Chapter 1064 Before attacking Liang, we need to conquer Khitan first

March, the third year of Jianwu.

Without sufficient preparation, Su Mingzhe was ready to go on the expedition.

We have no choice but to go to war.

The news that Emperor Zhu Wen of Liang had exchanged the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun for the Khitan Khan's dispatch of 100,000 troops was passed back to Chang'an.

There was indignation throughout the government and the country.

Since ancient times, whenever wars broke out among the various lords in the Nine Provinces of the Central Plains, they were all closed-door affairs among the entire family.

Anyone who dares to borrow troops from foreign races is betraying the ancestors of Yan and Huang and will be despised by generations to come.

For example, Emperor Gaozu of Tang, who once borrowed troops from the Turks, has always been criticized by history, and most of his credit for unifying the country was taken away by Li Shimin.

Now, Emperor Liang also wanted to borrow troops from the foreign Khitan. Suddenly, people from all walks of life in the Han Dynasty felt a sense of common hatred for the enemy.

The army is assembled.

Prime Minister Wei Yi held the reins and said goodbye to the Han Emperor:
"Your Majesty, how about letting Minister Lu lead the troops to harass the Khitans, and Your Majesty lead the troops to attack Liang yourself!"

"Prime Minister, please stop talking. The dispatch of troops has already been decided. We cannot change the commander in chief during the battle! This time, I will go to the expedition against Khitan in person!"

Su Mingzhe said, and then he looked at the solemn-looking Minister of War Lv Wen and said seriously:

"Lü Wen, this time I have only one request for you, you must keep the enemy out! How to fight, whether to rely on natural barriers, fortification and clearing the fields, or attack instead of defense, it's all up to you. One hundred thousand Yi Nu troops, plus two hundred thousand border troops, I hope you won't let me down!"

In Su Mingzhe's eyes, Liang State was vulnerable.

The Khitan is the biggest enemy.

What's more, when chasing the enemy on the grassland, people without a sense of direction can easily get lost like Li Guang, and ultimately fail.

Therefore, Su Mingzhe thought of letting the Minister of War Lu Wen defend Liang State while he himself went to fight against Khitan.

"I accept the decree!"

Lu Wen did not hesitate at all and directly accepted the emperor's order!
Lü Wen was born into the Lü family of Hedong.

The elders of the Lu family had once offended Zhu Wen. After Zhu Wen established the country, he confiscated the Lu family's property and exterminated the clan.

In order to avoid disaster, Lu Wen and his family fled to Qi State.

Li Maozhen, the ruler of Qi State, appears to be eager to recruit talented people, but in fact, he has a strong aversion to prominent families from all over the country.

When Lu Wen came to seek refuge with his family, Li Maozhen did not even conduct an assessment and directly gave him the position of a county magistrate, which lasted for ten years.

When Su Mingzhe destroyed the State of Qi, Lu Wen led 800 county soldiers to the city wall and mobilized tens of thousands of civilians for support. They boiled gold juice, burned hot oil, and moved rolling logs, and they managed to block the attack of 3,000 Yi Nu troops for three days and three nights.

Only after Li Maozhen left the city and surrendered did Lu Wen surrender.

When Su Mingzhe was sorting out the internal affairs of Qi, he examined Lü Wen and found that he was a man of superior talent in both civil and military affairs, so he promoted him to be the Minister of War of the Han Kingdom.

Lu Wen also didn't expect that after the Qi State he was loyal to was destroyed, everyone else fell into disgrace, but he was actually promoted.

Faced with this trust, Lu Wen gladly accepted it.

Su Mingzhe appointed him as the Minister of War, and Lu Wen worked diligently and never slacked off for the slightest.

Lu Wen tried his best to implement all the instructions of the Han Emperor.

When Su Mingzhe later conquered the Tang and Shu kingdoms, Lu Wen and the Minister of Revenue worked together to provide logistical support.

Now, Su Mingzhe asked him to lead an army of 300,000 to defend against the Liang army of 600,000 and the Khitan's 100,000 reinforcements. He gladly accepted the order without any intention of refusing.

March expedition.

mid March.

Su Mingzhe led 50,000 cavalrymen, took the old Qi State Road, passed the former territory of Dingnan Army, and entered the northern grassland at a speed of 150 miles a day.

