Chapter 27 Feng'an Military City
From the curses of these soldiers, Li Xuan got some important information and some guesses.

No matter how they criticized him, Li Xuan turned a deaf ear to them.

At Li Xuan's instruction, Luo Xing had no choice but to obey.

Several soldiers punched the cotton and it was very uncomfortable.

Finally, the sergeant named Meng Da slammed the table and said, "On the grassland there are only eagles and wolves. The timid moles and docile deer will only become prey. The mantis stretched out its arms to try to block the frame. It was an act of overestimating its own capabilities. It hurt others and itself."

After saying this, Meng Da and other soldiers paid their bills and left.

They didn't believe that Li Xuan had the ability to lead troops in battle.

Ridicule and contempt, to the fullest.

"My dear, can you bear this?"

If Li Xuan hadn't stopped him, Luo Xing would have fought them to the death.

"I think he's right."

Li Xuan replied with a smile.

"PhD!"

Without waiting for Luo Xing to say anything else, Li Xuan waved to the doctor in charge of the store.

"What do you want, sir?"

The store manager came running over immediately.

He learned from the gatekeeper that the guest was also a soldier.

Huile City was a military town, and the status of soldiers was far higher than that of officials.

The garrison commander, Wang Zhongsi, held several concurrent posts, and the heads of the surrounding counties and prefectures were all under his control.

"Have you ever heard of General Chen Huiguang?"

Li Xuan asked Dr. Guandian.

"How come you haven't even heard of General Chen?" Doctor Guandian was puzzled. Isn't Li Xuan also a soldier?

"I have just reported to the Shuofang Army. My superior is General Chen Huiguang, so I am asking you."

Li Xuan said casually and invited Dr. Guandian to take a seat.

"Alas! General Chen is a legendary figure of the Shuofang Army. When he returned to Lecheng, he often came to our place to drink and eat. Did you see those soldiers just now? They were all subordinates of General Chen. But last year, General Chen was transferred to Feng'an Army outside the Yellow River. Seven days ago, the court sent an express horse to remove General Chen from his position and transfer him to Chang'an. It is said that a son of a prime minister came to Feng'an Army as a deputy envoy. In order to control Feng'an Army and know Feng'an's military affairs, the chief envoy was removed. Humph! It's a pity that he didn't succeed. General Wang directly promoted another deputy envoy to the chief envoy..."

After taking his seat, Dr. Guandian spoke to Li Xuan, his words expressing his hatred for those who used backdoors.

Li Xuan also completely understood that he had been tricked by Li Linfu.

The old thief is insidious and hard to guard against.

Under normal thinking, when Li Xuan and Li Shizhi learned that it was Li Linfu who recommended the deputy envoy of Feng'an Army, they would subconsciously think that the chief envoy of Feng'an Army was Li Linfu's man.

If you go there rashly, you will definitely be killed.

When Wang Zhongsi's father Wang Haibin was fighting against Tubo, his fellow generals were jealous of his military achievements. When Wang Haibin was surrounded by Tubo, they stood by and watched without providing any help, which led to Wang Haibin's death from exhaustion.

It is too easy for a main general to kill a deputy general who has no confidants.

Li Xuan did not want to leave his ambitions unfulfilled, so he did not think too much about it and agreed to transfer Chen Huiguang.

Because there are limited historical records about Chen Huiguang, Li Xuan only knew that he was a subordinate of Guo Ziyi and quelled the Anshi Rebellion.

In addition, Li Linfu used the post station to rush to Lingwu and announced that Li Xuan and Li Shizhi had transferred Chen Huiguang for no reason in order to "know the military affairs of Feng'an" as the deputy envoy of Feng'an Army. Once he had gained the qualifications, he could legitimately take control of Feng'an Army.

Chen Huiguang's old subordinates fought against nomadic tribes such as the Turks and Nujie for many years, and lived on the edge of a knife.

Soldiers who come through the "recruitment system" basically only obey their superiors, the commander-in-chief.

He had no great respect for the powerful, so he dared to insult Li Xuan unscrupulously.

"What's the legend of General Chen?"

Li Xuan wanted to know more.

"Have you ever heard of the robe poems that are popular in our border areas?" Doctor Guandian asked Li Xuan.

