In the troubled times of the late Sui and early Tang Dynasties, Li Mi was undoubtedly a legend. He used to be the leader of the anti-Sui alliance recognized by the world, with 300,000 Wagang troops, occupying a large area of territory in the Central Plains, and was a well-deserved leader of the rebel army at the end of the Sui Dynasty. Moreover, he is also a troubled man who is favored by many people, believing that he can eventually replace the Sui Dynasty and achieve the great cause of the emperor.

However, creation makes people, and the world is impermanent. In the end, Li Mi was proud of his self-servitude and pride to despise the enemy, and personally ruined the once-prosperous Wagang Army and his dream of being an emperor. In the first battle of Luoyang Beibi Mountain, the 100,000 Wagang army was almost wiped out. Since then, the Wagang Army Group, which once threatened the Central Plains, withdrew from the historical stage of the late Sui and early Tang Dynasties. And Li Mi himself, like a lost dog, led 20,000 remnants of the defeated army to the west of Guanzhong and defected to Li Tang.

It stands to reason that he has fallen to this step, and the general trend has gone. If Li Mi can recognize the situation clearly and keep to himself, perhaps, he can also preserve the glory and wealth of the second half of his life. However, Li Mi is a person who refuses to accept his fate, and he will not easily compromise with fate.

Therefore, less than a year after defecting to the Tang Dynasty, Li Mi re-erected the anti-banner and rebelled against the Tang Dynasty in an attempt to break away from Li Tang's rule. It's a pity that this time, history didn't favor Li Mi. With this move, Li Mi has truly embarked on a road of no return, and what awaits him will be death and defeat.

So, why did Li Mi refuse to be satisfied with the status quo and honestly be a courtier of the Tang Dynasty, why did he embark on a road of no return where eggs hit stones? In Li Mi, who has embarked on the road of rebellion against the Tang Dynasty, what will be the outcome of his life? In the end, in what way did Li Mi end his legendary life?

As introduced in the previous chapter, in November of the first year of Wude (618), Li Shimin, the king of Qin, personally led the main force of the Tang army to defeat the Western Qin army in the Battle of Qianshuiyuan. Soon, Li Shimin took advantage of the victory to pursue, and the troops were on the verge of breaking the city, and Xue Rengao surrendered the city in a desperate situation where the mountains and rivers were exhausted, and the Western Qin perished. At this point, the Tang Dynasty completely eliminated one of the most formidable rivals in the northwest, the Western Qin Xue regime, and incorporated the land of Longxi into the territory of the Tang Dynasty.

After the elimination of the Western Qin, the Li Tang Dynasty decided to strike while the iron was hot and take advantage of the momentum of victory to unify the entire northwest in one fell swoop. In the second year, in May of the second year of Wude (619), the Tang army sent troops again and successfully leveled the Li Rail regime in Hexi. With the successive collapse of the two major separatist forces of Western Qin and Liangguo, the Tang Dynasty truly realized the unification of the northwest region, and Longxi and Hexi became the areas under the jurisdiction of the Tang Dynasty.

After Li Tang unified the northwest, Tang Gaozu Li Yuan began to prepare for the next stage of the operation. That is, to go all out to deal with Liu Wuzhou in Shanxi, pull out this nail in Shanxi, consolidate the military environment in Taiyuan, and completely eliminate the military threat to Guanzhong from the surrounding separatist forces.

However, before this military plan could be implemented, an unexpected situation occurred in the Tang Dynasty. The former leader of the Wagang Army and the leader of the anti-Sui League, Li Luqing and Xingguo Gong Li Mi of the Li Tang Dynasty, suddenly led his troops to defect and break away from the Tang Dynasty, intending to start anew. Faced with this thorny problem, Li Yuan judged the situation and had to temporarily put aside his military plan to deal with Liu Wuzhou, concentrate on dealing with Li Mi's rebellion against the Tang Dynasty, and eliminate this elbow and armpit problem.

Some people may wonder, Li Mi defected to the Tang Dynasty, at this time, it was less than a year, why did he suddenly decide to rebel against the Tang Dynasty and become independent, and moreover, he defected under Li Yuan's nose? Regarding why Li Mi rebelled against the Tang Dynasty, the ins and outs of the matter have to start from the beginning.

From July to November of the first year of Wude (618), the Tang Dynasty at this time was engaged in a fierce battle with the Xue regime on the battlefield on the Western Front, fighting bloodily for the unification of the northwest. At the same time, during this period, the situation in the Central Plains underwent great changes. As the leader of the anti-Sui League and the leader of the Wagang Army, Li Mi encountered the biggest "Waterloo" in his life and career under Luoyang City. With this defeat, Li Mi has since entered a low point in his life, and he has never had a chance to turn over.

In September of this year, because Li Mi was anxious to capture Luoyang, he committed the taboo of lightly advancing the enemy and going deep alone, and rashly fought a decisive battle with Wang Shichong's main force. As a result, in the battle of Beibi Mountain in Luoyang, Li Mi fell for Wang Shichong's treacherous scheme, and the 100,000 Wagang army was almost wiped out.

It can be said that the battle of Luoyang's Beibi Mountain made Li Mi defeated. The family wealth accumulated over the years, because of this battle, lost cleanly. However, often disasters do not go alone. The military fiasco was not the most fatal blow to Li Mi. What's even worse is that Li Mi at this time really experienced the taste of betrayal and separation. Many civil and military officers of the Wagang Army, as well as their old subordinates, surrendered to Wang Shichong one after another.

After the defeat of Beibi Mountain, Li Mi's defeat was a foregone conclusion, and he was obviously powerless. Because Wang Shichong took a surprise attack, Li Mi was defenseless, so he was defeated with one blow. At that time, the main force of the Wagang Army was basically lost, and most of the army was scattered. At that time, there were only more than 10,000 remnants left around Li Mi. In desperation, Li Mi had no choice but to gather the remnants of the army and retreat to Luokoucang, intending to defend Luokoucang and recover his vitality.

Li Mi's army was defeated like a mountain, and Wang Shichong could be regarded as raising his eyebrows and exhaling at this time. In the year of confrontation with the Wagang army in Luoyang, Wang Shichong always won fewer victories and lost more, and was at a disadvantage. Now, finally, feng shui takes turns, and it is Li Mi's turn to be unlucky. Wang Shichong naturally will not let go of this opportunity. As a result, Wang Shichong immediately gathered troops and horses, pursued the victory, and occupied a large amount of Li Mi's territory in Henan.

From this time on, Li Mi's betrayal and separation from relatives were very obvious. Those Wagang Army territories occupied by Wang Shichong either secretly communicated with Wang Shichong, or took the initiative to surrender to Wang Shichong. For example, when Li Mi was just defeated, Wang Shichong pursued all the way, and the soldiers first approached Yanshi.

At that time, the general of the Wagang Army stationed in Yanshi was Li Mi's Changshi Zheng Ting. Faced with the pressure of Wang Shichong's troops, Zheng Ying originally wanted to gather troops in the city to resist Wang Shichong's siege. However, the main force of the Wagang Army has been completely annihilated, the people's hearts have been dispersed, and everyone does not want to continue fighting. Therefore, without waiting for Zheng Ying to organize resistance, his subordinates took the initiative to surrender the city. Wang Shichong's troops occupied Yanshi bloodlessly, and Zheng Ying was also forced to surrender to Wang Shichong.

Immediately afterwards, Wang Shichong tasted the sweetness, integrated the soldiers and horses, and continued to advance in the direction of Luokoucang. It should be said that Wang Shichong's progress along the way is like a bamboo. In the process, Wang Shichong captured many Wagang army generals and their families. Moreover, Wang Shichong also asked these people to write letters to their relatives, hoping that they would surrender themselves. This move did add fuel to the fire in disintegrating the morale of the Wagang Army.

