Chapter 167: Infantry and Cavalry Arrive at Hehuang, Uighur Cavalry Head South to Baitinghai

"I am aware of this matter and will investigate it as soon as possible."

Li Xuan took a deep breath and said to Kang Jiahong.

Not to mention whether it was trafficking innocent women, even bringing female slaves from the Tang Dynasty across the Yumen Pass was intolerable.

If what Kang Jiahong said was true, it was the guards and officials at Yumen Pass who deliberately let them pass.

This is more than just setting up checkpoints on the road.

But as the war was imminent, Li Xuan could only send people to Hexi to inquire whether there were any missing women and children in Wuwei, Zhangye, Jiuquan, Dunhuang and other counties.

If the story is true, Li Xuan will definitely go on a killing spree, no matter who they are.

"That's all! Do you know anything about cotton?"

After Li Xuan asked, Kang Jiahong didn't quite understand.

He described it again and Kang Jiahong finally understood.

Cotton is stacked flowers.

During this era, there was already cotton cloth in the Western Regions, which was called "diebu".

But due to its scarcity, it was not widely used. The quality of the folded cloth cannot be compared with the silk of the Tang Dynasty.

But in Li Xuan's opinion, after the initial planting of cotton, even if folding cloth is not produced, cotton coats and quilts will be the main products.

When the quantity is large enough, cotton cloth will be produced and popularized among the common people.

"Since you know about cotton, I hope you can contact other merchants and transport some cotton seeds from the Arab Empire to Huangshui City and Guzang City. We will exchange them for silk. As long as you can transport them, I guarantee that the merchants will make three times more profit than silk. It's only for one year, and we will accept all."

Li Xuan said to Kang Jiahong again.

Nothing is unachievable.

Under normal circumstances, doing this would result in huge losses and no businessman would do this.

However, as the chief official of Wuwei County and Xiping County, Li Xuan purchased a large amount of cotton seeds on behalf of the two places in order to plant cotton on a large scale in a short period of time.

Wuwei County is wealthy and can afford such a price.

After Li Xuan conquered Jiuqu Qinghai, there were large tracts of arable land south of the Yellow River in Hehuang and Ningsai counties, including Jiuqu and Qinghai, which could be used to grow cotton.

It would be a great merit if cotton could bloom all over the river valleys in a short time and all over the Central Plains within a dozen years.

"What the Marshal said is true."

He knew quite a few merchants who went to the Caliphate, where there were many cotton seeds.

If we could ship in truckloads of cotton, we would make a lot of money in the future.

"I am the commander-in-chief of the Tang border army, so I will keep my promise."

Li Xuan nodded solemnly.

"When I get back, I will tell the business alliances I know. There must be many business alliances willing to do this."

Kang Jiahong quickly assured Li Xuan.

"Well, I will write a letter to you. If other Hu merchants don't believe it, let them read my letter."

Afterwards, Li Xuan wrote a letter to collect cotton seeds and stamped it with his seal.

Kang Jiahong took Li Xuan's letter and bid farewell to Li Xuan.

"What do you think about this matter, sir?"

Li Xuan summoned Li Mi and asked him about the Hu merchants selling female slaves from the Tang Dynasty.

When Li Xuan inspected the troops before, he had to travel a long way and it was quite tiring. Li Xuan did not call Li Mi. He had been cultivating himself in Huangshui City.

Li Mi was not an official and could not be allocated a courtyard, so Li Xuan let him live in his own mansion.

"Many people know that stealing a working ox will cost them their lives, but the theft of working oxen happens repeatedly. The Hu merchant must be right. Some people cannot see the accumulated power of the Tang Dynasty. Especially the Arabs, they cannot feel it either. When faced with the beautiful Tang female slaves, they will definitely bid high prices. This attracts desperate people."

"If the guards of Yumen Pass or Yangguan Pass were bribed with dozens of gold coins, would they be able to control the situation? The gold and silver earned by the Hu merchants from selling Tang women may be more than that."

