Mountains and Seas

Chapter 59: Conceal the truth

Views:

Chang'an was first built in the Zhou Dynasty and has existed to this day.

It is supported by the Wei River in the north, the Feng River in the west, the Shui River in the south, and the Ba River in the east. At one time, it was said that eight rivers surrounded Chang'an. But now this historic city, the starting point of the Silk Road and the beginning of the Grand Canal, is occupied by a group of rebels.

As the leader of the peasant uprising army, Huang Chao entered Chang'an under the banner of serving the people. What did he do now? He appointed many officials to important posts, defiling the palace, and before completing his great cause, he began to enjoy himself.

The coalition forces threatening Chang'an were not just Zhu Li's side. To the west of Chang'an, Li Sigong gathered many warlords to confront Huang Chao's nephew Lin Yan across the Fengshui River; to the east of Chang'an, Wang Zhongrong gathered many Jiedushi from the Central Plains, threatening Zhu Wen while deploying troops across the Bashui River, eyeing Chang'an, and even ordered his general Zhou Ji and others to fight against Zhuge Shuang; to the north there were Zhu Li and others, and Chang'an was already surrounded by powerful enemies and was in danger.

Zhu Li did not immediately order an attack on Wei Bridge, but secretly sent people to collect warships. In the past, he did not have enough troops and had no say. Moreover, Li Xiaochang disliked him. Among the four leaders of the coalition army, three did not take him seriously, and he was hindered in everything he did. But now it is different. He is the commander-in-chief of the North Route and has the final say on the actions of the army. Naturally, some plans can be carried out according to his own wishes.

At the same time, Zhu Li sent people to contact Li Sigong and Wang Chongrong, advising them to postpone the attack and wait for the opportunity.

Li Sigong agreed readily. In Yiting, his officers and men suffered heavy losses. Although the army was not damaged, the morale was low. Zhu Li's request was exactly what he wanted.

As for Wang Chongrong, he personally confronted Zhu Wen across the water and only sent his general Zhou Ji to attack Zhuge Shuang who was stationed on the west bank of the Ba River. He was completely unable to free himself and give his all. He would have been more than happy to have the opportunity to keep his troops in place and wait for the situation to change.

Zhu Li agreed on a signal with both parties, and after agreeing to launch a quick attack upon seeing the signal, he concentrated on collecting warships and planning his deployment.

"Commander-in-chief, we have collected more than 200 warships, including nearly 150 battleships, tower ships, and fighting ships, nearly 40 cruisers, and even three chariot ships." Shi Yan reported with a bow in Zhu Li's temporary military tent.

"What about the arrangements for the generals?" Zhu Li asked after hearing this.

"The people in charge of commanding these ships are Song Wentong and Dong Chang. Both of them have experience in commanding naval forces. As for the guards in charge of driving the warships, according to the governor's orders, they are mainly guards from the Central Plains and the south. Now these people have entered the warships to familiarize themselves with the operations." Shi Yan replied in an orderly manner.

"Okay, how are the others preparing?" Zhu Li was very satisfied when he heard this and turned to ask about other people.

"General Gao Pian and Feng Shou will lead the Yangzhou army to attack Dongwei Bridge, Dong Jin will lead the Yangzhou army to attack Xiwei Bridge, and Yang Fuguang will lead the Xuzhou army to be responsible for Zhongwei Bridge. They will attack immediately after the governor gives the order." Shi Yan said with his eyes shining and a little excited.

Once upon a time, he, a small frontier citizen, was able to control these unruly local tyrants. The thought made him happy, and this group of people seemed to be full of confidence, as if they were afraid that he would not have the opportunity to take action.

Driven by interests, these people did not need anyone to supervise them. They were all very alert and waited for Zhu Li's order.

"When the navy has figured out the details,

Notify me when you get it." Zhu Li looked at Shi Yan and said carefully.

"promise"

In May of the second year of Zhonghe, it was a good harvest season, but in the land of Guanzhong, a war over the ownership of Chang'an suddenly broke out.

Without any prior warning, Zhu Li's northern coalition forces took the lead in launching a fierce attack.

As the Weishui coalition forces north of Chang'an attacked, Li Sigong west of Chang'an and Zhou Ji east of Chang'an suddenly launched urgent attacks against Lin Yan and Zhuge Shuang respectively. The battle entered a state of fierce fighting from the beginning. The fighting situation was extremely fierce. The sounds of fighting and shouting shook the entire Chang'an area.

At the same time, a navy quietly appeared at the confluence of the Weishui River and the Fengshui River. Three chariot ships led the way, followed by dozens of patrol ships, and countless remaining warships and tower ships, each flying the flag of Dong or Song. They went upstream along the Fengshui River and headed south to attack Chang'an.

The appearance of the navy happened to be in the gap between the battlefields of Lin Yan and Li Sigong, which was a strategic blind spot. Along the way, the patrol boats of the Cao army were immediately smashed and overturned when they encountered this navy, and were vulnerable. This navy was like a tiger that had just been released from a cage, hungry and ferocious to the extreme.

The army reached the east bank of Fengshui River with almost no effort. Countless guards gathered together and without stopping, they immediately attacked Lin Yan's right wing. Lin Yan, who was fighting with Li Sigong with great enthusiasm, was suddenly attacked. In his hasty resistance, he didn't even have time to ask for help. He didn't hold out for long. The Cao army west of Chang'an collapsed like a embankment destroyed by a flood.

