Da Tang: Father, can I resign?

Chapter 281 Li Shimin: Entering the Pass!

To the banks of the Ruoshui River, a very unusual nomadic tribe came.

This tribe also herded sheep and wore nomadic clothes, but they were all men, marching in neat rows from north to south.

Compared to a tribe, they are more like an army with its own logistics.

The further south you go, the steeper the road ahead becomes.

The leader of the team, Ashina She'er, was riding a horse and the horse's hoof stumbled, almost throwing him off.

Ashina She'er managed to keep his balance and couldn't help muttering:
"This road is really difficult to travel. Dafeichuan...isn't that Tuyuhun's territory? Why does Tian Khan want to attack that place?"

Qibi Heliwu drove his horse forward:
"Your Majesty must have his reasons for doing this."

As a man of great talent, his understanding of loyalty and filial piety was limited to "whatever Your Majesty says is what it is."

It would be great if the Heavenly Khan really had his reasons... Ashina She'er complained in his heart but was too embarrassed to say it out loud.

His loyalty and admiration for Emperor Li Shimin were no less than those of Qibi Heli.

But he also knew that after he unfortunately suffered from stroke, Tian Khan's brain power and energy declined drastically, and his consciousness was sometimes clear and sometimes blurred.

Attack Dayechuan...When making this decision, Tian Khan himself may not have been clear about what he was doing.

why?
Ashina She'er raised his head and looked far ahead.

A mountain range stretching from east to west and reaching into the sky was like a giant wall blocking the team's way forward.

“This road is too difficult to walk on…”

Ganzhou (Zhangye City), which was recently occupied by the New Turks, is not far from Dafeichuan in a straight line.

The only difference is that Ganzhou is in the Hetao region, while Dafeichuan is located in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, and the two places are separated by the Qilian Mountains.

They are two completely independent geographical units.

She'er didn't understand. The main goal now was obviously to retake the court in Chang'an.

Why didn't Tian Khan continue to advance eastward to Liangzhou and return to the Tang Dynasty?
Instead, turn around and head south in Ganzhou. Why climb the Qilian Mountains?
Yes, starting from Ganzhou and heading south along the Ruoshui River, there is a gap in the Qilian Mountains. It is relatively convenient to cross the Qilian Mountains through here.

However, compared to going east along the Hetao River to Liangzhou, it is undoubtedly a much longer journey.

However, despite his doubts, Ashina She'er still faithfully carried out the orders of the Heavenly Khan.

He also sincerely hoped that as Qibi Heli said, there really were reasonable reasons for Tian Khan's arrangement.

"Your Majesty has ordered that the titles be conferred according to military merit!"

Qibi Heli walked in the front and shouted loudly to the Turkic soldiers:

"Use the enemy's ears as proof. If you kill one enemy cavalryman, you will be rewarded with one cow and one sheep. After entering Guanzhong, you will be given one acre of land! If you kill 100 people, you will be called Beg. If you kill 1,000 people, you will be called Shilifa. And so on. The more enemies you kill, the greater the reward!"

This modified Qin military merit and title system with distinct grassland characteristics has a huge appeal to the simple Turkic people.

The morale of the crowd was boosted and they couldn't help but quicken their pace.

"Slow down, slow down!"

Ashina She'er promptly suppressed the tribesmen's restless desire to win.

"The day before we set off, the Khan specifically told us to march slowly on the plateau and not rush for quick success!"

The average altitude of the Qilian Mountains is 4,000 meters, and the target of this campaign is Dafeichuan, which has an altitude of more than 3,000 meters.

The ancients also knew about "altitude sickness" and knew that soldiers needed an adaptation process before fighting in plateau areas.

For example, it took Hou Junji more than half a year to conquer Gaochang, and although Gaochang was called a country, it was actually just a state.

It takes so long because it allows the soldiers to adapt to the high altitude environment first.

"Yes!"

When they heard that it was the order from the Heavenly Khan, the Turks obeyed obediently.

A few months of legendary experiences were enough to make them realize that there was meat to eat if they followed Tian Khan.

The large group marched at steady pace along the Ruoshui River until they arrived at a canyon called "Biandukou".

The canyon is bottomless, with majestic mountains on both sides, as straight as a knife.

This place is the only gap in the long Qilian Mountains, connecting the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and the Western Regions.

When Huo Qubing went out of Qilian to fight the Huns, he chose Biandukou as the main battlefield.

Now this group of people is walking backwards, starting from the Western Regions, going from north to south through Biandukou, and entering the Qilian Mountains.

After crossing the Qilian Mountains, to the south is the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the roof of the world.

…………

The sixteenth year of Zhenguan, early summer.

