Chapter 411 Cold Weather
After winter came, Li Yuanhui still thought that Liu Xuan would not retreat.

After all, it is cold in winter, and the soldiers need more food and a lot of heating supplies. Using troops in winter is actually a test of logistics.

The tents also need to be replaced with thicker ones for winter use, and the soldiers also need to change into cotton clothes.

As for the Tang army, because of the appearance of padded armor, the armor coverage rate of Li Yuanhui's left and right Wuwei Army, Beiwei Army, Qi Wangfu Guards, and personal soldiers has covered all of them.

All the heavily-armored troops wore cotton-padded jackets inside and armor outside, while the rest were all equipped with cotton armor, which was both protective and warm.

After the winter came, it was the Tang army that launched several tentative attacks and provocations, while the Yan army became as still as a rock.

Li Yuanhui, the commander of the Tang army, began to get a little anxious. If this battle was just him and Liu Xuanji confronting each other, he would not be afraid for three to five years. The entire Central Plains could now provide him with resources continuously, and the water transportation was safe. The Tang army on the entire battlefield, including the Baima direction, did not exceed 100,000, so there was no need to worry about logistical supply issues.

But the problem is that after the New Year, Li Yuan will lead his troops to Luoyang, which will cause the situation on the battlefield to develop in an unknown direction and completely out of his control.

Li Yuanhui didn't think too much about it at first, but Dugu Ying, the chief secretary of the Prince of Qi's palace, reminded him, "Have you forgotten that Emperor Zhaowu took in Prince of Qiao Murong Jian?"

This sentence was a wake-up call for Li Yuanhui, because he knew this matter very well.

That was in the 13th year of Tiansheng in the previous dynasty of Great Yan. At that time, he was still a general of the Xiongguo Army, and followed the emperor to suppress the rebellion of the governor of Qi County. However, the governor of Xuzhou and Prince of Qiao Murong Jian, who was in charge of the war on the southern front, remained in Langya without moving his troops.

Murong Ying first led his army directly to Xuzhou Pengcheng and captured Murong Jian's lair. Then he personally led thousands of cavalry to Langya, rushed into Murong Jian's camp and seized his military power.

Li Yuanhui was among those thousands of cavalrymen at that time.

At that time, he was still sighing that his father-in-law had suddenly become wise and his methods were so swift and effective.

Wasn't this the way Emperor Wen of Wei took Zang Ba? He rushed to Qingxu in the name of a personal expedition and took this de facto vassal away. With the dual support of the righteous cause and the central army, he directly completed the reduction of the vassal state.

Could it be that the old man was planning this as well? Come to think of it, it was really possible. Or, in other words, this was aimed at him.

After all, no emperor could tolerate someone in his own country controlling half of the territory and one-third of the troops. Not even his son.

After thinking it through, Li Yuanhui initially hoped that Liu Xuanji would withdraw his troops.

If Liu Xuanji had withdrawn his troops like this, would the old man not have come? However, as time went by, Liu Xuanji did not withdraw his troops.

Secondly, Li Yuanhui also faced the reality. Even if Liu Xuanji withdrew his troops, Li Yuan would come anyway if he wanted to attack him.

Snowflakes were falling from the sky as Li Yuanhui, wearing a felt hat and a mink coat, rode on horseback along the bank of the Qi River. The water had already frozen, and was already strong enough for horses and men to pass through.

Li Yuanhui looked at the snow falling all over the sky and suddenly said, "I am worried about the low coal prices and I hope the weather is colder."

When Li Qinglian and Dugu Ying heard this, they immediately thought that His Royal Highness the Prince of Qi wanted to expand the scale of the war to resist the Emperor's move to move the Prince of Qi to Guanzhong?
Li Yuanhui actually had this idea.

But this thought only flashed through his mind. There have been several tentative attacks in this period of time. It would not be good for the Tang army to attack rashly now. Whoever took the initiative to attack would be at a disadvantage.

So he was more anxious now. He even considered that if Li Yuan really moved him to Guanzhong, he would have to rely on others in the future.

The court will spare no effort to crack down on the Jianghuai faction. It's difficult.

Thinking of this, Li Yuanhui asked, "Qinglian, Dugu, if I return to Chang'an, is there any place you want to go?"

Li Qinglian smiled and said, "As the Sima of Tiance Mansion, I will be wherever the Tiance General is."

