Tumeng: I am a national advisor in the Golden Family

No matter how much he admired the other person, he would not accept this fact and he could not face Zhang Yong.

As the Khan of the Golden Horde, Batu could not accept being sent to Zhang Yong, even if the other party did not kill him!

This is a hateful pride. If he were sent there, it would be a true fate worse than death. Even if Zhang Yong didn't say a word to him, just seeing him, Batu would be ashamed to death.

This was an extreme humiliation, a humiliation that frightened Batu more than death. He was not afraid of death, but he was unwilling to see Zhang Yong.

"I said, I won't kill you! And whether you like it or not, you have to go to the East to meet my father. It's that simple. I'm not asking for your opinion, I'm just informing you." Zhang Dingguan said.

You said you don’t want to go, so you don’t want to go?
This Western Expedition required a large number of troops from the Daqian Empire, which even took several years and consumed a huge amount of manpower, material resources, and financial resources.

My father made so many preparations just for this war.

"You, you, do you want to humiliate me like this?" Batu said.

"The amount of military rations consumed in this Western Expedition is far beyond your imagination, Batu. So whether it is to give an explanation to the people of the Daqian Empire or to give an explanation to my father, I must send you to the East." Zhang Dingguan said.

If it weren't for the emergence of compressed biscuits, the amount of military rations consumed would have been an astronomical figure.

Soldiers transporting 100 kilograms of food to the front line might not even reach the Kublai Khanate.

It was precisely because of the emergence of convenient military rations such as compressed biscuits, ketchup, and pickled cucumbers that Xizhen's life became easier. At least the rations carried by the army were enough to last for more than two years, and the rations in the rear were also insufficient.

You can also get supplies through farming or fighting to support your opponent, at least after defeating the Golden Horde.

Their compressed biscuits can be stored for the time being and eaten on the way back. Now they can eat the cattle, sheep and dairy products of the Golden Horde.

At the same time, the Southern Russia region can also provide some wheat rations. Even though Hungary did not send troops to support, it can still provide some food. At least during the period of fighting in the West, the army will not lack rations.

Handal, who was sitting next to him, sighed helplessly when he heard this. During this time, he also tentatively asked the other party about his attitude.

They wanted to see whether the eldest son of Zhang Yong, the commander of the Western Expedition Army, could let the people of their Shu family go. After all, they were all descendants of Genghis Khan and members of the Golden Family.

But Zhang Dingguan’s answer was very simple, if we were the losers, how would you deal with me?
After hearing this, Handar was speechless. What if their Golden Horde really won this battle?
Then Zhang Yong’s eldest son and his other sons are definitely doomed to die.

Batu and the many princes of the Golden Horde will not show any mercy and will kill all these people to promote the power of the Golden Horde.

This is a very realistic thing. Now that they were captured, the army of the Golden Horde did not suffer a devastating massacre, but instead joined the Khanate of Ogedei or returned to their homeland in Mongolia.

None of these princes of the Golden Horde were killed. Zhang Dingguan had clearly told them that they would be sent back to their hometown in Mongolia to meet their father, and the final judgment would be conducted by Zhang Yong, the emperor of the Daqian Empire.

Although they were prisoners in name, their living conditions were much better than those of other prisoners. At least their personal freedom was not restricted, and at least they were not locked up in cells, eating moldy and smelly prison meals.

The food provided to them was still according to the standards of Mongolian princes, with wine, meat, vegetables, and even some food from the East.

"Don't humiliate me. You also said that you are the grandson of Genghis Khan. I am much older than you. Since I am your brother, I beg you to kill me." Batu said.

"Give up on this idea, Batu!"

"If you don't agree, I have plenty of ways. Go to hell!" Batu said, gritting his teeth.

He wanted to die like a Mongolian noble, wrapped in cowhide and then trampled to death by horses, which was the highest ceremonial way to die in Mongolia.

To be honest, he didn't want to commit suicide unless it was absolutely necessary, because suicide was an extremely shameful way to die for Mongolian people.

He didn't want to choose this option unless it was absolutely necessary, but if the other party insisted on sending him to see Zhang Yong, then he would have no choice but to commit suicide.

When Handal, who was sitting nearby, heard this, his expression changed. He was about to speak, but was stopped by Zhang Dingguan with his hand.

"Hahaha! Batu, you actually use this to threaten me. Let me tell you, this trick doesn't work.

If you dare to commit suicide, then I promise you that I will not spare any of the descendants of Jochi of the Golden Horde!
Regardless of gender, age, adult or child, as long as they are of Jochi's blood, I will not kill any of them. I want to see how you will face your father after you die.
All the princes of the Golden Horde, as long as they are descendants of the Jochi family, even the hungry babies, will die because of you!" Zhang Dingguan's expression was extremely cold.

Do you think I really don't dare? If you dare to die, then I dare to kill you! And I will kill you without burying you.