The endless green grasslands of Dafeichuan are filled with a strong smell of blood.

The bodies of Murong Xianbei's tribesmen lay in a mess on the southern shore of Qinghai (Qinghai Lake).

This place is not far from the Qilian Mountains. It is a canyon grassland between the two mountains, running east-west.

In theory, Dafeichuan was the grazing ground of the "Tuyuhun" of the Murong Xianbei regime.

After being beaten up by Hou Junji, Li Daozon, Xue Wanche and other fourteen traitors in the ninth year of Zhenguan, Tuyuhun surrendered to the Tang Dynasty.

However, the rapidly rising Tubo had long coveted this place and had attacked it several times, but was slapped back every time by the Asian gendarmerie, the Tang Dynasty.

Are you invading the vassal states of the Tang Dynasty because you think our Khan is no longer strong enough to lift the sword?
Now, the Tang Dynasty is in civil strife, and the whereabouts of the Heavenly Khan Li Shimin is unknown.

Songtsen Gampo, the ruler of Tubo, felt that he was doing well again.

He sent his trusted minister, the "Grand Prime Minister" Lu Dongzan, to lead a large army to invade Tuyuhun again and seize Dayuechuan.

After a bloody battle, Tuyuhun leader Murong Fushun escaped alone, while the rest of the main forces surrendered.

"All the surrendered Tuyuhun tribesmen were taken as slaves."

Lu Dongzan wiped the blood-stained blade and gave the order lightly.

The people of Tibet are now very fertile, thanks to the warm interglacial period, and farming is now possible on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Tibet has developed a serfdom agricultural economy with unique local characteristics and has quickly become prosperous.

However, this sustainable system of exhausting all resources is not very friendly to the serfs and slaves.

The Xianbei men and women, who were accustomed to the free and nomadic life, all showed looks of despair.

The despair of the prisoners of war could not affect the prime minister's decision. Lu Dongzan was still making subtle calculations in his mind:
"Zamp (Songtsen Gampo) married Princess Wencheng of the Tang Dynasty last year. Regardless of whether Princess Wencheng is the biological daughter of the Khan, Zamp is already the son-in-law of the Tang emperor in terms of etiquette and law.

"Tibet can use this as an excuse to legitimately intervene in the internal affairs of the Tang Dynasty, and take advantage of the disappearance of the emperor and the civil strife in the country to use the Dafeichuan as a springboard to send troops to Guanzhong.

"As long as we raise the banner of 'welcoming back His Majesty and expelling the treacherous', the Han people will not have much backlash against us..."

Just as the Tubo prime minister was shrewdly counting the beads on the abacus, black dots gradually appeared at the foot of the northern mountains.

Those black spots formed orderly columns and were approaching their own camp at a very high speed with the momentum of a tiger descending from a mountain.

"Prime Minister, that is an army!" the scout stated the facts.

Lu Dongzan's face darkened:
"Do you need to tell me this? Whose tribe are they? Are they our Tubo?"

He took a quick look and saw that his troops were all in their respective positions, and no one had wandered to the foot of the mountain.

It was also impossible that they were reinforcements from Luosha (Lhasa), because Luosha was in the south, and those black spots came from the direction of Qilian Mountains.

Either friendly forces or enemy forces.

"Is this the reinforcements from Tuyuhun? Prepare to meet the enemy."

Lu Dongzan directed the operations calmly.

Although this bloody battle with the main force of Tuyuhun caused them to lose considerable troops.

But now the morale of the Tubo army is high. Since they can defeat those Xianbei weaklings once, they can defeat them a second time.

"Yes!"

The Tibetans quickly formed up their battle lines and were ready for battle.

But as time went by, some people gradually discovered something strange.

The enemy did not deploy the common Tuyuhun combat formation, but a formation that was strange yet eerily familiar.

It wasn't until the enemy came within visible range that everyone felt something was wrong.

From their clothing to their appearance, the invading enemies had nothing in common with the Xianbei people.

Instead it's like...

"Turks?!"

Lu Dongzan was shocked.

What a hell!

Are the Turks just bored or what?
Why don't they graze on the other side of the mountain, but instead cross the Qilian Mountains and come to Dayichuan!
There is not much wealth on the plateau for the Turks to plunder. Do you want to come here to eat barley?
Lu Dongzan's mind was full of questions, but with the enemy at hand, he had no time to be in a daze, and immediately gave the order:
"withdraw!"

This army under his command, which was half-crippled after fighting with Tuyuhun, could be used to fight against Tuyuhun reinforcements, but it would be too much to expect them to face the fresh forces of the Turks.

Lu Dongzan is not stupid, he decisively cut his losses.

