Elegy of Tang Dynasty

Chapter 496: Futile Struggle

dong dong dong!dong dong dong!
dong dong dong!dong dong dong!
Late at night, drums sounded loudly! That was the warning sound of someone attacking the camp at night.

Fang Youde calmly put on his helmet and walked out of the general's tent slowly. The fighting at the camp gate was still going on, but it seemed that there was no more trouble.

"Marshal Fang has a plan in mind. He has already guessed that Cui Qianyou will attack the camp at night."

At some point Li Mi had come to Fang Youde and bowed to him.

"It's just a small trick."

Fang Youde snorted coldly, not knowing whether the "trivial trick" he mentioned meant that Cui Qianyou should not attack the camp at night, or that defending against this level of night attack was not a big deal at all.

In less than an incense stick of time, the sounds of fighting and killing in the distance gradually died down, as if Cui Qianyou's troops were retreating.

A personal soldier stepped forward, and Fang Youde clasped his fists and reported: "General, the enemy has retreated to Huangxiangban. Should we pursue them?"

"Don't chase after a desperate enemy. Leave some people to patrol the surrounding area, and the rest of you, continue to sleep."

Fang Youde gave an order to his personal soldiers and then walked towards the general's tent.

Li Mi quickly grabbed Fang Youde and asked in confusion: "General, Tongguan is easy to defend but difficult to attack. The enemy has finally attacked the camp. Why don't we follow them? Even if we can't break the city, we will definitely be able to dampen their morale."

"If you want to go, go ahead. I won't go."

Fang Youde left after saying a few words, not wanting to waste any more time talking to Li Mi.

Li Mi was a wise man when it came to big strategies and national policies, but he was not good at marching and fighting. Li Mi wanted to use the "rolling up the pearl curtain" to break through Tongguan like a bookworm, but Fang Youde knew that Cui Qianyou must have set up ambushes on both sides of the mountain road of Huangxiangban.

This night attack was fake, but the real purpose was to lure the enemy in. Fang Youde had lived two lives, so how could he not see through this little trick?

Due to information asymmetry, Cui Qianyou did not know that Crown Prince Li Heng had taken a detour via the Shangluo Road, pretending to repair the plank road while secretly passing through Chencang.

Tongguan looked lively, but it was just a feint. Fang Youde was in an invincible position if he was not in a hurry to break the city. There was really no need to go there and die.

"This time Cui Qianyou is just luring the enemy. Don't chase after a desperate enemy. We will drive them away as many times as the enemy leaves the city.

As long as Chang'an runs out of food, Tongguan will be cut off from both inside and outside and become an isolated city, and it will be impossible to hold on."

Gao Shi, wearing the emperor's dragon robe, stepped forward and explained to Li Mi.

To put it simply, what Cui Qianyou should do now is to quickly return to Chang'an to stabilize the situation, which may be able to delay it for a few days.

As for the current situation, on the surface, he was blocking Fang Youde, but in fact, he was being held back by Fang Youde in Tongguan and could not move. If Cui Qianyou was in charge of Chang'an, it would be quite troublesome for some people to support Li Heng to take the throne.

Li Mi quickly sorted out the interests involved.

"There is no such thing as fairness in a battle on the battlefield!"

Li Mi couldn't help but sigh, feeling that he had gained a lot in recent times, and had seen clearly and understood many truths in the world.

There is only a difference between winning and losing on the battlefield, where is the fairness?
Think about how Cui Qianyou tried his best to use all kinds of methods, but he seemed like a praying mantis with outstanding skills.

Li Mi felt a little sad because the way of heaven is ruthless and man cannot defeat heaven.

From the very beginning, Cui Qianyou had already lost.

Even a very powerful person cannot defeat nature, and he dare not even say this out loud!

Cui Qianyou, what a pity.

Li Mi sighed lightly, returned to his military tent, picked up a volume of "Tao Te Ching" and began to read.

"Heaven and earth are not benevolent, they treat all things as straw dogs; sages are not benevolent, they treat the people as straw dogs. Between heaven and earth, is it like a bellows? It is empty but not bent, it moves and produces more. Too much talk will lead to exhaustion, it is better to keep to the middle..."

His slightly hoarse voice echoed in the military tent, but the soldiers on duty outside the door only heard "Yiya-yiya" buzzing like a mosquito, and could not distinguish the words at all.

……

Shangluo Road is a series of routes that do not exist on the official map of the Tang Dynasty, but are very active among the people. It is not a road, but a series of routes of various sizes that connect many places, like blood vessels.

There are no government-run post stations, but there is no shortage of shops that supply food, fodder and water, and they can even provide accommodation.

As the saying goes, there are no roads in the world, but when more people walk on it, it becomes a road.

