Tang Dynasty: Father, if you don't rebel, I will!

Turks.

A major battle suddenly and fiercely broke out on the vast grasslands of the Eastern Turkic Khaganate in a way that Jieli could never have predicted.

“Yelülü..…”

The neighing of warhorses, accompanied by the sound of their hooves shaking the earth, rang out.

In his mind, his nephew, Tuli Khan, the young Khan of the Eastern Turks, had always been cowardly and dared not resist him. But now, he was personally leading his cavalry to launch a surprise attack on him.

Immediately afterward, before Jieli's massive cavalry army could turn around...

From the surrounding grassy slopes came the sound of horses' hooves again.

Jieli's expression suddenly changed.

"kill!!!"

There was no process of "acting on behalf of Heaven" or "having a legitimate reason for the war," and the cavalry led by Jieli were discovered by Tuli Khan's side early on.

Tuli, who already harbored resentment towards his uncle Jieli, immediately issued the order to attack.

Screams and shouts of battle, along with the neighing of horses and the sounds of them charging, echoed across the crisp autumn air of the Turkic steppe.

Although Jieli's side was initially caught off guard by this clash between the new and the old king, once they adapted, the ferocity of their battles was no less than that of Tuli's side.

In the distance, a group of Imperial Guards hidden in the grass watched this scene with icy eyes.

One of them was observing the battlefield while simultaneously making quick notes with a small brush.

A great battle raged from noon until dusk.

The intensity of the battle finally came to an end as Jieli's side ran out of steam.

A junior officer of the Imperial Guard calmly watched the direction in which Jieli led his fleeing soldiers and spoke softly.

"Report this immediately: Jieli suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of Tuli Khan, and the division of the Eastern Turkic Khaganate is now a foregone conclusion!"

Not to mention that Tuli, despite suffering considerable losses, still won a resounding victory and returned to his camp with a group of tribal leaders who supported him.

They discussed reorganizing their forces and retaking the Turkic steppe.

Inside the tent, wine cups clinked and flattery rang out. Accompanied by the exhilarating feeling of having defeated Jieli and finally letting go of years of pent-up hatred, Tuli had the illusion that he was intoxicated not by the wine, but by the atmosphere itself.

Amidst the celebration, he vaguely gazed at the precious glass eagle treasure beside his bed, lost in thought about becoming the Great Khan of the Turks in the future.

He dreamed of conquering the grasslands, even ruling the Central Plains, and making the Tang emperor bow down to him.

however.

The tribes under Tuli's command were already itching for another battle because of their victory over Jieli.

When it came time to unify the grasslands.

North of the Eastern Turkic Khaganate.

Ashina Dili was the son of the Western Turkic Khan and Tongyabhu Khan.

Leading a force of 50,000 elite cavalrymen from the Western Turks, he had already crossed the tribal pastures that separated the two countries.

The cavalry was moving slowly, because in the midst of that vast cavalry formation, a ferocious, glass wolf statue, securely bound to a wooden frame and adorned with gold and jewels, was bathed in sunlight.

Shining brightly.

The tribal chiefs from the surrounding areas, whose grasslands had been disturbed, rushed over with their men, wanting to question them.

The next moment, upon seeing the Glazed Wolf Treasure, their expressions changed drastically.

"What? You mean there's more than one of these divine treasures bestowed by the Heaven of Immortality?!"

Ashina Dili's face was so gloomy it looked like it could drip water.

Born into an extraordinary family, upon receiving such a precious treasure, his first thought was not to offer it to his aging father, the Khan, but rather to immediately do so after Jieli's defeat at the hands of the Tang Dynasty.

They wanted to take advantage of the situation in the Western Turkic Khaganate.

But he never expected that he would receive such infuriating news as soon as he entered the territory of the Western Turks.

"Yes, Khan Tuli received a treasure bestowed by the Eternal Heaven, a treasure similar to yours, which only a genius of the Eternal Heaven could possess—a divine eagle!"

This leader had clearly seen that thing before.

And it was precisely for this reason that when Tuli asked their tribe not to send troops to help Jieli, they agreed without hesitation.

Anyway, they didn't want the men of their tribe to go to the battlefield to fight.

Now that autumn is here and the grass is turning yellow, it is the most important time for cattle and sheep to graze on the grassland. If the cattle and sheep cannot get enough fat during this season, they will suffer.

In winter, there isn't much fodder, and cattle and sheep will freeze and starve to death.

