Chapter 7 Residing in Mountain Great Victory

In mid-June of the 19th year of Zhenguan (645 AD), Li Shimin led an expeditionary force to the south quickly and surrounded Anshi City on June 20. Among all the Koryo strongholds in Liaodong, the situation in this city of Anshi is the most special. Strictly speaking, it is now semi-independent. At the beginning, after Yuan Gai Su Wen launched a coup and monopolized power, the guards and city lords in various places in Koryo were frightened by his lust and had to submit to him. Only the city lord of An City refused to recognize Yuan Gai Su Wen's new regime.Yuan Gai Suwen was furious and sent troops to attack several times.Due to the strong defense of Anshi City, coupled with the heroic and good command of the city lord of Anshi, the government troops were repeatedly repelled.Yuan Gai Suwen had no choice but to give up in the end, allowing Anshi City to become an independent kingdom without ownership.

But at this moment, Yuan Gai Suwen could no longer ignore An Shicheng. Because all the other important towns in Liaodong had fallen, only this city of Anshi was left to stop the advance of the Tang army.Although there are cities such as Jian'an, Houhuang, Yincheng, and Wugu in the south of it, the defenses in these places are quite weak and cannot withstand a blow from the Tang army at all.Once Anshi falls, the Tang army can easily cross the Yalu River and go straight to Pyongyang. Therefore, Yuan Gai Suwen decided to keep Anshi City at all costs—to keep the last barrier in Liaodong! On the second day after the Tang army entered the siege of Anshi City, Yuan Gai Suwen ordered the northern governors Gao Yanshou and Gao Huizhen to lead a total of 150,000 troops from Goryeo and Mohe to rescue Anshi City.

What is the concept of 150,000 people?It is the army that conquers the country, and it is all the mobile forces and reserve forces that the Kingdom of Koryo can use at present! There is no doubt that the expeditionary army of the Tang Empire and the all-powerful Koryo army will surely wage a decisive battle in Anshicheng. The survival of Anshicheng will have a decisive impact on this war. Li Shimin is very clear - An Shicheng is a hard nail, and it is not easy to pull it out. So at the beginning, Li Shimin planned to bypass Anshi City and take down Jian'an City in the south first.But Li Shiji disagreed with the emperor's strategy. His reason was: Jian'an is in the south, Anshi is in the north, and the Tang army's supply transfer station is in Liaodong City. The defenders are cut off; on the contrary, if Anshi City is captured first, Jian'an City will be at your fingertips.

Li Shimin respected Li Shiji's opinion, so he decided to attack Anshi City. When Gao Yanshou's rescue army rushed towards Anshi City, Li Shimin made three judgments about the current situation. He said: "Now Gao Yanshou has three strategic choices: first, lead the army forward, fight with the defenders of Anshi City, occupy dangerous terrain, and send Mohe cavalry to plunder our cattle and horses. Once our attack is frustrated, we must The best policy is to retreat and get stuck in the swamp, and you will get into trouble. Second, rescue the soldiers and civilians in Anshi City, and then retreat. This is the best policy. This is a bad strategy. Just wait and see, Gao Yanshou will definitely come up with a bad strategy, and capturing him alive is as easy as pie."

At the same time, a strategist in the Goryeo army was also offering advice to Gao Yanshou: "Li Shimin wiped out the heroes at home and subdued Rong and Di externally. He is a talented and bold emperor. Now that he has come here all over the country, we are not his opponent. The current plan , Only by fortifying the walls and clearing the field, avoiding its edge, preparing for a protracted war, and then dispatching surprise troops to cut off the supply line of the Tang army, once the Tang army's food is exhausted, there is no way to fight, and there is no way to return, our army will be able to win a big victory."

Obviously, this strategist's strategy is exactly what Li Shimin said is the best strategy. It's a pity that the headstrong Gao Yanshou couldn't listen to it at all.He categorically rejected the counselor's suggestion, and resolutely marched westward, determined to fight Li Shimin. Everything was pinpointed by Li Shimin, and Gao Yanshou's defeat was also doomed. The Goryeo reinforcements rushed to Anshicheng non-stop. When they were forty miles away from Anshi City, Li Shimin was worried that they would not dare to advance, so he ordered the left guard general Ashnasheer to lead a thousand Turkic cavalry as bait to lure the Goryeo army to continue to penetrate.

Ashinasheer pretended to be defeated as soon as they confronted the Goryeo army.The Koryo soldiers were overjoyed and shouted to each other: "The Tang army is too easy to deal with!" So they scrambled to pursue them, reaching eight miles south of Anshi City, and then set up camp close to the foot of the mountain. Li Shimin smiled. Gao Yanshou was indeed brave and foolhardy. Immediately he took Changsun Wuji and others and hundreds of cavalry to climb up to observe the enemy's situation. He saw the flags of the Koryo army fluttering, and the camp stretched for forty miles.At the same time, Li Shimin carefully observed the mountains and rivers near the Koryo military camp, looking for places suitable for ambushes and charges.

