Chapter 17 Chapter 17: Xue Shou Weiyan Offers a Miraculous Plan

When Dou Jiande captured Liyang, when he heard that Li Yi was attacking Hengshui in the south, he led his troops north to confront him.Wang Shichong had long coveted Li Yang, but seeing that Dou Jiande had no intention of caring about the south, he hurriedly sent troops across the river to attack.Unexpectedly, Liyang had been prepared for a long time, it was difficult to conquer, and there was no food in the army, so they had to retreat to Henan.Now Wang Shichong completely offended Dou Jiande. Since then, the two countries have turned against each other, and the messengers have been unable to communicate.As I said before, at this moment, Li Yuan seized the opportunity to write to Dou Jiande willing to make friends, and Tang Xia joined forces and put Wang Shichong aside.Li Yuan sent out all his elites to attack Wang Shichong, and Li Shimin led people to besiege Luoyang so far.

Li Shimin was in a hurry to attack Luoyang here, Wang Shichong in the city was very anxious, he thought about it and had no good plan, Fang regretted that he should not have attacked Liyang and had a bad relationship with Dou Jiande.Now that this was the case, he could only lower his face and ask Dou Jiande for help.At that time, Dou Jiande was busy, dispatching troops and generals to go south to settle accounts with Meng Haigong of Caozhou.After Meng Haigong started the incident in the thirteenth year of Daye, he kept quiet and fought steadily, and his power grew.Seeing that Dou Jiande was busy fighting Li Yi in the north, Wang Shichong only cared about Luoyang, and Shandong had become an empty area, he led his army to attack eastward, taking Yanzhou and Yunzhou one after another, and even marched towards Jeju.Seeing Meng Haigong taking advantage of the fire there to rob, but Dou Jiande was caught in a fight with Li Yi and it was not easy to separate himself.After Li Yuan returned to the original invaded land and the two countries established friendship, Dou Jiande split up and gathered a large number of troops to cross the south of the river.

Seeing the envoy sent by Wang Shichong, Dou Jiande was very disdainful, and asked in the hall: "Why did Wang Shichong think of me today? He invaded Liyang, didn't he think of today? If I knew today, why bother!" Wang Wan, Wang Shichong's nephew, and Sun Anshi, the official minister, came to ask Dou Jiande for help. Wang Wan was too young and could not speak, but the eldest grandson Anshi was able to observe words, dare to speak, and was a first-class diplomatic role in Wang Shichong's court.Seeing Dou Jiande's indifference, he laughed and said: "Emperor Xia's words are wrong! Thinking that Emperor Xia owns land in Hebei and Shandong, and controls millions of people, how can he be worried about a small matter? Now that the Tang family is powerful, both Xia and Zheng The family is relatively small. At the beginning of the friendship between the Tang family and Emperor Xia, in fact, there was evil intentions, and the intention was to divide us first, and then break each other! This is not my alarmist talk, and I will not say anything far away. The former Li Yuan asked Li Shimin to fight Xue Rengao in Longxi. He made friends with Li Gui and used this strategy to divide Xue Rengao's power. Later Li Shimin destroyed Xue Rengao, and Li Gui was soon lost. Emperor Xia, Li Yuan recently went north to defeat Liu Wuzhou, and went south to defeat Xiao Xian. Only our two families are left to fight against him. Today's situation is just like the story of Wei, Shu and Wu in the Three Kingdoms. , The Tang family's next target is you, Emperor Xia."

The words of Changsun Anshi touched the hearts of Dou Jiande and his subordinates, and Ling Jing most felt the same way.When the Tang army captured Luoyang, the territory of the Tang Dynasty would be connected from south to north. At that time, Li Yuan would definitely not be as kind and polite as he is today. It would be difficult to tolerate Dou Jiande continuing to occupy the lands of Shandong and Hebei. How could he allow others to sleep soundly !At that time, Dou Jiande has two choices: one is to continue to fight, but the chances of winning are not much; the other is to surrender, but he is unwilling.After deliberation, Dou Jiande and his officials finally decided to join forces with Wang Shichong.But right now I can't get away.So Dou Jiande wrote two letters, one to Chang'an and the other to Li Shimin in Luoyang. The main content of the letter was to persuade Li Yuan and his son to cease fighting.After all, the relationship with Tang has not yet turned, so it's better to be courteous first and then fight.Unexpectedly, Li Yuan and his son ignored him at all and did not reply to a single word, which made him furious.After Dou Jiande finally wiped out Meng Haigong, he wrote another letter and sent someone to Li Shimin's account, still persuading him to withdraw.

On this day, Li Shimin, Xiao Yu, Feng Deyi, and Qu Tutong were studying and judging the military in Qingyang Palace. Qu Tu said: "Our army has surrounded Luoyang Palace City like an iron barrel, and there is not much food in the city. I think it is difficult for them." Support for another five days." Li Shimin smiled and said: "That day Xiao Gong wrote a letter and shot it into the city, advising Wang Shichong to show compassion for the people in the city and stop fighting trapped beasts. I don't want to hear nothing back, Xiao Gong's good intentions were all gone to the east of Luoshui. Xiao Gong, one day Wang Shichong will raise his hands and go out of the city to surrender, just ask him: why did you ignore him at that time?"

Everyone smiled knowingly, seeing that Luoyang had become a turtle in a urn, everyone felt very relaxed at this moment.Xiao Yu said: "I'm not just thinking about Wang Shichong, Lu Deming and others in the city are suffering very much now, maybe they are starving to death." At this time, an inspector reported: "Marshal, Xia Zhu Dou Jiande sent an envoy to write a letter, and now the envoy is waiting outside the camp." Li Shimin's heart sank, and he said as if talking to himself: "What is he doing here at this time? He must want to be a peacemaker again."

Feng Deyi said: "It's a disaster that can't be avoided, King Qin, what is coming will come eventually." Li Shimin nodded, and said to the inspector: "Someone is brought in." Fu said to the crowd, "What kind of tricks Dou Jiande is going to play this time, we will know in a while." The name of the envoy is Master Li, who is currently the Minister of Rites of the Xia Dynasty.After he entered the door, he saluted Li Shimin and presented a book.Li Shimin paid respect to him, called the left and right to bring chairs, and asked him to sit down. Li Shimin opened the letter from Dou Jiande, browsed it quickly, then raised his head and smiled at Master Li: "Li Shilang, King Xia's letter asked me to retreat from Tongguan and return to Zheng's invasion land. Since you are here as an envoy, you should know the truth about King Xia. Xinyi. I am really puzzled by what King Xia said, can you help me clarify my doubts?"

