People in the early Tang Dynasty: I compete with Wu Zhao for the throne

Chapter 1600: The army marches eastward, military remonstrance

"How much does the Marshal know about what happened in Yangzhou?" Li Xuan looked up at Liu Shenli.

Liu Shenli stood in front of the window. It was a pitch-black night outside and guards were patrolling back and forth.

There was the faint sound of swords in the distance.

He died just after taking office as Deputy Protector General of Anxi.

However, Liu Shenli could feel the joy of the entire Qiuci and the entire Anxi.

Now he finally knew why.

Turning around, Liu Shenli walked to the soft couch opposite Li Xuan and sat down. He couldn't help coughing twice: "Ahem."

After calming down a bit, Liu Shenli shook his head and said, "We don't know much. The prince should have arrived in Yangzhou a long time ago. In the past few months, there has been no news from Yangzhou to the outside world."

Li Xuan nodded, feeling a little absurd.

Empress Wu deliberately ordered the blockade of all external news about Dunhuang and Changzhou, but both Liu Shenli and Li Xuan knew everything they should know.

Li Xuan is fine, but as for Liu Shenli, the Pengcheng Liu family is not far from Yangzhou.

Crown Prince Li Chongzhao arrived in Yangzhou. However, in the past few months, no news about Li Chongzhao had been leaked to the outside world. However, all news from Yangzhou to the outside world was intercepted, even the autumn tax in Jiangnan was intercepted by them.

That's enough to explain the situation.

"What do you think they are doing, Marshal?" Li Xuan looked up at Liu Shenli.

"Let's communicate with all directions." Liu Shenli lowered his head and pondered, saying: "One Yangzhou is not enough, they need the support of the entire Jiangnan, Huainan, Shannan, and even Jiannan, or even..."

Liu Shenli turned around abruptly and squinted at Li Xuan: "They are waiting for King Peng to come back."

Li Xuan sighed and said, "I have a will in my hand. The late emperor ordered that it must not be opened unless Prime Minister Pei plots rebellion. But the Duke of Jiang also has a copy of this will..."

Liu Shenli's breathing became heavier. He looked at Li Xuan and asked, "Your Highness, do you know that if this happens, the world will be in chaos?"

Li Xuan nodded slightly, looked at Liu Shenli and said, "But, Marshal, if Xuan returns to Chang'an like this, Marshal, do you think there is a chance that Xuan will survive?"

Liu Shenli was stunned, and then fell silent.

Li Xuan smiled bitterly, and bowed to Liu Shenli, saying, "General, please give me an answer."

Liu Shenli sighed and tilted his head, saying, "Within three years, with your intelligence, there may be a 50% chance of survival, but after three years, I'm afraid there will be no chance of survival."

"Xuan can't wait three years." Li Xuan shook his head slightly.

"But tonight, isn't it a bit too hasty for the prince to suddenly kill people?" Liu Shenli turned around and looked at Li Xuan.

"Xuan can wait, but some people can't." Li Xuan smiled bitterly.

"Yes, the Queen is too anxious. She is making everyone uneasy." Liu Shenli raised his head calmly, his eyes passing over Li Xuan and looking towards Chang'an.

Empress Wu's hatred for Wang Fangyi surpassed everything.

In the early years, Wang Fangyi still had the protection of Emperor Gaozong, but as soon as Emperor Gaozong died and she sorted out the affairs of the court, she immediately set her sights on Wang Fangyi.

Li Xuan lowered his head: "The Marshal should know that the Queen is attacking my uncle on the surface, but in fact, she is warning Xuan."

Let Du Huaibao embarrass Wang Fangyi, and in front of Li Xuan.

It was nothing more than a warning to Li Xuan, and he would receive the same treatment when he returned to Chang'an.

Liu Shenli fell silent.

Li Xuan looked at the inventory on the low table and said softly, "Xuan is like this, what do you think the people in the center will think?"

Liu Shenli raised his eyebrows: "Who is King Peng talking about?"

