Elegy of Tang Dynasty

Chapter 607 I want to focus on military affairs
"finally reached."

Yan Zhenqing dismounted from his horse and looked at the tall Tongguan city wall in front of him, feeling dizzy.

He was no longer young, and riding a horse for hundreds of miles almost broke his waist. But the situation was critical, so he had to try his best.

This is his responsibility as prime minister.

The Tang Dynasty cannot fall in his hands. No matter how difficult the situation is, we must fight for the last glimmer of hope.

"I am the Right Prime Minister Yan Zhenqing. Please take me to see Gao Xianzhi, the Defense Commander of Tongguan!"

Yan Zhenqing, panting, shouted to the soldiers on duty on the Tongguan city wall.

Soon, a hanging basket was lowered from above and Yan Zhenqing was lifted up.

Yan Zhenqing was led to the signing room on the city wall. After a while, a middle-aged general whom he had never seen before came in.

As soon as he saw Yan Zhenqing, he clasped his fists and saluted, saying, "Mr. Yan, I am Ma Lin, acting as the military officer for Tongguan. How is the situation in Chang'an? I heard that the Konghe Army mutinied. Wasn't the Saint with you?"

Huh? They actually knew?
Yan Zhenqing was shocked. The person in front of him actually knew that Chang'an had fallen. How did he know that?
Yan Zhenqing couldn't understand because he didn't send anyone to Tongguan to inform him of this matter.

So he answered truthfully: "This matter... is hard to explain in a few words. But the Konghe Army did mutiniate, and Chang'an did fall. The emperor was killed in the chaos. I am incompetent, oh! I am incompetent!"

Yan Zhenqing kept sighing and lamenting, almost to the point of shedding tears.

Ma Lin, who was standing aside, had a blank expression on his face. Not only was he unable to say anything to comfort Yan Zhenqing, he even didn't know whether he should tell the other party about Gao Xianzhi and the others' decision.

"Where is General Gao Jie? I have something to say to him. Have they set out for the battle?"

Yan Zhenqing wiped the tears from his face with his sleeve and spoke to Ma Lin with a serious face.

"them……"

Ma Lin hesitated to speak, because he really couldn't bear to make this prime minister who was so worried about the Tang Dynasty sad. But the truth would come out sooner or later, and Yan Zhenqing would know about these things, so Ma Lin was very conflicted at the moment.

"How is it?"

Yan Zhenqing had a bad feeling.

"They left Tongguan early this morning and headed for the Western Regions. Didn't you meet them on the way?"

Ma Lin sighed and said that he was helpless too. Gao Xianzhi was just like that. He casually gave him the waist badge and fish token of the Tongguan Defense Commander.

Then nothing was said! There was no so-called "official procedure" either.

After all, Chang'an had fallen. Although this official position was not worth anything, it was almost worth nothing.

"Gone? How are they going to return to the Western Regions?"

Yan Zhenqing was shocked!
Gao Xianzhi and the others have actually left?
How could they just abandon the imperial court and return to the Western Regions without even saying goodbye?

Yan Zhenqing heard the news he least wanted to hear.

Ma Lin told the other party about Zhang Guangsheng's affairs, and also repeated the results of the discussion by Gao Xianzhi and others, as well as the opinions of the generals and soldiers in the army.

Originally, Gao Xianzhi planned to arrange for the remaining people to go to Bianzhou, but they were all native to Guanzhong, so they refused to go to Bianzhou.

Only Li Siye went with fifty riders.

In the future, Li Siye will build an institution similar to the "Beijing Office" in Bianzhou to maintain contact with the Western Regions. Of course, in addition to maintaining basic contact, it is not ruled out that related trade will be arranged.

"Mr. Yan, I have something to say. General Gao and his men have been in Anxi Beiting for many years, and the soldiers under their command are all from there. With the court in such a state now, why would they stay in Guanzhong instead of leaving? Please understand the difficulties of the soldiers."

Ma Lin spread his hands to Yan Zhenqing, saying that he was helpless. He couldn't even say anything to persuade him to stay.

