The Rebellious Officials and Traitors of the Late Han Dynasty

Chapter 521 Raid
The setting sun was like blood, dyeing the grassland red. Qin Shou stood on the high slope, letting the evening breeze blow his battle robe. In the distance, another camp of the Xianbei tribe was burning, and the black smoke rose into the sky, like a ferocious black dragon circling in the sky.

"Your Majesty, this is the seventh tribe we have destroyed in the past three days." Xu Chu rode over, with blood still stained on his armor. "At this rate, within ten days, the foundation of the Murong tribe will be completely shaken by us."

Qin Shou nodded slightly, but his eyes were looking further east. That was the territory of the Eastern Xianbei, Budugen's territory. "Send the order, let the soldiers rest well tonight. Tomorrow at 3 pm, we will change direction and head northeast."

"Northeast?" Xu Chu was stunned. "Isn't that Budugen's territory? Aren't we going to deal with the Murong tribe?"

"The Murong tribe is just an appetizer." Qin Shou sneered, "Ke Bineng is not a fool, and Xu You is even smarter. He will soon understand our true intentions. Instead of waiting for him to react, we might as well take the initiative and catch him off guard."

At this time, Xun You hurried over with a serious face: "Your Majesty, the scouts reported that Kebineng's army has been chasing us for a hundred miles, and they seem to have seen through our intentions and sent light cavalry to the east Xianbei direction, most likely to inform Budugen."

Qin Shou's eyes gleamed, and he sneered, "As expected. Kebi Neng has been the king of the grassland for many years, and he is indeed quite capable. He reacted promptly. Although he was fighting with Budugen, his main enemy was me, so he would deal with me first."

In the big tent of the Eastern Xianbei, butter torches illuminated the inside of the tent. Budugen leaned on the tiger-skin couch, playing with a dagger inlaid with gems, staring at the envoy kneeling in the tent with sinister eyes.

"Is Kebineng, this old fox, going to ask me for help one day?" He sneered, and the tip of the dagger cut a deep mark on the table. He sneered, "He attacked my tribe first last year, and now he wants to join the alliance?"

The messenger rested his forehead on the ground, his voice trembling, and said: "The Great Khan said... that the Tang Emperor is our common enemy. As long as the Khan is willing to send troops to cut off Qin Shou's retreat, he is willing to cede 500 miles of fertile grassland after the war."

The tent suddenly became quiet. Budugen sat up straight with greed in his eyes. What does five hundred miles mean? And it was a grassland with abundant grass and water. It was a treasure land that the tribes had fought for for a hundred years.

He stood up slowly, and his heavy wolfskin cloak made a rustling sound as it dragged on the ground.

"Five Hundred Miles of Grassland" Budugen walked to the door of the tent, opened the curtain and looked at the dark night sky. A ferocious smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, and he sneered: "Kebineng is willing to spend a lot of money."

He turned around suddenly, his wolfskin cloak drawing a sharp arc in the air, and shouted: "Order the leaders of all tribes to immediately assemble 30,000 elite cavalry!"

"Chanyu, if we support Kebi Neng, we will offend the Emperor of Tang!"

A general saw this and hurriedly tried to stop them.

These people knew how powerful the Tang Dynasty cavalry was. Although the 500-mile grassland was very good, they were still worried about offending the Central Plains for it.

"Although Kebi Neng is very hateful, he is right about one thing: the Han people in the Central Plains are our biggest enemies." Budugen said with a wry smile.

He didn't want to offend Qin Shou, but he had to do so in the face of interests.

Budugen swept his eyes over the generals in the tent and said in a deep voice: "Everyone, the Tang Emperor's northern expedition this time is ostensibly aimed at the Murong tribe, but in fact it is aimed at the entire Xianbei. If we sit back and do nothing, once Kebi Neng is destroyed, we will be the next one."

He suddenly drew out the scimitar from his waist, the blade gleaming coldly in the firelight: "Instead of sitting and waiting to die, it is better to take the initiative! Pass on my order, all troops will assemble immediately and follow me westward in three days!"

At this moment, the sound of hurried horse hooves suddenly came from outside the tent. A scout covered in blood rushed in, knelt on the ground, and reported loudly: "Report! The vanguard of the Tang army has broken through our eastern defense line and is less than 200 miles away from the royal court!" "What?" Budugen was shocked and exclaimed: "Aren't they still in the territory of the Murong tribe? How could it be so fast?"

The scout panted and said, "The main force of the Tang army has three horses per person. They can rest but not rest. They travel day and night at a very fast speed."

Budugen's face instantly turned livid. He slammed his fist on the table and shouted angrily, "What a cunning Emperor Tang! Send an order, the whole army will fight immediately!"

At the same time, Qin Shou personally led 30,000 cavalrymen and penetrated the eastern Xianbei hinterland like a sharp sword. In the night, he looked at the campfire faintly visible in the distance and said to Xu Chu beside him: "Budugen should have received the news by now."

Xu Chu grinned and said, "Your Majesty is very smart. This will give that old guy a hard time."

Qin Shou's eyes flashed with a cold light: "Pass the order, the whole army speeds up. Be sure to give Budugen a fatal blow before he completes the assembly!"

Just when the two armies were about to clash, Qin Shou suddenly received an urgent report: Ke Bineng personally led an army of 50,000 and was encircling them from the west!

"Your Majesty, we are being attacked from both sides!" Xun You said solemnly, "Should we temporarily avoid the attack?"

Qin Shou laughed up to the sky and said, "No need, just kill him. How can a small Bu Dugen be a match for our Tang soldiers?"

Qin Shou's laughter echoed in the night wind, bold and confident. He waved his hand fiercely, his battle robe rustling, "Order the whole army, line up the front and attack Budugen's center!"

Upon hearing this, Xu Chu's eyes were filled with fighting spirit. He clasped his fists and shouted, "I obey your orders!" After that, he turned around and rode away on his horse. His iron armor gleamed coldly in the moonlight.

Xun You frowned and whispered, "Your Majesty, Kebineng's army..."

"It doesn't matter." Qin Shou stared at the faintly visible Xianbei campfire in the distance with a sharp gaze, and said disdainfully: "Budugen rushed into the battle, and his army is unstable. It will take him four or five days to gather his troops. At the moment, he only has the troops of the Yazhang. As long as we defeat him, Kebi Neng will be helpless."

As the night deepened, the grassland was filled with a murderous atmosphere. The Tang army's cavalry rushed towards the Xianbei camp in the east like a tide, and the sound of horse hooves shook the earth slightly.

Budugen was pacing anxiously in his tent at this time, and the scouts kept sending urgent reports: "Report! The Tang army is less than 50 miles away!"

"Report! Our left wing has not yet assembled!"

Budugen's face was gloomy. He suddenly drew out his scimitar and said sternly: "Order all troops to defend the camp! When Kebineng's army arrives, we will attack from both sides and annihilate the Tang army!"

Qin Shou's guess was correct. Budugen's main force had not yet assembled, and he was only surrounded by his own soldiers.

However, before his order could be spread throughout the army, deafening shouts of killing were heard in the distance.

(End of this chapter)