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Chapter 1399 Cossacks and Kazakhs 4
"Yes, yes, after the war, I will select the finest horses and personally deliver them to the capital to present to His Majesty the Emperor!" Aismuhan quickly corrected himself upon seeing this.

"A few fine horses might not be enough. It would be best to carefully select one or two beauties from other ethnic groups. Yangir Khan's daughter is currently the most favored concubine in the palace. If she can give birth to a prince, her position will be very difficult to shake."

Upon hearing that Aismu Khan intended to present the emperor with fine horses, Huang Taiji immediately had a new idea. It was true that the Kazakh Khanate had been famous for its fine horses since ancient times, but it was also true that Emperor Jingyang didn't particularly favor them.

Persians, Russians, and Arabs all presented the Ming emperor with fine horses, local specialties, as a gesture of goodwill. Among them were many exquisite horses that were so beautiful that one could not tear oneself away from them.

As a result, the emperor didn't even glance at them. Most of them were handed over to the Imperial Stables for breeding and raising, and a small number were given to the Ministry of Rites for ceremonial use. Not a single horse was left in the palace.

This shows that luxurious carriages and fine horses did not suit the emperor's taste. On the contrary, the new imperial concubine with exotic charm seemed to be more valued, and after she entered the palace, the emperor stayed in the harem much more often than before.

Whether it was proper for the emperor of the mighty Ming Dynasty to favor a woman from a foreign land was no longer a concern for the court officials. They lowered their expectations time and again, hoping only that the emperor would have an heir, even if it was a mixed-race child, it would be better than none at all.

Emperor Jingyang was no longer a young man. Although he was over 50 and not old, and in good health, and there were precedents of late-age childbirth in history, he was not young either. If he did not have a child soon, it would really be too late.

In traditional Han culture, if a commoner's family line ends, the family cannot prosper; if an emperor's family line ends, the impact is even greater, even concerning the survival of the nation. It is a matter of utmost importance and cannot be taken lightly.

Although Huang Taiji was not Han Chinese, he had been assimilated for so many years that he identified as Han for most of the time, and even his ideology had been subtly shifting towards Han Chinese ideologies. He was just as concerned as his court officials with placing women around the emperor, and he would try to do so whenever he had the chance.

Having been stationed in the Western Regions for so many years, he had a certain understanding of the western kingdoms. Compared to the Uzbeks of the Khanate of Bukhara, the Kazakhs had more beautiful women. Since the emperor favored Aisha's appearance and temperament, let him choose accordingly; with a little effort, there were bound to be even better ones!

"Understood, understood. I also have a daughter, even more beautiful than Aisha. Choose the most beautiful one to present to the Emperor!" Upon hearing this suggestion, Asmuhan agreed without hesitation for half a second, thumping his chest loudly.

As for whether his daughter is as beautiful as Aisha, there's no need to worry at all. Among all the eligible women in Zhongyuzi, whoever is more beautiful than Consort Aisha will immediately become his daughter.

This wasn't deceiving the king; it was standard practice. Princess Aisha wasn't Yangir Khan's biological daughter, nor was she related to him by blood at all. She was said to be the daughter of a nobleman from the Great Horde.

Once chosen to be presented to the emperor, it's just a temporary change of father. After all, nomadic peoples don't have birth certificates or DNA verification; as long as both parties agree, the child is biologically related and can be recorded in the family genealogy.

"But General, our cavalry has all left. What will happen to the enemy? There aren't many fortified cities here, and the infantry can't outrun the cavalry. We'll be attacked!"

Having reached an agreement to divide the bandits, Asmu Khan was finally able to focus all his attention on the actual battles, and then he discovered a major flaw. In the vast and flat grassland terrain of the Syr Darya Valley, infantry could not defeat cavalry. "When Your Majesty personally led the expedition to the Western Regions, I also told His Majesty the same thing, and as a result, the Yarkand cavalry was completely wiped out, and the Bukhara and Kazakh cavalry that went to support them also fled in disarray."

Back then, the Ming army didn't have much combat experience; they could easily crush their opponents with just muskets and cannons. Now, they have weapons and tactics specifically designed to counter cavalry, so there's no reason they can't win. Don't worry, neither you nor I will leave. We'll stay in the city and watch how the infantry deal with the cavalry!

When it comes to tactics, Huang Taiji is even more knowledgeable than anyone else. He started his career in cavalry, and after being captured, he specialized in army subjects. In many large-scale battles, he continued to study cavalry tactics by combining theory with practice, making him a master of both infantry and cavalry.

In the past few years in the Western Regions, besides handling daily affairs, the thing he did most was to figure out how infantry could defeat cavalry and how cavalry could defeat infantry. He even invented several tactics for this purpose, which earned him praise from the chief of staff and the emperor.

After learning the approximate origin and itinerary of the enemy, Huang Taiji and Ding Shun immediately made targeted adjustments to the troop deployment in the Western Regions theater, changing from passive defense to active defense.

In the first step, Huang Taiji led the 31st Army Guard from Tashkent westward to Turkestan City, where they joined forces with the 30th Army Guard stationed there, becoming the first node of the defense line.

Then, Bai Buping, the commander of the Central and Western Military Command, led the 12th Army Guard from Druzhba to Jambyl, and Han Baobao, the chief of staff of the Central and Western Military Command, led the 11th Army Guard from Tacheng to Samarkand.

This move was intended to increase the flexibility and depth of the defensive line, with the three major cities of Jambyl, Turkestan, and Bukhara forming the first line of defense. If the enemy launched a strong attack, it would play right into their hands; stopping the cavalry would be tantamount to half a victory.

Even if the enemy continues their eastward advance regardless, it doesn't matter. These three major cities are all located on key transportation routes and are also important water sources. The troops stationed in the cities can leave at any time to seek opportunities for battle, and can fight if outnumbered or retreat if necessary, allowing for flexible advance and retreat.

In this situation, the enemy cavalry advancing eastward would be in a difficult position. In fact, throughout history, there have been countless battles between nomadic and agricultural peoples, and the number of times that a fortified city was left unattacked and the enemy dared to continue their advance is extremely small.

Under normal circumstances, the cavalry force advancing eastward must find a way to capture one of these three cities and turn it into their logistical base to ensure a safe and unobstructed rear route.

In the second step, Ding Shun exchanged views with the key figures in power in the Kazakhs and the Khanate of Bukhara, and reached a consensus: the significance of this war is far-reaching, its impact is enormous, and its role is crucial; all parties must do their utmost to win!

In simpler terms, whoever wins will gain control of Central Asia for a considerable period, and will also have influence over the Caspian and Black Sea regions. For their own interests, the Kazakhs and the Khanate of Bukhara had no choice but to stand with the Ming Empire and fight to the death for victory.

Some might say this is obvious, but it's not. Every country and group is not monolithic. Every person and every force, from different perspectives and positions, will have different perceptions and understandings of the same thing.

(End of this chapter)