In the first battle of Beibi Mountain, the main force of the Wagang army suffered casualties, and Li Mi had to retreat all the way. According to Li Mi's original plan, he retreated to Luokoucang and used it as a base to gradually recover. However, fate played a joke on Li Mi again. Luokoucang is Li Mi's last hope, and now, even this last hope can't be kept. Luokoucang surrendered without a fight, and in the huge Central Plains, there was no place for Li Mi to gain a foothold.

The guard general at Luokoucang at that time was Li Mi's long history - Bing Yuanzhen. However, it was this Bing Yuanzhen who fell into the well when Li Mi was desperate, not only colluding with Wang Shichong. Even, he had to ambush Li Mi halfway. In fact, Bing Yuan is really anti-water, and Li Mi has an unshirkable responsibility. Due to Li Mi's suspicion and suspicion, Bing Yuanzhen was dissatisfied with him, and finally threw himself into Wang Shichong's arms:

At the beginning, Bing Yuanzhen was a county official, and he was killed by stolen goods, and he was conceded from Zhai to Wagang; Let him taste as a servant and make him a secretary. and the secret opening of the mansion, the wonderful selection of Shiying, so that the recommendation of Yuan Zhen is a long history; It was used as a last resort, marching and planning, and did not participate in the pre-trial. (Information Governance Guide)

Bing Yuanzhen was originally just an ordinary county official in the Sui Dynasty, but he was forced to flee because of corruption. Later, he followed Zhai Rang and revolted together in Wagangzhai. Therefore, Bing Yuan is really the entrepreneurial veteran of the Wagang Army, and his qualifications are even older than Li Mi. Zhai Rang also trusted him very much, and often put him in charge of secretarial affairs.

Later, Li Mi sat on the top spot of the Wagang Army, established the title of Duke of Wei, and opened the Marshal's Mansion. At that time, Li Mi needed to recruit talents, so Zhai Rang recommended Bing Yuanzhen to Li Mi as a long history. Li Mi estimated that he couldn't resist Zhai Rang, so he could only reluctantly appoint Bing Yuanzhen as the long history.

Despite this, Li Mi never believed Bing Yuanzhen, thinking that he was the eyeliner that Zhai Rang had placed beside him. Therefore, although Bing Yuanzhen has the name of long history, he does not have the right to long history. Li Mi did not even allow him to participate in major military decisions within the Wagang Army, and he was always wary of him.

Li Mi's high degree of distrust naturally made Bing Yuan really dissatisfied. Later, before the decisive battle between Li Mi and Wang Shichong, he ordered Bing Yuanzhen to stay in Luokoucang. However, many people in the Wagang army think that Bing Yuan is really greedy and vulgar, and he is very unreliable. For example, Yu Wenwen, a strategist under Li Mi, even suggested that Li Mi kill Bing Yuanzhen and choose another meritocracy: "If you don't kill Yuanzhen, it will be a public disaster." Of course, Li Mi did not listen.

Although Li Mi did not follow Yu Wenwen's advice, after Bing Yuanzhen found out, his dissatisfaction became more and more intense, and he had the idea of betraying Li Mi in his heart. So, taking advantage of the decisive battle between Li Mi and Wang Shichong's main force, Bing Yuanzhen began to plot a rebellion and secretly communicated with Wang Shichong.

There is no impermeable wall in the world, and Bing Yuanzhen's conspiracy was soon discovered by other generals of the Wagang Army. Therefore, they secretly reported the matter to Li Mi. It's just that Li Mi was busy fighting Wang Shichong at that time and had no time to take care of it, so he could only be suspicious of this matter.

Soon, Li Mi's troops were defeated in Beishan and retreated to Luokoucang. At this time, Bing Yuanzhen had already colluded with Wang Shichong, and he definitely couldn't let go of Li Mi, who was like a lost dog. In fact, Li Mi knows everything about Bing Yuanzhen's apostasy. However, Li Mi was too conceited, he felt that he still had more than 10,000 soldiers and horses in his hands after all, and he was fully capable of fighting a battle. Therefore, Li Mi lined up on the shore of Luoshui, planning to take advantage of Wang Shichong's half-crossing of Luoshui to suddenly attack and "attack him half-crossing".

It's a pity that Li Mi's plan was seen through by Bing Yuanzhen. Bing Yuanzhen informed Wang Shichong in advance and pointed out a hidden shortcut for him, so that Wang Shichong's soldiers and horses crossed Luoshui unconsciously. Therefore, until the enemy army completely crossed Luoshui, Li Mi's scouts were unaware of it. In this way, Li Mi's plan obviously fell through. There was no way, Li Mi had no choice but to lead his troops to escape to the tiger prison. After that, Bing Yuanzhen moved the city to surrender to Wang Shichong.

Luokoucang surrendered without a fight, symbolizing Li Mi's last glimmer of hope, which was also dashed; Li Mi's last territory in Henan no longer exists. Soon after Bing Yuanzhen surrendered, Shan Xiongxin, another member of the Wagang Army, also defected from the Wagang Army and surrendered to Wang Shichong:

At the beginning, Xiongxin was brave and fast, made good use of the horse lance, and was named the army, and the army was called "flying general". Yanzao is less than going to it with a strong letter, and persuades it to get rid of it; I love his talent and can't bear it. and the secret defeat, Xiongxin then descended to the world. (Information Governance Guide)

Shan Xiongxin is brave and good at fighting, and has made great achievements for the Wagang Army, and is one of the best generals in the Wagang Army. Now, even a powerful general like Shan Xiongxin and 10,000 enemies have surrendered to Wang Shichong. It can be seen that at this time, the Wagang Army has completely fallen apart and disintegrated to the point that there is not even a shelf left.

From an objective point of view, Li Mi at this time really reached the point of exhaustion, with no way to go to the sky and no way to enter the earth. At this time, Wang Bodang, another member of the Wagang Army, also abandoned Kim Yong Cheng and retired to Heyang. Soon, Li Mi came to Heyang with a small number of remnants of soldiers and joined Wang Bodang.

After seeing Wang Bodang, Li Mi had mixed feelings. He didn't understand why the Wagang Rebel Army, which once dominated the world, ended up in this step? Li Mi, who was full of grief and anger, couldn't help but lose control of his emotions, and in front of the generals, he pulled out his sword, and once wanted to kill himself. Moreover, Li Mi also said something very bleak:

The army is defeated, and the kings have suffered for a long time! I will kill myself today, please thank you. (The Old Tang Book: The Biography of Li Mi)

At the last moment, Wang Bodang hugged Li Mi and cried loudly, preventing Li Mi's suicide attempt. Then, the rest of the Wagang tribesmen wept together and couldn't look up. In fact, Li Mi's move was also to test Wang Bodang and see if Wang Bodang was willing to follow him.

Next, Li Mi tentatively said to Wang Bodang: "The general's family is very important, how can he be alone again!" "How did Uncle Wang react to Li Mi's intentional temptation? Wang Bodang was a loyal and righteous man, and after hearing this, he did not hesitate and immediately responded:

In the past, Xiao He led his children to obey, and Bodang hated Kunji to obey, and he was ashamed of this. How could it be that the public lost today, so he went lightly? Vertical in the wilderness, but also willing. (The Old Tang Book: The Biography of Li Mi)

In the end, under the unanimous persuasion of the generals of the Wagang army, Li Mi decided to lead the remaining troops and defect to Li Tang. At that time, the world was in turmoil, and the heroes from all over the country proclaimed themselves kings and emperors, and established separatist regimes, which continued unabated. The Li Tang Dynasty was just one of many secessionist regimes, and at this time, less than a year after the founding of the country. Moreover, at this time, the Tang Dynasty was fighting a fierce battle with the Western Qin Xue regime on the Western Front, and the outcome was not yet known. So, why did Li Mi choose to vote for Li Tang?

As far as Li Mi's current situation is concerned, defecting to the Tang Dynasty is his only choice. Why? First of all, after the First Battle of Beibi Mountain, the main force of the Wagang Army was lost, and Li Mi's territory in Henan was basically occupied by Wang Shichong. Therefore, in the Central Plains, there is no place for Li Mi to gain a foothold. Moreover, it is impossible for Li Mi to surrender to Wang Shichong, and he has been fighting with Wang Shichong for so long. Once he surrenders to Wang Shichong, he will never have a day to turn over.

