Da Tang: Father, can I resign?

Chapter 253 Li Zhi: Are you trying to get me? Li Tai and Li Ming are teaming up to get me, right?
The three thousand elite troops that Li Ming sent to Hebei were an army of just over four thousand in number and whose overall strength was still relatively weak.

Although these 5,000 men had extraordinary technical and tactical skills, in the vast and populous Hebei region, and on the stage of the great battle between the Xueyantuo, Li Tai and the local gentry, these 6,000 men were indeed a little too few.

"What? Why do you think the Red Turban Army is getting bigger and bigger?"

In Pingzhou Prefecture, Li Ming looked past the battle report and glanced at Changsun Yan who was sitting opposite him.

"Brother Ming, I don't doubt that the Red Scarf Army is collecting empty salaries." Chang Sunyan said sincerely:

"But war always results in casualties, and Liaodong has not continued to send new armed forces to Hebei. Our number of soldiers should be decreasing, or at least not increasing, right?
"But why did the demand for soldiers' rations increase dramatically as the war progressed? The loss on the road wasn't that great, right?"

"Of course the enemy was moved by my teachings and took the initiative to join our army."

Li Ming answered as a matter of course.

As the demand for food and wages increased, the first thing to do was to eliminate Xue Rengui and Su Dingfang who were drawing the empty wages at the front.

Because Li Ming is still very confident in his control over his army.

First of all, based on ideological education, he instilled the concepts and discipline of the Red Turban Army organization into grassroots soldiers day and night.

Of course, ideological education is only the foundation.

The real killer move lies in the organizational structure.

The Red Turban Army's supervision mechanism is nested layer by layer, and is much more rigorous than what Chang Sun Yan knew.

In addition to the traditional vertical structure of the military from top to bottom, there are also various institutions that report directly to Li Ming, which implement flat supervision of the Red Turban Army to prevent military power from being usurped by senior generals.

From the Disciplinary Committee and Soldiers Committee within the military, the Intelligence Committee and Purge Committee outside the military, to the National Chamber of Commerce that connects logistics, and so on.

Li Ming mobilized all internal and external organizations that could be mobilized, weaving a tight network to strictly monitor and control the army's every move.

Li Ming has a complete set of methods, from preventing the army from acting on its own and repeating the mistakes of his father Li Er's nationwide chaos, to preventing abstract operations such as watering down battle reports and producing "base camp battle reports" that lead to misjudgment of the battle situation.

Therefore, after passing the strict review, Li Ming basically trusted the people he employed in the army.

"Relax, Ayan. The army is not collecting empty salaries. It's just that more people have surrendered to our army." He patted his chief secretary on the shoulder.

"There were the Weizhou troops who had come to their senses, the Tiele people who had abandoned darkness and joined the light, and even more were the local people of Hebei who were mobilized and joined our army to defend their country."

Apart from the above three situations, Li Ming really couldn't think of any other explanations.

It's impossible that the soldiers of the Red Turban Army achieved fission reproduction on the battlefield?
"Really?" I don't believe it... Chang Sun Yan muttered to himself.

I can't help but believe it. It's only been a few days since the Red Turban Army marched into Hebei to fight.

The total military strength doubled so easily?

Isn’t the efficiency of surrender too high?

Are you going to war?

If you don’t know, you might think this is a recruitment drive to Hebei!
“Of course they were impressed by my civil and military skills!
"Could it be that you were moved by the Qin King's Battle Music and wanted to form a band with me for life?"

Li Ming asked back unhappily.

Chang Sunyan listened to Li Ming's complaints with a vague understanding, and scratched his head in disbelief.

"It's not that I don't trust soldiers, but the point is that this record is too outrageous..."

"This is the benefit of occupying the moral high ground. This is the essence of politics. Ayan, you still need to learn more."

Li Ming patiently taught his friends:

"Hebei is what I want, but if I rashly send troops to attack, I will not only provoke fierce resistance, but also pay a heavy price.

