Chapter 84 Liu Heita still...ran away
The cost of armor is high and the construction period is long.
The predecessor had no intention of preparing a military headquarters, so the armor stored in the Prince Qi's Mansion was limited.
After equipping the Zuo Yitong Military Headquarters, there were very few left.
He had requested the armor of the Zuo Erjun Mansion from Li Shimin.
Although many soldiers of Zuo Er Tongjun Mansion were killed in the battle of Mingshui City, their armor will still remain in Zuo Er Tongjun Mansion and be handed over to their successors for use.
Therefore, in a short period of time, he could not get enough armor to equip the Zuo Santong Military Headquarters.
Of course, if you really want to, you can get it.
As long as he was willing to give some food to Li Shimin, Li Shimin would give him the equipment of a military headquarters without hesitation.
But if that were the case, Su Dingfang would not easily agree to take on the position of deputy commander-in-chief of the Left Third Military Office.
He could understand Su Dingfang's desire to prove his worth through merit, but he didn't have that much time to wait for Su Dingfang to make achievements.
The speed of planning and building the Left One, Left Two and Left Three Military Headquarters of the Prince of Qi's Palace was a bit too fast, faster than he expected. He needed to support some people he could trust and capable people as soon as possible to help him lead the three military headquarters.
After listening to Li Yuanji's words, Su Dingfang looked hesitant.
Li Yuanji smiled and said, "You can't just watch the people you recruit become a pile of scattered sand, right?"
Su Dingfang hurriedly said: "Of course not."
As Li Yuanji's man, Su Dingfang did not want to see the troops under Li Yuanji become a mess, whether he was willing to serve as the deputy commander of the Left Third Military Office or not.
"That's settled then."
Li Yuanji finalized the matter without hesitation.
Su Dingfang saw that Li Yuanji had made up his mind. After hesitating for a while, he bowed and said, "I will definitely not let your highness down."
The Zuo Sanjunfu that Li Yuanji asked him to lead were not a group of armored soldiers, nor were they Li Yuanji's old subordinates. He did not have to worry that he would not be able to convince the people with his identity.
The commanders of the Zuoyi and Zuoer Military Offices should not have too many complaints when they see that they are not leading armored soldiers.
Since Li Yuanji appreciated him so much and trusted him so much, he naturally had to respect him.
When others promote you and you repeatedly decline, that is called humility.
If you keep refusing, it means you don't know how to appreciate the favor.
"Um……"
Li Yuanji nodded with satisfaction, walked to the long table in the room, wrote a letter of appointment, stamped it with his seal, and handed it to Su Dingfang.
Su Dingfang took the appointment document respectfully.
From then on, he became the deputy commander of the Left Third Army of the Prince of Qi's Palace.
He was in command of three thousand soldiers selected by him personally.
Li Yuanji handed the appointment document to Su Dingfang and reminded him: "You selected the people in Zuo San Tong Jun Fu, and you need to judge whether they are loyal or treacherous.
I will give you one month. After one month, I hope to see an army that is wholeheartedly loyal to the Tang Dynasty."
Su Dingfang clasped his fists solemnly and said, "I will definitely live up to your trust, Your Highness."
Li Yuanji nodded, waved his hand, and asked Su Dingfang to go down and prepare for the establishment of the Zuo Santong Military Headquarters.
As soon as Su Dingfang left, Li Yuanji sat behind a long table, looking thoughtful.
At first, he only wanted to set up the Zuo Santong Military Headquarters to house the brave generals he recruited and let them protect his safety together.
But now it seems that the Left Third Military Headquarters is obviously not enough.
Xie Shufang was an old man under his command, who was both civil and martial, and could handle things on his own. He definitely could not be allowed to be someone else's deputy, so the position of the commander-in-chief of the Zuo Yitong Military Headquarters must belong to Xie Shufang.
Although Su Dingfang had just joined his army, he was both civil and military, able to stand on his own, and his military talent even surpassed Xie Shufang.
It would be a waste to let Su Dingfang serve as someone else's deputy, so the position of commander of the Left Third Military Office will probably fall on Su Dingfang in the future.
There are three military headquarters, but only one is left, which is not enough to accommodate the other powerful generals he wants to recruit.
People like the Xue brothers, Kan Leng and others are all famous veterans.
Their current reputations are far higher than those of Xie Shufang and Su Dingfang. It is impossible for them to serve as deputies to Xie Shufang and Su Dingfang, let alone to serve as deputies to each other.
Therefore, they had to set up a new army to accommodate them.
"I'm afraid the Right Third Military Office will also be put on the agenda..."
Li Yuanji sighed.
The power in his hands grew too quickly, so he had to adjust his plans.
"But there's no need to be too hasty. He's not my general yet."
Li Yuanji sighed again.
The Xue brothers, Kan Leng and others have not yet joined his army, so he does not need to rush to prepare for the establishment of the Right Third Military Headquarters.
Li Yuanji did not think about this issue for too long, nor did he consider the candidate for the governor of Weizhou. Instead, he got up and left the wing room, took a walk around the wounded camp, and then went to the high tomb to pay his respects to the soldiers who had just been buried.
It was not until nightfall that he returned to his residence.
I just returned to my residence not long ago.
Qu Tutong hurried to Li Yuanji's residence with a grim look on his face, and Luo Shixin was with him.
Luo Shixin's face didn't look good either.
Li Yuanji saw the expressions of the two men and asked without waiting for them to speak, "What happened?"
