The Leisurely Life of the Prince of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 347 Liaoshui War
Liu Junang stared at this person blankly for a long time and was speechless. How did this guy get here?
When he looked again, the corner of his mouth twitched again. Why was the armor worn by the person in front of him so dazzling?

Xue Rengui held the human head in his hand, and the warhorse under him neighed and raised its hooves.

The remaining Goguryeo soldiers had not yet come to their senses when they saw how one of their generals was killed in a single encounter.

The sound of war horses' hooves was heard from the rear, and more Tang troops were rushing over.

Wang Xuandu cursed in his heart that Xue Rengui was like a madman, as he took so long to catch up with him. This guy charged into the enemy camp alone. If anything happened to him, how would he explain to General Zhang Shigui in the rear?

Wang Xuandu shouted, "Kill all the Korean dogs!"

Seeing the situation, the remaining Goguryeo soldiers fled in all directions.

Liu Jun'ang finally breathed a sigh of relief, and clasped his fists towards Xue Rengui with great gratitude, saying, "Thank you, General, for saving me. I am Captain Liu Jun'ang."

Xue Rengui raised his head and said: "You are very good. My Tang army has never retreated."

In the rear, Liu Renyuan's team also followed.

Wang Xuandu turned his head and looked. This guy always looked cool, and he marched and fought slowly and leisurely.

The Goguryeo soldiers in front of them had already retreated, and the Tang army here was not in a hurry to catch up with them because Qibi Heli and Xue Wanbei were clearing out the troops around Anshi City.

According to the military's deployment, there is no rush to capture Anshi City.
Even if the army is marching in a hurry, it must not forget the general's orders or violate military discipline when fighting.

According to the arrangement of Duke Ying and Prince Jiangxia, Duke Ying's army crossed the Liao River in the north and headed straight for Xuantu City.

Liu Renyuan said with a straight face: "According to the battle report just delivered, there is a 40,000-man Goguryeo army in the north rushing to support Anshi City, and in the east, there are also Goguryeo generals Gao Yanshou and Gao Huizhen, who are leading a 150,000-man army to come to support."

Xue Rengui grinned and said loudly: "Come on, it's good. We will kill as many as you can. The general has a brilliant plan!"

The Tang army suddenly crossed the Liao River and caught Goguryeo off guard.

Yeon Gaesomun cared a lot about Anshi City. If Anshi City was captured, the western gate of Goguryeo would be opened. The Tang army would occupy Anshi City and control the Liao River, and the Tang army would continue to invade Goguryeo territory.

The strategy set by Duke Ying was to besiege the city of Anshi without attacking it, in order to attract reinforcements from Goguryeo in the rear.

In terms of military tactics and strategies, the Tang army did not take the Goguryeo people seriously at all.

Pretend to besiege Anshi City and surround it. This time, Ying Gong's real intention is to ambush the Goguryeo soldiers who come to support with the three armies of Wang Xuandu, Xue Rengui and Liu Renyuan.

When Goguryeo thought that the Tang army was going to take Anshi City.

In fact, the real purpose of the Tang army was to defeat the Goguryeo troops who came to rescue Anshi City.

Wang Xuandu cursed, "Are there really 150,000 troops? Didn't Yang Guang kill them all back then?"

Liu Renyuan left with a stern face, ignoring Wang Xuandu's shouting and cursing.

Xue Rengui also left with him.

Wang Xuandu was still standing there, yelling and cursing, “Assholes, no matter how many come, I’ll kill them all, these bastards…”

When Liu Renyuan looked back, he saw Wang Xuandu following behind him, cursing, and asked, "Has this guy always been like this?"

Xue Rengui shook his head and said, "Not familiar."

Liu Renyuan nodded, "Yes."

Wang Xuandu cursed at the Goguryeo people who were fleeing in panic in the distance, "You bastards, you bastards!"

Liu Renyuan felt a little annoyed and said, "Let's go."

Xue Rengui nodded and said, "Okay."

On the east bank of the Liao River, Duke Ying and Li Daozon led 30,000 troops to cross the Liao River in the north and attack Xuantu City directly.

Qibi Heli and Xue Wanbei surrounded the city of Anshi with 5,000 men.

Liu Renyuan, Xue Rengui, and Wang Xuandu each led more than a thousand soldiers and horses to intercept the reinforcements heading south from Xuantu City to Anshi City.

At night, the three armies had only about 4,000 soldiers in total.

Wang Xuandu scratched his head, looked at the brothers behind him, and said, "Hide well and wait for orders."

A thousand soldiers were divided into several teams and hid in the woods.

Wang Xuandu warned again: "I heard that there are many ferocious beasts in this forest, be careful and don't get separated."

After giving these instructions, Wang Xuandu climbed up a tree, stood on a branch and stared into the distance.

The moon is very bright tonight.

In the darkness of night, a group of Goguryeo soldiers and Mohe people were marching towards Anshi City.

The Mohe people wore long feathers on their heads and armor made of animal skins, wood and rattan. When the group walked into the forest, the leader of the Mohe people had a dispute with the general of Goguryeo.

