Li Chengqian of the Tang Dynasty: Please say long live His Majesty

Chapter 722 Di Renjie's Ice Mist Breaks the Enemy (First Update)
Amidst the cold mist, countless flags fluttered slowly in mid-air.

A wisp of cold mist was drawn onto the flag, which then froze and was planted upright by the roadside.

The large group moved forward slowly, and strangely, many people did not feel much cold.

At this moment, many people couldn't help but look at Di Renjie, who was positioned slightly behind.

Di Renjie rode his horse calmly.

In truth, he wasn't entirely confident about this method either.

Even though the method was originally proposed by the emperor, what truly gave Di Renjie confidence in it was the practice that Andong conducted during the winter.

Using an igloo can indeed help keep out the cold in winter.

This method enabled a large number of people in Liaodong and Andong to get through the winter safely, which changed Di Renjie's views on many things.

He even traced the origins back to the source, eventually finding it in the Tao Te Ching.

The softest thing in the world can overcome the hardest thing in the world; nothing can penetrate its gaps.

While scorching the body with flames is a way to harm the icy fog, it cannot be sustained. Instead, water can absorb the coldness of the icy fog first, thus preventing it from harming the body.

This is the same principle as an igloo, only it's used in reverse.

I looked up at the icy mist above.

Di Renjie knew that no matter what the Tibetans wanted to do with these things, from this moment on, they were completely useless.

……

The densely packed procession continued forward.

Gradually, those at the forefront were about to emerge from the edge of the cold fog.

Just then, Li Dejian, who was walking at the front, suddenly raised his hand.

The people behind them stopped at the same time.

Li Dejian leaned forward slightly, seemingly listening attentively.

Suddenly, a cold smile appeared on his face.

Turning around, Li Dejian waved his right hand.

The hundreds of infantrymen behind him immediately laid their flags flat on the ground, then retreated inwards, while raising their crossbows and aiming them out of the icy fog.

The next moment, the thunderous sound of horses' hooves suddenly rang out from outside the icy mist.

The strong winds even blew open the edges of the icy fog, and countless Tibetan cavalrymen clad in heavy leather armor quickly arrived.

"Fire!" Li Dejian shouted coldly, and in the next moment, countless crossbow bolts shot forward.

With a "whoosh," crossbow bolts appeared in mid-air like a black cloud, and instantly, they were already hitting the ground with a crackling sound.

The Tibetan cavalry at the forefront of the charge were instantly pinned to the ground by crossbow bolts, one from the top of their heads.

Both the man and the horse fell to the ground at the same time.

Li Dejian stared coldly at the large number of Tibetan cavalry disappearing ahead, and then gently waved his hand again.

The black-armored soldiers behind immediately threw their crossbows, which were now empty of bolts, to the ground. At the same time, they picked up a new crossbow from their waists, already loaded with bolts, and forcefully pulled the trigger in front of the charging Tibetan cavalry.

In an instant, countless crossbow bolts roared up again, like a dark cloud covering the Tibetan cavalry behind them.

In an instant, men and horses fell, and blood flowed like a stream.

Just then, behind Li Dejian and his party, the thunderous sound of countless hooves roared.

The shadowy black-armored cavalrymen had already charged past the hundreds of infantrymen under Li Dejian's command on both sides and rushed towards the Tibetan cavalry in front.

Before anyone even got close, a volley of crossbow bolts had already been fired.

The cavalry galloped forward, their battle flags billowing wildly.

At that moment, the icy fog that had enveloped the mountain path suddenly thinned out.

Above the mountain path, three thousand Tibetan cavalrymen, who had been waiting for their turn to charge down, were positioned, while within the icy mist, thirty thousand Tang cavalry and infantrymen stood in dense, tightly packed formation, ready for battle.

When the three thousand Tibetan cavalrymen charging down finally saw the densely packed Tang cavalrymen opposite them, it was already too late.

A large number of black-armored cavalry charged away through the two passages that Li Dejian had deliberately left open.

At the same time, the soldiers who had run out of crossbow bolts immediately picked up the flags on the ground, waved them forward, and their sharp spear blades appeared under the bright sun. Then, they strode forward, heading straight to meet the Tibetan cavalry in front of them.

Behind them, another group of infantrymen armed with crossbows stepped forward and coldly fired their crossbow bolts at the Tibetan cavalry further away.

