In the early autumn, the grasslands and trees turned yellow, and the flat and open wild scenery was lonely, but the war horses had been fattened and strong after a spring and summer with luxuriant water and grass. The warriors on the prairie will choose to follow their chiefs and hold large-scale safari in the boundless wilderness at this time.
Of course, if the tribal leaders on the grassland want to launch a war to expand the territory, now is also the best time of the year. Mobei has never been a peaceful place, large and small tribes are always fighting endlessly.
When the times are bad, the cattle and sheep are not fat enough in spring and summer to survive the long winter. The tribe will choose to launch a war in order to plunder enough supplies to survive the severe cold.
When the times are good, the ambitious tribal chiefs will also choose to launch wars, allowing the tribe's brave cavalry to expand their territory and obtain more cattle and sheep property.
This kind of war will not only happen between rival tribes, even a tribe with a name is full of various mergers until a real hero emerges and unifies large tracts of grassland.
Only heroes can bring enough wealth to the tribe, and only heroes can bring real peace to the grassland. The grassland tribes worship heroes from the bottom of their hearts and go deep into their bones.
To become a hero, one must first become an invincible warrior. At this level, one can win the respect of the tribe; and once a warrior who advocates fighting and pioneering has wisdom, he may win the worship of everyone.
Undoubtedly, Yelu Abaoji is such a hero.
This is true for the Khitan Eight Divisions, and it is also true for the entire grassland.
On the grasslands thousands of miles from east to west, the horseshoe prints of his warriors have been left over the years. Because of his existence, tribes, large and small, have been unified and united under the same banner. This big flag that is flying in every corner of the grassland now has three big bloody characters written on it: Khitan Kingdom.
Unlike the heroes who conquered the Mobei grassland before, Yelu Abaoji was the first hero who established a complete national system on the grassland. Under his command, the Khitan warriors became the well-deserved masters of this grassland, and for the first time, besides obeying the tribe and obeying the strong, they had a collective consciousness of allegiance to the king.
Xilou City is the center where Yelu Abaoji ruled the grassland.
Here, therefore, has become a sacred city in the minds of grassland people.
Under the clear sky and the breeze blowing, a cavalry team full of prey came back screaming. As soon as they approached the camp, the warriors held up all kinds of prey and showed off their achievements to their companions who greeted them.
The leader, Yelu Abaoji, was wearing a black sable hat, and there was not a single prey hanging on his horse, but the guards behind him had the most prey in their hands.
After getting off the horse, Yelu Abaoji flicked his whip and approached a majestic white felt tent with a smile on his face. There were already people waiting in front of the tent. The leader was a young woman in white clothes and a red cloak. Her lips were red and her teeth were white, and her eyes were like stars. She didn't have the roughness of a grassland woman at all. She was as delicate and beautiful as the moon in the sky.
"Yue Liduo, you are getting more and more beautiful. The bravest warrior on the grassland will willingly bow down in front of your skirt after seeing you!" Yelu Abaoji gestured exaggeratedly, attracting the beauty's shyness and anger .
Yelu Abaoji, who was laughing loudly, picked up the Yue Liduo he was talking about, and walked into the tent with a big laugh. When the maids on the left and right saw it, they understood and didn't follow in. Instead, they helped put down the curtain.
On this grassland, everyone can praise Yue Liduo's beauty, but Yelu Abaoji is the only one who can enjoy her beauty.
The brightest pearl on the grassland should be matched with the bravest hero. This is a rule that no one can break.
When Yelu Abaoji returned to the camp, the sun was still high in the sky, and when he and Yue Liduo walked out of the yurt again, the galaxy had already illuminated the night sky.
There were bonfires piled up in the camp, and the warriors who came out to participate in the safari grilled their trophies amidst laughter.
In front of the largest bonfire, there were the most crowds, and the scene was the most lively, but the wide main seat was left out. Although the food placed in front of it was not dazzling, the mountain of wine and meat was not small.
The appearance of Yelu Abaoji caused cheers. He just waved his hand to signal to the warriors to continue the excitement, and he sat down in the spacious seat.
He casually picked up a grilled golden and fat leg of lamb, opened his mouth to tear off a long and slender piece of meat, stuffed it in his mouth and chewed, while Yue Liduo, whose face was full of pink, poured wine gently and served him.
