A lowly soldier becomes king, I slaughter my way through the late Tang Dynasty!

Let's go back to August.

The 50,000 imperial guards in Bianliang, the capital, are making final preparations for the northern expedition.

A long-planned battle is about to begin.

The personnel deployment and commander appointments for the northern expedition were decided long ago.

Du Chongwei was appointed as the commander-in-chief of the northern expeditionary force.

Li Shouzhen was appointed as the military commander, which is equivalent to the deputy commander.

Although Du Chongwei was afraid of death, his performance in the last great victory at Yangcheng was not satisfactory.

But Shi Chonggui still chose to hand over the army to him.

The reason is simple: he trusts Du Chongwei the most!

This is his uncle-in-law!

In this era where a strong army is the foundation of a dynasty, no emperor would entrust his large army to an outsider.

Moreover, for this northern expedition, Shi Chonggui brought out all of his imperial guards!

Without the Imperial Guards, Shi Chonggui was just a powerless emperor.

Such an important army can only be entrusted to the most trusted people.

Li Shouzhen, the deputy commander, was there to strengthen Du Chongwei's military capabilities.

It doesn't matter if the commander-in-chief can't fight; he just needs to firmly grasp military power and leave the fighting to the deputy commander.

In addition to finalizing the two commander-in-chief positions, the troop deployment orders for the other regional military governors were also issued in sequence.

Fu Yanqing, Huangfu Yu, Liang Hanzhang, An Shenqi, Zhang Yanzhe, Wang Qing...

The military governors and generals of these various regional military commands would also go on expeditions together.

however.

When it came time to draft the order for the Wu army to send troops, Shi Chonggui suddenly spoke up.

"Order Li Rui to remain and guard Dingzhou."

Upon hearing this, several key officials were taken aback.

Li Song quickly replied.

"Your Majesty, Li Rui has never been defeated in his campaigns against the Khitan. This northern expedition is precisely the time to utilize his abilities. Why have you ordered him to remain behind?"

Shi Zhonggui suppressed the urge to cough.

"Do I lack capable generals? Does the northern expedition have to fail simply because I'm missing Li Rui?"

Li Song lowered his head in fear.

"I had no such intention. I am simply puzzled as to why we are putting away our weapons when a great battle is imminent."

At this moment, Feng Yu's eyes darted around, and he had already figured out the emperor's thoughts.

He immediately stepped forward and spoke.

"Your Majesty, I also believe that Li Rui should not have accompanied the army on the expedition, for three reasons."

"Oh? Tell me about it, Feng Qing."

"Your Majesty, firstly, this northern expedition is a matter of great importance, requiring the full strength of our Great Jin. Li Rui is young and not steady enough, and has repeatedly disobeyed orders. Allowing him to accompany the army would only bring more trouble."

Secondly, His Majesty once ordered the arrest of Li Rui's concubines, but he defied the order, showing that he has no respect for His Majesty and is extremely arrogant. He cannot be entrusted with important responsibilities!

Thirdly, Li Rui's repeated victories against the Khitan were based on his Restoration Army, but now that he has disbanded it, effectively crippling himself, what use is it to his army?

Upon hearing Feng Yu's nonsensical explanation, Li Song rolled his eyes!

Isn't that just utter nonsense?

The first point is that Li Rui is not steady enough.

Are other talented young men in their twenties mature enough?

Secondly, it was clearly stated in He Jingsi's report that when he went to Dingzhou to arrest people, Li Rui did not directly refuse, but was somewhat reluctant to part with him.

As a result, while they were trying to persuade him, they happened to encounter the Khitan raiding southwards.

He Jingsi followed Li Rui into battle and won a great victory at Yunshan Dang. He was seriously wounded and stayed in Dingzhou to recuperate.

Once his injuries had healed enough for him to travel, he personally escorted the prisoners back to Bianliang.

Although there must be something fishy going on.

But how can you openly say that Li Rui disobeyed the imperial order?

As for the third point, that's utter nonsense!

When Li Rui won the great victory at Yangcheng, the Restoration Army had just been recruited and its combat strength was no different from that of other soldiers.

They relied on their own courage and decisiveness!