"Prime Minister Pei, Prime Minister Pei is the Minister of Regents, the Minister of Regents appointed by the late emperor himself. He also has a will in his hand."

Li Xuan took out a letter from his sleeve and handed it to Liu Shenli, saying, "Prime Minister Pei had someone sneak into the imperial envoy group and bring it to Xuan, and then asked Xuan to pass it on to the Marshal."

Liu Shenli took the envelope and his breathing suddenly became heavy.

Li Xuan had a will in his hand, Pei Xingjian had a will in his hand, and Pei Yan and Su Liangsi also had wills in their hands.

Empress Wu would not let Li Xuan live, so how could she let the other three live?

Liu Shenli glanced at the envelope, then looked up in surprise: "King Peng has not read this letter?"

"No need." Li Xuan said indifferently, "The prince is in Yangzhou, and now he is just waiting for the right time to ascend the throne. The Duke of Jiang will inevitably take on an important position. I know very well what the situation will be like for Prime Minister Pei, who is also from the Wenxi Pei family... By the way, Marshal, the mother of Prime Minister Pei's eldest son is the daughter of the Pengcheng Liu family, right?"

"My cousin has passed away for a long time." When Liu Shenli lowered his head to read the letter, he couldn't help but show a hint of worry in his eyes.

Li Xuan nodded slightly and didn't say much, but he believed that Liu Shenli must know that Empress Wu would not let his cousin's family go so easily.

In the original history, Pei Yan's three clans were exterminated because he was framed by Empress Wu for having connections with Li Jingye. Now Pei Xingjian and Pei Yan have a closer relationship.

The extermination of the three clans is inevitable, it just depends on when to start.

Although Li Xuan didn't know what Pei Yan wrote in the letter, he knew Pei Yan's situation.

……

After a long time, Liu Shenli finally finished reading the letter. With a hint of sadness on his face, he raised his head and looked at Li Xuan, asking, "What does Your Majesty need me to do?"

Li Xuan placed his hands flat on the low table, then looked at Liu Shenli: "How about the Marshal and Xuan return to Beijing together?"

Liu Shenli paused for a moment, raised his head and looked at Li Xuan with a frown: "Does the prince want to use military force to advise against this?"

Li Xuan relaxed his hands and shook his head calmly, "There will be news from Yangzhou soon."

As soon as Li Chongzhao ascended the throne in Yangzhou, he did not resort to military remonstrance, but instead obeyed the imperial edict to suppress the rebellion.

"I'm sorry." Liu Shenli shook his head and said, "Your Majesty, I still need to take care of the people in Pengcheng."

"Okay." Li Xuan nodded and said, "In that case, I'll trouble the Marshal to lead his troops westward to plan the restoration of Persia. In addition, you can also take over the garrisons of the Right Guard, the Right Army Guard, and the Left Guard."

"Is this the prince's purpose?" Liu Shenli felt a little amused.

He felt at the beginning that the Right Guard, Right Army Guard and Left Guard were too close to the Four Towns of Anxi.

It turned out that Li Xuan was planning to replace the troops in Luoshui Road with the troops from the four towns of Anxi.

Li Xuan fell silent and did not speak.

Liu Shenli smiled and finally nodded, "Okay!"

Li Xuan breathed a sigh of relief, stood up and said, "Thank you very much, Marshal. I will leave tomorrow."

Liu Shenli raised his head, looked at Li Xuan, and asked solemnly: "Have you ever thought about what the outcome of this matter will be?"

Li Xuan stopped, looked at Liu Shenli, bowed seriously, and said: "In the end, Xuan only accepts two options. One is that the Prince of Xiang will rule the country, and the other is that the Crown Prince will ascend the throne, Empress Wei will be the empress, and Duke Jiang will lead the government. Xuan is talking nonsense about being a tutor to teach the Crown Prince to read and understand government affairs."

