Du Qi looked at the aggrieved Zhangsun Wuji and said, "Zhangsun Wuji, you must be feeling aggrieved."
Zhangsun Wuji snorted.
Obviously, he was feeling aggrieved! Damn it, he was not the mastermind. Why did he have to target him? If he was not aggrieved, then there was nothing to be aggrieved about.
Du Qi continued, "Even if you are aggrieved, you have to bear with it. As long as I, Du Qi, am not happy, you can forget about being happy. As long as I am affected, you will be affected too. In short, I want you, Zhangsun Wuji, to be tied to me. "
Zhangsun Wuji did not say anything. He lifted his robe and knelt down. He kowtowed and said, "Emperor Xia, Zhangsun Wuji knows my mistake. Please forgive me."
He did not kneel down casually.
After all, he already had experience. If he was not sincere, he would be humiliated by Du Qi again.
Du Qi looked at the kneeling Zhangsun Wuji and instantly lost interest. However, at this moment, many of the soldiers under Du Qi's command began to laugh and point at Zhangsun Wuji.
"Hahaha, Zhangsun Wuji is the Emperor's brother-in-law and the Duke of Qi of the Tang dynasty. Even so, he still has to kneel before our King. How satisfying! "
"Well done. We should let him kneel. Let him know that our Xia is not to be humiliated. "
"A Duke kneeling. This is a rare scene. It is worth it to see this."
"I can boast about this for the rest of my life."
The soldiers were all talking at once, especially when they were all standing behind Du Qi. Their words clearly entered Zhangsun Wuji's ears, causing him to feel a burning sensation on his face.
Previously, outside Du Qi's camp, there were no soldiers watching. Hence, after Zhangsun Wuji knelt down, he turned and left. However, it was different now. He did it in front of everyone.
It was too embarrassing.
Not only was Zhangsun Wuji the Duke of the Tang dynasty, he was also from a prestigious family. During the Sui Dynasty, the Zhangsun family was a prestigious family. Therefore, in Zhangsun Wuji's heart, he was extremely proud. Now that he was being criticized and pointed at by all the ordinary soldiers, Zhangsun Wuji's heart was filled with incomparable anger and discomfort.
Du Qi didn't let Zhangsun Wuji get up for now. He let Zhangsun Wuji bear all of this.
But Li Yuan could not watch on anymore.
Li Yuan did not like Zhangsun Wuji, but Zhangsun Wuji was Li Shimin's subject, an official of the Tang dynasty. Therefore, Li Yuan opened his mouth and said, "Erlang, enough is enough. Give me some face."
Du Qi laughed and said, "Retired Emperor opened his mouth to plead for leniency, kowtow and apologize, so be it."
"Thank you, Emperor Xia."
Zhangsun Wuji stood up with a cold expression.
His chest was heaving up and down continuously. Especially when he looked around and saw the Xia Country's soldiers who were pointing at him and mocking him, his emotions fluctuated even more. However, Zhangsun Wuji was holding it in.
Li Yuan said, "Emperor Xia, it's time for you to fulfill your promise."
"No problem!"
Du Qi waved his hand and ordered, "Men, release Duan Zhixuan and the rest of the captive Tang soldiers."
Following Du Qi's order, Xue Rengui immediately made arrangements. Duan Zhixuan and all the soldiers were brought out and released. After the soldiers came out, they ran down like they were flying. Duan Zhixuan came to Li Yuan's side and stood with a bow. At this moment, Duan Zhixuan's expression was rather dispirited. Because he was defeated in this battle, which led to the defeat of tens of thousands of soldiers and caused the Tang army to be restrained.
Li Yuan bid farewell and said, "Erlang Du, take care."
Du Qi nodded and said, "Retired Emperor, the mountains will not change and the rivers will continue to flow. I hope as I said, ten or twenty years later, I can still see you again."
Li Yuan turned and left.
Zhangsun Wuji and Duan Zhixuan followed him down.
The group went down the mountain. However, after Zhangsun Wuji took two steps, he suddenly raised his hand and covered his chest. His face was flushed red. It was as if something was going to drill out from his chest. Immediately, he felt a sweetness in his throat. He only felt that all the blood in his chest directly surged up and was spat out.
Blood spurted out.
After Zhangsun Wuji spat out blood, his body went limp and fell down the mountain. Duan Zhixuan could not help in time and quickly ran down. After running for a distance, he then carried Zhangsun Wuji up. At this moment, Zhangsun Wuji's face was as white as paper. His entire person's complexion was very bad. Even his hands were slightly trembling.
Du Qi saw this scene from the mountain and smiled coldly.
This was the price.
Through every incident, it made Zhangsun Wuji completely terrified and did not dare to be enemies with Du Qi. Because whether it was Zhangsun Wuji's wish or the Tang dynasty's wish, as long as the Tang dynasty attacked Du Qi. Once the Tang dynasty was defeated, Zhangsun Wuji would have to kowtow and apologize. This would make Zhangsun Wuji feel terrified and terrified.
In the end, once it involved attacking Xia Xia, Zhangsun Wuji would feel his scalp go numb and he would speak out to stop it.
This was Du Qi's goal.
Not long later, Zhangsun Wuji was carried down the mountain. After receiving him, the soldiers brought Zhangsun Wuji down for treatment.
After seeing this, Li Shimin sighed.
He was very helpless.
Duan Zhixuan kneeled down and said in a deep voice, "Your Majesty, not only did I not defeat Du Qi, but I also failed to hold back Du Qi. Instead, I was defeated and became Du Qi's captive, causing Your Majesty to be restrained. Your Majesty, please punish me for my crimes. "
Li Shimin looked at Duan Zhixuan who was kneeling on the ground and was furious. The key to this pincer attack on Du Qi was Duan Zhixuan. As long as Duan Zhixuan did not make any mistakes, Du Qi would definitely lose this time.
Once Duan Zhixuan was defeated, the entire situation would collapse.
At this point, there was no point in Li Shimin punishing Duan Zhixuan anymore. He said in a deep voice, "Duan Zhixuan, you have lost this battle. You have indeed let down my expectations. Go back and receive thirty strokes of the military rod. This is my punishment for you. "
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Duan Zhixuan bowed and thanked him.
It was already good enough that Li Shimin did not kill him or demote his position.
Li Shimin continued, "I did not kill you or demote your position because I want you to remember everything that happened today. Remember the humiliation that Du Qi inflicted on you."
Duan Zhixuan said, "Your Majesty, I dare not forget."
Li Shimin said, "Su Dingfang betrayed the country, and Guazhou lacks a provincial governor. You will stay behind and take up the position of Guazhou's provincial governor. You will be in charge of Guazhou's military and political affairs. Apart from that, I will give you fifty thousand elites. This batch of soldiers that were captured together with you will be under your command. I believe that you will not make the same mistake as Hou Junji. I also believe that you will be courageous after being humiliated. "
Duan Zhixuan said, "I will not let Your Majesty down."
Li Shimin no longer had any intention of staying. He ordered, "Withdraw!"
He left first. Li Yuan, Li Jing, and the others followed closely behind. The army also immediately left Niulan Mountain and headed toward Guazhou City. After Li Shimin's group arrived at Guazhou City, they temporarily rested there and then began to withdraw. As Li Shimin withdrew, he did not forget to inquire about Du Qi's situation.
On Du Qi's side, his army made some minor adjustments at Niulan Mountain before quickly withdrawing. They left Guazhou overnight and only stopped to rest after returning to Rouyuan County.
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