An Lushan had a total of 180,000 troops, and it was impossible for all of them to march.

The army is divided into the front army, the middle army and the rear army.

The one who stayed behind in Fan Yang was Shi Siming, assisted by the brave general Cai Xide.

Because An Lushan adopted a surprise attack tactic, he could only ensure the smooth flow of grain, and it was impossible for him to occupy Hebei first.

He needed Shi Siming and Cai Xide to help him conquer Hebei.

At the same time, he was responsible for recruiting soldiers.

In addition to the Hu people in the Six States, there are also many Hu people in Youzhou and Hebei areas.

There were also many Han tenants who were exploited by the powerful and had no way to make a living, and they would be good soldiers.

Rebellion is risky but the benefits are very high and it can also vent anger and release animal desires.

Some people, even if it was An Lushan who once oppressed them, would join An Lushan's army to oppress others.

They were not necessarily loyal to An Lushan, they wanted the world to burn, and it didn't matter who their leader was.

It is said that the imperial court was unjust and the powerful were cannibalistic, but An Lushan caused even greater harm to the people of Hebei.

Fan Yang needed grain from Henan and Hebei, and storing grain in order to rebel would inevitably lead to exploitation of the people.

In order to curry favor with Li Longji, An Lushan often mobilized civilians to transport gems, wood, wild beasts, etc. to Chang'an, and the journey of thousands of miles was endless.

When building the Huaqing Palace, the finest jade was transported from Fan Yang.

Countless people died or were injured on the road.

Every month, there was an endless stream of people offering camels, war horses, falcons and hunting dogs to An Lushan, making it impossible for the common people to live in peace.

Prosperity, people suffer; death, people suffer!
There is no doubt that some opportunistic powerful families and aristocratic families who resented the imperial court joined An Lushan's camp.

But to say that all the gentry in Hebei joined An Lushan's camp is pure conjecture.

Not to mention ordinary civilians.

During the Anshi Rebellion in history, counterattacks in Hebei occurred one after another.

All seventeen counties were under the jurisdiction of the imperial court, with a total of more than 200,000 soldiers; only six counties, namely Fanyang, Lulong, Miyun, Yuyang, Ji and Ye, were attached to An Lushan.

This put An Lushan in a very embarrassing situation at one point. If it weren't for Li Heng's careful management, the rebels would definitely have lost Hebei and cut off An Lushan's connection with Fan Yang.

In the end, it was only after An Lushan's generals killed many people in all directions that many were frightened.

As for the discussion of building temples for the "Two Saints" in later generations, it was purely a bargaining chip for the vassal states to threaten the imperial court and to win over the hearts of the vassal states.

If we put ourselves in their shoes, would the people care about An Lushan and Shi Siming who repeatedly carried out massacres in Hebei?
An Lushan knew that he was a descendant of Sogdians and Turks. After living in Chang'an for many years, he became more aware of the gap between him and the Han literati.

I also understand the contempt that the Han scholars held for the Hu people.

Therefore, An Lushan employed many Hu people under his command, and sometimes even replaced Han generals with Hu generals.

Or they are down-and-out literati like Yan Zhuang, Gao Shang, Li Shiyu, Dugu Wensu, Ping Lie, and Li Tingjian.

There are also people like Zhang Tongru and Xue Song, whose ancestors were extremely glorious, but they were not valued by the court. They wanted to take advantage of An Lushan and find their own shortcut.

Zhang Tongru’s grandfather was Zhang Renyuan, a general and prime minister, and Xue Song’s grandfather was the famous Xue Rengui.

Although An Lushan liked to employ Hu people, he had to accept the reality that the Hu generals under his command were not as capable of fighting as the Han generals.

The training of the army has always been dominated by the Han people.

Even his most valued elite cavalry, Yeluohe and Tongluo, were trained by Cui Qianyou and Tian Chengsi respectively.

But in the end, An Lushan handed over Yeluohe to the commander-in-chief of the Xi people Li Guiren.

