Chapter 2: Being an official (five times) "Tang Gong's actions are profound in the art of military use!" Liu Hongji commented in a low voice on the way back to the room.
"The pine is bright and tight, and the pinch is just right!" Li Xu nodded in agreement. This is not a flattery to Li Yuan. Li Xu knows best the virtues of his colleagues. If Tang Gong showed a little nervousness just now,
, it is estimated that the morale of the military has collapsed at this time.
"Alas!" Liu Hongji sighed, as if he was deeply worried about the fate of Huaiyuan Town. He was twice as old as Li Xu and had seen many more things than everyone else.
This is a very strange arrangement on the border of China. But through this strangeness, we can vaguely infer a fact that cannot be told to others.
Seeing that the other party didn't speak, Li Xu also felt a little sad. He abandoned school last year and went to the war, just to escape the war and join the army in Huaiyuan Town this year, and also to avoid becoming the unjust ghost who killed Liaodong. However, what was supposed to come finally came, and no matter how he escaped, he could not escape.
Didn’t escape….
The two walked step by step, each thinking about their own thoughts. The distance from the school grounds to the residence was close in an instant. However, the two of them seemed to have forgotten the way. They walked diagonally around, went around half a circle, and then walked back diagonally.
After a moment of silence, Liu Hongji suggested in a low voice: "Brother, it's time for us to do something for Duke Tang!"
"Brother Liu, tell me, what should we do?" Li Xu nodded, his voice was not loud, but he was very decisive. Tang Gong had been kind to him, and he should indeed repay him. Moreover, the meaningful words he just said before leaving
A glance clearly conveyed something. I couldn't guess what Li Yuan was thinking, but this question couldn't stop the thoughtful Liu Hongji.
"Help Duke Tang guard Huaiyuan Town! If the army does not move and the food and grass are lost first, Duke Tang will definitely be ruined!" Liu Hongji stopped and looked at the dark sky and said.
The spirit returned to him
This is the Liu Hongji that Li Xu knew. During the past month or so in the barracks, Liu Hongji, who drank and got drunk with everyone every day, and the tall and powerful man on the grassland were almost completely different people. Sometimes, Li Xu
I even wonder if Liu Hongji has an identical twin brother
"How to keep it?" Li Xu asked in a low voice
"First of all, we have to stabilize ourselves and the brothers around us! The Koreans don't dare to confront our main force in the Sui Dynasty. As long as the morale of the troops in Huaiyuan Town remains, we will have a chance to try our best!" Liu Hongji thought about it!
think, say
"I'll do my best!" Li Xu thought about it carefully and solemnly agreed.
For Liu and Li, who have low-level positions and only have one month of military experience, stabilizing military morale is not easy. People who come to Huaiyuan Town to join the army through connections and their family backgrounds are not bad. At the beginning, everyone did it to avoid going to the battlefield and dying.
Come on, including Li Xu and Liu Hongji, why don't they have the same intention? Now that the safe place has become a dangerous place, who has the heart to listen to the two newcomers? Even if they are direct descendants of Tang Gong, they can't let everyone take their lives.
go on adventure
But after nearly a month of socializing, everyone is friends, and friends can naturally talk to each other, including exchanging their judgments on the situation at hand.
Li Xu didn't have to look for this opportunity to have a heart-to-heart relationship. When he and Liu Hongji discussed the countermeasures and returned to his residence in the army, several close friends were already waiting at the door of the house. Wang Yuantong, Qi Poning, Qin Ziying,
Samurai Tong, Zhang Deyu... there are no missing familiar faces.
"Boy, I hope you two are back!" From a distance, Qi Po Ning stepped forward to say hello.
"Brother Liu and I just went to do some private things!" Li Xu smiled and replied in a low voice. It was the first time he had purposefully interacted with someone. He felt particularly awkward.