Upon hearing this, one of Ashina Dili's trusted confidants frowned slightly.

None of the people present doubted that the magnificent and sacred glass treasure behind them was some kind of treacherous scheme by the Tang people, after all, they had never even heard of such an exquisite glass treasure.

"Your Highness, since Ashina Shibobi's glazed treasure is a divine eagle, and yours is a divine wolf, does that mean that only by collecting both divine treasures can one become the grassland god recognized by the Eternal Heaven?"

As soon as these words came out.

Ashina Dili and the people around him all seemed to be deep in thought.

If the Imperial Guards knew what they were thinking, they would probably all give this contestant a big thumbs up!

These men on the grasslands are so clever; they understand everything without being told!

Ashina Dili's expression was gloomy, and he snorted coldly.

"Let's go! Come with me to meet that damned Tuli. I want to see if this piece of trash can actually be recognized by the Eternal Heaven!"

The emergence of the Western Turks made the already turbulent Eastern Turkic steppe even more unpredictable.

It was filled with a chilling and murderous atmosphere.

Each tribe has realized that something is wrong with the current situation and has begun to strengthen patrols and control over the grasslands surrounding their own tribes.

however.

Just two or three days after Ashina Dili led his people into the territory of the Western Turks, Ashina Dili had just arrived.

Another piece of news spread like wildfire across the grasslands in autumn.

"What! Ashina She'er from the northern desert also obtained a divine treasure of immortality? And it's a divine horse?!"

This news not only stunned Tuli and Ashina Dili, who were already somewhat confused about the situation.

This infuriated Jieli, who had suffered yet another crushing defeat, to the point of being furious.

Inside the tent, Jieli roared through gritted teeth.

"Go! Go to the northern desert! Go and question my brother, ask him! Does he also think he has been blessed by the Eternal Heaven? Does he also want to follow that Tuli fellow and rebel against me, the Great Khan!"

"Go! Ask him! If he doesn't want to rebel, make him obediently hand over that divine treasure!"

As his confidants fled in a panic, Jieli, panting heavily, stared angrily at the map of the Eastern Turkic Khaganate before him.

This is on the geomantic map at this moment.

His headquarters was located in the center, with Lingzhou and Bingzhou of the Tang Dynasty to the south.

To the west, in the northern part of the desert where the Eastern Turks and Tuyuhun meet, lies his younger brother Ashina She'er, who has obtained the "divine treasure".

To the east was his nephew, Tuli Khan Ashina Shibobi, who had just fought a battle with him and was in high spirits.

Even from the north, Ashina Dili has now arrived...

Seeing this situation, although Jieli's hatred for the Tang Dynasty surged even more, he had no choice but to focus on the present and fight for the rule of the Eastern Turks.

"Tuli wants to rebel against me! The Western Turks want to join in the fun too!"

"Then fight!"

With a fierce glint in his eyes, Jieli immediately ordered his main tribe, the Ashina tribe, and his wife's tribe, the Ashide tribe, to mobilize their troops.

At present, although there are still some tribes, large and small, under his command, they are nominally under his rule.

However, given the current situation in the Eastern Turkic Khaganate, even someone as arrogant as Jieli had to be cautious.

And at the same time.

After a bumpy journey of seven or eight days, they finally arrived at Li Chengqian's troops in Taiyuan, Bingzhou.

Just as they entered the former imperial palace in Taiyuan, led by Wang Ming and accompanied by the Wang clan of Taiyuan, as well as various aristocratic families and officials of Bingzhou, a series of rapid hoofbeats filled the air.

A robust military officer, dressed in the uniform of the Hundred Cavalry, quickly dismounted.

"Your Highness, urgent report from the Northern Garrison of the Imperial Guard in Datong! Internal strife has broken out among the Turks!"

Upon hearing the name "Jinyiwei" (Imperial Guard), Wang Ming, who had originally planned to bring his family to make an impression or inquire about their satisfaction with the renovations of the palace, was surprised.

His steps abruptly stopped.

He reached out and stopped some of the Wang family officials behind him, then took two steps back.

Nevertheless, the news of the Turkic internal strife inevitably made Wang Ming and other officials from prominent families in Bingzhou somewhat nervous and curious.

Li Chengqian glanced at the other person indifferently.

He reached out and took the report from the hands of the Imperial Guard in front of him.

The report contained detailed information, and Li Tai and Li Ke approached from the side.

When the two saw that the Eastern Turkic Khaganate had grown to four factions, including the Khagan of Jieli, in less than half a month, they realized that these factions were now fighting each other.