If he, a prime minister second only to the emperor, were to suffer a setback in the Dafei River, the destiny of Tubo would be over.

"Prime Minister, these slaves..."

"Do you want to be a slave of the Turks? Hurry up and leave!"

The Tubo army did not dare to fight and abandoned the Tuyuhun prisoners of war and retreated in an orderly manner under the command of Lu Dongzan.

The Turks, like a force descended from heaven, continued to pretend to chase for a while, and after forcing the Tibetans down the mountain and completely out of sight.

They were immediately deflated, and both men and horses squatted on the spot, gasping for breath.

"Huff... my method... is okay... right?"

Ashina She'er was out of breath, but he didn't forget to show off.

Qibi Heli's face was pale, and he was so sick from the altitude sickness that he couldn't even speak, and he just nodded. Under She'er's command, the Turks sat on the mountain and watched the fight between Tubo and Tuyuhun.

After the two of them were both defeated, they took advantage of the conflict between the two and gained control of Dafeichuan without losing a single soldier.

If they were to face off head-on, these nomads, who were suffering from altitude sickness, might not be able to defeat the Tibetans who had long since adapted to the plateau environment.

"Let's go back."

The group returned to the Dafeichuan grassland listlessly like deflated balls.

The group of Tuyuhun prisoners of war remained with their hands and feet tied, looking at their "liberators" anxiously.

Well, the Turks were not like the Tibetans. They did not plunder serfs or exploit surplus value.

The Turks were more straightforward, they killed the men and raped the women.

In comparison, it would probably be better if it was taken away by the Tibetans...

The prisoners of war felt that they were really screwed. They had just escaped from the wolf's den and were back in the tiger's mouth.

"We Tuyuhun...are a vassal state of the Tang Dynasty."

The leader of the prisoners of war tried to bring out the name of "Tang Dynasty" to make these barbarians a little more cautious.

Qibi Heli looked at them strangely, but because of his severe altitude sickness, he couldn't even say "your loyalty is admirable".

This terrifying and distorted expression was interpreted as a "threat" by the prisoners, who smoothly changed their words:
"But we can also become a vassal state of the Turks."

He Li, the elite Tang Qibi, couldn't help but roll his eyes.

I was just about to praise them for their integrity...

Ashina She'er took a deep breath, tried to keep his breath steady, and shouted in full force in Chinese:
"We are all the followers of the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty and the Khan of the Grassland! Following the order of the Khan, we will conquer Dafeichuan and enter the capital to fight against the enemy!
"The Khan of Heaven has issued an order that those of you who are unwilling to follow him will be released back to their homes. Those who follow him will be rewarded according to the system of military merit and promotion!"

The Murong Xianbei listened in surprise, looking at each other.

It seems that there is no need to worry about being killed or being taken as an slave?
Everyone couldn't help but feel grateful for having survived the disaster.

After saving their lives, they should think about their future.

Leader Murong Fushun had already abandoned them and fled, so there was no point in them continuing to be loyal to that coward.

Moreover, in theory, since Heavenly Khan Li Shimin was the master of Tuyuhun King Murong Fushun, he was also the master of all the Tuyuhun people.

Therefore, there was nothing wrong with the Tuyuhun people being directly loyal to the Heavenly Khan. They just eliminated the "middleman" Murong Fushun, which theoretically did not count as betrayal.

The leader of the prisoners of war answered in broken Chinese with great dignity:
"We Murong Xianbei have always been loyal subjects of the Tang Dynasty, and we are willing to serve the Heavenly Khan at our utmost!"

Ashina She'er breathed a sigh of relief and smiled at Qibi Heli.

After winning the following of the indigenous Tuyuhun, the New Turks achieved actual control over the Dafeichuan.

According to the plan of Tian Khan Li Shimin, the next step is -

Granaries and livestock pens were built here, and troops were stationed.

…………

Liangzhou, the Military Governor's Office.

"Reporting to the general manager, we have searched the desert area in the northwest, but still found no trace of the Turks." The deputy general reported.

The chief steward Li Shiji sat at the desk with his eyebrows twisted into the shape of a "川" character.

The deputy general asked:
"Commander, are you going to pursue us westwards?"

Li Shiji shook his head:

"There is a risk of having our supply lines cut off. We must not advance without authorization."

"Ah... obey your command."

After receiving the order to continue holding the position, the deputy general retreated in frustration.

"Why is there nothing here..."

Li Shiji muttered in confusion, picked up a pen, and drew a cross on the map on the table.

The grassland and Gobi between Liangzhou and Ganzhou were full of crosses drawn by Li Shiji.

In other words, there was absolutely no trace of Turkic activities between the two places.

The vigorous New Turkic movement suddenly died down.

