Splitting the troops is a strategy that Gu Qing has already considered. Tongguan and Luoyang are both strategic places and must be captured. If they attack Tongguan alone, the rebels will inevitably find out their intentions. If Chang'an and Luoyang send troops to rescue them at the same time, Tongguan will fall into trouble.

Being attacked at both ends, Tongguan and Luoyang must be captured at the same time.

After just one year, history seems to have gone through a cycle.

At first, brother Shu Han was guarding Tongguan, but Tongguan was defeated and Chang'an was lost.

Now the tide has turned, with the Anxi army marching north for a surprise attack and eyeing Tongguan. It is the turn of the rebels in Chang'an to sit still.

In the commander's tent, standing in front of the sand table, Gu Qing pointed the long stick in his hand at Tongguan and Luoyang on the sand table, and said: "The news that our army defeated Shangzhou must have been known to the rebels. There will be reinforcements from the direction of Chang'an rushing to Tongguan.

However, I estimate that there will not be too many reinforcements. There are only about 100,000 rebels in Guanzhong now. The emperor has led Shuofang's army to capture Qingzhou. The rebels will definitely send troops to meet the enemy. Chang'an is the city where the rebel An Qingxu proclaimed himself emperor.

, at least tens of thousands of troops and horses must be left for defense, so they can only send less than 20,000 troops and horses to rescue Tongguan..."

"Compared to Luoyang, Tongguan's strategic position is more important, so I will personally lead the army to join the Shu army led by Commander Xian Yujie to attack Tongguan. It is best to outmaneuver Tongguan. If we attack by force, the damage will be too great. The Anxi army cannot afford the loss.

."

Chang Zhong said nonchalantly: "My lord, Tongguan should have been closed. You can't get in even if you disguise yourself."

Gu Qing touched his chin and pondered for a long time, then suddenly smiled and said: "Tongguan has been sealed, but Luoyang is the capital of the East. It is impossible to seal such a big city. Take Luoyang first, and then take Tongguan."

Shen Tian stood up and said: "The last general will ask for a battle to capture Luoyang."

All the generals hurriedly said in unison: "The last general invites you to fight!"

Gu Qing shook his head: "Why attack with force if you can outwit them? Isn't it fun to fight against others?"

After thinking for a while, Gu Qing suddenly shouted outside the commander's tent: "Han Jie, I have sent word that Wang Gui is here to see you."

Soon Wang Gui appeared in the commander's tent, as ordinary as ever, standing half-bowed in front of the generals, with an uneasy smile on his face, like a monkey that accidentally fell into a tiger's cage.

Gu Qing also smiled.

This guy always looks like he is not outstanding. Judging from his appearance, the first impression given by others is that he is greedy for life and easy to bully. His words and deeds reveal an air of enduring humiliation and living a humble life. It seems that if you slap him in the street, he will only do it.

Smiled and endured it.

However, if people who are familiar with him know what he has done in the past, I am afraid no one will think that he is easy to bully. On the contrary, if he does not bully others, he will be considered a high incense.

Everyone in the commander's tent is already quite familiar with Wang Gui.

Everyone knows that he is Gu Qing's personal guard. An inconspicuous personal guard is not qualified to be familiar to the generals. However, when Wang Gui was in Anxi, he once fought against the enemy's sharpshooter with his own strength. He fought almost to death and was dragged away by reinforcements.

He arrived and captured the sharpshooter. That battle was Wang Gui's famous battle. From then on, the generals in the army knew that he was just a personal guard, but no one dared to despise him. Instead, they all called him brother-in-law.

A capable person, no matter how humble his status, will be like a shining gem, attracting others to approach him.

Later, Huangfu Sisi disappeared, and Wang Gui led people to search the city. After the Anxi army entered the pass, Wang Gui led his bodyguard to outsmart Luoyang City. These achievements were higher than those of the generals in the commander's tent.

Therefore, no matter how humble Wang Gui is and how ordinary his appearance is, the generals of the Anxi Army still respect him very much.