Dugu Ying also expressed his opinion: "I am a subject of the king, so I will naturally follow the king."

Li Yuanhui smiled and said, "Maybe next year we will have to go back to Chang'an to enjoy a peaceful life." Although he was smiling and speaking in a carefree manner, he was actually somewhat unhappy in his heart.

But there is no way, I can’t let people laugh at me.

It can now be basically concluded that Li Yuan is coming for him. Can he still occupy the area east of Shan County and directly raise the flag of rebellion?
It's too difficult. Once the righteous relationship between monarch and subject, and father and son is suppressed, he will have to bear the reputation of being disobedient whether he wins or loses.

This really can't be done.

So now he has a somewhat relaxed mentality and just lets things take their course.

As for the generals in Jianghuai, he is not worried. Li Yuan will not make any major adjustments in the short term. After all, this is one-third of the military strength of the Tang Dynasty. If you make random arrangements, you can't say what they will do.

We have to rely on these people to conquer the world.

Therefore, in the short term, he, the King of Qi, and the generals and soldiers of Jiang Huai don't have to worry. At most, they will be stripped of their power.

In the long run, it is a bit of a matter of leaving it to fate. It is hard to say what the outcome will be.

If given a choice, he still wanted to be a vassal king, whether in Shuzhong, Jingzhou, or even in Liangzhou or Longyou.

In general, he just didn't want to be in Chang'an.

So his idea was to wait for the old man to come to Luoyang, have a good talk with him, ask him for Shu or Wancheng, and continue to shine for the Tang Dynasty.

Secondly, ask him for 10,000 troops, and take his trusted men and confidants with you to march west. Tell him that all the territory you conquer will belong to you.

You have to agree on one of these two options.
If he doesn't agree, he will be used as a prey. This is the rhythm of forcing people to overturn the table.
Li Yuanhui dismounted and stood by the river, lost in thought. A dozen steps away, Dugu Ying and Li Qinglian also dismounted, but did not come forward.

Dugu Ying said: "Brother Qinglian, it seems that His Majesty is really coming for the king this time. The king has a shallow foundation in Guanzhong, and it is not a good thing for him to return to Chang'an."

Li Qinglian also sighed and said, "What can we do? We can't let the king raise an army to fight against the court, right? That would make him a traitor."

Dugu Ying said: "It is of course not possible to raise an army, but the words of the king just now, 'I am worried about the cheap coal and wish the weather is colder', are interesting. Isn't Wei Xuan's poem saying that the colder the weather, the more valuable the coal is? Only when the situation in Luoyang is serious, will the king of Qi have a need to stay!"

Li Qinglian said: "But once the war expands, the outcome will be hard to predict."

Dugu Ying said: "No, no, the war does not need to be expanded. As long as the war cannot be stopped, Your Majesty will not dare to move rashly. As long as the war is still going on, the king has a reason to stay in Luoyang."

Li Qinglian heard this and immediately smiled and said, "Brother Dugu, what you said makes sense. There must be war in eastern Shaanxi."

On the way back to the camp, the three of them rode side by side. Li Qinglian and Dugu Ying followed half a body length behind on the left and right, and explained the strategy of keeping the enemy at bay one by one.

After listening to this, Li Yuanhui was speechless for a long time. After a long while, he said: "This strategy is feasible, but from my understanding of Liu Xuanji, when he learns that Your Majesty is leading the army, he will definitely guess the intention of the court and will definitely withdraw his troops. On the one hand, it will lead the Tang Dynasty to attack Yecheng. If I don't send troops to attack, I will definitely be replaced. For him, no matter who guards the Central Plains, it is better than me."

"As for Jiangdong, Cao Yan is still competing with the elders, and it is impossible for him to march north in the short term. If I send troops to Jiangdong, they will definitely unite against the enemy. These people are more difficult than each other. Well, let's wait and see."

Dugu Ying and Li Qinglian were both silent after hearing this. The strategies they offered were not useless, but a lot depended on the cooperation of their opponents.

If your opponent doesn't respond at all or even sees through your intentions, then all your efforts will be in vain.

But Li Yuanhui had already thought of another possibility.

It would be interesting if Li Yuan led his army to Luoyang and Liu Xuanji immediately withdrew his troops to Yecheng and then spread the rumor that he was afraid of the reputation of the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty.

If this happens, Lao Li must not get too excited.
(End of this chapter)