Li Mi's words hit the nail on the head, and he was certain that no matter what, the commander of Yangguan or Yumenguan deliberately let them pass.

Previously, Li Xuan attacked the checkpoints that were extorting money, but he did not expect that such a situation would occur in important towns such as Yangguan and Yumenguan.

"The war is imminent..."

Li Xuan clenched his fists.

"General, there is no need to go out in person. The war is more important. Send a capable official to handle this matter."

Li Mi saw that Li Xuan wanted to kill him, so he tried to dissuade him.

"Yes, that's right! No matter what, the Doulu Army cannot escape blame. I will redeploy the Doulu Army, with the Yumen Army guarding Dunhuang County and the Doulu Army guarding Jiuquan County."

Li Xuan decided to swap the garrisons of the two armies before beginning to clean up the Dou Lu Army.

The name also fits the purpose of the Yumen Army stationed in Jiuquan guarding the Yumen Pass and Yangguan in Dunhuang County.

Immediately afterwards, Li Xuan issued an order to let the Yumen military envoy lead 3,000 troops south to Longyou.

The rest went west to Dunhuang.

After the Yumen Army arrived in Dunhuang, it took over all defense responsibilities of the Doulu Army.

The military envoy Dou Lu also led 3,000 people to Hehuang in Longyou.

At the same time, Li Xuan asked Yan Zhenqing, the judge of the Hexi Jiedushi, to investigate the matter and find out whether there were any missing women or children in the counties of the Hexi Corridor along the way.

In addition, the military envoy Mo Li led 3,000 infantry and cavalry to Huangshui in Longyou.

The Ningkou army led 6,000 infantry and cavalry to Shanzhou.

The envoy of Jiankang Army led 3,000 infantry and cavalry to Huangshui in Longyou.

The Dadou military envoy led 6,000 infantry and cavalry to the Huangshui River in Longyou.

Fourteen thousand light cavalry, five thousand elite cavalry, one thousand heavy cavalry, one thousand crossbowmen, three thousand heavy armored infantry, and three thousand iron armored infantry were recruited from the Chishui Army and marched south.

On the Longyou side, the Momen military commander Qian'er Dafu led 5,000 Momen troops towards Hehuang.

Xin Yunjing, the commander of the Zhenxi Army, led 10,000 Zhenxi troops towards Hehuang.

Cao Shengning, the commander of the Pingyi Rebellion, led 2,500 soldiers towards Hehuang.

An Zhongzhang, commander of the Weirong Army, led 3,000 soldiers toward Hehuang.

Yang Jinghui, commander of the Baishui Army, led 3,000 soldiers towards Hehuang.

Zhang Shouyu, the commander of the Anren Army, led 10,000 soldiers towards Helong and immediately crossed the Huangshui River.

Heyuan Army General Li Feiyuanli led 4,000 soldiers across the Huangshui River.

Murong Xihao led 7,000 Tuyuhun soldiers across the Huangshui Bridge and was on standby at any time.

Geshu Han's 7,000 troops remained stationary at Jishijun.

Li Xuan did not mobilize the remaining small troops and small garrisons in Hexi and Longyou towns. He left about one thousand to two thousand people in each military city to remotely control the garrisons and defend the border.

The Helong army is being mobilized in an orderly manner and is expected to be assembled before September 1st.

Together with the 20,000 elite cavalry under Li Xuan, there were a total of 120,000 soldiers and horses. The two towns gathered 10,000 powerful crossbows and more than 30,000 sets of iron armor, preparing to launch a war unprecedented since the Kaiyuan period.

Although the Tibetan spy had detected the movements of the Tang Dynasty, he did not know where specifically the Tang Dynasty was going to attack, so he could only remain in place.

Tubo maintained corresponding military forces in Jiuqu, Chiling and Qinghai to support each other.

At the same time, Tubo also began to recruit troops from Bailang Qiang, Tuyuhun and Dangxiang.

All the young and strong men in the tribes were drawn away.

Looking across the entire Tuyuhun, it is difficult to see an adult horse.