The Mohe people were unwilling to enter the forest as they thought there was an ambush and wanted to take a detour.

The two sides were arguing when they heard the sound of war horses coming from behind.

"It's the Tang army!" the Goguryeo people in the rear shouted.

The Goguryeo general shouted, "Form a battle array."

But the voices were soon drowned out by chaotic shouts, and arrows continued to be shot from the Tang army in the rear.

On a high ground in the forest, Liu Renyuan rode on horseback, looking calm and composed, watching the Goguryeo soldiers below fall into chaos and their torches flickering.

Many people have already walked into the mountains and forests.

Liu Renyuan whispered, "You don't want to go into the mountains? Then I'll drive you in. It's not up to you whether to go in or not."

Standing on the tree trunk, Wang Xuandu saw torches appearing in the forest and heard the unique shouts of Goguryeo.

Wang Xuandu suddenly smiled, feeling confident, and whistled.

The soldiers and horses around scattered in all directions upon hearing the noise, and the piles of branches and dead leaves were set on fire. In this dry summer, the flames rose with the wind.

As the wildfire began to spread, Wang Xuandu ordered again: "Prepare bows and arrows, and capture anyone who escapes."

Downwind, Xue Rengui was preparing to lead his troops here, riding a warhorse with a long spear in hand, looking at the fire in the distance, and said loudly: "The Goguryeo soldiers are coming."

The wildfire was growing bigger and bigger, and from a distance, it looked like a line of fire was spreading across the valley.

Wang Xuandu was still upwind, staring at the forest in front of him but didn't see anyone coming out.

A scout came with a report, "General, General Xue's troops have entered the mountains!"

"What did you say?" Wang Xuandu asked in surprise, "Really?"

"really."

Wang Xuandu took off his helmet and scratched his forehead vigorously, saying, "This Xue Rengui is really unreasonable."

When the sky just got bright, the fire had almost burned down the valley. Sparks could be seen from time to time among the trees, and thick smoke was floating in the forest.

Wang Xuandu led his men into the forest and when they arrived at Xue Rengui's team, they saw the bodies of Goguryeo soldiers scattered all over the ground. Some were choked to death by the thick smoke, and some were killed.

Xue Rengui still stood in the team with his sword drawn. Although he looked a little embarrassed, countless corpses of Goguryeo and Mohe people lay at his feet.

There was also a large group of surrendered soldiers kneeling on the ground.

Liu Renyuan also came from the other end, leading a number of prisoners of war, with bloody human heads hanging on his horses' necks.

Walking along the road with these two powerful generals, Wang Xuandu felt somewhat lonely, mainly because these two were too powerful.

A big fire broke out one night and wiped out the Goguryeo reinforcements.

Wang Xuandu laughed and said, "Great! The two warriors defeated the 40,000 reinforcements from Goguryeo in just one night."

Liu Renyuan said with a straight face: "There are only about 20,000 people here, not 40,000. My soldiers killed more than 3,000 enemies and captured 6,000." Xue Rengui said: "Killed 6,000 enemies and captured 2,000."

Wang Xuance asked, "Why are there only so many troops? Didn't they say there would be 40,000 reinforcements?"

Liu Renyuan explained calmly, "It was Yinggong and his men who were attacking Xuantu City. They returned with reinforcements."

Wang Xuandu smiled awkwardly and said, "It's a great victory! The two warriors have made great contributions, but there are casualties among the brothers."

The forest was very quiet and neither general spoke a word.

Realizing that the atmosphere was not right, he added, "What's wrong? This is a big win."

Liu Renyuan rode on horseback, holding a long spear, and remained silent.

Xue Rengui's hand holding the halberd was trembling a little. He said through his teeth, "At the Yalu River, the Goguryeo people used the corpses of the former Sui soldiers to build a Jingguan. The Jingguan was dozens of miles long and contained tens of thousands of corpses."

Perhaps because they were too angry, the brothers around them all had stern faces, looking at the group of prisoners with murderous intent on their faces.

Wang Xuandu punched the tree trunk heavily, his face darkened, and he put away his usual playful expression and said in a deep voice: "How dare they!"

Liu Renyuan said, "It was Baili Xuanjiang who first told His Majesty about this. Now our scouts at the front have seen it with their own eyes, and they came back to report it."

“Ah!” Wang Xuandu roared, “Korean dogs! I will slaughter them.”

Jingguan is a building built with the corpses of enemies during war, or with soil and corpses.

It is a means to show off martial arts and intimidate the enemy.

This is not burying the bones, this is piling up the bones to expose them to wind and sun.

Liu Renyuan thrust the long spear into the abdomen of a Goguryeo soldier, then quickly pulled it out, and the soldier fell in a pool of blood.

A Tang army general killed people for no apparent reason, which frightened the surrendered soldiers around him.

Liu Renyuan said: "Leave some and kill them slowly."

"Here!"

