Da Tang: Father, can I resign?

Chapter 273 Satisfaction
The Western Turkic troops appeared on the horizon.

It was a tribal alliance formed by several tribes that migrated in the spring. It was huge in scale and had a large population. The sandstorms it raised covered the sky.

Ashina She'er looked at him from afar, his body suddenly tensed up, and his hands holding the reins trembled slightly due to the force.

As a former Eastern Turkic noble, he and the Western Turks were not only blood relatives, but they were also irreconcilable.

The other people in the team also felt similar tension and vigilance.

The relationship between the Tang Dynasty and Western Turkestan is far from being described as "good neighborly and friendly."

At the beginning of the story, Hou Junji had just led his team to defeat Gaochang Kingdom, a younger brother of Western Turkic Khanate.

The Western Turkic tribe on the opposite side also discovered them, and the team immediately split into two parts.

The old, the weak, women and children drove the livestock to the rear, while the young and strong rode their horses forward.

This is the starting move of the nomadic tribe's alert.

They also couldn't figure out the origin of the strange "tribe" on the opposite side that was full of murderous intent and composed entirely of men.

"stop!"

Qibi Heli stopped the team and looked at Li Chengqian nervously:

"Your Highness, what should we do next?"

The enemy was coming with great force and seemed ill-intentioned. If a direct confrontation broke out, it would be difficult for them to escape unscathed with their half-paralyzed Majesty.

This is really weird. If His Majesty was not disabled and the Crown Prince was the most powerful, who would have the guts to lead the troops to the territory of Western Turkestan?
Rather than betting on the character of the Western Turkic Khan, it is better to go south back to the court and bet on the filial piety of His Highness Li Zhi.

There is no other way. Now the world is so big, and the prince is the most important.

If anything happens to your majesty, it can only be attributed to God's will. The good fortune of the Tang Dynasty has come to an end...

"Don't worry."

Li Chengqian was calm and seemed very confident in his plan:

"Just wait here. I only need to say a few words to make those barbarians surrender."

"Hey, Your Highness, wait a minute!..."

Ignoring the dissuasion, Li Chengqian rode his horse forward in a cool manner and galloped towards the Western Turkic army under the worried gaze of everyone.

The two brothers, Qibi and Ashina, were numb and subconsciously looked towards the carriage where His Majesty was.

Li Shimin was still lying there motionless, only his chest was rising and falling slightly, indicating that he was still alive.

The Western Turkic tribe understood the other side's desire to communicate, so they also stopped their large troops and sent an envoy.

The two sides exchanged a few words in the open space. The Western Turkic envoy seemed greatly shocked and immediately ran back to the tribe.

After the envoy reported a few words, the Western Turkic side immediately sent several more envoys, led by a respected old man.

The old man spoke a few words to Li Chengqian with a very humble attitude.

Then, Li Chengqian turned around and returned to his troops, and the Western Turkic envoys all lowered their heads and followed closely behind him.

Under the shocked and admiring gazes of Qibi Heli and others, Li Chengqian successfully completed the contact with the other party and brought the other party's envoy back smoothly.

"temple……"

Qibi Heli was about to say a few words when Li Chengqian stopped him with a look.

The elderly Turkic envoy looked around and asked tremblingly:

"Are they all soldiers of the Nilitqin?"

Teqin is the name of a Turkic official who is responsible for the internal and foreign affairs of the tribe and is usually the Khan's sons or relatives.

"Nili" was the name of the special agent, and he seemed to be a newcomer. Neither Ashina She'er nor Qibi Heli had any impression of this name.

Li Chengqian answered fluently in Turkic:

"Yes, they are all Nilitqin's followers."

As he spoke, he signaled his subordinates with his eyes.

What the hell is Nili... The two super nobles from the Ashina family and the Qibi family complained fiercely in their hearts and nodded with tense faces:

"Ah."

