A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Starting from the Village Chief

Chapter 604 Declaring an Edict to Seize Power
The sun rose high in the sky.

The sun shines on Taiyuan, the Dragon City, which has a circumference of twenty-seven li.

On the west gate tower,
King Li Shenfu of Xiangyi had been standing on the city wall for half the night.
Several riders galloped in from the southwest.

The scouts sent out brought back news.

The good news is that Li Yi indeed led his troops to launch a surprise attack on Jieli's camp in Jinci last night. The bad news is that the people who came to the city last night to mobilize troops were not fake.

"Yesterday, King Wu'an led five thousand elite cavalry, making a 160-li raid in a single day and night, and decisively defeated Jieli's army at Jinci..."

"What was the result?" Li Shenfu asked anxiously.

"The Turkic army was routed, and Jieli even abandoned his wolf-head banner. The Turkic Khagan, along with more than a dozen Turkic special agents, Sijin, and Dagan, were captured."

Wu'an killed over a thousand enemy soldiers, captured over three thousand, and seized countless warhorses, livestock, and other valuables.

"Right now, the Prince of Wu'an is leading his army to Taiyuan City."

Li Shenfu waved his hand, signaling the knight to go and rest.

Touching the battlements,

Li Shenfu couldn't help but sigh inwardly, this was truly unexpected.

It was just a moment of reverie.
He then summoned his personal guards and ordered them to inform the Duke of Peng and the Duke of Xihe to accompany him out of the city to welcome Li Sikong's triumphant return.

Wang Junkuo, the governor of Daizhou, greeted them at the city gate.

"Your Highness, what is your opinion on the Battle of Jinci last night?"

Li Shenfu glanced at the Daizhou governor, who had completely lost Daizhou.

"The King of Wu'an has won a great victory at Jinci Temple, so we should naturally open the city gates to welcome him."

Wang Junkuo was not satisfied with the result. "Your Highness, what the people who came last night said, is it true? The court appointed Li Yi as the Deputy Marshal of Hedong, the Grand General of Bingzhou, and the Military Commander of Bingzhou Road?"

Li Shenfu adjusted the jade-hilted sword on his belt and calmly said, "Nothing is impossible."

"Even if the imperial court appoints the Prince of Qin as commander-in-chief of Hedong and Li Yi as his deputy, the Duke of Xin and the Prince of Xiangwu are currently negotiating peace with Jieli."
"Wouldn't it be inappropriate for Li Yi to send troops to attack the Khan's camp?"

Whether it was appropriate or not is for the court to judge; Li Shenfu has no intention of commenting here.

Under the morning sun,
The Tang cavalry, victorious from the Jinci victory, appeared outside the city, raising their red flags high.

They hadn't even had time to wipe the blood off their armor.

Everyone was exhausted and travel-worn, yet full of energy.

Countless heads, prisoners of war, warhorses, cattle, sheep, camels and other captured supplies.

Jieli's wolf-head banner, golden wolf tent, and even his golden wolf armor were all displayed in the triumphant procession.

Li Shenfu looked at the scene.
I couldn't help but be amazed.

Regardless of whether Li Yi launched this attack without authorization, he certainly won spectacularly.

I straightened my robes.

Li Shenfu led the way and went to greet them.

"Welcome back victorious, General Sikong!"

Li Yi dismounted.
“Uncle of Xiangyi, I have been appointed by imperial decree as the Deputy Marshal of the Hedong Campaign, the Grand General and Governor of Bingzhou, and the General Commander of the Bingzhou Road Army.”

Yesterday, someone sent troops to deliver orders and mobilize troops.
"Why does the Prince of Xiangyi disobey the order?"

Yuchi Gong, Qin Shubao, Cheng Yaojin, Luo Shixin, Duan Zhixuan, and other valiant generals also dismounted and came over.
All of them were murderous.

Li Shenfu smiled wryly.
"Please forgive us, but last night was dark and windy, and we were worried that the visitors might be Turks in disguise, making it difficult to distinguish the real from the fake."
"I dared not trust it too easily, and to prevent the fall of Taiyuan, I did not send troops just now."

Li Yi had a stern face.
"Fortunately, the five thousand soldiers fought bravely, and we won last night's battle. If there had been even the slightest mishap last night, the King of Xiangyi and the generals in the city would have had to bear all the consequences."

Wang Junkuo stood behind Li Shenfu and said, "The court sent Xiangwu King and Xin Guogong to negotiate peace with the Turks. Li Sikong launched a surprise attack. I'm afraid this was an unauthorized attack. If anyone is to blame, it should be the court."

