Goguryeo... This was Li Zhan's first preferred attack country in the Tang Dynasty's foreign expansion war.

During the Sui Dynasty, there were four large-scale conquests against Goguryeo, Emperor Wen of Sui Emperor Yang Jian once, and Emperor Yang Guang of Sui Chang three times, but all of them ended in failure, especially Yang Guang's three conquests ended in fiasco.

During the four expeditions to Goguryeo, many Sui Dynasty soldiers died on the battlefield. In the fifth year of Zhenguan, the Tang Dynasty sent people to Goguryeo to collect and bury the corpses of the Sui people who died in battle during the Sui Dynasty, and destroyed the Jingguan that Goguryeo used the corpses of the Sui people to erect.

After Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty conquered Goguryeo for the third time, many soldiers were captured or scattered in Goguryeo, but the king of Goguryeo did not follow Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty and did not release a large number of captured soldiers and civilians of the Sui Dynasty. In the early years of Tang Gaozu Wude, he exchanged prisoners of war with Goguryeo and obtained more than 10,000 Han Chinese, which shows that there were many Han people stranded in Goryeo at the end of the Sui Dynasty.

In the fifteenth year of Tang Zhenguan, Tang Taizong sent Fang Langzhong Chen Dade to envoy to Goryeo, and met a large number of Han people on the way, and was surrounded by onlookers.

After Chen Dade came back, he reported what he saw to Tang Taizong, and Taizong said: "The four counties of Goryeo, I sent tens of thousands of soldiers to attack Liaodong, and he will save the country, don't send the boat division out of Donglai, from the sea to Pyongyang, the water and land are combined, and it is not difficult to take it." ”

In fact, "in order to save the Han people stranded in Goryeo, we will avenge the revenge of Jingguan with the corpses of the Han people." Li Shimin also had the intention of conquering Goryeo.

Here's why... The first reason why Li Zhan chose the first battle as Goguryeo was to save the Han scattered in Goguryeo and restore the majesty of the Han people... The Han people are definitely not something that any country wants to wantonly bully.

Secondly, the second point... Many people may not know that the Liaodong and northern parts of the Korean Peninsula occupied by Goguryeo at this time were originally owned by the Central Plains Dynasty.

The Huangmen Shilang of the Sui Dynasty once told Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty: "Goguryeo was originally a country recorded with bamboo, and the title of Jizi was specially given in the Great Zhou Dynasty, and it was only three counties in the Han Dynasty until the end of the Jin Dynasty, taking advantage of the turmoil in the Central Plains to occupy the Liaodong region to form the current Goguryeo."

Here Pei Ju traces the territory occupied by the Goguryeo regime back to before the Western Zhou Dynasty and down to the Wei and Jin dynasties, and irrefutably points out that Liaodong is Chinese territory. The Tang Dynasty was supposed to recover this area.

Wen Yanbo of the Tang Dynasty said: "In the land of Liaodong, Zhou is the country of Jizi, and the Xuansu County of the Han family." Before Wei and Jin, it was close to the seal, and it was not allowed to be disobedient."

Therefore, when Li Zhan was preparing to send troops to attack Goguryeo this time, he made it even clearer: "Liaodong is the land of China, and the Sui clan cannot get it when the four divisions are out; Lonely and now crusade to the east, wanting to avenge the children of China".

The last point is that Li Zhan swept away the disaster for Li Chengqian.

In the fifteenth year of Jeongguan, Silla sent an envoy to the court, telling that Baekje had captured more than 40 cities in Silla and united with Goguryeo in an attempt to cut off Silla's tribute to the Tang Dynasty.

Goguryeo joined forces with Baekje to attack Silla, and also sent envoys to Mobei to instigate the relationship between the Xueyanta Khanate and the Tang Dynasty, which was very likely to join forces to counter the Tang Dynasty.

From the failure of the Sui Dynasty's four conquests of Goguryeo, to Goguryeo at this time, the strength was still very strong, and it was a major hidden threat in the eastern part of the Tang Dynasty. Until the first year of Tang Zongzhang, when Goguryeo was destroyed, there were still "one hundred and seventy-six cities and more than 690,000 households" in the country.

