Datang: Just been appointed as the crown prince, the counterattack system is here

Chapter 340 What, you all want to sleep with me? [Bonus Chapter]

As soon as Li Chengqian finished speaking, the entire Liangzhou Governor's Mansion fell into a deathly silence.

Li Daliang and Cheng Gao looked at each other, their eyes flashing with shock and confusion.

They never expected that Li Chengqian would make such a request.

It should be noted that the troops in Liangzhou belonged to the imperial court.

Although Li Chengqian received an imperial decree from Li Shimin that he could command Li Jing to quell the 200,000-strong army left behind by the Eastern Turks.

However, Li Shimin's decree did not hand over the troops of Liangzhou to him.

In other words, Li Chengqian's request was incredibly bold for them, and even suspected of being treasonous.

"What? Nobody's going to speak?" Li Chengqian sneered when no one answered, then his piercing gaze swept over everyone present.

Under his gaze, those officials who had initially harbored illusions all lowered their heads, not daring to meet his eyes.

"Alright! Since no one objects, then it's settled!"

"Wait a minute!"

No sooner had Li Chengqian finished speaking than Li Daliang couldn't help but ask in a deep voice, "What does Your Highness mean by this?"

"It means exactly what you understand: I want command of the Liangzhou troops!"

Li Chengqian looked at Li Daliang calmly and indifferently, and said, "What, does Governor Li not intend to hand over the troops of Liangzhou to me?"

Upon hearing this, Li Daliang paused for a moment, then asked noncommittally, "Does the Crown Prince have His Majesty's edict?"

"no!"

"Is there a transfer order from the Ministry of War?"

"nor!"

"Then I cannot comply!"

Li Daliang refused outright.

Li Chengqian's face immediately darkened: "Is Governor Li sure he cannot obey?"

Upon hearing this, the Imperial Guard beside him instantly drew his sword.

The governor's personal guards around him drew their swords the next moment.

The atmosphere instantly became incredibly tense.

"Your Highness, this matter requires further consideration!"

Seeing that Li Daliang was about to clash with Li Chengqian, Cheng Gao quickly stepped in to smooth things over, saying, "Why don't we report to His Majesty first and wait for His Majesty to make a decision?"

"Doesn't Commander Cheng know the meaning of 'speed is of the essence in war'?"

Li Chengqian swept his gaze coldly over them: "By the time you report to His Majesty, the battle will have been delayed. Whose responsibility will that be then?"

"This"

Cheng Gao immediately shut his mouth and turned to look at Li Daliang.

But then Li Daliang said coldly, "What is this so-called 'opportunity' that Your Highness is referring to?"

"Naturally, it's the opportunity to annihilate Tuyuhun!"

Li Chengqian said calmly, "I ask you, do you know what the situation is like over in Tuyuhun?"

"know a little."

Cheng Gao glanced at Li Daliang, then quickly said, "According to the information I have received..."

The crown prince of Tuyuhun and Prince Murong Shun have gotten into a dispute, and King Fuyun of Tuyuhun is seriously ill. It seems there is a potential power struggle within Tuyuhun!

"Since you knew that, why did you delay the battle?" Li Chengqian pressed.

"No, Your Highness, although this news is indeed a good time to launch an attack on Tuyuhun, isn't Your Highness supposed to pacify Xueyantuo? If we also launch an attack on Tuyuhun, then we'll be fighting on two fronts!"

"Moreover, our Great Tang has always valued having a just cause for war. Tuyuhun has not offended our Great Tang. If we attack rashly, it will likely be disgraced by our neighbors."

"Ah!"

Li Chengqian sneered, ignoring Cheng Gao, but instead glanced at Li Daliang and then at the other Liangzhou officials, frowning as he asked, "Is that what you all think too?"

"This"

Li Daliang exchanged glances with the other Liangzhou officials, then frowned and said, "Your Highness, please speak frankly about your plans!"

"There's nothing to say directly!"

Li Chengqian waved his hand and said, "I will give you two choices now: either hand over military power to me, or I will punish you for disrespect and strip you of your position as Governor of Liangzhou!"

"Does Your Highness intend to use force?"

Li Daliang narrowed his eyes and immediately placed his hand on his sword.

Tensions rose again between the two sides.

Just then, a report came from outside the door: "Your Highness, Commander Li, the eldest son of Xueyantuo, Yishi Dadu, has personally led an army of 100,000 and is now less than 20 li away from Liangzhou City!"