After some reconnaissance, Li Shimin already had an 80% chance of winning in his heart. At this time, Jiang Xia Wang Li Daozong proposed a strategy to Li Shimin to hit his heart.He said: "Koryo came to war with the most powerful soldiers, and the defense of Pyongyang, the capital city, must be weak. Please lead five thousand elite soldiers to attack the heart and root out the roots! As long as Pyongyang is captured, the hundreds of thousands of people in Koryo will surrender without a fight." .” This is a surprise strategy. Had Li Shimin adopted this strategy, the outcome of the Koryo War might have been completely different.What is confusing is that Li Shimin didn't say a word after listening.

Not speaking does not mean acquiescence, but rejection. Why did Li Shimin reject Li Daozong's proposal? The only explanation can only be - he is too confident.Right now, he has a plan in his chest, and he is absolutely sure to eat Gao Yanshou's support army in one fell swoop.And once the defenders of Anshi have no foreign aid, even if they want to resist, their fate will be the same as that of Liaodong City! This was probably what Li Shimin thought at the time. After Li Shimin rejected Li Daozong with silence, he immediately sent an envoy to Gao Yanshou to send a message, saying: "Yuan Gai Su Wenqiang minister killed the lord, so I came here to inquire about the crime. As for fighting, it was not my wish. My army penetrated into you There is no food supply at the border, so I will take a few of your cities first, and when your government restores the etiquette of vassals, it will naturally return the cities to you."

Obviously, this is a smoke bomb deliberately released by Li Shimin.He knew that Gao Yanshou was brave and foolish, so he was determined. As expected, Gao Yanshou fell into the trick, and then relaxed his vigilance, and the defense of the barracks was also extremely lax. On the other hand, Li Shimin held a military meeting overnight and seized the opportunity to deploy for a decisive battle.He ordered Li Shiji to lead a mixed infantry and cavalry force of 15,000 people to seize the hill to the west; he also ordered Changsun Wuji to lead an elite force of 11,000 people to march secretly from the narrow valley in the north of the mountain to the rear of the Goryeo army; I personally led 4,000 people to sit in Beishan and set up the general headquarters here, overlooking the entire battlefield from here, using drums, horns and various flags as signals for commanding operations.

