Chapter 12 Dancing on a Wire: The Rise of Li Yuan

Although Li Yuan arrested Wang Wei and Gao Junya on the charge of "colluding with the Turks", any charge needs evidence.Where is Li Yuan's evidence? Li Jiancheng and others were still on the way, so Li Yuan did not dare to raise troops formally.In this case, if Li Yuan still fails to produce evidence, it is likely to arouse people's suspicion, which will lead to unexpected complications in promoting teachers and righteousness. What Li Yuan didn't expect was that at this tense and delicate moment, God actually helped him a lot. To be precise, the Turks helped him a lot.

On May 17th of the thirteenth year of Daye, two days after Li Yuan arrested Wang and Gao, tens of thousands of Turkic cavalry suddenly roared south and launched a surprise attack on Jinyang City at lightning speed. As the Jinyang defenders were caught off guard, the Turks quickly broke through the outer city and drove between the north gate and the east gate, as if entering a land without people.Facing the menacing Turkic cavalry, Li Yuan had mixed feelings.The happy thing is that the crime that I casually planted on Wang Wei and Gao Junya's head was unexpectedly confirmed, and now the evidence is so strong that Wang and Gao can't be cleared even if they jump into the Yellow River; There are powerful enemies coming, if you go to war with them, the army you have just raised will be consumed, if you lose all your money, what use is there to start an army?

In desperation, Li Yuan decided to sing an empty city plan. While ordering Pei Ji, Liu Wenjing and others to secretly set up defenses at the gates of the palace city (inner city), he ordered all the gates to be opened and all the flags on the top of the city to be removed. Make a little noise. The Turkic people who were running back and forth and showing off their might all fell silent for a moment. Because they saw that the gate of Jinyang Palace was completely opened towards them, and there was not a Sui soldier on the top of the city. The Turkic people did not dare to attack the inner city rashly, nor were they willing to leave, so they continued to plunder the outer city while still eyeing the inner city.

Li Yuan boarded the southeast tower, and found that although the Turkic soldiers were numerous and powerful, they were running back and forth and scattered, so he ordered Wang Kangda and others to sneak to the north gate of the outer city with more than a thousand people to set up an ambush, preparing to attack the Turkic stragglers. Loot some horses and do some strategic exploration on the one hand. But Wang Kangda's actions failed.As soon as they started, they were surrounded by Turkic regiments. Most of the more than 1,000 people died in battle. Wang Kangda was killed in battle, and only more than 100 people escaped back.The soldiers and civilians were immediately terrified, so they concentrated all their grievances on Wang Wei and Gao Junya who "colluded with the Turks".Li Yuan took advantage of the situation to behead Wang and Gao in public, which not only quelled public anger, but also completely eradicated these two confidants.

There were not many troops in the city, and now they have lost another thousand people. It seems that a hard fight will not work, and this empty city strategy will not last long.Li Yuan immediately set up another suspicious strategy, ordering the troops to sneak out of the city under the cover of night, and then enter the city from another direction in the early morning of the next day with banners waving and drums beating. The Turkic people panicked when they saw it. It seemed that this was a support soldier, and there were quite a few of them!The suspicious Turkic people stayed for another two days, but never dared to attack, and finally led their troops north after plundering the outer city.

Although Jinyang was temporarily relieved, for Li Yuan who was about to raise troops, the Turkic people in the north were always a huge threat behind him.If he sent his troops to Chang'an and the Turks took advantage of the situation to invade Taiyuan, it would undoubtedly put him in a predicament where he would be attacked from both sides and lost ground.Therefore, we must temporarily bow our heads to the Turks, and there is no other way. Li Yuan personally wrote a humble letter to Shibi Khan, saying: "The Sui Kingdom is in chaos today, and the people are poor. If you don't provide relief, you will be responsible for God. Your Majesty, return the capital, and restore peace with the Turks, just like the Kaihuang era. If you can send troops south with me, I hope that the people will not be harmed. The money, treasures and silks are all owned by the Khan; You can also enjoy rich wealth. What to do is left to the khan's choice."

