"What? His Highness the Crown Prince has conquered Gaimu City?”Li Jing stared at the Dragon Cavalry soldier who came to report with wide eyes. He was in disbelief, but the seal of the injured soldier was exactly the same. Li Jing could still recognize it.
"Grand Marshal Bing, the commander sent someone into the city last night and opened the gates. The nine thousand Dragon Cavalry charged into the city and wiped out the entire army. They captured over three thousand prisoners of war and wiped out over ten thousand Goguryeon elites.”The Dragon Cavalry replied calmly, but the arrogance in his words was obvious.
As expected, the generals were originally surprised that Li Zhi had broken through the city so quickly. Now that they heard the battle report, they were even more incredulous.
However, such a public battle report could not be faked. After all, they had to verify the information on the casualties later on before they could reward and compensate.
"Is the Crown Prince alright?" Li Jing stared at the Dragon Cavalry soldier who delivered the letter and asked. If something happened to the Crown Prince, even if they won this battle, they would still lose.
"The general is safe and sound. Also, the general has said that he wants the grand marshal to speed up the journey. According to reliable sources, Quan Gaesomun had ordered the northern governors Gao Yanshou and Gao Huizhen to lead the Goryeo, Yabei, Shiwei, Rouran, and the remaining Tu. The Jue army, together with the Baekje army and the Silla army that had surrendered, combined the strength of the three countries, a total of 450,000 troops are rushing towards Liaodong. They want to fight to the death with our army outside Liaodong City to defend against the enemy.”
"What is it? Is the information accurate?" This time, it wasn't Li Jing who spoke, but the generals in the tent. If they had been pleasantly surprised just now, they were now shocked and angry.
"The general said that the information is absolutely true.”
"You must be tired. Go and rest first.”Li Jing silently waved his hand. The Dragon Cavalry soldier silently cupped his hands and bowed before retreating.
"This time, we only have 100,000 soldiers on the water route and 70,000 soldiers on the ground. Who would have thought that Quangesomun would be so fierce? It seems like he wants to destroy both jade and stone.”Li Ji frowned. Even if the 45-strong army stood there without moving, they would still have to watch for a long time.
"Pass down my order, speed up the march. We must arrive at Gaimu City the day after tomorrow. We must take down Beisha City, Baiyan City, and Anshi City before Gaimu's army sets up defenses under Liaodong City and attacks us, completely isolating Liaodong City. In addition, I have to report to His Majesty... Send more troops." Li Jing had gritted his teeth as he said the last two sentences. It was a disgrace for a man like Li Jing to send more soldiers before the battle had even begun. But as a veteran, Li Jing was not afraid of the forty-five-man army. However, if he fought to the end, he would lose a thousand men and eight hundred men. There would be very little left of these hundred thousand elite soldiers. It would be a real waste.
The Tibetans of the Great Tang's southwest were restless, and these hundred thousand elite soldiers could not be lost.
The generals in the tent nodded silently, but the anger in their hearts rose. Coupled with Li Zhi's military report, these founding generals of the Great Tang wished they could charge into the battlefield and kill him.
The lovely dividing line.
Six months ago, Xiucun, Longmen, Jiangzhou, Shanxi Province.
On this day, just as the sky brightened, every household in Xiu Village was bustling with noise and excitement as they rushed towards the Xue family at the village entrance.
Today was a joyous day. Xue Li, the only heir of the Xue family for six generations, was going to get married. This was a major event.
This Xue Clan was a large clan. Although it had already declined, as the saying goes, a starving camel is still bigger than a horse. Even the village chief would have to give Xue Li a smile when he saw him. He would address Xue Li in a proper manner. To ordinary people like them, they would have to treat them as a wealthy family.
Moreover, it was said that he married the daughter of the Liu family, a wealthy family in the east of the river. For ordinary villagers who worked at sunrise and rested at sunset all year round and seriously lacked spiritual entertainment, they might not return to the county town in their lifetime. Now, it was a rare thing for the daughter of a wealthy family to marry into the village, and it also greatly boosted the reputation of the people of Xiu Village.
Therefore, they all went to the Xue family early in the morning to help out. The Xue family had declined. They didn't have much to do, but they had a lot of food.
The only male heir of the Xue family, Xue Li, was the most powerful hunter in the entire Xiu Village. If he really shot an arrow, it would never miss. Every time he went up the mountain, he would return with a full load. Unfortunately, this kid of the Xue family was too gluttonous. He could eat a sheep that was half the height of a person in the blink of an eye, and not even the bones were left. Now that he had another bite at home, he reckoned that he would not be able to play with those knives and sticks in the future.
