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

Chapter 450: Songzan's Killing Move, His Military Achievements in the Eyes of the Generals (Part )
In the hall, Zhang Shigui handed the urgent report to Du Fengju, then looked at the generals and said, "A large Tibetan army has invaded Hezhou. They are coming from the plateau along the Yellow River. The number of troops is unknown, and their purpose is unknown, but their vanguard has already headed towards Taozhou."

Hezhou and Taozhou are both south of Lanzhou. Once the Tubo army breaks out of Taozhou, the connection between Lanzhou and Chang'an may be cut off immediately.

"The Yellow River is rugged and difficult to navigate, and there are counties such as Guzhou in the middle. How did they come here quietly?" General Qu Fang of the Left Tunwei Guard could not help but look up and look towards the southwest.

Although nothing could be seen in the hall, the generals understood that he wanted to see the signal smoke from Kuzhou.

Once there is a war, smoke of war will rise in Guzhou.

but no.

"The Tibetan Guangjun," Li Dejian said, looking at the ministers. "Your Majesty once told me that under Songtsen's command, there is a special unit called the 'Guangjun'. The soldiers are exceptionally capable, and stealthily crossing into Kuzhou at night is not difficult, given the unique environment there."

Guzhou has both sides of the Yellow River. The Tang Dynasty only occupies the north bank, and the south bank is controlled by Tuyuhun. If Tuyuhun helps, with the special combat power of Guangjun, it will not be difficult to cross Guzhou and go down the Yellow River to Hezhou.

"The Guangjun is just a term." After a brief pause, Xi Junmai shook his head and said, "A more accurate term would be the Shadow Army. The Tibetan translation should be 'soldiers outside the sun'. I don't know who cut out the word 'non-sunlight' when telling Your Majesty, making it the Guangjun. In reality, it's the exact opposite."

The generals in the hall couldn't help but smile softly.

The emperor was wrong.

Liu Rengui spoke calmly at this time: "The General of the Central Army seems to know quite a bit about the Shadow Army. Why don't you tell us in detail?"

"Yes!" Xi Junmai's expression suddenly restrained. He realized that he almost broke a taboo.

"The Shadow Army, as its name suggests, hides behind the Zamp like a shadow. They rarely deploy, and even fewer people know about them." After a brief pause, Xi Junmai said, "Perhaps many people have known about them and seen them, but most of them died at their hands."

The look in the hall had become solemn.

Even the Qianniu Guards and Jinwu Guards might not be able to match such an army. Perhaps the only one that could completely overwhelm them is the Baiqi Division.

"The predecessor of the Shadow Army was a force established by Songtsen himself after the unification of Tubo. It was small but efficient. According to investigation, the number of people was between 10,000 and 20,000. They practiced various highland warfare tactics and ranger swordsmanship. At the same time, they also learned some strange and secret methods of Bon religion." After a slight pause, Xi Junmai looked at everyone.

Everyone's faces became solemn.

"Almost all members of the Shadow Army are drawn from the Goba tribe, one of the original Zhangzhung Twelve Rock Gangs. They are martial and warlike, fearless of death, and incredibly tough, with a wolf-like temperament." Xi Junmai shook his head slightly. "Perhaps it was this nature that led Songtsen to recruit all the young and strong men of the Goba tribe into the Shadow Army after he destroyed Zhangzhung. They were kept secret from the outside world, trained in secret, and only deployed on important missions."

Zhang Shigui nodded and said, "That's right. Your Majesty once said that this shadow army never reveals its true identity and moves swiftly. Once the battle is over, it disappears without a trace. Anyone who has seen them has been killed by them."

"But the news still got out." Li Dejian shook his head and said, "General Xi knows this, and so does Your Majesty. Perhaps they are not as strong as they say."

"The plateau has a small population and a vast territory. The tribe may have had a strong army, but its armaments are certainly scarce. Choosing the right time will make all this easy." Liu Rengui spoke from the rear, saying, "The Shadow Army may not be as powerful as the legends say, but it's definitely not weak."

"Yes!" All the generals in the hall nodded in agreement, their expressions relaxed.

"Of course, it's inevitable that these people are fearless and unafraid of death." Liu Rengui added, "So when facing them, you should use more crossbows and less close combat."

With these words, the expressions of the generals in the hall became solemn again.

