Tiantang Splendid

Chapter 5131 Worried
Without Ashina Helu stationed in Mohe City to attack Tingzhou and Xizhou, the Anxi army was attacked from both sides. There was no Lu Dongzan who took advantage of the chaos to attack Hexi and cut off the food supply... All the preparations for this battle failed. How could this battle be fought?
Several generals of the Arab army were horrified.

Even Amir, who had always advocated "speed is the essence of war", couldn't help but panic at this moment. Although he had not participated in the last war in the Western Regions, he had a deep understanding of the combat effectiveness of the Tang army. He did not have much confidence in a head-on confrontation and a fight to the death.

Once they fight to the death, even if they win, it will be a pyrrhic victory, and they will be unable to continue attacking the Western Regions. The Tang army can quickly adjust its forces in the Western Regions and quickly pick up the pieces and make a comeback...

In the end, it was still the Arabs who failed.

If you don’t win, you lose.

When Auf saw Yezid's expression, his heart skipped a beat. Could it be that this guy was backing out?
This is impossible!
This attack on the Tang Dynasty and the seizure of the Western Regions was not only a "battle of honor" for the Caliph and a "battle of foundation" for Yazid, but also a "battle of merit" between him, Amir and Maslama. The three of them represented the interests of their respective tribes and could only win, not lose, and retreat was not an option!
They spent so many resources and manpower, not only sending the elite troops from Damascus, but also mobilizing all the troops from the entire Persian Plateau and Transoxiana, and yet they retreated without a fight?

That's a capital crime!

"Don't worry, Commander. Although the Tang army is strong, it is by no means invincible!"

Amir also realized that something was wrong and agreed, "In any case, the elite troops of Anxi Army only have 40,000 soldiers, and the rest are not worth mentioning. But we have gathered more than 200,000 coalition forces from various ethnic groups, which is enough to fight! Moreover, although Helu was driven away by Mishe and Buzhen, causing our plan of internal and external cooperation to fail, are Mishe and Buzhen really willing to surrender to the Tang people? As long as we put enough pressure on the Tang army on the front battlefield, they will do what Helu should do without the need for an alliance!"

Maslama also advised gently: "The strength of the Tang army is only due to firearms. We have obtained some firearms and studied them before. Although we cannot copy them, we have understood their power. In terms of lethality alone, they are not enough to threaten an army of 200,000. Their greater effect is to cause panic. As long as we overcome them, firearms will have no place to use."

Before this, Muawiyah was first defeated at the Suiye River and then defeated at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains. How could he not pay attention to the extremely powerful firearms and think about imitating them?
Through merchants traveling east and west, some of the firearms equipped by the Tang army were obtained. Cannons were difficult to obtain, but muskets and thunder bombs were equipped on a large scale by the Tang army, so there was always a way to find a way to get them...

After some research in Damascus, they found that the formula of gunpowder could not be reversed at all. Although the musket could be imitated, the quality was too poor and the cost was extremely high. Without gunpowder, the musket was just a fire stick.

But it was not all in vain. The power of firearms was not as huge and irresistible as imagined. The reason why the Arab army collapsed at the first touch of firearms on the battlefield was more of a psychological effect.

The roar and the flames first frightened the horses and made them uncontrollable, which led to the psychological collapse of the soldiers and the overwhelming defeat...

As long as you resist the psychological pressure, the power of the firearm will be reduced by at least half.

Yazid was undecided and looked at Helu: "What do you think, Khan?"

Ashina Helu said: "I agree with the advice of several generals. The Tang army is strong only on the surface, or it is all due to its reliance on firearms. In fact, the quality of the soldiers is not much higher than that of the Arab army. As long as we can defeat them once and shatter their myth of "invincibility", their morale will inevitably collapse. By then, the general will crush them with his absolute superior force. What use will the Tang people have for all their tricks? They will collapse at the first blow!"

Not only did his generals not allow the troops to withdraw, but even the surrendered generals believed that this battle could be won. Yezide also calmed down and nodded, saying: "Then we will fight the Tang people to the death! However, the current situation is completely different from what we expected, and we need to formulate a new strategy."

Auf nodded: "That's right!"

Amir looked at Ashina Helu.

Ashina Helu understood and quickly stood up to say goodbye: "I have come from afar, I will leave the city first to settle my soldiers, and then I will come back to the city later to pay a visit to the commander-in-chief and listen to his instructions!"

Yazid said: "Khan has been traveling a lot and is very tired. It is time for him to take a good rest."

He looked at Maslama and said, "Please place the Khan in Tozhe City. It will be convenient for him to rest and also help defend the mouth of the Chirchik River."

Kesan City is located on the bank of the Yaosha River. To the north is the Alatau Mountains, which stretch from east to west. The mountain is not very high and has many mountain passes, so a large army must be stationed along the river bank for defense. The Chirchik River is a tributary of the Yaosha River, which originates from the Kyrgyz Mountains. Tuoze City is on the bank of the river. To the north of the mountain is Hengrus, and to the east of Hengrus is Suiye City. The Kyrgyz Mountains also have many mountain passes, which are not conducive to the movement of large armies. However, a small army can cross the mountains and follow the Chirchik River Valley all the way south, directly behind Kesan City, so Tuoze City must station troops to prevent it.