Seeing Wang Gui smiling in the commander's tent with a worried look on his face, all the generals laughed.

Li Siye was a rough man, and he laughed and said: "Brother Wang Gui, no matter how much you smile like this, you won't welcome anyone, so you should use your magical powers. People who are not familiar with you think that you are born with a good temper and can be manipulated at will, but in our own brother

In front of you, please save yourself, we all know your weight very well."

Wang Gui bent down and said with a smile: "I don't dare, I don't dare. General Li is ridiculous. I really have no ability. Everything I have done is done according to the instructions of the father-in-law. It's okay if I don't have to do any errands, haha."

Chang Zhong smiled and said to Gu Qing: "My lord, with your great achievements, you have long been able to lead an army by yourself, and become a captain is no problem. Could it be that you don't want to give up this personal guard?"

Gu Qing smiled bitterly, but before he could say anything, Wang Gui hurriedly said: "General Chang misunderstood. My father-in-law has already repaid the villain for his fault, and he also wanted to transfer the villain to the army as a general, but the villain didn't want to go.

I have no other thoughts, I just want to follow my father-in-law."

Gu Qing looked at Wang Gui with a smile and said: "Outside Luoyang City, you violated military discipline and molested a peasant woman. Later I promised her to be your mother-in-law. How was your life?"

The generals laughed when they heard the words, and Wang Gui said with some embarrassment: "I lived a comfortable life. After the army set off, I used the reward money I saved to move my mother-in-law's family to the south. Haha, I didn't do any indecency anymore...

"

Shen Tian said maliciously: "Well, getting married is called intimacy, not indecent, but you kid is not honest when getting married. When the army was stationed in Xiangzhou, you sneaked in through the ajar door. I saw it with my own eyes in the city.

A few times..."

Wang Gui suddenly blushed and couldn't help but protest: "What does it mean to be dishonest... The women with the door ajar are also human beings. They live a hard life. I give them some food and meat, but they can't repay me.

I'll take a nap, this is a well-known story about giving and repaying kindness, can it be called dishonest?"

Ma Sui was not familiar with the generals here, but he still whispered softly: "Isn't this just prostitution?"

The crowd roared with laughter.

Gu Qing smiled and said: "Wang Gui, there is something you need to do this time. If you can do it well, I will make you a captain and give you a reward of one hundred guan, which will be enough for you and your mother-in-law's family for half a lifetime. How about that?"

Wang Gui clasped his fists and said solemnly: "My lord, please give me an order. I will not give up even if I die. I will not be a captain. I will still follow my lord Shu Tan. The reward... Haha, the reward for the villain is disrespectful. He has a family and a family.

You have to give your mother-in-law something to look forward to."

Gu Qing smiled and said, "You are just a coward without any ambition."

After pondering for a moment, Gu Qing said again: "It was you and your personal guards who outsmarted Luoyang back then. This time I want to outsmart Luoyang. Do you have any ideas?"

Wang Guiwei said: "It's okay if a villain kills people, but when it comes to strategy, there is nothing a villain can do."

Gu Qing thought for a while and said: "I will give you a way. Let Commander Xian Yujie of Tongguan cooperate with you and give you two thousand soldiers and horses, disguise yourself as the defeated army of Tongguan and sneak into Luoyang. This matter is not difficult to say, but it is important.

What's more important is your acting skills. Can you act like a defeated general?"

Wang Gui said with a smile: "Acting skills and so on, talking to people and talking to ghosts, villains are good at it."

Gu Qing looked at Shen Tian and said: "Assign two thousand soldiers and horses to you and Wang Gui to disguise themselves as the rebels are retreating. I will have the rebels' armor, clothing and flags prepared for you. When we arrive at Luoyang City,

Everyone who listens to Wang Gui will sneak into the city in two days and then seize the gate of Luoyang. There will be soldiers and horses outside to support them."

Shen Tian cupped his fists and said, "Yes."

