Du Qi led an army of more than a hundred thousand, marching forward in a grandiose manner.
They didn't encounter any obstacles along the way.
The army had already withdrawn from all parts of Shazhou. As for the people of Shazhou, many people lined the streets to welcome the arrival of Du Qi's army. That was because the people living on the border had deeply experienced the richness of Xia Xia and the preferential treatment of Xia Xia. Businessmen of Xia Xia didn't need to pay taxes when doing business in Guazhou.
When they were said to be from Xia Xia, it was as if they were superior and different from ordinary people. In the first few years, the people of Xia Xia were exempted from agricultural taxes. Although agricultural taxes had been restored now, corvee labor had long been abolished.
Although the people of Xia Xia had to enlist in the army, there was no government army system, and there was no need for the people to prepare food and other things to participate in the war. In particular, the people of Xia Xia lived a rich life. Even if they didn't farm, they could still support their families by working in the factories.
Under such a premise, many people of Shazhou had admired Xia Xia for a long time. In addition, Du Qi was originally from the Tang dynasty. Moreover, when Du Qi was in Suzhou in the early years, he was in charge of Suzhou, eliminating evil, promoting good, and punishing corrupt officials.
Because of this, the people of Shazhou never regarded Du Qi as an unpardonable evil person, nor did they resist Du Qi. On the contrary, they were quite close to Du Qi and trusted Du Qi. They thought that after Du Qi arrived in Shazhou, the people of Shazhou would live a good life.
The people lined the streets to welcome him.
This scene made Xue Rengui, Ma Yuan, and the others very proud.
Li Jing, Su Dingfang, and the others were stunned.
They felt that it was incredible.
Su Dingfang had governed Guazhou before. During his time in Guazhou, he had taken care of the military affairs of Shazhou, so he knew the situation of Shazhou. During his time in Shazhou, he kept encircling and suppressing bandits and did a lot for the people.
Wei Shuyu, the Governor of Shazhou, had also been working for the people and benefiting them. He reduced their taxes and corvee labor, and constantly opened up trade routes so that the people could grow cotton and vegetables on a large scale, so that the people could make money. It could be said that both Guazhou and Shazhou had spent a lot of effort.
Even so, the common people still lined the streets to welcome Du Qi, making one feel surprised, but also a bit sad.
Li Jing sighed in his heart.
It was the general trend!
Du Qi had such influence and high prestige in the hearts of the people. If Du Qi wanted to take over Shazhou and Suzhou, it would be an extremely simple matter. It would be impossible to stop him.
The troops continued on their way in a mighty manner, getting closer and closer to Shazhou. But when they were about to reach Shazhou, it was already late. Because the soldiers in the army were quite tired from rushing all the way, Du Qi ordered them to set up camp and rest for the night. Tomorrow, they would go straight to Shazhou.
The soldiers in the army began to cook.
The smell of food lingered in the camp.
Du Qi walked around the camp, checked the situation of the soldiers, and then returned to the main tent. But not long after he sat down, there was a message from a bad person.
It was a letter sent from Chang 'an.
Du Qi opened the letter to read. When he saw the content of the letter, his expression changed slightly. Because the content of the letter was very simple. It was the news of Li Xiaogong's illness.
Li Xiaogong was ill and absent-minded.
Du Qi was worried.
Du Qi also had great respect for Li Xiaogong, not only because Li Xiaogong was his father-in-law, but also because Li Xiaogong had protected and helped him in all aspects. A few years ago, when Li Shimin appointed Li Xiaogong as the Jiedushi of the Anxi Protectorate, Li Shimin had considered letting Li Xiaogong be the Jiedushi of the Anxi Protectorate, but Li Xiaogong refused with the excuse of illness.
Now, Li Xiaogong was really ill.
Du Qi was thinking about the situation of Li Xiaogong's illness. After thinking for a while, Du Qi ordered someone to call Shangguan Yi in to discuss the matter of Li Xiaogong.
After Shangguan Yi entered, Du Qi handed the letter to Shangguan Yi and waited for Shanghai Yi to read it. After Shangguan Yi finished reading, Du Qi said, "What do you think about the matter of Prince Hejian?"
Shangguan Yi thought for a while and said, "Your Majesty, I think there are two possibilities for Prince Hejian's illness."
Du Qi said, "Let's hear it."
Shangguan Yi said, "The first possibility is that Prince Hejian is really ill. But I think that Prince Hejian's body is healthy and he is in the prime of his life, so it is unlikely that he is ill. But he suddenly became absent-minded, so there must be something fishy about it. "
"So, there is the second possibility."
"Prince Hejian is faking his illness."
Shangguan Yi continued, "The reason why Prince Hejian is faking his illness is very simple, it is to avoid disputes. Now that Xia Xia and the Tang dynasty are at war, especially when the Tang dynasty suddenly lost and lost many soldiers and generals. The Tang dynasty needs an influential person to take charge of the overall situation, and Prince Hejian is the most suitable candidate. Prince Hejian is also Your Majesty's family. Once Prince Hejian leads the army, he can restrict Your Majesty. Prince Hejian should have deduced this possibility, so he took the initiative to avoid it. "
Du Qi said, "It is possible."
Shangguan Yi said, "Moreover, the most important point is mentioned in this letter. Before this, Prince Hejian has been refusing visitors and has never been ill. But now, he suddenly fell ill. "
After a pause, Shangguan Yi said, "I think that Prince Hejian is probably faking his illness."
Du Qi nodded.
In fact, he also thought so, but he called Shangguan Yi to discuss this matter together.
Shangguan Yi said, "But Your Majesty, it is not appropriate for Prince Hejian to stay in Chang 'an all the time. Once the decisive battle with the Tang dynasty comes, Prince Hejian's presence may affect the situation. The best arrangement is to let Prince Hejian come to Xia Xia. Only in this way can we completely cut off the possible risks. "
Du Qi nodded and said, "Arrange for the bad guys in Chang 'an to contact my father-in-law and ask for his opinion. But this contact must be done carefully, because there are probably countless people watching Prince Hejian's mansion now. If you are not careful, there may be problems. "
Shangguan Yi said, "I understand."
Whoosh!!
The curtain of the tent was lifted, and Lai Ji came in.
Lai Ji bowed to Du Qi and said, "Your Majesty, I have already ascertained the situation in Shazhou City."
Du Qi said, "Speak!"
Lai Ji said seriously, "The current Shazhou City has about 200 thousand soldiers. Li Shimin has left Shazhou and returned to Chang 'an, but Zhangsun Wuji and Wei Zheng stayed. The person in charge now is Li Ji, the commander-in-chief of the Tang army. "
Li Shimin's departure was a secret.
No news was leaked.
Li Shimin's whereabouts were leaked when he returned to Chang 'an. Therefore, Du Qi did not inquire about Li Shimin's whereabouts during this period. He only thought that Li Shimin did not go out temporarily. He did not expect that Li Shimin had quietly slipped away.
After hearing this, Du Qi said, "Li Shimin returned to Chang 'an, obviously to guard the rear and stabilize the situation. But it is not so easy for Li Shimin to stabilize the rear. Moreover, the army led by Li Ji can't stop our troops. "
Du Qi was full of confidence now.
Because his troops were invincible.
The Tang army could not stop them.
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