Zhangsun Wuji explained, "Your Majesty, you might not believe it. According to our post-battle estimates, there were only 3,000 Xia Xia's soldiers outside the east city, while our side had 25,000 men, more than eight times their number. Such a gap could be said to be incomparably huge. Especially our Tang dynasty's soldiers, they were all elites. Under normal circumstances, our side could only succeed and not fail. After all, the difference in numbers was huge. "
"However, Xia Xia's army used 3,000 men, a wall, and Xia Xia's special weapons to block us at the city gate, making us unable to break out."
"For the entire night, we did not manage to break out."
"When we were able to break out in the morning, most of our forces had been used up, leaving only 5,000 men."
"Xia Xia's side only had 1,000 men left."
"These 1,000 men stopped resisting and fought with all their might. Because of this, they managed to delay for a bit more time. In the end, only a little over a hundred soldiers were left. But even then, these hundred plus soldiers didn't fear death and continued to charge forward. From the beginning until the end, they didn't retreat even half a step. Even when we tried to save time and retreat, they were still coming. "
Zhangsun Wuji sighed, "Originally, our forces should have been able to retreat. However, at that moment, we were ambushed by the cavalry and were entangled. In order to cover our retreat, Qinqiong volunteered to stay and block the cavalry, giving us time to retreat. If not for that, we might have been trapped in Jiuquan County. "
"Sigh …"
Li Shimin sighed upon hearing this.
Li Shimin was well aware of the combat prowess of the troops under his command. They were definitely elites.
They dared to fight.
They were not afraid of death.
Unfortunately, Xia Xia's army was not weak either.
Li Shimin did not participate in the battle, but after hearing Zhangsun Wuji's description, he could already imagine the situation at night. Even if they tried to break out at night, because they were near the city gate, they would be bombed. However, Xia Xia's soldiers were not afraid of death and held Zhangsun Wuji's men back, causing them to lose miserably.
Zhangsun Wuji said, "Your Majesty, in the end, it was my fault for not planning properly. If I had planned properly, we would not have been trapped in Jiuquan County, and we would not have ended up in this situation. "
Li Shimin said, "Man proposes, God disposes. You don't have to take responsibility for this. At this point, there was no point in thinking about what had already happened. The most important thing now is to think about our next step. My original plan was to wait for all of you to rest well before gathering everyone to discuss the next step. "
Zhangsun Wuji said, "Your Majesty, I have rested well."
After pausing for a moment, Zhangsun Wuji continued, "After careful consideration, I believe that there is only one way for us to turn the situation around in our battle with Du Qi. We will not be in such a passive position."
Li Shimin said said, "What way?"
"Attack!"
Zhangsun Wuji said forcefully, "If we use this method that is not a method, we will have a chance to obtain victory. Because if we use use use's Xia Wuji '''s Xia Xia Xia County, Xia Xia Wuji and Xia Wuji Xia Xia ''s Even if we use all kinds of strategies, it will still be difficult to achieve our goal. Therefore, I believe that we should attack Changbai Slope in an open and aboveboard manner, and attack with everything we have. Even if we have to use up all our soldiers, we must attack Du Qi's position. "
Li Shimin smiled helplessly.
The strategy that Zhangsun Wuji proposed was a bit of a hopeless situation. Because the strategy of forcefully attacking was equivalent to not having any arrangements. It was just a direct attack.
Li Shimin remained silent and did not express his opinion.
"Report!"
At this moment, a soldier said, "Your Majesty, a scout from the frontline has returned to report."
Li Shimin said, "Pass!"
The soldier immediately gave the order, and the scout followed closely behind. He cupped his fists and bowed. "Your Majesty, there's news from Du Qi's camp at Changbai Slope. They said that Du Qi arranged for people to spread the news that Li Ji and Qin Qiong were killed in battle. Now, Jiuquan County's army is about to meet up with Du Qi's army, and they will attack us. "
This was Du Qi's plan.
It was just to spread the news.
Li Shimin's scouts were everywhere near Changbai Slope. As long as they made some arrangements, Li Shimin's men would know the news.
Li Shimin was not surprised when he heard it, but he felt sad. Before this, Li Shimin had already received the news from Zhangsun Wuji and the others. He knew that Li Ji and Qin Qiong had fallen, and that they were definitely dead. Now that Li Shimin had confirmed the news, he waved his hand and asked the scout to leave. However, he said seriously, "Li Ji and Qin Qiong are really dead. Our Tang dynasty has lost two more generals. "
Zhangsun Wuji said, "Your Majesty, my condolences."
Li Shimin raised his hand and wiped his face. He took a deep breath and said, "Our Tang dynasty and Xia Xia are irreconcilable. We will not rest until we destroy Xia Xia. "
Zhangsun Wuji said, "Your Majesty is right."
Zhangsun Wuji also hated Du Qi because Du Qi had brought him too much humiliation. Only by killing Du Qi could he wash away the humiliation on Zhangsun Wuji and the Zhangsun family's humiliation.
Li Shimin clenched his fist and said, "We will choose to meet force with force. Even if our army will have losses or even greater losses when we attack, we will not make the choice. But right now, we can't make a choice. We can only attack.
Zhangsun Wuji said, "Your Majesty is wise!"
"Report!"
At this moment, a soldier directly entered and reported, "Your Majesty, the soldiers at the back have sent back news. The old emperor is about to arrive at the camp."
Li Shimin raised his eyebrows.
He showed a shocked expression.
Li Yuan was here?
This year, Li Yuan's body was getting thinner by the day. His energy was getting worse day by day. It was as if he had reached the end of his life and could not hold on any longer. Why did Li Yuan in such a state suddenly set off from Chang 'an to the front line?
Li Shimin stood up and said, "Weiji, follow me to the camp entrance to welcome father."
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
Zhangsun Wuji immediately responded.
Li Shimin brought Zhangsun Wuji out of the main tent and waited at the camp entrance. Not long later, they saw Li Yuan's carriage arrive. He slowly walked down from the carriage. However, at this moment, Li Yuan's back was already extremely hunched. His head was almost hanging down. His white hair was messy and he did not care about his appearance.
After he got down from the carriage, he was supported by someone. After all, riding a carriage all the way was also very difficult for an old man like Li Yuan who had one foot in the grave.
Li Shimin went forward and said, "Your son greets father."
Zhangsun Wuji said, "Your Majesty."
Li Yuan nodded but did not say anything. When Li Shimin walked over to support him, he entered the camp with Li Shimin and sat down to rest in Li Shimin's tent.
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