Master Li stood up from his seat, cupped his hands and said, "Since the King of Qin has asked you, Master Li has the liberty to give you a word or two. It is still a kind heart to guess my emperor's wishes. At the end of the Sui Dynasty, the war broke out and the people were displaced. Now Tang, Zheng and Xia are at peace. It is not appropriate to attack each other again. Emperor Zheng once wrote to my emperor, saying that he has no intention of invading westward. It is better to stop the army and rest, and let the people recuperate, which is a great blessing for the people." Li Shimin's smile did not retreat: "King Xia kept saying that he wanted to rest and recuperate, but he launched a war in Yunzhou and killed Meng Haigong. Isn't it insincere?"

"Meng Haigong is different from Wang Shichong. He has invaded our land several times and should be attacked!" Li Shimin sneered and said, "I didn't expect you to have a sharp mouth, so it seems that Dou Jiande is not blind." He said sharply, "However, our army has been here for a year, costing a lot of food and money, and losing many soldiers. Now Luoyang is ready to go, you guys Instead of persuading me to retreat and return to the land, tell me, is there any reason for such cheapness in the world?" Master Li was not afraid, and continued: "The emperor of Tang has revised the letter to our emperor many times, saying that he has the ambition to bring peace to the people, and he is unwilling to resort to military force. If we stop the war and repair the peace now, firstly, we can rest the soldiers and people, and secondly, we will not hurt the peace. This is also true. It is Tang Emperor's will."

When Li Shimin heard the word "harmony", he was excited and angry, and said angrily, "Zheng is an enemy country, so what kindness is there? What does it have to do with you when I destroy the country of Zheng? Tang Xia originally had a good relationship, but Dou Jiande has no reason." Saying things like this actually hurt the harmony of the Tang Xia family!" Master Li heard Li Shimin directly reprimanding Dou Jiande's name, and knew that today could not be good, so he said in his heart: "For the sake of resting the army and the people, our country sent a special master to write a letter to ask for peace on behalf of Zheng. If the king of Qin refuses to agree, our emperor will With millions of soldiers under his command, we will use force to force peace."

Li Shimin became calm now, and said lightly: "Millions of strong soldiers? Don't I know the details of Dou Jiande? If Dou Jiande wants to come, no one can stop him, so let him come. Master Li, you still have one Man, let me send you this head, and I will watch the next good show in my king's camp. You don't have to go back to Dou Jiande's place." Master Li was taken to the back tent and detained in the army. Dou Jiande waited for a long time for Li Shimin to reply, but saw that Master Li was like a yellow crane, and understood that it was Li Shimin's refusal to reconcile and detained Master Li.He was furious for a while and decided to send troops to rescue Wang Shichong.On March 11th in the fourth year of Wude, Dou Jiande asked his general Fan Yuan to guard Caozhou. He led an army of 150,000 people, known as 300,000, advancing by land and water, and went west along the river and Yongji Canal to rescue Luoyang.His army was as powerful as a broken bamboo, and he captured Huazhou and Suanzao, which belonged to the Tang Dynasty, in one fell swoop, and then divided his troops to attack Guanzhou, Xingyang, Yangdi and other places in Henan.As soon as Dou Jiande's army broke out, Tang Jun's spies reported the news of his march to Li Shimin's case. Knowing that Dou Jiande's Western aid army had been launched, Li Shimin felt that the matter was urgent, so he summoned everyone to discuss matters in Qingyang Palace.For a while, all the generals left their posts, and even Li Yuanji, who was guarding Cijian, was summoned. Everyone took their seats one after another. Most of them had already learned that Dou Jiande was leading the army to attack.Li Yuanji was filled with righteous indignation, and opened his mouth to curse: "This Dou Jiande is really not a good person, if he says he will turn his back on him, he will turn his back on him!" Changsun Shunde, Cheng Yaojin and others also scolded their mothers. Feng Deyi said lightly: "Soldiers are deceitful. Now that the heroes are fighting, only strength speaks. How can we talk about faith?" Li Shimin smiled and said to Xiao Yu: "Xiao Gong, when I detained Master Li, I wanted to ignore Dou Jiande and try to delay it for a while, and then deal with Dou Jiande after taking Luoyang first. Now it seems , Dou Jiande did not give us a buffer time." Xiao Yu said worriedly: "Now that Luoyang is besieged, it is at a critical juncture. Dou Jiande's army claims to be 300,000, but the actual number is no less than 150,000. We will be in a situation where we will be attacked on both sides." Li Shimin frowned and said to everyone: "Since ancient times, water has been covered by soil, and soldiers have come to block. Now that Zheng and Xia have joined forces, and soldiers are approaching the city, we want to say that we can't retreat from Dou Jiande, so we have to let go and fight. We will call everyone today, please express your opinions, and plan a plan to deal with today's situation. Xiao Gong, Feng Gong , Qu Gong, if we report the plan we are planning now to Chang'an, I am afraid that there will be too little time, and the people of the world will make a supplementary report to the royal father, and the rest will be decided