The Tongluo elite cavalry was commanded by his adopted son Tian Qianzhen.

Even the Yanyun Cavalry was led by his adopted son An Shouzhong.

As for the other adopted sons and Hu people, there were even more of them, and they all controlled heavy troops.

An Lushan handed over the command to the Han people, but most of his middle-level generals were Hu people. Therefore, it was very difficult for the Han generals to revolt.

An Lushan was very shrewd inside. As a Hu man, no matter how stupid he was, he could not possibly use a large number of Han people. That would be his own death sooner or later.

The Hu generals under An Lushan included:
The Sogdians of Anguo: An Zhongchen, An Zhongshun, An Shouzhong (An Lushan’s adopted son, a Shatuo), An Shenwei, An Taiqing, An Wuchen, An Xiongjun, An Dai, An Siyi, etc.

The Sogdians of the Shi State: Shi Siming, Shi Dingfang, Shi Chaoyi, Shi Chaoqing, etc.

The Sogdians from He Country: He Qiannian, He Side, He Lingzhang, He Yuantan, He Shu, etc.

The Sogdians of Kang State: Kang Ayi Qudagan, Kang Jie, Kang Jie, Kang Moboye, Kang Wenjing, Kang Xiaozhong, etc.

The Sogdians of Cao State: Cao Runguo, General Cao, etc.

The Sogdians of Shi State: Shi Diting, etc.

Xi people: Li Riyue, Li Baochen (Zhang Zhongzhi), Li Guiren, Li Qincou, Zhang Xiaozhong, etc.

Khitans: Wang Wujun, Sun Xiaozhe, Li Huaixian (a Xianbei who was sinicized by Khitan), Li Lijie, etc.

Turks: Ashina Chengqing, Ashina Congli, etc.

Miscellaneous Hu people in Youying: Cai Xide, Liu Longxian, Li Xiancheng (Mohe), etc.

There were countless other Hu generals such as the Nine Surnames Tiele, Tongluo, Mohe, Shiwei, Youying Miscellaneous Hu, and Liuhuzhou.

Many people in later generations only looked at the names and thought they were Han people. In fact, in that era when all nations came to congratulate them, many Hu people changed their surnames to Han ones.

Especially those Hu people with the surname Li, they all know the origin of their surname Li.

Of course, many of An Lushan’s foreign generals were Sinicized Hu people.

Although the Hu people were brave, apart from Shi Siming, Cai Xide and others, there were not many who could lead troops in a major battle.

Therefore, An Lushan appointed Han people as commanders and Hu people as generals.

Form his own military structure.

He secretly traveled to various roads to do business with the Hu people, and exported precious treasures from foreign countries numbering in the millions every year. Whenever the merchants from the Hu people arrived, An Lushan would wear Hu clothing and sit on a heavy bed, burn incense and place precious treasures. He would order hundreds of Hu people to serve him on his left and right, and the Hu people would bow down to him and pray for blessings from heaven. An Lushan would set out a grand sacrifice, and the shamans would beat drums, sing and dance, and they would disperse at dusk.

An Lushan also used faith to win over the hearts of the Hu people and make them closer to him religiously.

When the rebels marched south this time, An Lushan appointed his brave general Tian Chengsi as the vanguard commander, leading the cavalry.

He also appointed Li Baochen and Sun Xiaozhe, adopted sons of the Xi tribe, as deputies to lead the way for the army.

An Lushan established military rules for marching at night and eating at dawn, which enabled the army to march sixty miles a day.

The vanguard soon entered Shanggu County.

This is An Lushan's territory and has long been under his control.

The rebels marched straight into Boling.

A county soldier noticed something unusual and asked why the border troops entered the county. Tian Chengsi claimed that he was following a secret imperial decree to eliminate Yang Guozhong and purge the emperor's side.

The county soldiers wanted the rebels to wait, but they were shot dead by the rebels.

