In Shanzhou, a conference room in the Longyou Jiedu Embassy was steaming, and dozens of generals who participated in the Hehuang Campaign gathered together to listen to the commander of the Hehuang Campaign, and the Longyou Jiedu envoy Ge Shuhan conveyed the latest orders of the imperial court.

"The Holy Lord has issued a strict order, I can't take the Stone Castle City within three months, my brother Shuhan's head will be hung under the Mingde Gate of Chang'an, and in the same way, if I can't take the Stone Castle City, all of you here are my brother Shuhan's burial, and I will behead you all before the court kills me."

Ge Shuhan's eyes swept coldly to the twenty-four generals present, these generals are from the five major systems, Longyou, Shuofang, Hexi, Anxi, and Dong Yanguang from the Chang'an Garrison, in the past six months, his Ge Shuhan has been committed to integrating them, wanting to forge them into a piece of iron to fight together, but it turned out that he was wrong, he did not have enough authority to suppress these generals, they still have their own ideas, the loss of Shenwei Fort is the best example, and the Shuofang cavalry of Arbus was a hundred miles away at that time, When the fire of Shenwei Castle was lit, they actually stood still, until Shenwei Fort was lost, they slowly swallowed the army, but in the end the reason they told themselves was very simple, they did not tell them that they had the obligation to rescue Shenwei Fort, this incident made Ge Shuhan angry, but also made him sober, he could not integrate these five different systems of armies, unless all of them were replaced by his own subordinates, but the court did not give him this power.

Ge Shuhan knew that the Holy Lord gave him three months, which did not mean that he could calmly fight Stone Castle City after two months, and then a small change would make the battle irreparable, and the Holy Lord gave him three months, and he could only give himself one month.

"That's all for my opening words, if you have any opinions, give me now, I'll deploy the campaign later, if you don't have any opinions at that time, I'm sorry, then you can get out of Longyou!"

Ge Shuhan said cruel words, the conference room was silent, Abs gently stroked a few short beards, and there was a trace of disdain in his eyes, wasn't Ge Shuhan's words aimed at himself? Didn't you just because of the battle of Shenwei City? Who does he think he is, does he think he is the heir of the king? Hum!

"General Arbus, do you have any opinions?" Geshuhan glanced at Abs and asked coldly.

"Nope! What will I say? Marshal Geshuhan, although you give the order, but my cavalry is not suitable for mountain combat, please consider this. ”

Absi meant to tell Ge Shuhan that he would not participate in the battle of Stone Fort City, and Ge Shuhan sneered and said: "General Absi, the battle of Shibao City will be completed by the three families of Longyou, Hexi and Anxi, and your cavalry is performing another task." ”

"Well, Marshal Geshuhan gives the order! I listened. ”

Just when Ge Shuhan and Absi were arguing, Li Siye whispered to Li Qing'an: "Qilang, why didn't Ge Shu mention your victory on Longju Island, didn't the imperial court have any commendation?" ”

"I don't know, maybe the court wants to commend it last!"

Li Qing'an's mind is not on the matter of commendation, and at today's military meeting, Ge Shuhan is finally going to arrange to fight Shibao City, but Li Qing'an thinks that the time is not ripe now, first of all, in winter, Chiling is covered with heavy snow, which is conducive to defense and not conducive to attack, which he deeply understands when he defends Longcheng, and secondly, the armies have never had joint combat exercises, and they are so engaged in battle without integration, is it possible to cooperate tacitly? This Abs is still shouting at Goshuhan! If it can be delayed until February next year, not only will it be easy to attack, but the internal situation of the Tubo army will also change.

Although he thought so, Li Qingan didn't say much, and these Ge Shuhan could also think of it, but the pressure of the imperial court forced him to start a war in advance. At this time, Ge Shuhan finally began to deploy, and he first said to Absi: "General Absi, the task of your 30,000 Shuo Fang army is to suppress Shenwei City, and force the Tubo army in Chiling not to dare to retreat to support Shibao City, if possible, you take Shenwei City for me!" ”

Abs snorted, neither agreeing nor expressing his position, only saying that he knew, Geshuhan glanced at him and asked, "General Abs, did you hear my orders clearly?" ”

"I heard clearly, isn't it just to contain the Chiling Tubo army on the northern front? No problem, I can do it. ”

"Well, if you miss the Battle of Stone Castle City, I'll take you to the knife!"

