Du Qi's army was stationed in Rouyuan County.
Now that it was December, the weather was even colder.
The entire land was covered in white.
At this time, Rouyuan County was covered in snow, but the lives of the people were not bad. After all, the economy of the Xia Continent was developing very well, especially since Rouyuan County was located at the border. It had the geographical advantage, so the lives of the people were even better.
Inside the city, in the central tent.
Du Qi was writing a book.
This was his only way to pass the time after dealing with the government affairs.
He could not do any research, so he wrote about some of the machinery that could be researched, as well as the technological products that could be created, and gave them to the people of the University of Science and Technology to research.
While Du Qi was writing, a servant came in and reported, "Your Majesty, a soldier sent by Li Shimin is outside the camp. He said that he has a letter from Li Shimin."
Du Qi put down his brush and said, "Bring him in."
"Yes!"
The servant went to pass the order.
Not long after, a Tang soldier came in.
In order to avoid being targeted, Zhangsun Wuji only sent the most ordinary soldier to deliver the letter. The soldier handed over the letter and stood aside to wait.
When Du Qi saw the contents of the letter, he frowned. He looked at the ordinary soldier. It was obvious that Li Shimin sent him to die, so he was an insignificant person.
Du Qi did not have the intention to kill.
He looked at the soldier and said, "Go back and tell Li Shimin that he used the most wrong and extreme method. Tell him to wait in Guazhou City. My army will arrive in a few days. "
The soldier responded and turned around to leave.
Du Qi ordered, "Men, summon Shangguan Yi, Lai Ji, and Guan Zhilan for a meeting. Also, summon Li Jing, Xue Rengui, Ma Yuan, and Xiao Yuanqi. "
"Yes!"
The soldier received the order and immediately went to inform them.
It didn't take long for the group to enter the tent.
Du Qi's tent was warm because there was a charcoal fire burning to drive away the cold. After entering one by one, they took off their thick cotton-padded clothes, gloves, and hats before taking their seats.
Du Qi looked around at the crowd and said, "The reason why I called all of you here is because Ma Zhou went to Guazhou City as a diplomatic envoy and was detained by Li Shimin. Not only that, Li Shimin also sent a letter saying that he wants us to hand over the mortar in exchange for Ma Zhou. "
"Don't even think about it!"
Shangguan Yi immediately spoke.
With a sharp look in his eyes, he said, "The mortars are the foundation of Xia Xia. Once he hands over the mortars, the strength of the Tang dynasty will definitely increase. Moreover, once we hand over the mortars, Li Shimin will know that His Majesty is softhearted, and he is bound to reach for a yard after taking an inch. Therefore, this is absolutely not allowed to happen right now. "
At this moment, Shangguan Yi was blaming Ma Zhou. If not for Ma Zhou's naivety, things wouldn't have turned out this way.
This put Mr. Xia in a difficult position.
This put Du Qi in a difficult position.
Xue Rengui also expressed his stance, "Your Majesty, our mortars are the weapons that determine victory. Because we have the mortars, we can suppress the Tang army and the Tang dynasty's forces. Once we hand over the mortars to Li Shimin on a large scale, he will be a threat to us. Therefore, we absolutely cannot give him the weapons. "
The rest of the people also expressed their opinions.
Although it involved Ma Zhou's safety and everyone was concerned about Ma Zhou and Ma Zhou's safety, Mr. Xia was the root. Once Mr. Xia was affected, not only Ma Zhou, but everyone would be attacked by the Tang dynasty.
Du Qi nodded and said, "I know it's definitely impossible to hand over the mortars. What I need to consider now is how to get Ma Zhou back. The people of Great Xia will never be coerced by Li Shimin. And this time, Li Shimin will definitely regret it. "
"That's the key."
