Chapter 728 The so-called strategy of retreating from the enemy
What was supposed to come would eventually come. Even though the emperor was unwilling and could not believe it, he still had to face reality. Urgent reports from three directions in Henan arrived in Chang'an City again on November 15th.
Li Longji urgently summoned Yang Guozhong, the right minister, and Wei Jiansu, the left minister, to the palace to discuss countermeasures.
When Yang Guozhong learned that An Lushan had rebelled in Fan Yang, he climbed up from his bed, raised his arms high and said loudly: "What am I talking about? An Lushan is indeed a traitor! What a saint!"
It’s time to believe me!”
The two prime ministers rode horses side by side towards Nannei. Yang Guozhong raised his head and chest out, full of confidence. Wei Jiansu lowered his head and pondered, worried.
Yang Guozhong turned to the worried Wei Xiang and said: "Are you worried about the traitor rebels? You don't have to worry. Although An thief has been in charge of Youyan for thirteen years, he is just a general and a warrior. How can he be as good as your majesty?"
The emperor of Taiping has shown kindness to the people for ten years, but he has tempted the soldiers of the three armies to rebel, and his power will not last long."
Seeing Supi's smile, Wei said, "I'll keep these words of Prime Minister Yang to comfort Your Majesty for a while."
"That's natural. The saint needs you and me to share the affairs of state for him."
They dismounted at the palace gate and entered the main hall on the second floor of the Qinzheng Building. The sad-faced emperor walked down the steps and waved to the two of them and asked: "My dear sirs, An thief led an army of 150,000 to go south to rebel. The two of them rebelled."
Do you have any countermeasures?"
Just as Wei Jiansu was about to step forward to speak, Yang Guozhong stepped forward with a proud look on his face and said: "Your Majesty, there is no need to worry. The people who planned the rebellion are only a few close associates of An Lushan and his son. I believe that all the officers and men under his command are unwilling to follow him in rebellion. As long as
If he fails in battle and his attack is frustrated, his morale will decline and he will be defeated in a few days."
Li Longji nodded in agreement: "What Guozhong said is exactly what I expected. It's just that there have been no troops stationed in the hinterland of the Central Plains for a long time, and the capital has no troops to send. Even if troops are sent to the border towns now, I'm afraid they won't be able to save the country.
You are close to the fire, what should you do now?"
"Your Majesty," Wei Jiansu stepped forward and spoke: "In the court, General Gao Xianzhi of Youyu Lin is idle at home, Ge Shuhan, the governor of Longyou Jiedu, is ill in Chang'an due to infection with wind disease, and General Lai Yao's son Lai Ai is also in court.
The minister suggested that Gao Xianzhi should be ordered to go to Luoyang to recruit troops to meet the Anlu Mountain rebels. He ordered Lai Ai to serve as the prefect of Runan County and recruit troops to fight against the Anshi army. Then he sent someone to Shuofang Jiedushi An Sishun, Longyou immediately.
Marching Sima Tian Qiuliang, Hexi, Beiting, and Anxi Jiedushi Li Siye sent fast horses to convey the message, ordering them to select the best soldiers and horses, place them in the rear, and come to Guanzhong to prepare for support."
"Seeing that Su has considered the issue comprehensively, I have approved all your proposals one by one and immediately sent people to summon soldiers and horses from all towns to prepare for the court."
"Wait a minute," Yang Guozhong crossed his arms and interrupted: "Is it feasible to summon An Sishun and Tian Qiu Liang to lead his troops to the court? But summoning Li Siye to lead an army to the court? I have some objections."
Li Longji and Wei Jiansu looked at him dumbfounded. Yang Guozhong raised his chest and raised his head and said, "Has Your Majesty forgotten the rumors that have been spreading in Chang'an City recently? Li Siye has troops in three towns? He also has hundreds of thousands of troops under his command? He led his troops in.
The court can bring one hundred thousand soldiers. If he really has ulterior motives as the rumors say, and wants to collude with An Lushan to overthrow the Tang Dynasty? It is tantamount to luring tigers and wolves into the pass, and the country will be in danger!"
"How can the rumors be trusted?" Wei Jiansu usually had no opinion on Yang Guozhong's obedience and tolerance? But now it was related to the national crisis? He finally couldn't help but argue for the correct answer: "Your Majesty, Li Siye has always been loyal and has no objections.
.Besides, he has only served as the governor of Hexi Province for four years, and his foundation is far less stable than Anlu Mountain, which is based on Pinglu Fanyang? Think about it, he would not do such a thing that goes against the morale of the military."
"Knowing people but not knowing their hearts? Your Majesty, An Lushan claimed to be loyal to Your Majesty before, but he rebelled against His Majesty's kindness and raised an army! Your Majesty must be aware of it and must be on guard against it."
Wei Jiansu: "An Lushan has prepared tens of thousands of cavalry in Youyan, and the force is huge? If Luoyang is occupied, the rebels will not be able to be suppressed except by the Xiliang soldiers."
"Your Majesty? Li Siye has great military exploits. If he is allowed to enter the court to lead troops in battle again? What reward will Your Majesty give? The current situation is unclear. Although An Lushan's troops are powerful, are they actually strong from outside? If he can be defeated with the help of the Gyeonggi Suwei army,
Before Tongguan? Why do we need to drive away tigers and devour wolves, which will only harm ourselves. Therefore, I suggest that it is not necessary to call Li Siye to lead his troops into the court for the time being, and also order the Longyou Army to guard the east bank of the Yellow River Floating Bridge in Lanzhou to prepare for unexpected events."