At this moment, Batu felt a chill running through his body. The fierce look and the undisguised murderous intent made him instantly see the figure of another person in Zhang Dingguan.

He saw Genghis Khan! For some reason, he saw his grandfather. This kid must have never seen his grandfather, right?

Zhang Yong is not someone who wants to kill people at every turn. When Zhang Yong fights, he can reduce casualties to a minimum.

He would never kill innocent people, but this kid hasn't crossed the bottom line in his heart. But Batu can see that if necessary, this kid will do it without hesitation.

"Crown Prince! I beg you not to do this! I promise you that Batu will change his mind. Let me persuade him!" Handal came to Zhang Dingguan, knelt on the ground and kowtowed continuously.

"I'm not the one you should beg for help. I really want to let you go and I don't want to kill you, so you'd better keep an eye on your brother.

Keep an eye on our Khan of the Golden Horde. It would be best if he could think things through. You should stay in the Kipchak steppe for a few months first!

After I destroy Northern Russia, we will set out to return eastwards, and I will personally escort you to the east." Zhang Dingguan snorted coldly, stood up and prepared to leave.

Batu suddenly spoke up and stopped Zhang Dingguan who was about to leave. "Wait a minute! I have a question for you."

"Just ask any questions you have! But don't expect me to answer you." Zhang Dingguan snorted coldly.

"How do you plan to deal with the people in the Northern Rus region? I once adopted a son there named Alexander Novsky. He was very brave and good at fighting. He once followed me and your father to participate in the Western Expedition."

Zhang Dingguan asked, "Why, are you still interested in this son? Or do you want to save his life?"

"He betrayed me. I have no intention of saving his life. I just want to know how you are going to deal with the people of Northern Russia." Batu stared into Zhang Dingguan's eyes and asked.

Zhang Dingguan snorted coldly and said, "In the Northern Ross region, whether they are civilians or nobles, as long as they are unwilling to submit to my Daqian Empire, I will slaughter them all without leaving a single one alive."

"Hahaha! Well said! You know what?
Your personality is nothing like your father's. You did not inherit your father's military talent, nor did you inherit your father's personality. You are very much like your grandfather." Batu said with a smile.

When Zhang Dingguan heard this, he was stunned. What are you talking about, you bastard?
Although I also admire my grandfather Genghis Khan, you say I am not like a father!
What are you talking about! Am I as brave in battle as my father?
"Grow up well, boy." Batu said this and stopped talking. He closed his eyes and sat on the ground.

Handal looked a little frightened. He just wanted to pray that his brother would not do anything stupid. If you die alone now.

Thousands of people in our Jochi family are going to die. Now they have all grown up, started their own families and careers, and he even has two grandchildren. Don't kill them all because of one person's idea!
After leaving Batu's room, Zhang Dingguan began to prepare for the attack on the Northern Rus region.

The tens of thousands of troops of the Ogedei family were stationed on the grassland, incorporated the family's troops several times, and then continued to sweep the land of the Golden Horde, completely controlling this land. At the same time, they stepped up animal husbandry to provide food and fodder for the army. In the following wars, members of the Ogedei family did not need to participate, they only needed to guard the base behind.

Zhang Dingguan led 50,000 Han troops and 50,000 Mongolian troops and slowly headed towards the northern Russian border.

After the army returned, Southern Russia quickly reorganized itself, and a large number of troops began to move towards the border of Northern Russia.

After being ruled for ten years, the people in the Southern Ross region, although there are still some elderly people who attach great importance to bloodline and lineage, a large number of young people are willing to follow these newly rising grand dukes.

Two months later, Zhang Dingguan led his army towards the assembly point as promised.

"Commander, this land is really cold!" A Han army general wiped his hands, wrapped his clothes again, and spoke.

Now the weather has entered winter, heavy snow has fallen on the land of Ross, and the rivers have begun to freeze.

This was the Mongols' favorite battlefield and terrain, and it was not very friendly to Han soldiers.

The weather in Russia was really unbearable for them. The Mongolian cavalry in the army were fine, but many Han cavalry could not even stand such cold weather.

Fortunately, they had conquered the Golden Horde and obtained a lot of animal furs. Every soldier was given a thick sheepskin coat to wear.

But even so, the army's advance was slow.

"Why? The morale of the Han army is still not very good?" Zhang Dingguan said with a frown.

Now he finally knew that his father had led more than 1 Han troops to the Western Expedition, but this Han army basically never fought a war and was always engaged in farming or defense work in the rear.

Now he finally understood why. The Han army was very powerful, but it was indeed not as good as the Mongolian army in terms of expedition. The Mongolian army had a natural advantage in this regard.

The cold weather is the most powerful weapon and the best helper for the Mongols, but for the Han soldiers, it is the biggest enemy.

"Commander! After all, we Han people are not Mongolians. Mongolians can endure such cold weather and even like to fight in such an environment, but we Han people really don't like such an environment." A Han army general shook his head helplessly and said.

