Tang Dynasty Swordsman.

Pugu Huaien himself said that it was because Guo Ziyi was on patrol outside and difficult to find for a while, and he was afraid of delaying military operations, so he came to Xiangji Temple to offer advice to Li Chu. This was obviously an excuse! It was more than ten miles from the Tang camp under the city to Xiangji Temple, and it was dark. Could he fly over there? Wasn't he afraid of delaying military operations?

Pugu Huaien was worried that if he suggested the plan to Guo Ziyi, Guo Ziyi might send another general to pursue the defeated enemy, making it difficult for him to achieve complete success. However, if he suggested it to Li Chu, it would be different. Xiangji Temple had soldiers but no generals, so he could only give orders to himself. Surely he wouldn't send the Chief Clerk or the Military Advisor to risk their lives to pursue the enemy.

Pugu Huai'en had assumed Li Chu would be pleased with the plan, but to his surprise, Li Chu refused. Pugu Huai'en was filled with regret, and now he was in a difficult position – the Marshal had already rejected it, and even if he sought out Vice Marshal Guo Ziyi, the latter wouldn't dare make a decision. That's why he repeatedly pleaded with Li Chu, seeking an audience twice – he was truly unwilling to give up.

However, Li Tan's arrival revealed Pugu Huai'en's selfish motives in a single sentence, causing Pugu Huai'en's expression to change drastically and his heart to pound with unease. Seeing this, Li Tan slightly tightened his grip on Pugu Huai'en's hand and then soothed him with kind words: "Now that I am the Marshal's Chief Clerk, I have disobeyed orders to go out at night. If I achieve any merit, I will share the spoils with you, General; if I commit any crime, I will bear the consequences alone, and you will have no part in it. Does the General have any intention of doing this?"

Seeing that Pugu Huai'en was still hesitating, Li Tan's expression changed quickly. He immediately released his grip, straightened his back, and said coldly, "If the general dares not go, so be it. I will personally lead these hundred brave cavalrymen to pursue the enemy general—if anything goes wrong on this mission, it will all be the general's fault for offering advice!"

Pugu Huai'en was nearly scared to death upon hearing this...

The marshal's chief clerk is one thing, but this man before me is the Prince of Jianning, the emperor's own son! If anything happens to him, do you think the emperor will forgive him? Do you think the marshal will forgive him? Look at you, you've stirred up trouble for no reason, coming up with this terrible idea!

What should we do then? Should we advise Prince Jianning to return? Judging from the other party's expression, it's quite obvious...

There was no way to back down; there was no way he could persuade the prince. Should he rush to the marshal to report the defection? Prince Jianning was surely long gone; in the dead of night, there was nowhere to look for him. If something happened to Prince Jianning, the marshal wouldn't forgive him; if he ruined Prince Jianning's plans, the marshal certainly wouldn't forgive him either!

There was no other way but to board this pirate ship... Pugu Huai'en was quite confident in his martial arts skills, thinking that at least with me by his side, nothing serious should happen, right? If we were to encounter danger, I would rather die with Prince Jianning!

Of course, it would be best not to die with him. Even if I were to die, if I could ensure the safety of Prince Jianning, then it would be considered a death in the line of duty. Your Majesty should take good care of my family, right? My Pugu family has already died more than twenty people for the country. We cannot have any more die, especially not in a dishonorable way.

His mind raced, and he immediately clasped his hands and said, "However, without the Marshal's order, I dare not ask the Deputy Marshal for more. So, all I can command are these few brave men who are traveling with me..." He had originally requested two hundred cavalry, but that wasn't enough, because he was afraid that if he asked for more men, the Marshal would not agree. But now, looking at Prince Jianning's side, there were only about a hundred men, while he himself only had four retainers—I can't provide any more men. Your Majesty, do you still dare to go?

Li Tan smiled slightly, then turned his face and addressed the soldiers behind him: "I suspect the thief has fled in the night. Li Guiren and An Shouzhong are here. Capture or kill either one, and the title of Marquis of Ten Thousand Households will be yours! I intend to lead a hundred of you cavalry to pursue him—do you dare to go?!"

Although he spoke to the crowd, his gaze remained fixed on Li Ji. Li Ji understood and immediately patted his chest: "Even Your Majesty, a woman of noble birth, dares to take risks, what do we have to fear?" He then looked at Chen Fu and Yi Tiechui: "The red handkerchiefs on your headscarves were once stained with the blood of the Tibetans, and now, with the army gathered, you have fought fiercely with the enemy for half a day, yet you have achieved nothing—are you willing to follow Your Majesty and fight for the title of Marquis of Ten Thousand Households?!"

