The reason why Li Xu became a serious problem in the Song Dynasty was because the Dingnan Army under his command had developed into an out-and-out local fan town. The disaster of the fan town in the late Tang Dynasty was, for the monarchs and ministers of the Song Dynasty,

This is a typical lesson learned from the past.

The imperial court had long wanted to get rid of this scourge. Unfortunately, over the years, the imperial court had been trapped in the confrontation with the Liao people, and a large amount of real money and silver had been invested on the Song-Liao border. Secondly, the natural dangers of Hengshan had also increased.

Due to the obstruction of the Shangdang Xiang Qiang people, it was very difficult to send troops. Thirdly, Li Xu bribed some important officials of the Song Dynasty, so that every time the court began to discuss this strategy, there would always be different voices.

, there will always be people who obstruct it for various reasons.

Time just slips away day by day.

In this way, opportunities slipped away from the hands of the emperors and ministers again and again.

When he suddenly looked back, Li Xu had become a behemoth.

At present, the area controlled by Li Xu has two core areas. One is with Xiazhou as the core, which governs Youzhou, Hongzhou, Longzhou, Shizhou, Yinzhou and other places. The other is Ganzhou. Now

It was directly renamed Xingqing Mansion by Li Xu. Li Xu personally took charge of this place, united the Tubo tribes, and penetrated the Qingtang area. Three years ago, he directly sent troops to capture the important towns in the northwest of the Song Dynasty, such as Liangzhou and Lingzhou.

land, cut off the tribute from the Western Regions to the Song Dynasty, and controlled trade with the Western Regions, no longer allowing the Western Regions to sell horses to the Song Dynasty.

An important source of war horses was cut off. The Song Dynasty, which lacked horse-breeding areas, immediately fell into a dilemma in terms of equipping war horses. Fighting the Liao people, relying only on infantry could only be defensive. I think

To win a decisive battle with the Liao people, cavalry is indispensable.

It can be said that if it weren't for Hengshan Dangxiang's vacillation, Li Xu would have set up a banner long ago and claimed to be a loner.

Now even if Hengshan Dangxiang has completely moved towards the Song Dynasty court, for Li Xu, it is just missing a powerful arm, and his strength is still extremely strong.

The sound of hoofbeats rumbled, and more than a hundred war horses galloped in from the official road. Seeing the large banner with Li characters facing the wind, the soldiers guarding the city gate quickly pulled away the horses and other objects placed at the door. This group of knights

Control the horse and enter the city directly.

This team of knights comes from Youzhou, and the leader is Li Hao, the young marshal of the Dingnan Army.

At this moment, Xiazhou City has been transformed into a large military camp. Soldiers and horses from all over the country are gathering. Young and strong civilians can be seen everywhere. The tense atmosphere spreads throughout the city.

Li Hao was ordered to come to Xiazhou to attend a military meeting.

Xiao Ding of the Guangrui Army unexpectedly attacked Yanzhou unexpectedly. Li Hao left the city at night to mobilize reinforcements from Youzhou and other places. However, not long after he set off with thousands of troops, news of the fall of Yanzhou had already spread.

Come.

Yanzhou has been lost. In such weather, taking only these thousands of cavalry to recapture Yanzhou City would only be a sacrifice of lives and military exploits for Xiao Ding. Li Hao returned to Youzhou bitterly.

Next, he wanted to reorganize troops from Youzhou, Hongzhou, Longzhou and other places to attack again, but this plan was shelved because the security forces on Shaanxi Road in the Song Dynasty and the Suide army moved frequently, and Hongzhou and Longzhou

The two generals did not agree with Li Hao's mobilization of their troops.

Although they also believed that the two groups of troops on Shaanxi Road were probably bluffing.

But the soldiers are treacherous, and no one can tell whether it is true or not. What if it is true? After all, these two Song armies are indeed gathering, and intelligence gathered from all aspects, including from within the Shaanxi pacification mission,

The intelligence clearly showed that Ma Xing's order was for these two troops to attack Hongzhou and Longzhou.

Li Hao waited anxiously for more than half a month.

Finally, the order came for him to attend a military meeting in Xiazhou.

"Second uncle, what on earth are father thinking?" As soon as he entered the room, Li Hao threw the riding whip heavily on the table, looked at Li Du who was reviewing the memorial after the major case, and asked. "Is it possible to let Xiao Ding do that?"

Are you complacent? Besides, Yanzhou is a very important place for us. After the news of the fall of Yanzhou came, the price of salt in Youzhou more than tripled, but I am afraid that in Xiazhou

Is that true too?”

Li Du chuckled, put down the pen in his hand, walked out from behind the big case, and patted Li Hao on the shoulder, "You didn't get much rest along the way, right?"

"Why can't I sleep? Just hurry up and come to Second Uncle to see what kind of regulations are there!" Li Hao said with some dissatisfaction: "Second Uncle, what kind of regulations are you here? Yu Zang is here to take it.

Tens of thousands of troops have arrived, and my father wants to stay in Xingling to control and scare the other side to prevent the other side from causing trouble, but you won't just watch Yanzhou fall, right?"