This coquettish expression turned into a mystery in the eyes of everyone. He was Tang Gong's nephew. Everyone in the military camp knew that the two men had not returned just now. They must have been summoned by Tang Gong to discuss matters. The result of the discussion would involve everyone.
worth life
"Liu, Brother Liu, Brother Li, you, how are you?" Qin Ziying greeted him with saliva on his face. He was usually weak and suddenly became "fat", with bulging from his neck to his knees, like a man with a lot of autumn fat.
bad cow
"Of course. Don't you want us to freeze to death? Why are you guys standing here? If you have anything to do, go in and talk about it in the snow and ice. Aren't you too cold?" Liu Hongji hit him haha, turned the door lock, and let everyone in.
"Yes, yes, let's go into the house and say, go into the room and say, Lao Qi, get the wine you made and find someone to bring it in as soon as possible!" Wang Yuantong agreed with a smile, and took the lead to walk in with six or seven knives on his body.
Collision, every step, there is a clanking sound
Liu Hongji smiled, let everyone into the house one by one, opened the door ajar, blew on the fire in the charcoal basin, and hung a copper kettle filled with water above the brazier, and then slowly swallowed
Asked: "Are these brothers not going to bed so late? Do you have anything to do with us?"
"It's okay, it's okay, I just came here to take a look!" Wang Yuantong wiped the sweat from his face and hesitated.
"Is it really okay?" Liu Hongji asked everyone knowingly and since he didn't tell the truth, he was happy to talk in circles with everyone about casual lessons. He didn't believe there was anyone here who could compare with him.
"Brother Liu, we are all good brothers, right?" Qi Po Ning is the oldest person besides Liu Hongji and has the worst concentration.
"Of course, once you enter the military camp, everyone will die on the battlefield of friendship. The only ones who can save your life are the brothers around you!" Liu Hongji replied readily.
"A life-threatening friendship, a life-threatening friendship!" Qin Ziying turned pale instantly and kept saying that he was too sensitive to the word "battlefield". When someone mentioned it, his heart beat so fast that he couldn't breathe.
"Good brothers, you have to speak directly when you have something to say. You can't hide it, right?" Qi Po Ning pushed Qin Ziying and continued to ask.
"Yes, the most important thing about a friend is to be close to each other. If you only say half a sentence, what kind of friend is that?" Liu Hongji poked the charcoal fire with a copper skewer and replied with a smile.
Pink flames were already jumping up in the brazier, making the copper kettle sizzle. The temperature in the room gradually increased, and everyone's face was reflected red by the firelight.
"Then, when will Tang Gong plan to take everyone to evacuate Huaiyuan Town?" Qi Po Ning finally summoned up the courage to ask the most critical sentence. If the Sui Dynasty had started a war against Goryeo, Huaiyuan Town, which had stocked up on grain and grass supplies, would undoubtedly be a safe place.
However, now the Koreans have crossed the boundary river and launched an attack on the Sui Dynasty. The important grain garrison area near the boundary river was specially selected for the convenience of supplying the army, and it became the most unsafe place. A gentleman will not stand under a dangerous wall.
, We are all gentlemen. When you can escape, try not to escape slower than others.
"Withdraw, if you were Mr. Tang, would you lead everyone to withdraw?" Liu Hongji suddenly became serious and looked into Qi Po Ning's eyes and asked.
Qi Poning was stunned. He had never thought of himself as the commander of an army. He suddenly changed his position. Under the violent impact of the thoughts in his mind, his whole body stiffened.
"You, you mean, Mr. Tang, Mr. Tang doesn't plan to evacuate at all?" Wang Yuantong's upper and lower teeth kept chattering, sweat dripping from his face, but his body seemed to have fallen into an ice cave.
The faces of the people next to the charcoal basin turned as white as snow. They were all educated, and they were children of aristocratic families who had been trained since childhood. Their minds quickly changed. They followed Liu Hongji's suggestion and changed their positions. The previous doubts suddenly became clear.
Anyone who puts himself in Li Yuan's position will not evacuate Huaiyuan Town, which has stockpiled enough food for a million troops to last for three months. If he leaves without fighting and the food falls into the hands of the enemy, the general will be cut to pieces.