Secondly, although the Tang Dynasty was established not long ago, it was gaining momentum. The newly-born Li Tang Dynasty showed a new atmosphere of restoration in all aspects of the country, and there was great hope for unifying the world. Therefore, Li Mi believes that if he defects to the Tang Dynasty, he can at least temporarily have a place to settle down, and take this opportunity to recuperate. One day, when the strength has been accumulated and recovered, it is also very promising to make a comeback.

What's more, in the process of Li Yuan's entry into the Guanzhong, Li Mi once indirectly helped the Li family's father and son. If it weren't for Li Mi leading the Wagang Army and dragging the main force of the Sui army in Luoyang, the Li family father and son would not have been able to conquer Chang'an in such a short period of time and achieve the cause of Emperor Li Tang. Based on this alone, Li Mi thinks that thanks to Li Tang, and now he has defected to the Tang Dynasty, presumably Tang Gaozu Li Yuan will not treat him coldly, and will entrust him with important tasks.

So, in September of the first year of Wude (618), Li Mi led the remaining 20,000 remnants of the army to the west into Guanzhong and defected to Li Tang. At that time, the old Wagang department that followed Li Mi to Li Tang was about 20,000 people in total. However, there were some generals and subordinates of the Wagang Army, and Li Mi did not take them to join the Tang Dynasty, but stayed in the Henan area. Therefore, when Li Mi left, most of these people surrendered to Wang Shichong.

Li Mi's defeat to the Tang Dynasty marked the withdrawal of the Wagang Army, the most powerful armed force in the late Sui Dynasty, from the historical stage of the late Sui and early Tang Dynasties. So, for Li Mi's coming and annexing, how will the Tang Dynasty treat Li Mi, who once responded to every call and is now reduced to a lost dog?

Initially, when Li Mi entered the customs and joined the Tang Dynasty, Tang Gaozu Li Yuan still attached great importance to it. You must know that today is not what it used to be, and the current Li Yuan and Li Mi have very different identities. Li Mi is no longer the leader of the powerful Wagang Army and the leader of the anti-Sui Alliance, but Li Yuan is already the emperor of the Tang Dynasty. In this case, why does Tang Gaozu Li Yuan still attach so much importance to this matter? There are two main reasons for this.

First, after all, Li Mi was the leader of the Wagang Army who was Megatron and the leader of the anti-Sui alliance promoted by the world's heroes, and his influence was still there. After Li Mi's army was defeated in Luoyang, part of the remnants of the Wagang army in Henan surrendered to Wang Shichong, and part of it was in a wait-and-see state. Therefore, Li Yuan believed that treating Li Mi and his 20,000 subordinates well would play a certain role in recruiting the old Wagang troops and making them subordinate to Li Tang.

Second, Li Mi's political identity is special. Li Yuan and Li Mi were both born in the Guanlong aristocratic group. For example, Li Yuan's grandfather Li Hu and Li Mi's great-grandfather Li Bi were both one of the "Eight Pillar Kingdoms" of the Western Wei and Northern Zhou dynasties. Therefore, Li Mi has the political identity of a member of the Guanlong aristocratic group. Appeasing Li Mi was of great political significance to the nascent Tang Dynasty and was conducive to stabilizing the Guanlong aristocratic group.

In order to show the importance of Li Mi's subordination, the Tang Dynasty court had not yet arrived in Chang'an after Li Mi entered the customs. Tang Gaozu Li Yuan sent a wave of envoys to comfort and reward Li Mi's troops. Tang Gaozu attached so much importance to it that Li Mi was very useful. Li Mi was very proud, and even compared himself to a figure like Dou Rong of the Eastern Han Dynasty, and said something like this to his subordinates in a gaffe:

I have millions of people, once I disarmed and returned to the Tang Dynasty, hundreds of cities in Shandong, knowing that I am here, I should send an envoy to recruit him; Compared with Dou Rong, the work is not fine, how can it not be seen by a division! (Information Governance Guide)

It is not difficult to see that Li Mi is still quite confident and has great hopes at this time. He felt that he had made a great contribution to Li Tang, and besides, the old Wagang Army in Shandong had not yet returned to the Tang Dynasty. If the Tang Dynasty wanted to co-opt these old Shandong departments, it had to treat Li Mi well. Therefore, Li Mi estimated that after he voted for the Tang Dynasty, he would be able to become a high-ranking official of the Three Princes. So, is this really the case?

Reality is often much harsher than ideals. Obviously, Li Mi was a little overconfident, and he thought everything too well. After entering Chang'an, the appointment of Tang Gaozu Li Yuan surprised Li Mi and made him disappointed. Moreover, Li Yuan's attitude towards Li Mi, and his reward and appointment, are full of contradictions, some of which make Li Mi unpredictable.

First of all, after Li Mi entered Chang'an, the attitude of the Tang Dynasty towards him took a 180-degree turn. Previously, before Li Mi arrived in Chang'an, Tang Gaozu sent a wave of envoys to condolence and reward, what a standard and importance it was. However, as soon as Li Mi entered Chang'an, the attitude of the Tang Dynasty immediately underwent a shocking reversal. According to the record of the "General Guide to Governance":

Jimao, to Chang'an, there is a division to treat a little thin, the soldiers are tired and cannot eat, and the people are quite resentful.

According to the above records, after Li Mi entered Chang'an, the Tang Dynasty's department in charge of reception was significantly reduced in terms of Li Mi's treatment and specifications. That's not all, you know, Li Mi didn't join Tang alone, but brought 20,000 Wagang old departments. Unexpectedly, as soon as the 20,000 horses entered the customs, they didn't eat for several days, let alone be rewarded. As a result, Li Mi and his 20,000 subordinates gradually became dissatisfied.

You don't have to guess to know that if it weren't for the acquiescence and instruction of Tang Gaozu Li Yuan behind his back, how could the relevant reception department treat Li Mi so harshly. Some people may be puzzled, why is there such a big contrast between Li Yuan's attitude before and after? Before, Li Yuan was so enthusiastic and earnest; However, as soon as Li Mi entered Chang'an, his attitude changed so strangely, and he became cold and ignorant of Li Mi.

This was deliberately done by Tang Gaozu Li Yuan, and the reason why he did this was to sharpen Li Mi's arrogance. Li Yuan knows very well that Li Mi is very capable, and because of this, he is also very arrogant, and most people look down on him. Moreover, Li Mi thought that he had a great credit to Li Tang, and felt that the Tang Dynasty should naturally follow him everywhere. The question is, would Tang Gaozu think like this? Li Yuan won't eat this set!

In the opinion of Tang Gaozu Li Yuan, Li Mi has just joined the Tang Dynasty, if he does not set the rules, if he lowers his posture too much, it is easy for Li Mi to despise the Tang Dynasty. Therefore, after Li Mi entered Chang'an, Li Yuan deliberately instructed the relevant departments to lower the reception specifications, so as to frustrate Li Mi's arrogance and make him dare not underestimate himself and the Tang Dynasty.

However, Li Yuan's coldness obviously made Li Mi very dissatisfied, and he felt that Li Yuan didn't take himself seriously. Just when Li Mi was depressed and angry, the appointment of the Tang Dynasty came down. However, this appointment once again poured cold water on Li Midou's head. So, what kind of appointment is this, which will disappoint Li Mi again? So, how did Li Yuan, as the emperor of the Tang Dynasty, arrange Li Mi's position in the Tang Dynasty?

In October of the first year of Wude (618), that is, one month after Li Mi surrendered to Tang, Tang Gaozu Li Yuan appointed Li Mi as Guangluqing and Shangzhu State, and gave him the title of Duke Xingguo. Among the three official titles appointed by Tang Gaozu to Li Mi, among them, Xing Guogong is a knighthood, and Shangzhuguo is an honorary title.

