Traveling through Du He, Li Chengqian's rebellion begins

As night fell, the door to the Liangyi Palace remained tightly closed.

On the candlesticks on both sides of the hall, the candles had already burned mostly, and the melted wax had condensed into large lumps.

After most of the day's discussion, except for the specific combat deployment which has not yet been determined, a relatively complete plan for the early combat preparations has been formulated.

Li Shimin stood up, his resolute face tinged with a little fatigue, and he made his final summary speech.

"Then it is settled. At the court meeting tomorrow, I will announce to all officials that I will mobilize troops against Goguryeo. Prepare for the war in advance."

"The day after tomorrow, we will send Minister of Agriculture Li Xuanjiang to Goguryeo to order Yeon Gaesomun to withdraw his troops."

"Next spring, the army will attack Goguryeo!"

"The specific combat arrangements will be discussed slowly by the Ministry of Shangshu and the Ministry of War."

Silla would have been beaten badly by Goguryeo and Baekje if Li Shimin had not sent envoys to give Goguryeo a beating.

The weak Silla might not even survive this year.

If Goguryeo gives face and withdraws its troops, everyone will be happy. If it continues to act on its own, it will also provide a good excuse for the Tang Dynasty to send troops.

The master has a legitimate reason to beat it.

"Follow the order!"

All the ministers stood up together and bowed to Li Shimin with solemn expressions.

Zhang Sun Wuji asked: "Your Majesty, which general will lead the expedition against Goguryeo? Which generals should be sent?"

The selection of commander-in-chief is crucial and determines the success or failure of the battle.

After hearing this, most of the people present turned their attention to Li Jing, Li Ji and Hou Junji.

Li Jing's achievements and military command and combat capabilities are unquestionable, and he can be said to be unique in the Tang Dynasty.

He pacified Wu and Hui in the south, swept the Turks in the north, and conquered Tuyuhun in the west. He fought in more than ten large-scale battles without a single defeat.

He is definitely a war god level boss.

Li Ji was not bad either. In addition to following Li Shimin in establishing the Tang Dynasty, he also participated in the wars to destroy the Eastern Turks and led the wars to destroy the Xueyantuo, and both were great victories.

Although Hou Junji's battle record was a little worse, he was also a ruthless man who led his troops alone to destroy Gaochang and had experience in fighting with large armies.

Apart from these few people, the other generals, although brave and strategic, have never commanded a large army in battle and are not suitable to be the commander-in-chief of the three armies.

Hou Junji's eyes narrowed, and he turned his head and glanced at Li Ji.

In this expedition to Goguryeo, the title of commander-in-chief is most likely to go to him and Li Ji.

Li Jing is already 73 years old and is ill. Your Majesty cannot allow such an old and frail general to lead the army.

"This time it's my turn to stand out!"

Hou Junji clenched his fists tightly.

Among the five great heroes of the Xuanwu Gate Incident, Changsun Wuji was promoted to Situ, and Fang Xuanling was promoted to Sikong. Now it is his turn to hold the power!

When he conquers Goguryeo, he will come back and be the Shangshu Zuo Pushe, in charge of the Secretariat!

Just when Hou Junji, Li Ji and others had different thoughts, Li Shimin announced a candidate for commander that surprised them.

"My dear ministers, I have decided to lead the Northern Expedition against Goguryeo in person this time!"

Li Shimin raised his head slightly, his eyes full of ambition.

Boom!

Li Shimin's words were like thunder in a clear sky, shaking everyone's hearts.

"what's the situation!"

"Your Majesty actually wants to lead the army in person?"

Changsun Wuji, Fang Xuanling, Li Jing and others looked at each other, feeling a little uneasy.

In their view, Li Shimin had never participated in a war since he ascended the throne, and all the wars were completed by his generals.

After not leading troops in battle for so many years, will you become unfamiliar with it?

Moreover, if an emperor loses a battle, wouldn’t his prestige in the hearts of the common people plummet like Emperor Yang Guang of the Sui Dynasty?

The gain outweighs the loss!

Chu Suiliang, who was sitting at the back, advised: "Your Majesty, our Great Tang has many generals and strong soldiers. If we attack Goguryeo, we will surely be unstoppable. Why do you need to lead the army in person?"

"Besides, the country has just experienced the rebellion of the King of Qi, and it is not stable. Without you in Chang'an, I am afraid it will cause unrest in the country!"

