Li Xiao walked in front of the window, looking at the gray scenery outside the window, his face was solemn. Pen | fun | pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

"Hmph, this title of Duke of Tang Kingdom, Li received it. After all, with this title, it is more helpful for the official to accept the people and recruit scholars. But if the official wants to leave Shandong and go to the capital to be officially sealed, it is absolutely impossible. Li Xiao's eyes narrowed, and he said in a deep voice: "Since the imperial court plans to play yin with this official, this official is also willing to accompany him. ”

In the secret room, there was silence for a while.

"Tang Guogong's intentions, but he wants to enter Beijing City?" Jiang Yueguang's words trembled slightly.

A wry smile suddenly appeared on Li Xiao's face, but he sighed and shook his head: "That's not yet here." If the general really sent troops to Beijing, he would have been completely convicted of the crime of being an anti-thief. In this Ming Kingdom, there is really no place for the general. ”

Li Xiao paused and sighed: "It's still the same sentence, if the prince and the court are fighting each other like this, it will only make the thieves and the Tartars benefit, which is really not the wish of the prince." Moreover, dealing with the imperial court is not so complicated, and the official believes that if the imperial court really wants to do it, as long as the imperial court is hurt and afraid, the imperial court will be honest, and will no longer point fingers at our army, and everyone can continue to maintain a harmonious atmosphere on the surface. ”

A day later, Wang Zhixin, who was living in the pavilion, suddenly had a report from his subordinates, saying that Li Xiao had sent Li Haoran, the captain of his personal guard, to ask for a meeting.

"Oh, Captain Li, is Tang Guogong ready to return to Beijing with our family?"

After the guests sat down, Wang Zhixin said to Li Haoran with a smile.

Li Haoran smiled and shook his head: "Princess, Tang Guogong said that because of the turmoil in the new overseas land, Tang Guogong is eager to go to the sea to pacify him, so he does not plan to enter Beijing with his father-in-law to be sealed." ”

The smile on Wang Zhixin's face suddenly froze.

"How, how is this good? Didn't Tang Guogong say that he would go to Beijing with our family to face St. Shane'en? Why is it suddenly 。。。。。。 again The king's heart was incoherent.

Li Haoran waved his hand, interrupted his words, and then said lightly: "Princess-in-law, this is what Li has brought, Prince-in-law, please take care of yourself." In addition, my family is benevolent, and Cheng Yi gave 100 taels of gifts, and Li said goodbye. ”

Li Haoran put down the silver and left with a group of guards.

"This, this 。。。。。。"

Wang Zhixin's fat pig-like face trembled non-stop.

"This Li Xiao is really bold and rebellious! didn't even go to Beijing to be sealed, and he didn't take the emperor and the court in his eyes at all! ”

When Li Haoran and the others were far away, Wang Zhixin seemed to come back to his senses and slapped the table and scolded angrily.

However, next, Wang Zhixin still carefully packed the 100 taels of snowflake pattern silver, and then shouted to the two little eunuchs who were standing on the side: "What are you still in a daze, Tang Guogong is not going to the capital, let's still do something in Dengzhou with a shy face, quickly pack up, and return to the capital with our family." ”

The little eunuchs came back to their senses, hurriedly agreed, and went around to pack their luggage without mentioning it.

Seven days later. Wang Zhixin returned to the capital and had no choice but to return to Emperor Chongzhen.

Hearing the report of the king's heart who was kneeling and crying, Chongzhen, who was originally full of anticipation, suddenly sank to the bottom of the ice lake.

The emperor who was breathing heavily, sitting on the dragon chair, was like a bomb that would explode at any time, and the entire Qianqing Palace was depressed that made it difficult for people to breathe.

The heart of the king on the earth is even more atmospheric, and he doesn't dare to breathe.

Unexpectedly, to Wang Zhixin's great surprise, Chongzhen did not have a seizure in an extremely rare way. Eventually, a passage came out of his mouth coldly.

