(PS: Voting for a red vote is like ordering a certain white coquettish-acupoint)

Chapter 740: The Decisive Battle (1)

There is a village thirty miles away from Wudang Mountain, this village can have nearly 2,000 people at its peak during the Kaihuang period of the Great Sui Dynasty, but after the war in the last years of the Great Cause, after more than ten years of catastrophe, there are only more than 100 people in this village now, and these more than 100 people still fled from the north to settle down after that, as for where the original villagers fled and went, no one knows.

The 2,000-strong village is home to only 100 people, making it look very empty and deserted. Most of the houses are dilapidated, and they look like they are in ruins.

It wasn't long ago that an elite force of 20,000 men was stationed in the village, and the place became lively again, and after a few days, the villagers gradually settled down from their initial panic. Occasionally, they would make a joke or two with the soldiers passing by, and give each other a kind smile.

Since last night, the villagers have noticed that there is something unusual about the troops stationed in the village, and the number of soldiers patrolling the defense is more than twice as large as usual. Many cavalry kept coming in and out, and there was no peace all night. When the sun began to peek out of the east in the morning, the early risers were surprised to find that the soldiers were already lined up outside the village. The infantry was a phalanx of 1,000 people, densely packed on the plain outside the village, and it was shocking to watch.

It is said that they are the two big men of the grandfather of the Tang Kingdom, wearing iron armor and standing at the front of the queue. Behind them, hundreds of generals and colonels at all levels stood in a solemn line. The fiery red battle flag was waving in the early morning wind, it was almost early winter, and the morning air was a little chilling, making the armor on the soldiers look even more solemn.

The villagers didn't know what was going on, and they didn't dare to go out easily, so they leaned on the wall of their yard and looked out, their eyes full of shock and curiosity.

As the sun struggled to emerge from the horizon completely, a cloud of dust and smoke swept in from the northwest. It looked like a violent storm was rolling in. All the villagers who saw this scene were stunned and frightened, and they fled back to the house and closed the door and trembled. They thought that war was about to befall this peaceful village, and they thought that the dust and smoke coming from afar were another army that had come to crusade against the Tang army outside the village.

When the dust and smoke gradually cleared, the bolder villagers could not help but breathe a sigh of relief when they saw the huge army coming in the distance also flying the red flag.

Luo Shixin, who was standing at the front of the queue, took a deep breath and turned his head to look at the eldest grandson Wuji beside him. The two of them looked at each other and smiled, and then quickly greeted each other at the same time. Hundreds of generals followed behind them, marching neatly.

The army coming from afar slowly stopped, and at the opening of the formation flag, hundreds of ironclad knights surrounded a general wearing black armor and slowly walked out, and behind the black-armored general, the Li character banner fluttered in the wind.

"Minister's Letter"

"The Minister's Sun Wuji"

Luo Shixin and the eldest grandson Wuji said in unison: "Meet the lord!" ”

At the same time, all the generals behind the two of them stood solemnly at the same time, and walked forward with their right arms across their chests with a standard Yanyun military salute.

"Meet the Lord!"

The sound of bang bang bang began to sound neatly, like war drums, like winter thunder, deafening.

It was the sound of 20,000 soldiers striking their shields or their breastplates with their swords, and they greeted their king in such a majestic and solemn way. This beating one by one vented their respect and worship for His Royal Highness King Yan in their hearts. The scene was so shocking that I am afraid that the villagers who saw it with their own eyes will never forget it for the rest of their lives.

Li Xian, who was sitting on the big black horse, bowed his head slightly, and then raised his right arm high.

As he raised his arms, the sound of banging on his shield and cuirass stopped abruptly.

"Shixin, auxiliary machine, thank you two for your hard work."

Li Xian jumped off the big black horse, looked at the two people in front of him and said with a smile. Behind him, Cheng Zhijie, Pei Xingyan, Xiong Kuohai, Zhang Gongjin and other generals slowly followed. And following Li Xian's side was the young man who had only reached his shoulder height. Wearing a suit of armor that didn't fit well, but his eyes were bright. Ye Huaisleeve and Jia'er didn't get down in the carriage, after all, their identities should not show up too much.