Upon hearing this, Li Tan couldn't help but secretly applaud, and his opinion of Li Ji rose even higher—the saying goes, "One is influenced by one's company," and as Changyuan's cousin, having spent several years with him, even if he was naturally intelligent, he must have picked up some of his eloquence. Hmm, when he held Li Fuguo hostage in the palace that day, he wasn't just quick-witted…

Upon hearing this, all the generals and soldiers were overjoyed.

These men were all elites of the Shence Army, having fought fiercely against the Tibetans on the western front for years. They were all incredibly bold, fearing only that they wouldn't have the chance to fight and achieve merit. When would they ever take the enemy seriously? Especially since they were all low-ranking officers—once they entered the commander's guard, each promotion brought rank—they only knew how to obey orders and fight. They wouldn't proactively consider the battle situation. So, how many of the fleeing rebels there were, whether they could be caught in the dead of night, and whether they could defeat them after catching up... those were questions for the generals to consider. Why should we worry about them?

And who is the general now? It is Prince Jianning, the Marshal's Chief Military Advisor. His status must be extremely noble. How could we dare to disobey his orders? Besides, as the saying goes, "A son of a thousand pieces of gold will not sit under a dangerous roof." Since Prince Jianning dares to lead us to pursue him, there must not be much risk involved.

Li Tan then discussed this with Pugu Huai'en, saying, "I am quite familiar with the roads to the east of the capital. Now that the rebel generals Feng Yi and Huayin have also gathered in the west of the capital, the only place we can defend this time is Shaanxi. We will have to pass through Changlepo, Baqiao Station, and Huichang, and travel along the main road. We may rest at Xinfeng or water our horses at Weinan, and wait until dawn to head out of Tongguan towards Shaanxi."

If we follow the main road, we'll have a great chance of catching up.

From Changlepo at the west gate of Chang'an to Xinfeng County, it's about sixty li (approximately 30 kilometers). If they reach Weinan, it's over a hundred li (approximately 50 kilometers). At full gallop, it shouldn't take two to four hours. But the problem is, it's pitch black. Even with torches, visibility is extremely limited, making it impossible to gallop at full speed. So, it'll probably take most of the night, and then they'll have to find a place to rest. Escaping Tongguan in one go is impossible; even if the men could endure it, the horses couldn't.

Therefore, Li Tan suggested that we should only pursue them this far. If we find nothing, we should turn back and return home at daybreak. We can then apologize to the Marshal. Don't worry, I will apologize, and General Pugu, you will not be punished.

With the plan settled, they set off immediately. The thunderous hooves of more than four hundred horses created a rather frightening spectacle. Pugu Huaien naturally galloped in front, Li Tan in the middle, with Chen Fu and Yi Tiechui flanking him on either side; as for Li Ji, his riding skills were not very good, so he could only bring up the rear.

After running for a while, news came from ahead: "General Pugu saw fresh hoof prints, there must be thieves escaping!" Upon hearing this, Li Ji was secretly delighted—even if he couldn't catch up in the end, this trip wouldn't be a waste. Even if he was punished when he returned, he wouldn't be ridiculed.

After running for a while, they saw the firelight gather in one place ahead and stopped. Li Ji quickly spurred his horse forward and asked Chen Fu, "Why have you stopped?" Chen Fu replied, "The road forks. Going south leads to Xinfeng, while continuing forward leads to Weinan. Your Highness is hesitating. Which way should you go?"

Perhaps the traitor intended to settle in Xinfeng County, but there was a possibility that he hadn't been able to enter the city yet—even outside of wartime, the county town's four gates were always locked at night, so checking identities, reporting to superiors, and then opening the gates would take some time—wouldn't it be a pity if we continued to pursue them while An Shouzhong and the others took the opportunity to enter Xinfeng City? Therefore, Li Tan ordered Pugu Huai'en and the others to dismount and examine the hoofprints to determine the next direction.

Li Ji thought to himself, "I'm slow, so I'd better start first. I'm not willing to be left behind." So he spurred his horse forward and stood by the fork in the road—he had to avoid the hoofprints of the people in front of him so that his own horse wouldn't trample them.

Just then, a sharp "snap" sounded in his ear, as if something had struck his saddle. Li Ji, holding a torch in his left hand, bent down to shine the light on his head and was greatly surprised—

On the wooden-covered saddle, there was a short sword, forged from fine steel, about two feet long.