They all gasped in shock.

These days, the two of them and their elder brother, the Emperor, have been riding in the same carriage.

They also learned a lot of things, including the arrangements for the Turks. Although they didn't know the details, they were immediately certain of the current turmoil in the Eastern Turkic Khaganate.

It was entirely his own elder brother, the emperor, who did it in secret.

"Tell Qianlou to do whatever he wants, let the Turks fight amongst themselves as much as possible, and damage the vitality of the Eastern Turkic Khaganate!"

"Yes!"

As the Imperial Guards departed.

Wang Ming then led a group of Taiyuan city officials over.

"Your subject pays respects to Your Highness."

Li Chengqian nodded, looked back, and saw that under the command of the eunuch Wang De, they had begun to assign living quarters and move things into the palace.

"Your Highness, although Yangcheng Palace is a remnant of the previous dynasty, its original structure and various palaces and pavilions are still well preserved. I have already ordered craftsmen to repair some parts. What do you think...?"

Wang Ming wore a fawning expression, even though behind him were officials from his own Taiyuan Wang clan in Bingzhou.

At this moment, he dared not put on any airs of the Taiyuan royal family in front of Crown Prince Li Chengqian.

however.

Li Chengqian glanced at the palace before him and then calmly looked away.

"No matter how magnificent the palaces and pavilions are, they are nothing more than dwellings to shelter from the wind and rain. I have no interest in these things. Compared to these, Lord Wang, have you prepared everything I asked you to prepare in advance?"

Wang Ming was stunned, and then pointed blankly around.

"Your Highness, why don't you go in and take a look first?"

Li Chengqian frowned immediately, his eyes seemingly revealing a dissatisfaction that sent a chill down the spines of everyone present, including the Wang family.

"As I've already said, it's just a house. Compared to that, I'm much more interested in seeing what the dwellings of the Tang people in Bingzhou are like."

"Your Highness, I have overstepped my bounds! Please forgive me. I will have someone fetch the land and grain tax ledgers of Bingzhou immediately."

Li Chengqian added casually, "There are also population statistics records for each prefecture and county."

"Yes, yes, Your Highness, please wait a moment..."

Watching Wang Ming hurriedly leave, Li Chengqian then turned his gaze to Li Tai and Li Ke beside him.

"You two don't need to choose a palace. We'll reserve two rooms next to the residence for you, which will make it easier for us to handle some matters."

Li Tai and the other man quickly bowed.

Kong Yingda and Yu Shinan personally directed their servants to move the books they had specially ordered to be transported all the way from Chang'an into the palace.

The elderly and frail Li Gang, who remained behind, looked solemnly at Crown Prince Li Chengqian, whose eyes were now flickering as he stared at the officials and noble families of Bingzhou before him, remaining silent.

"Your Highness, may I ask a question? Now that we have arrived in Bingzhou, where do you intend to begin implementing these new policies?"

Hear the words.

Li Chengqian gave a cold laugh.

As Hou Junji's gaze swept across the area, he saw that Hou Junji had already begun to allocate manpower to take over the defense of Taiyuan City. Along the way, as they entered Bingzhou...

The military personnel his father had sent him had already taken control of important counties and towns in Bingzhou, including Jinyang, Yangzhi, Wuhe, Jiaocheng, Yuci, Qingyuan, and Fenyang.

It can be said that Bingzhou is now effectively in his hands.

He didn't answer directly, but calmly asked a question in return.

"Master Li, in your opinion, from the chaos of the previous dynasty and the rise of numerous warlords to the establishment of our Great Tang Dynasty and the few years since my grandfather ascended the throne, how many people have lived in our Great Tang Dynasty?"

Li Chengqian wore a cold smile.

"These local tyrants concealed people, seized land, colluded with local officials, oppressed countless people, and destroyed countless families?"

Li Gang's hand holding the cane suddenly trembled.

As if sensing what Li Chengqian was about to do, she gasped.

Li Chengqian's gaze swept lightly across the faces of these officials. Some wanted to step forward to greet them or become acquainted with them, but Xue Wanche, who had long understood his crown prince's intentions, ordered his men to stop them.

"Your Highness, if we start by making a big fuss about the officials in Bingzhou, it may cause dissatisfaction among them. If that happens, the new policies may not be implemented and could collapse halfway through!"

Li Chengqian sneered: "But alas, I simply do not want the benefits of this new policy to fall on these former rats!"