Li Chengzhi looked at the battle report and smiled so hard that the beard he had grown for just a few months was shaking wildly.
Led by Cui Guang and Li Shao, all the generals and officials were in high spirits and beaming with joy.
There were only a little over 200,000 soldiers in the six towns, and more than half of them were lost in one battle. Even Yuan Yao wanted to sink his ship, but he may have lost his confidence.
Furthermore, all the direct roads from Luojing to Six Towns were cut off, and the prefectures and counties east of Hedong also started to take action one after another in response to the West Sea. It was no longer possible for half a grain of grain to flow to Six Towns. Under such circumstances, how could Yuan Yao and others
How to boost the morale of the army so that one hundred thousand generals dare to fight against the odds?
So Beizhen is no longer in danger...
All the generals gathered together and agreed in unison, but they had different thoughts.
The descendants of the Li family in Longxi, such as Li Zun, were naturally overjoyed.
There are not two characters of Li in one stroke. Li Feng is a retainer of the Li family. Strictly speaking, Li Chengzhi also belongs to the Li family of Longxi. And there are many children of the Li family of Longxi who are working under Li Feng. Naturally, all of them have merit. For example, Li
It is natural and honorable to obey such an elder, and I also know better in my heart that since then, the Li family has become even more prosperous and has become unparalleled in the West Sea.
But the rest of the people were secretly worried.
Successful reports came frequently from all sides, and without exception, the leading generals were all former ministers of the Li family.
Not to mention that Li Feng defeated Xing Luan and Yuan Heng, Li Liang also regained the entire territory of Eastern Qinzhou ten days ago, and is now confronting Yuan Qin and Yang Jun across the Luoshui River. As long as Li Chengzhi gives an order, he can march straight in.
Attack Huazhou directly.
On the south road, Li Zhang fought steadily, guarding Pinyang and Tongguan (belonging to the North County of Yongzhou, adjacent to Huazhou) like a mountain. Although Yang Dayan rushed and attacked, he remained firm and motionless.
In just two months, the small Jushui River (today's Ishikawa River) was like a meat grinder. Fifty thousand officers and soldiers died there, and their corpses covered the entire river valley.
Therefore, whether it is Li Liang or Li Zhang, their contribution is definitely less than that of Li Feng...
Li Chengzhi came from a humble background, with only a few hundred tribesmen following him when he started his career, so there is nothing he can do to treat him seriously.
But now, heroes from all walks of life have joined forces one after another, including many well-known generals like Xue He and Yuan Gui who once followed Li Chengzhi but have now abandoned the dark side and turned to the bright side.
There are also relatives like Zhang Jingzhi, Zhang Xinyi, Zhang Huaiyi, Wei Zijian, Wei Zhang, Gao Li, etc. who are always steady and capable of both civil and military affairs.
There are also generals such as Huangfu Rang, Song Shihe, Guo Zheng, etc. who followed him from the beginning and are now famous all over the world.
Dominating one family is not a safe solution. For the sake of balance, Li Chengzhi should also use new generals. At the worst, he should also reuse ministers like Huangfu Rang who are loyal to the dragon.
And when he arrived, Huangfu Rang's commander-in-chief did a good job, and the battle was fought steadily and with progress. When he saw a great victory, he summoned Chang'an with a transfer order?
Now, sitting together with a group of civil servants or idle generals who are famous but have no real power, they make suggestions and fill in the gaps for Li Chengzhi all day long.
It's really overkill...
But Huangfu Rang seems to be content and content, without even a trace of confusion?
What's even more strange is that capable ministers, close ministers, and flatterers who have been in officialdom for a long time, such as Cui Guang, Wei Zijian, and Li Shao, who have been in the officialdom for a long time and are calm and experienced, don't even advise Li Chengzhi?
It is by no means a safe way to have a single family...
After entertaining themselves for a while, Li Chengzhi dismissed the idlers, leaving only Cui Guang, Wei Zijian, Li Yun, Guo Cunxin, Zhang Jingzhi, Huangfu Rang and others in the hall.
