The expedition is about to begin. Fortunately, due to the Eastern Expedition, the military and political logistics systems of the entire empire are operating rapidly, so the preparations for Youtunwei before the expedition are in an orderly manner and are very convenient.
Early in the morning, Fang Jun came to the Yamen of the Ministry of War to deal with some urgent official documents.
Just as he entered the duty room to deal with the official documents, Jin Wang Li Zhi walked in. Before he could speak, Cui Dunli, who had come to the Yamen on duty after a day's rest, knocked on the door and came in, holding a battle report in his hand.
"Your Majesty, Your Highness is here. It happens that I will go to look for you later. This is the battle report sent back by Liaodong. Your Highness, Your Majesty, please take a look at it."
After Cui Dunli saluted, he placed the battle report on Fang Jun's desk.
Fang Jun quickly picked it up and read it carefully. Jin Wang Li Zhi was also very concerned about it. He simply came to the desk and stood beside Fang Jun, leaning slightly and tilting his head to read the battle report in Fang Jun's hand.
Cui Dunli wanted to remind him, but his lips moved and he held back.
One monarch and one minister, one standing and one sitting, but both of them were unaware of the rudeness in it, perhaps they have long been accustomed to it...
Fang Jun glanced at the battle report in his hand, looked up and saw Li Zhi standing beside him, handed him the battle report, sighed, and said: "The army stormed Anshi City for several days but failed, with heavy casualties, and the enemy's support continued to flow.
The constant... war is anxious and worrying."
Li Zhi looked solemn, took the battle report, stood on the side of the desk, and read it carefully.
Fang Jun asked the clerk to come in and make a pot of tea. He poured a cup for Li Zhi and put it in front of him. Then he poured a cup and took a sip, tutting his lips with a heavy heart.
Sure enough, just like in history, the Eastern Expedition army was unstoppable all the way, but encountered stubborn resistance from the Goguryeo army at the foot of Anshi City. Because Liaodong entered the summer hurricane season, there were many hurricanes landing along the coast, causing heavy rains throughout Liaodong for several days.
Unable to come in handy, the only option was to storm Anshi City.
At the beginning of the war, Goguryeo retreated steadily and withdrew all the elites in Liaodong to Anshi City. Not only did they prepare enough food and weapons, but they also strengthened the city wall, demolished all the houses in the city, and piled all the materials that could be used to defend the city on the city wall.
When the Tang army attacked the city, they worked together to fight to the death.
In addition, Pingrang City continued to send reinforcements, and since then Quegu and other places have continuously harassed the Tang Army's rear formations, dragging down the Tang Army's strength. As a result, the Tang Army has never been able to maximize its military advantage. The war has become anxious, and both the offensive and defensive sides have suffered heavy casualties every day.
.
After many days of violent attack, the bows, arrows and stones on Anshi City caused too many casualties to the Tang army. His Majesty Li Er ordered people to dig mounds of earth and built a small hill outside Anshi city. The Tang army's crossbowmen suppressed them from high up.
The Goguryeo defenders on the city wall once gained a considerable advantage.
Seeing that this strategy worked, His Majesty Li Er simply ordered people to continue digging, intending to pile the hillocks all the way under the city wall, and eventually connect them with the city wall, so that the Tang army soldiers could directly rush to the city wall of Anshi City.
Fang Jun drank tea and sighed in his heart.
This tactic of "piling earth to attack the city" was not the first to be used by His Majesty Li Er. Gao Huan, the Prime Minister of the Eastern Wei Dynasty, used this tactic in the "Battle of Yubi" and led a heavy army to attack Yubi City in an attempt to open up a passage to the west.
.
The man stationed at Yubi City was Wei Xiaokuan, the general of the Western Wei Dynasty.
It was Concubine Wei's great-grandfather...
At that time, Gao Huan commanded a large army and came to the foot of Yubi City. He first dug up the embankments of the Fen River and redirected the Fen River to bypass Yubi City, resulting in a lack of water in the city. Then he dug mounds of earth outside the city so that the soldiers could stand
On it, the situation in the city can be clearly seen, and it is more suitable for soldiers to shoot down the defenders with bows and arrows.
Wei Xiaokuan's countermeasures were even more interesting. Whenever the Eastern Wei army outside the city raised the mound, he would order people to use wood to connect the city tower to a higher level, always maintaining suppression of the enemy...
Gao Huan saw that the tactic of piling dirt into mounds was not effective, so he came up with a reverse thought, there is nothing you can do at high places, so let's go to low places.
So he ordered his soldiers to start digging tunnels...
Wei Xiaokuan discovered Gao Huan's intention on the city wall, and quickly had a trench dug inside the city wall and sent soldiers to guard it. The Eastern Wei army had just dug through the tunnel and came out of the trench directly. They were already ambushed here.
All the soldiers were killed.
Gao Huan was unwilling to give in and asked his soldiers to dig a tunnel under the city wall. He first supported it with wooden sticks and then removed the wooden sticks, causing the city wall to collapse.
