Memoirs of the Heavenly Khan

Chapter 433 He was far too extreme.

Outside Fusi City, at the Tuyuhun's headquarters.

The atmosphere of war was already pervasive. Khalil, clad in armor, sat on his throne as Khan, his face quite solemn.

Yaren walked in from outside the tent, bringing with him the wind, snow, and chill of the outside world.

Kua Lü asked:

"How is it?"

The gazes of all the princes and nobles within the tent also turned to Ya Ren, whose voice was very subdued as he said:

"Yang Kan has led an army of 20,000 to Shanzhou, and Li Yuan has led 6,000 troops from Guanzhong to Hezhou. In addition, I heard that Da Xi Wu has also led a force north from Wudu."

Hearing this, everyone understood that Li Shuang was serious this time.

Yang Kan's 20,000 troops were essentially all the elite forces that Longyou could mobilize. In addition to Yang Kan's force, there were two other detachments, clearly indicating that this had been planned for a long time.

"It seems that Da Yeshuang has been eyeing my Tuyuhun lands for quite some time now."

Tuyuhun was a large plateau country whose territory extended north to the Qilian Mountains, south to the Bailan Mountains, east to Longhe and Pingkang, and west to Qiemo and Shanshan.

This vast territory was not solely dominated by nomadic life; it also included agriculture and the oasis economy of the Western Regions.

From its founding to the present day, under the rule of Kualü, who has declared himself Khan and established his capital at Fusi City, the Tuyuhun Kingdom has undergone a transformation from a tribe to a kingdom.

After Kualü succeeded to the throne, in order to stabilize the internal affairs of Tuyuhun, he established a system modeled after the Central Plains.

However, before he could fully establish the internal structure of Tuyuhun, Li Shuang sent troops to attack.

Yang Kan, Li Yuan, Da Xiwu and others were going to attack the river valley area in the eastern part of Tuyuhun, which was one of the few agricultural areas in the Tuyuhun territory.

Having lost these lands, the Tuyuhun people became a nomadic people.

Khalil's self-deprecating smile did not resonate with those around him; they were now only interested in knowing Khalil's new Khan's resolve.

What to do?
Kualu had not yet made up his mind.

Although Tuyuhun was the overlord of the plateau, it only reigned supreme on the plateau. After descending the mountain, the only reputation it left behind in the past two hundred years can be summed up in just two words.

The soldiers are weak!

During his years in Longyou, Yang Kan united the Han Chinese powerful clans in Liangzhou, Qinzhou, Hezhou and other prefectures, pacified the Hu and Qiang peoples, recruited their warriors, and trained an elite army.

Previously, Yang Kan led his army to capture Shanzhou and fought against the Tuyuhun army. Although there was an element of surprise attack involved, the complete annihilation of the Tuyuhun army cannot be explained solely by a surprise attack.

The lessons learned from this war were not favorable to the leaders of the Tuyuhun tribes.

Now, the elite troops of Longyou have gathered in Shanzhou, intending to occupy the entire Hehuang region. A great battle is about to break out. What should they do?
Kualü has not yet fully integrated the internal forces of Tuyuhun, and the interests of the kings and nobles in the camp are not entirely aligned with Kualü's.

Kua Lü hesitated, but looking at the kings and lords he had enfeoffed according to the system of the Central Plains, he realized something.

He had no choice but to fight this war, even if he would lose in the end.

"This great battle must be fought!"

After Kua Lü finished speaking, he did not receive any response from the people in the tent.

Prince Yong'an stepped forward and asked:

"How do we fight?"

When Kualü changed his title from King of Tuyuhun to Khan, his intention was not to acknowledge himself as a minor Khan under Li Shuang, the Heavenly Khan, but rather to break free from the influence of the Northern Wei on Tuyuhun.

The faction led by Prince Yong'an was a prime example. The marriage alliance between Tuyuhun and Northern Wei resulted in many members of the royal family being deeply influenced by Emperor Xiaowen's Sinicization reforms.