Maslama immediately took Ashina Helu out and arranged for someone to go to Tuoze City to pass on the order, allowing Helu to lead his troops to station there and allocating some food and fodder.

When Maslama came back and sat in front of Yezid, he looked worried and said, "Tuozhezhe City is very important in terms of strategy. Is it appropriate to place Helu there?"

Yezid was unimpressed: "It's not like Helu is the only one stationed in Tuozhe City. There is also Aluhan leading the Persian cavalry stationed there. The two of them are restraining each other, so Helu can't make any waves. Besides, if we don't place them in Tuozhe City, should we place them around Kesan City?"

After all, although the Arab army had 100,000 troops, they had to defend the Yaoshashui line before the war to avoid being raided by the Tang army crossing the Alatau Mountains, and they had to be prepared for war. They could only be assembled in a certain area for easy deployment. Areas slightly far away from the scattered cities could only be stationed and defended by the various Hu tribes.

Ashina Helu has come all the way with his army to surrender. We can't just drive him away or ignore him, right?

Then people's hearts will be scattered.

Amir said: "Arohan is resourceful and calm, enough to contain Helu, so there is no need to worry."

Last year, he led his army into Persia, advancing straight ahead and invincible. Its king Yazdashi fled to Murug with the royal family and officials. He followed closely and defeated the remaining Persian army on the banks of the Uhu River. Yazdashi died in the battle in Murug City, and his son Alohan led the royal family and officials to surrender.

Afterwards, Alohan's wife and children were sent to Damascus as hostages, and the remaining Persian troops were handed over to Alohan's command. He performed extremely well, so he also came with the army during this expedition to the Western Regions...

Maslama said no more.

The reason why the Arabs are so powerful today is that they have been constantly expanding outwards, conquering foreign tribes year after year, and many captives have become generals of the Arabs, and they have been subdued by means of hostages, rewards, etc. If you doubt Arohan's loyalty to the Arabs, then all the foreign tribes recruited by the Caliph this time are untrustworthy, not only can the war not be fought, but even the foundation of the Arab state must be denied.

Then it's all over.

Ye Qide rubbed his forehead and asked, "What should we do now?"

Amir did not answer, but looked at Maslama who was in charge of logistics and supply: "How are the troops of various ethnic groups assembled? How much food and fodder have they stored?"

"We have assembled more than 150,000 troops. We will be able to complete the assembly in half a month, but we are short of food and fodder."

The Arab army had always prepared only a small amount of food and fodder when conquering all directions. They were either brought by the troops of various tribes recruited by the Caliph, or they fought to support the war and plundered everywhere. Now the Caliph had recruited all the tribes under his rule to join the attack on the Tang Dynasty. Everywhere they passed was the territory of each tribe, so they naturally could not plunder and rob. The food and fodder of each tribe was also limited, and the consumption was extremely high.

Before the army has completed its assembly, it cannot go to war directly. As the army gathers more and more, the consumption increases, forming a vicious cycle...

Maslama sighed and said, "According to my estimation, by the time the troops have assembled, their food and fodder will have run out."

The troops have assembled, but the food and fodder are gone. How can we fight the war?
Several people looked unhappy; this question had no solution.

Amir had to reiterate his previous suggestion: "We still have to launch a surprise attack. The resources of the Tang army are constantly gathering in Suiye City. As long as Suiye City is captured, all problems will be solved."

This is true, but what if we can’t capture Suiye City in one battle?
Aofu disagreed: "We Arabs have fought like this for generations. Why would we hesitate and worry so much? If I were you, we should start the war right away. Our morale is high now. If we still can't conquer Suiye City, can we just wait for those tens of thousands of people to gather? In winter, it's difficult for the Tang army to get supplies. It's impossible to store too much food and fodder, and it's not convenient to mobilize the army. If we delay any further, when the Tang army is fully prepared, we will miss the opportunity."

Maslama agreed: "When the food and fodder run out, we will have to go to war. By then, the soldiers will be demoralized and lack physical strength, which will be bad."

He was in charge of logistics, and his brain was almost burning with worry because he had to carefully calculate the food and fodder supplies for each army every day. He was most in favor of starting the war as soon as possible.

Yazid also knew that the current situation was unfavorable. Who could have thought that the assembly of the army would waste so much time, resulting in the loss of the opportunity to fight, and that Lu Dongzan and Ashina Helu would encounter problems one after another, causing the expected tactics to completely fail?
He made a prompt decision: "Then we will decide to send troops to raid Suiye City! Let's discuss how to raid and who should go?"

Amir took the lead and said, "I will lead 30,000 men to cross the river in three days, first to take Hengluo and then attack Suiye City. Auf will lead 20,000 men to support us from behind. We will ride light horses and rush quickly to catch the Tang army off guard! Even if we cannot capture Suiye City in one go, we can retreat to Hengluo to defend against the counterattack of the Tang army. After we have gained a firm foothold, the general will lead the main force to assemble. By then, the whole army will be ready to capture Suiye City!"