Eight hundred and ninetieth chapters invite Ying to fight
Li Tong looked at Wu Han in surprise. His Majesty refused to say anything. What does this mean? Wu Han pondered for a moment, pulled Li Tong to sit down, and explained in detail his Majesty's plan to attack Hanzhong, and then he said helplessly.
: "This battle requires going deep into Hanzhong and fighting the weak against the strong. It can be said to be extremely dangerous. Only generals who are good at fighting have a chance of winning. But the generals in the court are all under the surveillance of Gongsun Shu's eyes. If there is any change, they will definitely give way.
Gongsun Shu was alert, so..."
"Therefore, the general who can command this extraordinary force must not only have rich experience, but also have the ability to command thousands of troops. At the same time, he must not be too famous for leading troops in battles!" Li Tong answered.
Wu Han nodded his head and said: "Chi Yuan is right!"
Li Tong clapped his hands and realized that this candidate was simply tailor-made for him.
As for his ability to lead troops in battle, he was a veteran who followed His Majesty and raised troops to rebel in Chung Ling. He had experienced so many life-and-death battles and had already honed his ability to stand alone.
While Liu Xiu was campaigning in Hebei, Li Tong was still serving as King of Xiping under Liu Xuan. It can be said that Liu Xiu conquered Hebei and laid the foundation of Hebei, and Li Tong did not contribute a single part.
It wasn't until Liu Xiu settled in Luoyang that Li Tong took Liu Boji to defect to Liu Xiu.
After switching to Liu Xiu's command, Li Tong did not serve in the army, but directly became a guard. He worked for several years. The Luoyang court had nothing to do with Li Tong, whether it was the Western Expedition, the Southern Expedition, the Eastern Expedition, or the Northern Expedition.
, Li Tong has always stayed in Luoyang, serving as the "head of the palace guard" for Liu Xiu's palace.
Therefore, when it comes to the reputation of generals in the army, Li Tong is basically at the bottom, not to mention not at the top. No matter how closely Gongsun Shu monitors the generals who are good at fighting in Luoyang, he can't monitor Li Tong's head.
In Li Tong's opinion, he was the best candidate to lead this unexpected force to attack Yancen in Hanzhong.
Looking at Li Tong, whose eyes were brighter, Wu Han shook his head with a wry smile and said: "Ci Yuan, you should give up. His Majesty will not agree to your going. Even if His Majesty agrees, Princess Ningping will not
Agreed."
Li Tong blinked his eyes. He could no longer drink the wine. He suddenly thought of something, patted his head and said, "Mr. Wu, I suddenly remembered that there is an urgent matter that I have not dealt with, so I'll take my leave first!"
Wu Han frowned and said: "Ci Yuan, what are you in a hurry for? No matter how important the matter is, we should wait until we finish drinking!"
Li Tong waved his hand and said: "It is indeed an urgent matter. I will be disrespectful today. I will definitely entertain Duke Wu another day."
Seeing that Li Tong had decided to go, Wu Han looked helpless and said unhappily: "Go, go, everyone has something to do, why don't I have so many things to do?"
He came out of Deng Yu's house because Deng Yu received urgent military affairs and had to deal with them.
Li Tong smiled at Wu Han, said goodbye, turned around and left quickly.
He left the tavern and did not go home. Instead, he went directly to the palace and asked to see Liu Xiu.
Liu Xiu was having a meal when Li Tong suddenly came, which puzzled him.
Judging by the time, it was obvious that he came at this time to get some food. Liu Xiu wiped the corners of his mouth and said to Zhang Kun: "Please come in, Jiyuan."
After a while, Li Tong strode in from outside. "Your Majesty!" Li Tong bowed to Liu Xiu.
Liu Xiu happily waved and said: "It's better to come early than to come by chance, Jiyuan, come on, come on, sit down and let's eat together."
"Your Majesty, I have already eaten the meal that I just had with Da Sima in the wine house."
"Oh!" Liu Xiu said, "Even if you have eaten, sit down and eat some more with me."
Li Tong did not refuse, walked to Liu Xiu's servant, knelt down and sat down. Soon, a waiter came forward, first placed a small square table in front of him, and then brought out dishes one after another.