The secret of the Shangluo Road's success is that it connects Luoyang, Jingxiang and Chang'an. Most of the routes are official roads, while a small number of small roads over mountains and ridges are the "finishing touch" of the Shangluo Road.

These small roads were formed after merchants took hundreds of years to form trade routes. It was with this shortcut that merchants in Jingxiang could connect with the two major commercial ports of Chang'an and Luoyang. The road from Lantian to Wuguan in the south of Chang'an was a very important trade route.

The emergence of Shangluo Road was not accidental, nor was it that the ancients had no choice but to wander around in the mountains to find a way. Instead, there was a very urgent economic need, and they continued to open up in order to make money.

Along the way, Li Ying felt the great power from the people.

This road sometimes requires climbing mountains and sometimes crossing rivers. But no matter what kind of terrain, you can ride on horseback. It is hard to imagine that without the intervention of the Tang government and the post stations providing food and accommodation for horses, there would be no shortage of supplies along the way.

What the government could not do, the people did.

It is not uncommon to cut a path through mountains.

Building bridges over water and maintaining these seemingly simple bridges from time to time, this is the true "will of the people".

“Your Highness, the reason why this road is like this is because the tea and local specialties in Jingxiang cannot be carried by hand or on shoulders, but must be carried by donkeys or mules.

If a road cannot be ridden, then it loses its meaning of existence.”

Seeing Li Ying in deep thought, Lu Jing started to explain. They were crossing Xiong'er Mountain, and after crossing the mountain, Lantian Pass was in front of them.

This section of Xiong'er Mountain seems difficult and dangerous, but in fact, the road has been paved by someone long ago.

"I understand."

Li Heng, who was wearing the Tang army uniform, nodded slightly.

"Your Highness, I will pass through Lantian Pass in a few minutes on the pretext of changing guard. Please wait patiently and do not reveal your identity, which will cause unnecessary trouble."

Xu Yuan bowed to Li Heng and gave him a reminder.

After Li Heng and his party passed Wuguan, he joined the marching team with part of the garrison and was responsible for clearing the way in front.

Looking around, there are many Taoist temples on the top of Xiong'er Mountain, including the Taoist Temple of Zushi, Linggong Temple, Laojun Temple, Dasheng Temple, etc. After they entered Xiong'er Mountain, they met many Taoists along the way.

These people were all walking in a hurry, as if no one was around, as if they had seen them.

Along the way, Li Heng saw many human scenes that he had never seen before.

There are not only the idle monks and Taoists, the hurried merchants, the numb farmers working in the fields, and the waiters with fake smiles, but also thousands of people with different faces and different aspects of life.

All living beings are busy with the trivial things in front of them.

Whether Ji Ge is the emperor or he, the prince, ascends the throne as the emperor, it seems to have little impact on the lives of these people.

The prefectures and counties near Shangluo Road are relatively remote, with few wars in history and relatively backward economies.

The people here work from sunrise to sunset and live a hard life. Although they are not so ignorant of the Han Dynasty, let alone the Wei and Jin Dynasties, they are still not sensitive to changes in the political situation.

Li Ying suddenly felt that even if the Tang Dynasty ceased to exist one day, it would not matter to them.

The idea that "all under heaven belongs to the king" is just talk. What king? He is more like a turtle!
Li Heng couldn't help but laugh at himself. No matter which emperor was missing, the people would still have to live their lives!
The ambition to be king and to dominate the world is all for showing off to others and for self-improvement, but in reality it means nothing!
He suddenly stopped and felt a little reluctant to go to Chang'an.

"Your Highness, why did you stop?"

Seeing that Li Heng did not leave without any warning, Lu Jiong walked up to him and asked in a low voice.

"I have ascended the throne and become the emperor, so what can I do?"

Li Ying couldn't help but let out a long sigh.

"Even if your Highness doesn't think about himself, he should think about the people of the world!"

Lu Jiong was a little anxious.

If the prince does something strange at this critical moment, many people will die!
"I just expressed my feelings, you don't have to mind it."

Li Ying waved his hand gently and continued walking along the mountain road. Only then did Lu Jing breathe a sigh of relief.

After crossing this mountain, you will reach Lantian Pass, a pass with almost no defense capability and only symbolic significance. Lantian Pass is integrated with Lantian Post (Qingni Post), which is the largest post station south of Chang'an, with a constant flow of people coming and going.

A great man hides himself in the city. Li Heng didn't need to make any announcement, let alone reveal his identity. He just needed to follow Xu Yuan through Lantian Post. This change of guard followed the normal procedure. Xu Yuan had the change of guard document to Chang'an, so he could pass through directly.

Li Heng was wearing the Tang army uniform and hiding in the team, looking inconspicuous.

Now this is a Lingmen kick, and victory is at hand.

