Chapter 3: The Debate in the Imperial Court

  Thanks for the reward from Tingyu and Guotang book friends!

  "Your Majesty, this is absolutely impermissible!"

  The first one who stood out against Li Heng's proposal was Ge Shuhan.

  "In the midst of the ministers' surprise and Li Longji and Li Hen's astonishment, Geshu Han memorialized: 'Your Majesty, General Yang has just led the army to victory in the defense of Tongguan, subjugating the generals of Tongguan. General Yang showed great military talent and bravery in commanding the defense of Tongguan, which is truly admirable. However, the great task of pacifying the rebels is not yet complete, and Tongguan remains the most coveted pass for the rebels. If another general were to be sent to command the battle at Tongguan, they would have to familiarize themselves with the situation again, and it's uncertain whether the other generals would obey their commands, which could lead to disaster. The rebels may continue to attack the city, and changing commanders in the midst of battle is a great taboo. Therefore, I believe that General Yang should continue to command the troops at Tongguan! I also support what General Yang said earlier, that we should defend the city according to its layout and not lightly engage in battle outside the pass, lest the tragedy of Lingbao be repeated!'"

  Before the defeat of Lingbao, the situation in Tongguan was even better. After six months of fierce attack by the rebels, they retreated to the vicinity of Shaanxi Prefecture, and at that time, the morale of the rebel army was very low. After the Battle of Lingbao, the morale of the rebel army was greatly boosted, and even if they failed to capture Tongguan, their morale was much better than before. According to the latest intelligence reports, the rebels have set up ambush points in many places along the way, hoping that our army will take advantage of the victory and pursue them, and fight another Battle of Lingbao. In this situation, it is absolutely impossible for us to lead the army out of the pass to fight, otherwise, the consequences are unpredictable.

  Ge Shuhan judged that the rebels would still attack Tongguan again, and he hoped that Yang Hui could lead the army to defend it.

  He thought so, said so, not to show that the rift with Yang Guozhong had disappeared, he just considered the overall situation and also recognized Yang Hui's ability, did not want to cause another chaos at Tongguan due to changing generals at the last minute, so after Li Heng proposed to change commanders, he immediately memorialized.

  Of course, he also had a bad relationship with Li Heng, otherwise he would not have been the first to come forward and express his views on this matter.

  Although Geshu Han was relieved of all his duties by the imperial court, his prestige still existed. After all, this old general had gone through hundreds of battles and had few defeats. Before the Lingbao War, he almost won every battle. He said this from a macro perspective, and even Li Heng couldn't stand up to insist on his own opinion. Other officials who originally had this intention also retreated after hearing Geshu Han's words.

  However, at this time Yang Guozhong stood out and made a courtesy to Li Longji, saying: "Your Majesty, I am also worried that Yang Hui is not capable of continuing to command the follow-up war, I support the court to appoint another general to command the Tongguan army and take charge of the follow-up rebellion. Yang Hui is young, and he has no military experience before, this time he can command the Tongguan army to win the defensive battle, it's all because of his bold and reckless personality, and also the help of God! But I am worried that he will continue to lead the army and disappoint Your Majesty, so I suggest that Your Majesty should choose another general to lead the army."

  Yang Guozhong said this because he was worried that Yang Hui would continue to command the war and suffer a defeat, and all the prestige and military achievements established earlier would be destroyed in an instant. It's better to quit while ahead, throw this hot potato of Tongguan to others, and hand over the heavy responsibility of pacifying the rebellion to others to command.

  Yang Kai's military achievements are already very great, and with this achievement, he can get a very big reward.

  This is Yang Guifei's capital, the honor of the Yang family. With these military achievements, he can stand firm in the imperial court and have follow-up development. Of course, Yang Guozhong also worries that Yang Guifei will encounter accidents during battle command, get injured or die, and then he will not even have time to cry.

  Yang Ke could not fully understand what Yang Guozhong was thinking, but no matter what Yang Guozhong thought, he would not give up the opportunity to continue leading the army. Previously, in a letter sent to Yang Guozhong, he had also expressed this view, only to think that Yang Guozhong did not respond or disagree with his words. It seems that soon he will have to communicate well with Yang Guozhong and explain the pros and cons to this father in detail.

