A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Starting from the Village Chief

Chapter 529 Insult
The night breeze is cool.

Outside Yanmen City, in the central tent of the Turkic army, the Khan of the Central Army, Jieli, had a livid face. He pulled out his knife and stabbed it into the whole roasted lamb in front of him. He then cut off a leg of lamb and wolfed it down.

The wolf guards lifted the tent flap.

He brought in four Tang people: Li Chen, Prince of Xiangwu and Junior Minister of the Court of Imperial Clan Affairs; Changsun Shunde, Duke of Xue and General of the Left Valiant Guard; Zheng Yuanzhu, Duke of Xin and General of the Left Martial Guard and Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices; and Su Gui, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites and Duke of Hanyang.

Jieli's hawk-like gaze swept over the four of them before he continued eating his roasted mutton.

The four Tang envoys were thus left stranded in the center of the tent.
He stood there watching Jieli eat and drink heartily.

The roasted lamb smelled delicious.
The whole roasted lamb had only one leg removed; it sat there steaming, golden brown, and incredibly fragrant.

The four men were envoys from four different delegations of the Tang Dynasty, who came to negotiate peace with the Turks on behalf of the Tang Dynasty, but were all detained by Jieli.

During his time being detained in the Turkic territory, he suffered a great deal.

These four men were all important officials in the court, either from the imperial family or from prestigious families. Yet, they were forced to herd sheep for the Turks and even live with the sheep.

Everyone had lost a lot of weight and was wearing dirty sheepskin robes, no longer possessing their former nobility and elegance.

After finishing a leg of lamb, Jieli wiped his hands and looked at the four of them.

"The mutton is roasted very well today, very succulent, and cooked to perfection," he said, his gaze sharp as a knife. "Zheng Yuanzhu, you were supposed to have a share of this mutton, but unfortunately, you were sent to persuade Liu Shirang to surrender, and instead, you were angered by a few words from a mere warrior and fell from your horse."
You don't deserve to eat this mutton.

Zheng Yuanzhu was openly insulted by Jieli, which made him so angry that his beard trembled, his face turned ashen, and his eyes were filled with humiliation.

Jieli then looked at the three of them, including Changsun, and asked, "Which of you can persuade Liu Shirang to surrender and open the gates of Yanmen?"

None of the three spoke.

"Whoever is willing to try tomorrow, I will reward him with a fat sheep and fine wine!"

Li Chen looked at Jieli, straightening his back, and said, "Great Khan, in times of war, envoys are not to be killed. How can you insult us, the envoys of the Great Tang, without any regard for etiquette?"

Jieli chuckled coldly and poured himself a glass of persimmon wine.

“I only respect the strong. Back when Emperor Wen of Sui was a powerful and shrewd ruler, my father and brothers were all extremely respectful when they were Khans, and they paid tribute to the emperor. Later, Emperor Yang of Sui was incompetent, and my brother, Shibi Khan, directly led 200,000 cavalry to besiege him in Yanmen City, and almost took his head back to the grasslands to make a wine vessel.”

"We don't care about etiquette on the grasslands; we only respect the strong."

The Tang Dynasty of today calls itself the Great Tang, but does it have the strength to claim that title?

At the beginning of Li Yuan's uprising, he received assistance from the Turkic army and agreed to submit to them and pay tribute. However, in recent years, Li Yuan has become increasingly disobedient, so the Turks will take what they deserve themselves.

"Even if we were to capture Chang'an, send Prince Yang Zhengdao of Sui there, and then restore the Sui Dynasty, that would be a viable option."

Changsun Shunde angrily said, "Jieli Khan relies on nothing more than light bows and fast horses. He can gain an advantage here in the border region, but if he goes deeper, does he really think he can be invincible? Isn't he afraid of never returning?"
Why not forge a friendly alliance with my Great Tang Dynasty, and from then on, never invade each other's territory?

Jieli laughed loudly: "An alliance? I don't believe in that stuff. It's too hard to even wipe my butt with. I only believe in swords and spears. Li Yuan broke his promise to the Turks back then. I'm going to get it myself now."

