The Yin Mountains stretched across the desert, and it was certainly impossible for Li Ji's army to reach the grassland so quickly. The first person to arrive at the Uighur tribe was a fast-horse messenger sent by Li Ji, who informed the Uighur leader Tumidu that Li Ji had personally led a hundred thousand Jin and border defense field troops to march towards the grassland on the edict of the Holy Emperor. !
It turns out that ten days ago, Tumidu had noticed Yi Nan's ambitious move from Qibei to the south to annex the grassland. The reason was that Yi Nan wanted to forcibly marry sisters Xue Lian and Xi Yan. At that time, He Luo'u, the leader of the Ashina tribe, secretly sent the two girls to the Uighur tribe to hide, and asked Tumidu to seek help from Li Ji, the northern military commander of the Tang Dynasty.
It's a pity that Tumidu failed to save the Ashina tribe from being exterminated in the end, and Li Jiyuan was beyond the reach of the water to quench his thirst. The Ashina tribe, which was once glorious for a time, has since been almost wiped out on the grassland.
After learning the details from Tu Midu, Xue Rengui was extremely excited, and his blood was still boiling!
They have been fleeing and wandering for a long time. They are like the noble wolf god who is a rootless floating duck. He has made his home in all directions and is homesick for others. Now that I know that Wang Shi, the main force of the imperial court, has arrived, it is undoubtedly a feeling of meeting old friends in a foreign land and meeting relatives after a long absence.
Xue Rengui decided to station and repair here safely and wait for the arrival of Li Ji's army. Then discuss the next step with him. After all, Li Ji was also the prime minister in charge of the military, and one of the top military leaders in the Tang Empire. Even Qin Mubai respected him, and Xue Rengui was looking forward to his arrival.
A few days later, the Uighur sentry sent to Qibei reported the news that Yi Nan had been pierced through the shoulder armor by Xue Rengui with an arrow and had been bedridden since he returned to his tent. His brother generals and nephews took advantage of the situation to fight for power. Speaking of rectifying the troops and going south to take revenge, they fought among themselves and attacked and killed several times.
This is great news for Xue Rengui and the Uighur people!
After the great victory in the battle on the Orkhon River that day, Xue Rengui certainly shocked the grassland and frightened the enemy and made everyone worship him. At the same time, the Huihe tribe also had a great prestige. Taking this opportunity, Tumidu, in the name of "the daughter of the Khan of the Ashina tribe", summoned the leaders of the other nine surnamed Tiele tribes in the grassland to meet and discuss the "righteous act" of raising troops to attack Yi Nan and assist the Tang Dynasty king's division. ".
The wall fell and everyone pushed back, and the Orkhon River suffered a huge defeat, which almost dampened Xue Yantuo's energy. Now that Tang Dynasty was the backbone and Tumidu was taking the lead, other tribes in the grassland who originally hated Xue Yantuo flocked to the Huihe Wen clan to discuss raising troops day and night.
Xue Rengui was naturally invited to be a guest at the table. Even Tumido was willing to sit under him and paid Xue Rengui the courtesy of an envoy from the Celestial Dynasty. Other tribal leaders and warriors even followed Xue Rengui's advice!
This is really beyond Xue Rengui's expectation!
Within ten days, the Uighur tribe actually gathered nearly 150,000 troops, all of them cavalrymen with the ninth surname Tiele. The leaders unanimously elected Xue Rengui as the commander-in-chief and organized the "Crime Alliance" army. As soon as Li Ji's army arrived, they all went north together to destroy Xue Yantuo! !
Among the 150,000 troops, there was one unit that attracted the most attention. Its leader is a female general - Ashina Blood Lotus!
Na Shi Na tribe is a noble tribe in the grassland. He Luo'u was once respectfully called "Khan", and Na Xuelian was a majestic princess. Now that the Khan has been killed by Yi Nan, the princess raises the flag to recruit troops to punish the people, which is also the right thing to do. It was in the names of Xue Lian and Xi Yan that Tumido summoned the leaders of the nine surnamed Tiele.
But no one expected that Xue Lian would not be willing to be a puppet or a flag at all. She insisted on leading 30,000 elite rebel troops as a personal force to conquer Xue Yantuo to avenge her father. If she was not given soldiers and horses, she would not be able to afford it. This rebel!