After eating a leg of lamb, Yelu Abaoji also drank a jar of wine, Yue Liduo carefully selected a piece of venison, cut it into small pieces and handed it to him, eyes full of tenderness. , but he stretched out his hand and pushed it away.
Under Yue Liduo's puzzled and curious eyes, Yelu Abaoji suddenly sighed, and said in a waned way: "You know, Yue Liduo, Li Ye put down the Tang Dynasty, and now the world of the Tang Dynasty, he is the one who said it all." Forget it. And he also regained Hexi, and completely defeated the Tubo people... Heh, that was a great victory in a foreign war that the Tang Dynasty hadn't seen in a hundred years!"
Seeing Yelu Abaoji's sorrow, Yue Liduo blinked her big black shiny eyes and asked doubtfully, "What does the Tang Dynasty have to do with us
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"We graze on the grasslands, and they farm on the land. As long as we don't go south, aren't the two irrelevant? Since ancient times, the Central Plains Dynasty has never taken the initiative to go north. It was because of countering our invasion that they launched wars again and again. .”
Yelu Abaoji drank a large bowl of wine, wiped his mouth and said calmly, "War is inevitable."
Seeing Yue Liduo's bewildered face, Yelu Abaoji continued: "The grassland is barren, and the property we can harvest is basically only cattle and sheep. These alone are not enough for us to live on. Cloth, porcelain, tea, ironware, etc. We also need it, but there are too few on the grassland.
"Even if it is cattle and sheep, it is not enough every year. When the year is bad, too many people will freeze to death in winter, and many people will starve to death in the coming year. Many tribes brazenly launch plundering wars to prevent their people from starving to death. , to rob other tribes.
"If they win, he can get enough food. If they draw, they will consume a lot of people and save a lot of food. The remaining food may be enough to eat.
"If they are defeated, their tribe will disappear. Do you know what that means when the tribe disappears in the calamity year? Those people are not reduced to slaves, but abandoned in the wilderness, starving to death!"
Yue Liduo opened her bright eyes wide.
Some of Yelu Abaoji's words were known to her, some she only knew one part but not the other, and some she had never heard of. She has a noble status, and she can be regarded as a person who is well-clothed and well-fed on the grassland. She doesn't know much about the life of the herdsmen and small tribes at the bottom.
This was the first time she had heard that a tribe launched a war to consume their own tribe's population so that there would be enough food to eat! Even if this is not the main purpose, as long as there is such an intention, even if it is only a little bit, it will make people feel cold all over the body just thinking about it.
Yelu Abaoji looked at the night sky in the south, and said with serious eyes: "When the grassland is not unified, once a disaster occurs, it is natural to suffer internal losses, but when the grassland is unified, there is no hero who can tolerate his shepherds being starved to death on a large scale. .
"There are not enough cattle and sheep, what should we do? We are used to war. Apart from grazing ourselves, we will only rob other people's cattle and sheep. So before the severe winter comes, we will call on the shepherds to step on their own horses, pick up their own bows and arrows, and gather together Use troops to the south to plunder the wealthy Han people and raise enough supplies and food for the winter."
Hearing this, Yue Liduo nodded.
At this moment, she understood the root cause of the prairie cavalry's continuous southward invasion.
If you don't want to be starved to death, you can only choose to mount a horse and fight. As long as the Central Plains dynasty is not particularly strong and has the slightest chance of winning, the predatory wars of the grassland tribes going south will not stop.
After all, the grassland is still too barren.
Survival is an even more fundamental proposition.
But another question arose in her mind, "But this year is a good year. There are plenty of cattle and sheep on the grasslands, so winter is not a problem at all. There is no need for us to start a war and fight against the Tang Dynasty, which has already settled down in the country."
Yelu Abaoji gave a wry smile, touched Yue Liduo's hand and said, "But Li Ye knows that we will still use troops to the south after all. As long as this possibility still exists, he will not sit idly by. Heroes on the grassland will not watch Even if his shepherds are starved to death, the hero of the Central Plains will not ignore his people being burned, killed and looted.
"So, when he has the ability to deal with us, he will definitely solve this scourge that will always come. No matter from which point of view, the sooner the better, preferably before we launch another plundering war. In this way , his people will not suffer losses, and his taxes will not be reduced.”