The counties in Hebei were totally unprepared, and they had enjoyed peace for over a hundred years. No one had heard of war, from the county governors to the common people.

The prefect and the county magistrate could only allow a small number of county soldiers to enter the city for defense. They also had to pass on the news of An Lushan's rebellion to the post station and send it to Chang'an at an accelerated speed of 800 miles.

But how could these cities defeat An Lushan who had been preparing for a long time?

The rebels took out the siege equipment they had built privately and directly attacked the city.

He often attacked the city in the early morning and occupied the city before noon. The governor of Boling was the first to be executed by An Lushan.

Every time a city was captured, the rebels looted the gold, silver, jewelry, clothes, food and women in the city.

An Lushan was good at winning people's hearts, and most of the gold, silver and jewelry he obtained were rewarded to his subordinates who had made contributions, and he also rewarded women as wives and concubines.

Therefore, regardless of whether they were Hu or Han, the soldiers had red eyes and were as ferocious as wild beasts.

The Fanyang and Pinglu armies were already good at fighting, and after releasing their animal nature, their combat effectiveness soared again.

Steal money, steal food, steal women.

Nothing can boost morale more than this. Even the "honor" formulated by Li Xuan is far inferior.

As a general who was repeatedly rewarded for killing innocent people and taking credit for his achievements, An Lushan could not be expected to enforce military discipline.

Moreover, An Lushan, who was cruel by nature, also knew the benefits of indulging his soldiers.

Wherever those Hu cavalry passed, there was chaos and devastation. When not marching, they deliberately raped and looted the villages along the way. Countless villagers burst into tears and cried out to the heavens.

Zhao County, Yuanshi County.

After Tian Chengsi led the vanguard to Zhaojun, he ordered Sun Xiaozhe to attack Yuanshi, which was the only way to get there.

He gave Sun Xiaozhe one day, and after one day, the main army would pass through Yuanshi County.

Yuanshi leader Chen Li was quite courageous. After he received the news of An Lushan's rebellion a few days ago, he knew that An Lushan would definitely pass through Yuanshi.

In just two days, he recruited more than 300 local militiamen, ready to cooperate with hundreds of county soldiers and dozens of new recruits from the Changping Army to defend Yuanshi City to the death.

"Warriors, this bastard An Lushan disregarded the grace of the emperor and dared to rebel. We must not let him get away so easily."

"I have received news that the rebels are heading south from Fanyang, burning, killing and looting along the way. Most of them are uneducated barbarians who are capable of committing all kinds of evil. If Yuanshi City is breached, our wives, daughters and money and food will not be saved!"

"Let's fight to the death!"

Chen Li stood at the north gate, looking at the billowing smoke and dust in the distance, and swore an oath to his subordinates.

Using a few hundred people to resist the rebels is like hitting a rock with an egg.

But Chen Li was not afraid. He received a salary from the Tang Dynasty and as a local official, he should die for the Tang Dynasty.

Even if it can be delayed for one day, it can buy time for other counties and give the court a chance to mobilize troops.

"We will die for you!"

The local militia responded with shouts and spears in hand. They were all fighting for their families.

In some ways, they are all very unfortunate.

An Lushan would only attack counties along the way to ensure the smooth flow of food.

Hebei is so big, and there is no time to attack the other dozen counties.

An Lushan's strategic goal was to capture the two capitals first, and then conquer the four directions and unify the world.

Little did people know that Chen Li's hands were shaking as he held onto the parapet. As a civil servant, he had never experienced war.

"Boom!"

Accompanied by the sound of horse hooves, thousands of Mohe cavalry and Pinglu soldiers, led by Sun Xiaozhe, arrived at the city of Yuanshi.

Sun Xiaozhe himself rode a black horse with a brocade saddle and a golden saddle, looking extremely luxurious.

Sun Xiaozhe himself was also very arrogant and looked at Yuanshi City with contempt.

Sun Xiaozhe was more favored by An Lushan than his adopted son.

Because his mother was quite beautiful and had an affair with An Lu.