by you three princes on the fly, what do you think?" The three of them glanced at each other, and they all felt that the situation in front of them should not be limited to the usual festivals, so they nodded to each other.Qu Tu said: "King Qin, just make up your mind, and we veteran officials should report the truth to the emperor." Li Shimin looked at everyone and said: "Okay, Sangong is like this, let's talk about it too." Thinking that this move would affect the success or failure of the Tang Dynasty, everyone was very cautious and meditated silently, and there was a moment of silence. Qu Tutong, Xiao Yu, and Feng Deyi often discuss current affairs together, and they have a common heart at this time.The three of them looked at each other, and Qu Tutong took the lead and said, "Well, let me say something first. When I came, I had a brief discussion with Duke Xiao and Duke Feng. Weary, Wang Shichong is defending the strong city there, and we are in a hurry. Dou Jiande has just defeated Meng Haigong, and he came by taking advantage of the victory. Our army is hard to take the lead. If we are trapped in Luoyang and Dou Jiande attacks, we will inevitably be attacked by the enemy. The situation. The three of us thought that the whole army should withdraw to protect Xin'an immediately, and then send troops when there is an opportunity." Xiao Yu and Feng Deyi nodded in agreement, Xiao Yu said: "Xia Zheng has always had conflicts, if we retreat to Xin'an, they may change, this is exactly the opportunity we are waiting for." Li Yuanji also thought this plan was very good, and shouted: "San Gong's plan is reasonable, I will vote first. Wang Shichong and Dou Jiande are both tigers and wolves. Let them fight here, it will be a good show." Li Shi shook his head and thought it was impossible: "It is safest to retreat to protect Xin'an. However, our army is now actively attacking, and it becomes passive when it retreats. If we passively wait for Wang Shichong and Dou Jiande to turn their faces, isn't it just wishful thinking on our part?" The opinions of the generals were divided. Liu Hongji, Changsun Shunde, Cheng Yaojin, Hou Junji and others agreed to retreat to protect Xin'an temporarily. The rest of the generals believed that Luoyang was about to be captured, and it would be a pity to retreat now. At this time, Du Ruhui took out a map of mountains and rivers, and pointed out: "Wang Shichong is poor and is about to be imprisoned, but Dou Jiande comes to help him from afar. God wants to perish! Please look at this map of mountains and rivers. If Dou Jiande wants to come to relieve the siege of Luoyang There are two roads to go, one is to go south from Guancheng, detour to Songyang, but there are many mountains and dangerous roads, and Shi Wanbao is guarding it; the other is to go out of Guancheng to Hulao, pass through Luokou, When Beiman comes here, Dou Jiande will definitely take this road. He wants to gradually break through the pass with heavy troops, and there are waterways to support. Xue Shou has a strategy, that is, our army immediately occupies the natural danger of Hulao to prevent Dou Jiande from advancing, and prevent him from joining forces with Wang Shichong. Soldiers." Since Xue Shou defected to Li Shimin in Jingyang, people usually respect his literary name, he is quiet and restrained, he doesn't make any publicity, he arranges the military documents in an orderly manner, and he and Du Ruhui usually get along best.When Li Shimin heard that Xue Shou had a plan, his eyes lit up immediately, he straightened up and greeted him: "Mr. Xue, Shimin knows that you never speak lightly. You have a plan today. You must have thought it over carefully. Let's talk about it. Come on, Come and sit in the front, we can't hear you in the corner." Xue Shou found out that he was the secretary of the Prince of Qin's mansion, and in front of a large group of civil servants and military generals, he was indeed soft-spoken.Seeing Li Shimin greet him, he got up slowly and walked to the front, took the landscape map in Du Ruhui's hand, and said eloquently: "Brother Du said that the former tiger prison is the basis of my plan! Wang Shichong protects Luoyang, the eastern capital. , the treasury is full, and the soldiers under him are all elites from Jiang and Huai. His biggest difficulty now is the lack of food! Because of this reason, he is at a stalemate with us. , just as Qu Gong said just now, take advantage of the victory to bring out the best, and want to kill our army in one fell swoop! If we retreat to protect Xin'an and let the two bandits join forces, Dou Jiande will definitely transfer the millet from Hebei to Luoyang, so that Wang Shichong will regain his vitality , Our efforts to besiege Luoyang for many days will be in vain. Instead, the war between our army and Xia and Zheng has just begun. There are deep ditches and high fortresses against them, even if Wang Shichong goes to fight, he will not easily fight with him. On the other side, Pai Neng will take the lead to occupy the tiger prison first, and train his soldiers hard to wait for Xia's army. We wait for work with ease, Dou Jiande will surely be defeated. If Dou Jiande is defeated, Wang Shichong sees that there is no hope of reinforcements, and the city is short of food, so it will be difficult to support him for 20 days. In this way, our army can capture the two masters of Xia and Zheng in one fell swoop, and the Tang Dynasty will be established from now on." Xue Shou's speech was not long, but he analyzed the current situation thoroughly, and the strategies he proposed were highly