Wei Xiaokuan ordered people to urgently build a wooden fence to block the enemy's violent attack.
Gao Huan fought hard for two months and suffered 70,000 casualties and heavy losses. In the end, instead of capturing Yubi City, Wei Xiaokuan counterattacked and occupied Tushan. He had no choice but to retreat...
At this time, news emerged in the army that Gao Huan was seriously injured by an arrow, which led to a loss of morale. Gao Huan had to sit in the tent despite being sick to stabilize the morale of the army.
Two months later, Gao Huan died of a serious illness and died in depression.
Look, the process of the Battle of Anshi City was almost exactly the same as that of the Battle of Yubi. Fang Jun knew that it would not be long before the defenders of Anshi City replayed the news that His Majesty Li Er was hit by an arrow...
After Li Zhi read the battle report, he couldn't help but feel worried and said sadly: "How can Anshi City, a mere city, stop my million-strong army? There will be another victory report arriving in the near future."
Fang Jun remained silent, not daring to be too optimistic.
Seeing Cui Dunli standing aside with his hands down, he said warmly: "Yuanli's mission to Tuyuhun has been delayed for a long time with all his efforts, and the journey is long and tiring, so you might as well rest at home. It won't be too late to come back for duty in a few days."
Cui Dunli shook his head and said solemnly: "Shang Shu is about to go on an expedition. We encountered difficulties in the Eastern Expedition. The responsibilities of the Ministry of War are too important. Even if I rest in the mansion, I am afraid that I will not be able to eat well and sleep peacefully. It is better to come to the Yamen to do my part."
Mental strength. The situation is critical. We must serve the king and we dare not slack off for a moment."
There were still words left unsaid. He felt that Fang Jun's future was in jeopardy when he left town in Hexi, and his life was hard to guarantee. So he gave up the opportunity to rest and returned to the Yamen to do everything, hoping to be able to do more.
The extra effort gave this Western Expedition an extra chance of victory.
Fang Jun was not only a nobleman in his officialdom, but also his character and talent made him admire him deeply. He did not want Fang Jun's great future to be ruined and die in Hexi...
Fang Jun nodded and said: "Well, it's a troubled time. We should work hard and do our best. When His Majesty marches eastward and Tuyuhun falls, we can talk about merit and rewards. Let's have a good rest!"
In fact, since last year, the Ministry of War's yamen has been operating at high load. Officials and clerks have been working hard to ensure that all departmental affairs go smoothly and achieve great success.
Now that Tuyuhun was about to rebel, the officials of the Ministry of War shared the same hatred with the enemy. They unanimously gave up all their time for rest and devoted themselves wholeheartedly to the military affairs.
Although the Ministry of War is not monolithic, under Fang Jun's rule, it is able to put aside disputes and deal with the outside world in unity when facing crises, which makes him very gratified.
If you don't have a group of soldiers who can fight hard, how can you create achievements that will make history?
Behind those outstanding figures who have shone through the ages, there are countless unknown heroes who have made silent sacrifices...
Li Zhi sat down at the side, took a sip of tea, looked at Fang Jun and said: "This time when we go out to control Hexi, the future is dangerous and unpredictable. Brother-in-law must be careful."
Fang Jun sat behind the desk, looked at Li Zhi with a half-smile, raised his eyebrows and said, "I'm afraid His Highness is thinking in his heart that it would be perfect if this guy could be buried under the iron hoof of Tuyuhun."
Li Zhi's eyes widened immediately, his face still full of youthful anger, and he said unhappily: "Who do you think my brother-in-law thinks of me? Although I have a slight prejudice against my brother-in-law in my heart, it is just because my brother-in-law is wholeheartedly assisting the prince brother, so he is a little dissatisfied. But
This is a time of national crisis, and I also know what will happen if Tuyuhun captures the counties in Hexi. How can I confuse the empire's foundation with personal grudges? My brother-in-law Taiye looks down on me!"
He had always felt that he was more suitable to be the prince than his brother, and his ambition and ambition far surpassed that of the prince. However, at this moment, Fang Jun regarded him as a villain who did not distinguish between public and private affairs. He just felt that he was being looked down upon. How could he not be angry?
Fang Jun didn't take his anger seriously, smiled faintly, and said softly: "I just hope that His Highness can remember these words, understand what is public and what is private, and understand the truth of the saying 'national interests come first', and don't be influenced by someone."
Due to the bewitchment of some people, they would not hesitate to involve the empire in turmoil for their own selfish interests."
Li Zhi's expression suddenly changed and he said angrily: "Brother-in-law, what are you talking about? Is it possible that this king can take the opportunity to cause trouble?"
Fang Jun shook his head and said: "Your Highness can do whatever you want, but you need to consider the consequences... In five days, I will go on an expedition. I don't know if I can protect myself in the face of a strong enemy. I don't need to consider where Your Highness will go."