Su Gui glared at Jieli: "Khan, our Great Tang has already ceded the Hetao and Fengsheng prefectures, and agreed that our troops will not leave Yanmen Pass. Even the Khan's wish for a marriage alliance has been agreed upon by His Majesty, who has selected a princess for the marriage."
Moreover, since they are willing to bestow money and silk upon him annually, why must the Khan insist on a fight to the death?

"Hahaha!" Jieli stood up, looking at the four stubborn Tang envoys, "A fight to the death? You think you're worthy?"

What does Li Yuan have to fight me to the death? My Turkic Khaganate has spread across thousands of miles, commanding 400,000 cavalrymen. What does Li Yuan have to fight me with?

They say that troops don't cross Yanmen Pass, so why did Li Da'en send troops to Mayi?
Furthermore, Li Yi just seized Weizhou, and Wang Junkuo seized Beiyanzhou. How can this be explained?

The four envoys had been detained for a long time and were cut off from many communications. Only then did they learn from Jieli that Weizhou and Beiyanzhou had been captured by the Tang army in Hebei, which greatly excited them.

Seeing their expressions, Jieli said disdainfully, "Don't be too happy yet. Li Yi and Wang Junkuo are just taking advantage of the situation. I have already sent troops there and will soon annihilate them!"

"If they're lucky, they might survive and come here to keep you company."

Jieli waved his hand.

"Serve them the food."

A wolf guard quickly brought over a wooden bucket.

Each of the four Tang envoys had a basin in front of them, and the wolf guards scooped food from a bucket into each person's basin.

It's neither roasted lamb nor stewed lamb.

Instead, it's stewed lamb heart, liver, spleen, and lungs, boiled in plain water without any seasoning, and simply cut into large pieces.

"Give them some salt." Jieli cut off another roasted lamb leg and started eating it himself.

Four princes of the Tang Dynasty could only eat these offal.

Li Chen and his companions were already used to the Turks' rudeness. They sat on the ground, picked up the offal, sprinkled some salt on it, and ate it.

It tastes terrible.
In the past, they would never have eaten such uncooked food.

The heart, liver, spleen, and lungs of a sheep can actually be a delicacy after careful cleaning and meticulous cooking, but it requires a lot of seasonings and refined cooking techniques, rather than being prepared like feeding a dog.

The four of them tried their best to maintain the elegant etiquette of aristocratic dining, even though they were wearing dirty sheepskin robes and eating offal.

But the news that Li Yi had captured Weizhou and Wang Junkuo had captured Beiyanzhou still invigorated them.

It seems that the imperial court has begun to counter the large-scale invasion by the Turks.

Having captured Weizhou and Beiyanzhou, and with Yanmen in Daizhou still holding out, it seems that Jieli's invasion this time will be thwarted.

If they can withstand Jieli's offensive, then there will be an opportunity for peace talks, and they may really be able to return to Chang'an.

All four of them, without prior agreement, placed high hopes on Li Yi and Wang Junkuo, especially on Li Yi, who lived in Weizhou, which was right next to Daizhou.

That was the Great General Wang, whose military achievements were second only to the Prince of Qin since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, and who had never been defeated.

It is located two hundred li south of Daizhou, outside the city of Xinzhou.

He rode into the camp at breakneck speed.

The knight tumbled from his horse, covered in dust, and cried out, "Quickly, take me to see the Prince of Yan!"

Gao Kaidao was discussing with the chieftain of the Turkic Zhisi tribe, Zhisi Yanjielifa, about how to attack Xinzhou. They were acting on the orders of Jieli Khan, and their allied army of 30,000 was coming to attack Xinzhou, which was guarded by Li Gaoqian.

The two men weren't in a hurry to deal with Xinzhou City. They had been busy sweeping through the outer areas, which was essentially a large-scale looting operation.

Xinzhou was a small prefecture located between Daizhou and Bingzhou, surrounded by mountains on all sides, with a small basin in the Muma River basin, and only two counties.

However, it is the northern gateway to Bingzhou, with several important passes.

Gao Kaidao and Zhisi were eager to attack Xinzhou, so they each sent troops to plunder and loot, making a fortune before finally joining forces at the city of Xiurong in Xinzhou.

