The third emperor of the Sui Dynasty

Chapter 939 Surprised by Li Jiancheng

The fall of Mianzhuguan also meant that the north gate of Shu County was opened, not only fulfilling the strategic intention of cutting off the Li Tang Dynasty in advance, but also entering the Chengdu Plain at any time.

However, the task Luo Shixin received was not simply to help Li Daliang capture Mianzhu Pass, but more importantly, to capture Mianzhu County after occupying Mianzhu Pass, so as to knock the mountain and shake the tiger and shake the city of Chengdu.

He left Li Daliang to guard Mianzhu Pass to meet the army, while he himself led [-] fine cavalry to Mianzhu County, and within half a day, the cavalry of the Sui Army killed and swept Mianzhu County, which was empty of troops. Newspapers flew to the southern city of Chengdu like snowflakes.

After Li Daliang and Luo Shixin occupied Mianzhu Pass, Yang Tong led the main force to Mianzhu County the next day, and soldiers from the Fifth Army and Seventh Army of the Sui Dynasty also gathered here continuously.

Although Li Zhongwen, the coach of the Tang army in the middle road, did not attack Jiameng Pass by water, he also gave Yang Tong a good inspiration, that is, to expropriate the civilian ships on both sides of the Fu River, and use the water to transport grain, grass, and siege equipment to Mianzhu County to do a good job for the Chengdu campaign. Good logistical preparation.

During these few days of marching, in order to win the decisive battle of the Sui and Tang Dynasties, Yang Tong kept learning about the terrain of Shu County from Li Xizhi, Liu Deyu and other generals, and then compared it with Fang Xuanling, Ling Jing and others one by one. It's not that he is timid, but the more he reaches this critical moment, the less he can be careless. After all, the Battle of Guandu and the Battle of Chibi are lessons that cannot be ignored. Cao Cao.

It was also when Mianzhu was broken, and Li Xizhi, Liu Deyu and others knew Yang Tong’s true strategic intentions, and the mentality of wavering and passive answers before gradually disappeared. Perhaps for the sake of their own future, they began to introduce Yang Tong to him. Ignored some details.

"Your Majesty, the Mianzhu Pass has been breached. Our army only needs to capture Luo County, and then the city of Chengdu is within sight. With the strength of our army, it will be easy to break through. However, there is one thing that the Holy Majesty should take precautions for." He has been active in Jingzhou Compared with Li Xizhi, Liu Deyu obviously knows more about the mountains, rivers, terrain, customs and customs related to Shu County. He not only actively and detailedly introduces it, but also actively advises Yang Tong.

Yang Tong looked at Fang Xuanling next to him, then turned to Liu Deyu and asked, "General Liu, but I don't know what I need to guard against?"

"As far as the general knows, Li Shimin is not a person who is willing to lose, and he is extremely gambling, otherwise he would not sneak into Chengdu to launch a palace coup. Generally speaking, unless this kind of person is at the end of his life, he will never stick to Chengdu. If he dies in the city, if he knows that he is invincible, he will most likely retreat to Linqiong County, and then through Yuexie County, he will join forces with Li Xiaogong who attacked Nanzhao, and continue to fight the Sui Dynasty to the end, thus causing the western part of Yizhou to fall into a trap. In the midst of prolonged chaos." Liu Deyu cupped his hands and said: "My lord, it's not that the last general was ungrateful and betrayed the old master, but that Li Shimin is really too dangerous. This person is not the generous and generous Li Jiancheng. If there is a glimmer of life, we will fight to the end."

"I see." Yang Tong nodded and asked, "I wonder if General Liu has a good strategy?"

"I don't dare to say a good policy." Liu Deyu said respectfully: "It's just that the general is old friends with Quan Hongshou, the prefect of Yuexi County, and Yuan Hongshan, the governor of the county. These two have been dissatisfied with Li Shimin for a long time. If the emperor is willing, the general can go. Yuejue County lobbied that as long as the Holy Majesty can defeat Li Shimin in Chengdu City, they only need to set up defenses in the area of ​​Yuejue County, and they will definitely be able to intercept him, lest he join forces with Li Xiaogong."

Yang Tong pondered for a moment, then nodded with a smile: "Then I'll have to trouble General Liu to make this trip."

With the fall of Mianzhuguan, Yang Tong's army has entered the Chengdu Plain, where the terrain is most suitable for cavalry to play. When it comes to using cavalry, Yang Tong is full of confidence.So now his dependence on Liu Deyu has been reduced to the extreme, but he went to Yuexie County, which can better reflect Liu Deyu's due value.

As for whether he will return to the Tang Dynasty, Yang Tong is not worried at all. After all, the Li and Tang Dynasty have already been defeated to this point, and no one with a little brain would do stupid things like opposing the Sui Dynasty and surrendering to the Tang Dynasty.