The key to the success of this annihilation battle lies in whether Changsun Wuji's surprise army can smoothly detour to the enemy's rear, disrupt their morale, and cut off their retreat. Li Shimin was on the commanding heights of Beishan, eagerly waiting for the signal from Changsun Wuji. In the early morning of June 22, Li Shiji led his troops to quietly occupy Xiling.When the mist gradually dispersed, the Goryeo army suddenly discovered that the Tang army had already formed an attack formation around them. Gao Yanshou was shocked and immediately ordered the army to prepare for battle. But it was too late. At this moment, Changsun Wuji's surprise soldiers had passed through the narrow valley, entered the predetermined battlefield, and raised dust all over the sky, sending a signal to the headquarters. As soon as Li Shimin saw it, he immediately ordered the drummers and standard bearers to issue instructions to attack. In an instant, all Tang army units attacked the Koryo barracks from all directions at the same time with overwhelming momentum.Gao Yanshou had no idea how many troops the Tang army had, let alone the Tang army's combat intentions.He tried to divide his troops to resist, but the barracks were forty miles long, and he was unprepared before the battle, so he had no time to issue different combat orders to the 150,000 soldiers. At this moment, Gao Yanshou discovered for the first time in his life that it turned out that it was such a painful thing to lead hundreds of thousands of people to fight! The various departments of the Tang Army were like several sharp knives suddenly piercing into the Koryo barracks from all directions.Gao Yanshou's subordinates could not get orders from the coach, so they could only bite the bullet and fight on their own. In an instant, 150,000 people became 150,000 headless flies. At this moment, the originally clear sky suddenly thundered, lightning and stormy, making this battlefield where hundreds of thousands of soldiers and horses galloped to fight more tragic, strange and spectacular. Li Shimin overlooked this scene from Beishan, and couldn't help but feel an indescribable throbbing in his heart. Suddenly, among thousands of troops, a bright white robe caught his eyes. It was a young warrior.Everyone is wearing armor, only he is wearing a white robe. I saw him holding a long halberd and a quiver hanging on his waist, galloping across the battlefield, rushing from left to right, as if entering a land without people. Li Shimin was very surprised, and quickly asked who this person was. However, no one knew this white-robed warrior. At this time, the situation on the battlefield has gradually become clear, and the Koryo army collapsed across the board, throwing more than 20,000 corpses on the battlefield.Gao Yanshou and Gao Huizhen fled into the mountains with the remnants in a hurry. The Tang army won this battle. After the battle, Li Shimin immediately ordered someone to bring the white-robed warrior to him. This person is Xue Rengui, a legendary general of the Tang Dynasty who is well-known in later generations. However, at this time, he was just an ordinary soldier who had just joined the army, and this was the first time he had stepped onto the battlefield to show his talents. Xue Rengui thought he was brave, and in order to create extraordinary achievements, he deliberately wore a white robe instead of armor, hoping to attract the attention of senior generals.But he never expected that the first person to notice him was actually the Tang Emperor Li Shimin! After Li Shimin inquired a little about his life experience, he greatly appreciated him, and then gave him two horses and forty pieces of silk, and promoted him to be a guerrilla general. After the Koryo War ended, Li Shimin once said to Xue Rengui with emotion on the way of withdrawing troops: "All my generals are old, and those who think of newcomers will be brave, and there is no one like you; I don't like Liaodong, but I like you! "(Volume 198) Xue Rengui became famous in such a battle, and since then embarked on the glorious journey of a generation of famous generals. After this battle, more than 20,000 of Goryeo's 150,000 troops were killed, and the rest scattered like birds and beasts. Only less than 40,000 people fled into the deep mountains with Gao Yanshou, and held on to the danger.According to the original plan, Changsun Wuji destroyed all the bridges on the river behind and completely cut off Gao Yanshou's retreat. Subsequently, Li Shimin ordered all the troops to guard the mountain passes and besiege the remnant enemy regiments. Gao Yanshou has become a turtle in a urn. On June 24, the remaining rations of the Koryo army ran out.Gao Yanshou and Gao Huizhen realized that the general situation was over, so they had to surrender to the Tang army with the remaining 36,800 people. Gao Yanshou and Gao Huizhen were escorted to the Tang army's camp. They knelt and walked from the Yuanmen to the Tang army's surrender platform, waiting for the emperor of the Tang Dynasty.Li Shimin sat majesticly on the high platform in military uniform, and said with a sneer, "You young Dongyi boys can jump beams by the sea. If you want to fight a tough battle, I'm afraid you're no match for my old man. How about it? From now on, will you still dare to fight the emperor?" Gao Yanshou and other generals were all prostrate on the ground, trembling all over, not daring to say a word. It's already meat on someone's chopping board, what else is there to say? This battle can be said to be the biggest victory Li Shimin has achieved since his Eastern Expedition.The Tang army not only defeated the 150,000-strong army in one fell swoop, but also seized 50,000 horses, 50,000 cattle, 10,000 pieces of armor and a large number of other weapons. Regarding the handling of more than 30,000 prisoners of war, Li Shimin adopted three different methods. First, there were 3,500 military officers at all levels, Li Shimin granted them official positions, and then sent them all back to China for appointment as appropriate; followed by more than 30,000 Korean soldiers, Li Shimin sent them all back to Pyongyang without saying a word. In ancient wars, such generous capture of prisoners is relatively rare.The reason why Li Shimin did this was because for the Tang army who had penetrated into the hinterland of Liaodong, what was most lacking at this time was not troops, but food and supplies.Right now, these 30,000 people are more than 30,000 mouths to eat, and Li Shimin absolutely cannot keep them.In addition, due to political considerations and humanitarian standpoints, Li Shimin did not want to kill and surrender, so he had to return him. The soldiers of Goryeo burst into tears of gratitude, and the sound of cheers resounded for dozens of miles. In the end there were 3,300 Mohe soldiers. For them, Li Shimin's order is only two words - hang and kill. In the early days of the Liaodong War, the Mohe people originally stood on the side of the Tang Dynasty and obeyed Tian Khan's orders honestly, but later they were bewitched by Yuan Gai Suwen for some reason, and they turned against the Tang Dynasty and became enemies of the Tang Dynasty.Of course, Li Shimin would not forgive this kind of barbarian who betrayed his promise and didn't know what to do. On that day, 3,300 Mohe soldiers were all murdered without mercy.Li Shimin hopes to warn other Rongdi with this - this is the fate of betraying Tian Khan! After winning this almost decisive victory, Li Shimin's self-confidence and heroism were beyond words. He named the mountain where his imperial tent was located Zhubi Mountain, and at the same time sent a fast horse to report the victory to the prince who stayed in Dingzhou, and wrote a letter to Gao Shilian and others, in which he said with great joy: " I will be like this, how?" This sentence is largely meant for those ministers who oppose the emperor's personal conquest. It is translated into the vernacular——my old man is still so good at fighting, have you all seen it? Yes, Li Shimin has reason to be proud.The hundreds of thousands of people who came to fight in Koryo were wiped out at once. It can be said that they have grown stronger and stronger, and their glory has not diminished! Li Shimin's high self-confidence brought him one victory after another, and these victories fueled his high self-confidence. This is really the same self-confidence as Yang Guang, Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty! But Li Shimin never imagined that he would soon encounter the same fate as Yang Guang in this city of Anshi.