They understood the prince's plan, which was to pretend to be the subordinates of the so-called "Nilitqin" as a stepping stone to meet Yibi Duolu Khan.

This is in line with common sense. Otherwise, if you randomly pick a member of the Western Turkic tribe on the grassland, tell him that you are the emperor of the Tang Dynasty, and come to negotiate a cooperation project with the Turkic Khan, and ask him to help make the contact, you will see whether others will think you are crazy or not.

The old man nodded and said:
"The Teqin tribe is not far from here. We are going to seek refuge there. Please ask a few warriors to follow us."

Several people looked at each other secretly and breathed a sigh of relief at the same time.

We successfully connected with the Western Turkic side and passed the first hurdle without any danger.

"Mount!"

At Qibi Heli's command, everyone surrounded the carriage that His Majesty was riding in and followed the Western Turkic troops, heading west.

Li Chengqian and the old man walked side by side in front, talking about the mountains all the way.

The old man was the leader of this temporary tribal alliance, under the command of Yibi Duolu Khan (Beiting of Western Turkic Khaganate). Because he was harassed by Yibi Shabolayahu Khan (Nanting), he came to seek refuge with "Nilitqin".

"Nilitqin is brave in combat and always at the forefront of the charge. He is the patron saint of all the tribes on the grassland." The old man said seemingly unintentionally.

Li Chengqian corrected with a smile:

"Times are different now. The tribe has a large population, and it is no longer the time to conquer the world with personal bravery.

"In large-scale military operations, discipline must be strict. Nili is good at rectifying military discipline, and he generally does not do things that put him in danger."

The old leader nodded repeatedly:
"Yes, yes, I am old and confused and remembered it wrongly."

After confirming through eye contact, it was clear that this young lady was indeed very familiar with Nilitqin.

A brave and resourceful warrior, a graceful and elegant beauty, what is the relationship between the two...

The old chief's heart was ignited with a burning gossip spirit.

But due to his face, he was embarrassed to ask in detail. He wished he could travel a thousand miles a day to send the special forces' "troops" back quickly so that he could eat some fresh melon.

Qibi Heli and Ashina She'er, who were listening to the whole process, were not so relaxed and had cold sweat on their backs.

The two veterans could certainly hear that the other party had been setting traps and testing them during the conversation, trying to confirm whether this team of unknown origin was really affiliated with the special forces, or was a spy from the Southern Court of Western Turkestan who came to carry out a shameless sneak attack.

If His Highness Li Chengqian reveals his true colors during the conversation...

The consequences are unimaginable!

But surprisingly, His Highness knew everything about that Nilitqin, from his appearance to his personality traits, and answered every question perfectly.

Even some of the information he revealed was unknown to the old leader who set the questions.

It seems that His Highness Li Chengqian is not pretending, he is indeed very familiar with the mysterious Western Turkic special agent.

This is strange. Who on earth is that guy? How could he catch the eye of the prince?

They were both very curious about the Nilitqin.

"Ahem, little Khan."

Ashina She'er took advantage of the opportunity and approached Li Chengqian and asked in a low voice:

"Your intelligence on the Western Turks, including Yibinashui... including the war between the Southern and Northern Courts of the Western Turks, all came from that 'Nilitqin'?"

Li Chengqian nodded: "Yes."

"Who is Nilitqin?" Ashina asked.

Li Chengqian said without hesitation: "He is the son-in-law of Beiting Yibi Duolu Khan. Because of his meritorious service in the war against Nanting, he was given the title of special service."

"Oh, I see." Old Sheer understood: "Did the little Khan meet that special agent by chance during a foreign affairs event?"

"It's an internal matter..." Li Chengqian muttered softly.

Ashina She'er: "Hmm? Did you say anything?"

Li Chengqian's face flushed: "Nothing."

"Cough, cough, cough!"

Li Shimin suddenly burst into coughing in the car.

Qibi Heli quickly stopped the team, and everyone was busy patting his chest, helping him to breathe, and giving him water.