Speaking of this, Yelu Abaoji drank another bowl of wine.
Yue Liduo thought for a while, and said seriously: "But the Tang Dynasty has not used troops against us for many years. They are all defensive. Now that there are heroes like you in the grassland, the Khitan Kingdom is unprecedentedly strong and far from being unified in name. In fact, the tribal situation is comparable. Does Li Ye have the guts to start a war with us?"
This question made Yelu Abaoji silent for a moment.
But he wasn't thinking, but lost in memory.
Yue Liduo didn't disturb him, just watched him quietly and waited.
Finally, Yelu Abaoji came back to his senses, smiled, and said: "Li Ye is different, he will definitely use troops against us. And he should be impatient. He is a rare hero in the world, he once told me In a word, how can you allow others to snore on the side of the couch!
"The strength of Khitan will put pressure on the Tang Dynasty. He will not sit idly by and let the leading country become strong. Every hero will not let the leading country become strong. Strongness means threat. Therefore, there must be a big war between the north and the south, or even Decisive battle. Just like what the 'Tian Khan' did in the early Tang Dynasty, he defeated the Turks and declared the rule over the grassland.
"A hero like Li Ye must very much hope to reproduce the glorious achievements of 'Tian Khan'. People in the Tang Dynasty worshiped their ancestors, and the achievements of their ancestors were their lifelong goals. However, those who still have a bit of bravery and blood in their bodies will not achieve this goal in a day. , will not relax for a day.”
Yue Liduo finally understood that the war between the Khitan Kingdom and the Tang Dynasty was inevitable and imminent.
From the moment the Tang Dynasty was pacified, it was announced that the North-South War had entered the preparation stage and was about to break out.
...
"A warrior on the grassland never waits for the enemy to enter the tent before thinking of picking up his bow and arrow. It will be too late then, right?"
Yue Liduo stared at Yelu Abaoji with bright eyes, "Eagle on the grassland, you are already making preparations for war, maybe you are already ready, aren't you?"
Yelu Abaoji laughed heartily, and hugged Yue Liduo into his arms, grabbed the plump place a few times, and the laughter became louder.
"You know, Yue Liduo, people in the Tang Dynasty said that Li Ye regained Hexi within a few months, and turned around and put down Shuzhong without bloodshed, which is comparable to the glory of the prosperous Tang Dynasty! Putting nonsense like ZTE, they all say now that this is a sign of the coming of the Great Tang Dynasty in the future!
"Now, every Tang person is sharpening their knives, wishing to raise their knives and ride their horses immediately to open up the territory. The generals of the Tang Army in the Youzhou frontier have begun to send scouts to cross the Great Wall to explore the depths of the grassland! What is this? ? This is Datang showing his ferocious fangs, sharp claws, and fierce eyes again!
"Like the wolves on the prairie, they are going to hunt for prey all over the world and expand their territory! You say, at this time, as the biggest shepherd on the prairie, how can I, Yelu Abaoji, be ready to go to war? Prepare?"
Yue Liduo lay in Yelu Abaoji's arms, resting her head on the other's broad and firm chest, her whole body was tender and tender, as if she wanted to melt into the other's body.
She said in a tired voice: "No matter how vicious the wolves are, if they meet an excellent hunter, they will only end up being shot by bows and arrows."
Yelu Abaoji nodded again and again: "You are right. Excellent hunters know that the best time to shoot wolves is before they attack—especially when they are not strong enough to kill them early. The possibility of beasts is the most obvious."
Speaking of this, Yelu Abaoji picked up Yue Liduo, who was already limp all over, and turned around to walk into the white felt tent again.
But as soon as he took a step, he stopped there, put Yue Liduo down, and said to her: "You go to the tent and wait for me."
Yue Liduo responded meekly, blushed and ran away with her head down.
Next to Yelu Abao's fuselage, an old man with a black hood and a snow-white beard appeared.
"If the shepherds find that the wolves are too strong, they will not fight alone. It is the best choice to gather more shepherds on horseback and bows to hunt." The old man deliberately lowered his voice, like a night owl .
Yelu Abaoji sat down again, waved his hand casually, motioned for the old man to sit down, and said nonchalantly, "Didn't the Divine Cult always claim that they don't need help?"
