Tiantang Splendid

Chapter 5347 On the verge of breaking out

Chaos reigned within the royal palace of Mosul.

Denirari smashed everything in sight, his rage insane and furious. Had his close advisor Ethil not intervened, he would have nearly killed the soldier who came to deliver the message with his greatsword...

Denilari, fuming, sat on a stool, took a sip of his drink, and sighed, complaining, "I've raised a bunch of useless fools! One of them rashly led troops into battle and died, and the other underestimated the enemy and fell into their hands. These two sons have none of my wisdom or courage. There's no one to carry on my legacy!"

"How could I, a hero of unparalleled stature, have given birth to such two good-for-nothings?"

"Could it be that my queen had an affair back then and secretly raised someone else's child?"

Ethel: "..."

This is something I can't respond to, and there's no way to respond to it.

Because the chieftain's queen was his childhood sweetheart and almost married him...

Denilari complained for a while, then took another sip of wine: "This group of Tang soldiers seems to have appeared out of nowhere, their whereabouts unknown. Could they really just be passing through? Give me a suggestion: should we prepare the amount of gold coins they demand and send them over, or should we gather a large army and annihilate them completely?"

Ethel said helplessly, "What choice do we have? You only have Adad as your son!"

Denis Lari remained silent.

Compared to wealth and territory, inheritance is the most important thing.

If this leads to the extinction of our lineage, what use is all the wealth or the vast territory we possess?
You can't just hand over what your ancestors passed down to others after you die, can you?

So even though he had previously looked down on Adad, and now it had been proven that his eldest son was incompetent, he still had to save him at all costs...

Denilari summoned the palace steward and ordered him to immediately raise gold coins.

Then, looking at Etir, he asked, "If nothing unexpected happens, the Tang army crossed the Persian Plateau and the Zagros Mountains to appear here. They fought their way from Suyab to here. Do they really intend to capture Damascus?"

Etir shook his head and said, "It's hard to guess the true intentions of the Tang army. They can advance north across Syria to attack Damascus, or they can retreat and capture us to intimidate the entire empire. It all depends on what they really want."

"If we were to attack Damascus, could the Tang Dynasty sustain such an expedition?"

"Given the wealth of the Tang Dynasty, of course it is possible."

Upon hearing this, Denilari was somewhat annoyed: "I don't know what the Caliph is thinking. In the west, he is still entangled with Byzantium and fighting for decades without either side being able to defeat the other. In the east, he wants to provoke such a behemoth as the Tang Dynasty. It's simply absurd."

Even the most powerful nation would find it difficult to sustain two fronts for an extended period, let alone a superpower like Byzantium in the west or the Tang Dynasty in the east, which made the task even more challenging.

This Caliph was also an ambitious, arrogant, and tyrannical man...

Ethel shook his head and sighed, "Who can resist the temptation of conquering the East?"

Since ancient times, the East has been a land of plenty. Whether braving the waves on the sea or trekking across the land, countless merchants have transported Eastern silk to the West, and that mysterious and distant capital was said to be covered in gold.

Many of the most famous and powerful monarchs in Western history, whether Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, or Constantine the Great, had the desire to conquer the East at the height of their power.

It can be said that for any monarch who wants to achieve something unprecedented, the easiest and most indisputable way is to conquer the East.

Although Mu'awiyah ascended to the throne of Caliph, his method of seizing power through assassination was inevitably criticized. Even today, there are still many opponents who are dissatisfied with his rule and make numerous overt and covert obstacles. Furthermore, Ali's son, Hussein the Younger, is still active in the mountains south of Mecca, constantly threatening his rule.

The empire and Byzantium had been locked in a fierce battle for decades, with neither side gaining the upper hand, making it virtually impossible to annex the empire in one fell swoop.

If the empire were to conquer the East, a region that no great monarch had ever conquered, Mu'awiyah's achievements would be unparalleled and unmatched throughout history, and his throne as Caliph would be as secure as a mountain.

Denilari felt that these issues involved too many strategic aspects, and he was too lazy to bother thinking about them. He asked directly, "So what should we do now? Should we let the Tang army pass through here and head to Damascus, or should we mobilize the entire city to fight the Tang army to the death and annihilate them here, thus becoming a loyal subject and general of the Caliph?"

Although the Assyrians had long lost their glory and had been oppressed and enslaved by various tribes for nearly a thousand years, their inherent unruliness made it difficult for them to be completely subdued by any one power. They always dreamed of successfully restoring their kingdom and regaining their glory.

If the Tang Dynasty and the Caliphate were to fight to the death, wouldn't that be the Assyrians' opportunity...?

Etir shook his head: "How can we trust the words of the Tang people? No matter what they plan, Mosul is a stumbling block in their path. If we don't kick it away, how can they feel at ease? So we must strengthen our defenses and guard against their sneak attacks. If necessary, we might as well take the initiative and launch an attack. If we can annihilate the Tang army in one fell swoop, we will not only become famous in the empire, but also capture countless weapons and supplies from the Tang army. Wouldn't that be wonderful!"