"Good! Men, immediately assemble the troops and prepare to march out of the city to meet Yi Shi Dadu in battle!"

Li Chengqian directly issued orders to the officials of Liangzhou City.

But the officials of Liangzhou City couldn't help but look at Li Daliang.

But Li Daliang said coldly, "Your Highness, my Liangzhou City has less than 50,000 troops. At most, we can only defend the city. How can we go out of the city to fight?"

Li Chengqian ignored him and continued to issue orders: "Sun Rui, the military commander of Liangzhou, and Li Xu, the military commander of Liangzhou, lead their troops to garrison Qiaobao and Liancheng!"

"Notify the Governor of Ganzhou, Qiu Yu, the Military Advisor, Liu Erhu, and the Assistant General, Zhao Da, to lead their troops to garrison Heyang, Pinglu, and Wuwei."

"The above-mentioned troops must be fully assembled before our decisive battle and be ready to be deployed at any time!"

Upon hearing this, Li Daliang and Cheng Gao, along with other officials in Liangzhou City, felt a chill run down their spines.

Because the officers and soldiers that Li Chengqian mentioned were basically familiar with the areas they were stationed in.

In other words, he did not come to Liangzhou to seize military power at random, but had already thoroughly studied the military situation in Liangzhou and even Longyou.

Otherwise, it would be impossible to mobilize the officers and soldiers here so skillfully.

"Your Highness the Crown Prince."

Li Daliang opened his mouth, but hesitated to speak.

Li Chengqian glanced at him, then said coldly, "If you want to stop me, then don't blame me for turning ruthless!"

"No, Your Highness, you misunderstand. Although I cannot hand over military power to you, I can obey your command."

"Yes, Your Highness, Liangzhou is now in imminent danger, and I also wish to do my part."

Upon hearing Li Daliang's explanation, Cheng Gao quickly echoed with a bitter face.

But after glancing at them, Li Chengqian refused outright: "I don't need you now. You can stay in Liangzhou City and report to me immediately if anything happens!"

"But."

"Alright, all of you may leave. I need to rest now and recharge my energy!"

Before Li Daliang could finish speaking, Li Chengqian impatiently interrupted him.

Upon hearing this, the other officials of Liangzhou City wisely left one after another.

Only Cheng Gao and Li Daliang remained in the same place, unsure whether to leave or stay.

"What, you want to sleep with me?"

Seeing that the two were still standing there, Li Chengqian couldn't help but ask a question with amusement.

"Uh, this."

The two men's lips twitched slightly, then they exchanged a helpless glance. Li Daliang spoke first, "May I ask Your Highness, is His Majesty aware of your strategy towards Tuyuhun?"

"I know, so what?"

Li Chengqian spread his hands and said, "He indeed did not give me a personal edict or a royal decree!"

"No, what I mean is, Your Majesty has already tacitly approved the Crown Prince's war against Tuyuhun, is that right?"

"Heh, interpret it however you like, but I want military power in Liangzhou!"

"As I just said, without Your Majesty's personal edict and decree, I cannot give it to you."

"Alright, are you done yet? Stop dawdling. If you're not going to give it to me, then fine. I need to hold a military meeting. You can either leave or stay here and listen. If you keep arguing, I'll tell the whole country about your failure to save me!" Upon hearing this, Cheng Gao quickly tugged at Li Daliang's sleeve and bowed obsequiously, saying, "Your Highness, please calm down. We'll stay here and listen. We won't interrupt again!"

What a joke! This matter is known throughout the country. Even if the two of them are in the right, given Li Chengqian's reputation across the country, many people will probably criticize them.

Even military generals wouldn't dare to be indifferent to such a disgraceful act.

So the two of them shut their mouths and stood to the side, like two wooden figures.

Li Chengqian ignored them and had Laifu bring him a map. Pointing to the map, he said, "There are about twenty Tuyuhun tribes to the south and southwest of Liangzhou City. Xueyantuo's army has not yet arrived in Liangzhou City. We only need to send out more than twenty elite small units, disguised as Xueyantuo people, to carry out precise strikes against these twenty tribes. Tuyuhun will definitely come to join the war."

"At that time, we can muddy the waters, make them suspicious of each other, and hesitant to act, so that we can defeat them one by one!"

