Chapter 394 Listen to advice
After the court session, Li San and Li Er were directly invited by Li Yuan to have dinner.

"Although Liu Lang is a concubine's son, you are still brothers by blood no matter what. You should stop arguing with him about this matter."

Only when the father and his two sons were alone did Li Yuan speak softly.

Li Er didn't say anything, but Li San put down his chopsticks and said seriously, "Then Father, please call him back to Chang'an as soon as possible. If I go to Hedong and he is still there, I will definitely kill him according to military law."

Li Yuan was about to get angry when he heard this, but because he was in the wrong, he could only nod and said, "Okay, call him back to the court."

Originally, he was thinking of letting Li Xiaozheng follow Li Sanlang to fight in Bingzhou, and it would be best if he could make some military achievements, so as to save some face. But Li Sanlang said this, and it was obvious that he was unwilling to give him this opportunity.

Li Yuan also knew that Li Sanlang was the kind of person who would definitely do what he said.

What brothers are you talking about? Li Sanlang called Li Xiaozheng a slave and a family servant all the time in the court. How could this be an attitude towards him that treated Li Xiaozheng as a brother?

But Li Yuan hasn't said anything about this matter yet. Even if Li Sanlang killed someone in Hedong, people in the court would have to praise Prince Jin for doing a good job.

Justifiably.

There was no other choice but to choose Li Sanlang to go to Hedong. At this time, we had to find someone with high enough prestige and who could be trusted to go to Hedong.

The crown prince cannot be moved, the King of Qi is in Luoyang, and the King of Jin is the most suitable candidate.

After the two of them had lunch, Li Yuan was in a bad mood, and Li Er seemed to be worried about something. Only Li Sanlang ate and drank as usual, as if he was not affected at all, and didn't care whether his father and brother had an appetite or not.

After eating and drinking, Li San put down his bowl and chopsticks, rinsed his mouth with tea, and then said seriously: "Aye, second brother, you can rest assured in Chang'an. I am not capable of taking back Jinyang, but it is not difficult to stabilize Hedong. When I arrive in Hedong, I will contact Silang and will not let Beiyan act too recklessly."

After saying this, he stood up, bowed, and then left.

Li Er thought about it, stood up and bowed, then said goodbye and turned to chase Li San.

Li San was waiting for him outside the palace, and the two brothers walked together on the way out of the palace.

"With the fall of Jinyang, Silang is under increasing pressure in Luoyang. I guess Liu Xuanji may not attack Hedong next, but will attack Henei from Taihang Pass and Zixia Pass, and then ask Yang Kan of Qingzhou to send troops to Yanzhou to cooperate with him in attacking the Central Plains."

Li San told Li Er in detail about his strategic predictions, and Li Er nodded repeatedly upon hearing them.

"If Liu Xuanji attacks Hedong, he needs to be on guard against Silang's northern expedition to the hinterland of Hebei from the Yellow River. After all, Henei is still in the hands of our Tang Dynasty. It is enough to keep the situation in Hedong stable. Unfortunately, without Jinyang, it will be difficult to compete with Beiyan. Fortunately, the Central Plains is still in our hands. As long as the Central Plains can recover, the northern expedition does not have to start from Jinyang."

The two brothers talked all the way to the palace gate. When they were about to part, Li Ercai warned, "Sanlang, be careful."

Li Sanlang responded: "Don't worry, second brother."

In late March, the Tang Dynasty appointed General Tianzhu and Prince of Jin Li Xuanqing as the Grand Chancellor of the Northern Road, Commander-in-Chief of the Bingzhou Military, and Chief of the Hebei Road Army, and led 20,000 troops to Hedong to take over the war in Bingzhou.

At the same time, Li Yuan also sent someone to quickly notify Li Xiaozheng who was staying in Hedong, asking him to return to Chang'an as soon as possible, otherwise when Prince Jin arrived, even the gods would not be able to save him.

Li Xiaozheng, who was in Hedong during this period, was actually not idle. On the one hand, he asked Wang Yi for troops.