The Khitan tribe was active on the grasslands in the early Tang Dynasty. The original meaning of the tribe's name was "iron".

Twenty years ago, Yelu Abaoji unified the Khitan tribes, established the Khitan Kingdom, and named himself "The Great Saint and Great Ming Emperor".

Three years ago, when the Han Dynasty was founded, Yelü Abaoji passed away. According to Yelü Abaoji's will, after his death, the eldest prince, Crown Prince Yelü Bei, should have ascended the throne.

As a result, Yelu Abaoji's queen Shulü Ping held the ministers hostage and allowed the second prince Yelu Deguang to ascend the throne and become emperor.

The reason why Shulü Ping chose the second prince was very simple.

The eldest prince, Yelü Bei, was raised by Yelü Abaoji since he was a child and was very opinionated.

Yelu Deguang was raised by his mother and always listened to his mother, Shulü Ping.

Later, the woman that Crown Prince Yelü Bei married was just the daughter of an ordinary cousin of Shulü Ping.

The Xiao Wen whom Yelu Deguang married was the granddaughter of Shulü Ping.

In other words, Yelu Deguang listened to his mother and married his niece.

After comparing the two sons in her mind, Shulü Ping naturally felt that her second son was closer to her, so she tampered with Yelü Abaoji's will and helped her second son, Yelü Bei, become emperor.

When Yelu Deguang became emperor, Shulü Ping, who was promoted to empress dowager, easily took control of the court and began to establish diplomatic relations with the State of Liang.

This time, the State of Liang was able to easily borrow troops from the Khitan, and Queen Mother Shulü Ping played an indispensable role in this.

This morning.

The army stationed on the grassland is preparing to break camp and set off soon.

Li Yuanjie, the commander of the Sentinel Battalion, reports:
"Your Majesty, the scouts have explored 500 miles. We have not found any traces of grassland tribes to the east or north. However, there is a tribe 300 miles to the west. However, judging by their flags, they are not Khitans."

Although the Khitans were unified, there were still many tribes of various ethnic groups on the grassland.

For example, the Dangxiang, the Mongols, the Uighurs, the Qiang, etc.

Su Mingzhe looked at the second prince Li Cunxu in front of him and asked calmly:

"How many people are there in the tribe?"

Yuan Jie had been in the army for many years and answered without hesitation:
"Fifty-five tents, with no more than two thousand people."

"Jun Jie, you lead two thousand people to destroy them, then head east to join the main army!"

Su Mingzhe gave an order to a handsome young man beside him, and then continued to advance eastward with his army.

Li Yuanjie looked at Yan Junjie enviously, then said nothing and continued to explore the way with his scout battalion.

Yan Junjie is the great-great-great-grandson of Yan Zhenqing and the 44th-generation grandson of Yan Hui.

During the Tang Dynasty, the Yan family was a family of true descent, with loyal and brave people coming from generation to generation.

Later, in order to avoid the war, the whole family moved to Ma Chu in Jiangxi.

After the Han Kingdom annexed the Shu Kingdom last year, Yan Junjie came to the Han Kingdom on behalf of the Yan family.

After Su Mingzhe knew that Yan Junjie was both talented in literature and martial arts, he kept him by his side and made him a third-class commander.

The Dutong in the Han army was similar to the "independent" unit in later generations, who could leave the three armies and act independently.

And this is what Li Yuanjie envies.

Since Taiyuan was captured, Li Cunxu and his two sons have been imprisoned and placed under house arrest.

Princess Zhenning of Liang State, in order to save her "three sons", spared no effort to satisfy the various fetishes of men.

Her hard work was rewarded during this year's Spring Festival.

When Su Mingzhe decided to attack Liang State, he pardoned a group of "prisoners", including Li Cunxu's three sons.

Li Yuanxiang, the crown prince of the old Tang Dynasty, continued to live a secluded life after being pardoned, as if there was some ferocious beast outside his house and he dared not go out at all.

The third prince, Li Yuancheng, took the several thousand taels of silver given by Princess Zhenning and bought hundreds of acres of fertile land in Lantian County. He became a landlord and it seemed that he was preparing to become a local rich man in the country.

Only the second prince Li Yuanjie was brave enough to take on the responsibility. He knelt outside the imperial city for a long time and finally got the opportunity to join the army.

(End of this chapter)