Therefore, the two titles of Xing Guogong and Shangzhuguo basically have no real power. The only one who has real power is Guangluqing. However, it was Guang Luqing, an official position with a little real power, that made Li Mi feel humiliated, thinking that Li Yuan was deliberately humiliating him.

The position of Guangluqing, which belongs to the three products, is the highest official of Guanglu Temple. Although Guangluqing's official rank is very high, the specific work he is responsible for is a big surprise. Guangluqing is mainly responsible for important activities such as state sacrifices, court meetings, and state banquets, as well as the preparation of food required by the royal family, as well as the cooking of the daily diet of the royal family. To put it bluntly, Guang Luqing is the secretary in charge of the emperor and the imperial family's diet and the first-class chef.

Let's imagine that Li Mi turned out to be such a heroic figure, with 300,000 Wagang troops, and was recognized as the leader of the anti-Sui alliance by the world's heroes. Now, he has fallen to Pingyang and defected to Li Tang, but he can only be a Guang Luqing who is in charge of the royal meal, which is really a great irony. And the high-ranking officials of the Three Princes that Li Mi had imagined before were undoubtedly also lost. It is conceivable that the anger in Li Mi's heart is self-evident.

However, what is unbelievable is that Tang Gaozu's attitude towards Li Mi himself is very strange, not only did he not cross his eyebrows and face each other, but he was extremely warm and cordial. It is equivalent to saying that Tang Gaozu Li Yuan deliberately attacked Li Mi politically, however, in daily life, he took great care of him. According to historical records:

The secret is not satisfied, the courtiers are too light, and the rulers may come to ask for bribes, which is very unfair; Alone with the pro-courtesy, often called as a brother-in-law, with the brother-in-law Dugu's wife. (Information Governance Guide)

After Li Mi defected to Tang, in fact, he was seriously discriminated against in all aspects. The officials of the Tang Dynasty thought that Li Mi was an "outsider", who was defeated and lost his division and had no way out, so he returned to the Tang Dynasty. Therefore, these Li Tang officials looked down on Li Mi from the bottom of their hearts. Since Li Mi surrendered to the Tang Dynasty, many officials and courtiers in the Tang Dynasty have been extremely sarcastic and sarcastic about Li Mi, and some even openly asked Li Mi for bribes.

Originally, Li Mi was angry with Tang Gaozu's appointment. The leader of his own dignified Wagang Army, who once roared on one side, arrived in Chang'an, but he was only given two false titles, an insignificant Guangluqing. Now, being humiliated like this by those Li Tang officials, the dissatisfaction in Li Mi's heart is even more indescribable.

However, Tang Gaozu Li Yuan's attitude towards Li Mi was completely different from everyone else. He did not deliberately humiliate Li Mi, but on the contrary, he was very polite to Li Mi. Even, Tang Gaozu Li Yuan once called Li Mi a virtuous brother, and the two were called brothers, and they also married Dugu, the daughter of his uncle's family, to Li Mi as his wife.

As we all know, Li Yuan's mother, Empress Yuanzhen Dugu, is also the daughter of Dugu Xin, a famous general of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, and is a sister to Empress Dugu of Emperor Wen of Sui. Therefore, in the body of Tang Gaozu Li Yuan, part of the blood of the Dugu family flows. Therefore, Li Miying's marriage to the Dugu clan is equivalent to having an in-law relationship with the matrilineal family of the Tang Emperor. It should be said that this is a great honor, marrying the imperial family, Li Mi is probably the only one.

In this way, the question arises, why is Li Yuan's attitude and approach towards Li Mi polarized? On the one hand, Tang Gaozu tried his best to suppress Li Mi politically and prevent him from holding real power; On the other hand, Li Yuan took special care of Li Mi in his daily life and gave Li Mi enough face. Li Yuan's polarized approach is really confusing, I don't know what kind of medicine he sells in his gourd?

In fact, this kind of polarization can precisely reflect the unfathomable imperial mental skills of Tang Gaozu Li Yuan. The reason why Li Yuan has two completely different approaches can be summed up in four words: grace and power. The so-called "grace and power" is not only to make Li Mi awe-inspiring, but also to make him grateful to Dade.

From the rise of troops in Taiyuan to the establishment of the Tang Dynasty, it can be seen that Li Yuan is an extremely smart person. With his wisdom, of course, he knew that Li Mi was by no means sincere in defecting to the Tang Dynasty, but a helpless move that was exhausted for a while. In the past, Li Mi was a heroic alliance leader who controlled 300,000 Wagang troops, would he be willing to be a courtier of the Tang Dynasty from now on? Definitely not. Once the time is ripe, Li Mi will still re-erect the banner and make a comeback.

Because of this, in order to avoid Li Mi's resurgence and rebellion against the Tang Dynasty, Li Yuan deliberately suppressed Li Mi. Therefore, since Li Mi returned to Tang, Tang Gaozu Li Yuan deliberately treated him coldly, and did not let him hold real power. Li Yuan's intention was to strangle Li Mi's ambition in the cradle and not give him any chance to make a comeback. In this way, even if Li Mi has the ability, he can only be helpless.

However, Tang Gaozu's approach will definitely cause Li Mi's dissatisfaction. Therefore, in addition to suppressing Li Mi politically, Li Yuan has another preparation. This kind of preparation, that is, to give Li Mi enough face in ordinary times and take special care of it. For example, Tang Gaozu Li Yuan awarded Li Mi the position of Guangluqing, although it is not an important position, but after all, it is a high-ranking official from the third grade, and the official rank is very high. Li Yuan used this way to show the world that he was still good to Li Mi.

Giving Li Mi enough face is not as simple as just putting on a posture and putting on a show, Li Yuan has a deeper strategic consideration. Although Li Mi defected to the Tang Dynasty, most of the old headquarters of the Wagang Army were still left in Shandong. At the beginning, Li Mi's army was defeated in Luoyang, and many generals and subordinates of the Wagang Army surrendered to Wang Shichong one after another. However, there are also some old Wagang departments that did not surrender to Wang Shichong, but were in a wait-and-see state.

At the same time, at this moment, the war between the Tang Dynasty and the Western Qin Dynasty has entered the final decisive stage. Li Shimin completely grasped the initiative on the battlefield, and the demise of Western Qin was just around the corner. After the unification of the northwest, the next offensive target of the Tang Dynasty was naturally Liu Wuzhou in Shanxi. Therefore, at this time, Li Yuan began to plan a new strategic plan for the Tang Dynasty to unify the world. After settling Liu Wuzhou, the Li Tang Dynasty was bound to march eastward and compete with Wang Shichong and Dou Jiande for hegemony in the Central Plains.

After the First World War in Beibishan, the Li Tang Dynasty mainly faced two strong enemies in the Central Plains: Wang Shichong of Henan and Dou Jiande of Hebei. Li Yuan understood that sooner or later the Tang Dynasty would have to meet Wang Shichong and Dou Jiande. Therefore, the Tang Dynasty must plan ahead and take precautions.

How to plan ahead? If Li Tang wanted to advance eastward into the Central Plains, he had to stabilize the situation east of the Kunshan Mountains. At that time, there were many old Wagang departments in Shandong. If the Tang Dynasty could peacefully absorb these old Wagang departments, it would not only stabilize the situation in Shandong, but also pave the way for future eastward expansion.

At this time, Tang Gaozu Li Yuan thought that Li Mi could play a role. Li Mi has great prestige in the Wagang Army, and can use this former leader of the Wagang Army to carry out political propaganda. Through this kind of political propaganda, it can play a certain positive role in the Tang Dynasty's incorporation of the old Wagang Department and the smooth stabilization of the east of the Kunshan Mountains.

It is not difficult to see that Li Yuan's strategy of combining grace and power, carrots and sticks is indeed clever. This practice not only stifled Li Mi's hope of making a comeback, but also provided a certain political advantage for the incorporation of the old Wagang department. It should be said that for Li Yuan's grace and power, Li Mi obviously has nothing to do, and he is dumb and eats coptis. However, Li Mi is now under the fence, what can he do?

