Chapter 203 Departure
In Jiangdu City, after burying Yang Guang, Li Shimin used the name of Duke of Zhao to pacify the people in all directions. The neighboring counties and prefectures responded one after another, and the situation soon stabilized.

However, Shen Faxing occupied more than a dozen counties south of the Yangtze River and proclaimed himself the governor of Jiangnan Province. Not only did he not show any intention of surrendering, but he even dared to deploy troops to attack Jiangdu.

Li Shimin rejected Wang Gui's proposal to send people to negotiate with Shen Faxing, and excitedly began to recruit soldiers. With 30,000 brave soldiers as his foundation, how could he possibly give in to Shen Faxing?

Wang Gui thought that it would be a good idea to make some concessions now and grant the Shen family the title of Duke. It would not be too late to deal with these local nobles slowly after King Tang ascended the throne.

But since he was there to assist, he still obeyed the Duke of Zhao's wishes and spent two months recruiting 50,000 soldiers. Li Shimin only selected 20,000 of them as auxiliary troops, and then led his brave men to the battle.

The Duke of Zhao sent 30,000 elite troops and 20,000 auxiliary troops to fight against Shen Faxing, who already had nearly 100,000 soldiers. After Wang Gui watched the troops set out with some concern, he continued to recruit young and strong civilians to strengthen the defense of Jiangdu city.

Sun Tzu once said that a general should consider defeat before he considers victory, so he can fight a hundred battles without danger of defeat. The Duke of Zhao was young and energetic, but he had to be responsible for the King of Tang and be prepared to defend Jiangdu even if he was defeated.

But soon he was shocked by the continuous good news. At first he thought it was Shen Faxing's strategy to lure Duke Zhao deep into the territory and then ambush and encircle him, so he hurriedly sent someone to write a letter to remind him.

But after just two months, Shen Faxing had been defeated and only tens of thousands of his defeated soldiers were left hiding in his hometown of Wuxing. After the rest of the counties were conquered, he realized that his worries were unnecessary.

God bless the Li family! Wang Gui kept following behind Duke Zhao to appease the surrendered counties. Fortunately, he was the grandson of Wang Sengbian, the Minister of the Southern Liang Dynasty, and he also had roots and relatives in the south of the Yangtze River.

He quickly recruited capable local scholars to serve as officials, implemented the lenient policy set by the King of Tang, appeased the people in the south of the Yangtze River, and reduced their burden.

However, Shen Faxing contacted Li Zitong of Hailing and Du Fuwei of Liyang, and explained the pros and cons. Only by repelling the Tang army could they continue to dominate the Jianghuai region. If they allowed the Tang army to gain a foothold in Jiangdu, they would have no choice but to submit to Chang'an and be controlled.

Li Zitong and Du Fuwei did not care about their mutual hatred and sent troops to attack Li Shimin from the side in order to lift the siege of Wuxing. Li Shimin chose to temporarily avoid the attack and let the three parties join forces.

After retreating two counties, Wang Gui also led 30,000 troops to support. He was relieved to see that Duke Zhao did not choose to fight head-on. Although the Xiaoguo Army was elite, they were few in number after all.

If they suffered too many casualties, they would have no choice but to abandon all the counties and defend Jiangdu until help came.

Li Shimin did not show any surprise at Wang Gui's aid, but Wang Gui was shocked. The original nobleness of the Duke of Zhao had been covered by sharpness, and the whole person was like a divine weapon unsheathed, so sharp that people dared not look directly at him.

Li Shimin looked at the terrain map and took the initiative to give up two counties in order to let the three parties fight each other. This was originally Shen Faxing's territory, but Shen Faxing's strength had been greatly damaged, so why should he ask for it back?

Li Zitong and Du Fuwei came here to protect their own interests. Faced with these two extremely wealthy counties, could they really resist their greed and return them to Shen Faxing?

As Li Shimin had expected, the enemy did not advance for several days. After waiting for some more time, he received the news that Shen Faxing had died, the Shen family in Wuxing had been massacred, and only a few dozen of the thousands of people had escaped.