targeted, just like turning the clouds to see the sun.Before Li Shimin could finish listening, he had already stood up, slapped his hands excitedly, and shouted: "Mr. Li Yuanji said coldly: "What's good? Our soldiers are exhausted. Can the danger of a tiger prison stop Dou Jiande's thousands of troops? If Dou Jiande travels all the way west to save Luoyang, I'm afraid even Xin'an will be in danger!" Others whispered to each other, and more than half of them felt that Xue accepted this plan with grace and grace, and it was very feasible.Although it seemed a little risky, the Tang army now encircled Luoyang with only a small half of its troops, and most of them were still idle, capable of resisting Dou Jiande's attack. Li Shimin's expression was restrained, and he said loudly: "Mr. Xue, who would have thought that you, an elegant person, could come up with such a clever strategy of hiding? Attack vigorously and encircle him. Although Dou Jiande has just defeated Meng Haigong, he will be arrogant and lazy. If our army is in a tiger prison to block his attack momentum, we can choke his throat. If they dare to take the risk to compete with us, I will take it very easily. If he is suspicious and does not fight, Wang Shichong will collapse because of lack of food within ten months. At that time, our army's momentum will naturally double, and we can kill two birds with one stone. If our army does not advance quickly, Dou Jiande will be locked in a tiger prison, and the surrounding counties and counties will surrender , he will join forces with Wang Shichong, and his power will be even stronger. If we think about it again, we will have to work hard! Ladies and gentlemen, this king has made up his mind: follow Mr. Xue's plan, divide the troops to encircle Luoyang and occupy Hulao! " Seeing that Li Shimin was determined, everyone followed him one by one.Although Li Yuanji was dissatisfied in his heart, the faces of the audience were not good to say anything. Li Shimin told Xiao Yu, Feng Deyi, and Qu Tu again: "After I go down, I will ask Xuanling to report to the emperor. If you have any opinions, you can also play a special performance. At that time, let the fast horse send to Chang'an. Shilang, you will leave from now on." Ci Jian comes to Qingyang Palace, Luoyang's existing army besieging the city is under your command, and Qu Gong is here to assist you. Qu Gong, Shiro has not experienced many battles after all, so you must devote yourself to Luoyang's major events. Jingde, you choose three thousand Five hundred riders, we will set off to help Hulao today. The rest are divided into three teams, Brother Shi, you and Brother Shubao, Brother Yaojin, and Brother Shixin are the first team, and tomorrow you will lead your soldiers to the Hulao; Shunde, Brother Hongji, Hou Junji, and Shi Danai will set off as the second team; the third team will be led by Wuji and Duan Zhixuan, and you will be responsible for escorting the supplies." All the generals agreed in unison. Qu Tutong was worried, and said: "King Qin, I agree with the strategy of dividing the army, but there are too many troops to continue to encircle Luoyang. Why not break the siege first and distribute the troops in Cijian, Beiman, Yique and other places, so that according to the Just wait and see what happens.” Li Shimin forbade: "We surround Luo with more troops than Zheng Jun, and we have deep trenches and high fortifications. Qu Gong, as long as you and Shiro maintain the current situation, it will be a great victory. Shiro, come here, this time you and Qu Gong Guarding is a heavy responsibility, and there must be no mistakes. I give you eight words of caution: Deep trenches and high fortifications, be careful not to fight!" After noon that day, Li Shimin and Yuchi Jingde led 3,500 riders out of the camp. They galloped east along the foot of Beiman Mountain, and the yellow dust raised by the horseshoes continued for a long time.At that time, Wang Shichong and Shan Xiongxin learned that there was movement in Tangying, and hurriedly boarded the north city wall to watch. They saw thousands of horses galloping eastward along Beiman Mountain, and they couldn't guess the purpose of Li Shimin's move for a while. When Sheji was first built in the Sui Dynasty, Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty began to dig a canal. The Guangtong Canal dug led from Daxing City to the Yellow River in the east to Tongguan.Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty continued to excavate extensively, and built Tongji Canal, Hangou, Jiangnan River and Yongji Canal.Tongji Canal leads from Xiyuan in Luoyang to Zhugu and Luoshui into the river, and from Banzhu to the southeast, meanders to Sizhou and enters Huaihe River.Hangou starts from Shanyang in the north and reaches the Yangtze River in the south; the Jiangnan River runs from Jingkou to the east of Taihu Lake until Yuhang meets the Qiantang River. Yongji Canal is in the north of the river, from Luoyang to Zhuojun. The five canals excavated in the Sui Dynasty centered on Chang'an and Luoyang, connecting the five major water systems of Haihe, Heshui, Huai, Jiangshui, and Zhejiang, making them the longest artificial canals in the world.The Grand Canal is the main artery of north-south traffic, with a length of 10,000 miles, and is one of the great projects in the world. The construction and prosperity of the Grand Canal led to the prosperity of some towns along the river, and Hulaoguan also prospered because of it. Hulao Pass is located at the junction of Tongji Canal and the Yellow River.The terrain here is special. It is flat