Chapter 131 Raid on Eastern Qinghai
The Kuts transported gold and jewelry to the Tang Dynasty, and often took away silk and porcelain.

Even though these gold and jewelry were mostly shared by the upper class, they created a certain degree of prosperity.

Li Xuan hoped that he could concurrently serve as the envoy for interviews and disposal in the future. In this way, he would not have to do anything, and officials and powerful people would not dare to act rashly.

"Excuse me, if you do this, you will offend a lot of people, which will be bad for you."

Kang Jiahong knew the Tang Dynasty very well and was aware of its intricacies.

For example, this time, the tyrant who robbed his horse returned the horse to him but was not punished.

"It's definitely not good for me. But that's just now, it may not be the case in the future."

Li Xuan smiled meaningfully.

The powerful people in Longyou had long hated Li Xuan to the core, and they wished that Li Xuan would go to the battlefield and die in battle!

Therefore, Li Xuan would not worry about the collusion between the powerful and the officials.

"With these words from the Marshal, we will help you with anything you need in the future. Although we love money, we are definitely not ungrateful."

Kang Jiahong had a certain prestige among the Kudeans, and he patted his chest and made an assurance to Li Xuan.

"Just obey the law! Some time ago, I sold smuggled iron in the Qiushan Iron Mine in Longyou, and there were traces of you Hu merchants."

Li Xuan will definitely not say anything now, but will just warn the Kurds.

"If we are executed for this, we will be convinced. Those scum who break the law have no bottom line and often do dirty things to us."

They certainly knew that merchants in other countries must abide by the laws.

Kang Jiahong was also in the desert Gobi and was robbed by his fellow tribesmen. Fortunately, their team had a sharpshooter, which made them more powerful.

"If you encounter some grains, vegetables, fruits and melons that are not available in our Tang Dynasty in the Western Regions or Western countries, you can bring back their seeds. I will buy them with gold!" Li Xuan told Kang Jiahong about this again.

From Zhang Qian's mission to the Western Regions in the Han Dynasty to the prosperity of the Silk Road in the heyday of the Tang Dynasty, although many fruits and vegetables took root in the Tang Dynasty, there are still many species that are not found in the Tang Dynasty.

"With the Marshal's words, I will definitely tell other merchants to pay attention to it as well."

Kang Jiahong said that everyone would be willing to exchange seeds for gold.

For example, this time the Longyou Mujian exchanged gold, silver and jewelry for good horses.

Originally, merchants had to exchange jewelry and gold for silk, but now they could first buy good horses at a low price in the Western Regions, then exchange them for gold from the Longyou Mujian, and then go to Chang'an to exchange the gold for silk, and then return to the Western Regions.

After this effort, I made a lot more money.

In order to express his sincerity, Li Xuan specially invited Kang Jiahong to have dinner at his house.

Serve with savory beef.

Kang Jiahong was flattered that he, a mere Hu merchant, could be treated so well by the Marshal of Longyou.

Moreover, Li Xuan was not only a marshal with outstanding military achievements, but also came from a royal family and his father was once a prime minister.

If he told his friends and companions, they would be shocked.

While eating, Li Xuan talked about many very "advanced" business ideas, and Kang Jiahong benefited a lot.

He kept it in mind that if he did that, he would be richer in the future.

However, Li Xuan would occasionally pour cold water on Kang Jiahong, making Kang Jiahong feel that no matter how rich he was, it might be a waste of time.

They wandered all their lives, and even their hometown was ruled by the Arabs.

It’s better to have power like Li Xuan!

After an hour of discussion, Kang Jiahong realized more clearly that Li Xuan was a person who valued businessmen.

Such a person gave Kang Jiahong the illusion that he should not be a mighty general, but a civil servant.

"Thank you for your hospitality, Marshal. I will never forget it in my life."

When leaving, Kang Jiahong shed tears. He wondered if he would meet such a charming person again in the future.

Li Xuan smiled and asked his personal guards to escort Kang Jiahong away from the governor's mansion.

Two quarters of an hour later, the personal guard told Li Xuan that when Kang Jiahong left, he left behind a good horse and asked the soldier guarding the city gate to give it to Li Xuan.

Li Xuan did not care about it anymore. He thought the horse left by Kang Jiahong was good. Although it was not as good as the Fire Cloud Horse and the Ferghana Horse, it was also a rare and high-quality horse.

Li Xuan gave it as a reward to Nan Jiyun.

"General Murong, do the Tuyuhun people still recognize your status as a Tuyuhun royal family member?"

Li Xuan summoned the newly appointed bailiff Murong Xihao and questioned him.

The Yaya was a close confidant of the Jiedushi, responsible for protecting the Jiedushi's government office, including patrolling and city defense.

