Chapter 5118: Fierce Appearance and Cowardice
Chapter 5118: Fierce Appearance and Cowardice
Xi Duoyu's face flushed with shock and anger: "The Tang Dynasty is a country of rites and etiquette, and Duke Yue is a great man of the time. How can you threaten us at will? My father has abandoned his dignity and retreated again and again for the sake of the people of the Gar tribe. Duke Yue has disregarded his dignity and pressed his will. Does he really think that our Gar tribe is weak and can be bullied? At most, my father and I will leave our heads here and let Duke Yue deal with them. The Gar tribe is angry and will fight to the last soldier, but we will not compromise!"
Pei Xingjian sneered: "It's just a request for the Prime Minister to write a letter, why do you react so strongly? But I also have a piece of good advice for you. It is indeed worthy of respect to face death and never bend, but if you ignore the life and death of your clan members for your own reputation, it is too selfish. You are willing to destroy your entire clan to achieve a reputation of steadfastness and unyieldingness, but have you ever thought about whether your clan members are willing to die for your reputation?"
People living in the world are always pursuing things tirelessly. Some people pursue profit, some people pursue fame. Although they seem to be different, they are essentially the same.
Those who pursue fame do not care about power and wealth, and sometimes they will drag more people to be buried with them to preserve the name of "chastity".
They never care whether others are willing or not, and they will not think about why others should die for your reputation. They only need to hold high the banner of "morality" to suppress some unwillingness...
Even an official like me is not afraid of death, so why are you unwilling to risk your lives?
Sita's face was dejected, her lips were trembling, but she could not speak.
Lu Dongzan put down his teacup, sighed, and looked at Fang Jun helplessly: "Bring me a pen and paper, and I'll write it... But whether Ashina Helu is willing to come is not something I can control."
Fang Jun held the pot and poured tea for Lu Dongzan: "Now that the Prime Minister has been appointed, how dare Ashina Helu not come?"
When Ashina Helu received Lu Dongzan's letter, he knew that their plot had been exposed. With his fierce appearance and timid character, he definitely did not dare to raise an army. He could only come to Luntai honestly. Anyway, he had strong power and many supporters, so he would not be killed by Fang Jun...
Lu Dongzan shook his head and said nothing. He quickly wrote a letter. He did not mention anything else, but only invited Ashina Helu to come to Luntai to meet him.
Put it in an envelope, stamp it...
Seeing Pei Xingjian take the letter and immediately send someone to deliver it to Mohe City in Tingzhou, Lu Dongzan looked thoughtful and looked at Fang Jun: "Does the Duke of Yue have any plans?"
There were two letters, one to appease the Arabs and one to Ashina Helu. If designed properly, an opportunity could be gained from them...
Fang Jun avoided the question: "That depends on whether Ashina Helu is a smart man... The Prime Minister may want to take a walk around Luntai City these days to see the layout and city defense. If you find any omissions, please give us some suggestions."
Lu Dong praised: "You are all outstanding talents of the time, and you are excellent in commanding troops and generals. How dare I show off?"
*****
Tingzhou is located at the northern foot of the Tianshan Mountains, and governs three counties: Jinman, Luntai, and Pulei. It is connected to Yizhou and Shazhou in the east, Xizhou in the south, and Gongyue City and Suiye Town in the west. Before the early Tang Dynasty, the area belonged to Khan Futu City and was once the site of the Western Turkic royal court, hence the name.
Mohe City is located in the northeast of Luntai. Both are under the jurisdiction of Tingzhou, but they are thousands of miles apart...
It was the first heavy snow after the beginning of winter, and it kept falling for several days. The inside and outside of Mohe City were already covered with snow and ice. Ashina Helu stood at the window and looked into the distance. The mountains were hazy and snowflakes were flying. He felt very heavy.
He turned around and looked at the letter from Lu Dongzan on the table, and remained silent for a long time.
It was his lifelong wish to restore the Turkic Khanate and rebuild the Khan's tent. To this end, he secretly recruited soldiers and horses, surrendered and rebelled many times, and was feared by the Tang Dynasty. However, because he was a direct descendant of Shidianmi Khan, he was deeply supported by the remnants of the Turkic people in various parts of the Western Regions. Therefore, the Tang Dynasty was cautious and tolerated him, and never sent troops to directly eliminate him.
The door opened and a gust of wind and snow poured in.
His son Diyun came in from outside, closed the door with his backhand, rubbed his hands and said, "It's just the beginning of winter, and the weather is so cold. The livestock outside the city have already frozen to death. This winter will be difficult to endure. If our strength is damaged before spring comes, it may affect our great cause."
For the Turks, the so-called "strength" is nothing more than population and livestock. A large population means a large source of soldiers. The Turks grew up on horseback and are skilled in archery and horsemanship, so they can quickly raise a large army.
Horses are used for war, cattle and sheep are used for food...
These two items are the confidence of the Turks.
Ashina Helu had a gloomy expression on his face. He said nothing and pointed to the letter on the table.
Di Yun was puzzled. He walked to the table, picked up the envelope, looked at it, and asked curiously, "Is it a letter from Lu Dongzan?"
Ashina Helu said: "The letter just delivered says that Lu Dongzan has arrived in Luntai."
Di Yun was shocked: "Why did this old villain come to Luntai in the winter snow instead of staying in Fuqi City and waiting to send troops to Hexi to cooperate with us in conquering the Western Regions?"