"The lord has worked hard from afar."

Luo Shixin and the eldest grandson Wuji leaned over and said.

Li Xian smiled, and said to the eldest grandson Wuji as he walked: "Before I arrived, I heard that Li Xiaogong saw you yesterday, and then last night the army marched all the way to the southeast. According to the news from the scouts, Li Xiaogong's men and horses actually marched nearly 100 miles in one night...... It's so fast, it's impressive. ”

The eldest grandson Wuji lowered his head and smiled and said, "Yesterday, the minister talked nonsense to him, I think Li Xiaogong scared him away." ”

Li Xian said: "If you are really scared away, you can't be spared by Lone." The army had traveled a long way, and it was time to rest for a few days to regain strength. Let Li Xiaogong volunteer to be the vanguard and fight two battles...... It's just that, Shixin, he robbed you of your errand like this. ”

Luo Shixin laughed and said: "Li Xiaogong is willing to rob, but the minister can't stop him." ”

The eldest grandson Wuji hesitated for a moment and asked, "Does the lord really want to rest for a few days before continuing south?" ”

Li Xian shook his head and said: "How is it possible, Li Shimin is in a hurry to lay down Xiangyang, just to want a place to build a foundation, and for this reason, he does not hesitate to fight a decisive battle with the Liang army." Speaking of which...... Lone is more anxious than Li Shimin...... Gu Ke was worried, if Xiao Mo couldn't bear to open the door and surrender, a good plain field battle would turn into a fortification. After the year, I have to rush to Hebei, where is the time to delay here more? ”

Li Xian glanced at the generals and said, "The soldiers will have a meal here, and then immediately pull out." It is best to be able to fight Li Shimin on the plain, if Li Shimin enters Xiangyang City...... I have to tear down the city walls! ”

Although the words were not fierce and surging, the faint confidence in them made the blood in everyone's hearts gradually boil.

……

……

Outside the city of Xiangyang

Standing on the high slope and looking to the north, Li Shimin's face was extremely solemn. The joy of the reinforcements of the Liang army a few days ago has long since disappeared, replaced by worries about the future.

Emperor Liang Xiao Mill was not frightened by him, although Li Shimin also knew that it was impossible for a letter to force Xiao Mill to open the door and surrender, but he didn't expect that Xiao Mill didn't even write a reply, the defenders on Xiangyang City in the past few days seem to be a lot more than in the past, you can see that craftsmen and people are busy repairing the city wall, and a lot of bed crossbows have been added, which shows that Xiao Mill has made up his mind to defend the city.

This is the worst and worst news for Li Shimin.

It's about to be winter, but the soldiers under his command don't have winter clothes and quilts at all! It was still spring when his men and horses marched from Xicheng County to the east, and it was midsummer when Yongqing County was conquered, but now October is almost over, and the weather is getting colder and colder day by day. Not to mention his men and horses, even the 100,000 Liang troops have no winter clothes, and in half a month, there is no need to fight, and then the terrible north wind can completely destroy the morale of the 200,000 troops under his command.

And what worries him more than the north wind is that the people and horses of Yan King Li Xian have arrived at Wudang Mountain. And Li Xiaogong, who was originally stationed in Wudang Mountain, had already led an army of 50,000 to the south, and rushed here under the stars. Li Shimin didn't have to think about it to know that Li Xiaogong was not here to take refuge in himself, even if he had just won a brilliant battle.

"The Lord"

Zhao Wu, who was promoted to the chief of the march, took a big piece of the horse, put it on Li Shimin and said: "The news from the scouts, Li Xiaogong's men and horses are on the way at night, I am afraid that they will be able to reach Xiangyang ......City in six or seven days at most."

"It's just the end of the crossbow."

