Jinshan, the prairie nomads who use the wolf as their totem, believes that this is the place where the wolf god lives, so they call it "Wolf Mountain" and regard it as a holy place in their hearts.
Between Jinshan Mountain and the Mobei Prairie, there is a vast desert stretching for nearly a thousand miles, commonly known as the "Eight Hundred Deserts". It is also the geographical watershed of the Eastern and Western Turks.
"We can see Jinshan Mountain." Xue Rengui looked into the distance, looked back, and sighed, "Unexpectedly, we have crossed the eight hundred deserts again..."
"Brother..." Ashina Xuelian couldn't help but be confused and asked, "Since the first day I stepped into this desert, I have seen you and the soldiers under your command feeling heavy and depressed. I have always wanted to ask The reason, but it’s hard to say. Now that we have left the desert, can you tell me the reason?”
"Actually, it's nothing." Xue Rengui said calmly, "Not long ago, I led 20,000 Western Expedition troops to break through and go northward. We fought dozens of battles along the way, and now we have suffered more than half of the casualties. I remember that we were at the foot of Jinshan Mountain, fighting against the Western Turks Hulu After a bloody battle with tens of thousands of troops, we managed to break out and escape into the Eight Hundred Desert. At that time, we were short of food, horses, and supplies, and even drinking water was difficult to find in the desert because we did not receive timely supplies. After recuperation and treatment, they all died in the desert. At that time, we were worried that the Western Turkic army would come to pursue them and they were eager to escape. We would not have time to bury them in peace. At most, we would use some rocks and branches to cover their bodies all the way back to their hometown. Come, we see that the bodies of many soldiers have been turned into bones, and many of them were destroyed by wild beasts... "
"No wonder..." Xuelian also sighed and said, "Actually, I should have thought of it earlier. What else can make someone like my brother sentimental?"
"Really?" Xue Rengui smiled slightly and said no more.
At this time, several sentries from the front came back and reported to Xue Rengui that the front was about to enter the territory of the Hulu tribe, and their military camps could already be seen; depending on the situation, the Hulu people also discovered that the army on this side of the desert was approaching. Gather troops and horses.
"Brother, do you want to fight them again?" Xue Lian said, "Previously you only had 10,000 to 20,000 remaining soldiers, but you were still able to kill nine in and nine out of his formation, and no one could stop it and shocked the enemy. Today This time, with the help of my younger sister and her 40,000 elite Huihe cavalry, we will definitely defeat him in one blow!"
"Don't be anxious." Xue Rengui said with a face as deep as water, "Today is different from the past. I was fleeing then, but now I am borrowing a way. Moreover, the sun and the moon are changing, and the situation is changing. I don't know what the Western Turks Beiting is doing to me in the Tang Dynasty. What kind of position is this? Don’t use force rashly.”
"Oh, you should be polite first and then attack, right?" Xue Lian said with a smile, "Yes, the high officials and generals in the Central Plains all like to get one."
Xue Rengui was startled for a moment, then smiled meaningfully: "You are right, I learned this from a high-ranking official. That high-ranking official is the one you are rushing to see after traveling thousands of miles. people."
"Dare you make fun of me?" Xue Lian's almond-shaped eyes were round and her eyebrows were flying, and she was about to change her face.
Xue Rengui laughed loudly, "Don't be fooling around. Look, there is smoke and dust ahead, and it seems that there are soldiers and horses coming."
Sure enough, within the time of burning incense, a large formation of cavalry was formed a few miles ahead, numbering approximately 60,000 to 70,000 people. On this side, Xue Rengui and Xue Lian commanded two Han Hui troops, numbering 50,000. The two sides were lined up, all cavalry, and it seemed that a big battle was about to begin.
The soldiers and horses of the Hulu tribe were in position, but they did not rush into action. Instead, they ran out with a rider holding the command flag, came to Xue Rengui's formation, and said: "Marshal Huluwu, the leader of our army, invites General Xue Rengui, General Xue, in front of the formation answer."
"Please." Xue Rengui agreed, and with only one flag envoy, he rode forward alone, even Fang Tian's painted halberd was stuck on the ground.
"Brother, be careful!" Xue Lian reminded, "How can you go forward alone like this? No matter what, you must bring weapons!"
"It's okay." Xue Rengui turned around, smiled calmly, and walked forward.
