The Bad Guys: Don't call me Little Emperor Taizong

Of course the soldiers guarding the city knew what was going on in the city.

Meng Zhixiang's expedition this time was not just to seize territory.

He also planned to unite the princes to eliminate Qi State and Li Changping together.

Therefore, a large number of elite soldiers were mobilized this time.

There were so many of them that the moment the soldiers defending the city saw the big flag with the word "Li" on it, they began to think of surrendering.

Facing such a fierce opponent.

If you shoot an arrow at this time, you will not force the opponent, but will force yourself into a desperate situation.

Therefore, no one dared to shoot an arrow, or rather, everyone was waiting for someone else to shoot the first arrow.

"Humph!"

Thinking of this, Li Changping sneered, and without saying anything more, he walked straight to the city gate.

As he got closer, he could also hear the low and whispered discussions on the top of the city wall.

"General, what should we do? Even the God of War Li Cunxu couldn't stop him, and even Zhu Youwen was killed by him. If he comes, this city will definitely be undefendable!"

"Yes, we don't have anyone more powerful than those two. The King of Shu is out with his army and will definitely not be able to come back. We might as well surrender..."

"But if that happens, wouldn't that mean we're turning against our own side? Would we be considered rebels?"

"Bullshit! If we were facing foreign invaders, we would fight to the death. But now we are back in the arms of the Tang Dynasty. What kind of rebels are we? Isn't it better to follow the orthodox royal family than to follow the idiot Meng Zhixiang?"

"That makes sense, but what is His Highness' attitude towards us? If the King of Shu returns, will he abandon us..."

"It shouldn't be! I heard that His Highness wants to revive the prosperous times and enjoy peace together. After all, he is the direct descendant of Emperor Taizong, so he should have some tolerance."

"Oh, by the way, it is said that Chang'an has reintroduced the military system. If you serve as a soldier for this prince, you can get a hundred acres of land!"

"Really? That's great. Since we can join the army, we should be strong and healthy. With these hundred acres of land, we can give it to those weak people to cultivate, and we only need to collect some taxes every year. Even if we die on the battlefield, our wives and children at home will be protected."

"That's all you can think of. With the tax revenue from these hundred acres, we can create better and sharper armor and swords. Of course, we will follow Your Highness to conquer more territory and gain greater military merit."

"With more territory, more troops will be needed to garrison it. With more troops, more land will be needed. If this cycle continues, we may be able to recreate the boundless Tang Dynasty!"

"Everyone, let's get off topic... The question before us now is... should we vote or not?"

"I voted!"

"If we don't invest, we will be sorry for the hundred acres of land, and sorry for the stingy Meng Zhixiang for giving us these two copper coins!"

"Go ahead and invest! In this chaotic world, the government is in ruins. Everyone knows that money is useful, and everyone likes to mint coins. Who knows how much miscellaneous goods are mixed in these copper coins? My hometown has started bartering, who knows when these copper coins will be useless? It is still the real good farm that makes people feel at ease!"

"Isn't it? This month's copper coins are half as light as last month's. I don't know how he refined it. Last month I could buy a chicken with the money, but this month I can't even buy a chicken."

“So I really voted?”

"Vote, vote, vote. You must vote!"

"I'll open and close the gate, you go lock it and lower the drawbridge, General, go get the seal, and we'll welcome the Tang Dynasty into the city!"

……

At first they just called him that, then gradually they became members of the orthodox royal family, and finally they even called him "Your Highness", and their words were full of respect.

Li Changping never thought that one day he would be able to reach the point where others would surrender in fear of him.

Listening to the discussion on the city wall gradually dying down, the corners of my mouth couldn't help but twitch.

A sense of joy rose in my heart.

Do these people believe in themselves so much?

Aren’t you afraid that there will be a massacre as soon as you open the door?

Then I felt a little disappointed again.

Xingyuan just surrendered like that, and he had no place to vent his passion and desire to perform.

I was originally thinking of replicating the King of Western Chu.

He stepped on the flying arrows and climbed to the top of the city wall amidst the hail of arrows.

Then, he killed the generals guarding the city in public, completing the feat of taking the city by himself.

By then, I will stand on the top of the city and laugh out loud. The soldiers and civilians of Xingyuan Prefecture and the Qi army will definitely respect me like a god. My good name will spread in the future, and it will definitely feel great.

But this is okay...

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Li Changping curled his lips.

Although Xingyuan surrendered, his achievement of conquering Hanzhong alone was enough to brag about.

Well...anyway, it’s not a loss!

Chapter 81 Stop

Just when Li Changping walked to the city gate.

But something strange happened suddenly.

"Can't vote!"

A loud shout rang out from above his head. Li Changping looked up.

I saw a graceful figure in white clothes and white hair on the top of the city.

"Huh? Little White Hair? Why is he here?"

He was stunned at first, then Li Changping frowned.

Zhang Zifan's arrival was indeed somewhat unexpected to him.

But I didn't panic too much.

As long as Meng Zhixiang doesn't come with a large army...

I felt a little emotional in my heart.

He is worthy of being the number one chess player after Yuan Tiangang. His plan can be inferred from the details alone.

Just based on this point, he is much stronger than those princes.

Just as he was stunned, he saw hundreds or thousands of figures appear on the battlements.

Some were wearing Taoist robes, while others were in casual clothes.

No need to ask, this is someone from the Tianshi Mansion.

But Zhang Zifan waved his folding fan, his face full of confidence that everything was under control.

"Li Changping's sneak attack is also intended to start a war. I have sent a message to the King of Shu tonight, and the army will be back soon. With more than a thousand troops from my Tianshi Mansion, plus the people from Xingyuan Mansion, we are enough to defend the city. It is not yet Li Changping's turn to control this Shu land!"

