Traveling through Du He, Li Chengqian's rebellion begins

Du He glanced at Changsun Wuji, put down the military book in his hand, pointed to the cushion beside him and said.

"Duke Zhao, please sit down and rest for a while. Have a cup of tea to calm your nerves."

"At your age, you need to know how to balance work and rest."

As he spoke, he personally poured a cup of tea for Changsun Wuji, as if he and Changsun Wuji were close friends.

hypocritically!

"Humph!"

Changsun Wuji snorted lightly, then walked to the cushion with a stern face and sat down.

He had fought wars with His Majesty all his life and had never been so cowardly, but he had no way to deal with Du He.

I drank a few rounds of tea.

Du He raised an eyebrow and asked, "Duke Zhao, there was a commotion outside the city today. Did the Khitans refuse to accept our demands?"

"Yes!" Changsun Wuji nodded, then said in a deep voice: "The group of Khitan officials who led the reaction were the most intense. They even encouraged their soldiers to protest and asked us to cancel this request."

Even a dog would shake its head when it heard that request, let alone the Khitans.

Killing 10 strong men of the Xun tribe is as difficult as climbing to the sky, and killing 20 of them is definitely a life-threatening situation.

Du He smiled and asked, "How do you solve this problem?"

Zhang Sun Wuji said coldly, "I ordered the execution of all those ministers, and also the execution of several soldiers who were leading the riot. Only then did those Khitan surrendered soldiers become obedient."

"Hard enough!"

"Compared to you, I am kind."

When Changsun Wuji saw Du He's eyes, he was filled with fear.

This guy can kill all the members of his family, let alone deal with the Khitan foreigners, and even deal with the people from the Prince of Jin's Mansion in the future.

After more than four months of contact with Du He, Changsun Wuji discovered that Du He was an extremely tough opponent.

He has a flexible and bold mind and nothing can restrain him.

Zhangsun Wuji then reported: "I have separated the Khitan warriors from their families. Once they have completed their mission, I will allow them to live with their families."

There was a pause.

He then asked, "Duke Han Guo, should we continue our attack on the Xun tribe, or wait until next spring?"

Du He thought for a moment and said, "It's already early November, and the weather is getting colder. It won't be long before there's going to be heavy snow, which isn't suitable for cavalry operations."

"Our soldiers have been fighting continuously for over two months and are already exhausted. They need to rest for a while."

Attacking the Khitan was extremely tiring; they had to travel over a hundred miles, or even several thousand miles, every day.

The soldiers' war horses were all very thin and tired.

Du He continued, "Although our Tang army will not take action, we can send Khitan soldiers out during this period and let them complete the mission."

"Don't send too many people at a time, just 500 will do."

Then Du He told Changsun Wuji some precautions.

After listening.

Changsun Wuji bowed and said, "Okay."

The two chatted for a while, and then Du Wu came in with the meal.

There was wine and meat, which was very rich.

The two of them were like a pair of good friends, raising their glasses to clink from time to time, and the atmosphere was very relaxed when they chatted.

Finish your meal.

Du He smiled and said, "Duke Zhao, please write a battle report so that we can send the good news of the Khitan's annihilation back to Chang'an."

"Row!"

Changsun Wuji responded and then went to write the battle report honestly.

...

Five days later.

Chang'an City.

Light snowflakes were falling from the sky, and the gloomy weather looked a bit depressing.

royal palace.

Inside the Tai Chi Hall.

Li Shimin sat high on the imperial platform, Li Chengqian was his deputy, and Li Zhi and civil and military officials were on both sides of the hall.

No one spoke at this moment, and the atmosphere in the hall was a little depressing.

Obviously, a key figure lost the battle.

After a long time.

Li Shimin said in a deep voice: "The court meeting has begun. Fang Xuanling, you will report the current battle situation of the various armies!"

"promise!"

Fang Xuanling responded.

When he stood up holding the tablet covered with words, the eyes of all civil and military officials were focused on him.

"In the war to annihilate the Western Turks, the armies of Zhang Shigui and Cheng Yaojin have captured twenty cities, including Dushan, Qiemo, Tokharistan, Yanqi, and Shiguo, killing over 8 enemies and capturing over 38 women, children, and the elderly."

"Li Ke, the deputy commander-in-chief of the march, recklessly advanced deep into the enemy's rear and was attacked by the main force of the Western Turks, resulting in the death of over 5000 of his men."

"Zhang Shigui was pierced in the thigh by a spear in an effort to save Li Ke. He and his personal guards bravely fought and brought Li Ke back to the camp safely."

this...

The faces of all the civil and military officials darkened and they all turned their eyes to Li Shimin.

At this moment, Li Shimin's face was gloomy and his eyes were cold, and he was filled with strong anger.

"Oh!"

Li Shimin slapped the sides of the armrests heavily with his hands and gave orders in a deep voice.

"Sun Fujia, send people from the Dali Temple to the Western Turkic battlefield and bring Li Ke back to Chang'an!"

"Take Zhang Shigui back to Chang'an for treatment!"

As soon as this order was issued, the hall fell into silence.

However, no one dared to stand up and plead for Li Ke, including Yang Shidao and others who supported Li Ke.

Sun Fujia quickly stood up and responded.

"I obey!"

Li Shimin nodded to Fang Xuanling, indicating that he should continue reading.

The atmosphere in the hall also eased a little.

Li Chengqian's face was indifferent, but his heart was full of disdain.

"How can military merit be so easily gained?"

He doesn't take Li Ke seriously now.

On the contrary, he felt a little wary of Li Zhi, who followed his father every day.

Fang Xuanling continued reading.

"In the campaign against the Xueyantuo, Su Dingfang, Xi Junmai, and Wang Jun'e annihilated over 15 enemy main forces and over 60 enemy troops in total."

"At this time, the Xueyantuo army was swamped by snow and wind, with the snow on the ground more than two feet thick. The three generals also stopped fighting."

"Now the Xueyantuo only have tens of thousands of soldiers stationed at the imperial court. We expect the battle to end by the beginning of next spring."

Li Shimin nodded with a softened expression.

He was most assured of the three armies attacking Xueyantuo, as they were advancing steadily and his soldiers would not suffer heavy casualties.

Fang Xuanling turned over the tablet and continued to report.

"The three armies of Li Ji, Niu Jinda, and Xue Wanche have annihilated a total of 18 Eastern Turkic main forces, leaving them nearly crippled."

"After his first defeat, Xue Wanche performed well in the subsequent battles, annihilating over 4 people!"

"Affected by the wind and snow, the army is currently resting."

When the civil and military officials heard that Xue Wanche had performed well, they immediately looked around and whispered to each other.

"That was a really good fight."

"Xue Wanche knew his shame and then showed his courage, and finally lived up to the expectations of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

When Li Shimin heard the good news, he felt much better.

With Li Ji as the stabilizing force, he did not worry about losing the war against the Eastern Turks. And as long as Xue Wanche played steadily, the Eastern Turks would not be able to withstand it.

Fang Xuanling then reported.

"Hou Jun gathered a large army and annihilated a total of 12 troops from the four-nation coalition. He has completely eliminated all enemy forces in Liaodong Road. The army is now resting in Liaodong Prefecture!"

"Yuchi Jingde's army has annihilated 8 troops from the Four-Nation Alliance and has completely eliminated all enemy forces within Sishui Road. The army is now resting in Pyongyang Prefecture!"

wow~

There was a sudden commotion in the Taiji Hall.

Li Shimin said happily, "Finally, two armies have completed their mission! It seems that Yuchi Jingde is still as skilled as ever!"