedly, the emperor failed to make the best use of the opportunity and lost himself.

So it was lost, but they neither went east to look for the emperor, nor went north to attack the Xueyantuo, nor went south to return to the court.

Instead, they moved westward to the unrelated Xiazhou area, unable to advance or retreat, and continued to be stuck on the front line.

This made the soldiers feel very helpless and depressed, and they didn't know what they were doing.

Among the upper echelons of the troop, the atmosphere was particularly strange.

After the emperor and the crown prince passed away, the highest-ranking official in the entire army was Li Shiji, the commander-in-chief of the army.

However, as the top superior, Li Shiji became more and more respectful towards his two deputy general managers.

It seems as if Hou Junji and Xue Wanche are the general managers.

Even after the two of them voluntarily released Li Daozon, who was suspected of collaborating with the enemy, and incorporated him into the top leadership of the army, Li Shiji did not object at all.

This is highly unusual in the military, a place where hierarchy is paramount.

Li Shiji had no choice.

For the sake of team unity, as the leader, he must endure it.

Hou, Xue and Li are all die-hard members of the Fourteen Traitors Gang.

The relationship between the Fourteen Parties and the Jin Wang Party, Li Ming and Li Zhi can be described in one word:

Hard to say.

The two sides may have fallen out, but it is unlikely that they will fall out again.

From Li Ming's point of view, Li Zhi was certainly one of the traitors who forced the emperor to abdicate by force.

But Li Zhi finally spared him and let him return to Liaodong, which showed that he still had a conscience and could be educated.

From Li Zhi's perspective, Li Ming was also a traitor who replaced the legitimate heir with a concubine's son. However, he has been "killed" now, and "revenge for Li Ming" was also Li Zhi's political slogan against the fourth brother Li Tai.

So in fact, the two sides have not completely torn their relations apart.

This unclear political situation also affected the areas outside the northern border of Shuobei, and the 80,000-strong army that was still on the front line.

This main force of the Tang army was not isolated overseas.

In fact, they maintain extremely frequent contact with the mainland and are fully aware of the developments in their hometown in real time.

The unclear relationship between Li Ming and Li Zhi also made the relationship between the top military officers delicate.

Thanks to Li Shimin's clever move to keep the situation stable, Li Shiji from the Jin Wang party was appointed as the commander-in-chief of these 80,000 elite troops, while Hou Junji and Xue Wanche from the Fourteenth Party were appointed as deputy commanders-in-chief.

The two groups have different positions and thoughts. In the current unclear situation, they are suspicious of each other and hinder each other, and neither of them has the ability or determination to "clean up" the other side.

"Those three bastards probably knew long ago that His Highness Li Ming was not dead..."

Li Shiji said to himself.

Again, this army is not isolated overseas and information is flowing smoothly.

Since we can receive instructions from the imperial court here, we can naturally also receive communications from Liaodong.

Hou, Xue and Li must have received the secret letter from His Highness Li Ming reporting his safety.

It is even possible that the three of them received the next instruction to take control of this army...

This is very scary.

The 80,000 troops outside the Great Wall are the elite among the elite, and they crush all other armies in the world without exception.

In comparison, the Li Tai Army and Li Zhi Army, who fought to the death in the country, were at best third-rate troops.

If these 80,000 people fell into Li Ming's hands...

game over!

"Should we take the initiative and kill those three people?"

This was an idea that Li Shiji had thought of more than once, and he rejected it more than once.

First of all, those three people are not easy to deal with. They are very alert and usually eat and sleep separately to avoid being caught in one fell swoop.

Not to mention taking action, I'm lucky enough that I wasn't killed by those three bastards.

Secondly, after all, Li Zhi and Li Ming have not completely broken up.

He slaughtered three generals of Li Ming's side on his own initiative and intensified the conflict, which was definitely not a good thing for Li Zhi to stabilize the overall situation in the country.

More importantly, he couldn't mobilize his troops to do the dirty work.

These soldiers are worthy of the name of elite and are loyal only to the emperor.

They are not the private soldiers of the general commander.

Fight foreign enemies and make them go through fire and water without a single complaint.

But if there is an internal conflict, don't blame them for just sitting there and watching the show.

Letting Li Shiji fight three people alone obviously has little chance of winning.

Since we can't overturn the table, we can only be more tolerant and maintain unity.

"Anyway, I can't mobilize these 80,000 people, so how can those three bastards command them?

"Let's just make do with it..."

Li Shiji studied the map in distress.

This did not relieve his depression much.