“It will also greatly increase governance costs and management difficulties.

"You know, the people of Hebei have always had a grudge against my father, and the local nobles have slandered my policies.

"If I take it by force again this time, I am afraid that the local people will become more alienated from me, which will pose a huge hidden danger."

For example, it might have triggered the Anshi Rebellion, the separatist rule of military governors, etc. He added in his mind.

Chang Sunyan understood, and slapped his forehead with sudden realization:
"I didn't expect that by using the righteous cause of expelling Xueyantuo, I could actually win the support of the other side's military and civilians..."

"Let them play the bad guys and we will be the good guys, and then we can control Hebei naturally." Li Ming nodded affirmatively:
"This is actually the same strategy we used to deal with Goguryeo."

The Tiele people are good people, and the good thing is that they are brutal.

He drove all the people of Hebei to his side.

If there is anyone stubborn enough to not go with Li Ming, he can only go with King Xia Dou Jiande.

Li Tai is also a good person, the good thing is that he recognizes the barbarians as his master.

Having lost the support of the people, they had no choice but to seek refuge in Liaodong.

These two negative teachers are both very good and have played an irreplaceable role in Li Ming's plan to recruit new members.

"If we can drive out the Xueyantuo for the people of Hebei and stabilize the situation, then our land reform policy will be very smooth, and the problems of the gentry and regional discord can be solved at the same time..."

"If that's the case, then Hebei will soon be in our pocket, right?"

Chang Sunyan's eyes lit up:
"I will immediately organize the clerks to move in and establish a grassroots governing body in the local area!"

"Slow down, slow down. Leave the things at the front to the soldiers. If you take too big a step, you may get hurt."

Li Ming stepped on the brakes for his friend's attitude of losing quickly but winning quickly.

"Then I will start with the refugees in Hebei, select and train grassroots officials suitable for dispatch to the local area, and then wait for your notification, Brother Ming, and set off immediately!"

Chang Sunyan retreated with full of fighting spirit.

Li Ming looked at his friend's excited back, his expression gradually became gloomy, and his gaze returned to the battle report itself.

Yes, after winning the war, the prestige of the war can be used to solve many stubborn problems in local governance.

But the key to the problem lies in solving the key problem, that is -

How to win the war.

As mentioned before, fighting is the most materialistic human behavior.

Although Li Ming had made sufficient preparations and seized all the advantages of time, place and people.

However, the objective gap in military strength between them and Li Tai's side cannot be easily eliminated in the short term.

The Weizhou Military Governor's Office under Li Tai's control and the troops from other military governor's offices totaled tens of thousands of people.

Although not all of them were wearing armor, their equipment and training were inferior to the 80,000 elite soldiers led by Li Shiji.

But they were the army of the early Tang Dynasty after all, and the quality of their soldiers was also very good, enough to defeat the elite troops of ordinary dynasties.

Of course, the people that Li Tai directly controls are only little Karami.

Xueyantuo is the big boss, and their military force is even greater.

There were a total of three hundred thousand soldiers and archers.

Although they are both military and civilian integrated forces, their training and quality are generally inferior to those of professional soldiers.

However, nomads are naturally good at riding, and they are all ready-made cavalry. Their combat capabilities on the North China Plain should not be underestimated either...

"Your Highness."

There was a rare visitor outside the door.

Governor of Yingzhou, Zhang Jian.

This great-grandson of Li Yuan is the emperor's confidant, not Li Ming's.

Fortunately, after witnessing the Xuanwu Gate Incident, this relative became very sensible and did not easily interfere in the Li family's affairs.

Therefore, he turned a blind eye to Li Ming's infiltration of the Governor's Office. After the army set out to Hebei, he took the initiative to hand over power and stayed in the base camp.

In recognition of his sensibleness, Li Ming appointed him as the chief of staff whose farts were noisy.

