Li Longji's plan was to first send troops over to launch a surprise attack and then burn a portion of the grain that was about to be harvested in autumn. Tubo requested peace every year and attacked the borders every year. When they requested peace, they actually used the attitude of a victorious country. Naturally, they wouldn't allow Great Tang to give them anything.
Taking advantage of the fact that the Zhang family was able to popularize the seeds in Great Tang and had the method of hatching chicks and thermometers, they would be able to produce a lot of grain next year. This autumn, when Tubo retaliated and attacked, Great Tang would have finished harvesting the grain in many places. They wouldn't have to worry about not having enough grain to fight a war.
Using the method of fighting a big war to make the people of Great Tang work hard to support the borders. The method of support was to learn how to plant seeds and use war to stimulate that thing called domestic demand and promote the development of productivity.
Li Longji learned this from Bi Gou's letter. He felt that if it was successful, it could also be used to train the soldiers. After two years, when Great Tang had more grain, poultry, and livestock, they could use it to expand their territory.
However, he didn't expect that the usually smart and capable Guo Tu would make such an idiotic mistake. Yes, he was an idiot. If he made a mistake, he should just die there. He even implicated Xiao Bao and Cuckoo.
Xiao Bao and Cuckoo were the personal disciples of the two experts of the Zhang family who didn't show themselves. It was said that the two little fellows were able to pass the Imperial Examination. How capable were they?
If the experts weren't willing to show themselves, then so be it. Wouldn't it be fine if the two little fellows learned their skills? The two little fellows couldn't possibly hide and not show themselves, right? Regardless of whether it was for their own use or for their children or grandchildren, it would be fine.
Now that the two little fellows had come out of seclusion and brought more than three hundred people who could fight, would they be able to come back alive? If they were really unlucky, where could they find two such people? Who knew how long the experts of the Zhang family could live.
More importantly, the four children of the Zhang family were indeed stronger than ordinary people, but they were far inferior to Xiao Bao and Cuckoo.
The more Li Longji thought about it, the more fearful and angry he became. He had even told the Zhang family to visit Xiao Bao and Cuckoo when they returned to the capital after finishing their business in Yizhou. Now that their lives were at stake, if it was possible, he really wanted to bite Guo Tu to death. Let the two children bear the consequences of their own actions.
Of course, Li Longji didn't want to talk about it, nor did he want to think about the fact that he had sent out a decree to give Zhang Zhong credit.
He could only hope that Xiao Bao and Cuckoo, the two future talents, would return safely. When the time came, he would immediately send out a decree to ask Zhang Zhong to take good care of the two children and not let them run around. If something happened, would Zhang Zhong be able to take responsibility? Xiao Bao and Cuckoo weren't his own children. How could he wait for them to grow up and do more things like experts?
"Lishi, go and call Song Jing, Zhang Shuo, Zhang Jiuling, and the others who can discuss this matter. Let's see if there's anything we can do."
Li Longji wasn't in the mood to let the concubines dance to liven things up. He had Gao Lishi call for people to discuss this matter.
Gao Lishi hurriedly left. He was worried about Xiao Bao and Cuckoo. He was also preparing to find an opportunity to recognize a godson, godson, godson, or daughter-in-law. In any case, he just wanted to recognize a relative. He also wanted to take some time to enjoy the two children's cooking and take them for a stroll in the imperial gardens.
*****
Guo Tu didn't know that he had already been hated by someone, and it was a very powerful person. He continued to analyze what the logistics camp wanted to do with the general who was also under house arrest.
"This is too much. This is too much. They arrested us and didn't even tell us their purpose. Everyone, think about it. If we really escape, we won't be able to answer correctly if someone asks. Also, is this food for humans?"
Guo Tu complained as he ate the wild vegetable soup that didn't have any meat. If he didn't make such a big mistake this time and put the army in danger, he might continue to praise the logistics camp.
However, it seemed that his psychological quality was not high enough. After encountering a setback, not only did he become absent-minded, but he also tried to push the blame from himself to others. The bad side of human nature was undoubtedly revealed, especially when he was under house arrest and did not know the purpose of the logistics camp.
In fact, he really wanted to participate. Even if he could say a few words occasionally, it would be good to remind them. However, they didn't give him the chance at all. Facing the fear of the unknown, he finally exploded.
The other generals didn't say anything and didn't complain about the food. In the current situation, it was very good to have stuttering food. Usually, when fighting for power, it was not as simple as house arrest. It was very normal to kill a few people. Even if they killed all of them, they could find an excuse. With the help of the former Prime Minister and the former Minister of Revenue, they couldn't do anything to the two kids.
Seeing that his words didn't get the support of the others, Guo Tu hurriedly ate the wild vegetable and stared back and forth at the generals.
Liu Jun finally couldn't stand being stared at like this. He sighed and said, "General, I think it's really possible to successfully escape back. Since the people who followed us couldn't understand, how could the Tubo people guess the intentions of the army? Eat, it looks like they are going to make a big move. "
As if to support Liu Jun's words, early the next morning, Wang Juan's new order was passed down. Ten battalions were to be close to the mountain. All the food that they collected was to be given to the ten battalions. The remaining two battalions and the few hundred people who came back later were to continue forward. After three days, they would descend the mountain and be met by people there.
