Xiao Yu looked at Su Dingfang unhappily. This was only in Chengdu. If it were in Chang'an City, he would have reported you to the emperor based on what you said. You didn't even know what the key points were. What was so important about a broken place like Nanzhao? If Li Xiang got a little bit of skin scratched, it wouldn't matter if he killed a million Nanzhao people.
"Go down and prepare immediately. Don't bring too many people, just over 10,000 will be enough. Besides some of my guards, mobilize the troops of the four chieftains for the rest. Also, recruit some of the local Han troops. Disband them all and reorganize them."
Li Xiang thought for a while and said that the local people in Sichuan have also formed an army. If they are only asked to perform security tasks, they will not be able to go to the battlefield in the future. The battlefield in the south will be very large in the future. If Li Xiang wants to gain access to the Indian Ocean, he will probably have to fight all the way there. If he relies on favors, Li Xiang feels that he does not have that ability.
"There might really be a war going on in Nanzhao, so you have to prepare here as well. No matter what's required on the front line, no matter how difficult it is, focus on the front line first."
Li Xiang also had to give Xiao Yu a few words of advice. It would be best if there was no war, but if the time came when we had to fight, we couldn't be afraid. We had to draw our swords when it was time to do so, and not let others think that our Tang Dynasty was only good at talking.
"Please rest assured, Your Highness. The surrounding warehouses are already fully stocked, and the necessary escort personnel are ready and waiting for Your Highness's orders at any time. We in Chengdu will not delay anything."
Xiao Yu said very proudly that after stepping down from the position of prime minister, this guy had no real power in his hands, and he was always doing some empty things. After Li Xiang asked him to go to Sichuan, the entire province was under his management. Now he also wanted to prove to the people in Chang'an City that no matter where he went, he was capable.
After a brief preparation, an army of 12,000 people set out from Chengdu. Among them, 800 were Li Xiang's soldiers, who were mainly responsible for Li Xiang's safety. Another 2,200 were local Han troops in Chengdu, and the rest were all reorganized troops of the four chieftains.
If you look at it from the outside, these people are all wearing the same clothes and holding basically the same weapons, but only they themselves know that the grades of their weapons are different, and their salaries are also different.
The army reorganized from the chieftains can only get 70% of the salary at present. Only after participating in a few wars can they be treated like the Tang Dynasty soldiers. After a period of ideological education, these people's thoughts have changed a lot, and all that is left is actual combat on the battlefield.
Li Xiang was also wearing the uniform of an ordinary soldier. If you were not familiar with him, you would not know that Li Xiang was the crown prince. The more than one hundred people around him were all system soldiers. Li Xiang would not communicate with other soldiers to prevent the spread of news from causing disaster.
"The whole army is charging."
After mounting his warhorse, Su Dingfang immediately issued his orders. Except for more than 4,000 infantrymen, the remaining 12,000 people were all cavalry.
However, the Tang Dynasty's infantry would not walk on their own legs. They all used customized four-wheeled carriages. When they attacked Goguryeo, the soldiers had already started using this kind of four-wheeled carriage, so many soldiers were no longer worried about walking.
In the past, if there was a war, the journey alone would make everyone exhausted. Relying on their own two feet, they would have to walk thousands of miles. Once they arrived at the destination, let alone fighting, they would have to rest for many days just because of the fatigue.
Nowadays, with the advent of four-wheeled carriages, the people on the carriage take turns driving the carriage, and the rest of the people can rest in the carriage. Although it is not very comfortable, it is much more comfortable than walking on their own feet, and it can also maintain their combat effectiveness.
The chieftains' army had never seen such luxurious equipment. According to their previous understanding, only the chieftains' family members could have such carriages when they went down the mountain. As for the others, they all relied on their legs. Now we can also enjoy this.
The most terrible thing is that they changed from two meals to three meals. What they feared most before was starvation, but after joining the Tang army, as long as you don’t waste food, you can eat as much as you want. When they first arrived, many people wanted to eat the whole pot, but now it is a little better.
The measurement of the road from Nanzhao to Sichuan has begun, and the court officials have also started work, but construction has not started yet. By the time Li Xiang and others return, this place will belong to the Tang Dynasty, and it will be time to start.
But now they still need to overcome some difficulties. Because the road is not wide enough, only two cavalrymen can ride side by side. As for the four-wheeled carriage at the back, only one carriage can pass through. When they encounter some dangerous places, the people in the carriage can only get off, dismantle the carriage and carry it over.
This greatly affected the speed of the infantry's advance, but the infantry also needed to carry things like artillery shells, and they would not be able to do without them. However, the soldiers in Nanzhao obviously did not dare to resist. When Su Dingfang led his men across the border, someone came to ask questions last time, but this time no one even asked.
They simply opened the entire checkpoint, and no one knew where the soldiers inside had gone.
"Leave 500 men to guard this place, and notify Sichuan to send another 2,000 men. We must control the checkpoints in the border areas."
The last time we passed through here, we had to be polite and not go too far. But this time it’s different. Su Dingfang knows that we went there to clean up the ends. If we don’t take down the entire Nanzhao, we won’t be able to return to the court. In the future, we will have to deliver supplies to the south on the way. If the checkpoint is not in our hands, how can we sleep well?
Li Xiang was forty meters to the left of Su Dingfang at this moment. He also heard Su Dingfang's arrangements. The two had agreed before that as long as Li Xiang didn't say anything, he could have full authority over the rental of the house. Except for the major route after Nanzhao, there was nothing else that Li Xiang needed to decide along the way. Some of the soldiers guarding the house didn't even know that Li Xiang was following them. Of course, they had to follow Su Dingfang's orders.