  Yang Hui did not want to express an opinion different from his father's, so he didn't speak up. He believed that such a major matter Li Longji would not make a decision on immediately. After Yang Guozhong stepped down, they exchanged glances, and Yang Guozhong somewhat understood the meaning in his eyes. Hesitating for a moment, he made eye contact with Wei Fangjin.

  Wei Fangjin stepped forward on horseback, and after making a bow to Emperor Li Longji on the imperial throne, he spoke out boldly: "Your Majesty, I disagree with what Yang Gong has said. I think that General Gesu's words make sense. Changing generals in the midst of an army is a great taboo; it would be better to let Commander-in-Chief Yang continue to command the troops at Tong Pass!"

  Wei Jian also stood out and echoed Wei Fangjin's meaning, but he mainly considered the overall situation and thought that changing generals before a battle was unacceptable.

  Takebe no suke, Xiao Hua, however, stood up in opposition to allowing Yang Kai to continue leading the Tongguan army, opposing on the grounds that Yang Kai was too young and could not fully grasp the situation, lacking experience, unable to cope with the ever-changing battlefield situation, and if the battle were unfavorable, it would be a disaster.

  But Wei Fangjin, who supported Yang Jie continuing to lead the army, immediately retorted that when Han's Huo Qubing led the army, he was only seventeen years old, and when he achieved his great achievements, he was only around twenty years old. Emperor Taizong of Tang led the army to lift the siege of Yongmen at the age of sixteen, and having ambition is not about being older. From Yang Jie's performance in Tongguan, it can be seen that this young man can fully take on the role of Marshal Ma Bing and has the ability to continue commanding the war.

  The court was in an uproar, and Emperor Li Longji furrowed his brow. Just as the officials continued to argue, Yang Guozhong coughed loudly several times, stepped forward, and bowed before Li Longji, saying: "Your Majesty, please take your time to consider this matter carefully before making a decision! Today's commotion has not yielded any results. I presume that when Yang Hui returns, there will be many important matters for him to report to Your Majesty personally. Let us wait until Yang Hui finishes his report before we deliberate further."

  Yang Guozhong also said so, and Li Longji thought for a moment before agreeing immediately. He waved his hand to signal the ministers not to make any more noise: "All of you, dear officials, do not argue anymore. This matter will be carefully considered by me before making a decision. Dismissal!"

  He didn't care about the reactions of the officials in the hall anymore and left on his own. Gao Lishi, who was standing beside him, followed closely behind.

  Li Longji left so abruptly, leaving Yang Hui very surprised. Today's court meeting wasn't supposed to discuss many important matters? How could he make a fuss and then not continue presiding over the court meeting with the other officials? And what about Geshu Han, that old general - how would he be dealt with? Was he going to be punished or not? This emperor was really somewhat incompetent.

  The emperor left, and the ministers had no choice but to continue arguing, leaving Xingqing Hall one after another, either alone or in pairs.

  Yang Guozhong also whispered a few words to Wei Fangjin and Wei Jiansu, then called over a small eunuch, gave him some quiet instructions, before finally allowing Yang Hui to follow him to the imperial audience.

  "Father, why are you opposed to letting the child continue to lead the army at Tong Pass?" Yang Hui asked straightforwardly as they accompanied Yang Guozhong to Emperor Xuanzong's palace.

  Yang Guozhong said with some embarrassment: "Xi'er, your father is afraid that you will have an accident in Tongguan. On the battlefield, knives and arrows are ruthless. If something happens to you, your mother will cry herself to death!"

  Pei Rou already knew about Yang Hui going to Tongguan to lead the army, and for several days she had been crying and making a scene at home. Yang Guozhong didn't dare return, fearing his wife's tearful pleas. When faced with his son's questioning, he could only use this reason as an explanation first, and after seeing that there was no one around, he expressed his other thoughts, saying that he just wanted to see things go well and not let Yang Hui take any more risks, in case something unexpected happened.

  "Father, please be at ease. As long as the imperial court does not interfere with my decisions, I will definitely be able to command my troops and continue to win battles and achieve merits." Yang Hui lowered his voice and said to his father: "Father has few trusted subordinates in the army, but now that I have already subdued the generals of Tongguan, if these people can all be used by Father in the future, then Father's influence in both literary and military fields will be very great. I will also have more prestige in the army, which should be what Father hopes to see most."

  Yang Hui's bold words left Yang Guozhong stunned!