The weather at the end of June could change at any moment. A moment ago, the sky above Chang 'an had been shining with golden sunlight. In the next moment, dark clouds gathered and blocked out the sun. It looked like dark clouds were pressing down on the city. Soon after, it started to rain heavily. This downpour temporarily took away the scorching heat of the summer and cooled the air.
Li Shimin had also arrived at the entrance of the hall to enjoy the coolness brought about by the rain. But as Li Shimin gazed at the rain and the splashing rain, his mind was elsewhere, thinking about the situation in the Western Regions.
Hou Junji's assassination attempt had failed, and given Du Qi's personality, he was not the type to take a loss. Li Shimin wondered how Du Qi would respond. Moreover, Li Shimin's intelligence network was operating at high speed, keeping a close watch on the Western Regions and waiting for Du Qi's response.
Tap! Tap!!
Suddenly, he heard footsteps in the distance.
A figure ran out of the rain and quickly arrived at the entrance of the hall. This was an eunuch, and he bowed and said, "Your Majesty, there is an urgent report from the Longyou Dao!"
The eunuch handed over a letter.
Tang Zhen stepped forward, took the letter, and handed it to Li Shimin. Li Shimin quickly opened the letter. However, at this moment, the hand he used to open the letter was trembling slightly. This was not out of fear, but nervousness. When Li Shimin opened the letter and saw the contents, his expression changed greatly and his face became gloomy.
In his fury, Li Shimin crumpled the letter into a ball and threw it out.
"Trash, trash!"
Li Shimin rebuked.
The contents of the letter had been sent back by Su Dingfang, and it described how Du Qi had suddenly led his army into Guazhou. It was an extremely detailed account of the general situation. Since the sudden attack of Du Qi's army, there had been no news from Guazhou. And then, when Du Qi's army arrived, Hou Junji was encamped outside the city and surrounded. Su Dingfang didn't have enough soldiers, and Du Qi had sent soldiers to keep an eye on him, preventing him from assisting Hou Junji. In the end, Hou Junji was defeated and captured by Du Qi.
This was the information in the letter.
Li Shimin turned and walked into the main hall. "Summon Zhangsun Wuji, Fang Xuanling, and Wei Zheng to the palace. In addition, inform Li Jing to enter the palace for an audience. "
Tang Zhen agreed and immediately made the arrangements. Then he returned to the palace and stood beside Li Shimin. It was just that Tang Zhen was standing by the side. Even though he was separated by a certain distance, he could still feel Li Shimin's anger.
That was true fury.
Last time, when Du Qi had captured Hou Junji, Li Shimin had not even been this furious. Hou Junji's second defeat had infuriated Li Shimin, but Li Shimin had not yet lost his temper. As a result, the mood in the hall was so tense that it seemed like the slightest spark could trigger a tsunami.
Time passed slowly. Not long after, Zhangsun Wuji, Fang Xuanling, Wei Zheng, and Li Jing entered one after another. After everyone had taken their seats, Li Shimin did not beat around the bush. He went straight to the point and spoke about Hou Junji's defeat.
Everyone's expression changed upon hearing this.
Hou Junji had not only been defeated.
He had also been captured.
This situation immediately put the Tang Dynasty in a passive position. The Tang Dynasty was facing a thorny situation. Zhangsun Wuji and the others were already racking their brains to think of a way to break out of this situation. Because if there was no way to break out of this situation, the Tang Dynasty would be in an extremely awkward situation. If it was not handled well, it might even affect the stability of the Tang Dynasty.
Li Shimin looked around at everyone and said, "Speak, how should we deal with this matter?"
Everyone's expression turned solemn.
The current situation was not optimistic.
Zhangsun Wuji was the first to speak. "Your Majesty, Hou Junji has been defeated and has fallen into Du Qi's hands. Su Dingfang's forces will definitely not be able to save Hou Junji. Thus, this subject believes that we can only send troops. "
"We have already gathered an army. As long as Your Majesty gives the order, our Tang Dynasty's hundreds of thousands of soldiers can immediately set off for the Western Regions. However, now that Hou Junji has been defeated, the situation at the Guazhou front line in the Western Regions is tense. Our original plan was to use Du Qi's location as a feint while the real army would ambush at the Tibetan border. "
"From the looks of it now, it is beyond our capabilities."