It’s not that they were unwilling to endure hardship, but they really couldn’t adapt to the climate and water here. Many Han soldiers developed high fevers and some were even frostbitten.

If there were not so many military doctors in the army and they had not brought some very good Chinese herbal medicines, we might have suffered non-combat casualties by now.

You have to know that all the soldiers here are wearing a sheepskin coat, plus their armor, so they all feel very cold.

In sharp contrast was the Mongolian army, which was not afraid of the cold at all. They wore sheepskin coats of the Jin Tibetan Khanate, their own fur armor, and did not even wear fur hats.

They could go into the snow and play snowball fights every day, which formed two completely different groups from the Han army.

Generally, they have no desire to fight! It is a bit difficult to march, but one side has high morale and marches very fast.

"General Luo, how about this! You lead all the Han troops to garrison along the border, and you don't need to move forward any further.

Just provide some logistical supplies to the army, and I will lead 50,000 Mongolian cavalry to attack." Zhang Dingguan said after thinking for a moment.

In the past few days, in order to boost the morale of the Han army soldiers, he has killed sheep and cattle, but it was of no use.

Just marching and not running away is already the limit. If a war breaks out, Zhang Dingguan will be really worried.

So, just in case, it was decided to leave all 50,000 Han soldiers in the territory of the Golden Horde to be responsible for logistics and transportation, or to let them open up wasteland and cultivate nearby land.

With his own 50,000 troops plus the Russians' 50,000 troops, it would be no problem for an army of 100,000 to pacify the northern Russian region.

"Commander, how can we do this? Although morale is a little low, it does not mean that we cannot fight. We can only do logistics and be civilian laborers." A Han army general said.

"Okay, stop talking. I will mobilize some troops from the Ogedei family as a reserve force.

You just stay on this land, cultivate the land nearby, and store food and grass for the army!" Zhang Dingguan waved his hand and said.

My father is right. When it comes to expeditions over ten thousand miles long, the Han army is still inferior to the Mongolian army. They are too dependent on the environment and the influence of the weather.

The severe cold weather was really unbearable for the Han army. (To be honest, only the Mongols could handle the weather in Russia, and only the Mongols dared to fight Russia in winter.)
In the end, 50,000 Han troops were retained by Zhang Dingguan in the Golden Horde and were asked to engage in farming and reclaiming wasteland.

After leaving behind the Han army, Zhang Dingguan urgently allocated 20,000 troops from the Ogedei family and ordered the Han army to help the Ogedei family to pacify the Kipchak Turkic tribe within the Golden Horde.

After settling these matters, the army set out again and headed towards the Northern Russia region. They first came to Liang Zancheng, the capital of the Principality of Liangzan, and then stationed troops here, waiting for the arrival of reinforcements from the Northern Russia region.

The army's first target of attack was the Principality of Vladimir. When his father went on the Western Expedition, the Principality of Vladimir was defeated within a month.

This time we must follow the schedule set by our father. We must not drag the battle on too long. The battle here must be ended by the beginning of next spring at the latest.

When the Dingguan army arrived, Grand Duke Ryazan had already prepared a warm welcome and had prepared some accommodation for the Mongolian army in an area of ​​the city.

Zhang Dingguan also ordered all Mongolian troops not to leave the barracks without orders to prevent the Mongolian troops from harassing civilians in the Russian region.

"Great eldest son of King John, you have indeed come with the army as agreed. The grand dukes of other principalities are on their way with their troops." Grand Duke of Liangzan greeted Zhang Dingguan very warmly.

He still remembers the Western Expedition more than ten years ago. Back then, he was just an ordinary grain-raising noble.

It was because he surrendered to King John that he received King John's reward and became the Grand Duke of Ryazan.

In a blink of an eye, more than ten years have passed. I am now in my fifties and have two children.

"Grand Duke Liangzan, you're welcome. My army is coming this time and will nag you for a while. Don't worry, we will not consume the food and grass of your Liangzan Principality. My army has already carried enough food and grass." Zhang Dingguan said.

Even though the Grain War Principality has recovered after more than ten years of development, its total population may only be over 200,000.

It was obviously impossible to support an army of more than 70,000 people. The army of the Principality of Ryazan itself had less than 7,000 people.

"Thank you for your understanding, the great eldest son of King John. Although I cannot provide food and fodder, a hearty meal of beef, mutton and strong liquor is no problem for you." Zhang Dingguan of the Grand Duke of Liangzan bowed and said.

"Haha, if it's wine and meat, then I'll accept it." Zhang Dingguan said with a smile.

When Zhang Dingguan's army gathered in Ryazan City, Northern Russia also received the news. The Principality of Vladimir, the Principality of Novgorod, and several other principalities began to panic.

The Grand Dukes of several countries gathered in Vladimir and began to discuss how to resist the invasion of the Mongol army. (End of this chapter)