Now Liaodong can be said to have all the generals, either in Hebei, Shuobei, or in the Northeast. Therefore, Zhang Jian became the one who knew the most about military affairs in the base camp, and faithfully served as a military advisor to Li Ming.

"Three thousand people versus more than three hundred thousand. We cooked one table of food but two tables of people came. The pressure on the front line is a bit high."

Li Ming said to him with a wry smile.

Although the Red Turban Army on the front line had "increased" its strength by nearly one-fold, these newly added 3,000 surrenderers could not immediately become combat forces.

First, they had to be screened to determine whether they were local spies; second, they had to be trained. It was impossible to let them pick up guns and go to the front to die. In order to improve their understanding of commands and formations, cultural education and literacy training had to be strengthened.

After their technical and tactical levels initially reached the level of the Red Turban Army, they could only start with simpler military tasks such as defense and patrolling, and gradually break them up and integrate them into existing troops.

This whole process will take at least a month.

Therefore, the only people who are now fighting Li Tai and Xueyantuo on the front line in Hebei are the original 3,000 people.

"It's more than just two tables, almost a hundred tables of people came for one table of food."

Faced with the huge disparity in military strength, Zhang Jian couldn't smile at all:

"Three thousand men against more than three hundred thousand, our soldiers really did fight one against a hundred but it was still not enough!

"Isn't it a bit rash to send troops this time and provoke the hostility of Xueyantuo?"

Zhang Jian also understood Li Ming's temper. As long as he didn't play tricks on matters of principle, he would not be displeased if he disagreed with him on other issues.

In terms of being humble and willing to accept advice, he is almost exactly like his father.

Therefore, Zhang Jian's speeches gradually became bolder.

"Is it hasty? If you ask me if this plan is risky, I admit that it does involve some gambling. The enemy is strong and we are weak, so it is impossible to be foolproof."

Li Ming admitted it openly, and then changed the subject:
"But I also have a magic weapon to win, so I am not even unqualified to sit at the table."

Having said that, Zhang Jian no longer worried about whether to send troops, and focused his thoughts on the most important issue at the moment, namely, how to achieve the strategic goal.

"If we want to win, we must not allow the enemy's large forces to continue to move southward into the Central Plains. We must draw them as far north as possible."

Li Ming pointed at the map:

"General Zhang, how can we achieve this goal?"

Zhang Jian sat upright and began to actively offer suggestions:

"I think that Xue Rengui has served in Yingzhou Military Governor's Office for a long time and is good at fighting in the mountains and forests. He can lead the Liaodong soldiers to conduct guerrilla warfare in the eastern foothills of Taihang Mountain and disrupt the enemy's logistics.

"Su Dingfang had participated in the campaign against the Eastern Turks and had experience in commanding cavalry. He should lead the foreign soldiers who were skilled in horsemanship to fight the enemy on the front battlefield.

"also……"

The two chatted until late at night.

…………

Amid internal and external chaos, the Tang Dynasty entered the 16th year of Zhenguan.

The news that Liaodong was sending troops to Hebei spread quickly and soon spread throughout the country.

Upon hearing the news, people from all over the country, young and old, were filled with mixed emotions.

They all thought that His Highness Li Ming was killed by the evil King of Wei.

However, although His Highness died, his political legacy is still faithfully protecting the people of the world——

Unexpectedly, when Hebei was devastated by the Xueyantuo, neither Li Tai nor Li Zhi stood up, but the weakest Liaodong stood up.

Now, His Majesty's whereabouts are unknown, and China is facing external and internal troubles.

However, the performance of Li Tai and Li Zhi, the two princes who had the greatest hope of becoming the new emperor, surprised everyone in the world.

Needless to say, Li Tai not only failed to protect the people, but also opened the door to thieves and became an accomplice to the evil.

It’s better not to mention such human detritus.

Li Zhi's performance was also very disappointing.