Ma Lin was a native of Guanzhong, so he was willing to stay there. However, those soldiers from Anxi Beiting were thousands of miles away from Guanzhong. What qualifications did Ma Lin have to persuade others to stay?
Those soldiers from Anxi Beiting have been away from home for many years and fought in many places, but they have not gained a penny in these years. It would be even worse for them to stay in Anxi Beiting and farm!

These people did not continue to plunder Guanzhong, which was a very martial virtue.

"I wanted to take them to Jingxiang to support His Royal Highness Prince Ying in entering Guanzhong to take charge of the situation. I didn't expect... Gao Xianzhi had already left."

Yan Zhenqing shook his head, then stood up and said to Ma Lin: "I will go and chase them back now!"

"Mr. Yan, you can't get her back."

Ma Lin quickly grabbed Yan Zhenqing's sleeve and stopped him from leaving.

Since Gao Xianzhi and the others have already left, there is no way they can turn back!

"How do you know if you don't try? When the country is in danger, someone has to stand up.

If I don’t pursue the truth, who else would be willing to pursue it?”

Yan Zhenqing said this with a righteous tone, then he pushed open the door of the signing room and was about to go down the city wall.

He clasped his fists and saluted Ma Lin and said, "General Ma, I will go find Gao Xianzhi and the others first. You guard Tongguan first."

"Please rest assured, Mr. Yan, I will definitely live up to your trust."

Ma Lin also saluted Yan Zhenqing with his fists clasped.

Yan Zhenqing still went to chase Gao Xianzhi's Anxi Beiting army, but he went alone without any followers.

Ma Lin looked at Yan Zhenqing's back from the Tongguan city wall, feeling mixed emotions for a moment.

There are many things that people know will be meaningless if they continue doing them, but some people still refuse to give up and continue doing these futile things.

Perhaps, doing this thing itself is the whole meaning. Whether it succeeds or not is not important.

……

"General Jie, you are so cruel. Such a delicate girl came to the military camp to find you, and you let Liu Yan send her back without saying a word?

If I were to say, it wouldn't matter if you stayed in the commander's tent."

Fang Chongyong was leading a dozen cavalrymen to scout the enemy situation more than ten miles to the east. He Changqi was right beside him, nagging incessantly like a fly.

Perhaps, he was venting his anxiety in this way.

"If I were to play with a young lady in my tent, what would the soldiers think?
Who still dares to believe that my orders were made after careful consideration?

Will they follow my example and go to the surrounding villages to find women?
You know nothing! "

Fang Chongyong retorted to He Changqi in annoyance.

The last time Li Yi came to the military camp to see Fang Zhongyong, she thought she would be given a tight hug, a passionate kiss, and a series of sweet words.

But Fang Chongyong didn't even let her into the camp, and directly asked Liu Yan to take her back.

Not to mention hugging and kissing, he didn't even touch me.

To be honest, it was really a depressing sight. After all, they could have at least gone into the camp to have a meal before leaving. This was a bit too heartless.

However, Fang Zhongyong's "ruthlessness" also paid off.

Everyone in the Silver Spear Filial Piety Army saw that Fang Chongyong was strict and ruthless in his military discipline.

He even didn't treat his new beautiful concubine well and didn't allow her to enter the military camp.

As a result, no one dared to slack off and completed the issued military orders without compromise.

He Changqi felt embarrassed and dared not say more.

"It's strange. Li Baochen hasn't launched an attack yet, and the troops in Guanzhong haven't made any moves. What is he trying to do?"

Fang Chongyong suddenly pulled the reins of the horse and stopped, talking to himself.

There was a bridge in the west of where they were, called "Xiaoyi Bridge". The west side of the bridge was the boundary of Yanshi County. Yanshi County was adjacent to Luoyang in the west.

Along the way, Fang Chongyong discovered that Marshal Baochen had cleared all the cities and villages along the way and implemented a firm policy of clearing the countryside. He created a large "no man's land" and even demolished the houses and took away the wooden planks!

