Li Chengqian of the Tang Dynasty: Please say long live His Majesty

Chapter 120 The Emperor Returns to the Capital, the Crown Prince Has a Daughter Named Fuchang (First Update)
Winter season, southern foot of Yinshan Mountain.

More than thirty scouts stopped silently in the shadows, drinking cold water, eating dry food, and replenishing their strength.

The war horses were eating hay and drinking water in the mountains nearby.

Li Dejian, the chief officer of Lanzhou, held a topographic map in his hand, looked at the Yinshan Mountains in front of him, and estimated something in his mind.

It is now the sixth day of November, and almost three months have passed since the Xueyantuo sent out 200,000 troops to attack the Turkic tribes.

During these months, the emperor appointed Li Ji, the Minister of War, as the commander-in-chief of the Shuozhou Road, with 60,000 soldiers and 1,200 cavalry, stationed in Yufang.

Zhang Jian, the governor of Yingzhou, led his cavalry and the Xi, Khitan and other tribes to break through the eastern border of the Xueyantuo.

Li Daliang, the General of the Left Guard, was the commander-in-chief of the Lingzhou Road army, leading 40,000 soldiers and 5,000 cavalry, and stationed in Lingwu.

General Zhang Shigui of the Right Tunwei Army led 17,000 soldiers and served as the commander-in-chief of the Qingzhou Road Army, and left Yunzhong.

Li Xiyu, the governor of Liangzhou, is the commander-in-chief of the Liangzhou Road. Going west, Li Dejian is now under Li Xiyu's command.

Or to be more precise, Li Dejian came into Li Xiyu's sight when he was leaving Lanzhou and heading to the grassland for reconnaissance on the orders of the crown prince.

Li Jing's eldest son and the crown prince's confidant.

It would be strange if Li Xiyu would let such a person go.

The Tang Dynasty has only been established for a few years, and even the son of a duke still has to fight on the front lines of the battlefield.

Li Xiyu raised his head and looked forward, his eyes narrowed slightly.

The Xueyantuo marched directly from the northern desert to the southern desert. After traveling thousands of miles, their horses were exhausted and their supplies were insufficient.

In the art of war, one should advance quickly when the situation is advantageous and retreat quickly when the situation is disadvantageous.

Now that Ashina Simo has retreated to the Great Wall, the Xueyantuo cannot catch him off guard and can be defeated by a hasty attack. Under the strict guard of the Tang Dynasty, if he does not retreat quickly, the situation has become a dilemma.

Especially last month, when the grass and trees turned yellow, the emperor ordered the Tang army in various places to attack from time to time, either to burn the dry grass or to raid and burn the stored food.

The Xueyantuo people had long been anxious and wanted to retreat, but they were unwilling to give up because they had gained nothing, so they hesitated and paused.

In addition, the Tang army attacked the grassland from time to time and entangled with each other. The Xueyantuo could not retreat even if they wanted to.

Li Dejian knew even more that under Li Ji's planning, all the Tang army were waiting.

If the Xueyantuo people dared to take a step back, the entire Tang army behind the Great Wall would rush out and defeat the enemy in one blow.

A warhorse suddenly came galloping from a distance. After the cavalry approached, it quickly slowed down and came to Li Dejian's side. It bowed seriously and said, "Chief Secretary, there is a camp on the north side of Yinshan Mountain, guarded by 300 Xueyantuo cavalry."

"Hmm!" Li Dejian nodded indifferently. He turned to glance at the thirty-odd elite cavalrymen behind him, then asked in a low voice, "What's the exact location? What's the terrain like? What's the wind direction like? How are the soldiers distributed? How are the provisions arranged?"

"Here!" The scout quickly recounted everything he had discovered.

……

The flames rose rapidly and the fighting began to rage.

"Kill, kill, kill!"

Li Dejian, wearing full black armor, led more than 30 cavalrymen under his command and charged directly into the Xueyantuo's granary.

While setting fire, they quickly killed every Xueyantuo soldier in the granary.

With a "clang", the long spear in Li Dejian's hand and the scimitar in the Xueyantuo general's hand collided fiercely. The next moment, with a "bang", the scimitar in the Xueyantuo general's hand broke instantly.