Sun Xiaozhe was also very tactful in expressing his "filial piety" to An Lushan. In addition, as a Khitan, he was naturally relied upon by An Lushan.

"We are ordered to suppress the rebellion, but the county magistrate in the city still refuses to open the city and surrender. Do you want to disobey the order?"

Sun Xiaozhe jumped forward and shouted to Chen Li.

"You all know who the traitor is. You can't shake the Tang Dynasty's sacred weapon!"

Chen Li said sarcastically, and then ordered his men: "Shoot him with arrows."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa..."

There was no archer in the small county, so even from fifty steps away, it was impossible to hit Sun Xiaozhe.

"Hmph! Stubborn!"

Fearing being shot by arrows, Sun Xiaozhe turned his horse and left under the cover of his personal guards' shield. He snorted coldly and issued an order: "Prepare to combine siege equipment and attack Yuanshi!"

"General, I am willing to lead the troops to attack Yuanshi City. If we cannot take the city before noon, I will bring my head to you."

A rebel general named Shen Zigong volunteered.

His eyes were full of fanaticism. He would be the first to enjoy the victory after leading his troops to capture the city.

"Break down Yuanshi City. General Shen's troops will be the first to enter the city! I will send another 500 Bohai warriors to help you."

Sun Xiaozhe agreed to Shen Zigong's request.

But in order to capture the city quickly, he also transferred some Bohai soldiers.

Mohe was an important part of the Bohai Kingdom. The Bohai Kingdom, which had a population of only tens of thousands, sent 7,000 Mohe cavalry to assist An Lushan this time.

The Mohe people, who grew up between the White Mountains and the Black Waters, were born warriors, each of them was brave and good at fighting.

The brave soldiers on the city prepared thunder stones and rolling logs, dozens of bows and arrows, and were ready with spears, ready for battle.

There was tension in their eyes.

After all, they are facing elite soldiers who have fought in many battles.

The rebels outside the city were sharpening their knives. They took the tools from their war horses and assembled them into ladders, siege vehicles and climbing ladders in just half an hour.

"My men, the Yuan clan leader is a subordinate of the traitor Yang Guozhong. Charge into the city and kill him. Everything in the city will be ours!"

"attack!"

Shen Zigong raised his saber, gave a high-sounding reason, and contradictoryly promised the soldiers that they could plunder at will after they broke into the city.

At the last order, there was only madness in the eyes of the Hu and Han soldiers. They carried the ladders to climb up the city, wearing iron armor.

The four gates attacked simultaneously, with powerful crossbows providing cover.

There were only a hundred or so defenders on each wall, and the city was shaking.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa..."

The sporadic arrows could not stop the rebels at all.

"clang!"

When they got close to the city wall, the rebels hooked the ladders on the battlements, and the well-equipped rebels climbed up the wall with shields in hand like hungry tigers pouncing on their prey.

"Oh!"

The rocks fell, knocking down one man and more rebels.

Dozens of steps away, the rebels fired powerful crossbows. Many defenders were hit by crossbow arrows before they could even lift their thunder stones and rolling logs, and blood was spilled on the city walls.

The rebels were still pouring in from various sections of the city wall, and ladders were erected one after another to make climbing easier.

Occasionally he would climb up the city wall and be stabbed down by spears.

Some crazy rebel soldiers climbed up without shields, only holding spears.

These elite soldiers who had fought in many battles held on to the ladders with one hand and fought with the soldiers on the city wall with the other.

"Pfft!"

Even if the rebels are at a disadvantage, they often have the upper hand in the offensive, and the defenders suffer increasing casualties.

No matter how determined the look is, it cannot make up for the difference in strength.

"Stop it! Kill the rebels!"

Yuan ordered Chen Li to hold a spear and shout loudly. He led the troops and personally participated in the battle, and even shouted until his voice was hoarse.

"kill!"

Amidst another shout of killing, Chen Li stabbed a rebel off the ladder.