This is an important position. When he is demoted, he will at least be the deputy envoy of the army, or even directly a military envoy.

It is excessive to let Murong Xihao become a yamen guard. He will be demoted to a general in the army in the future.

"General Li, you treated them well. This time I brought beef and broth. They all cried bitterly. They shouldn't have followed Tubo to violate the border. They also wanted to support me to return to Qinghai to restore the country."

Murong Xihao replied to Li Xuan.

He is in his thirties, handsome and extraordinary, and he is also a very brave general.

"What do you think about Tuyuhun's restoration of the country?"

Li Xuan asked Murong Xihao about this.

"I am now a general of the Tang Dynasty, so I dare not talk about restoring the country."

Murong Xihao said quickly.

He was neither the eldest son nor the legitimate son, and he just wanted to achieve great things and become a true powerful figure in the Tang Dynasty.

Although their family inherited the title of governor of Anle Prefecture, they were still a level lower than the upper-class nobles.

"The Xianbei have long been one with the Han people. From now on, Murong will be a Han surname, but there is no need to restore Tuyuhun. But they are still your people, and we need to help them out of their suffering. Tomorrow you will tell the captives that you will persuade me to release them and let them reunite with their families."

Li Xuan gave instructions to Murong Xihao.

As long as Murong Xihao, the descendant of Murong Nuohebo, can establish prestige among Tuyuhun, the future war with Tubo will be very beneficial to them.

Seven thousand captives represent many families.

At the critical moment, Murong Xihao's call was enough to make them turn against him.

"As ordered!"

Murong Xihao accepted the order.

"If this is accomplished, I will recommend you to the third rank. In the future, I will set up a county and an army in Jiuqu, and you will be the governor and the commander of the army. General Murong will have a lot to do in the future!"

Li Xuan patted Murong Xihao on the shoulder and painted a rosy picture for him in advance.

"I would like to thank General Li!"

Murong Xihao was extremely excited and bowed solemnly to Li Xuan.

Even in Hexi, everyone knew Li Xuan's reputation.

He was full of energy to be appreciated by Li Xuan.

"Okay! During this period, you should often go to the Tuyuhun camp and cultivate your relationship with them."

Li Xuan gave another instruction and asked Murong Xihao to leave. He continued to handle official business.

Now that there is a judge in charge, his duties are relatively easy. After finishing his work in the afternoon, he can practice calligraphy and play musical instruments.

Three days later, the heavy snow that had just stopped started again.

Li Xuan was practicing with a lance in the snow in the parade ground. After finishing the whole exercise, he felt refreshed and warm.

"General Li, there is a ranger who calls himself Liao Zhengrong who wants to see you!"

At this time, the personal guards came to the parade ground in the Jiedushi's mansion to report to Li Xuan.

"Liao Zhengrong! Invite him to the main hall!"

Li Xuan thought of the Helong ranger who had blocked his way more than two months ago and wanted to be his personal guard.

At that time, Liao Zhengrong made bold statements and took out a golden certificate to become his personal guard.

Now that Liao Zhengrong dared to meet Li Xuan, Li Xuan felt that he had obtained a golden certificate.

"I have obtained the golden certificate, please check it, Li Shuai!"

After Liao Zhengrong arrived at the main hall, he held a golden certificate in his hands.

Although it was a golden certificate, Li Xuan believed that it was as difficult as ascending to heaven for an individual to obtain.

"How did you get this golden certificate?"

After Li Xuan took the golden certificate, he asked curiously.

"In eastern Qinghai, he ambushed and assassinated a Tibetan general outside a camp, then killed several cavalrymen who were chasing him, seized their horses and fled."

Liao Zhengrong told Li Xuan casually.

"remarkably brave!"

Li Xuan could sense the danger, but he didn't dare to ask too much.

"Will Marshal Li accept me as his personal guard?"

Liao Zhengrong said.

"This golden certificate can be exchanged for a yamen general. Do you still want to be my personal guard?"

Li Xuan asked Liao Zhengrong in return.

"Only by following you can I become a true hero." Liao Zhengrong still insisted on becoming Li Xuan's personal guard.

"Okay, from now on you will be my personal guard!" Li Xuan stopped persuading her.

Although Liao Zhengrong was not good at archery, he was considered a remarkable man as he could kill people with his sword skills.

"Greetings, General Li! I would like to ask you, what are your duties as the commander of Longyou?"

After Liao Zhengrong bowed to Li Xuan, he suddenly asked.

This sentence made Li Xuan stunned.

It’s not that he couldn’t answer, but which personal guard would take the initiative to ask such a question to the coach!
This ranger is too ambitious.

"A border commander is responsible for securing the border and protecting the people!"

Li Xuan did not bother with Liao Zhengrong and just smiled and told him the well-known duties of a frontier commander.