In an instant, dark clouds loomed overhead, and blood flowed like a river.

A cold-blooded massacre unfolded in an orderly fashion.

……

Di Renjie rode behind on horseback, glanced at it, and couldn't help but shake his head slightly.

It's a pity that too few Tibetans came.

If 12,000 men were to come and engage in a decisive battle right here, they wouldn't need to go through so much trouble to attack Black Mountain Pass.

The outcome can be decided right here.

With his gaze fixed on the battlefield ahead, Di Renjie's expression calmed down.

When he was in Chang'an and Luoyang, he rarely came into contact with these military affairs.

Previously, Changdu had been captured, but more importantly, it had been besieged for more than half a year, and the city's food supplies had run out, allowing the Tang Dynasty to easily conquer Changdu.

Di Renjie did not witness any fierce fighting.

But now, having personally arrived at the front lines, Di Renjie finally understood the key to the Tang Dynasty's true dominance over the world...

It is a crossbow, a long spear, armor, and countless meticulously crafted weapons and armor.

Of course, there were also countless soldiers who bravely charged forward.

Endless shouts rang in his ears, and Di Renjie couldn't help but grip the longsword lying to the side.

But at this moment, ahead, the sharp black-armored cavalry had already pierced through the Tibetan cavalry from the flanks and rear, while in front, countless long spears and crossbows began to brutally slaughter the Tibetan soldiers whose retreat had been cut off. The Tibetan soldiers were already in a state of panic, and some even jumped off their horses to surrender.

"It's a pity they're not the Tibetan Shadow Army." Pei Xingjian had somehow ridden up to Di Renjie's side, his gaze fixed ahead.

As more and more Tang cavalrymen charged into the battlefield, the three thousand Tibetan cavalrymen were finished.

Only the last hundred or so riders managed to turn around in time and escape the battlefield.

But deserters never end well.

"Will the Tibetan army also appear in this battle?" Di Renjie asked Pei Xingjian with a serious expression.

"Yes, they will." Pei Xingjian nodded, looking at the Black Mountain Pass ahead, and said seriously, "This battle has reached the critical moment of the destruction of the Tubo Kingdom. They will use all the forces they can."

"Yes, this battle will be difficult." Di Renjie nodded calmly.

“So those Shadow Army soldiers must be hiding in some special place deep in the mountains on both sides. The scouts in the army have searched everywhere they can, but they just can’t find any trace of those guys.” Pei Xingjian looked at Di Renjie with a solemn expression and said, “They must be hiding in some places that are difficult for ordinary people to reach.”

It's difficult for even the most elite scouts in the army to reach this point, let alone ordinary people.

"It must be some remote, almost deadly place." Di Renjie looked towards the deep mountains in the distance, especially the snow-capped peaks.

It's already late June, the height of summer, but there's still a lot of snow and ice on some mountaintops.

"I heard that the Tibetan Shadow Army originated from the Goba tribe, one of the twelve rock tribes of the ancient Zhangzhung Dynasty." After a slight pause, Di Renjie said, "Although I don't understand the deeper meaning, the word 'rock' alone is enough to show their ability to survive in the deep mountains. Especially last year, they were able to easily cross the He and Tao prefectures and appear in Tianshui, which shows their extraordinary ability."

Pei Xingjian nodded solemnly and said, "So they hid in places we couldn't find, and then waited until the war was at its most intense before bursting out of the deep mountains and attacking us from behind."

“Yes.” Di Renjie nodded first, then shook his head and said, “That’s true, but they are still too far away. To break out of the mountains in time, we still need to rely on the connection between the three Tibetan passes ahead. As long as we defeat them as quickly as possible, and then lay in wait…”

“Then even if these people are like gods and demons, they will still die from the crossbow bolts of the soldiers.” Pei Xingjian smiled slightly and nodded to Di Renjie, saying, “Thank you for your explanation, Brother Huaiying.”

"I hope this will be of some help to the General." Di Renjie bowed slightly.

"No need to be so polite, let's go." Pei Xingjian smiled and nodded, then turned and rode his horse forward.

Di Renjie looked up and saw that the fighting ahead had completely ended.

The ground was littered with the corpses of Tibetan cavalrymen; there were not a single prisoners.

It's not that they refuse to surrender, it's that the Tang Dynasty doesn't need prisoners to increase its burden.