"Pfft!"

But under the city wall, crossbow arrows were flying like locusts. After Chen Li revealed his figure, a crossbow arrow passed through the battlement and hit Chen Li's shoulder.

"Mingfu..."

The county soldiers under his command shouted and quickly dragged Chen Li, who was lying on the ground, back.

"Don't worry about me...Stop the rebels and don't let them come up."

The injury was serious. Chen Li endured the pain and spoke to his subordinates with a grim expression.

At this time, everyone on the city wall must enter combat status.

But Yuanshi County only had leather armor, no iron armor.

There are only bows and arrows, no crossbows.

There are only swords and spears, no sledgehammers or Mo Dao.

In a battle where the strength is not proportional, defeat is inevitable.

The ferocious rebels jumped onto the city wall just half an hour after the battle began.

The first person to climb up was quite brave. He held a shield in one hand and a knife in the other, slashing left and right, and blood splattered everywhere. He first killed the commander of the new soldiers of Changping, and then killed the commander of the county soldiers.

Under the cover of the first climbers, more and more people completed the climb.

The northern wall had been lost.

It was only a matter of time before the other three walls fell.

All the soldiers around Chen Li had died in the battle. He covered his bleeding shoulder with one hand and stood up with the other hand supporting his spear.

"Pfft!"

The rebels would not show mercy to a wounded man. They did not know that Chen Li was the county magistrate, and they nailed Chen Li to the pillar of the city wall with a spear.

When the spear was pulled away from his chest, Chen Li's eyes widened and he died with his eyes open.

He tried his best!

All the soldiers defending the city were brutally killed by the rebels, even those who surrendered were not spared.

The rebels threw heads off the city wall, and blood flowed like rivers.

"Haha...close the four doors and loot to your heart's content!"

Seeing that the city had been breached, Sun Xiaozhe laughed loudly, and then it was time for the victor to celebrate.

Sun Xiaozhe was the envoy of the Qingyi Army. Not only was he extravagant, he was also extremely cruel by nature. He loved killing and it was normal for him to let his soldiers run wild for fun.

Therefore, his subordinates were extremely brutal, and even the Mohe people thought he was a good man when they saw them.

Li Xuan's words "leading beasts to eat people" are the most appropriate to describe Sun Xiaozhe.

Under Sun Xiaozhe's command, the rebels, blinded by greed and desire, rushed into Yuanshi City roaring.

Most of the strong men in the city died in the battle, leaving only the elderly, the weak, women and children, who were locked up in their homes.

"Oh!"

The houses closest to the city gate were the first to be affected, as the rebels kicked open the doors.

The first thing they looked for was not food, nor gold, silver or jewelry, but people.

"You traitors..."

An old man came out with tears on his face, leaning on a crutch and cursing.

"Old thing! Puff!"

The rebel stabbed the old man with a knife and he fell into a pool of blood.

The rebel had a blank expression on his face, as if killing his own kind was insignificant.

"what……"

Just then, a woman's scream was heard.

The rebels rushed towards a thatched hut like cats smelling blood.

I saw a woman holding a teenage girl.

There was also a child of several years old whose head and body were separated.

It turned out that a rebel broke in and discovered them.

A dozen rebels surrounded the mother and daughter and remained indifferent to their cries and begging for mercy.

When the rebels walked out of the thatched hut with lewd smiles on their faces, the young girl was naked, lifeless, and her lower body was covered in blood.

The woman had disheveled hair and a pale face, without a trace of blood or life.

More rebels rushed into the city like wolves.

For a moment, cries and screams resounded through the sky.

On the streets and in the alleys, bodies of the people were lying in disorder, and blood formed a river.

Every house was filled with the cries and screams of women.

After raping and looting, the rebels carried away bags of food and money, drove away chickens, ducks, cattle, and sheep, and even spared the guard dogs.

Houses were set on fire and the raging fire devoured everything. The once prosperous city was reduced to a living hell under the iron hoofs of the rebels.

