In the long smoke desert, wind-eroded mushroom stones can be seen everywhere. The sun is blazing and mirages appear frequently.
Even Xue Rengui himself felt that it was a miracle that this group of people had not been intercepted by thousands of troops, had not died of hunger, thirst and fever, or had not been lost in the desert and buried in the belly of wolves.
Ahead, a large green field loomed.
This time, it’s not a mirage!
Soldiers of the three armed forces, cheers!
"General Xue, we have come out! We have left the eight hundred deserts and come to the grassland!" the deputy generals on the left and right shouted with tears of joy.
Xue Rengui raised the corners of his mouth slightly, nodded and smiled, and breathed a sigh of relief.
It has been more than half a month since we broke out of the siege and headed north. Along the way, there was a bloody battle in the Tianshan Mountains where Ni Shusui was ambushed, and then they crossed the Tianshan Mountains, which were too high and dangerous to reach. After descending from the mountain, they entered the territory of Bashmi under the rule of Beiting of the Western Turks. Although the Bashmi tribe is a small tribe, all the people are equipped with many elite horsemen, waiting for work. Xue Rengui led the iron army, which was tired and old but had the seal of Qin Shubao's God of War in its bones, and attacked the weak with the strong. Like a sharp cone, it pierced through the three lines of defense deployed by Bashimi's troops, annihilating several enemies. Thousands broke through the siege and killed more than thirty enemy generals and chiefs. Xue Rengui also captured Du Nan, the second son of the leader of the Bashmi tribe, alive in front of the battle. He took him as a hostage and ran away, escaping for 500 miles and letting him go back. Duonan felt Xue Rengui's loyalty and vowed to persuade his father to stop pursuing the Tang army when he returned. He also said that in fact, the Bashmi tribe had never intended to be an enemy of the Tang Dynasty. But because of the power of Beiting, he had to submit to Beiting and act according to orders.
After breaking through Bashimi's siege, Xue Rengui's troops arrived at the large desert near the southern foot of Jinshan Mountain. As early as decades ago, Jinshan was the territorial dividing line between the Western Turks and the Western Turks who were pacified by the Tang Dynasty. Going west is the sphere of influence of Beiting; going east is the Mobei grassland of the Tang Dynasty.
And here, guarding Beiting's territory is Beiting's second-most general, second only to Ni Shuchui, the leader of the Hulu tribe, Huluwu.
80,000 troops were stationed in the dangerous wilderness!
At this time, Xue Rengui's troops were already more than a thousand miles away from Gaochang. Many of the soldiers suffered battle deaths, injuries, and heat-related diseases along the way. The supplies along the way basically relied on trophies and wild hunting. Every soldier had almost reached the limit of what the human body could bear. The limit of exhaustion!
But Xue Rengui knew that there was no way out now! Only by breaking through the defense line guarded by Huluwu, crossing the desert into the Mobei grassland, and then passing through Shanyu's Protector's Palace and entering Helong via the Yinshan and Helan Mountains can we possibly return to Lanzhou!
Thousands of miles away, thousands of miles away!
At this moment, Xue Rengui really hoped that he and the remaining 17,894 Tang Army soldiers could transform into wings and fly back to Lanzhou!
Xue Rengui only used one sentence to boost the morale of this lonely army - "We are all sons of the Tang Dynasty God of War. We have only one way forward!"
"kill-"
More than 10,000 exhausted soldiers launched a life-and-death attack on the 80,000 elite Turkic cavalry of the Huluwu tribe!
Xue Rengui, taking the lead, broke into the army like the head of a blood-tasseled spear!
…
The fierce battle lasted for more than four hours. Late at night, Xue Rengui personally picked and killed thirteen of the "Eighteen Cavalry" generals under Beiting General Hu Luwu, who was the most proud and brave leader of the three armies!
The people in Hulu House were frightened!
The leader Hu Luwu was filled with grief and anger. He gave up the siege of Xue Rengui's troops with one order and allowed them to break through the defense line and enter the desert!
After this battle, Xue Rengui became famous and powerful in Beiting, and was known to women and children in the north and south of the desert!
Ni Shushuo, who was stabbed in the chest by an arrow by Xue Rengui, survived the catastrophe and saved half his life, but he will definitely not be able to lead the army and the board of directors within a year and a half. Yibi Duolu Khan of Beiting was so angry that he ordered someone to cast a golden man of the same size as a life-size man. He threatened that if anyone cuts off Xue Rengui's head, he will be rewarded with this golden man. Give it to him; if he can be captured alive, in addition to the bounty, he will also be awarded the chiefs of thousands of tribes, three thousand cattle and sheep, and twenty beauties!
At this time, Xue Rengui, who had already led more than 10,000 soldiers of the Western Expeditionary Army who had survived hundreds of battles, were like a group of immortal men trudging through the 800-mile desert without any grass, crossing, and stepping onto the grassland to breathe fresh air.
"General, where are we going now?" the deputy generals on the left and right asked Xue Rengui.