As for the information they possessed about the three passes of Tibet, it's likely that the Tibetan generals guarding the city had already made the most meticulous arrangements the moment they stepped out of the pass.

It could even be a trap.

If the Tibetan generals really intend to rely on this patch of ice fog to try and completely defeat the Tang Dynasty, then they should send more cavalry.

These three thousand men were primarily used to deplete the Tang Dynasty's strength as much as possible, rather than for a decisive battle.

If they have ulterior motives, even sending five thousand men would be fine.

……

Three miles outside Heishan Pass, Di Renjie followed Su Dingfang, standing beneath the great banner.

From here, looking up at the Black Mountain Pass, a steep slope leads straight ahead to the entrance of the pass.

The pass was densely packed with countless Tibetan soldiers, holding swords and spears, looking warily at the Tang army below the city.

Su Dingfang glanced at the above, then looked at Di Renjie and said, "This section of the road is the steepest and narrowest part of the first half of the entire mountain road. High mountains rise on both sides, making it extremely difficult to climb. Ten years ago, the Tubo suffered a crushing defeat at Dafeichuan. After that, they carefully selected this place as the first pass to resist possible attacks from the Tang Dynasty."

Ten years ago, the Tang Dynasty decisively defeated the Tibetan army of 100,000 at Tuyuhun.

Even the double personally chosen by Songtsen Gampo, the former Tibetan king, was killed by Li Junxian with a single spear thrust in the Tongtian River.

Later, Tibet sued for peace, and the Tang Dynasty shifted its strategic focus to Goguryeo.

Meanwhile, the Tang Dynasty spent ten years training warriors who could adapt to the high-altitude miasma, and now that ten years have passed, the Tang Dynasty has reached the Tanggula Mountains.

"General, this stretch of road may not be easy." Di Renjie bowed slightly.

"War and bloodshed have never been easy." Su Dingfang looked ahead calmly and said indifferently, "It's nothing more than paying with human lives."

As soon as Su Dingfang finished speaking, the war drums beside him suddenly sounded.

Three catapults and more than a dozen crossbows were quickly pushed forward.

With hundreds of burly men pulling and pushing, the catapult was quickly propelled to the optimal firing distance.

At this moment, countless stones and logs were hurled down from the distant city walls. There was no need for catapults; the sheer height and slope alone were enough to make it difficult for the Tang soldiers to maintain their footing.

At that moment, three hundred infantrymen quickly stepped forward, rapidly connecting their shields together, then bracing the shields against their shoulders to form a slanted V-shape.

Countless boulders and logs struck the shield, immediately rolling to the sides and finally tumbling down the mountain path beside the catapult.
Waiting for a lull in the rolling stones and logs, the catapult moved forward quickly, eventually reaching a point 500 paces from the city wall.

This is the optimal attack range for the catapult.

Wedges, narrow at the front and wide at the back, were placed behind the catapult, instantly fixing it in place.

At the same time, the soldiers in front quickly retreated and moved to the front of the catapult to block the rolling stones and logs coming down from in front of them.

“They’ve sealed the city gates.” Su Dingfang shook his head slightly, then said, “Fire!”

With a deafening roar, three massive boulders hurtled down on the city wall with incredible precision, instantly turning the wall into a scene of carnage.

Just then, more catapults were pushed up from behind.

More stones flew into the air and then crashed heavily onto the city walls, rapidly increasing the casualties among the Tibetans.

The Tang Dynasty's counterattack has begun.

……

With a "whoosh," countless crossbow bolts rained down on the walls of Black Mountain Pass like a dark cloud. Instantly, a large number of Tibetan soldiers were killed, and blood flowed down the city steps like a stream.

The Tibetan general standing on the city wall waved his hand expressionlessly, and the next moment, countless Tibetan soldiers rushed up from the steps on both sides.

They had barely steadied themselves when they heard a shout from beyond the pass: "Kill!"

A large number of Tang soldiers rushed up the city gate from the rear, carrying siege ladders.

At this moment, all the Tibetan archers simultaneously unleashed their bows, firing a dense barrage of arrows that struck the ground outside the pass. In an instant, countless Tang soldiers fell to the ground, their blood flowing freely.

Even though Tibet had the advantage of city walls and passes, the Tang Dynasty had far more catapults and crossbows.

Both attacking and defending the city resulted in countless deaths and injuries, but in reality, the Tibetans suffered even greater casualties.

