Traveling through Du He, Li Chengqian's rebellion begins

What?

Five thousand Indian monks followed Master Xuanzang to persuade the monk to surrender?

I didn’t expect that the seemingly inconspicuous Master Xuanzang had such a great appeal in India?

Deputy Chief Position.

Li Ke asked in astonishment, "General Pei, are there so many monks in Western Tianzhu?"

Master Xuanzang had only been separated from them for more than a month, but he unexpectedly managed to convince more than 5,000 monks so quickly. How was he able to do that?

The rest of the generals were also puzzled.

Pei Xingjian explained, "Your Highness, the King of Chu, the city of Adianpochiluo in Western India is very Buddhist, with over eighty temples and over five thousand monks."

"Including the many temples in the surrounding city-states, there are probably no less than 20,000 monks in total."

There are five thousand monks in one city?

This is too exaggerated!

The population of the city-states of Tianzhu was similar to that of the prefectures and counties of the Tang Dynasty. Ordinary prefectures and counties had only tens of thousands of people, while larger prefectures and counties had more than 200,000 people.

Even if there are 100,000 people in Adianpochiluo City, more than 5,000 of them are monks, which is an exaggerated proportion.

A moment of silence.

Li Ke said admiringly, "Duke Hanguo, you are so far-sighted that you actually brought Master Xuanzang to India!"

"The role played by Master Xuanzang now is probably no less than that of a hundred thousand troops!"

Western India is a Buddhist country. If these thousands of monks go to save all living beings, the people of Western India will definitely surrender to the Tang Dynasty.

As for South India, which is also a place where Buddhism is prevalent, its fighting power is far inferior to that of the people in Central India.

Du He smiled and waved his hand, then stood up and said, "There will be a big battle tomorrow. I'm afraid it will last for a day or two, or even longer."

"Everyone has come such a long way. Let's go back and have a good rest first."

The cavalry's power cannot be fully utilized in a siege, and the soldiers will probably have to dismount and fight against the Tubo soldiers.

The casualty rate in hand-to-hand combat is very high, so you must conserve your energy and strength.

All the generals bowed and saluted.

"As ordered!"

After watching the group leave, Du He sent Cui Shenji, Wang Jingzhi and Xiao Kai to rest.

Sit still for a moment.

Du He went to the central army's position, found Taoist priest Zhen Fengzi, and checked the ammunition of the sky bombs and artillery with him.

Seeing the explosive packs pushing against more than a dozen tents, Du He felt much calmer.

"Master Zhen, whether we can blow up the walls of Qunu City tomorrow depends on your performance."

"After the war, I will reward you!"

During the time the army was on the road, these elderly Taoist priests had a lot of trouble.

Moreover, the role played by these Taoist priests is no less important than that of a group of generals, and they can even determine the outcome of a war.

Zhen Fengzi quickly said, "Don't worry, Lord Han, even if the walls of Qunu City are made of iron, I can still break them open!"

In order to achieve success, they made a lot of oversized bombs.

It was even twice as big as the bomb that blew up the wall of the Western Turkic city.

"it is good!"

Du He nodded slightly.

He gave Zhen Fengzi a few more words of advice, and then, escorted by his personal guards, returned to the tent to rest.

at dusk.

Du Wu brought in a pot of fish soup, a steamed chicken with medicinal herbs, two plates of wild vegetables and two large bowls of white rice.

"Master, it's time for dinner."

After taking a look at Fengsheng, Du He's expression changed slightly.

I didn't expect that he could still eat such a sumptuous meal at this time. It seems that these firemen put in a lot of effort.

Du He said softly, "Call Xue Rengui and Xi Junmai over for dinner. Tomorrow's battle will depend on these two brave generals to lead the charge. Let them eat their fill."

"promise."

Du Wu received the order and left quickly.

Not long after, Xue Rengui and Xi Junmai strode in.

When they heard that Duke Han had left his meal for them, they refused at first, but finally saw Duke Han give the order with a stern face, and then they gobbled up the meal in no time.

Before they could show their loyalty.

Du He waved his hand and said, "Go down and rest. We will fight well tomorrow!"

"promise!"

Xue Rengui and Xi Junmai responded with serious expressions.

...

The next day.

noon.

When the defenders on Qunu City saw dense cavalry appearing on the official road in the east, they shouted loudly.

"coming!"

"The Tang army is coming!"

"Beat the drum!"

Shortly after these soldiers shouted, the big drum on the city wall was suddenly struck.

The commander of the East Gate also hurriedly rode to the palace to report.

In the main hall.

When Lu Dongzan, Lun Qinling and others learned that the Tang army had arrived, they all stood up with extremely solemn expressions.

The next battle will determine the fate of their Tubo.

If they could withstand the attack of the Tang army, their Tubo country would definitely not be destroyed by the Tang army. If they could not withstand it, their Tubo base camp would not have the troops to guard it.

A moment of silence.

Lu Dongzan ordered in a deep voice: "Generals, you must go to the front line to command the battle immediately. I am worried that the Tang army will launch an attack on the city this afternoon!"

The Tang army understood better than them that without the support of food and fodder, staying one more day would increase the risk of failure.

All the generals bowed and shouted.

"As ordered!"

After the ceremony, they left the hall in a hurry.

Lu Dongzan said to his son, "Lun Qinling, let your 3500 elite cavalry rest this afternoon. If the Tang army doesn't attack the city today, send them to attack the camp tonight!"

"It's dry and rainy right now. If we set the Tang army's camp on fire, we'll definitely inflict heavy damage!"

If they could blow up the Tang army's camp or destroy their dry food supplies, even if all 3500 cavalrymen were killed, it would still be a huge profit for them.

Lun Qinling bowed and said, "As you command, my son!"

Looking at his son's back as he walked away, Lu Dongzan paced back and forth in the hall with his hands behind his back, his face looking very serious.

After walking around for about ten times, he put on his armor and then led his men to check the deployment of the Tang army's forces.

On the east city wall.

Lu Dongzan looked at the densely packed Tang army sitting on the ground below the city. They were eating dry food in a carefree manner, not worried at all that he would order the camp to be attacked.

"Arrogant!"

"You actually don't take me seriously!"

Lu Dongzan cursed in his heart, but did not send anyone out of the city to attack.

Although the Tang army was sitting lazily on the ground to rest, their formation was maintained very well and they could join the battle as long as they stood up.

At this moment, the spy commander Bu Duzhi came running over to report.

"General, 8000 Nepali cavalry have appeared fifty miles west of the city. They are slowly heading towards Qunu City!"

what!

The Tang army also brought 8000 Nepalese cavalry?

Damn!

Lu Dongzan quickly ordered, "Immediately send someone to inform the generals in Chabohe Luocheng, Nalanda, and Vaishali, and tell them not to send troops out of the city!"

"I suspect these 8000 Nepalese cavalry are specifically used to deal with the three reinforcements!"

The three armies were mainly composed of infantry. If they were ambushed by this group of cavalry, the consequences would be disastrous!

"As ordered!"

After receiving the order, Butuzhi ran away quickly.

Lu Dongzan walked around the city wall and then returned to the palace with a worried look on his face.

...

outside the city.

Du He also brought a group of generals and Taoist priests and slowly circled around Qunu City, looking for a breakthrough point to break the city.

Looking at the thick city walls, everyone's mood became a little solemn.

Du He pointed to the city wall in front and said, "Master Zhen, this wall is quite thick. Are you sure you can blow it open?"

Zhen Fengzi said with a smile: "Don't worry, Lord Han Guo, the thickness of the city wall doesn't matter. I can just put 20 super bombs together!"