Chapter 39 Lingwu
Just when the court was still arguing about whether to kill He Ruobi, the Turkic Khan Dahan led his army to invade the border. Although the Sui Dynasty won the battle against the Turks last year, the Eastern Turkic Khan also died in the battle.

But the Western Turkic Khan Datou was not dead. When he saw that Dulan Khan was dead, he immediately withdrew his troops and marched back to the Eastern Turkic Khanate. Datou Khan proclaimed himself as Buga Khan, unified the Eastern and Western Turkic Khanates, and became the common ruler of the north.

But he was only in name only. The Turkic tribes were not so easy to control. Only victory, continuous victory could establish prestige and truly become the Great Khan.

This is why Datou was so eager to invade the border, and he was in a difficult situation.

The principles are universal. Yang Guang also needs to prove himself through victory, so he began to make efforts, hoping to get the opportunity to lead troops to war.

Li Jiancheng also went to the Eastern Palace every day. Naturally, he also hoped to go north with the army to observe and learn.

After several days of preparation and discussion, the emperor issued an edict, ordering Crown Prince Yang Guang to be the marching marshal, and to go out through Lingwu Road with Duke of Yue Yang Su, and King of Han Yang Liang and Shi Wansui to go out through Mayi Road, to fight the Turks in two routes.

In addition, he asked Zhangsun Sheng to recruit the Turks to surrender and let them serve as the vanguard after the war broke out.

Before the expedition, Yang Guang pleaded that He Ruobi, who was in prison, be allowed to join the army to redeem himself for meritorious service. The emperor became more sober-minded after encountering a major event and agreed.

Li Jiancheng led more than a hundred of his own family generals to join the prince's guard. The troops were in high spirits and after a little preparation they swore to go to war.

The army had already set out as soon as they received the news, and the Turks were a thorn in the side of the imperial court, and there were sufficient troops at the border passes along the way. They only needed to lead their personal guards and light cavalry to catch up.

Commanding a large army is not an easy task. The difficulty is not just during the battle, there are endless crowds of people, and there is nothing that needs to be taken care of, including eating, drinking, defecating, urinating, and sleeping.

Fortunately, there has been no shortage of wars since the founding of the Sui Dynasty, and the generals and officers are very experienced. Yang Guang and Yang Su only need to give simple instructions, and their subordinates will be arranged in an orderly manner.

This is the foundation of a country, which is reflected in the extremely excellent and skilled middle-level managers and grassroots cadres. With such a foundation, as long as a qualified general is equipped, victory will not be a difficult thing.

Apart from guarding the commander-in-chief during the march, Li Jiancheng spent the rest of his time riding around on horseback, cooking, digging camps, wells, toilets, fences, and barriers. There was nothing he did not check, and he would take the initiative to inquire about the relevant officers from time to time, and would not give up until he understood everything.

Yang Guang had no interest in teaching Li Jiancheng personally, but he did not restrict him either. He allowed him to ride on horseback and watch and learn. Yang Su, Yang Xuangan and others just watched coldly.

The children of generals are all brought up like this. When it comes to leading troops in battle, there is no need for so much hands-on teaching, nor can you learn it by reading a few volumes of military books. You just follow and learn by watching. If you can do it, you know it, and if you can't, you don't know it.

The methods of making the troops arrive as fast as the wind, as slow as the forest, as aggressive as fire, as still as a mountain, as unpredictable as the shadow, and as powerful as thunder have been written down in the military books by the ancient sages. If you haven't practiced it yet, there is no other way.

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Li Jiancheng absorbed experience like a sponge. There were too many things he didn't understand, but fortunately, with his status, he wanted to learn and was not afraid of others not teaching him. What's more, he was very generous.

After marching for half a month, Li Jiancheng's face had become much darker. He dismounted in front of a camp where they had already set up pots and pans for cooking, and first went to the captain to convey the military orders on how far to march tomorrow and where to set up camp.

He was only wearing warm clothes, and so were the other officers. Armor, a heavy and inconvenient item, was only put on before a battle. The same went for bows, which would only be strung when the battle was about to begin.

If the bowstring is kept stretched, it will soon lose its elasticity, so it must be kept loose on weekdays. When marching, food, tents, pots and pans, armor and arrows must be pushed and pulled by carts. The cart is the most important thing, and people must be lost but the cart must not be lost.

Not only did they serve the purpose of carrying supplies, but in the event of a cavalry attack, by connecting the carts head to tail and mounting spears and pistols on them, they would immediately become a solid defensive barrier.

Li Jiancheng threw the dried meat in his arms to the soldier who came forward to salute, and started chatting with him laughing. In recent days, everyone has become accustomed to this noble son of the Li family. Although he talks too much and is a bit annoying, it is not in vain for others to ask.

Li Jiancheng discovered that the soldiers in the army respected Yang Su but did not love him. Instead, they all missed Duke of Qi Gao Zuo.

After drinking a pot of good wine, Li Jiancheng finally understood the reason. It turned out that Yang Su was very harsh in employing his troops. He even had the habit of beheading officers in front of the army to intimidate the soldiers. He had done this at least a dozen times, while he himself was covered in blood, and he was still talking and laughing.

After intimidating the soldiers, he would organize one or two hundred elite troops and order them to attack the enemy first. If they can't break the enemy's formation, that's enough. If there are those who fail to break the formation and return, no matter how many there are, they will all be killed!

He also ordered two or three hundred men to advance again and follow the previous method. The officers and soldiers were terrified and determined to die, so they were invincible in every battle.

Of course, Yang Su had been commanding troops for many years, and apart from severe punishments, he also had his own rewards. Otherwise, how could he lead his troops to victory time and time again with such brutality?

As long as someone has made some minor military achievements, he will be rewarded by the court. If the court does not recognize it, he would rather make up for it himself and would never let the meritorious person go unrewarded.

After the war, he would properly place the disabled soldiers in less busy government offices, which won the gratitude of many soldiers. After all, there were many generals and commanders who were greedy for soldiers' rewards and pensions. In comparison, those who worked hard for the Duke of Yue could at least get the corresponding rewards.

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Lingwu is an ancient northern city. The provincial capital was founded in the Western Han Dynasty. Its history has undergone constant changes over the dynasties. From the time when Qin incorporated Hetao into its territory to the time when Li Jiqian of Western Xia captured Lingzhou City, it can be said that whoever controls Lingzhou controls Hetao.

The army gathered and reorganized in Lingwu, and Changsun Sheng also led the Turkic troops to arrive. Li Jiancheng compiled topographic maps and recorded documents for them in order to convey military orders.

As a fledgling, he had no right to speak on matters like this, especially when Yang Su and He Ruobi both disliked him. If he didn't want to be scolded, he had to shut up.

It is understandable that Yang Su disliked him, but as for when he offended He Ruobi, Li Jiancheng didn't know. Maybe he just disliked him purely and there was no reason for it.

After discussing the situation, Chang Sun Sheng told his plan: "I am familiar with every mountain, river and stream here. The position of the Datou garrison is guarding upstream. The leader of the tribe is my internal support. Maybe we can poison them and try. If it works, we can defeat them. If it doesn't work, then we can leave."

Yang Guang naturally had no reason to refuse. After Changsun Sheng left, he dismissed some generals. He looked at the document sent by the King of Han and said, "We must not let the King of Han achieve more than I do."

Yang Su said in a clear voice: "The King of Han is not familiar with military affairs. He can only rely on Shi Wansui. Although Shi Wansui is brave, he is just a fierce general, not a great general. Please rest assured, Your Highness."

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(End of this chapter)