Lin Yan was also beaten to pieces by the angry Li Sigong. The two sides gathered for a while and then separated. Li Sigong drove straight in and led the Dangxiang warriors to attack the Jinguan Gate west of Chang'an.

Dong Chang led his troops north to attack Kaiyuan Gate; Song Wentong led his troops south to attack Yanping Gate. The Cao army soldiers guarding the three west gates of Chang'an never imagined that it was Li Sigong, the weakest soldier, who would be the first to break through Fengshui. In a hurry, they could not hold out for long before the three city gates were breached one after another.

Li Sigong, Song Wentong and Dong Chang led their troops to attack Chang'an.

The first person to get the news was Zhuge Shuang, this two-faced fence-sitter. Upon hearing the news, he immediately surrendered to Zhou Ji, a general under Wang Zhongrong.

At this point, the three gates of Chang'an's east city, Tonghua Gate, Chunming Gate, and Yanxing Gate, fell one after another. Under the rebellion led by Zhuge Shuang, they were all breached by Zhou Ji. Zhou Ji continued to march forward and led his troops directly into Chang'an City.

Under attack from three sides, only the coalition forces led by Zhu Li north of Chang'an were still fighting a bloody battle with Meng Kai. Standing on a temporary platform built north of the Weishui River, Zhu Li frowned slightly.

He received news that Li Xiaochang and others from West City, Zhou Ji and others from East City, had already attacked Chang'an. It had been two or three hours since the news came, but these people still hadn't come to North City to help. They were attacking from both sides. Could it be that they were attacking the palace now

When he thought of this, Zhu Li felt a surge of hatred and rage. Each of them only cared about taking credit, but never considered the overall situation. No wonder these people wreaked havoc for an era, but ended up with a miserable end.

"Commander-in-chief, Li Keyong leads the Shatuo army to ask for an audience." Just as Zhu Li was secretly hating Wang Zhongrong, Li Xiaochang and others, Shi

Yan came in person to report.

"Li Keyong, did he capture Huangye or defeat Shang Rang?" Zhu Li looked at Shi Yan in confusion when he heard this.

"Reporting to the Governor, both parties were defeated by Li Keyong. The Shatuo people were indeed strong. Li Keyong had thirteen brave generals under his command, known as the Thirteen Guardians. The Shatuo army first assisted Li Xiaochang and Wang Chongying in defeating Huang Ye at Shiti Valley. Later, the three parties gathered troops at Liangtianpo and defeated Shang Rang and Zhao Zhang. The specific battle report is here." Shi Yan admired and handed over a battle report.

Zhu Li took the battle report and quickly read it. After a while, he couldn't help but sigh in admiration: "So fierce!"

"They are indeed fierce. The Thirteen Guardians are invincible. No matter whether it is Shang Rang or Huang Ye, no one under their command can stop the Shatuo army. Speaking of which, we have to admire these Shatuo people. Fighting a tough battle is as easy as eating and drinking." Shi Yan continued to echo.

Zhu Li nodded slightly when he heard this. The Thirteen Guardians under Li Keyong were not only famous in his time, but also widely known in later generations. There is no false reputation under a great reputation. Thinking of this, he seemed to have thought of something and said to Shi Yan, "Let him come over."

"promise."

Shi Yan walked down from the platform and quickly brought four people with him. The first one was mighty and majestic, with the look of a hero. It was Li Keyong with one eye slanting. Behind Li Keyong's left, a skinny and short warrior was looking at Zhu Li with a smile on his face. There was no respect in his eyes, only a provocative smile.

Zhu Li did not dare to underestimate this skinny and short man. This man was none other than Li Cunxiao, the most powerful general in the late Tang Dynasty and the adopted son of Li Keyong. It was rumored that this man was extremely strong and invincible. Combined with what was heard in later generations, this man was the most powerful man in the Five Dynasties. Even his master Wu Dao, who appeared in this era, had to stand behind him.

Behind Li Cunxiao, the two people following him were naturally his subordinates, An Xiuxiu and Xue Atan, both of whom were powerful generals that could not be stopped by ten thousand men. This was not just a boast.

"Li Keyong, the governor of Daizhou, pays his respects to the commander-in-chief." Li Keyong walked to Zhu Li's side in a proper manner and bowed.

"General Li fought these two battles brilliantly, whether it was restraining Shang Rang from attacking Huang Ye, or joining forces with Li Xiaochang and Wang Chongying to defeat Shang Rang. General Li's combination of false and true, true and false, was really hard to guard against. I admire you very much." Zhu Li looked at Li Keyong and praised him sincerely.

"Thank you, General Liao. I came here to report to you." Since Zhu Li took the initiative to show goodwill, Li Keyong naturally knew how to be humble and said respectfully.

Li Keyong is now the governor of Daizhou, and the only two titles that Zhu Li has that can surpass him are General of the Left Guard and Protector-General of Shanyu. As for his actual power as the governor of Yunzhou and Shuozhou, he only controls one more state than Li Keyong. Li Keyong is not afraid of him much.

What worried him was that Daizhou was adjacent to Shuozhou, and Zhang Guiba, a general under Zhu Li, had already taken over Yanmen Pass, thus firmly curbing Li Keyong's intention of massive expansion. Now Zhang Guiba was like a fishbone stuck in Li Keyong's throat, which he could neither swallow nor spit out, making him very uncomfortable.

"I will report the general's achievements truthfully. When the general is promoted, don't forget to treat me to a drink." Zhu Li promised in person to report the truth and said a polite word.