land to the east, and there are many giant swamps to the west. A mountain like a tiger sits and lies in the middle, separating east and west travel, so it is called Hulao Pass.There were not many residents at that time, and when the Tongji Canal was opened, the Sui Dynasty built a Hulao warehouse here, which became a water and land wharf for a while, with more people, and the town became prosperous. Li Shimin left Luoyang in the afternoon, and more than 3,500 people rode out of Beimang with whips and hooves, and went straight to Luokou.After seeing Wang Junkuo, Li Shimin ordered him to leave a small number of people to guard Luokou, and most of the rest of the people will go to Hulao tomorrow.It was almost midnight when they left Luokou, and when they arrived at the Hulao, it was already three quarters of the ugly hour. That night, Li Shimin rested for less than two hours, and just after dawn, he got up and went outdoors.The sun has just emerged halfway from the east, and the morning mist has not yet dissipated. Combined with the mist on the water surface of Tongji Canal in front of you, it is more like the cool feeling in the early spring morning. Hulaoguan is built on the mountain, and the terrain gradually slows down to the east. Two miles away is flat land, and further east is a flat river.The Tongji Canal was built in a huge natural ditch one mile before the pass, and an arched stone bridge was built on it, connecting the East and West official roads. Li Shimin's breakfast today is very simple. There is a popular food in Fangyuan called "Hu spicy soup". It is mainly noodle soup, mixed with beef, wild vegetables, gluten, etc., and sprinkled with chili powder and pepper.Li Shimin wanted a big bowl, picked up the chopsticks and drank it, and ate three noodles, sweating profusely. Dou Jiande marched very fast in the past two days. His navy marched westward along the Yongji Canal and assembled at Jindiguan; It is only thirty miles away from Hulao Pass.After Li Shimin arrived at Hulao last night, he sent scouts out to investigate overnight, and they returned to report to Li Shimin after dawn. After breakfast, Li Shimin and Yuchi Jingde led an army of 500 horses out of the pass and headed east.This is Li Shimin's habit. Before each battle, he must go out to scout the enemy's situation and find out the surrounding terrain. After leaving the customs, they traveled about five miles and then turned southeast. Because of years of wars, the people were scattered here, and it was difficult to see people along the way.I saw decayed grass all over the ground, flooding the path, and leafless trees lined up between the rice paddies, but a little green buds appeared on the tops of the willows growing by the river branch, telling people that spring is here. Li Shimin looked around, as if he was looking for something, and said to Yuchi Jingde: "At the beginning, the emperor was the governor of Zhengzhou in the Sui Dynasty. At that time, here, the water and land transportation was convenient, there were many business travelers, there were many boats and boats in the canals, and the farmers in the fields were busy with farming. Who would have thought that this place would become so desolate in just over ten years!" He sighed, with a melancholy expression on his face. During the heyday of the Sui Dynasty, with Chang'an and Luoyang as the centers, wide post roads radiated to all parts of the country.There is a post station every 30 miles on the post road. "From Song and Bian in the east to Qizhou in the west, there are shops on Jialu to entertain guests, and there are plenty of wine and food. Every shop has donkeys for rent and passengers. They are called post donkeys. They go to Jing and Xiang in the south, Taiyuan and Fanyang in the north, and Shuchuan and Liangfu in the west. It is more prosperous, "All the Tianjin in the world are gathered by boats and sailings, bypassing Bahan, referring to Minyue in front, seven lakes and ten villages, three rivers and five lakes, controlling and leading Heluo, including Huaihai, Hongge giant ships, thousands of ships, Trade and exchange, ignorance will last forever." Seeing Li Shimin sighing there, Yuchi Jingde couldn't answer because he had too little ink in his belly, so he just nodded. At this moment, a monastery appeared in front of him, and Li Shimin's face was beaming with joy. He waved his whip a few times, driving "Qing Zou" to speed up his pace, and said, "This is it." .When we arrived at the monastery, we saw long grass buried paths inside and outside the monastery, but no one was there.The plaque on the gate of the temple is mottled, and the words "Dahai Temple" can be vaguely discerned. Yuchi Jingde let out a long breath, and said: "I thought it was a rare scene, it turned out to be a dilapidated temple." Li Shimin didn't say a word, dismounted and entered the gate of the temple. Go forward, chop down the dry grass with a knife, and clear a path.Li Shimin stood inside the gate and ordered them to clear the weeds on the left side of the temple to the west.There is a stone monument standing among the long haywood trees over there. Li Shimin thought back on the past, and said leisurely: "I once heard Xianci said that this Dahai Temple was very prosperous in the past, and the statues of the two kings standing there are the most effective in curing diseases. "When I was young, I was weak and sick. My father tried to treat me with famous doctors, but it didn't improve. In desperation, my father and Xianci came to this temple to pray for blessings, and finally healed. After that, I went to Shaolin Temple to