To the west of the Liao River, the emperor's army finally arrived at Liaoxi County.

Li Shimin listened to the battle report from the east bank of the Liao River.

"Your Majesty, Lord Ying and the King of Jiangxia have taken Xuantu City and killed 50,000 enemies. Liu Renyuan, Xue Rengui, and Wang Xuandu led three armies with 3,000 soldiers to block the reinforcements from Goguryeo and killed more than 10,000 enemies. Qibi Heli and Xue Wanbei are still besieging Anshi City. Now the east bank of the Liao River has been completely taken."

"Hahaha!" Li Shimin suddenly laughed, "Great! They've already reported victory before I even reached the Liao River. They are truly the brave generals of the Tang Dynasty."

"Your Majesty, the Duke of Ying asked whether we should continue eastward now."

Li Shimin walked into the camp, sat down immediately and looked at the map in front of him.

Li Ke looked at the situation on the map. Duke Ying's strategy was actually very clear. He first ordered a large army to attract Goguryeo's attention on the south bank of the Liao River, and then cross the river on the north bank of the Liao River.

When Xue Wanbei and Qibi Heli besieged the city of Anshi, the city of Xuantu in the north sent support.

Duke Ying landed on the north bank and headed straight for Xuantu City.

It was because Xuantu City sent troops to provide support that Duke Ying found the opportunity to capture Xuantu City.

The Goguryeo generals were defeated by the Tang army's multi-pronged attacks, and a team of 30,000 soldiers even left Xuantu City to rush to the support of Anshi City.

When they looked back, they found that their house had been taken down by Ying Gong.

However, Liu Renyuan and Xue Rengui blocked the vanguard that came to support.

The current situation is that Anshi City is still under siege, and Xuantu City not only failed to rush to the south bank for support, but was also captured by the Tang army.

The remaining 30,000 troops could only flee eastward.

After taking control of Xuantu City and Anshi City, the east bank of the Liao River was under the control of the Tang army.

Under the military wisdom of the Tang people, the Goguryeo people seemed so vulnerable.

Li Shimin asked, "Dingfang, what do you think?"

Su Dingfang replied: "Your Majesty, Goguryeo still has a 150,000-man army led by Goguryeo generals Gao Yanshou and Gao Huizhen, and they are heading towards the Liao River."

Li Shimin looked at the map and said, "Now that they know Xuantu City has been lost, they will probably not march any further."

Su Dingfang nodded, fully agreeing with Your Majesty's opinion.

Li Shimin continued, "Has Zhang Liang's army not crossed the sea yet? Has it not reached Beisha City yet?"

"Your Majesty, they haven't arrived yet."

Li Shimin snorted coldly as if he had expected it.

It was already July, and autumn was about to begin. Li Ke remembered his brother's warning and said, "Father, it will be difficult to cross the river in October."

Li Shimin said in a deep voice: "Order the whole army to rest for three days and prepare to cross the river."

Su Dingfang said loudly: "Yes!"

The emperor's 30,000-strong army rested in Liaoxi County. Li Ke led his men on horseback to the Liaoshui River. Looking at the wide river and toward the opposite bank, he could see wisps of smoke and many villages that had been razed to the ground.

Some soldiers were already leading people to build a pontoon bridge in preparation for crossing the river. He remembered his royal brother's advice not to leave any regrets in this battle.

In mid-July, the emperor's army crossed the Liao River and took over the east bank of the Liao River. Anshi City, which had been besieged for more than a month, surrendered.

Li Ji, Li Daozon, Qibi Heli and Liu Renyuan were still the emperor's vanguards.

Qibi Heli was a Teler man, and he was always brave in battle.

"Report! Goguryeo soldiers have been spotted ahead, by the river."

"Okay! How many soldiers?"

"More than 10,000 people."

Qibi Heli picked up his long spear and was about to rush out. Xue Wanbei said, "Don't be impulsive."

"No problem!" Qibi Heli said, "My subordinates are all the bravest warriors, only 10,000 people."

On that day, Qibi Heli still led his troops to attack the Goguryeo army.

Unexpectedly, he was ambushed this time, and Xue Wanbei hurriedly brought another troop to rescue him.

Qibi Heli covered the wound on his waist and said, "I was careless."

"This is anti-virus wine. The army doesn't have much of it, so I'll give it to you first." After saying that, Xue Wanbei opened a small ceramic jar and poured the clear wine on his wound.

There was a hole in Qibi Heli's waist, but it should not be fatal.

After Xue Wanbei cleaned it, he sewed it up again.

"General, the Goguryeo soldiers are celebrating their victory!"

"What are you saying!" Qibi Heli said angrily, "What are they celebrating?"

"This……"

Without caring about the wound on his waist, Qibi Heli led the others and said, "Grandpa never suffered such humiliation during the battle in Tianshan. Even Yu Gushe dared not be so presumptuous in front of Grandpa!"

Xue Wanbei let out a long sigh.

The angry Qibi Heli mounted his warhorse and left the camp again without caring about his wounds.

(End of this chapter)