Chapter 424 Play hard to get
Li Yuanhui was stunned for a moment, then asked, "Aye, you don't think I asked Fengjie to burn the river bridge, do you?"

Li Yuan looked into his eyes carefully, but could see everything.

"It's not your best. Now, what do you think we should do?"

Li Yuan actually doesn't want to find out who burned it now. Even if he investigates now, it will be a mess. Besides, these things can't be investigated to the end.

Even if it was really Li Si who did it, what could he do? He brought 100,000 troops to show off to outsiders, not to deal with his own son. The most important thing now is to solve the problem.

"Father, I have just said what I should say in the palace. Without the river bridge, as long as the Yan army controls a few ferry crossings, it will be extremely difficult for our army to go north to fight against them. If Governor Zhao is still in Liyang, with his bravery, he may be able to deal with Liu Xuanji, but the troops in Hebei are too scattered at present."

Li Yuanhui's opinion was very simple. He suggested withdrawing troops, strategically shrinking, and giving up Hanoi.

But the more Li Yuanhui said this, the more Li Yuan didn't want to give up Hanoi, a strategic location. Both of them understood that in fact, Hanoi could still fight with Northern Yan in this place. It was not to the point where they had no strength to fight.

But at present, the only Tang troops in Luoyang who are capable and qualified to lead the troops to the north bank of the Yellow River to confront the Yan army led by Liu Xuanji are Li Yuan and his son Li Yuanhui.

Besides, no one else has this weight.

But Li Yuanhui clearly demanded the withdrawal of troops, which clearly showed that he did not want to fight, or was pretending not to want to fight.

If Li Yuan wants to fight, he will probably have to do it himself.

But it was always risky for the emperor to lead the army in person. Whether it was a military victory or a defeat, it also affected the emperor's own authority and influence, so when the emperor led the army in person, he should always fight to win.

Otherwise, how embarrassing it would be for you, an emperor, to lead the army in person but still fail to win?

So Li Yuan is now facing this problem, a dilemma.

He had only two choices: to lead his troops to fight against Northern Yan himself, or to offer Li Yuanhui some conditions and let him fight.

As for what other conditions could be offered to Li Yuanhui, it was obvious that he did not want to return to Chang'an. He could either continue to stay in Luoyang or return to Jianghuai. These were the only two conditions.

"Well, what exactly do you need to support sending troops to the north bank to stabilize Hanoi?"

Li Yuan finally sighed helplessly.

Hearing this, Li Yuanhui frowned and said, "What are you talking about, Father? My opinion on sending troops to Hebei is all public opinion. The situation on the north bank is too serious. The Northern Yan cavalry under Liu Xuanji can fight head-on with my second brother's Black Armor Army without losing the upper hand."

To Li Yuan, these words sounded like excuses and exorbitant demands.

Then he waved his hand and said, "Okay, you go back first, I'll think about it."

After Li Yuanhui bowed, he left the hall. As he was walking out of the palace, the tension in his heart loosened little by little.

In fact, when Li Yuan said this in the palace, he wanted to agree to it.

But he knew that the time had not come yet. Li Yuan was definitely testing him, and basically all the things he promised him would not count.

He believed that Liu Xuanji would never miss this good opportunity.

If Hanoi could be taken, then Northern Yan could directly spy on Luoyang to the south and threaten Hedong to the west. Li Yuan would never be willing to lose this strategic hub, let alone lose face.

Therefore, Li Yuanhui was certain that Northern Yan and Tang would definitely fight a war in Hanoi next, and the scale of the battle would not be small.

Lao Li must either go himself, or he must be allowed to lead the army. Otherwise, the second or third brother must be transferred over.

But now neither of them can move.

The second son is the crown prince. Longyou and the areas north of Guanzhong have just experienced a major war. Guanzhong needs to be stable at this time. Without him, there may be chaos. Hedong has just stabilized. If the third son leaves now, it will easily become a new breakthrough point.

So Li Yuan could only choose between himself and Lao Si. His own shortcomings were too great and it was easy for him to have problems. And Lao Si was the most suitable person to fight this battle.

