Traveling through the early Tang Dynasty starts with hanging

Chapter 1398 The Night Before (Part )

Li Shan's guess was correct. It was difficult to say whether Tuli Khan would be in Bingzhou or Xinzhou tomorrow. At this moment, he was in the state of Schrödinger's cat.

Judging from the current situation, the Turks do not suffer in terms of military strength. Just by gathering troops scattered in Bingzhou, Tuli Khan can gather 40,000 to 50,000 cavalry. This is after the Tang army beheaded 5,000 in Jinzhou and Fenzhou.

But the morale problem is bigger. From Jinzhou to Fenzhou, and then to Bingzhou, the Tang army won successive victories. The defeat of the remnant soldiers who fled back will inevitably lead to the decline of the morale of the army. The most important thing is that the Tang army is coached by the King of Handan at that time. The current heir of Wei, Li Huairen, made many generals grit their teeth and fear.

And the most important thing is that Tuli Khan found that he had made a mistake... If the Tang army did not kill Qingyuan and Jinyang so violently and quickly, it would not be considered a mistake. But at this moment, Tuli Khan fell into A dilemma.

If an order was given to withdraw troops, almost everyone would gallop back to the grassland without even thinking about it, but Chitang Pass was a checkpoint... The Tang army would inevitably pursue them one after another, and it might be a big defeat.

Tuli Khan will never forget that when Li Huairen was in Guji Town, in Yunzhou, in Jingzhou... almost every time, he won a complete victory in the pursuit battle and killed many people.

Not to mention that there are so many grains and people still stranded around Yangqu County. Tuli Khan felt regretful when he thought of this... The Tang army had been staying in Jiangzhou before and did not go north, so he was slow to move.

This is not without reason. If a large amount of food, grass and population are quickly sent outside the Great Wall...who knows how much of it will fall into the hands of Tuli Khan. Unlike Dubu Khan, most of his generals are Ashina tribesmen. This is With the foundation of his power, it was impossible for him to break up with his tribe, so he intercepted a large amount of food, grass, and people to be taken away when he returned north.

But he didn't expect that after staying in Jiangzhou for half a month, the Tang army suddenly headed north and reached the hinterland of Bingzhou so quickly, giving himself almost no time to react.

After Tuli Khan was silent for a moment, he said quietly: "If we return to the north, will you lead your troops to guard Chitang Pass?"

Tuli Khan knew well that if he really returned north and left his troops to stop the Tang army... only he had the qualifications and determination.

"It's better to withdraw our troops." Ashina Jusheshui suggested: "This time it's Li Huairen who's here!"

Obviously, Li Shan's night attack in Mayi left an eternal shadow in Ashina Jiushe's heart.

Tuli Khan recalled what happened in the past. Jieli Khan had invaded Hedong several times and was stationed in Xinzhou. He only sent troops to plunder Bingzhou and Fenzhou. In this way, he could ensure that he could steadily control the plundering. At the same time, the population, goods, and food will not be choked by Chitang Pass.

Tuli Khan will not forget that in the battle of Jingzhou last year, the forwards of the Tang army stormed to two hundred paces from the Khan flag. Ashina Sheer ordered the guards to hold the Khan flag forward, and the morale of the army was stable... On the other hand, if If he leaves first, he is afraid that if the Tang army pursues him, the whole army will collapse.

Ashina Jisheshui remained silent and guarded Chitang Pass... Who knows if he will be defeated by the Tang army, or he might be captured alive.

More importantly, Tuli Khan wanted to know...what happened on the Guannei Road?

Why did the Tang Army's cavalry return to the pass to aid the pass?

The most important thing is, what is the current situation of Dub Khan?

Tuli Khan needed this information to determine his next decision.

If the commander-in-chief of the Tang army was someone else, Tuli Khan could not do anything, but this time it was Li Huairen who was sworn to Jinlan, so he should still have a chance.

You can always find out something... Well, sometimes, the habitual thinking pattern really kills people. Tuli Khan felt that even if Dubu Khan was defeated, the entire army would not be wiped out... As long as Dubu Khan was alive, Li Huairen, or the Tang Dynasty, would need him.

He was captured alive in the battle of Jingzhou, didn't Li Huairen release him?

"Let's give it a try tomorrow." Tuli Khan murmured in a low voice. At least there should be no problem in talking before the battle. After all, he is a good brother who is sworn to Jinlan.

It was late at night, but scouts and messengers from the Tang army kept coming and going, heading south to Qi County and even Jiexiu of Fenzhou, west to Qingyuan, Jiaocheng, Wenshui and even Huangdan Town, and east to Yuci, Taigu and even Shouyang.

There were many preparations to be made for tomorrow's war. Of course, these matters were presided over by Li Daozong, Su Dingfang, and Qin Qiong. Li Shan fell asleep quietly after worrying about Zhang Wenguan for a while.

At this moment, in Lingshi County, more than two hundred miles away from Jinyang, Qian Jiulong, who had fallen asleep, was woken up by his guards and looked blankly at the sweating messengers.

"King Si of Wei?"

"King Si of Wei went north on the night of October 20th. The battle report came back from Jiexiu County before dusk. Yesterday he defeated thousands of Turks in Pingyao County, and then went north to merge with the state and enter Qi County."

Qian Jiulong looked at the messenger while explaining, and his heart was pounding. If something happened to Chang'an again... wouldn't it be because King Wei Si had too much military exploits?

A messenger made some desperate calculations, "If we go north all night, we won't arrive in Qixian County until noon tomorrow."

Another messenger gasped, "I haven't rested for two days and one night. I really can't hold on any longer. Please ask Qian Gong to send someone to send a message to King Wei Si."

It shouldn't be something wrong with Li Huairen... Qian Jiulong felt a little relieved and asked in a low voice: "What happened?"

Several of the messengers were soldiers of the Beiya Forbidden Army. Two of them were sent in by Li Shimin some time ago. One of them said directly: "Dubu Khan fled with his remnant army and was captured by the Duke of Guangling County in Lanzhou. After the interception, the Turks were defeated, and Dubu Khan was trapped at the foot of Guzang Mountain and committed suicide."

Qian Jiulong was frightened and stood up suddenly, "Dub Khan is dead?!"

"There is no doubt about it." The messenger responded: "After the battle report came to the capital, Your Majesty and the Crown Prince ordered us to leave the capital overnight and inform King Wei Si."

Qian Jiulong's mouth trembled. He knew Li Shan's general plan... He could not let the Turks return to the grassland easily, but he would not start a war with the Turks. After all, Dubu Khan had escaped, and the Turks had to be allowed to Lee Khan went back to continue fighting in the ring.

But now that Dubu Khan is dead, once Turli Khan returns to Wuyuan County, he will definitely be able to unify the Turks... Now this war lasts for more than a month, ranging from Longyou Road to Guannai Road, and from Hebei Road to Hedong Road. The war proved that as long as there was no civil strife in the Turks, or even just superficial reconciliation, they would pose a huge threat to the Tang Dynasty.

Qian Jiulong did not dare to delay and immediately sent his personal guards to drive on horseback overnight. He thought that Li Huairen had been able to defeat the Turks in almost every battle in the past few years. He wondered if he could perform another miracle this time.

It's really a miracle... Qian Jiulong knew in his heart that the Turks were already planning to return north. If they really wanted to run away, King Wei Si, who had just arrived in Qi County yesterday, might not be able to catch up.

(End of this chapter)