Ge Shuhan snorted heavily, and said to Dong Yanguang, another headache: "General Dong, the next important task is to trouble you." ”

Dong Yanguang is the general of the left guard, last year because Wang Zhongsi refused to fight Shibao City, Li Longji sent him to attack Shibao City, but failed, Dong Yanguang put the responsibility on Wang Zhongsi, resulting in Wang Zhongsi was dismissed and demoted, Ge Shuhan succeeded to Longyou Jiedu envoy, Dong Yanguang did not return to Chang'an, but was named the governor of Shanzhou, the deputy envoy of Longyou Jiedu, to assist Ge Shuhan to attack Tubo, this Hehuang Campaign, he was named a deputy general, became the second commander, Ge Shuhan to Dong Yanguang headache is not Dong Yanguang as his deputy general, but the last time Dong Yanguang led 30,000 Longyou Army to attack Shibao City and failed, he did not hand over the military power, but took the control of the 30,000 army as his own as the governor of Shanzhou, and the court also acquiesced in this, Ge Shuhan's new official took office, and he was helpless, because Dong Yanguang had failed in attacking Shibao City, so in this Hehuang Campaign, he has been silent and has no opinion on all military affairs.

Dong Yanguang is tall and thin, fair-skinned, about forty years old, among the rough dark-skinned generals in a circle, he seems to stand out a little, hearing that Ge Shuhan assigned him a task, he responded lightly, "Boss, please speak!" ”

Ge Shuhan pondered for a moment, he wanted Dong Yanguang to be responsible for intercepting Dafeichuan's reinforcements, but he was still a little uneasy about making this decision, such an important task was handed over to Dong Yanguang, could he complete it? However, Ge Shuhan also understands that this Dong Yanguang is Li Longji's favorite general, if it weren't for the fact that he had failed in attacking Shibao City, then the envoy of Longyoujie would be Dong Yanguang, not his brother Shuhan, this battle of Hehuang, appointing Dong Yanguang as a deputy general, is to let him make another great contribution to make up for the defeat of the last attack on Shibao City, so Dong Yanguang must be reused, just let him fight Shibao City, Ge Shuhan is not at ease, after thinking twice, Ge Shuhan still decided to let him be responsible for intercepting the main force of Tubo in Dafeichuan.

"General Dong, your task is to intercept the Tubo reinforcements in Dafeichuan after General Absi pinned down the heavy army of Chiling in Shenwei City, and after you led the 30,000 troops of your headquarters and the 30,000 Hexi army to detour from Qinghai Lake to Chiling."

"Wait!"

Dong Yanguang hurriedly said: "Is the marshal asking me to intercept the main force of the Tubo army?" ”

"That's right, I don't want General Dong to hold out for long, as long as it is intercepted for three days, the battle of Shibao City, I will admit that General Dong is tied for the first credit."

Dong Yanguang was a little tempted, as long as it took three days, he could get the first credit, which could be considered, he thought about it and said, "Okay! The subordinates obeyed the arrangement of the commander. ”

Shuofang Army, Hexi Army and Dong Yanguang's Department have a whereabouts, and the rest of the frontal attack on Shibao City will be completed by the main force of his Longyou Army, at this time, Ge Shuhan's eyes glanced at Li Qing'an and Li Siye, these two are the representatives of the Anxi Army, and they are also the only ones who are good to command his army, Ge Shuhan smiled: "Siye's Modao Army is a siege army, this time with me to attack head-on, as for General Qing'an." ”

Ge Shuhan pointed to the mountain behind Chiling and said, "General Qing'an's task is to cooperate with the frontal attack of the main force, and surprise troops will enter from behind Shibao City. ”

Li Siye and Li Qing'an glanced at each other at the same time, and Li Siye hurriedly said: "Marshal, the mountain behind Chiling is the place where the Tubo army is heavily armed, and our Anxi army is a major general, how can we kill Shibao City from the back mountain?" Think again. ”

Ge Shuhan waved his hand and said with a smile without waiting for Li Qing'an to speak: "Don't worry, Ben Shuai did not ask General Qing'an to take Shibao City, Ben Shuai meant to let him feint from the back mountain to attract the attention of the Tubo army, General Qing'an's subordinates are all scout troops, and they are fully competent, and then the Tubo army in Chiling will be attracted to the front line of Shenwei City, and the Tubo army in Dafeichuan will be intercepted by General Dong Yanguang, in fact, General Qing'an's task is very easy, this is also Ben Shuai taking care of the Anxi army, you don't shirk." ”

After speaking, Ge Shuhan's eyes glanced at Li Qing'an, he didn't dare to take the Shuofang army and the Hexi army, if the Anxi army dared to disobey again, he would use this Li Qing'an to build the army's prestige, Li Qing'an pulled Li Siye, stood up and arched his hand and said: "The last general will obey the order!" ”

Geshuhan laughed, "Good! That's how a husband should be! ”

As soon as the laughter ended, his eyes swept over everyone, and he said slowly: "I will arrange the time for each army to send troops in detail, but the time to take Shibao City has been set, and before the first day of the first month of the eighth year of Tianbao, we must take it!" ”

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After the meeting, Ge Shuhan ordered someone to invite Li Qingan to his study.