Next, Li Yuan is going to start doing a big thing. This is what I mentioned earlier, the old headquarters of the Wagang Army was incorporated to stabilize the situation east of the Kushan Mountains. In fact, not long after Li Mi joined Tang, Tang Gaozu was always paying attention to this matter, and he was in full swing to handle this important matter.

In September of the first year of Wude (618), Li Mi was defeated in Beibishan and defected to the Tang Dynasty. More than a month later, on the ninth day of October, Tang Gaozu Li Yuan began to solve the Shandong problem. As a result, Tang Gaozu appointed Li Shentong, the king of Huai'an, as the ambassador of Shandong Province to pacify, and all the armies in Shandong were subject to his moderation; At the same time, Cui Mingan, the waiter of the Yellow Gate, was the deputy. The two went to the east of Kushan Mountain together to incorporate the old Wagang Department there.

This time to stabilize Shandong and incorporate the old Wagang department, Tang Gaozu Li Yuan specially sent a prince of Li Tang's clan - Li Shentong, the king of Huai'an, as the chief official, to be fully responsible for all matters related to the subjugation of Shandong. It can be seen from this that Li Yuan attaches great importance to the takeover of Shandong.

Sure enough, Li Yuan's political posture has played a huge role. The old department of the Wagang Army east of Kunshan thought that the Li Tang Dynasty was still very sincere. Moreover, they also learned through inquiries that since Li Mi surrendered to the Tang Dynasty, the Tang Emperor has treated him with great courtesy and awarded him high-ranking officials from the third grade. Therefore, these old Wagang departments all feel that they still have a future for Li Tang; Even Li Mi can become a "high-ranking official" in the Tang Dynasty, and his treatment must not be bad.

Therefore, many of the old Wagang departments have returned to Li Tang. For example, Li Yude, the former governor of Li Mi, raised the land of Wuzhi and attached it to the Tang Dynasty, and was worshiped by the Tang Dynasty as the assassin of Zhizhou. Soon, with Li Yude's dedication to the Tang Dynasty, a chain reaction was immediately formed, and many Wagang generals surrendered to the Tang Dynasty one after another. Liu Dewei, Jia Yanfu, Gao Jifu and other generals either offered the city, or led their subordinates, and successively defected to the Tang Dynasty.

In Shandong, a large number of old Wagang Army units were successively returned to the Tang Dynasty, which opened up a very good situation for the Tang Dynasty to stabilize the east of the Kunshan Mountains. But soon, a heavyweight also came to join the Tang Dynasty. His return to obedience basically laid the general pattern of Shandong's return to the Tang Dynasty. This heavyweight is none other than the famous generation of famous generals in the Wagang Army - Xu Shiyun.

Xu Shixian, as mentioned earlier, is a core member of the Wagang Army and an important general at the veteran level of the Wagang Army. In fact, Xu Shiyun was not Li Mi's descendant general, he originally raised troops with Zhai Rang, served under Zhai Rang for a long time, and belonged to an important member of Zhai Rang's camp.

In February of the thirteenth year of the Great Cause (617), Li Mijian was called the Duke of Wei and set up an official office. At that time, in order to consolidate his exclusive position in the Wagang Army, Li Mi sealed the civil and military affairs, and Xu Shiyun was among them. After Li Mi proclaimed himself Duke of Wei, Xu Shichang was appointed as the general of the Right Wuhou and commanded the troops and horses of the headquarters.

However, Li Mi has always been very jealous of Xu Shiyun. He believes that Xu Shiqian is a famous general, a core member of Zhai Rang's camp, and holds military power, and may pose a threat to him at any time. Therefore, when Li Mi later designed to kill Zhai Rang, Xu Shiyun almost lost his life. Fortunately, Wang Bodang and the others stopped him in time, and Xu Shiyun picked up a life. However, since then, Xu Shiyun has had a dislike with Li Mi.

Later, Xu Shiyun blindly resisted and had irreconcilable contradictions with Li Mi. Xu Shiyun was suppressed because of this and was sent to Liyang to garrison. When Li Mi was defeated, he once thought about going to Liyang and defecting to Xu Shiyun. However, it was opposed by his advisers. Originally, Xu Shiyun and Li Mi had a face-to-face and heart-to-heart discord, and Zhai Rang's death, he died nine times in his life. Under the persuasion of the strategist, Li Mi dispelled the idea of defecting to Xu Shiyun.

Don't underestimate Xu Shiyun, this person can be called a legendary general in the late Sui and early Tang Dynasties. Xu Shiyun, the word Maogong, Caozhou Lihu people, at the end of the Sui Dynasty, the family moved to Huazhou, Henan. According to the records of relevant historical books, when he was young, Xu Shiyun behaved differently, and he was a hero at first glance:

There are many servants in the family, accumulating thousands of bells, and their fathers are all kind and benevolent, saving the poor and needy, regardless of relatives. (The Old Tang Dynasty Book: The Biography of Li Tao)

This record says that Xu Shiyun's family was a well-known and wealthy family in the local area, and the family kept many servants and hoarded a large amount of grain. However, Xu Shiyun is not the kind of miser who is short-sighted. He saw the general trend of the world very thoroughly, at that time, the world was in chaos, and smoke was everywhere. In such a troubled era, it is not of much use to keep so much food and money. It's better to use these things to achieve something great.

As a result, Xu Shiyun and his father Xu Gai often donated generously and were very charitable to help the poor. Therefore, Xu Shiyun has a very good reputation among the villagers and has accumulated a high reputation. It is precisely because of such a reputation and popularity that soon, in the chaotic times of the late Sui Dynasty, Xu Shiyun pulled up a team of his own. However, there is one place that is the cradle of Xu Shixian's true ambitions,—— Wagangzhai.

In the twelfth year of the Great Cause (616), Zhai Rang raised troops against the Sui in Wagangzhai. That year, Xu Shiyun was seventeen years old. Seeing Zhai Rang rise up, Xu Shiyun felt that his opportunity to show his skills had arrived. Subsequently, Xu Shiyun took his own armed force and participated in Zhai Rang's Wagang Army. Since then, Xu Shiyun has become a member of the Wagang Army, and a generation of famous generals rose in the troubled times of the late Sui and early Tang Dynasties and began his career as a horseman!

When Zhai Rang first started raising troops, his foothold was not stable; In addition, Zhai Rang himself is a martial artist and has no foresight. Therefore, at the beginning of the army, the Wagang Army did not know where to go, and fell into an embarrassing situation of hesitation and wandering. At the critical moment when the future of the Wagang Army was uncertain, Xu Shixun played a vital role. What is the important role? Xu Shichang took the initiative to offer a plan to Zhai Rang:

Nowadays, this land is a public and rural soil, and many people know each other, so it is not suitable to invade each other. And the two counties of Song and Zheng are in charge of the royal river, business travel is returned, and the boats are endless, so they are invited to intercept, which is enough to fund themselves. (The Old Tang Dynasty Book: The Biography of Li Tao)

This strategy won the "first pot of gold" for the development of the Wagang Army. Xu Shichang suggested that Zhai Rang could take root on both sides of the canal and rob the rice boats, so as to expand his power and gradually become bigger. Zhai Rang's brain was not bright, and he had always been the same as everyone else, and he obeyed Xu Shiyun's advice. So, Zhai Rang led his troops and ambushed them on both sides of the canal, specifically responsible for robbing merchant ships. Sure enough, Zhai Rang took the opportunity to make a "windfall" and obtained a large amount of food, and the strength of the Wagang army gradually began to grow.

With the rise of the Wagang Army, there is a tendency to set the prairie on fire, and it has gradually become a climate in the Central Plains. The Sui Dynasty felt like a fish in the throat and had to pull out the nail. In order to eliminate the Wagang army, the Sui Dynasty sent a fierce general to lead the army to recruit and suppress. Who is this titan? Qi County guards Zhang Xutuo.