"Hey, Brother Xue, why are you dressed up so happily so early in the morning? Are you going to get married?”Bruiser let out a strange cry and circled around Xue Li a few times, clicking his tongue non-stop."I say, Brother Xue, this wedding robe must have been passed down from your ancestors. As expected of a wealthy family. Just this wedding robe alone is something that countless families in the city can't compare to.”
"I say, Bruiser, don't be envious of him. Brother Xue is also a handsome and talented person. He comes from a wealthy family. Even if he loses now, he's still better than a poor and destitute person like you. Marrying the young lady of the Liu family is also a match of equal status. Why don't you know that Brother Xue won't be able to soar in the future? Now that the news had spread in the village, the imperial court was preparing to attack Liaodong. With Big Brother Xue's archery skills, it was almost certain that he would become a lieutenant.”A short and muscular youth next to him was unhappy. His name was Niu Hu. He looked like a bull and was as fierce as a tiger. He was Xue Li's diehard admirer. When he had nothing to do, he liked to swing his sword and club around. Although he couldn't compare to Xue Li, in the small village of Xiu Village, he was still twice as good. If he claimed to be third, no one would dare to claim to be second.
"I know, I'm not praising Brother Xue.”When Bruiser heard Xue Li's archery skills, he didn't say anything else. He had seen all the wolves in the back mountain of Xiu Village. They came out at night with their eyes green and had been cleaned up by Xue Li alone. When the day came, he would look and obediently shoot them into their eyes. This archery skill was enough to scare people to death.
The person they were talking about was a young man who stood silently in the courtyard of the Xue family. He had thick black eyebrows and eyes as bright as stars. He was dressed in a groom's suit. He had a strong back and a strong waist. His skin was a healthy bronze color. He stood upright and had a scholarly aura. He quietly watched Bruiser and Niu Hu discuss him. No matter whether it was good or bad, he was neither anxious nor impatient. He had his own bearing.
This young man was called Xue Li, also known as Rengui. He was from Xiu Village, Jiangzhou's Longmen County. This Xiu Village was located in the north of the Fen River Valley. It was a Huangtu Hill in the remaining range of Luliang Mountain. It was called White Tiger Hill.
Xue Rengui was the descendant of Xue Andu, a famous general during the Northern and Southern Dynasties. He was the sixth generation grandson of Xue Andu and belonged to the Xue family in the east of the river. However, by his generation, it had already declined. His father, Xue Gui, died early. Although his family was poor since childhood, he did not fall behind in learning literature and martial arts. He worked hard.
His family was poor, but he was born with a big stomach and great strength. Although ordinary rich people liked Xue Rengui's strength, they were afraid of his appetite. They really didn't dare to ask him to work unless it was busy farming season. Therefore, when the future Marshal Xue was young, he was the embodiment of tragedy. He didn't eat much.
However, there was still hope in life. One day, Xue Rengui went to a rich family surnamed Liu to sell his strength. The rich man surnamed Liu was a man who had seen the world. Not only did he not mind Xue Rengui's big appetite, but he also found it strange. Later, he heard that Xue Rengui was as strong as an ox and even hired him as a long-term worker to raise horses and farm. At least Xue Rengui had a share of food.
However, not long after, the eldest daughter of the Liu family took a fancy to the handsome Xue Rengui and got together with him in private. As the saying goes, there is no wall in the world that cannot be kept secret. In the end, Old Master Liu caught the matter of Xue Dada seducing his precious daughter. If their family was unlucky, they had to be kicked out. In the end, the young couple was tragically kicked out of the house.
What was the most important thing for a man?
Face, and of course, his little brother.
Although Xue Dada's family was poor, he had a sense of pride in his heart. A poor person's ambition was not short. That young man was poor, so what was this now? He had no choice but to sell a tiger skin that had been passed down from his ancestors to buy some clothes and act out a double-act with his wife to marry into the family.
There was no matchmaker's words or parents 'orders, but at least Miss Liu was willing. It had to be said that our Xue Dada was definitely better than Brother Guan Xi in terms of wooing his sister. If Brother Guan Xi was not as awesome as " Li Gang "…If he forced his father, who would hang him up?
Without further ado, the sound of drums and gongs filled the air. The horns were locked and all of them started to ring. Xue Rengui heard them and realized that they were here.
There were many gifts passed down from the countryside since ancient times, but ordinary families could not prepare all the gifts. Therefore, compared to the city people marrying their daughters, it was much more shabby.
It was still the same sentence. He couldn't resist the fact that Eldest Miss Liu was willing.