"Since the late Kaiyuan period, Tubo has invaded Tang territory many times and plundered the people. There is no rooster crowing for a thousand miles in the Hehuang area, and all the houses are empty at the border. These people not only fled or died, but some were taken away to Tubo and became slaves. To the east of Qinghai, less than a hundred miles from the border you control, the Han slaves there have to build castles in the ice and snow. Their hands are frozen and cracked, and they keep dying in the cold. There are also children in their teens who cannot be exempted. I ask General Li to rescue those Han people who are serving labor!"

Liao Zhengrong half-knelt on the ground and asked Li Xuan for help.

He was born as a knight-errant, who valued righteousness over his own life, and was brave enough to help others in need. When he was assassinating the Tubo general, he felt very uncomfortable when he saw that scene.

But there was nothing he could do alone.

Even the Tibetan general had to lie in ambush for half a month before finding an opportunity to assassinate him.

"Is there such a thing?"

Li Xuan frowned.

The land was covered in ice and snow, and even the soldiers could not be trained. Tubo was still building the city.

After a little thought, Li Xuan knew why Tubo built a city in the eastern direction of Qinghai.

This was to prevent the Tang Dynasty from launching an attack on them in the spring.

Due to the disastrous defeat in Anxiang County, Tubo was forced to strengthen its border defenses.

That is why Han slaves were pulled out to build the city in this cold winter.

"As a frontier commander, I feel ashamed of the people. This is my shame!"

Li Xuan slammed the table and stood up.

If this matter is not handled properly, he will definitely not be able to sleep all night.

"How many Tibetan garrisons are there?"

Li Xuan asked Liao Zhengrong.

"It's impossible to find out. There is a military camp in the east and west. I saw at least one or two thousand people."

Liao Zhengrong replied to Li Xuan.

"Rescue the drowning, even if it is raining heavily, there is no time to delay. I will select 2,000 elite cavalry, each with three horses, to raid the area west of Qinghai."

Li Xuan decided to carry out the raid himself.

He had experience fighting in heavy snow and believed that if he launched a surprise attack at this time, Tubo would not be able to react in time.

"Zhengrong, please point out on the map the location where the Tubo city was built in the eastern part of Qinghai."

Li Xuan took Liao Zhengrong to a map of Qinghai.

When Liao Zhengrong pointed to that location, Li Xuan saw that it was next to Qinghai, on the east side of Kubahai Lake, and was indeed less than a hundred miles away from Tang territory.

But ahead of Kubahai there were Tibetan beacons and garrisons specifically designed to monitor the movements of the Tang army.

Li Xuan was silent for a moment and thought of a marching route.

He would take a detour through the Weirong Army area, pass through the tunnel in the Qilian Mountains, and directly attack Tubo in eastern Qinghai.

This way you can avoid the Tubo scouts.

Wait until the raid is complete before leaving from the front.

Tubo had no time to deploy troops. Even if the Tubo cavalry came after him, Li Xuan had already entered Tang territory, and they would not dare to pursue him deep into Tang territory.

Afterwards, Li Xuan gave instructions to Liu Yan and other subordinates.

Liu Yan, Gao Shi, Cen Shen and others also believed that they should send troops to rescue the Tang people, as this was the duty of their border troops.

It is just that I do not recommend that Li Xuan lead the troops personally. It would be better to send a brave general like Wang Nandi.

But Li Xuan insisted on leading the troops himself, as he felt more at ease.

However, this time, Li Xuan will bring powerful generals such as Wang Nande, Che Shensai, Nan Jiyun, and Xin Yunjing.

There are two thousand elite cavalrymen, and the four of them each lead five hundred, in order to quickly break through the enemy.

Apart from these, Li Xuan only brought Gao Shi, Cen Shen and two military commanders.

Li Xuan did not delay and went to the military camp that day to select two thousand elite cavalry.

Because Li Xuan was leading the troops personally, out of their admiration for Li Xuan, the soldiers responded without fear of the severe cold.

Everyone wore thick cotton clothes, bright armor, and their faces were covered with cloth.

They brought plenty of food and some beef.

One person, three horses, carrying a tent.

When Li Xuan left the city with his personal guards, he did not make any announcement. Only the assistants in the Jiedushi's office knew that Li Xuan was going to war again.

After three days of marching, they arrived at Weirong Army, and An Zhongzhang came to greet Li Xuan.

He had already figured out the route from the Qilian Mountains to eastern Qinghai, and Li Xuan asked An Zhongzhang to follow him.

The sky was clear at this time, but there was still thick snow on the road. Even though they each had three horses, it took them seven days to pass through Kongdao and bypass Menggu.

Tubo never expected that the Tang army would appear from here.

In order to prevent any accidents, Li Xuan sent scouts to investigate ahead.