Zhang Xutuo led 20,000 Sui troops to encircle and suppress the Wagang army. As a last resort, Zhai Rang could only organize the Wagang Army to resist Zhang Xutuo's attack. At that time, Li Mi had become the number two person in the Wagang Army. Therefore, Li Mi was fully responsible for resisting Zhang Xutuo, and personally commanded the famous "Battle of Dahai Temple", annihilating Zhang Xutuo's troops in one fell swoop, and killing Zhang Xutuo, a fierce general of the Sui army. In this battle, the Wagang army achieved an unprecedented victory.

In the entire process of the "Battle of Dahai Temple" carried out by the Wagang Army and completely annihilated Zhang Xutuo, Xu Shiyun made the first contribution. According to the record of "The Old Tang Book: The Biography of Li Tao", "Xun fought with the frequency, and he actually killed Sutuo in the battle". According to the "Old Tang Book", in the battle of Dahai Temple, Xu Shiyun led his troops to break the main force of the Sui army in one fell swoop, and personally beheaded Zhang Xutuo in the battle. Therefore, the first merit of this battle, Xu Shiyun deserves it.

Through the above description, it can be seen that Xu Shiyun was an outstanding legendary general in the late Sui and early Tang Dynasties. This man is a man of great military strategy, very far-sighted, and quite a military talent, and is a rare general. So, after Li Mi surrendered to Tang, when most of the old Wagang departments were attached to Li Tang, what was Xu Shiyun doing? As the only remaining famous general of the Wagang Army, under what circumstances did Xu Shixun lead his troops to the Tang Dynasty?

It can be said that at this time, Xu Shiyun was still in a wait-and-see state, and he was not sure about the Tang Dynasty's attitude towards him. As mentioned earlier, Xu Shiyun was sent to Liyang to guard because of a conflict with Li Mi. Therefore, in the decisive battle of Beibi Mountain, Xu Shiyun did not participate.

Li Mi's troops were defeated in Beishan, and the main force of the Wagang army was completely lost, and they retreated all the way to the Tiger Prison until they defected to Li Tang. After Li Mi's disastrous defeat in Luoyang, most of the territory of the Wagang army in Henan was basically occupied by Wang Shichong. Only Xu Shiyun's jurisdiction is intact. Moreover, after Li Mi retreated, Xu Shiyun took over Li Mi's few remaining territories in Henan, and finally kept the last seed of the Wagang Army in the Central Plains:

Its old realm is as far as the sea in the east, the river in the south, Ruzhou in the west, and Wei County in the north...... (The Old Tang Dynasty Book: The Biography of Li Tao)

Objectively speaking, Xu Shiyun was the last representative of the Wagang Army in Henan, and he was also the object of the Tang Dynasty's efforts. If Xu Shiyun returned to the Tang Dynasty, the situation east of the Kushan Mountains would basically be settled. When the Tang Dynasty entered the Central Plains in the east, it had an extra chance of winning. However, how can Xu Shiyun return to Tang?

The Tang Dynasty began to actively do Xu Shiyun's ideological work, and there was a person who played a vital role in Xu Shiyun's defection to the Tang Dynasty. It was the promotion of this person that finally prompted Xu Shichang to make up his mind to join the Tang Dynasty, and this person was the famous Wei Zheng.

Wei Zheng was a well-known figure in the history of the Tang Dynasty and even in Chinese history. He assisted Tang Taizong and achieved the great cause of "the rule of Zhenguan", and left a good story of monarchs and ministers in Chinese history with Tang Taizong, which can be called a generation of ministers and good ministers. So, how did Wei Zheng persuade Xu Shichang to submit to the Tang Dynasty?

First of all, it is necessary to introduce Wei Zhengqi.

Wei Zheng, the word Xuancheng, a native of Julu, Hebei, and his father Wei Changxian, once let the Northern Qi Tun stay in order. Wei Zheng was an orphan since he was a child, his family was poor, and even for a while, he became a Taoist monk. Wei Zheng is not an ordinary person, this person is a strange person with great talents, with great ambitions and a hidden strategy for the country. Moreover, Wei Zheng was particularly fond of the Zonghengjia doctrine during the Warring States Period, according to historical records:

He is less lonely and poor, has great ambitions, does not do anything, and becomes a Taoist monk. Good reading, many things involved, seeing the world gradually chaotic, especially the meaning of vertical and horizontal. (The Old Tang Book: The Biography of Wei Zheng)

At the end of the Sui Dynasty, the world was in turmoil, and Wei Zheng, who had great ambitions, was unwilling to do nothing, so he threw himself under the banner of Li Mi of the Wagang Army. Wei Zheng saw Li Mi for the first time, just as Li Mi saw Yang Xuangan when he first saw him, and presented Li Mi with ten strategies for dominating the world. For Wei Zheng's ten strategies, Li Mi felt very novel. It's a pity that Li Mi didn't really adopt and implement Wei Zheng's ten strategies.

Although Li Mi did not adopt Wei Zheng's ten strategies, Li Mi admired Wei Zheng's talent very much. After defecting to Li Mi, Wei Zheng served as a literary officer in the Marshal's Mansion by Li Mi's side, specializing in the management of documents and archives. In the Wagang army, Wei Zheng was far-sighted and was the first strategist of Wagang.

For example, in the Luoyang duel between Li Mi and Wang Shichong, at first, the Wagang army frequently won victories. However, Wei Zheng saw Li Mi's weakness and believed that this victory could not last. Later, before the decisive battle of Beibi Mountain, there were serious differences in the battle strategy among the Wagang army, and there were three main opinions:

The first opinion, the generals of the Sui Dynasty represented by Pei Renji, suggested that Li Mi take advantage of the fact that Wang Shichong's main force poured out of the nest and Luoyang was empty; selected an elite soldier, attacked Luoyang, and took Wang Shichong's lair.

The second group of opinions, represented by Shan Xiongxin and other generals of the main battle faction, believes that Wang Shichong Chen soldiers in the north of the mountain, and the main force is out of Luoyang. In this case, we should take the initiative to attack and defeat Wang Shichong with absolutely superior forces. Then, with the momentum of victory, he conquered Luoyang in one fell swoop.

The third group of opinions was put forward by Wei Zheng, in his opinion, Wang Shichong is currently at the end of the crossbow and will not last long. Therefore, the wisest decision at the moment is to clear the wilderness, avoid the battle, and consume Wang Shichong's last vitality. When Wang Shichong's soldiers are tired, he will counterattack in a big way, and he can succeed in one battle.

It must be admitted that Wei Zheng's strategy of strengthening the wall and clearing the wilderness is a safe plan. For this reason, Wei Zheng specially explained his plan to Li Mi's long history Zheng Cheng and Panhe. Unexpectedly, Zheng Ying disagreed with Wei Zheng's strategy and thought it was a cliché. After hearing this, Wei Zheng was very angry and said: "This is a clever strategy, what is a common talk? After speaking, Wei Zheng brushed his sleeves away. Sure enough, in the first battle of Beibi Mountain, Li Mi's army was defeated, and Wei Zheng's prophecy became a fact.

Later, Wei Zheng followed Li Mi and went west to Guanzhong together and defected to Li Tang. However, because Wei Zheng had not been prominent enough in the Wagang Army before. Therefore, Tang Gaozu Li Yuan didn't reuse him much at first. This made Wei Zheng feel very depressed, and as a result, Wei Zheng was anxious to gain the approval of the Tang Dynasty.

It just so happened that there was a great opportunity at that time. In order to open up the road to the Central Plains in the east, Tang Gaozu Li Yuan recruited a large number of old Wagang departments in Shandong. Under the active appeasement of the Tang Dynasty, many old departments of the Wagang Army successively returned to the Tang Dynasty. However, among the old departments of the Wagang Army, the most powerful one was the Xu Shichang Department east of Tongguan. However, at this time, Xu Shichang was still in a wait-and-see state and had not yet returned to the Tang Dynasty.

Wei Zheng was keenly aware that Li Tang was advancing eastward, and Xu Shiyun was the object that must be fought for. Therefore, Wei Zheng took the initiative to ask Tang Gaozu for help, saying that he could appease Xu Shiyun. So, Li Yuan was overjoyed, and immediately appointed Wei Zheng as his secretary and set off for Liyang to appease Xu Shiyun's troops.

