Chapter 9: The Dispute in Xingqing Palace

  Every time I upload, the main character's name automatically changes to Yang Xi, and it takes many attempts to get it right once. What's going on with the starting point????

  On the way to Xingqing Palace, Yang Kai had already made up his mind to ask for orders and lead troops to rescue Tongguan urgently.

  Since Heaven has brought him to the Great Tang at this time, he must have been "sent" to save the Great Tang from its predicament; since he bears such a mission, he should stand up without hesitation and lead the army to rescue Tongguan!

  He had led troops in the past, participated in many exercises close to actual combat, and also commanded many actual operations, and even killed people. Although the methods of military action in ancient times were very different from those in later generations, he, who graduated from a military academy and re-enlisted, had studied the tactics of ancient cold weapons during his time at the military school, and was not unfamiliar with the ways of ancient warfare. With rich combat experience, if he could lead a team of elite soldiers, he was confident that he could change the outcome of Tongguan being occupied by the rebel army!

  The book "Anshi Rebellion" he read before taught him many ways to defeat the enemy, and there were ways to stop the rebels at Tongguan City, but it was unknown whether they would be useful. However, Yang Hui knew that things had come to this point, and what needed to be done most was to lead the army to rescue Tongguan as soon as possible!

  If it's late, any plan made for defending Tongguan will be empty and futile.

  What's more, the military situation is now critical, Tong Pass has fallen, and if there hadn't been someone like him who suddenly appeared on the scene, history would have unfolded as it originally did: Tong Pass would soon fall, Emperor Li Longji would flee, Chang'an would be occupied by the rebels, and famous historical figures such as Yang Guozhong and Yang Yuhuan would be killed in the chaos when the imperial carriage fled to Mawei Slope, plunging the Tang Dynasty into a prolonged period of internal strife, bringing an end to its glorious era.

  Perhaps with his ability as a time-traveler to foretell the future and his extraordinary skills, he could avoid death, but that would be too humiliating, too pathetic!

  The blood that remained in his body made him unable to bear the tragic fate that had befallen him, nor did he wish for the era in which he lived to sink further into turmoil. The many worries that arose from this situation led Yang Hui to step forward and ask for mercy without much hesitation.

  Yang Guozhong, shocked and enraged, glared at Yang Hui and growled in a low voice: "Hui'er, how dare you! Shut your mouth at once!" Yang Guozhong hoped that Yang Hui had only spoken out of temporary impulse and hastily rebuked him to stop talking such nonsense, lest the Emperor be ridiculed.

  A seventeen-year-old young man who has never been in the army before is leading troops to rescue Tongguan, does he think it's a joke?

  Yang Guozhong slightly regretted bringing Yang Hui into the palace!

  But Yang Jie was full of confidence, and replied to Yang Guozhong in a low voice: "Father, rest assured, if the child is really allowed to lead a team to rescue Tongguan, the child is confident that he can take advantage of the natural danger of Tongguan, guard the city gate, and block the rebels outside Tongguan City, and make father's face longer!"

  Yang Guozhong was about to say something, but at this time Li Longji spoke up: "Guozhong, it seems that you and the Fourth Prince have already discussed and come up with a good strategy to defeat the enemy, quickly tell me about it!"

  Yang Hui rushed to ask for orders before Yang Guozhong, and although Yang Guozhong's face turned ugly, he didn't say anything in the hall. Li Longji believed even more that this was something Yang Guozhong and his son had discussed beforehand. He guessed that Yang Guozhong was worried about being blamed for Geshu Han's defeat, so he and his son had planned this performance in advance! Of course, there must be some plot behind the performance, and the father and son must have discussed some way to deal with the enemy. Li Longji, who didn't want to punish Yang Guozhong at this time, wanted to hear what they had discussed.

  "Your Majesty! I am guilty, please punish me!" Yang Guozhong let out a long sigh and knelt down again, preparing to explain the reason and reprimand Yang Hui's nonsense in front of the emperor. But as he was about to kowtow, Yang Hui took a step forward and helped him up.

  In Yang Guozhong's astonishment and confusion, Yang Hui helped him up and stood tall, while Li Longji, with a look of surprise on his face, bowed and said: "Your Majesty, although Geshu Han suffered a disastrous defeat, he still led nearly 10,000 soldiers back to Tongguan, where they are defending the pass. They must have set up roadblocks along the way to slow down the rebel army's advance! Although An Lushan's army won this battle, they also paid a considerable price and need time to clean up the battlefield and deal with the remnants of our defeated troops. To continue fighting and rush straight to Tongguan is extremely difficult, if not impossible. The most urgent task now is to immediately dispatch a general with troops to rescue Tongguan and ensure its safety! If Tongguan is secure, then Chang'an has nothing to worry about!"

  When Yang Jie began to speak, many important ministers such as Wei Shaosu, the Minister of War, Chen Xuanli, the General of Dragon Martial, Xiao Hua, the Vice Minister of War, Fang Cuo, the Vice Minister of Justice, Zhang Kai, the Minister of Imperial Stables, and Wei Fangjin, the Governor of Jingzhao, arrived at the hall one after another.

  They had already learned the news of Tongguan's defeat and were in a state of panic. As they entered the hall, they saw Yang Jie speaking boldly before the Emperor, which added to their astonishment. However, what Yang Jie said immediately caught their attention, and after paying respects to Li Longji, they all stood aside and listened to Yang Jie's statement.

  Relying on the residual memories of his previous life, Yang Hui recognized Wei Jian and Chen Xuanli, among other high-ranking officials in the court, as well as Wei Fangjin, a trusted follower of Yang Guozhong. The others he did not know.

