Tiantang Splendid

Chapter 4873 Prince's Safety
Inside the tent, Lun Qinling looked around and said in a deep voice: "The Tang people's aid has arrived. Not only are there no shortages of food and fodder, but there are also enough firearms. Our combat power has increased by more than 10%. The morale of the whole army is high. We should strike while the iron is hot and surprise attack the enemy troops on the mountain pass to clear the way to Luoshui City!"

"Yes!"

The officers were extremely excited and cheered and shouted.

The Tang people's firearms were so useful that they were invincible when attacking cities and strongholds. They also had large quantities of food and fodder and finally had enough to eat. Their morale was high and they felt that they could defeat any enemy, let alone their defeated general Sai Rugongdun.

Lun Qinling also reminded: "This batch of firearms will be secretly put into the barracks. No one outside will know about it. You must keep it secret and give Sai Rugong Dun a surprise when the time comes."

There must be spies of Sairugundun in the army. If Sairugundun knew in advance that the Gar tribe had a large number of firearms, he would certainly take strict precautions. As long as the news was blocked, they would be able to gain maximum advantage by suddenly launching firearms when the two armies fought.

"Yes!"

Everyone accepted the order with a solemn look.

Bo Lun Zan Ren hesitated for a moment and asked, "What about the prince?"

Everyone's excitement faded a little, and they all looked at Lun Qinling. No matter how incompetent Gongri Gongzan was, he was still a Tubo prince and the only heir to the Zamp. The more than 10,000 elite soldiers under his command should not be underestimated. Whether to fight or not, a strategy must be decided in advance. Otherwise, if there were disagreements, there would be a high probability of chaos, which would give the enemy an opportunity to take advantage.

Lun Qinling said: "Attack Sairu Gongdon with all our strength and defeat him in one fell swoop. As for the prince, don't worry about him. As long as Sairu Gongdon is defeated, the prince will not have the courage to fight us head-on and will definitely run away faster than anyone else. If the prince helps Sairu Gongdon attack our army, we are allowed to fight back, but everyone must remember not to hurt the prince, otherwise we will become the target of the entire Tubo."

It's not that we can't attack Gongri Gongzan, but war is fierce and dangerous. Once the army attacks Gongri Gongzan, anything can happen in the chaos, but the situation on the battlefield changes rapidly. If Gongri Gongzan cannot see the situation clearly and rashly launches an attack, our side cannot sit there and wait for death and must fight back.

The most important thing is that Gongri Gongzan cannot be harmed, let alone die in the chaos of war. Otherwise, all the Tibetan tribes, whether loyal to the Zamp or not, will inevitably declare war on the Gar tribe. No matter what the final outcome is, the Gar tribe will lose the qualification to compete for the Zamp.

Bo Lun Zan Ren frowned and questioned: "In such a chaotic situation, who can guarantee the prince's life? It is possible that he fell off his horse and died in panic. What if that happens?"

Lun Qinling admitted that the risk was huge. A fall from a horse or a stray arrow could lead to unpredictable consequences. He gritted his teeth and said, "If the worst happens, it will be Gongri Gongzan's fate!"

Bolun praised Ren excitedly and said, "That's exactly what we should do! When we fight, we must go all out. How can we be timid?"

"Don't have any evil ideas, kid!"

Lun Qinling felt that something was not right with Bo Lun Zanren and warned him.

"Brother, don't worry. Are you still worried about me? I will definitely charge in front and be invincible! That old guy Serugundun may have been the bravest among the three armies when he was young, but now he can't last three rounds under my hands!"

"Hmph! You can't just charge in recklessly. You are the deputy commander. You should learn to control the overall situation and command with confidence instead of rushing in and attacking recklessly!"

"That's your responsibility, brother. I don't know how to do that, and I don't care about that. I'll just be the vanguard in attacking the city and taking the stronghold!"

"Okay, safety is the most important thing."

Lun Qinling pinched his brows and said unhappily that he was a little worried about this reckless brother who was extremely slow in politics, but now that the war was about to start, he didn't have the energy to teach his brother a good lesson.

"Be prepared. The entire army will attack at midnight today!"

"Yes!"

The officers were full of fighting spirit and responded loudly.

The entire camp operated in an orderly manner, completing pre-war mobilization and preparations.

*****
It was already evening when Sairu Gongdun came down from the mountain pass on the southern slope of Dangla Mountain. He went straight to Gongri Gongzan's tent, reported it to someone, and after getting permission, he pushed the door and entered.

There was a brazier burning in the tent, and it was warm as spring.

Sairu Gongdun took off his cloak and sat cross-legged opposite Gongri Gongzan, with a worried look on his face: "Just now, a message came from the north of the mountain, saying that a batch of aid sent by the Tang people has arrived. Although the spies have not yet learned what exactly is in it, Lun Qinling has already ordered mobilization and preparation. I am afraid that they will attack the mountain pass with all their strength today and tomorrow. I have occupied the mountain pass with my troops and the advantage of the terrain. I think it will be safe to defend. But I am worried about the safety of the prince. Why don't you lead your troops to the mountain pass and join forces with me, which can not only strengthen the defense but also ensure safety. What do you think?"

He was always worried about Gongri Gongzan's safety.

Before that, he had thought about it after Gongri Gongzan arrived, and finally came to the conclusion: although he had no intention of harming Gongri Gongzan, Gongri Gongzan's identity was too important, and it was possible that others had the same idea.

