After Qu Tutong read Luo Cheng's letter, a strong worry surged in his heart, he set up layers of defense in Hedong, with 50,000 or 60,000 troops, and was confident that he could block Li Tang's army for a year and a half, waiting for the support of soldiers from all walks of life. Pen "Fun" Pavilion www.biquge.info

If Li Yuan's army really divided into two routes, and the plank road was darkened, his defense line here, even if it was like an iron wall, would be of no use.

In his heart, Luo Zhaoyun also wrote that once Xijing was lost, Li Yuan followed the example of Cao thief and coerced the Son of Heaven to order the princes, and would recruit many Sui army soldiers.

This kind of suggestion is a bit bold, and Qu Tutong hesitates, because as a commander in chief, he has not been approved by the imperial court, and if he leaves his post without permission, it is a taboo for generals and can easily be dealt with by military law.

If he led the troops back to Xijing and was falsely accused of rebellion by the courtiers and imperial historians, it is estimated that the crime of beheading will not escape.

"Luo Cheng, Luo Cheng, to this day, how dare the old man go back with his troops without permission, let go of the Hedong defense line here, once Hedong is lost, I am a capital crime!"

Qu Tutong did not get the transfer of the holy decree, he did not dare to decide to retreat without authorization, did not transfer the order, led the troops back to Xijing, there was a suspicion of forcing the palace, this is the death of the imperial generals, no one dares to offend.

He thought about it for a while, and decided to send scouts to find out the information first, find out the situation of Li Yuan's division of troops, verify whether Shaomarshal Luo's information is accurate, and then make plans.

.........

Wagang Army Battalion.

Nearly 200,000 troops, more than 10 miles of camps, the cangcheng with grain and grass, to protect the back, here, the Wagang army has an inexhaustible supply of grain and grass, this granary alone, enough for 200,000 troops, for several years.

Since Pei Renji and his son joined, they have promulgated complete military discipline, increased training, and become more and more regular and professional.

However, there are also some lazy teams, that is, the old department of Wagangzhai, because they are not reused, they are not favored by Li Mi, they cannot become elites, and there are few opportunities for meritorious service, and they are generally responsible for guarding the grain road, stationing in the city, carrying weights, etc., resulting in a lot of complaints.

"Have you heard, recently the Duke of Wei failed and was defeated by Wang Shichong's Hu Chong minister, but that's it."

"The Li family should have the world's proverbs, but they are all false, and the Li family can't get the world."

"Several leaders of the Zhai family intend to take back the military power and take over the power of the Wagang Army again, and the old people in our old department will be reused."

These news gradually spread in the barracks, first weakening Li Mi's influence, destroying his reputation, and then moving out of the news that Zhai Rang wanted to ****, which made the hearts of the people in the Wagang army float.

A deputy team named Feng Erdong, who has joined the old department of the Wagang Army for two years, is an undercover agent who came in from Yanlang Pavilion, intentionally or unintentionally spreading the news and spreading it through the mouth of the pawn.

More and more of this kind of meticulous work muddied the internal waters of the Wagang Army and intensified the contradiction between Li Mi and Zhai Rang.

Sure enough, Wang Bodang, Fang Yanzao, and Cai Jiande passed the news to Li Mi.

"Duke Wei, now Zhai Kuan, Zhai Hong and others are constantly discussing in secret, how to rebel against more generals and support the Zhai family to regain power, we can't sit idly by and wait for internal troubles to break out!" Fang Yanzao said.

Cai Jiande said with a murderous face: "Duke Wei, it's better for us to mobilize troops, strike first, and kill the people of the Zhai family as soon as possible." ”

Wang Bodang was silent, feeling that it was a bit brutal to kill them all, but he didn't fight back, and he was worried that Duke Wei would be harmed.

"Is the message accurate?" Li Mi's face was gloomy.

"Of course, it has spread, and they have spread that it is a funny thing that the Li family should have the world, slandering that Duke Wei was defeated by Hu Chong's ministers, and it is not a true destiny, and the Zhai family wants to take back the throne."

The more Li Mi listened, the more angry he became, and he felt unbearable for Zhai Hong and others who repeatedly slandered his reputation behind his back.

Of course, the most intolerable thing is that someone wants to threaten his current status as King of Wei.

After people have power again, their ambitions have become greater, Li Mi wants the country, not only the small pattern of Wagang Village, but the Zhai family still thinks that this is Wagang's family business, and they despise him Li Mi's strength, which makes him even more unacceptable.

"This group of villains who have not achieved enough things and more than enough to lose, now my Wagang army is two or three hundred thousand, seventy percent of them are recruited by my Li Mi, or come at my Li Mi, only thirty percent are the men and horses of the old department, most of them are stationed in the mountains, defending the city in the rear, the Sui army is only 20,000 people, with their little people, they will not be able to mutiny?"

Cai Jiande said: "Duke Wei, the so-called heart of defense is indispensable, now Zhai Hong, Huang Junhan and others are gradually being excluded and not reused, and seeing that the Wagang Army is now powerful and powerful, and it will be able to impact the world in the future, they may take risks." ”

Fang Yanzao persuaded: "Duke Wei, can we send someone to monitor them, investigate their conspiracy, and take precautions early?" ”

Wang Bodang also spoke: "It's better to be safe, don't let them know for the time being, and wait for the evidence to be conclusive, and then it's not too late to start." ”

Li Mi nodded, although he was eager to wipe out all these and get rid of the internal troubles as soon as possible, otherwise, it would affect his duel with Wang Shichong and hinder him from doing a big business, but he also understood that infighting, launching a mutiny, and getting rid of some old troops would have an impact on morale in the future.

Therefore, until he couldn't bear it anymore, Li Mi didn't want to tear his face for the time being, and planned to conquer Luoyang, and after he was truly the emperor, he would pull out the old department of Wagang little by little, and those who had opinions about him wanted to follow the example of Liu Bang, the ancestor of the Han Dynasty, and use people first, and then liquidate them later.

But if the people of the Zhai family want to take back his power now, then Li Mi feels that he doesn't need to be soft, and he can't let anyone block his path to hegemony.