Gu Qing said to Wang Gui again: "You are in charge of the acting part. When we capture the city gate, the command of the troops and horses will be given to Shen Tian, ​​so you don't have to intervene."

Then Gu Qing said again: "Send an order to Commander Xian Yujie, who is stationed outside Tongguan, and order him to lead the Shu army to pretend to attack Tongguan. If he sees a scout reporting to Luoyang, pretend to let him go, so that the defender of Luoyang knows that Tongguan is under attack. ."

"Chang Zhong leads the Anxi Army's 10,000 troops to march towards Luoyang. Tomorrow he will join Qu Huan's 10,000 Hexi Army. A total of 20,000 troops will be lurking twenty miles outside Luoyang City, waiting for Wang Gui and Shen Tian to signal fire. Once the letter is fired, you and Shen Tianli will join forces and capture Luoyang City."

"yes."

"After the scout who reported the news to Luoyang was let go, he ordered Commander Xianyujie to retreat immediately and make a temporary move to attack Luoyang. The remaining troops of the Anxi Army stood still. Once Luoyang was captured, Wang Gui immediately returned to the camp to resume his orders. The victory of Tongguan was also dependent on Your show.”

The generals looked at Wang Gui with envy. If he could handle his errands well this time, Wang Gui's military exploits would be extraordinary. The generals here were not as good as his military exploits. This boy is very lucky.

Chang Zhong snorted, looked at Wang Gui with a sour look and said, "If Luoyang and Tongguan are captured, you will be the first to do so. Not to mention the official bounty, I have rewarded you with so much money, how do you plan to spend it?"

Wang Gui blinked and said uneasily: "I have calculated my savings. After I am disbanded and return to the fields, I will be able to become a wealthy landowner. How about... marrying two more concubines?"

The generals were so angry that they all scolded him for being useless.

Wang Gui said with a smile: "I don't have such lofty ambitions, and I have never thought about being promoted to an official position. Being a landlord is enough. I have a mother-in-law, two concubines, a rich family, and filial children. How can I live like this all my life?" What is there to be dissatisfied about? When you become an official, you are on tenterhooks, fearing that you will be involved in something inexplicably."

With these words, the generals suddenly fell silent.

The ambitions of all the generals here are not small. Following Gu Qing, they all want to achieve high official status and make their descendants rich and noble for generations. However, Wang Gui's words are completely different from everyone's ambitions.

He has a humble mentality, but he lives the purest life.

…………

Guanzhong, Gyeongju.

The city of Gyeongju is devastated. Many burned-down buildings are still emitting smoke. There is a pungent smell of burning everywhere. Countless corpses lie in the streets and alleys of the city. Soldiers of the Sofang Army are cleaning the battlefield.

Li Heng ascended the throne in Lingzhou. Three days after he ascended the throne, he led a personal expedition and led more than 30,000 Shuofang troops southward. He first captured Yuanzhou and today he just captured Qingzhou.

In contrast, Li Heng was not as stupid as his father Li Longji. He knew his own position and handed over the command of Shuofang Army to Guo Ziyi during the war. He did not participate in the command himself.

Although Guo Ziyi was a veteran, he did not disappoint the government and the opposition. The new dynasty successfully captured Wonju in the first battle, and also successfully captured Gyeongju in the second battle.

With these two victories, the morale of Shuofang's army was high, and the whole army was very high-spirited, wishing they could go straight to Chang'an in one go.

Outside Gyeongju City, the Emperor's Golden Tent.

Li Heng sat in the golden tent, quietly reading a memorial, his expression getting increasingly ugly.

The memorial was written by Gu Qing, and Li Heng could recognize the distorted and ugly handwriting at a glance.

The content of Gu Qing's memorial was not very polite. He stated in a rather tough tone that the Tang Dynasty was borrowing troops from the Huihe and must not agree to the Huihe's unreasonable demands. If the Tang emperors and ministers acquiesced in allowing the Huihe soldiers to plunder Chang'an and plunder women, this would not be the way of a wise king. Nor is it the behavior of a wise minister.
Chapter completed!