Li Yi merely glanced at him.

"Uncle King of Xiangyi, and all the officials and generals of Taiyuan City, I now formally read out the imperial edict to you."

From this moment forward,
I, Li Yi, have assumed the positions of Grand General and Governor of Bingzhou, and concurrently serve as Left Vice Minister of the Grand Secretariat of Shaanxi East Circuit, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Hedong Circuit Army, and Grand General of the Bingzhou Circuit Army. All military commanders of Bingzhou are under my command.

"Li Shenfu, the Prince of Xiangyi, has been transferred to the position of Grand General of Youzhou."

"Li Daoxuan, the Prince of Huaiyang, took office as the Governor-General of Daizhou, while Wang Junkuo, the former Governor-General of Daizhou, was reassigned as the Chief Administrator of the Jingzhou Governor-General's Office."

"Dou Jing was appointed Chief Secretary of the Bingzhou Grand General's Office, and Zhang Liang was appointed Military Advisor of the Bingzhou Grand General's Office..."

Li Yi publicly read the imperial edict to the officials of Taiyuan.

He took over the military and political power of Bingzhou.

The troops in Bingzhou City did not come out of the city to provide support last night. Now they are all under Li Yi's command. The generals looked at Li Yi and felt somewhat uneasy, and even secretly worried.

The troops entered the city.

Li Yi finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Yesterday, after a forced march of 160 li and a night of fighting, 5,000 men defeated Jieli's 20,000. Although the enemy was routed, Li Yi remained on edge the entire time.

The fear is that after Jieli escapes, he will immediately mobilize troops from the surrounding areas to launch a counterattack.

Fortunately, Jinci Temple is located near Taiyuan.

After cleaning up the battlefield, they retreated into the city. So far, they haven't seen any trace of the Turkic army, only some Turkic scouts near the battlefield.

It's only safe once we're in the city.

If it were really in the wild,

Their remaining 4,200 exhausted soldiers were entangled with the Turks and were likely to be wiped out.

Li Shimin's 20,000 men won't arrive so quickly.

This reveals a weakness in the Turkic raiding warfare style: they lacked the ability to fortify strongholds, but excelled in open field battles and plundering.
They were also accustomed to plundering rather than attacking fortified cities, and rarely attacked large cities during their southward campaigns.

Under normal circumstances, the Tang army would not dare to go out of the city to fight in the field.

But now, when the Tang army launches a surprise counterattack, these fortified cities allow the Tang army to quickly enter and gain safety, while the Turks can only look on with envy.

Entering the city,

Remove armor,

The eight hundred soldiers who died in battle all returned wrapped in their horses' hides.

In a short time, the army bought up all the coffins in the city.

They had no choice but to requisition craftsmen and hastily make coffins.

Many soldiers went straight to sleep after removing their armor.

Li Yi himself also gave some instructions and then slept soundly.

A forced march of 160 li, a fierce battle in one night,

Even the youngest person can't withstand it.

While outside the city, they held on with renewed vigor, but once inside the city and safe, they relaxed and could no longer sustain themselves. They woke up...
It was already night.

When she woke up, she felt sticky all over and her stomach was growling with hunger. Hearing the noise, Song Yi came in.

"Ah Lang is awake."

"Is there anything to eat? Get me something to eat." Li Yi got up. "I'm going to take a shower first."

On the night of September 16th, the moon was even rounder and brighter than the night before.

Li Yi took a refreshing bath in the courtyard. Song Yi had prepared hot water for him, and he felt completely relaxed after the bath.

Song Yi brought him clean clothes. "The King of Xiangyi originally planned to hold a banquet to celebrate his victory tonight, but since you were all asleep, he didn't."

"Chief Steward Qin and Chief Steward Luo are both up early and have taken over the city's defenses."

Li Yi changed his clothes and quickly ate his meal.

Song Yi had prepared food for him: mutton soup, cleaver noodles, and a roast chicken.

He was so hungry that Li Yi wolfed down his food.

"Have you all prepared dinner for the brothers?"

"Everything is arranged. There is stewed horse meat and millet rice, and mutton soup and millet porridge for the wounded soldiers."

"The wounded soldiers were also admitted to the sick children's camp, where doctors were arranged to treat them and servants to care for them."

Li Yi finally finished eating.

"Where are the Turks?"

"At dusk, some light Turkic cavalry appeared outside Taiyuan City, but no large troops appeared. It is estimated that the Turks are now afraid of Alang's reputation."