"Your Majesty, please think twice!"

The role that Chu Suiliang is now playing is that of Wei Zheng in the past, responsible for advising and reminding Li Shimin.

Advise Li Shimin on his inappropriate decisions to prevent him from making mistakes.

"Your Majesty, if you lead the army in person, wouldn't it make our generals look incompetent?"

"We must not follow the old path of Emperor Yang Guang of the Sui Dynasty. His bloody lesson is still fresh in our minds. We should learn from it!"

"Your Majesty, please choose another good general as the commander!"

Li Jing, Li Ji, Gao Shilian and others also dissuaded Li Shimin from staying in Chang'an.

Although the soldiers of the Tang Dynasty are extremely powerful, who can guarantee that they will win the battle?

Moreover, with Emperor Li Shimin around, the generals accompanying the troops in the battle would be restricted when formulating strategies.

For example, someone like Li Ji, who is good at using strange strategies, cannot fully display his true strength.

After all, Li Shimin is not the King of Qin back then!

If anything happens to him, the people following him will be finished as well.

Changsun Wuji narrowed his eyes and looked at Li Shimin in surprise, but did not say anything to stop him.

The two of them have known each other the longest, and they have a better grasp of Li Shimin's thoughts than anyone else.

He never led the army in person to conquer the Turks, Tubo, and Xueyantuo, but now he wants to lead the army personally to fight against Goguryeo.

Isn't this trying to tell the people of the world that he, Li Shimin, is more awesome and capable than Emperor Yang Guang of the Sui Dynasty?

And Your Majesty can also complete that great task in a natural way!

"Hey~"

Li Shimin was very unhappy when he saw the fierce opposition from his ministers.

There is still someone missing who can understand his heart!

Fang Xuanling saw that Li Shimin was unhappy, so he said jokingly, "Your Majesty, as the ruler of a country, do you also want to snatch the credit from your subjects?"

"Forehead!"

Faced with this sudden remark, Li Shimin, who was filled with anger, was stunned.

The others also looked at Fang Xuanling with admiration.

It still has to be you, Fang Sikong!

With this joke, His Majesty, who was about to get angry, was instantly silenced.

Li Shimin shook his head with a bitter smile on his face.

He knew that his proposal to lead the army in person would not be passed today, and he could only convince these ministers one by one in the future.

"We will discuss this later. Let's make preparations for the war first. It's getting late now. Let's go back first."

"I'll take my leave."

Fang Xuanling, Li Jing, Hou Junji and others left Liangyi Hall one after another, dragging their tired bodies.

But Changsun Wuji stood where he was and showed no intention of leaving.

After everyone else left, Li Shimin looked at Zhangsun Wuji in confusion and asked curiously, "Fuji, do you have anything else to say?"

Zhangsun Wuji's courtesy name was Fuji.

When the two of them were together in private, Li Shimin always called Zhangsun Wuji "auxiliary minister".

Changsun Wuji cupped his hands, lowered his eyebrows and eyes, and said in a low voice: "Your Majesty, I have a confusion in my heart."

"I want to lead the army in person?"

"Correct!"

"What's confusing? Tell me."

Li Shimin put his hands behind his back and looked at him with interest.

Zhang Sun Wuji raised his head and said with a smile on his face: "Your Majesty, you have decided to lead the army in person, but do you want to take advantage of the situation... to perform Fengshan?"

"Hmm!" Li Shimin raised his eyebrows, pointed at Zhangsun Wuji and scolded him with a smile: "Assistant, being too smart is not good!"

Fengshan at Mount Tai had always been Li Shimin's obsession. However, he postponed the ceremony several times in his early years because he was too busy.

Later on, he took the initiative to perform Fengshan, but it was put on hold for various reasons.

Now Li Shimin felt that he was no longer young. If he did not go to Mount Tai to offer sacrifices to heaven and earth, he would not have the energy to do so when he was old.

It just so happened that Goguryeo attacked Silla, giving him a great opportunity!

After conquering Goguryeo and completing the feat that the Sui Dynasty had not accomplished, when the reputation reached its peak, it would be natural for him to be enthroned on Mount Tai.

Chang Sun Wuji said with a smile on his face: "If we officials are not smarter, your Majesty will not use us."

"Hahaha, auxiliary machine, auxiliary machine, you are the one who understands me the best!"

Li Shimin pointed at Changsun Wuji and laughed.