Xue Rengui frowned and pondered for a moment, then said: "This is the first time for me to come to this place in my life. I have seen the "Mobei Army's Geographical Records" map that the young marshal inherited from Duke Wei; if I remember correctly, , and more than four hundred miles to the southeast is the territory of the former Jue Tuli Khan."
"Tuli Khan? Is he the young Khan of Ashina who helped the Tang Dynasty pacify the Turkic Khanate a few years ago?" Zuo Zuo asked.
"It's him." Xue Rengui nodded, "Tuli Khan is the noble chief of the Ashina tribe. The surname of 'Ashina' is just like my surname of Li in the Tang Dynasty... After he returned to the Tang Dynasty, he was awarded the title of Shun. The governor of the state died of illness after returning to the court. After that, his son Ashina Heluoqu inherited his title and stayed in the grassland to govern the Turkic remnants here. "
"That's great!" Zuo Zuo said excitedly, "So, he is one of our own people from the Tang Dynasty!"
"That's true." Xue Rengui frowned slightly and said, "But I have never met him. In the past few years, the Tang Dynasty has rarely stationed troops here. At most, it only sent some officials to assist He Luo'u in governing. Military and political affairs. The most powerful tribe in the Turkic grasslands today is the Xueyantuo tribe in the north of the desert. Their leader Yi Nan, like the Tuli Khan, made great contributions to the pacification of the Turkic Khanate by his Majesty. The princess married him and named him Zhenzhu Khan, but Yi Nan had always been strong, brave and ambitious. In recent years, he had annexed several grassland tribes, just to unify the grassland and break away from the Tang Dynasty to establish an independent khanate and become the second Jie. Li. In other words, the Ashina Tribe, the grassland aristocratic tribe led by He Luohu, is still a vassal of the Tang Dynasty; but in fact, I worry that their authority over Yi Nan has surrendered to Xue Yantuo. After all, Datang is beyond its reach..."
"What should we do? Should we still go to Ashina?" Zuo Zuo asked.
"Whether we go there or not, that is the only way for us." Xue Rengui narrowed his eyes slightly and said with a deep voice, "Think about the Ashina tribe on the grassland that was like yellow flowers yesterday, compared with the 80,000 cavalry under Huluwu! "
"Order—to advance eastward at full speed. The target is the territory of Ashina tribe and the Shanya tent tribe of Governor Yu!"
Two days later, Xue Rengui, who was traveling quickly, led his army to Yudujun Mountain, the place where the Turkic Khanate's tent was once located, and it was also the most prestigious political and military center and prosperous place on the grassland.
But what I saw was shocking!
The once lively and prosperous Yazhang tribe is now lifeless and fragmented, with scattered corpses and running cattle and sheep everywhere. The shepherd's felt tent was filled with thick smoke in the flames, and the green grass was covered with dried purple blood. The tribe, which was dozens of miles in size, was like a dead zone!
"This place has been looted by fire!" Everyone came to this conclusion unanimously!
"Who dares to be so bold and attack the Ashina tribe on the grassland?" Xue Rengui was shocked and angry, and thought to himself: Although the Ashina tribe has become a thing of the past, it still lives up to its name as a noble and ranks highly among the grassland tribes. With prestige and influence, he can at least be regarded as a spiritual leader. Moreover, He Luo'u, the son of Tuli Khan, was personally appointed by the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty as an official who was close to the people and managed the army, and was the court minister of the Tang Dynasty. Now that Ashina's tribe has been bloodbathed... Could it be that Yi Nan is really rebelling
"Search the tooth tent to see if there are any survivors!" Xue Rengui gave the order, and all the soldiers split up to search.
After a few hours, the soldiers reported that no one was alive, and almost all the cattle, sheep and wealth were looted!
"That's unreasonable!" Xue Rengui gritted his teeth and groaned, holding Fang Tian's painted halberd in his hand so hard that his bones rang.
"General, a large army of troops and horses appears in the east!" Suddenly the scout came to report.
Xue Rengui raised his thick eyebrows and said, "Prepare the army for war!!"
Countless iron hooves came rolling in. The grassland vibrates!
Xue Rengui prepared a good formation and marched out with only one flag and horse. Along the way, all the soldiers and horses were stained with blood and dirty, but only this bright red flag with the Chinese character Tang Dynasty was still shining brightly and fluttering in the wind.
The number of soldiers and horses coming from the front is no less than 30,000. The black iron armor and scimitar wolf flag are obviously the troops of the grassland tribe.
Xue Rengui raised Fang Tian's painted halberd in his hand to signal the whole army to be on alert to prepare for battle, and then the horse stepped forward first.
The opponent's cavalry circled around and stood on a high slope, occupying a commanding geographical advantage in preparation for a sprint. However, they did not rush to attack and kill, but lined up in a line like dark clouds. Afterwards, a number of horses galloped out towards Xue Rengui.
Naturally, Xue Rengui didn't recognize these people who came, but judging from their attire and demeanor, they must be chiefs or generals. These people are quite wary and confused at the same time.
Several riders stared at Xue Rengui for a few times and murmured a few words. One of them stepped forward and said in Chinese: "Whose army are you Your Excellency? Why did you loot the Ashina tribe?"