After a short pause, Li Xuan added: "This matter will have results in one or two years at the fastest, or three to five years at the slowest. By then, the crown prince will be quite old and will be able to rule the country in a few years. Xuan will then retreat to the Western Regions. I think everyone will be happy with that."

Liu Shenli sighed and said, "If the Queen Mother does not summon the King back to the court, will the King just ignore everything?"

Li Xuan did not answer, but just bowed slightly and turned to leave. …

Under the cover of night, a team of black-armored cavalry escorted Li Xuan back to the military camp.

Wang Fangyi followed him and saw him off. After a long while, Wang Fangyi finally said, "Actually, Your Majesty, there is no need to do that."

"Uncle, you're overthinking it. Xuan is not doing this for you, but for herself. Besides, there's no need to say anything more between you and me." Li Xuan smiled gently.

"You and I have been in contact for eight years. Who would have thought that we would encounter this situation at the same time when we just met." Wang Fangyi smiled bitterly.

In the current situation, without Emperor Gaozong's blessing, Wang Fangyi's life would be even more difficult.

However, he was not having an easy time, and Li Xuan, Emperor Zhongzong's greatest confidant, was not having an easy time either.

They all worry about death and annihilation of their clan.

"None of this was chosen by you or me. We both chose the Western Regions, but people still refused to turn a blind eye." Li Xuan shook his head and then restrained his expression: "By the way, how are General Quan and Duke Sa doing?"

"Quan Shancai is related to the Quan family of Tianshui. Obviously, he has been implicated. But this time, he still didn't dare to speak clearly. Instead, it was Brun Zanren who agreed very readily." When Wang Fangyi mentioned Quan Shancai, there was a hint of disdain in his voice.

"It's not easy for General Quan either. Once the situation in Yangzhou becomes clear, he will make a choice." Li Xuan pondered for a moment, then said, "In that case, my uncle will lead 5,000 cavalrymen to set out tomorrow and arrive at Dunhuang. Duke Sa will go slower to prepare logistics, and General Quan will stay in Anxi."

"Okay!" Wang Fangyi nodded seriously. Once Du Huaibao died, he had no other choice.

Back at the military camp, Li Xuan watched Wang Fangyi turn around and leave.

Ever since Du Huaibao's death, the entire Qiuci immediately fell into the hands of Wang Fangyi.

After all, Wang Fangyi was the Protector General of Anxi, and even Liu Shenli was only the chief military commander of Anxi Road.

Li Xuan turned around and walked back to the tent where Fan Yunxian, Zhao Gong and Xue Shao were.

"Uncle, Prince Consort, and Supervisor Fan, everything is settled. We will set off for Dunhuang tomorrow." Li Xuan stood at the door and bowed to the three of them, saying, "Something happened tonight, and it's Xuan's fault."

"It's okay. As long as we can set off tomorrow." Xue Shao breathed a sigh of relief. Before at the banquet, when Li Xuan raised his sword, his heart was really in his throat. Also, although the Kucha city outside was blocked at the beginning, it was soon unblocked.

Li Xuan nodded and said, "In that case, everyone should go to bed early. I will take my leave first."

……

Seeing Li Xuan's back disappear into the darkness, Xue Shao breathed a sigh of relief, turned around, looked at Zhao Gong and said, "Doctor, King Peng tonight... Hey, where is Fan Jian?"

Zhao Gong turned around and found that Fan Yunxian had disappeared without a trace.

He sighed in his heart, shook his head and said, "He went to deliver a message. What happened tonight must be reported back to Chang'an as soon as possible, and a message must also be sent to Dunhuang... Forget it, the prince consort wants to ask about the matter between Prince Peng and Protector Wang, right?"

"Yes!" Xue Shao regained his composure.

Zhao Gong sorted out his thoughts a bit and said, "The mother of Prince Pengsi Li Yuanze was Emperor Gaozu's concubine Wang Cairen. Wang Cairen's father was Imperial Doctor Wang Jing. Imperial Doctor Wang Jing's father was former Sui Imperial Doctor Wang Long. Wang Long had five sons: Wang Du, Wang Tong, Wang Ning, Wang Ji, and Wang Jing.