"The last general will see Geshu Dashuai!" When Li Qingan entered the house, he half-knelt down and gave a military salute to Ge Shuhan.

"Huh! Shichiro doesn't have to be polite. ”

Ge Shuhan hurriedly helped him up with a smile, invited him to sit down, and ordered his soldiers to serve him a cup of tea.

"Shichiro, last time you won a big victory on Longju Island, the imperial court didn't reward you in time, do you have complaints?"

"There are no complaints from the subordinates."

Ge Shuhan smiled and said: "Actually, I have already reported your exploits to the imperial court, as well as the surprise attack on the ambush city and the burning of military rations, I have also reported to the imperial court in time, and the saint has also expressed his position." ”

As he spoke, he took a copy of the will forwarded by the Ministry of War and handed it to Li Qingan, "Take a look at it first!" ”

Li Qing'an opened the jute decree issued by Zhongshu Province and looked at it, and the holy decree clearly pointed out his merits, a surprise attack on the city of Fuqi, and the fire of the Tubo army rations; The great victory on Longju Island boosted the morale of the Tang army, and they all made great contributions, and they were rewarded after the end of the Hehuang War.

Ge Shuhan sighed and said: "The reason why I didn't immediately ask the court to reward you is because the factions in the army are complicated, you also saw it just now, an Absi, a Dong Yanguang are both unruly people, once you are rewarded, first of all, they will not do it, yesterday that Absi also came to me and shouted, saying that he saved Yang Jinghui, why can't he be rewarded, I said that Li Qing'an has made such a great contribution, and he hasn't been rewarded yet, so he just shut up, hey!" I am the commander-in-chief of the Battle of Hehuang, supervising more than 100,000 people, everyone thinks that this battle will be won, only I know in my heart that it is difficult to win this battle! An internal friction will restrain your hands and feet. ”

Li Qing'an pondered for a while and said: "Don't worry, I don't have any complaints, it's just that I thought that the big marshal transferred the Absi Department and Dong Yanguang's department and entrusted him with important tasks, but there is no guarantee that the two of them will cooperate with the main force to fight, especially Dong Yanguang's department, he can really intercept the main force of the Tubo army?" ”

"I know this in my heart, and I don't want them to really fight with Tubo, as long as they put on a posture, they can disperse Tubo's troops, so that the Tubo army can't see my true intentions, as long as I capture Shibao City, Chiling will be in my bag."

Speaking of this, Ge Shuhan stared into Li Qing'an's eyes and said: "And you attack Shibao City from behind, this is the key to the entire battle situation, Shibao City can only accommodate a thousand people, it is not terrible, what is terrible is its steady stream of reinforcements, so you must contain the reinforcements of Shibao City and give me a frontal attack to relieve the pressure, Qilang, two days, as long as you drag the Tubo army for two days, you are the first hero of this Hehuang Campaign, if you fail, it means the failure of the entire Hehuang Campaign, do you understand?" ”

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A team of cavalry rushed in the barren plateau meadows, far away is the snow-capped Chiling, the sunset shines on the red mountain beams, there is a blood-colored dusk desolation, and then to the west is the endless Qinghai water, there seems to be a raging fire burning on the ice field, Li Qing'an slowly reined in the war horse, staring at the round of red sunset in the distance, his mind is still haunting Ge Shuhan's words, 'two days, as long as you drag the Tubo army for two days, you are the first hero of this Hehuang Battle, if you fail, That means the defeat of the entire Battle of Hehuang, do you understand? The setting sun shone on his well-defined face, and there seemed to be a fire burning in his gaze, which was the duty and fortitude of a soldier.

In the cold winter of December, Hudi is cold and frosty, and the man does not hesitate to die, breaking his courage and tasting it.

Li Qing'an whipped his horse fiercely and ran towards the boundless Qinghai Ice Field.

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From the 15th of December, the war machine of the Tang army began to be launched, and the 30,000 Shuofang army led by Absi and the 60,000 Tang army led by Dong Yanguang, a total of 90,000 troops, marched at the same time in the direction of Xihai County, hundreds of miles away.

It had just snowed heavily, and on the vast grasslands covered with mud and snow, there were grain carts covered with tarpaulins, carts loaded with straw and hay, and huge baggage sleds, staggering and creaking forward, and the snowflakes were flying in the sky.

The Tang army marched northwest in the mud, braving dense snow, accompanied by shouts and curses, mixed with the crackling of leather whips and the creak of axles, like the tide of the sea, and from time to time you could see dying animals or dead animals lying on both sides of the procession, and occasionally a cart with wheels facing the sky.