"Spread my will, the entire territory of Dengzhou Mansion will be restored, and the imperial court will be governed. Li Xiao, the Duke of Tang Guo, led a battalion of troops to be transferred to Jiezhou, Shanxi, where he was stationed on guard and cleared out the thieves. The rest of the troops were received by the generals sent by the imperial court, and there must be no mistakes. ”

Hearing the emperor's edict, Cao Huachun next to him was stunned, he subconsciously turned his head, but when he saw Emperor Chongzhen's cold and angry eyes, he couldn't help but shudder.

"Yes, slave maid is the will."

Five days later, the imperial court took back Dengzhou, separated Li Xiao's soldiers and horses, and transferred Li Xiao to Shanxi to Jiezhou, Shanxi, and arrived at Dengzhou City.

Li Xiao, who listened to the edict, did not change his face and was very calm. He politely arranged for the eunuch to go to the pavilion to rest, and then discussed with Chen Zilong and Jiang Yueguang.

"Transferring Lord Li to Shanxi, and dividing the forces of Lord Li's subordinates, the court is ruthless enough, but I want to uproot Lord Li." Chen Zilong sneered: "The court is really soft, so it will be hard." ”

"In my opinion, the imperial court is now ready to be ruthless to adults." Jiang Yueguang said in a low voice on the side: "Perhaps, as soon as Lord Li went to Jiezhou, Shanxi, the imperial court will secretly cause harm, Lord Li must not agree!" ”

Li Xiao didn't speak for a long time, and his face was gloomy, but he quietly clenched his fists.

In the end, he slowly spoke: "Since the court is unkind in front, then don't blame the injustice of the father!" Now that the imperial court wants to split our army, it is really to take away the foundation of the official's foothold. That being the case, the name of the Tiger Army given by the emperor is in name only, and it can be used again. “

Casually, Li Xiao took a deep breath and said loudly: "Pass on the order of this duke, since this duke is already the Duke of Tang Guo, from now on, our army will abandon the name of the Tiger Army and change its name to Tang Army." In addition, the soldiers and horses garrisoned by our army in various places need to be on more alert to prevent the imperial court soldiers and horses from sneaking attack. ”

Hearing Li Xiao's words, Chen Zilong and Jiang Yueguang didn't feel their hearts tremble.

Tang Jun?

abandoned the emperor's personal name of the army, and directly changed it to the Tang army, this Tang Guogong Li is bold!

It's just that now the situation has taken a sharp turn for the worse, and the confrontation with the imperial court is absolutely unavoidable.

"Master Li, in your opinion, where will the imperial court be next, and what will happen to our army?" Chen Zilong asked.

Li Xiao had a wry smile on his face, he got up and walked to the wall, pointing directly to the Jintang City on Xuanfu North Road in the cowhide map on the wall.

"My father thinks that if the imperial court wants to make a move, because it does not know the reality of our army, it will not dare to directly attack our Shandong. Therefore, the most likely place for it to attack is the Jintang City of our army, which hangs alone on the north road of Xuanfu. In the eyes of the imperial court, as long as Jintangcheng is taken, it will be a major blow to our army, and second, we can find out the combat strength and truth of our army. Then, the imperial court can gather the whole country and boldly launch an attack on Dengzhou, Shandong. ”

"The imperial court thinks simply, you must know that our army has nearly 20,000 soldiers and horses stationed in Jintang City. Moreover, our army has been operating in Jintang City for many years, and the city is high and steep, and it is extremely dangerous, and the imperial court wants to take Jintang City, but I am afraid that it will not have this ability. Jiang Yueguang interjected with a sneer on the side.

After listening to Jiang Yueguang's words, Li Xiao also sneered: "The imperial court is now in a hurry to punish Li, so I take it for granted that Jintangcheng is a soft persimmon that can be won in one fell swoop." It's just that they probably didn't think that in the ninth year of Chongzhen, the Qing army entered the customs with tens of thousands of soldiers and horses, and they couldn't take it if they wanted to attack Jintang City. “

Li Xiao paused, and said in a low voice: "As long as the imperial court wants to attack Jintang City, that official will not only defend Jintang City, but also defeat the imperial court soldiers and horses in one fell swoop, and let them thoroughly understand what will happen if they continue to fight against this official!" This battle is bound to make the prestige of our Tang Army, so that the imperial court will no longer have the courage to confront our army, and then the peace between our army and the imperial court will finally come. “

Seven days later, the eunuch returned to Beijing in disgrace, and immediately reported to the emperor that Li Xiao had once again refused to be transferred.