This is war!
They dug up people’s tombs, burned their houses, looted their treasures and silk, the strong died on sharp blades and the weak were buried in ditches.

The description of the Anshi Rebellion in history books is not exaggerated.

The tragic incident in Yuanshi City spread to other counties, and many officials who were afraid of death surrendered.

Most of the county magistrates who had the same integrity as Chen Li were brutally killed.

These huge hidden dangers left by An Lushan were caused by the alliances among the other county governors in Hebei. They recruited tens of thousands of militiamen in a short period of time. The number of militiamen expanded rapidly, threatening to cut off An Lushan's retreat. As a result, Shi Siming and Cai Xide, who stayed in Fan Yang, had to lead their troops south in advance to fight with the counties in Hebei.

The rebels burned, killed, looted, and demanded death if they did not surrender. They easily crossed Changshan County and Zhao County, intending to rush straight across the Yellow River and head towards Chenliu County.

At this time, the sound of Yuyang drums and the express horses from the post station reached Huaqing Palace.

……

Huaqing Palace, slow songs and dances.

Li Longji was still in the Feishuang Palace, admiring the Colorful Skirt and Feathered Dress Dance, intoxicated.

Yang Yuhuan was surrounded by stars, wearing a colorful dress and pleasing the emperor to the music of the musicians.

Her dance steps are light, swaying like a red lotus in the autumn mist, and her graceful figure is soft, agile and changeable.

Just as Li Longji was drinking the wine, Gao Lishi broke into Feishuang Palace at an inopportune time and shouted, "Stop! Stop!"

Hundreds of musicians on both sides, playing all kinds of instruments, stopped abruptly at this moment.

Without the beat of musical instruments, Yang Yuhuan's charming body also stopped, and the sleeves of her painted silk dress fell naturally.

She looked at Gao Lishi with her eyes as clear as autumn water, and felt that something big had happened.

Otherwise, with Gao Lishi's steadiness, he would not be so impulsive.

It is a great sin to disturb the saint's interest.

She touched her chest unconsciously, very worried. She was afraid that it was bad news about Li Xuan.

Li Xuan's serious illness in a foreign country made her anxious and unable to sleep.

She burned incense and prayed in the Buddhist temple of Huaqing Palace again and again, hoping that Li Xuan would recover suddenly.

"Lushi, what are you doing?"

Li Longji knocked the wine glass on the jade table and questioned Gao Lishi.

He glared with his eyes wide open, and if Gao Lishi didn't give him an explanation, he would definitely punish Gao Lishi.

No matter how big the problem is, it cannot disrupt his dance of colorful feathers.

"Saint, An Lushan has rebelled. He led a large army southward. Seven days ago, the vanguard had reached Boling."

Gao Lishi spoke to Li Longji anxiously, and went on stage to present the memorial to Li Longji.

Since Li Longji wanted to spend the winter safely, all secret reports and memorials had to be given to Gao Lishi for review.

Only extremely urgent news needs to be given to Li Longji.

"what?"

Li Longji's face changed drastically as he looked at the memorial.

It was a letter from the governor of Boling asking for help, indicating an emergency at the border.

Although Li Longji already knew that An Lushan had ulterior motives, An Lushan's sudden march into the Central Plains made him blush and feel ashamed.

There is also an uncontrollable panic.

An Lushan had a large army and had already subdued the Hu people.

How could it be possible that those arrogant and powerful generals could leave no one harming anyone wherever they went?
He finally realized that war was the greatest disaster.

Floods and snowstorms are nothing compared to military disasters.

If a major rebellion occurs during a prosperous era, can it still be called a prosperous era?
Will he still be praised by future generations?
"Saint, you must cheer up. In this time of national crisis, you must take care of your health! You must quickly summon the civil and military officials to discuss countermeasures. An Lushan is just a barbarian. He has failed the trust of the saint and will die without a burial place sooner or later."