"Your Majesty,"

The knight was led into the high-ceilinged tent and shouted in a hoarse voice, "Li Yi of Dingzhou and Wang Junkuo of Youzhou have suddenly launched an attack and have already captured Weizhou and Beiyanzhou!"

"Li Yi's attack was sudden and swift. He even sent troops to seize Pingxing Pass first, forcing me to detour through Yunzhou and then Shuozhou to deliver the message..."

Gao Kaidao, who had just been gloating over his lucrative looting, froze in disbelief as he stared at the knight. "What did you say?"

"Your Majesty, Weizhou and Beiyanzhou have been lost, as have all the passes and fortresses."

"How is that possible?" Gao Kaidao stood up abruptly, his eyes wide as copper bells, looking like he wanted to devour someone. "I have stationed troops at the passes of Jundu Pass, Puyin Pass, and Feihu Pass, these three important routes leading to Shanxi."

At Jundu Pass, Baibi Pass, and Daoma Pass, each had at least two thousand veteran soldiers, and three thousand newly recruited soldiers were also dispatched. In addition, there were several thousand people in the cities of Beiyan Prefecture and Wei Prefecture.

"One man can hold the pass against ten thousand; do Li Yi and his men have wings and can fly?"

But the messenger said that Jundu Pass was only defended for a day and a night, and Baibi Pass and Daoma Pass were taken by the Tang army without losing a single soldier.

General Zhang Jinshu, standing nearby, said, "Your Majesty, things have come to this. What should we do next?"

Gao Kaidao was extremely annoyed and wanted to kill someone.

Last time in Hebei, he was forced to retreat to Shanxi, and as a result, that scoundrel Wang Junkuo took the opportunity to seize three prefectures from him.

He was left with only two prefectures in Shanxi, one of which originally belonged to Li Da'en.

He thought that by dividing his troops to guard the Three Passes, Li Yi and his men would be unable to attack and would be powerless to do so for the time being. He brought his troops to assist Jieli in attacking Daibei, and by looting and replenishing supplies here, he was also demonstrating his loyalty and usefulness to Jieli.

Who knew,

A fire broke out in the backyard, and all their belongings were gone in an instant.

Even the two remote mountain states are the only territory he has left now.

Without territory, he would be like a stray dog, with only 20,000 soldiers under his command, and he wouldn't even have a home.

Suppressing his anger,

After carefully inquiring about the details, Gao Kaidao was both shocked and furious; his home had indeed been robbed.

Although he brought his elite troops, those left behind were mostly the elderly, the weak, and newly recruited able-bodied men, and they were also short of food. However, given their strategic location and the natural defenses, it was no wonder that the Tang army so easily captured two prefectures.

But that's just how it is.

Even because Li Yi launched a surprise attack and seized Pingxing Pass, blocking the road to Daizhou, the messenger still had to take a very long detour. Li Yi had already been attacking Wei and Beiyan for some time.

"Damn Li Yi." He gritted his teeth. Back in Dingzhou, it was this man who caused him to lose his advantageous position, and now he had even completely ransacked his home.

And then there's Wang Junkuo, that treacherous dog. He seized the three prefectures of Tan, Ji, and Ping before, and now he's seizing Northern Yan. He doesn't dare to fight head-on, so he dares to resort to underhanded tricks.

"Your Majesty, what should we do now?" Zhang Jinshu and the other generals asked. Although they were here, many of their wives, children, and elderly relatives had already fallen into the hands of the Tang army.

boom!
Gao Kaidao slammed his fist on the table.

"Order the entire army to immediately regroup and march back to Weizhou. We will fight our way back and reclaim our territory!"

Upon hearing that Gao Kaidao intended to withdraw his troops immediately, Zhi Shiyan rushed over to dissuade him.

But Gao Kaidao ignored him, saying, "Zhishisijin, our home has been stolen, and the families of our soldiers have fallen into the hands of the Tang bandits. I must immediately reclaim the city and the families of our soldiers, otherwise the entire army will be scattered."

On that day, Gao Kaidao disregarded all obstacles and led his troops in a hasty retreat north.