"General Chen can also write poetry?" Li Xuan was a little surprised.

"No..."

The store manager shook his head and told Li Xuan a story. Before he started, he sang a poem for Li Xuan.

The soldiers on the battlefield feel cold and miserable as if they were sleeping.

The battle robe was made by hand, who knows where it ended up?
Deliberately add more lines, and the feelings will be more lingering.

This life has passed, and we have a destiny for the next life.

In the middle of the Kaiyuan period, Li Longji ordered the palace maids to make cotton clothes to keep the soldiers warm in order to reward the Shuofang soldiers who were guarding the border in the bitter cold.

The number of maids in Li Longji's palace was unprecedented. They entered the palace with dreams in their hearts, but they might never see the emperor in their entire lives. This is why "palace resentment" arose.

The palace maids and concubines were full of fantasies. They were no longer attached to the wealth and luxury of the palace, but were pursuing a kind of "unrestrained" romance and longing in their spirit.

While the coat was being made, a palace maiden was very talented in writing. She wrote an anonymous poem and sewed it into the coat, boldly proposing to the soldier who might get the coat, and believed that the soldier was her destined man.

But the end of the poem also says: She can only spend this life in the palace, and will marry you in the next life.

The person who got this cotton coat was Chen Huiguang, who was a small soldier at the time.

Chen Huiguang was very scared and gave the poem to Li Xian, the governor at that time.

When Li Xian returned to Beijing, he reported the matter to Li Longji.

Li Longji circulated the poem in the palace. The palace maid who wrote the poem took the initiative to admit it and asked for death.

Palace maids were locked in cages their entire lives and were not allowed to leave the palace without the emperor's permission.

During the reign of Emperor Zhongzong of Tang, Li Dan had a sudden inspiration and allowed palace maids to leave the palace to watch the lanterns during the Lantern Festival.

When the palace maids were called back, they found that three thousand were missing.

This is enough to prove the palace maids' pursuit of freedom behind the high walls.

But Li Longji was not a foolish emperor during the Kaiyuan period, and he was tolerant. He took pity on the maid and married her to Chen Huiguang, thus establishing their bond in this life.

This anonymous poem, therefore, became known as "Poem in the Robe" and became widely circulated in the frontier areas.

"To show the saint's kindness, General Chen sacrificed his life for his country and was always at the forefront of every battle. In just over ten years, he accumulated merits and became a general."

Finally, Dr. Guandian told Li Xuan the reason why Chen Huiguang was well-known in the border area.

This legendary story was enough to make a soldier of civilian origin regard Chen Huiguang as his idol.

Li Linfu used this to ruin Li Xuan's reputation.

At this point, Li Xuan could only think of another way.

It is impossible to transfer Chen Huiguang back now.

"Thanks for letting me know!"

Li Xuan thanked the doctor in charge of the restaurant, paid the bill and left the tavern.

What he is most worried about now is that Li Linfu has a backup plan.

He has left a bad impression in Wang Zhongsi's mind, and he needs to be more cautious when doing things.

That night, Li Xuan and Luo Xing rode on horseback to Mingsha Ferry in Mingsha County, which was a military ferry.

After Li Xuan showed the imperial edict, his troops crossed the Yellow River.

Rest overnight at the ferry.

On the second day, Li Xuan rode up the Yellow River on horseback and finally arrived at Feng'an Military City at dusk.

Feng'an Military City was built outside the Yellow River, in the southeast corner of the desert (Tengger Desert).

The entire military city is just a two-meter-high earthen city. It is close to the Yellow River and has a military ferry.

If the Turkic army attacks, they can cross the Yellow River at any time and use the Yellow River to defend themselves.

Of course, a military stronghold stores a large amount of food and equipment, which cannot be abandoned easily, otherwise it will anger the emperor.

In peacetime, the Feng'an Army's main mission is to patrol the area west of the southern foothills of the Helan Mountains and the border desert area.

To the west of the Helan Mountains and north of the desert, there were several unsubdued Turkic tribes that belonged to the Left Wing of the Turks.

Wang Zhongsi had already conquered the right wing of the Turks, and only the left wing was still resisting stubbornly under the instigation of Wang Ting.

(End of this chapter)