practice martial arts. I have been in good health since then. Speaking of which, this temple is still the efficacious. On the eighth day of the first lunar month of the second year of Daye, when I was still young, my father specially came to this temple to erect a monument to fulfill my vows. Jingde, let them find this monument." After a while, two soldiers yelled: "I found it." The two stepped forward quickly. At that time, the soldiers had wiped off the water stains and floating dirt on the stele with cloth, and the handwriting suddenly appeared. It was written in regular script: Li Shimin got off his horse and stroked the stele to recite word by word. Before he finished reading, his eyes were full of tears.He took two steps back, fell to the ground and kowtowed three times.Yuchi Jingde and others also fell to the ground and kowtowed together.After getting up, Li Shimin waved his followers to leave the temple, leaving only him and Yuchi Jingde in the courtyard.Li Shimin was in a turbulent mood at this time, and raised his head to the sky and said: "Father and Xianci's kindness to me can only be learned from heaven! Jingde, let me ask you, in this world, who cares for you wholeheartedly and selflessly?" ?” Yuchi Jingde understood the answer to his question, but he was stumped and couldn't answer. Li Shimin said: "Only your parents! I heard from Xianci that in those days I was suffering from illness, and my father didn't even care about official duties, and his heart was tied to me. Alas, Jiaci passed away too early. Do your best to repay your father's kindness!" Although Yuchi Jingde was a rough man, he could feel that Li Shimin's words were showing his true feelings, so he couldn't help getting excited, tears streaming down his eyes, and said: "Heizi is a rough man, and he understands righteousness. Who in this world is right? I am good, who treats me badly, Heizi’s heart is like a mirror. When Heizi’s parents were oppressed by the evil gentry, I killed the whole family of the evil gentry in a rage, and fled to Shuozhou overnight with my parents, where I concealed my identity. Later, I waited for an opportunity to join the army. To his parents, Heizi should be filial; he should be loyal to King Qin. Seriously, King Qin, if you want my heart, Heizi will take a knife to gouge it out!" Li Shimin was immersed in memories just now, but now he heard Yuchi Jingde's words, he pondered for a while, and felt that what he thought just now was too narrow-minded: parents are kind to him in raising him, so all the subordinates and generals will be willing to him What should I do if I work hard?Yuchi Jingde in front of you is an example, if you let him charge forward, he will definitely not want to avoid Shishi and charge forward.Thinking of this, he stepped forward and took Yuchi Jingde's hand, and said: "Jingde, what the people of the world thought just now is that they are confined to the small family, and their hearts are too narrow. We are called generals, but we are actually fighting in battle. In a word, for the sake of the word 'righteousness'! Needless to say, I understand your heart, in fact, I treat you the same way." The two communicated with each other without much words. The group continued eastward, and encountered two scouts on the way to inquire about the news.According to their report, Dou Jiande camped the Chinese army in Guanzhou, and his forward went out of Guanzhou to the west and set up camp in Xushui, which was only five miles away. At this time, they suddenly heard the sound of horseshoes coming from the west, and they couldn't distinguish friend from foe for a while, Yuchi Jingde ordered the 500 horsemen to scatter to the two sides to ambush, and he and Li Shimin stood in the road. The sound of horseshoes is getting closer, and you can see that there are about 20 riders coming.Li Shimin said: "Jingde, don't be nervous, there is no enemy army here, the one who comes must be ours." In an instant, they galloped up to Li Shimin, and when they saw Li Shimin, they got off their horses and saluted him.The first four are Li Shi, Luo Shixin, Qin Shubao, and Cheng Yaojin. Li Shimin returned the salute to them and said in amazement: "You should start from Luoyang today, why are you here now?" Li Shigong said: "Yesterday after King Qin left, the four of us felt that King Qin led too few people, so we reorganized our troops and horses and followed us. We set off only an hour later than you. There was some delay on the way, so we led the horse army We just arrived at the Hulao today. We entered the Hulao and heard that the King of Qin was out to investigate, so we brought a few cavalry to look for it." Li Shimin saw the exhausted look on their faces, thinking that they had been galloping all night and could not rest.Then he asked with concern: "Brother Wang should rest in Guanzhong, have you had breakfast?" Everyone nodded again and again, Cheng Yaojin replied: "We each drank a big bowl of Hu spicy soup and ate five noodle cakes, and we are still feeling overwhelmed right now." Li Shimin looked around and saw a wide post road leading to Xushui and Guanzhou. There were many hills and rivers on both sides of the post road.With a thought, his pride suddenly arose, and he said: "You guys came just in time, let's fight Dou Jiande first." Cheng Yaojin asked doubtfully, "A fight? Just five hundred of us?" "Yes, let's fight! Now that Dou Jiande's foothold is not stable, he may not know the news of our entry into the tiger prison. "Brother Wang, you each lead more than a hundred people to ambush on both sides of the post road. Jingde and I went