Chapter 132: Three thousand soldiers are needed in the field
Yanjing, Imperial City.
In the Qinzheng Hall, Li Qing was fully clothed in armor and wearing a dagger on his head. He entered with a sword in hand, followed by four groups of fully armed imperial troops.
Li Dingyuan was sitting on the dragon chair, with his middle-aged father-in-law Gao Zhan standing to one side with his hands down, surrounded by young eunuchs.
There was silence in the hall, except for the sound of boots tapping on the ground.
Li Qing walked to the imperial steps, bent down and cupped his fists.
"Father, please move. This place is too close to the palace gate. If rebels attack, it will be dangerous."
Li Dingyuan let out a long sigh, looked at Li Qing and the imperial guards behind her, her face turned pale, and she started coughing.
The middle-aged father-in-law hurried over and beat Li Dingyuan's chest and caressed his back.
After a while, Li Dingyuan stopped coughing and asked in a deep voice.
"Qing'er, what's the situation outside? How many of the four camps are controlled by that traitor?"
Li Qing's face turned ugly: "It's not clear yet.
Su Lu led the patrol battalion in a fierce battle with the soldiers of the West City camp in the West City. Tang Ke, the commander of the East City camp, was suppressed by General Xiahou Wei. There was no movement at the North City and Nancheng camps."
Li Dingyuan let out a long sigh: "How is the control of the left and right palace guards?"
Li Qing glanced at the several Forbidden Army generals beside him and said: "My people have taken control of all the palace guards, and the unstable factors have also been controlled."
Li Dingyuan nodded and gave instructions:
"In passing the decree, Su Lu is extremely loyal and brave, loyal to the emperor and patriotic. He will give instructions to the Northern Fourth Army and lead the defense of the inner city."
"Xiahou Wei was loyal to the country and guarded the Dongcheng camp with integrity."
"Li Gan, the left minister of the Ministry of War, guards the Beicheng camp with integrity."
"Although the champion general Luo Du made mistakes, he was loyal to the army and patriotic. He rose up and guarded the Nancheng camp with integrity."
Several young eunuchs received the imperial edict and quickly left the palace gate to deliver the edict.
Li Dingyuan stood up holding the dragon chair, standing on the imperial steps, and asked the middle-aged father-in-law beside him.
"Gao Zhan, you old boy, tell me, this is great, why did Xun'er suddenly rebel?"
Gao Zhan lowered his head and held Li Dingyuan's arm:
"Your Majesty, I don't dare to say anything about this. I don't know why. My predecessor, Prince Ning, came to the palace to pay his respects."
Li Dingyuan turned pale and snorted coldly.
"If it weren't for my permission, today's bad consequences wouldn't have happened. To put it bluntly, my heirs would still be in decline. Otherwise, how could the ministers allow him to interfere in the major camps? Unexpectedly, the four major camps that defend the capital have also been corrupted."
Outside the palace door, there was the sound of hurried footsteps.
The Minister ordered Zuo Ping to serve Tang Yi, the Secretary ordered Guo Ping, followed by a group of officials from three provinces and six ministries.
Zuo Ping was the first to salute, and a group of court officials knelt down in unison.
Li Dingyuan waved his hand, and all the officials stood up. For a moment, the whole hall was filled with purple robes and scarlet robes.
Zuo Ping took the lead and said:
"Your Majesty, the Ministry of War has sent a message that the Xicheng camp is plotting a rebellion. This is a serious matter. It is necessary to send senior generals to guard the remaining four camps, and to recruit capable generals to guard the Northern Fourth Army and protect the inner city."
Li Dingyuan waved his hand: "Zuo Ping, you told me not to abolish Li Xun at the beginning, but now the trouble is caused by Prince Ning. You, Zuo Ping, don't know people well."
Zuo Ping took off his hat and knelt down: "I am scared, and I am guilty. Now the war in Yanjing has resumed, and foreigners have entered the capital, and I am guilty of it. However, state affairs are at the forefront. I request an order to personally supervise the fourth army of Xiangding Guards in the North, and swear to defend the imperial city to the death.
"
Li Dingyuan waved his hand: "That's right."