If someone else were suddenly attacked, they would be terrified and would immediately report to Li Tan, and seek help from the police.

Chapter 50, Immersed in Immortal Aura

Regarding the encounter with someone who resembled Zhen Sui in Ding'an City that day, and the subsequent thwarting by a "flying sword" from a martial arts master, Li Ji, Li Bi, and Li Shi all made analyses and speculations afterward.

Based on his own fighting experience, Li Ji carefully studied the trajectory of the "flying sword" and concluded that it had no intention of harming anyone; it was purely intended to distract him.

Although he was skilled in combat and had sharp reflexes, dodging such an elusive "flying sword" when caught off guard was no easy task. The next day, when defending the commander's mansion, even though he had anticipated the hidden assassin's darts aimed at the guards and was on guard, he still narrowly escaped being hit each time. So, when he was unexpectedly attacked in the streets, could he have dodged that sword in time?

Honestly, I'd say there's an 80-90% chance I couldn't do it.

Especially after studying the trajectory of the "flying sword" afterward, the target was neither himself nor the two children, but only the wall beside him.

Considering that none of the seven assassins who subsequently attacked the Marshal's Mansion fired the "flying sword," Li Ji concluded that they were most likely not from the same group.

The person who released the "flying sword" was only trying to cover Zhen Sui's escape, without intending to harm anyone. From this, it can be inferred that they were either not one of Zhou Zhi's "Divine Machine Guards," or even a rebel. Li Ji suspected that this was a secret subordinate of some high-ranking official in the court, or a powerful eunuch in the palace.

As for his appearance on the street yesterday and the subsequent attack on the Marshal's Mansion by assassins, it may have been purely coincidental and the two were unrelated; or perhaps it was because Li Shi told Li Chu about it that night, and Li Chu then reported it to Li Heng, who then ordered a city-wide search, thus forcing "Mr. Guo" to launch his attack prematurely.

Putting aside the past, let's just talk about today. After Li Ji was shot in the saddle, his first reaction was that he had run into an acquaintance, and his second reaction was: "That was a really good shot!"

It was pitch black all around, and he only had a torch in his hand. He was even hiding by the roadside. How good must his eyesight be to hit the target with his "flying sword"? If it were a person and a horse, such a large target, it wouldn't be surprising to hit it. But to hit such a small saddle... Was he trying to shoot a person but accidentally hit the saddle? That possibility was even smaller.

The opponent's target was most likely the saddle; the sword struck squarely, narrowly avoiding his own left leg. What does this mean? Is it a warning or a hint?

If such individuals were subordinates of powerful figures like high-ranking officials or eunuchs, they might be used for personal schemes or state affairs. These extraordinary individuals from the martial world would be perfectly suited for frontline reconnaissance. Therefore, striking the left side of the saddle with the sword might be a reminder to himself: the traitorous general has gone straight to the main road!

If he were a member of the rebel army, would he have used this sword as a warning? He could have simply shot him dead, why bother with a warning? It's not like I was the one drawing my bow to shoot those bandits... I missed, so I used this cryptic warning.

Moreover, the flying sword came from the north. If the rebel general was heading straight for Weinan and had not gone south to Xinfeng, then launching the sword from the south would more easily draw the pursuers' attention in the wrong direction. If the rebel general had indeed gone south to Xinfeng, but this person launched the sword from the north to mislead the enemy... it means that his whereabouts have been exposed, and the rebel general will surely receive the news soon and be prepared! In that case, the risk for these hundred cavalrymen to go south to Xinfeng is extremely high.

Li Ji's mind worked quickly, and in an instant he had already weighed the pros and cons. Fearing that Li Tan and the others would chase south—either a mistake or walking into a trap—he immediately used his reckless persona and shouted, "The opportunity is fleeting, keep chasing, keep chasing!" He then dashed off directly onto the straight road.

Li Tan, Pugu Huaien, and others were still hesitant, but seeing the situation, they had no choice but to spur their horses and follow.

The hoofprints were a bit messy and couldn't be clearly distinguished in a short time. Anyway, going straight or heading south was a gamble, with a 50/50 chance of winning or losing. Since that was the case, we might as well follow Li Ji and see what fate had in store. There were only about a hundred people in total, so we couldn't afford to split up and chase each other.

As it turned out, Li Ji was indeed guided by "divine will," and Li Tan and his men had made the right gamble. After galloping for about five more miles, suddenly the sound of a sharp blade cutting through the air rang out, and an arrow shot from afar. The leading knight—Li Ji, who had already fallen behind again—was struck by an arrow in his left arm, where he was holding the torch, and couldn't help but cry out, "Ouch!"