It's hard to apologize for his crime by cutting him in pieces. But if he insists on sticking to this place, with the 1,200 brothers in the city who are just waiting to die, I'm afraid they won't be able to hold on for more than an hour before they will be crushed into powder by the Koreans.
"Of course Tang Gong doesn't plan to evacuate, there is no need to evacuate at all! Although Huaiyuan Town is small, it is actually impregnable!" Li Xuman answered Liu Hongji's first lie nonchalantly. He was a little nervous, but in front of people who were more nervous than himself.
, but seemed extremely calm.
"Indestructible?" Everyone's eyes turned to Li Xu. Li Xu was famous for his honesty and kindness in the military camp. Although everyone always laughed at him, at this very moment, the same words came out of his mouth.
It’s much more credible than saying it from other people’s mouths
"Yes, can't you see it?" Li Xu looked at everyone disdainfully, and explained according to the rhetoric taught by Liu Hongji in advance: "General Xin's army of more than 30,000 people is next to us, interacting with Huaiyuan Town.
If the enemy's army attacks General Xin with the force of a horn, and we attack the enemy's army from behind and attack Huaiyuan, General Xin will cut off his flanks. If the stalemate between the two sides lasts for a long time, our army of Lulong will surely arrive in Liucheng, and the Koreans will be trapped in a tight siege.
The whole army is in danger of being wiped out..."
This is a battle example mentioned in history books. The Chu army used this formation to resist the Qin army for three months. The Sui Dynasty was not weak to Chu. Three months was enough to send millions of reinforcements.
"The enemy general is not a fool. He will not take such a big risk to attack." Liu Hongji added with a smile, as if he had just discussed the situation at hand with Li Yuan. "Tang Gong thought that after the river froze, the enemy would attack by surprise."
, harassment is the main method, and we will never confront us head-on.”
After hearing this, the expressions on everyone's faces gradually became relaxed. The city wall of Huaiyuan Town was relatively strong. If the enemy army only came to harass a small group of soldiers, it would be difficult to get over such a high wall. Moreover, the Sui border army was stationed far away.
It's indeed not far away. Seeing the beacon fire in Huaiyuan Town, they can arrive with reinforcements in one day.
"Brothers, don't worry. If there is any abnormality, Brother Liu and I will never hide it from everyone!" Li Xu patted Wang Yuantong on the shoulder and promised in a low voice.
"Besides, the emperor won't let Mr. Tang take the risk of judging by seniority. They are cousins!" Liu Hongji lowered his head and revealed to everyone with a mysterious face.
"Don't worry, don't worry!" Wang Yuantong and others nodded with a smile. The emperor and Tang Gong are relatives. Everyone has heard this. No matter how stupid he is, he will not send his cousin to death. Everyone speculates based on common sense.
At that moment, no one thought that Emperor Shengming had poisoned his own brother, cousin, and killed more than one of his cousins. However, they felt that the upcoming battle was no longer so terrifying, and the wind outside the window did not sound as anxious as before.
"Tang Gong said that the enemy did not dare to attack the city!" That night, I don't know who leaked the "news" obtained from Liu Hongji!
"Liu Brigade and Captain Li are not in a hurry. They are still drinking and eating meat with a few adults. What are we anxious about?" Some people who secretly ran to check the situation reported back to their companions. If the general escapes for his life, he will definitely take him with him.
His confidant and his confidant are still drunk and dreaming. Even if there is danger in front of him, it will not be too great.
Thinking about Tang Gong's calm behavior at that time, everyone felt more stable and slowly fell asleep with their swords in hand.
When they got up the next morning, everyone admired "Tang Gong"'s judgment even more. The rumors last night were correct at all. After the Koreans broke a section of ice, they took the initiative to retreat to the Liaodong City on the other side. They were responsible for the Sui border side.