On the one hand, he repeatedly requested Chang'an to send reinforcements, with the aim of retaking Jinyang.

But Wang Yi would definitely not give him troops. What a joke!
But when he learned that Prince of Jin Li Xuanqing was appointed as the new governor of Bingzhou and in charge of the war in Hebei Province, he immediately felt that he had lost the chance to win back his face.

After Li Yuan's messenger arrived, he listened to the advice and packed up his things overnight to return to Chang'an.

Without any hesitation or delay.

He knew that if it were the Crown Prince and the King of Qi, they might not do anything to him, but his third brother, the King of Jin, would really chop off his head as a sacrifice.

He still remembers the feeling of Li Xuanqing pressing his head that day, and the look in his eyes really wanted to kill him. And Wang Yi, the governor of Bingzhou, was relieved when he received the news.

There is a difference between cousins. All I can say is that my uncle finally stopped making mistakes and sent someone who is capable.

As for Northern Yan, after Liu Xuanji captured, or even "fraudulently seized" Jinyang, he continued to mobilize another 10,000 troops to Jinyang.

The newly formed Northern Army consisted of only 80,000 elite soldiers, and 40,000 of them had already arrived in Bingzhou.

Bei Yan's attitude was very firm. Not only did they want to take Jinyang, but they also wanted to operate it as an important stronghold.

Therefore, while Liu Xuanji was personally in charge here, he also brought the newly appointed emperor Murong Ju to ensure stability in the rear.

After all, it’s more reassuring to have this kind of factor right under your nose.

The Tang Dynasty also had sufficient food and grass in Jinyang, which had now become the spoils of war for Northern Yan. Even after adding 20,000 more troops, it would still be enough to feed these troops for several years.

Under such circumstances, the logistical pressure on the Yan army was reduced to a state of almost no burden.

On the other hand, Liu Xuanji did not forget that Li Yuanhui was eyeing Luoyang covetously, and Wang Xiong, the governor of Jizhou stationed in Yecheng, was mature and prudent.

After the fall of Jinyang, Li Yuanhui asked Li Sixing in Hanoi to guard the Taihang line, and at the same time ordered Yu Zhongheng and Zhao Yi to launch several attacks in an attempt to test Jizhou's strength and to try his best.

But without exception, they were all beaten back by Wang Xiong and had no chance at all.

Li Yuanhui also learned that Liu Xuanji was really lucky to take Bingzhou this time, because he took advantage of the sudden death of his brother-in-law Murong Yang to set a trap for Li Xiaozheng.

Moreover, he did not mobilize too many troops to enter Bingzhou, and the garrison troops left in Yecheng were also sufficient, so the chance of taking the opportunity to go north was not very good.

Inside the office, Li Yuanhui was looking at the huge map in front of him, while Yu Zhining, an attendant officer, was reading military intelligence reports next to him.

But I was a little worried in my heart, the current situation was not very optimistic.

Northern Yan now controls Jinyang, and the current situation is a bit like that of Northern Qi versus Northern Zhou.

Fortunately, the Tang Dynasty is now able to control the Central Plains, and its overall strength is still stronger than that of Northern Yan. However, the Tang Dynasty’s biggest problem now lies internally.

There is already a tendency for infighting between father and son and brothers. The biggest problem now is that the old man is too selfish.

There has to be some trouble every now and then. The Tang Dynasty is not unified yet and cannot bear such trouble.
Or do you want to find a way to let the second brother take the throne early and let the old man be the emperor emeritus?

After thinking about this, Li Yuanhui was also shocked by his own idea, and then quickly rejected this idea.

No, it's too dangerous.

It may not be a good thing for him.

When the old man was the emperor, even if he was afraid of his sons, he would not be ruthless. At most, he would think about reducing their power and influence.

But if the second brother comes to power, it’s hard to say.

There is brotherhood. Even though he is now the crown prince, the brotherhood still exists because he has not yet gained power.

But if he really becomes an emperor, and an emperor with real power, it is hard to say whether he would be the first to deal with the powerful people in his area.

You can't afford to gamble with people's hearts.

(End of this chapter)