The preparedness Yang Guozhong mentioned was of course prepared for Li Siye. Li Longji was sitting on the hut on the steps, holding the handrails with his hands, and his eyes were hesitantly looking back and forth between Yang Guozhong and Wei Jiansu, and when they disagreed with each other,
, he is the only one who can make decisions that affect the safety of the country.
He once gave An Lushan great trust, and he also gave Li Siye the same trust. Because Li Longji started his career through Tang Long's coup, and relied on the heroes among the Yulin Army's thousands of knights, he had a natural affinity for generals.
He was also the most generous and trusting emperor to his generals in history.
He promoted An Lushan from the defeated general to the governor of the Three Towns, and gave him the title of Dongping Commandery without hesitation. Ge Shuhan captured the stone castle with tens of thousands of casualties, and the emperor gave him a mansion without hesitation.
Yitong Sansi, the title of Liang Guogong. Gao Xianzhi massacred the Shi Kingdom in the Western Regions, triggering Dashi to move his troops eastward. The emperor only transferred him away from Anxi, and still granted the title of Kaifu Yitong Sansi, Yulinwei General.
.Also Wang Zhongsi was once highly valued by Xuanzong, and he did not hesitate to give him the power of the Four Towns. Even though he was falsely accused of wanting to make the prince emperor, the emperor did not kill him, but demoted him to Hanyang as the prefect. You must know that the concubine at the time
Li Ying and his three other sons were framed by Concubine Wu Hui for treason, so they were all deposed as common people and ordered to die within a day.
The emperor's preference for military generals far exceeded that of his sons. But An Lushan's rebellion tore a bloody scar on his heart. How much he once trusted them, but now he felt disappointed and cold in his heart.
The more serious it is, the crisis of trust has been created, and his psychology has quietly changed.
Li Longji raised his head and ordered coldly: "Send an order to Tian Qiu Liang to guard the Lanzhou Yellow River Ferry and not let any troops pass. The remaining Longyou Army will go to the interior within twenty days to put down the rebellion. Although An Sishun and An Lushan are cousins
Brother, he has repeatedly warned me of his rebellion. He is a loyal minister, but he is no longer suitable to stay in Shuofang. He returned to the court and served as the Secretary of the Ministry of Household Affairs. Guo Ziyi was ordered to seize the opportunity to replace him as the Jiedushi of Shuofang.
Lead troops to conquer the east and regain the east of Hedong. An order was given to Li Siye, ordering him to guard the west of Hexi with peace of mind. He could not enter the court without an imperial edict."
…
Changshan County is close to Boling. After An Lushan's army arrived at Boling, they immediately marched towards Changshan and sent Gao Miaohe and He Qianqian to recruit Yan Gaoqing, the prefect of Changshan County.
Why did he think that Yan Gaoqing would be surrendered? Because Yan Gaoqing once served as Fan Yanghu Cao and joined the army. He was a direct subordinate of An Lushan. He was later appointed by An Lushan to serve as Weizhou's official recorder and joined the army. Now he is the governor of Changshan County.
The rebel general Gao Miao came to the city gate and shouted for Yan Gaoqing to go out of the city to the camp to meet Prince Dongping.
At this time, there were only a thousand soldiers in Changshan City, and any hard resistance would be like hitting a stone with an egg. Yan Gaoqing and Chief Shi Yuan Luqian sat in the study to discuss countermeasures.
"Mr. Yan, do you want to follow An Lushan's call, commit rebellion, and subvert the Tang Dynasty?"
Yan Gaoqing stood up and said angrily: "Lu Qian, you know who I am. Our Yan family has been favored by the emperor for generations, how can we obey and rebel? It's just that the enemy's army is powerful and we have no usable soldiers at hand. If we just want to
If we stick to the city in our own name, we may harm the people. It is better to pretend to surrender and wait until An Lushan's attack is over. Then we will spend all our wealth to recruit brave soldiers to fight against the thieves from behind and regain Hebei."
"Good!" Yuan Luqian nodded in agreement: "I want to go to the thief camp with Yan Gong and pretend to surrender to calm his mind."
Not long after the rebels shouted at the city, the city gate of Changshan County slowly opened. The prefect Yan Gaoqing and the chief minister Yuan Luqian came out hand in hand, stood in front of the rebel general Gao Miaohe's thousand-year-old war horse, crossed their hands and said: "General, please
Lead me to Dr. An."
When the two came to the rebel camp, An Lushan personally walked out of the tent to greet them and comforted them: "Nowadays, traitors are rampant in the court, and your Majesty is deeply deceived. We border generals are always on guard. This time I am safe."
Lushan would no longer swallow his anger, and led his troops into the court to kill the traitors, relieve the people from hanging upside down, and save His Majesty from prison. An Mou was very happy to have two people take refuge today. Come and give the two familiar brocade silks.
One each of gold and purple official robes!"
Yan Gaoqing and Yuan Luqian sneered in their hearts, but they bowed and crossed their hands to thank An Lushan for the reward and took the official robes from his hands.
An Lushan thought he had appeased Yan Gaoqing, so he safely led his army southward. He only sent his general Li Qincuo and Gao Miao to stay in Tumen County with 5,000 soldiers and horses to control the official route of food and grass.
The two rode back to Changshan County. On the way, they looked down and saw their brand-new official robes. They laughed loudly and said, "How can we wear the official robes given by the traitors?"
Yuan Luqian smiled and agreed. They took off their robes, took out the knives from their waists, smashed them into pieces, and threw them scattered on the mound.