"Where are the King of Qin's troops?"

"When it got dark, Qin King's troops came and said that Qin King already knew that Alang had defeated Jieli at Jinci last night. Therefore, Qin King camped in Taigu today and did not rush to Taiyuan for the time being."

Li Yi touched his bloated belly, realizing he had eaten a bit too much.

The main objectives of this operation have been achieved.
Therefore, it is now necessary to play it safe and not be too reckless, lest we be caught off guard by a counterattack.

Li Yi moved to Taiyuan City to rest and recuperate, while Li Shimin moved to Taigu City to rest and recuperate. The two cities are 120 li apart as the crow flies.

Not far,

Not exactly close.

A day's march is enough for a fast-moving army, or two days for a slower one.

Even now, there are still many Turkic troops around Taiyuan. Of Jieli's 20,000 troops who were routed, even after accounting for the 5,000 captured and killed, there are still 15,000 left.

Therefore, there were at least 95,000 Turkic troops around Taiyuan.

This number still gives them the potential to turn the tide.

You have to be careful.

If they become blindly arrogant, given the high mobility of the Turkic cavalry, they could be ambushed in the open, which would be dangerous.

When it's time to charge, you have to charge.
When it's time to be cautious, we should remain cautious.

"Ah Lang, Jieli escaped this time, he will definitely raise an army to retaliate, won't he?"

"Are we still afraid of Jieli's retaliation?"

Now it's Jieli who's in a hurry. Although Li Yi's surprise attack on Jinci didn't capture Jieli alive, he only captured and killed a little over five thousand.
But this slap

This completely destroyed the prestige that Jieli Khan had built up since his ascension to the throne.

He had 100,000 men in Taiyuan, with 20,000 troops in his main camp, yet Li Yi wiped out his entire camp with only 5,000 cavalry. They even destroyed his golden wolf banner, golden wolf tent, and golden wolf armor.

And Princess Khotoun Yicheng was also lost.

This is utterly shameful.

What right does he have to extort money from the Tang Dynasty?

If he wanted to regain face, then war was the way to go. But Li Yi was stationed in Taiyuan, and Li Shimin was stationed in Taigu.

The pro-war faction is now in charge of the war situation in Hedong.

Tens of thousands more elite Tang troops were added.

It won't be so easy for Jieli to gain an advantage again.

On the battlefield, Jieli lost face.

That would make it even harder for him to get back on the negotiating table.

Li Shimin was not like Li Jiancheng; he wouldn't be so afraid of the Turks.

Who would fear a defeated opponent?

He would not allow his defeated subordinates to gain an advantage.

Just woke up, and after eating and drinking my fill,

Li Yi was no longer sleepy.

The moonlight is perfect.

So he simply put on a robe and had Song Yi lead his personal guards to begin inspecting the city's defenses.

On the city wall, they encountered Qin Shubao, Cheng Yaojin, Luo Shixin, and others who were also unable to sleep, while Yuchi Gong, Duan Zhixuan, and others took turns resting.

"There are quite a few Turkic cavalrymen outside the city, coming and going. It seems that Jieli is still not giving up," Qin Shubao said to Li Yi with a smile.

Luo Shixin said, "I have already sent out scout cavalry to scout. If we have the chance, we'll take them down again."

Since Jieli is still not convinced, then we'll keep fighting until he does!

He was already a veteran of many battles, and last night's battle only increased everyone's confidence in the Turks.

Cheng Yaojin crossed his arms and said, "Now that we've eaten and drunk our fill and have nothing to do, I'd actually like Jieli to attack. We attacked him last night, so tonight it's his turn to attack."

Luo Shixin said disdainfully, "Do you think Jieli is stupid? The city of Taiyuan is only twenty-seven li in circumference. Even if he sends a hundred thousand men to attack Taiyuan at night, it will be useless."

"We'll have to go out of the city to find him."

Li Yi gazed at the bright moon in the sky.

I wonder what Li Yuan is thinking in the Taiji Palace of Chang'an under this bright moon, and what his reaction will be when he receives news of the great victory at Jinci a few days later.

Therefore, the imperial edict was changed, and Li Shimin was no longer summoned south, nor was the peace treaty with Jieli rushed.

Or do they still insist on immediate peace talks with the Turks?

And what would Li Jiancheng, the crown prince of Jingzhou, think if he heard the news of this great victory?
future,

It's still a bit puzzling.

(End of this chapter)