The hall immediately fell silent. At first, Huangfu Rang thought that Li Chengzhi was planning to discuss military plans with these people, but it had been a long time since Li Chengzhi spoke, and the others were like old monks in meditation, with solemn expressions. Huangfu Rang gradually realized that something was strange.
Suspicious in the center, Li Chengzhi asked with a smile: "Yi Zhi, I took away your military power out of thin air and made you waste a lot of time here. Do you have any complaints in your heart?"
Huangfu Rang's heart skipped a beat and he quickly prostrated: "The Duke has made a serious statement. I have followed the Duke for several years. I know very well that every strange move the Duke makes must have profound meaning. How can I dare to make random speculations?"
"Haha... I said before, Huangfu can definitely guess that I have an important task to entrust to him, so he is as stable as Mount Tai!"
Li Chengzhi laughed and pointed down the hall again, "But this time it's definitely not my idea, it's the princes!"
Cui Guang and others all smiled and nodded towards Huangfu Rang.
"But if there is a mission, the Duke of the country will not hesitate to let Wan die without hesitation!"
Huangfu Rang's expression was as usual, and his tone was also calm, without much impassioned tone.
Li Chengzhi sighed secretly, and couldn't help but think of the scenes of Huangfu's loyalty and loyalty at the beginning of the army.
He was strong, but good at riding and shooting, so he worshiped him as the leader of the cavalry team. When the monks' rebellion was quelled, Huangfu had thousands of cavalry under his command.
But at that time, there were nearly five thousand soldiers fighting in the West Sea. In addition to Li Song, there were also two brothers, Li Liang, Li Feng, Li Shi, and Li Zhang. To be honest, Huangfu Rang at that time was still in the West Sea in Li Chengzhi's mind.
Generally speaking, they are all not ranked high.
It wasn't until Li Chengzhi faked his death and escaped to the West Sea that Huangfu Rang gradually stood out.
In the past five years, he has been hardworking and loyal, and his position has become higher and higher. He has more and more troops under his command, the battles have become bigger and bigger, and his reputation has become more and more prosperous.
Who in the world doesn't know that Huangfu is the general that Li Chengzhi relies on most and is the most adept at fighting?
To the current commander-in-chief of the armed forces, in the past, senior officials such as Li Liang, Li Feng, and Li Feng were his assistants, but as he was before, he is still the same now.
Just like the sentence: I am not surprised by favor or disgrace, watching the flowers blooming and falling in front of the court; I have no intention of leaving or leaving, watching the clouds rolling and relaxing in the sky...
If this is the case, what else can I ask for?
"It is impossible to let you resign, so the action is yours, but death is still avoided... Seeing that success is imminent, all I want is to have a wife and a cute son, and to inherit the blessing of future generations. Wouldn't it be a pity if I died at this time?
"
Hearing this sentence, even if he was as calm as Huangfu Rang, he couldn't help but feel shocked in his heart, and his face turned red, as if he was drunk.
After saying this half seriously, half jokingly, Li Chengzhi spread out the map again: "Please refer to the map for details!"
Huangfu Rang looked up and found that the map was very large, but it only marked the states of Hua, Luo, Si, Xiang, Bing, and Fen. In other words, they were all states close to the capital, and Luoyang, the capital, was right in the middle.
And draw a circle with a red pen.
"In mid-November, Pei Anzhi of Xiurong, Du Zuyue of Fenzhou, and Wei Xuzhi of Bohai raised troops one after another... At first glance, it seemed that these people could not hold themselves back and wanted to gain an advantage in the troubled times. In fact, this was not the case. In fact, it was the imperial court.
It has greatly lost the hearts of the people, like in Guanzhong, the Guandong nobles helped us in our righteous deeds, and wanted to abandon the secret and turn to the light...
At that time, I sent Li Hui to Bing, Xiang, Ding, Ji and other prefectures, firstly to raise grain and grass, and secondly to lobby the families. I thought that each family must be undecided, and at most they would sell me some grain to Xihai, but
There are many people who don’t want to follow righteousness?