On the other side, only two people came out. Huluwu, the chief of the Hulu tribe and one of the two marshals of the Western Turks Beiting, also has a flag envoy.
The two stood side by side, Xue Rengui clasping his fists, and Hu Luwu stroking his chest and nodding as a greeting.
"General Xue, there is an old saying in the Central Plains, which is to practice courtesy first and then attack with force." Hu Luwu, who spoke Chinese quite fluently, said, "I was ordered to intercept and pursue you before, which was my duty; but why did you go there again today? And come back? Are you really going to have trouble with my Hulu tribe?"
"That's absolutely not what I meant." Xue Rengui said, "If this were the case, I would not have released the captured prince. I know that your Hulu tribe became an enemy of the Tang Dynasty due to pressure from Beiting, so I also I don’t blame you. Today, I’m just here to take advantage of the situation. If the general agrees, please get out of the way and let me wait.
"Excuse me?" Hulu Wu obviously let out a long breath, with a smile on his face. He once again stroked his chest and bent down to salute Xue Rengui, and said, "Hulu Department must be tolerated. Originally, Beiting I have already given up my relationship with Tubo and am now on good terms with the Tang Dynasty. Our department has no reason to be an enemy of Xue Rengui anymore. Not only do I want to give way to General Xue, but I am also willing to ask General Xue to lead his troops to stay in our department. Today, let me show my loyalty as a landlord!”
"Beiting has reconciled with the Tang Dynasty?" Xue Rengui was surprised and thought: How is this possible? Beiting was the culprit who killed the marshal. Even if the court agreed, how could the marshal forget this bloody feud? ... By the way, the purpose of Beiting abandoning Tubo and repairing the Tang Dynasty is nothing more than to sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight; at this time, the young commander is facing a powerful Tibetan enemy, so it is also a good strategy to temporarily tolerate Beiting to reduce one enemy. In this case, why don't I follow the Young Marshal's wishes, try my best to get Beiting's help, and use them to help me deal with Tubo
"Since the marshal is determined to win with his fists, Xue will not refuse!" Xue Rengui, who had figured out the twists and turns, said cheerfully, "It just so happens that our army has just crossed the eight-hundred-year-old desert, and we are exhausted and need to rest."
"That's great!—General Xue, please!"
That night, Xue Rengui's troops were stationed in the territory of the Hulu tribe. Huluwu really showed his kindness as a landlord, killing cattle and sheep and entertaining them with great hospitality for three days. Only then did Xue Rengui find out that Marshal Beiting, whom he shot during the Battle of Tianshan, was lucky enough to survive but was seriously injured. He can only rest in bed and cannot take care of military affairs. Although Hulu Wu was the deputy marshal second only to Ni Shuchui, Yazhang did not hand over the military power to him, the "foreign chief" guarding the frontier, but firmly dragged him to Beiting Khan Yugu Shehe. In the hands of his sons who don't know how to fight.
For this reason, Huluwu was quite critical. He complained to Xue Rengui more than once after drinking, saying that he and the whole clan sacrificed their lives for Yugushe, but in the end, he was still regarded as an outsider and a watchdog.
Xue Rengui could smell the flavor in his words - he wanted to say that instead of working for Beiting, it would be better to join the Tang Dynasty!
So Xue Rengui struck while the iron was hot and told Huluwu that the Tang Dynasty had sent Li Ji to lead the army to attack Xue Yantuo in the north, which would lead to peace in the near future. By then, the Tang Dynasty will surely dominate Mobei, and all the Tiele and Turkic Uighur tribes will surely surrender one by one. The Hulu tribe is located between Beiting and Mobei. Since it is the throat of the Western Turks, it is the first battleground for military strategists. If one day the war between Datang and Beiting resumes, then the Hulu tribe will undoubtedly be the first to be devastated by the war!
Xue Rengui told the truth. Huluwu also knew in his heart that it was natural for Datang and Tubo to "fight between two tigers, and one of them would be injured." However, no one dared to break up the fight - so Beiting temporarily repaired with Datang. Another important reason is that Beiting's vitality was greatly damaged in the Tianshan battle, and Nishuchuu, the main pillar, fell and was seriously injured and unable to function. Now that the Tang Dynasty has invaded Mobei, sooner or later it will advance westward to clean up Beiting - no matter what, a blood feud has been forged between Beiting and the Tang Dynasty, which cannot be resolved by making peace!