He possessed the most powerful force, but apart from fighting for power and profit in the civil war, he did nothing, turned a blind eye to foreign invasions, and watched the Tiele people flood the land of China.

This policy of "pacifying the country before fighting the enemy" was not only unacceptable to people from other places, but even the people in Guanzhong, who had always discriminated against Hebei, disagreed with it.

With the invasion of foreign races, regional conflicts naturally gave way to ethnic conflicts.

During his more than ten years in power, Li Shimin struck hard at the barbarians and restored the backbone of China that had been broken during the period of the Five Barbarians and Sixteen Kingdoms.

The Chinese have regained their "superpower" mentality and can no longer tolerate foreign races showing off their power on Chinese soil.

However, the two emperor candidates, Li Zhi and Li Tai, were only concerned with internal fighting and turned a blind eye to external hostility. They had no sense of responsibility for the world and ignored the suffering of the people of Hebei.

The only country that extended a helping hand to the people in times of crisis was Liaodong.

Obviously, all this has nothing to do with them. Obviously, as long as they close the gates of Yanshan, they can stay out of it...

People all over the world couldn't help but miss His Highness Li Ming again.

This is the last refuge that His Highness leaves for this land!
…………

"He'll be the good guy, and I'll be the bad guy... Oh, what a good plan!"

In the Taiji Hall, Li Zhi angrily collected the letter and threw it into the corner.

Chang Sun Wuji said expressionlessly:
“Why doesn’t the Regent also march into Hebei?

"Not only can it wipe out Li Tai's forces and drive Xueyantuo out of the territory of our Tang Dynasty, it can also dispel the resentment of the people and make Li Ming's tricks fall apart."

"That's easy to say." Li Zhi was a little irrational and spoke rudely to his uncle:

"The southern states are increasingly lip-service to me, and the vassal kings in the Central Plains have not submitted to me either.

"Without sufficient military strength and without reliable logistical routes, are my soldiers going to fly from Guanzhong to Hebei?"

Recently, due to the civil war and the rebellion in Hebei, the government and the country were in turmoil, and public opinion was about to explode, which made Li Zhi very angry.

It was as if Li Ming and Li Tai had made an agreement. One of them was a good guy, while the other tried to stop Li Zhi from being a good guy, causing his reputation to plummet to the lowest point...

"You still have a way to regain the hearts and reputation of the people."

Zhang Sun Wuji continued to give his "advice" calmly:
"Then you can also march north to attack Xueyantuo and bring back His Majesty and the Crown Prince. Eighty thousand elite troops are still outside the Great Wall. You don't even need to send more troops. As long as you provide sufficient logistics, it won't be difficult to attack Xueyantuo's camp directly."

"Then Li Shiji revealed a flaw, allowing the spies planted by Li Ming to seize control of those 80,000 people?" Li Zhi immediately retorted.

Zhang Sun Wuji pretended to be surprised:

"Aren't all the armies in the world yours? Isn't rescuing your majesty the most urgent task right now?

"If we can welcome back His Majesty and the Crown Prince, wouldn't your reputation and the people's support be restored?"

"You..." Li Zhi's face turned red and white when he was scolded by his uncle.

This old fox is really pretending to be innocent.

Didn't he know that "saving the emperor" was just a cover and Li Zhi's real intention was to "become emperor"?

Of course he knows!
He was deliberately trying to deceive his nephew!
Li Zhi's chest rose and fell for a while, then calmed down and said coldly:
"My priority is naturally to welcome back my father and my brother, and now I am just acting as their administrator.

"But Li Ming's motives are not pure. We cannot let those 80,000 elite troops fall into his hands. Otherwise, he will definitely rebel, and there will be endless troubles."

After saying that, he waved his hand, signaling his uncle that he could leave.

Changsun Wuji didn't want to linger and turned around and left.

On the way out of the palace, he carefully hid the envelope in his arms.

The letter came from Liaodong.

(End of this chapter)