forward to lure the enemy, trying to lead them into the ambush circle, and kill them by surprise!" Li Shiyan smiled: This is the courage of the King of Qin. It seems that before each battle, if he does not personally take risks, the battle will not start.After going through many previous battles, everyone was very convinced of Li Shimin, they didn't say much, and each led their men to set up an ambush. Li Shimin and Yuchi Jingde led the three of them forward, and they were only two li away from Xushui camp of Xia army.Looking from a distance, the Xiajun camp was built across Xushui, and the flags and streamers stretched eastward.Yuchi Jingde turned his head and said to the three attendants: "Everyone take out the arrows, be careful in every possible way." As soon as he said that, more than ten people turned out from his left hand. These ten or so people were riding on horses, and they were the patrol team sent by Xia Jun. When they saw Li Shimin and others, they thought they were scouts sent by their own side.However, after taking a closer look, he found that the clothes were different, and he immediately became nervous.At this time, Li Shimin yelled: "The visitor heard clearly, I am Li Shimin, King of Qin." After speaking, he shot an arrow "swish", and the arrow was as straight as lightning, and it overturned the first person.The rest of the people were shocked, unable to resist, they scattered and ran towards Xu Shui.Just as they turned around, the four arrows shot by Yuchi Jingde and the others came in front of them again, with two "plops", the two of them fell off the horse. These deserters entered the camp and ran straight to the tent of the general.This time Dou Jiande ordered Wang Fubao to be the vanguard of the former army, and led an army of 50,000 horses to garrison Xushui Town.Hearing that Li Shimin came to the camp, he was shocked for a moment, and after careful questioning, he found out that there were only five people on the other side, so he said: "Li Shimin is now in Luoyang, can he fly here with wings?" Lead Yin Qiu and Shi Zan out of the camp with 500 men. At that time, Li Shimin's five people had been standing in the same place, and saw the gate of the other side's camp opened, and more than 500 people crowded out from it.Li Shimin was overjoyed, and said with a smile: "Look at Jingde, there are not too many people coming, too many, I'm afraid it's hard to eat, and less, it's not very interesting." Yuchi Jingde deeply agreed. Yin Qiu and Shi Zan had only heard of Li Shimin's name before, but had never seen Li Shimin's person. When they reached three hundred paces in front of Li Shimin, Yin Qiu shouted, "Where are the thieves who dare to come here and want to seek death?" At this moment, Yuchi Jingde also felt that he was sure of winning, so he rode his horse forward and said, "Blind bastard, the King of Qin is here, and he will be bound before he dismounts. Do you want me, Yuchi Gong, to do it myself?" Yin Qiu saw Yuchi Jingde's face like a black diamond, with two whips hanging from his waist, and a black horse sitting under him; he also saw Li Shimin's eyes like bright stars, with an extraordinary bearing, and a green Yanhuilong machete glowing blue in the sun, It is the image of the two people in the rumors.He was timid for a while, opened his eyes and looked far away, and saw that there were no Tang soldiers and horses in front of him, and he calmed down again.He thought to himself that the two of them were really the King of Qin and Yuchi Jingde, there were only five people in front of him, and he had five hundred people on his side, no matter what he could capture them alive, it must be a great achievement to go to the emperor.Thinking of this, he and Shi Zan called everyone to rush over. Li Shimin saw that the enemy team started to mobilize, and the three of them showed panic on their faces, so he said to them: "The three of you retreat first, I will break up with Jingde." After saying that, he and Yuchi Jingde walked slowly.Seeing the front of the enemy cavalry approaching, he and Yuchi Jingde turned their heads and drew their bows and shot arrow feathers. When the bowstring rang, the two fell to the ground.Yin Qiu repeatedly urged everyone to move forward, Li Shimin and Li Shimin shot arrows one after another, and Xia Jun's riders fell to the ground one after another. Seeing this, Yin Qiu and Shi Zan ordered people to take out their bows and arrows, and shoot a rain of arrows forward.Li Shimin and Li Shimin pulled the reins, "Qing Zou" and Wu Zou, holding the moon, leaped forward, hooved out of the range of the arrow rain.Li Shimin turned around and opened the big bow again, the big feathered arrows rushed into the enemy's formation like shooting stars, shooting down the enemy continuously. Stopping like this, the five gradually led Xia Jun into the ambush circle.Seeing that they had all entered, Li Shimin signaled his followers to light the cannon.The three people who were going forward took out the horns and lit them one by one, only to hear three loud bangs of "pa, pa, pa", and Tang Jun, who was ambushing around, appeared among the grass.Li Shi, Qin Shubao, Luo Shixin, and Cheng Yaojin urged their mounts to rush into the enemy's formation first.Seeing this, Li Shimin and Yuchi Jingde turned around and killed them. In less than half an hour, Xia Jun was seriously injured, and more than half of the casualties were already there.At this time, Qin Shubao turned over and rushed up a high hill, and shouted with his voice as loud as a bronze bell: "You who are wise, get off your horse and surrender quickly, so