Uncle Detective Di Renjie, I build a crime-solving team

Lun Ke truly never imagined that Lun Qinling's death in battle would plunge Tibet into such an unimaginable crisis.

Logically, the Tang army should have been suffering terribly from altitude sickness, but these people were able to still defeat them so badly that they couldn't even stand up straight despite their altitude sickness.

Is this still a human being?

Of course, Lun Ke did send people to gather information. The news that the scouts risked their lives to bring back described the recent routines of the Tang army.

Not far from them, Guo Yuanzhen's army, numbering over 200,000, had only about 80,000 men on high alert at the same time, while the remaining 160,000 were fast asleep.

This method of relying on rest to combat altitude sickness left Lunke with no other options.

The only way to prevent these people from getting proper rest is to send troops to attack them.

But if they could take the initiative to attack the Tang army, they would have done so long ago, and they certainly wouldn't have been hiding in their garrison camp.

"General, someone from the Tang army camp has come to request an audience."

Just as he was feeling a chill run down his spine, a guard walked in and spoke to him.

"Who dares to be so bold?" Lun asked instinctively.

"It is said that he was sent by Li Bushang, the younger brother of Li Jinzhong, the former Supreme Khan of the Khitan tribe."

“Li Bushang? Isn’t he the general of the Khitan cavalry?” Lun Ke squinted. “Sending someone here, surely not to spy on our army’s situation? Just drag him out and kill him.”

"Yes, sir." The guard bowed and turned to leave.

Lun Ke frowned, then suddenly raised his hand: "Wait, don't rush to kill him, let him in now."

The guard paused outside the door, and after confirming that he hadn't misheard, he brought in an old man with a white beard.

The white-bearded old man had a square face, a heroic air between his brows, and his beard was as sharp as steel needles. The calluses on his hands further indicated that he was no ordinary person.

The old man clasped his hands in a fist salute to Lun Ke, who was on the commander's seat, then glanced back at the guards without saying a word.

From his position, Lun Ke took the initiative to ask, "Old man, who are you?"

The old man swallowed hard and said, "Since I arrived, I haven't even had a sip of water."

"You old man, speak more bluntly." Lun Ke turned to the guard, "You can go out for a bit."

The guard clasped his hands in a fist salute and withdrew immediately.

The old man then looked at the inscription above and said, "This humble general is the younger brother of Li Jinzhong, the Supreme Khan of the Khitan. Li Bushang is also the younger brother. Now, this humble general serves as the General of the Khitan Cavalry under His Majesty the Emperor of the Great Tang Dynasty, holding the official rank of the third grade."

Lun Ke narrowed his eyes.

After Li Bushang introduced himself, he did not sense any murderous intent emanating from him.

At such a critical juncture in a major battle, for a general from an enemy state to come to one's own camp, there must be something important he wants to discuss with him.

If it's not persuading them to surrender, then it's asking them to surrender.

Lun Ke believed that the latter possibility was too small, so he made up his mind that Li Bushang had come to persuade him to surrender.

He glanced at Li Bushang and silently drew his sword.

"I already know what you want to do. Try to persuade me to surrender, but if you say anything wrong, I will ask you to try this knife."

Li Bushang chuckled and shook his head repeatedly.

"Does the commander-in-chief perhaps believe that I have come to persuade you to surrender?"

"Is not it?"

"The reason why the Khitans submitted to the Tang Dynasty was simply to live a good life for a while, but the Tang emperor implemented the methods of merging villages and relocating tribes, so we Khitan people no longer live as easily as before."

"Do you think I'd believe that?" Lun Ke crossed his legs, a mocking smile on his face. "You've already led the Khitan cavalry all the way to Supi, and now you're telling me you're not actually a loyal supporter of His Majesty the Emperor of Tang? Do you think I'd believe you?"

“You don’t need to believe me. I’m here today for only one thing I need your cooperation on. If it succeeds, the area from Dunhuang to Liangzhou will no longer be under the control of the Tang Dynasty.” Li Bushang frowned. “Wanshan and Xiangzhou are both juniors. Their elders died because of the Tang Dynasty. If they don’t avenge this, I will.”

"I'll say it again, I don't believe it. No matter how much you say, I won't believe it," Lun Ke said nonchalantly.

"I'll say it again, you don't need to believe me. Three days from now, at dawn, I will lead my men to attack the right wing of the Left Guard. That will be the time of the shift change, when the troops will be exhausted. I will lead my men to charge them and inflict a crushing defeat on the Tang Dynasty. If this is done, I will go to the Turks, contact the ten noble tribes, and welcome Helu back to the Turks."

Upon hearing this, Lun was torn between his own mind and his inner turmoil.

This might not be a bad plan, and it might even be possible to implement it.

If Helu of the Turks also wants to break away from the Tang Dynasty, then all of this could potentially be accomplished...

but.

Li Bushang overlooked an important issue.

Sun Wanrong's son, Sun Xiangzhou, was still serving as the Grand Marshal of the Tang Dynasty, leading troops to fight against Japan!

"You're absolutely right. I almost believed you."

Lun Ke leaned back a little, fiddling with the knife in his hand.

“If Sun Xiangzhou weren’t the Grand Marshal of the Japanese Army, I would really believe you.”

Li Bushang remained completely calm, instead laughing heartily for a while before asking:

"Your wife, children, and elderly parents are all in Lhasa, aren't they?"

Lun Ke tilted his head and laughed:

"If it's not in Lhasa, why would it be in your house?"

Li Bushang clapped his hands and laughed: "If this were really in my house, I would definitely laugh nonstop."

The next second, he immediately resumed his serious expression and asked in return:

"Since your family members are all in Lhasa, do you dare disobey Qi Nuxi's orders?"

Lun Ke's smile froze as he stared intently at Li Bushang, suddenly realizing that there seemed to be no problem.

But the biggest problem is precisely that there is no problem.

The problem is that Li Bushang, Li Wanshan, and Sun Xiangzhou's entire family were all in Luoyang, the capital of the Tang Dynasty.

He simply couldn't believe that Li Bushang and others could disregard their families and directly turn against Li Cunxi to defect.

"If Lord Li were to defect, what would become of the lives of his entire clan?"

"Those who achieve great things do not concern themselves with trifles. How could I, Li Bushang, possibly care about them?"

Lun Ke slowly rose to his feet, his doubts growing stronger.

If such an opportunity arises at this critical juncture, it would certainly be entirely beneficial to Tibet if it were true.

Once this opportunity is lost, it's hard to say how long this battle can last.

He believed he lacked the abilities of Lun Qinling and did not believe he could defeat the Tang Dynasty head-on in this war, so he had to seize the opportunity.

"This matter may not be true."

"I have heard that the Khitan people practice shamanism. Let me ask them further. If they can swear an oath of faith, then it is not impossible to believe them."

After pondering for a while, Lun Ke made up his mind and turned to Li Bushang.

He opened his mouth, about to speak, when he suddenly saw Li Bushang across from him straighten his back abruptly.

"By the Wolf God above, Li Bushang, the younger brother of Li Jinmie, the Supreme Khan of the Khitan, has made up his mind today to fight the Tang Dynasty to the death!"

"May the Wolf God protect us!"