Thief Emperor

Chapter 1006 Captain Li

Outside Liaodong Pass.

In the central military tent, Meng Qing sat in the main seat, Liu Bo sat next to him, and generals such as Luo Zhen and Gongsun He were also present.

Luo Zhen stood in the tent and bowed his head to Meng Qing and said, "General, the Wugu tribe outside the Great Wall has basically moved to the area near Yuguan. Now that winter is approaching, there is no benefit in fighting with them outside the Great Wall."

Meng Qing turned his head to look at Liu Bo, then nodded and said, "That's what I mean, it's time to retreat back to Yuguan and Yingzhou."

"but."

Meng Qing said, "Rebuilding Yuguan Pass will not be completed in a few months. We need to build this pass into one of the best in the world so that the Khitans outside the pass will never invade again."

"This will take at least one or two years. During this time, we must guard Yuguan and Yingzhou without losing anything."

Luo Zhen lowered his head and said, "The defense of Yingzhou has been almost arranged."

At this time, the usually quiet Duke of Ying, Liu Bo, lowered his head and thought for a while, then looked at Meng Qing and said, "General, General Deng Yang of Taiyuan has almost arrived in Youzhou. We need you to send troops to join Deng Yang in encircling the remaining Khitans in Youyan, so that Youyan can fall back into the hands of the court."

"It is almost time to report on the errands that His Majesty has assigned me."

The most important strategic goal of Li Yun's campaign against the Khitans this time was to capture and recapture Youyan. Even at the beginning, Li Yun did not expect to be able to capture Yumen Pass and repair Yumen Pass in one battle.

After all, the location of this pass almost overlaps with Shanhaiguan in another world, and in the future it will be the most important gateway separating the inside and outside of the pass.

Up to now, although there are still 20,000 to 30,000 Khitans in Youyan and it takes a lot of effort to wipe them out bit by bit, the emperor's strategic goal has basically been achieved.

After a group of senior generals gathered together and discussed the strategy, Meng Qing pointed at the map and gave orders, starting to deploy troops.

Soon, all the generals in the big tent left one after another and went to arrange the war according to Meng Qing's request.

In the big tent, only Meng Qing and Liu Bo were left.

Without outsiders, Liu Bo smiled and said to Meng Qing: "The Marshal is so impressive in commanding the country."

Meng Qing waved his hands repeatedly and said with a wry smile: "Brother Jiu, please don't ridicule me."

He looked at Liu Bo and asked, "Brother Jiu, do you want to continue to stay in the army?"

Liu Bo shook his head slightly and said, "Once the gates of Yingzhou are closed, unless there are any major accidents, these Khitans will not be able to get away with anything. The rest is just a matter of time and effort, and it has nothing to do with us, the Nine Departments."

"My children and wives have all been rescued. I don't have anything to do in Liaodong for the time being."

He smiled and said, "His Majesty sent me a letter asking me to go to Jinling to spend the New Year with him. I will go to look for the King of Yue later. If the King of Yue agrees, I will take him to Jinling."

Meng Qing shook his head slightly and said, "King Yue's personality... I'm afraid he won't be willing to leave the battlefield at this time."

Liu Bo smiled and said, "From now on, it will be a war of annihilation. It is unlikely that there will be any encounters in the war inside the pass. The scout camp he is in is no longer of much use."

"We can't let him charge into the battle line and attack the city as a prince, right?"

Meng Qing thought about it and nodded, then asked someone to invite the second prince Li Zheng, the fourth son of the Su family, Su Zhan, and Su Zhan who was helping in the army to the central military tent.

In the evening, Li Zheng brought Su Zhan, who had just recovered from his injuries, to the central military tent. After entering the tent, King Yue saluted Meng Qing and called him "General".

Meng Qing sighed, asked him to sit down, then looked at him and said, "Your Highness joined our army at the beginning of the year. Now it is already the end of the year. Although it is less than a year, it has been more than half a year."

"It's really not easy to endure the hardships for half a year."

The King of Yue looked up at Meng Qing, then at Liu Bo, and asked suspiciously, "Uncle Meng, Uncle Jiu, do you want to chase me away?"

Liu Bo stepped forward, pulled his sleeve, and said with a smile: "Do you still want to stay in the army for the rest of your life?"

His Royal Highness the King of Yue raised his head and said, "At least drive all these Khitans out of the pass, or kill them all before I leave the barracks!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Bo looked at Meng Qing, and then his eyes flashed.

The Second Prince's temperament and character are very similar to those of the Emperor, but he seems to be even more aggressive and ruthless than the Emperor.

However, the second emperor after the founding emperor does not necessarily need a martial emperor.