Li Shimin brazenly sent troops, and at this time, the news that Li Jing occupied Luoyang also came. More than half of the world had fallen into the hands of the Li family. The people under Li and Du's command were in unrest, and all the officials and officers wanted to surrender.

Li Shimin's offensive was fierce and he always led the troops in every battle. When the Xiaoguo Army learned that even Luoyang had fallen into the hands of the King of Tang, their morale was greatly boosted and everyone fought hard to be the first in order to gain merit.

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Xiao Xin once again invited his uncle Xiao Jing to a banquet, but this time his attitude was much lower. Xiao Jing did not like his nephew very much because he was too ignorant, did not consider the overall situation, and put the family in an unjust position for his own selfish desires. "Humph, arrogant at first and respectful later, what's going on? Did the King of Tang take over Luoyang or Jiangdu?"

Xiao Xin sighed helplessly: "They've all been taken."

Xiao Jing wanted to be serious, but he couldn't help laughing: "It's so fast, the King of Tang is really destined to be king."

After that, he scolded with a serious face: "Then what are you waiting for? Can a mere ten counties resist the great trend of the world? Earlier, I advised you not to listen, and you insisted on detaining me. Now that you know that the destiny has fallen on the Li family, why don't you quickly present your petition to the pass and meet the King of Tang!"

Xiao Xin sat down dejectedly: "Does the Xiao family really have no chance of restoring the country? Has Daliang's luck run out? Why can't you give me a few more years?"

Speaking of Liang State, Xiao Jing's face lost much joy. No matter how prominent one is, it is not as good as being in charge of one's own country.

"Hey, Xian'er, the trend cannot be violated. Think about how many families have risen and fallen in the past hundred years. It's already good that our Lanling Xiao family can still maintain its wealth.

Princess Tang, the future queen, is our noble daughter and is already pregnant..."

Xiao Xin angrily slammed the table and stood up, his eyes filled with resentment as he said, "It was because of his daughter that my Xiao family was ruined!

If it weren't for my great uncle helping the Li family take Chang'an, how could Li Jiancheng have occupied most of the country so quickly? If not, I would have had time to swallow up states and counties, and there might be a chance to rebuild the country!"

Xiao Jing frowned and said, "Do you really think that the Tang King's rise to power is entirely due to my family? You are wrong. Even if my Xiao family did not exist, the time when the Tang King would rule the world would not be much later than it is now.

You can still be said to have a strong army, but the generals under your command are all self-reliant and have their own plans. Although they nominally obey you as their leader, they just want to borrow the reputation of my Xiao family. I'm afraid that the number of troops you can really command is not even 100,000. "

Xiao Xin did not refute. At that time, Yuezhou Captain Dong Jingzhen, Lei Shimeng, Brigade Commander Zheng Wenxiu and others rose up against the Sui Dynasty, but because they all came from humble backgrounds and found it difficult to mobilize local forces, they specifically invited him to be the leader, and thus they established their current foundation.

Although he eliminated some people one after another, there were still factions under his command. Generally speaking, they would not disobey his orders, but when it came to their foundation, they would not be obedient.

"The King of Tang annexed the world so quickly. Does that mean he can control his subordinates just like an arm?"

Xiao Jing said, "Of course not, but the King of Tang is young and strong. After he has secured his throne, he has plenty of time to sort out internal affairs. Sooner or later, he will be able to issue orders and the world will obey. Unless it is a chaotic time, no hero can defeat the Lord of the Country."

Xiao Xin was silent for a moment: "Uncle, I have a daughter, the King of Tang..."

Before he could finish, Xiao Jing waved his hand and said, "It would be fine if the princess couldn't get pregnant, but now that the princess is pregnant, there are too many Xiao women in the Tang king's harem, and it is easy to be tabooed. So, I heard that the Tang king's younger brother, the Duke of Jin, has not yet married, what do you think?"

"Yes, I will submit my land and surrender."

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(End of this chapter)