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Chapter 1360: Terrifying the Grassland
The Anxi Protectorate set up mercenary recruitment offices in various places in the Western Regions, and was not limited to recruiting young and strong people from the ethnic groups within the Tang Dynasty. Even the people from Tubo and Huihe would be recruited.

Moreover, many favorable conditions were set up to attract young and strong people from other ethnic groups. You must know that the Tang Dynasty was the world's most powerful country at that time, and the neighboring countries were even more crazy about immigrants settling there than those who immigrated to the United States in later generations.

Although this type of mercenary military system was first created by Suning, it does not prevent it from being sought after by adventurers of all ethnic groups in the Western Regions. Every day, young and strong people of all skin colors and ethnic groups join the mercenaries.

The training methods adopted by the Anxi Protectorate were also very simple and crude. First, all the mercenary recruits were taken away for disinfection and sterilization, then they were secretly implanted with the seventh-generation AI smart chip, and finally they were taken to the barracks to start daily high-intensity training.

You should know that this kind of smart chip is not as low-end as the brain-computer interface that Musk is playing with. It will soon turn these foreign soldiers into the most loyal members of the Chinese nation. The most amazing thing is that they can pass on their loyalty to their descendants.

In addition, after Suning conquers the Western Regions and the Northern Frontier, he will implement Confucian education, which will definitely allow this plateau area to integrate into the Chinese culture and make the Tang Dynasty in this world a truly prosperous era.

Su Wuming, who had been keeping an eye on the mercenary recruitment, immediately noticed something unusual. The newly renovated mercenaries exuded an aura of strength. "Grand Protector, how come these soldiers look so different after the purge?"

"Is there?" However, Suning asked back perfunctorily.

"They all seemed very uninhibited before, but after going through these disinfection and sterilization procedures, the look and temperament of each of them has changed."

"Haha, the Western Regions are originally a place where all kinds of people live together, and there is a serious lack of water resources here, so these people may only take a bath twice in their lives. Now, after such careful cleaning and disinfection, they will naturally show a completely changed state."

"Huh? Is it that simple?" Su Wuming still looked at Su Ning with a questioning look on his face and asked.

"of course."

Although Suning's explanation was very reasonable, Su Wuming still felt a little strange because the changes of these mercenaries were too abrupt.

It’s like this group of people used to be a mess, their biggest characteristics being chaos and lack of faith, but now they have suddenly become obedient overnight, so Su Wuming couldn’t help but feel particularly strange.

Naturally, Suning would not explain too much about his methods to Su Wuming. Even if he really explained it to him, it would be impossible for Su Wuming, a native, to understand it.

Then, Sun Ning, who didn't want to say anything more to Su Wuming, left the military camp and rode back to the Protectorate of Kucha City in armor. However, there were already guests waiting for him.

Su Ning looked at Cao Zhongda and Cao Xiaoxiao, father and daughter, in front of him with a look of surprise, "Mr. Cao, Miss Cao, there have been too many things going on lately. I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

"You are too polite, Grand Protector! I came here to ask for a favor." Cao Zhongda naturally showed an expression of being flattered at this time.

"Oh? What's the matter?"

"Grand Protector, I, Cao, would like my daughter, Cao Xiaoxiao, to be your concubine."

However, after hearing Cao Zhongda's explanation, Su Ning couldn't help but be surprised. He turned his head and looked at the girl beside him with a surprised expression, "What? Mr. Cao, you are willing to let Miss Cao be your concubine?"

"It is an honor for our Cao family to have our daughter serve the Grand Protector. In addition, since I, Cao Zhongda, have no heirs, all our Cao family property will be used as our daughter's dowry."

Naturally, Su Ning looked down on the Guazhou Cao family's wealth. Instead, he looked at Cao Xiaoxiao seriously and asked, "Cao Xiaoxiao, are you willing to accept your father Cao Weng's idea?"

"Reporting to the Grand Protector, it was I who proposed to serve you, and I hope you can fulfill it." Cao Xiaoxiao, who felt Suning's respect, was actually a little moved.

Although the social status of women in the Tang Dynasty was relatively high compared to other dynasties, the idea that the husband is the leader of the wife was still prevalent, and there were very few men who respected women like Suning.

Seeing that Cao Xiaoxiao's expression didn't seem fake, Su Ning readily accepted the marriage proposal. "Alright! Then I'll have Mr. Cao choose an auspicious day, and then the Grand Protectorate will bring Cao Xiaoxiao to the palace."

"Yes! Grand Protector, three days from now will be a suitable day for marriage. How about choosing this day?"

"Okay! Then I'll marry Cao Xiaoxiao in three days."

"Yes."

Suning naturally understood that this was Cao Zhongda's decision to serve him, but he did not attach too much importance to the Cao family's wealth. After all, the Western Regions were located in a corner of the northwest, and even the richest man was far from the aristocratic families in the Central Plains.

