The Eastern Expedition army passed through Xin'an and Shengchi from the "Beijiao Road", and then the Zuowu Guards suddenly broke away from the army, accelerated their speed to occupy Hangu Pass, and went straight to Tongguan... When the Tongguan guard sent people to rush to deliver the news to Chang'an, Guan
The senior officials in Long were extremely shocked.
For a long time, Li Ji led hundreds of thousands of troops outside and allowed Chang'an to turn into a mess, but he never showed his attitude and slowly returned from Liaodong, as if he was "watching the fire from the other side".
However, the hundreds of thousands of troops capable of affecting the power structure of the empire are like a sharp sword hanging above their heads, making it difficult for Donggong and Guanlong to sleep and eat at all times. Both sides want to win Li Ji into their own camp and thus establish victory in one fell swoop.
And worried that Li Ji would suddenly join the other side's camp...
Now, it was finally time for Li Jitu to meet him.
The general guarding Tongguan asked if Zuowu guards came to the city, should they fight or retreat?
The opinions of Yu Wenshiji, Linghu Defen and others were that Cheng Yaojin should not be stopped, otherwise it would easily lead to Li Ji's misunderstanding. Perhaps Li Ji was also swaying about the decision at this time, and any small thing might prompt him to make a decision.
Make a judgment that is not conducive to Guanlong.
Furthermore, even if the Tongguan garrison is brave enough to defeat the three armies, and even if the Tongguan moat is impregnable, there are only a few thousand soldiers and horses in total. If they can stop Cheng Yaojin's Zuowuwei, how can they stop Li Ji's hundreds of thousands of troops?
It is inevitable that the city gate will fall. It is better to simply abandon the gate and retreat, handing over the Tongguan Fortress to show Guan Long's sincerity.
Changsun Wuji thought it was inappropriate.
In any case, Li Ji has not been able to reveal his position until now. Rather than letting him enter Tongguan without knowing his position, it is better to take this opportunity to meet with him and find out his wishes. If he really stands on the side of the East Palace,
It would be better to mobilize troops to defend Tongguan to block it, and then quickly reach peace talks with the East Palace. No matter how much benefits are transferred, this "military remonstrance" must be ended before Li Ji enters Tongguan.
After all, once Li Ji stands on the side of the East Palace, Guan Long has no chance of winning. He must prepare for the aftermath of the defeat in advance, otherwise the whole army may be destroyed and the entire clan will be defeated...
However, just as the order was sent out, Tongguan guard general Xue Hu Wu Ren actually came back to do it himself.
The fall of Tongguan...
…
Yanshoufang.
Changsun Wuji looked gloomy, stared at Xue Hu Wu Ren with his eyes, and said slowly: "As a guard general of Tongguan, you are responsible for guarding. Now you have ignored orders and fled without fighting, causing the fall of Tongguan Suoyue and Guanlong Shu."
One hundred thousand troops are at stake, and the success or failure of the military revolt hangs by a thread. Do you know what crime should be committed?"
Although there was no thunderous anger, this extremely gloomy attitude made Xue Hu and Wu Ren even more frightened, and cold sweat broke out.
He quickly knelt down on one knee and argued: "Gonggong Zhao, it is not that the general is afraid of death and war, but it is because Cheng Yaojin suddenly came to the city with his troops, but has not received orders from you, Duke Zhao. The general really does not know whether to fight or retreat.
If we fight, if the British Duke is angered and the plan of Zhao Guogong goes wrong, how can I bear the responsibility? In desperation, I can only retreat temporarily and hand over Tongguan to Lu Guogong. If I do, I will really make a mistake.
I sincerely request you to lead an army to Tongguan and recapture Tongguan. Even if you are shattered into pieces, you must make up for this big mistake!"
He said this, but he was really unhappy in his heart.
I'm retreating without a fight now, and you say I'm wrong; but if I fight tooth and nail to defend the border, is it possible that I must be right? At least now I'm back with all my strength, but once I defend the border and start fighting, I'm likely to make a big mistake.
At the same time, a life has to be taken...
Changsun Wuji's face was gloomy, showing no signs of joy or anger.
For a long time, he did not hold Xue Hu and Wu Ren accountable, but asked lightly: "Cheng Yaojin captured Tongguan, but did he block the pass and strictly prohibit entry and exit?"
Xue Hu and Wu Ren felt relieved and said hurriedly: "After Lu Guogong took over the defense, he did not block the passage. The troops of the nobles outside the pass were able to enter the city smoothly, a little slower than the general, and they would arrive around Chang'an later. However, Lu Guogong issued an order
, it is strictly forbidden for anyone to wait to leave the customs.”
Changsun Wuji frowned: "Are you allowed in but not allowed out?"