Liu Xiu's diet was not very luxurious, and of course he didn't eat pickles, noodles and gnocchi. It was just the diet of ordinary wealthy people. The difference was that the skills of the imperial chef were far better than ordinary people.
Seeing Li Tong sitting there, eating absentmindedly, Liu Xiu put down his chopsticks and asked with a smile: "Did Jiyuan come to the palace to see me for something?"
"Uh..." Li Tong hesitated and did not speak immediately.
Liu Xiu smiled and said: "Ciyuan, if you have something to do, it's okay to say it."
Li Tong was worried and didn't care whether Wu Han was sold or not. He said: "I heard that your Majesty plans to send a surprise force to attack the Yancen tribe stationed in Hanzhong."
Liu Xiu was startled, how did Ji Yuan know about this? After thinking about it, he immediately understood that Ji Yuan had been drinking with Zi Yan just now, and now he came to the palace to see him. Zi Yan must have told him this.
He did not hide anything from Li Tong, nodded and said: "It is true, but we haven't been able to find a suitable candidate for a while..."
Before he finished speaking, Li Tong stood up, bowed his hands and saluted, and said: "Your Majesty, I am willing to go to this battle!"
Liu Xiu knew that since Li Tong mentioned this matter, he must have come to ask for his tassel. He stood up and walked out. Li Tong hurriedly followed Liu Xiu and left the hall with him.
In the yard outside, Liu Xiu walked slowly and said, "Boji was very dissatisfied with Ji Yuan's transformation from a guard to a former general. She even came to the palace to look for me."
Li Tong's eyes flashed with a look of surprise on his face. He really didn't know about this matter. He bowed and said: "Your Majesty, I don't know, I will wait until I return home..."
Liu Xiu waved her hand and said, "Don't blame Boji. Boji also has good intentions. She is worried that you are weak and sick and cannot bear the hardships in the army."
Li Tong sighed softly and said, "Your Majesty knows that. Back then, the ministers also followed Your Majesty, starting from the bottom of the soldier and reaching today step by step." He has never experienced any hardships or dangers.
experienced?
Liu Xiu smiled and said: "But now Jiyuan is no longer a soldier, but the consort of the Han Dynasty, the dignified Marquis of Gushi, and the former general!"
"His Majesty……"
Liu Xiu continued: "Later, Boji also accepted your transition to become a former general, but she also put forward a condition, that is, you would not be allowed to go to Shu to fight."
Li Tong looked confused. Liu Xiu explained: "I heard from Boji that she once asked Ziling to divine a fortune for you, saying that your five elements are short of water, and you should be in the south rather than the north, and you should be in the east rather than in the west."
Hearing this, Li Tong almost laughed. What's the reason? Based on this alone, His Majesty didn't choose himself to be the commander-in-chief of the crusade against Yancen? He said seriously: "Your Majesty, how can you take the words of fate seriously?"
Liu Xiu said meaningfully: "Liu Xiu sent troops to capture but failed. The barbarians gathered in Long Dou Ye from all over the world. On April 7th, fire is the main thing."
Don't believe in fate? But sometimes, these mysterious and mysterious things really come true. When "Chi Fu Fu" appeared, Liu Xiu didn't exist yet, but "Chi Fu Fu" could accurately predict that Liu Xiu would become emperor.
Then Liu Xin, a talented and learned man, calculated the pi value at 3.15, and later generations called it Liu Xinsu. He also believed in the prophecy in "Chi Fu Fu" and did not hesitate to change his name to Liu Xiu.
Can you really say that these metaphysics are nonsense?
Of course Li Tong understood what Liu Xiu meant, and he said sternly: "If a person's fate has already been determined, then Wei Chen cannot avoid it even if he wants to. Your Majesty, let Wei Chen go in this battle!"
Liu Xiu frowned and pondered for a long time, then he said slowly: "Let me think about it again!"
Li Tong knew Liu Xiu's character, and after considering this, he was definitely out of luck!