A soldier who is fearless and brave is terrifying, especially when he is a barbarian warrior who has undergone rigorous training and is not weak to begin with.

On the battlefield, these people may just be targets if they are far away, but they can be deadly threats if they are close.

Zhang Shigui nodded and said, "Now that they are here, let's first tell us their number and purpose. With the power of Hezhou, I'm afraid it will be difficult to find out these things for the time being."

"It's not easy to descend from Hezhou via the plateau," Xi Junmai spoke first. "When the secret decree from His Majesty arrived last year, we began preparing various strategies, including one to ascend the plateau from Hezhou. However, after careful investigation, we discovered that the first section was already difficult and rugged, and the latter section was even more difficult. Furthermore, there was hostility from Tuyuhun Su and your tribe."

The Yellow River flows west of Hezhou, among the mountains of Guzhou. The river channel is rugged and narrow, but the real danger lies in the huge drop in the river channel.

The damage can be as light as a dozen feet or as heavy as a hundred feet.

From the plains to the plateau, the turbulent Yellow River washes away the mountains, the roads are rugged and rocky, and if you are not careful, you can lose your life.

"All of these can actually be overcome. It's nothing more than some casualties. But the real problem is that the food and fodder supply can't keep up." Xi Junmai shook his head and said, "Three to five hundred people is already the limit. If we go up more, we won't be able to come back."

The generals in the hall nodded in agreement, saying that food and fodder were the foundation of the army.

Xi Junmai thought for a moment and said, "But that's relative to going up to the plateau. Coming down will be much easier. Plus, it's winter now, and considering the time, there are probably about 2,000 people. After all, it's useless if there are fewer people."

"Four thousand!" Li Dejian interrupted, shaking his head. "The Shadow Army isn't just any ordinary army. If it were them, the number would probably be double."

Four thousand shadow soldiers suddenly appeared in Hezhou, and everyone felt a heavy weight.

"The urgent report said that their vanguard has already headed towards Taozhou. This means that they are going to encircle Lanzhou's rear." Zhang Shigui's expression became serious.

"Maybe only one." Xi Junmai bowed to Zhang Shigui and said, "General, their men may be able to get down from the plateau safely, but their horses are not. In fact, the only reason they were able to get down safely is probably because they sacrificed their horses. So I'm afraid that less than half of their war horses are left."

"Two thousand cavalrymen are encircling Lanzhou from behind, and another two thousand infantrymen should be heading towards Lanzhou along the Yellow River." Li Dejian raised his head, looking towards Shanzhou, and said solemnly, "Calculating the time, the enemy troops from Shanzhou will reach Lanzhou in three days. If at this time, the Shadow Army attacks from both the Yellow River and the rear of Lanzhou..."

"Hiss!" Everyone couldn't help but gasp.

There were tens of thousands of troops in front, and two thousand fierce enemy troops coming from the side and rear. If this had not been foreseen in advance and happened suddenly, the situation would have been absolutely critical.

And even now, it is a difficult task.

"We need people to meet the enemy." Zhang Shigui said, "First, send orders to Hezhou and Taozhou to close the city gates and gather the people to prevent these Shadow Army soldiers from getting supplies."

"Yes!" All the generals bowed in unison.

The Duke of Guo was indeed experienced and saw the biggest weakness of these shadow armies at a glance.

They were short of supplies. After traveling hundreds of miles down from the plateau, on a arduous and dangerous road, it would be a wonder if they had much left.

"These people's target is Lanzhou. Doing this will be in vain and ultimately prevent them from robbing the people." Lanzhou Governor Du Fengju nodded gratefully to Zhang Shigui.

"Yes!" Zhang Shigui nodded slightly, then said, "Let's talk about Taozhou first. Send two thousand Jinwu Guards cavalry to meet the attack. General Xin, you go."

Xin Liaoer stood up and said, "I will obey your orders."

"As for the Yellow River channel." Zhang Shigui looked up at the generals in the hall, and for a moment he didn't know who to call.

In order to go to war with Tubo, Lanzhou has set up an elaborate trap, and everyone present has his or her own responsibility.

It's not easy to pick out Xin Liaoer, and the others...

……

Liu Rengui was sitting in the back. At this moment, a figure stood up from his side, stepped forward and bowed, saying, "General, I am willing to go!"

