Xiaoqi

Jia Xu is also an important military and political officer. In the past two years, he has been called Yongzhou Biejia, but in fact he has been exercising the power of governor of Yongzhou.However, he has always been cautious in handling affairs. After taking charge of Yongzhou, he no longer intervened in military affairs. Whenever he encountered wars, he would take Fan Yong, the commander of the military guard battalion, as the leader, and report everything to Li Li. He strictly abided by the way of being a minister and never crossed the bottom line.

Now that the Xiliang Army was fighting again, Jia Xu was ordered to hand over all the government affairs in his hands to Bing Yuan and Hua Xin, escaped and returned to Chang'an, officially returned to his post, and continued to serve as the left army division of the Xiliang Army.

"My lord, I received my lord's military order a month ago. Bing Yuan, the prefect of Jiuquan, was promoted to Biejia of Yongzhou, and concurrently the prefect of Wuwei. Hua Xin, the prefect of Dunhuang, was promoted to the governor of Yongzhou. Half a month ago, my subordinates handed over all the government affairs to the two of them. Now Yongzhou The whole area is stable and peaceful, as always. Please rest assured, my lord." Jia Xu reported respectfully.

Li Li nodded slightly when he heard the words, and said with a smile: "Wenhe is calm and meticulous in handling government affairs. This is my luck, Li Li, and the blessing of the people of Yongzhou!"

"My lord, I'm honored." Jia Xu responded with a smile, and then said respectfully: "Since the early summer of last year, all the barbarians around Yongzhou have been wiped out. Settle down. For more than a year, the whole prefecture has maintained good law and order, and the people live and work in peace and contentment. They have made great efforts to reclaim the fields and develop agriculture and mulberry. In particular, Dunhuang County has opened a large number of bazaars and traded with countries in the Western Regions. In recent years, there has been an endless stream of caravans and taxes. The number of government treasury is increasing day by day, which has greatly improved the living conditions of the people in Yongzhou. Therefore, in the past two years, Hua Xin, the prefect of Dunhuang, has made remarkable achievements, and his promotion to the post of governor is indeed well deserved. In comparison, in the past two years, the humble minister His political achievements are mediocre, and he has done nothing. Fortunately, the governors of the counties under his rule are able to live up to the entrustment of the lord. How dare he be greedy for merit? Hehehe!"

Li Li shook his head and said with a smile: "Wenhe is too modest. Yongzhou is bitterly cold, and the old look has changed in the past two years. This is the credit of Jia Wenhe! What a mansion, just south of the General’s Mansion, reward [-] gold, [-] bolts of brocade and silk, and [-] personal guards.”

"Thank you, my lord, for your generous gift. I am ashamed to accept it." Jia Xu was indeed different. Facing the mansion, gold, silver, and brocade that Li Li rewarded, he accepted it without any affectation.

Li Li smiled and nodded, "Now that the Central Plains War is approaching, Wen He will go into battle with me again. We have fought side by side. As of today, the soldiers of each battalion have assembled. After the food, grass and supplies are ready, we will set off for the Central Plains soon. Yuan Zhong, Have food, grass and weapons been prepared properly?"

Li Xuan got up after hearing the sound, and said respectfully: "My lord, long before my lord swore to the Northern Expedition, my subordinates, Wen You, and Situ had already raised 30 shi of food and grass for the army to go out. Unexpectedly, my lord only took 20 shi with me when I led the army to the Northern Expedition." There will be no order for food and grass since then. Therefore, our army has enough food and grass. In the past two months, the subordinates have raised 30 stones of grain and grass, weapons needed by 60 troops, more than [-] arrows, and the remaining [-] heavy ordnance In addition, all the food, grass and supplies have been delivered to Tongguan Camp for storage ten days ago. Therefore, it is conservatively estimated that these food and supplies can supply our army for three months. All of them have been dispatched when the lord travels south. Therefore, our army has enough food and supplies. The lord can lead the army at any time!"

"Okay, Yuan Zhong is planning ahead and thinking carefully, that's great!" Li Li nodded happily.