In the last years of Zhenguan in the Tang Dynasty, there were only 3 million households.

Although Goguryeo's national power had been drastically reduced in the wars of the previous decades, its original strength had retained most of its strength during the years of war.

It can be said that Goguryeo's total population and economic and cultural development far exceeded that of Silla and Baekje, and even exceeded the strength of the Tang Dynasty at that time.

If Goguryeo was allowed to continue to develop, it was the only country that could integrate Silla and Baekje. If there is another turmoil in the Central Plains, then Goguryeo will take the opportunity to invade the south, and the consequences will be unimaginable.

Therefore, Li Zhan must eliminate Goguryeo, the leading yellow, and must destroy it, just to eliminate a big disaster for the later Tang Dynasty.

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"Big brother... This time in Goguryeo, I am the vanguard! Li Ke bowed down and asked for battle.

However, after Li Ke finished the battle, Li You and Li Su competed to be pioneers, only Li Tai sighed and looked at Li Zhan and said, "Big brother... In my body, I can't be a pioneer, but I can manage the logistics for the eldest brother, please rest assured that if there is anything in the logistics, the younger brother will be fully responsible. ”

"Well... Good... Good...! Li Zhan looked at his brothers and laughed happily: "As long as we brothers use our strength together, this world will definitely be at our mercy." ”

After speaking, several brothers hugged each other with a smile, and this scene was also seen by Li Shimin and Empress Changsun, and after seeing this scene, the two also showed smiling expressions.

About three days later, Li Zhan's request to fight in Goguryeo appeared on Li Chengqian's case.

At this time, the eldest grandson Wuji, Fang Xuanling, Wei Zheng... are all around Li Chengqian.

Li Chengqian showed Li Zhan's table to the three of them and asked, "The three... My eldest brother has already said that he is going to fight in Goguryeo, and I don't know what the three of them think. ”

"I'm supportive... Goguryeo has always been on our side, occupying our territory, and the so-called couch side does not allow others to sleep soundly...! Of course, the eldest grandson Wuji unconditionally supports Li Zhan.

However, Wei Zheng asked: "His Royal Highness the King of Qin said above that he will be fully responsible for the salaries of the soldiers, but why can't we send many troops, and after Goguryeo captures, will the land be ours or Dengzhou?" ”

Fang Xuanling touched his beard and said: "And how sure we are of attacking Goguryeo, you know, this Goguryeo is not easy to fight, and the climate there is very weird."

When the Sui Dynasty attacked Goguryeo, it rained every day in Goguryeo.

Moreover, the heavy rain caused the Sui army's army to advance slowly, and in addition, Goguryeo was mainly wetland, which was very unfavorable for the army to advance, so it affected the attack speed of the Sui and Tang armies.

Following the construction of a large number of mountain defenses in Goguryeo, if the army of the Sui and Tang dynasties wanted to attack, they had to pull out these strongholds one by one, and the time must be fast, otherwise it would be miserable again when the rainy season came.

Even after surviving the rainy season, the winter in the northeast was very cold, which was not conducive to warfare, so Goguryeo could defeat the Sui and Tang armies in every battle, even if it was accurate for the Sui and Tang dynasties to attack. ”

As soon as he said this, Li Chengqian and the others frowned slightly.

Fortunately, at this time, the eldest grandson Wuji said: "But if you don't fight, you can't do it, although the country of Goguryeo is not a big country, and its strength is not as powerful as the surrounding countries, but this country is very keen on war, and has provoked the Tang Dynasty many times, and has forced the surrounding small countries to break away from our tribute system and form a confrontation with our Datang."

In the end, Datang's dominance over the Northeast has weakened a lot.

If Goguryeo unites with the Khitan and other barbarians in the future, it will be enough to affect the security of the northern Tang Dynasty, and Goguryeo now occupies most of the territory in the northeast of the Tang Dynasty, and Goguryeo has become the center of Northeast Asia and has become a big problem for our Tang Dynasty.