After finishing writing, Li Yuan used the words "so-and-so enlightened" on the envelope to show his humility.The official in charge of sending the letter felt very uncomfortable after reading the word "Qi", and suggested sending more property to the Turkic people, and then changed "Qi" to "book". After hearing this, Li Yuan laughed and said, "You don't understand this. The ancients said: 'Be subdued by one person and stretch above ten thousand! Give, are you still reluctant to bear the word?" Shibi Khan of the Eastern Turks was overjoyed when he saw the letter.For him, Liu Wuzhou of Mayi, Liang Shidu of Shuofang, and Guo Zihe of Pucheng had all surrendered to him, and now Li Yuan stayed in Taiyuan and came to join him, which meant that the military towns on the northern border of the Sui Empire had all surrendered to him. Suddenly it opened.Once the troops go south in the future, won't it be unimpeded all the way, like entering a land without people?

Shibi Khan immediately replied a letter to Li Yuan, expressing his full support and providing him with soldiers and war horses, but the condition was that he would call himself the emperor and openly oppose the Sui Dynasty like Liu Wuzhou and others.In fact, it meant that Li Yuan became a vassal of the Turks and became a vassal of the Turks.After receiving the reply, everyone around Li Yuan was very happy, but Li Yuan didn't take it seriously.It's not that he didn't want to get the support of the Turks, but he didn't want to ascend the throne so early and openly break with the Sui Dynasty.

His political wisdom told him that it is far safer and more beneficial to use the banner of "respecting the Sui Dynasty" than "anti-Sui". Because when the victory or defeat is uncertain and the general situation of the world is still unclear, "respecting the Sui Dynasty" can get more leeway and space for maneuvering than "anti-Sui". Infamy will become a target of public criticism.In addition, Li Yuan was unwilling to accept the so-called "Son of Heaven" canonization of the Turks like Liu Wuzhou and the others, and openly became a vassal of the Turks.The reason is very simple. The cooperation with the Turkic people was originally forced by the current situation and had to be done.Since it was a one-night stand, how could it be advertised with great fanfare?Besides, at least in name and at this stage, Li Yuan still tends to position himself as a relative and important minister of the Sui Dynasty, so as not to overly hurt his national pride and sense of morality, but also to serve his own interests. The uprising against the Sui Dynasty put on a layer of political protection of "supporting the country and stabilizing the world", and won more precious time for strengthening its own strength.

In view of this, Li Yuan believes that the most appropriate posture for himself at present should be to strike a delicate balance between the Sui Dynasty and the Turks, neither to break with the Sui Dynasty nor to be an enemy of the Turks. In other words, he had to walk a tightrope between the Sui Dynasty and the Turks. And dance on a tightrope. Pei Ji, Liu Wenjing and the others saw Li Yuan's delay in replying to the Turkic people, and they said anxiously: "Now that all the soldiers have assembled, what we need most is war horses. We don't necessarily need Hu people's soldiers, but Hu people's horses must be done away with." .If you delay in accepting their terms, I'm afraid they will regret it."