A few months ago, around the beginning of spring, the Turks expanded all the way to the city of Liangzhou. After several small-scale exchanges of fire with the Tang army, they suddenly retreated without any warning.

They abandoned the vast desert between Ganzhou and Liangzhou and instead focused on defending the city of Ganzhou.

The nomadic people can only defend a chicken-feather city... Li Shiji did not take them seriously at first and sent a siege force to test their strength.

As a result, after having their logistics cut off many times and being surrounded, the outpost troops escaped back to Liangzhou intact.

Yes, all in one.

This made Li Shiji feel a chill down his spine.

It’s not scary to get full marks every time, what’s scary is to get 99 marks every time.

Why did the Turks let the Tang army go?

Humiliate? Teasing? Provoking? Flexing muscles?

If the Turks no longer show mercy and attack with all their might, can Li Shiji withstand it?
Then, Li Shiji received a letter from Chang'an.

Li Zhi brought explosive news——

According to a letter from Xizhou Governor Guo Xiaoke, the leader of this new Turkic army that has suddenly emerged may be the long-missing Emperor!

Li Zhi ordered Li Shiji to find out the authenticity of the news. If it was true, His Majesty should be welcomed back to the capital immediately.

Li Shiji suddenly realized.

If it was Your Majesty, it wouldn't be surprising.

If it were Your Majesty, it would be very logical to beat up the Tang army and then let them go.

But why doesn't Your Majesty take the initiative to reveal your identity, but has to use such a roundabout way and hide your true face?
Li Shiji was full of doubts and did not dare to delay. He tried his best to get in touch with the New Turks.

However, the other side did not respond to his olive branch. They neither attacked nor negotiated peace. They only treated the envoys with a feast and then escorted them out of the country.

The strange new Turkic people neither admitted nor denied it, and kept Li Shiji in suspense for several months, until the summer.

At this point, Li Shiji felt more and more that the Khan on the other side was most likely his own "Heavenly Khan".

Otherwise, why would the New Turks adopt such an ambiguous attitude?

Is this kind of strategic posture of being close yet distant something that those rough guys on the grassland can achieve?

"But why has Your Majesty refused to respond directly?"

Li Shiji was puzzled.

At this moment, the deputy general suddenly rushed into the tent again, waving the letter in his hand excitedly:
"General Manager, a letter from the new Turks!"

"Oh!"

Li Shiji felt relieved and stood up immediately.

I took the letter and read it. There was only one short line of words in it:

"Li Shiji, I have captured Dafeichuan."

Li Shiji's gaze froze for a moment.

"Is it Your Majesty? Is it really Your Majesty who leads those Turks?" The deputy general's face was full of anticipation.

"Uh..." Li Shiji was also confused.

The tone of voice is indeed that of His Majesty, but the handwriting does not belong to His Majesty. It seems to be written by His Highness Li Chengqian. The seal on the letter is indeed the imperial seal.

Why did His Majesty let the prince write for him? Was it because he was disdainful or incapable? What was the other side trying to do? What did "capturing Dafeichuan" mean?

Li Shiji became more and more confused and asked:
"Just this letter?"

"The other side also sent some tokens, take a look."

The deputy general took out a secret bag.

Inside was a bunch of smooth-touch hair, not human.

Some kind of livestock...

"Is this... yak hair?" Li Shiji stroked the hair thoughtfully.

"Yaks live on the grasslands of the highlands. Your Majesty, are you trying to prove that you really reached the Dafei River?
“Why, what is the special significance of Dafeichuan?

"Dafeichuan, Dafeichuan..."

Li Shiji felt that the answer was about to come out. He subconsciously looked at the map on the table and quickly found the location of Dafeichuan.

Dafeichuan lies quietly in the former Tuyuhun land south of the Qilian Mountains, on the northeastern edge of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. It is far from the Tubo capital of Luosha, but very close to the Hehuang Valley in the east.

Hehuang Valley...

Li Shiji's face suddenly changed:
"Your Majesty, are you planning to..."

The Hehuang Valley is the common source of the Yellow River and the Huangshui River. The land is fertile and the terrain is relatively flat. The Tang Dynasty Shancheng (Xining City) is located in it.

From Shancheng, cross the river to the south, and to the east is the Wei River, and downstream is the capital city of Chang'an.

Last year, Princess Wencheng went to Tibet to marry a princess, and she took this route.

Conversely, the armed forces of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau can certainly also attack Chang'an directly through the canyon where the two rivers originate!

The Dafei River overlooks the Hehuang Valley from its high ground!

"Your Majesty bypassed the tens of thousands of elite troops in Liangzhou and is going to attack Chang'an directly from the plateau?!"

(End of this chapter)