Before the Xueyantuo general could react, the long spear stabbed forward and pierced the enemy's throat in an instant.

The next moment, Li Dejian continued killing despite the blood rushing towards him.

Under the cover of night, more than 30 cavalrymen completely broke through the granary in a very short time.

Li Dejian stopped his horse and reined in his gun, looking at the Xueyantuo cavalry fleeing in all directions, sneered lightly, and then gathered all the cavalry under his command.

At this moment, a frantic warhorse rushed over from behind, shouting, "Chief, Chief, the Xueyantuo have retreated. The army has already rushed out of the Great Wall and is charging straight towards the grassland."

Li Dejian turned abruptly and looked at the scout who had communicated. The next moment, he had already raised his spear and shouted, "Brothers, the army has already charged in. If we don't charge, we won't get any of the remaining military merits."

"Kill, kill, kill!" More than 30 soldiers raised their spears and shouted.

"Kill!" Li Dejian squeezed his legs against the horse's belly and rushed forward madly.

More than thirty cavalrymen followed suit and rushed out together.

A fine snowstorm suddenly came from the north, but at this time Li Dejian's eyes were full of joy.

It seemed that the heavy snow was the greatest blessing for him.

Soon, more than thirty riders charged into the wind and snow, disappearing without a trace.

And after more than ten days, these thirty-odd riders actually emerged from the wind and snow intact.

But this time, each of their horses had more than a dozen heads, and Li Dejian even put a head with a full beard and a green jade on its forehead on the horse's head.

The face in that mind was full of surprise and disbelief.

There was not even time to panic.

...Chang'an, Chunming Gate.

The winter months are extremely cold and the ice and snow have not melted yet.

The emperor's carriage slowly stopped.

Li Chengqian, Wei Zheng, Hou Junji, Lu Chengqing, Cen Wenben, Cui Renshi, Wen Wuyin, Cui Dunli, Zheng Rentai, Su Dingfang and others all bowed to welcome them.

The curtain of the imperial carriage was lifted, and everyone immediately bowed and said, "Your Majesty, we pay our respects to you."

"Stand up," the emperor's voice echoed from the carriage. "Thank you all for your hard work in collecting food, fodder, and clothing for this expedition."

"It is our responsibility to do this." The ministers bowed again.

This time, the emperor sent troops to the north to attack the Xueyantuo. Except for Yingzhou, which was under the responsibility of Hebei Province, and Shuozhou, which was under the responsibility of Bingzhou, the logistics of the army attacking from Lingzhou, Qingzhou, Liangzhou and other places were all dispatched and supplied by Chang'an. Li Chengqian, Wei Zheng, Hou Junji and others all contributed their efforts.

In addition, the Left Guard General Li Daliang went on an expedition as the commander-in-chief of the Lingzhou Road Army, and all military affairs and defenses in Chang'an were borne by Zheng Rentai and Su Dingfang.

The army is going to war, and Chang'an is under-guarded. If someone causes unrest at this time, there will be a big chaos.

But fortunately, everything ended smoothly.

"Prime Minister Wei and the Crown Prince, please come up." The emperor said calmly. Li Chengqian and Wei Zheng looked at each other, and then they both boarded the imperial carriage.

Hou Junji and others joined the ministers and together they escorted the emperor back to the palace.

The emperor looked at Li Chengqian, who looked much thinner, nodded with satisfaction, and said, "Your Highness has done well. Please take a seat."

"Thank you, father." Li Chengqian bowed and sat down. Wei Zheng sitting opposite him sat down without the emperor saying anything.

"What's the news from the battlefield?" Li Shimin turned and looked at Wei Zheng. He had come all the way from Luoyang for several days, and the news from the battlefield was a little slow.

"Ever since the battle of Nuozhenshui last month, when Li Ji defeated Datushe's 30,000 cavalry with 6,000 elite cavalry, all the armies have been pursuing him bravely. Up to now, we have beheaded over 10,000 people and captured 50,000. During the heavy snow, Datushe escaped and Xue Wanche was unable to catch up with him. However, many Xueyantuo people and animals froze to death in this heavy snow." Wei Zheng suppressed his excitement under his calm expression.

