Li Zhi, who was already worried, listened to Li Hong's words and looked at his son who did not argue with him. His heart began to beat. He was on tenterhooks. He was really afraid that when he arrived in Liujing, he would be the first to fall. An order is wrong, and may even lead to the siege of the city, so I can't help but pray secretly in my heart, but don't let that unfilial son say it.
And he didn't know that Li Hong originally asked Ge Xiyuan to inform Qibi Heli and Li Jinxing to postpone the march, which was deliberately to give Silla and Baekje time to fight outside the royal city of Goguryeo.
In this way, Li Hong could cooperate with Liu Rengui inside the city, and with Qibi Heli and Li Jinxing outside the city, to defeat all the troops of Silla and Baekje approaching the city.
The advantage of this is that at least it can be guaranteed that within ten years, any one of Silla, Baekje, or Goguryeo who wants to unite with another to annex the other will be powerless. At most, the three will regularly Some small frictions and small local wars occurred on the border.
In this way, Datang can naturally sit back and relax. After ten years of recuperation or seeing them continue to grow, they can sow discord among the three families and let them continue to fight among themselves. Datang can then When the troops are almost exhausted, mediate again.
The best result is that we hope that the Korean peninsula can continue to fight within itself, and no one country will ever be able to become powerful or unified.
But as he said, he is not afraid of opponents who are like gods, but teammates who are like pigs. Li Hong's good strategy was so easily destroyed by his father Long, and it was very likely to cause a fatal blow.
Who knows, by the time tomorrow dawns, the mountains and plains outside Ryugyong City will be filled with the combined forces of Silla and Baekje.
Hua Meng and the prince's personal guards escorted a few vendors in ordinary people's clothing. While those vendors were being escorted in, although they lowered their heads, their eyes kept looking around. If you take a quick look, it doesn't look like an ordinary vendor.
Li Hong knew that he had no extra time to waste on these traders. Looking at the looks of these people, he knew that these were definitely not ordinary traders. They were definitely the work of Silla and Baekje sneaking into Ryugyong.
He signaled Cheetah to place the table in front of the courtiers in front of the vendors, then threw the horizontal knife in his hand to Hua Meng, turned around and waved to the still trembling tongue man next to Gao Zang, asking him to come over. .
Seeing the tongue man walk up to him and salute, Li Hong stopped the tongue man's thin shoulders and said calmly: "Tell them, I will only ask a question once. Anyone who refuses to answer, I will chop him off." If you give me an honest answer, I will let you go."
The speaker immediately translated the words of His Highness the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty to the vendors who were kneeling on the ground with their hands tied behind their backs. At this time, their hands, which were originally tied behind their backs, were held down by the Prince's Guards. Both hands were placed on the table.
The ministers and His Majesty of the Tang Dynasty, Gao Zang of Goguryeo and his other ministers did not know how Li Hong would interrogate these people, but when he heard the chopping of fingers, Gao Zang could not help but shrink his fat fingers into the palm of his hand. , as if Li Hong would chop off his fingers first.
Zhang Lushui listened to Li Hong's faint words, or she was in the so-called sixth sense of a woman. In short, she still felt a touch of impatience and murderous intent from Li Hong's mouth, so she couldn't help but tightened her grip on Li Zhi nervously. hand, this move naturally attracted a comforting smile from Li Zhi.
"Who are you?" The speaker quickly translated Li Hong's first question.
The five vendors looked at each other blankly, and then said in unison: "The common people are vendors."
"One per person, chop it up." Li Hong's voice was very soft, and it didn't even seem like he was talking about punishment.
"ah… ."
Continuous screams appeared out of thin air in the palace. Some timid ministers shivered when they saw the fingers that fell from the desk, and they fainted.
The screams of the five vendors still echoed in the palace. Because their fingers were chopped off, the pain from their fingers to their hearts forced them to shake their bodies violently to relieve the pain, but their two arms were tightly secured. I couldn't move at all.
When Gaozang, the King of Goguryeo, heard the first scream, his face suddenly turned pale again. His fat body shook for a moment before he stabilized. He just said nothing and did not dare to look again. Five hands.
Zhang Lushui, who was next to Li Zhi, immediately snuggled into Li Zhi's arms, closing his eyes tightly, covering his ears with his hands, and his heart was beating loudly, as if the next moment he would burst into tears from his mouth due to nervousness and fear. jump out.
Without Li Hong saying anything, several soldiers from the Crown Prince's Guards heard their heart-rending screams and looked at His Majesty's deeply frowning brows, so they unanimously took out a piece of cloth from their arms and stuffed it into it skillfully. into the mouths of five vendors who were still screaming and moaning.
Suddenly, there was only a thin whine in the entire palace, and the scalp-numbing scream finally disappeared.
Li Hong did not warn them a second time, but still repeated calmly: "Who are you? Answer one by one from left to right."
"You are really a merchant." As soon as the rag was removed from his mouth, the merchant shouted with runny nose and tears.