"What? Li Xiao actually refused the imperial court's edict again, he, didn't he really plan to rebel?! “

Listening to the eunuch's report, Emperor Chongzhen trembled with anger.

"That's right, the minions have heard of it, and 。。。。。。 heard of it." The eunuch wanted to speak and stopped.

"What did you hear?!"

"I heard that now Li Xiao has abandoned the name of the Tiger Army given by the emperor and renamed his troops as the Tang Army!"

"Bang!"

A fine porcelain teacup, which was smashed by the furious Chongzhen, was smashed on the dragon pillar in front of the stairs and shattered.

"It's the opposite, it's the opposite, Li Xiao is so rampant and reckless, how can I tolerate him anymore!"

Chongzhen was like a trapped beast, pacing back and forth on the steps.

He stood still, waved his hand irritably, announced that the eunuch had made a promise, and bowed down and hurriedly withdrew from the hall.

"Quickly pass the first assistant Liu Yuliang, enter the palace to see me!" Chongzhen shouted to the little eunuch on the side.

The first assistant, Liu Yuliang, came to the Qianqing Palace at the fastest speed.

After a set of courtesies for monarchs and ministers was completed, Chongzhen hurriedly briefed Liu Yuliang about the report of the eunuch he had just announced.

Liu Yuliang's face also changed greatly.

Casually, he knelt on the ground and said to Li Xiaoyu: "Your Majesty, it seems that Li Xiao's wolf ambition is extremely contradictory, and it cannot be replicated!" The minister asked the emperor to make a quick decision, as the minister had played before, and dispatched elite soldiers and horses to attack Li Xiao's Jintang City on Xuanfu North Road, so as to suppress the rebellion and set an example! ”

After Liu Yuliang finished speaking, there was no movement on the dragon chair.

He secretly glanced up, but saw Chongzhen's expression, which was very complicated and painful.

Thinking of this young famous general Li Xiao, who he regarded as his confidant in Gancheng, with the change of shape, but now he has come to the point where he and himself are completely torn face, and the sword and soldiers between the monarch and the minister, Chongzhen's heart is like a knife cut.

"Your Majesty, Li Xiao has been responsible for the country's kindness, and Your Majesty can remember the old feelings again. You know, when it is broken, it is broken, and if it is continuous, it is chaotic. Liu Yuliang cautiously reminded.

Chongzhen finally let out a long sigh, his face was already full of coldness, and his voice was cold and clear.

"Passed on my decree, announcing Li Xiao's rebellion, depriving him of all titles and official positions, and raising troops to punish him. Lu Xiangsheng, the governor of Xuanda, commanded all the soldiers and horses of Xuanfu Town, and went all out to attack the Jintang City of the anti-thief Li Xiao. In addition, Wang Pu, the chief soldier of Datong, the general soldier of Shanxi, the governor of Shaanxi, Sun Chuanting, and the chief soldier of Liaodong, Zu Dashou, divided the elite soldiers and horses, and handed them over to Lu Xiangsheng for unified command. ”

"Wechen obeys!"

Three days later, Lu Xiangsheng, the governor of Xuanda, received an order from the imperial court to declare Li Xiao a traitor and let him command his own troops to attack Li Xiao's Jintang in the Wanquan Metropolitan Mansion.

After listening to the holy decree, Lu Xiangsheng froze for a moment.

What's going on?!

Li Xiao, who once talked passionately about state affairs in front of himself, was bent on sweeping away the thieves and expelling the Tartars; Li Xiao, who was outstandingly resourceful and had proposed to himself to exterminate the Henan Liukou, with three strategies; The brave and famous general Li Xiao, who once commanded his own command, personally commanded the troops and horses, swept through western and southern Henan, first beheaded Gao Yingxiang, then captured the scorpion block, and then defeated the old man and returned back, turned out to be the same thief as Kong Youde? !

Although, because Li Xiao insisted on negotiating peace with the Qing court, and even planned a marriage between the Ming and Qing dynasties, he was extremely unhappy with him. But in the final analysis, this is a dispute between the two sides over strategic opinions, and if there are differences, it is normal. Why has more than a year passed, and Li Xiao, a famous general who is regarded as a brother and can be called the dry city of the country, has become a thief who the imperial court wants to exterminate? !

