Chapter 3866 The Prince’s Mind
The lights in the prince's residence are brightly lit. Li Jing, dressed in military uniform and with a calm demeanor, is reporting the current battle situation to the prince...
"The rebels assembled no less than 50,000 troops, hoarded them in Chang'an City, and launched a fierce attack on Taiji Palace along the imperial city line regardless of casualties. Looking at the situation, the ministers saw that it was likely that everyone would be destroyed, and everything would be destroyed! It can be seen that Changsun Wuji was this time. I made up my mind and wanted to accomplish my goal in one battle.”
Li Jing frowned, his voice heavy.
Guanlong's army is indeed a mob, far less elite than Donggong Sixth Army, but no matter how elite the army is, it cannot withstand too many enemies. One against five is considered the elite among the elite. The so-called one against ten can only be an isolated phenomenon.
In particular, siege warfare has very high requirements on the number of people. No matter how elite you are, if you are passively trapped in a defensive situation and lack mobility, you cannot fully demonstrate the advantage of your soldiers like in field battles. No one can resist being passively beaten. Can't live.
Moreover, since the beginning of the war, the East Palace Sixth Army has suffered heavy losses and is exhausted. It cannot get timely personnel replacement, and the attrition is very serious. On the other hand, the Guanlong army took advantage of the geographical advantages and received a steady stream of supplies. The gap in combat power between the two armies was no longer as large as it was at the beginning of the war.
Although the front line of Chengtianmen has not fallen until now, this battle has been very difficult. Even Li Jing, a famous marshal in the world, feels powerless...
Li Chengqian knelt down behind the coffee table and sighed, saying: "Changsun Wuji is very good at calculating. He not only wants to cut off his own arm to eliminate the threat in the eyes of the British, but also wants to take advantage of the opportunity to see if he can win the favor of God. Favoring the destruction of the East Palace... But no matter what, after this battle, most of the foundations of the world's powerful families will be cut off, and the past situation of controlling the government and monopolizing local areas will no longer be possible."
Weakening the powerful families, bringing all the power of the court to the center, and centralizing the imperial power... This is the ideal that my father has been pursuing tirelessly over the years, but he never expected to achieve it after his death. However, this situation came at the expense of the empire. The stability, the wealth in Guanzhong, and the lives of countless soldiers and people, I wonder if my father’s spirit in heaven would be happy if he knew about it?
After all, the price is too high...
Of course, Li Jing also understood that no matter who wins in the end, this mutiny will be a devastating blow to the powerful family, and the imperial power will be concentrated like never before... But the premise of all this is to defend the Tai Chi Palace so that the prince can successfully ascend the throne in the future. , otherwise what’s the point?
After pondering for a while, he asked: "In view of the humble minister, why not issue a decree to the British Duke at this moment, ordering his troops to return to the court and return to the East Palace to aid?"
This is not really asking Li Ji to come to the rescue, but forcing Li Ji to express his position. Otherwise, Li Ji will still be in Tongguan, with an unclear position and unclear tendency. This is too passive for the East Palace. They were fighting life and death in Chang'an City, but in the end Li Ji sent his troops back to the capital to help Zhou... By that time, the East Palace had no way to retreat.
Even though he was called the "Military God" and was extremely conceited about his tactical, strategic and military qualities, Li Jing was not arrogant enough to believe that he could lead the Sixth Army of the East Palace to defeat the Guanlong rebels and the hundreds of thousands of Eastern Expeditions commanded by Li Ji. The army...
Li Chengqian pondered without saying a word.
He understood what Li Jing meant. This morning he was able to test out Li Ji's stance and tendencies so that he could be well-targeted. If Li Ji didn't stand on the side of the East Palace, then what was the point of sticking to the Taiji Palace now? Even if the rebels were repulsed, when Li Ji led his army to attack in a large scale, they were still completely defeated. It is better to respond as soon as possible and simply withdraw from Taiji Palace and retreat to the counties in Hexi to make preparations.
After thinking for a while, he said in a deep voice: "I understand what Duke Wei means, but I will never give up Taiji Palace, no matter whether I face the Guanlong rebels or the Eastern Expedition army under the British Duke. Maybe this decision is a bit stupid, But what Gu wants to tell Duke Wei is that even if Gu is killed in the Taiji Palace, he absolutely does not want to see the empire fall into civil war."
As long as he withdraws from Taiji Palace and Chang'an City, no matter the Guanlong rebels or Li Ji, he will immediately establish another prince to compete with him, the upright prince.
When there are two princes, one internal and one external, or even two emperors, it is inevitable that the empire will fall into division. A huge civil war that is destined to take a long time and drain the vitality of the empire will soon occur.
So what if there is a winner in the end?