After arriving in Liyang, Wei Zheng immediately gave Xu Shiyun a letter. In this letter, Wei Zheng first analyzed the current general trend of the world, and at the same time, Wei Zheng also specifically analyzed Xu Shixian's current situation. He hopes that Xu Shiyun can recognize the situation and make a correct and wise decision:

The heroic voice of the public is enough to vibrate in the present and ancient times. However, who has no good beginning, the end is difficult. Go to the opportunity, safety festival. If the name is obtained, the nine tribes will be shaded by the rest of the light; If you are not a person, you will not be able to protect yourself. Yin Jian is not far away, and the public has heard of it. Meng Ben hesitated, the boy came first, knew a few gods, and did not wait all day. Today's public place must be contested, take the opportunity of speed, hesitate, sit and watch the success or failure, fear of the cunning generation, the ancestors of the heart, then the public affairs to go. (The Old Tang Book: The Biography of Wei Zheng)

After receiving Wei Zheng's letter, Xu Shiyun felt that it was very reasonable, indeed, as far as the current situation is concerned, voting for Tang is his only way out. However, Xu Shichang is relatively humble and pays great attention to proportions and scales. Therefore, Xu Shiyun specially said this to his long history Guo Xiaoke:

Since the Duke of Wei belongs to the Tang Dynasty, the land of the people is owned by the Duke of Wei. If I offer it, it will be the defeat of the Lord, and I will be ashamed to do my own work to invite wealth and richness. Now it is advisable to record the number of counties and soldiers, people, and household registrations, and always enlighten Wei Gong, listen to the public dedication, and this is the merit of Wei Gong. (The Old Tang Dynasty Book: The Biography of Li Tao)

After a series of thoughts, Xu Shiyun decided to return to Tang. However, the way he returned to the Tang Dynasty was very ingenious. Xu Shichang entrusted Changshi Guo Xiaoke to send an envoy to Chang'an, bringing the roster of prefectures and counties, troops, and household registrations under his jurisdiction, and handed them to Li Mi, who then handed them over to Tang Gaozu. At this time, Li Shentong, the king of Huai'an, was ordered to appease the old department of Wagang in Shandong, and Xu Shichang sent someone to deliver a batch of grain to Li Shentong, the king of Huai'an, in order to show his sincerity.

So, why did Xu Shiyun make such a move, why didn't he directly dedicate these things to Li Yuan, but let Li Mi hand them over? This is exactly Xu Shiyun's down-to-earth character, he doesn't want others to think that he is a philistine who pursues fame and wealth and takes advantage of everything. Rather than dedicate it to Li Yuan himself, it is better to let Li Mi hand it over. Anyway, these things were originally Li Mi's things, and they were just temporarily kept by themselves, and now they are just returning to their original owners.

Originally, Xu Shiyun had officially returned to Li Tang, and everything should go smoothly. However, Tang Gaozu Li Yuan couldn't receive Xu Shixian's descent, and he was puzzled. Just when Li Yuan was in the clouds, Li Mi presented the list brought by Xu Shichang to Tang Gaozu, and told Li Yuan all the ins and outs of the matter. After listening to this, Li Yuan was very emotional, and commented on Xu Shiyun like this: "Xu Shiyun is grateful for virtue and meritorious service, and he is really a pure minister." ”

Xu Shiyun returned to the Tang Dynasty, and since then, most of the old Wagang territory east of Tongguan has been placed under the rule of Li Tang. Therefore, Xu Shiyun has made great contributions. Therefore, the Tang Dynasty naturally wanted to reward Xu Shiyun with a big reward. At the beginning, Xu Shichang sent Changshi Guo Xiaoke to Chang'an to dedicate land to the Tang Dynasty. After Xu Shichang returned to the Tang Dynasty, Tang Gaozu Li Yuan appointed Guo Xiaoke as the assassin of Songzhou, and together with Xu Shiyun, he managed the land east of the Tiger Prison. Immediately appoint officials to administer the states and counties.

For Xu Shiyun, of course, Tang Gaozu will not forget. After Xu Shichang returned to the Tang Dynasty, Tang Gaozu Li Yuan issued an edict and awarded Xu Shichang the titles and titles of Liyang Governor, Shangzhu Guo, and Lai Guogong. Soon, Xu Shiyun was added as the general of the right military hou and was renamed Cao Guogong.

Not only that, Li Yuan also gave Xu Shiyun a special honor, giving the country the surname "Li", fifty hectares of fertile land, and the first district of A. Since then, Xu Shichang was renamed "Li Shixian", and later, in order to avoid the name of Li Shimin, Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, he changed his name to "Li Tao". Throughout the history of the Tang Dynasty, Xu Shiyun was the first founding general to be given the surname of the country. No one can compare this honor.

The reason why the Tang Dynasty wanted to stabilize the situation in Shandong and appease the old department of Wagang was very clear, that is, to open up the road to the east and compete with Wang Shichong and Dou Jiande for hegemony in the Central Plains. And Xu Shiyun himself is quite prestigious in the Central Plains, and his military achievements are impressive. Therefore, after Xu Shichong returned to the Tang Dynasty, Tang Gaozu allowed Xu Shichang to lead the troops and horses of Henan and Shandong to block Wang Shichong's attack. It is equivalent to saying that Xu Shiyun became the military head of the Tang Dynasty in Shandong.

Since then, Xu Shiyun has officially become the founding father of the Tang Dynasty, and has made outstanding contributions to the Tang Dynasty in the unification war of the early Tang Dynasty, including the later wars between the Tang Dynasty and the Turkic, Xue Yantuo, Goguryeo and other minority regimes. Later, Xu Shiyun was ranked as one of the "Twenty-four Heroes of Lingyan Pavilion", after the three dynasties of Gaozu, Taizong and Gaozong, he was a very popular minister, and he was in and out of the phase.

In December of the second year of the general chapter of Tang Gaozong (669), Li Tao (Xu Shichang) died of illness at the age of seventy-six. After hearing the news, Tang Gaozong Li Zhi was grief-stricken, dropped out of the dynasty for seven days, and posthumously presented Li Tao as a lieutenant and the governor of Yangzhou, nicknamed "Zhenwu". Moreover, after Li Tao died, he was buried in Zhaoling, and then he was worthy of enjoying the temple court of Gaozong.

Because Xu Shiyun dedicated the land to the Tang Dynasty, to be precise, at this time, a large area of Wagang east of Tongguan was filled with Tang Dynasty flags and became the ruling area of the Li Tang Dynasty. In other words, the Tang Dynasty had basically stabilized the military situation in Shandong, paved the way for the eastward expansion into the Central Plains, and laid the foundation.

Now it seems that the previous technique of controlling Li Mi with both grace and power and using Li Mi to carry out political propaganda has indeed achieved very good results. Li Yuan is also an ordinary person, and he also has seven emotions and six desires, laughing and scolding. Faced with such an achievement, Tang Gaozu Li Yuan couldn't help but be complacent. Driven by this idea, Tang Gaozu wanted to show off to Li Mi. On the other hand, I also want to take the opportunity to knock Li Mi.

As the emperor of the Tang Dynasty, how could Li Yuan show off to Li Mi, who was a subordinate? The Tang Dynasty appeased the old department of Wagang in Shandong, and when it had just achieved certain results, Tang Gaozu asked Li Mi to leave Beijing and go to Fengzhou to pick up a person. Who is this man? Li Shimin, King of Qin.

While the Tang Dynasty was in full swing to stabilize Shandong and appease the old Wagang department, Li Tang's battlefield on the Western Front came with good news that had been lost for a long time. After nearly half a year of bloody battles, as well as the heads and blood of the Tang army, and the wise command of Li Shimin, the king of Qin, the Li Tang Dynasty finally achieved an exciting victory.