After Li Xuan was seated, Li Ru stood up and reported: "As of today, the letters sent to various princes before the Lord led the army to the Northern Expedition have also received replies. Liu Biao of Jingzhou responded to the imperial edict. Seven days ago, Cai He Escorted [-] shi of grain and grass to Xu Rong's camp; Xuzhou Tao Qian was seriously ill, and ordered his eldest son Tao Shang to escort [-] shi of grain and [-] gold to Xu Rong's camp five days ago, with a letter written by Tao Qian. Gongsun Zan of Youzhou sent Chief Shi Guanjing to escort [-] stones of grain and grass and [-] horses to Zhou Yu’s camp three days ago. Afterwards, Guan Jing will come to Chang’an to pay homage to the emperor. He wants to meet his lord. In addition, Liu Zhang of Yizhou sent an envoy to send [-] stones Grain and five thousand gold. Zhang Lu in Hanzhong sent three thousand stones of grain and grass to express his support for the lord's crusade against the barbarians. Liu Yao, the governor of Yangzhou who has never paid tribute in recent years, also sent envoys to send ten thousand stones of grain and ten thousand gold. Claiming that Yuan Shu provoked the war without reason and wantonly slaughtered the people of Yangzhou, I beg the lord to report to the emperor and punish Yuan Shu."

"Hahaha!" Li Li laughed loudly when he heard the words, "This Liu Yao is quite interesting. He doesn't burn incense on weekdays and hugs Buddha's feet temporarily. I have never seen him pay tribute and food before. Now Yuan Shu invaded Yangzhou and sent troops continuously within half a year, occupying Runan, Jiujiang, Lujiang and other counties are imminent, and this Liu Yao knows to ask the court for help. Unfortunately, he is too naive, too childish, and the court is also in trouble. I, Li Li, can't take care of myself now, so I don't have time to care about his trivial matters!"

After a short pause, Li Li ordered Li Ru: "Tell the matter to the emperor, and Liu Yao will be granted the title of General Zuo and Yangzhou Shepherd. He will lead Yangzhou and take charge of the war in the south. Tell him that Yangzhou belongs to him, Liu Yao. Yuan Shu is just an outsider, let him withstand the pressure, rectify the troops, and destroy Yuan Shu!"

"This,,, Liu Yao is probably not Yuan Shu's opponent." Li Ru was stunned and said hesitantly.

Li Li said with a sly smile: "Whether he is an opponent or not, it's too early to say. Liu Yao has occupied Yangzhou for many years. Before that, he had been drunk and dreamed of death. He had no eyes on the court, and he was leisurely and happy. It was no different from Liu Yan in Yizhou. Now Yuan Shu led the army to fight over. As long as he doesn't want to sit and wait for death, he must swear to the death to fight Yuan Shu. I don't expect Liu Yao to really destroy Yuan Shu, as long as he entangles Yuan Shu, it's fine, as for whether he lives or dies, it has nothing to do with me!"

"No, this subordinate understands." Li Ru responded happily.

Li Li nodded slightly, and said with a light smile, "I will reward Liu Biao with all the promises I made to him before, especially the imperial edict to Liu Biao's concubine, the Cai family, which must not be neglected. In addition, Cai Mao was appointed General Hengjiang and in charge of the Jingzhou Navy. I also ordered Gongsun Zan The former general and the shepherd of Youzhou presided over the military administration of the four prefectures of You, Ji, Qing, and Yan. He gave holiday festivals and axes, and he did not have to ask for help, but he could make his own decisions! As for Liu Zhang of Yizhou, don’t worry about it for the time being. The food and grass he sent He Jinyin is just giving me a favor, not really supporting me. There is also Zhang Lu in Hanzhong, this thief is really hateful, what do you mean by three thousand stones of grain and grass, do you have pity on my Xiliang army? This thief showed me on the surface Weakness, but evil intentions. Cui Yan, governor of Liangzhou, was ordered to rectify the county soldiers, and Guo Si was ordered to lead [-] Qinglong Battalion to defend Yangping Pass, always be on guard against movement in Hanzhong, but report to me immediately if there is any change!"

"No!" Li Ru and Li Xuan respectfully accepted the order.

"En." Li Li nodded lightly, then stood up, and said loudly: "Each battalion rests for two days, and the meeting will be held in the Anyi camp. Two days later, I will personally lead the army to march eastward, and join the princes of the Central Plains." Compete!"

"No, I will take orders!" Everyone in the hall got up and bowed.

Li Li waved his hand with a stern expression, and then strode towards the side door to the inner hall of the backyard.