No matter the Sairu tribal army under his command or the Yalong tribal army led by Gongri Gongzan himself, they all seem to be the direct troops of their own tribes, but there are too many people, and there is no guarantee that there are no spies who have been bribed or even planted among them. The news of the Gar tribe in the north of the mountain can be passed to his ears at any time, so how can the armies of the Sairu tribe and the Yalong tribe be an exception?
For hundreds of years, the Tibetan tribes have been separated and united for their own interests, and it has become difficult to clearly define each other...

If anything unexpected happens to Gongri Gongzan, he will be in a passive position.

Gongri Gongzan disagreed. He offered a glass of wine to Sairu Gongdun. After the other party took it respectfully with both hands, he smiled and said, "I think there is no need to go to such great lengths. The general's ability is more than enough to stop Lun Qinling. Why should the army that came with me be dispatched to the mountain pass? Too many troops are not a good thing. It will be difficult for them to coordinate with each other, which will cause panic and give the enemy an opportunity to take advantage. I will lead the army here to stay with the general. To put it another way, our two armies have built a defensive layer. If there is a loss at the mountain pass, I can also support the general at the foot of the mountain and snipe the enemy at the same time to ensure that the defense line of Dangla Mountain is safe."

Sai Rugundun opened his mouth, wanting to say something but stopped himself.

Logically speaking, Gongri Gongzan's decision was correct. The mountain pass was not spacious, and no matter how many troops there were, they would be useless if they could not be deployed. As a safeguard, guarding the southern slope of the mountain pass was the best strategy, and this was also the original intention of the Zamp to send the prince here.

But Gongri Gongzan is of a different status after all, and there are countless people who are eyeing him with evil intentions. If something goes wrong...

The consequences are almost unimaginable.

But he could also see that Gongri Gongzan had the same concerns as him: Gongri Gongzan also knew that his identity was sensitive and was afraid that someone would take advantage of the chaos to harm him, so he was unwilling to be in Serugundun's army.

After all, any tribal leader could harbor ill will towards Gongri Gongzan, and in Gongri Gongzan's view, Sairu Gongdun was no exception...

Therefore, Sairu Gongdun could not continue to persuade him, as it would be bad if it aroused Gongri Gongzan's suspicion.

He could only warn him cryptically: "Warfare is dangerous, and you must be vigilant when you are in the army. You must put your own safety first. Don't step into dangerous places or rush in. Otherwise, if there is any damage, it will be a heavy burden that Tubo cannot bear."

Gong Ri Gong Zan said happily: "I am deeply grateful for the general's love and care, and I will always be careful and attentive."

Without saying anything more, Sai Rugongdun stood up and said goodbye, returning to the mountain pass to command the army to strengthen the defense to deal with the upcoming surprise attack by Lun Qinling.

Gongri Gongzan was sitting alone in the tent drinking. After finishing a pot of wine, he called the guards in to help him put on his armor. He also placed his scimitar, bow and arrows within reach and strictly ordered the guards not to leave the tent more than fifty steps away, to ensure that they could come to protect him as quickly as possible in case of any emergency.

He also felt a faint sense of panic in his heart. When he was in Lhasa, he only felt proud and glorious because of his identity, and had infinite beautiful visions for the future. But now that he had walked out of Lhasa and came to this chaotic battlefield, he suddenly found that his identity might be facing infinite danger.

His father had only him as his son, which was a good thing. Tubo did not need to fall into internal strife because of the dispute over the throne, and all forces could be united to the greatest extent. But at the same time, his father had only him as his son, which was also a bad thing, because as long as he had any accident, the throne of Tubo would inevitably fall into chaos, and many people would get opportunities because of this...

He firmly believed that there was no absolute loyalty in this world. The so-called loyalty was nothing more than the price of betrayal being insufficient. As long as the price was high enough, any betrayal was possible.

So he politely declined Serugundun's request. Although he did not believe that Serugundun would do anything bad to him, he could not rely on Serugundun's loyalty for his life and death.

His life is in his own hands.

……

Gongri Gongzan wrote a letter, saying that he was still in the army and was extremely worried about his safety. He also advised the Zanpu to be vigilant at all times and not give the thieves any chance to take advantage of him. It was especially important to transfer him back to Luoshui City... Then he called in a trusted guard, put the letter in an envelope and handed it to him, and instructed: "Take two trustworthy people with three horses and return to Luoshui City immediately to give the letter to the Zanpu."

"Yes."

The guard put away the letter and walked out.

After a while, the sound of horse hooves gradually faded away.

……

At midnight, the battle broke out.

Lun Qinling left behind some auxiliary soldiers to guard the food and fodder, and the rest of the army went out in full force to launch a fierce attack on the enemy entrenched in the mountain pass. Sai Rugongdun had already taken precautions, and his troops were in a strict formation, with a large number of chevaux de frise placed along the mountain road to prevent the enemy's armored cavalry from charging. Both sides were unreserved and the battle became fierce in an instant.

It was not until the night fell when rockets with swaying tails of light flew up from the Lun Qinling army, streaked across the night sky and landed in the camp on the mountain pass that the usually calm Sai Rugundon finally changed his expression.

Regarding the firearms that Qinling received from the Tang army, this was something that Sairu Gundon had not been aware of before.

When roars were heard one after another in front of the two armies, thunder bombs exploded, the soldiers of the Sairu tribe retreated in panic, and the front army was in chaos, Sairu Gongdun knew that defeat was inevitable and decisively ordered a retreat.

At the same time, he also sent someone to send a message to Gongri Gongzan, telling him to hold out for a while and let Gongri Gongzan lead the army to leave first...