Chapter 481: The ability to control a general is second to none
Even though Li Yuanhui and his party did not delay on the way back, it still took them twenty days to reach Luoyang.

After all, there are women and children in the team, as well as infantry, so it is impossible to compare with the marching speed of all cavalry.

Although he had walked this road many times, the steepness and difficulty of the Xiaohan Road still made Li Yuanhui complain in his heart, when will there be a high-speed rail? Even if it is an old green-skinned one.

No matter how much he complained, he knew that with the current level of technology, even if it developed rapidly, it would take hundreds of years to see it.

As for the development of science and technology, his predecessors actually did not do much, probably because they were liberal arts students.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have been so idle as to publish all the 300 best Tang and Song poems. This made it so difficult for Li Yuanhui to even pick up a pen when he wanted to "write" a poem. He could only say that all the poems suitable for copying and suitable for the occasion were written by Cao.

To this day, when it comes to literary achievements, the "Four Caos" are insurmountable peaks.

As a result, Li Qinglian had to change his career path and focus on studying military strategies. Now he has become "My Zifang" in the Prince of Qi's Palace.

Li Yuanhui's contribution to science and technology was also extremely limited, because he actually studied design, and physics and chemistry would not be suitable for him.

So far, we have only reproduced cotton armor, cloth armor, and improved crossbows, including large bed crossbows and small Yuanrong crossbows.

In terms of catapults, he has developed the Huihui cannon in the past few years. In fact, he was thinking about developing firearms.

But he was very cautious about firearms, and he wanted to develop fertilizer rather than gunpowder.

Once chemical fertilizers are available, it will be possible to greatly increase the amount of grain produced per mu, and it will not be difficult to double it. This also means that the problem of famine can be greatly solved, and even the dynasty cycle can be delayed.
But again, he studied design, and had long since handed chemistry back to his English teacher.

On the second day after returning to Luoyang, all civil and military officials were summoned to Changchun Hall.

In the main hall, standing in sequence on the left were the staff of the Tian Ce Palace and the Qi Wang Palace, headed by Guo Fenghe, the Chief Clerk and Acting Left Prime Minister, Li Qinglian, Dugu Ying, Jiang Yi, Zheng Shandao, Yu Zhining, Gao Kan, Li Chunfeng, Dou Shi, Zhao Jiong and others.

Standing in sequence on the right are the generals of various guards and armies, headed by Li Sixing, the general of the Left Guard, Zhu Deyu, Zhang Jian, Chang Yanheng, Zhang Zhen'e, Luo Shixiang, Xiao Shizhi, Liu Yuanqing, Xue Wanche, Duan Wuxuan, Pei Xingyan, Han Quan, Yuchi Jingde and others.

Li Yuanhui sat in the main seat, with two young men beside him. One was about sixteen or seventeen years old, more than seven feet tall, with an upright figure and extraordinary handsomeness. He was the fourth son of Prince Zhaode, Prince Lanling Li Changgong.

The other one is a fat boy with a chubby face, cleverness and likability. He is the fifth son of Prince Zhaode, Prince Ande Li Yanzong.

This time, Li Yuanhui specifically mentioned that he wanted to keep the two boys by his side to gain some experience and train them well as future great members of the royal family.

Li Yanzong was also very excited to be able to leave Chang'an and follow his fourth uncle to Luoyang for training. He was especially excited to be able to participate in meetings of this level as soon as he arrived in Luoyang.

Li Changgong was secretly amazed at the generals in the palace. He was usually diligent in riding and shooting, and he practiced martial arts hard. Naturally, he could tell from their figures, auras, and expressions that they were all powerful. Compared with the generals in Chang'an City, the generals in the East Palace and the Prince of Jin's Mansion were not inferior at all.

However, at this moment, these warriors who should have been unruly all stood there, with solemn expressions, and were very respectful to the always amiable Fourth Uncle.

I couldn't help but become more curious about my fourth uncle. How did he do this?
"The Crown Prince and the King of Jin have reached an agreement. Next, I in Luoyang will also do my utmost to ensure that the war to take Jingzhou in the south can proceed smoothly. Whether it is sending troops or supplying food and grass, we must do our best and not make any mistakes."

Li Yuanhui set the tone right from the start: no time to lose, full support. Everyone knew what was going on after hearing this.