Then I discussed with the princes and ordered Li Fengming to build the plank road, and Jin Ming to Lishi with great fanfare to attract Yuan Yao. In fact, I led a large army to secretly sneak into Chencang and set up an ambush at Changshan and Julu. I also invited Guandong people such as the Xue family, the Wei family, and the Cui family.
I am waiting for help from my family, so that Li Feng can achieve a great victory... But this plot is definitely more than that. It seems that these two counties rebelled earlier than Xiurong County, but I have other plans. Please give these two a moment.
Don't worry, because I haven't raised the flag of righteousness yet..."
Li Chengzhi tapped the map twice with his fingers. Huangfu Rang could see clearly that he was referring to Pingyang County, which is south of Fenzhou and belongs to Sizhou, and its adjacent Shangdang.
The former of these two counties is north of Hedong County and west of Huazhou, just behind Li Chong. The latter is north of the capital, only separated from the capital by Hanoi County, which will be two hundred miles away...
Huangfu Rang's eyes bulged and he took a deep breath: "Is it possible that the imperial court doesn't know about it yet?"
"Originally, there was some possibility that Li Chong, Yang Dayan, etc. in Huazhou would notice it. But I ordered Li Liang to attack Dongqinzhou urgently, while Li Zhang defended Pinyang and Baishui, and he was very likely to switch from defense to offense.
.These two men were eager to defend and concentrated most of their troops on the east bank of Luoshui River, so they did not bother to attack these two places...
Nowadays, the two counties of Hedong and Hanoi are under the supervision of Yuan Kuang. In addition to Yuan Yi, there are also Yuan Ai, Yuan Quan, Yuan Yuan and others in the court to assist in the administration. According to common sense, Shangdang is so quiet away from the capital, but far away from Hedong and Hanoi
What's more, there is only a river between them, so Yuan Kuang and other clansmen in the capital should be aware of it.
But before that, I sent a spy to spread rumors in the capital, saying that Gao Ying wanted to unite with Wei Wei Qing Yuanyuan, and that Huben Zhonglang would restore Yuan Shun and others. I also said that these two people wanted to abandon the secret and turn to the light and join me... Therefore, there was a terrible noise in the capital.
, Yuan Kuang felt as if he was facing a formidable enemy. After going back and forth, the news was not leaked, it was just luck..."
Li Chengzhi spoke slowly, and Huangfu moved his mind faster.
Li Liang's momentum was overwhelming and he won consecutive battles. Li Zhang did not give in too much. He was as stable as a rock and his defenses were watertight. Li Chong and Yang Dayan naturally felt as if they were facing a formidable enemy, and they were looking at the small Xiurong County.
Looking at the capital in turn, when Gao Ying came to rule the dynasty, Yuan Jia and Yuan Cheng were both his ministers. Gao Ying loved Wujiwu, so he naturally looked at these two children in a different light, just like Yuan Yuan.
To lead a large army and go on many expeditions. As for Yuan Shun, who was regarded as a real blue sky, suddenly became extremely expensive.
And coincidentally, Yuan Yuan and Li Chengzhi have such a specious marriage relationship, and Yuan Cheng has not been heard from since he went to Xihai as an envoy. How can we dare to say that he did not vote for Li Chengzhi?
The so-called groundless rumors may not be unreasonable. With wars raging everywhere, Yuan Yi, Yuan Ai, Yuan Quan and others have long been frightened and have to be on guard. Even if they hear what Shangdang is doing, they may not care about it...
On the other hand, thinking about it again, Li Chengzhi insisted on giving in to Pingyang and did not raise the flag of rebellion. Could it be that he wanted to attack Luoyang directly?
Huangfu Rang looked at Li Chengzhi blankly.
"Guessed it?"
Li Chengzhi nodded with a smile, "That's why I asked Li Feng to drive straight in. Fortunately, he lived up to his expectations. Not only did Xi Kangsheng, Xing Luan, Yuan Heng and others return defeated, but he was also like a nail, firmly piercing the
Between the capital and Beizhen. And all the famous families in Guandong have surrendered one after another, so Yi Zhi should have no worries...
You only need to ride lightly and easily, and you can pass through Pingyang and Shangdang all the way to Changshan in a few kilometers without letting Li Chong and Yang Dayan in Huazhou, Yuan Kuang in Hanoi, Yuan Yi, Yuan Ai and others in Beijing notice...