After Du Qi stated his request, he continued, "What we need to do now is not to complain. Although there have been cases in history of detaining envoys and using envoys to threaten others, it's not reasonable. No one thought that Li Shimin would use such a ruthless method. "
Shangguan Yi had always been a hardliner. His eyes were sharp as he said in a deep voice, "Your Majesty, we must save Ma Zhou. In fact, there is a very simple way. As long as Your Majesty is determined, there will be no problem. "
Du Qi asked, "What way?"
Shangguan Yi said in a deep voice, "Your Majesty, we will lead the army directly to Guazhou City. At the same time, we will escort all the Tang captives and directly station the troops outside Guazhou City to order Li Shimin to release Ma Zhou. If Li Shimin does not release Ma Zhou, then we will kill the captives. If he is not released for a day, then we will kill 100 people. I don't believe that Li Shimin can take it. "
After a pause, Shangguan Yi continued, "As long as Li Shimin releases the captives, then we will not kill the captives. Then we will put all the captives' lives in Li Shimin's hands to decide. If Li Shimin refuses, then the people who work for Li Shimin will definitely be distressed. Because Li Shimin does not care about these captives now, and will not care about them in the future. "
Guan Zhilan said, "Mr. Shangguan's plan is good, but what if Li Shimin wants to kill Ma Zhou?"
"Impossible!"
Shangguan Yi said, "Li Shimin will get nothing if he kills Ma Zhou. On the contrary, it will increase his hatred. So I think we can use this to threaten Li Shimin. And when the time comes, we will also publicize this matter. I don't believe that Li Shimin dares to take it all the time. "
Lai Ji also said in a deep voice, "Li Shimin's method this time has broken the bottom line and the convention. Since Li Shimin did this, then we can't be blamed. Your Majesty, I agree with Pavilion Head Shangguan's suggestion. "
"Your Majesty, I agree with Pavilion Head Shangguan's suggestion."
Xiao Yuanqi also spoke.
One by one, they all expressed their agreement.
Only Li Jing did not speak.
Du Qi looked at Li Jing and said, "Master Pharmacist, what do you think?"
Li Jing said, "Your Majesty, I agree with this arrangement, because it is the best arrangement now. If we blindly use conciliatory means, we will be thought to be bullied. So, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, is the best arrangement. But I will not participate in this battle. "
Du Qi nodded and said, "In that case, you will stay behind."
Li Jing said, "Thank you for your understanding, Your Majesty."
Du Qi ordered, "Xue Rengui, Ma Yuan, Xiao Yuanqi, immediately mobilize the troops and prepare to send out the troops."
In fact, according to the previous plan, the troops would not be sent out immediately. They needed to wait for the situation in the south of Tianzhu to stabilize and cut off a part of Li Shimin's flesh first before making arrangements. But now, Du Qi could not care so much. There was no other choice but to send out the troops.
Xiao Yuanqi, Xue Rengui, and Ma Yuan responded and went to mobilize the troops.
Even though it was bitterly cold, the army had completely left Rou Yuan County in merely an hour. Furthermore, all of the captives had been escorted away.
Even so, Du Qi left the army to guard the county.
It was given to Pei Changqing.
The army marched forward in a mighty manner, heading straight for Guazhou City. When they entered the border, they did not encounter any obstacles along the way, but they were discovered by the Tang Army's sentries, who rushed back to report first.
The news from the sentries was sent back to Guazhou City.
When Li Shimin received the news that Du Qi directly sent out the troops, he was not surprised. Du Qi was not a kind person, nor was he a useless person. It was impossible that Du Qi would obediently send over weapons after a letter was sent over. There would definitely be a contest.
This was something that had to be done.
Li Shimin immediately arranged for someone to call Zhangsun Wuji over and told him about Du Qi's troops. He then continued, "Assistant General, Du Qi's army is already heading for Guazhou City. Order all the generals in the army to prepare for battle. Du Qi might attack first and then negotiate with us. "
Zhangsun Wuji said, "Yes, Your Majesty!"
He immediately went to make arrangements.
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