Desert Eagle Suletan Khan

Ascending atop his steed, the Great Khan of Lotus, holding up his binoculars, gazed at the earthen hill northeast of the ancient cave, its garrison tents, and the various flags. He felt a mixture of joy and worry. He was pleased that while these wolves were valiant, their camps were haphazardly set up, with some even chatting in front of the camp, far less well-trained than regular soldiers. Furthermore, they belonged to different chieftains, each flying their own flag, making unified command difficult. He was worried because the wolves were all locals, with easy access to supplies and familiarity with the terrain. Now, occupying a strategic high ground, if they couldn't be quickly defeated after the conflict broke out, it would inevitably drag on, impacting the war against Wu Zhou.

Thinking of this, he asked Xirimo with a stern face: "A few days ago, Cen and Huang submitted a memorial to me, acknowledging me as their subjects, and their attitude was very obedient. Why is this happening?"

Xi Rimo calmly replied, “Your Majesty, the Cen and Huang tribes have been training troops and stockpiling grain in Guixi for years, annexing land, imposing their own laws, and levying taxes. They have long harbored rebellious intentions, causing the local people to know only the Cen and Huang tribes and not the imperial court. This time, when you led your army through their territory, the Cen and Huang tribes were worried that it would affect their local rule, so they sent troops to occupy strategic locations to block our army. The Han people often say, ‘Under the vast sky, all land belongs to the king; on the shores of the earth, all people are subjects of the king.’ As subjects of the Great Wei, upon hearing of Your Majesty’s arrival, instead of preparing to welcome you, they gathered troops to defend themselves. Where is the demeanor of a subject? They clearly harbor rebellious intentions!” What a wolf of the Oirat! As expected of a founding minister, he vividly portrayed the arrogant and rude image of the Guixi chieftains in just a few words, and even labeled them as having the intention to rebel.

Watching the vivid performance, Sultan smiled slightly, pulled a memorial from his sleeve, and tossed it to Xirimo. "Take a look. This is a joint memorial impeaching you by Cen Jilu, Huang Daiqian, and 116 other local officials. Cen Jilu said he sent his official Cen Zhaoxi with cattle, sheep, and provisions to your camp to reward the troops, but you detained him on the pretext that the supplies were insufficient. You also instructed the Wei clan to seize three villages in Fengshan. This aroused public outrage, which is why they gathered troops at Tushan to block the army's path. Is this true?"

"Great Khan, this old minister is innocent!" Xirimo cried out, vehemently accusing himself. "Cen Jilu ordered his subordinate Cen Zhaoxi to feign a reward for the army but instead set up an ambush at Fengshan. This old minister saw through the ruse and captured him. Knowing that the Great Khan was in a hurry to reach Guizhou and did not want to cause trouble, this old minister educated Cen Zhaoxi and his men before releasing them, hoping to make the local chieftains feel the goodwill of the court and change their ways. Who knew that they would repay kindness with enmity and instead lead a large army to block our way, clearly showing their rebellious intentions!"

Who was the Great Khan? How could he be fooled by a few words? He asked carefully, "You say that the Cen family set up an ambush at Fengshan. What evidence do you have?"

"It was Wei Zhaobi, the prefect of Donglan under the old minister's command, who sent scouts to investigate and discovered that Cen's soldiers were lying in ambush on the west side of Fengshan Mountain," Xi Rimo argued, his back unknowingly soaked with sweat.

Sultan sneered inwardly and ordered Wei Zhaobi to be summoned for questioning. Wei Zhaobi summoned several dozen of his soldiers, who all insisted that they had personally witnessed Cen's soldiers lying in ambush on the west side of Fengshan Mountain.

"Shut up! Do you think I don't know that the Cen family forcibly occupied three villages of your Wei family in Fengshan a few days ago? You wanted to take this opportunity to reclaim the lost territory, so you framed the Cen family in front of Xirimo just now? How dare you deceive the emperor? Do you really think I can't kill you?" The Great Khan suddenly changed his expression, and wave after wave of overwhelming killing intent pressed down on everyone, and the air instantly became solid.

With a "thump," even the battle-hardened Oirat wolf could not withstand such momentum and was the first to kneel down, shouting, "This servant dares not!"

"Thump~ Thump~" All the generals knelt down and begged for forgiveness.