Since Huluwu can be the chief of a clan and the marshal of a country, he naturally has good vision and is not stupid. After several heart-to-heart talks with Xue Rengui, he made a bold decision—secretly leaving Beiting and joining the Tang Dynasty!
Xue Rengui was naturally overjoyed, but he also knew that this kind of matter should be slow rather than urgent, and should be kept secret rather than exposed. It is unrealistic to expect Huluwu to agree to join the Tang Dynasty now. After all, Li Ji's army is still fighting Xue Yantuo thousands of miles away in Qibei; Qin Mubai in Guanxi is still fighting with the Tubo people; the Beiting family is still the dominant one in the Western Region. !
So Huluwu made an agreement with Xue Rengui that on the day when the king of the Tang Dynasty arrived at Jinshan, it would be the time for his entire Hulu tribe to surrender! Before that, this could only be a secret agreement between him and Xue Rengui. Xue Rengui said that he was just a general under the command of Qin Mubai, the head coach of the Kansai Army, and could not make decisions on such important matters. Unless Hu Luwu writes down a document and establishes a contract, it will only count when Xue Rengui returns to Lanzhou and hands the contract to Qin Mubai for his approval.
Hu Luwu readily agreed and immediately wrote down the contract document and gave it to Xue Rengui, who took it to Qin Mubai.
The Tang Hui coalition rested for five days in the Hulu tribe before leaving and advancing towards the Tianshan Mountains in the south. Their troops pointed directly at the throat of the Western Regions - Gaochang Kingdom!
On the way, Xue Lian, who was puzzled, asked Xue Rengui, "Brother, what is Huluwu's plan? His hospitality to us these days is simply more warm and considerate than we were to you at that time, like slaves Serving the master is obviously trying to please you. Does he want to leave Beiting and join the Tang Dynasty?"
"That's the intention. It's quite obvious and can be seen at a glance." Xue Rengui said with a smile, "But he thought he was doing it very secretly."
"So he really mentioned this to you? Did you agree to it?"
"I have agreed for the time being, but I can't make the decision. Marshal Qin must make the decision." Xue Rengui said.
"Ha! Why don't you leave Marshal Qin alone?" Xue Lian curled his lips and said, "To be honest, he is thousands of miles away now and can't even care about your life or death. There are still 10,000 Western Expeditions left. You fought for your life to retain the army. There are also 40,000 Huihe cavalry. Last time, you defeated Yi Nan and made it easy for Li Ji to defeat Xue Yantuo. This is all due to you alone! Who in the Western Regions and Mobei knows him, Marshal Qin, but doesn’t know you, Xue Rengui? - What else can’t you do?”
"There is an ancient saying in the Central Plains, which is called 'father, father, son, king, king, minister'. Do you understand?" Xue Rengui said with a smile.
"I don't understand, I can't speak even when I read it. Although my mother is Han, she didn't teach me such profound knowledge." Xue Lian shook his head.
"Let me explain it to you..." Xue Rengui smiled slightly and said, "Even if you live to be eighty years old, you are still your parents' daughter."
"..." Xue Lian was silent for a while, then sighed and nodded, "I understand!... You men, especially the men of the Han family, are so weird!"
"You won't understand." Xue Rengui looked up into the distance, looking at the vast Tianshan Mountains in the distance, and sighed leisurely to himself, "Just like many people don't understand, why did the commander do that in the first place..."
"Report to General Xue!" A sentry horse galloped over and reported, "More than ten riders were found at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains ahead. The people who came claimed to be the trusted envoys sent by Shabolo Yehu Khan in Nanting, and they came here specially. Welcome General Xue!"
"Strange things happen one after another." Xue Rengui couldn't help but laugh, "I just sent Hulu Wu in Beiting, and the envoy of the Khan in Nanting came again! - Are all Western Turks' sense of smell so sensitive?"
All the soldiers of the Tang army laughed together, while Xue Lian was confused and eagerly asked Xue Rengui what he meant by this.
"Tianshan is the territory of Beiting, but an envoy from South Ting appears here. Isn't it interesting?" Xue Rengui said with a smile, "Come here, invite the envoy! - Let's see what he wants!"