Chapter 5264 Extortion at the Door

Chapter 5264 Extortion at the Door
Nisa, nestled against mountains and facing the desert, was not on the Silk Road, but due to its surrounding oases and fertile land, it became an extremely important market town north of Persia and south of Kangju. With the entire Persian Empire being annexed by the Abbasid Caliphate, Nisa became a key town overlooking the entire Transoxiana region, where thousands of elite Abbasid cavalry were gathered.

Sheikh retreated from the city of Merv, leading his remaining troops on a treacherous march through the freezing snow. Countless soldiers died of cold and hunger along the way, and many succumbed to their wounds. When they finally reached the city of Nisa to rest, they found that only a little over six thousand men remained, and some of these were from Yazid's army...

More than half of the 10,000 elite troops were lost in the Battle of Mulu, a blow that left Sheikh heartbroken and disheartened.

It wasn't even a war, because the main forces of both sides never formed a battle formation; our side simply fled at the first sign of trouble...

Sitting inside the rammed earth house, the cold wind howled in through the cracks in the windows, making the thatched roof tremble and causing straw and dirt to fall down. Sheikh raised his hand to wipe his face and sighed out a long puff of white breath.

Although Nisa is called a "city", it is not on the same level as Mulu in terms of size, location, population and so on. It is just a market town built on an oasis at the foot of the mountain and on the edge of the desert, and the conditions are extremely harsh.

Having retreated from the luxurious and wealthy city of Mukhlu to this place in just a few days, his life took a sharp turn for the worse. How could he not be disheartened and sigh in despair?
However, the more he recalled the defeat at Mulu City, the more suspicious and unwilling he became.

He acknowledged that the Tang army's fighting strength was unparalleled in the world, and that his own army, which he had trained for many years, was no match for the Tang army's elite troops. However, he believed that by holding the city and its iron gates and high walls, they should have been able to hold out. Even if the city was eventually captured and the Tang army fled here, they should have made the Tang army pay a heavy price, rather than running away at the first sign of trouble like they are now.

The reason why this battle was lost so quickly was that the Tang army infiltrated Mulu City undetected, and split into two groups. One group raided the city lord's mansion and captured Ye Qide, causing the city's defenders to hesitate and become demoralized and disorderly. The other group attacked the north gate and successfully opened the city gate, letting the Tang army into the city...

How exactly did the Tang army enter the city?
As a nobleman of the Arab world, although he was a firm believer and thought that the gods were omnipotent, he absolutely did not believe in any so-called "heavenly soldiers" or "sending beans to create soldiers" in reality. He believed that there must be someone in the city who was secretly colluding with the Tang army.

It was impossible for him to secretly open the city gates and let the Tang army into the city. Firstly, the guards at each city gate were his trusted men and confidants, and there was no way they would collude with the Tang people. Secondly, if someone really did let the Tang army into the city, he only needed to open the city gates. Why would he need to first raid the city lord's mansion and then raid the north gate?
There is only one answer: the Tang army had been lying in wait in the city beforehand, and their sudden attack caught the defenders off guard, causing them to lose the initiative and even lead them by the nose.

The army that could possibly be providing cover for the Tang troops lurking in the city must be under Ye Qide's command...

Ye Qide would not do that, but there might be tribes among his allied forces who had secretly formed an alliance with the Tang army. It was highly likely that they would have lured the Tang army into the city in the chaos. The Tang army consisted of only a few hundred men. They could hide their armor and weapons in their baggage. Unless the purpose was clear and they were checked one by one, who would have found them?
But the problem now is how to pin the blame for this defeat on Ye Qide and make him bear the responsibility.

After thinking for a moment, he called his trusted general to his side and instructed him: "Go and gather the prince's troops together, and then secretly investigate how the Tang army entered the city, to see if anyone is secretly colluding with the Tang people."

The general hesitated, "This... even if someone were secretly colluding with the Tang people or even helping them infiltrate Mulu City, who would admit it?"

They colluded with the Tang people and supported the fall of Mulu City, leading to the prince's capture...

This is not only a serious crime that could cost an individual their head, but could also bring disaster to their entire family and clan!
I absolutely refuse to admit it!

Sheikh stared at the fool without saying a word.

After a moment's hesitation, Jiang Lingyue suddenly realized his mistake and quickly accepted the order: "Rest assured, Lord City Lord, I will definitely find out who is colluding with the Tang army!"

"Yes, we must find out!"

"Yes!"

After the general turned and walked away quickly, Sheikh took a sip of water and felt somewhat relieved.

With so many of Ye Qide's deployments, it's no surprise that they found someone who colluded with the Tang army.

Even if it doesn't, it definitely will...

Only by pinning the blame on Yezid can he remain unscathed and return to Damascus as a "victim".

A guard rushed in from outside: "Reporting to the city lord, there is a Tang army envoy outside requesting an audience."

"Ok?"

Sheikh was taken aback: "What is it?"

"It was said to be to discuss the prince's ransom."

