Chapter 2 Li Shimin Flying a Kite to Escape the Enemy
At this time, Gao Shi, who was outside the Hanguang Palace, was a little confused.
As an eighth-rank official, he was not qualified to attend court directly. But he heard Li Shimin execute Jingzhao Prefecture Governor Cui Guangyuan before he could say a few words in the hall.
Is this correct?
This is not right!
Didn’t Your Majesty ask Prince Jianning to come back and borrow troops to cover the rear?
Moreover, Cui Guangyuan, as the highest administrative chief of Chang'an, was killed. Who will be responsible for and handle all the affairs of Chang'an?
What exactly is the Prince of Jianning going to do? Is he really here to cover for His Majesty?
Not sure, want to wait and see?
Gao Shi outside the hall had the same idea as the audience on the sky screen.
Everyone in the live broadcast comments was also guessing what Li Shimin was going to do.
After guessing for a long time, there were only six big words left -
Not sure, let’s see.
At this time, all the officials in the hall were intimidated by Li Shimin. Those who were hesitant or wanted to surrender to the enemy did not dare to have any thoughts at this time.
For example, the son-in-law Zhang Yi, who had originally wanted to surrender to the enemy, was now so frightened that his legs were shaking and he couldn't speak for a long time.
He wanted to file a complaint against Li Shimin, but the emperor was not there, and he didn't even know where to file the complaint!
Even if someone was dissatisfied with Li Shimin, they could do nothing at this time and could only let him stand in front of all the officials and give orders.
However, soon all the officials discovered that Li Shimin's policies were well organized, very reasonable and feasible, and he was so skilled in them as if he had handled court affairs thousands of times.
[??? This boss's aura looks like the boss of one of our Fortune 500 companies! No, like my boss's boss!]
[And he's quite knowledgeable about the various officials in the capital! My wild guess is, could he have served... as emperor?]
Li Shimin still had time to glance at the sky at this time, thinking that he had been emperor for twenty years, it would be strange if he was not experienced.
At this time, Chang'an was in chaos, and Li Shimin issued three orders:
First, stabilize the morale of the troops in the city; second, maintain the security of Chang'an and prevent thieves from taking advantage of the opportunity to rob and cause chaos, and harm the people;
Third, prepare for military matters such as city defense and take stock of available forces.
For example, the Chang'an Guards, the Imperial Guards, the Imperial Household Troops, the Outlaws, etc. All available personnel were trained to be ready for emergencies.
As Li Shimin finished his orders one by one, the panicked civil and military officials seemed to have found a backbone in an instant.
Although it was not an imperial edict, for some reason, they nodded and agreed to Li Shimin's order and immediately carried it out.
If the emperor fled, the ministers in the city would be in chaos; if the ministers were in chaos, the administration would be in chaos, and then the entire city of Chang'an would be in chaos. Of course, it would fall without a fight.
[That's why Li Longji is so hateful. He didn't care at all and just ran away, causing chaos in the city caused by the thieves.
Cui Guangyuan probably didn't know what to do, and his generals probably panicked, thinking the rebels had already broken through, so they simply gave up and opened the city gates.
[In the final analysis, the main responsibility still lies with Li Longji! ]
Seeing this, Li Shimin added another accusation to this damn great-grandson in his heart.
This damn unfilial grandson!
Li Shimin gnashed his teeth for a long time. After dismissing all the officials, he privately pulled Cheng Qianli, who was in charge of the imperial guards, and said:
"General Cheng, are there any soldiers in the Imperial Guard who are good at riding and shooting? Lend me a thousand elite soldiers."
"Your Highness, what do you want to borrow troops for?
If you need to leave the city to meet the enemy, Cheng is willing to be the vanguard and serve Your Highness and Your Majesty at your service!"
At this moment, Gao Shi's eyelids twitched as he listened. He hurried in, bowed, clasped his fists, and said:
"Your Highness, His Majesty has sent you here to borrow troops to support the rear. If you charge directly into the enemy, how will you explain this to His Majesty later?"
Killing Cui Guangyuan would be fine, and you can even find an excuse to take advantage of it, but don't kill yourself.
This is going to go wrong. I will either die at the hands of the rebels or at the hands of His Majesty. I will be incompetent either way!
"What?
Your Highness, you are not coming back to lead the troops to meet the enemy, but are only coming back to lend troops to support His Majesty?"
Cheng Qianli was stunned after hearing the whole thing. When he saw Li Shimin nod, his head was buzzing.