Zhishiyan and several other Turkic chieftains, with more than 10,000 men, remained outside Xinzhou City, caught in a dilemma.

midnight.

The gates of Xinzhou quietly opened, and Li Gaoqian, the Right Martial General, Governor of Xinzhou, and Duke of Jiangxia, led the city's troops in a sudden attack.
This meritorious official from Taiyuan took the lead, charging straight into the enemy camp with a horse spear in hand.

His scouts had learned that Gao Kaidao's more than 20,000 troops had retreated north. Regardless of the reason, there were now only about 10,000 Turkic tribes outside the city. Because of Gao Kaidao's sudden withdrawal, the remaining Turks did not have time to adjust their camp deployment, leaving them vulnerable everywhere.

Zhi Shiyan was awakened by his grandson Zhi Shisi Li, "Grandfather, the Tang army has broken out of the city."

"Oh? This Li Gaoqian does have some guts. But he's just in time. Let's surround and annihilate him."

Zhishi Sili smiled bitterly, "Azu, two small tribes have already abandoned their camp and fled. Let's retreat first."

As one of the four major direct lineage tribes of the Turks, the Zhishi tribe had a large population and sent a significant number of troops this time. However, the main force was led by Zhishi Sili's father and was under the command of Khagan Jieli at the foot of Yanmen City.

Zhi Shiyan donned his armor, came outside the tent, mounted his horse, and had just mustered his personal guards when he saw the Tang army already charging towards him.

Several small Turkic tribes have already abandoned their camps and fled.

Zhi Shiyan angrily cursed for a while, but seeing that no one was willing to fight the Tang army, he naturally couldn't be the one to suffer the consequences.

"withdraw,"

These more than 10,000 people belonged to many Turkic vassal tribes. When they were raiding, they were all fiercer than the other. But when they went to war, they all ran away faster than the other.

“Ah Zu, it’s all Gao Kaidao’s fault. If it weren’t for him, our camp wouldn’t have been so easy to attack,” Zhi Shi Sili said from the side.

Upon hearing this, Zhishi Yan felt that his grandson's words made a lot of sense. He would then tell the Great Khan Jieli that it was because Gao Kaidao had retreated his troops without authorization that the Tang general Li Gaoqian had the opportunity to take advantage of the situation.

Li Gaoqian led his soldiers from Xinzhou in a fierce charge through the Turkic camp, unstoppable by anyone.

One after another, the Turkic troops were routed and retreated in panic.
Li Gaoqian did not underestimate the enemy and pursued them relentlessly. He razed the Turkic camp, beheaded more than 300 people, seized many tents, and captured a lot of grain, livestock, and women that the Turks had not had time to take away.

As the sun rises,

Outside Xinzhou City, the enemy camp had no trace of the Turkic army. Only the Tang soldiers of Xinzhou, who had cleaned up the battlefield and were returning with their spoils, were all beaming with pride and joy.

Li Gaoqian looked north and asked the officers around him with a puzzled expression, "You said that Gao Kaidao abandoned the Turks and hastily retreated north?"

These Turks were also routed at the first blow and fled in disarray.

Why is that?

One recruit speculated: "Gao Kaidao's hasty retreat, could it be related to him? Could it be that Weizhou or Beiyanzhou were attacked, and he's rushing back to provide relief?"

Li Gaoqian stroked his beard. "That makes some sense. So it must be that troops have been dispatched from the Hebei direction."

"I suspect that the Prince of Wu'an is attacking Weizhou or Beiyanzhou. Gao Kaidao was afraid of losing his base, so he hastily retreated."

Back in Xinzhou City,

Li Gaoqian also hurriedly reported the victory to Bingzhou, and at the same time sent people to the north to gather information.

Some generals suggested sending troops to reinforce Liu Shirang in Daizhou, but this suggestion was rejected by all the generals.

Xinzhou only has 5,000 soldiers, and they risked a lot to launch a surprise attack on the camp last night.

Daizhou is now teeming with Turkic troops. If this small force marches north, it will be surrounded and annihilated by the Turkic army halfway there.

Defending Xinzhou would be a great achievement.

He's not Li Yi; he's not as good at fighting as Li Yi.

(End of this chapter)