He quickly took out the letter from the envelope and was even more surprised to see that it was written in Chinese characters.
When he finished reading it quickly, he finally understood why his father looked so unhappy...
Di Yun was shocked: "Will this old thief sell us out? Father must not listen to him and must not go to Luntai!"
Although the letter did not mention any specific matters, the news that Fang Jun had arrived in Luntai as the commander-in-chief of the Gongyue Road army had already reached Mohe City, and Lu Dongzan had secretly traveled with Fang Jun, and at this time he invited them father and son to meet in Luntai... It was a trap no matter how you looked at it.
"Ugh!"
Ashina Helu sighed, turned back and sat down at the table, took a bowl of warm mare's milk and drank it in one gulp.
After a while, he said dejectedly, "If we don't go, the rebellion will be obvious. What we will face next will be the thousands of troops of the Anxi Army and the many tribes of the Hu people who are fawning on the Tang Army. Even the first to pounce on us will be our blood relatives and brothers."
Di Yun asked doubtfully, "Father, are you talking about Mishe and Buzhen? That can't be the case!"
Ashina Mishe and Ashina Buzhen are both fifth-generation grandsons of Shidianmi Khan and cousins of Ashina Helu, but they have always had different positions. At this moment, they are eyeing the north and trying to steal Ashina Helu's position in the Tang Dynasty.
But after all, they are all of Khan's bloodline, and what his father and son are doing this time is to restore the Khanate. Could Mishe and Buzhen really risk the disapproval of the world and disregard the opinions of all Turkic tribes and brazenly stab Mohecheng in the back?
Ashina Helu looked solemn: "What's impossible? Just kill me. The Tang Dynasty needs someone to continue to intimidate the Turkic tribes, and they can take my place."
After a pause, he slammed the table and angrily cursed: "Lu Dongzan, that old dog, swore to me that he would attack from all sides to annihilate the Anxi Army, divide the Western Regions together, and help me restore the Khanate, but he turned around and surrendered to the Tang Dynasty. He is so shameless!"
If Lu Dongzan had not acted as a lobbyist and made various promises to him, how could he dare to rebel against the Tang Dynasty again?
Di Yun thought about it, still unwilling to give up: "Although the Anxi Army is elite, the total number is only tens of thousands. We can raise a force twice as large as the Anxi Army in an instant, so we may not be powerless, right? As long as we can make achievements on the battlefield, Mishe, Buzhen and the other Hu people may not be willing to work for the Tang people."
Ashina Helu glanced at his son and said unhappily, "Do you still believe that victory or defeat in war is determined by numbers? The Anxi army only has tens of thousands of soldiers, but its fighting power is second to none in the world. Muawiyah's army of 200,000 soldiers was defeated, let alone us?"
The reason why he dared to agree with Lu Dongzan was that after the war broke out, the Anxi army would have to face the Arab army in the area of Suiye City. The Arabs would learn from their mistakes and would definitely not make the same mistakes again. If they advanced steadily, the firearms of the Anxi army would find it difficult to exert their maximum power, and it would definitely be a tough battle.
When Lu Dongzan sent troops to cut off Hexi, the Anxi army became an isolated force.
At that time, Ashina Helu would have launched an attack on Xizhou, Tingzhou and other places, turning the hinterland of the Western Region upside down, gathering various tribes of the Hu people, and attacking from the front and back with the Arab army, completely destroying the Anxi army...
Now he is asked to stay in Mohe City and face the fierce attack of Anxi Army. How can he have the courage to do so?
Di Yun didn't know what to do: "Then what should we do?"
Ashina Helu said: "We can only go to Luntai City, otherwise the army will be approaching in the next moment."
Di Yun still had hope: "With a powerful enemy at hand, the Anxi Army will not go crazy and attack us, right? If that happens, the entire Western Region will be in a state of disarray. Who will be able to shoulder the responsibility?"
"Others may have concerns, but Fang Jun doesn't care about that. Even if he really caused the Western Region to be corrupted, who in the court can punish him? This man has always advocated that 'national interests are above all else' and clamored that 'crimes are committed in this era, and merits will be passed down through the ages'. He is the most tough and warlike, like the Hu people like us, and I wish I could wipe them out in one fell swoop!"
The more Ashina Helu spoke, the more timid he became, and the more he believed that as long as he did not go to Luntai, Fang Jun would bring the Anxi Army to attack Mohe City the next moment and completely eliminate him, the direct descendant of Shidianmi Khan.
With the combat effectiveness of the Anxi Army, one winter is enough to capture Mohe City. After the spring, it will also be in time to reorganize the army and march to Suiye to fight the Arab army with all their strength.
By then, there would be no worries at all. Food and fodder could be transported from Guanzhong to the Western Regions continuously. The Anxi Army fought desperately, and the Arab army had little chance of winning...
"Pack up, and let's go to Luntai immediately, father and son, to prevent the situation from changing."
If he guessed correctly, Ashina Mishe and Ashina Buzhen should also be summoned by Fang Jun at this moment. These two have coveted his position for a long time. If they get in front of Fang Jun first, who knows how they will frame him, flatter and deceive him. Fang Jun is best at winning over one faction and attacking another. If he believes the slander of these two, wouldn't he be doomed?
(End of this chapter)