The old man carefully selected a jug of wine, took an extraordinarily clean silver cup, sat on the felt, poured himself a small half of the cup slowly, put it in front of his nose and sniffed it carefully, then showed a satisfied expression, and wrote lightly: "Of course the gods don't need helpers, but you do."
Yelu Abaoji stretched out his hand to the side, and a maid filled his wine bowl, "The Tang Dynasty has just been established in the country, so is it so powerful?"
The old man drank the wine, aftertaste for a long time, and then said slowly: "The Moon God Sect is gone, and the Shimen is also down. Do you still think the Tang Dynasty is not strong enough? Li Ye is not an ordinary hero. No matter how much we value him, we will not be ashamed." Yes. You have suffered losses at his hands twice, and you still don’t understand the truth?”
"Okay, then who do we need as a helper?" Yelu Abaoji became sensible when he thought of the only two defeats in his life.
"All the countries around the Tang Dynasty will be our helpers. The prosperous Tang Dynasty once brought them too deep a nightmare. No one hopes that such a Tang Dynasty will appear again. It is a disaster for all of us. Therefore, everything in the Tang Dynasty All existences within reach will unite with us."
The old man dangled his wine glass, but his eyes were full of bloodlust, "The Uighurs in the west, Silla in the east, and even Nanzhao in the south of the Tang Dynasty..."
Speaking of this, he suddenly sneered, "People in these places should be trembling now. Especially the Uighurs, the Mingjiao people have already taken the initiative to find us."
"No one can really fight." Yelu Abaoji curled his lips, "A bunch of chickens and dogs."
The old man said lightly: "Compared with us, they are weaker, but as long as the Tang Dynasty is flanked by several sides, that is our chance. The Tang Dynasty's country is too vast, and there are many mountains and rivers. Even the cavalry can't do it. To quickly rush to help everywhere. As long as these countries can contain some Tang Dynasty troops, we will be sure of victory."
Yelu Abaoji straightened up, stared at the old man for a long time, and suddenly said: "This time, it seems that it is not to prevent the army of the Tang Dynasty from entering the grassland, nor to go south to plunder the population and wealth of the Tang Dynasty. Annihilate the Tang Dynasty and completely occupy the Central Plains?"
The old man chuckled and asked, "Why not? A great hero should have a big heart. Could it be that the eagle on the grassland doesn't have one?"
Yelu Abaoji lay back, "During the Jin Dynasty, the Xiongnu, Xianbei, Jie, Di, and Qiang entered the Central Plains one after another, and the final result was not very good."
The old man said disdainfully: "How can mere ants be compared with the envoys of the gods? Although these five races entered the Central Plains in the past, their gods did not defeat the Taoist fairy court. So after they entered the Central Plains, most of them eventually became Central Plains People. We are different, the gods are already going to defeat the Taoist fairy court and seize their orthodoxy, this is the general trend!"
Yelu Abaoji regained his energy, sat up and said: "Can the gods defeat the Taoist fairy court?"
The old man smiled complacently: "The Taoist Immortal Court is currently in a civil war, and we are just reaping the benefits. Don't worry, the result will be announced soon."
Yelu Abaoji lay back again, looked at the night sky, and said after a while: "The winner is divided in the fairyland, the gods occupy the Taoist fairy garden, and our Khitan kingdom conquers the Tang Dynasty. Isn't it a matter of course?"
The old man nodded and said, "That's exactly the reason."
Yelu Abaoji let out a long sigh, and seemed somewhat dispirited: "One day in the fairyland, one year in the mortal world, so don't we have to wait a long time? I have already prepared for the war, but now I want to let the warriors idle?"
"There's nothing wrong with being idle."
The old man drank the wine in his glass in one gulp, "Replenish your energy, and when it's time for you to go into battle, don't be defeated by Li Ye. As I said, Li Ye is not an ordinary person. Even if we occupy the Taoist fairy garden, he will It may not necessarily be a devastating blow, Hexi is an example."
Yelu Abaoji nodded, and his eyes recovered, "I hope that day will come sooner. I will definitely let Li Ye know that the previous two small defeats were just jokes, and the one who can win the decisive battle and laugh till the end is the real world. Lord!"