Chapter 188 Getting Started
Longyou.

After several days of rapid march, Li Sanlang finally led the vanguard to Jieting.

When Yuwen She saw the Bantun soldiers who were obviously dressed as barbarians from Shu and Li Sanlang's 3,000 flying soldiers, he immediately realized that the reinforcements from Yizhou had arrived, and he became a little discouraged.

Murong Abao heaved a sigh of relief. If reinforcements didn't come, he had no idea if he could hold on.

After more than ten days of fighting, the total number of casualties on both sides was more than 20,000.

Among them, the defending Dongyan Army had more than 4,000 casualties. With this ratio of casualties, the army was actually on the verge of collapse.

Fortunately, reinforcements arrived.

Yuwen She immediately decided that he could not continue fighting like this. He had to wait for the outcome of the Liangzhou Army.

Three days later, a military report was shot into the front line of the Western Yan Army by the Eastern Yan Army.

The soldiers in front picked it up and quickly delivered it to the central military tent. After listening to the contents of the military report read by their staff, the whole central military tent was like a boiling pot. You have to know that it was already close to November and the weather was starting to get colder.

This military report was sent from Longyou County to Jieting. The content was very simple. Li Mingqi, the Eagle General, led 3,000 cavalry to launch a surprise attack when the 20,000 Liangzhou troops were not yet firmly established, and won a great victory. Afterwards, they pursued the enemy all the way, beheaded more than 2,000 people, and captured more than 10,000 people.

Yuwen She's face was very gloomy, and all the generals in the big tent cursed the Liangzhou Army and Xiao Juan as useless.

Twenty thousand men were defeated by three thousand men, and more than ten thousand were taken prisoners.

Who wouldn't despair with such allies?

The enemy reinforcements arrived, and our friendly forces were defeated, and the momentum was completely reversed.

Yuwen She finally had no choice but to decide to retreat.

"General, if we withdraw our troops now, not only Longyou, but Hexi will also be out of the control of the imperial court. Liangzhou lost all its elite troops after this battle. Li Yuan and Murong Abao only need to take advantage of the situation and advance their troops. Liangzhou will definitely change hands."

After all the generals left, Zhongdu Protector Tuoba Yuji stayed in the big tent, as if to remind Yuwen She that this decision was related to the situation in the entire northwest battlefield.

Yuwen She asked in return: "Then what do you think General Tuoba should do now?"

Tuoba Yuji said: "Or we can try to take the Xiaoguan Road and raid Liangzhou."

Yuwen She shook his head: "The Turks are now retreating from Hebei. Luoyang has regained control of Youzhou and Jizhou, and has also surrendered Wagang and ordered him to stay in Qingzhou. General Tuoba, where do you think the Eastern Army will aim at next?"

Tuoba Yuji frowned upon hearing this, and then asked, "What does the general mean?"

Yuwen She said: "Li Yuan has already entered Longyou. If we don't withdraw our troops, we may be in danger of collapse. There are only tens of thousands of soldiers in such a large Guanzhong."

Tuoba Yuji said: "But General, if we withdraw now, Longyou and Liangzhou will not belong to us. Li Yuan can look down on Guanzhong from a high position. If we want to seize Longyou and Liangzhou at that time, it will be twice as difficult."

Yuwen She said: "Weighing the two evils, we should choose the lesser one. Although Longyou and Liangzhou are important, Guanzhong is the foundation. Besides, don't forget that we still have allies outside the Great Wall."

Tuoba Yuji immediately understood what Yuwen She meant. It was not easy to advance into Longyou from Guanzhong. It was an attack from above.

Retreating this time would be tantamount to giving up the strategic initiative. Once Li Yuan had secured control of Longyou and Liangzhou, it would be extremely difficult to retake them.

But they could have asked their allies, the Turks, to send troops to make Hexi and Longyou restless. After all, it was much more convenient to send troops from outside the Great Wall to Guanzhong.

Before Li Yuan led his troops to arrive, Yuwen She made a prompt decision to withdraw his troops.

At this time in Liangzhou, Li Er led his army across the Yellow River and captured Jincheng and Xiping counties without bloodshed. He then joined forces with the Qiang and Hu cavalry who had previously fled to Liangzhou and surrendered Xue Renmei's troops.

He obtained more than 30,000 elite soldiers and marched straight to the city of Wuwei.

Xiao Juan, who had just rushed back, was shocked. Standing on the top of the city wall and looking at the army outside the city, he suddenly became a little panicked.

"I used to be very friendly with Wang Sengdi, Mu Changling and others. Why did they turn against me so quickly? Why is it so?"