Xue Rengui had put in a lot of effort for today's wedding banquet. He had been busy for half a month. He had hunted a big wild boar, then roe deer, pheasant, and so on. He didn't pay much attention to it. He just asked the village's aunties to pick a few handfuls of green onions and stir-fry them. Otherwise, they would stew them into soup. Just like that, he had set up more than ten tables. The tables were gathered by the old and young people of the village. Such a wedding banquet was one of the best in Xiu Village.
As night fell, the Xue family's courtyard was filled with laughter.
With the help of Tie Dan and Niu Hu, they kowtowed three times and nine times. One kowtowed to heaven and earth, the second kowtowed to the respected elders of the village, and finally, the husband and wife bowed to each other.
After a round of greetings, the villagers all took out the wine that they had brewed from the fruits in the mountains. They exchanged drinks and had their fill. Everyone laughed and went back. Tonight was also a good topic for the people of Xiu Village. The older youth in the village, Xue Li and Xue Rengui, also had a wife.
The wedding night is also the first day of one's life. Let's not talk about it, who told Xue Dada not to be a pig's trotter.
It was noon.
Xue Rengui did not have a high official position, and Eldest Miss Liu had been kicked out of the house. She would not be able to return home to visit her parents in three days. The husband and wife ate across the table. When it came to eating, Xue Rengui was absolutely like a hungry ghost reincarnated. He did not care about it because if he was slow, he would not be full.
But today, Xue Rengui ate very slowly. He kept stuffing the leftover meat from last night's wedding banquet into Miss Liu's bowl.
Eldest Miss Liu looked at the small mountain of food in her bowl. She was amused and touched."Rengui, don't pick up anymore. You have a big appetite, so eat more. How am I supposed to eat so much now?”
Xue Rengui scratched his head in embarrassment.""Well, I was afraid that you wouldn't be full.”
Eldest Miss Liu looked at Xue Rengui's dazed expression and burst out laughing.
Although Eldest Miss Liu was not a beauty that could topple a country, and could not be compared to Wu Meiniang, the number one imperial sister in history, or Xiao Shuran, the eldest daughter of the Xiao family in Lanling, she was virtuous and above average. With Xue Rengui's current family affairs, she was also climbing up the social ladder.
Although they were newlyweds, material conditions determined their spiritual life. On the second day of their marriage, Xue Rengui had to go hunting in the mountains to make a living.
The days passed quietly between his fingers. Unknowingly, Xue Rengui had been married for more than five months, but the life of the Xue family was getting more and more difficult. Although there were occasional financial support from Miss Liu's mother, in our words, Xue Rengui was a typical big eater. He could not get fat from eating. The number of people in the family decreased day by day. In the end, they even sold the ancestral house for food and lived in a cave.
Early in the morning, Xue Rengui asked Lady Liu to put down her chores and start discussing something with her.
"Wifey, our family is always so poor. Is there a problem with the feng shui? I mean, should we change the feng shui and move the ancestral graves?”A single coin stumped a good man. Now that their family was really too poor, if they did not think of a way, they would not be able to make a living.
Eldest Miss Liu looked at Xue Rengui's dispirited face and felt helpless. Originally, Xue Rengui's extraordinary archery skills should have been good at home. However, Xue Rengui's appetite was too big. Often, he could only fill half of his pot of rice.
Sighing in her heart, Eldest Miss Liu suddenly glanced at the wild goose on the stove from the corner of her eye. It was Xue Rengui who had brought it to nourish her body. Eldest Miss Liu held her three-month-old stomach and asked the good husband, Xue Rengui, to hurriedly go forward to support Eldest Miss Liu.
Eldest Miss Liu came to the stove and pointed at the wild goose. She smiled at Xue Rengui and said,""You were the one who shot these wild geese, right?”
Speaking of hunting, Xue Rengui was full of energy. He was arrogant, but his expression was indifferent."Not only that, my wife, you see, my arrow was shot through the eye of the wild goose, it didn't hurt the fur at all. If you buy it in the market, it will definitely be a good price.”
Seeing Xue Rengui's arrogant face, Eldest Miss Liu's beautiful eyes sparkled. She immediately encouraged him,""Husband, since you have such powerful archery skills, why don't you join the army?”
"Join the army?" Xue Rengui was stunned. This was the second time he had heard it. Xue Rengui looked at Eldest Miss Liu with a complicated and hesitant expression.
As if she knew what Xue Rengui was thinking, Eldest Miss Liu leaned forward and said,""Are you worried about me and the unborn child? Husband, I've heard that capable people are good at seizing opportunities. Now, His Majesty has General Li Jing as the commander in chief to conquer Liao. Even His Highness the Crown Prince has gone north to attack Liao. At this time, it is the time for men to make contributions and be in high spirits. With your martial arts and archery skills, how can you not be called a fierce general? Why not join the army, win a reputation, seal his wife and children, and bury his parents when he returns home in the future? As for this concubine, she was also a person with legs and hands. Coupled with her mother's support, how could she not have food?”