Pugu Huai'en was not alarmed but delighted. He immediately picked up his long spear from the saddle bridge, spurred his horse to gallop, and shouted: "Those who surrender, including An Shouzhong and Li Guiren, will be spared!"

The Tang cavalry, carrying torches, clashed violently with the rebel cavalry who had been hiding in the darkness.

By the time Li Ji caught up, the battle had already begun, allowing him to be positioned on the periphery and better observe the battlefield. The main road connecting Chang'an with the important towns of Tong and Hua was wide, but still too narrow for dozens of riders to ride abreast. Many soldiers were forced to leap into ditches or even charge diagonally into the roadside fields, attempting to flank the enemy. The number of rebel cavalry was roughly equal to that of the Tang army; unless more troops were hidden in the darkness behind them, it was estimated to be only one or two hundred riders.

On the Tang side, Pugu Huai'en was naturally at the forefront of the charge. His long spear swept across the battlefield, and none who stood in his way were spared. However, the horse spear was a powerful weapon for breaking through enemy lines, allowing for direct, direct attacks. With Pugu Huai'en at the forefront, he formed a formidable spearhead. If the Tang cavalry followed behind, they could seize the opportunity to tear through the enemy ranks, greatly increasing their chances of victory. Unfortunately, only four of Pugu Huai'en's men remained behind him, and in the blink of an eye, half of them were killed by the rebel army.

This was because Chen Fu and Yi Tiechui dared not stray far from Li Tan, and of course, they were even less willing to let Li Tan personally go to the front lines to fight. As a result, half of the Shence Army soldiers followed the two men's lead and adopted a defensive posture. So what about the remaining half, that is, Li Ji's troops? Their captain was still lagging behind, and there was no one to command them. Who would dare to fight recklessly?

In conclusion, Li Tan was the commander-in-chief, but he was a general who knew nothing about military affairs.

It was even more difficult to command on the battlefield; Pugu Huaien was the vanguard, but his troops were too few in number and had no coordination with the Shence Army.

Seeing this, Li Ji thought to himself that things were going to get bad. But upon further reflection, he realized that he was fortunate to be at the back, which gave him a chance to get a general overview of the situation. Although his eyesight wasn't very good, he quickly spotted the person in charge among the rebel troops.

He was a silver-armored general, heavily armored and his horse clad in protective gear, as solid as an iron barrel. Guarded by several knights, he stood on one side of the enemy lines. Li Ji saw him gesture, ordering a dozen or so riders to surround and entangle Pugu Huai'en, while the main force spread out to the left and right, slowly advancing towards the Tang army. In an instant, small groups of five or six men were engaged in fierce combat everywhere—on the roads, in the ditches, and even in the fields.

Li Ji tossed aside his torch, drew his sword, and, seizing an opening, deliberately circled before attacking the enemy general. Because he was alone on horseback in the darkness, he was a tiny target, and the rebel cavalry paid him little attention. Those who did approach were quickly cut down by his swift, powerful strike.

He didn't kill them, and immediately started wielding his sword, but that wasn't his forte. He relied entirely on his strength and powerful moves to frighten the enemy into retreat.

As they approached the enemy general, the man finally spotted Li Tan in the crowd, recognizing him as a key figure on the enemy's side. He then ordered his soldiers to charge towards Li Tan while simultaneously drawing his bow, pulling a heavy arrow from his quiver, and nocking it…

Li Ji thought to himself, "This is bad. Li Tan probably won't be able to hold on!"

It's impossible to gamble that the enemy general's archery skills are worse than one's own, right? The key is that Li Tan only has one set of armor, which has limited protective capabilities. Since the Prince of Jianning didn't personally charge into battle before, the armor was naturally designed to be exquisite and imposing, which inadvertently sacrificed some of its protective capabilities.

Li Ji was still some distance from the enemy general, and he estimated that even if he charged immediately, he might not be able to stop the enemy from firing arrows—unless he had a fully grown lance or a long-handled broadsword instead of a horizontal sword…

He was truly desperate—if anything happened to Li Ji, even cutting off the heads of An Shouzhong and Li Guiren wouldn't be enough to atone for it! Besides, he had only risked his life to storm the palace and save this guy half a year ago; how could he let him die now? All his efforts would have been for nothing!