Denirari was puzzled: "As long as we make any move, the Tang people will definitely take Adad hostage to coerce us. So you want me to give ten thousand gold coins to ransom Adad?"

Etir said, "No matter how the battle goes, Adad must be saved!"

Denirari thought for a moment and said, "That's not necessarily true. I'm not that old yet, and I can still have children."

Ethil exclaimed in alarm: "How could the city lord possibly plunge the eldest prince into utter ruin? Absolutely not!"

"Ok?"

Denirari stared at Ethel, a suspicion creeping into his mind.

Adad is my son, and only I can make the decision on whether to rescue him. But why is this guy more anxious than I am?
……

Wang Xiaojie led his soldiers in a state of high alert, watching as an army approached from the direction of the city and stopped about a hundred feet from the bridgehead. A moment later, a man on horseback came alone.

The man approached and said a lot of things, meaning that the city lord had agreed to redeem Adad with 10,000 gold coins, but because the amount was too large, it would take some time to raise. He asked the city lord to treat Adad well and not to be impatient.

The man even said that he was acting on the orders of the city lord to welcome the Tang army who had come from afar and was willing to provide them with some food and wine in their hospitality...

Wang Xiaojie smiled and thanked him, saying it was too much trouble for him.

After the man left, Wang Xiaojie turned around and his face darkened: "Everyone to your positions, prepare for battle!"

The soldiers quickly returned to their positions, checked their bows and arrows and loaded their muskets. They also took out the remaining thunderbolts and placed them within reach, along with tinderboxes ready to be lit at any time. The entire unit was filled with a sense of formidable tension and operated in an orderly manner.

The orders had to be carried out meticulously, but some people still expressed their confusion.

“Adad is the city lord’s eldest son. We’ve already killed his other son. Surely the city lord wouldn’t abandon his only son as well?”

"Didn't we say we were going to collect gold coins? Do they really dare to attack?"

Wang Xiaojie snapped, "Enough with the nonsense! Execute the order!"

Then he summoned his personal guards: "Ride a fast horse to meet the commander-in-chief and tell him to speed up, otherwise we might not be able to hold out."

"Here!"

Without a word, the guards ran quickly to the warhorses tied to the riverbank, leaped onto their horses, and galloped back along the pontoon bridge in the direction they had come from.

Wang Xiaojie looked up and saw that it was almost noon. He then ordered, "Let's eat some dry rations to replenish our strength!"

"Here!"

Wang Xiaojie's gaze swept across the faces of the soldiers, his heart heavy.

The reason why the Tang army was invincible all the way from Suyab was not only because its own combat strength was far superior to that of the Arabs, but also because it was always able to maintain its own mobility and use its long range to attack the enemy's weak points, which naturally made it successful in every battle.

But now, in order to hold the bridgehead and ensure the pontoon bridge remains intact so that the main force can quickly cross the river after it arrives, they have no choice but to hold their ground and lose initiative and mobility.

This is, after all, enemy territory. They have all the advantages of timing, location, and manpower. It will inevitably be a bitter battle for our side. By the time the main force arrives, we don't know how many of us will still be alive.

The soldiers were all seasoned veterans, so they naturally knew what they were about to face. Seeing Wang Xiaojie's gaze, they understood even more.

Someone laughed and said, "General, you don't need to worry about us. We'll die if we have to, it's no big deal! But you shouldn't fight too fiercely. You're different from us, you have a bright future ahead of you, you're destined to be a high-ranking official or a general, you have to live!"

"Let me ask you this: if we die here today, will the merits and compensation go to our wives? Or will they be withheld?"

Wang Xiaojie pondered for a moment, then grinned, revealing a set of white teeth. His face was smiling, but his teeth were clenched tightly: "If I live, I will personally deliver the compensation for the fallen brothers to your homes, to your parents, wife, and children! Anyone who dares to withhold even a penny, I will dig up their ancestral graves to get it back for you. If I die, even as a ghost, I will lead you to seek revenge!"

Hundreds of soldiers fell silent.

A moment later, someone burst into laughter: "What are you talking about? If they're all dead, so be it. When people die, birds fly to the sky. Who cares about anything else?"

……

Around 1 PM, scouts outside the city reported that the east gate of Mosul had opened and troops were pouring out of the city and gathering outside.

At the beginning of the Shen hour (3-5 PM), scouts reported that the enemy's assembled forces numbered around three thousand.

By the end of Shenshi (3-5 PM), the Tang army at the bridgehead could already see the enemy surging in like a tidal wave. The sound of footsteps and horses' hooves was as muffled as thunder, and even the ground beneath their feet trembled slightly.

Shortly afterward, the enemy launched an attack without pause.

Having largely learned from their previous two defeats, the enemy cavalry only maneuvered around the outer flanks and did not act as the main force in the charge. Instead, the charge was carried out by a vast, ragged mass of slaves armed with rudimentary weapons.

It was obvious that the enemy intended to use these slaves, who were no different from livestock, to deplete the Tang army's ammunition and arrows before launching a main attack.

Wang Xiaojie's heart sank; he knew the enemy had seized upon their greatest weakness...