"Your Majesty, don't worry, you will be able to take Yuejuan County for your Majesty in the end." Seeing Yang Tong's approval, Liu Deyu was both happy and excited, showing full confidence.

Yang Tong smiled and said, "It's not time to finish the matter. General Liu needs to leave as soon as possible for the matter of Yuexie County."

"Your Majesty, don't worry, I'll go and prepare for this at the end." Liu Deyu bowed out.

When Liu Deyu left, Li Xizhi cupped his hands and said: "Your Majesty, although the last general has not been in Yizhou for a long time, and he doesn't know many people, one of the last generals recommended him to the Holy One; if I can get help from this person in the Sui Dynasty , General Li Xiaogong who conquered Nanzhao will definitely surrender to us in the Sui Dynasty!"

"Who has such ability?" Yang Tong asked very curiously.

"Li Jiancheng!" Li Xizhi replied with a bow.

"Li Jiancheng?" Yang Tong was stunned for a moment, and then his heart skipped a beat. Based on his understanding of Li Jiancheng and Li Xiaogong's friendship, as long as Li Jiancheng and Li Xiuning's brothers and sisters greet each other with a single letter, it is really possible for Li Xiaogong, who has seen Li Tang's powerless Offer up the Southern Expedition Army and the occupied Nanzhao with both hands.

"It's Li Jiancheng, the false Tang prince." Li Xizhi obviously didn't recognize Li Shimin, a guy who was violent and superior.

Yang Tong thought for a while, then frowned and said, "After all, he is from the Li clan, how could he help me in the Sui Dynasty?"

"Returning to the Holy Lord, when the general served under General Li Xiaogong, he was very trustworthy to the general. General Li Xiaogong did not hide many things about Li's father and son. As far as the general knows, Li Jiancheng hated Li Yuan's calculations. , Disappointed, and more ambitious to return to the mountains and forests, but because of his filial piety, he returned to Yizhou and continued to run around for Li Yuan. He tried every means to get rid of it. If the "Li Yuanji poisoning case" hadn't been solved, and Chen Shuda, Liu Wenjing, Zhao Cijing and others begged for mercy, and he had a good reputation among the people, Li Yuan would have just demoted him to avoid riots among his subjects. Otherwise, Li Jiancheng would have been deposed by Li Yuan as a citizen long ago; at this point, the relationship between father and son has faded to the extreme. After Li Shimin successfully launched a palace coup, he was demoted to the county king in the name of Li Yuan , but did not give him any power, and moved his family to Mianzhu County, where he lived a life like a prisoner.”

Speaking of this, Li Xizhi glanced at Yang Tong, and said with a wry smile: "The general thinks that Li Shimin's intentions are actually sinister, and his fundamental purpose is actually to find a way to get rid of Li Jiancheng."

"Where is Li Jiancheng now in Mianzhu?" Yang Tong already understood Li Shimin's "good intentions": he put Li Jiancheng under house arrest in Mianzhu County, just to give Li Jiancheng a chance to contact the old department. Li Jiancheng and his family got rid of them.Li Jiancheng has lived until now, and he probably guessed Li Shimin's intentions, so he lives in Mianzhu County in obscurity and security. He does not give Li Shimin any excuses, and Li Shimin must be very disappointed.

Li Xizhi said: "He was arranged by Li Shimin in a valley surrounded by mountains on three sides. There used to be a big family's other garden. It is only more than 20 miles away, and it is almost completely isolated from the outside world. In addition to Li Jiancheng's family, servants, palace eunuchs, and Li Shimin's [-] confidant soldiers are watching day and night."

Mianzhu County is not far from Mianzhu Pass. Since the Sui army broke through Mianzhu Pass, the magistrate of Mianzhu County fled after hearing the news, and Luo Shixin took it down without a single soldier. However, Li Jiancheng was regarded as an idle figure under surveillance. , and far away from Mianzhuguan, living an isolated life, I am afraid that he has no idea about many things that are happening now, and he may still be in that valley.

"After all, he is my eldest brother-in-law. If I have time, I will go to pay a visit in person!" Yang Tong's eyes flickered, and he said with a smile, "General Li will go to help Anmin first, and if I have time, you will lead the way. go."

"Here." Li Xizhi saluted and said, "The last general will take his leave."

After a while, the silent Fang Xuanling finally spoke: "Your Majesty doesn't seem to want to see that Li Jiancheng?"

"To be honest, I haven't thought it through yet." Based on Yang Tong's understanding of Li Jiancheng, although he is generous and benevolent, he is a handsome and noble son in troubled times, but at the same time he is also a man with both civil and military skills. He has been the prince of the Tang Dynasty for so many years. , until now Li Yuan was jealous because of the 'abdication'. Obviously, Li Jiancheng is still a person who knows the way of forbearance, and at the same time has enough heart.