"Wait a minute, my lord, my subordinates have something to report." Seeing Li Li leaving with his hands away, Li Ru hurried over and said anxiously.

"Huh? What else is there for Wenyou, military affairs or government affairs?" Li Li stopped walking when he heard the sound, and muttered with a slight frown.

Seeing the displeasure on Li Li's face, Li Ru's expression changed slightly. He knew that he had come at the wrong time. The lord had just returned to the mansion, so naturally there were many trivial matters to deal with, but he rushed forward at this time, which was not what he should have done.

"This subordinate is reckless. This is not an urgent matter. It is not an emergency. Please forgive me, my lord. This subordinate will resign." After bowing down and apologizing, Li Ru left angrily.

It is true that Li Li's prestige has become more and more serious in recent years, and Li Ru, perhaps because he has been in charge of detailed intelligence for a long time, often reports some secret things to Li Li in private, so it is inevitable that he feels a little arrogant.In fact, this is a bad habit that Li Ru picked up around Dong Zhuo in the early years, but he himself didn't notice it, but today he hit a snag in front of Li Li.

Chapter 610

Tongguan is the east gate of Chang'an. It faces the Yellow River in the north and sits on the mountainside in the south. Because the Yellow River flows into Tongjiguan Mountain in the south, it is called Tongguan.

Historically, Tongguan was built in the first year of Jian'an, but now it is built four years ahead of schedule.

After the pacification of the Chang'an Rebellion, in order to consolidate the defensive fortresses of Chang'an and the towns in the Central Plains, Li Li mobilized heavy troops to defend Chang'an, the western capital, and guarded three passes, one of which was the construction of Tongguan, the east gate of Chang'an.

History is born because of people, and the world changes because of people.

Historically, Tongguan was completed because Han Emperor Liu Xie fled Luoyang and was acquired by Cao Cao in Yanzhou. As a result, Li Jue, Guo Si and others had to build Tongguan to resist the army of Central Plains princes for fear that the Central Plains princes would invade Chang'an.At the same time, the Han Emperor's escape caused the counties and counties in Sili to escape from the control of the Xiliang Army one after another, and they were captured by Cao Cao.As a result, the Xiliang warlords Li Jue, Guo Si and others lost the front line of defense in Sili, and had to retreat to Chang'an to build a defense line in Tongguan to protect their own safety.

However, with the strong rise of Li Li from Xiliang, he quickly quelled the Chang'an Rebellion with a thunderbolt, and then unified the Xiliang Army and pacified the entire Xiliang.What followed was that Tongguan was built four years in advance, but Li Li's original intention of building Tongguan was not to save his life, but to build a defensive barrier for Chang'an City to prevent accidents.Once the counties of Sili fall, Tongguan will become a fortress against the attack of Chang'an by the princes of the Central Plains, and it will also be the last defensive barrier of the Xiliang Army.

Things are fickle and times are changing rapidly.

Li Li never thought that what he did at the beginning would come in handy two years later.When he sent Bocai to lead the army to Tongguan, it was purely on a temporary basis. In his impression, Tongguan's geographical location is very important. It is the only way from Chang'an to Luoyang.It is reasonable to send heavy troops to garrison.But what he didn't know was that Tongguan was just a small town at that time, and there was no strong city to garrison as he imagined, and the importance of geographical location had not yet been revealed.However, Bo Cai, who was ordered to lead troops to garrison Tongguan, carried out the military order meticulously. There were no ready-made city gates available, so he led his troops to build them.

After half a year, Bocai led [-] pacers to build the city day and night, and finally built a strong fortress in the small town of Tongguan, firmly guarding the east gate of Chang'an.

The original battle of fame in Tongguan was the battle of Tongguan between Cao Cao and Ma Chao more than ten years later.As a result, it has truly become a battleground for military strategists, and it has become very important in the change of dynasties for thousands of years since then.However, Li Li led the army to march eastward this time, and the food and grass were hoarded in Tongguan, making Tongguan a transit point connecting Chang'an to Sili, and its strategic position immediately became prominent.However, the Xiliang army has not yet reached the point where it relies on Tongguan to defend against enemy attacks.Therefore, the Tongguan Camp is still the rear of the Xiliang Army, and Bocai's [-] defenders will also mobilize part of their troops to follow Li Li on this expedition.

"Tat-tat-tat-rumble!"