There was no other way, so the leaders had no choice but to follow him - they selected the 30,000 strongest soldiers and 50,000 good horses from the 150,000-strong army and gave them to this heroine. Later, she had no choice but to give in to his willfulness and let her join forces with Xue Rengui's Tang army to form the central army and vanguard, becoming the backbone and center of the rebel army.
Xue Rengui was secretly happy about this. Although he had no interest in or high regard for women becoming generals, Blood Lotus's "willfulness" was a great help to him. On the surface, the Allied forces certainly share the same hatred and loyalty, but in fact are they not secretly colluding with each other? After all, isn't it just to dismantle Xue Yantuo's power and break the existing structure to benefit his own tribe? Everything is okay now that the war has not started; once Xue Yantuo is defeated, it is very likely that tribes in the current allied army will attack each other for their own benefit, and even a second Yi Nan will appear.
Now that Blood Lotus has mobilized these 30,000 elites to strengthen the central army, and with Li Ji's army coming later, it will be able to completely suppress other tribes and prevent them from daring to move rashly, and the Tang Dynasty will sit firmly on the grassland. The throne of overlord.
In other words, Blood Lotus unintentionally helped Datang, and played a trick of "strong stems and weak branches" first, which can save a lot of trouble in the future - Xue Rengui gradually made a decision in his heart, and he must take this woman to Lanzhou to see him Qin Mubai fulfilled her wish... "I believe that the young marshal must know better than me how to handle the relationship with her well, and - firmly hold the troops and power in her hands!"
Twenty-eight tribes with nine surnames, an army of 150,000 and hundreds of thousands of cattle, sheep and horses, mountains of grain, grass and equipment, and a bustle of traffic and people... The Huihe tribe was bustling.
In this extremely lively and noisy environment, there is one person who is incompatible with it.
Under the blue sky, white clouds and green grassland, she was riding a snow-white horse alone, playing a continuous and melancholy tune on the Turkic eagle flute over and over again.
Ashina said in the evening.
The setting sun stretched her shadow long, and the cattle and sheep were about to turn around. She was still sitting alone on the small slope of the grassland, watching the clouds rise.
A string of horse hoofbeats came from behind, sonorous and powerful. Xiyan didn't need to look back to know that it was her sister's horse coming.
"Xi Yan, why are you doing this? Is it worth it for a man?" Xue Lian said in a somewhat aggressive tone without dismounting.
Xiyan turned to look at her sister, smiled slightly, and said nothing.
Xue Lian jumped off the horse angrily, sat down next to her, and said, "Xi Yan, there are only two of us left in the family now. I am your only relative, and you are also my last support. Tell me, you are Don’t you really like Xue Rengui?”
"..." Xi Yan's face turned red, she stared into the distance, and said softly, "But he is like the garland of the gods and the flowing clouds, just out of reach. Sister, don't worry about me. Maybe he will be here soon." If he leaves, I will forget about him.”
"Since you like it, you must work hard and pursue it fiercely!" Xue Lian said anxiously, "Sister! People in the Ashina family, even women, are brave and willful! Our ancestors, father and brother were once The real king of the grassland, don’t be so cowardly and shame them!”
"Sister, how do you think I should pursue it?" Xi Yan smiled lonely and said softly, "Luo Hua is ruthless on purpose. How can we force things to happen? Brother Xue is an upright heroic man. He only has his love in his heart. If you have a wife, you can’t let go of other women.”
"Who said that! No man would be unmoved by a peerless beauty like my sister!" Xue Lian hugged Xi Yan's shoulders, stared into her eyes and said, "Tell me, do you care about being his concubine?" Yes, concubine! If you want to follow him to the Central Plains, you have to follow the local customs! In the Central Plains, concubines have no status, and they are even bullied and sold like pigs, dogs, cattle and sheep!"
"I do not care!"
"Your words are enough!" Blood Lotus stood up and jumped on the horse's back, whipped the horse's butt and ran away - "Wait for my good news!"
At night, in Xue Rengui's felt tent.
Xue Lian was dressed in a battle robe and armor as bright as flames, with a sword hanging from her waist and a snow tassel on her head. She stood in front of Xue Rengui with her arms folded and her eyes squinting at him - "Think carefully! My sister is not a woman who cannot get married. She is seventeen years old. She has never liked any man before, so I want to fight for her!”
"Blood Lotus... How can we force this kind of thing?" Xue Rengui shook his head in embarrassment, "My sister is indeed very beautiful, gentle and kind, but... I already have a wife, and..."
"And what? You are a grown man, why are you such a mother-in-law!" Xue Lian said angrily.