However, Li Shimin remained calm and even had a smile on his face. He patted Cheng Qianli on the shoulder to reassure him:
"As the saying goes, a general on the battlefield may not obey orders from his sovereign. Your Majesty has granted me the authority to act at your own discretion for this very reason.
"General, don't panic. I'd like to lead the troops out of the city to conduct scouts. Would General Cheng be willing to join me?"
It was not against the imperial order to spy on the enemy, so Cheng Qianli was naturally eager to try.
After listening to this, Gao Shi still felt strangely that something was wrong, but he couldn't put his finger on it.
Seeing that His Royal Highness the Prince of Jianning was selecting a thousand-mile horse from the army and was practicing shooting with a bow and arrow, Gao Shi hurried forward and asked suspiciously:
"Your Highness, are you really just planning to go and scout the enemy?"
"Of course, I'm just taking a look, it's nothing serious."
"Are we really just watching? What if a fight breaks out?"
[It should be just to test the situation, right?]
After all, only a thousand soldiers weren't enough. I remember that at this time, An Lushan sent Sun Xiaozhe and 20,000 soldiers to attack Chang'an, but a thousand men couldn't defeat them.
It turns out there were only 20,000 people.
Li Shimin was even relieved when he saw this. He chose his bow and arrow, put on his heavy armor and immediately mounted his horse:
"General Cheng, Gao Shiyi, follow me out of the city!"
Although Gao Shi felt uneasy, who knew that they were on a pirate ship when they got on?
He naturally had to obey the orders of His Royal Highness the Prince of Jianning. So, several of them rode out of the city, leading the thousand imperial guards, who were skilled in cavalry and archery.
[That's not right. If we are acting as scouts to gather information about the enemy, do we need so many people?
I've never heard of a thousand people spying on the enemy! Are they afraid the enemy won't find out?]
[This is hilarious! Has this Machiavellian boss never fought a war? So he really doesn't understand anything at all?]
[When I first appeared, I knelt before the Machiavellian boss;
Now: Oh, could it be Zhao Kuo? 】
Gao Shi felt that it was inappropriate at this time, but the Prince of Jianning was proficient in riding and shooting, so it was impossible for him not to know such common sense.
Therefore, when he respectfully pointed out that it was wrong, Li Shimin looked at him meaningfully:
"What Zuo Shiyi said is absolutely correct. As I see it, the terrain here is narrow and there are trees.
Zuo Shiyi will lead these 1,000 soldiers to wait in the woods on the high slopes of the mountain. General Cheng and I will go and investigate first."
Gao Shi: ???
"Your Highness, there's no need for Your Highness to go as a scout yourself. General Cheng and I will..."
Before Gao Shi could finish his words, Li Shimin had already galloped several hundred meters away.
Cheng Qianli lowered his head and the prince disappeared. He then reacted and immediately ran after Li Shimin:
"Your Highness, please wait for me!"
"It's settled, Zuo Shiyi, just do as you're told!"
Li Shimin's words came from afar in the wind, and his tone could not be refused.
Gao Shi scratched his head in confusion, but had no choice but to do as he was told.
Although I don't know what His Highness is trying to do, isn't it too dangerous for two people to go and explore the way?
At this time, Cheng Qianli, who had finally caught up with Li Shimin, thought the same thing.
At least bring a few more soldiers. If we really run into the enemy and get discovered, how will we escape? We can't let His Highness get into trouble, right?
Cheng Qianli felt heavy-hearted and trembling all the way, wishing he could protect Li Shimin behind him.
However, only then did he regret why he had chosen a thousand-mile horse for Li Shimin. His Highness rode the horse at lightning speed, and it took him a long time to catch up!
[This is too reckless, two people rushed out?! Are they really so brave and fearless?
Is there a chance for NPCs to be resurrected? 】
[I don't think I've heard of this. Only players have health bars, right? If an NPC dies, it's all over, right?]
[That's it, I guess I can't wait to get the mission and it's over. Let's disperse, everyone.]
[Oh shit, we've run into the enemy! Five hundred meters ahead! Ahhhhh, hide quickly!]
At this moment, Cheng Qianli saw the rebels' marching flags at a glance, and he immediately grabbed Li Shimin anxiously:
"Your Highness, quickly follow me and hide in the bushes nearby!"
Li Shimin rode his horse slowly and followed to the small hill next to him.
But soon he saw that the enemy was not marching very fast.