Li Qinglian, the Sima of Tiance Mansion, was the first to stand up and say, "Your Majesty, I thought that the Guandong treasury was full, and there was no need to worry about supporting the army's food and grass. However, His Royal Highness the Prince of Jin led the army to conquer Jingzhou, and the Luoyang army and the Jianghuai army would have to face the attacks of the Northern Han and Eastern Wei at the same time. Liu Xuanji and Cao Yan have been preparing for war and watching them covetously in the past few years. I thought that we needed to focus on the defense along the rivers and stockpile heavy troops to ensure the stability of Jianghuai and the Central Plains." Dugu Ying also said, "What Sima Li said is very true. Although our Tang Dynasty has the natural dangers of rivers, it still needs troops to guard it. Huainan and Jiangzhou still need to leave some troops to guard them. As for the Yellow River, we still need heavy troops to guard the river crossings such as Heyang, Baima, and Mengjin."

The two men meant the same thing, that we should still be on guard against the two powerful enemies in the south and the north.

Support for the war in Jingzhou must be limited, and all mobile forces cannot be deployed to help.

Li Yuanhui naturally thought so too, so he immediately announced the specific strategy of sending troops to everyone.

The troops were divided into four groups.

The Yizhou navy and land forces numbered 80,000, the Guanzhong elite numbered 100,000, the Jiangzhou and Yangzhou navy as well as the Jianghuai warlords' troops, the available navy from Southern Yuzhou, Xuzhou, Qingzhou and other places plus the soldiers from the prefectures and counties.

The Left and Right Wuwei, the Left and Right Weiwei, and the six armies under the Tiance Palace did not move a single soldier.

Upon hearing this, everyone was completely relieved and no longer worried that sending troops to Jingzhou would leave the defenses of Central Plains, Lianghuai and other places loose, allowing Northern Han and Eastern Wei to take advantage of the situation.

This army passing through the passage in western Henan had to go through the three passes of Yiyang to enter Jiangxia County, and then join the navy to march out from Xiakou. Its mission was to support the battlefield rather than to be the main attack direction.

The battle site that really decided the outcome should be the battle for Xiangyang and Fancheng. This place has been a key point between the north and the south since ancient times. It is an important barrier for the Jianghan Plain and the core of defense for the Western Wei regime.

This tough nut to crack was naturally taken by the Jin Wang Li Xuanqing himself, who also used the elite troops from Guanzhong.

Therefore, in this war, Luoyang obviously had to bear greater logistical pressure. After realizing this, all the generals became somewhat discouraged, which meant that they were basically just spectators in this war to annihilate the country.

All they need to take on is the defense against powerful enemies in the north, which makes it difficult for everyone to accept. However, the main force is destined not to participate in the conquest of Jingzhou, so can they be temporarily transferred over to take charge of the state and county troops?
But once they were out, they would lose their position if they wanted to come back. So everyone had no choice but to join the war.
Li Yuanhui knew what everyone was thinking at this time, and said with a smile: "You have all been with me for a long time, why bother about this? The Western Wei occupied less than a state, it was just a small country, it would be easy to destroy it, what kind of achievement is that? In the future, we will need you to fight bravely to pacify Jiangdong in the south and attack Liu Han in the north. Are you afraid that you won't be able to lift your sword by then?"

"Hahahaha, what the king said is exactly what I want. The Western Wei army is not up to the challenge. If we were allowed to go, we would think they are too weak and cannot show our abilities."

Zhu Deyu's words were just right, and everyone agreed.

Li Yuanhui also laughed and said, "Don't be too complacent and underestimate the enemy. If the battle on the front line goes wrong, you will have to take action. If anyone fails to defeat the enemy, he will be laughed at! I will beat him with a military stick!"

"If the king wants us to fight, all we need to do is prepare some good wine. This military stick will never give the king a chance to strike!"

"Hahaha, that's right! How can those soldiers of the Western Wei Dynasty compare to the elite troops under the command of the Prince of Qi's Palace? Defeating them is as easy as chopping melons and vegetables."

All the generals immediately became active, each showing their bravery from having been through hundreds of battles.

Li Yuanhui also stood up and chatted with everyone, without any airs of a commander. Li Changgong was still looking at the generals. These warriors seemed to be happy to hear about war, as if the stronger the enemy, the more motivated they would be, and they were ashamed to bully the weak.

On the other side, Li Yanzong was thinking more. He had the majesty to intimidate the generals, but also the heroic spirit to get along with everyone at this moment.

When it comes to controlling powerful generals, even Liu Xuanji of the Northern Han Dynasty and Chang'an's second uncle can't do better than the fourth uncle, right?
(End of this chapter)