Now Li Xizhi, Liu Deyu, Xu Shiren and others have joined, and with the victory of the Southern Expedition, more officials and generals of Li Tang will join the officialdom of the Sui Dynasty. Dong naturally wants to use it, but the premise is that a "little dynasty of the Li family" will appear around him, not under him.

It's just that their current identities are surrendered generals, and their status in the Sui Dynasty is not as good as that of Yang Tong's direct line team. Because of their personal experience, they will be people with their tails between their legs for a long time in the future, but if Li Jiancheng and Li Xiaogong return to the Sui Dynasty , Will these people promote Li Jiancheng, Li Xiaogong, and Li Daozong as the leaders of the "Lee Group" because of their personal interests?And Li Jiancheng, Li Xiaogong, and Li Daozong, will they push their nephew Yang Chong to fight for the reserve out of their own interests?
The above two major problems are what make Yang Tong worry.

"I don't know how the Holy One will deal with Li Jiancheng?"

"Although getting Li Jiancheng alone can put Li Xiaogong and many Li Tang officials and generals in peace, and Yizhou will soon be peaceful. But I am worried that these people will become a cancer of the Sui Dynasty. If a Li family group is created, then The gain outweighs the loss. After all, we have fought for so many years, and in order to achieve the effect of hitting the family, we have endured and endured, and abandoned and abandoned under the circumstances of strong strength and many opportunities. Up to now, we have After walking 99 steps, we are only close to the door. We have worked so hard to manage the situation today, not to let this group of people become a cancer of the Sui Dynasty."

The only ones present were Fang Xuanling and Ling Jing, both of whom were confidants, Yang Tong didn't hide his worries, and continued: "I think Li Shimin and Li Xiaogong are no longer worthy, we can get rid of them soon , As for governance, we also don't lack time, I think it's better to take down Chengdu City first, and then decide how to arrange Li Jiancheng. What do you think?"

Fang Xuanling said with a smile: "I feel that some of the authorities have lost their minds."

Yang Tong asked curiously, "Oh? How do you say that?"

"Your Majesty doesn't need to know Empress Chen, so have you forgotten Xiao Mian and Dou Jiande?" Fang Xuanling reminded: "To be precise, Li Jiancheng's identity is very similar to that of Xiao Mian and Dou Jiande, but the former two are opposites. The latter is the son of the anti-king, but upon closer inspection, there is not much difference. The courtiers and generals of Xiao Xian and Dou Jiande mostly do not communicate with each other for their own safety and the safety of the old master. If Li Jiancheng becomes a minister of the cabinet who only has the right to participate in politics and discuss affairs, and he can be at ease, then Li Xiaogong, Li Daozong and others will also take the initiative to get close to them. You can rest assured to serve the Great Sui Dynasty, they are the children of the nobles, they understand the true meaning of 'a gentleman should not fight, a group should not be a party', and they will never, and dare not, do things that are harmful to the country and Li Jiancheng."

Hearing this, Yang Tong smiled suddenly: "It's my appearance, thanks to Xuanling's reminder, I will go to meet this leisurely brother-in-law tomorrow."

"Your Majesty, apart from the matter of Li Jiancheng, I have one more thing to say..." At this time, Ling Jing said from the side: "Then Li Zhongwen is still stationed in Langnei. If the Holy Majesty can't solve it quickly, he only needs to send troops to Yicheng County Jiameng Pass, even if it can't cut off our army's retreat, it can still cause some trouble for our army."

"In the opinion of respect, how should we act?"

"Weichen means quick battle and quick decision. We can go southward and approach Chengdu City, making the puppet Tang uneasy; we can also go northward and attack Wenshan County with General Pei Xingyan. If the two armies meet at Wenshan, we will not only have more The [-] fine cavalry of the First Army have an extra food road from Jiangyuan County to Wenshan County, even if there is a major mistake in the direction of Yicheng County in the future, there will be another food road to supply the army." Ling Jing said two of his own propositions.

"Pass down the order to let Luo Shixin send troops to Luoxian County south of Mianzhu tomorrow, push the frontier of the war to the middle of Shu County, and make the puppet Tang Dynasty panic." Yang Tong thought for a while, and chose from Ling Jing's two propositions. the latter.

Today's Chengdu City is empty of troops. In order to protect Chengdu City, Li Shimin can only transfer Li Zhongwen's army to support Chengdu City. This not only solves the hidden safety hazards existing in Jiameng Pass, but also gives Xue Wanjun an opportunity to defeat the enemy. However, once Li Zhongwen was defeated, Zhang Shigui would face the dilemma of Xue Wanjun and Su Dingfang attacking from north to south.

"Saint is wise."

(End of this chapter)