Xue Rengui fell silent. He found a stone bench and sat down. He looked outside and frowned. It was obvious that he was hesitating.
"Husband, this is a rare opportunity. Do you want to waste your skills and be a hunter in the mountains forever?”Eldest Miss Liu was soft on the outside but tough on the inside. Now that Eldest Miss's temper had risen, she immediately put her hands on her waist and raised her eyebrows.
If a man had the chance to enjoy the smoke, no one would miss the smoke.
Xue Rengui's pure manly heart was stimulated by Eldest Miss Liu, and he jumped up abruptly, giving Eldest Miss Liu a fright.
"Madam, I heard that Zhang Shigui is recruiting soldiers in Xinjiang City. I will go and join him tomorrow. I don't believe that my Xue family won't be able to revive.”Gritting his teeth, Xue Rengui's face was filled with indignance, like a person whose talent was not recognized.
"Wrong!"
"Wrong? "Wifey, didn't you just say that?" Xue Rengui's ambition that had just been ignited was cooled down by Eldest Miss Liu's words.
Eldest Miss Liu, on the other hand, was calm and composed. She covered her mouth and laughed."I was wrong. It's because you shouldn't have joined General Zhang, but should have gone north to join the Crown Prince.”
"Join the Crown Prince?" Xue Rengui was enlightened.
Eldest Miss Liu nodded." Word spread in the village a year ago that the Hedong border guards have now become the Crown Prince's personal army and have been renamed the Dragon Cavalry Army. Many of the sons of the good families in Hedong are now serving under the Crown Prince. I heard that the monthly salary is eight taels, and it has never been delayed. Now, many people regretted not going to the Hedong border defense army to recruit soldiers. With her husband's ability, once she joins the Dragon Cavalry Army, she will definitely be able to achieve great things. Moreover, the Crown Prince will become the Emperor in the future. If her husband can be admired by the Crown Prince, it will be better than anything else.”
Xue Rengui was not stupid. He nodded in agreement with Miss Liu's analysis."Dragon Riders, Dragon Riders." A pair of iron fists squeezed his bones until they creaked.
Alas, the butterfly wings of a pig's trotter had caused another storm in the distant Shanxi Province.
The next day, Xue Rengui bid farewell to Eldest Miss Liu and set off alone. However, he did not expect to be stopped after walking for half a day.
Of course, the people who stopped him were none other than his best friends, Bruiser and Niu Hu.
"Brother Xue, CEO... I've finally caught up to you. How tiring…I'm dead." Bruiser sat on the ground, panting heavily.
"Chasing me? What are you guys doing?" Xue Rengui looked at the two of them in confusion.
"Brother Xue, you didn't tell us that you joined the army. If it wasn't for the fact that I came to look for you in the cold today and heard from sister-in-law, I don't know if I would be able to see you in the future.”Niu Hu was a little unhappy.
"In short, big brother, I, Bruiser…No, I, Liu Sanfu, will follow big brother from now on. We will accompany big brother to roam the world.”Bruiser hammered his chest with his fists.
Xue Rengui was filled with pride after hearing the two's words. He squatted down and hammered his chest."Brother, if you don't mind me, Xue Rengui, I won't say anything delicate. We'll share happiness and hardship together, and we'll live and die together.”
"Okay, Brother Xue.""Brother Xue."
The three of them looked at each other and laughed loudly. They put their arms around each other's shoulders and sang Shanxi's folk songs as they headed north.
The lovely dividing line.
The little demon sleep-talked." Sorry, everyone. It's only been uploaded now. The little demon has been too tired recently, so it's been uploaded slowly. I'm sorry, brothers of the Tang Empire." It was very difficult to update four times a day. This was because two chapters of Little Witch were close to 10,000 words, and Little Witch was not a professional writer. In addition, the scenes after Little Demon would get bigger and bigger. Some readers were worried that Little Demon would write too fast. Don't worry, this book was called " Emperor Li Zhi of the Tang Dynasty ". Everything was still before he ascended the throne.
Li Zhi wanted to be like Qin Shihuang and Yang Guanglei, completing all the things that he thought of. Otherwise, how could he reach the height of the one emperor in history? He couldn't boast like the later Braids Dynasty.
This is the first update. Everyone, it's a recommendation ticket. After you add it to your collection... Gong, you can do it. I'll love you for ten thousand years.
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。