Liu Rengui looked up and saw that it was Duan Baoxuan, a general of the Left Thousand Oxen Guard who was in his twenties.

Everyone was stunned.

Xi Junmai was the first to react and nodded, saying, "Brother Duan is from the Wuwei Duan family, and is a nephew of General Duan, the Duke of Bao. Your Majesty has favorably promoted him to General of the Left Thousand Oxen Guard... The Tibetans are currently marching along the Yellow River, so they have few cavalry and rely primarily on infantry. The Left Thousand Oxen Guard possesses exceptional individual strength and can handle the situation appropriately. I believe this is acceptable."

As he said this, Xi Junmai stood up facing Zhang Shigui.

Zhang Shigui looked at Duan Baoxuan, as if his old friend Duan Zhixuan appeared before him again.

Zhang Shigui and Duan Zhixuan were both veteran officials in the Prince of Qin's Palace, having fought side by side and served in the same palace for many years.

Especially at Xuanwu Gate, they went through life and death together.

Looking at Duan Baoxuan, Zhang Shigui felt a little emotional for a moment.

However, the war was dangerous, so Zhang Shigui turned to look at Liu Rengui beside Duan Baoxuan and asked, "What do you think, Mr. Liu?"

"I think it's possible." Liu Rengui stood up and bowed. "I think we can mobilize two thousand Right Thousand Oxen Guards and add one thousand Lanzhou soldiers. We also need three thousand crossbows and twenty thousand crossbow arrows. I can accompany them and ensure that not a single Tibetan Shadow Army soldier reaches the gates of Lanzhou."

Zhang Shigui looked surprised, but after carefully thinking about Liu Rengui's words, he realized that his real weakness lay in the three thousand crossbows.

The emperor began to rush to produce a large number of crossbows and crossbow arrows within half a year, almost tens of thousands of crossbows and more than 200,000 crossbow arrows, and even squeezed out the production of many long swords and long spears.

Now that Liu Rengui needs three crossbows and 20,000 crossbow arrows, it is naturally not a big deal.

but……

Zhang Shigui's eyes swept over the generals, and they all began to rethink the use of crossbows.

Zhang Shigui looked at Liu Rengui and nodded, "Yes!"

"Thank you, General!"

……

Kongjiawan under the night sky.

The Yellow River originates from Hezhou and makes a sharp turn at Kongjiawan, flowing from northwest to northeast at a very fast speed.

The high mountain ridge blocks all views from upstream.

Liu Rengui stood on the mountain ridge, looking at the deep night opposite. There was no light on the earth.

"Brother Zhengze." Duan Baoxuan walked up from behind, came to Liu Rengui's side, and said with a bow, "Brother Zhengze, you can enjoy your life in Lanzhou. Why take the risk here?"

Liu Rengui turned and glanced at Duan Baoxuan, saying, "Your Majesty once instructed the soldiers to use more crossbows and arrows. After what I said the other day, they must have been moved. So, Your Majesty's mission is now accomplished."

"So that's how it is." Duan Baoxuan nodded suddenly.

Liu Rengui smiled and said, of course there is more to it than that.

After what he said the day before, he already knew a lot about the personal qualities of all the generals. All that was left was to let them perform on their own.

When he was around, they all restrained themselves. It remains to be seen what others will do when he is not around.

He also left enough manpower in Luoyang.

"Brother Duan, what about you? Why did you suddenly ask to lead the troops yourself?" Liu Rengui looked at Duan Baoxuan seriously.

Duan Baoxuan smiled, a rare smile, and looked at Liu Rengui. "Brother Zhengze, in the whole of Lanzhou, is there any place that can attract His Majesty's attention more than here, and where you can accumulate more military merits?"

Liu Rengui was stunned for a moment, then nodded in agreement.

Turning around, Liu Rengui looked behind the mountains on both sides and asked, "Is everything arranged?"

"Hmm!" Duan Baoxuan's expression grew solemn as he whispered, "According to Brother Zhengze's arrangements, the mountain front has been flooded with water. It will all freeze overnight. Furthermore, a trap has been dug at the bend in the river. There's icy water underneath, and a thousand crossbows have been deployed above, with a thousand cavalry charging at the rear..."

Liu Rengui smiled softly, his eyes looking towards the distance below the mountain, and said softly: "They will be here at noon tomorrow."

(End of this chapter)