This can only mean one thing, that is, Marshal Baochen did not regard himself as the "advantaged party" at all, he was prepared to launch a defensive counterattack!
Therefore, this is very inconsistent with the current battlefield situation. The army from Guanzhong was not even seen, which is too abnormal.

"General, we can't scout any further. Otherwise, the enemy will catch up with us and it will be inconvenient for us to retreat."

He Changqi rode his horse forward and blocked the team's way.

Xiaoyi Bridge is the only passage here. In case someone is ambushing on the nearby hills, they can block Xiaoyi Bridge after Fang Chongyong and his men pass by.

The situation faced by the entire reconnaissance team will be very dangerous, and it is not worth the risk.

We can just send a scout to the west to check later, it’s no big deal. “This commander finds it very strange.

Li Baochen didn't send any scouts to the east, which is why we didn't encounter any enemy troops along the way.

Logically speaking, the troops from Guanzhong should have come out and were fighting with Li Baochen's troops.

Guanzhong should also contact us."

Fang Zhongyong raised his whip, pointed to the west and said, "But it's too quiet right now. If there's any disturbance in the west, how could no one flee eastward?"

Now He Changqi had nothing to say.

No matter how you look at it, the current battle situation is a bit strange. There are more than one or two generals in the camp who have noticed this, and they basically all agree.

But I still don't know what went wrong.

"General, there seems to be someone hiding behind the tree across the bridge. I will capture him and bring him back to the camp for interrogation."

He Changqi suddenly came close to Fang Chongyong and whispered something.

"Be careful. Take the two brothers and walk over there without riding a horse. This way you won't be too conspicuous."

Fang Chongyong nodded slightly and gave the order. It must be said that He Lao Hu's battlefield intuition was still very sharp.

He Changqi and two elite soldiers of the Silver Spear Xiaojie Army dismounted from their horses. They pushed and shoved each other, swearing that they wanted to find a place to pee to see who could pee farther, while quietly moving towards the tree.

There was no movement behind the tree.

When He Changqi and the others were very close to the tree, the three of them suddenly exerted force and pounced on the person hiding behind the tree!

"Eh!"

The two sides wrestled with each other, and after seeing each other's faces clearly, they couldn't help but shout out.

After a while, the man was brought over. He was not tied up, and He Changqi, who was standing by, was pointing at the man.

"Why did you... hide behind a tree?"

Fang Chongyong looked at Zhang Guangsheng, who was living like a beggar, and asked with a puzzled look on his face.

There are so many flaws in the other party at this moment that I don't know where to start.

"Brother, something big has happened. The Konghe Army mutinied in Chang'an. I came here specially to inform you, but I ran into Gao Xianzhi's troops on the way. When they asked about it, I told Gao Xianzhi and his men the news.

This is not the place to talk, let’s go back to the camp and talk in detail.”

Zhang Guangsheng said anxiously.

This news was so shocking that He Changqi and others were so shocked that they were speechless.

"He Lao Hu, give him a horse, and let's go back to Xingyang camp now!"

Fang Zhongyong waved his hand and said in a deep voice.

At this moment, his face was full of frost, and he gave the order almost with gritted teeth.

Damn it, I got cheated!
No wonder there was no army from Guanzhong coming to attack Li Baochen, it turned out that even Chang'an had fallen!
The group returned to their own camp not far from here. As soon as Fang Chongyong entered the commander's tent, he called all the generals in the army, as well as Yan Zhuang, Li Quan, Cen Shen and others who were responsible for making plans, to a meeting to discuss important matters.

"Tell me, what's going on?"

Seeing that all his scholars and military officers had arrived, Fang Chongyong looked at Zhang Guangsheng with burning eyes and asked.

He usually attached great importance to military democracy. Regardless of whether he was autocratic or not, he would always summon his main generals to discuss important matters, at least as a formality.

Therefore, his subordinates have strong cohesion and a strong sense of participation during marches and battles, and they never worry about being betrayed.

"It's like this. The Konghe Army was stationed outside the city because they were asking for money. Then, probably because they couldn't reach an agreement with the court, they mutinied."

Zhang Guangsheng then told everyone everything he knew, even in every detail.