Li Yuan still disagreed, and said, "You guys think of a compromise." In early June, Li Jiancheng, Li Yuanji and Chai Shao finally arrived in Taiyuan.After discussing with Li Jiancheng, Li Shimin and others, Pei Ji proposed to Li Yuan a way to dance on the wire: "Abolish the emperor and establish a replacement king; raise righteous soldiers to attack the counties; change the flag to show the Turks." Famous, to collect Yixia". ("Datang Entrepreneurship Daily Note") Li Yuan smiled. First of all, it was announced that Yang Guang would be deposed, and Yang You, the young king who stayed behind in Chang'an, would be supported. This would not only conform to the will of God and the hearts of the people, but also seize the political commanding heights. coat.Secondly, with this beautiful coat, we can spread the word to the world in a grand manner, unite all the forces that can be united, form the broadest united front, strive to win without fighting, and exchange for the best results at the lowest price .Finally, in order to gain the political and military support of the Turkic people, it is advisable to use the white color used by the Turkic people on the flag of the army to show favor to the Turkic people. Obviously, this is a well-known plan for raising troops that is both pragmatic and flexible, impartial and balanced.Li Yuan accepted it almost intact. He only changed one small detail.In the color of the military flag, Li Yuan did not use the red of the Sui Dynasty, nor the white of the Turks, but a double color of red and white. Dance on the tightrope! Li Yuan decided to carry out this political idea to the end. On the fifth day of June in the thirteenth year of Daye, after experiencing a series of adventures and twists and turns, the political and military group headed by Li Yuan finally formally set up troops in Taiyuan. The historical curtain of the Sui Dynasty's fall and Tang Dynasty's prosperity was opened.Li Yuan's strategic goal is very clear, which is the political heart of the Sui Empire - Xijing Chang'an.To march into Chang'an, Xihe County must first be conquered. Li Yuan handed over the heavy responsibility of the first battle to Li Jiancheng and Li Shimin brothers, he said: "You are young and have no experience in training, first this county will see your performance and deeds, now everyone's eyes are on you, work hard on your own! "After speaking, Li Yuan issued another order: In addition to the round-trip journey, I will only give you three days of military rations. That is to say - if Li Jiancheng and Li Shimin can't take Xihe within three days, it means failure. For the fledgling Li brothers, this is definitely a severe test. And what's worse, they led a group of recruits who had not been trained at all. However, Li Jiancheng and Li Shimin set out on the road with full confidence.Along the way, they shared weal and woe with the soldiers, and stepped forward as soon as they discovered the enemy's situation; if the soldiers stole vegetables and fruits from the villagers, they would find the owner and compensate them, and they did not punish the soldiers who stole; They all share it with the people, and never enjoy it alone; if someone is particularly kind to offer cattle, wine and other things, they politely refuse, saying: "This is also the law of the Sui Dynasty, I dare not." With this style of honesty, self-discipline and generosity, the young Li brothers quickly won the support of the tribe and the hearts of the people near and far. The demeanor and reputation of the "righteous teacher" spread immediately, and spread faster than their marching speed, and immediately fell into the ears of Xihe officials and people, so the officers and soldiers of the Sui army guarding the city had no fighting spirit, except for the county magistrate Gao Deru In an attempt to occupy the city and resist.On the tenth day of the sixth lunar month, the rebel soldiers approached the city of Xihe. As soon as the ladder was put up on the top of the city, the soldiers with high morale rushed forward, captured the city without any effort, and arrested the county magistrate Gao Deru. The Li brothers immediately beheaded Gao Deru, and did not kill anyone else, and did not commit any crime against Xihe officials and civilians, and let the common people settle down to their jobs. The fledgling Li brothers lived up to expectations and took down Xihe County almost without bloodshed. They easily completed their first military career, and at the same time took a beautiful first step in the journey to create Li Tang. After the triumphant return of the army, it took only nine days before and after.Li Yuan was overjoyed and said: "Using troops like this is enough to run rampant in the world!" Victory in the first battle.Li Yuan strengthened his determination to "go south to Guanzhong and west to take Chang'an". After Xihe was pacified, Li Yuan immediately opened a granary to provide food, and young and middle-aged people from far and near came to join him. Thousands of people joined the rebel army every day, and the number of people soon increased to tens of thousands.Then Pei Ji opened the treasury of Jinyang Palace and presented 90,000 dendrobium of rice, 50,000 pieces of colored silk, and 400,000 collars for military use. The men, horses, supplies, and food and wages are all ready. The next thing Li Yuan has to do is to give himself a proper title, and at the same time give a proper title to all those who follow him. For everyone in the Li Yuan Group, their status is too important.Having a new title means that they will bid farewell to their past life and make a clean break with the old dynasty. From then on, they will have a new starting point and have their own place in the upcoming new dynasty. On June 14th of the 13th year of Daye, Tang Guogong Li Yuan established himself as a general and opened the General's Mansion. Kaishan was Hucao, and Changsun Shunde, Liu Hongji and others were the left and right armies; at the same time, Li Jian was appointed as the Duke of Longxi and the governor of the left army, commanding the left three armies; For the right leader Shi... This is the original political and military team that Li Yuan founded the Tang Dynasty. A group of people from all over the world chose the same historical mission at this moment. And saved into an iron fist. Can it swing towards Chang'an smoothly and deliver a fatal blow to the heart of the old dynasty?