Xue Hu Wu Ren said: "That's exactly it."
After pondering for a moment, Changsun Wuji reprimanded: "As a guard general, you should stick to the pass and not retreat even if you are shattered into pieces before receiving a clear order from your superiors to retreat! But now we are employing people, so I will bypass you.
This time, I will do my best from now on and make meritorious deeds. If I violate military law again, I will be convicted of both crimes and punished, and I will never give you a lenient sentence!"
Xue Hu and Wu Ren were sweating profusely: "The general will finally be convicted!"
"Okay, step back for now."
"Here!"
…
When Xue Hu and Wu Ren retreated, Changsun Wuji looked at Yu Wenshiji, Linghu Defen, Dugu Lan and others who were silent and asked, "Li Jizhi's style...what do you think?"
There was a silence in the hall.
Although they all understood that Li Ji's position would eventually be revealed, and that this day was imminent, the Eastern Expedition army suddenly accelerated after passing Luoyang. Cheng Yaojin led the Zuowu Guards to attack Hangu and Tongguan successively, and the troops were approaching.
Guanzhong still caught people a little off guard, and it was really difficult to guess Li Ji's intentions.
Naturally, it is impossible to give an accurate response.
After a long while, Yu Wenshi said slowly: "Hundreds of thousands of Eastern Expedition troops have entered Guanzhong, which is unstoppable. No matter what the British people's position is in their hearts, we should take the initiative to fight for it instead of sitting here and waiting. After all, things have not yet happened.
Before it happens, who can know for sure what it will be like?"
Everyone nodded in unison.
Not to mention that Li Ji has not revealed his position yet, even if he stands on the side of the East Palace, it does not mean that he cannot fight for it at all.
There is hope for many things if you work hard. Nothing in this world is destined...
Changsun Wuji also recognized this sentence, his eyes swept over everyone's faces one by one, and finally returned to Yu Wenshi and his face, and said slowly: "In this case, I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you personally, brother.
Make a trip and try your best to persuade the British public."
The reason why Guan Long is getting farther and farther away from the center of power is not only because the children in the clan are not living up to expectations and have no successors? Even the heads of various families who were prominent in the past have gradually faded away from the center of power, either because of old age or because of everything.
Not interested.
Only Yuwenshiji has outstanding ability and eloquence, is deeply loved by the government and the public, and is quite popular. The most important thing is that Yuwenshiji has always paid attention to the future of Guanlong, knowing that only by uniting all Guanlong families can we have a better future.
It has a broad future, but once it falls apart, it is doomed to sink into history and be covered up by the sand.
If it were anyone else, he would even worry about whether he would take the opportunity to defect to Li Ji and completely entrust the Guanlong Alliance...
Yuwen Shiji also knew that the current situation was critical. Once Li Ji surrendered to the East Palace, Guan Long would face a disaster. And if he could really convince Li Ji, then the peace talks would become a foregone conclusion, whether he or the entire Yuwen clan
Everyone will gain great benefits.
In both public and private matters, we must do our part without giving in.
Then he nodded and said: "Don't worry, auxiliary machine. I will make a trip in person later. I will try to persuade Li Ji with emotion and reason."
He even regretted that if he had not sent his eldest son Anye to Luoyang to persuade Li Ji out of selfish motives, but had asked Yu Wenshiji to go, he might have already impressed Li Ji and won him over to Guan Long's side. After all, regardless of his status,
His status, abilities, connections, and Yuwenshi are definitely not comparable to those of Changsun Anye.
It's just that he wants to hold the whole Guanlong firmly in his hands, and he doesn't want to see Yuwenshi who advocates peace talks and make great achievements.
But now, I have to rely on Yuwenshi and...
He became more and more angry, and his hatred towards Fang Jun naturally increased.
Although there are too many variables in this "military admonishment", it has already changed beyond recognition compared to his earliest plan. It can even be said that he is hampered in everything and has bad luck. But as the saying goes, good things come in many ways, and things in this world cannot always go smoothly. Such a big plan will always be
All kinds of accidents are going to happen.
But the biggest variable was Fang Jun. No one expected that this guy would defeat the Dashi army that invaded the Western Regions so quickly, and lead his troops to rescue thousands of miles so resolutely, returning to Guanzhong at lightning speed, stabilizing the crumbling East Palace in one fell swoop.
, reversing its inevitable defeat.
This young man who was unlearned, reckless and stupid grew up at an astonishing speed. Not only did he suddenly realize that he had made outstanding achievements and became a leader among the younger generation, he also grew into a bright and waving flag in the military.
A new generation of "Military God"!
In comparison, Guan Long's children were lackluster, especially his own sons, who fell directly or indirectly at his hands. Every time he thought about it, Changsun Wuji was filled with hatred and gnashed his teeth.