Kualü both needed to rely on these people and was constantly on guard against them. "Uncle, although I have sent the princes on expeditions to the Western Regions, the troops I left behind are still stronger than Yang Kan's army. We should gather a large army and fight them to the death."

Upon hearing this, the aged Prince Yong'an sighed and said:

"In that case, the fall of the Tuyuhun kingdom is not far off!"

Kua Lü's expression was somewhat unpleasant, and he said something.

"uncle!"

Prince Yong'an waved his hand, signaling to Kualü to let him finish speaking.

"Yang Kan's troops in Longyou and Li Bi's army in Lingwu are both top-tier troops. At this time of year, with the weather freezing cold, Yang Kan was still able to lead his troops to Shanzhou, which shows that his fighting spirit is outstanding and his military supplies are sufficient. If we fight them to the death, we will be fine if we can win, but if we cannot win, how will we face ourselves?"

Kualü initially thought that the Prince of Yong'an simply wanted to dampen his spirits, but after hearing these words, Kualü was somewhat moved.

He could choose not to fight among the people in his own tent, but he, the Khan, could not. Otherwise, if the people's hearts were scattered, how could he maintain his position?

However, after the Prince of Yong'an spoke out, he gave Kualü a way out.

"In your opinion, Uncle, what should be done?"

"The King of Qin wants our land in the east, but only to protect the safety of Ba and Shu and cut off our passage to Ba and Shu. In case the Liang army attacks Ba and Shu in the future, we will ally with the Liang army to attack Li Shengui's army from both sides. In this way, we will use these lands as bargaining chips to exchange for peace talks."

After the Prince of Yong'an finished speaking, dissenting voices arose in the tent, and some even angrily denounced him as a traitor.

Prince Yong'an stood there, unmoved. It wasn't until Kualü spoke again that everyone in the tent was forcibly silenced.

What if he's still not satisfied?

Prince Yong'an's eyes flashed, and he gave an answer that surprised everyone present.

"Then we will burn down the city walls, burn everything we can't take with us, and take our people, cattle, and sheep to the Western Regions. After that, we will join forces with the Rouran to attack Liangzhou, and make sure that Dunhuang and Wuwei never have a peaceful day!"

The King of Yong'an revealed the core advantage of the Tuyuhun people: they were a nomadic people!

What is the strongest tactic of nomadic peoples?
If you can't win, you can run away. After you run away, wait for the enemy to withdraw before coming back.

Large-scale battles are not their forte, but harassment warfare is their specialty.

Their core assets are cattle, sheep, camels, and horses, which can be moved at any time. As long as they can escape, they can make a comeback.

"The Qin people built the Great Wall in the north to defend against the Xiongnu. I don't believe they can build another Great Wall in the snowy region. As long as they are willing to give up the cities in the Western Sea and the Hehuang region, even if they have a strong army, what can they do to us?"

Prince Yong'an went from one extreme to another, which was hard for the people present to accept.

When they realized what was happening, the group started cursing again.

So it wasn't your city that was burned down, you make it sound so easy.

The cities themselves were secondary; what was important was that many of the cities of Tuyuhun were used to store supplies.

They burned down more than a dozen cities in the Western Sea and Hehuang regions and fled to the Western Regions. What were they doing here for the past two hundred years?
"Khan, without the determination to burn this to ashes, we cannot stand under the might of the Heavenly Khan's army."

The words of the Prince of Yong'an still lingered in his ears, but what truly made Kualü make up his mind was the military intelligence from afar.

"Khan, Longhe King has led his troops in rebellion, and his envoy has already arrived in Chengdu."

Kua Lü's heart skipped a beat as he realized a truth.

With the determination to completely transform the Tuyuhun into a nomadic people, Kualü had the resources to confront Li Shuang.

……

(End of this chapter)