Due to internal strife and logistical problems, the activities of these 80,000 people were strictly restricted to the Wuding River area northwest of Taihang Mountains.

Running around will easily lead to supply cuts, and the military risks are too high.

If these 80,000 men were lost, including the logistical support of the civilians, the historian would have said "Li Shiji caused the annihilation of a million-strong army", allowing him to experience the treatment that Fu Jian had received.

If we withdraw our troops, it would be tantamount to showing that we are not going to help Your Majesty, which would involve huge political risks.

If Li Shiji dared to make this decision, not to mention that Li Zhi would be drowned in saliva.

He might not even be able to leave the military tent, and might even be torn to pieces by the 80,000 loyal soldiers of the emperor.

Therefore, he could only let this large group of people be stuck in this nebulous position, searching inefficiently for clues about the emperor, obtaining supplies from the already impoverished Xiazhou, and making life difficult for the local people.

"Ok?"

As Li Shiji watched, he realized something was wrong.

The reports on reconnaissance of the Tiele tribe are becoming less and less frequent.

War is about gaining intelligence, and we have sent out enough spies.

"That is to say, the main force of the Tiele people has broken away from contact with us and is moving in other directions?"

Li Shiji frowned.

Nomads migrate like a gust of wind, and can travel hundreds of miles in one night. However, the terrain in the south of the desert is monotonous, either Gobi or grassland, with no memorable features.

So it can be said that Li Shiji lost the main force of Xueyantuo.

Chang'an did not provide any valuable information. Perhaps Chang'an is still waiting for information from Li Shiji.

"I wonder if those three bastards got any information from Liaodong... Should I ask them?"

Li Shiji fell into a fierce ideological struggle.

At this time, the deputy general reported:
"General, there is a letter from Chang'an."

"A letter from His Royal Highness the Prince of Jin?" Li Shiji was somewhat puzzled. He took a carefully sealed wax envelope from the hands of his trusted deputy general who was in charge of delivering secret letters and began to read.

The more he read, the more his brows furrowed.

After reading the last part, he tore the letter into pieces and threw the scraps into the charcoal stove, where they were completely burned to ashes.

…………

"Why don't we kill that bastard Li Shiji?"

As soon as he left the commander-in-chief's tent, Xue Wanche spoke his mind.

Hou Junji and Li Daozon said in unison:
"Hush! If you don't want to be torn apart by your soldiers, don't have such a crooked idea."

Most of these 80,000 elite soldiers came from Guanzhong. Their fathers and brothers had followed the Li family to conquer the world, and they had high subjective initiative.

The relationship with the generals is more like that of collaborators rather than puppets who only know how to follow orders.

"Then what should we do? Continue to waste time here?"

Xue Wanche was a little impatient.

He just wanted to get rid of the annoying Li Shiji, lead an army of 80,000 south, sweep across the Central Plains and be himself again, bring Prince Li Ming, who was forced to Liaodong by traitors, back to Chang'an, end the civil war, and rebuild the glory of the Tang Dynasty.

"Yes, this is the task His Highness Li Ming has given us. We must fight with Li Shiji and prevent the control of this army from falling into his hands."

Hou Junji said seriously.

The importance of these 80,000 soldiers in the second round of "Four Sons' Struggle for Succession" is self-evident.

Basically, whoever these soldiers stand on will be the one to ascend the throne.

Li Dao Zong frowned and shook his head:
"I can understand Xue Wanche."

Hou Junji was stunned: "You have the same idea as him?"

Li Daozong stroked his beard:

“If we continue to waste time here, it will probably be even more disadvantageous to us.

"Don't forget, Li Zhi still controls the court."

Hou Junji was silent for a while.

Among the four princes, Li Ming, Li Zhi, Li Tai and Li Chengqian, who is closest to controlling this army of 80,000?

It must be Li Zhi.

Let’s not talk about the factor of Li Shiji, the commander-in-chief of the army.

If Li Zhi asked the court to issue an imperial edict, these 80,000 people would return to the court to defend the capital.

Do these soldiers listen or not?

Maybe they won’t listen now because the emperor has just been lost and hasn’t been found yet.

What if we wait another month, until the beginning of next spring?

Will these fierce and powerful troops continue to sit by the Wuding River and confront the Tiele people?
"Don't think too much. His Highness Li Ming has clearly instructed us to just hold back Li Shiji. Don't create any complications and establish Li Zhi as a mortal enemy in Liaodong."

Hou Junji suppressed the two people's bold ideas.