He was so anxious that he scratched his head and said: "Your Majesty, there is no one more suitable than Wei Chen! Your Majesty, Wei Chen is willing to issue a military order. If this battle cannot be won, Wei Chen is willing to be punished by military law!"
Liu Xiu was not worried that Li Tong would not win, but that he would not be able to come back alive.
Looking at Li Tong who remembered that his face was red, Liu Xiu smiled bitterly, spread his hands and said: "Boji has reminded me that you cannot go to Shu. If I send you to Hanzhong, how can I explain to Boji?
"
Li Tong was silent for a moment and said: "Your Majesty, you can tell me that I am going to Nanyang to farm." There is currently a war in Nanjun, and Nanyang is adjacent to Nanjun. It is reasonable to have soldiers and horses stationed in Nanyang in case of emergencies.
Liu Xiu raised his eyebrows and asked, "Did Jiyuan ask me to lie to Bo Ji?"
Li Tong frowned and said: "Your Majesty, I must go to this battle!" In the Luoyang court, Li Tong was definitely one of the high-ranking ministers, but what was embarrassing was that the establishment of the Luoyang court was not the same as him.
It doesn't matter a dime.
At the beginning, it was Liu Xiu who led Deng Yu, Wu Han, Geng Yan, Feng Yi, Gai Yan, Yao Qi, Ma Wu and others to conquer Hebei and establish the foundation of the Han Dynasty.
He didn't do anything. As soon as he arrived in Luoyang, he was named Gushihou, appointed as a Weiwei, and ranked among the nine ministers.
Privately, many people said that Li Tong had no ability and that the reason why he became a guard was just because he was lucky enough to marry a good lady and became the emperor's brother-in-law and the emperor's consort.
Li Tong heard these remarks, but never refuted them. Not refuting them did not mean that he did not take them seriously.
Li Tong has been holding back a sense of resentment in his heart, and has been looking for opportunities to prove his abilities. This sneak attack on Yancen in Hanzhong is the opportunity he has been waiting for.
Liu Xiu thought again and again, raised his eyes to look at Li Tong, and asked seriously: "Ci Yuan, have you really thought it through?"
"Yes, Your Majesty!" Li Tong nodded heavily.
Liu Xiu narrowed his glasses and said: "In this battle, I can only send you 30,000 troops at most!"
When Li Tong heard this, his face suddenly lit up with joy. He bowed and said, "I would like to thank Your Majesty for your kindness!"
Liu Xiu waved his hand and said, "Don't thank me in a hurry. Do you know how many soldiers and horses Yancen has under his command?"
Li Tong shook his head. Liu Xiu said seriously: "There are no less than 50,000 people." After a pause, he said meaningfully: "Going deep into the enemy's territory and fighting 50,000 with 30,000 is extremely dangerous. Moreover, Gongsun Shu of Chengdu may attack at any time.
Mobilizing troops into Hanzhong to reinforce Yancen, this battle will not be easy!" Liu Xiu was not deliberately trying to scare Li Tong, what he said was true, and he was also reminding Li Tong not to think that this battle would be easy to win.
I thought that Yancen was beaten to a pulp by Cen Peng, and if you go there you can defeat him. Yancen himself is a very capable general, not to mention that there is Gongsun Shu behind him now.
After listening to Liu Xiu's words, Li Tong said seriously: "Your Majesty, if I cannot win this battle, I should raise my head and see your Majesty again!"
Liu Xiu raised his eyebrows. He didn't know whether he was right or wrong in agreeing to let Li Tong go on the expedition.
He was silent for a moment and said faintly: "Ci Yuan, if we can fight this battle, we can fight it. If we can't fight it, we must not force it. We need to withdraw our troops in time and withdraw from Hanzhong."
Li Tong said disapprovingly: "In this battle, if I don't succeed, I will succeed!"
"..." Liu Xiu was afraid that Li Tong went there with the intention of fighting to the death.
He frowned, looked at Li Tong deeply, and said word by word: "I just want you to come back alive, and I don't want to see the soldiers carrying your body back!"
Li Tong was silent. After a moment, he suddenly knelt down, kowtowed forward, and said, "I will not disappoint Your Majesty! Let alone... I will not be ashamed of Bo Ji!"