Sheikh was bewildered: "When did I agree with the Tang army to ransom the prince? That's the Caliph's business. How could I interfere? Tell him to go back immediately and say that this matter needs to be reported to the Caliph before a decision can be made."

The guard hesitated for a moment, then whispered, "But when the Tang envoy arrived outside the camp, he loudly proclaimed that the prince was in their hands and that you should prepare the ransom..."

"...Black Meller!"

Xie He could no longer restrain himself from his noble status and couldn't help but curse, his face full of anger: "The Tang people are despicable!"

Yazid's capture was naturally a major event. He originally planned to report the matter to the Caliph after returning to Damascus, and then let the Caliph preside over the rescue, so that whether it succeeded or failed would be irrelevant to him.

Most importantly, he didn't want to pay the ransom...

But now that Tang Jun has made this matter known to the whole world, he can't deny it even if he wants to.

By letting the prince fall into enemy hands and refusing to rescue him... if he goes back to Damascus, the Caliph will skin him alive!
After a brief moment of impotent rage, he could only wave his hand and order his men to bring in the Tang army envoy.

He only hoped that the Tang army wouldn't be too greedy and wouldn't empty his pockets of all the gold, silver, and valuables he had brought from Merv. He planned to take this money back to Damascus to bribe officials and the Caliph to lessen his punishment.

In Damascus, nothing is impossible with money.

Conversely, without money, you can't move an inch...

……

As the camp gates opened, the Tang envoy rode into the camp. When the nearby Arab soldiers learned that the envoy was sent by the Tang army, they rushed over and shouted at him angrily. Some even clamored to drag the envoy off his horse and behead him as a warning to the public.

The Abbasid army both hated and feared the Tang army. In open field battles, they would flee at the mere sight of the Tang army, but at this moment, on their own territory, they appeared murderous and fearless.

The Tang envoy was not old. He sat on horseback with a serious and indifferent expression. When he heard insults, he would grin, revealing a set of white teeth, his face full of mockery.

The noise within the camp grew increasingly louder...

The commotion only subsided after he dismounted before the main tent and was led inside by the city lord's personal guards. The soldiers gathered near the tent, however, refused to disperse, standing nervously in the snow, waiting for the outcome of the negotiations between the Tang army and the city lord.

The soldiers' biggest concern was whether they could temporarily cease hostilities with the Tang army, at least to get through the winter. Otherwise, if the main force of the Tang army came to pursue them, they would have no choice but to abandon Nisa and continue their escape. Whether they went east along the mountains behind them through Khorasan into the Persian Plateau, or west along the coast of the Western Sea, in this cold winter with heavy snow, few would be able to return to Damascus alive...

……

Inside the tent, Xie He sat imposingly on a stool covered with animal skin, glaring with displeasure at the Tang envoy who had entered the camp alone without showing any fear.

There was no offer of a seat, not even a word of welcome, but the Tang envoy was unperturbed. Standing in the tent with neither arrogance nor servility, he got straight to the point in fluent Arabic: “Your prince has been captured by our army, but General Xue has said that he does not wish to harm the nobles and bloodline of the Caliph, so you only need to pay a ransom to release him.”

Sheikh didn't bother with any negotiation tactics, his eyelids drooping as he feigned indifference, and took a sip of hot milk: "Tell me, how much money does your army want?"

The Tang envoy said, "One hundred thousand gold coins."

"puff!"

Sheikh spat out the milk he had just drunk, choking and coughing violently. After finally catching his breath, he stared at the envoy in disbelief: "How much did you say?"

"One hundred thousand gold coins, or horses and grain of equal value."

Sheikh was so angry he almost laughed: "Do you even know how much 100,000 gold coins are? Just because you're rich doesn't mean everyone in the world is as rich as you."

The Abbasid Caliphate was vast and rich in gold. Gold coins produced in Damascus were widely used and recognized by countries from the Byzantium in the West, the Tang Dynasty in the East, and all countries along maritime trade routes.

One Arab gold coin weighs 15 grams, and one pound is 350 grams, which is roughly equivalent to 23 gold coins. 100,000 gold coins would weigh nearly 4,300 pounds. Even if the Arab world's gold production were to be fully utilized, the total amount of gold coins minted in a year would only be 8,000 pounds...

Leaving aside whether Ye Qide is worth half of the gold coins minted by the entire Abbasid Caliphate in a year, even if he is, why does the Tang army believe that Xie He can produce half of the gold coins minted by the Abbasid Caliphate in a year?
In their annoyance, they didn't even have the interest to haggle.

He was well-versed in business and knew the principle of "asking for the moon and settling for the moon," but when the other party proposed an outrageously high astronomical figure... he only felt indignant at being fooled and extorted.

The Tang envoy stood calmly in the tent: "Whether Your Excellency can produce this amount of money, or is willing to produce it, is irrelevant to the Tang army. We simply believe that Yeqid is worth this much money, so we require this amount. If Your Excellency refuses, we will find a way to inform Damascus of Yeqid's capture, and I'm sure your Caliph will be able to produce this amount."

"..."

Sheikh wanted to curse!