If one day I really decide to rise up against the Tang Dynasty, those aristocratic families of the Five Surnames and Seven Names will be the source of my wealth. At that time, I must do things more thoroughly than Huang Chao in later generations. Not only will I completely uproot the land on which the aristocratic families depend for their survival, I will also implement the land-based tax system and the most fair tax policy. The privileged class will completely disappear in my world.

Three days passed quickly, and Suning arranged for someone to bring Cao Xiaoxiao into the mansion.

Taking a concubine was a very common thing in feudal society, and Suning was not planning to hold a grand ceremony to attract attention.

However, the various forces in the Western Regions naturally wanted to take the opportunity to build closer relations with Suning, so they took the initiative to come forward and offer generous gifts. For a while, it almost became the most lively event in the entire Western Regions.

One of the three great joys in life is the wedding night, but Su Ning took the beauty into his arms and asked, "Xiaoxiao, do you feel wronged if I let you be my concubine?"

"My lord, being able to marry a king like you is the blessing that Xiaoxiao has earned in her previous life. How could I ever feel wronged?" However, after her red veil was removed, Cao Xiaoxiao showed a sweet smile.

"Xiaoxiao, you are so good! A spring night is worth a thousand gold. The flowers have fragrance and the moon has shadow. Let's get some rest quickly."

"what……"

A night of joy is naturally a wonderful thing that cannot be described. Due to the limitations of the platform, Suning will not explain too many details here. After all, such beauty can only be understood but not expressed in words.

After the wind and rain stopped, Cao Xiaoxiao still lay obediently in Suning's arms, closing her eyes and savoring the wonderful feeling just now.

"Xiaoxiao, I heard that you like doing business?"

"My Lord, my father is already very old, and my eldest and second sisters don't pay much attention to these matters, so I usually just assist my father."

"Well, from now on, the Cao family's assets will be handed over to you."

"Yes! Lord, tomorrow I will deposit all of the Cao family's gold, silver, and copper coins into the bank, and from now on, all transactions in the Cao family's assets will be conducted using banknotes."

"Xiaoxiao, you are indeed a smart woman. Once the entire Tang Dynasty uses our banknotes, our bank will be truly wealthy enough to rival a nation."

"My Lord, I and the Cao family will provide you with all our assistance."

"Well, since you've been so good, Xiaoxiao, let me reward you again." "Ah..."

Suning didn't know how many times she scored that night. Anyway, in the end, Cao Xiaoxiao fell into a deep sleep exhausted. It was also the first time that she enjoyed the beauty of being a woman.

……

Time flew by like flowing water, and three months passed quickly. The Anxi Protectorate also formed a mercenary force of 200,000. You should know that the Tang army in the entire Anxi Protectorate was less than 30,000, so this iron army as fierce as wolves and tigers immediately shook the entire Western Regions.

Lu Tong, who had hurried all the way to Anxi Protectorate, came to visit Suning and said, "The humble Lu Tong pays his respects to the Grand Protector."

"Well, from now on, the Hanzhou Grand Commandery will be handed over to you. I hope you won't let me down." Looking at the once arrogant Lu Tong in front of him, Su Ning did not have any special feelings in his heart at this moment.

"Yes! Grand Protector, I heard that the Anxi Protectorate will soon launch an attack on Tubo, so I would like to lead the troops from Hanzhou to join the expedition."

"No need! You just need to maintain the defenses of Hanzhou. Furthermore, the Anxi Protectorate's target this time isn't Tubo, as Tubo is already experiencing serious internal tribal strife. If we, the Anxi Protectorate, go to war with Tubo at this time, we might actually force them to abandon their internal conflicts and unite against our Anxi Protectorate army."

"Ah? Grand Protector, when will we launch an attack on Tubo?"

"No rush! Next, the Anxi Protectorate will directly turn around and attack the Uighurs. This time, I intend to conquer a vast territory for the Tang Dynasty."

"What? Uighurs?" Lu Tong was really shocked at this time. He didn't expect that Suning's real target was Uighurs.

You must know that at that time, the Uighurs were the overlords of the northern border of the Tang Dynasty. Not only were there the remaining forces of the Turkic tribes, but there were also the Khitan, Xi, Mohe and other ethnic groups. Therefore, Suning had long been eyeing the survival foundation of these foreign people.

Then Suning did not fall into the gentle arms of Cao Xiaoxiao, but instead personally led 200,000 mercenaries to invade the Uighur territory. You must know that Chang'an did not provide much support to the Anxi Protectorate, and now it relies on Suning's own strength to support the 200,000 troops, so Suning was eager to attack the Uighurs and fight to support the war.

Because the relationship between the Tang Dynasty and Tubo had already been in dire straits at that time, Emperor Taizong of Tang, Li Shimin, marrying Princess Wencheng did not lead to peace between the two sides. Instead, it once again nurtured a powerful enemy with advanced technology. Therefore, the Uighurs and the Western Regions all thought that the target of the Anxi Protectorate was Tubo.