All were deployed to the battlefield.

This caused the Tuyuhun people to complain.

Tubo also drew troops from the eleven Dongdai in Tongjia and the eleven Dongdai in Subi.

It can be said to be the whole country's efforts.

Although Enlanda Zhalugong persuaded Guli Peiluo and his son to trip up Li Xuan, they still did not dare to slack off in order to prevent Li Xuan from ignoring the Huihe.

For more than a month, Li Xuan was busy with official duties and inspecting troops from all over the country.

On both sides of the Huangshui River, there were fluttering flags, armor like clouds, and spears like forests.

The camps were neatly arranged, stretching for hundreds of miles. Makeshift horse pens were built one after another, and the sound of horses neighing was everywhere.

Soldiers continued to cross the Huangshui River on bridges and boats.

Various military supplies were transported to the military camps one truck after another.

Under the command of the deputy general, the sound of car bells colliding was heard constantly.

On this day, Lin Chaocheng, the envoy of the Doulu Army, arrived with three thousand Doulu soldiers.

The Doulu Army was the farthest from the Huangshui River, a distance of more than a thousand miles. Fortunately, they marched along the official road and arrived in more than 40 days.

The Doulu army was stationed in the west of Shanzhou City, preparing to cross the Huangshui River.

Li Xuan summoned Lin Chaocheng, the commander of the Doulu Army, in Shanzhou City.

"Do you know why I asked the Yumen Army and the Doulu Army to switch their garrisons?"

After Lin Chaocheng paid his respects, Li Xuan asked Lin Chaocheng.

"I don't know what will happen next!"

Lin Chaocheng lowered his head and replied.

He was also very surprised to see that the army changed its station.

Although the Yumen Army was called "Yumen", it was hundreds of miles away from the Doulu Army.

Including menial servants and auxiliary personnel, all of them were replaced, which is a rare thing in the military.

"Snapped……"

Li Xuan threw a military document in front of Lin Chaocheng: "Take a good look!"

Lin Chaocheng was shocked. He had a bad feeling, but he could only pick up the military document and look at it carefully.

"I don't know what this means?"

After reading the military article, Lin Chaocheng closed it and said.

"Since Tianbao, hundreds of women and children have disappeared in the Hexi counties, and hundreds of registered slaves are missing. You served as the envoy of the Doulu Army in the first year of Tianbao. Don't you know where they went?" Li Xuan said it clearly.

These are the missing persons that Yan Zhenqing has investigated in the Hexi counties over the past month.

Kang Jiahong did not lie to him.

Although not all missing people were abducted by illegal merchants, most of them are related to illegal merchants.

Many maids were also taken out of the Tang Dynasty.

This is not bad!
After receiving the news, Li Xuan was so angry that he couldn't eat.

Now Yan Zhenqing has rushed to Dunhuang, and will send a letter to Li Xuan as soon as there is any situation.

"The disappearance of people is a matter for the county. I am only a general, how can I know about it?"

Lin Chaocheng seemed unaware of the situation.

"Humph! I have received accurate information that the missing women, children, and maids have all arrived in the Western Regions. They must have passed through Yangguan or Yumenguan."

Li Xuan snorted coldly.

"This is none of my business."

Lin Chaocheng denied it flatly as beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.

"As the commander of the Doulu Army, this is none of your business. Is it my fault? How could I know about such a big thing first?"

Li Xuan spoke sternly to Lin Chaocheng.

"I will definitely get to the bottom of this matter when I return." Lin Chaocheng didn't know how to respond, so he could only say this.

"Are the guards of Yumen Pass and Yangguan coming with the army?"

Li Xuan asked Lin Chaocheng again.

The Yumen Army replaced the Doulu Army to guard Dunhuang, and the border army's garrison commander was naturally replaced as well.

Li Xuan was temporarily not qualified to interfere with the officials and soldiers of Dunhuang County.

"The Yangguan and Yumenguan guards are both following in the team."

Lin Chaocheng replied.

