Elegy of Tang Dynasty

Chapter 436 Roaring Lingzhou

Starting from Chang'an and going west to Hexi, you need to take the "Longguan Road". This road was opened in the Spring and Autumn Period and has a long history. This was the path the Qin people took when they entered Guanzhong from the "Western Frontier".

Starting from Chang'an and going north to Lingzhou, you need to take the "Xiaoguan Road", which is a main road that was opened no later than the Spring and Autumn Period and has a great influence on Guanzhong.

This road goes north from Chang'an, passes Xiaoguan, and reaches Yuanzhou (Guyuan City).

We have just finished walking the first section, and we are within the Guanzhong range.

The second section is from Yuanzhou to the Yellow River. This section is a long and narrow canyon oasis zone with a harsh climate.

This area already has a desert climate and can be regarded as an extension of the Hexi Corridor in the northeast.

After reaching the Yellow River, we started the third section of the road, which is to walk along the Yellow River all the way to Lingzhou.

By this time we had arrived at the grassland.

The three roads added together are the famous "Lingzhou Road". After Tubo controlled the Hexi Corridor, Lingzhou Road was the only route after the Silk Road was rerouted!

The entire journey was one thousand two hundred and fifty miles, and the Tang government had precise calculations. Along the Lingzhou Road, there are many inns and private guesthouses, and people come and go intensively. This is also a major trade route. Specialties from the grassland, especially cattle, sheep and livestock, will continue to enter Guanzhong through this road.

After three days of rapid march, Fang Chongyong arrived at Yuanzhou City with the Silver Spear Xiaojie Army and stationed and repaired here.

There is no city that provides large-scale supplies between here and Lingzhou. It is impossible not to prepare what is needed on the road. Not only do supplies need to be replenished, but the soldiers also need to rest. Make sure that when the Silver Spear Xiaojie Army arrives in Lingzhou, they can mount their horses and fight immediately.

As soon as night fell, the generals of the Yinqian Xiaojie Army, who had been holding back questions for a long time, came to the commander's tent and asked Fang Chongyong to get to the bottom of it.

"Jie Shuai, aren't we going to Yangzhou? Why didn't we leave Guanzhong, so we turned back and headed north to Lingzhou? This is a bit strange!"

He Changqi touched his round head and asked.

According to the plan, after going to Huainan this time, he would "report" Fang Chongyong's embezzlement of money in the prosperous Yangzhou, and he would be transferred from the Silver Spear Filial Piety Army afterwards.

However, now that the itinerary has been changed, the original plan cannot be realized.

"Jie Shuai, this move is indeed unusual. If it is a false shot, then it is too real."

Che Guangqian also mentioned it. He and He Changqi had the same idea. He sent troops to Huainan on official business before, so it didn't look like a lie. The logistical preparations are very solid. Yan Zhenqing had hundreds of followers, and it was clear that he wanted to set up an yamen there to coordinate military and political affairs.

If it's acting, there's no need to act like this.

"Shuofang Army, they played a big game this time, so big that they can't end it."

Fang Chongyong sighed lightly. He seemed to have no memory of this matter. It should not be in the history books. But in reality, he was impressed by how arrogant and domineering the Huihe people were.

It can only be said to be an accident of necessity.

"A few days ago, Shuofang's army found the Huihe people and bought 10,000 horses. As a result, after paying the deposit, the Huihe people sent 10,000 bad horses."

Fang Chongyong said slowly.

"Jie Shuai, this is the Huihe people testing the truth."

Feng Changqing on the side added.

"Who says it isn't? You and I can see it, and I believe the people in the Shuofang Army can also see it. How can they endure it?

Then, Shuofang's army detained these 10,000 bad horses and waited for Huihe to send someone to negotiate.

But what I didn't expect was that within a few days, tens of thousands of Huihe cavalry troops came to the city, showed off their power on the other side of the Yellow River in Lingzhou City, and demanded an explanation from Shuofang's army.

Either pay the balance or return the horse. There was no intention to discuss it at all.

So, Li Guozhen beat Pugu Huai'en, who was responsible for buying horses, with a stick in front of the Uighur people, and returned the 10,000 horses to the Uighur people.