Wang Tong's son was Wang Fuzhi, a doctor of Taichang. At that time, when the late emperor wanted to abdicate the throne to the empress, Wang Fuzhi, along with Hao Chujun, Li Yiyan and Dai Zhide, spoke out against it.

Then came the murder case of Wang Bo, the son of Wang Fuzhi. Wang Fuzhi was implicated and exiled. After several efforts, Wang Bo is now the county magistrate in Jiaozhi.

Wang Bo is a direct descendant of the Longmen Wang family, and Wang Fangyi is a direct descendant of the Taiyuan Wang family, not to mention that among them there is also Wang Fanglin, the governor of Wuzhou.

The two had been in contact for a long time.”

"Ah!" Xue Shao looked at Zhao Gong in disbelief. He didn't expect that Li Xuan and Wang had such a deep relationship.

Zhao Gong smiled, and then he heard a slight sound of footsteps coming from the back tent. He immediately made a gesture to Xue Shao to keep quiet.

The next moment, Fan Yunxian had quietly entered the tent.

……

The next day, the sky was bright.

More than 5,000 people got up at dawn and left Qiuci.

The long and mighty team marched eastward along the southern foothills of the Tianshan Mountains.

Under the black banner, Li Xuan's straight figure attracted everyone's attention.

Fan Yunxian was not far behind Li Xuan, looking at Li Xuan's back, with relief and worry in his eyes.

Fortunately, they finally left the Anxi Protectorate, but they were worried that they were getting closer and closer to Dunhuang.

As they walked, suddenly, the team turned south.

"Prince Consort, this direction is not the direction to Dunhuang!" Fan Yunxian was shocked and could not help but ride her horse closer to Xue Shao.

Xue Shao frowned and went to the front to ask Li Xuan.

After returning, he whispered to Fan Yunxian, "We are going to Gaochang. Li Zhiyou, the third son of King Peng, is the Earl of Gaochang County. He has a fiefdom there. We can stop there to rest for a while. It's on the way anyway."

Gaochang?

Gaochang.

The night is dark and the candles are bright.

In the residence of the Earl of Gaochang County.

Li Xuan sat in the main seat, and with a serious expression, he handed a document to Zhao Gong, Xue Shao, and Fan Yunxian who were taking a short break, and then said, "Something happened. Tuyuhun King Murong Nuohebo rebelled against the Tang Dynasty."

"Why?" Zhao Gong held the official document and stared at Li Xuan with inexplicable eyes.

Li Xuan calmly shook his head and said, "I don't know the specific situation, but it seems that the chaos started a few months ago, and the whole Tuyuhun is in chaos."

"Western Tuyuhun, Western Tuyuhun is not far from us?" Zhao Gong looked at Li Xuan in disbelief.

"Yes!" Li Xuan lowered his head and said, "So, we return to Chang'an, not through Dunhuang, but along the southern route of the Silk Road, and suppress the rebellion while we're at it."

"Then what about Changzhou Governor Cheng Wuting?" Zhao Gong asked gritting his teeth.

Li Xuan said calmly: "Something happened in Chang'an, Cheng Wuting was recalled to Chang'an."

Fan Yunxian suddenly looked up, her face full of surprise!

At this moment, Chen Ziang walked out in disbelief, holding a sandalwood box, and finally stood in front of Li Xuan.

Li Xuan looked at the sandalwood box and was stunned.

Fan Yunxian's face suddenly changed in shock.

Li Xuan's expression suddenly turned indifferent. He turned to look at the three people and said, "Three of you, the imperial edict has arrived. Now we have to go to Tuyuhun to quell the rebellion."

Imperial edict, whose imperial edict?
Fan Yunxian's face suddenly became extremely ugly.

Did King Peng really go to Tuyuhun just to quell the rebellion?

Tuyuhun is close to Changzhou.

It is much closer from Changzhou to Chang'an.

(End of this chapter)