Whether it is from the perspective of familiarity with the battlefield, military style, or even personal prestige, he is suitable.

But Lao Si's appearance fee is very expensive, and Li Yuan is not willing to give the price that Li Si wants.

The matter was put on hold for the time being.

Li Tang's decision makers were struggling to their limits in Luoyang. After receiving the news that the river bridge was burned down, Liu Xuanji in Yecheng, Hebei, did not show any excitement. Instead, his face was very serious.

Wang Sizheng, Ling Jing and Li Yuanzhong all expressed their willingness to send troops.

After all, this opportunity is rare. Fu Hongzhi led a thousand people to capture the North City and burned the pontoon bridge. If the Tang army wants to repair the pontoon bridge, they have to take back the North City first. There is no need to think about this in a short time.

So now is actually the best time to capture Hanoi.

But only Liu Xuanji knew that this must be Li Yuanhui's way of doing things because he didn't want to return to Chang'an and wait for death.

He vaguely remembered Li Yuanhui saying something like this: When you want to solve a problem, you usually need another problem to appear, or you can make the problem bigger by trying to solve it.
After careful consideration, he decided to send troops as Li Si wished.

The opportunity is too rare.

Liu Xuanji gathered 50,000 elite Northern Army soldiers and 20,000 powerful troops, a total of 70,000 people, and marched south to capture Liyang.

On the Tang army side, Xu Qiande, the defender of Chaoge, abandoned the city early and retreated to Fangtou with his baggage and food. He joined forces with Xiao Shizhi to form a pincer attack with Liyang.

The defender of Liyang City was General Liu Yuanqing of the Left Guard, who came from the anti-Yan righteous army and later surrendered to Li Yuanhui. He was considered a powerful faction within the Qi Wangfu.

He was stationed in Liyang on assignment from Li Yuan.

Before this, Jizhou Governor Zhao Yi had been stationed in Liyang for several years, but Li Yuan took into consideration Zhao Yi's bravery and the fact that he was a local lord and had been away from home after joining the Tang Dynasty. So this time, after adjusting his official position, he directly appointed Zhao Yi as the General of the Right Guard and granted him the title of Duke of Song.

They are supported by high-ranking officials and high salaries.

His core troops were handed over to his brother, Zhao Jiong.

Previously, Zhao Jiong served as the General of the Right Guard and concurrently as the Secretary of the Central Secretariat, and was considered a close minister of Li Yuan and a nobleman.

This time he was appointed General Zhenbei, commanding half of the 6,000 elite troops left by his brother, 3,000 of whom were stationed in Yanzhou, Bai Ma on the opposite bank of Liyang.

Liu Yuanqing led half of his own troops, five of which were stationed in Liyang, and the other five were also stationed in Baima.

Zhao Yi's old brothers Han Duo and Shi Yanchao, who commanded 3,000 elite troops, remained in Liyang, but were under the command of Liu Yuanqing.

Liu Yuanqing had a total of 8,000 troops in Liyang. Facing Liu Xuanji's aggressive attack, he did not dare to be careless. He led 3,000 men to set up camp outside the city to support the defenders in the city.

After Liu Xuanji arrived in Liyang, he immediately took charge of the battle and ordered the troops to attack the Tang army's camp outside the city.

Liu Yuanqing, who was fighting the Yan army for the first time, was surprised to find that the enemy's fighting power far exceeded his expectations. Although Liu Yuanqing himself was brave, his ability to manage the army and train soldiers was not outstanding among the generals in the Qi Palace.

He built three camps, two of which were breached in half a day. If Shi Yanchao in the city had not led his cavalry to charge in time, it would have been difficult for Liu Yuanqing to even retreat to Liyang City.

Liu Yuanqing had also fought for many years and had even fought against the former Yan army. He had also seen the elite troops under the Crown Prince and the King of Qi. He had also always heard the King of Qi talk about the bravery of the Yan army and that they should not be underestimated.

But with some opponents, you only realize how strong they are after you actually fight them.

(End of this chapter)