After he finished speaking, he raised his eyes to look at the ministers and pointed at Li Huaiyuan: "Li Huaiyuan, you should also go along. As the highest official of the Guards, you also need to know the soldiers of the four-city camp."
Li Huaiyuan bowed in agreement and chased Zuo Ping out of the Qinzheng Hall.
At the top of the Xicheng city, Su Lu frowned as he looked at the dense mass of soldiers from the Xicheng camp. It seemed that the soldiers from the Xicheng camp had rebelled.
The Changning soldier in white robes and silver armor walked over with his armor covered with blood and the armor pages clanking.
"Captain, most of the soldiers from the West City Camp were killed and the rest surrendered. What should we do with these people?"
"Select the battalion officers to form the team, and the rest will be organized into each battalion. The battalion officers will be organized into death squads."
Su Lu gave the order without looking away from the Xicheng camp soldiers who were heading towards the city.
The Xicheng camp has a full strength of 12,000 people and has three armies under its jurisdiction. The two guard camps that captured the city are only a fraction. Now I am afraid that the whole camp has been wiped out.
There are tens of thousands of people, and there are no boundaries.
Standing on the top of the city and looking around, you can see soldiers and horses everywhere, boundlessly.
Su Yun wore a white armor and a silver-white robe on his head. His cheeks were flushed, and he reported to Su Lu:
"Brother, the three gates of the patrol camp, the southeast, north and south are intact. Colonel Li Ling has sent out all the forbidden troops."
Su Lu nodded: "Ask Li Ling to guard the east city gate and tell him that no matter who it is, the door cannot be opened. If there is a strong attack, it is treason and he will be killed without mercy."
Su Yun nodded, turned around and gave orders to Xiao Niba who was following behind.
Luo Ding had already put on his hat, but the blood on his face was not wiped clean, so he came over and said something.
"Captain, what should we do? It seems that the troops from the West City Camp are going to attack by force. I'm afraid we won't be able to defend the West City Gate with just a few people."
Su Lu turned his head and glanced at Luo Du.
Luo Du's face turned pale, his whole body felt cold, and it seemed as if a hole had been shot in his chest.
"Captain, that's not what I meant."
"What does Lieutenant Luo mean?"
An old voice sounded. Shangshu Ling Zuoping and the Minister of War Li Huaiyuan led a group of forbidden troops to the top of the city. The person who spoke was none other than Shangshu Ling Zuoping.
Su Lu waved his hand: "I don't care what you mean. From now on, no one can leave the city without my military order. Anyone who dares to spread rumors and shake the morale of the army will be killed without mercy."
Luo Ding bowed and clasped his fists, "I understand."
Su Ping waved his hand, signaling Luo Ding to prepare for war, and then turned to Zuo Ping and Li Huaiyuan.
"I am wearing armor and cannot perform the ceremony properly. Prime Minister Zuo and Li Shangshu are here. But what do you want your Majesty to say?"
Zuo Ping stood in front of the battlements, stroking his beard and said: "Without him, it's just to embolden the general."
Li Huaiyuan raised his eyebrows and thought that Zuo Ping was generous and gave all the power to Su Lu. He went through Su Lu's resume in his mind and Li Huaiyuan asked.
"General Su is good at field battles. He is invincible in every attack. I wonder if he has confidence in defending the city? Your Majesty's military order has been to mobilize the fourth army of Xiangding Guards in the North. They can attack the city at any time."
Su Lu looked at the approaching soldiers from the West City Camp below the city.
"It's just a mere 10,000 soldiers from the West City camp. I can defeat him with 3,000 soldiers in a plain field battle."
Zuo Ping's face darkened when he heard this. Each general has his own fighting style. Su Lu is good at field battles, but defending the city is not his specialty. This time, he still needs to think of ways to recruit more troops to defend the city.
Li Huaiyuan asked anxiously: "How many troops are needed this time? I will try to find a way to coordinate with you. Is it possible for the left and right city guards and the fourth northern army of Xiangding Guard?"
Su Lu looked at Prince Ning Li Xun riding a white horse outside the city, smiled and said.
"To defend the city, only two thousand soldiers are enough."
two thousand?
Zuo Ping and Li Huaiyuan looked confused.
Below the city, the sergeant with a loud voice had already shouted.