"Moreover, I am now a general commanding troops outside. I only serve the public good and dare not be selfish." Xue Rengui said, "If I let the soldiers know that I am still willing to marry and take concubines at this time, wouldn't it chill their minds?"
"Oh, you mean... If your brothers are allowed to take wives and concubines here, you will have no objection, right? - That's no problem!" Xue Lian spread his hands and said, "I know you guys The women of the Central Plains are warm and kind, but the daughters of the grassland are not bad either! Tomorrow I will ask my uncle to issue an order for all the unmarried women from all the tribes with the surname Jiu Tiele to come and marry you brothers. Marriage between our tribes!"
Xue Rengui was stunned for a moment, "Don't be ridiculous!"
"Isn't this nonsense!" Blood Lotus raised her willow eyebrows and widened her almond-shaped eyes, "Is it rare for Han and Hu to marry each other? Besides, it is completely voluntary and not forced! If there are so many Tiele women marrying you, Wouldn't it be great for the soldiers in this army to strengthen the friendly relations between the Tang Dynasty and the various grassland tribes? Isn't this also of great benefit to the Tang Dynasty - I believe your court will not object!"
"..." Xue Rengui was speechless for a moment, thinking to himself, this Blood Lotus is too smart and sharp, thinking about everything, making it irrefutable!
"If you don't have any objections, I'll do it right away. It's just a matter of words!" Xue Lian clapped his hands and prepared to leave.
"Wait a minute!" Xue Rengui stopped her and said solemnly, "In the final analysis, our entire army is actually on a journey to escape. How can we be so reckless? You'd better take it easy, at least wait. Let’s talk about it when Li Ji comes. I’m willing to act according to his advice.”
"Promising!" Xue Lian stamped her foot angrily, "Didn't you say you were Qin Mubai's man? Why did you listen to Li Ji again? Don't worry about him!"
"..." Xue Rengui was speechless again.
"If you can't make a decision anymore, I'll tell you one more thing." Xue Lian was obviously prepared. He smiled mysteriously, approached Xue Rengui and said, "If you are willing to marry my sister, I will give you a gift." A big dowry!”
"Dowry is also popular on the grassland?" Xue Rengui couldn't help but laugh, "Forget it, although Xue is poor, he has no shortage of money."
"You are wrong." Xue Lian protracted his voice and said seriously, "This dowry is neither gold, silver nor cattle and sheep, but - 30,000 elite soldiers!"
"!!!" Xue Rengui was suddenly stunned!
"Are you tempted?" Xue Lian's chiseled lips slightly raised in a sly smile, with two shallow dimples showing at the corners of her fair mouth. "I know that only something like this can impress you - even if you don't like me now. Sister, it doesn't matter. I completely believe that it won't take long for you to change your attitude, because my sister is the gentlest and kindest woman in the world. Now, you must accept her and not hurt her. For her happiness, I will! No matter what the cost - including these 30,000 elite soldiers, including killing anyone who harms her!"
Xue Rengui frowned and nodded slowly: "I can give it a try. But as you know, I already have a wife..."
"This is not a problem! - You just need to like her, love her deeply, and treat her well! Otherwise I will!..." Xue Lian raised a finger, almost pointed at the tip of Xue Rengui's nose and drank a few words, then put down his hand and gently He nodded and whispered, "I'm sorry, Brother Xue, I only have my sister as my only relative... Please forgive me for my gaffe and excess! - Leave the wedding to me to prepare. This will be the grandest wedding on the grassland. , even the noble Wolf God and Xianxia from Jinshan will come to visit and bless you!"
Ten days later... The sky was clear, the sky was clear, the clouds were floating, and the orchestras were singing and dancing in unison.
In the tooth tent of the Huihe tribe, an unprecedentedly grand wedding was held for Xue Rengui and the princess of the Ashina tribe. The leaders of the nine Tiele tribes and the people gathered to watch the ceremony. It was very lively!
Coincidentally, less than halfway through the wedding, Li Ji personally led 100,000 Tang troops to arrive, adding another element of happiness!
Xue Rengui and the soldiers of the Tang Army welcomed Li Ji's army, and they all cried with joy!
And Li Ji had long heard about the feats of Xue Rengui and others, and was quite moved! Immediately, he was invited as a guest of honor by Tumido and others, and he also presided over the wedding of Xue Rengui and Xi Yan.
An army of 250,000 people gathered together with the Huihe tribe!