Li Xuan immediately ordered Li Guangchen to take people to detain them first.

Wait until Yan Zhenqing finds out the situation before making a decision.

As for Lin Chaocheng, Li Xuan temporarily dismissed him from his post for dereliction of duty and detained him as well.

Li Xuan even suspected that there was something wrong with Lin Chaocheng.

As the garrison of Dunhuang, the Doulu Army had enormous power and plenty of lucrative benefits.

"I am not convinced. This is none of my business. I have traveled thousands of miles to defend my country. General Li is doing this for the sake of the Handou Lu army..."

Being directly dismissed from his official position made Lin Chaocheng very scared, and he mustered up the courage to argue with Li Xuan.

"Even if you are innocent, your subordinates committed a serious crime under your nose. Does this count as dereliction of duty?"

Li Xuan glanced at Lin Chaocheng.

You still have the nerve to call yourself innocent?

If it happens once or twice, it's considered negligence, but if it's been like this for three or four years, what are you doing?
"Take it down!"

Lin Chaocheng wanted to say something, but Li Xuan waved his hand and asked his personal guards to take him away.

The Doulu Army cannot be without a commander.

Li Xuan appointed a general named Li Fei Shouyu from the Anren Army as the deputy envoy of the Doulu Army, temporarily commanding the Doulu Army.

It was a temporary appointment, and he would report to the court after the battle.

Lifei Shouyu is the cousin of Lifei Yuanli, the commander of the Heyuan Army, and is also a very brave and fierce general.

Like Li Fei Yuanli, his abilities are no less than Nan Jiyun.

Li Fei Yuanli was promoted to military envoy by Li Xuan. Now Li Xuan is preparing to promote Li Fei Shouyu to be military envoy as well to make him his confidant.

The military order was passed on to all the troops, and the officers and soldiers became solemn.

Before going to war, dismissing a main general can shock the entire army.

After all, there are more than a dozen main generals in the army.

Even if Lin Chaocheng was not dismissed because of the military.

But Li Xuan's power was there, and no one dared to question it.

After learning the reason why Lin Chaocheng was dismissed, no one felt sorry for him.

At least the two guards at the checkpoints were eating in an extremely ugly manner.

This case, involving the Hu merchants, Dunhuang officials, etc., was temporarily shelved until Yan Zhenqing had investigated the matter thoroughly before taking further action.

Li Xuan returned to Huangshui City and summoned the main generals and major assistant officials in Hexi and Longyou to begin making arrangements.

At this time, it is time to tell the commanders the specific tactics and how to implement them.

In the main hall of the Longyou Jiedushi's government office, the military commander, the commanders of the armies, the judges, prosecutors, secretaries, military commanders, and chief military officers of Helong all sat on both sides.

Yang Wan, the chief judge of Hexi, stayed in Hexi, and Yan Zhenqing was helping Li Xuan investigate the Guanai case, so he was not there.

"Report..."

Just as Li Xuan was about to start a military meeting to discuss the attack on Tubo, his personal guard received a letter in a black bag in front of the government office.

It turned out to be an express delivery of 800 miles!
Faced with an urgent message of 800 miles, no matter what the coach is doing, it must be presented as soon as possible.

So the personal guards broke into the main hall and handed Li Xuan an urgent letter from eight hundred miles away.

Li Xuan had just sat down and hadn't said a few words, but when he saw his bodyguard holding a black bag, he immediately stood up.

He knew what the bag meant.

Unless it is an emergency, black bags will not be used.

All the commanders and subordinates turned their eyes to the black bag.

Li Xuan opened the black bag and unfolded the letter.

Just one look and Li Xuan frowned.

To the north of Baitinghai, tens of thousands of Uighur cavalry appeared and marched southward.

Despite such a major event, Li Xuan was very calm. After reading the letter, he gave it to Duan Xiushi and asked him to read the contents to the generals.

"What? Tens of thousands of Huihe cavalrymen are heading south to Baitinghai?"