Qu Tutong frowned and said in a serious tone: "Liu Heita ran away..."
Li Yuanji was stunned for a moment, and said in surprise: "Liu Heita ran away?! Didn't I tell you to remind my second brother?"
Qu Tutong said bitterly: "When the people I sent out met the marshal, Liu Heita had already run away."
Li Yuanji looked at Qu Tutong in surprise.
Qu Tutong explained: "Xu Yuanlang set up an ambush in Yongji County, and when Liu Heita retreated to Quzhou, he raided the grain camp of His Royal Highness the King of Wu in Linqing.
His Royal Highness the Prince of Wu was forced to send people to fight Xu Yuanlang.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Liu Heita sent Dong Kangmai to lead the remaining troops to rush towards Zongcheng, while he himself took Fan Yuan and others to flee to Julu in the chaos.
His Royal Highness the Prince of Yan has led his army to Zhaozhou, preparing to cut off the road between Zhaozhou and Jizhou, hoping to capture Liu Heita. "
Li Yuanji slowly came back to his senses. It was unexpected, but also reasonable.
In history, Liu Heita faced worse situations and was able to escape successfully. The situation he faces now is far less bad than in history, so it is reasonable for him to escape.
Although Li Yi brought people to block the road, the chances of successfully doing so were slim.
Otherwise, Qu Tutong and Luo Shixin's faces wouldn't be so ugly.
Liu Heita escaped from the encirclement set up by Li Shimin, just like a fish entering the sea. It would not be so easy to find him again.
Li Shimin must be furious .
The duck that was in hand flew away, and the credit for pacifying Hebei was suddenly weakened by 30% or even more.
Li Yuan might take advantage of the situation to make further progress. It would be strange if Li Shimin didn't get angry.
"My second brother got angry?"
Li Yuanji stared at Qu Tutong and asked.
Qu Tutong had a bitter face and said nothing.
It's not just angry, it's rage.
The troops going to support Du Fuwei and Ren Gui are already on the way.
Xu Yuanlang ruined Li Shimin's plans and reduced his achievements in the conquest of Hebei by as much as 30%. How could Li Shimin let Xu Yuanlang go?
If Xu Yuanlang defended Yanzhou, Li Shimin might have to think twice before sending troops.
If Xu Yuanlang sent his troops out of Yanzhou, Li Shimin would have nothing to worry about.
With the limited military force Xu Yuanlang had, it was already insufficient to defend Yanzhou, yet he dared to send out a part of them.
Then he's gone.
Seeing that Qu Tutong didn't say anything, Li Yuanji asked again, "Is it inconvenient to talk?"
Qu Tutong bowed and said, "I dare not criticize His Royal Highness the Prince of Qin."
"You don't want to say it?!"
Li Yuanji knew whether Li Shimin was angry or not, and he did not force Qu Tutong to answer since Qu Tutong refused to speak.
"This matter seems to have nothing to do with me, right? Why did you come to see me so late at night?"
Li Yuanji wondered.
Liu Heita ran away, but that was Li Shimin's business and had nothing to do with him, the commander-in-chief of the rear army who had already handed over power.
If Qu Tutong and Luo Shixin had nothing important to do, there was no need for them to come to him so late at night.
Qu Tutong bowed again and said, "The Marshal sent someone to tell you that you and Luo Shixin should lead the army to Weize Pass as soon as possible. Liu Heita has escaped and is likely to go to the Turks.
Once Liu Heita meets the Turks, the Turks are likely to gather together and march southward.
The Marshal hopes that you and Luo Shixin will stay at Weize Pass, so that Her Royal Highness the Princess can go to help Prince Huai'an and Li Shiji."
Li Yuanji was stunned at first, then he raised his eyebrows slightly and asked in confusion: "My second brother wants to transfer my third sister out of Weize Pass. Has he asked my father?"
Qu Tutong smiled bitterly and said, "The Turkic army of 200,000 is about to march south, who can care about anything else?"
Li Yuanji nodded slowly, "That's right, dealing with the Turks is more important."
He had no objection to Li Shimin's decision to transfer him to Weize Pass to take charge.
The southward advance of the 200,000-strong Turkic army was a disaster for the Tang Dynasty.
For the people in the eastern Shaanxi and Hebei provinces, it was a disaster that destroyed their homes and families.
Every time the Turks went south to plunder, they would not only plunder food and gold and silver treasures, but also plunder people.
The Turks practiced slavery, and all the people they abducted would become their slaves.
Their treatment of slaves was far worse than that of cattle and sheep.
The people of East Shaanxi and Hebei Province had already suffered terribly after experiencing the wars between the Tang Dynasty and Wang Shichong, Dou Jiande, and between the Tang Dynasty and Liu Heita. If they were further afflicted by the Turks, it would take them at least 10 to 20 years to recover.
In this matter, Li Yuanji could not just stand by and watch, both morally and logically.
Li Yuanji looked at Luo Shixin and asked in surprise: "Are you going to Weize Pass too?"
Luo Shixin nodded solemnly.
Li Yuanji was a little confused.
What was Li Shimin thinking when he let Luo Shixin follow him to Weize Pass?
Was it because he saw that Luo Shixin was planning to leave the Qin Palace, so he went with the flow... or was he taking the opportunity to test whether Luo Shixin had any unfaithful thoughts?
Li Yuanji was a little confused about what Li Shimin meant.