A large black banner stood behind him, but Su Dingfang was standing on a five-zhang-high arrow tower, overlooking the entire Black Mountain Pass.

Inside the expansive Black Mountain Pass, and even more so in the tents outside the city, countless Tibetan soldiers were densely packed, preparing to guard the pass.

Whenever a breach appeared in the city wall, countless soldiers would immediately rush from behind to fill it.

Even with the most cautious calculations, Su Dingfang could barely make out that at least 30,000 Tibetan soldiers were piled up inside and outside the entire Black Stone Pass.

Di Renjie stood beside Su Dingfang, his face grave as he looked at the devastating battlefield in the distance.

Su Dingfang turned around, glanced at Di Renjie, and asked calmly, "Well, what are you thinking?"

"General!" Di Renjie withdrew his gaze, looked at Su Dingfang, and cupped his hands, saying, "In today's battle, at least three thousand soldiers were killed or wounded. If this continues every day, then in less than ten days, the army... the army will probably be unable to hold on."

Su Dingfang asked calmly, "Then do you have any other good ideas?"

Di Renjie was taken aback, then shook his head with a somewhat grim expression and said, "This humble official is incompetent."

"It's none of your business. The current state of the battle was inevitable." Su Dingfang looked up and gazed into the distance, saying calmly, "Actually, if the Tibetans were willing to come out of the pass to fight in the open, or even if we were to defend the city while they were to attack it, their losses would be at least several times greater than ours. But this is different."

"Yes!" Di Renjie nodded. The location chosen by Tibet for this pass was too ingenious, weakening the Tang Dynasty's advantage in attacking the city as much as possible.

“In recent years, Your Majesty has actually been most wary of the Tibetans.” Su Dingfang’s gaze fell on a burly silver-armored general on the opposite city wall, and then he said, “Not because they have the high plateau barrier to rely on, but because they are the country in the world that has learned from the Tang Dynasty the best.”

Di Renjie's heart skipped a beat, and he immediately bowed with a solemn expression.

Sowing discord and seizing the opportunity to kill—these were the thirty-six stratagems that the Tibetans were adept at using.

"That's why His Majesty has placed the conquest of Tibet last all these years." Su Dingfang looked up and gazed behind the Tanggula Mountains: "Qibi Heli and Xue Rengui led the Left and Right Guards and a part of the Imperial Guards to attack Tibet from the west, drawing away a portion of the main Tibetan force. Otherwise, the pressure we would have faced would have been much greater, and the price we would have had to pay would have been much higher."

"General!" Di Renjie looked at the city wall and saw dozens of dead or wounded with just a casual glance.

"Don't worry, there won't be another battle as fierce as today." Su Dingfang said calmly, his expression solemn. "Every sacrifice they made today will be repaid a hundredfold or a thousandfold in the future."

……

Luoyang, Mount Song.

Inside the main hall of the Zhongyue Mountain Temple.

Li Chengqian respectfully performed the three kneelings and nine kowtows before the statue of the Great Emperor of the Central Peak.

His expression was solemn and his face dignified.

After the ceremony, Li Chengqian handed the incense sticks in his hand to Pan Shizheng, who was standing to the side.

Pan Shizheng placed the incense sticks into the incense burner on behalf of the emperor before asking the emperor to rise and inviting him into the inner hall.

Walking between the large trees on both sides, Li Chengqian's expression relaxed a little.

Pan Shizheng led the emperor to sit down at the stone table, then flicked his whisk and bowed slightly, saying, "Your Majesty comes to Mount Song to offer sacrifices every time there is a major battle in the army. Your sincerity is commendable. The gods will surely protect the Tang Dynasty and make it invincible."

"Thank you for your kind words, Master." Li Chengqian smiled, glanced at the sky above Luoyang in the northeast, and said softly, "At this moment, the war should have already begun on the plateau."

Pan Shizheng nodded slightly and said, "Does Your Majesty have any concerns?"

Li Chengqian shook his head and said, "The outcome of this campaign against Tibet is not in much doubt. The court can at least support the army for three years. What I am most worried about is that the casualties among the soldiers will be too great, which would be too disastrous for the people."

"Your Majesty is benevolent." Pan Shizheng bowed slightly.

Li Chengqian picked up his teacup, took a small sip, smiled, and said, "Let's not talk about the military affairs. This year has been relatively smooth with favorable weather. Master, how is everything in Jiangnan?"

