Time travel, quick transmigration

The following day, Xiao Huanling led his troops to Luoyang to support the Tang army.

Xiao Huanling arrived outside Luoyang and joined forces with the main Tang army. Together, they repelled An Lushan's more than 30,000 rebel troops. Jiang He, Zhang Liang, and Feng Xiang all performed bravely. Compared with the rebel army, which suffered more than half of its casualties, the 10,000 Xuan Ce troops suffered only more than 100 casualties, which was relatively light.

The rebels, fearing the bravery and terror of Xiao Huanling's Xuan Ce army, fled in panic after their defeat and returned to Luoyang to report to their commander-in-chief, An Lushan.

After rescuing the remaining 6,000 Tang soldiers, Xiao Huanling heard that Shi Siming and other rebels had gone to Hebei. The situation in Youzhou was critical, and the people were suffering and countless people were killed or wounded wherever the rebels went. That night, after discussing with Jiang He and others, Xiao Huanling led the remaining 9,000-plus Xuan Ce soldiers to relieve the crisis in Youzhou.

In December of the fourteenth year of the Tianbao era (620 AD), after the fall of Luoyang, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, heeding the slanderous words of the eunuch supervising the army, Bian Lingcheng, executed the generals Feng Changqing and Gao Xianzhi, and appointed the ailing and retired military governor of Longyou, Geshu Han, as deputy commander-in-chief, ordering him to lead an army of 200,000 to defend Tongguan. Tongguan was strategically important, easy to defend and difficult to attack. After arriving at Tongguan, Geshu Han immediately fortified the city, building deep moats and high walls, and closed the pass to hold out.

On the first day of the first month of the fifteenth year of the Tianbao era, An Lushan proclaimed himself Emperor of the Great Yan in Luoyang and changed the era name to Shengwu. He was riding high and secretly vowed to take Chang'an, seize Li Longji's empire, imprison and humiliate the high-ranking concubine who disdained him, and possess her to appease his long-standing resentment and greed.

In the same year, An Lushan, who became the emperor of the Great Yan, ordered his son An Qingxu to lead troops to attack Tongguan, but they were defeated by Geshu Han.

An Lushan's main force was blocked at Tongguan Pass for several months and could not advance westward. Seeing that a direct assault was not feasible, An Lushan ordered Cui Qianyou to station the old, weak, sick and disabled soldiers in Shaanxi County, while hiding the elite troops, hoping to lure Geshu Han out of danger and into battle.

Ever since learning that An Lushan had established his kingdom and proclaimed himself emperor in Luoyang, Li Longji had been deeply troubled by it, his heart filled with resentment, and he became even thinner and more haggard.

Because of his worries about the war in recent days, Li Longji was in poor health, so he moved all the memorials and war reports to his bedchamber to read and process them.

Not long ago, Li Longji received intelligence that the rebel general Cui Qianyou had "less than four thousand soldiers in Shaanxi, all of whom were weak and unprepared." He then sent an envoy to Tongguan to order Geshu Han to send troops to recapture Shaanxi and Luoyang. He had just delivered the decree to Geshu Han when Geshu Han's secret memorial arrived in Chang'an today.

Li Longji opened the secret memorial sent by Geshu Han and read it carefully.

"Your Majesty, An Lushan is a seasoned military strategist. Now that he has launched a rebellion, he will surely be prepared. He will undoubtedly use a weak and feeble army to lure our forces. If we advance, we will fall right into his trap. Moreover, the rebels are exhausted from their long campaign and their advantage lies in speed. Our army, relying on the natural defenses of Tongguan, has the advantage of holding its ground. Furthermore, the rebels are tyrannical and have lost the hearts of the people; they are gradually weakening and will soon descend into internal strife. At that time, we can attack them and capture them without a fight..."

"At present, Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi are attacking the rebel general Shi Siming in Hebei. They have won several great victories and are making great progress. They also believe that Tongguan should be held firmly and not easily attacked. Your Majesty, why not follow their advice and lead the Shuofang army north to take Fanyang, destroy the rebel army's stronghold, and cause the rebel army to collapse from within..."

Upon seeing this, Li Longji frowned slightly, unable to make a decision for the moment. He then instructed Gao Lishi to send someone to invite Chancellor Yang Guozhong and other ministers to discuss the matter.

The eunuch who went to fetch the person was very efficient and left the palace in no time. Yang Guozhong soon entered the palace.

Upon entering the Ganlu Hall, Yang Guozhong first bowed to Li Longji, and then greeted his colleagues with clasped hands.

Li Longji called the group over and told them what Geshu Han had presented. While the others remained silent, Yang Guozhong stepped forward and spoke.

"Your Majesty, according to the previous intelligence that the rebel general Cui Qianyou had less than four thousand soldiers in Shaanxi, and they were all weak and unprepared, if the intelligence is true, the rebels are not a threat at all. I suspect that Geshu Han intends to plot against him."