Along the way, they were to reduce the number of stoves. Every three hours, they would burn the stoves. From seventy thousand to sixty thousand, then to fifty thousand. After two days, the number of stoves would be back to two thousand.
When they reached the front and descend the mountain, they would listen to the instructions of the people there. Another point was that when the ten battalions continued to ascend the mountain, they would use flammable objects to create a thick smoke to obstruct the Tubo people's pursuit and erase their traces.
After the order was passed down, Wang Juan and Zhang Xiaobao led the ten battalions and set off. Guo Tu and the others continued to lead the ten battalions. Otherwise, if the two battalions were to be handed over, it would be easy for them to take back their authority.
"You all don't want to live anymore. Do you know how cold it is on the mountain? All of the food added up is only enough for two days. You all killed ten thousand people just like that. I want to see the person in charge, I want to see the person. "
When Guo Tu was being watched climbing up the mountain, he knew that they were preparing to ascend the mountain. He kept shouting and shouting. According to what he had learned, he had already come to a conclusion about the future of the group.
The face of the bodyguard who was watching them darkened. He kicked Guo Tu from behind and said, "Behave yourself. What are you shouting for? If you shout again, I will chop you up. Let's see how many people are willing to offend Royal Prince Tong 'an for a failed general. "
"Royal Prince Tong 'an? Royal … Royal Prince Li? What does he have to do with you? "Guo Tu asked in surprise. He didn't dare to call Li Xun by his name.
"I am the personal bodyguard of His Royal Highness. His Royal Highness is a guest in Yizhou and calls Young Master Xiao Bao his younger brother. What do you think it is related to him?"
Li Xun's bodyguard replied in dissatisfaction.
Guo Tu didn't say anything, and so did the other officers. Only now did they realize how big of a backer the two kids had. They were all killed, but when they went back, they could just find an excuse, and no one would cry out for them.
After a long while, Guo Tu whispered to the bodyguard, "Xiao Bao and the others are wrong. Aren't you afraid that …"
"Can they be more wrong than you? Shut up. " The guards did not show him any respect at all. They knew the little young master and the little lady's abilities very well. They had seen it when they were in Lu Zhou. Then, they went to Shu Province and then to Peng Province. They learned from the two of them along the way.
There were many tactical ideas that they had never thought of before they met the young master and the young lady. They were very good at analyzing human nature and terrain in various situations. However, they were not done yet. It seemed like there was more to come.
Would such people make an unwise decision?
*****
After Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan led ten battalions up the mountain with more than ten thousand men, the two battalions below started to light the fire. Thick smoke drifted with the wind. It was only because of the wind today that Wang Juan made the decision. Otherwise, they would have to continue waiting.
After the smoke was released, the two battalions cleaned up all the traces as much as possible. Then, they started to rush forward. Three days later, they would go down the mountain and see if there were any reinforcements.
The Tubo people were almost catching up, but they had to slow down. Their generals were also afraid of falling into an ambush. First, they observed the campsites. Day by day, they increased the number of campsites. They could not figure out what was going on. Could it be that reinforcements had arrived? Then they should be fighting with them.
They only increased the number of campsites but did not fight. Were they trying to set up an ambush? There was no need to be afraid. They just had to be careful. It was easy to mobilize troops in their own territory.
However, the problem was that from the footprints left behind, the number of people was not fixed. Sometimes, there were more than ten thousand people. Sometimes, there were more than a thousand people. Sometimes, there were more than six thousand people. When there were fewer people, what did the people do?
Did reinforcements come and follow them for a while and then hide? Or did the people in the army make some arrangements? There must be something wrong with increasing the number of people. As the saying goes, all is fair in war. To chase or not to chase, they had to wait for the reinforcements. Hiss ~! This was not easy to handle.
Tatatatu was the leader of the ten thousand men in the headquarters. This time, he led twenty thousand men. If it was in the past, he could have more men. He had Tu Yuhun's men to help him. Now that he had no more men, he could only use his own men to fight.
He thought of himself as a capable general. He was literate and had read a few military books. Usually, he led his own men to guard the front line of Jinchuan. He felt that he knew a lot about war, especially all kinds of strategies. He had memorized them.
When he saw the situation in front of him, the first thing that came to his mind was that all is fair in war. As the saying goes, what is true is false, and what is false is true. However, he could not tell whether the other party was lying or not. If they wanted to lure the enemy by reducing the number of campsites, they should not have set up so many campsites. If they wanted to increase the number of campsites to scare the enemy, they should not have left behind footprints.
From the footprints, there were at least ten thousand people. Sometimes, there were even fewer. Increasing the number of campsites when there were fewer people? Did they think that he could not tell, or were they doing it on purpose?
This was troublesome. According to the scouts in Pengzhou, the general who came this time was a person called Guo Tu. He had never heard of this name before. Could he be a wise general of Tang?
At this moment, there were only five thousand people chasing in front of the headquarters. Should they chase quickly or be careful and slow? Should they send out all the scouts to increase the distance, or should they just charge forward without thinking?
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