At this moment, Li Longji was discussing with Prime Minister Zhang Shuo and Song Jing, who had already been dismissed as Prime Minister, about the newly built canal. Because Li Xun and the Zhang and Wang families had given them a lot of money, the canal had been built quite well, and it had already been connected to more distant places. If the canal was connected before the autumn harvest, they would be able to transport more food from all over the capital when there was insufficient food.
When they talked about this, Li Longji was reminded of the Zhang family and his two children, Xiao Bao and Cuckoo. The completion of the canal was obviously a good thing, but it did not put him in a good mood.
Zhang Jiu Ling was not much better than Li Longji. His old housekeeper, who could no longer do anything, was also there. When he was building roads and relay stations back in his hometown, Zhang Zhong, who was the Provincial Governor of Lu Zhou, had given him a lot of money to help. He had also given him comfortable furniture and sea dried goods.
Currently, there were two beautiful little red fish swimming in the glass fish tank at home. It was almost time for the fish to come out. However, the two children of the Zhang Wang and Zhang Shuo had gone missing with the logistics battalion. Moreover, they had gone missing in Tubo. How could he be at ease?
Zhang Shuo and Song Jing had also received a lot of things from the Zhang Wang and Zhang Shuo. Now, every month, they would receive tonics from Hua Yuan County's Deyi Hospital. The four of them were thinking about the children of the Zhang Wang and Zhang Shuo while talking about the canal that was built with money. It would be strange if the atmosphere was good.
"The canal is done. It's just a little bit away from being connected to the canal. It will be very convenient to use the Zhang family's explosives. The place where the canal crosses the Yellow River needs to be reinforced with cement. You said that the Zhang family had also contributed a lot to the canal, right? That's right. The transportation of food this year will be easier. After the canal is connected, will the two children be able to get out of danger? "
Before Gao Lishi came in, these were the last words Li Longji said. He was thinking about something else. As he spoke, he brought Xiao Bao and Cuckoo out.
Therefore, the four of them looked at each other. They felt it was funny but could not laugh. They could only sigh in their hearts.
Gao Lishi ran in with a happy smile on his face, waving the letter he had taken from the pigeon.
"News from Wing Prefecture? What happened to Xiao Bao and Cuckoo? " When Li Longji heard that it was about Xiao Bao and Cuckoo, he threw the matter of the canal aside. It was not important. With the Zhang Family and the Wang Family around, they could fix it if they wanted to. If the two kids died, wouldn't the Zhang Family and the Wang Family go crazy? What would the two experts do if their disciples were gone?
Li Longji and the other three could not help but show a nervous expression. Fortunately, when they saw Gao Lishi's unconcealable smile, they felt that it should be good news. The two kids ran around Tubo and came back in fright. They were not caught.
Gao Lishi did not dare to hesitate, lightly coughing, he recited, "Reporting to Your Excellency, we received news from Tubo that Xiao Bao Juanjuan personally led the logistics battalion to provide emergency assistance and successfully converged with them. Leading the remaining twelve thousand soldiers, they fought in the boundless Jinchuan, breaking four thousand men of Tata Datu's logistics battalion, completely annihilating them, breaking three thousand men of Tata Datu's vanguard battalion, breaking two thousand men of each of Tubo's three divisions, seizing and burning their provisions and supplies. After that, leading the main force of the Tang Army, they disappeared into the Da Chuan.
Gao Lishi had tried his best to control his body, but he still could not help but tremble. Even his voice was trembling.
Li Longji and the other three froze like they were carved out of wood. They only recovered after a few breaths. Li Longji pursed his lips and did not make a sound. He clenched his fists tightly and his chest rose and fell. It was obvious that he was trying his best to suppress the excitement in his heart.
Zhang Shuo and the other two's faces were also flushed. They could not find their usual composure.
Zhang Jiuling was the first to speak, "Congratulations to Your Majesty. Xiao Bao and Cuckoo have obtained the true teachings of the expert. They are invincible when fighting outside the country."
With one person speaking, the other three almost simultaneously let out a sigh of relief.