"Furthermore, with Tuyuhun joining the war, we also have an excuse to send troops to Tuyuhun, which can be described as killing multiple birds with one stone!"

"This"

Upon hearing this, Cheng Gao and Li Daliang were taken aback, thinking to themselves, "You're just a kid, only a teenager, and you're already talking about attacking more than twenty tribes? Is that appropriate?"

Although the tribes of Tuyuhun near Liangzhou City are not large, a single Tuyuhun tribe has at least a thousand people. If you follow your plan to attack more than twenty tribes at once, the Tuyuhun people will probably be so angry they'll vomit blood.

However, Li Chengqian ignored Cheng Gao and Li Daliang's thoughts, and then said in a deep voice, "This matter will be handled by the Wolf Fang Guard set up in Yugu, because you are all Hu people, and it will not be easy for Tuyuhun to discover the flaws in time!"

"Of course, the Embroidered Uniform Guards must also provide covert assistance and do intelligence work!"

“But Your Highness, you’re going to use more than twenty Wolf Fang Guards to attack more than twenty tribes of Tuyuhun. That’s bound to be a big deal. And there are definitely Tuyuhun spies in Liangzhou City. Our operation will definitely be greatly hampered and our results will be insufficient!” Pei Xingjian said with some concern as he looked at the map.

But Yu Gushe said with a bit of a laugh, "The garrison commander's specialty is intelligence work, but he probably doesn't understand warfare. In all our strategies, there is no guarantee of success. If everything is planned, then there is no risk in doing anything."

"Is this possible? Obviously not! Therefore, for us Turks, as long as we have a 50% chance of success, we can start fighting!"

"Haha, I like to hear that. Back when we were conquering the world with His Majesty, we would rush in as long as there was profit to be made. But as the world has gradually become stable, we have to follow the rules in everything we do, which has actually tied our hands and feet!"

"Well, we don't actually need to take down all twenty-odd tribes. Just taking down a dozen or so will create panic in the surrounding areas, and their armies should be unable to sit still!"

Li Daliang couldn't help but laugh to himself.

He had gradually accepted Li Chengqian's plan and offered his own opinions and deductions with heartfelt sincerity.

However, Li Chengqian still ignored him and instead turned to Pei Xingjian and Yu Gushe, saying, "Do you have any other opinions? If not, then let's act tonight. I reckon that Yi Shi Dadu wouldn't dare to attack the city rashly today! So, you still have one more night of golden opportunity!"

"Your Highness, there's no time to lose, let's get ready to move out!" Yu Gu She hurriedly said, cupping his hands in greeting.

"Alright! Let's start preparing for the operation now!"

Li Chengqian nodded and gave an instruction, then watched Pei Xingjian and Yu Gushe leave the governor's mansion.

Seeing this, Li Daliang and Cheng Gao looked at Li Chengqian with expectant faces, hoping that Li Chengqian would also arrange some work for them.

Li Chengqian glanced at them indifferently and said, "What else do you two have to say?"

"Your Highness, we also want to do our part!"

Cheng Gao and Li Daliang exchanged a glance and immediately expressed their stance to Li Chengqian.

Li Chengqian chuckled and said, "Want to lend a hand? Sure, go back now and write a memorial, reporting to His Majesty exactly as I forced you to hand over your military power, without hiding anything!"

"Ah? Your Highness, what's wrong?"

"Don't misunderstand, this is your job. If you don't want to die, do as I say!"

"But."

"Alright, I'm truly exhausted this time. You may all leave now!"

Li Chengqian waved his hand, and then Laifu, who was beside him, gestured for them to enter with a stern expression.

Upon seeing this, the two exchanged a glance, and without saying a word, they both bowed to Li Chengqian and took their leave.

Meanwhile, Li Shimin, who had just won his first battle, was also deploying a new battle plan against Goguryeo.

At this moment, in Li Shimin's central tent, all the civil and military officials were staring intently at the sand table map in Li Shimin's tent, listening attentively to his eloquent speech.

"That's basically what Hou Junji said, but we must place enough scouts around the perimeter so that even if we fail to complete the plan, we can still make a safe retreat if anything changes in the surrounding area!"

"After all, we represent not just an army, but a nation, and the dignity of the Tang Dynasty royal family!"

Upon hearing these concluding remarks, all the ministers turned solemn.