But no matter what, in this cold winter when the whole country is in chaos, the best killing weapon in the world under his command can only sit in this barren northern wilderness and watch the show.

Wasn't he also restless in his heart?

I don’t know what His Highness Li Ming is planning. He must be able to think of the same things that Li Daozon and Xue Wanche can think of.

How can His Highness be so calm...

"Deputy Chief, there is a letter from Pingzhou."

The messenger handed Li Ming's secret letter to Hou Junji.

Li Ming has been exchanging letters with the three giants of the army. Since he took control of Liaodong, he has insisted on writing at least one letter every day.

Although there was a delay in sending the letter, the delay was not too many days because Liaodong and the Northwest are relatively close to each other and it was connected by the "military optical cable".

"What instructions does your Highness have?"

Li Daozon came forward curiously.

"Are we going to take action?" Xue Wanche was even more full of fighting spirit.

"Shh! Be quiet, there's someone next to us!"

Hou Junji elbowed the two impatient people away and spread out the young master's handwritten letter.

"What?!" Hou Junji couldn't help but raise his voice.

"Hush!" Li Daozon and Xue Wanche reminded at the same time, moving the letter under their eyes.

Then they both said in unison:

"What? Xueyantuo colluded with Li Tai and invaded Hebei?!"

Of course, they were also dissatisfied with the Hebei gentry who only obeyed orders and not announcements and who put a stranglehold on them in terms of logistics.

But the barbarian invasion is another matter, especially when it is an invasion led by the big bad guy Li Tai with the help of both inside and outside forces.

Shame!
China was bullied before the establishment of the Tang Dynasty, and it was still bullied after the establishment of the Tang Dynasty. Wasn’t the establishment of the Tang Dynasty in vain?

"Damn it, is the Prince of Wei's Mansion a nest of insects? What on earth does Li Nitai want to do!"

Xue Wanche spoke frankly and angrily.

Li Dao Zong was also shaking with anger:
"Li Zhi is incompetent and has lost power and humiliated the country!"

As they continued reading, the three of them exclaimed in unison:

"What? His Majesty the Emperor was suspected to have been spotted on the Hebei border?!"

No matter how hard you try, you won't be able to find anything, and it takes no effort to get there!

I didn't expect that the gossip Li Shiji got had some background.

"Then what are you waiting for? Turn around and head to Hebei!"

Xue Wanche couldn't wait any longer.

He just wanted to quickly welcome back His Majesty and let his father give those eight rebellious sons a good beating. They had messed up the Tang Dynasty so badly that he would give them a beating as hard as possible.

"Why are you so anxious? Why are you so anxious..." Li Daozon complained arrogantly, but in his heart he was as anxious as Xue Wanche.

His Majesty should also return to his loyal Chang'an.

Damn it, His Majesty has only been missing for a month, and these unfilial sons have ruined the country into such a mess that even the slaves of the Turks can ride on their heads and shit on them!

"Oh? His Highness Li Ming is planning to send troops to support Hebei?" Hou Junji raised his eyebrows.

"You are worthy of being His Highness!" Xue Wanche raised his arms and exclaimed.

China was actually invaded by the Tiele people, which made him feel extremely aggrieved.

Li Ming's decision to dispatch troops was a good one, it really makes me feel relieved!
Li Dao Zong thought more than him:
"Oh no, no, His Highness Li Ming, is it a bit...

"Oh, yes, yes, yes. If we can take this opportunity to capture Hebei, win the hearts of the people and become famous, it would be a great opportunity to gain both fame and fortune."

He figured it out quickly.

Hou Junji thought one step further than the two funny guys.

He put down the letter and looked at the two of them:

“The question is, what do we do about it?”

"You're still asking this? Either go east to support Hebei, or go north to attack Xueyantuo and form a support with Your Highness!" Xue Wanche blurted out without even thinking.

Li Daozong seconded the motion:
"I suggest that we march eastward to Hebei. This will not only make it easier to obtain supplies from Liaodong and Hebei, but will also allow these 80,000 strong troops to see who is saving the people from danger and help Your Highness rally the troops."

Hou Junji nodded, feeling that what the two said made sense.

What's more, if His Majesty can be rescued.

Then, not only can the collapsed social order be restored.

The broken order of succession to the throne will also return to normal.

The troublemakers Li Zhi and Li Tai will definitely be eliminated, and His Highness Li Ming will win without a doubt.

"Okay!" Hou Junji clapped his hands and said:
"Pack your luggage now and head east to Hebei!"

"Where do you want to go?"

An emotionless voice sounded behind the three of them.

(End of this chapter)