It was July. Although the weather was still quite hot, it was much better than it was in June. Especially at night, there was a cool breeze, so people would not feel like they were in a steamer at night.
Especially in late July, the heat subsided even more.
Guazhou City was now completely under Du Qi's control. However, although Du Qi occupied Guazhou City, he did not send troops to attack other places in Guazhou. Du Qi took Guazhou for two reasons. On the one hand, he wanted to beat Li Shimin. On the other hand, he wanted to fight for more benefits for Xia Xia. As for other things, Du Qi did not have any ideas.
Now that he had taken over the states in the Western Region, he seemed to be quite powerful. However, if Du Qi really wanted to go to war with the Tang dynasty, he did not have the strength for the time being. In terms of foundation, he was much worse than the Tang dynasty.
While Du Qi was waiting quietly, a letter came from Gaochang.
It was a letter from Du Ruhui.
The content of Du Ruhui's letter was very simple. He urged Du Qi not to have a conflict with the Tang dynasty. Du Ruhui's starting point was not about his own feelings, nor did he say that Du Ruhui had feelings for the Tang dynasty. He just said that Xia Xia had just been established and its foundation was not stable. Although it had some strength in the Western Region, it was still a little weak compared to the Tang dynasty.
Du Ruhui advised Du Qi to stop while he was ahead. As for the rest, Du Ruhui did not say much.
After reading the letter, Du Qi did not care much about it. He knew what Du Ruhui was thinking. Du Ruhui used to be Li Shimin's minister. Not only was the relationship between the monarch and his minister, but they had also been friends for more than ten years. After all, the Tang dynasty was Du Ruhui's root. Therefore, Du Ruhui still had some mixed feelings about the conflict with the Tang dynasty.
Du Qi immediately replied with a letter.
The content of the letter was also simple. It said that Du Qi would not occupy Guazhou and would eventually return to Xia Xia.
This was enough!
After Du Qi arranged for someone to deliver the message, he also had someone call for Shangguan Yi and told him about Du Ruhui delivering the letter. He then said, "Mr. Shangguan, my father specially sent someone to deliver the letter. Based on my understanding of him, he wouldn't take the initiative to advise me to stop and not start a war. There must be spies from the Tang dynasty in Gaochang of Mr. Xia. Taking advantage of the fact that I'm now at war with the Tang dynasty, they must have the intention of contacting my father. These are the spies of the Tang dynasty. Arrange for Liu Zhengxi to keep an eye on these people and put them under surveillance. "
Shangguan Yi said, "Your Majesty, why don't we directly kill these spies of the Tang dynasty?"
"There's no need!"
Du Qi shook his head and said, "Even if we kill this batch of spies, there will still be others. Rather than that, why don't we keep an eye on these people and bring them under our control? "
Shangguan Yi thought for a moment and said, "Your Majesty is wise."
Du Qi said, "My father has already sent a letter. It's estimated that the army of the Tang dynasty will soon arrive in Guazhou. A few days ago, we received the news that the Tang dynasty has sent troops. Now I think it should be soon. As for the city defense, have you arranged everything properly? "
Shangguan Yi said, "Everything has been arranged properly."
Du Qi said, "That's good."
"Reporting!"
At this moment, Guan Zhilan entered. He came to Du Qi's side and reported, "Your Majesty, the latest news has been sent back. It's about the army of the Tang dynasty."
Du Qi took the letter and opened it to read. After reading it, he smiled and said, "Speaking of Cao Cao, Cao Cao has arrived. The latest news is that the Tang army is less than 20 miles away from Guazhou City. Li Shimin will arrive at the county by 5 pm at the latest. It's just that I'm surprised by the content of this news. Li Shimin personally led the army. Even Retired Emperor Li Yuan also came. "
Shangguan Yi said, "Your Majesty, Li Yuan is here. Could it be that he wants to see you? After all, Your Majesty and Li Yuan's relationship was quite harmonious in the early years. He treated you like a junior. "
Shangguan Yi and the others were also aware of the relationship between Du Qi and Li Yuan.