The vigilant Zuotunwei General Xin Shixiong also withdrew his troops into the military camp ten miles north of Huaiyuan Town in view of the bad weather. The enemy and we were once again in a stalemate before the snow fell. The Sui army did not cross the border to attack, and the Goryeo army
I am also happy to maintain temporary peace
The price of that night's conflict was that a thousand-man Goryeo army that had crossed the river but lost support was wiped out by General Xin Shixiong. An unknown number of Goryeo soldiers fell into the river and froze to death. The Sui army that rushed to the river to fight also suffered casualties.
More than 700 people were killed, more than 500 of whom suffered from frostbite.
Two of the brothers who were protecting the baggage in Huaiyuan Town were also "killed" in battle. They stole the war horses in the middle of the night and prepared to escape. As soon as they rushed out of the camp gate, they were shot off by hidden sentries. Li Yuan executed them in public.
His head was hung for three days and then he was buried as if he had been killed in a fierce battle with the enemy, and the county where his home was located was notified of the death.
This result shocked many people, but no one complained about Duke Tang's cruelty. Generally speaking, Li Yuan was a good boss. He was not filial to his subordinates, did not deduct food, and treated everyone for minor offenses such as sneaking out to drink and other violations of military discipline.
Adopting an attitude of turning a blind eye
"Tang Pingping has always treated everyone well, but those two guys became deserters when the war came. They are really unloyal!" Qi Po Ning commented privately. This also represents the views of most people. The family who came to Huaiyuan Town to serve as soldiers
Most of the disciples do not have high martial arts skills and are not very motivated, but they can show some loyalty to friends.
"Tang Gong, who is kind and uncontrollable, has already taken into account the face of his family by being so rebellious!" Liu Hongji echoed in a low voice. This is a truth. The big family cares more about face. If the corpses of those two people are sent back to their hometown as deserters,
The whole family will be ashamed
In the midst of the discussion, no one cared about why the intensity of training suddenly became so much deeper, why military discipline suddenly became so much stricter, and even the new rule of not leaving the camp at night without the approval of the commander-in-chief was implemented to the letter.
Now everyone has changed from the rear team to the forward team, and the real forward team is still in Zhuo County. Although Tang Gong's "confidence" believes that everyone can make the Koreans flee as long as they stay for a long time, but if there is no one under his command,
Jinliang, if the Koreans come to attack the city, it won't be so easy to hold on for half a day.
And deserters are not worthy of being considered as deserters. Only through hard training can everyone avoid being killed heroically in half a day.
Just a few days after the official training started, Li Xu found that the team he led had become popular. It turned out that his team was too rigid, and many people wanted to switch to other teams to get food. But now, not only the people in his team are not
He asked others to plead for him to be transferred, and people continued to come forward through Wang Yuantong, Qi Poning and others, hoping to be transferred to his team.
"The moves taught by Captain Li are very useful!" The soldiers are very smart and know what they need most at the moment. When Li Xu leads the team to practice martial arts, he does not focus on routines but on the dismantling of moves. He teaches everyone almost every move.
It's all simple and effective. It's hard to find a team leader like this. Anyone who doesn't learn is making fun of his own life.
"Team Li's teamwork is very useful. We had a fight at dinner the day before yesterday. The four of us defeated seven of the other team!" The soldiers under Li Xu proudly showed off the same combat cooperation. After Li Xu's instruction, they immediately changed.
Although the change is only a little bit practical, this little change is simply the difference between life and death.
After hearing these praises, Li Xu trained more seriously. In his mind, this was also a way for him to repay Duke Tang. The technique of move disassembly came from the coppersmith master, and the formation changes and cooperation came from Xu Dayan. These accumulated skills
Knowledge and experience were integrated with his own actual combat experience, and it became Li's unique military training method.
Tang Gong Li Yuan obviously also noticed Li Xu's efficiency in training. A few days later, Li Shimin came again to ask about Li Xu's apprenticeship under the pretext of asking for advice on archery.
"Brother Zhongjian, from which famous general did you learn your military training skills?" Li Shimin chased after him and asked. Since he lost to Li Xu in the archery contest that day, he would go to the military camp to ask Li Xu for advice on archery almost every three or five days.