There was no mention of a deposit. "

Fang Chongyong calmly stated what happened so far.

He Changqi and others were dumbfounded. The subsequent development of this incident was different from what they thought.

If they handle this matter, they can either give in and deal with it in a low-key manner, and then find a way to get back on their feet later.

Since the horses of the Huihe people have been detained, there is no way to solve the matter without bloodshed.

Were all the top brass of Shuofang Army kicked in the head by a donkey?

"Jie Shuai, is this the end of the matter?"

Che Guangqian asked in disbelief. He always felt that this matter was weird.

"Don't you think it's strange why Shuofang's army wants to find Hui He people to buy horses?

Who are they buying these horses to fight against?
I guess they came just to deal with the Huihe people, so of course this matter is not over yet. "

Fang Chongyong asked with a sneer.

Everyone said nothing, waiting for Fang Chongyong's next words.

As expected, Fang Chongyong continued:

"Afterwards, Li Guozhen invited Pei Luo, the Huihe Ye Guhu Li, and a group of Huihe tribal leaders to come to Lingzhou City to discuss the purchase of horses, and they could negotiate the price. This was equivalent to giving in.

However, Huihe Yehu was unwilling to come to Lingzhou, so he sent Prime Minister Dun Ying to congratulate him and brought dozens of Huihe tribal leaders to discuss the horse trade. Together with the guards, there were more than a thousand people in total.

Li Guozhen and others planned to trap and kill all these people. Then it was announced to the outside world that some tribes of Uighurs were attacking Lingzhou City, and they wanted Huihe Yehu to give an explanation. "

Why does this story seem so familiar?

The generals looked at each other, feeling as if they had heard similar plots somewhere. Just change "Uihe" to "Khitan" and "Shuofang Army" to "Youzhou Army" or something like that.

"Back then, Pinglu Jiedu envoy An Lushan seemed to have done something similar."

Che Guangqian gave the answer directly.

Everyone in the handsome tent suddenly realized, no wonder it was so familiar, someone had played it before!

"It's more than that."

Fang Chongyong waved his hand and continued: "What I just said was a plan, which means that this matter has not happened yet. Pugu Huai'en secretly wrote a secret letter and sent it to the saint, and sent Li Guozhen and others Please tell me the plan in detail. We are going to Lingzhou this time to clean up the mess."

Fang Chongyong sighed helplessly. Ji Ge knew that he, the "former ambassador of the Western Region Economic Strategy", was good at handling problems through political means and could lead troops to fight, so he asked him to temporarily change his route to Lingzhou.

Otherwise, if we move troops from Hexi, the distance will be slightly closer and more convenient.

It’s just that Li Guangbi obviously does not have the political skills of Fang Chongyong.

The current situation has become complicated and confusing because of the time difference of 1,250 miles away.

Did Li Guozhen and others succeed or fail, or did they simply back down temporarily and not take action?
Brother Ji didn't know, and Fang Chongyong didn't know either. But it was obvious that Brother Ji had prepared for the worst by letting the Silver Spear Xiaojie Army accompany him.

These words directly silenced He Changqi, Che Guangqian, Feng Changqing and others!

In fact, whether Shuofang's army defeated the Huihe people or failed, it actually didn't matter to the Silver Spear Xiaojie Army. They are there to clean up the situation. Whether the situation is good or bad has nothing to do with them.

It's not like they did it.

But now this matter is just Pugu Huaien's "snitching", and things are a bit difficult to handle.

Mystery and the unknown are the greatest dangers in the world.

The second is knowing but not being able to control it.

Uncontrollable means the risk is unknown.

What should I do?
"If the incident has not happened yet, then the imperial court can prevent the crisis from breaking out by establishing a Shuofang Economic and Strategic Ambassador in accordance with the specifications of the Western Region Economic and Strategic Ambassador.

Of course, this still cannot solve the problem of the Huihe people getting bigger and bigger.