Pan Shizheng's eyes turned solemn; the emperor's problems were never simple.

Although he lived in Songshan for many years, he was actually a direct disciple of Wang Yuanzhi of Maoshan, and held a very high seniority in the Shangqing Palace of Maoshan.

He would often send matters concerning the court to Maoshan in letters, and Maoshan would similarly inform him of matters in Jiangnan that required attention.

Compared to Buddhism, Taoism is more integrated into the lives of ordinary people.

Therefore, they know more about the affairs of ordinary people.

For the emperor, this was more like an eye, an eye that viewed everything in Jiangnan from a different perspective.

Before we knew it, the sky had darkened.

After listening to what Pan Shizheng said, Li Chengqian smiled and nodded, saying, "I hope you and the Maoshan Sect will pay more attention to the affairs of Jiangnan. After all, there are some things that are inherently limited by the local prefectures and counties."

"Your Majesty is benevolent." Pan Shizheng sighed softly and nodded slightly.

Government officials have always been superior to ordinary people. No matter how approachable an official may be, he cannot consider himself to be the same as the common people.

"It's getting late, I should head back." Li Chengqian stood up.

"This humble Taoist priest will see Your Majesty off!" Pan Shizheng rose and escorted the emperor to the outside of the Zhongyue Temple, then watched the emperor depart into the distance.

Li Chengqian sat inside the imperial carriage, his expression slightly solemn.

In war, there is no guarantee of victory. All he can do is ensure that logistics are fully in place from all aspects.

As for the military front, he believed that Su Dingfang would do a better job than anyone else.

His gaze drifted slightly towards the direction of Tibet.

His expression was expectant.

……

As dawn breaks in the east, the mountain path is quiet.

At Black Mountain Pass, Tibetan soldiers patrolled back and forth, holding torches high.

Two miles away, a dense array of barricades were placed along the mountain road, and every hundred meters there was an arrow tower with four archers patrolling it all night.

The army camp gradually began to unfold as far as a mile away.

Even in the main military camp, there were more than three thousand people patrolling at all times to prevent the Tibetans from launching surprise attacks outside the city.

The two sides were too close; they were so close that if the Tibetans had been just a breath apart, they could have attacked.

However, during those ten days, it was the Tang Dynasty that truly initiated the attacks every day.

Su Dingfang was not lying.

Aside from the initial fierce attack on the first day, the frequency of Tang army sieges began to decrease rapidly from the second day onwards. They attacked the city once each in the morning, noon, and evening, and the intensity of the attacks was not very strong. However, people were extremely tense at every moment.

Su Dingfang is observing.

The Tang army understood this, and so did the Tibetans: if they showed even the slightest weakness, the Tang would launch a full-scale attack.

Especially when the Tang army suddenly attacked the city in the middle of the night, they would immediately mobilize all their forces.

The Tibetans were defending the city, while the Tang Dynasty was attacking it; however, the Tibetans suffered the most casualties in the past few days.

In the military camp, Su Dingfang got up early this morning and went to the last armory storage area.

Everyone else retreated far away, leaving only Su Dingfang in the entire warehouse.

Su Dingfang calmly looked to the side and asked, "Have all the black oils been delivered?"

Li Wu stepped out from the hidden corner and nodded, saying, "It's been delivered, enough for you."

During these ten days, in places unseen by the Tibetans, Li Wu transported large quantities of black oil from Tanggula Town to Heishan Pass.

"Then let's begin." Su Dingfang turned around and walked directly out of the warehouse.

……

Half an hour later, the thunderous sound of war drums quietly subsided.

Countless boulders ripped through the sky and then crashed heavily onto the city walls.

At the same time, countless crossbow bolts were fired directly at the city wall from a distance.

The Tibetans habitually dodged, and unwittingly, more than a dozen crossbow bolts became deeply embedded in the city wall.

Su Dingfang stood atop the arrow tower, his eyes fixed on the wall three miles away.

“There are five places that have been nailed in, confirming that those are the places where the Tibetans used corpses to build the city walls.” Li Wu walked up from the back and said calmly, “I went to see them myself last year.”

"Okay, launch it." Su Dingfang looked to the side.

The flag bearer standing on one side immediately raised the red triangular flag high.

With a loud "boom," a fireball trailing thick smoke slammed directly into the city wall.

(End of this chapter)