Du Qi thought for a while and said, "Li Yuan may come to see me, but it's still unclear what's going on. Let's take one step at a time. We'll eventually know the other party's intentions. Now that the Tang army is approaching, I'm looking forward to this battle. The last time I saw Li Shimin, our strength was not so tyrannical. This time I see Li Shimin, we're a bit stronger. "
Shangguan Yi said, "Your Majesty is wise and understanding, wise and powerful, and also works hard to govern. My Xia Xia naturally develops rapidly."
Du Qi simply stood up and said, "Let's go to the gate tower and take a look at the situation of the city defense."
"Yes!"
Shangguan Yi immediately responded.
The two went out of the room and went up to the gate tower. They patrolled the gate tower and came down. In the blink of an eye, they were close to the hour of the afternoon. At this time, another scout came back to convey the news that the Tang army was about to arrive outside the eastern city.
Du Qi arrived at the eastern city and waited quietly.
Not long after, the army of the Tang dynasty appeared outside the city. The vast and mighty Tang Army was like a black mass, giving people great pressure. The appearance of such an army immediately created a great pressure.
After Du Qi saw it, he seemed very relaxed.
There was nothing to be afraid of.
All of this had long been within his expectations.
Du Qi waited quietly. It didn't take long for the Tang army to get into formation. The warhorses neighed and the banners flew in the air. The soldiers held their heads high and puffed out their chests, looking like they were at the peak of their military career. Li Shimin, dressed in armor, had already urged his horse forward. He looked up at the top of the Guazhou city wall and shouted, "Where is Du Qi?"
Du Qi said, "This King is here."
After a pause, Du Qi said, "Your Majesty has traveled a long way from Chang 'an. Don't tell me that you can't wait to attack Guazhou city without resting and reorganizing your army? It's just that the army under your command is quite tired. I'm afraid it will be difficult for them to fight! "
Li Shimin said, "My Tang Empire's officers and soldiers, all of them are experienced soldiers, this little bit of traveling is not worth mentioning. Du Qi, I want to see Su Dingfang. Let him come out and answer. "
After hearing this, Du Qi looked at Su Dingfang and asked Su Dingfang for his opinion. The Tang army had arrived. Su Dingfang also went to the gate tower to participate in the battle. He was now serving Du Qi, and his family had been sent to Guazhou city. After Su Dingfang met his family, his family went to Gaochang city again to settle down.
Before this, Du Qi had asked Su Dingfang if Su Dingfang would participate in this battle. In Du Qi's plan, he didn't want Su Dingfang to come out, because Su Dingfang would be in a difficult position.
However, Su Dingfang said that since he had pledged allegiance, he had nothing to fear.
Su Dingfang took a deep breath and stepped forward. He put his hands on the city wall and looked at Li Shimin outside the city. He took a deep breath and said, "Su Dingfang greets His Majesty the Emperor of the Tang dynasty."
Li Shimin's cheeks twitched, and there was anger in his eyes. He almost gnashed his teeth and said, "Su Dingfang, I promoted you to be the Guazhou provincial governor. Did I treat you unfairly?"
"Never!"
Su Dingfang answered directly.
Li Shimin continued, "Su Dingfang is a general in the army. It is reasonable to say that you can only stay in the army. It is almost impossible for you to be in charge of a region. However, I have entrusted you with an important task. Even if you are young, I have put you in a high position. Before the battle of Guazhou, Su Dingfang didn't handle things well, and I didn't punish you. Now, you have betrayed the Tang dynasty and betrayed me. Su Dingfang, you have disappointed me. "
These were words of mockery.
At this point, Li Shimin knew that it was impossible to let Su Dingfang return to the Tang dynasty. As long as one was smart, one would know that after pledging allegiance, one should not waver. At this time, one would be a fool to have other thoughts. It was even more impossible for a wise general like Su Dingfang to make such a low-level mistake.
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