Wei Zhaopi also knelt on the ground, his face flushed red, even breathing became extremely difficult, and he had to gasp for air. Fortunately, he had discussed it with Xi Rimo beforehand and was prepared. After catching his breath for a long time, he wept and said, "The Cen family of Sicheng has dominated western Guangxi for seven hundred years, building city walls, stockpiling grain and fodder, training soldiers, and occupying land. By the time of Cen Jilu, half of Guangxi was under their control, and they also had influence in Guizhou and Yunnan. The people of Guangxi only knew of Cen Huang, not the imperial court. A single word was enough to make Mo Shiying, the prefect of Nandan, dare not accept His Majesty's summons. At the slightest displeasure, he dared to gather more than 100,000 troops to block His Majesty's way. Is this not treason? I did indeed intend to take advantage of Your Majesty's power to recover the three villages that were forcibly occupied by the Sicheng family. If Your Majesty blames me, I have nothing to say and am willing to accept death. But I will not rest in peace until the treacherous minister is executed!" As soon as he said this, the surroundings became so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. But Suletan's heart was in turmoil. Wei Zhaopi said the Cen family was powerful, but he didn't care. Even if they were powerful, they were just a local chieftain; what was there to fear? But the fact that a mere verbal message could deter other chieftains from accepting his summons was what truly offended him. There can't be two suns in the sky, nor two rulers in a country. Should the chieftains and people of Guangxi listen to the Cen family, or to me? Gathering troops to block my path! Hmph! I'll see if a mere hundred thousand wolves are more formidable than Wu Sangui's army!

"Rise," the Great Khan said, his anger subsiding and his face regaining its composure. He gently stroked his beard with his left hand. The surrounding high-ranking officials trembled with fear; whenever the Great Khan appeared calm and stroked his beard, it meant he intended to kill!

However, this time Sultan did not kill anyone. Instead, he spoke gently to Wei Zhaopi, saying, "You stirred up trouble because of the personal feud between the Wei and Cen families. You should have been beheaded, but considering that you have already admitted your guilt, I will spare you for now. Cen Jilu and Huang Daiqian have always been obedient to David. I do not believe that they will rebel. I will send an envoy to Cen's camp to inquire."

"I beg the Great Khan to summon Cen Jilu and Huang Daiqian to the camp to explain the conflict. If they dare to come, they have no intention of rebellion; if they are too cowardly to come, then they undoubtedly have the intention of rebellion. Moreover, your purpose in coming to Sicheng is to appease the various departments in Guixi. It is only right that you summon your subjects. How can subjects not come when summoned?" Xi Rimo suddenly shouted.

Sultan glanced at the Oirat Wolves and slowly said, "That makes sense. I will immediately issue an edict summoning Cen Jilu, Huang Daiqian, and others to an audience. I believe these two will not fail me!"

“‘He who does not plan for the future will have trouble in the present.’ Although I believe that Cen Huang has no intention of rebelling, we still need to prepare for war,” said Minister of War Hala Huli.

"Alas~" The Great Khan suddenly sighed, "I just observed the terrain of the earthen hills and found that they are all hundreds of feet high. Cenhuang is holding a defensive position, and once a battle breaks out, it will probably be a long and drawn-out affair. If it drags on, I'm afraid that old traitor Wu Sangui will learn of our army's whereabouts and flee to Yunnan. In that case, we will have gained nothing but losses!"

“The main peak of Qinglong Mountain is actually Cenwang Laoshan in the north of Lizhou. Although the ancient cave where the Cen family lived is also located in the mountains, it is not the highest point of Qinglong Mountain. Some of the peaks are only a hundred feet high. I know all the little Taoists in the mountains. I am willing to lead the way for Your Majesty,” Wei Zhaopi, who had lived in the area for a long time and was familiar with the terrain, said generously.

"Oh~" Sultan gave him an approving look, then asked in confusion, "Since the Cen family wants to live in the mountains, why not build the city at the foot of the main peak?"

"Your Majesty," Wei Zhaopi replied with a fawning smile, "Cenwang Old Mountain is 619 zhang (2062 meters) high. Originally called Triangle Mountain, it was named after the Cen clan who occupied it during the Song Dynasty. Later, the Cen clan's territory expanded, and their influence reached Qingyuan, Tianzhou, Si'en, and other places. To better control their newly acquired lands, they built a new city near the ancient Kan Cave. While the new city is advantageous, its terrain is not as treacherous as the old city, making it easy for our army to annihilate them." (End of Chapter)