as not to be slaughtered!" He shouted three times in succession. Yin Qiu and Shi Zan saw that the Tang army was surrounded by heavy siege, and although the Tang army was small in number, they were all brave.Hearing Qin Shubao's shout, the two looked at each other and shouted in unison: "We surrender! We surrender!" Soon, the two sides ended the fight.All Xia's soldiers discarded their weapons, dismounted and surrendered, and slowly lined up in the encirclement.Yuchi Jingde led Yin Qiu and Shi Zan to Li Shimin, where they were trembling, Li Shimin smiled and said: "Now you should believe that I am the King of Qin, right?" The two hurriedly fell to the ground and kowtowed, saying: "The villain has no eyes, offended King Huwei of Qin, and begs for mercy." Li Shimin said: "If it's not because you have no eyes, I'm afraid Dou Jiande will not believe that the king has left Luoyang and came here! The king let you two go back and told Dou Jiande that I, the king of Qin, Li Shimin, is waiting for him at Hulao Pass." .” The two said in succession: "The villain dare not, the villain dare not." Li Shimin said sharply: "That's it! Jingde, give them two fast horses and let them go back." 两人将信将疑，待走出有一里的地方，方才打马加速，仓皇而去。 王伏宝得知李世民确实到了虎牢关，一时大惊，他做梦都想不到李世民动作会如此之快！接报后，他急忙打马驰往管州，求见窦建德禀报。 听说李世民据守虎牢关，窦建德一时无语，凌敬在旁说道：“这李世民确实有智有勇！当初皇上决定西援洛阳，臣下估计李世民不敢分兵，有可能退守新安，这样我们与郑王合军，可保鼎足之势，不意他用兵神速已据虎牢关。皇上，臣下知虎牢关地势险要，易守难攻，我们若去强攻，李世民有备而来，恐怕会耽延时日，若时间一长，洛阳那里恐难以支持下去。” 窦建德现在兵锋正锐，听凌敬此言，满心不喜，斥道：“你这是书生之言！两军尚未交战，你能卜未来吗？伏宝，你先回须水，明日拔营向虎牢关进发，朕亲率大军随后。” 第二天窦建德尚未动身，李世民派人送来一封书信。窦建德展开一看，只见其中写道：赵魏之地，久为我有，为足下所侵夺。但以淮安见礼，公主得归，故相与袒怀释怨。世充顷与足下修好，已尝反覆，今亡在朝夕，更饰辞相诱。足下乃以三军之众，仰哺他人，千金之资，坐供外费，良非上策。进前茅相遇，彼遽崩摧，郊劳未通，能无怀愧！故抑止锋锐，冀闻择善，若不获命，恐虽悔难追！ 窦建德读罢，顿时大怒，他扯破来书，大骂道：“黄口孩童，还想来教训老子。”急令催动三军，进逼虎牢关。 两日内，后续唐军陆续进驻虎牢关。李世民令王君廓、段志玄带领二万兵马扎营河水岸边，从那里到虎牢关沿途放上警戒哨。又令侯君集领军二万向南十里扎营，与虎牢关遥相呼应。事实上，虎牢关以北以南地方，遍布沼泽沟壑，人烟阻绝，商旅不通，夏军并无进军之路。 这日王伏宝带领五万前锋兵马渡过汜水，越过通济渠，到虎牢关前集结。后面，窦建德催动十余万大军，旌旗蔽日，鼓钲齐鸣，沿驿道连绵而来。 窦建德到了关前，仰望关上，见那里毫无动静，就令王伏宝推动抛石车等器具准备攻关。王伏宝接令，招呼众兵士将攻城之具推上前来。此去关前皆为缓坡，推车之人因为使力速度甚缓，等他们到了离关三百步的地方，还未将器具放好，就听关上传来三声炮响，顿时，关上唐军打出旗幡，无数军士冒出头来。 夏军正惊疑间，关上又一声号炮响起，唐军齐齐从关上推下一排排的石磙。石磙溜墙而下，触地后沿着缓坡向下滚动，渐渐速度加快，到了夏军面前，这些石磙先是碾坏了攻城器具，再下来撞倒夏军军士。后面的石磙不绝地翻滚过来，碾得夏军鬼哭狼嚎。后排之人见这些石磙来势凶猛，急忙掉头逃跑。石磙下了缓坡到了平地处，无力再向前滚，终于缓缓地停止滚动。 关上唐军看到夏军退过缓坡，距离关前已有一里之遥，遂一齐停手。 王伏宝见唐军并不出关交锋，欲借关前缓坡地势推出石磙来阻挡自己。他一时无计，急忙到窦建德面前讨教下步行止。 窦建德道：“早闻李世民善于坚壁不出，他这次轻骑占据虎牢关，看样子就是这般打算。我们欲援洛阳，必须打通虎牢，或者溯河而上，从水路进攻。” 王伏宝道：“水路大军现在已沿永济渠集结至金堤关，他们本想溯河而上，或入汜水攻虎牢，或入洛水攻洛口向东都前进。谁知河水上游连下暴雨，河水暴涨，无法行舟，一时无法。如今只有打通虎牢关，沿陆路增援洛阳。” 窦建德沉吟道：“如此，伏宝，你挑选一些善射之人，想法射出箭弩压制关上唐军。李世民既要围困洛阳，又要分兵堵截我们，其力量毕竟有限，我们先与他硬拼一阵。” 王伏宝回头去布置，一会儿，手持弓弩的夏军腾跃向前缓缓推进，手中不绝地射出弓弩。然关前空地毕竟狭小，唐军早有准备，他们一面向关下人群稠密处推去石磙，一面立起盾牌掩护，一些神射手藏在盾牌之间，向夏军猛射。夏军支持不下去，纷纷败下阵来。 李世民带领众将立在城墙内，眼见夏军两次冲锋皆被打了下去，李世民露出微笑，问道：“无忌，关中石磙、硬弩等物备得充足吗？” 长孙无忌道：“我们这次有备而来，弩箭已装满三窖，像眼前这种用法，可支用一月有余。石磙，虎牢关原本就有储备，我又在北邙条石场设立工场，用一千石匠日夜打造，并当即运来。这两日，我怕石磙不够用，又派军士四处征用。” 程咬金接口道：“你这样一征用，方圆百姓算是遭了殃。过了几个月秋熟之后，满亩的粟子无石磙可碾。” 李世民点头道：“对，咬金兄说得有理，我们在这里打仗，以不扰民不殃民为根本。无忌，战阵过后，所征用石磙要一一归还。” 罗士信问道：“秦王，眼前窦建德大举来攻，我们仅用石磙、箭弩之物来对付他吗？” 李世民答道：“对，人言我好用坚壁怠敌之策，这次还要老调重弹一番。洛阳王世充那里身处水火，城中粮草短少，我们只要把窦建德阻在这里，不出二旬，王世充自乱。士信兄，我看窦建德攻关不下，此处又难以扎营，他肯定会退后找寻营地。届时也不能让他太舒服，我们组织精干小股人马前去骚扰他。你最善于轻骑踹营，扰敌之策由你完成如何？” 罗士信点头答应，尉迟敬德和程咬金一听有仗可打，一同向李世民请战。李世民一听笑了，说道：“你们跟着本王，这逞匹夫之勇劲猛杀敌的水平见长啊。” 众人都发出会心的微笑。 窦建德在关前使尽了法子，无奈唐军攻防有度，石磙、箭弩等物无穷无尽，只要夏军前攻，这些东西层出不穷地抛射过来。两天时间，虎牢关前躺满了夏军的尸体，石磙更是横七竖八在坡下堆积如山。窦建德见进攻毫无效果，只好下令退军。他们沿河后退十里，来到一个名为板渚的小镇。这里北依河水，南控通济渠，沿河东北行二十里即是金堤关，大军粮草可以从此接济。窦建德就将中军帐设在板渚镇，其余人马沿河水扎营，连绵十余里。 王世充那日得知窦建德来援，一颗沉重多日的心顿时松弛下来，满心想唐军听此消息，肯定会收兵退回西面，这样自己就可以和窦建德在洛阳相会了。 谁知他等了几日，城外围城的唐军没有任何动静，依旧凭借深沟高垒和自己相持。要说也有变化，就是唐军不再轻易出击，只是坚守。那日他在城墙上看到李世民率领三千余骑向东开拔，后来又有数队人马拔营向东。现在他才回过味来：李世民一面继续围困洛阳，一面亲带人马去阻挡窦建德来援。这一时刻，他忽然感到李世民这个年轻人太可怕了，他不畏强敌，依旧想分兵给予夏、郑雷霆一击。 其时洛阳宫城内缺粮更甚，人人面黄肌瘦，四肢无力。王世充在宫内长吁短叹，这日招单雄信等人筹划解救之法。单雄信这数日甚是忙乱，他趁夜色派人或坠下城墙，或顺洛水出城，竭力打探唐军消息。现在见了王世充，禀报道：“好叫皇上欢喜，臣下数日来得到确切情报。那李世民为堵截夏王所率军马，全出精锐前往虎牢关。这里仅留下李元吉和屈突通为首围困洛阳，其生力军已去大半。” 王世充长叹道：“尽管其生力军已去大半，然观朕手下之兵，昔日号称江、淮精锐，如今都饿得半死，哪还有劲儿与唐军厮杀？且唐军现在来围城之军还有十余万人，与我军兵力相当，他们又建深沟高垒，要想反攻过去，谈何容易？” 单雄信道：“臣下已经侦察清楚，此去北邙五里有一唐军的粮仓，我们想法将此粮夺回，就可支城中两月之用。李世民所以敢分兵围堵，就是欺我们城中无粮，他的如意算盘是只要挡住夏王不能西来，我们支持不下去就会走出城外向他投降。眼下城外元帅为李元吉，由屈突通佐之。李元吉勇而无谋，且不纳人言。臣下已筹下一策，请皇上定夺。” 王世充听了单雄信的计策，觉得可行，此计若成功，即可解洛阳之困，遂令单雄信全权指挥。 李元吉这些日子一直住在青羊宫，攻城军事日常调度皆由屈突通负责，他反而显得无事。李世民东去三日过后，他终于按捺不住，带人往慈涧以西山上狩猎一回。屈突通知道他的习性，只要不干涉军务，乐得他自由。 李元吉自从来到洛阳，自觉一直罩于李世民影子之下，军中之人对他甚是恭敬，然自己所言所语他们并不重视，多是左耳听右耳出，全没把他放在心上。这次他名为围城元帅，然一切章程皆依李世民“深沟高垒、慎勿出战”的大框子而定，他曾提出搞几次出击，都被屈突通用以上八个字给挡了回去。这日天还未亮，他尚未起床，一名巡官进入房来，禀报道：“齐王，现在宫城西太阳门大开，郑军从门中拥出，直奔青羊宫而来。屈尚书令来叫殿下，一起到前堂议事。” 李元吉到了前堂，就见屈突通率领数名行军总管正在等他，屈突通劈头说道：“齐王，王世充突然在西太阳门发动攻势，不知意欲何为？我们一同前去观看如何？” 李元吉点点头，一行人来到离西太阳门有半里的地方站定，观看那里的阵势。 那边战斗正杀得惨烈，郑军从城内不绝地拥出，个个头缠红布，手持大砍刀，不避矢石。唐军依托深沟高垒，不绝地射出弩箭，郑军一排排倒下身来，然后续队伍连绵不绝，瞧他们的劲头，必欲夺下唐军阵地。 屈突通问道：“郑军除了这里，其他地方有动静吗？” 行军总管卢君谔答道：“王世充甚是奇怪，仅在西太阳门出击，其他地方都平静得很。” 屈突通道：“这里面有鬼！传令，其他守军严阵以待，不可擅离阵地，违令者斩。” 李元吉大怒：“屈公，这还看不出来吗？王世充在城内饿得难受，闻听窦建德来援，他有两个选择：一是出东门与窦建德会合，二是出西门进攻长安以为声援。他现在猛攻西门，就是想我军主力已去虎牢，关中空虚，他想乘虚而入呀！” 屈突通摇头不信：“此去长安数百里，再借给王世充几个胆他也不敢。齐王所言王世充欲与窦建德会合，很是有理。卢总管，你领人前去东门加强戒备，防止王世充逃逸。西门这里，就由我和齐王镇守。” 李元吉不同意：“屈公，我们现在应该防备西门、东门，北门那里，现屯下如此多的重兵有什么用处，可让他们分兵增援东、西两门。” 屈突通踌躇道：“齐王，秦王临行时候所说的'深沟高垒，慎勿出战'，甚是有理。如今王世充那里，兵力与我们相当，然他们饿了两月，战斗力大大下降，谅他们插翅难逃。若现在分北门之军，就打乱了原来的防御格局，万一有变，恐难以应付。” 李元吉大怒，吼叫道：“屈公，记着：我是这里的主帅，你为副！本王已经忍耐你多日了，别动不动就拿二郎来压我。传我的命令，立刻分北门之兵。谁若敢拦阻，军法从事！” 屈突通等人看到李元吉动了肝火，不敢再言。 单雄信以西太阳门为饵，寅时又在上春门发起攻击，吸引唐军撤下北面守军增援，使其北面防线顿时空虚。这时，单雄信一面派人继续在西、东门牵制唐军，一面亲率倾城之军从北面尤光门、德猷门、徽安门、喜宁门而出，快速撕破唐军防线，又在东西两端留下重兵筑垒防守，他则亲率三万马军，后面跟随无数车辆，直奔唐军北邙山粮仓而去。 及至唐军明白了单雄信的意图，为时已晚。单雄信将所有粮食都装运出来，指挥大军掩护粮车入城。唐军拼命冲杀，妄图将粮车抢过来。东面领头的行军总管卢君谔最为骁勇，亲带数骑闯入敌阵截住单雄信厮杀，无奈寡不敌众且武艺不行，很快被单雄信挥动金顶枣阳槊刺下马来。单雄信见大功告成，嘱咐手下不可恋战，用弓弩射住阵脚，然后依次退入城中。 王世充得了这些粮草。如同雪中送炭，精神为之一振。当日，全城人饱餐一顿。这天暮色中，王世充让从人远远离开，独自站立在北墙之上，遥望东方天空，心想粮食入城，可保一时无虞，然粮食终有用尽的那一天，内心盼望窦建德的援兵赶快来到。