Xiao Juan couldn't accept this psychological gap. He had worked with the governors and generals for many years and boasted that he had some popularity. It was not that he couldn't accept these people surrendering after being captured.

After all, dying for such a civil war does not reflect any integrity at all. And the Wuxing Emperor in Chang'an was originally a rebel.

On the one hand, the temporary surrender was due to high positions and generous salaries, and on the other hand, it was forced by the situation.

But it's fine if you surrender to the other side, but you pick up a knife and a gun so quickly and point it at your old boss. Isn't this a bit of a lack of sentimentality? Therefore, Xiao Juan looked helpless and desolate, and even a little sad.

It was his son Xiao Keyi who figured out something was wrong. "Father, please be patient. Although Li Erlang has led the surrendered soldiers to besiege the city, he has no intention of attacking it. His soldiers have not cut down trees to build siege equipment."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Juan looked in the direction of the enemy camp that his son had pointed. Suddenly, a group of cavalry emerged from the opposite camp and galloped to the foot of the city. A knight, outside the range of the defenders' bows, drew his powerful bow and shot an arrow, which hit the watchtower.

After seeing that they had succeeded, the cavalry team quickly left.

A soldier took the letter off the arrow and delivered it to Xiao Juan and Xiao Keyi.

Xiao Keyi unfolded the letter and read it with Xiao Juan.

Xiao Juan was very surprised because it was a family letter from Xiao Kezhan, the eldest son in Shuzhong.

Now the father and son knew that their family members had all arrived in Yizhou.
After reading it, Xiao Keyi said directly: "Father, open the gate and surrender the city."

Now he understood why Wang Sengdi, Mu Changling and others were so happy to surrender and immediately turned against him.

Not far away, Li Er and a group of generals stood on a pile of earth platforms and looked at Wuwei City.

"Lord Mu, in your opinion, will Lord Xiao surrender the city?"

Mu Changling said: "Although Lord Xiao is a bit stubborn, Mr. Xiao Sanlang is a wise man who can judge the situation and make decisions. It would be better for the general to get Xiao Keyi than Liangzhou."

Li Erlang raised his eyebrows when he heard this, "If it is really like Lord Mu, we will personally invite you to discuss state affairs together."

Before he finished speaking, the gate of Wuwei city opened.

People in the city poured out one after another, then lined up outside the city, placing their weapons on the ground.

Seeing this, Li Erlang smiled slightly, Liangzhou was settled.

Mu Changling, Wang Sengdi, Xue Renmei, Hou Jun, Da Xi Changru, Dou Zhun and others all breathed a sigh of relief.

Because it means they don't have to go to war with their old boss.

Afterwards, Li Erlang brought only dozens of his trusted warriors and a group of surrendered generals to the gate of Wuwei city.

Xiao Keyi held the seal of the commander-in-chief of Liangzhou's military affairs on behalf of his father, and invited out Zhang Gui, the governor of Liangzhou who had been imprisoned by them.

Li Erlang rode his horse to the city gate, jumped off his horse, and walked forward with the gait of a dragon and a tiger.

Xiao Keyi was a little shocked when he saw how young Li Erlang was, then he bowed and handed over the seal.

"General Li, the entire territory of Liangzhou has rebelled. Please make your decision."

Li Erlang helped Xiao Keyi up and said, "Mr. Xiao, there is no need to be polite. It is not enough to say that Lord Xiao is willing to rebel. It is a blessing for the world. The military affairs of Liangzhou will still rely on Lord Xiao and you."

Then he bowed to Zhang Gui, the governor of Liangzhou, and said, "Junior Li Mingqi pays homage to my uncle."

Zhang Gui smiled and nodded when he heard this. "If it weren't for Erlang's swift military action, I wouldn't be able to see the light of day again. Thank you, father and son."

"Uncle, what are you talking about? This is my job."

Zhang Gui, the governor of Liangzhou, was a good friend of Li Yuan, so he knew Li Er.

After exchanging pleasantries, the two entered the city together.

Zhang Gui was imprisoned because he opposed the surrender of Murong Zhan to Western Yan. However, since Chang'an had been captured, the people were worried about his family, so they imprisoned him. However, because Zhang Gui was an upright person and had a good relationship with the people, no one thought of killing him.

However, he did not expect that within just a few months, it would prove that Zhang Gui's choice was correct.

When Xiao Keyi followed Li Er into the city, he asked a question: Why was it not stated at the beginning that the families of the Liangzhou army generals had already entered Shu, but was only said after the war?
Li Er smiled when he heard this and asked, "If I threaten you with my family, will you surrender?"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Keyi bowed immediately.

He said solemnly, "I know the general's talent."

(End of this chapter)