The Uighurs, who had always wanted to sit on the mountain and watch the fight between the two tigers, never dreamed that they themselves were the target. After all, the Uighurs and the Tang court were still in a honeymoon period, so they had not prepared any defensive forces on the border.

In addition, the Uighurs were originally a nomadic regime with a very loose and casual organization, so they were simply unable to resist this group of 200,000-strong army that was as fierce as wolves and tigers.

Although Suning did not take out the hot weapons from the space world this time, the space world still provided a large number of war horses and weapons and armor. In addition, he also took out a large number of bionic eagle robots to control the location of the Uighur royal court. Therefore, the 200,000 Tang mercenaries wiped out the Uighurs like a landslide.

Because the large armies in the Uighur territory were all controlled by mercenaries, Suning could march his troops in multiple directions without restraint, often taking advantage of their rest to quickly destroy the Uighur's organized troops.

Moreover, the tribal groups of various sizes scattered across the grassland were also captured by the bionic eagle. The mercenaries of the Anxi Protectorate could naturally find them easily, and then carry out targeted elimination of these tribes. As for the captured prisoners, they would also be implanted with smart chips and integrated into the mercenaries. Therefore, the mercenaries of the Anxi Protectorate grew rapidly like a snowball.

The ancient city of Gulong, the royal court of the Uighurs, is now Kharkhorin in Mongolia. The endless yurts almost gathered all the wealth of the Uighurs, which naturally solved Suning's initial difficulties in supporting an army of 200,000.

The predecessor of the Uighurs was a branch of the Tiele tribes, called Yuanhe or Weihe.

Tiele was an early tribal alliance distributed in the area south of Lake Baikal, which included Dili, Chile, Tiele, Dingling and other tribes.

The Yuanhe tribe roamed the Ili, Orkhon and Selenge River basins and was once enslaved by the Turkic Khanate.

During the Sui Dynasty, the Yuanhe tribe united with the Pugu, Tongluo, Bayegu and other tribes to form the Uighur Alliance in order to resist the oppression of the Turks.

The Uighurs used the Turkic Runic script and believed in the primitive religion of Shamanism. Later they converted to Buddhism and were renamed Uighurs during the reign of Emperor Dezong of Tang.

In 605 AD, the Uighurs united with the Pugu and other tribes to resist the Turkic regime and gradually became stronger.

In the 646th year of the Zhenguan reign of the Tang Dynasty (), the Uighurs cooperated with the Tang army to attack and destroy the Xueyantuo regime. Their leader Tumidu proclaimed himself Khan and accepted the jurisdiction of the Tang Dynasty. The Tang Dynasty established six prefectures and seven states in their territory.

Later, the Uighur leader Guli Peiluo proclaimed himself Khan, and the Tang court appointed him as Huairen Khan, establishing a Uighur regime that controlled an area stretching from the present-day Ergun River in the east to the present-day Altai Mountains in the west.

The royal court was located in Gulon City, which is now Kharkhorin in Mongolia.

It can be seen that the dynasty accepted the enthronement of the Tang Dynasty from the beginning of its establishment, which shows that its relationship with the Tang Dynasty court was very close and it has always expressed its submission to the Tang Dynasty court.

This close relationship was continuously strengthened and consolidated by the Tang Dynasty court using the policy of marriage alliance as a magic weapon.

The Uighur Khan Guli Peiluo looked at Su Ning in front of him with a timid look on his face and questioned, "Marquis Wuwei, my Uighur royal court was personally appointed by the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty. Your current behavior will definitely be punished by the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty."

"Oh? Guli Peiluo Khan, haven't you Huihe people always called our Majesty the Heavenly Khan? Why are you talking about the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty now?" However, Suning looked at the king of a fallen country in front of him with a mocking face and asked back.

"Humph! Emperor Taizong is our Heavenly Khan. This is recognized by all tribes across the grasslands."

However, Suning was waiting for Guli Peiluo to say this, because only then could he explain to Li Longji in Chang'an, "Humph! Does that mean that you Huihe people look down on the current Emperor of the Tang Dynasty?"

"Ah? I didn't..." Guli Peiluo, who just reacted at this time, became panicked.

"Guli Peiluo, the Uighurs will become history. All lands under the sun will be part of the Tang Dynasty, and the grasslands will be established as prefectures. You, the Uighur royal family, will live in Chang'an City from now on."

"What? We Huihe are the descendants of Changshengtian. You Tang people can't treat us like this."

"Someone come here." However, Suning was too lazy to pay attention to Guli Peiluo. Instead, he looked at the deputy general standing beside him and shouted.

"Grand Protector." The deputy general immediately stepped forward and saluted Suning.

"Take all the Uighur royal family with you, and then have our craftsmen build a city in Gulong City. From now on, this place will belong to our Great Tang for generations to come."

"Yes! Grand Protector."

……

(End of this chapter)