The chaotic Chang'an, the frantic people, the unlucky aristocratic families, the royal family members who were almost on the verge of extinction. The scene of everything thriving and flourishing is still vivid in my mind.

From his perspective, Zhang Guangsheng described some things that prime ministers like Yan Zhenqing could not see.

The Konghe Army only has 8,000 people, not to mention that they need to guard important venues, look after hostages, guard against surprise attacks and so on.

Chang'an was such a big city with 108 wards. According to the most conservative estimate, the fixed population was over 500,000, not counting the floating population.

The Konghe Army has only so many people. How much can they rob or take?
What really caused the huge losses was not the looting of the Crane Control Army, but the fact that after the order in Chang'an City was lost, the hungry people of Chang'an had turned into rioters, looting wherever there was plenty of food, and some even took the initiative to lead the way for the Crane Control Army.

There will definitely be some bloody and unspeakable things involved.

So let alone the fact that Chang'an is unlikely to send reinforcements now, even if Yan Zhenqing is given another three months, even if Li Baochen turns into a stone statue and remains motionless for three months, no army from Guanzhong will leave Tongguan!

The situation is so serious.

Zhang Guangsheng's words frightened all the generals present. Now that the Konghe Army is not coming, Gao Xianzhi's troops... are unlikely to come either. It is not clear how Li Guangbi is doing.

If Li Baochen turned around and came to Xingyang, he would fight to the death with Fang Chongyong.

It will probably be a tough battle then!

boom!
Seeing that everyone was whispering to each other, Fang Zhongyong slammed the table fiercely.

“Is the sky falling?
Even if the sky falls, I am here to hold it up. What are you afraid of?
Everyone here is scared like a mouse.

So what if Li Baochen comes? If he wants to make trouble, he has asked me if I have a knife!"

Fang Zhongyong looked around at the generals and cursed.

No one answered, because what just happened was really embarrassing.

They were all frightened by the powerful military force under Li Baochen and the fact that they had to face so many elite soldiers alone.

This time is different from the last time in Hebei. There is basically no room for maneuver.

Either draw your sword or kneel down, there is no third way to deal with it. Bianzhou is right behind you, you can't run away.

I can run away from the monk, but I can't run away from the temple.

"You all should go away now. Go back and think of a solution today. If you have anything to say, just come to me and offer your suggestions.

As long as you don't withdraw your troops, you can say whatever you want! I don't care! "

Fang Chongyong waved his hand, signaling all the generals to disperse, leaving only Yan Zhuang and Li Quan.

"What do you think?"

Fang Zhongyong asked in a deep voice. The relaxed attitude just now was just an act, just to stabilize morale.

"General, I think we can hold a celebration banquet in a while."

Yan Zhuang had a weird look on his face and chuckled.

"Celebrate? Why?"

Fang Zhongyong asked doubtfully, not sure if he really didn't understand or was pretending.

Yan Zhuang said word by word: "The first one to enter Guanzhong will be the king. If Li Baochen had the possibility to attack us before, now I'm afraid he has his eyes fixed on Chang'an and can't move away! How can he care about insignificant people like us?"

"Yes, General Jie, Li Baochen has Li Wan in his hands. If he enters Guanzhong and drives away the Konghe Army stationed in Chang'an, he can use the emperor to control the princes.

The Konghe Army has lost all its support and is definitely no match for Li Baochen. They will definitely not be able to defend Chang'an.

Even if Li Baochen had no idea what was more important, he always had smart people around him.

What can Li Baochen get if he brings a large army to fight us to the death?

Once the situation in Guanzhong is stabilized, this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity will be gone in a flash.

Therefore, I estimate that Li Baochen will not attack us, but will most likely send someone to negotiate peace with the commander, so that we don’t fight with him, which will only hurt both sides.”

Li Quan said, stroking the beard on his chin.

It is so ridiculous that Li Baochen would actually send someone to make peace with Fang Chongyong.

But after listening to Li Quan's analysis, Fang Chongyong felt that there seemed to be nothing strange about Marshal Baochen's choice.

(End of this chapter)