If Li Heng refuses to leave, everyone in the team will go crazy!
Fortunately, Li Ying’s feelings came and went quickly. After walking on the mountain road for a day, everyone finally walked out of Xiong'er Mountain.

The road opened up instantly.

However, just as Li Heng and his men had just passed through Lantian Pass, they were blocked by a team of Tang troops that suddenly appeared.

"Stop! Who are you?"

At the edge of a bamboo forest less than two miles north of Lantian Posthouse, Li Ying and his companions were stopped by a general dressed as Jinwu Guards.

There were more than a hundred Jinwu Guards behind him, and this man was none other than Zhang Guangsheng, the General of the Jinwu Guards.

Recently, he was transferred from Chang'an by the Council of State for no reason and was inspecting the Lantian area. This move was very unusual.

So Zhang Guangsheng strengthened the inspection of Lantian Pass.

In fact, apart from this, there was nothing else for him to do.

Li Heng and others were shocked by the sudden change.

In fact, because the itinerary was kept too secret, no one in Chang'an City knew that they would take the Shangluo Road!
As for why Zhang Guangsheng was transferred to Lantian, it was purely because he was not in the new core of power. Some people who wanted to launch a coup thought he was in the way, so they transferred him and the Jinwu Guards away from Chang'an!
Unexpectedly, Li Heng was blocked!

Xu Yuan winked at Lu Jing, suggesting that he was ready to take action. The Jinwu Guards were not many in number, and were no match for this group of soldiers. It was totally worth exchanging their lives for others.

"General Zhang, do you still recognize me?"

Li Ying walked out of the crowd and looked at Zhang Guangsheng and asked.

"You are……"

Zhang Guangsheng looked at Li Ying in military uniform and suddenly remembered who this person was. He was immediately horrified.

He is not a fool. There have been undercurrents in Chang'an City recently, and it seems that something big is about to happen.

Seeing the Crown Prince Li Heng in front of him, even a fool could guess what would happen!

"Your Highness, you are really...unexpected."

Zhang Guangsheng smiled bitterly. He also knew that the group of Jinwu Guards behind him were not even children of aristocratic families. Many of them were descendants of merchants who came here to gild their reputations and gain experience.

Nothing you want!

"Now I need someone to lead the way, to take me to Chang'an, and to gather all the ministers in the Daming Palace to discuss important matters.

I don't know, can you give me a favor?"

Li Ying asked in a deep voice.

Lu Jing, Xu Yuan and others beside him had already grasped the handle of their swords. Once Zhang Guangsheng said "no", these people would immediately attack.

They have come to this point. Even if the person in front of them is Brother Ji, they will not be afraid to kill the king with their own hands! They have been under great pressure along the way, and there is a great temptation of wealth and glory ahead, which makes these soldiers have no scruples!

"Your Highness, this way please. I will lead the way for you."

Zhang Guangsheng had a bitter taste in his mouth and made a gesture of invitation to Li Ying.

"I will never forget General Zhang's kindness in leading the way."

Li Ying nodded slightly to Zhang Guangsheng.

"Your Highness, please don't bother me. Lantian Posthouse is quite a distance away from the South Gate of Chang'an. Please follow me."

Zhang Guangsheng shouted, and with his group of Jinwu Guards who were good at looking but not fighting, he turned around and headed north to clear the way.

Due to the presence of the Jinwu Guards, pedestrians on the road avoided them as if they were avoiding the god of plague.

Lu Jing clasped his fists and saluted Li Ying, saying, "Your Highness, look, this is what the people want!"

Li Heng nodded slightly, without making any comment.

Lu Jing's nice words were just for show. In fact, for the Jinwu Guards, it made no difference which prince became the emperor, and they would not do anything to little people like them.

The people of the Jinwu Guard should still patrol the streets as they should, drink as they should, and live their lives as they should. No emperor would make things difficult for them.

Thinking of this, the words "alone and helpless" suddenly popped up in Li Heng's mind.

You may seem to be in power, but in fact you are walking on thin ice. Everyone may betray you if something goes wrong.

The emperor seems to be in control of the world, but isn’t he also being roasted on the fire by the people of the world?

Step by step, we were getting closer to Chang'an. More and more people were coming to the market, and even ox-carts and horse-drawn carriages were coming and going.

Li Heng felt his body trembling.

It is a fear that comes from the depths of the soul.

Li Heng knew very well that as soon as he entered Chang'an City, his fate would be sealed.

"Your Highness, are you feeling unwell? Do you want to rest for a while?"

Seeing Li Ying’s pale face, Lu Jiong asked with concern.

Li Heng calmed himself down, waved his hand and said, "It's okay, Chang'an should be ahead."

"Yes, Your Highness."

"Then keep going, I'm fine."

(End of this chapter)