These three arguments are simply insulting to people's intelligence!

however.

Before Li Song could offer any rebuttal, Shi Chonggui clapped his hands and said...

"What Minister Feng said is exactly what I was worried about, which is why I ordered Li Rui to stay in Dingzhou and not to go on the expedition with the army."

Li Song opened his mouth, then sighed silently.

In fact, anyone with eyes can see it.

The emperor simply didn't want Li Rui to achieve any more merits.

The awarding of the title for the great victory at Yunshan Dang alone took more than a month to be decided before the great achievement was barely suppressed and the title of Jianxiao Sikong was given.

If Li Rui were to display his exceptional skills and achieve extraordinary feats during this northern expedition, the entire army might be able to launch a full-scale campaign.

What to do? How to reward them?

It is impossible to make a young person in his twenties a public official without the title of "inspector".

It would be even more impossible to allow such a young regional general to ascend to the position of Jiedushi (military governor) and become a powerful regional official at such an early age.

Instead of racking your brains about how to reward people later, it's better to solve the problem at its source.

Just don't let Li Rui accompany the army!

If there's nowhere to fight, how can you earn merit?

Will the Northern Expedition be affected by Li Rui's absence?

The rulers and officials of Bianliang never considered this issue.

After all, after the establishment of their Great Jin Dynasty, they won both of their major battles against the Khitan!

In 944, the Khitans marched south but were firmly blocked by the Jin Dynasty. Eventually, due to insufficient supplies, they were forced to withdraw.

This is a victory.

In 946, the Khitans marched south, and needless to say, the Yangcheng victory was a great one!

This is the second win.

At the end of the same year, the Khitans invaded south again. Hedong held firm and achieved a great victory at Yunshandang in Hebei. Only Shandong suffered a defeat, with a score of 2 to 1.

This is the third victory.

The Jin dynasty won three times, while the Khitan dynasty won none.

This is the fourth win...

In short, they won several major battles in a row.

How could Shi Chonggui still think that the Khitans were some untouchable tiger?

It's nothing special!

That's all there is to it!

When our Great Jin Iron Army comes out, the Khitan will surely be terrified and flee in defeat!

Perhaps after the recapture of Yan and Yun...

They could even emulate Wei Qing and Huo Qubing of the Han Dynasty, conquering all the way to the northern desert, annihilating their enemies, and sealing the wolf's lair!

So what difference does it make if Li Rui is gone?

Does that mean that without Li Rui, the hundreds of thousands of troops would be slaughtered like pigs and dogs by the Khitans?

How is that possible?!

Shi Chonggui was bursting with confidence and directly wrote a secret memorial, which was sent to Dingzhou.

After receiving the imperial decree, Bai Zairong, though puzzled, still complied.

He appointed Niu Ben as his deputy general and personally led the left and right wings of the Yiwu Army on the expedition.

He then ordered Ji Cong to remain in Anxi County and the governor of Yizhou to remain in Yi County.

As for Li Rui...

Do whatever you want!

In short, one cannot accompany the army on expeditions.

This completely baffled Li Rui!

In fact, Li Rui had made many preparations in advance for this overconfident northern expedition by the Great Jin Dynasty.

For example, strengthening the defense system of Boling County and building Langshanwu, etc.

His purpose was to ensure that the garrison he left behind after his departure would be able to easily resist the remnants of the Khitan forces.

He also left Zhao Pu with many instructions to ensure that the public services and administration of Boling County could operate smoothly even in his absence.

Li Rui even knew that once he left, he might not be able to return until next year.

So he took advantage of the summer to spend some quality time with his wives and concubines, as a brief farewell.

The results of it?

Shi Chonggui actually refused to let him go to the front lines!?

Li Rui was stunned, but then he guessed what Shi Chonggui was thinking.

It's simply because they're afraid that if they perform any more meritorious deeds, they won't be able to receive any rewards!

Seeing this, Zhao Pu sighed speechlessly.

"The nation is launching a northern expedition, yet it doesn't even appoint its lord as a general. What kind of nation is this, what kind of ruler and ministers are these...?"

Li Rui laughed heartily.

"This is a good thing!"