How is this possible?!

Lu Xiangsheng's heart was in turmoil, he knelt down to listen to the order, and subconsciously raised his head, but only saw Cao Huachun's cold and gloomy gaze, and suddenly trembled.

"Father-in-law Cao, this 。。。。。。"

After Lu Xiangsheng received the holy decree, he couldn't help but spit out these words.

Cao Huachun sighed and shook his head, signaling that he didn't have to say any more.

"Governor Lu, the emperor's will has been decided, then Li Xiao rebelled and refused to obey the decree of the imperial court, and the emperor was helpless, so he decided to make an order to exterminate him. I also hope that Governor Lu will command his troops and horses as soon as possible, defeat Li Xiao, and live up to the emperor's trust. ”

Listening to Cao Huachun's words, Lu Xiangsheng's eyes were gloomy, he opened his mouth half-open, but he couldn't say anything more.

After giving Cheng Yi away Cao Huachun and others, Lu Xiangsheng immediately discussed with his four younger brothers Lu Xiangguan, Lu Xiangjin, Lu Xiangtong, and Lu Xiangkun in the mansion.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I really didn't expect that one day, my brother would become a life-and-death rival with that Li Xiao. You must know that this Li Xiao is a rare famous general of wisdom and courage in the country, and he is regarded as a biological brother by the governor. Now, alas。。。。。。 Lu Xiangsheng shook his head and sighed.

"Big brother, the will of the court has been issued, as a Ming courtier, even if I am unwilling in my heart, how can I disobey the decree of heaven." The second brother Lu Xiangguan sighed on the side.

"Yes, eldest brother, then Li Xiao, it is because of his repeated resistance that he was regarded as a thief by the imperial court, how can the eldest brother make the mistake of this person again." The third brother Lu Xiangjin also looked worried.

"The two elder brothers are right, if the eldest brother is unbearable with Li Xiao and refuses to send troops to suppress Jintang City, then the next thing the imperial court will take is I'm afraid it's you, the eldest brother." The fourth brother, Lu Xiangtong, whispered.

"Yes, the king wants the minister to die, and the minister has to die. That Li Xiao has been regarded as a thief by the imperial court, and he has the reason that the emperor has to do, how can I ask more. We, the courtiers who are loyal to the Ming Dynasty, can only do our best to share the emperor's worries and send troops to exterminate Li Xiao, which is the right thing. The youngest brother, Lu Xiangkun, also sighed and said.

Listening to the words of the four younger brothers, a miserable smile swelled on Lu Xiangsheng's face.

"Fellow virtuous brothers, as a brother, you should obey the will of the court and serve the court before resting. It's just that you think that this Jintang City, which Li Xiao has been running for many years, is so easy to take? Do you know that in the ninth year of Chongzhen, the Qing army that entered the customs numbered tens of thousands, but they had no choice but to take Jintang City, and finally had to go around the city, so they had to go deep into all parts of Xuanfu to plunder. “

"Brother, having said that, but at that time, the Qing army came from afar, and the siege equipment was not enough, and because of the urgency of time, there was no way to attack Jintang City for a long time, so that Li Xiao's garrison of thousands of people in Jintang City could be preserved. In the opinion of a foolish brother, there are many lucks. Lu Xiangjin frowned and said.

The third brother was right, at that time, the Qing army was not well prepared and the time was in a hurry, so in order to avoid being under the fortified city for a long time, they had to choose to go around the city. But now, there are more than 30,000 soldiers and horses in my Xuanfu Town, plus the soldiers and horses from all walks of life, it is estimated that there are at least 50,000 people, which is five times the defenders of Jintang City. Lu Xiangtong interjected on the side.

Lu Xiangguan. Lu Xiangkun and the others also agreed with Lu Xiangtong's words.

After listening to the words of the younger brothers, Lu Xiangsheng pondered for a long time with an iron face, and finally said slowly: "Okay, as you said the virtuous brothers, during this time, our army will step up the time to build siege equipment, and after all the soldiers and horses gather, we will go to attack Jintang City." ”