Gao Lishi comforted Li Longji: "The century-old foundation of the Tang Dynasty cannot be shaken!"

This was the time when Li Longji was at his most vulnerable. An Lushan had completely torn him apart, which reminded him of his unbridled indulgence of An Lushan in recent years.

Give An Lushan whatever he wants.

Blank letter of attorney.

Foreign generals replaced Han generals.

The minister who advised An Lushan to rebel was tied up and taken to Fan Yang!
I will protect myself, so you don't have to worry.

The harsh words echoed in his mind.

"Order the civil and military ministers to the Right Court."

Li Longji was an emperor after all. He forgot his own shortcomings and gave instructions to Gao Lishi.

"According to the order!"

Gao Lishi left immediately and asked the eunuch to inform the civil and military officials.

Li Longji also prepared to change his clothes.

After putting on the dragon robe, he felt that he was still the king who controlled the world.

An Lushan could only control two towns. He gathered the troops from Hedong, Hexi, Shuofang, Longyou, and the central imperial army, and recruited some local militias to capture An Lushan easily.

Li Longji thought to himself that if he caught An Lushan, he would cut him into pieces.

"Yuhuan, don't worry. I am still the Son of Heaven and the Khan of Heaven."

When Li Longji left Feishuang Palace, he comforted Yang Yuhuan and told her not to think too much. His kingdom was still stable.

"I hope the Saint can put down the rebellion as soon as possible."

After hearing the news, Yang Yuhuan breathed a sigh of relief, but felt extremely guilty in her heart.

An Lushan was her godson. She believed in An Lushan and thought he was not scheming, so she said a lot of good things about him.

Her cousins ​​and her sisters lived a life of luxury.

Is she a disaster to the country and the people?
How would Li Xuan, who is wise, heroic, and clear about what he loves and hates, view her?
Under Yang Yuhuan's gaze, Li Longji walked out of Feishuang Palace.

"call……"

A cold wind blew on the steps outside the palace, like a knife, making Li Longji shrink.

It turns out it's so cold outside.

He looked back at the Feishuang Palace guarded by hot springs and sat on his dragon chariot.

I didn't expect that the first court meeting in Huaqing Palace would take place in this form.

All the civil and military officials were in chaos in the right court of Huaqing Palace.

The eunuch had already informed all the ministers of An Lushan's march south.

The old ministers cried out in grief and could not control themselves.

The ministers looked at each other, clueless.

Only Yang Guozhong stood there calmly, waiting for Li Longji to arrive.

It seemed as if everything was under Yang Guozhong's control.

"Your Majesty has arrived..."

"Meet Your Majesty..."

After Li Longji arrived, the ministers stood up and bowed.

"I'm sure you all know that An Lushan is a traitor and is rebelling. Come, execute this traitor, An Qingzong."

As soon as Li Longji arrived at the court, he broke down his defenses and prepared to kill An Qingzong.

He felt unsatisfied again, and ordered: "Execute Princess Rongyi as well."

"According to the order!"

The imperial guards took the order and left.

The civil and military officials were horrified and they could understand why An Qingzong was executed.

After all, An Lushan's rebellion was unforgivable.

But Princess Rongyi is the daughter of former Crown Prince Li Ying and the granddaughter of Li Longji!
Li Longji's eyes turned red as he tried to cover up his mistake.

Kill Li Ying and then kill Li Ying's daughter.

This is simply...

But no one dared to persuade Li Longji.

"Right Prime Minister, how many troops does the An thief have? How should we mobilize them to defeat him?"

Li Longji said to Yang Guozhong.

"Your Majesty, it is certain that the Hedong Army will not obey the orders of the traitor An Lushan. The deputy ambassador of Pinglu Jiedushi, Lu Zhihui, is loyal to the court and will not obey An Lushan's military orders. At least he can control part of the Pinglu Army."

Yang Guozhong replied to Li Longji, emphasizing that An Lushan was disloyal.

Everyone knew that the Hedong Army did not listen to An Lushan.

