Chapter 322 Li Shimin asks for peace?

Tongguan was breached.

on the second day.

Not to mention Li Jing, even Su Dingfang didn’t expect it.

This is too exaggerated.

This is Tongguan.

Luoyang is located in the Central Plains, Chang’an is located in the Guanzhong Plain, and Tongguan is an important throat connecting the Central Plains and Guanzhong.

When heading west from Luoyang to Chang’an, Tongguan is a must-pass place. It is a key passage to the Central Plains in the east and Guanzhong in the west, and its geographical location is extremely important.

The battle between Cao Cao and Ma Chao, Liu Yu’s Northern Expedition, the Battle of Tongguan between the Eastern Wei and Western Wei, many battles were fought in Tongguan.

But it has never been so simple, so trifling.

Just like kids playing around in the house.

“It’s broken just like that?”

When the news reached Chang’an, Li Shimin’s eyes widened.

Although Li Shimin had a premonition that Tongguan might fall to the prince’s army.

But in his expectation, no matter how high his estimate was or how fast it was, it would at least be the beginning of spring after the New Year.

We just received the news yesterday that Su Dingfang led 30,000 elite troops to attack the city.

It’s not even evening yet today and Tongguan is gone.

Who is kidding me?
Zhangsun Wuji, Chu Suiliang, Fang Xuanling and others looked at each other.

To be honest, they couldn’t believe it.

You must know that the general guarding Tongguan this time is not some unknown general. He is Li Jing, the military god of the Tang Dynasty, who has won battles all his life.

He participated in many famous large-scale military battles, including pacifying Xiao Xing, gaining power in Lingnan, exterminating Fu Gongju, conquering the Turks, and pacifying Tuyuhun. His outstanding military talents meant that almost half of the world was related to Li Jing.

In Li Jing’s entire military career, the only battle in which he was considered to have experienced a “failure” was the Battle of Taigu.

That year, the Turkic Khan Jie Li marched south to invade Hedong. Li Yuan sent five armies to fight against them. Li Jing led more than 10,000 elite soldiers to garrison in Taigu, responsible for attacking the Turkic flanks and rear and cutting off their retreat.

The Turkic cavalry approached the city of Taiyuan, and Jie Li Khan divided his troops to plunder nearby residents, angering the Tang army and trying to lure them out of the city for a decisive battle. Bingzhou governor Ren Gui and Zhang Jin led their troops to fight the Turks head-on, and at the same time requested Li Jing to launch a pincer attack from the side and rear.

However, the Turkish cavalry quickly surrounded the Tang army, which was mainly composed of infantry. Ren Gui’s army was completely annihilated, and Zhang Jin’s troops also broke and fled to Li Jing’s camp. Li Jing originally planned to fight back, but the Turkish troops were aggressive and the Tang army was small and demoralized, so he ordered his soldiers to form a square formation and evacuate Taigu without fighting Jie Li Khan.

In the end, the Turkic Khan Jie Li pursued the victory and plundered many cities in Hedong, and the Tang army did not dare to pursue.

Although Li Jing chose to retreat in this battle, it was more of a strategic choice after weighing the pros and cons.

At that time, the Turkic forces were strong, and Li Yuan had already submitted to the Turkic forces when he started his army in Taiyuan. Li Jing had only more than 10,000 men under his command, and other Tang armies had been defeated one after another. If he forced a war, the 10,000 soldiers would probably be wiped out.

Such a Li Jing, however, defended Tongguan, but it was lost in less than two days.

How can one believe this?

Suddenly, Li Shimin’s face turned gloomy.

“Has Lord Li Wei had any contact with Luoyang recently?”

Li Shimin believed that it was not that Li Jing could not hold on, but it was very likely that Li Jing had secretly betrayed him.

Who can be an emperor without some suspicion?

It’s not that I don’t trust you, it’s just that this situation is really hard to accept.

The only possibility is that Li Jing deliberately lost the battle.

It was because of his eldest son Li Dejian.

That’s the prince’s man.

Perhaps Li Jing was persuaded by his son and had secretly defected to the prince.

Fang Xuanling was reading military reports at this time.

Because the news came so suddenly, Li Shimin was shocked before he even had time to read it.

“Your Majesty, this battle may not be Li Jing’s fault.”

Fang Xuanling bowed and explained to Li Jing.

Li Shimin frowned and asked, “Why do you say that?”

Fang Xuanling bowed and handed over the report.

Zhang Ananda hurried over to take it and placed it on the dragon table for His Majesty.

Li Shimin picked it up and took a look.

His expression suddenly changed slightly.

“The traitor’s artillery destroyed the walls of Tongguan?”

The course of events was described in the report in a simple and detailed manner.

There are not many words, just a few sentences.

Su Dingfang used artillery to bombard Tongguan for two consecutive days, and the city wall collapsed the next day.

Not a city gate, but a city wall.

Because Li Jing had long known that Li Chengqian had used thunderfire to blast the city gates when he attacked Goryeo, he made special arrangements for the city gates.