Therefore, although Sun Xiaozhe was ordered to attack Chang'an at this time, he was not sure whether there was an ambush in Chang'an, nor did he know that Li Longji had escaped from the city.
Thinking of this, Li Shimin felt more at ease.
"Your Highness, please don't look up, or you might be discovered!"
Cheng Qianli was really anxious at this time, and he wanted to press His Highness's head directly to the ground. However, Li Shimin broke free from him and said:
"Don't worry, the advantage is mine at this moment."
Cheng Qianli: ???
"Huh? Do you want to check what you're saying? They have 20,000 of you and you're two, and you're saying you have the advantage?"
[Be careful not to overdo it if you act too cool! ]
Cheng Qianli was stunned. Before he could react, he saw Li Shimin jump on his horse and draw his bow.
With a whoosh sound, a white feather arrow broke through the wind, and one of the enemy's vanguard soldiers fell down.
"Enemy attack ahead!"
"Form a line, quickly form a line!"
"Who dares to launch a sneak attack?"
Soon, the other party discovered that there seemed to be only two people on the opposite side, and was a little confused as to who was so bold and reckless. The other person unexpectedly shot a few more arrows, and then did not even run away, and even shouted:
"Prince Jianning, Li Neng, is here! You rebels, surrender immediately!"
When Sun Xiaozhe in the back heard this, everyone laughed.
"Li Neng?
He only had two people out as scouts, and when they encountered us, they dared to ask me to surrender?"
Sun Xiaozhe thought that the other party had a serious brain disease, so he immediately sent 3,000 people to capture Li Shimin alive and hand him over to An Lushan to gain merit.
"General, be careful of a trap."
"What kind of deception could there be? They are just two people.
Even if it's a trick, we have 3,000 vanguards and the advantage is in our hands. Can they still escape?"
Sun Xiaozhe didn't care at this time and said casually.
[Wow, another head! If it weren't for the mosaic, I wouldn't dare to look at it!]
[This guy's archery skills are extremely accurate. He can knock down a person with just one arrow!
I've learned a lot today. This is called hitting the target from a hundred paces away, never missing an arrow!
[See? This is the advantage of long-range archers. I also like to sneak up on the enemy and shoot arrows at them from a distance when I play King of Glory. It's commonly known as kiting!]
[But that's just a game, and this guy is actually practicing! NPC boss, be careful, don't let anyone get close to you and surround you!]
Of course, Li Shimin would not be surrounded directly. He relied on his good horses to keep a certain distance from the enemy.
Relying on his familiarity with the terrain outside Chang'an City, he always maintained an advantageous position and never gave the enemy any chance to get close.
Cheng Qianli, who was left behind, was also a brave general. When the enemy approached, he quickly drew his sword and cut off their heads. He always guarded Li Shimin.
The two men cooperated well, standing on high slopes or using trees along the way, which resulted in the 3,000 vanguards not only failing to capture Li Shimin, but also killing dozens of soldiers along the way.
[That's not right. This kite-flying technique seems familiar to me.]
[Didn't Li Shimin and Yuchi Gong serve as scouts to scout out the enemy's situation? Then, when they encountered Wang Shichong's troops, they started to play tricks on them?]
[Yeah, it seems like Erfeng always runs into a large enemy force when she's out on a scout mission. She's just got really bad luck.]
[But Erfeng has a cheat. Every time she encounters an enemy, she can escape unscathed and even has a counter-killing skill.
If this person is not careful, he will become the first-class package. 】
【Not sure, wait and see? 】
As the barrage was talking, Li Shimin and Cheng Qianli fought and retreated all the way, treating the enemy army like donkeys and taking advantage of every opportunity to shoot arrows at them.
After leading the enemy army to the valley, Li Shimin suddenly shouted:
"Zuo Shiyi, if you don't charge now, when will you?
My fellow soldiers, follow me to slay the rebels, quell the rebellion, and earn merit by killing the enemy!"
Suddenly, there was the sound of horse hooves in the woods on the hillside, dust was raised, and a thousand elite cavalry of the Imperial Guard rushed down.
The three thousand enemy troops were immediately surrounded on both sides and were thrown into chaos in the narrow valley.
Gao Shi didn't even know how he got out.
In short, by the time he reacted, he was already hacking and killing people left and right beside Li Shimin.
It was not until the enemy fled in panic, with only a few hundred men taking off their armor and fleeing in disarray, that Gao Shi finally reacted.
Wait, wasn't he just at the rear? Why did he suddenly defeat the rebels?
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