"Chop." Li Hong's voice was still very soft.
The rag was stuffed into his mouth immediately, and then the other four vendors rushed to the table. The table was shaking, and the vendor's other finger also fell to the ground.
"Say it." Li Hong stared at the second vendor and said calmly.
When it was the third turn, the vendor was completely defeated by Li Hong's torture of chopping off his fingers. He cried out with tears and runny nose, endured the burning numbness and deep burning pain from his fingers, and begged for mercy: " I said, I said, we are the masterpieces of Silla and Baekje.”
"When did you enter the city?"
"I just arrived yesterday, and they just arrived today." The merchant said, pointing to the two merchants who had just had two fingers chopped off.
"What is your purpose?"
"To find out Liujing's true identity, it is best to find out how many soldiers and horses of the Tang Dynasty are stationed in Liujing City."
"Last night the Tang Dynasty army left the city, did you send any news?" Li Hong's eyes narrowed into a slit, but the cold light and murderous intent were even stronger. It was Gao Zang, Li Zhi, and Zhang Lushui. Although the three of them faced each other, Facing Li Hong's back, one can still feel the coldness in Li Hong's words.
"If I don't send it out, I won't dare."
"Chop. Next one." Li Hong said coldly to the executioner Hua Meng.
"Ah... Wuwuwu..." Before the merchant could scream, the rag in the hands of the soldier behind him was immediately stuffed into his mouth.
"Finger and honest answer, I can only choose one thing. Last night the Tang Dynasty army left the city, did you send any news?" At this time, the fourth vendor only felt numbness at the cut off finger wound, and even the little bit of pain The feeling has disappeared, but the large beads of sweat on his face are enough to show that he is probably in so much pain that he is about to faint.
"Sent out. A total of 50,000 people from the Tang Army and Goguryeo Allied Forces left the city. Judging from the direction, they should be heading to the frontier to support Goguryeo's border troops. Liujing City now only has 20,000 people from the Jinwu Guards of the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty, and 3,000 guards from the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty. "The merchant said happily, enduring the sudden itching sensation from the wound.
"How many people are there in the Silla and Baekje coalition forces?"
"Seventy thousand people."
"When will we arrive outside Ryugyong City?"
"...Early tomorrow morning." The merchant hesitated for a moment, then blurted out immediately when he saw Hua Meng raising the horizontal knife in his hand.
"Are there any of you in the city?"
"… have."
"Several people?"
"One hundred and forty-seven people."
"What's it for?"
"Cooperate with the coalition forces internally and externally, and create chaos in the city when the coalition forces attack the city, leaving the superior defense defenseless."
"Go down and bandage the wounds. Find those people immediately and take them into custody." Li Hong breathed a sigh of relief.
After finishing speaking, he watched the five vendors being dragged away. Only then did he realize that whether it was the courtiers from the Tang Dynasty or the courtiers from Goguryeo, their eyes were full of fear when they looked at him. No one even dared to look at me.
No matter who he glanced at, whether it was a courtier from the Tang Dynasty or Goguryeo, that person would immediately lower his head and not dare to look at himself.
"Father, I ask you to leave Liujing immediately and cross the river to Huiyi City." Li Hong turned around, looked at Father Long who was standing there in a daze, and said in a gentle tone.
"Don't retreat." Li Zhi slowly raised his head and looked at Li Hong firmly.
Li Hong looked at Li Zhi and rolled his eyes helplessly. At this time, Father Long's stubborn temper broke out, and he really knew how to find the right time.
"Father, the detailed report says that it is 70,000 people, but I estimate that there will definitely be more than 70,000 people appearing outside Liujing City tomorrow. There is no doubt that 20,000 Jinwu Guards can guard Liujing City, but the two Ten thousand people, including the 3,000 soldiers and civilians of Liujing, are far from able to defend the offensive of 170,000 people." Li Hong had no choice but to be patient and analyze it to Li Zhi. The next battle situation.
"I can't withdraw. If I withdraw, what will you do? Do you want me to leave you, the prince, alone? I can't do it." Li Zhi looked at Li Hong, with a rare twinkle in his eyes like Wu Mei occasionally looking at Li Hongyi had the same look in his eyes.
Li Hong sighed again. Although his heart became warm because of his father's words, at this moment, it was not the time for children to have long-lasting love.
Besides, he was not a fool, so how could he stay and defend the royal city for Goguryeo? I am crazy to do such a thing!
But this cannot be said now. Otherwise, Goguryeo King Gaozang and other ministers will definitely retreat with Father Long. By then, there will be many people and troubles. Can they evacuate before Silla and Baekje besiege the city? It's all a problem.
Therefore, he needs his father to immediately withdraw with the Jinwu Guards, while he stays to stabilize Gaozang and other Goguryeo people, and then finds time to retreat. After all, when necessary, when his father leads the army to cross the river, he can still We must protect the father and Jinwu Guards from crossing the river safely.
(End of chapter)