When the Xue Yantuo tribe in the north heard the news, people were in panic and turmoil. Yi Nan fainted several times when he heard about it when he was seriously ill, but the fighting in the tents of the teeth has not stopped. The Xue Yantuo tribe, which was once prosperous for a while, was like a dead leaf swaying in the wind.
The celebrations and gatherings lasted for three days, and the Huihe tribe became a sea of joy.
But the groom, Xue Rengui, who should be the most happy, doesn't seem so excited. Lying slightly drunk in the brand new felt tent, looking at the gentle bride who was shyly dressing up and pouring sweet milk wine under the red candle, he always felt a little absent-minded and thoughtful.
"Husband..." She finally plucked up the courage to call out, and Xiyan's face turned as red as a midsummer grape.
"Sorry, please wait a moment, I have something important to do and I'll be right back!"
Unexpectedly, Xue Rengui took off his groom's clothes, opened the felt tent and ran out.
Xiyan stood stunned for a long time with two glasses of wine, then gently placed the wine glasses on the small round table, then carefully put the traditional red hijab of the Central Plains on her phoenix crown, and sat quietly beside the bed. .
"I am willing to spend my whole life in exchange for your sincere treatment, so why rush for this moment? Go ahead, I will wait for you to come back..."
Xue Rengui went directly to the camp of Wang Shi, the main force of the Tang army, and asked to see Li Ji.
Li Ji was naturally surprised. As soon as Xue Rengui entered the tent, he smiled and said, "What's wrong, groom? Could it be that he was kicked out of the house by the bride for snoring and is homeless?"
"Commander Li, please stop making fun of me..." Xue Rengui smiled bitterly and said, "General Li came to you to discuss important military affairs."
"Well, you tell me." Li Ji was not a glib person, so he asked Xue Rengui to sit down and got straight to the point.
Xue Rengui said: "The general has been thinking about it these past few days. Since the imperial court has approved the war between Lanzhou and Tubo and dispatched troops to Jiannan, Liaodong, and the northern grasslands, I think a series of wars are about to begin. At the moment, I think Lanzhou is under the greatest pressure. After the fall of Gaochang, the coalition forces of Tibet and Turkic Beiting are bound to launch a large-scale attack on Puchanghai and Lanyang Passes. At the same time, the main force of Gar Qinling will also officially attack Dafeichuan. . Lanzhou is surrounded by enemies from both sides, but its troops are few, and the most elite troops are now thousands of miles away in the grassland... I am really worried that the young commander will not be able to hold on!"
"Your worries are very reasonable." Li Ji frowned and said, "To be honest, even I feel a cold sweat for Qin Mubai. Lanzhou is now facing a siege of hundreds of thousands of troops, and he has many soldiers on his hands. Even though your majesty supported Qin Mubai in supporting the main battle in Lanzhou against all odds, he also faced the same problem - you have also seen that nearly 200,000 troops from Guanzhong were mobilized to the south. The Northern War already seems a bit empty. Moreover, in order to cope with the logistical supply of hundreds of thousands of troops, hundreds of thousands of civilians have been recruited... This expenditure of manpower and material resources is quite staggering. It can be said that the imperial court is almost exhausted now! His family and the troops in Guanzhong are also very weak. Your Majesty, there is really nothing else he can do to support Qin Mubai. His greatest power and freedom!”
Li Ji obviously meant something in his words. Xue Rengui was naturally a smart man and couldn't help but feel enlightened. He whispered: "Marshal Li, you mean... the young marshal might recruit troops to expand his army in Lanzhou by himself?"
"I didn't say that." Li Ji smiled enigmatically, "Moreover, even if he did this, the newly recruited sergeants will not be able to become effective without training. At most, they can only be a temporary solution. Now , what Qin Mubai and Lanzhou need most may be a surprise army... "
"This strange force must move behind the Tibetan army and attack the enemy with the defenders of Yuyang Second Pass!" Xue Rengui said with a fist.
"Wonderful." Li Ji raised his eyebrows with a look of approval, "Qin Sanlang often told me what a genius Xue Rengui was in both civil and military affairs. Looking at it today, it is true!"
"Commander Li is so complimentary!" Xue Rengui bowed his hands humbly and said, "I came here just to discuss this matter with the Commander-in-Chief."
"Just say what you think."
"The last general wanted to... lead this Gaochang army to turn back the way it came. Unexpectedly, he turned around and fought again. He recaptured Gaochang and attacked and killed Yuyang Erguan. With the defenders of Yuyang Erguan, he formed an encirclement and defeated the enemy. Army!" Xue Rengui said.
