Li Daozong was younger than Li Xiaogong. He was only in his early thirties, the prime of his youth. When he heard Du Qi's words, he said disdainfully, "Du Qi, you once swept through the Tang dynasty and made great contributions. Even you, Du Qi, are a loyal subject. I have great respect for you. "
"Unfortunately, you, Du Qi, look honest, but you're a traitor in your heart."
"Everyone has the right to kill people like you."
"Let me tell you, the reason why His Majesty left Chang 'an was not because he was afraid of you, but because he wanted to preserve his strength and fight you to the end. The capital of the Tang dynasty can't be left to a traitor like you. I volunteered to stay in Chang 'an and wait for your arrival. "
Li Daozong said forcefully, "Chang 'an is as long as I'm here. If you want to break Chang 'an, you'll have to step over my dead body. "
His attitude was extremely tough.
It was full of decisiveness.
When Li Shimin led the army to retreat from Chang 'an, he strongly urged Li Daozong to leave Chang' an. Even Li Chengqian, Li Ke, and others also asked for Li Daozong to leave. Because among the relatives of the royal family, except for the deceased Li Shentong and Li Xiaogong who betrayed the Tang dynasty, only Li Daozong was the most influential.
It was a pity for Li Daozong to stay in Chang 'an.
But in the face of everyone's persuasion, Li Daozong insisted on staying and was willing to fight to the death. When Li Shimin left Chang 'an, Li Daozong said that a loyal minister needed to protect the country. The capital of the Tang dynasty needed someone to guard, so he chose to stay.
Li Daozong didn't have many troops.
There were only six thousand people.
A portion of the six thousand soldiers were the private soldiers of his own mansion. There was also a portion of his former subordinates, as well as newly recruited soldiers. Li Daozong knew that it was impossible to stop Du Qi's army with just 6,000 people. But he still stayed because he couldn't leave Chang 'an. He couldn't give the huge Chang 'an to Du Qi.
Li Daozong spoke eloquently, and before Du Qi could reply, he continued, "Du Qi, you traitor. This King is telling you, as long as this King is on the city gate tower, you can forget about stepping onto the city wall, and you can forget about entering the city. And I'm telling you seriously, as long as I die and the city is destroyed, my men will detonate the gunpowder and completely destroy Chang 'an. "
"Hahaha …"
Du Qi laughed when he heard that.
His laughter was filled with disdain.
There was even mockery.
Li Daozong knew that Du Qi was good at arguing, but Li Daozong didn't care. He smiled and continued, "Du Qi, are you mocking me for not being able to defend Chang 'an? Or perhaps, you're heartbroken that I'm going to destroy Chang 'an City. You're disappointed that you can't completely occupy Chang' an City. "
Du Qi said, "Li Daozong, oh Li Daozong, you really think highly of yourself. But you're right about one thing. I'm heartbroken that you're going to destroy Chang 'an City. "
Li Daozong raised his head and proudly said, "You're heartbroken, that's right. If you're not heartbroken, I'll stay in Chang 'an and risk my life to resist. Wouldn't it be a waste of effort and gain nothing? It's best if I can make you heartbroken. "
Du Qi looked solemn and said in a deep voice, "The reason why I'm heartbroken is not because of the buildings in the city, but because of the people in the city. One by one, the people in Chang 'an will lose their homes because of you. Even they themselves may be blown to death. "
"When two countries are at war and kill each other on the battlefield, it's very normal for you to kill me and I to kill you. But I'm disgusted by such an extreme method that affects the people. Aren't the people innocent? "
"I'm heartbroken for these people, that's why I'm laughing and mocking you, Li Daozong. You, Li Daozong, are a heroic man. But now, you don't care about anything. Even if you want to blow up the city and destroy Chang 'an, you should first drive out the people in the city and let them leave Chang' an. Then, it doesn't matter how you blow up Chang 'an. "
Du Qi said, "But now, you're blowing up the people together with them. You have no humanity at all. Thinking about it carefully, it's natural for the Tang dynasty to come to this point. It's normal for a dynasty that doesn't care about the people and the life and death of the people to be destroyed. "
Li Daozong's face slightly changed.
To be honest, he didn't care about the life and death of many people in the city. Since the Tang dynasty had come to this point, how could he care about the life and death of ordinary people? What he needed to do now was to fight to the death and delay Du Qi and stop Du Qi's advance.
That's all he could do.
Apart from that, there was nothing else.
Li Daozong was a very insightful person. In the blink of an eye, he came up with a countermeasure. He said, "Du Qi, if you care about the lives of the people so much, why don't you stop? If so, why don't you stop the war? "
"You must know that because of your rebellion, countless people have lost their homes, countless people have lost their homes, and countless people have died on the battlefield. If you withdraw your troops now, the world will be peaceful, and the life and death of the people will be saved. Du Qi, since you're so benevolent and righteous, just do as I say. "
Li Daozong said, "As long as you stop the war and withdraw your troops, I will admire you."
Du Qi said strongly, "Li Daozong, I didn't expect you to be so sophistry. You're actually talking nonsense. Who started the war between the Xia Xia and the Tang dynasty? Every time, it was the Tang dynasty who started the war first. As for now, you're threatening me with the people in Chang 'an, saying that as long as I withdraw my troops, the people will be saved. Even after I withdraw my troops, the people of the Tang dynasty will be saved. "
"You're not thinking about what you said, and you have ulterior motives! And this kind of nonsense and deceit really disgraces Li Daozong. If I withdraw now, will the people be able to live a good life? "
"Tens of thousands of people in the Tang dynasty are now caught in the flames of war. The Tang dynasty can't even take care of itself, and it doesn't even have the ability to take care of the people. Especially in recent years, because of the war, countless people have been affected by the flames of war. In order to fight the Xia Xia, Li Shimin didn't care about the lives of the people. But now, you're talking about the people, which makes people look down on you. "
"So you want me to withdraw my troops, it's really a big joke. If Li Shimin loves the people like his children, then it's fine. The problem is that Li Shimin treats the people of the world like straw dogs. How can I withdraw my troops? If I withdraw my troops, I'll fall into Li Shimin's trap. "
Du Qi said, "So no matter what, I won't withdraw my troops."
Li Daozong's expression changed again and again.
Du Qi's words were said in a dignified manner, and the refutation left him speechless. In recent years, the people under the Tang dynasty's rule really had a hard time. Many people were displaced, and many families were lost because of the war. Du Qi's words, on the contrary, stood firm, causing some of the soldiers on the city gate tower to whisper.
The morale of the army began to fluctuate.
Li Daozong suppressed his slightly impetuous mood and said in a deep voice, "Du Qi, cut the crap. If you want to attack, then attack. If you don't want to attack, then withdraw your troops. This King will be on the city gate tower, waiting for you to attack. No matter what, as long as this King is defeated, Chang 'an will be turned into ruins. "
He threw caution to the wind.
Regardless of benevolence, righteousness, and morality, he only wanted to talk about guarding the city. After all, Du Qi was better at talking than him. He simply didn't want to argue with Du Qi about this.
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