As he spoke, he jumped up from the top of the city wall.

He made a gesture of spreading his wings like a roc in the air, and then, with his hands on the ground, he landed steadily in front of Li Changping's horse.

Then, several figures flashed out.

Whether fat or thin, tall or short, they all fell behind Zhang Zifan.

"Li Cunyi...Yelü Tabuyan...Yelü Tabuhua..."

As he read out the names one by one, Li Changping's eyes flashed with endless coldness.

In the palm of his hand hanging at his side, blood-colored true energy was slowly condensing.

With a mocking look on his face, he said calmly:

"Starting a war for no reason? Haha... I don't know what Meng Zhixiang is doing in Xiangzhou? If he didn't start a war, why would I come to Hanzhong?"

Hearing this, Zhang Zifan folded up his folding fan with a snap, pointed forward, and asked sternly:

"If you hadn't advanced to Chang'an and tried to seize Tongguan, how could Li Cunxu have marched west? If he hadn't died, how could the other princes have risen up? Look at the devastated Mobei, look at the dusty Qi army, and finally look at the panicked soldiers and civilians in Xingyuan. All of this was caused by you! Isn't it enough now?"

"After all, I'm still wrong? Hahahaha..."

Li Changping laughed, from being sarcastic at first to being arrogant later.

The true energy in his hand was extinguished.

Between the corners of his eyes and eyebrows, endless murderous intent was revealed without reservation.

Zhang Zifan raised his eyebrows and continued:

"Heaven does not stop winter because humans hate the cold, and Earth does not stop expanding because humans hate the vastness! The way of heaven operates according to its own laws, and you rely on your status as a royal family of Li Tang to go against heaven. When the Shu King's army returns, it will be your retribution!"

"Going against the will of heaven?"

Looking up at the sky, Li Changping muttered to himself, but the murderous intent in his eyes did not diminish at all: "If this is God's will, then I don't need this sky!"

"It's simply unreasonable!"

Zhang Zifan mocked, "Even Yuan Tiangang can't turn the world around, and you still want to swing your sword? The beginning of the hegemony is people-oriented. Those who fight for the world must first fight for people! You don't even understand this simple truth, and you want to achieve your hegemony by killing people?"

The sonorous and powerful words made the beautiful woman behind Zhang Zifan and Li Cunyi nod their heads repeatedly.

Only Li Changping was somewhat noncommittal:

"Then the people you are fighting for are those princes?"

"He who cultivates rituals becomes king, he who wins the people's peace, he who respects scholars becomes honored, and he who makes the wise strong! The princes are only bridges connecting the generals, you have indiscriminately provoked wars and made the people uneasy, you have disrespected the wise, and you have failed to respect the rituals and the emperor."

"Having Chang'an alone is not enough. What awaits you is inviting invaders, enriching your enemies, destroying your country, and endangering your life. These are the old ways of your ancestors."

Zhang Zifan spoke incessantly, as if firing a machine gun.

Li Changping looked at him coldly, and waited until he finished speaking before sneering, "Respect etiquette? In this chaotic world where the government is in ruins, how can there be any etiquette? Respect the virtuous? Where are the virtuous? Who are the virtuous? Are you talking about those princes?"

"Humph!"

As if he knew what Li Changping meant, Zhang Zifan snorted coldly and continued, "He who serves the princes is king, he who is friendly to the princes is hegemon, and he who is hostile to the princes is in danger. You are now the center of attention and are being attacked by the princes. Isn't it because you are hostile to them?"

But at this time.

Li Changping's limited patience gradually disappeared, and his voice became even colder:

"Heh... As a nobleman who grew up in a honey pot, your high-handed vision can only see the princes and ministers, right?"

"I am not Li Siyuan's son!"

That sentence seemed to have touched a sore spot.

Zhang Zifan refuted vigorously, as if he was trying hard to erase the mark of Li Siyuan on his body.

But after meeting Li Changping's gaze, the voice stopped abruptly.

"I don't know who gave birth to you or who raised you. I only know that you never worried about a meal, and never fought for a grain of rice. You don't know what it means to be almost depopulated, nor do you know what it means to select the weak men and women to feed the army!"

"what?"

Zhang Zifan suddenly took several steps back, his lips turned pale, and his hands clenched unconsciously.

I want to refute, but I don’t know what to say.

Then Li Changping continued:

"Those wise men you mentioned are just like you. Wherever they look, they see thousands of miles of fertile land. They never pay attention to those barren lands. Countries are at war, and horses trample on fertile land. You have never thought about what will happen to those who cannot provide them with taxes and have nothing for them to plunder. You have also never thought about why a small country can go to war year after year? Adult men go to war, and their fields are left deserted. Where do their military rations come from?"

"Talented people are the best choice for government. In troubled times, talents are used regardless of their status..."

It was almost a reflexive rebuttal, but the trembling voice showed that Zhang Zifan was not at peace.

"I've said so much! Didn't Xunzi tell you...in troubled times, strength is everything?"

As he spoke, the Zixiao sword with a red glow slowly came out of its sheath.

The sharp edge on it and the cold light in Li Changping's eyes reflected each other, making the temperature of this world drop a little.

"Haven't you always been saying that I am going against the will of heaven? Haven't you always been saying that those who want to conquer the world must first conquer people?"

"I will tell you right now what heaven is! What is a human being!"

As the words fell, his internal energy gushed out, and the Purple Night Sword emitted a bright red light, dyeing the water in the moat a touch of blood.

Behind him, the five thousand soldiers had no idea what was happening.

But after seeing the blood blooming in Li Changping's hands, his blood gushed out and his eyes were instantly filled with bloodshot.