…
I have also ordered Li Feng to prepare enough firearms to meet the needs of an army of 30,000 for several months. When the time comes, we can first capture Jijun (southeast of Shangdang and northeast of Luoyang), and then take Xingyang (southeast of Luoyang). These two counties are one
If it is lost, Luo Jing will have no danger to defend..."
Luo Jing?
Huangfu Rang Leng Buding was shocked: "Why me?"
According to his understanding, since Li Feng had already marched to Changshan, which was only separated from Shangdang by a river, why would Li Chengzhi go all the way and ask him to make another trip?
"Because Li Feng doesn't have any brothers who are Weiwei Shaoqing..."
Clan brother...Wei Weiqing...Huangfu Zhongda?
A look of embarrassment suddenly appeared on Huangfu Rang's face: "The Duke of Guo is aware that Huangfu Zhongda and I have been on the fifth server for a long time. The two families have had no contact in the past hundred years. Rang does not dare to lie, and I ask the Duke to consider it..."
"Haha, don't worry... When Huangfu Zhongda sees you, he will naturally take the initiative to get close to you... Without further ado, you can get on the road as soon as possible. This time I will grant you the envoy to command the three armies. Zhang Xinyi will be the deputy, and Zhang Gong (
Zhang Jingzhi) is Sima. I allow you to act expediently. If you are undecided or have doubts, you can ask the Minister and your uncle (Wei Zijian) for advice..."
Cui Guang and Wei Zijian also want to go to Luoyang together?
Huangfu made Suran the chief minister.
Nowadays, the West Sea is like a sycamore tree with a golden nest, heroes and talents are like crucian carps crossing the river, and states, counties and counties have attached their responsibilities one after another, and a considerable part of them are related to these two people. If Li Chengzhi dared to let these two sea-fixing needles enter the capital, he must have already
Contacted the internal response...
He did not hesitate and took the order immediately.
Li Chengzhi's various plans were just waiting for the news from Li Feng, so he had already prepared troops, horses, and food.
Early the next morning, Huangfu Rang led his army and set off. After asking Cui Guang and Wei Zijian on the way, he found out that the Pei family from Guandong had already surrendered to Xihai. Otherwise, Pei Anzhi, the governor of Xiurong County, would not be so dedicated.
His father was Pei Zhi, the current Secretary of Duzhi, and Huangfu Zhongda, the Shaoqing of the Wei Dynasty, was his cousin, who had an irreversible love with Pei Zhi. In addition, Pei Zhi's legitimate son and Pei Anzhi's younger brother Pei Yan is now the city gate captain.
, led the troops to garrison at Guosan Gate (outer gate) outside Qili Bridge.
In addition, Zuo Pushe Guo Zuo and Cui Guang are relatives, and his second son Guo Jingshang is Cui Guang's son-in-law, and Ren Zhijinwu... And last month, someone suddenly sent a letter from Guo Jingshang's personal soldiers...
There are so many and so on, as if all the high-ranking officials and generals in the capital have become Li Chengzhi's internal correspondents overnight.
Originally, Li Chengzhi was just happy. After all, the battle had to continue. If he could not defeat Li Chong and Yang Dayan and could not pass Tongguan, it would be in vain no matter how many internal contacts there were in Beijing.
But he couldn't stand the repeated persuasion of Cui Guang, Li Shao, Guo Cunxin, Zhang Jingzhi and others, saying that there was a way to attack Huanglong once and for all. Why should we cause more casualties and waste the lives of soldiers?
Li Chengzhi has been unmoved and seems to be disapproving, but in fact he has already been moved and made many arrangements.
It wasn't until Li Feng received the good news that he made the final decision. In this way, at least Huangfu would not go deep alone. Even if he could not capture Luoyang, he would definitely be able to capture Jijun and Xingyang. If he had better luck, it would not be impossible to surround Luoyang into an isolated city.
.
If he had known that Luoyang City was about to be destroyed, he did not believe that Li Chong and Yang Dayan would still be as angry as they are now...