If Li Guozhen and others have succeeded, then the Silver Spear Xiaojie Army will have to cooperate and even lead the Shuofang Army's defense, and will have to attack the Uighurs forcefully!
At that time, who was right and who was wrong, and the cause of the incident no longer mattered. Everything was discussed after the Uighurs were beaten to the ground.

Jieshuai, is that what you mean? "

Che Guangqian asked doubtfully. "Isn't that what it means? It's just that things are not as simple as you think.

It was very simple for the imperial court to appoint me as the governor of Shuofang, it was just a matter of an imperial edict. But it is not easy for me to seize the military power of Li Guozhen and others!
The saint thought they were guilty, but the Shuofang army did not think they were guilty!
The court changes commanders at this time. What if Shuofang's army mutinies? "

Fang Chongyong asked as he looked around at the crowd.

This is a big hole dug by Brother Ji. If Brother Ji had a conscience and a sense of responsibility, he should first send someone to Shuofang's army to issue an order. After Fang Chongyong arrives, he can directly take over the military power.

But this emperor did not do this. Instead, he left all the matters of delivering orders and taking over military power to Fang Chongyong!

This has made it clear that the military and political system of the Shuofang Army cannot function normally.

Of course, there was a reason for Brother Ji's move.

The trick Li Guozhen played was equivalent to ruining the "Oath Monument" established by Brother Ji back then, and ruining his reputation and status among the nine surnames of Tiele. Although the Uighur people were at fault for this incident, Brother Ji did not think so.

If you don't buy a horse, wouldn't it be fine?
This is probably the true thought that Brother Ji cannot express in his heart.

He directly let the Silver Spear Xiaojie Army take over because Brother Ji felt that the Shuofang Army was a bit disobedient and was afraid that they would go berserk.

"Jie Shuai, this errand is really..."

He Changqi was speechless for a moment and couldn't find words to describe the feeling of this trip to Lingzhou. Including Fang Chongyong, everyone present was actually quite speechless.

"Jie Shuai, I think that Pugu Huaien's move may not be his private behavior, but it is probably what Li Guozhen and the others asked him to do.

Everyone in Shuofang's army knew it.

This matter has probably been done.

Maybe right now, when the killing is going on.

All current news is for aftermath, not for warning.

Therefore, the general thought that it was not difficult to take over Shuofang's army. What was difficult was how to deal with the retaliation of the Huihe people. "

Feng Changqing suddenly spoke slowly.

"No wonder, I always feel like there's something wrong with this matter. When you say that, I understand."

Fang Chongyong sighed helplessly. It had to be said that Feng Changqing still had some ideas.

Feng Changqing's words made the last doubt in his mind disappear.

Things like being a second-year-old are extremely risky, and keeping it secret until even your family knows about it is considered safe.

As for the secret letter sent to the court, it was not confidential at all. Gao Lishi could tell the secret casually, and the news would eventually come back to Shuofang's army.

When the time comes, how will Shuofang's army treat him, a Hu man from Tiele's ninth surname?
How can Pugu Huaien end up with a happy ending by doing this?

But if Li Guozhen and Zhang Qiqiu were responsible for this matter, and they took the blame afterwards, they took the responsibility.

If Pugu Huaien acted as a "good guy", it would be easier to contact the Huihe people afterwards.

After all, the conflicts between Tang Dynasty and Uighur have not intensified to the point of destroying each other.

After slashing the Hui people, all the mistakes were the fault of Li Guozhen and Zhang Qiqiu, not the fault of the saints, not the fault of the court, nor the fault of Pugu Huaien who betrayed the nine surnames of Tiele.

That just makes sense.

Because according to this logic, the tragedy of massacre of Huihe senior officials was still caused by "coming too late."

It was just the thoughts of a small group of senior officials in the Shuofang Army and did not represent the thoughts of the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty.

"Shuofang Jun's method of doing things is wrong, but his idea is right.

However, the Uighur people suffered such a big loss, and a war was inevitable.

Shuofang's army was a little overconfident, and since the Ai soldiers were bound to win, they might not be able to win back He if they fought alone. "

Fang Chongyong sighed and immediately ordered: "Pass my military order and set off immediately to Lingzhou. If there is anyone who is slacking off, military law will be enforced!"