"Why don't you care?" Li Du pointed to the fire pit on one side and said, "Sit down, drink some hot tea, and let's talk slowly."

Li Hao took a deep breath, sat down patiently, took the tea handed over by Li Du, took a sip, and asked: "What kind of charter is the second uncle?"

"What kind of charter?" Li Du said: "Since the Guangrui Army has already attacked us, we naturally don't have to hide it anymore. Your father has decided to raise a big flag and start a big fight.

Already."

"When the time comes to counterattack Yanzhou, I am willing to be the vanguard." Upon hearing this, Li Hao was overjoyed.

Li Du chuckled: "Jing'an, you are the young commander of the Dingnan Army, and you will also be the heir to this huge territory in the future. Is this Xiao Ding the only one in your eyes?"

Li Hao paused for a moment, and his face felt a little hot.

Xiao Ding was of course the idol worshiped by all the young generals at this time, or someone they wanted to catch up with. Whether they were people from the Song Dynasty or Liao Dynasty, they all sincerely respected Xiao Ding.

Surpassing Xiao Ding is naturally the subconscious goal of people like Li Hao.

"What is your father's goal?" Li Du said with a smile: "And Xiao Ding is just a commander, with only a few thousand troops under his command. Counting those Tibetan soldiers, there can be tens of thousands of them, right? What are you doing?

Can you lower yourself and put yourself on the same level as him?"

Li Hao coughed lightly: "Second uncle, it's not that I look down on Xiao Ding, but because he occupied Yanzhou and it is really harmful to us. No matter what we do, we must remove this nail first?"

Li Du shook his head gently: "Jing'an, your vision is too small. This time, we are going to compete with the Song Dynasty people. If we win, our Li family will be able to gain a firm foothold in the northwest. In time, we can stand on the same level as the Song and Liao Dynasties."

Maybe, if you lose, you won't be able to save your life. Even if you can survive, I'm afraid you will have to flee to the end of the world."

"Just based on their troops and horses on Shaanxi Road?" Li Hao said disdainfully: "Xiao Ding succeeded, but it was just a shameless sneak attack. If I could gather the troops and horses from Youzhou, Hongzhou, and Longzhou, I could easily defeat them.

Then we can get it back. And on Shaanxi Road, apart from Guang Rui Army, is there anyone else who can fight?"

"For our Li family, this is a major event that affects the life and death of the entire clan. We cannot slack off in the slightest." Li Du said solemnly: "Because the Song Dynasty can afford to lose, but we cannot afford to lose. So.

Even if we are facing a rabbit, we must treat each other as a lion. Jing'an, as you know, the Song Dynasty was rich and populated. In them, the population of a county is greater than the population of a state here.

There are much more Ding.”

"I'm frivolous, second uncle. So tell me, what are we going to do this time?" Li Hao said.

"Your father has been planning for many years. Unfortunately, the Hengshan party finally favored the Song people, which added a lot of difficulties to our great cause. However, now we also have a countermeasure." Li Du said.

"What is it?" Li Hao asked in surprise.

Li Du stood up, walked to a map hanging on the wall, pointed at a location, and said: "Here, this time, we are going to break through here, capture here, and control here. From then on, Hengshan

Natural danger has lost most of its meaning to us, and by taking this place, we can not only threaten Shaanxi Road, but also directly attack Hedong Road."

"Siwu Village?" Li Hao exclaimed: "A large number of Song troops can be stationed here, but the road is difficult and dangerous and extremely difficult to fight!"

"It used to be difficult to fight, but now, there is an opportunity." Li Du waved his hand vigorously: "Xiao Ding's capture of Yanzhou has attracted almost everyone's attention. Many people think that we must go all out to recapture Yanzhou.

Ma Xing even ordered the Suide Army to make strategic maneuvers to ensure Xiao Ding's victory. Siwu Village is now at its most vulnerable!"

"They transferred the elite?" Li Hao's eyes widened.

"According to detailed reports, Li Dan transferred about 3,000 people from various fortresses, including Siwu Village. These 3,000 people were the elite of the Suide Army. And he actually used the missing personnel in these places.

The Xiang army will make up for it."

"What does Li Dan want to do?"

"Either he just wants to satisfy Ma Xing's order, or he wants to imitate Xiao Ding and take Longzhou to gain merit. In short, our chance to take Siwu Village is here." Li Du said with a smile: "Once we take it

Siwu Village, the initiative is in my hands. When the time comes, Li Dan and Ma Xing will all panic, right? As long as they panic, we will have a lot to do."

"Not bad!" Li Hao said excitedly: "If God is willing, maybe we can go to Yan'an Mansion for a visit. It would also be good to see the panicked look of the beheaded horse."

"So, what is a small Yanzhou? What is a small Xiao Ding?" Li Du said: "Your father has calculated the overall situation. If he succeeds in this game, can Yanzhou still fly to the sky? By then,

We can get back without spending a single soldier. How about Jing'an? Do you want to personally command the attack on Siwu Village?"

"Of course, thank you uncle for giving me this opportunity." Li Hao was overjoyed.
Chapter completed!