Without hesitation, he spurred his horse and charged towards the enemy general. One of the enemy guards reacted only then, hastily thrusting his spear. Li Ji, unwilling to waste time on him, flicked his wrist and hurled his broadsword at him. The man tilted his head, the blade grazing his phoenix-wing ear guard… but he hadn't expected such force. He felt a buzzing in his head, lost his balance, and slid off the saddle.

At this moment, Li Ji was already two or three horse heads away from the enemy general. However, when he threw his sword, his hands were empty, while the enemy had already drawn his bow fully and was pointing it at Li Tan, ready to release the string at any moment. In desperation, Li Ji simply pressed his hands firmly on the saddle and stomped his feet on the stirrups, leaping into the air and lunging towards the enemy general.

The enemy general only then noticed him, and with a sidelong glance—for fear of missing the target of his bow and arrow, he didn't move his head—he saw a figure leaping over like a large bird, a large hand already close to his face...

Then, with a loud "thud," they crashed into each other and fell off their horses.

Li Ji, acting with cunning, caught the enemy general off guard. After the initial impact, even while airborne, he used his hands and feet to climb up and firmly lock the enemy general's body in place. The enemy general, below, fell backward, dazed and confused, while Li Ji, above, suffered almost no injury upon landing. After the shockwave subsided, the two fell to the ground. Li Ji pressed his left hand against the enemy general's shoulder armor, raised his right fist high, and aimed at the exposed area between the helmet and the neck, especially the bridge of the nose, ready to deliver a powerful blow.

Unexpectedly, halfway through the fight, the enemy general screamed like a pig being slaughtered: "Stop hitting me, I'll surrender!"

Upon hearing this, Li Ji's grip loosened slightly, and his fist only managed to deflect the tip of the nose. Then the general shouted again, "Stop! Disarm yourselves! We surrender!"

The entire battle, in modern terms, would have lasted no more than seven or eight minutes. Both sides laid down about ten corpses before inexplicably calling a halt. The rebels were all dejected, throwing down their weapons, dismounting, and kneeling on the ground. Li Ji, meanwhile, tore off the enemy general's helmet, grabbed the inner turban, and came to see Li Tan.

The enemy general knelt on the ground, but because he was wearing heavy armor, his knees were difficult to bend, resulting in an awkward posture, almost like he was sitting sideways with one leg to the side. Li Tan did not dismount, but looked down at him coldly and asked, "Who are you?"

The enemy general, with his head bowed, replied, "I am Tian Qianzhen."

Where are An Shouzhong and Li Guiren?

"They've already left, they're heading into Weinan, I'm afraid it will be difficult to catch up..."

"Why did you surrender?" Li Tan was also a little puzzled. Although the commander-in-chief was captured and the morale of the army was in chaos, the enemy was not without a chance to fight back. After all, Li Ji had no weapon and was surrounded by traitorous cavalry. If the enemy risked taking a few punches to the face, their troops would have enough time to cut Li Ji into mincemeat.

Are you so afraid of pain that you can't even take a punch? Although Li Ji's punches are heavy, he might actually kill someone with two punches... but the other party might not know that.

Tian Qianzhen's words were tinged with indignation: "Because they acted on their own, I was left to cover their retreat..."

Tian Qianzhen was also a valiant general in the rebel army and was highly valued by An Lushan. When Geshu Han held Tongguan Pass and refused to engage, and Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi advanced into Hebei, attempting to cut off the rebels' retreat, An Lushan angrily denounced Yan Zhuang and Gao Shang. It was entirely thanks to Tian Qianzhen's persuasion that An Lushan regained his confidence. Later, when the rebels captured Chang'an, the Turkic and Tongluo troops stole horses and fled. Cui Guangyuan seized the opportunity to force Sun Xiaozhe to leave, causing An Shenwei's death from fright. Upon receiving this news, An Lushan appointed Tian Qianzhen as the Prefect of Jingzhao to quell the chaos in Chang'an.

After arriving in Chang'an, Tian Qianzhen quelled the rebellion, stopped the killings, and reorganized his troops, keeping himself extremely busy. Unfortunately, just as things were beginning to improve, Li Guiren and An Shouzhong arrived, their forces wreaking havoc and destroying Tian Qianzhen's newly acquired forces.

Chapter 51, Obtaining Value as Promised

Having captured Tian Qianzhen, Pugu Huai'en came to ask for instructions: Should we continue pursuing him eastward? Li Tan pondered for a moment and then said, "There's no need to add legs to a snake—that's fine."