The country is broken and desolate. The people who have just lived a good life for a few days are once again in dire straits. The population has dropped sharply, the finances have collapsed, and the Nuo Empire has been torn apart. The scenes of war and war in the late Sui Dynasty are even repeated...
This is not what Li Chengqian wants.
"I would rather die in this inner gate, and would rather be replaced by King Wei or King Jin, than drag the empire into civil war single-handedly."
Li Chengqian's eyes were firm and his tone was sonorous.
If he had been a little hesitant about sticking to Taiji Palace or withdrawing from Chang'an City before, he had made up his mind at this moment and would never waver again.
Li Jing looked at Li Chengqian with burning eyes. Seeing his magnanimous expression, he nodded slightly and asked, "Has Your Highness made up his mind?"
Li Chengqian said: "I will never regret it!"
It is not difficult for him to die without hesitation, but in order to prevent his son from being used and manipulated by ambitious people and becoming a means to split the empire, he has to let his son die with him... The world is in turmoil, childish. Why?
However, living in an imperial family, being a descendant of the emperor, and enjoying the glory and power in the world, naturally there is no such thing as innocence...
Li Jing looked indifferent, stroking his beard and nodding: "Now that His Highness has made up his mind, I, an old man like me, swear to live and die with His Highness!"
He never wanted to sway, but because of his political shortcomings, he had been a "second minister" for half his life. Lin Lao was able to gain Li Chengqian's trust, reuse, and even rely on him in life and death. He did not intend to seek advantages and avoid disadvantages, and follow the wind. It is to be a true loyal minister for once.
After fighting for a lifetime, countless soldiers turned into corpses in front of his eyes. Life and death had already been destroyed, waiting for nothing to happen.
He immediately said: "How should the Duke of Yue deal with it?"
The prince is determined to die, and if he doesn't succeed, he will be benevolent. He himself is willing to follow him to the death, but Fang Jun outside Xuanwu Gate may not. This son has a great reputation, is young and powerful, and has powerful troops in the world such as Youtun Guards and Navy under his command. I am afraid that he may not be willing to be buried in Chang'an or Guanzhong.
When nothing can be done, he will definitely evacuate Guanzhong. With his ability and character, how can he be willing to bow down and beg for mercy to Guan Long or Li Ji?
I'm afraid I still have to fight vigorously.
Li Chengqian smiled, poured tea for Li Jing with a pot in his hand, and said warmly: "The Duke of Yue is different from others. His father once said that everyone else is loyal to the king, but Duke Yue is loyal to the empire, or in other words, he is loyal to the king." The world is loyal to all people, and his life ambition is to seek peace for the people. Others may want to gain power and advance. Cheng Er led his army to evacuate, and since then he has been fighting against the central government, but the Duke of Yue will never do that. If the day comes that he will die here alone, the Duke of Yue will probably only lead his army across the Qinling Mountains, enter Hanzhong, pass through Bashu, and then Go straight down the river to Huating Town, then pack your bags and head out to sea. ”
When Fang Xuanling went to Jiangnan, and Xiao Shuer, who was pregnant, accompanied her, it was obvious that Fang Jun was prepared for the worst.
Fight a civil war and seize the throne?
I'm afraid Fang Jun doesn't have that kind of interest. If he had the energy, it would be easier to lead the navy to conquer a country overseas with both hands...
Li Jing was silent for a long time, thinking repeatedly between "loyalty to the emperor" and "loyalty to the world", and was filled with emotions for a while.
Those who are "loyal to the emperor" may be loyal to a generation, but only those who are "loyal to the world" are likely to become famous ministers in the world, loved by hundreds of millions of people, and their names will last forever.
Maybe, it would be possible to build a temple to accompany it.
In terms of realm, there is actually a big gap between myself and that guy...
This made the military god of the Tang Dynasty a little confused - what had he lived for so long? I used to be a young man with a silver saddle and a white horse. Every time I think about it, I feel glorious and satisfied. I feel that although my career has been wasted after middle age, at least my youthful years were high-spirited and wanton, and they were not wasted.
But now compare it with Fang Er... Didn't I live in vain back then?
*****
Inside Yanshou Square, the lights are brightly lit.
Scriveners and scouts came and go incessantly. News from inside and outside the city and from various armies generally flew into this shop that was temporarily conquered as a "headquarters". Then orders came out one after another and were distributed to The Guanlong army and the private armies of various clans in Guanzhong.
In the side hall that was temporarily used as a residence, Changsun Wuji had just finished soaking his feet. The old servant made a pot of strong tea and carefully wiped his feet clean before carrying the footbath out, leaving Changsun Wuji behind. Avoid being in the hall with Yu Wenshi and the other two people. (End of chapter)