Zhangsun Wuji said, "Because it is unrealistic to deal with Tibet at the same time. Thus, we can only arrange for a certain number of soldiers to defend against any sudden attacks from Tibet."
He was actually feeling a little uneasy.
The reason was simple. When Zhangsun Chong returned, he had said that if the Tang Dynasty and Xia Xia went to war, they would definitely use his son as a hostage. Although this might have been a threat from Du Qi, even if it was just Du Qi's words, Zhangsun Wuji was still worried.
However, no matter what, they could only fight.
There was no other choice.
They could not ignore Hou Junji.
They could not allow Du Qi to kill his way into Guazhou.
Fang Xuanling stroked his beard and sighed, "Your Majesty, this subject also agrees with the suggestion to send out troops and not deal with Tibet. Guazhou is the territory of the Tang Dynasty and cannot fall into the hands of Du Qi. Otherwise, the consequences will be unimaginable. "
Wei Zheng and Li Jing also spoke up and agreed with the idea of sending out troops.
After listening to everyone's words, Li Shimin sighed deeply. He had just led the army to fight against Du Qi, and now, he had to fight again. This made Li Shimin feel a little helpless.
Li Shimin was still not ready to fight against Du Qi. It was not that his internal preparations were not enough. In fact, the internal structure of the Tang Dynasty had already been adjusted and everyone respected Li Shimin. What Li Shimin was worried about was the external problems of Tibet, Goguryeo, and the others. These problems had not been dealt with properly, and recently, there had been some movements in the grasslands in the north. Some nomadic tribes had begun to show signs of rising. Thus, Li Shimin still had many external problems.
Li Shimin took a deep breath and said, "Since that is the case, then prepare to send out troops."
"Yes!"
Zhangsun Wuji and the others replied in unison.
Li Shimin said, "This time, it will be the same as the last time. Fang Xuanling will stay behind to assist the Crown Prince. Li Jing will lead the army, and Zhangsun Wuji, Wei Zheng, Cheng Yaojin, Yuchi Gong, and the others will follow. The army of the Tang Dynasty will go all out. I will also lead the army. "
"Yes!"
Everyone replied again.
"Report!"
At this moment, another eunuch came in and said nervously, "Your Majesty, there is an urgent report from the northwest Longyou Road. A scout is at the door of the hall and requests an audience."
Li Shimin said, "Let him in."
The eunuch went to pass the order, and the scout quickly entered. This sentry was not Su Dingfang's messenger, but one arranged by Li Shimin's subordinates in Guazhou, Longyou Road. He rushed all the way back, looking very tired. Even because it was raining outside, his whole body was soaked. Everywhere he passed, the ground was wet.
However, no one cared that the scout was wet. They all looked at the scout with a trace of nervousness in their eyes.
What news did the Western Regions send back?
Was it good news?
Or bad news?
The scout knelt on one knee and took out the stopper from the bamboo tube on his back and took out a letter. This letter was not wet at all because the bamboo tube blocked the rain.
The scout handed over the letter and said, "Your Majesty, Guazhou City has fallen."
Boom!!
The words were like a shocking clap of thunder. Everyone in the hall was in disbelief when they heard it. They had just heard that Hou Junji was defeated and captured, and now they heard that Guazhou had fallen.
Tang Zhen knew that something bad had happened. He immediately took the letter and placed it in front of Li Shimin. Li Shimin looked at the letter on the table in front of him and actually paused for a moment. He did not move at all.
Then, Li Shimin picked up the letter and read it.
This letter was written by Li Shimin's scout. It was about Du Qi leading the army into the city and Su Dingfang, Fu Junheng, and the others surrendering. The news was very brief and only had a rough idea. After all, the scout was only responsible for gathering information. He could not find out how Du Qi had infiltrated the city and how he had convinced Su Dingfang.
After Li Shimin finished reading, he couldn't figure it out for a moment. How could Su Dingfang submit to Du Qi? According to the information in the letter, Du Qi was able to enter the city in the middle of the night. It must be Su Dingfang who opened the city gates. But there was also a contradiction. Since Su Dingfang wanted to surrender, there was no need to wait until night to open the city gates.
Li Shimin's emotions were complicated as he handed the letter to his subordinates to read. After everyone finished reading it, Li Shimin said, "Now, let's talk about the fall of Guazhou City."
Everyone's expression was solemn.
All of them lowered their heads and pondered, because they really didn't know where to start.
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