"So Xiao Bao and Cuckoo are fine for the time being. Good, it should be the two of them commanding the army. Guo Tu does not have that ability yet. When Xiao Bao and Cuckoo grow up, we will have no worries. Hehe, these two kids are really capable. Let's put aside the matter of the canal for now and talk about it. Yes, talk about it."
Li Longji was happy. He felt that even though it was about to rain outside, it was still so comfortable. He, who rarely smiled, opened his eyes wide and raised his eyebrows. The corners of his mouth curled up. He loosened his fists and rubbed his hands together.
Zhang Shuo and the other two also realized that the originally dark room had suddenly become bright.
"Your Majesty, I believe that Xiaobao and Juanjuan will definitely be able to return safely with a body full of military merits. I really can't think of how you want me to go to such a place to look for them, successfully find them, and then immediately lead the defeated army to consecutive victories. How can you do that? They are still two children."
When Li Longji asked Zhang Shuo and the other two, Gao Lishi's eyes turned red. He couldn't help but imagine two nine-year-old kids. After receiving the imperial edict, they gathered the people from the logistics camp and rode on their horses with their little faces up high. They resolutely chased after the setting sun in the west. That was where Tufan was located.
After searching and searching, they avoided the search of the Tufan patrolling cavalry again and again. They successfully found Guo Tu and the others on the Jinchuan mountain range. Looking at the dispirited soldiers, they took out the food they had brought and distributed it to everyone.
Guo Tu, who had lost the battle, was a coward. No matter what, he did not dare to command the army anymore. He pushed the responsibility to his godson and daughter-in-law. The courage of more than twelve thousand people was now on the shoulders of his godson and daughter-in-law.
His son and daughter-in-law had no choice but to lead the troops. As they ran, they thought of a solution. After thinking and thinking, they finally thought of what others had taught them. They ran around the mountain and fought again and again. Every time they fought, his son and daughter-in-law would fight with the determination to die.
Under the encirclement and pursuit of the enemy, they escaped again and again and again found a chance to counterattack. With the twelve thousand remaining soldiers, they wiped out the same number of enemies. In the end, because there were too many enemies, they stole food to replenish their supplies and hid together on the cold snowy mountain to warm themselves.
It was quite pitiful.
Gao Lishi, who had already treated Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan as his godson and daughter-in-law, felt more and more like this. In the end, he could not help but cry.
After hearing Gao Lishi's words, Li Longji, who had been happy just a moment ago, also thought of the predicament that the two children were going to face. With a sullen face, he slammed the table and said, "Guo Tu, you can't do anything right, but you're good at ruining things. Do you think that Guo Tu can't take it anymore and gave the troops to Xiao Bao and Cuckoo? If they win, he will get credit. If they lose, it will have nothing to do with him, right?"
"This official thinks that General Guo might …"
"What general? He's not a general anymore. I'll dismiss him. Let the children fight for the generals. The Great Tang doesn't want them." Before Song Jing could finish, Li Longji was already dissatisfied with the way he addressed Guo Tu and dismissed him.
Song Jing hurriedly changed his words. "This official thinks that the criminal Guo Tu might not have given up his military power of his own accord. When the sand table in the imperial court deduced that he would form an alliance with others, Guo Tu was already obsessed with power. He probably had his eyes on Xiao Bao and Cuckoo's logistics camp. Your Majesty also knows that the logistics camp has fifty-six people from the Zhang family and two hundred people from Commandery Prince Tong 'an.
These two hundred and fifty-six people have been trained by the Zhang family and can be said to be the elites of the elites. Coupled with the financial and technical support of the Zhang family, their equipment is definitely superior to other soldiers. Guo Tu wanted to take advantage of his superior numbers and wanted to take over this group of people. In the end, he probably underestimated Xiao Bao and Cuckoo and was forcefully taken over.
Your Majesty should know that Zhang Wang's inner courtyard can take over hundreds of officials and handle the government affairs of a prefecture alone. The Protector of the Seedlings is also proficient in the art of leading troops. This official guesses that the twelve thousand soldiers and twelve battalion commanders have all been replaced. Thus, Xiao Bao and Cuckoo can be easily ordered around.