  But the passionate lecturer, seeing Emperor Li Longji showing great interest in what he was saying, ignoring the arrival of so many people, continued to speak freely: "Your Majesty, the road ahead of Tongguan Pass is difficult to travel. When Geshu Han left the pass, the baggage, felt carts, and the remains of the loyalist soldiers who died for the country had already blocked the road. The enemy army can only clear these obstacles before they can advance! This will take at least a day or a night, which means that even if the enemy advances at the fastest speed, it will not be possible to reach Tongguan City until tomorrow morning or afternoon!"

  "If the imperial court were to exert its full strength to rescue, before the bandit army breaks through Tongguan City, dispatch a large army to urgently rescue Tongguan and strengthen the defense of Tongguan. The bandit army will certainly not be able to take it! If there is hesitation and indecision, it will inevitably delay military action, so I beg Your Majesty to quickly decide and dispatch a large army to rescue Tongguan! I beg Your Majesty to grant me permission to lead the army to rescue Tongguan. If the rescue is not successful and we fail to block the enemy, I am willing to accept any punishment from Your Majesty! If the battle is lost, this humble subject will also sacrifice himself for the country!"

  With a thud, he knelt down on one knee and made a big bow, then loudly asked for orders again!

  Yang Hui's behavior and the arrogant attitude he showed when asking for orders not only shocked Li Longji and Yang Guozhong, but also Wei Jianfu, Wei Fangjin, who were Yang Guozhong's confidants, and even Chen Xuanli and Xiao Hua, who had a bad impression of Yang Guozhong, couldn't help but look at him sideways!

  Yang Hui's words were too full of heroic spirit for a man, which was completely different from their impression of Yang Guozhong and his son.

  The hall was filled with so many people, Yang Guozhong had grievances that he could not express. He couldn't scold Yang Hui now, if he did, the emperor and other ministers would think he was afraid of death, his son's request to go on an expedition would be blocked, and it was even possible for him to be punished by the emperor; but he knew the nature of his own child, how could such a young man lead the army? Pinning hopes on Yang Hui to lift the siege of Tongguan was no different from a fool's dream!

  How could his own son turn out like this and dare to ask for an audience with the Emperor? Yang Guozhong was extremely perplexed and shocked!

  His complicated emotions left him standing there blankly, unsure of what to say, his former quick wit and adaptability completely gone.

  Everyone's eyes in the hall kept wandering between Yang Guozhong and Yang Hui, seeing that Yang Guozhong had no reaction for the time being. Many people immediately thought this was what Yang Guozhong had intended, and today they were putting on a show in front of the emperor. Immediately, someone stood up to express their opinion.

  "Wei Zheng first stepped forward and said: "Your Majesty, I agree with Yang Siling's suggestion to send a large army to urgently rescue Tongguan. This is also the only way to save Tongguan now! However, it should not be led by Yang Siling. Your Majesty should dispatch other capable generals to lead, and set off immediately. Otherwise, Tongguan will be in danger!"

  Wei Fangjin also stood up immediately, expressing a similar view to Wei Jiansu. They saw Yang Guozhong's embarrassment and clearly knew that this powerful emperor's favorite minister was not convenient to refute what his son said at this time, so they had to do it for him!

  Both of them took today's situation as Yang Guozhong pretending to be at odds with his own son.

  Several people guessed what was on his mind and spoke out the words that he found hard to say, Yang Guozhong breathed a sigh of relief, adjusted his collar, and just as he was about to say something, General Chen Xuanli of Longwu stood up and expressed an opinion different from the previous ones: "Your Majesty, I fully agree with what Mr. Yang said, and we should send a large army to rescue Tongguan urgently! Now all the good generals in the court are outside commanding troops, and there is no one who can effectively control the generals of Tongguan. I also feel that I don't have this ability! And Mr. Yang has the highest prestige in the court, if Mr. Yang leads the army to rescue, with Your Majesty's edict and Mr. Yang's prestige, Mr. Yang will surely be able to command the troops and block the rebels under Tongguan City!"

  Chen Xuanli's sarcastic remarks about Yang Guozhong were naturally heard by everyone, including others who also sensed the tone. However, no one immediately stood up to refute him. Because it was an extraordinary period, many people, including Wei Jiansu and others, did not know the emperor's current attitude and dared not express their opinions randomly. Even those who wanted to oppose Chen Xuanli's words were thinking about how to say them properly!

  At this time, the Minister of War, Xiao Hua, stood up and said: "Your Majesty, I think that Yang Gong has the most important responsibility for the defeat at Lingbao! Geshu Yuan Shuai repeatedly petitioned to be allowed to fight outside the pass, but was refused, and could only defend from within. If he had been allowed to do so, we would not have suffered this defeat! It was Yang Gong who repeatedly requested that Geshu Yuan Shuai lead his troops out of the pass to fight, and now that Geshu Yuan Shuai has suffered a great defeat, I think that not only should Geshu Yuan Shuai be punished for his defeat, but also Yang Gong's crime of insisting on his own way and forcing Your Majesty to agree to let Geshu Huan go out to fight should be punished! However, this is an extraordinary time, and I suppose Your Majesty will not agree to punish Yang Gong at this moment. I suppose Yang Gong also knows that his guilt is great, and therefore wants to let his son lead the army to redeem himself by turning back the tide of defeat! I also agree to let Yang Jia Si Lang lead the army to rescue Tongguan, if Yang Jia Si Lang can successfully block the enemy at Tongguan, then some of Yang Gong's guilt can be forgiven. Please, Your Majesty, agree to let Yang Jia Si Lang lead the army to urgently rescue Tongguan!