Chapter 257: There is one person who can replace Your Majesty in the expedition.
What kind of general will lead to what kind of soldiers.
What kind of monarch will lead to what kind of country.
And is Li Shimin the kind of person who would stop living his life?
Looking at his career from the time he debuted until he became emperor, he was either fighting or preparing for war.
Therefore, the national situation in the early Tang Dynasty was almost the same as a war machine.
As long as Li Shimin gives an order, the entire country will start to move and support the frontline war.
For example this time.
Domestic grain, grass, weapons, money, and materials were continuously transported to the north.
Li Chengqian's current job is to properly distribute these money, weapons, grain and supplies, and then transport them to the frontline battlefields.
On the front line, one hundred thousand soldiers of the Tang Dynasty launched attacks on the Xi people from the east and south.
Although the Xi people have made corresponding preparations, the combat power of Datang's soldiers is definitely not something they can withstand.
Within five days, the defense line composed of more than 10,000 people in the eastern part of the Xi tribe was torn open by the Liangzhou soldiers led by Li Xiaogong, and the troops pointed directly at the tent of the Xi tribe king.
On the other side, the Bingzhou Corps led by Su Dingfang also advanced dozens of miles northward in these five days and broke through dozens of Xijun camps.
If we continue at this speed, in another three to five days, the southern line will break through the Yanshan Mountains.
The Xi clan seemed to accept this result calmly.
It was enough not to resist. Instead, after several encounters, they began to shrink their defense lines and retreat across the board without suffering much losses.
This is really hard to understand.
Is it possible that Yuwen Yuanliang gave up?
Su Dingfang and Li Xiaogong are both veterans of many battles. How could they not see the strangeness of such a scene?
Therefore, these two people, who were hundreds of miles apart and had never met, almost unanimously adopted the same tactics.
Both of them stood still and sent more than a hundred people as spies to explore the way ahead.
However, the news returned by the spies remained the same. They only said that they had seen the soldiers of the Xi tribe withdrawing to the vicinity of the king's tent, but no buried soldiers were found. volt.
At this point, the armies from the east and south of the Tang Dynasty finally began to move towards the Xi clan's royal tent.
It was then that the Bingzhou Army, under the leadership of Su Dingfang, was making great progress.
Even the soldiers of the Bingzhou Army began to feel a little elated.
Is this still a war?
It's obvious that I just came here to go through the motions.
But at this moment, the Khitan's 30,000 troops suddenly came out without warning and attacked the flank of the Bingzhou Army.
Even though Su Dingfang was well prepared to prevent a sneak attack, he was still caught off guard.
Fortunately, the soldiers of the Bingzhou Army were brave and Su Dingfang's command in battle was able to gradually control the decline.
But at this moment, the 20,000 soldiers from the Xi tribe's main formation suddenly came out.
At this time, no matter how good Su Dingfang's command was, and no matter how brave the soldiers of the Bingzhou Army were, they could not stop the decline.
Su Dingfang had no choice but to order the entire army to retreat.
But this retreat is like a flood discharge, retreating again and again.
From less than a hundred miles away from the royal tent of the Xi clan, they returned all the way to the border of Tang Xi.
After retreating here, the Bingzhou Army finally stopped its decline.
Then, under the command of Su Dingfang, a battle was launched to push the pursuing Khitan and Xi tribes back into Yanshan Mountain.
The first contact is a small defeat, the second contact is a small victory.
The battle was over, so the Bingzhou Army did not suffer much losses.
But it also made that rainbow-like morale gradually slump.
In this regard, Su Dingfang could only order the entire army to rest and reorganize, and did not dare to act rashly again.
On the other hand, Li Xiaogong also encountered a similar situation.
When the Liangzhou Army was about to arrive at the Xi Clan's royal tent, 20,000 troops and horses from the Ping Clan, one of the three northeastern divisions, suddenly came out.
The veteran general Li Xiaogong was calm in the face of danger and commanded in an orderly manner.
But just as the old general was organizing a counterattack, 30,000 cavalrymen composed of old Turkic people from the Xi tribe came again to kill.
Even though Liangzhou soldiers' individual combat ability is unparalleled in the world, they can't stop the opponent's cavalry.
If the old general hadn't commanded him properly and had taken precautions before evacuating immediately, his reputation would have been ruined here.
But even so, the Liangzhou soldiers still paid the price of nearly 3,000 casualties.
…
The battle ahead was unfavorable, and both armies were beaten back.
This caused the voices of peace to gradually begin to appear in the Tang Dynasty's court.
The frontline battle reports are also like a revolving lantern, running continuously between Chang'an and the battlefield.
This situation was really unexpected by Li Shimin.
Since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, the Tang Dynasty has never suffered a single defeat in its foreign wars.
But this time they mobilized troops against an inconspicuous Xi clan, and actually lost two games in a row.
Moreover, those who lost these two wars were the two most elite ace armies of the Tang Dynasty.
Therefore, one can imagine the anger in Li Shimin's heart.
He even expressed his intention to conquer the country personally.
However, as soon as this idea came out of his mouth, Wei Zheng rejected it.
"Your Majesty, the Xi tribe is just a small barbarian, and there is no need for His Majesty to conquer it personally."
"Furthermore, His Majesty's status is no better than before."
"Looking at ancient times and modern times, there is no reason to go to the battlefield in person as a pilgrim..."
Wei Zheng is such a guy who never gives Li Shimin a chance to talk back.
He has always been straightforward when speaking, and he is not afraid of offending Long Yan.
Fortunately, he was born in the Tang Dynasty and met such a wise monarch as Li Shimin.
If it were placed in other dynasties, such a guy would probably have ten heads that wouldn't be enough to chop him off. Li Shimin said with a gloomy face: "Can I just sit here in the rear and watch the soldiers on the front line fall one after another?"
Be it the Bingzhou Army or the Liangzhou Army.
Which one of these is not the master of hundreds of battles under Li Shimin?
But they didn't even capture a small Xi clan, and instead suffered a defeat.
How could this make him feel so embarrassed?
At first, maybe he just wanted to scare King Xi Yuwen Yuanliang.
But now, he really has plans to exterminate his family.
If his race is not exterminated, it will be difficult to eliminate the hatred in his heart...
Seeing everyone, he didn't speak.
Li Shimin asked with a cold face: "What? Are you all mute? Speak and tell me, what should I do if I don't fight in person?"
His gaze swept across everyone's faces like a knife.
Finally, his eyes rested on Changsun Wuji: "Changsun, tell me, what should I do now?"
I heard him name me.
Changsun Wuji couldn't help but smile bitterly.
Through his understanding of Li Shimin.
Now Li Shimin was waiting for him to say what he wanted him to do in person.
But is that possible?
Li Shimin is no longer the King of Qin, he is now the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty.
If it were a few years ago, Changsun Wuji might still have the passion to go with Li Shimin.
But today is different from the past, and the turmoil in the family has just subsided.
If Li Shimin leaves Chang'an City at this time, the family will inevitably make a comeback, and their previous efforts will be in vain.
Changsun Wuji thought for a long time, then gritted his teeth and said, "I feel that it is not appropriate for your Majesty to do the conquest in person, but there is someone who can do it in your place."
"who?"
Li Shimin asked with raised eyebrows.
Changsun Wuji raised his head to face Li Shimin and said loudly: "The eldest prince of the current dynasty, King Qin Li Chengqian..."