First, the city gate was wrapped with iron sheets, and second, many large stones were added behind the city gate.

In this way, even if the city gate collapses, the big rocks behind will block the road.

This made it difficult for the army to enter the city easily, and if they did, they would be surrounded and attacked.

But who would have thought that the artillery would not work according to common sense and would cause a section of the city wall to collapse.

The city walls collapsed, and all fighting spirit was lost.

In such a situation, there is no courage to fight at all.

In desperation, Li Jing had no choice but to withdraw in order to preserve his troops, just like he did in the Battle of Taigu.

Obviously, this choice is correct.

But Tongguan is gone.

This is the throat of Chang’an, and now it is controlled by Li Chengqian.

This position is too critical.

In history, Huang Chao was also stumped by Tongguan.

After Huang Chao’s uprising, he led his army to the west to attack Tongguan. At that time, the defenders of Tongguan were less than 2,000 soldiers, and due to the strategic location of Tongguan, Huang Chao’s army could not capture it for a long time.

Later, Huang Chao sent troops to pass through the abandoned Han Tongguan, go around behind Tongguan, and attack Tongguan together with the troops in front of the pass. Finally, they broke through it, and then marched straight into Chang’an and occupied it.

This means that Li Chengqian already has the ability to march straight into Chang’an and occupy it.

After reading the report, Li Shimin’s face became even gloomier, and the report in his hand was slightly wrinkled.

“This rebellious son actually has such a powerful artillery!”

Zhang Sun Wuji stepped forward and said solemnly, “Your Majesty, now that Tongguan has been lost, the most urgent task is how to deal with the Crown Prince’s next move. Now that the Crown Prince has taken control of Tongguan, he will certainly march westward and head straight for Chang’an. We must make arrangements as soon as possible to strengthen Chang’an’s defense.”

The current situation suddenly became critical.

If Tongguan can’t withstand the artillery, then what difference is there between other checkpoints and paper-made ones?

Luoyang was hundreds of miles away from Chang’an. If Li Chengqian accelerated his march, the army would arrive in just ten days.

It can be considered a checkpoint. Perhaps within a month, we can reach the city of Chang’an.

But up to now, the imperial court has no way to deal with it.

Li Jing has already lost, so it’s useless for anyone to come forward now.

Since we couldn’t defend Tongguan, the other checkpoints are even more difficult.

Li Shimin obviously also realized this.

Take a deep breath and calm yourself down.

“Lord Changsun is absolutely right. Pass on my order to immediately mobilize all the garrisons around Chang’an to strengthen the city’s defenses. At the same time, order the craftsmen to work day and night to manufacture defensive equipment and strengthen the city walls.”

If the walls of Chang’an were also blown down, it would be a very bad thing.

After that, Li Shimin asked again: “Why, I sent so many thunderbolts, but they didn’t work at all?”

“Even if the power is not as good as it used to be, it shouldn’t be this useless.”

Fang Xuanling sighed, “Your Majesty, Li Chengqian’s cannon has a much longer range than a crossbow, and even a catapult cannot match it.”

“Just like archery, they can hit the city wall, but our Thunderbolt can’t touch it.”

“Even if the trebuchet has some effect, it won’t be effective without accuracy.”

After all, Fang Xuanling was in charge of state affairs. He had already known the news from the Ministry of War before arriving at the palace, and he also personally asked the soldiers who reported the news.

Li Shimin was silent for a while.

I originally thought that with the Thunderbolt, there would be no threat to the prince, but now it seems that the difference between the Thunderbolt and the cannon is too great.

At this time, Chu Suiliang bowed with a little hesitation and said, “Your Majesty, the Crown Prince has a large army and artillery. If we fight head-on, it will be difficult for our army to win. I think we can send someone to negotiate with the Crown Prince, which may temporarily stabilize the situation and buy time for our army.”

Li Shimin looked at Chu Suiliang with a sharp gaze.

“You want me to give in to that rebellious son?”

In fact, Li Shimin knew in his heart that at this time, Chu Suiliang’s proposal actually made some sense.

This is just like the Tanyuan Alliance back then, buying enough time.

But this is different from the Turks.

After all, Li Yuan had pledged allegiance to the Turks before this, and at that time Li Shimin had surrendered and had a way out.

But this is his own son.

It’s a big deal that the emperor is giving in to his son.

As if seeing that His Majesty had no way out, Fang Xuanling quickly said, “Your Majesty, calm down. Doctor Chu’s intention may be to use negotiations as a delaying tactic. Although the prince has the upper hand, he has no legitimate reason to do so. We can use this time to expose the prince’s rebellion and win the hearts of the people, while at the same time stepping up preparations for military strength.”

Fang Xuanling’s words were very considerate of Li Shimin’s face.

We are not really giving in, but using a trick.

Soldiers who, deception also.

Naturally, there is no possibility of really giving in to the prince.

Sure enough, after hearing this, Li Shimin’s complexion improved a lot.