At this moment, Li Li was standing on the top of the city, looking down at the iron cavalry of Xiliang passing through the customs.Can't help but feel an upsurge of emotion.passionate.

After two years of training and precipitation, the Xiliang Army has improved a lot compared to two years ago, whether it is the mental outlook of the soldiers, weapons and equipment, as well as the quality of the horses and the configuration of protective gear.Now the Xiliang war cavalry has truly become a brave cavalry, and the Xiliang army is also a truly elite army.

Two years ago, most soldiers of the Xiliang Army had many bad habits.Such as domineering, predilection to rob property, rape women, burning, killing, looting, etc., almost all evils, notoriety, it is really not flattering.Until Li Li took charge of the army.Strict military discipline, the whole army was broken up and reorganized, some of the most vicious soldiers were eliminated, the soldiers of the whole army were strictly restrained, heavy rewards and punishments were adopted, and a two-pronged approach was taken.After two years of strict military management, the mental outlook of the entire army has been completely renewed, the spirit of soldiers and gangsters has disappeared, the phenomenon of military discipline has been completely eradicated, and bad habits have been abandoned.Now the soldiers of the whole army have ruddy complexions, strong bodies, resolute expressions, orders and prohibitions, and follow rules in every move. They are already a well-trained and battle-hardened elite division.

This is the army Li Li wants to see most, a Xiliang Xiaoqi who can fight tough battles, dare to fight tough battles, can't be defeated or worn down, but can fight to the end with a breath of blood.

At this moment, Bocai, the chief general of Tongguan, was standing beside Li Li. Looking at the steady stream of cavalry in Tongguan below the city, he sighed thoughtfully, "Our army's Eastern Expedition is not a small one! Except for the Huben Camp, which is fighting on the Xiongnu Grassland, Apart from the more than 15 golden guards, the lord has mobilized almost all the main cavalry battalions to participate in the battle. Now there are only tens of thousands of cavalry left behind in Yongliang and Liangzhou, and all the troops stationed in Chang'an except the county soldiers are all sent out. Finally, the general made a rough calculation. Among the soldiers brought by the lord this time, the infantry, including the heavy soldiers, is less than 15, but the cavalry has as many as [-]. Although the equipment of the [-] cavalry is uneven, it is the strongest in our army The combat power is enough to sweep half of the world."

After sighing, Bocai's tone changed suddenly, and he said in a low voice: "But as far as the general knows, our army is on the defensive in this battle of the Central Plains. We have not seized the opportunity and have fallen into a passive position. This means that we Most of the time, the army has to rely on the defense of the city or the pass. In this way, the lord mobilized so many cavalry, wouldn't it be impossible to use it? It is far less flexible than the infantry? If the cavalry is used as an infantry, it will inevitably be a bit overkill, and the long will be short Do you suspect that it is not good for the battle? These are all the conjectures of the last general, if there is anything inappropriate, please also ask the lord Haihan!"

"Hehehe!" Li Li smiled frankly when he heard the sound, and waved his hand to signal that Bo didn't have to restrain himself. He leads troops well, defends the city well, and has studied a lot of military books, so he is already a general in charge of his own affairs, congratulations!"

"My lord, I am honored." Bo Cai bowed and said humbly: "The general is stupid. When he followed Zhang Jiao in the early years, he was illiterate. He only knew how to rush and fight blindly. In the end, he was defeated and captured. I have been lying dormant by my side for seven years. Although I waited until Zhu Jun fulfilled his promise, I learned to read and read a few military books. Since then, I have never left military books, but I would pick them up and read them when I have free time. Over the past ten years, I have made some small achievements. , now I am fortunate to be appreciated by my lord, and I am able to lead an army alone, and I have benefited a lot from picking up what I left and filling in the gaps. I just don’t know if what the last general said is true, so please tell me clearly.”

Li Li nodded slightly, and said with a smile: "It is true that as Wen Xian said, cavalry is not used in the battle of defending the city. ** There are [-] infantry, plus the [-] infantry drawn from you, and the [-] soldiers and horses I brought this time, the [-] infantry is enough to garrison the city gate. However, for a long time You must lose. There is no unbreakable city in the world. What's more, it is not my Li Li's style of fighting to blindly defend the city. In other words, even if you simply defend against the enemy, even if you can ensure that the city is not lost, you will not be able to defeat the enemy. win or lose.