After another three days, Li Xuan arrived at a place thirty miles north of Kuba Sea.

It was already noon.

It was too close to the place Liao Zhengrong pointed out. Li Xuan could not send scouts past at such a close distance as there would be a risk of being discovered.

Li Xuan thought about it and decided to fight in the daytime, so he began to issue orders: "General Nan, General Che, you each lead 500 cavalrymen to rescue and protect the people of the Tang Dynasty. General Wang, General Xin, General An, follow me, and we will rush forward in one go."

"As ordered!"

The generals take orders.

The soldiers also knew that the war was coming, and they were all excited and ready to fight.

"Boom!"

The war horses galloped towards the east of Kuba Sea on the unmelted snow.

The Tibetan soldiers did not know that the Tang army would come around from the side and rear at this season.

Suddenly hearing the sound of horse hooves, the guard at the Tibetan side camp felt something was wrong.

After he left the camp, he looked ahead at the source of the sound.

I thought the people in that direction were our own.

When the sound got closer, he saw the light of the Mingguang armor and his face changed drastically: "Tang Army!"

"Come out quickly, the Tang army is attacking!"

The Tibetan guard shouted to be on guard.

"Woooo..."

At the same time, the warning horn sounded.

Another camp on the side was also alarmed.

Between the two camps, more than 2,000 Han slaves were building a city under the supervision of hundreds of Tibetan soldiers.

The foundation of this city has been laid, and there are signs that one of the city walls has been erected.

Compared to the panic of the Tibetan soldiers, the thinly dressed Han people looked confused when they saw this situation. They didn't know what this meant.

During this period, too many people died of hunger and cold, which made the Han slaves numb.

When Li Xuan was several miles away from the Tubo cavalry, he ordered a change of horses and began to sprint.

This time he rode a Ferghana horse and held a lance in his hand.

It was too late for Tubo to organize its army for defense at this time.

"Boom!"

In a short while, the two thousand cavalry were only a hundred feet away from the Tubo camp.

Tubo never thought of defending against the Tang cavalry, so they didn't even put up any fences.

Their military camp was here to supervise the Han slaves and build a new city east of Kubahai, where they would be stationed in the future.

When the Tibetan soldiers, holding their spears, moved to the edge of the military camp, Li Xuan ordered: "Shoot!"

Including Li Xuan's personal guards, everyone took out their bows and arrows.

"Shhhhhh!"

While running, shoot arrows three times in a row.

The Tibetan soldiers standing in front of the Tang army fell to the ground one after another.

Before the Tibetan cavalry mounted their horses, the Tang army rushed into the Tibetan camp, stepping on the corpses of those who had been shot dead.

Che Shensai and Nan Jiyun followed Li Xuan's orders. They each led 500 cavalrymen to the area where Tubo was building the city and raided the Tubo soldiers there.

"Pfft!"

In the Tibetan military camp, Li Xuan was on his horse and a Tibetan soldier was pierced by Li Xuan and impaled on the blade of his spear.

When the Tibetan soldiers were looking terrified, Li Xuan rushed into their group again and killed them all with a swing of his spear.

Since the Tang army broke into the Tubo camp, the Tubo army had been in chaos, and all the Tubo soldiers who showed their heads were stabbed to death by the Tang army.

The Tibetan defenders shouted and gave orders desperately, but to no avail. The defeated soldiers, who had no formation, were no match for the iron cavalry.

Wang Nanhai rushed forward with his personal guards and chopped off the head of the Tibetan commander in an instant.

This military camp, which housed more than a thousand people, was trampled by the Tang army's horses, and most of the soldiers were killed or wounded.

Li Xuan ignored the remaining defeated soldiers in the camp and led his troops straight to another camp.

Tubo finally organized hundreds of cavalry in an attempt to stop Li Xuan.

Li Xuan's personal guards and a thousand cavalrymen killed only one tenth of the Tibetan cavalry in just one charge back and forth.

Nan Jiyun and Che Shensai, with their respective cavalry, killed the Tibetan infantry who were guarding the Han slaves and made them flee in panic.

"The Tang army came around Menggu!"

The Tubo commander was in the southern camp, thinking about the origins of the Tang army.

It had just snowed heavily and the rivers were frozen, so they thought that even if the Tang army showed up, they would just cross the border head-on. They never expected that the Tang army would come to attack them in the cold winter, taking a month's detour.

The Tubo commander didn't know that it only took the Tang army, with only three men on horseback, just over ten days to bypass Huangshui City.

"Go and ask Dalun to send troops to help!"

The front camp had been destroyed and all the cavalry had been lost. Now this camp had barely completed its deployment and had only more than a thousand people.

But the front camp was breached in just a moment, making the Tibetan soldiers in the camp feel uneasy.

(End of this chapter)