In this battle, the Tang Dynasty mobilized 120,000 troops from inside and outside the country, and the Xueyantuo mobilized 200,000 troops from the Tongluo, Pugu, Huihe, Mohe and other tribes. In the end, the Tang Dynasty won the battle. The Xueyantuo tribes inside and outside the country suffered a loss of 60,000 troops on the battlefield, and there were also 30,000 to 50,000 others who fled on the road.

After this battle, Xueyantuo's reputation in Mobei was greatly reduced, and it was almost impossible to organize such a force again.

At least in the next three to five years, it is basically impossible.

What satisfied Wei Zheng the most was that the army would only be at war for three months, with the troops stationed inside the Great Wall for the first two months.

But when Li Ji defeated Datu She's 30,000 cavalry with 6,000 elite cavalry at the Battle of Nuozhen River, all the soldiers of the Tang Dynasty immediately rushed out of the Great Wall and pursued the enemy to the north. In this battle, the loss of food and grass of the Tang Dynasty was limited.

After World War I, all the spoils of war on the battlefield, including the tens of thousands of war horses, were enough to cover all the expenses of the war.

There are also other spoils of war on the battlefield, rewards for soldiers' military merits, everything is enough.

And there is still a lot left.

As for the future, merchants from the Tang Dynasty will be able to travel through Mobei, and the profits from here and there will be terrifyingly huge.

……

After listening to Wei Zheng's detailed account, Li Shimin nodded in satisfaction and said, "It's good that we didn't lose this battle. After the Battle of Gaochang, the morale of the army has always been a little low, and now it has finally been fully vented."

Li Chengqian immediately looked at the emperor in surprise. Are there such considerations here?
"Everything, both internal and external, requires careful consideration." Li Shimin looked at the surprised Li Chengqian, smiled, and said, "The Crown Prince still has a lot to learn in the future."

"I feel ashamed." Li Chengqian bowed slightly, speaking in an amazed tone.

"What a pity that Datushe escaped, otherwise this battle would have been a complete success." The emperor couldn't help but sigh.

Datushe was the eldest son of Xueyantuo Zhenzhubijia Khan Yinan.

"Oh, right." The emperor turned to look at Li Chengqian and asked, "I heard that Li Jing's son, Li Dejian, led over thirty cavalrymen into the depths of the grasslands. There has been no news since."

"Yes," Li Chengqian said carefully, "Li Dejian simply took advantage of the Xueyantuo's defeat to charge in. Compared to Wu'an County Duke Xue Wanche leading 600 cavalry to charge into the Xueyantuo's rear, or Duke Ying leading 6,000 cavalry to charge into 30,000 enemy troops, it's a far cry."

"Why, are you afraid something might happen to him?" The emperor laughed, then shook his head and said, "Look, Li Jing himself isn't afraid, so why should you be afraid?"

Li Dejian was the eldest son of Li Jing, Duke of Wei.

Today the emperor returned to the capital, but Li Jing didn't even come out to greet him, just like when the emperor was on his eastern tour to Luoyang, he didn't even come out to see him off.

Li Jing's heart was terrifyingly steady.

"By the way, you reported that the Crown Princess gave birth to a daughter." Li Shimin looked at Li Chengqian curiously.

"Yes!" Li Chengqian smiled and said gently, "It was just the full moon last month, and it happened that the North won a great victory, so I gave him the nickname Fuchang'er."

"Fuchang Fuchang, both blessed and prosperous." The emperor repeated the name, and finally nodded and said, "Yes, you chose a good name. Let's go to the East Palace and meet my eldest granddaughter."

Although the emperor had several grandsons, his granddaughter was the first one for him.

Wei Zheng on the side was slightly surprised.

Originally, all the officials in Chang'an were disappointed that the Crown Princess did not give birth to a grandson here, but unexpectedly, the Crown Prince was extremely happy.

Now it seems that the emperor is the same.

Is it true that the younger grandson is not as good as the eldest granddaughter?
(End of this chapter)