Therefore, if we want to reverse the unfavorable situation of our army's passive defense, we must take the initiative to attack, so that we have a slight chance of winning.This time, the Central Plains lords and allies have a large number of troops. If our army only mobilized [-] to [-] cavalry to take the initiative to attack, even if we can win, it will only be a small victory.I, Li Li, disdain small fights, and I don't want to tickle the princes and allies. If it's just a sneak attack, I'd rather defend the city to the death and refuse to fight.In this way, Wen Xian must already know it well? "

Bo Cai nodded when he heard the words, and said in response: "What the lord means is that our army will either not attack, and once it does, more than a hundred thousand cavalry will be dispatched to deal a thunderous blow to the allied army! In this way, even if the allied soldiers and horses There are too many, but it can't stop the frontal charge of my 15 war cavalry. If the timing is right and the troops are used cautiously, once our army of war cavalry charges out, the Allied forces will definitely be defeated."

"Well, what Wen Xian said is very true." Li Li nodded approvingly.

Seeing this, Bocai thought about it and said, "All the princes in the world know that my Xiliang iron cavalry is brave and good at fighting. I think they must be wary of this. However, the general heard that Yuan Shao's troops in Jizhou have a good way of dealing with cavalry, and Gongsun Zan's troops in Youzhou Baima Yicong was destroyed in Yuan Shao's hands. In addition, the Central Plains has a vast land and resources, and there are many strong bows and crossbows, chariots, and giant shields, all of which can effectively withstand the charge of cavalry. Therefore, the lord has to guard against cavalry and choose a fighter. It is very important, once the attack is made, it must be hit in one hit, otherwise it will inevitably scare the snake. I will use my humble opinion, if there is something wrong, please give me your advice."

Li Li smiled happily and said, "Wen Xian's words make sense, which amazes me! As you said, the reason why I mobilized so many cavalry is not to fight head-on with the Allies, but to fight at the end of the day." Defeat the Allied forces at the right time. If we fight head-on without giving an inch, even if our army can defeat the Allied forces, we will suffer heavy casualties, and the gains will outweigh the losses. After all, the hundreds of thousands of Allied forces are not for display, and no one in a head-on confrontation will To be slaughtered by others is bound to fight with all one's strength. With hundreds of thousands of troops fighting together, one can imagine the huge casualties. And this is exactly the result I don't want to see. I have won in name, but in fact it is casualties Huge. If so, I would rather not go to war, and defend the city to fight for consumption with the Allies. Anyway, they have a large number of soldiers and horses, and our army is fighting on the ground, occupying a geographical advantage. Even if the two armies stalemate for a year and a half, our army It can also afford to wear them down!"

Bo Cai was stunned when he heard the words, and then he laughed dumbly and said: "My lord, this is an angry word, and I definitely won't fight like this. The general has followed the lord for many years, and has never seen a battle where the lord insisted on not fighting, and this time is no exception. But then again, our army’s grain and grass are indeed very sufficient this time. Our Tongguan camp alone has stored more than 40 stone grain and grass, while Anyi camp and Xu Rong camp had 10,000+ stone grain and grass before. In addition to the 20 shi of grain and grass sent by Liu Biao and other princes in Jingzhou, all of them add up to more than [-] shi, enough to supply our army for half a year. This is a battle of wealth that our army has never had before; If we compete with the allies to consume food and grass, we can really afford to consume them, enough to drag them down to death. Hehehe!"

Chapter 611

It is night, a crescent moon hangs on the horizon, and twinkling stars adorn the night sky.

Tongguan camp, the commander of the Chinese army.

It took a whole day for the Eastern Expeditionary Army to enter Tongguan, so that the camp was overcrowded.

As night fell, Li Li, who led the former army to the camp first, had already rested for a long time, and at this moment he summoned the generals of each battalion to discuss matters.

In the big tent, Li Xuan and Li Ru were also sitting at the bottom of the steps. They followed Li Li to Tongguan Daying to dispatch food and supplies.

The food, grass and supplies of the 20-odd army is not a trivial matter, it is directly related to the success or failure of the war, and there is no room for any mistakes, so Li Xuan and Li Ru must personally come to supervise the handling, only in this way can they rest assured.It is precisely because they are careful and cautious in their work, and they do not leak water, that they have the reputation of "two plums don't drive each other".