In November of the first year of Wude (618), Li Shimin, the king of Qin, led the elite Tang army to defeat the main force of Western Qin in Qianshuiyuan, and then pursued the victory and attacked the city. In the end, under the absolute military pressure of Li Shimin, Xue Rengao surrendered the city. At this point, the Western Qin perished, and the land of Longxi was included in the territory of the Tang Dynasty. The Li Tang Dynasty, which was founded less than a year ago, won a decisive victory in the unification of the northwest.

The military victory of destroying Western Qin was simply a joy to Tang Gaozu Li Yuan. In the case of a good political and military situation, Li Yuan planned to take the opportunity of the Tang Dynasty's victory on the western front to show off to Li Mi and let him see the strength of the Tang Dynasty.

It just so happened that after Li Shimin led the army, eliminated the Western Qin, and stabilized the situation in Longxi, he led the Tang Dynasty to the west to conquer the army and returned to the dynasty. At this moment, Li Shimin is on the way to the triumph of the class. Therefore, Tang Gaozu appointed Li Mi to go to Fengzhou (now Bin County, Xianyang City, Shaanxi Province) to meet Li Shimin, the king of Qin.

Why did Li Mi go to meet Li Shimin and the army of the Western Expedition? Tang Gaozu Li Yuan's purpose mainly has two very important intentions.

First, knock on the mountain and shake the tiger. From beginning to end, Tang Gaozu's vigilance against Li Mi has never been let go. Although he carried out Li Mi's strategy of combining grace and power, Li Mi has always been unwilling to be lonely and ready to move. The current peace and dormancy are just waiting for the opportunity to rebel against the Tang Dynasty again, which is what Li Yuan is most worried about.

In the face of Li Mi's ambition not to die, in order to prevent trouble, Li Yuan decided to take advantage of this great victory on the Western Front, and the Tang Army's squad was triumphant and directed a good play. Through this return to the DPRK, the army will show Li Mi the military might of the Tang Dynasty. It is also a warning to Li Mi that if you can still recognize the situation, it is best to keep to yourself; Otherwise, with Datang's current strength, it is not a matter of effort to destroy you.

Second, by the way, let Li Mi meet the young Qin King Li Shimin. You must know that in this great victory on the Western Front, Li Shimin became famous in one battle, and in the case of absolute disadvantage, the Jedi counterattacked, leveled Western Qin in one fell swoop, and achieved an unprecedented victory. Since then, Li Shimin's name has become a nightmare for all anti-Wang heroes.

However, Li Shimin at that time was only a twenty-year-old young commander, and he could really be described as a hero. Li Yuan appointed Li Mi to meet Li Shimin, but also to let Li Mi understand a truth: the future is terrifying. Li Mi has always had a very high opinion of himself, and his eyes are higher than the top, this time he might as well open his eyes and see the demeanor of his Li family Erlang, so that he can also understand the truth of "the strong are more strong".

Originally, Li Mi didn't take Li Shimin in his eyes at the beginning. He believes that even if Li Shimin can fight again, no matter how he uses his troops like a god. At this time, he was just a twenty-year-old yellow-mouthed child. However, what is Li Mi himself? He was the leader of the Wagang Army and the leader of the anti-Sui Alliance, holding 300,000 Wagang soldiers. Even, once so close to the great cause of the emperor. The young Li Shimin is still a little tender compared to him.

Therefore, at the beginning, Li Mi was inevitably arrogant to Li Shimin. However, after arriving in Fengzhou and seeing Li Shimin with his own eyes, Li Mi immediately changed his original opinion and suddenly felt a sense of potential crisis. So, what exactly did Li Mi see? According to historical records:

The envoy Li Mi welcomed the Qin Wang Shimin in Fengzhou, and secretly relied on his wisdom and fame, and he was still proud when he saw it; and when he saw the people, he was not astonished...... (Information Governance Guide)

Rather, Li Mi felt a sense of crisis; It is better to say that Li Mi was conquered by Li Shimin. What's going on? As soon as Li Mi arrived in Fengzhou, Li Shimin led the army of the Western Expedition and immediately arrived. As a result, when Li Mi saw Li Shimin, he couldn't help but be amazed. As a generation of heroes, Li Mi witnessed Li Shimin's demeanor of dragon and phoenix, coupled with Li Shimin's own temperament and charm. He didn't expect that the commander of the Tang Dynasty's great victory on the Western Front would be such a heroic and outstanding young hero.

The more Li Mi looked at Li Shimin, the more he liked it, and he had a feeling of "giving birth to a son like Sun Zhongmou", he felt that Li Yuan had such a son, and the Tang Dynasty had such a god of war, so why worry about not being able to unify the world! Li Mi was very emotional, why was the young man in front of him not his son? Thinking of this, Li Mi couldn't help but feel a little emotional, and then, he said something meaningful to Tang General Yin Kaishan, commenting on Li Shimin:

True Hero also. If not, why is there chaos? ("Old Tang Dynasty Book: Taizong Benji")

Although this evaluation is only a few words, it is a very high evaluation. In Li Mi's view, Li Shimin will be a generation of heroes in the future. The task of pacifying the four seas and ending the troubled times will be completed by this 20-year-old young man. Originally, Li Mi still looked down on this twenty-year-old doll before. Unexpectedly, after seeing the deity, he was deeply conquered by Li Shimin's temperament and charm.

In this way, Tang Gaozu Li Yuan's intention was achieved. This time, Fengzhou welcomed the King of Qin, which not only allowed Li Mi to see the military might of the Tang Dynasty and its strong military strength; At the same time, it also allowed Li Mi to witness the heroic appearance and pride of Li Shimin, the king of Qin. It can be seen that Li Yuan killed two birds with one stone, and used a little means to make Li Mi doubt whether he could make a comeback, and temporarily suppressed Li Mi's restless heart.

From September of the first year of Wude (618), Li Mi's troops were defeated in Beishan and forced to defect to Li Tang; By November, Tang Gaozu Li Yuan used Li Mi's influence in the Wagang army to gradually stabilize the situation in Shandong and appease the old Wagang army. So, how to summarize the situation of Li Mi after defecting to the Tang Dynasty during this period? It can be summed up in eight words, that is: the tiger falls in Pingyang, and the person is sent under the fence. Since entering Chang'an, Li Mi has entered the "golden wire cage" designed for him by Li Yuan.

On the one hand, Tang Gaozu gave Li Mi a very high treatment, but he was always wary of him, did not let Li Mi hold real power, and did not give him any chance to make a comeback. On the other hand, Li Yuan used Li Mi's influence to actively carry out political propaganda, so that a large number of old Wagang troops were submitted to the Tang Dynasty, laying a military foundation for the Tang Dynasty's eastward advance into the Central Plains. It is equivalent to saying that Li Mi is testing the waters for the next military action of the Tang Dynasty.

Or, to put it in layman's terms, the reason why Li Yuan still keeps Li Mi is because he still has a certain use value, and he is a chess piece. One day, Li Mi loses his use value, and Tang Gaozu will definitely discard him without hesitation. Li Yuan didn't have murderous intentions, but he was in the way of the situation and waited for a suitable opportunity. Once the time is ripe, Li Yuan will not hesitate to get rid of Li Mi.

The same is true for Li Mi. He used to be the leader of the Wagang Army, but now he has fallen into Pingyang, sent people under the fence, and landed in such a field. With such a huge contrast, is Li Mi's heart really balanced? Will he really be willing? Of course not.

With Li Mi's temperament, he has always called himself a hero, with the ultimate goal of determining the emperor's industry, and he is never willing to be a foil for others. Besides, the days under the fence also made Li Mi depressed, he had had enough of it and didn't want to stay in the Tang Dynasty. It should be said that at this time, the germ of Li Mi's rebellion against the Tang Dynasty had already quietly emerged. Now, Li Mi has been looking for a reason to leave Chang'an and raise the banner again.

So, how will Li Mi leave Chang'an? Why did Li Mi I fail to make a comeback this time? How did this once powerful generation of heroes finally embark on the road of no return step by step, and ended up in a tragic end of disgrace and no place to be buried?