After all, the emperor's personal expedition is no small matter, and stability must be the top priority.

Even if you don't expect 100% success, you should only take action if you have an 80% chance of success.

But Changsun Wuji chimed in, “Gaimu City is one of Goguryeo’s key military strongholds in Liaodong! General Hou’s initial victory has greatly boosted the morale of our Tang soldiers. Now, if we take advantage of this victory to attack the city, we will surely achieve twice the result with half the effort!”

"Ok!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Jian, the governor of Yingzhou, nodded heavily, then pointed to the sand table map in front of him and said thoughtfully, "Actually, while attacking Gaimou City, we can also attack Jian'an City in the south. We can cross the Liao River from here, and they will definitely not expect us to cross the Liao River a second time, giving them a surprise attack!"

"Excellent! Zhang Jian is right! We must take Jian'an City!" Upon hearing this, Li Shimin immediately made the decision: "Zhang Jian! Jian'an City is entrusted to you!"

"Yes!"

Zhang Jian immediately bowed and accepted the order.

Soon, Li Shimin issued troop deployment orders for the new battle plan.

Upon receiving the order, the generals dared not delay for a moment and quickly left the central command tent.

When only Changsun Wuji and Li Shimin remained in the central command tent, Li Shimin casually asked, "Wuji, is there any new movement from Chengqian's side?"

"Uh, this."

Upon hearing this, Changsun Wuji couldn't help but show a look of hesitation.

What he fears most now is Li Shimin asking him about Li Chengqian.

It wasn't that he was afraid of Li Chengqian or Li Shimin, but rather that he didn't want to be caught in the middle between the father and son, putting himself in a difficult position.

"What, he's caused trouble again?"

Seeing that Changsun Wuji remained silent, Li Shimin immediately pressed him with a stern face.

But Changsun Wuji quickly replied, "No, the Crown Prince didn't cause any trouble. I just heard that he didn't go directly to the northern desert, but went to Longyou instead!"

Longyou?

Li Shimin narrowed his eyes: "What is he going to Longyou for? Does he intend to deal with Tuyuhun first?"

"I am not sure about that either, but I have heard that Tuyuhun seems to be in some turmoil lately."

As Changsun Wuji spoke, he told Li Shimin everything about Tuyuhun.

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin was greatly surprised, and then he said with disdain, "This Fu Yun is really pitiful. He is already terminally ill, and his two sons are still fighting for the throne! As expected of a barbarian country, it cannot be compared with my Central Plains dynasty!"

"Uh,"

Changsun Wuji's lips twitched, thinking to himself that similar things had happened before in our Central Plains Dynasty.

Putting aside other things, take King Wuling of Zhao for example. Wasn't he starved to death when his son fought for power and he was terminally ill?

Such things were also common during the Jin and Southern and Northern Dynasties!

As for teaching his son, to be honest, Changsun Wuji no longer has any respect for Li Er.

But then Li Er continued, speaking to himself, "I remember the Crown Prince once said that he wanted to destroy three kingdoms in one battle, but I only gave him command of 200,000 troops, plus the tens of thousands of men in the Eastern Palace. Do you think he can do it?"

Changsun Wuji thought for a moment, then shook his head and said, "Even Your Majesty, I don't think you can do it, let alone the Crown Prince. Therefore, I think the Crown Prince is being a bit presumptuous."

"Yes, I think so too, which is why I didn't give him military command over key border cities back then."

"However, based on my understanding of the Crown Prince, he never gives up until he achieves his goal."

"Ah!"

Li Shimin smiled, then turned to look at Changsun Wuji and said calmly, "Do you know how I tamed those warlords in those chaotic times?"

"this."

Changsun Wuji hesitated slightly, then bowed and said, "Please enlighten me, Your Majesty!"

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin gave Changsun Wuji a deep look, then walked to his desk, picked up a handwritten edict, and handed it to Changsun Wuji, saying, "Give this edict to Li Daliang; he will understand my meaning!"

"Yes!"

Changsun Wuji responded, then carefully took the imperial edict. He looked at it intently, and what he saw filled him with astonishment. He couldn't help but look at Li Shimin: "Your Majesty, what is this?"

"If you want to take something, you must first secure it. Let him do whatever he wants!"

Li Shimin smiled faintly: "As for the rest, we'll talk about that after I've destroyed Goguryeo."

(End of this chapter)