Sometimes a troop of cavalry rushed into the flow of people, and the soldiers kept shouting and cursing, and the horses stood up and kept neighing, and a cart full of grain and grass would roll down the slope, and the people in the cart would roll down the slope with them.

Ahead, in the middle of the torrent of vehicles, the soldiers lined up in a long queue, stepping on the slippery mud and marching with difficulty, and the flow of people was mixed with carriages carrying small weapons such as knives, guns, bows and crossbows.

Two miles parallel to the army was the Huangshui, the river was covered with thick ice, and thousands of Longyou men were pulling with great difficulty a huge sleigh of baggage, making a low, rhythmic, and shocking sound.

The baggage sleds were loaded with all kinds of heavy siege engines, and the ladders, nest cars, building cars, as well as a large number of tents and food, stretched for more than ten miles, and there were also terrible trebuchets, battering rams, and barrels of fire oil, all of which were heavily guarded.

Their destination was Qinghai, three hundred miles away, and the march was unusually slow, and the march had been on the road for five full days.

A cavalry team sped past the ranks, splashing large clouds of mud mixed with snow, and several soldiers could not dodge, their bodies and faces splashed with muddy water.

"you!"

Before the words fell, 'Smack! There was a crisp thud on the ground, and there was a blood-red whip mark on the sludge-covered face.

A horse galloped past him, bringing up a rumor of wind.

"You are blind, and you dare to scold General Abs."

With a gloomy face, Absi galloped forward, passing a group of Tang troops, and in front of him was a bare dense forest, which was heavily guarded and forbidden to enter the soldiers, and in the dense forest, Dong Yanguang was resting with more than a dozen of his civilian officials and staff.

"I'm Shuofang Absi, and I want to see you General Dong."

Absi was originally the leader of the Turkic nine surnamed Tiele Tongluo tribe, belonging to the Eastern Turkic Khanate, with a large population and strong strength, during the reign of the Eastern Turkic Usumish Khan, he was appointed as the Ye Hu of the west, second only to the Khan, the Eastern Turkic Khanate perished, and the Usumish Khan was attacked and killed by the combined forces of Ba Ximi, Hui and Qarluq, he led his troops to defect to the Tang Dynasty, and was named the king of Fengxin by Li Longji, and gave the Han name Li Xianzhong, and placed his tribe in the land of Henan, to which the Shuofang Jiedu envoy belonged.

The only Tang army general that Absi was convinced of was Wang Zhonghe, the envoy of the original Shuo Fang Jiedu, after Wang Zhongsi was innocently dismissed from his military position, he had a kind of dissatisfaction with the imperial court in his heart, this time he was transferred to participate in the Battle of Hehuang and assist Ge Shuhan in attacking Shibao City, he felt that the imperial court was taking the opportunity to weaken him, his subordinates were basically cavalry, how could he participate in the battle of Shibao City?

It is precisely because of the existence of this element of distrust that he has been passively responding to the war since the beginning of the war, when the Tubo army attacked Shenwei City, he stationed troops hundreds of miles away, and saw the help beacon of Shenwei City, he was unwilling to go to the rescue, but only finally responded to the remnants of the Tang army, it was this incident that made him contradict the Tuqi Shi Ge Shuhan, who he had already despised.

After a while, Dong Yanguang rode out of the dense forest and said with a smile: "General Absi, why are you still behind me?" ”

Absi turned over and dismounted, and said with a smile: "General Dong, I want to say a few words to you, I don't know if it's convenient?" ”

Dong Yanguang glanced at him deeply, and waved his hand to the woods, "General Absi, please!" ”

The two walked into the woods, sat down on two big rocks, a personal soldier brought them two cups of hot tea, Absi took a sip of hot tea, a hot breath poured into his chest, driving away the chill in his chest and abdomen, he smiled and said: "General Dong, we march on such a large scale, do you think the Tubo army will know?" ”

"If Shenwei City was controlled by the Tang Army, they wouldn't know about it, but now, they must have gotten the information."

Absi nodded and said, "So I want to remind General Dong to beware of being surrounded by heavy troops from the Tibetans." ”

Dong Yanguang was stunned for a moment, and he suddenly heard the meaning of Absi's words.

"Does the general mean that Geshuhan is trying to use me as bait?"

Abs smiled coldly and said, "I didn't say that, General Dong can think about it himself, but one thing is for sure, Ge Shuhan deliberately transferred us away, that is, he didn't let us participate in the fight against Stone Fort City." ”

Dong Yanguang lowered his head and fell into deep thought.

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(To be continued)