Li Ji frowned and pondered for a moment, then nodded slowly and said, "Rengui, I heard... you have also studied the military art of Duke Wei, right?"
"Well, I have to thank Marshal Qin for not giving up. He once gave some advice to the generals."
"That's right." Li Ji smiled meaningfully, "Wei Gong can be said to be a rare military god throughout the ages. The essence of his military use lies in the 'unpredictable'." Encircling Wei and rescuing Zhao can be said to have taught you the art of war. But as the saying goes, a good woman can't make a meal without rice - now after successive fierce battles, your troops have less than 10,000 men left and many are injured. , is already a tired army. Don't talk about recapturing Gaochang and attacking Tubo. The desert spanning eight hundred miles and the tens of thousands of Hulu tribe's defenders are mountains that you can't climb. "
"Commander, the general is not a reckless person. Since he dares to propose such a bold idea, he is certainly confident!"
"Oh? Tell me, where does your confidence come from?" Li Ji was immediately interested.
"My newlywed wife has brought a rich dowry..." Xue Rengui frowned with a look of guilt on his face. He endured it for a while and said, "That is, 30,000 elite Huqi!"
"What?" This time, even Li Ji was surprised!
"That's right." 30,000 elite cavalry selected from among them!”
"Is this really happening?" Li Ji almost didn't believe his ears, and he said in surprise as his face remained calm and his heart did not beat.
Xue Rengui smiled bitterly: "Commander, do you think the general is the kind of person who likes to joke and joke?"
Li Ji took a deep breath and nodded heavily: "That's so, great!... Rengui, you are really a divine general and a blessed general! Originally, I only agreed to marry you because you were trying to appease the Huihe and the tribes on the grassland. Shi Na Xiyan. Although that woman is very nice, I can see that you are not a womanizer and have little interest in him. You agreed to this brown marriage not because of yourself, but because of the overall situation. I'm so relieved. I believe that when I report back to the court, the Holy Emperor will be very happy and praise you very much - I didn't expect that you actually recruited 30,000 elite cavalry! This... Haha! Even I think it's a bit unbelievable! , led a brigade of remnants to travel thousands of miles and went through bloody battles, it is already very good to be alive until now! You can actually defeat the Yinan Weizhen Grassland, gather 150,000 allied troops to fight against Xue Yantuo, and also gain fame and wealth, and make a lot of money! Bing—haha! You are just as amazing as Qin Mubai!”
"Commander! Marshal!..." Xue Rengui, already blushing in embarrassment, said hurriedly, "Let's get down to business - you say, if the last general led his 10,000 Tang troops and 30,000 Tiele cavalry, he would turn back and surround Wei to rescue Zhao. , is this feasible?”
"It's completely feasible!" Li Ji said decisively, "Actually, you don't need to tell me, I have been thinking about this issue for a long time. In the Tang Dynasty, the biggest crisis and turning point are all in Lanzhou. The reason why I ordered my troops to travel day and night Rushing to Mobei, you hope to put an end to Xue Yantuo's rebellion as soon as possible and then cross Jinshan to attack Tubo and help the Western Regions. Unexpectedly, you almost killed Xue Yantuo by yourself. Now, you don't have to at all. Pay attention to Xue Yantuo's matter, lead your Jiujiu Iron Army with confidence and boldly, and go do what you should do!"
Xue Rengui’s blood suddenly boiled!
Haoran stood up, cupped his fists and bowed heavily: "Thank you, Marshal Li, for your advice! - General, we will start the campaign tomorrow!"
Li Ji frowned slightly, "Aren't you a newlywed? Wouldn't it be better to abandon the bride and run away with her dowry?"
Xue Rengui was stunned for a moment, then smiled bitterly, and then said: "If Xue stays here for one more day, tens of millions more people may die in Lanzhou, the Tang Dynasty will be in more crisis, and the young commander will be under more pressure. I can’t worry about it anymore! Since Ashina Xiyang has married me, she must understand and support me in doing this - otherwise, I would rather get married today and give up tomorrow!”
"Then what are you waiting for?" Li Ji raised the corner of his mouth and showed a smile of approval, "It's rare for Chunxiao to go back and persuade and comfort your poor beautiful mother! Tomorrow at two o'clock in the morning, I and the Tumi of the Huihe tribe will I will make great progress together for you!"
"promise!!!"