But he didn't think about it. If An Lushan didn't control the Pinglu Army, could he mobilize the Mohe, Shiwei and other Hu tribes?
Does he dare to lead his troops south without caring about the rear?
Perhaps some of the Pinglu Army did not listen to An Lushan, but the vast majority of them would definitely follow An Lushan's lead.

Historically, a small part of the Pinglu army that stayed behind in Pinglu saw that the situation was not good and started an internal conflict, allowing the Tang Dynasty to take control of the Pinglu army's lair and capture Fan Yang.

"Your Majesty, there has been no war in Hebei for a hundred years. The people do not know how to fight and their military preparations are lax. It will be difficult to stop An Lushan from going south. We should quickly mobilize heavy troops to prevent An Lushan from crossing the Yellow River. Then we can order the Hedong Army to go out of Jingxing to encircle and suppress the rebels, and the country will be safe."

But as soon as Yang Guozhong finished speaking, the Minister of War Gao Xianzhi could not help but step out and report to Li Longji.

He was usually a silent person and didn't talk much. But now that the country was in trouble, as the most knowledgeable person in the court, he had to speak up.

Gao Xianzhi also saw an opportunity for him to regain military power and make meritorious contributions.

He believed that the rebellion could be easily put down by preventing An Lushan from crossing the Yellow River.

"Mr. Gao only knows about military affairs, but not the situation."

"Your Majesty, I have determined that An Lushan is the only one who is rebelling. Most of his generals and soldiers do not want to risk their lives in rebellion. An Lushan's head will be sent to Chang'an in less than ten days."

Yang Guozhong said with a solemn vow.

His words shocked all the ministers. An Lushan used blank letters of appointment to buy off the hearts of the troops. How could his subordinates not listen to him?

Yang Guozhong was self-righteous. He was initially worried about An Lushan's rebellion, but after careful analysis by his staff, he felt that An Lushan, a mixed Hu, was not a big deal.

As long as An Lushan died and Li Xuan in the west died of illness, no one in the world would dare to go against him.

"Your Majesty, An Lushan has evil ambitions and has been planning for many years. The soldiers around him are all elite soldiers from Yanyun, and many of them are Hu people. We must not take it lightly."

Gao Xianzhi said anxiously, disregarding etiquette.

"I have long known that the Hu people are unreliable. An Lushan is a Hu who has no roots. It is impossible for such a person to achieve anything. Moreover, Your Majesty is so powerful that even if An Lushan wins over the people's hearts, the soldiers will still be loyal to the saint."

Yang Guozhong glanced at Gao Xianzhi, then bowed to Li Longji.

He was very unhappy that Gao Xianzhi was against him, and he started by saying "the Hu people are unreliable", implying that Gao Xianzhi was a Goguryeo person.

Until now, his words were full of compliments.

"We can wait for the head of the thief An to be sent to the capital, but we need to immediately mobilize the imperial guards in Guannei, Henan and other counties, and recruit good soldiers to go to Luoyang and Chenliu to fight the enemy."

Li Longji was skeptical about Yang Guozhong's words. He did not believe them completely and also had to make other preparations.

"Your Majesty, I am willing to go to Luoyang to recruit soldiers and capture An Lushan to meet you."

After hearing what Li Longji said, Gao Xianzhi was overjoyed and volunteered.

"I await your victory report!"

Li Longji looked at Gao Xianzhi and nodded. He did not doubt Gao Xianzhi's identity as a Hu person.

Now, the civil and military officials felt relieved.

Although Gao Xianzhi was not as good as Li Xuan, he was also invincible at this time.

It was because of Yang Guozhong's deception that Li Longji thought it would be easy to pacify An Lushan, and he did not immediately mobilize troops from Longyou, Shuofang, Hexi and other places thousands of miles away.

The troops were scattered, some were in the plateaus, mountains and seas, and they needed to prepare food, grass and equipment. It would be impossible to reach Chang'an without half a year...

(End of this chapter)