Li Shimin seemed to have just woken up from a nightmare, mumbling incoherently: "Every one of them is a rebellious son... It has made me worry so much. Finally I found a decent one, but he died..."

Such a big commotion also attracted the attention of the old leader. He looked back and caught a glimpse of the middle-aged man who was surrounded by stars in the tent car.

The middle-aged man didn't look impressive at first glance, but he had an imposing aura that made people subconsciously want to lower their heads and dare not look directly at him.

Obviously he is not an ordinary person.

It’s just that the left and right sides of the middle-aged man’s face are not symmetrical. If you look closely, you can find that the right half of his face has a crooked mouth and slanted eyes.

The old leader sighed and said:
"Your old man? Had a stroke?"

Li Chengqian nodded stiffly: "Yes."

Seeing that the other party was unwilling to talk more, the old leader tactfully shut his mouth, and his curiosity grew even more.

…………

This mixed super tribe trekked all the way to the northwest, and because of their sufficient logistics, they moved very quickly.

The large army arrived at the edge of the desert, with wasteland on one side and yellow sand on the other.

On the boundary between grass and sand, there are rows of tents.

"We have arrived at Nilitqin's territory." The old leader introduced.

Li Chengqian frowned:
"Is this the territory of a special agent?"

After a few days of getting along, he and the Western Turkic tribe had gradually become familiar with each other, so he spoke more directly.

After all, Teqin was a high-ranking official in the Turkic Khanate, and Nili Teqin had made many military achievements. How come his territory was divided into this remote corner?
Is this allocation or distribution?
"Tsk, this matter..." The old man looked left and right, and after making sure that there were no outsiders around, he lowered his voice and complained:
"That's the character of the Khan, greedy and stingy."

The Great Khan he was referring to was Yibi Duolu Khan, the controller of Beiting in Western Turkic Khaganate.

According to the principle of infinite divisibility of the Turks, after the original Turkic Khanate split into eastern and western parts, the Eastern Turks were destroyed, and the Western Turks were further split into the Southern Court and the Northern Court.

The two sides confronted each other for nearly ten years with the Ili River as the boundary, but there was no clear winner and neither side could destroy the other.

"The Khan never shared the pastures and wealth he had seized with the tribesmen, and he also wantonly exploited and extorted them, calling it 'collecting taxes'.

"For example, every year when cattle and sheep give birth, half of the lambs and calves are handed over to him. If someone's flock of sheep accidentally steps on his pasture, even if only one sheep steps on it, he will snatch the entire flock away..."

The old man also became familiar with this "big girl" and had endless complaints about her.

This bucket of bitter water poured from beginning to end, completely confusing Li Chengqian.

Why is it that the more I listen, the more I feel that this future ally is not very reliable?

After holding it in for a long time, Li Chengqian couldn't help but ask:

"Since the Khan has committed atrocities, why do you still want to go to them instead of going to Yibishabolayahu Khan in the south?"

"Alas..." The old leader let out a long sigh.

"Beiting only wants money, but Nanting wants your life~"

Li Chengqian's mouth twitched when he heard this.

What kind of people are in Western Turkestan? It’s a place where the orangutans shine. One of them has some understanding of human nature, and the other is very non-human.

How can you kill Li Zhi if you are with such a bug?
"Mei Niang, it seems that your plan has failed. The Western Turks are simply hopeless..."

He even began to doubt his (and Wu Meiniang's) strategic approach.

"To be honest, Beiting is now supported by Nilitqin. He is good at fighting, has strict discipline, and is willing to share the spoils with his men. He is very popular in the Khanate.

"That's why the stingy Khan gave him a piece of pasture for the first time, although, haha, this piece of land is not very good."

The old leader smiled bitterly and shook his head, continuing to chatter:
"The South Court is now in full swing. They kill the men and take the women of the conquered tribes as slaves. In order to survive, we have no choice but to surrender here.