Li Shimin waved his hand and said, "Li Xiaogong is nothing, Li Xian is here in person...... He's Lone's opponent. ”

Zhao Wu hesitated for a moment and persuaded him: "Lord, although there has just been a big victory, the morale of the soldiers has increased enough to be worthy of a battle. But the morale of the troops is still not available, and it cannot be used with confidence...... Li Xian's troops and Li Xiaogong's men and horses combined, it was only 1230,000, but they were all elite soldiers. In summary, the enemy is strong and I am weak...... It's better to avoid its edge for a while. ”

"Li Xian is using troops in Hebei, and he will not and dare not spend too much time here, so he must seek a quick battle...... The lord now has 100,000 troops, and he is the elite of the Liang army, it is better to retreat temporarily, find a place to recuperate, and then fight back for half a year at most, and Xiao Mo will still be unable to resist at that time. It takes half a year to integrate and surrender troops, which is also the top priority. Li Xian can't afford it, Dou Jiande is not a straw bag idiot, he has been running Hebei for ten years, deep-rooted, and has hundreds of thousands of soldiers, since he can't find an opportunity to fight quickly here, he will inevitably wave his troops north to attack Dou Jiande. ”

"As long as Yan Yun's army goes north, who can still stop the main public soldiers? In just one year, the lord can sweep the land south of the Yangtze River with these 200,000 male soldiers. At that time, even if Li Xian wins Dou Jiande and wins the land of Hebei, what can he do? The land south of the Yangtze River is rich, and the lord only needs to recuperate for a year or two, and then he can raise millions of troops to the north! ”

Li Shimin smiled and said, "That's good! ”

Zhao Wu was overjoyed, thinking that Li Shimin had listened to his suggestion, and before he could be happy, he heard Li Shimin continue: "But I can't wait a few years...... Zhao Wu, you have the talent to govern the country and the strategy of the world...... But you're ignoring one thing. You just said that you can gain a firm foothold in Jiangnan in one or two years, and then you are expected to go on a northern expedition......"

He turned his head to look at Zhao Wu and said seriously: "Then Gu asks you, now, how does Gu compare with Li Xian in terms of strength?" You don't shy away from anything, just be honest. ”

Zhao Wu hesitated for a moment and said, "It's not as good." ”

Li Shimin nodded and asked, "Is it small or big?" ”

Zhao Wu's face changed, but he still replied truthfully: "It's not as good." ”

Li Shimin hummed and said: "That's it, since the strength of Lone is not as good as Li Xian now, Lone will spend a year or two to recuperate and develop his strength." So will Li Xian stagnate in the next two years? Will it be a big loss of its own strength? The same is development, lonely is developing, and Li Xian is also developing. But he originally had more than Gu, and in the same development time, as long as there are no accidents, Li Xian will still be stronger than Gu, and it will get stronger and stronger......"

"You said that Li Xian must seek a quick battle, and that's right. But don't you see that Lone also wants to fight quickly now? It's not hope, it's just a quick battle! ”

Li Shimin sighed and said: "Li Xian led an army of seventy or eighty thousand, which is already the largest force he can draw from Chang'an. Most of his troops were deployed on both sides of the Yellow River, at least 400,000 men...... If Lone listens to your advice, retreats temporarily, recuperates for a year or two and then fights, by then Li Xian has pacified Hebei, gained dozens of counties, tens of millions of people, and then he mobilizes millions of soldiers to go south, how can Lone deal with it? There is no city and no land, how can we fight? ”

"In that case, why don't you take advantage of Li Xian's current situation when there are only more than 100,000 around him to fight a decisive battle?"

Li Shimin took a deep breath and said, "Since you have given Gu this opportunity, Gu will not let it go!" ”

He turned his gaze to the north, looking out of sight: "Alone with him...... Sooner or later, there will be a decisive battle, in this case, now is the time to be beneficial to Lone, why should Lone be cowardly and avoid war? The Li family's things were all taken away by him, and those belonged to Lone, and Lone had to take it back little by little. This is the best time, and it will be difficult to have such a fair fight with Li Xian in the future...... Lone doesn't want to miss it. ”

"Zhao Wu"

"The Minister"

"You say, why is Li Xian in such a hurry?"

"Minister......

"Lone comes to tell you, because he will look at Lone the most! heavier than his father...... Although Lone didn't know why, Lone was not ashamed of it, but felt a little proud. ”

"Being Li Xian's enemy is the most satisfying thing in life."