"Order!"

All the generals accepted the order in unison, and no one complained.

Because they know that something is really wrong! Even if the Silver Spear Xiaojie Army can defeat five of them each, they only have 3,000 people.

The Uighur people were truly mobilized and controlled more than 200,000 strings.

Who dares to ask for help?

……

On the outskirts of Lingzhou City, on the grassland near the Alliance Oath Monument, there were many military tents and bonfires everywhere.

Li Guozhen, the governor of Shuofang Army, prepared a grand dinner for the arriving Uighur tribal leaders and their guards, totaling more than a thousand people.

According to the custom of the prairie people, the ground is the dining table and the sky is the dome. Everyone sat on the ground and set up a bonfire. Those rugged and delicious dishes, freshly grilled and eaten!
The Uighur people had a conflict with Shuofang's army before, but now it ended because Shuofang's army was weak in uniform.

The Huihe people did not really want to fall out with the Tang Dynasty. After receiving Li Guozhen's invitation, they sent people to Lingzhou happily.

After all, in terms of military strength, the Uighurs were much stronger than Shuofang's army. But if the Hexi frontier army of the Tang Dynasty is also included, it would be difficult to say. Not to mention that the Tang Dynasty had many other armies, so where could the Uighurs compete?

The Tang Dynasty could use all its strength to conquer the Uighurs, but the Uighurs were not Tubo, and they did not have a highland base to hide in and recover blood. If he was beaten, he would have no choice but to flee to the grassland and head west.

So this time the Huihe people accepted the offer. Li Guozhen was willing to give in and invited them to come and discuss the price of the horses. These Uighur leaders are also willing to give this face and settle the matter completely.

Of course, it is inevitable that the lion will open his mouth, drive up the price of horses, and kill Shuofang's army.

This is not because they are raising prices, but because they sold them too cheap before, and now they are just letting the prices return to normal.

In business, brothers are still settling accounts!
"Li Jieshuai, you've almost finished drinking this wine. Should we talk about the price of a good horse?"

Dun Yinghe, who was already drunk, squinted his eyes and asked Li Guozhen, who was in front of him. He was a well-known "anti-Tang faction" within Uighur. Uighur Ye Hu was afraid that someone would collude with the Tang Dynasty, so he deliberately sent a prime minister who was very difficult to deal with the Tang Dynasty to discuss the horse trade.

"The price, of course, has to be discussed. However, Shuai is a little upset this time, so I will go for convenience first before coming back."

Li Guozhen waved his hand, obviously looking for an excuse to leave.

Dun Yinghe didn't take it seriously, because he knew that Li Guozhen did not have the final say on this matter alone. It was only natural that the other party would make excuses and discuss the matter with his subordinates to finalize the case.

Anyway, just wait.

Next to the alliance oath monument, would Tang Jun fall out on the spot?

Not far away, in front of the main camp of Shuofang Army, Zhang Qiqiu was already waiting impatiently.

Fortunately, Li Guozhen had already galloped over on horseback. When he arrived, he said to Zhang Qiqiu: "The Uighur people have drunk too much. It's time to take action. Send the signal."

"Well, there is no turning back when you shoot your bow. It's all for the Tang Dynasty!"

Zhang Qiqiu clenched his fists and said.

"Everything is for Datang!"

Li Guozhen nodded.

Things have progressed to this point, and there is no room for retreating!

call out!call out!call out!
Near the Oath Monument where the Uighur camp is located, three fireworks were as gorgeous as meteors, exploding in the air!
Among the ignorant Huihe people, some continued to drink and eat meat without paying any attention to what was going on; some saw the fireworks and pointed at them, thinking that Shuofang's army had set them off to look good for fun.

"Kill!" "Kill!" "Kill!"

The sword and shield soldiers were in front, and the Mo Dao soldiers were behind. A Tang army with no less than 10,000 soldiers formed a dense infantry formation, closing in on the Uighur camp from all directions.

On their periphery, there were thousands of cavalry on standby, ready to kill any fish that slipped through the net.

(End of this chapter)