Although Tian Qianzhen's troops blocked the way, it only took a quarter of an hour. But I imagine that An Shouzhong, Li Guiren, and the others, knowing that the pursuers were behind them, would be as eager as birds released from their cages or fish that had escaped from the net, and would run even faster. It would probably be difficult to catch up with them.

In this battle, although only a dozen or so Tang soldiers died, many were wounded. Having marched through the night and engaged in fierce fighting, they were exhausted. According to Tian Qianzhen, An Shouzhong and Li Guiren gave him half their troops, leaving about two hundred cavalry accompanying them on their march. If these remaining Tang soldiers, exhausted, attacked the larger force, what chance of victory would they have? Besides, we captured nearly two hundred prisoners; they need someone to guard and escort them.

Therefore, Li Tan decided to stop while he was ahead. After all, capturing one general alive was enough to explain to Li Chu. The crime of failing to pursue the enemy without orders could be barely covered up by Tian Qianzhen and the two hundred prisoners. If the losses were greater and there were no further gains, then it would be hard to say.

Therefore, they bound their soldiers, collected the remains of their comrades, and escorted the prisoners, before turning back. The rebels hung their heads in dejection, while the Tang soldiers were arrogant and laughing incessantly. Tian Qianzhen, with his hands bound behind his back and tied to his horse, took the opportunity to turn around and ask the Tang soldiers escorting him, "Who captured me just now?"

The Tang soldier replied, "It is Li Zhiguo."

Tian Qianzhen couldn't help but sigh, "I never imagined that I would be captured by a mere seventh-rank official."

The Tang soldier escorting him glanced at him, his tone rather unfriendly: "How dare you underestimate Li Zhiguo? Although his rank is not high, it's only because he's young, not because his skills are inferior. Back in Ding'an, he single-handedly killed three assassins, and later in Yong County, he won a wrestling match against a brave warrior from the Uyghur army. Moreover, he is Li Changshi's cousin..."

Upon hearing this, Tian Qianzhen's brows furrowed immediately: "Li Changshi? Is it Li Bi?" After receiving an affirmative answer, he couldn't help but sigh: "I know him now—what goes around comes around. Is this not the will of Heaven?!"

Not far from Xinfeng County, the sound of galloping hooves grew louder ahead, and another cavalry force approached, carrying torches high. It turned out that Li Chu, having waited in vain for Li Tan's return and Li Ji's report, finally realized what was happening and hurriedly ordered Guo Ziyi to send troops to the rescue that very night. Guo Ziyi dispatched five hundred elite cavalry, who rushed to the scene. The general leading the troops was none other than Xue Jingxian, the prefect of Fengxiang County and an old acquaintance of Li Ji.

Seeing that Li Tan was unharmed, Xue Jingxian breathed a long sigh of relief. He then hurriedly sent a fast horse back to report, so that Li Chu could rest assured. He himself accompanied Li Tan, escorting the prisoners, and slowly returned to the city of Chang'an.

Li Chu was indeed deeply devoted to his brother, and he moved his camp overnight from Xiangji Temple in the south of the city to Baqiao Post Station in the east of the city, so as to get news of Li Tan as soon as possible. The new camp had just been set up when Xue Jingxian sent a report, and he was relieved. He went to sleep for a little over an hour, and when he got up at dawn, Li Tan and the others had already returned.

Li Chu went out to greet him at the gate, and Li Tan hurriedly dismounted, knelt on the ground, and said, "Your foolish brother has acted recklessly and has come to accept his punishment." Leaving the army without orders was a serious offense. If he had addressed himself as "this humble official" or "Marshal," Li Chu might have considered handling the matter according to the law. But since he called himself "your foolish brother"... Li Chu's heart simply couldn't harden. So he stepped forward, reached out to help Li Tan up, and scolded him, "You've been restless since childhood and are accustomed to acting on your own initiative. This is one thing in the palace, but now on the battlefield, do you not even consider your own safety? If anything were to happen to you, what would I, your brother, do?"

Li Tan clasped his hands and bowed, replying, "I was afraid that the opportunity would be missed and could not be regained, so I acted rashly for a moment... Fortunately, I returned unharmed and came to apologize to my elder brother."

Li Chu shook his head and said, "This matter is my fault... I didn't expect that the bandits An and Li would indeed escape in the night. Although I heard that you were unable to catch them, you captured Tian Qianzhen alive, which is a great achievement. Why should I ask for forgiveness?" He wanted to quickly put the matter aside, so he turned to Li Bi and asked, "What does the Chief Secretary think we should do with Tian Qianzhen?"