"What about you? You are loyal to the Western Turks. You have come all the way from the east of the Helan Mountains. Isn't the Khan of Xueyantuo more generous than our Khan? Isn't the pasture there more abundant than here? Why don't you surrender to them? Why do you come back to eat sand?"

Li Chengqian chuckled: "Xueyantuo Zhenzhu Khan was killed."

This nonchalant answer made the old chief shudder.

"How could it be?! Aren't the Xueyantuo and Tiele tribes very powerful? They have 300,000 soldiers under their command, just like the Eastern Turks back then...

"Could it be the Tang army again? Did the Tang Dynasty destroy them?"

Are those guys in Liaodong still considered part of the Tang Dynasty... Li Chengqian did not give a direct answer, but just smiled bitterly:

"So in order to survive, aren't we also coming here for refuge?"

At this time, Nilitqin's guards came and delivered the order:

"The special agent is in the tent. Please come over and have a chat."

"Then let's say goodbye here." The old leader's expression relaxed and he was about to go to the big tent.

But he was stopped by the guards.

"It was him who was hired by the Special Service."

Li Chengqian smiled slightly and greeted the old man with Turkish etiquette:

"See you later."

He was about to ride his horse forward when a roar suddenly came from behind him.

The words were a little unclear, but full of majesty:

"Wait, I'll go with you."

Li Chengqian paused and turned around.

His father, Li Shimin, who had just collapsed in the car, now stood up entirely by his own strength, without relying on anyone else.

"Heavenly Khan!"

"His Majesty!"

Ashina and Qibi cried out in low voices and rushed forward to help.

"Get lost! I'm not that bad yet!"

Li Shimin didn't know where he got the strength from, but he angrily pushed away the attendants who were in the way, and limped down from the carriage with difficulty, dragging his right half of his body which was unable to move freely.

"I will go with you to meet the newly rising 'Special Agent'." He spoke word by word, trying to make his pronunciation as clear as possible.

Li Shimin had just contracted the disease and his condition was still unstable, sometimes lucid and sometimes drowsy.

Now was the time when he was sober, his eyes were blazing like fire, containing the anger of a father and an emperor.

The old chief didn't know what was going on, but his subconscious told him that this was no longer something a young Karami of his level could get involved in, so he wisely hid in the crowd.

Not only him, but even Ashina She'er and Qibi Heli realized that the royal family affairs were of great importance and not something they could interfere with, so they wisely faded into the background.

"Father..."

Li Chengqian almost subconsciously jumped off the horse, lowered his eyes, not daring to look his stern father in the eye, and his body trembled instinctively, as if he had awakened from his childhood nightmare again.

"What's the answer?" Li Shimin's voice was not loud, but it frightened everyone around him.

It’s okay, don’t be afraid, Mei Niang, you are by my side… Li Chengqian muttered silently, struggling hard against the fear he had since childhood.

After a while, he slowly raised his head and raised the corners of his mouth with difficulty:
"All is up to you, father."

Under the timid and curious gazes of the tribesmen, the lame father and son limped towards the tribal tent.

"Father, come, I will help you."

"No need. I'm not so miserable that I need your support."

When the two were still several steps away from the tent, the tent curtain was lifted.

A strong man walked out of the tent with brisk steps.

He was wearing a sable-skin coat with a lapel and left-front, fox-skin boots, flowing beard, and a few braids at the back of his head. It was a typical Turkic outfit, but his face was that of a Han Chinese.

When the man saw Li Chengqian, his whole face lit up like the clouds had cleared and the rain had stopped.

But when he saw the man standing next to Li Chengqian, he was greatly surprised and exclaimed:
"His Majesty?!"

"Ha, ha, ha." Li Shimin laughed, seeming to find it very funny:
"I was wondering how there was a special agent on the grassland whom I had never heard of. It turned out to be you.

"Didn't I banish you to Yizhou to fight the Turks? How come I met you here?
"Satisfied?"

(End of this chapter)