As he spoke, he observed Li Longji's expression and, seeing a strange look on his face, continued.

"Your Majesty, I believe that if Geshu Han remains inactive, he will inevitably miss a golden opportunity."

Li Longji's eyes flashed as he looked at Yang Guozhong.

"But Li Guangbi and Guo Ziyi also said in their previous memorials that Tongguan should only be held and not easily attacked. They even suggested that the Shuofang army could be led north to take Fanyang, destroy the rebels' stronghold, and cause the rebels to collapse internally and disintegrate on their own..."

Perhaps due to old age and senility, Li Longji was no longer as wise and decisive as before. Furthermore, he suffered a great blow from An Lushan's betrayal, and the country was teetering on the brink of collapse. His mind was in a state of confusion, and at this moment he could no longer discern the situation.

Yang Guozhong, greedy for merit and reckless, disregarded right and wrong, and slandered Li Longji. Li Longji was misled and began to doubt Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi, and became enraged by Geshu Han's cowardice in battle. He immediately issued an edict and repeatedly dispatched imperial envoys to urge Geshu Han to fight. Geshu Han met with the imperial envoys, and upon receiving the edict, he was forced into a corner and wept bitterly.

Forced to lead his troops out of the pass on the fourth day of the sixth lunar month, Geshu Han encountered Cui Qianyou's forces on the seventh day at Xiyuan in Lingbao. Lingbao is bordered by mountains to the south and the Yellow River to the north, with a narrow mountain pass seventy li long running through the middle. Cui Qianyou had previously ambushed his elite troops on the southern mountain and led his army to a decisive battle with the Tang army on the eighth day. The Tang army, with Wang Sili and others leading 50,000 elite troops in the vanguard, followed by Pang Zhong and others leading 100,000 troops, and another 30,000 troops were sent to beat drums and provide support from the high ground on the north bank of the Yellow River. When the two armies clashed, the Tang army, seeing that the rebel army's formation was disorganized, lowered their flags and attempted to flee, only to be lured into the narrow pass.

The rebel ambush was abrupt, hurling logs and stones down the mountain. The Tang soldiers, crowded in the narrow passage, were unable to maneuver and suffered heavy casualties. Geshu Han hastily ordered felt carts to charge ahead, attempting to open a path, but they were blocked by burning straw carts set ablaze by the rebels. Blinded by the smoke and flames, the Tang army, unable to see their target, mistook the rebels for those in the thick smoke and fired indiscriminately with crossbows until sunset when their arrows were exhausted, realizing they had fallen into a trap. At this moment, Cui Qianyou ordered his elite cavalry to outflank the government troops from the southern valley, attacking from the rear. The Tang army, attacked from both sides, was thrown into chaos. Some abandoned their armor and fled into the valleys, while others were pushed into the Yellow River and drowned. Their desperate cries were deafening, a scene of utter carnage. Seeing the vanguard routed, the Tang rear guard collapsed without a fight. The Tang army on the north bank of the Yellow River, seeing the unfavorable situation, also scattered. Geshu Han, with only a few hundred cavalry, fled in disarray, crossing the Yellow River westward into Tongguan…

Xiao Huanling, who was in Hebei, heard from Guo Ziyi that the emperor had ordered Geshu Han to lead troops out of the pass, and he knew the final outcome. Sure enough, the Tang army was soon defeated and suffered heavy casualties. News of Geshu Han leading several hundred cavalry back to Tongguan reached Guo Ziyi's camp in Hebei.

Looking at Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi, who were both grief-stricken and sighing with their hands on their foreheads, Xiao Huanling felt equally heavy-hearted. If the decision had been made correctly, they should not have lost this time.

At this moment, Xiao Huanling felt intense hatred for the emperor sitting on the dragon throne in Chang'an, for the emperor's muddle-headedness, suspicion, and reliance on slander, which led to Geshu Han's defeat and the tragic deaths of countless Tang soldiers.

This crushing defeat was like a needle piercing everyone's hearts, causing them great pain. The atmosphere in the tent was somber, like a dark cloud hanging over the place. With the monarch incompetent and the court in disarray, everyone felt a sense of unease that the Tang Dynasty was nearing its end.

Xiao Huanling knew he could not linger in Hebei. With the emperor's incompetence and the rampant corruption of treacherous officials, the fall of Chang'an was only a matter of time. He had to rush back to protect the people he loved before An Lushan attacked Chang'an.

Now that the situation here has stabilized, it is time for him to take his leave. He came here to support the fight against Shi Siming, and he has not yet asked the emperor for permission. Right now, the emperor is too busy to pay attention to him. If we really want to talk about it, it is a serious crime for him to lead his troops to Hebei on his own.