"The Baiting Sea is surrounded by desert, with only a few oases. It's impossible to go there even if you want to graze!"

"Are the Huihe going to betray their loyalty and rebel against the Tang Dynasty?"

"Is Guli Peiluo so bold? He hasn't even unified the northern part of the grassland, yet he dares to invade our Tang Dynasty?"

"There are not many soldiers left in the Hexi Corridor. We must return to support them immediately, otherwise there will be great losses!"

……

The generals were very angry and slammed the table and slapped their thighs.

Guli Peiluo was just conferred the title of "Huairen Khan" last year. They thought that the Uighurs would not dare to offend the Tang Dynasty from now on, so they felt at ease to withdraw troops from the counties in the Hexi Corridor.

After finally arriving in Longyou and Hehuang, the Uighurs marched southward in large numbers, as if they were playing a trick on them.

All the generals felt that the Uighurs had betrayed them and were ready to fight back and teach the Uighurs a lesson.

"General Li, at this critical moment, the Uighur cavalry suddenly moved south, obviously to support Tubo. But I guess they don't dare to really attack our Tang Dynasty. Guli Peiluo will not be so impulsive."

After the generals finished their discussion, Liu Yan analyzed the situation to Li Xuan.

"Yes, it was not easy for the Huihe to establish a nation. I thought Guli Peiluo and his son would behave themselves. I didn't expect them to dare to march south and disrupt our army."

Li Xuan knew that history had changed completely.

The Uighurs did not want Tubo to be defeated, so they marched south this time.

Li Xuan had the idea of ​​destroying the Uighurs and reforming the grassland, but that would have to happen after he came to power.

Now that the Uighurs have sent troops, not only has his plan for Tubo been disrupted, but his plans have also been disrupted.

"Reporting to Marshal Li, our army needs to return to defend immediately. If the Uighurs really dare to attack Hexi, we will be sinners for all eternity. I suggest that we rush 800 miles to Chang'an and ask His Majesty to order the cavalry from Shuofang and Hedong to go out of the border to deter the Uighurs." Gao Shi suggested to Li Xuan.

However, in this way, the tactics they had worked so hard to prepare would be delayed.

But they did not dare to gamble with the people of Hexi.

Li Xuan's slogan in the army has always been "secure the border and protect the people". Even the people of Helong know that Li Xuan treats his soldiers well and cares for the people.

"Unfortunately, the scouts did not find out the number of Huihe cavalry, and estimated it to be between 30,000 and 50,000. After the Huihe integrated the Nine-Surname Tiele and some Turkic tribes and nomadic tribes, they claimed to have 200,000 soldiers. But they can only send 50,000 cavalry, and at most 30,000 to 50,000 affiliated tribes. So the number of them going south is limited."

Li Xuan was struggling over whether to return to the army.

It took more than a month to gather the troops. If they return, they won’t have to come again.

It’s not that we don’t have enough time, but that going back and forth over and over again really affects morale.

"I think the Huihe people will withdraw immediately and not fight with us if they know our army is coming back."

Liu Dan said to Li Xuan.

They would be completely led by the Uighurs unless they conquered the Uighur royal court.

After everyone discussed for an hour, another black bag was delivered.

This time the letter was more detailed.

The Huihe sent someone to deliver a letter to Bai Ting Shouzhuo, saying that the Huihe had no intention of invading the Tang Dynasty and asked the Tang soldiers not to misunderstand.

Although they were reviewing their troops in an oasis 130 miles north of Baitinghai, that was the territory of the Uighurs and nearly 100 miles away from the territory of the Tang Dynasty, so it was not considered an offense.

"This is too much. This is obviously an attempt to intimidate the Tang Dynasty and make it give up attacking Tubo. Who are the Huihe people to dare to do this?"

Li Zhushi, deputy envoy of the Chishui Army, slammed the table and stood up.

The Uighurs' expressions made them feel even more disgusted.

As long as General Li gave the order, Division Li Zhu would lead the Chishui cavalry to fight back.

(End of this chapter)