This official suggests that Pengzhou should be ordered to release news to inform the people of Tubo who will be defeated. This will infuriate them and they will have no choice but to surround and annihilate them. This will create an opportunity for Xiao Bao and Cuckoo to escape. "
"This official agrees." Zhang Shuo and Zhang Jiuling agreed at the same time.
"Then when Guo Tu comes back, we can't let him off easily. That's right. Zhang Wang's inner courtyard can take over the government affairs. The meticulously trained Protector of the Seedlings will definitely be able to lead troops. If an ordinary servant can be trained to this level, Xiao Bao and Cuckoo, these two smart little fellows, will definitely learn more."
Li Longji's expression turned back and looked at Gao Lishi, wanting to hear what he had to say.
Gao Lishi was also thinking about how to let his godson and daughter-in-law come back alive. He knew the art of leading troops and understood that the more anxious the other party was, the better. With the abilities that his godson and daughter-in-law had shown, it was still possible for them to run back to Pengzhou amidst the chaos. It was better than hiding in the mountains.
Seeing the Emperor looking over, he nodded and said, "This official thinks that other than releasing the news, we should also let the Pengzhou government troops act as if they are about to leave the border and attack. This will restrain more Tubo troops and prevent them from acting rashly."
Li Longji and Weiwei nodded and said, "This is a good idea."
Gao Lishi quickly went to write the decree. Li Longji was also in a good mood to discuss the matter of the canal with Zhang Shuo and the other two.
*****
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan, who were being remembered by others, had already left the mountains. Who would be willing to suffer the cold for no reason?
The two of them led the troops all the way to the north. After walking for a few days, they turned east, which was the direction of the Tang Empire. There were a few Tubo villages here. The most important thing was that the crops were early rice. It was the kind that was planted early and had just matured.
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan led people to help the local people harvest the crops out of kindness. The local people just had to stay at home. Zhang Xiaobao carefully investigated the people in the various villages and found people who were prone to betrayal. He controlled their families and promised them great benefits to deal with the patrolling Tubo cavalry.
The scouts were everywhere. When they found the enemy, they would first report. The harvesting troops would then stop and hide, waiting for the people to pass by to continue harvesting.
The patrolling Tubo cavalry received the order to pay attention to this line of mountains and not let the Tang Army come down. At the beginning, they told the people to be careful and to report if there was anything. Later on, they did not find anything and only went back and forth once a day. They were too lazy to ask too many questions. As long as they saw the local people, they would casually ask.
Just like this, Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan led 14,000 people to hide in this place. They used the fastest speed to dig a cellar in the local people's houses. If there was anything, they would hide in it.
Of course, things were not that simple. According to Wang Juan's words, this was not the tradition of the army. The army had to follow the Three Great Disciplines and Eight Points for Attention. With some changes, it could be used in the few villages here.
Other than controlling them and not allowing them to report, they treated the people very well. The doctors that came out with the troops even treated the people. Those that could be treated with acupuncture would be treated immediately. Those that needed medicine would be collected by the local people who betrayed them.
The local people did not have a good life. If they were really capable, they would not live on the border of the two countries. If the Tang Army came, they would hide in the mountains. If their own army came, it would be impossible for them to hide. They had to obediently serve the Tang Army well and give the Tang Army satisfactory things.
Therefore, other than the local people, most people did not have any concept of the country, let alone a sense of honor.
This was what Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan made use of. The two of them were also clear that not to mention now, even in their time, many people living on the border did not care so much. They would listen to whoever was good to them. Even if the smugglers and drug dealers were good to them, they would cooperate. They would even help to transport the drugs and join in.
What Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan wanted to do was to instigate the 1,000 people in the surrounding villages to defect. They would bring food and belongings and find an opportunity to go to Pengzhou. From Pengzhou, they would go to Yizhou to replenish the population of Yizhou.
The Tubo people did not expect that there would be enemies with such ideas. The scouts ran around and thought that the Tang Army was hiding in the mountains and had not come out. Otherwise, the place would not be so peaceful and quiet.
In a harmonious atmosphere, Wang Juan took out the military map and began the next step of the plan.
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