If we can rely on His Royal Highness King Qin to solve the problem of Goguryeo this time... Then I have at least ensured the long-term peace and stability of the Tang Dynasty for three hundred years,"

"I agree with this too!" Wei Zheng nodded and said: "In this way, if you fight, the advantages still outweigh the disadvantages, however, His Royal Highness King Qin still has to make it clear, after the fight, how should we divide between us...!" ”

"No need to score...!" Li Chengqian laughed and said: "Big brother said, Goguryeo has always been the territory of the Tang Dynasty, just like Dengzhou, it is the territory of the Tang Dynasty. ”

"Good...!" Fang Xuanling and Wei Zheng both applauded, causing the eldest grandson Wuji to be slightly disdainful.

Seeing that his ministers had unified their thoughts, Li Chengqian immediately smiled and said: "It's best if everyone agrees, then let's discuss it now, how to send troops...!" ”

"His Royal Highness the Prince... It's actually quite easy to send troops. ”

Wei Zheng got up with a smile and said, "Just some time ago, Silla sued Goguryeo for attacking itself for no reason, we just need to start from this point...!" ”

"Good....!" Li Chengqian laughed and said, "Just use this as an excuse to declare war on Goguryeo." ”

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Seventeen years of Zhenguan... Li Chengqian appointed Li Zhan as the generalissimo of the Tang Dynasty... The generals of the whole country are all dispatched by Li Zhan.

In March, Li Zhan ordered the capture of Goguryeo, and Li Zhan ordered Niu Jinda, Li Tao, and Li Haihai to lead troops to harass Goguryeo by land and water.

Li Tao led his army across the Liaoshui, passing through several cities such as Nansu, and the Goguryeo soldiers fought with their backs against the city walls, and Li Tao defeated them and burned their outer cities before returning to the division.

Niu Jinda and Li Haihai led their troops into the territory of Goguryeo, and after more than 100 battles, they were invincible and conquered Shicheng. Marching to the foot of Jili City, more than 10,000 Goryeo soldiers went out of the city to meet them, and Li Haihai defeated them and beheaded them by 2,000 (usually the number of enemies killed was much more than the number of beheadings).

And this is just a small test, what Li Zhan wants to do is to eat the whole of Goguryeo, so his killing move is still to come.

June... The Tang army occupies Baiyan City. Take White Rock Castle as the rock state. Take Gaimu City as Gaizhou.

The car drove from Liaodong City and arrived outside the city of Anshi.

But what Li Zhan didn't expect was that just after the Tang Dynasty's army surrounded Anshi City, the northern Goguryeo Gansa Yanshou, Huizhen led Goguryeo and Jin Ya soldiers with 150,000 soldiers to save Anshi City.

Yanshou led his army to a place forty miles away from Anshi City.

Li Zhan laughed... Ordered Xue Rengui to lead a thousand tiger cavalry to lure the enemy, and pretended to retreat as soon as the battle began.

The Goguryeo army rushed forward and reached a place eight miles southeast of Anshi City, where they lined up in the mountains.

Li Zhan personally went to the high places with Cheng Chumo and others and hundreds of cavalry to observe the situation in the mountains and rivers, and the places where the troops could ambush and enter and exit.

Li Zhan ordered Hou Guangliang to lead an army of 15,000 to set up a formation in Xiling, and Cheng Chumo led 11,000 elite soldiers as surprise soldiers to attack the enemy's rear from the narrow valley in the north of the mountain. Li Zhan personally led an army of 4,000 troops, carrying drums and horns and banners, climbed the North Mountain, and ordered all armies to attack together when they heard the sound of drums and horns.

Yanshou saw Hou Guangliang set up a formation, and formed a formation to fight.

Li Zhanwang saw that Cheng Chumo's army was in the dust, and ordered to make drums and horns, raise banners, and all the armies were clamoring to march together, and Yanshou and others were terrified and wanted to divide their troops to resist.

At this time, Xue Rengui shouted and rushed into the Goguryeo army formation, invincible.