These thoughts only flashed through Liu Bo's mind for a moment before he threw them out of his mind. He looked at Li Zheng and said with a smile, "His Majesty is in Jinling and sent me a letter asking me to bring Your Highness to Jinling to celebrate the New Year with His Majesty."

"Your Highness, are you going?"

Li Zheng is not afraid of anyone, but he dare not not be afraid of his father. In addition to the majesty of his father as a king, more importantly, he is far inferior to his father in terms of martial arts.

So, the Second Prince stood in the big tent, scratching his head, somewhat at a loss. Duke Ying smiled and said, "Your Highness, it is already the twelfth month, and the entire Youyan and Liaodong are already freezing cold. We cannot start a large-scale war for at least three months. If we want to fight again, we have to wait until the beginning of next spring."

"How about this, you come with me to Nanjing first, and when you get there and meet His Majesty, you can return to serve under General Meng in the spring of next year and join the army to fight."

Hearing this, the Second Prince nodded and said yes. He looked up at Meng Qing and said, "Uncle Meng, based on my merits, I should be promoted to captain right away. Before I leave, give me this promotion."

"I'll go to my dad's place and look more glorious."

General Meng smiled in silence and nodded, saying, "Okay, okay, you can go back now. I will promote you to the rank of captain of the scout battalion tomorrow."

Li Zheng then smiled, bowed his head to the two elders, and took the fourth son of the Su family and left the central military tent.

About four or five days later, Liu Bo, with a group of about a hundred people, led the second prince Li Zheng, the fourth son of the Su family, and several important figures from the Nine Departments, and rode south to Jinling.

Because they were in a hurry, women and children could hardly walk, so when they arrived in Hebei Road, he could only leave the women and children of his Khitan tribe in Hebei Road temporarily, while he himself rushed to Jinling with His Royal Highness the King of Yue.

They traveled all the way until the end of the year, and when there were still a few days before the New Year, they finally arrived in Jinling City. After entering the city, Liu Bo first took the group to find an inn to wash up and have a good night's sleep. Early the next morning, he led Li Zheng and Su Zhan all the way to the Jinling Imperial City.

As the New Year is approaching and His Majesty the Emperor is visiting the old palace in person, the entire palace is decorated with lights and is very lively.

Liu Bo had a special status, and he was bringing the prince with him, so as soon as he entered the palace, the eunuch Gu Chang came out to greet him personally. After seeing Liu Bo, Gu Chang bowed his head and called him "Duke".

After seeing Li Zheng, Gu Chang knelt down and kowtowed: "I am Gu Chang, your servant, and I pay my respects to the prince."

Li Zheng bent down, helped Eunuch Gu up, and asked, "Is my father okay?"

Gu Chang quickly said, "Your Majesty, everything is fine."

"We know that your highness and the Duke of England will arrive today, and we are already waiting for you two."

Li Zheng looked back at Liu Bo, took a deep breath, and said, "Okay, then you lead the way."

"Yes."

Gu Chang led the way, and Liu Bo, Li Zheng and Su Zhan followed behind him.

His Royal Highness the King of Yue pulled Liu Bo's sleeve and whispered, "Uncle Jiu, when I meet my father later, please help me cover up."

"I can't let him know that I was taking risks on the battlefield..."

Liu Bo turned his head and glanced at Li Zheng, then said in silence: "Your Highness, in this Tang Dynasty, I'm afraid nothing can be hidden from Your Majesty."

"Don't expect to cover it up."

As they were talking, Gu Chang had already brought them to the door of the emperor's study. When they reached the door, Gu Chang stopped and invited them in.

Liu Bo had no psychological burden and strode in. The two juniors followed him carefully into the study.

After entering, Liu Bo bowed and saluted with great openness, while Li Zheng and Su Zhan only saw a figure and had not yet seen the emperor's face clearly, so they knelt down with a plop and kowtowed.

"My son, I pay my respects to my father."

"I pay my respects to Your Majesty."

His Majesty the Emperor was looking through a map of Liaodong at this time. After hearing the voice, he looked up at Liu Bo, waved at him, and said with a smile: "Come, come, come."

Liu Bo took a few steps closer and walked in front of the emperor. The emperor patted him on the shoulder and said with a smile: "I heard that you brought back three or four women and several children from outside the Great Wall."

"You are really good, kid."

Emperor Li laughed and said, "If I give you a few more years, I'm afraid the Wugu tribe will have to change its name."

The Duke of England touched his nose and said helplessly: "I am loyal to my country, and I have no choice but to do this."

"If Your Majesty had met those Khitan women, you would have known how loyal I am."

The emperor smiled silently, then looked at the two juniors kneeling on the ground, and the smile on his face faded.

"It really made a big splash."

"Captain Li."

(End of this chapter)