Xue Rengui looked solemn, clasped his fists and said: "I am Xue Li, the general of Lanzhou Zuoweiwei under the command of Qin Shubao, the protector of Anxi Province! The army led the army to this point, and it happened that Ashina's tribe was bloodbathed. Our tribe was earlier than yours. After an hour, if you don’t believe it, you can go into the tooth tent and check the knife edge! The knives used by my soldiers of the Tang Dynasty are all straight-cut and horizontal knives; and the wounds on the deceased in the tooth tent are all caused by curved knives!”
The people on the opposite side were obviously shocked and asked the person: "Are you Xue Rengui, the great general of the Tang Dynasty who defeated Nisucui in the Tianshan Mountains and defeated Huluwu in the Eight Hundred Deserts?"
"The one who should not be regarded as the divine general of the Tang Dynasty is none other than Xue." Xue Rengui said calmly.
Several people on the opposite side exclaimed and neatly turned over and dismounted. They stood in front of Xue Rengui's horse, caressing their chests and bowing before bowing: "General Xue, please accept our great gift!"
Xue Rengui was immediately stunned. He thrust Fang Tian's painted halberd into the soil beside the horse, got off the horse, clasped his fists in return, and said, "I would never accept such a great gift. May I ask your Excellency, what is your name?"
"Your Excellency, I am the official name of the Uyghur tribe, Tumidu, who was conferred by His Majesty the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty." The person who just asked the question replied, "I received a message a few days ago. Shi Naheluo Falcon asked for help, saying that Yi Nan came to cause trouble and intended to join forces to massacre the city, so he led his army to rescue... Unexpectedly, it was too late! "
"It turns out it's the leader of Tumidu. I'm disrespectful!" Xue Rengui fisted his fist and said angrily, with thick eyebrows raised, "Is Yi Nan really going to rebel?"
"Hey!" Tumidu sighed and shook his head, "After Yi Nan helped the Tang Dynasty pacify Jieli and was named Zhenzhu Khan, he took credit for himself and served the strong and bullied the weak, and rampaged across the grasslands for several years. He dares to bully all the tribes, even the noble Ashina tribe in the grassland! Among the tribes in the grassland, we are the only ones who have not surrendered to him. Now, Yi Nan has twenty soldiers. The rest of the people in Mobei have long been disobedient, and they will surely sweep across the grassland sooner or later. Now that the Tang Dynasty has started a war with the Tubo and Western Turks, Yi Nan thinks that the Tang Dynasty has no time to visit the north, so he brazenly attacks the Ashina tribe! General Xue, I have sent an emergency report to Li Mingong, the governor of Bingzhou, asking for help! However, Yi Nan has already slaughtered the Ashina tribe, and I will definitely take action sooner or later! Please give justice to General Xue!"
"Justice?" When Xue Rengui heard these four words, his heart was filled with anger, but he was also a little bit dumbfounded. He thought to himself: I am just a passerby in a hurry. I am in trouble and eager to return to Lanzhou. How can I care about the inside? The imperial court has Li Ji, a feudal official, to manage this place, and His Majesty calls it the "Great Wall to the North of the Tang Dynasty". How can it be my turn to take charge of it
But when he saw the bloodbathed tribe not far away and the corpses lying around, Xue Rengui couldn't bear his anger anymore. After thinking for a while, he said: "Since Yi Nan is the Pearl Khan conferred by His Majesty, now he is bloodbathing the Ashina tribe, which is an open rebellion. I am the general of the Celestial Dynasty leading the army here, and cannot be ignored! - Chief, Please send a message to Yi Nan that the envoy of the Tang Dynasty has come to question me, and ask him to speak to me, Xue Rengui, in front of the battle and give me an explanation!"
"Uh, this..." Tumidu showed a hint of embarrassment on his face and hesitated in his mouth.
Xue Rengui knew that Tu Midu was a little afraid of Yi Nan, and he obviously underestimated him. Xue Rengui also couldn't trust the tens of thousands of Tang troops in this area. He smiled slightly and said: "The great leader of Tumidu, although Xue is an unknown soldier of the Tang Dynasty, the flag of the Tang army here is the symbol of the Celestial Dynasty. As the Celestial Dynasty Hujing pointed out, he Yi Nan is If he really wants to rebel, he will dare to use force against me, Xue Rengui! If he uses force, he will break his promise and betray the Tang Dynasty. If so, we, the Tang Dynasty, will attack him! Li Ji's army will be well-known, and Mobei will be pacified and the grassland will be restored to a bright future. It is just around the corner! With the power of the Tang Dynasty to rely on, Xue came here alone and the veterans were not afraid; the leader's troops were well-equipped. Moreover, the tribes and people share the same hatred and try their best to resist the enemy, so why should we be afraid?"
"That's what General Xue said! That's good!" Tumido still hesitated for a moment, nodded and said, "Then, first, please invite General Xue and his officers to come to my tribe to rest and recharge their batteries! Wait! I'll send a message to Yi Nan to see what he thinks!"
"It is better to obey orders than to be respectful! Chief, please!"