The Tang army attacked, and the Goguryeo army was defeated. The Tang army beheaded more than 20,000 ranks. (Usually the number of kills is much higher than the number of beheadings, for example, in the Battle of Pyongyang, the Ming army beheaded 800 hundred, but Konishi's 1st Army lost more than 10,000.) ）

Yanshou and others led the remaining army to consolidate themselves in the mountains.

Li Zhan ordered the armies to surround him. Cheng Chumo withdrew the bridge and cut off the return route of the Goguryeo army.

Yanshou and Huizhen led 36,800 people to surrender, entered the army, walked forward on their knees, and bowed for their lives.

Li Zhan selected 3,500 people from the Ransar and his subordinate chiefs and moved them to the interior, and the others were released and let them return to Pyongyang. In addition, 50,000 horses, 50,000 cattle, more than 10,000 iron armor, and a large number of other weapons were captured in this battle.

The whole country of Goguryeo was very shocked and frightened, and the Goguryeo people in Houhuangcheng and Yincheng abandoned the city and fled by themselves, and there was no human population for hundreds of miles.

September... The Tang army began to besiege the city of Anshi. Due to the desperate resistance of the defenders, the Tang army was unable to conquer it. It was late autumn, and Li Zhan used explosives because the local area was getting cold early, the grass was dry and frozen, the horses could not stay for a long time, and the food was running out.

Originally, Li Zhan didn't want to destroy the largest city in the entire Goguryeo.

However, the people of Goguryeo toasted and did not eat and drink, and Li Zhan had to use explosives, and that day, according to the memories of the Goguryeo people, the heavens and the earth were shaken, the thunder was rolling, and there was a terrible thunder everywhere.

On that day alone, more than 50,000 people were killed in the bombing of Goguryeo's Anshi Fortress.

There was really no way, the generals of Anshi City had no choice but to go out of the city and surrender, and after taking Anshi City directly, Li Zhan once again asked Su Dingfang and Xue Rengui to take the upper and lower Goguryeo territories.

In less than a month, the two generals captured the ten cities of Xuansu, Hengshan, Gaimu, Momi, Liaodong, Baiyan, Beisha, Maigu, Yinshan, and Houhuang, and migrated 70,000 people from Liao, Gai, and Yan to the Tang Dynasty, and fought three major battles of Xincheng, Jian'an, and Garrison, eliminating a large number of Goguryeo troops, and capturing more than 40,000 Goguryeo troops (usually the number of enemies killed is much more than the number of beheadings, for example, in the Battle of Pyongyang, the Ming army beheaded 800, but the loss of the Konishi First Army exceeded 10,000).

The defenders of the other cities of Goguryeo either fled or surrendered.

The Tang army advanced to the city of Pyongyang, besieged Pyongyang for more than a month, and in October, the king of Goguryeo led a leader of 98 people and surrendered to the Tang army with white flags.

However, although the king of Goguryeo surrendered, he still refused to defend behind closed doors, and sent troops to fight many times, but they were all defeated by the Tang army.

Originally, Li Zhan was preparing to use explosives again, although the explosives violated the heavenly harmony, but you are shameless, what can Li Zhan do, but just when Li Zhan was about to use fried cakes, the Goguryeo general monk was secretly sending someone to contact Tang Jun, saying that he could be used as an internal response, and Li Zhan agreed.

Five days later, the monk was opening the city gate, and the Tang army captured Pyongyang, captured the king of Goguryeo and others, and pacified all parts of Goguryeo.

In this way, Goguryeo finally perished under the attack of the Tang.

After conquering Goguryeo, the Tang Dynasty on the one hand moved a large number of Goguryeo people to the south of the Jiang and Huai Zhi, and on the other hand, set up nine prefectures, 42 prefectures, and 100 counties in Goguryeo, and set up the Andong Protectorate to rule all parts of Goguryeo.

The meritorious people of the chieftain were selected as governors, assassins, and county commanders, and they managed the local area together with Chinese officials. Xue Rengui, the general of the Right Weiwei, was appointed as the protector of Andong and led 20,000 troops to pacify him.

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