After thinking for a while, his gaze slowly turned to Changsun Wuji.

“Changsun Situ, I order you to go to Tongguan to negotiate with the crown prince.”

“You are my trusted and important minister, and also the prince’s uncle, so you are the most suitable person. You must find out the prince’s true intention and see if he has any intention of reconciliation.”

“But you should also know that I will never bow to a rebellious son. If the prince is stubborn and refuses to change his ways, you should return home quickly and we will make plans later.”

The moment Li Shimin turned his gaze, Changsun Wuji understood.

He is indeed the best candidate to talk to the prince, and no one is more suitable than him.

However, Changsun Wuji felt a little bitter.

The Changsun family is not having a good time in Luoyang. This time he goes there again, which is the third time.

I don’t know if it will succeed.

His Majesty, of course, could not shirk his responsibility, so he bowed his hands and said loudly, “Your Majesty, rest assured, I will do my best to fulfill my mission.”

Li Shimin nodded slightly.

Then he looked at the other important officials in the hall, his expression solemn, and said: “Since we have decided to negotiate, we need to agree on the terms. Changsun Situ needs to bring clear conditions with him so that we can have a clear goal. My dear ministers, what do you think about this?”

Chu Suiliang spoke first, bowed and said, “Your Majesty, in my humble opinion, you can allow the Crown Prince to retain his current military power and station him in Luoyang. Luoyang is the center of the world and a rich place. If the Crown Prince can withdraw his troops, it can also be regarded as a compromise. In this way, the Crown Prince can be appeased and kept away from Chang’an.”

“And the Crown Prince needs to surrender Tongguan and not attack the city again.”

Fang Xuanling frowned slightly, thought for a moment, then cupped his hands and said, “Your Majesty, although Doctor Chu’s plan is well-considered, the Crown Prince is very ambitious. With only Luoyang, it may be difficult to make him completely give up his westward advance.”

“I think we can allocate several counties from the rich land of Jiangnan and grant them to the prince. Jiangnan is a land of fish and rice, with abundant wealth. If the prince can govern it properly, he can also achieve great things.”

“The prince was promised that he could form a local army of a certain size within his fiefdom, in the name of protecting the territory and the people, but in reality it was to disperse his currently concentrated military forces.”

“Now the Crown Prince not only has mercenaries in Luoyang, but has also occupied Liaodong. Liaodong can be given to the Crown Prince. This way, the Crown Prince will need to govern more areas, which will disperse his energy and make it difficult for him to raise troops.”

At this point, it would be a very troublesome task to capture Luoyang.

Without resolving the artillery issue, the only option is to compromise first.

Fang Xuanling had a clear view of the problem. After all, this was still a conflict between His Majesty and the Crown Prince. In fact, even if the Crown Prince raised an army now, there would not be much conflict between him and the court in terms of people’s livelihood.

Fang Xuanling was in charge of state affairs, and he had the clearest view of this area. Even now, the prince had no intention of intercepting memorials and post stations around Luoyang.

Looking at it from another angle, apart from controlling Luoyang, the prince has hardly made any moves in other areas. On the contrary, if the officials had not resigned before, the officials in Luoyang would still be officials appointed by the court.

If the noble families had not united and conspired against us, the prince would not have taken any action.

For the imperial court, the best situation is to delay.

Wait until the artillery problem is solved, then things will be easier.

After listening to this, Li Shimin was silent.

He actually understood the deeper meaning of Fang Xuanling’s words.

But this made him feel a little aggrieved. It was called a strategy, but in reality it was just a way of surrendering.

But then again, if a real war broke out, Li Shimin would have no idea what to do.

Matters like artillery were too unfamiliar, and no one expected them to be so powerful.

Zhang Sun Wuji nodded slightly and added: “Mr. Fang is right. However, since the Crown Prince has already raised his troops here, he values ​​power very much.”

“I think that a special position can be set up for the crown prince in the court, such as ‘Prince of State Regent’, which would be above all the other kings and give him the right to participate in the core decision-making of the court.”

“But this power is limited to discussing politics, and the final decision-making power still belongs to Your Majesty.”

“This way, we can satisfy the prince’s desire for power, while also keeping him within the court rules and restraining him.”

“And emphasize that this move is made by Your Majesty out of consideration for the relationship between father and son and the great Tang Dynasty, to provide a place for the prince to display his talents. If he insists on attacking Chang’an, not only will the people be in danger, but it will also cause the father and son to turn against each other, and become a sinner for all eternity.”

After listening to this, Li Shimin fell into deep thought.

There was a moment of silence in the hall, as everyone was waiting for His Majesty’s decision.

After a long while, Li Shimin said, “Changsun Situ, go to Luoyang and tell the Crown Prince to withdraw his troops and surrender Tongguan immediately. I will not investigate his past for the time being, but will restore his position as Crown Prince, grant him Liaodong, and allocate several counties from the rich south of the Yangtze River to him. You can also appoint him as the Regent and Counselor of State Affairs.”

(End of this chapter)